Kev & Ben's Excellent Adventure

Finally! It's organised. Ben and I just take a while :) Here's an excerpt of the email...

All you have to do is print out the following ticket:

and bring it on the night for free entry; otherwise the man will charge you $10!

Location: Jackson's on George, Level 1, 176 George Street.
Date: Two months too late! Saturday 3rd September 2005
Time: 10:00pm start. Get there early to make sure you can get in.
Music: RnB and Hip-Hop with the 1996-99 Golden Years of RnB mixed in just
the way you like it. Hope to see you there!

Damn! four cheap calls already:

See you there mate !!
JT (link) - 01 September '05 - 06:18

i was thinking about this over the weekend. for those who don't have home printers (a la moi), what about getting with the digital age and allowing people who have a pix of the coupon on their mobiles or digicams the same privis? :)
reenie - 04 September '05 - 09:55

Sadly since my phone is the "brick-style" Nokia 3310, the only pictures I can get is the dirty pr0n ones where you press the up and down keys of the mobile.
I should have asked Jacksons. And anyways, where were you?
JookBoy (link) - 05 September '05 - 05:15

ah hah! i have a brilliant excuse for this one. i was at a friend's farewell party :) inability to clone myself and my charming personality only left me with one event choice for the nite :P since you're still in the country...
reenie - 05 September '05 - 22:17

Social Capital

My company organised a presentation by the Harvard profesor Robert Putnam on the workings of social capital. If you click on the link, the information that is summarised is heaps better than anything I can write. My review here addresses what I saw as memorable sections of the speech.

• It is the connections we make with each other (this social capital) that adds value and productivity to our lives.
• Being socially disconnected equates to the same mortality rate as that of smoking.
• Social capital has to be based on physical networking. However, the key with technology is to work out how to utilise this technology we have now to better those networks.
• There are two types of social capital; bonding and bridging. Bonding capital is all about commonalities i.e. I would have a natural bonding capital with other asian male professionals in their mid-twenties. Bridging capital is the networks with have with people of different backgrounds, cultures, genders, age etc. A community must have both types for it to grow and succeed.

Bridging capital is obviously the harder one to create. So there are ways to increase the chances of this with groups.

1. Have lower barriers of entry i.e. make it easy to get in and get out
2. Have a cellular structure in your organisation, so that members will belong to small groups. People will feel the value in their small groups, and the aim of the leaders is to make sure all the small groups are heading the right direction.
3. Use common and less verbal activites to increase bridging e.g. arts, sports

It was a great talk. It's always good to get new perspectives on things. I'm keen on getting involved in a play now :)

Damn! three cheap calls already:

A play? Any excuse to perform in spandex pants right?

The article in your link is very interesting reading. It answers many questions, but poses more. Do we really trust our public authorities less now than in the past - do we today have a free voice to express it across mass media in a way not possible for previous generations?

Regardless, the data he provides is thought provoking. The physiological effects that intellectual stimulation and more notably human interaction provide are truly amazing.

Thanks for that post mate.
Taipan - 21 August '05 - 19:15

Interesting topic! I touched on Putnam and Bourdieu on Social capital last semester and yeah I passed! So what happens when there is a breakdown on Social Capital? If we are better off these days because as Putnam puts it that social capital adds value and productivity to our lives, why are we still finding less time but more work and pressure these days? and finding us spending less time with family and love ones?
lemon - 08 September '05 - 21:32

I think Putnam believes that the days around the end of 1960s were the good ones, and this correlates to the period of greatest "social capital" in terms of community involvement.

Now might be great productively, but pretty bad from a social capital perspective.
JookBoy (link) - 11 September '05 - 13:48

Karaoke

What pushes us to become pop diva's at the instant the lights dim and the words flash out to you on the TV?
How does someone make "Total Eclipse of the Heart" a hard rock ballad?

Tricks and traps for young players:

1. Don't go out hard on the first 2 or 3 tracks of the night...you'll be ruined. Pace yourself with a Rick Astley classic like "Never Gonna Give You Up"
2. Be drunk.
3. Like, really drunk.
4. Memorise your fave song codes off by heart, no need to flick through the song books, and you'll be first in line.
5. Pick crowd-pleasing melodies eg "Catch My Disease" by Ben Lee, so that other people will join in, and you sound wonderful.
6. Split your group into "Fools" and "Serious Idols"...this usually ends up as guys and girls.
7. 2 hours is definitely not enough for the quality that is produced!

More comments and suggestions!

Damn! eight cheap calls already:

You gotta watch out for the closet boy band wannabes *cough* Bernie *cough* :P
PeeDz - 13 August '05 - 17:48

it was interesting to see the boys all groan and point fingers when Rick Ashley came on but then ALL started crooning out the song knowing ALL the lyrics!!! :P

Meanwhile Belinda Carlisle still Rocks!
addy - 14 August '05 - 07:06

All the reaaal signers know the harmony sections of songs...esp those boy band tracks.

Signature, crowd pleasing tracks are also important, e.g. Get Low by Simon Watt.

3 hours for a group our size should be mandatory. Two just leaves you wondering...what if?
ricegrains (link) - 14 August '05 - 14:28

yeah and we gotta keep that remote away from 'button-happy' peedz :P

Skeet skeet skeet......
Addy - 15 August '05 - 12:59

Oi, I even sacrifice my own "Never done before U2 not so famous hit" for the pleasure of my fellow singers :) No finger pointing over here!
PeeDz - 16 August '05 - 20:06

It's Bernie "Boy Band" Wai :)
Yes, Peedz, I was waiting for some U2 that night. Till next time...
JookBoy (link) - 21 August '05 - 07:58

Ok let me tell a karaoke story that I posted elsewhere recently.


* * * * *


Call me a n00b, but I didn't realise that karaoke boxes here on Japan are intended for having sex in. I'd heard vague references to this phenomenon, but I guess people just assume that everyone knows this.

To be honest, it's not possible in Sydney's karaoke boxes (well, a friend had one room in one particular karaoke box that he reckoned could be used for doing the deed). And this is coming from me, the guy who has managed to find places all over the Sydney CBD.

I spent a couple of days in Tokyo this week, meeting up with friends I had made in Sydney over the years. One of which was a korean girl who would never let me make love to her in Australia because of her boyfriend back in korea, so I had to settle for sucking her tits and receving oral sex.

It was just coincidence that we were both in Tokyo at the same time - we were both there for two nights, and one night happened to overlap. We met in Shibuya and went to a Japanese "izakaya" bar for a beer and some food.

At about 9pm we left the izakaya and headed over to the seedy half of Shibuya. I suggested karaoke and she was cool with that. Of course, when we got into the room there were no korean song books, and so I took the hint and said that there were no English songs either. Our drinks arrived, and after a sip of beer I put a POWER MOVE™ into action and the rest is history.

Oh yeah, some points about these places being made for sex (just in case there are other n00bs out there like me)

* there are tissues there
* the seats are all vinyl = easy to clean
* if you're not entering songs in, the karaoke machine is making plenty of noise to mask any sounds you or her might make
* when you turn the lights off, I doubt you can see a lot from outside. And even if someone were to come and have a look (and they don't) they would have to be coming specifically to look for that kind of thing. They don't do this. They just don't.
* no cameras in there. Unless they are really well hidden. And even if there are cameras, and we were being watched, the staff didn't say anything.
* after 50 minutes when the courtesy call comes, you just pick up the phone and say you'd like to extend for an hour, and go back to whatever you were doing. ***TIP*** the phone can be reached from most places (and postitions) in the karaoke box.
* there are all kinds of possibilities for positions and so forth in there. Table, sofa/bed,... ok, there isn't *that* much scope, but for creative people it can be like a poor-man's love hotel.

Anyway, I'm excited about this new discovery! Can't wait to get back to Tokyo and do it all again!

RC
randomcow (email) - 26 September '05 - 08:31

Haha, seems like you've become quite the veteran :)

However, I feel that everyone in Sydney karaoke bars looks into your room as they go past. Some of them even start singing the song you're singing!

Hope Japan is treating you well up in Otaru.
JookBoy (link) - 02 October '05 - 07:20

Working For Work's Sake

I heard recently that there is a family out there that makes $200,000 from government benefits. There are 6 in the family, and they are living it up (I'm assuming it's tax free?), chilling out at home and playing the XBox.

One of the major issues with unemployment is the lack of financial security. With "The Solid Facts: The Social Determinants of Health" paper from the World Health Organisation in Europe (it's amazing the stuff I read now for my work), the authors have stated that unemployment brings both mental and physical illnesses.
But what if that financial insecurity was removed, as is the case with this family. They are earning a decent buck.

Life is grand...or is it?

At much as we would like to be ladies and men of leisure, I think there is an urge in all of us to have a meaningful job. A job that we feel utilises our skills, encourages responsilibty and and promotes creativity and problem solving. There is a buzz from achieving, no matter what the task may be. We look forward to our reviews, not just to complain about a pay rise (which we all do!) but to see if the stuff we do is making a difference.

Do other people feel this is true, or am I off on the wrong path?
Would an extra 40 hours of relaxation make me a happier person?

Damn! six cheap calls already:

I think for most of us who want to achieve even a teeny microscopic amount of something/anything with their lives, a career of coach-potatoing will drive them certifiably insane. Particularly for our social clique, most of whom were raised in decent environments and privileged enough to receive a solid education. To squander it away is an injustice to all of that. A holiday is only a holiday if you have something to take a break from.

A job confirms your self-worth in a sense. Like you said, we all like to know that what we're doing is making a difference, that we're being constructive, not just taking up space. The politics, pain and endless biatching at work makes life interesting.
beckster (link) - 04 August '05 - 13:32

I've been off work for almost two months now. I don't really want to go back, to be honest. I couldn't really say I'm not adding to people's lives. I'm a funny guy, I make people laugh.

RC (the clown)
randomcow - 10 August '05 - 09:44

if you can keep yourself busy in your time off (e.g. travelling the world, surfing the net, house sitting or xbox) i don't think many people would not it back. Who's gonna knock back free-money? or who'd knock back a job with less work/responsibilities and more money? not me :)
Dessy (link) - 11 August '05 - 18:21

How much net surfing and XBox playing can one do?
As with all things, it's all a balance....although those all-nighter Halo events were fantastic!

I don't know though, having less responsibilities makes a job less interesting.
JookBoy (link) - 12 August '05 - 13:19

I think it comes down to your personal needs.

There are 6 basic needs we, as humans, all share -

1 Certainty
2 Uncertainty/Variety
3 Significance
4 Connection/Love
5 Growth
6 Contribution.

Addictions arise when people satisfy 3 or more of these needs by committing a various act eg smoking.

Needs 5 and 6 are what it sounds like people fear losing if they do not work or accept reduced workplace responsibilities. As most people reading this site are "achievers" the thought of not growing (#5) or not contributing beyond themself (#6) is unattractive.

People who don't like getting up for work every day and additionally don't like the thought of NOT working every day clearly value their need for Variety. It doesn't matter what they do, as long as some uncertainty about their day exists.

Surely there are alternate ways to meet these needs other than work, right?
Taipan (link) - 14 August '05 - 10:14

dude I haven't worked for more than three months now and I'm still not sick of it. I start work this Monday as a porter at the Hilton Hotel up in Otaru (near Sapporo) just in time for ski season :) I wouldn't say I'm not looking forward to it, but the time off has been great.

RC
randomcow - 26 September '05 - 08:34