Ahoy thar buckeroos!  It's been quite a while since my last update but let's hope this blog entry can make ammends!

I'm currently on my first day of my break from caffeine products.  Pro Plus taken with cans of Coca-cola or Redbull no longer have an effect on me and I end up sleeping like a baby shortly afterwards.  I'm currently drinking nothing but water which should also provide a much needed de-tox and help prevent dehydration.  I've been feeling like shit lately and I can only narrow it down to consuming too much caffeine in such short spaces of time.

I am now the proud owner of an absolutely blingin' Nokia 8800.  Consisting of 134 grams of solid stainless steel, it's quite possibly the nicest looking phone I have ever owned (and I've owned a helluva lot in my lifetime!).  It also features tempered glass for the screen so it's similar to scratch resistant watches made from sapphire or crystal glass.  It's not perfect by any means; the only method to synch it up with a PC or Mac is via Bluetooth and it asks me to lock the keys every time I close the slider; hopefully a firmware update in future will allow me to switch this off.  It can also be a finger print magnet at times and I ask all my friends and family who handle it for the first time to use kid gloves.  It also comes with a funky charger which surprise, surprise, is fashioned out of a block of steel!

My two cents about the London bombings: some people take their faith a little too seriously.  I'm not a religious man, but like others before me have said, what kind of God wishes their followers to actively kill others?  I'm grateful that my parents chose not to raise me with any religion in mind since it allows me to decide once I feel I have a better grasp on such things.  And from events like these, I'll remain religion-free for a while yet.

Last Saturday, I was caught in the Birmingham city centre evacuations.  I went out for a quiet drink with Ralph, the Polish guy from work, and we wound up being moved along by the authorities.  Granted, nothing actually came to light from all this, but better to safe than sorry.  I'm sure people would be complaining if something did occur and no procedure had been applied.  Can't please 'em all...

Just the other day, I hooked up with my long time friend from secondary school, Jaswant.  We sat in Starbucks and whiled away the hours catching up on recent times and reminiscing about the good old days.  Jaswant's always been like a little brother to me, despite only being a few months younger.  He's never been wise to how the world works, so I've tried to broaden his horizons in any way possible through the years.  Back in 6th form when we were choosing which universities to apply to, I explicitly told him that going to the University of Birmingham would be one of the worst decisions he would ever make in his life.  He didn't listen to me, nobody did.  He failed his first year and was duely kicked out and moved on to Aston University.  I was one of the few people in my year to go away for university, and I can honestly put my hand on my heart and vouch that doing so was one of the best decisions I have ever made.  I've seen (some of) the world, met people from all walks of life, fended for myself etc etc.  At Birmingham, he had a very small circle of friends consisting almost entirely of people we both knew from school, he hated the course, and he spent over an hour each day commuting to the university.  We both agreed that if you were to compare the person I am now to the person I was back then, the contrast between the two are quite clear.  If you were to compare the Jaswant from now to the Jaswant from back then, you'd struggle to find any changes.  What brought all this on?  He said he'd be moving into halls for his final year come September.  I asked him if he was sure about what he was doing since he's quite possibly the most un-domesticated person I know for his age; he doesn't know how to cook, he doesn't know how to clean, he doesn't know how to do laundry etc etc.  I truly am worried for him so I'll be giving him a crash course on how to survive in halls this summer.

One Piece has taken over my life.  I'm now 130 episodes, 1 special, and 3 movies in and it continues to surprise me around every corner.  Since my last blog entry, two new crew mates have joined the Going Merry (the ship); Tony Tony Chopper and Nico Robin. 

Tony Tony Chopper is a little reindeer who happened to eat a Devil fruit which grants its user the ability to take human form.  Chopper thus became educated in the ways of medicine and combat and is a very welcome member to Luffy's gang. 

Nico Robin is an interesting addition; as a child, she sank an entire fleet of Marine battleships which gave her a bounty of 79,000,000 Belli for her head.  She also posseses Devil fruit powers which allow her to create hands as far as her eyes can see.  It sounds silly but she really is a force to be reckoned with.  The lone-wolf of the gang, she's often seen musing to herself and fending off Sanji's proposals of love. 

I was fortunate enough to take a sneak peak at the latest crop of episodes airing in Japan and they look stunning.  Broadcasted in HD widescreen with a super high frame-rate, it looks like an entirely different show almost.

I can't think of anything else which deserves a mention, if I do I'll add more at a later date (whenever that may be).

EDIT - Ah yes, I'm also planning a short break to New York in September with my other good friend, Daniel, who I've known for over 10 years now.  We've never travelled abroad together apart from school trips, so this will be quite an adventure for both of us if it goes ahead.  I'm currently shopping around for prices and with Thomas Cook, I've gotten a quote of £650 per person for 4 nights, flying from Birmingham International.  Not bad considering the time of year, but I know I can travel for a lot cheaper if I were to book everything separately online.  Watch this space for more developments!