The Return of Mad Men

The hit television series Mad Man returns for a fifth series.

I cannot say that I am enthused. I watched most of the first four series of the show and found my interest in it steadily dropping. My friends enjoyed it and I enjoyed discussing the show with them. I felt that from the beginning the style and aesthetic held the show up as an exemplary piece of television.

The more I watched it the less convinced I was. The problem for me is that the whole affair is inescapably shallow. The characters are all shallow and unlikeable, the references to historical events are laughable tangents and the plot-lines utterly contrived. All of this, you could say, is the theme of the advertisement industry. Of course a show about Madison Avenue men would be of this ilk.

Not for, say, Hitchcock's North by Northwest, a striking film from the 50s about a case of mistaken identity, implicating a Madison Avenue man in a plot of murder, intrigue and espionage. This character had depth, had something we could cling to, while the plot was engaging and unpredictable.

Mad Men might be more post-modern but it is certainly not as fun and certainly not as provocative.

-The English Student

New Radio

I gave up listening to the radio a few years ago.

As a child it was fantastic. I got to hear all sorts of different music, listen to people's opinions and join a larger conversation that my peers were having, all for free. As I developed my own interest in music this dependency began to fall away.

To be honest, I feel like most radio channels are pretty awful. They have obnoxious DJs, obnoxious advertisements and exclusively play music from obnoxious pop stars. Why would I listen to something like this when I can turn to my increasingly large music collection for satisfaction.

I have had to find new music in new ways and blogs are the most obvious source. I can find blogs that align with my interests and will inevitably find some music that appeals. Informational podcasts like RadioLab are far more likely to gain my attention when it comes to 'talk show' type programs and again, I can choose things that specialise in my own areas.

So the internet is really what killed the radio star and I cannot mourn them too deeply.

-The English Student

Ferry

I spend little time in any one country these days.

Today I opted for a ferry journey rather than the usual flight. It was quite inexpensive yet, of course, the trip was over twice the length it would have been otherwise.

It was certainly a unique trip. I was surrounded by obvious smugglers, adventurous students and travel-hardened business people. We were bound together by our mutual seclusion and exhaustion.

In some ways it showed how far distances really are and how used to extremely fast flight we have become. I experienced every minute of this journey in a more tangible manner than usual.

That does not mean that I would like to repeat the experience however!

-The English Student

Waiting

I jumped the waiting-gun yesterday.

I went overboard, and my imagination got away from me.

I have told myself not to be so stupid in the past.

I have failed.

I will try again.

-The English Student