Make Mine A Karma Koffee - Phoenix Karma

[Peace-Phoenix]

Ok, well I suppose I should start off. Here's a little about me:

My name's Sal and I'm 21, though it doesn't feel like I should be. I've been around these forums since the tender age of 16. I'm currently a student, reading Social and Political Sciences at Cambridge uni. I love being a student, I love studying a lot more than working, I love being in Cambridge, it's a brilliant place, and it'll be a shame to leave next year. I'm also a writer, I write a lot of poetry and I'm currently working on a novel. My dream would be to make it as a successful author. That and a TV personality, hehe. Yeah, I'm rather keen on getting famous, not for something cheap, but for something meaningful. I'm not entirely sure why, I've always wanted to be recognised. I think that perhaps most people, at least most people who don't believe in life after death, want to leave this world having left their mark on it, or having left something of themselves behind. Some people have children, some people look to other means. And since I love writing, what better way to try to make my mark.

As my course might suggest, I'm rather passionately political. I'm a socialist, and am very concerned with issues of equality, human rights, peace and the environment. I used to call myself a hippy, and even though my hair's still long, I'm not sure whether I would now. Probably because I no longer consider myself a pacifist. I do recognise certain situations where peace can be reactionary and not progressive. After all, those who have wealth, power and everything they want, are always going to be in favour of peace. That's a good lesson from the history of class struggles. I also don't tend to call myself a hippy because I'm not so comfortable being confined to any label. Being open minded, liberal, multicultural and mixed-race, I see labels and boxes as the antithesis of what I really am. Still, if someone wants to call me a hippy, I'd probably still take it as a compliment.

My music tastes are eclectic, from punk and rock to folk and dance (not Morris dancing!!!) My favourite band, of course, are the Levellers, and can't wait to see them at Beautiful Days this year. I love reading, skiing, horseriding (though I haven't done it in quite a few years) swimming, tennis and badminton, though I'm not really a very sporty person.

I've changed a lot in the last couple of years, I've done quite a bit of growing up, and I think I'm a lot more open minded than I used to be.

Please ask me questions, anything you like, and I'll try to answer them as best I can.

This is an example of how these Karmas might work, have a go at setting your own one up, tell us a bit about yourself, and open yourself up to probing. Ahem....

[Sebbi]

I've seen you around for ages but haven't ever in memory talked to you. I've been on here about a year before the board was shut down and restarted and I remember you from even then. So, finally, hi!

What's your favourite book?
How do you intend to get published (I presume you do?)?
How did you get into Folk music?

Much Love
Sebbi

[Peace-Phoenix]

I like so many books, that it'd be hard to pin down a favourite. From childhood it would have to be Lord of the Rings. Since then there have been a few books that have stood out to me as really amazing, such as Orwell's 'Nineteen Eighty-Four' 'Lord of the Flies' by William Golding, and 'Knowledge of Angels' by Jill Paton Walsh. They're all fables/satires to some degree, and I really love that in writing, powerful messages that hit home, sometimes more subtly than you might expect them to. Douglas Adams in a genius to me, whilst recently I've been quite enjoying Zadie Smith. Aside from novels, I love Shakespeare and Blake amongst others.


I'd love to say that I intend to get published, but I think it's a passionate desire/hope/wish/dream to get published. Obviously these things are rather hit and miss. But once I've finished this novel, which is about halfway through, I plan to send it to a number of agents, and if successful there it's a lot easier to get published with an agent backing you. I've had quite a lot published in the way of poems and articles, and have done a few things on TV, so I'm hoping that will all help me get recognised. It's not going to be easy, but it's something I love doing, so none of its been a waste of time anyway.


As for Folk, well I grew up listening to the Levellers and have always been a fan of that folk-punk kind of genre, along with the Pogues, McDermott's, New Model Army, and 3 Daft Monkeys to varying degrees. So I suppose when I say folk, I mean the more punky orientated folk.

[Sebbi]

What does story mean to you? (take that anyway you choose)
Where do you want to live when you're a little bit older?
Is the glass half full or half empty?
What do you look for in books?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Story, to me, is journey. It's about change and discovery. Sometimes it's about failure and setbacks. There are subplots, and twists, peaks and troughs. Stories intertwine, they run parallel and sometimes they end before their time. Stories are goal orientated, but the prologue is as important as the epilogue. Stories are acts and dances, filled with truths, half-truths and downright lies (all of which are true) Stories can be all seeing and completely blind at the same time.

My ideal place is the West Country. I love Sommerset, I love the atmosphere and the accents, I love the rolling hills and the festivals and the life. I've lived in Suffolk all my life, which has beautiful countryside, but is completely flat. Hills give a third dimension to beauty. My favourite place to be is Glastonbury festival, and that place always gives Somerset a certain magic to me. Even if I never end up living there, it'll always have a special place in my heart.

I'll probably end up living in London, at least for a time. That seems to be the path if you're at Oxford or Cambridge - get a career in the city and fast track. I'm a bit more laid back than that, though I'd like some sort of career in journalism or the media. Something that can keep my attention, engage me and challenge me, whilst contributing to my long term goal of getting recognised/published. For that, really, all the jobs are in London.

My glass is more than half full, it's pretty much always full. I'm generally a very happy person. I don't get depressed, though I can have my off days every once in a while. But I've been lucky, life's been kind to me and there have been no major upsets to speak of. I try to make the most of every opportunity and situation that comes my way. I don't believe in any after life. You only live once, so might as well make it the best life possible.

As for books - I look primarily for something that I'd enjoy. A well written book that's a good read. And every once in a while I come across a book that really grabs me, makes me sit down and really changes the way I think about things. I look for books that make me think, 'Damn, I wish I'd written that!'

Good questions, thanks.

[Xiola]

Sal!

I've not spoken to you for so long! Not really since the first few months of you starting uni I think.

How's uni going? Is it everything you thought it would be? Planning on having more formal education at some point or do you think that after you finish at Cambridge you wont go back?

I hope you're well! I'll see you at Beuatiful Days! :D:D:D

[Peace-Phoenix]

Hey, wow, it's great to hear from you, and am really glad to see you back on these forums. Hope you'll be sticking around.

Uni's going really well, I've made loads of new friends, and it's changed me as a person. I've grown a lot (up and, unfortunately, probably outwards as well!) It's not what I thought it would be. I had a lot of preconceptions of a load of stuffy stuck up people who would shame me for my ignorance. But thankfully it's been really easy to fit in. Of course there are a few old Tory boys and public school ponces around, but, surprisingly, I've found that they're generally nice people too. I've put aside many of my old prejudices and, even though I'm still a loonie leftie, I don't mind counting those sorts of people as my friends. I've also made quite a few friends outside of the uni, which has given me several different social circles - which I've always preferred over the one.

Work's going well, am still working and playing hard and managed to get a 1st this year, which means I get a scholarship. I don't think I'd want to do a PhD after I leave. Research and dissertation have always been my least favourite aspects of study, and also I can't see myself needing a PhD, I definitely don't want a career in academia. I think I'll probably do a Masters though, in creative writing. That would give me the chance to do what I love best, and be assessed for it.

Will be good to see you at Beautiful Days. Taz, Jonny and I are stewarding, so we'll be there from the Thursday. If you give me a call, I'll come show you to our campsite, though it'll probably be where it's always been.

[Xiola]

Long term you said you'd like to be a successful author, what's your short term goal? In the next 5 years what would you like to achieve?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Long term you said you'd like to be a successful author, what's your short term goal? In the next 5 years what would you like to achieve?
Five years is long term for me I'd say. Getting published is both a long term and a short term goal though. So I'd hope to get something published within the next five years. I'm working on a novel at the moment, and I want to see where I can take that. Other than that, well, I'll finish at uni next year, probably do an MA the year after, and then after that maybe do a journalist course and look for something in the media - possibly radio, as that seems a good stepping stone, and there are always quite a few jobs going for different local radio stations, and some national ones in London.

[Taz]

hey you,

I know you've read Northern Lights, if we were in Lyra's world what animal do you think your deamon would be (the one that most reflects who you are) and what animal would you like it to be (if it's a different one)?

If you could have periods would you use tampons or sanitory towels? :p

Do you think we're hooked on coco colo?

What's your biggest rational fear (that is, not a phobia)?

Love
Tahmina

[PinkMoon]

when you gonna be in london next?

erm rubbish question but am intruiged..am moving in around 3/4 september..

oh i know

how have you changed since you joined the forums so many years ago? I remember coming online when you were 16 and doing your GCSEs..so much has happened...give us an overview...how time flies...

you're getting old...hehe..

[fragilenothing]

if you had one wish what would it be?
Do you ever use your dreams as an inspirational tool to help you write?

[Peace-Phoenix]

hey you,

I know you've read Northern Lights, if we were in Lyra's world what animal do you think your deamon would be (the one that most reflects who you are) and what animal would you like it to be (if it's a different one)?

If you could have periods would you use tampons or sanitory towels? :p

Do you think we're hooked on coco colo?

What's your biggest rational fear (that is, not a phobia)?

Love
TahminaI always used to love snakes, but I don't think a snake best reflects my personality, even though it can take me about half a day of lazing before I get around to moving! I can be subtle and sneaky sometimes, and a bit mischievous, so it could be the monkey like Mrs Coulter, though I hope I'm not as evil or manipulative as her. I'd quite like it to be a lion or a tiger, proud, majestic dominant, a leader never born to follow.

I would go for a Phoenix as the Phoenix imagery has always been important to me. But in terms of real animals, I'm going to settle on the Eagle. I'm a hunter, always going after things, hunting goals and objectives, trying to shape the world around me. Like the Eagle I can be alone. Even though I'm a sociable person, I don't share my deepest thoughts and feelings with many people - I keep a lot close to my chest and that doesn't bother me at all, I like it that way, I'm happy. I like to move around quite a bit. Not too much, I like to have a base, a nest, but if I stay in one place for too long I can get restless. Like the Eagle I can fly high and have high hopes and ambitions but, also like the Eagle, I don't always fly where I want- sometimes I have to rely on currents in the air and chance has played quite a role in my life.

Sanitary towels I think, I'd be too afraid of Toxic Shock Syndrome.

I love Coca Cola. I really should boycott it in solidarity with the Columbian trade unionists, but it's just too damn nice.

I think I'd be afraid of dying. I think it's because, no matter how hard I've tried, I can't convince myself there's an afterlife. And I like life. If I could live forever, I probably would.

As for phobias, eeeek, spiders, bastard spiders....

[Peace-Phoenix]

when you gonna be in london next?

erm rubbish question but am intruiged..am moving in around 3/4 september..

oh i know

how have you changed since you joined the forums so many years ago? I remember coming online when you were 16 and doing your GCSEs..so much has happened...give us an overview...how time flies...

you're getting old...hehe..
I shall be up in London visiting Taz every few weeks, so I'll do my best to annoy you as much as I can :p

Well, I say groovy and funky a lot less than when I was 16! I was never big on labels, but I did buy into the idea of hippy culture and fashion quite a bit. It just seemed cool. Now I'm a lot more comfortable just being me, without having to try to live up to preconceived expectations imposed on labelled boxes. I think now that to live outside boxes, like religion, ethnicity, fashion, is a freer life. Thats a topic that comes up in my writing a bit.

When I was 16 I had a lot of dreams, now I'm beginning to realise them. I feel a lot more stable. Not that I was unstable before, but I feel more confident and the future seems less uncertain. Being 16 is a real crossroads age. You don't know how your exams will go, you don't know what subjects to choose, or which unis to aim for, or what career to pursure. A lot of those questions are answering themselves, and I'd hate to go back to the uncertainty of a 16-18 year old.

I remember, I've always had 3 goals for the first part of my life, probably handed down by parental expectation and what I've seen my brother and sister doing.

1) Get 3 A's at A Level.
2) Get into Cambridge.
3) This was the big one and it changed a few times. First it was become a paleontologist. Then it was become an astrophysicist. But for as long as I can remember, it's been to get that first novel published.

So since 16, I can put a tick next to two of those boxes. And if I can do the third, well, that's every dream come true.

Since 16, I've also been in love a few times. And it's a bloody confusing yin yang affair ain't it? Some of the best times and some of the worst times. I've been hurt, and I've hurt people, and neither are pretty. But on balance, love's a beautiful thing, and I've never been happier or felt more complete in love than now.

A few people I've known have died since I was 16. My cousin committed suicide, though I didn't really know him that well. Probably the saddest thing about it is that, because I didn't know him well, it's been hard to feel much. And part of me thinks, it was his choice. The one that does make me sad though, was my teacher dying, the one who led our expedition to Peru. She was young and full of life and adventure and the spirit for travel. She didn't choose to go, and that's what's sad. I remember at the memorial in school (which I came back for after I'd left) they played some of her favourite songs. All really cheesy uplifting ones. So whenever I hear Dancing Queen by ABBA I think of her.

[Peace-Phoenix]

if you had one wish what would it be?
Do you ever use your dreams as an inspirational tool to help you write?
To have three more wishes? Haha, no - it'd be the novel. Definitely the novel. It's a life's goal. If I had one wish it would be that in a hundred years, or three hundred years, people are still reading what I've written; to be up there with the yet to be found greats of the 21st century. But at the same time, I'm glad you can't just wish for things like that. I'm glad it takes work, because writing's a love I wouldn't give up. I'd rather enjoy writing and be unknown than hate it and be world famous.

I can't say I've used direct imagery from a dream and put it into writing. But what dreams can do, is give a certain vagueness to images, whilst a lucidity to emotions at the same time. Which is an interesting combination to work with when trying to write about powerful emotions that you might not have felt yourself. Also dreams are honest in a way, and that's important.

[flowerchild17]

Hey there - What in your life has made you so politically motivated? For a lot of people I know its tied to memories that happened in early childhood which made them want change, or one certain event that happened (like with me), or a million other things. What in life has kept you this politically active?

Also - What is your first memory?

[Sebbi]

I remember reading in a Paulo Coelho book that the place where most people fail to achieve their dreams is just as they are on the homestraight.

I know what he means; my band have just finished making a mini album and making an album has been a life ambition of mine; now that I've realised that dream, despite being really happy with the album, it sort of feels anti-climatic.

Have you ever wondered where you would go with life once you've finished your first novel?

Much Love
Sebbi

[Peace-Phoenix]

Write another one :D What I'm working on isn't my first novel, it's just the first one I'm going to send to the publishers. I've always written, from the day I could first pick up a pen and scribble barely legible short stories on little scraps of paper. I'd like to travel more too, get more experiences which I can put into writing. I love South America, I'd really like to go back. The next novel I want to write, I'm thinking about setting it around a revolutionary struggle in a fictional Latin American country. Long term goals? Well, there's always that Booker Prize that needs winning ;)

[Peace-Phoenix]

Hey there - What in your life has made you so politically motivated? For a lot of people I know its tied to memories that happened in early childhood which made them want change, or one certain event that happened (like with me), or a million other things. What in life has kept you this politically active?

Also - What is your first memory?
Well the news was always on in my house, it still is. I remember it all in the background, Israel/Palestine, Bosnia, Serbia, Croatia, all those conflicts flaring up. I remember my parents being really happy when Thatcher resigned. So it just sunk in from an early age. I was raised to be aware and critical, and think about these wider issues. Later, when I was 12, chance had it that I got an audition to co-host a children's news programme with Jon Snow on Channel 4. So when I went on that show, I'd interview people on topical issues on a number of programmes through the series, and it taught me a lot about looking in depth into issues.

By the time I was 16 I was a budding hippy and self-aware socialist and did some stuff with the Anti Nazi League. Once September 11th happened and the Afghan war kicked off, I got into the big protest movements over here and got involved in the Socialist Workers Party who were running the local peace campaign. I'm not a member of the SWP anymore, but they did teach me a lot about far-left politics, and I'm still a radical socialist and revolutionary. It's strange, you look at these big events and how they can change the world, but they can really change you too. Then of course, you look at big people through history, people whose example shows that one person can make a difference. And that's inspiring. I always try to make a difference, no matter how small.

My first memory that comes to mind is swimming in a rock pool in Spain when I was very young and seeing a cass lorry drive past on the road above. I said "Cass Lorry Gone", which I think must have been one of my first attempts at a sentance, as my parents still talk about it :&

[flowerchild17]

Haha - better than my first memory. The first thing I remember is cracking my skull open trying to go down my grandmother's stairs in her house- and falling face first onto her fire place. After a trip tot he hospital and about 10 stitches - it got better from there :p

If you could hop on a plane right now and travel anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I'd go back to South America. Along with Egypt, Peru is one of the most magical places I've visited. But I only got to spend a month there, and there's so so much to explore. I'd like to go there and spend maybe a year out there travelling to different countries. I'd like to go to Venezuela and see socialism actually working for once, maybe even go and teach out there. I'd like to go back to Machu Picchu, it's such a wonderful, energetic, magic, beautiful place, it feels almost like a pilgrimage even though I'm not a spiritual person at all. I'd like to explore the other cultures in South America, spend more time in the rainforest regions and then, when it's all over, write a novel about it.

[flowerchild17]

I know you're writing a novel now, but do you have ideas for other novels in your head that you've already planned out, know the plot/characters ect and plan to write some day?

[Peace-Phoenix]

The plot for my South American novel is coming along in my head at the moment. When it gets written depends on how this one fares. The second one would be a bit less realistic, more adventurous, the country would be fictional and some of the characters a little less down to earth. I want to focus more on morality and politics, revolutionary struggles, bringing in some elements from satire and fable, as well as explore some of the ancient Incan and tribal mysticism of the region.


Because the second one might have less mainstream appeal, I wouldn't want it to be the one I approach publishers with. I need to focus on something that will sell and try to make a name for myself before I can have more freedom. But that makes it sound like I'm restrained, it's not really like that. It's a lot of fun writing when you're restricted by genre and audience. I used to write fantasy a lot, and in that you can put in anything you want because you created the world. But if you set something in the real world, you're restrained by what is believable. And writing a novel that is both believable and entertaining is a wonderful challenge. Also, as an author once said to me, you write what people want to read, and use that to smuggle in your own opinions on things. Sound advice.

[flowerchild17]

That sounds exactly like something my aunt would tell me :)

What was the first story that you can remember writing about?

[Peace-Phoenix]

The first one I remember was when I was about 6 in school. I wrote a story about dinosaurs, probably inspired by the Land Before Time which was my favourite film as a kid. It was appallingly illustrated and my spelling was even worse. In fact my spelling was terrible because I'd never stop writing to ask the teachers how to spell something, I'd just want to carry on, and so many of my early words were spelt phonetically.

The first novel I wrote was when I was 12, it was a simple fantasy tale of good and evil, battles and adventure. A lot of fun really....

[Sebbi]

If you were a building which one would you be?
If you had to choose to live in any fictional world (e.g. Narnia, Noddyland) which one would it be?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I quite like the Gherkin, maybe that if I had to, but I'd hate to be a building. Being any building would really piss me off :p


Well, it'd have to be one of the big fantasy worlds. Possibly Middle Earth, but I'm not sure about the whole impending doom, end of the world, evil spreading thing, I think that would put me off a bit. It can't be good for their tourist industry.

Ok, I'm going to lay my cards down and come out as the geek I am - maybe the Forgotten Realms from D & D. It's not as bad as it looks, I only know about it through playing Baldur's Gate on the PC, which is bad enough, but probably not as bad as doing the pen and paper thing. But that world, which is quite inspired by Tolkien, is a lot more morally ambiguous. There's much less of the clear contrast between good and evil. It's just a lot of very diverse creatures and characters living their lives and making decisions which can have great and terrible consequences. Sounds like fun....

[lithium]

Where do you see yourself age 50?http://www.hipforums.com/forums/images/smilies/eek.gif

[Peace-Phoenix]

Fifty's so long away it's impossible to tell. I can say where I'd like to be. I'd like to be a successful author. I'd like to be making a living purely from writing, selling enough books, and getting large enough advances that I don't have to have a day job and so I devote all my work time to writing. Winning the Booker Prize would be nice too. So would a potential career in television (and if that fails, I can always audition for Pop Idol :D ) I don't relish the prospect of middle-age, but I think if I've achieved the goals I've set myself, and have something vaguely respectable and or glamorous to fall back on, it won't seem quite so bad. Obviously I think I'd be settled by then, and with Taz as long as I don't cock things up, as has been known in the past. I'm not sure I'd want children, though time will tell. I'd rather be jet set and mobile, be able to travel and see as many places as possible without kids dragging me down by the wallet....

[flowerchild17]

If you could make one drastic change in any aspect of your life right now, without any side effects to anything else in your life, and just instantly snap your fingers and make it happen, what would you do? Or is there anything huge right now you would like to even change?

[Peace-Phoenix]

If you could make one drastic change in any aspect of your life right now, without any side effects to anything else in your life, and just instantly snap your fingers and make it happen, what would you do? Or is there anything huge right now you would like to even change?
This is such a difficult question to answer, not because I think I'm perfect (I know I'm perfect - J/K!!! :p ) but because it's hard to imagine changing an aspect of life without it having many unintended consequences. If you pull one thread, the whole tapestry may unravel. And even the negative experiences have still been great excercises in learning. Of course there are skills I wish I had, things I hadn't done, things I had done, values I had etc. But generally, I'm very happy with the way things are, and it's hard to think of anything drastic I would change. I'm going to have to fob you off with that for now, but if something springs to mind later, I'll post it....

[flowerchild17]

Haha yeah you're perfect, and I'm a sweet innocent little school girl with pigtails :p

And I'd be really interested to hear waht you have to say about my previous question, so if you do think of anything don't forget to post!

Anyway, an easier question now - What was school like for you? Most kids either seem to love or hate school... Resenting it for supposedly holding them back, or loving it for opening new doors for them. How does that hold in your case?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Primary school was great fun. I was quite an active, playful and outgoing kid, and made quite a lot of friends relatively easily. Middle school was shit, I hated it. It was a poor school, and there was a serious anti-work ethic to the tune that any intelligent kids were dragged down by the sea of yobs. I didn't have that many friends through middle school, and I quickly retreated into a shell. Middle school and the people there definitely held me back. But I take solace in the knowledge that the people who held me back are now cleaning floors in chicken factories.


It took a few years, but by high school I came out of my shell, made a lot more friends and found an identity I was much more comfortable with. By 6th form, when the people who didn't want to be there were filtered out, I found it much easier to work and achieve. I really liked high school and still miss it. I don't think it held me back, it did help open doors. Some people find education restrictive, I find it enabling and don't resent it at all.

[flowerchild17]

How were academically in high school? I know I could be an A student if I really worked at it, but I choose not to. What about you?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I was a straight A student, though I don't remember having to work too hard. I remember a lot of people thought I was a lazy bum and didn't believe me when they asked what I got. It's not because I could just click my fingers and make things happen, but because by A Level I was really enjoying my subjects and it wasn't difficult to put the effort in. But I haven't really been taxed or challenged much before uni, which has been incredibly challenging....

[flowerchild17]

Off the subject of school...

I know you've been working hard on your novel, but have you written any poetry lately? I haven't seen any in awhile now that I think about it...

[Peace-Phoenix]

I haven't written any poetry in a few months. I don't really sit down to work on poems as I do with prose. I approach prose like an exercise in problem solving - thinking about what works best, how to say something original, how to avoid cliche, how best to describe something, how to develop a character, how to weave threads of plot together in a way the reader might not expect or might find entertaining. Obviously I have to be in the right mood to write, and I have to have some inspiration, but often I can just sit down and thrash it out. Poetry, for me, is different. I get a line in my head, or an idea, and then the whole thing comes out in five minutes and often only in one draft. I can't sit down and make a poem work - if you'll pardon the analogy, it's kind of like trying to force a poo when you don't need one! If I do, it's often not very good. So until something pops into my head, I won't think about writing any new poetry....

[flowerchild17]

Yeah I know what you mean, it's not worth trying to forces like that, I feel exactly the same way... Especially with music writing.

What was the first concert you ever went to?

[Peace-Phoenix]

The fist gig I went to was a band called Dacryphillia, a fairly crappy nu metal band - that was the crowd I was in at the time. The first major gig I went to was My Vitriol, whatever happened to them? Spent the night failing miserably to pull the same girl I had pulled at the Dacryphillia gig. Women eh?

[flowerchild17]

What's your favorite kind of chocolate?:D

[Peace-Phoenix]

Cadbury's Dairy Milk! :D Yum yum. Sometimes I like white chocolate, but only on special occassions. I hate dark chocolate, it's disgusting. I've eaten raw cocoa beans before, they taste even shittier, it makes you wonder how anyone got the idea to turn them into an enjoyable treat....

[lithium]

"Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law". Discuss.

[Peace-Phoenix]

That's a quote from Aleister Crowley, I don't know much about him except that he was called the wickedest man in the world, which means he was either really cool, or a crazy nutcase. Perhaps that was a bit unfair, unless they weren't treating politicians as human for the purposes of that statement.


Though I can guess he's referring to individual freedom, I don't know his exact meaning with that quote, and I've no interest in delving into the Book of Law to find out - I've not even read the Bible, and probably never will. So I'll answer in anecdote.

I was sitting on a train, coming home from Bristol. And I overheard a conversation between the most boring man in all of England, who Taz and I dubbed 'Boring Norman' and the stranger to whom he was sitting opposite, who was the most stupid woman in all of England, 'Dense Dora'. Boring Norman is talking about how he hates being on a train, but has to, because he's a borderline alcoholic, and because he likes to tank himself up on valium (presumably to make himself more interesting). He says that he likes to drink drive, and that he likes to speed and that rules are meant to be broken.

No, Mr Boring Norman, rules are not meant to be broken. That's a ridiculous sentiment. Rules are meant to be followed, some people choose to break them. And some, of course are unjust, some should of course be challenged, but many laws are practical. Most laws are constraining, some are enabling, but even those that constrain individual freedom often serve to promote harmony in the large scale societies we operate within. This isn't Hobbes, we won't end up in a 'state of nature' without them, but many laws serve a necessary purpose. I won't judge the merits of that, but I would say there must be more laws than simply a do as you will attitude....

[flowerchild17]

Speaking of laws, what law or laws would you like to see lifted from the books, or what do you think should be put into law?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I think most drugs should be legalised. Most of them are relatively harmless, and what risk is involved is often due to impurities, which should be removed if the supply was taken above board. The more dangerous/addictive drugs should perhaps only be administered to addicts as an attempt to cure them, helping rehabilitate addicts, rather than sending them to prison. I'd scrap the ID cards straight away, ridiculous idea and waste of money. I'd disestablish the Church of England, making Britain a secular society with no state religion. I'd declare war on Finland. Abolish the monarchy. Re-nationalise public services (and private ones too probably) rob from the rich, give to the poor, scrap Trident nuclear weapons and also Oxford University, which is just as bad....

[flowerchild17]

Now know that I know nothing about Oxford, but what's wrong with it?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Well I go to Cambridge, it's a historic rivalry that goes back hundreds of years. The only place we hate more than Oxford, is St Johns College, which is a college at Cambridge who allegedly were banned from the boat race (bumps) for about 200 years and also revilved for attaching a spike to the end of their boat and killing another student.


Hence the song (to the tune of She'll be coming round the mountain)

I'd rather be at Oxford than St Johns!
I'd rather be at Oxford than St Johns!
Oh I'd rather be at Oxford,
Rather be at Oxford,
Rather be at Oxford than St Johns.

Also they're all posh ponces, though people who sing that song may be calling the kettle dark blue....

[lithium]

I'd declare war on Finland. I notice you said that quietly because you know I'm gonna open up a whole can of whoopass on you...http://www.hipforums.com/forums/images/smilies/tongue.gif

[lithium]

I don't know his exact meaning with that quote, and I've no interest in delving into the Book of Law to find out - I've not even read the Bible, and probably never will. So I'll answer in anecdote.Hey, this is the internet, shallowness and generalisation is the whole point, mang:D

Yes, Crowley was a bit of a nutter. But sometimes it's important to listen to nutters because they open up new ways of thinking. It's important to make bold mistakes.

How about the Wiccan creed which reformulates the idea with one restriction: "If it harms none, do what thou wilt"?

[Peace-Phoenix]

How about the Wiccan creed which reformulates the idea with one restriction: "If it harms none, do what thou wilt"?
As an abstract notion, of course I'd support it, I think it would be hard to find someone who wouldn't. No victim, no crime - legalise the puff and all that. But then you get into trouble when you come to define what harm means. Eliminate self harm because that's a whole topic in itself, and you're still left with an open definition of harm. Naturally few 'civilised' individuals would support murder, or theft, or rape. But then I'd define harm much more broadly than that. I would define capitalist relations of production as harm. I would say owners of sweatshops are harming their workers. You can't have total equality and total freedom. So I would sacrifice some of the latter, to encourage the former, on the basis that total freedom, in the economic context, grants the power for the few to enslave the many....

[Peace-Phoenix]

I notice you said that quietly because you know I'm gonna open up a whole can of whoopass on you...http://www.hipforums.com/forums/images/smilies/tongue.gif
The Phoenix will layeth the smach down on allllll your candy asses!

http://www.e-hawaii.com/stars/index/the_rock/images/the_rock.jpg

[lithium]

As an abstract notion, of course I'd support it, I think it would be hard to find someone who wouldn't. No victim, no crime - legalise the puff and all that. But then you get into trouble when you come to define what harm means. Eliminate self harm because that's a whole topic in itself, and you're still left with an open definition of harm. Naturally few 'civilised' individuals would support murder, or theft, or rape. But then I'd define harm much more broadly than that. I would define capitalist relations of production as harm. I would say owners of sweatshops are harming their workers. You can't have total equality and total freedom. So I would sacrifice some of the latter, to encourage the former, on the basis that total freedom, in the economic context, grants the power for the few to enslave the many....That's a good answer. You mentioned self-harm. What do you think of suicide and euthanasia? Should ending your own life (and getting help to do so) be allowed? Under what circumstances? Should otherwise healthy people be stopped from committing suicide or are there any cases in which you would think that suicide is the best option?

[Hippie_Girl]

If there was a biographical film made of your life and you couldn't play yourself who would play you?

[Peace-Phoenix]

If there was a biographical film made of your life and you couldn't play yourself who would play you?
An older me, it'd have to be Naveen Andrews - Sayid from Lost, what a beard, I'm growing mine at the moment :D

[Peace-Phoenix]

That's a good answer. You mentioned self-harm. What do you think of suicide and euthanasia? Should ending your own life (and getting help to do so) be allowed? Under what circumstances? Should otherwise healthy people be stopped from committing suicide or are there any cases in which you would think that suicide is the best option?
I think suicide is probably one of the most selfish acts there is. That's not to judge it as bad, or to imply a moral element, it simply is objectively selfish. My cousin committed suicide a couple of years ago, he was a depressive, I suppose he didn't see life as worth living anymore. But his choice affected others in ways that made me more angry than sad for him. You don't just live life for yourself, every action we take has consequences for others. That's not to say I would condemn every suicide, certainly not without knowing the ins and outs of each situation, but neither can I see it as a particularly strong or noble act to take for a healthy individual.

Of course there's the added complication of what do you define as healthy. What about mental illness? Does deppression count as mental illness? I'm not qualified to answer those questions. For a terminal patient in pain, I see no harm in them wanting to end their own life, or being given the help to do so. Above all, it is someone's right to choose when they die. But with that right comes responsibilities to others, and they must be weighed into any decision....

[Hippie_Girl]

Have you seen the las two episodes of Lost yet (excluding this weeks cos its on tonight over here!)?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Nope, I have to wait till next week. Grrrr!

[Hippie_Girl]

Thats scandelous!!! Goodness me!!! They were dead good!! So looking forward to this weeks!!! EEEK!!!!

[Peace-Phoenix]

Aye, I can't wait! But at the same time, I fear those long lonely months without my Lost day after they're over....

[flowerchild17]

So...

What do you normally think about first thing in the morning?:) Or late afternoon, depending on your sleeping schudule...

[Peace-Phoenix]

I often have long term projects that occupy me. So generally the first thing I'll think about is how I'll use the day to constructively work on those projects. At the moment, one of those projects is rebuilding the forums, and I've been putting a lot of thought, time and energy into doing that. Also, I'm busy working on my novel, and there are some very exciting developments on that front. That characters in my novel are all alive in my head, frozen at the point I last left them, and they're with me wherever I go. And if Taz has just called and woken me up, she's often the first thing I'll be thinking about http://www.hipforums.com/forums/images/smilies/smile.gif

[lithium]

What was the last thing that made you gasp in awe and wonder?

[Hippie_Girl]

If you were a super hero would you rather be invisle, have X-ray vision or be able to fly and why?!

[Peace-Phoenix]

If you were a super hero would you rather be invisle, have X-ray vision or be able to fly and why?!
I'd pick flight. I wouldn't want to be invisible, as I like people, I like interacting with people, and I like to be seen. Conversely, although I like to be a public person, I can also be a very private person. We all have our backspaces, regions we retreat to out of the arena of public performance, where we can be most ourselves. And if I had X ray vision, I would be invading the backspaces of others. Part of having your own backspace is recognising that others have them too, and that they must be respects.

So yes, I'd fly. I like to travel, and as a child I'd always look up and see the birds and wish I was one of them, able to fly unfettered and completely free. Then I'd think, well, humans have a lot more going for them than birds. On the grand scale of things we're all largely irrelevant, but from where I'm standing, humans would seem to be the superior species. So I'd rather be a human capable of flight. Also, when I lucidly dream, I usually end up flying to places....

[Peace-Phoenix]

What was the last thing that made you gasp in awe and wonder?
The size of my penis :eek:

No, I think the simple things in life. Having all my friends around me again, having Tahmina around, feeling close to a lot of people and being in love. Soppy, but true....

[flowerchild17]

Do you think it's the simple things in life that truly shape us as human being? A lot of people believe that it's big events in our lives that shape us, but I feel that the little things taht happen to us over time shape us more than anything. How bout you?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I think it's like joining the dots. You could concentrate on the eyes, and the really important features, but you'd miss out all the bits in between that really give your life form. My life has been shaped by big events that have influenced me. Nearly being blown up on 7/7 for instance, combined with a couple of racist incidents, both from white people and from Pakistanis - they've all gone into my thinking and thus into my writing - from 'Paki in the Middle' to my novel. Also, my cousin's suicide has left me wanting to enjoy life to its fullest, seize that day, but plan for a full and happy future. And my teacher's death, the one who led our Peruvian expedition. I remember how full of life she was, and how she'd grab every chance for adventure. That she can't now, has left me hoping there's a bit of her that lives on in all the people she inspired. All negative big events, I suppose, but ones that have influenced me in positive ways. And, of course, in my first year at uni, I elctrocuted myself on a light, and survived unscathed - which left me feeling for a while that I must be destined to be on this Earth for great works :p


And then there are the everyday things, friends, family, Tahmina, people who are in my life all the time, but that make it a really happy life. Take them away, just leave the big events, and you'd have only half a human being. I believe in big events shaping people. They can break people, and they can make people. But it is the everyday things, things that sometimes you don't even have to think about, they are what mould the raw form....

[lithium]

Under what circumstances, if any, do you think it's acceptable to take another person's life?

Could you do it?

How would you do it?

How do you think it would affect you?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Whether or not I could take another life, I don't know. Revolutionary struggles against military oppressors, I think, are justified, if regretable, circumstances for taking another life. I certainly would not support attacks against civillians, and acts of terrorism, which are often tied to such struggles. But for an Israeli soldier, in the West Bank, buldozing houses and shooting kids throwing stones - that is the prime example of a legitimate target. Whether I could pull the trigger or not I don't know. As when you kill someone, you don't just take one life, you take a whole network of family and friends and tear a hole right in the middle of them. But, given the circumstances, I could not mourn their loss. And if the only way to resist oppression, is armed conflict, then I support that right to fight back. I would have supported the fight against the spread of fascism from the Spanish Civil War to World War 2. I want America to lose in Iraq, because I think the danger of unchecked American imperialism in the region, should they succeed, is far too great to contemplate.

How would it affect me if I did kill someone? I can only imagine, very negatively. I'd lose a part of myself, certainly. A part of myself that might once, if no longer, have called itself pacifist. That part, I suppose, would have been stolen from me by such an oppressor in the first place, but I still would have to live with guilt and conscience. Not long ago, Taz, I and a few friends came upon a girl being manhandled by a drunk guy. He was stopping her from getting away and was choking her. We stepped in to try to help her, had a stand off, tried to talk him down, and when he turned violent towards us, I ended up punching him and hurting him quite badly. I still feel bad about that, even though he forced the situation, and I can imagine that the consequences of killing someone, for me, would be much, much worse....

[flowerchild17]

And I'm gonna turn your question back on you now - If you knew everything in the bible was true and the saints were right, would you worship God and devote your life to spreading his word?

[Peace-Phoenix]

If everything in the Bible was true, then no. I would be worshipping a fascist dictator, responsible for the murder of thousands, if not millions, and the oppression of people throughout the ages. I might not have much choice, I might be coerced, as religion is inherently coercive, and God all powerful. But in my heart, I would hate that God as much as an Iraqi might have hated Saddam Hussein, even if they never said anything publicly against him. If, of course, I found proof of a supernatural being, one that the Bible and other religious texts had completely misrepresented, I would be interested in exploring it further. I find it hard to imagine worshipping anything. My life, my choices, they are my own. But if its motives and actions were good, then I might hold some respect for it....

[dapablo]

Are you your Father ?

Do you wish to father, and want demands, if any, have you placed upon yourself with regards to being a dad ?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I'm not a father and I don't feel that I want children, certainly not now, and possibly not in the future. Of course I won't rule anything out. But I think without children I'd be freer to travel and realise goals....

[flowerchild17]

If you did have children however, would you take them to explore the world with you so they had the same appreciation for it that you do?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Yes I'd try to make sure they were well travelled. Nothing quite like exploring other cultures. However, in truth, I think they'd probably be an anchor to my ship, both financially and practically....

[flowerchild17]

Many people are able to have large families and still travel if they budget it right - Why do you feel so strongly that kids would completley tie you down?

[PinkMoon]

why do you take so longon the toilet?
(seriously everyone...he was in there so long i had a shower in the meantime..)

[dapablo]

Are you your Father ?
Know my sentences can be difficult but surely the short ones can't be that hard. :)

[Peace-Phoenix]

Know my sentences can be difficult but surely the short ones can't be that hard. :)My apple bogies, your sentence was so ridiculous, I'd assumed the madness was yours, not mine :p I'm not my father!

[Peace-Phoenix]

why do you take so longon the toilet?
(seriously everyone...he was in there so long i had a shower in the meantime..)
I'd had my starter and main course, and I was waiting around to see if I had room for desert before paying....

[Peace-Phoenix]

Off the subject of school...

I know you've been working hard on your novel, but have you written any poetry lately? I haven't seen any in awhile now that I think about it...
Finally got the inspiration to write a new poem, let me know what you think:

http://www.hipforums.com/forums/showthread.php?p=2942985#post2942985 (http://www.hipforums.com/forums/showthread.php?p=2942985#post2942985)

[dapablo]

Are you your Father ?
My apple bogies, your sentence was so ridiculous, I'd assumed the madness was yours, not mine :p I'm not my father!

Some might say they were their Father and Mother.

I was trying to query the relationship with your parents and how that affects how you feel about kids yourself. :)

(trying, I know, they do say very :))

[Peace-Phoenix]

I have a good relationship with my parents and have never had any cause to complain really. I can see some traits in my dad that have rubbed off on me - a drive for learning and academia, a passion for literature, an interest in politics and current affairs, probably a little snobbishness in there too. But I'm quite different from my parents. They were 60's children, but I think I've embraced the spirit of that age, along with its various excesses, far more than they ever did. I'm also a lot more left-wing and motivated to action than my parents are....

[lithium]

Have you ever fired a gun?

If yes / no: did you enjoy it / would you like to?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Only air pistols and rifles for target practice. I've done archery as well. It's enjoyable enough, but never got any great kick out of it. I used to enjoy playing with toy guns as a kid. I suppose it's catharsis for all those violent masculine tendencies. I don't think I'd particularly enjoy handling a real gun. To be honest, I think the sight of one would frighten me....

[flowerchild17]

What are your best ways of dealing with stress?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I very rarely get stressed. If I do, the only way to deal with it is to face it head on and sort the situation out. Usually it involves a major essay crisis, if I'm ever stressed, and the only solution is to hit the books and study so hard I feel pleased that I've been so productive. Of course there's a downside. When that happen I usually sit back and relax for a little bit longer than I should. But despite a certain chaotic edge to my approach, I usually favour order. And if I'm stressed it'll be because I've not given enough structure to my activities, and the way out is creating some sort of order....

[Peace-Phoenix]

I'm bored, ask me a question someone....

[lithium]

Would you ever consider giving handjobs for cash?

[Peace-Phoenix]

How much cash?

[lithium]

How much do you need?

[Peace-Phoenix]

How much you offering?

[lithium]

Fiver?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Nah, I don't come that cheap baby....

[lithium]

OK, slightly more serious questions:tongue:

What is your favourite game?

How do you relax?

How do you get motivated to work?

Do you think humour is important (rather than simply diverting) and if so in what way(s)?

[Peace-Phoenix]

OK, slightly more serious questions:tongue:

What is your favourite game?

How do you relax?

How do you get motivated to work?

Do you think humour is important (rather than simply diverting) and if so in what way(s)?
Favourite board game is probably chess. Favourite computer games are strategy, possibly Civilization 4 or Birth of the Federation, and roleplay, Baldur's Gate 2. Yeah, I'm a geek, laugh it up.

I find watching television in bed quite relaxing, or posting on the forums. A cup of tea is always good to relax with.

I'm a chronic and accute procrastinator. I find it very difficult to motivate myself to work. Doing the reading is ok, but actually getting round to writing something up is a pain in the ass. Deadlines are a great motivator for me. When I do get around to doing something, I'll always make sure I do it well. When a deadline is approaching I'll work incredibly hard and be very systematic and organised about it. Then I'll feel proud of myself, relax for too long, and find it a struggle to motivate myself again. This year there are very few deadlines short-term, I'm having to chase supervisors for supervisions and ask people to set me essays so I can get all the work done by the end of the year. I need deadlines, without them I have to actually plan ahead.

Humour is very important, I think. It should not simply be diverting, but should be part of the fabric of every day life. People who take themselves too seriously can be irritating, and humour as satire is a vital element. I take my views seriously, but constantly open them up to satire and ridicule, and would hope others can too. One of the things I find most irritating about radical feminists is that they seem amongst the least likely people to be able to do this. Humour can break down boundaries between people and between ideas. People who laugh live longer, and people who do not have a sense of humour might as well be dead inside....

[phoenix_indigo]

Following the vein of people who laugh live longer ...

How old do you hope to attain before you die?

Would you rather no wrinkles or have smashing laugh-lines?

Who do you think is the funniest person (whether it is a well-known comedian or someone you know personally)?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I'd like to live as long as possible. I love life and I don't believe in an afterlife, so I hope to stick around here as long as possible. I'd live forever if I could.


I'm quite happy to have a few laugh lines, it's a sign of someone enjoying life I think.

Jonny2Mad is one of the funniest people I've ever met. His stories always have me in stiches. He's the king of the anecdote....

[flowerchild17]

In 500 years, if the world was in complete poverty and ruin, and was about to be completley destroyed, would you still want to live through to the end, or end your life before the complete chaos?

[Peace-Phoenix]

In for a penny, in for a pound I say....

[flowerchild17]

That's how I feel to, just not using your silly English slang :P

Anyway, what holiday do you enjoy the most?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I love the Summer hols, lots of time to relax and do you thing and see old friends and travel about and go to festivals. But I also love Christmas, I love being wrapped up warm inside with a log fire, having family around, going for walks in the frost with my dog, always lots going on. And my birthday is then too, so muchos presents....

[flowerchild17]

My birthday's closer to Xmas than yours :P

And summer does have to top that list... I love having the time off, being able to devote it to marching and being with friends who I normally don't get to see much otherwise...

Do you enjoy summer or winter more weather wise?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Summer, without a doubt. Don't mind winter around Christmas time when I can be snug and warm inside. But during the long January-March cold months, when I have to get up and walk to lectures, I don't enjoy that at all....

[flowerchild17]

Ah yeah, I can understand that. I love the snow and cold we have here, but I know it gets colder, and snowier more here than in the UK...


How far do you have to walk outside between classes?

[Peace-Phoenix]

It's about a ten minute walk, nothing problematic, but it's a walk of death in the cold....

[flowerchild17]

Yeah sounds it, certainly not fun...

Whats your favorite piece of clothing? That one that you'd wear every day if you could?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Quite like my Levellers T shirts, and my Ted Baker top, and a red snuggly one I have. Also a purple tie dye t shirt. Not sure if I have any favourite clothes though....

[dapablo]

Do you buy white or wholemeal bread ?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Tend to buy white, though I really should buy wholemeal. I prefer the taste of white, but will eat wholemeal if the filling's tasy enough....

[flowerchild17]

Whats your favorite late night snack when you cant get a real meal?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Pringles probably. Or maybe some roti....

[flowerchild17]

Roti?

[Peace-Phoenix]

It's an Indian kind of flat bread. You make it by mixing flour and water and frying it with no oil. I often add some garlic, chill, herbs and onion too. You can add anything to roti mix. I've made tikka massala roti, cheese roti, even orange squash roti. That was horrible....

[dapablo]

What type of flour would you use ?

Who is the natural cook in your relationship ?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Just plain white flour, not self raising.


Tahmina and I like to cook together. It's more fun that way. We're often quite lazy and eat out or buy food you just have to heat up. We don't really know that many dishes, but we probably make the best stir fry in the universe. Tahmina probably knows a few more dishes than me, but we're a team. I'm going to learn how to cook a Phall soon, just because it's there....

[lithium]

I'm touched:D
http://www.bvu.edu/news/images/full/majorjump.jpg
...and not in a good way:tongue:

[Peace-Phoenix]

Not quite sure why you won the Major award, I wouldn't have had you down for that myself. But you can console yourself with the Uncle Cunlice award....

[flowerchild17]

Sorry for my ignorance once again, but what's a Phall?

[Peace-Phoenix]

The hottest curry in the world. I've had a vindaloo in a restaurant once, and it wasn't pleasant. At the time I was under the mistaken impression that the vindaloo was the hottest curry in the world. Now I've found there's one hotter, I can't say I've had the hottest curry in the world. But I don't want to buy one, as it'll be a waste of money because I know I won't enjoy it. So time to make one....

[flowerchild17]

Good luck!:eek:

Why do you feel the need to make the hottest curry in the world if you know you'll prolly suffer later because of it?

[Peace-Phoenix]

When asked why he wanted to climb Everest, British climber George Mallory replied, "Because it's there". He died soon after....

[dapablo]

Do you think mankind will ever colonise space ?

[PinkMoon]

sal you edited my signature!!!!!!
you big bumface
next tim ei see you i shall enact revenge...10 fold..

[Peace-Phoenix]

Well it's fair, you did win the Pooball Prize! Just changed it to reflect the facts....

[dapablo]

Do you think mankind will ever colonise space ?
Bump

[Peace-Phoenix]

I hope so. I think we'd better get our first house in order before we do that. But I think, with the technology, there could be a lot of potential in space colonisation. It could solve problems of over population and our finite resources and it could be a great boost to our scientific knowledge and help to explain where we come from and whether or not we are alone in the universe. I'll admit, I'm a slight Trekkie. It's an ideal, a utopia, and if we can realise it, then it would be no bad thing for humanity as a whole....

[flowerchild17]

SLIGHT Trekkie, Sal? Don't cut yourself so short there dear ;)

What's your favorite thing about star trek? And who's your favorite captain?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I'm not a proper Trekkie, I don't go to conventions or put on silly ears, I just happen to enjoy the programme is all! Probably best thing about the show is the interplay between the characters, especially with long plot arcs and political/moral undertones as in some series; and occasionally some of the alien races, which are quite well developed. Favourite captain - Picard, by a long way. I've met him you know, and not at a bloody convention!

[flowerchild17]

I remember you telling me about that awhile back... Where did you meet him then?

[Peace-Phoenix]

He'd come to debate at the Cambridge Union. He's a big Labour supporter. Though I disagreed with him, and didn't think the debate was up to much, I was, of course, only there to see him. Sat right behind him too. Could see my face reflected in his shiny head....

[lithium]

What was the debate?

[Peace-Phoenix]

This house has no confidence in her majesty's government. It's an annual debate, but it's usually a pretty limited and dry debate for lefties, ending up being a Labour vs. Tories debate with no real extremes of opinion....

[flowerchild17]

Well, at least you got to meet him!


Do you wear any jewelry, like necklaces or rings?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I wear one pendant. It's a phoenix, carved from Machu Picchu stone, that I picked up from my travels in Peru, and I wear it for symbolic reasons more than aesthetic....

[flowerchild17]

I think you showed me a picture of it way back, now that you mention it :) I remember you talking about it also...

How are you feeling today?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Hungover. It's been a strange couple of days. Everyone at college is really sad because someone there died recently. Such a shame....

[flowerchild17]

That's odd, that's happened here this week. My friend's grandmother died on Monday, and another friend's parents finalized their divorce, with is a death in a way...

Did you grow up in a happy family, where both your parents were present?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Both my parents were and are present. Family life has always been relatively stable and pretty happy. Comfortable upbringing, close relationship with my parents, strong friendship with my sister, slight rivalry with my brother, nothing to complain about really :)

[dapablo]

Who means more to you, your father or mother ?

[Cutted]

Do you let yanks into your thread? I stumbled onto this one and you have engaged in an interesting discussion. I am from LA and out here on the "Left Coast" we are trying to find a way to get rid of King George (we got rid of yours, now we are going after ours), after getting rid of his majority in Congress. Any ideas?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Who means more to you, your father or mother ?
They're both important to me. They've both been very loving, very supportive parents, and I have a pretty good relationship with them. I think my Mum is more my practical, sensible side, my Dad's my more intellectual, creative, philosophical side. But both are essential to a well rounded human being. I'm not the sort of person who believes that you owe your parents love and respect simply because they are your parents. Love and respect is earned. Mine have earnt theirs....

[Peace-Phoenix]

Questions, so many questions, none for me?

[lithium]

What are you reading?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Last novel I read was Zadie Smith's 'The Autograph Man'. Currently I'm reading about a million books on the ideological coherency (or lack thereof) of the third way....

[dapablo]

Last novel I read was Zadie Smith's 'The Autograph Man'. Currently I'm reading about a million books on the ideological coherency (or lack thereof) of the third way....
C'mon then precis "The Third Way" for me.

[Peace-Phoenix]

A third way between Thatcherite neo-liberalism and old Labour social democracy. In some ways a pragmatic response to processes of globalisation and individualisation which have made old Keynesian ideas less viable within the capitalist context. Redefines inequality as social exclusion, more about opportunity for all then either equality or equality of opportunity. A move away from ideology and towards evidence based policy. A certain degree of style over substance. Not a new, independent ideological project, rather a flexible framework under which there is a synthesis of old ideas, though largely these bias the market over wealth redistribution....

[mellowthyme]

I had a feeling that you were quite advanced in your knowledge, Cambridge, nice to meet you Peace; but isn't being a hippy about not conforming, an ideology and not a kitsch fad or fashion?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I'd agree, though I don't see myself as that much of a hippy anymore. Maybe in my teenage years, but political realities just make that harder. I'm certainly not a pacifist. Nor am I in any way spiritual. I'm an atheist and, defining myself politically, I'm more of a revolutionary socialist - defining revolutionary quite broadly. Besides which, non-conformity can become a bit of a shallow mantra after a while. I've no problem with conforming to certain conventions. Not all laws are meant to be broken. And, I'm assuming this was the thrust of your question, I don't see being at Cambridge as conforming or non-conforming. It's simply about learning as much as I can in as much depth as I can whilst challenging myself intellectually....

[mellowthyme]

Could you see your outlook on life and how we should lead ourselves possibly being different in 10 - 15 years down the road?

Ref: to the hippy tolerance thing.


images/icons/newicons/icon25.gif No, I was sincere in the post, there were no double meanings.

Just picking up on your earlier post about Roti bread and other Indian food; have you had Dosa Masala before? Southern Indian breakfast dish, supposedly.

[Peace-Phoenix]

Everyone changes, I doubt my opinions or outlook will be the same as they are now. It'd make me pretty stubborn if they are. But then again, I'll never be voting Conservative!

I haven't has Dosa before, what's it like? How do you make it?

[mellowthyme]

Dosa is a mixture of lentils and rice ground down into a type of paste. It's spread out onto a large hot flat pan. It comes up like a crispy doughy pancake. The masala is made up of potatos, green chillis, onions and a whole mixture of strong herbs and spices. It's like a huge tortilla wrap with the dosa is wrapped around the masala. It hot and really tastey, the dosa soaks up the juices of the masala and has that mopping up effect. It's a southern Indian dish that seems to be in all the states of the south, not so much in the north.

It's really good though.

[Earthling]

What’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever put in your fridge?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Don't think I have put anything too wierd in my fridge. Usually eat the wierd things fresh!

[fountains of nay]

If you had to be a vegetable, which one would you be?

[lithium]

If you bumped into Osama Bin Laden buying condoms in the all-night chemist, what would you say to him?

[Peace-Phoenix]

This is a citizens arrest. Followed by:


Wooooooooooohooooooooooo! I'm rich!

[Peace-Phoenix]

If you had to be a vegetable, which one would you be?
Swede....

[lithium]

If you bumped into George W Bush in the philosophy section at WH Smith's, what would you say to him?

[Peace-Phoenix]

The children's section is round the corner sir....

[Earthling]

rofl

Do you have any odd routines or habits you have to follow each day?

[fountains of nay]

If you had an Ark and only had a couple of spaces left, would you pick the sheep or the cows?

[Peace-Phoenix]

If you had an Ark and only had a couple of spaces left, would you pick the sheep or the cows?
Cow. I love burgers, milk and cheese. To think of a future world where these things no longer existed would be truly dystopian....

[Peace-Phoenix]

rofl

Do you have any odd routines or habits you have to follow each day?
I eat, and more often than not that food turns into poo, which I pass into the flush toilet. Now if that's not an odd daily routine, I don't know what is....

[fountains of nay]

Cow. I love burgers, milk and cheese. To think of a future world where these things no longer existed would be truly dystopian....But you can get all of those things from Sheep too :)

[Peace-Phoenix]

Sheep's milk? Ewwwwwwwwwwww! Or should I saw, ewe!

[lithium]

But you can get all of those things from Sheep too :)...and women:H

[Peace-Phoenix]

Innit....

[Peace-Phoenix]

I'm bored, ask me a question someone....

[phoenix_indigo]

what's your favorite colour? (yes i know lame question)

[fountains of nay]

Would you rather be a moose or a dear?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Deer. I don't like the idea of being chocolate flavoured and full of holes....

[lithium]

If you could assassinate any current world leader, which would it be and why?

[Peace-Phoenix]

That wouldn't be wise to say online. The only one I'd definitely rule out is Hugo Chavez, by far my favourite world leader at the moment....

[Peace-Phoenix]

Dear Karma, I'm happy, I got a Glastonbury ticket, yay!

[CrucifiedDreams]

Yay, lucky you. :)

What's the number one thing you try to get out of life?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Fulfillment. I like to look back on a year, or a month or a day and say, yeah, I really achieved something. I like to set myself long-term goals, to live a life that's more than simply pure enjoyment. Making a difference....

[CrucifiedDreams]

Is your life what you want it to be?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Yes, I'm on course and I have very few regrets. I can't complain at all. Life's dealt me a good hand, I've been lucky....

[CrucifiedDreams]

Do you believe in luck? Or is life what you make it?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I'm a determinist. Life is a series of choices. Not all of those choices are made by you and not all circumstances are under your control. You could call that luck. Or coincidence. They're the stage, you're the actor....

[CrucifiedDreams]

What's a country you'd like to visit and why?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I've travelled quite widely, but I've never been to sub-Saharran Africa. I'd like to go to Zimbabwe, see the Victoria Falls, do the whole safari thing. Also, I'd like to visit Venezuela, see the revolution in progress....

[CrucifiedDreams]

I'd love to see Victoria falls as well. :)

Have you been to Canada?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Yeah, been to Alberta, British Columbia and Vancouver Island. Great country, loved it. Like America, but without the Americans, what more could you want? http://www.hipforums.com/forums/images/smilies/smile.gif

[CrucifiedDreams]

Haha. :D

What's your dream job?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Novelist....

[CrucifiedDreams]

Do you have anything published?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I've published quite a lot of poetry and articles. Google "Salman Shaheen" to find them. My novel's something I've been working on for the last year and a half though, getting that published will be by far the biggest challenge. What I've done so far is just small fry really. I've put a lot of energy into it and come the summer once it's finished I'm going to start approaching agents. It won't be easy, but I have a few aces up my sleeve....

[CrucifiedDreams]

You've started to accomplish what all artists dream off. Congrats.

What is your favourite sound and why? :D

[Peace-Phoenix]

Tough question. Other than my own voice, (http://www.hipforums.com/forums/images/newsmilies/biggrinjester.gif) I'd probably have to say the wood pigeon as it reminds me of being out in the countryside, which is where I most like to be....

[CrucifiedDreams]

Lol, uh huh.

What is friendship to you?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Friendship is being able to have a good time with someone, to enjoy their company, to have a laugh. But it's more. Your really good friends you should be able to count on no matter what, you should be able to trust them with your life....

[CrucifiedDreams]

:)

What's your favourite song lyrics and why?

[Peace-Phoenix]

One of my favourite song lines ever, which quotes a Welsh farmer on his way to fight in the Spanish Civil War:

"If I can shoot rabbits, I can shoot fascists!"

- Manic Street Preachers 'If You Tolerate This Then Your Children Will Be Next'

[lithium]

If you could change one event from your past, what would you change and why?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I don't think I'd change anything. I've definitely made mistakes. But if you go back and erase the mistakes, we wouldn't be complete people. Often mistakes are the only way to learn. If I went back and changed things, I'd only do something wrong all over again....

[CrucifiedDreams]

I don't think I'd change anything. I've definitely made mistakes. But if you go back and erase the mistakes, we wouldn't be complete people. Often mistakes are the only way to learn. If I went back and changed things, I'd only do something wrong all over again....So true. :)

What has been your most enlightening moment?

[Peace-Phoenix]

If you take away all those times on drugs, I don't think I could pin down one single epiphanic moment. Life is slow enlightenment. Obviously there are moments of inspiration and great bursts of creativity, but no gestalt switch. I've learnt a lot, and in very short spaces of time, but never would I say I've had a moment of pure enlightenment. I think those sorts of things are romanticised flights of fancy....

[PinkMoon]

you should be able to trust them with your life....
How many people do you trust with your life?

[Peace-Phoenix]

One or two....

[PinkMoon]

intruiging....
how many people do you trust not to pour water over you at glastonbury?

tumtteum

[Peace-Phoenix]

None, seeing as I'm going with you and Jonny and you've both poured water over me before....

[Rayan]

Awww Dammit, I wanted to go to Glastonbury (but going to portugal instead!)

So like, you told me on my karma your mixed race. Whats the races and ratios? Just for interest sake of course!

Ry.

[Peace-Phoenix]

My mum's English, my Dad's Pakistani - though he was born in southern India before partition and moved when the Hindus confiscated all their land. So I guess both of us have exile roots....

[westham]

hey peace phoenix took your advice a came to have a look at the uk side. i havent lived in uk for a number of years now 20,but i hear things have changed.living now in europe with my 2 kids and wonderful wife.so whats been happening on the island?? whats your view on the music of pink floyd and grateful dead!!.

[Peace-Phoenix]

I love Pink Floyd, easily one of my favourite bands. I saw Roger Waters live at Glastonbury in 2002 and it was without a doubt one of the most amazing live acts I've seen. I quite like the Dead too. They're not up there in the same league as Floyd for me, but then I've never had the chance to hear them live and the Dead were all about their live shows and the culture that went with it....

[westham]

yer thats true. saw roger do dark side last year in rotterdam.and am going on 5 may to see it again in arnhem.taking my wife for the first time to see him. will blow her away.she was never into floyd until she meet me 5 years ago.now she nows everything about them.even when i leavethis great planet there will be floyd playing.

[westham]

what is your msn-email address would like to chat with you.you seem like a good dude

[Peace-Phoenix]

hippy_waster@hotmail.com (hippy_waster@hotmail.com)


You can find a list of everyone's MSNs and add your own in the introduction thread :)

[westham]

hey phoenix dude.hows your day there on the island??,here is warm and getting warmer.28degress today.

[Peace-Phoenix]

Overcast, but warm....

[lithium]

What makes you angry?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Generally I'm very slow to anger. I can suffer fools, if they know they're fools, though idiots who make gross generalisations and unsubstantiated arguments whilst remaining ignorant or blinkered about the issue at hand, tend to annoy me. If I'm arguing with an intelligent person of an opposing viewpoint, I'll tend to afford them a measure of respect, even if what they're saying might be highly objectionable. Political issues can make me angry. Gross injustices, racism, human rights abuses, environmental destruction, those sorts of issues can make me angry, though it's constructive anger that can be turned into a kind of politically charged kenetic energy for me. A betrayal from someone I trust, that would make me angry. So would being punched in the face I think....

[xZx]

If you were an inanimate object, what would you be?

[Taz]

What’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever put in your fridge?
He once put 2p in my fridge though.

[Peace-Phoenix]

He once put 2p in my fridge though.
No, that's just what you heard. What I actually said was I'm going to pee in your fridge....

[PinkMoon]

Thats a lie. I found two pence in the fridge.

[Peace-Phoenix]

If you were an inanimate object, what would you be?
I think I'd be a pen, then I could still write....

[xZx]

Do you have a favourite kind of spoon?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I kind of like the large desert spoons, somewhere in between teaspoons and tablespoons. If I had to pick any kind of spoon it would be that....

[lithium]

What's your opinion on runcible spoons?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I'm quite apathetic on the matter....

[phoenix_indigo]

What about a spork (http://oak.cats.ohiou.edu/%7Ejm703496/spork/)?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Sporks are ungodly hybrids. There are some things with which man was never meant to meddle....

[lithium]

Do you have a least favourite type of knife and/or fork?

And the spork is a ghastly American version of Lear's almost perfect runcible spoon, why can't they leave well alone:rolleyes:

[Peace-Phoenix]

Knives and forks with plastic handles. They just have no class....

[lithium]

And to continue the cutlery theme ... a most favourite?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Gotta be the silverware, for those rare times I find myself at those sorts of occassions....

[xZx]

Gotta be the silverware, for those rare times I find myself at those sorts of occassions.... I don’t think I've ever found myself at one of those occasions...

Speaking of runcible spoons, have you ever dined on mince and slices of quince?

Do you know which knife and fork one should use to peel a banana?

[Peace-Phoenix]

What's mince and quince? And call me old fashioned, but I'd use my hands to peel a banana....

[Peace-Phoenix]

I should point out at this juncture, that the next person to ask me a cutlery related question will be told to fork off....

[lithium]

OK, next subject: crockery. What's your favourite kind of plate?:tongue:

[Peace-Phoenix]

What a crock of shit :tongue:

[PinkMoon]

how do you feel about spooning

[Peace-Phoenix]

It's quite enjoyable....

[xZx]

Do you own any tasteless garden ornaments?

[Peace-Phoenix]

Nope. We have three old staddle stones, which were once used for threshing corn, and a stone statue, but they're antiques and not really tasteless. No gnomes. Just a pond, flowerbeds, lawns, a wooded area and a greenhouse and a vegetable patch....

[lithium]

If you couldn't be you, who would you want to be, and why?

[Peace-Phoenix]

That's honestly a very difficuly question to answer as I'm incredibly happy being me. I'd like to try my hand at being an actor though, or maybe a rock star. It's a shame you only get one stab at life, and although I'm quite content with the stab I'm having at this one, there are many things I'd like to try my hand at, but know I never will....

[lithium]

What's the most interesting thing you've ever learnt?
What would you like to learn more about?

[Taz]

you also have an orchard...

[Taz]

If there was no such thing as university, what would you have done after school?

[fountains of nay]

When you die, are you going to be buried/cremated by western traditions or muslim traditions?

[Peace-Phoenix]

When you die, are you going to be buried/cremated by western traditions or muslim traditions?
Definitely wouldn't be Muslim traditions, I have no connection to Muslim culture in any way. I'm also very anti-religious, I wouldn't want a religious funeral of any sort, be that Muslim or Christian....

[fountains of nay]

So, how would you want to be "disposed" of?

[Peace-Phoenix]

I don't, I want to live forever....

[fountains of nay]

Ooooooooo, but surely living forever won't be cool when you get old and can't do much?

[Peace-Phoenix]

If I had the means to live forever, I expect that would take into account cell degradation through mitosis so that I wouldn't age either....

[fountains of nay]

You've got this well thought out! :)