Paul's Blog

Cyclists, Friends and Relationships

An odd title for a ‘bitty’ post. But here goes anyway.

Over the past few days I’ve been getting a little angrier than normal. But this time about things I’m allowed to get angry about, like cyclists! I’m not talking about normal, law abiding cyclists (if you can use those words in the same sentence) but the cyclists who run red lights, who flash by pedestrians, who don’t know how to ride their bike on the road!

As a pedestrian, you should feel safe to cross the road at a pelican crossing when the lights are on red without having to keep your eyes on stalks looking for bicycles flashing past in front of you because they’re too lazy to stop. Or even better, at a zebra crossing. For all the drivers out there, when a pedestrian is on a zebra crossing, the cars have to stop. So why don’t cyclists? Why, because they’re pedalling under their own power do they not have to abide by the law? Why shouldn’t they stop for the pedestrian? They’re on the same road as the cars. They have to follow the same laws of the road as the cars. So why are they above the law when it comes to stopping? Simply, why?

Ah-ha friends. Things are getting better. The long late night conversations continue and on very enjoyable subjects. Typically always turning to relationships, ultimately, but this kind of conversation is almost a right of passage to friendship in my eyes. Have the conversation and it’s a case of great friends for some time. On a night like that, it’s complete and open honesty from both sides, which is truly something for both involved and it works immensely in securing a strong friendship. Most of the people reading this will have experienced it at some point with me, and no doubt others, so it’s a refreshingly great slant to be having these conversations with other people too!

And finally, to relationships. I’m hardly a master to speak on such matters, as no doubt anyone reading this can tell. However, thinking I have been doing and I’ve come to some near conclusions. Honesty is the ideal policy, because it’s pointless lying and hiding something from the other person involved – it only hurts both of you even more in such a situation. Complete honesty is a bad plan though, and sometimes concealing things can be beneficial, but it’s not often that this happens, so take the honesty as the default plan, please. Another is don’t make yourself look needy or clingy. These traits just drive the other person away, much to the destruction of the friendship, let alone anything more. Normally these clingy tendencies co-exist with a lack of honesty, so the honesty should remove any such neediness. These seem to be the biggest titbits of advice I’ve picked up over the past week or so, and as you learn how they apply to the real world, they just make sense. Good, hard, logical sense.

It’s good to see people replying. But don’t feel like you need to. This is more a chance to get things out of my system than as something for others to read. Either way, enjoy and talk to you later.

Paul

posted by Paul @ 1:57 AM 1 comments

The Paul's done it again!

There’s something quite puzzling about the concept of reputation.

Some people want a reputation and get one. Some people don’t mind about a reputation and get one. And then some people don’t want a reputation and then they normally get a neutral one.

The snag is; they’re always there. Misconceptions about people are perhaps the biggest problem large groups of people face. If it’s a sizeable group, then no one can know everyone else and understand the way they work so misconceptions appear; which then turn into rumour and which eventually turn into misguided “fact”.

If people think it’s right and true though, then surely big problems appear. People begin to get judged by rumour and misconception rather than who they really are and what they’re really like. But surely this is completely flawed! How can you be certain of your own opinion? Your own thoughts may be the one thing you can be the most sure about in this life – because even if life itself is imaginary, your thoughts are your own and are real, it’s just they’re about an imaginary world.

This can easily be described as a complete load! If you don’t know someone, how can you judge them using someone else’s opinion? And even if you’re experiencing it first hand from the person under scrutiny, how can you be sure it’s true? How can you be sure about what you’re seeing? Why can’t that be the way that they are? Why does it have to be classed as something they are in a certain situation? Just because it’s a side of them you’ve never seen before doesn’t mean that you can put it down to the one thing that’s visibly changed. Surely you’ve got to test your theory out a few more times before jumping to an ill-advised conclusion? Surely…?

Surely……..?

posted by Paul @ 10:53 PM 5 comments

A new post for a new year

Hello to one and all!

I thought it was about bloody time to update this page, and indeed I will do.

I’ve been back at uni for a week now, and boy is it fun. Last term was alright, but this term so far has been fantabulous. Words aren’t enough. We’ve been to the cinema twice already to see two great films of massive calibre. We’ve had an exam, preceded by two days of solid and late night revision. We’ve started lectures once more, and have so far claimed little work to do. And last night we had a drunken formal.

I used to Christmas to regroup and sort myself out. And now I’m glad, because I’ve got my bounce back. I’m far happier now than I was last term and its showing. Last night, albeit a tad drunken, was one where I opened up and starting hugging people at pretty random intervals. This is how it should be!

Also this week, I started my Fantasy F1 Championship 2006. As it stands, we’re looking to draw a truly massive crowd and break our numbers from last year by some margin. Which is fantastic. I trust you’ve all received details if this competition, and if not, do not hesitate to e-mail me.

I’ll try and keep this more updated now. I promise.

See you all soon

Paul

posted by Paul @ 5:27 PM 0 comments