an epitaph to The Pacific

I’m happy that The Pacific aired its tenth and final episode tonight.

It wasn’t that I didn’t like it – in fact, the opposite. I shake my head at the unwarranted criticism that was increasingly aimed at this exceptional production as the series unfolded.

The Pacific differed greatly from its wildly successful older sibling, Band of Brothers. Too many people were expecting and wanting a type of Band of Brothers II.

It only took a couple of episodes before it became apparent that those expectant viewers were going to turn off, disappointed. Hell, given the atrocious attrition rate of the Pacific campaign it was probably even fitting.

The Pacific was much harder work to watch than Band of Brothers but ultimately more rewarding, because what it conveyed so emphatically was the unique brand of absolute hell that was intrinsic to the U.S. campaign through the Pacific.

There was nothing linear about The Pacific – the campaign or the TV series. The island settings could and would change abruptly, brilliantly evoking a maze of confusion, lack of purpose and loss of direction.

Characters entered and departed against a backdrop of terrifying nightfall, putrid mud, torrential monsoons and parched volcanic rock landscapes.

The Pacific did not afford viewers the chance to bond with characters in the same way they had in Band of Brothers, where they moved with one unit through boot camp and ultimately to Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest.

Death was also never far away. The horrific casualty rate of the campaign has been well documented, and the producers did a fantastic job trying to create a sense of what only those marines who served will ever understand.

Rarely were Japanese soldiers seen throughout the series. The marines were largely fighting against an invisible enemy who waged unimaginable terror out of the darkness of night or subterranean holes and tunnels.

Many times in this series I was left physically tense and wincing in the thick of a battle scene, wondering how on earth it was possible for young men to endure those levels of panic, alarm and killing. Harrowing, is a mediocre descriptor.

I’m happy for The Pacific to finish tonight because I’d had enough and seen enough. The arduous story had been told wonderfully well.

To all those soldiers and civilians who have died in conflicts and wars, may you Rest In Peace.

an hypnotic asphalt trip

i like this...

seductive visuals and awesome soundtrack; the dodos, the season



enjoy that? here's some equally blissful movement and sound:
an hypnotic NYC trip

Clear... bzzzt... we have a heart beat

i just need to post something, anything to break the silence.

From lone nut to leader, how movements start

Short and sweet.

One of the briefest TED Talks I've seen and also one of the best.

Online entrepreneur Derek Siver on how movements start, and a fantastic representation of how the first follower transforms a lone nut into a leader.

Roll the tape...

up here in my tree

this is without doubt one of the coolest pictures i've seen in a while. sure, it's over exposed and blurry around the edges but that doesn't matter. in fact, it just adds to the surreal nature of the photo.

it's taken in sequoia national park, california. i love it. if i die without walking among the majesty of the giant sequoias then i will have missed out.

it's funny how things happen in life. these seemingly random events light up around you and you need to take action and connect them.

over summer i did quite a bit of tramping around new zealand with an american friend of mine from seattle. (hey, alan, how you going, bro?) i'm planning to go visit him at some point soon. i've got a real yearning for an american road trip, and the national parks on the west coast, like sequoia, look staggeringly beautiful.

i was watching one of my favourite movies, into the wild, just two nights ago, and there is a moving sequence when christopher mccandless is walking along the pacific crest trail in northern california. it touched me.

then, yesterday, i just felt compelled to start searching on google for the town of auckland in california. from the satellite view, it appears to be a tiny little outpost on the edges of sequoia national park. intrigued, i push sequoia national park into google image search and 'bam', this beautiful image is right there. i know i need to make that adventure happen.

i've always loved trees. i used to climb trees a lot when i was a kid. our backyard was blessed with what, at the time, seemed like giant sequoias that i would clamber up and summit; hugging tightly at the top, feeling an intoxicating mix of fear, joy and peace. there was also a big walnut tree in the middle of our yard, with a tree hut of mine tucked away up in the foliage.

my connection to nature and mother earth is really channeled through trees, and also landscapes - more so than the animal kingdom.

i can hear the giant sequoias and redwoods calling me, tapping into that innocent boyish spirit within me...

pearl jam: in my tree (no code)

what i did last summer

great news today! i'm officially on the copywriting books for blacksheepdesign.

blacksheepdesign needed to expand their stable of copywriters and posted an ad that asked me to share what i did over summer.

over the past six months, one of my main goals has been to unplug from the 9-5 matrix and create as much mobility and flexibility in my life as possible. gigs like this chip away at self-doubt and keep nudging me along in the right direction. gotta keep walkin...

ps: if you're not from new zealand, my summer won't mean a thing to you. it's just one of those things...

Shameless SEO plug part I

apologies straight up here - but i need to give a bit of an SEO push for a newly launched website of mine. there'll be a little bit of this, from time to time, on the kava bowl...

abu dhabi is a city with a diverse and delectable spread of cuisines from around the world, which is always one of the beautiful offshoots of immigration and a nomadic global community.

although abu dhabi is rich with culinary delights, the main problem is trying to find these restaurants. after all, abu dhabi is a city that works on landmarks rather than postal addresses, which can be more than a little frustrating when you're trying to find the restaurant that your work mate swears by.

eating abu dhabi is going to change all of that for the people who live in the capital city of the uae. eating abu dhabi is a website rich with abu dhabi restaurant reviews, listings and menus, simplifying the decision over where to go and making food easy and accessible.

it's the ultimate restaurant and dining out guide that will demystify dining out in abu dhabi.

there - job done... i'll shut up now!