Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Source

Guess I'd better get this random ranting back on the go, after all there's not much like a rave, is there?
1. McLeish, the new Scotland Boss. Yeah, that's the sound of apathy. Congratulations, you were crap at Rangers - have the Scotland job. If I could be congratulated for being crap, then I would be crap more often and have a great job. Media report suggest that he had won a load of trophies with Rangers. True. Leagues however, he did not win. In the history books, it will say that he did but I'm not sure 'winning' leagues by 1 goal and 1 point actually means 'winning'. His Rangers legacy is still being felt now. Thankfully. They are crap and have been all season and the season before that. If he takes us to a major Championship, then I will offer a full apology and admit the errors of my ways but...

2. the 'green' movement. The more you moan, the less I'm going to listen. Simple as that.

3. Hastings believes that Scotland will win the Triple Crown. I'll have some of what he's been drinking. Beating England, Wales and Ireland in the same season. Aye right. Next we'll be beating bloody Italy.

4. Academics don't make good teachers. Names? No, can't cos they are marking my assignments at the moment.

5. that's your lot.

Friday, January 26, 2007

explanations

done.
hand-in.
dusted.
sorted.
+any other words associated with completing my 12,000word marathon. think it was closer to 14,000 but hopefully the markers won't notice.
it's kind of strange to wake up this morning and not think 'damn, i've got to write about x/y/z'. probably the 1st time this year actually.
thought i'd be handing them in today but that changed. in the end, i just couldn't bear looking at them anymore. they had to go. what would be the purpose of sitting on them? they weren't going to get any better. they might well have gotten worse. in the end, they were printed and read one final time and then the long march up the stairs to hand them in. and in they went. hope i never see them again. i guess that will change in a month or so.

and then that was it. hand them in. and nothing. anti-climatic; but what can you expect to happen? a choir of gospel singers to usher you out of the office? a round of applause? nothing. i just kept walking.

and thats all. the rest of the day was a nothing. head hurt. couldn't be arsed. can't be arsed chatting or moving or anything.

and what of these assignments?
Research Methods=good. happy with it. 2. Philosophical Foundations=very dry but what can you do when you are discussing hypothetical constructs some of which are dealing unconscious learning proceses. factually, its spot on. is that enough though. 3. Nature of Enquiry. hmm.=if points are awarded for the difference in what i know now having done the course, compared to what i didn't know before it, then i've done well.

worked hard. read loads and did my best.
predications? would be gutted if i didn't do well. seriously devestated. could turn into this years hurt.

Sunday, January 21, 2007

Make

The big fish eat the little fish and the little fish eat the littler fish.
and so on.

Saturday, January 20, 2007

motion.

Yet, it was not until more recent times that the study of language was given a legitimate scientific foundation.

The Swiss linguist, Ferdinand de Saussure (1857 – 1913) is largely credited with achieving this. Saussure was of the view that object of linguistics had not been suitably clarified. If its object had not been defined, then he was of the opinion that linguistics could not claim scientific status.

His dissatisfaction lead him to reject the methodology and terminology he found within the field and in doing so, he set about strategically placing linguistics alongside the more established and prized disciplines of Biology, Chemistry and Physics.

This though, he surmised could only be achieved by precipitating a crucial and, in historical terms, radical ontological-epistemological shift in distinction; a distinction which allowed language to be objectively studied. The resulting shift in perspective enabled scholars to discover laws and make generalisations to explain reality and enable prediction and control through experiments.

It is a view which strongly prevails within linguistics to this day.

Crowley (1996:6-29) provides a detailed insight into the historical backdrop that Saussure found himself in and how he set about establishing linguistics status as a science.

there.
said it.
if only it was as easy as saying ilove u.
haha.

Wednesday, January 17, 2007

realities

i'm sure young sexy will be liking this one.
Mr. Ali. 65 years old.

ON BEING THE GREATEST:

I'm not the greatest; I'm the double greatest. Not only do I knock 'em out, I pick the round.
It's just a job. Grass grows, birds fly, waves pound the sand. I beat people up.
Floats like a butterfly, sting like a bee, his hands can't hit what his eyes can't see.
Before the 1974 fight against George Foreman

I done wrestled with an alligator, I done tussled with a whale; handcuffed lightning, thrown thunder in jail; only last week, I murdered a rock, injured a stone, hospitalised a brick; I'm so mean I make medicine sick.
Again, before the 1974 Foreman fight

I'm so fast that last night I turned off the light switch in my hotel room and got into bed before the room was dark.
Yet more '74 pre-fight build-up ahead of facing Foreman

The fight is won or lost far away from witnesses - behind the lines, in the gym, and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights.

Superman don't need no seatbelt.

When you can whip any man in the world, you never know peace.
I'm the best. I just haven't played yet.
On playing golf


ON BOXING

Boxing is a lot of white men watching two black men beat each other up.

Champions aren't made in gyms, champions are made from something they have deep inside them - a desire, a dream, a vision. They have to have last-minute stamina, they have to be a little faster, they have to have the skill and the will. But the will must be stronger than the skill.

Only the nose knows where the nose goes when the doors close.

I never thought of losing, but now that it's happened, the only thing is to do it right. That's my obligation to all the people who believe in me. We all have to take defeats in life.
After losing to Ken Norton, 31 March 1973


ON RACE, RELIGION AND LIFE

I am America. I am the part you won't recognise. But get used to me. Black, confident, cocky; my name, not yours; my religion, not yours; my goals, my own; get used to me.
Cassius Clay is a slave name. I didn't choose it and I don't want it. I am Muhammad Ali, a free name - it means beloved of God - and I insist people use it when people speak to me and of me. Announcing his conversion to the Muslim faith after first Sonny Liston fight

"What's my name, fool? What's my name?"
To Ernie Terrell during their 1967 fight - Terrell had refused to call him Muhammad Ali

I know I got it made while the masses of black people are catchin' hell, but as long as they ain't free, I ain't free.

Why should they ask me to put on a uniform and go 10,000 miles from home and drop bombs and bullets on brown people while so-called Negro people in Louisville are treated like dogs?

I got nothing against no Viet Cong. No Vietnamese ever called me a 'nigger'.

Nobody has to tell me that this is a serious business. I'm not fighting one man. I'm fighting a lot of men, showing a lot of 'em, here is one man they couldn't defeat, couldn't conquer. My mission is to bring freedom to 30m black people.
Before his fight against Jerry Quarry in 1970.

A man who views the world the same at 50 as he did at 20 has wasted 30 years of his life.

What's really hurting me - the name Islam is involved, and Muslim is involved and causing trouble and starting hate and violence. Islam is not a killer religion, Islam means peace. I couldn't just sit home and watch people label Muslims as the reason for this problem.
21 September 2001, in the aftermath of the World Trade Center attacks


ALI vs FRAZIER

Frazier is so ugly that he should donate his face to the US Bureau of Wildlife. Ali

It will be a killer, and a chiller, and a thriller, when I get the gorilla in Manila Ali, before the "Thrilla in Manila" against Frazier

Joe Frazier is so ugly that when he cries, the tears turn around and go down the back of his head. Ali

I always bring out the best in men I fight, but Joe Frazier, I'll tell the world right now, brings out the best in me. I'm gonna tell ya, that's one helluva man, and God bless him.
Ali, after the "Thrilla in Manila"

I said a lot of things in the heat of the moment that I shouldn't have said. Called him names I shouldn't have called him. I apologise for that. I'm sorry. It was all meant to promote the fight. Ali

The Butterfly and me have been through some ups and downs and there have been lots of emotions, many of them bad. But I have forgiven him. I had to. You cannot hold out for ever. There were bruises in my heart because of the words he used. I spent years dreaming about him and wanting to hurt him. But you have got to throw that stick out of the window. Do not forget that we needed each other, to produce some of the greatest fights of all time.
Frazier in reflective mood.


ON OTHER OPPONENTS

Hey Floyd - I seen you! Someday I'm gonna whup you! Don't you forget, I am the greatest!
To then-world heavyweight champion Floyd Patterson during the 1960 Olympic Games.

Why, Chump, I bet you scare yourself to death just starin' in the mirror. You ugly bear! You ain't never fought nobody but tramps and has beens. You call yourself a world champion? You're too old and slow to be champion!
To Sonny Liston before their fight on 25 February 1964

I shook up the world! I shook up the world!
After beating Liston

That all you got George?
To Foreman late in the Rumble in the Jungle in Zaire on 30 October 1974

genius.

Saturday, January 13, 2007

Substantial

Gallus.
(ga-luss)
Dialect, chiefly Scot. ~ adj.
1. Self-confident, daring, cheeky.
2. Stylish, impressive ('see him, he's pure gallus, by the way')
3. orig. derogatory, meaning wild; a rascal, deserving to be hanged (from the gallows).

apparantly.

Thursday, January 11, 2007

werideuride

it started off with a kiss. how did it end up like this.
not really.

so, forrest gump is running. he has run from alabama to the west coast and from the west coast to the east coast. he is running back towards the west coast. a crowd has gathered and is following him. they see him as some kind saviour. some kind of inspirational figure head. he's not. he's just running because he can. on a long stretch of road in the desert he slows to a stop. behind him, his crowd slow also. he turns around to them. 'i'm kind of tired. i think i'll go home now'. and he does. just like that.

there, a little metaphor for you.
kind of tired.

Tuesday, January 09, 2007

diploma

Honestly some people.
In fact, I might even say - honestly, Scottish punters.
Some just don't look at the bigger picture and are completely content to look after themselves in there small, me me me world. Narrow-mindness prevails.

Of course, thats you Walter. National coach. The bigger picture is getting a strong and relatively successful football team on the go. The rewards are not just in the FIFA rankings but having the whole of Europe looking at the group table and thinking 'those Scots aren't that bad a team'. And with that comes the money side of things. Increased revenue from tickets sales, tv rights and sponsorship which doesn't just get put into the SFA'S bank account. It gets put into developing the grassroots which can at the very least get more kids playing.

Also, if we have a good national team, then potential players may think that the Scottish league isn't all that bad. And if we can attract decent players, then standards will improve.

But, old Walter has turned his back on this and gone to what can only be described as a crap team. The bigger picture for the small, limited gains of getting Rangers right. There is more chance of the National team getting to Euro 2oo8 than there is of Rangers doing well in the Champions League.

Stupid.

Saturday, January 06, 2007

outtage

The absolute dullness of sitting at a computer waiting for some form of inspiration to come from somewhere. To coin a Michael Caine-ism 'What's it all about?'

A question that I frquently ask myself. This word? This sentences? This paragraph? This Page? This assignment? This semester? This whole writing process? For what?

To let the lecturers know that I know what I'm talking about. I know what I'm talking about. Some of the time. Less than 3 weeks til hand-in day.
Pressure? What Pressure?

Having no food and water, that's pressure. Dangling 100 foot up a cliff and your strength waning, that's pressure. And the other forms of pressure that come before the pressure that i'm 'under'.

A holiday. Some nice sunshine and a dip in the warm blue sea. Required.

Wednesday, January 03, 2007

Attested

You numpty. You total numpty for even thinking it. Yes, that's you Walter - the Scottish football manager. Why on earth would you give up the Scotland job and head back to Rangers?
Are you mental?

We're upto 20th in the FIFA rankings, top of the Qualification Group and holders of the Kirkin Cup.
Rangers are 17 points behind Celtic, have a limited squad and you left in the first place because you didn't win a trophy. With little money to be spent in the transfer window.

Reality dictates...
Surely.

Tuesday, January 02, 2007

Tempest

Wants:

Health.
Daily recommended amount of fruit.
Increase in flexibility.
Gym attendence. 3 times per week.
3 assignments to be completed by 26 jan.
3 more assignments completed by april.
a monolithe of a research dissertation to be brillant.
Distinction.
Smiling.
Stess-less.
success. not mine...others
success.
Peace.
end to starvation and poverty.
bike to work.
healthy infants.
doing well.
cooking ability.
job.
money.
nice weather.
hangoverless.
successful wedding. not mine.
holiday.
Her. yes her. that one.