Ben Oliver Artiste takes a picture everyday!Ben Oliver Artiste takes a picture everyday!I am taking a picture of something everyday, just to see what changes! Articles
Day 292 - 11th January 2008
2008-01-12 00:18:00 It's now the end of the week of no lessons; just the weekend left and it's all over. Today, nothing much happened, someone broke a keyboard holder on their desk, the picture is of them panicking and fixing it. Also, a few more people turned up in the flat next door, we've got three right now and I think the rest arrive tomorrow.It's been a fun week despite the work, and I really could spend a lot of time here alone, or with very few people. As it happens, the first night alone before the winter home started was the hardest. I felt lonely like never before, I guess I'd gotten too used to being with friends all the time. To be honest, after the dire holiday in France I was glad to be alone again; especially somewhere I like!Turns out that the weekend after next I'm taking the train to go and see the grandparents, regardless of whether my grandmother's in hospital or not; would you believe it actually costs less to go a buy a railcard plus a ticket than it does to just buy the t... More About: January , January 2008 , 2008
Day 291 - 10th January 2008
2008-01-11 00:59:00 And then there were three. Another flat member turned up today to brighten things up a bit and two of us discovered we could play against each other on computer tanks. It's been pretty dull again otherwise, although I can't say it's been a bad day; I'm finally starting to get to the bottom of all my set work. It's Friday tomorrow; how the week has flown by! I think that most of the flat turn up on Saturday then it's time to get back to work, I hope the rain and bad weather stops before I have start going out all the time... More About: January , January 2008 , 2008
Day 290 - 9th January 2008
2008-01-10 00:56:00 Once again it was a fairly eventless day; I did some work and went back over the picture of the day entries changing the dates to 2008 , I still haven't quite got used to the year change... Someone has turned up from the flat tonight; it was a nice surprise and it's nice to have some company, although I was feeling surprisingly chipper on my own. It looks like my grandmother is in hospital so I'm not sure about my planned visit down there for the weekend; I'll have to wait and see. I'm looking forward to tomorrow, don't know why though. More About: January , January 2008
Day 289 - 8th January 2008
2008-01-08 23:28:00 The fridge smelt a bit funny today, and I noticed that some dippy sod had left half an onion in the bottom drawer; the smell was deeply nauseating but it had to be cleaned.Aside from that, nothing much happened all day, I haven't seen a soul! That is, until tonight, when the Lancaster weather decided to hit us all guns blazing.Heavy rain, thunder storms and hail descended upon the campus tonight; the kind of thing you see in films or read about in Dickens novels. It's been a surprisingly nice day though, I don't feel at all bored or lonely yet; maybe that's all to come... More About: January , January 2008 , 2008
Day 288 - 7th January 2007
2008-01-07 23:40:00 Back to Lancaster at last, although now the real work starts. Nobody has arrived yet from my flat, lessons only start next week; I need to get some work done so I have come early. I took the Christmas decorations back which was rather sad, time to move on I guess. There's not much more for me to say, so I'm off to bed now. More About: January
Day 287 - 6th January 2007
2008-01-07 00:20:00 It was my second and last full day at home before I go back to university tomorrow and I suppose I didn't really get much done. We went to Marks and Spencer to find a sports jacket for my brother and whilst he was trying things on I couldn't help but noticed this rather provocatively arranged display; at least someone has a sense of humour after the holiday period. This evening was the big game on TV; Stoke versus Newcastle in the FA cup. Nobody knew what was going to happen and by some miracle we drew to them 0-0. What's more is that we actually outplayed them and came incredibly close to scoring on several occasions in the second half, I don't know whether to laugh or cry; we've got to play the replay in Newcastle now. Tomorrow is home time for me and due to unforeseen illnesses I'll be going home on the train, so I'm currently trying to work out how I'm going to take my TV back which I brought down here for the grandparents to use over Christmas along with my massive suit... More About: January
Day 286 - 5th January 2008
2008-01-06 00:57:00 Out with the old and in with the new, despite it being my brother's birthday today I was the one who got the biggest present of all; my new computer arrived today (I wouldn't call it a present, I'm paying for a load of it!). So here it is, all nice and shiny and new; it took me hours to get rid of all the crap I don't want off it and to install my old stuff again! It's got it all, in fact, I'm not typing right now, I'm actually physically writing! I could go on, but not everyone is a geek so I'd better not besides, so long as I've got something to write this on; who cares about the spec? I saw The Simpsons movie today which was funny, it had more of a plot than your average episode; I thought it was good. Anyway, tomorrow the mighty potters face Newcastle in the FA cup and guess what? It's being televised! Oh yeah man, it's been such a long time; I hope to God we don't get our arses kicked. The experts rate our chances highly though, despite being a better side they are... More About: January , January 2008 , 2008
Day 285 - 4th January 2008
2008-01-04 19:10:00 The time finally came today to go home from France on the train. When we got to the station early this morning in Avignon it was pouring down with rain; the TGV appeared through the mist and on we got towards Paris. It was an epic journey, we changed in Paris on the metro and had lunch at the eurostar cafe before crossing the channel. When we got into the tunnel itself, we shook hands and I bought a eurostar muffin. Upon arrival in London we had two hours to burn so we went to Oxford Street and had a look around there; I forgot it was sales time and the place was heaving. We popped into John Lewis and all of a sudden I turned around and what did I see; the set of TV's filmed during the extras Christmas special only the other week, that very scene was there in front of my eyes for real. We then went home to Stafford on the train; for such a long and exciting journey the picture of the day is rather sad but it is important to note that the trains simply weren't that interesting real... More About: January , January 2008 , 2008
Day 284 - 3rd January 2008
2008-01-03 21:02:00 The time has come, rather abruptly, for a new computer. On Saturday I'm off to go and buy myself an upgrade and I hope it lasts as long as this one did. The one I currently own, pictured, has lasted me six years without any real trouble; problems have started to creep in now which make it quite hard to use.The CD drive doesn't work anymore, neither does the floppy disk drive (not that it'll ever be used again), it now takes ten minutes to switch on and sounds like a leaf blower once it's heated up to its running temperature of 120 degrees centigrade; enough to boil water, definitely enough for me.I was so determined to keep it for as long as possible, but the time has come for change; I feel like I'm actually wasting time waiting for stuff to load and I haven't even started on the huge amount of cables and external machinery required to keep it running, I accidentally unplugged my hard disk drive the other day and everything froze! The truth is that a 15GB hard drive and 128MB... More About: January , January 2008 , 2008
Day 283 - 2nd January 2008
2008-01-02 23:14:00 It's not been a fascinating year so far, although I suppose it's still only two days in (and yes, I did originally put 2007 in the title); I went shopping with my brother, don't get too excited even if you're a girl, it was only food shopping. For the rest of the time I've been trying to solve the mystery of my left trouser leg, which has mysteriously ripped up the back by just under a foot; I didn't feel it or hear it at all, goodness only knows what happened there. Days don't get much duller where you rip trousers and talk about it; who knows what could happen tomorrow, maybe I'll rewind some old cassettes, that'll be more interesting. More About: January , January 2008 , 2008
Day 282 - 1st January 2008
2008-01-01 21:11:00 The first day of 2008 was spent on the road for me, driving back to the dry flat lands of Provence; there's not much else to be said here really. I'm quite saddened by the fact that my holiday feels like it's over despite there being three days to go yet; how many more miserable Christmases can I possibly put up with? I don't have the answer to that question, although I'm sure I'll find out someday. Anyway, that's enough moaning for a while, I should be setting out my ambitions for the new year I guess; that's all boring though, I don't really have any interesting ambitions left. Oh it's all so depressing tonight I know, so I'm going to stop now. On a lighter note; Happy New Year everybody!! More About: January , January 2008
Day 281 - 31st December 2007
2007-12-31 14:35:00 2007 ends here, I suppose I should be summing it all up and what have you, but it?s also my last day here in the mountains and tomorrow I have a long journey ahead of me despite it being New Year?s Day.It?s been a year of great change for me and for all the people I know; France will never change though, I still had, let?s face it, a shite New Year watching crappy variety TV (oh how they so love their cabaret over the channel) as I have done for so many years now. Of course, as I type, it?s not even 2008 in Britain yet which is a bit odd; it?s a shame that Jools has only just kicked off, I would have watched him if I didn?t have such an early start. Still, I can?t quite believe that at nineteen years old I have just spent New Year?s Eve watching monkeys juggling on French TV; it?s such a depressing thought. Home on Friday, not long to go now; the train ride should be more interesting than the plane I think, I?m strangely looking forward to it. Actually, I?m looking forward to gettin... More About: December , December 2007
Day 280 - 30th December 2007
2007-12-30 14:34:00 This, I kid you not, was the view from my bedroom window when I woke up this morning; the cloud was practically coming into the room and it was shitting down with rain. Not good conditions for going into Spain as planned, but it?s just as well we didn?t go as my uncle had invited people round for lunch without telling us.The guests arrived at midday on the dot and left at five o?clock this afternoon; a true marathon lunch then. I didn?t want to be sociable any more, my brother was just bored and my dad felt like he was wasting his holiday; at least my uncle was happy doing what he does best (and I think loves most), bumbling about panicking about guest for hours on end, constantly checking that he?s remembered to bring the cheese to room temperature.The rain has long since backed off but not surprisingly nothing was really picture worthy so it?s clouds for today I?m afraid; the food was actually edible at the meal this time so I couldn?t even get a picture of people trying desperate... More About: December , December 2007
Day 279 - 29th December 2007
2007-12-29 14:32:00 The weird fog we experienced hanging over Spain a couple of days ago was back again today, but not in such great quantities this time; you can actually see the sky here with the fog low down in the distance. Huesca was an odd place; I had been before but couldn?t find any sort of town centre, so I came back with my dad after having seen pictures on Google earth of it.The first thing that struck us on arrival was that it was snowing, but then we slowly realised that there was nobody in the streets; not one person. We found the centre fairly easily and yes, there is a nice cathedral but in the hour we spent there we saw the grand total of six different people; the place was a ghost town and we had to get out.So we went back up north towards home and stopped off at the old favourite, Jaca. This place is quiet, yet it feels so alive, it?s rustic yet oh so clean; a great place full of interesting shops selling all kinds of unique stuff, mainly edible. Despite being closer to the mountain... More About: December , December 2007
Day 278 - 28th December 2007
2007-12-28 14:20:00 Dull days are frequent here in France and this one, despite making another trip into Spain this morning, was no different. To help the boredom I thought we could watch a film, so I sat down with my brother and stuck it on; he decided to carry on playing championship manager on his computer in front of the TV, classy.One of the great annoyances about being here is that if you ever want to watch something on TV in peace, then everyone has to be in bed or away. Actually, I?m lying to you about the ?away? part of that sentence, because my own rule was broken today; my uncle went shopping but forgot his manbag so he called us to go and bring it to him, yet another film remains unwatched.Luckily for me Britain lies 1 hour behind France and everyone goes to bed at ten o?clock, which is nine o?clock on BBC1, so I can watch most stuff undisturbed now. Tomorrow we?re making a third trip to Spain, to Huesca, the last time we went we couldn?t find a town centre, there is one though; we?ve seen ... More About: December , December 2007
Day 277 - 27th December 2007
2007-12-27 14:11:00 The trip to Zaragoza was marred by dense fog this morning in Spain. We still went though, and I?m really glad we did; it?s been a fantastic day at last. On the way down into Spain we hit fog for miles and miles but suddenly the sun decided to burst through it all, creating the greatest visual display I?ve seen in a long while; it had a certain brilliance about it all, like it shouldn?t really be happening. I couldn?t get a picture because I was in the back of the car, but we were surrounded by bright white; as if we?d gone to heaven.I love this city anyway, but on a freezing cold sunny winter?s day nothing much beats it. I could have chosen a picture of the bull ring or the great cathedral, but you can get those online; this one of the main street looking down through the fog into the sun is my favourite, it just about sums up my day. There?s something about that one guy standing there in the middle that makes it for me; plus all the people around, staring into the light.I could go ... More About: December , December 2007
Day 276 - 26th December 2007
2007-12-26 14:09:00 It?s Boxing Day and my immediate thought is that Christmas is over, this isn?t quite true however; there?s still New Year to come! This is a great thing, but I am slightly worried that it could end up like Christmas day. All I can say is that I can?t believe how close we?re getting to 2008 now, time is flying by far too quickly; goodness only knows how quickly university will pass. This holiday doesn?t seem to be flying by though, you can?t always get what you want I guess.Our local friend visited today and made some of her ?famed? pastry things. Don?t tell anyone, but I don?t really like them, I think that they look like dead bits of skin and they taste just as bland; I?m not meant to be saying this though, how could I? She seems to think we?re all so deeply and madly in love with her exaggerated ?local charm? that it would be a good idea to pop round maybe three or our times a day; just to say hello. My uncle loves it and yes, she is a nice person and so is her husband; this is wh... More About: December , December 2007
Day 275 - 25th December 2007
2007-12-25 14:08:00 So this is Christmas? I always thought it quite a depressing song, as much as I like it, and rather not in keeping with the season but this year it seems to have summed mine up rather nicely. It?s pretty easy to see why though, how many people spend Christmas with three other blokes they never see all year round in a house in the mountains? Not many I reckon, and that?s because it doesn?t work.I don?t like running through presents, but I do like hearing about what others got, so for your benefit I?ll mention one thing; I got a dead cool guitar game for my DS which I?m pretty much hooked on now and a couple of CD?s. My brother however, got Need for Speed for his Wii and a couple of wheels to go with the controllers (or Wiieals as I like to call them); this present just about saved Christmas for all of us. I didn?t realise just much fun this could be, what?s best is that it all works; really, really well! When asked if he liked it, even my dad said ?Wii? (sorry); by the way if you?ve ... More About: December , December 2007
Day 274 - 24th December 2007
2007-12-24 14:06:00 Joy of joys; it looks like Christmas might just be a bit crapper than I originally thought. My brother noticed the lack of presents and thought it wouldn?t do us any harm to go out and do a bit of last minute secret shopping on Christmas Eve, and why not? On any other day in any other place this would have cheered it up no end, but for some reason my uncle decided to cook Christmas dinner for tonight so we could see it through until midnight; some Frenchy tradition. This never works and tonight was no exception, everyone was too tired and fed up by the end of it they all went to bed; me included. This leaves tomorrow, the day itself, looking pretty bleak. It?s going to take a miracle to turn this one around; it?s not quite impossible yet though?So there lie the presents, contents known to all already sadly, apart from the green one underneath the pile labelled towards my brother; that?s the mystery one and I?m really hoping the present inside will be so good we?ll forget our other f... More About: December , December 2007
Day 273 - 23rd December 2007
2007-12-23 14:05:00 Ah, the view from my window, a firm winner for when I?m in the mountains and there?s nothing to take a picture of. It?s a shame I took it when I did, the weather has been pretty good until now; still no sign of rain or snow mind. It is, nonetheless, good to be here despite the slightly odd family situation and the ever looming depressing Christmas. I managed to watch the last Top Gear in peace, a miracle if there ever was one; maybe I?ll be just as lucky with Doctor Who and extras.All this talk of the weather and Doctor Who is oh so British, but I?m beginning to rather enjoy the old ?lost Briton abroad? thing. Despite being half French, I still never feel quite at home here, so I thought to myself; why bother trying? Who needs to strive to fit in when they?re on holiday? I don?t know why I didn?t think of it before, but I suppose this has never really been a holiday for me, more of a family duty which even now, after having been given the choice to go or not, I still feel would be r... More About: December , December 2007
Day 272 - 22nd December 2007
2007-12-22 14:03:00 The French seem to not be able to do Christmas like we do, which is a shame, and this is only all too evident in the house Christmas display. It?s dreary, dead and dated; everything needed for a bit of Christmas cheer. At least we?ll get all the TV though, I?ll be watching Doctor Who, Extras and I just saw the TOTP2 Christmas special; it doesn?t make me homesick, just happy.Today I didn?t get much done apart from some shopping, which isn?t particularly exciting. Tomorrow there?s 5 ¾ hours of James May, Richard Hammond and Jeremy Clarkson on T.V in a row, culminating in Top Gear; arguably one of the greatest shows ever. It?s sad I?m even talking about this, but there?s not much else to talk about; I think we?re planning to go to Spain for a couple of days on Boxing Day so things might get more interesting then. More About: December , December 2007
Day 271 - 21st December 2007
2007-12-21 14:01:00 When people claim that all the French are good for is being on strike, days like today don?t exactly bode well for their defence. I went to a shopping centre this morning to pick up some presents for otherwise forgotten family members and my uncle, and what do you know; there was a picket line outside the car park. Luckily we got in alright, but we did have a struggle to get out. Goodness only knows what they?re all striking for; I made a special point of not giving a shit.After lunch in my old favourite restaurant, which was unusually packed, I then went off to the Pyrenees with my uncle in the car. This was a day earlier than planned, but I thought it?d be nice to go along with him instead of leaving him to do the seven hour trip alone. So it?s from here that I?m typing this, no internet, although I do get BBC1, 2 and 3 by some miracle. Actually, I?ve been hearing rumours of some form of wireless internet adapter thing my uncle has; maybe I?ll give it a spin tomorrow.It?s cold her... More About: December , December 2007
Day 270 - 20th December 2007
2007-12-20 22:19:00 It was really quite nice of John Lennon to build an airport for me to fly to France from; I managed to get here in one piece to today which is always a good start to Christmas. It's funny really, I do always think of Lennon songs when I'm in Liverpool airport, maybe I'm a victim who's been sold the brand too hard, there's even a statue of him there; 'so this is Christmas' was the line running through my head today of course. Anyway, France seems fairly nice, there's talk of going to the mountains tomorrow which marks an early end to the internet; time to don the pen and paper once again then I suppose... I can't say I feel at home here at all, but I'm not sure I ever really have done; it's nice here but I can see myself not being too reluctant to go home on the 4th Jan. What's more is that I'm actually looking forward to the journey back, it's going to be an epic train ride instead of a boring flight; finally a break from the norm! First things first, the Pyrenees lie... More About: December , December 2007
Day 269 - 19th December 2007
2007-12-20 00:50:00 Well, tomorrow it's time to go to France which gives me a good excuse to miss the school award ceremony in the evening; not that I ever needed one. I was surprised then, that they still wanted me to come in this morning to pick up my certificates, surely they could send them off in the post? Anyway, for one last time I went in on demand and what do you know; I got a special award! It was presented to me on behalf of the language college, officially titled 'contribution to language college', and I met up and had a chat with some old teachers. Even though I having long been scathing of awards before, I did feel quite honoured about this one. It was nice to see some of the old bunch from way back when, I didn't feel particularly sad though; it's only today that I realised just how much that place has made me the person I am today. As previously mentioned, it's time to go to France tomorrow, so I've been packing all evening after having been to get some late night shopping done i... More About: December , December 2007
Day 268 - 18th December 2007
2007-12-18 23:59:00 Loggerheads, the place I have long called home but now I'm not so sure. That's where I got to today, and it's where I am right now typing this up. I spent most of the morning cleaning up, hoovering and emptying stuff that would go off during the holidays out of the fridges. Once I had packed and my mum arrived, we went down the motorway to an institute for the blind and partially sighted, where we bought a giant scrabble, some giant cards and a talking alarm clock for my Grandfather, whose macular degeneration is allowing him to see less and less. Now I'm back on the old stomping ground; Spooks has finished on the typical cliffhanger ending and so has Oz and James's wine adventure; what am I going to do on Tuesdays now? Tomorrow my old sixth form college have called me over in the morning to pick up 'some stuff' apparently, I assume that it's whatever I was meant to get given on the presentation evening which I'm skiving off by going to France on Thursday. Back in year 8 I... More About: December , December 2007
Day 267 - 17th December 2007
2007-12-17 23:40:00 To get a job done, and to avoid the inevitable loneliness, I went off to the Trafford Centre today to do some Christmas shopping. Surprisingly, the deep sadness I had felt yesterday had gone by today, and although I really miss my flat still, I was a happy man once again. Getting to the Trafford centre was an epic in itself, what with various buses, trains and trams involved. Although I had been there once before, I had completely forgotten the sheer scale of the place; it just stretches on and on... I didn't know where I was half the time, but there seemed to be enough room for a full-sized Selfridges, John Lewis and M&S! Every now and then I'd walk into a big cruise ship scene, or China town, or New York, or New Orleans, or an Arcade, or a bowling alley, or a cinema; the list goes on... This kind of place makes you wish you had more money and it was a nice place to be, but for me it doesn't quite top Birmingham; I just don't like knowing that there's nothing to do outside... More About: December , December 2007
Day 266 - 16th December 2007
2007-12-16 23:25:00 Darkness has fallen upon the flat; that's because there's nobody left. One by one the people I live with have disappeared for the Christmas holidays. I'm only off on Tuesday and it's very odd being here alone; I've been walking around and I haven't seen a soul for hours now! For the first time ever, I felt really, really sad. I seem to have got over it now though; it's only a month after all. I think everyone would agree that this is the first time they felt like a month was too long for a holiday... Tomorrow I'm off to do some Christmas shopping at the Trafford Centre, right now though, I'm watching the last ever Parkinson show. He's had Michael Caine, Billy Conolly, David Attenborough, Peter Kay, Judi Dench and David Beckham on, a good line up but you'd hope so; he's been on TV over thirty years! More About: December , December 2007
Day 265 - 15th December 2007
2007-12-16 00:25:00 Ah Blackpool, Blackpool, Blackpool. It's always been high up, almost top, of my list of places to avoid at all costs. However, no matter how bad the place, being anywhere with the flat is a true pleasure; so we decided to go on a quick road trip for some chips. Yes, it's a hole and yes it was dead, but I still had a nice time; plus I saw Europe's biggest laser, you can see it in the picture (the green dot at the top of the tower). We didn't really stop, which is why I got a blurry picture, but I think it paints a nice image of the place, rather than the somewhat lifeless town waiting for summer... I said that I went with the flat, but I tell a lie, the term is over and there's six of us left now, tomorrow everyone goes home apart from me; I'm staying back until Tuesday to do some Christmas shopping somewhere on Monday. Tomorrow is destined to be a weird day, the flat next door is already empty and I'll be truly sorry to see the others go; I'm having trouble deciding what to... More About: December , December 2007
Day 264 - 14th December 2007
2007-12-14 23:17:00 Another horrible, busy, tiring day has just passed. Thankfully, it's the last one for a long time; it's the last Friday of term everyone! No more work for a while now, and it's a good feeling to have. I go home only on Tuesday though, so I'm readying myself for a day of loneliness. I did a concert today too, which completely knackered me out bringing the tuba back; that's why I'm not out with the others tonight, although I did go out for lunch for someone's birthday. Anyway, despite no practice, it all went pretty well. There's a lot I can go on about, but before I go to bed I think I ought to mention that England have a new manager now, Fabio Capello. This could go either way, he's a hugely successful manager already; who knows what the future holds now. More About: December , December 2007
Day 263 - 13th December 2007
More articles from this author:2007-12-13 23:28:00 A cloudless sunrise on a crisp day followed by a great sunset; sounds great, but these were sadly not quite enough to make my first ever good Thursday. Yes, it's an inevitable truth, Thursdays are gonna be pretty awful whatever you throw at them. Even a free cooked breakfast in the morning didn't quite set me up properly for the torment that lied ahead. Luckily, it was an 11am start instead of 10am, but I had solid lessons until five O'clock as ever. This is a slight lie as I got let out of one early; a time filled up by running back home and grabbing the tuba to take it to the other end of campus in twelve minutes flat. I made it by some miracle to my next lesson, but I think I had a small heart attack on my arrival. I won't go on, I suppose I already have, but tomorrow is the last day so it can't be all that bad. Before I go off to bed, I want to talk a bit about the picture. You may be able to remember my spoof campaign to become Cartmel 'Fuhrer', posing under my alias, Di... More About: December , December 2007 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 |
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