I'm probably biased, but I think you should buy my book. It's about photograpy, and it's lots of amazing. Or so I've been told.

node audits

I hereby offer node audits to all noders who want one. It is quite simple: you contact me, tell me you want a node audit, and I will go through all your nodes. If you would like to see other people who offer audits, or if you would like to offer them yourself, read node audit, and send me a /msg!

I will:
-Suggest changes
-Tell you what I like
-Tell you what I don't like
-Help you
-Be a spelling pedant
-Upvote all writeups that are decent
-Downvote nothing - instead I'll suggest how to earn the upvote.
-C! particularly good nodes

the rules

The only thing I ask of you is that you are willing to take the critique that may come, and that you consider the suggestions. If you have more than 50 writeups, you'll be relegated to the bottom of the list and I'll audit you when I have the time. People with fewer than 50 writeups will be audited within a week or so.

audit me!

"But I only have 20 votes", I hear you cry. The great thing is, it doesn't matter. If you would like to help me out, give my 20 newest writeup a once-over. Or per- haps you are curious what I was like as a baby-noder, and you prefer to have a look at my 20 oldest nodes. Or maybe my 20 lowest-rep ones need some lovin'? Or my 20 highest rep ones? Or you could even just have the database "sort" my user search at random - that way you get a selection of whatever is out there.

No audit is too small, and all comments are most welcome. I've been here for a while, but I'm learning all the time...

wise words

- The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. Resist, and your soul grows sick with longing for the things it has forbidden itself.

SharQ's hall of fame

watch out for these noders. you will notice them sooner or later anyway. best make it sooner.

- Princess Therion
- tokki
- face
- Dawggy

You know there is something special going on, when you stumble out of a darkened cinema hall, out among a thousand drunk, singing people whose highest priority in life it is to try and hail a cab, and if they have enough cash left for the fare home, and you find yourself thinking... "I am alive. But I shan't be forever. What am I going to do about it?" (from my donnie darko write-up - possibly my best film-review to date)

don't let this footprint
lead the other way

don't leave it all behind

the tiny steps
make the slowest miles

but soon
you'll be out of sight

my ultimate writeup?

I just finished my degree in journalism. If you want to know if you should consider such a thing, you will want to read my most thorough write-up to date - a full 8000 words of dissertating goodness with the rather simple conclusion: Don't bother.. Which, in a very depressing, but simultaneously rather sobering, way, means that I now realise I wasted three years of my life getting a degree during which I learnt nothing of value. But hey, at least being an uni student gave me plenty of time for noding, so something good did come out of it.

My ultimate writeup? - part II

Okay, so maybe this goes in the category of ultimate daylog... But I did a complete overview of my music taste. If such a thing would interest you, you may find September 30, 2004 interesting.

noder meets I have been to:

jun -05: Impromptu nodermeet at the Jerusalem Tavern
nov -03: The death of a Comedy Legend: A Multi-cultural Liverpool Noder Meet
aug -02: The Bristol International Noder Meet
nov -01: Will Ya Ride Me Like A Monkey Missus? : An Anglo-Irish E2 Get-Together

if this is a man

Sooner or later in life everyone discovers that perfect happiness is unrealizable, but there are few who pause to consider the antithesis: that perfect unhappiness is equally unattainable. The obstacles preventing the realization of both these extreme states are of the same nature: They derive from our human condition which is opposed to everything infinite. Our ever- insufficient knowledge of the future opposes it.

- Primo Levi, in If this is a man

And the beat goes on

I can see you thinking it. "for a lad always whining about too much to do, he certainly seems to spend a lot of time on E2, wasting his time". And you are more than likely to be correct as well. I have no time, so I spend it on things I do not need to spend time on. The irony does not elude me.

At the moment, I feel old. I don't know why. Not physically old, perhaps, but I feel the way I always imagined old people would feel. Old is not a physical age It is that stare that people get. The air of wisdom and life they get about them. A touch of warmth. That kind smile. You know the one.

If I had a day that I could give you
I'd give to you a day just like today

Every now and then, I get people on my back about the future.

I don'k know what it is about me and past - but I always seem to leave the pasts far behind. Beginning one school, I tried to keep in touch with my old friends. The next school, realising I didn't have any, I didn't bother. Making new friends, and losing them. And never quite feeling bad about it. 'part of life', I'd say, and get back to my computer, doing my stuff. Getting better at the things I am good at. Putting more distance between myself and the others. I never missed them. I never do. But then, every now and then, I wish I had somebody who would call me. Tell me of their troubles. And - more importantly - their happy moments. The steps towards the pursuit of their dreams. Just like myself. Having moved house more times than I care to remember, torching more than a few bridges in my path, feels good. The new beginnings have been valuable towards shaping me. Getting a chance towards understanding people. Understanding myself. No, the past has never really been a problem. What I am not proud of I am not ashamed of either. A few things should have been different, I suppose.

But regret is not part of my immediate vocabulary.

And I wonder.
When I sing along with you.
If everything could ever feel this real forever.
If anything could ever be this good again.

The only thing I'll ever ask of you:
You've got to promise not to stop,
when I say when.

She sang.

The future, then, holds a lot more. I suppose. But things always seem to get in the way of clear sight. I am spending time learning things I don't want to know. Things I don't need to know. Things that - if I had the remotest interest in learning them in the first place - I would have learnt a long time ago. So instead I spend my time plotting out a possible future. No patience or inspiration for writing. Too much compassion for tabloids. Too something for everything. Too little something else for anything else. A fear of future slowly grips hold. I have done more with my life than many other people I know, regardless of their age. Now what the hell will I do with the rest. Something that means something. To me. To others. To the one I love. I really, really, want to touch the souls of people. Through writing, perhaps. Through art. Music. Whatever.

and with a gentle, yet elegant and swift lash of his left hand, he handed them back their souls. somewhat surprised, his audience would reach out to reclaim their posessions. reclaim the souls of which they were never even aware they missed, until they were handed back at the end of the performance. gently slotting them back into place, as they pulled their coats on to face the winter chill, they noticed the slight change. some of the hard edges were slightly worn, like the sharp sides of a pair of ivory dice that had been rolling in the tide for an unknown period of time.

just long enough to be changed.
just long enough to make a difference.

me

I was born in may 1981, in an insignificant little town in the netherlands. In 1988 I was dragged to Norway with my parents, where I lived more or less happily until 1997. In this year, I lived in the us for a year, as an exchange student, before moving back to Norway with my parents again. I finished my primary education, and went to folkehøgskole for a year (again living away from my parents), before moving to Liverpool, in the UK. Here I am wasting my time studying Journalism. I have a multitude of odd hobbies including (in no particular order) martial arts, playing pool, design (both web and otherwise), photography, literature, writing (both fiction and otherwise), music (listening and playing). I like Photoshop. I like PHP. I am a good marksman, but I cannot stand firearms, and consider myself a pacifist. I consider myself a socialist, and I am a strong believer of most of the socialist ideals. I am more than happy to pay half of my wages in tax, if the money is spent wisely to make sure that everybody in my community (= country) gets all the medical and social attention they deserve. I am for strong state-control of commercial ventures. I am for full personal freedom in the field of knowledge and information, but I am against unconditional freedom. I am against drugs. I am generally against religion - I believe it is the root to most of evil in society, but I respect people who don't attempt to force theirs down my throat. I am generally against space exploration, as I believe the money could be better spent. I am against all military institutions. I am fiercefully and dedicatedly against cultural imperialism. I do not believe in patriotism. I do not like the situation between israel and palestine, but I have made up my mind: Both parties are completely fucked up. I despise tabloid- and celebrity press. I refuse to believe a news story until I have read it from at least two independent sources that I trust. I implicitly trust BBC, The Guardian and Aftenposten. I may trust other news sources, based on the story. I do not trust CNN. I do not believe in revenge. I believe in the justice system of many countries, but not all. I believe civil lawsuits are a bad thing. I believe in copyright and intelectual property, but I also believe that the gains made from these commodities should be in proportion with their merit. I do not believe in patents on medicines, agricultural products and other necessary commodities. I think abortion should be discouraged (prevention is better), but I believe it should be an option to anybody who feels the need. I do not mind sex before marriage. I believe all sexual orientations - including the ones that are frowned upon - should be taken seriously.

Catbox and /msg gems

2003.03.27 at 13:20 Cletus the Foetus says I had this messed-up dream last night that I lived across the street from you. You had a tattoo parlour.

2004.08.11 at 19:40 Kit says *meow*

2004.09.21 at 19:52 JohnnyGoodyear says Your very literal SharQ, which is probably a good thing in an editor...

2004.09.22 at 02:23 wordnerd says You're more than welcome to enjoy being on fire. Your bedding, and those who may be staying with you in aforementioned bedding may not enjoy it--hence, the flame-retardant bedding. I am here to help.

2004.10.04 at 05:36 tokki says If you injure yourself setting yourself on fire, I promise I'll send you a box of Pocky as an apology for setting yourself on fire for a complete stranger. And maybe a fire extinguisher.

2004.10.04 at 07:39 loquacious says re tubgirl : You armadillo-curd fucking fuckassed prison bitch! I'll eat all your goddamn shitfucking cornflakes for this assfuckery! Then I'll shit your cornflakes in your cockshitting cornflakes! You think this bungstink is funny? You play fuckskittles with humanities ass-pantry!

2004.10.09 at 16:16 tokki says New Pavlovian response: write a node, get hugged by SharQ. I can totally dig that. :D

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nodes:   415         xp:       41347       cools:     675       
level:   6           xp req:   0           nodes req: 100       
max rep: 241         min rep:  -17         total rep: 16698     
node-fu: 99.63       WNF:      57.50       coolratio: 75.18%
merit:   34.41       devotion: 14280       HR level:  10        
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