2009 Inauguration
Jan 21, 2009
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One year ago today, I woke up in Montevideo, a new life, a new world and a time filled with unexpected surprises in store for me. I had no idea of what lay ahead of me, only that the immediate future was mine to decide, where I went, what I did and with whom I did it.
Today, the whole world has woken up to new life, a new world and a time filled with unexpected (but hopefully) pleasant surprises, as a man we hope is capable, has taken the helm of the most powerful nation on planet Earth.
The American people have given Obama the ultimate vote of confidence, and I hope that he can steer the US onto a better course than his predecessor, and maybe regain some respect for his nation, which has been utterly disgraced over the last 8 years.
From my economy lessons I have learned that all past decisions and costs are known as sunk costs. That means that they are irrelevant, and knowing what’s irrelevant and what isn’t, is hugely important to make the right decisions for the future.
When Obama makes decisions about Iraq, any reasoning about the invasion, and the casualties are irrelevant, what matters are the future and future costs, and what the return is on staying in Iraq. I personally believe that we should have stayed (Denmark), and so should all other nations, until the task was done. It can be compared to tearing down a shoddy house, and then abandoning the project, instead of taking the time to building a new house. The old building might have been terrible, but it provided some shelter and some stability. What has happened now is that everything goes with the wind; there is no control, no system, just havoc.
With the current focus on rebuilding the economy, my fear is that the environment will be given less attention, as it has never thus far, been given the attention it deserves, but less certainly isn’t better; the environment and education is what matters most, with health coming in shortly after. But in America those 3 sectors are famously neglected (education in America is so expensive, as the government doesn’t do much about it), but here’s the new angle, Obama has promised to do something about all 3.
I fear that the glamour around Obama will fade quickly, he made a lot of election promises and he won’t be able to keep them; a lot was said, but how much will be done?
I believe change will come, but it will come slower than we feared, and it won’t be as significant as we hoped for. Obama didn’t get as large a victory as he had hoped (which would be carrying 30 states), meaning that he has to bargain with the republicans, as the democrats alone can’t do whatever they please, despite having a majority in the senate (apparently it takes 60% to close a discussion, instead the republicans can just keep it open for eternity).
But the expectations the world have are extreme, save the environment, stop war, create peace (no war, doesn’t mean peace) and do something about the pandas while he is at it.
I suspect his presidency will be about highlighting the difference from the Bush administration, and his legacy will be his skin colour, and not his politics, of course I also hope that I will be proven wrong, that he will rise to the occasion and show the world that the US still knows how to save the day, the world and the environment.
Life is like a rainbow. You need both the sun and the rain to make its colours appear
Jan 19, 2009
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I love the title of this post, it’s beautiful.
I’m not gonna go out and shout at the top of my lungs, that I’ve had a terrible life. I’ve never been abused, maltreated, misused or neglected. But that isn’t what the quote aims at either, it’s a balance in between the good and the bad.
I don’t have the right balance, far from it, but I’m aiming to get there.
My childhood wasn’t easy, I was bullied for many years (picked on and beaten), and when someone finally noticed and I got sent to a different school, people had heard of me, and instead I was just ignored.
My year at boarding school was really good, people didn’t know me, and didn’t judge me before they knew me.
My parents ended up in a fiery divorce, from which I suffered a great deal, acting a lot as the messenger and taking the blame; and those years, I would rather forget. But this isn’t a pity post, I’ve had amazing experiences in my life.
I spent 5 months backpacking in South America, I’ve travelled in 37 countries, lived abroad, met the most amazing people, spent a big part of my life scouting and most of all… I’ve more of that to look forward to, all the travelling I will be doing, all the people I have yet to meet and the experiences ahead of me.
I’ve recently moved to Århus, I’m now studying at the Business School of Aarhus, I live in a fantastic dormitory with fantastic people, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Bush, The Memory
Jan 12, 2009
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This article:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7783286.stm
Argues that George W. Bush might be remembered well as a president, as he made tough calls that had to be made; similar to the situtation Truman was in; and justifies this statement by saying that at Trumans lowest point, he had a 22% approval rating, far below anything George W. Bush has been made to suffer.
I understand that this article underlines might, but the notion is just ridicoulus, Truman might have had a low approval rating in the states, but those in the know supported him, and unlike Bush he wasn’t universally hated.
Truman initiated the Marshall Plan, allowing a rapid regrowth of Western Europe, if that doesn’t make a good president, I wouldn’t know what does. He greatly helped rebuild Western Germany along with Britain, France and all the other devastated countries.
George W. Bush has done nought in that aspect, he has taken some of the most inhospitable countries in the world (Iraq and Afghanistan), and at least with Iraq turned it into a far worse place. There are more deaths, more suicidebombs, more persecution, more of all the bad stuff, it’s like he went to a country that was at rockbottom and drilled even deeper… Well done, indeed. I do support the war in Afghanistan, I believe it’s a necessary job, and that long term stability there is necessary, there is a cost, but it’s worth a lot.
If we pride ourselves on being the free world, then we cannot turn a blind eye to the oppressed.
I am indeed critical of George W Bush, and this isn’t just some hindsight fix, I supported both Al Gore and John Kerry; I believe that George W Bush will be looked back upon with disgrace (except maybe by some Americans), and that we need to move on from here, and hope that Sarah Palin never gets elected.
365 Days… 11 Days Down.
Jan 11, 2008
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I’m doing a “365” project, which means I will take a picture of myself every for a year, challenging my creativity in photography.
So far some of mine have been good, while others have been more generic, but I’m absolutely happy with the project so far, and I’m looking forward to continuing with this for a year, or maybe even more beyond that.
Once in a while I will update my blog, once I have accumulated enough good new shots. So here is the first batch:
January 3rd, 4th and 9th
January 5th, January 8th,
January 9th
I know it isn’t in chronological order, but it fitted better this way.
So what do you think? Voice your opinion in a comment please :)
Trainspotting
Jan 10, 2009
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Very nice day indeed, I spent 7 hours at work not doing much.
When I got home I spent about an hour or so cooking, in preparation for the arrival of Sine and Kra, two of the scouts
from my group, who were coming for dinner as well as Trainspotting.
It was a lovely evening, not only was my dinner very good (if I may say so), but the mood was amazing and the movie is pure brilliance.
After the movie we had about 1 hour and 30 minutes before they were getting picked up, and instead of watching a second short movie, we just goofed around and had fun, it was all very nice.
We will undoubtedly repeat the success, although I’m a bit booked in the next couple of weeks, going both to Spain (visiting my mother) and France (skiing). But we have already agreed that we will watch Million Dollar Baby.
365 Days
Jan 3, 2009
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I have begun a new project, on flickr there is a group, where the goal is to take a picture of yourself, every day for a year.
The goal isn’t just to take a picture, but to make it interesting, and to help you develop your skills.
So far it’s the 3rd of January, and I haven’t made it far yet, but I really like the picture from today.
So, which one do you like better?
I like the B/W the most, although I like the blue tshirt a lot, giving the colour version the final edge.
Simon
Dec 29, 2008
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December 11th, 2008
Having celebrated Christmas and my birthday at my uncles place, eating duck and other traditional Christmas food; I was given a candle holder and a photography book which I very much appreciate, although my uncles praise for my own book superseded it.
On the way back, DSB didn’t disappoint me. The train was 2 hours delayed, however fortunate for me, the train scheduled for departure 1 hour and 30 minutes earlier, was delayed as well, and I only had to wait for 30 minutes or so, unfortunately time had slipped through my fingers at my uncles place, so by the time I was home in my bed, it was half past 1.
But what I want to tell you is about Simon.
While waiting for the train, I came to talk to Simon, a person from Copenhagen (like myself), who had moved to Århus (like me) and was studying journalism (unlike me). Unfortunately he was going to break off his study and move back to Copenhagen, he had moved to Århus after he got divorced from his wife, as he wanted to live close to his children, unfortunately it didn’t work out.
But it was such a nice experience to talk with him, not only is it rare to just fall in conversation with strangers in Denmark, but when you do… They are usually as exciting, as dueling with a snail, there just isn’t much excitement there, although it is possible (pistols at dawn?).
He had such interesting stories to tell about where he’d been and what he’d done; he asked intelligent and interesting questions, really listened to what I said, and asked good questions about it. But most of all, he was just interested, he seemed to care about everyone around, he was modest, and in every way I can think, he was a good person, in fact, he seemed to be one of the best people I have met, not just nice, but deep inside him, rested a good core.
I didn’t know him for that long, but he has left me with a lasting impression, a lasting impression of a good person.
Crazy Christmas Cabaret
Dec 29, 2008
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December 17th, 2008
There are certain traditions in my life, and one of them is watching the Crazy Christmas Cabaret every year, together with my very good and old friend Christian Løber. First year we did it was back in 1997, when the show was Tarzan, King of the Swingers.
The show has sexual undertones, especially in the title, and takes famous stories, twists them, mixes them, and turns them satirical.
Last year the show was titled, Fogg’s Off, a reference to Phileas Fogg, who travelled around the world in 80 days, and it was by far, one of the best performances they have ever done.
This year it was Hamlet’s Private Dick (as in detective), a story about Sherlock Holmes, trying to solve a mystery, revolving around Holmes’s arch enemy’s second in command (some Austrian mastermind), disguised as a Brazilian footballer. I know it doesn’t sound that great, and to be frank, it wasn’t. Although the second act was hilarious, the first act was slow, and none of it, reached the heights of shows.
The only true highlight was that Dr. Van Helsingør from Elsinore (a recurring character every year, wildly popular), had a much bigger role than usual, and featured a lot on stage. Another “recurring” character is the fat lady. I put recurring in “, as it is the same actor performing the same role, in the same type of clothes, and with the same personality, but it’s a different character every year.
Those two roles are simply hilarious, as always; the fat lady always has songs, extremely overdone dresses and is the character, who has the most contact with the audience. The fourth wall isn’t just broken in this show, it was never there.
Amongst the better things, was the fat lady dressed as Amy Winehouse, singing Rehab, as the character she plays in the show, has an alcohol problem. The plot revolves around the mysterious death of her husband (which is why Sherlock Holmes is brought in), and she tells a story of how they ordered gravestones for each other, prior to his death. He chose one for her which said “Cold as usualâ€, and she went for one which said “Stiff at lastâ€.
The sexual undertones are there throughout the show, but it never gets vulgar like âØrkenens Sønner (Sons of the Desert), it’s more in a good spirit; I would say that they do it with grace, but I don’t see how you can get good sexual jokes with grace.
The mind behind the show, is Vivian McKee, who writes and directs the show, as well as having a lot of roles in the show itself. Her roles are normally diverse, and her acting is terrific. She always starts the show with asking who have seen the show before (usually a big majority), making fun of the ones who haven’t and joking about her legs (they’re nice, especially considering her age).
The show; it wasn’t bad, it just started slowly, the literary jokes were further in between, the story wasn’t as interesting (to be fair, last year, was fantastic), but I’m forgetting the most important thing. I wrote that it’s a tradition, that I go to watch this show together with Christian; at first it was his mother, father and brother as well, but the family moved to Belgium, so for two years I saw it with my own family, I also might have missed a year, but now I meet up with Christian every year (this was the second time), and we have fun. This time, I arrived on the day of our tickets, we watched the show, and I stayed at his place for the night, catching up on times past, watched a movie and just enjoyed myself.
Christian is 4 months younger than me, and I have known him ever since he was born, we grew up together (he features on so many of my childhood pictures), and then, unfortunately, he moved to Aalborg, a city in the other end of Denmark, although I did visit him there a few times, but when he moved to Belgium, it was harder, and during those 3 years he spent there, I only visited him 3 times or so. But now we are both back in Denmark, although he lives in Copenhagen, and I live in Århus. But I don’t doubt, that I will see him every time I go back to Copenhagen; the point is that, to me, the most important thing about the show, is seeing Christian again.
While We Wait
To kill the wait, I will post some of my favourite pictures from flickr:
Quite possibly one of the happiest, come-to-life pictures I have ever seen, it is as cheerful as HoppÃppola.
I wouldn’t call it happy, but it’s beautiful, serene and secretive.
Incredible action shot, although as a photographer, I’d be afraid to get hit.
Another great action shot, it’s just the speed being shown.
Well, I just love ice cream
I’m not big on photoshop, although when it is obvious like here, it’s quite all right.
When I someday reach this age, I hope to be as happy, as these people look
I’ve went diving on several occasions, but I’ve never been able to bring a camera, but this certainly is a pretty picture
Just beautiful, nothing else is needed here
Out and about, AIDS
Nov 30, 2008
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Today and yesterday, I was out for the AIDS foundation collecting money; I was standing in something called Bruun’s Bazaar”, asking everyone who passed (well… mostly), if they wanted to donate to the struggle against AIDS, and to as many as I could, I gave out condoms.
When you’re standing around for that long, you try to amuse yourself. The bin used to collect money, is in Danish called “bøsse”, which happens to be the same as the word for a homosexual… Hilarity ensues… Well not really, it would be poor taste. But “support the fight against AIDS(give me money), and I will support yours (hand out a condom)”, I don’t think that’s bad taste, in worst case, it’s just stupid.
Time doesn’t go slow, I did 3 hours both days, it doesn’t go fast anyway, and by the time I was done, I was damn tired, walking around bugging people for money, it’s a very unforgiving job. Yes some people stop, chitchat etc., but only one in 10 or one in 15 stop and donate, some even shout abuse (I’ve heard “gay bastard” more than once, despite being heterosexual). But there are groups for all people, and these people can be grouped into the following:
- Complete ignore, as if I don’t exist
- Look and ignore
- Look and laugh
- Look and and then look in a completely different direction, this isn’t your teachers attention you’re avoiding
- Pick up your cellphone until you’re past me and put it down
- Lie to make yourself feel better by saying “not RIGHT now” or “not today”
- Shout abuse
- Claim you’ve already given someone else
- Excuse that you haven’t got any small change (we accept all types and size of money)
- Excuse that you’ve only got your credit card (just leave it with me)
So why do I it? I don’t get paid, I get shouted at (very rarely though), I get ignored and I haven’t got AIDS. I also don’t feel greatly with Western people who have it, yes I apologise for people who were raped, nurses who had an accident with a used needle, doctors performing operations etc.
It’s a disease you get, when you do what you’re supposed to do, when you have unprotected sex, when you think a morning after pill, is a good type of prevention. I understand that’s it’s important to develop medicine for it. If that’s achieved, the high mortality rate in Africa might be stopped, and we can work on stabilising that part of the world, and in the end… Economic prosperity, I mean that continent is so far down and out, what can one do but look on in despair?
I did it purely for my own gain, it makes me feel better, I like having done something for other people, and that’s not the way it’s meant to be, it’s supposed to be a selfless act, but I’m afraid it isn’t.
