Author: Shaun And Olivia

Mad Dogs and Englishmen

Wanna head to Greece? Here’s some first hand news. 🙂

Diary of an Aesthete

On living theSimple Life in a rural Greek fishing village – Agii Apostoli – on the Gulf of Evia

Simple words and pictures – by James Dee Clayton.

A resting place for heart and mind…

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Having Greek family comes with its bonuses. Not only do I have a constant connection to this pure land I so love, with its rich cultural heritage, its humble people, its delicious FOOD – but also this place holds so many memories for me – memories I’m blessed to have shared …under those blue, blue skies.

After my stint Alone in Venice, I headed over to Athens, and the surrounding coast, to spend some time with my loved ones. (As if I hadn’t already been spoiled enough with a whole month in Venice!)

Life can be so strange sometimes – so wonderful, so colourful and light – and then suddenly blue, sad and lonely…

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Existential Angst

A good-night post, before bed. 🙂

Stories By Another Insomniac

Anticipating the anticipation,
Anticipating the living-life-on-the-edge days.
The ones you hear about
Or you think you’ve heard about.

You, you’ve fallen into monotony,
An inescapable feeling of restless contentment.

Some call it depression,
You call it boredom.
They’re one in the same,
Except boredom has a much less negative connotation;
And a much shorter life-span.

Mostly, it depends on your age;
The children are bored,
The adults are depressed.

Filling days with self-innovated anxiety,
The kind that didn’t always exist,
Or you don’t think it always existed.

A drive to be taken by storm
Overwhelmed.
Engulfed.
Something to shake you out of this trance you have been stifled by.

Like a visitor from afar,
You continue to sit in that hotel room,
Anticipating the anticipation of travel.

While you glance
Between the alarm clock,
The room service menu,
The T.V. Guide.

Bored.
Depressed.
Anticipating the anticipation of living.

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You May be Irish if…

This post helped me come up with a new term that I was looking to invent. It turned out to be a great read! 🙂

arlene stafford wilson

Irish pub

The Top Ten Ways to tell if you’re Irish:

1. You have the ‘gift of gab’. There is an ancient rock near Cork, Ireland at Blarney Castle and they say that anyone who kisses the stone will have the gift of gab. If you are truly of Irish descent, then there’s likely no pressing need to make the journey, as you surely already possess the talent of talking rings around most other people.

2. You are musical. Maybe you play an instrument or perhaps you just sing in the shower, but the gift of music is in your Irish blood and you will not be able to resist tapping your toe or strumming your fingers on the table when someone gets their fiddle out and plays a tune.

3. You have strong convictions. Whether the topic is religion, politics or your favourite sports team there will be no point in…

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5 Reasons Why The Harry Potter Series Is The Best Gift For A 9-Year Old

The most thrilling part about reading fiction is that it provides the mind with an escape. A sort of a metaphorical freedom. But inculcating that into the mind-set of your child, niece or nephew is not an easy task. This is why I believe that the Harry Potter Series are the best medium to achieve that space.

    1. Books will be Associated with Family, Love and Warmth:

      Gifting the child this series can be a fair excuse for you not having the time to read out-loud to your kids. Also, I am stressing on gifting it only to your child, nephew or niece, or someone close,

      because then the child learns to understand that books and family are associated to love and warmth, and will always have a bankable resource to depend on, not ever turning hostile towards either books or family. Books will become their home.

    2. The Characters of the Series grow with your Child:

      I think this is one of the biggest reasons why kids who haven’t been introduced to reading as a habit should be reading books. I am not exclusively endorsing the Harry Potter series, although I believe richly in its competency. When children are around the age of nine, the need for ‘feeling belonged’ begins to grow. It is hence important that these needs are fulfilled, and literature, in my opinion, is the greatest richness that one can be bestowed with.

    3. One can Learn The Best Of Lessons:

      One of the biggest reasons I love the Harry Potter series is because it a complex (yet unconscious) amalgam of life lessons, good values, morals and have these literary landmarks to help one have an understanding of his or her own. I think that happens a lot in fantasy novels. They generally are vast and expect the readers to develop their own perspective. Because, unlike a mystery/suspense noble, you don’t have to necessarily race your mind to uncover the answers that are hidden. Instead, it gives space for the mind to think in parallels.

    4. It is the Best Stepping-Stone of a Series:

      The Harry Potter novel has a greater advantage of having a superb fan following because it consists of seven books. Once your child (or nephew or niece) reads the first book, curiosity will make sure that he or she goes through the rest. Eventually, the child will develop an avid reading habit and will be ready to read other novels (Like The Lord Of The Ring series? Yep!) and explore other genres of writing. And I can bet the child will do this all on his or her own. You have an independent kid, who would have learned to think by himself or herself.

    5. It Makes Going to School look Cool:

      Harry Potter made me realize that nerds can perhaps be the greatest people in the world. Also, the series upholds the necessity for adventures. I remember studying chemistry assuming it to be Potions. So if the child grows up to be street-smart, intelligent and brave, what more do you want to give to his or her growth?

    So long, WORLD!

    – Shaun D’souza
    (I study forensics, play beats with my fingers
    and sometimes take a nap.)

    Say hi to me @hunchbakdsouza

Population Control: Not Ebola… But Not Science Fiction Either

So is Ebola a reliable mean to achieve for ethnic cleansing?

Such Is Life and Such are the Life Sciences

Yesterday, The New York Times took an interesting angle on the recent, media-consuming Ebola epidemic. After continuously consulting the experts and the people on the scene, the Times decided to review the “fringe” interpretation of the tragedy in an article aptly titled, “The Ebola Conspiracy Theories.” The dominant theory, echoed in the Liberian newspaper The Daily Observer and on Chris Brown’s Twitter account, is that the epidemic is an intentional incidence of population control–making the virus itself a bioweapon intended to carryout a massive genocide.

Just to be clear: like many journalists, experts, politicians, victims and casual observers, I don’t buy into this theory. But I am a bit discouraged by the diction some have used to dismiss it–Politico even labeled it “crazy.” While a sophisticated analysis reveals that Ebola would make a poor choice for a bioweapon (it spreads inefficiently and is difficult to produce in a lab setting), generally categorizing all paranoia about population control as…

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The Augmented Reality of a Schizophrenic

Blew my mind! It is raging with rain outside, and this happens to amuse me a lot!

Under my stars

I opened my eyes to see her staring at me. I looked at her with disgust and shame. She looked at me with soulless eyes. Her eyes turned dark. I was astonished and mortified at her sudden change of demureness. I sat aback and turned to my left. She sat aback and turned to her left. She bemocks me with grimace… I tried to push her but I couldn’t reach her. I got farther every time I came near her. Then I saw the mug on the table which I used to drink milk this morning. I took it and hurled it at her. Boom. Shatter. And the next thing I saw was a pool of blood. I looked around and saw pieces of shattered glass. I picked up a piece and saw her again. The glass pieces piercing on her face with grumes of rose red everywhere. We then…

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AN AMAZING WEEK – NaNoWrimo, New Blog And So Much More Magic!

The month of October is ending for me in a rather exciting fashion. Or maybe I am just overjoyed, and a little overwhelmed about what the following month is going to present me. wp_ss_20141023_0004

Last week on this date, a very good friend of mine, William Louison and I completed one year of knowing each other, virtually and really(I still have my doubts if he is a cyborg). And because the both of us have so much in common, apart from a shared obsession for blogging, we decided to co-author one of our own. Now, before you check it out, be advised. You may not really like it, as much as you would love it. Click here and go wild. We also do TV Show reviews, so you may actually find it productive.

Yea, 365+7 days of awesome (and never really boring) conversations with that guy. Wonder what went wrong with us during childbirth.

Also, ARRRREEE you excited about NaNoWriMo? If you are a writer and wanna find out more, head to the website! Or, if you haven’t checked it out yet, here is my theory about the Ten Things You Should Do Before NaNoWrimo.

I am pumped! I happen to have my university exams (hard to believe I am still studying right?) between all this action. Trying very hard to not let that dampen my spirits. What are the challenges you are facing? Do share and connect!

And! to get your heart further pumping, here is the first look of Johnny Depp in the forthcoming musical Into The Woods! YAYEYAYEYAYE! I can hardly wait, what about you?

Until my next arbitrary post.

So long, WORLD!

– Shaun D’souza
(I study forensics, play beats with my fingers
and sometimes take a nap.)

Say hi to me @hunchbakdsouza