Home Sweet Homeless

I wasn't too sure how to write this blog post. Every time I start a new draft of the following news then I make light of it straight away, obvious defence mechanism, but I think I may be too emotionally 'invested' in this situation to talk about it in a wholly whimsical manner.

To sum it up in, almost, one. I am back to the same state of affairs as Jess from the beginning of season 2 of New Girl.

And now without a house.

I can't work out whether I'm being too light or too downtrodden about the whole thing, so maybe I am borderline both about it.

Basically, whilst visiting family for the weekend we were notified we had to leave our current flat. Luckily, as of the 1st of November we have a house ready to rent and we have a friend we are living with now, so really the situation is far from terrible. To be honest, staying with our friend is really nice, and our other friend, who is moving with us too, is also homeless as of today so it's like having a big fun sleepover, with the boys. Not in that way.

Then the job front. An unfair dismissal you may call it, but as things are still ongoing there I don't want to delve into it, but when you are no longer given shifts as you won't work for less than minimum wage, I would call that unfair dismissal.

To say what probably everyone before me has said ever: No one tells you how hard it's going to be when  you move to a new country.

Actually what I should say is: I don't think i listened when everyone told me how hard it was going to be.

Don't think that I expected it to be a breeze, to be settled straightaway, have a job the first day, find a group of friends and set up the Dutch Maddrim 'Daddrim' (needs new name). I'm sure there has been worse situations for others, I'm blessed with our friends who look after us, being here with Hayden and having the internet for never ending distractions, entertainment, online Dutch lessons, information about jobs and Bejewelled Blitz.

What I am going to do when I feel my life is in a more organised, coherent and housed is write a guide for expats, a guide to knowing your rights and making sure you are ready to work and live and demand rights. Don't ever be afraid to ask for what you are legally obliged. Or I suppose what you want in general. As Mam Robertson says:

"If you don't ask you'll never get."

Thanks Charlotte.

I think now a lot about those people who find thousands of misplaced pounds gifted to their bank accounts because of some technical error by some multimillionaire company. A friend told me about that last night. That is my new dream in life, to be the person, not the company.

Thank you blog, writing this post is making me feel better, I forgot how therapeutic this is.

So let's go to the lighter new of fun things that have been going on in the Netherlands and television and past television I've only just started watching (obviously Firefly). Our friend Rodrigo is coming to stay tomorrow (from when we have a house, good timing). To that will be good having a friend with us, also he just told me he's bringing his super nice camera, I have already written to short film scripts. They will be coming your way soon.

I almost forgot: HAPPY HALLOWEEN.

(This blog post was started yesterday)

Here is a picture I have been working on that sums up all the various parts of Halloween:

That is a bag of bones I excavated. Animal bones.

So in news about tv and film: I have finished series one of Orange Is The New Black, if you haven't seen it, watch it, it's a Netflix series, but I'm sure you can just view it anywhere online, the wonders of internet. Then I have been trying to catch up with True Blood, I'm still on series four, and, like with every series, I forget how weird and disturbing it can get. There's always a point in True Blood when I wonder if I can watch the whole series, and, only half way through, I have hit that point three times.

Now an even older series I have finally started watching: Firefly

Oh Josh Whedon, you are so great. 

I tried to explain Firefly to Hayden, but, I've never been very good at explaining things, like when I wanted to show Dirk 'Children of Men' and said "It's about a women who can't have babies". Which is stupid, and in fact, kind of the exact opposite of what that film is really about. So, Firefly, when I was explaining it to Hayden I told him it is about 'Space Cowboys'. Contest if you like, and Hayden laughed for about 10 minutes, but I really think that is a good description.

Anyone who likes their sci-fi series, flying through space, discovering strange new planets with a massive dollop of western essence, then watch this. Also, as it is a Whedon series you can expect all the main characters to be well rounded and likeable. I think his strong characters are one of his best traits, especially the nice strong female roles.

I've only watched the first four episodes, so I don't have too much to offer, let me try:

Episode 1: the pilot is great and packed full of information and action, extra long, almost feels like a film but never feels like it has been drawn out unecassarily
Episode 2: I forgot
Episode 3: The third episode is really scary (good for tonight).
Episode 4: Not my favourite for storyline, but perhaps my favourite so far for humour.

Generally the story telling is one of the strongest parts, there is a lot of history to each of the characters and it the world they live in, this is revealed gradually through each episode with clever storytelling and dialogue.

Reapers.

Yes, go watch Firefly and lament too that there will only ever be one series of the show. Stupid Fox. I hope you enjoy it, I do, I especially appreciate all the shots of the ships flying through space  WITH NO SOUND EFFECTS. Because in space there is no sound. Josh Whedon, just look at the man and you can see all his brains. Literally.

Anyway, speaking of space. We're about to go and watch Gravity in an Imax. Excitement levels are high. Then we're going to come home and watch Practical Magic, it is Halloween after all and the stars kindly made an appearance in this post. After describing the film the boys are expecting it to be a scary and spooky film about witchcraft. I'm going to end up watching this film alone...

METALLICA

Metallica: Through The Never; A Review With Carefully Annotated Spoilers So You Can Read It Even If You Haven't Watched The Film.

The title was so catchy I shortened it to the first word (without the colon) for the post title.

But yes, I'm going to review the film with carefully highlighted spoilers so that those who haven't seen it can read this. I hate spoilers more than anything, the last thing I'd want to do is hurt someone in the same way.


Before I even go into Through The Never let's think back to earlier Metallica films. And by films I'm not even going to go into the making of the Black Album (because I haven't seen it) I'm just going to write about Some Kind Of Monster, if you haven't seen it, do.

Side Note: I am sat here in the Conservatorium Van Amsterdam, enjoying the fairly priced tea whilst writing this blog post and I kid you not; there is a man at the table next to me with a white billowing shirt on, half unbuttoned, playing the lute to a gaggle of females. I know there's a classical department here but this is a whole new level. I'd take a picture to share with you all but I've not got a decent camera, if you want one, please send me a DSLR. Maybe the Canon EOS 50d. Then you'll have your photo, plus or minus a video.

Oh and on another side note. Before I get too far into this review (when it begins) I made a video of Hayden and I's time so far in Amsterdam. The video is titled 'Amsterdam'.

Coming soon: Dirk's reaction video.






Right here:

Also, I have put in my first contribution to the Heavy Metal Buffet from Amsterdam on the latest episode. Have a listen, the episode is hilarious as well. And of course some great metal:






Now to METALLICA: THROUGH THE NEVER

I was so excited to see this film. I was giddy, there were butterflies in my stomach (partially due to me eating oysters accidentally, so allergic reactions too were flurrying).

The trailer was fantastic and if you haven't seen it, or heard about the film, at least watch this before reading the rest of this post:

So yes the basic backbone of the film is constructed of two columns. Column one: The most awesome Metallica concert you could ever imagine, amazing stage, props and set list. Column two: a young roadie is sent out to pick up a package for the band and on his journey, to retrieve said package (that he's not allowed to look inside of), he finds the world outside the venue is now in an apocalyptic state. The two columns intertwine and often mirror each other with amazing visual results.


The first column: The Metallica Concert

Holy shit it is awesome.

I dream of going to a Metallica gig like that in the future. They actually did a run of eight real gigs, all sold out; and out of those they took the live performance footage and made it into Through The Never. (I'd like to mention now that within the story line the concert is described as a one off show). I just hope they will go on tour with that show now, I would pay a lot to see it. A lot more than $12,000,000 for this painting:

(If I actually had the money.. and then more to spare after paying all that for a ticket to one concert.)


That, by the way, is a painting from Lars' art collection, not the one from Some Kind Of Monster, a latter one, as he says, he is always buying and selling art "Because, um, you can't, um, own art."

Don't take Lars' or my words on it. Check out this blog, if you want to see dedication click the link to this blog that writes solely on Lars' art collection, I haven't worked out yet whether it's serious:

http://larsulrichscollection.blogspot.nl/



Sorry for the distraction.



                      And back to
                      Through The
                      Never:









Oh man, the audience that got to go to the live show for the recording of this film are some of the luckiest people. The stage itself  and the props were mind blowing. When watching it you forgot you were watching a movie, with an added story line, as you were so easily immersed in the concert. Also as the concert was performed specifically to be filmed you got to see the greatest close ups in amazing focus, never mind the fact that the whole movie was made specifically for Imax's so the visuals and 3D was stunning.

At one point I thought one of the audience members in the cinema was throwing the horns. Didn't even realise at first it was within the film.

-Although I wouldn't have been too surprised if it was an audience member, the crowd was generally, peacefully headbanging to themselves throughout.


The stage show though was amazing, and their performances were fantastic. Also, after watching that I'll be so excited to see them live again, I hope I can, as I will have a better understanding of what it's like close up from seeing the film. They had some good cameramen. I've read arguments elsewhere online that the camera work was shoddy and often not focused on anything in particular, I'd have to disagree. They captured the atmosphere perfectly, which is more than just getting the nice focus shots and filming every second of the solo from multiple angles. It's about getting those wider shots, the ones that have little going in, the areas your eyes move to when your watching a live show, greedily trying to absorb the whole stage and venue in. Also everyone in the band looked to be properly enjoying themselves, which I'm not surprised anyway, the venue was full and the fans sing along throughout. And then a few more singing along in the cinema.

Also, I've trawled through so many comments on "blackheads" "saliva" and more. Why do people criticise that like it's a bad thing. It's not metal when it tries to airbrush it and make it pretty. Musicians spit on stage. They filmed real concerts with real performances. You should embrace all the aspects of that. Not complain when the realness of it offends you.


To the second column: The story of the Roadie.

Dane Dehaan plays Trip, one of the roadies for the band who is sent out on an errand during the show. Which is a shame because he is obviously one of Metallica's greatest fans. Dehaan is a great actor, I'd already seen him before in A Place Beyond The Pines and, one of the greatest found footage films to date Chronicle (go see it).

By the way the spoilers are highlighted so just scroll down to the plain old black on white and you'll be fine.

BEGINNING OF SPOILERS:

Ok, so the film's premise is two story lines, and I can talk about the stage show in general quite a lot without revealing spoilers, however I think Trip's journey, is one that those who haven't seen the film yet, should know little about.

He takes a pill, drives the van past a red light, subsequently is crashed into, then carries on his errand by foot, and soon walks into a confrontation between rioters and police. This is only the beginning of the nightmare, before things start to become even more inexplicable and by that I mean the horseman... and I suppose the puppet from the truck.

So the horseman is awesome, he is cool and mean and a total ass. Who's side is he on? Who's side is anyone on in this world? It's the apocalypse and it teaches us that during a Metallica concert anything, anything, could be going on outside but as long as they don't teeter into Lulu everything. is. fine.

I suppose, rather than dissect in any great detail the story that unfolds for the roadie, I ended up wondering about what is real and what is not? Before he even leaves the venue he pops a pill. Call me ignorant but I didn't know what that was, and I suppose the film makers (hiyi Metallica) don't want you to know either, the same way I suppose they don't want you to know what's in that bag. Which is an over used cliche. Tarantino nailed it Pulp Fiction, why pick this up again? Especially when Trip finally does get the bag and looks into it he looks completely horrified by it's contents. Which makes Metallica seem almost seedy. Then I think - is this the band's greatest joke in the film? They want to have that metal edge, they could be capable of all evil and it could be in that bag, but you will never know. I don't know Metallica. Answer me please.

But yeah, the roadie, the possible trip, the possible concussion, the possibility that everything that happened is in fact real. Whatever it was it all ended when he got Mjölnir's hammer and went Thor-style bad ass all over that evil rider. Thanks Trip and thanks voodoo puppet that I got overly emotionally attached to during the film.

I have a feeling perhaps we're not meant to fully understand Trip's story line.



END OF SPOILERS.

Look at Lars' approval.

So this was my review on Metallica: Through The Never and my summary is:

Go watch Metallica: Through The Never, even if you aren't a Metallica fan. It is, in essence, a Metallica concert with glimpses of another story line mirroring the songs. However, if you are not a fan, do not let that put you off. Metallica have done something no band has done to date; they have made an amazing piece of cinema of the most awesome gig. They have successfully captured themselves in a stunning film that will remain for all time. I thoroughly enjoyed this film and will buy it as soon as it's on DVD to watch again. Even without the whole Imax experience (which they nailed). I am pleased that Metallica found a new way in which to reach people with music and have the balls to have tried something completely different. Although I would have enjoyed more music from Death Magnetic, one song was not enough.

Plus the best part of the entire film is when Trip comes into contact with each band member at the very start. Metallica. Gold. (Ecstasy of).


To sum it up in an even shorter fashion, Hayden Hook, ladies and gentlemen:

"What I liked about it was that no matter how many concerts you watch you'll never see one in such detail... It was like a cinematic concert"

He says more:

"Metallica are definitely the first band to actually film a full concert in such a cinematic way. The film is the concert and a story. You're never going to get that view point of the band on stage from just a tour DVD."

Thank you Hayden. And thank you for reading this blog post. I hope you go out and see Metallica: Through The Never, and if you have already, feel free to discuss further any ideas from this blog. 



And finally an image proving James Hetfield is indeed the Master:

Thanks to:
http://www.metalhammer.co.uk 
http://larsulrichscollection.blogspot.nl/ 
http://deanoworldtravels.files.wordpress.com 
www.joblo.com 
http://www.blabbermouth.net 

Dutch, Work, Metal, Rent.

Speed blogging here as I sit in a cafe with laptop battery draining dangerously fast at an already frighteningly low level.

ACERS.

Yeah I had it plugged in earlier but this man has asked to use the plug and I said it was fine because my laptop was almost full. That was hours ago. His must be charged by now, but then, I paid for my drinks a long time ago, so in all senses it's time to move on. And then, just before packing up, I immediately chose to write a blog post. hashtagwhatamilike?

My life the past week and a half has been work. I got a part time job, so I'm working full time and by that I mean all the time. 4 days in on the job and every other waitress is away for various reasons. It was full on. Tiring. Double shifts. Eczema city on my hands. However some of the girls are back now and I'm back to part time. Living the dream. This was the dream, first couple of months in The Netherlands I wanted to get a job where I have time to explore and learn more about the city, then learn some actual Dutch. Goededag!

You can get a job in a cafe/restaurant/fast food chain I think quite easily, in the city centre especially when speaking only English. However they really want to encourage a greater use of Dutch, so to climb any career ladder a knowledge of the language is a necessity. Which is a good thing, it's driving my learning. my reading of this bad boy:

He gets to go everywhere with me. Everywhere.

The other day while walking to work (my chain had fallen off my bike) I decided to walk and read. Read Hugo's Dutch in three months book. Being so used to my normal cycle to work it was only after being tooted at by mopeds I realised I was walking on the cycle path while reading. hashtagwhatanuttern00b

I wish I had more exciting stories for you all. But I have been working so much I literally have been dreaming about stacking saucers. To give you an idea I had work shifts that go like this:

Saturday: 11 hours
Sunday: 6 hours
Monday: 9 and a half hours
Tuesday: 9 and a half  hours
Wednesday: 8 hours
Thursday: 9 hours

So I've been doing a lot of working, then sleeping. Although Hayden and I started watching Orange Is The New Black. I had forgotten how good it is to get a brand new, juicy series to get your teeth into. Also we're savouring the programme, watching one episode every few days. That feels like a practice of the past, archaic viewing with such strong self (the opposite of the following word) indulgence.

I think I need to get my brain back into writing again. And by writing I mean general thinking. It is funny how being tired knocks you to silly.


Battery too low. Have to find another cafe to plug into power source.

I am now blogging to you from my second home in Amsterdam... I give to you:

Beautiful...  heel mooi

Yes, thanks to Hayden I found a metal pub in Amsterdam. Pretty sure at the moment this is the only metal pub in Amsterdam, and I hope to be proved wrong on that. Not because there's anything lacking here. Just because I really like the idea of a thriving metal community. To be honest, on the surface I haven't encountered that much metal. But time and enthusiasm will tell. Metallica's Through The Never is premiering here tomorrow. When I find out my shifts I'll hopefully be able to book to go to a viewing. I'm really hoping Lars and Kirk are going to come to Amsterdam as part of their Europe tour but I've found no information so far.

More on Excalibur. It is awesome. I was just busy cycling to a different cafe to find a plug and a cup of tea when I heard Megadeth's 'Symphony of Destruction' so I locked up my bike and headed  straight in. Right now we have ACDCs 'T.N.T' playing. It's the happiest drinking hole in the city.


Look at the decor:

Yes that is a dragon. Yes you can buy a tshirt.

It's also just so refreshing to sit somewhere and have a constant stream of good metal in your ears.

I should have said, in actuality, when cycling from the first cafe I was looking for ABN Amro bank to set up a bank account. The Netherlands is very strict. We all have this super relaxed image of the country, yeah a lot of that is true, lots of people are laid back, friendly, lenient laws on various past times.

But when it comes to being a Dutch citizen, you have to register, have to (by law) get your own health care insurance, can only set up a bank account with your citizen number and work contract. Perhaps this is mandatory everywhere and it's just the first time I've encountered it, but yeah, it feels like the hoops of bureaucracy are before me and I must jump. Or, like in Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone for PlayStation one, fly through.

For once, I decided to give an image for my reference.
Not because it's necessary, but because I like the way
the health is shown in his lighting bolt scar.
SPOILERS: Basically Voldy's health.
Didn't think that one through did you PlayStation?

Almost a year ago, I was sitting at Cara's editing one of Maddrim's many Halloween films (they will be released... one day) and she put RENT on. I didn't really want to watch it I had heard it was sad and I wasn't interested in such a film. Also, side note, at the time, I had no idea Team America's 'Lease' was a parody; boy was that an eye opener on the background of that joke. I just thought they had gone to town with jokes on aids. To be brutally honest, I only realised last month, that that was a parody on Rent.

For anyone who doesn't know Rent  "is a rock musical with music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson^[1] based on Giacomo Puccini's opera La bohème." Thanks Wikipedia. 

However, as Cara and Joe watched the film and I started to procrastinate from editing I was drawn into the operatic rock beats of their 90s New York. I began my infatuation with Rent.

The more I watch it/listen to the songs on Aly's spotify the more I love it. It's really great, the whole bohemian life, although inflicted with disease/poverty/inability to write one glorious song. I said to Cara we should move to New York and live a similar lifestyle (without all the bad bits, I hope). 

Now Hayden and I are in Amsterdam, a city of laid back lifestyles and plenty of jazz, and I am craving...

WAIT. QUICK NOTE:

Megadeth's 'Symphony Of Destruction' is on again. I think this must be their Wednesday afternoon playlist on repeat. Can't wait for some more Turbonegro's 'All My Friends Are Dead' again.







Back to Rent:







Craving some structure, is structure the right word? Maybe I need more time off work to think. But yes, I can't wait to have a Dutch bank account, I can't wait to have health insurance. Coming here I've realised I'm the type of person who likes to have work, accounts, to be settled. I'd be a terrible bohemian. I suppose there's always Joanne, she's a lawyer.

I think this is a conclusion now, this blog has been everywhere, if this blog post were a buzzfeed post there would be no classification, well, perhaps WTF.


To give you a conclusion: I am happy to be registered and on my way to settling in officially and now, with less shifts and that means I can party more. I got both worlds. Thanks Hannah Montana, all my wishes Miley Cyrus. You'll get back to the best in no time.

I'm a waitress

Thanks to:
www.ica.org.uk 
www.holisticpage.com.au
rentheadsunite.tumblr.com
rentconfessions.tumblr.com
www.telegraph.co.uk
blood-diaries.tumblr.com
Wikipedia (always)