Big Day Out

I went to Big Day Out, a huge music festival here in Sydney. It was awesome! There were so many people there and I got to see some awesome bands. I moved right up front to see Serj Tankian; I'd never been that close to stage before. Here are some pics, the rest I'll post on facebook.

I also did something called Silent Disco where everyone has wireless headphones on and are rocking out while everyone without headphones watches in envy. Check this out.

And these videos too. Here and Here

We were there quite early as you can tell. It was a full day of rocking out...

It was packed by the end of the day. This is just 2 stages out of the 8 there.

SERJ!

The huge building that would later fill up that played electronic/DJ music.

It was a fun day.

To Give Blood ampersand To Rock Out...

I compared and contrasted how the Australian Blood Donor clinic's work to the ones in Canada by donating blood. The processes are pretty much the same but they get milkshakes after donating! I walked around with the bandage around my arm representing all the donors out there; that's right, my blood can go on to save 3 lives what what.

Tomorrow I am heading to Big Day Out. It is the biggest music festival held here in Australia, and I am looking forward to it. I don't ever think I've been to a music festival before, let alone one in another country. But I know that every time I do go to a concert I always think 'Why don't I do this more often', so I am. There is a huge list of bands playing on several stages, so we'll basically go from stage to stage checking out the bands we want to see most. I'll bring my camera and take some pictures for ya.


Keep on rockin,

Peace

Today Has Been Awesome...

As the title suggests, I have had an awesome day today. It was Sunday so I only worked 5 hours, but work was interesting though. I saw my first protest today. There were thousands upon thousands of people that walked nearby Cartier protesting Isreal's occupation of the Gaza Strip.

It was quite cool. There were riot police everywhere. At first I had no idea what was going on, but then one of the security guys came up to me and told me that there was a protest heading our way. The Cartier store is located in the MLC building, which I learnt, also has the American Embassy in it, so there were some fears that the protesters might head there. Luckily, nothing got out of hand; the protesters were routed up King street to Hyde Park, and it remained peaceful. I was ready out front of Cartier though with orders to close and lock the doors had they come down the street. Here are some pictures of what I saw.

In this picture, I am standing in front of Cartier. The protesters can be seen walking past down the street. It was like a strange parade and it lasted around 10 minutes.Same thing. Sorry for the poor quality of the pics. You can make out the mounted police guarding the street so that they could not enter. The street has lots of expensive jewelery stores on it so it is not an ideal place for a riot to get out of hand.


This is just a picture of the mounted police, they were all girls ;). And at one point we have 5 riot SUV's infront of the store, several cop cars, and a couple riot trucks.
This is Cartier's mat. I am in charge of bringing it in. I also don't know how to rotate pictures yet, sorry about that. This I found ironic. This is at Hyde Park, where all the protesters ended up. As I walked past, I noticed an ad for ANZ was casting a shadow that looks like the Star of David on the ground. In the far back you can see, and could clearly hear all the protesters. I was just at the right time of day to walk by and see this because look at what the ad booth looks like.

So yeah, weird.

After I got off work I went SURFING!!! I rode my best wave ever; check out my surf journal at the top for the details.

And now Mike and I might head out to the casino for a bit. So great day overall.

Andy G

It's Saturday.

It's Saturday. I still have things I would like to post but Mike and I are going to go out for a bit of partying. Check out this video though...


He he he...

Also, I posted a new album on facebook of when I went to Manly for the first time. Check it out.

Crap I just found out my work schedule is different now. See when I'll be available to skype...

Where to start...my new addiction to learning...

Its late now, I have updated the blog a bit. Will post again tomorrow.

There are so many things I have on my mind lately, I don't know where to start; I'll just jump in I guess.

I am addicted to learning now. With my job, I am allowed to listen to my phone so I have downloaded some tapes that teach you how to learn French. I listened to 3 hours of them today. I've wanted to know another language for awhile now. It is because I hate it when people converse in a language I don't know. I want to know it. I am also using a website, Babbel, to help me with this as well. It is a really good website if you are looking to study another language, I highly recommend it.

In addition to learning French, I recently have taken to downloading lots of pdf's. On anything and everything that interest me. For example, I was reading this one titled 'Speed Math For Kids The Fast, Fun Way To Do Basic Calculations' by Bill Handley. In the ten minutes I was reading it I learnt a better way to calculate than what was taught to me in school.

If I asked you what 96 x 97 is, how would you go about figuring it out? How long would it take you?

I've always envied the people who could rapidly answer math questions, so in a strive to improve my mathematics, I'll read this book.

The way the book tells you to solve this calculation is to first figure what is the difference of 96 and 97 to the reference number. For them the reference number would be 100. So, 96 is 4 away from 100, and 97 is 3. Write 4 and 3 below 96 and 97 respectively. Then cross subtract either one, ie. 96 - 3, or 97 - 4. The answer you get is 93, and that informs you of the first two numbers of the answer. Then simply multiply 4 by 3 to get 12 to find out the last two numbers. The answer is then 9312. With little practice one can become quite rapid with that, possibly even beating someone who is using a calculator. This is just one example of a speed mathematic method.

So yes, I am doing my best to learn lots while here in Australia. It is kinda ironic though, now after I am no longer in school, I feel more urge to study and learn then I did while at university.

Some other things I will be looking to learn.

Cryptology. I want to write a puzzle book of sorts and need to know some fundamentals.



There is a rubik's cube laying around the house. I want to learn how to do that once and for all. Also, I have a square one, which is like a rubik's cube except that it can form different shapes other than a square. I'll try and learn that too.

I have to get back into reading books. Just in general, and about something that interests me. I want one to bring to the beach, so if you have any suggestions please, feel free. I'm also going to listen to books at work.

My blog. I am going to learn how to add new features to make it more appealing.

I will set aside 30 minutes a day to learn. Anything and everything, I want to know it all.

Update delayed...But here is my new haircut

Today I had a picnic with a few friends at bondi beach. It was quite fun and was at the beach all day. I am finally getting a tan. I know I am due for an update but am burnt out from 2 beach days in a row and are going to get some sleep instead. Now that I work 5 days a week I try to cram in as much fun as I can on my days off. Once home from work tomorrow I will upload some new pictures, and do some posts. For now though, here is a random picture I have as my background...


Au revoir... for now

WAIT!!! I keep forgetting you all haven't seen my new haircut. I love it short as it is so easy to maintain.

On the ferry waiting to get to Manly beach.

Me sitting on a fence with Manly in the background.

Here is the back of my head, again with Manly in the background.

Gameplan

Okay, I have 2 days off now. I am heading to Manly beach tomorrow to do some surfing but after that I need to spend some time and update my blog properly, add some new features, and let you guys know where I'm at. I've got a bunch of things to post so it shall be good. But right now I am going to get some rest for tomorrow so I can carve it up nicely.

All is well though, just so ya know.

Bye for now,

Meow

Sufing, more surfing, and my new haircut.

Howdy all,

I'm exhausted after a long day of surfing. This morning I went and got a haircut so I can remain employed (my boss told me I needed a better hair style). It's short now. I'll post some pics tomorrow. But after that we went to Manly beach via ferry. The beach is very beautiful and I spent the majority of the time surfing. Attempting to surf would be a more accurate term. But either way it was quite enjoyable.

Yesterday the day was spent at Bronte beach, a beach closer by but less crowded than Bondi. I was surfing the entire time as well. I fared better yesterday than I did today for some reason, likely the types of waves. Here are some pictures of me surfing, and of Mike and Megan who I was with.

Damn. Just damn.

These are the last pics of me with my long hair

Mike, Megan, and I

I ride a short board. Isn't she beautiful.
Me catching a wave.

I shall post some pics of Manly beach tomorrow. And my new haircut!!!

Off to sleep now though. Hope everyone is well.

G'night.

Fuck.

** It is now a few months after I made this post and I have had people suggest, and thought myself, of removing it. But, I realized, the whole point of me blogging my trip is so I can remember the highs AND the lows. Even if the low points are embarassing and are a cut into ones character, I believe it would not be just to remove it. And so, to all of those who stumble upon this post, whether you know me or not, know that I choose to leave this here, to serve as the reminder it is. **

First off, let me start by saying I hate making mistakes. I hate looking stupid. There is a part of me that cares so much what others think. What their view of me is. I know that I shouldn't care, but I do. Deep down, I want their envy and their respect.

That being said, I messed up. I drank beyond excess and I don't remember what I did last night. I just had the sad pleasure of having Mike recount the details to me. Wow.

It is kinda ironic in a sense. There are advertisements all over Sydney that warn against this exact thing. "Don't turn a night out into a nightmare". One depicts a person who gets struck by a car because he is too drunk; another of a couple who gets caught having sex. When I first saw these, I laughed; not out loud, but on the inside. 'Who the fuck does that?' I thought. 'Who lets themselves get that out of control?'. I did.

The scariest part is that I had no idea. I bought a box of cheap wine down here thinking that it would be a good way to get a little drunk before going to the club. I underestimated it is an understatement. I mistook it for a soft kitten when it was really a ferocious panther. Glass after glass it went down, like water with a hint of fruity wine taste. As Mike and I left to go to the club I honestly thought that I would have a nice buzz on, no clue that the devilish elixir takes awhile before it hits you. I drank more than half of the 4L box! It's 9.5% alcohol! I estimate that I had a blood alcohol level exceeding 0.3450%. What. the. fuck. Andrew. How was I that clueless? I have been sitting here trying to figure that out.

So what did I do? Good question. I have a memory black-out of the entire night. Honestly, if Mike wasn't there, I don't know. Actually, yeah I do, I won't deny the truth. I might not be here. I was that bad. That out of control. Absolutely terrifying.

When we got to the club, I was still okay. Things were going well at first. We were chatting it up with lots of people in the line. We were making good friends with some cute girls but things then went downhill quickly after. I drank some of their wine in line as well. Remember this is Mike's account of the actions.

I pissed off one of the girls. She took her cute friend away that I was talking to and went in the line. I cut to chase after them, the bouncer told me to go to the back of the line. I started mouthing off to the bouncer and then was denied entry. Mike finally got me away and then things turned worse. Stumbling along the streets of Sydney, I began to mouth off to anyone who would listen. One point I walked up to 4 guys much bigger than Mike and I and started swearing at them. They did not like that very much and if it wasn't for other friends holding them back, and Mike holding me, my face would be looking a bit differently I'm sure. It gets better. I walked up to a police officer and told him to 'Fuck off'. Mike saved me from getting arrested there. At one point I entered a hostel and refused to leave. They actually had to call the cops before I left. I tried running away from Mike several times. I passed out several times. In such bad shape that a group of people surrounded me and tried to take pictures with the passed out drunk. Mike told them off thankfully. 'Fuck traffic lights' I stated as I ran onto the street and was inches from getting destroyed by a taxi. I also tried to fight Mike. He has a nice bruise on his arm now thanks to me.

Eventually we got back to the apartment. I then puked up as much as I could. Off the balcony even. I laid on the couch for a bit, senselessly muttering to myself. Mike took some videos of me at this point. But yeah, I had alcohol poisoning.

I am so utterly disgusted with myself I can taste it. I turned a night out into a nightmare. That stupid fucking cliche comment keeps going through my head. I always though I'll never be that guy. I was. FUCK.

So now I'm left sitting here, wondering what to do. How do I punish myself? How do I make everything right again? How do I NEVER let this happen again?

I completely and entirely lost control. The disgusting part is, this has happened before. What the fuck is wrong with me? Seriously.

How do I fix this? The best way I can. I man up. I have no recollection of this so I have made one. I've posted it here as a reminder. A little dark stain on the white shirt that is my life. I, Andrew Hamilton Meades, fucked up. I am sorry. Sorry to the bouncers. Sorry to the girls. Sorry to the receptionist who had to call the police on me. I plan on going back to where I was and apologizing right after this post. Something in my life is not right that I allowed for this to happen. I plan on finding out what that is and forever working to fix it.

And I am especially sorry to Mike. You took care of me last night and I am indebted. You saved my ass from getting kicked. From getting arrested, which I learned that there is a $5000 fine for btw. You even made sure to set several alarms to ensure I got to work the next day. As much as I wish upon myself now that those did happen. That I paid a higher price. You ensured my safety. Mike, I am sorry. I took all the fun out of your trip here last night and you didn't deserve that. I will NEVER let myself get that way again. I was clueless with how the wine intoxicates and I have paid the price. From now on, our times shall be full of only awesomeness.

And to everyone else who reads this. Be fucking careful. Hopefully you already have more sense than I.

As much as I want to say I will never drink again, I will. I have to just make sure I drink intelligently. From now on, drinking is like walking on ice; one misstep and you fall. Hard. And it hurts. And it's embarrassing. So, don't run, but walk. And if I am ever feeling angry,depressed, and even overexcited, I shall not drink. I cannot do it proper naively so I must be on guard every time. It's time for me to grow up, so I will.

Signed,

Andrew Meades


Here is a little reference on blood alcohol content. I almost got to the end of the chart. :(

NYE Sydney

Here is a picture and a video. When I get the rest of the pics from Mike ill upload.

And here is a little video of the fireworks. Yes I shout WOOOOOOO!!!! in it a lot. More later but Mike and I are going to head out tonight.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0aUoOZqS1c

Here is the facebook album.

Peace for now.

HAPPY NEWYEARS!!!!

Wishing everyone the best in 2009 from Sydney. Will post my pictures from the awesome fireworks show at Sydney harbour as soon as I get back from surfing :)

YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!1111!!!!111!oneone!!!!11