A Place Called NGC 224

Disappearing, like the burning stars that fly

Math Porn

Learning how to take pictures with my camera by exploiting settings!

  The smog had once again melted with the stormy air preventing much light from entering the room where Oliver Rush’s dreams were interrupted by the morning alarm. With drowsy eyes, he swung out his arm blindly tapping away at his phone to stop. Ugh, damn it… Why do I keep forgetting to turn that off?   Outside the usual honking from New York Traffic continued. There was no use in trying to go back to sleep now. Oliver brushed away at his bed sheets and planted his feet firmly upon the stained rug bellow. The fabric was coarse with dried coffee and alcohol. As the room materialized in front of him, he noticed the bright rectangular light coming from his desk. His laptop had been on for weeks with a blank word document loaded and the indicator line blinking away. Oliver grunted at the sight.   He stood up only to find that one of his legs was awfully sore. Caffeine, I need some caffeine. He limped over to the refrigerator and swung it open. It was completely devoid of everything, save a half finished carton of milk, which in all likelihood had gone bad, and a Styrofoam cup filled with unpleasant cold coffee. He grabbed his fuel, shut the fridge closed, and walked over his desk. The wooden stool creaked as soon as he sat down.   Oliver looked at the screen with disgust and then minimized the empty page. A picture of the moon uncovered itself in the background. The lunar maria always gave an appearance of the bloodspots found on eggs. He opened the internet browser and started flipping through social media. He hated it. People so obviously posted fake pictures depicting happy gatherings and events. And yet jealousy filled him, upon sighting them. Was it possible that these people were actually happy?   A few post and a couple sips of stale coffee later, he happened upon a party invitation from one of his old college buddies. Some sort of gathering that would happen around noon on Friday. He checked the date only to find that today was Friday. Outside the rain drizzled away.   Oliver longed for some social interaction. A month or two ago, solitude was what he craved, but quickly he realized how damaged his mind had become when left to its own devices. Time stretched out longer and yet he couldn’t bring himself to write one sentence. What had happened? I used to be so good at writing.   This was true. In high school and even partly through college his ability to share his stories was at an incredible level. He had won many literary competitions and exactly this skill got him through college. He was more of a romantic back then. Not yet crushed by the world. A certain memory popped up into his mind. His mother entered his room the day before he left for college.   “Oliver, promise me you won’t let the world change you too much, it can be quite damaging for a sensitive person.” He had shrugged it off then and probably responded with something along the lines of ‘I’m not that sensitive’. His mother looked at him with saddened teary eyes and responded, “Okay honey, sweet dreams.” How naïve had he been? His phone went off.   A message reminded Oliver that he had an interview for a high school teacher at one in the afternoon today. Shit. He needed this job. The rent was hard to make, and finding a roommate had proved a much more difficult task than he first expected. And yet his mind was on the edge of exploding if he didn’t relieve the pressure. The party was a must. I’ll just ask for a reschedule.   He opened up the desk drawer to search for the number he had written down. He found it next to a barely filled bag of weed. The drug, at the time of purchase, he thought would help him with getting ideas onto the page, but instead it rendered him completely sterile. Any work done would turn to incohesive thoughts and horrible run-on sentences upon sobering up. He hadn’t really touched it after the first few failed attempts.   He tapped in the number on his phone and let it ring. A minute later the conversation ended with the recipient saying “I’m sorry Mr. Rush but you’re not treating this matter very seriously. The appointment is in three hours. If you can’t make it, don’t bother coming in at all.” Oliver tried to argue, but already he was speaking to just his phone. He slammed one hand on the table while the other supported the weight of his head. Ok, I’ll just show up a little late to the party…  The interview did not go well. Already from the start it was clear that they were wasting his time and yet it dragged on for an hour before they finally released him. At least finally he could rest and just have fun for once. Hopefully this would break him out of the monotonous cycle and he would be ready to tackle the world once again. Hopefully.

Song of the Day #51 -This reminds me of something, but I can't quite place it.

Song of the Day #50 -Summer is almost over. Make the most of the final couple of days.

Song of the Day #49 -When the days blend together…

Song of the Day #48 -Really starting to like this band.

Song of the Day #47

Song of the Day #46 -We are all just trying to stay alive.

Song of the Day #45

Song of the Day #44 -Incase you are looking for another iconic slow song...

Song of the Day #43 -If you're happy, then this one is not for you... Pretty depressing, but hey sometimes we need to hear exactly that.

Song of the Day #42 -The answer to life, the universe, and everything else… The number, not the song. Song is good too though.

Song of the Day #41 -Another one from Regina Spektor.

Song of the Day #40 -This one has a particularly good style, which comes from the bass.

Song of the Day #39 -The album art for this song is a bubble chamber. :)