The World is Sick

Sleep Eludes Me

Wow well, it’s been a long time since I’ve written anything here. It’s nearly three in the morning. I had been lying awake in bed for more than two hours. It’s rather frustrating, being very tired all through the day, then not being able to fall asleep. Thoughts, fantasies, even music.

And then, I suddenly didn’t feel tired. I’m wide awake now. If I had anything to study, now would be a great time. I don’t really have anything to study, so I’m here. I busted out my old Audio Technica earphones to see if I noticed the difference between them and my more recently purchased Shure earphones. The sound is thinner, and the noise isolation is poorer. I’m not sure if the thinner sound is really a bad thing, actually.

Suddenly, I can ear the individual trumpet strains and those high string bits. It’s all just more… separated. And as an orchestral music enthusiast, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. But if I really want to use these old earphones again, I’m going to need to employ my latent engineering abilities. Perhaps some foam earplugs. A drill. I need to somehow improve their noise isolation.

I am sorely tempted to go out and buy a new pair of earphones. I don’t actually need them, but man, they look so cool.

It’s hard to believe that a whole month has gone by since I got back to Singapore. I took so long to adjust to the warm weather, spending the first week suffering from high irritating rashes. Most of my waking hours were then spent making little men kill each other in Starcraft II. And well, when there’s a game to play, time speeds up.

Then, I got back into band practice. At the time, I was pretty excited about being able to perform again. However, a combination of the fact that my entire section had been replaced by freshmen, a rather lacklustre song selection, and that I have been suffering from a perpetual sore throat for weeks now, is making me less than motivated to continue practices. I mean, it’s a lot to put in for just one or two CCA points. I could easily get many more points from volunteering at the next open house, and all the various other events that are bound to occur between now and the end of the next semester.

I suppose band has always been about the passion for music. That’s just not enough for me any more.

Rambly rambly.

My $80 Audio Technica earphones might actually be considered better than the $150 Shure set. I mean, I think I hear more things. Lighter and more crisp. Maybe I wasted all that money on the Shure ones. A bit stupid to realise that now, nearly two years after I bought them. Someone needs to invent a way to let consumers test earphones safely before purchase.

Anyway, in other news, Gliese 581g has been found to be very similar to earth, in that it is at the right distance from its sun and is of sufficient mass to hold liquid water. The planet is tidally locked to its sun, so one of its hemispheres receives light all year round. This would supposedly create a rather diverse set of global environments, perfect for life forms to evolve and fill.

That last paragraph was just a shameless excuse to use this picture.