#viewsaremyown

[nickbrian]

Final hours of a day well spent...surely wont be the last. . . . . . . . #lovechicago #amazingchicago #chicagoamazing #fantasticviews #viewsareamazing #viewsaremyown #viewsarethebest #chicagostreetphotography #chicagoarchitecture #chicago #chicagoviewsaregreat #chicagostreets #chicagostreetsandbeyond #navypierchicago #daystoremember #relaxation #relaxtime😎 #relax #friendships #friendshipdays #sunset #amazingsunset #chicagoarchitecture #chicagosunsets #instachicago #instachicagoshots #instafamous #vacationmode #vacationgoals (at Chicago, Illinois) https://www.instagram.com/p/BsosChJAJ_e/?igshid=vb4ee4xsaxix

[mrholmes-minorclassics]

on a clear day i can see you forever . #TobiasPhotoADay #viewsaremyown (at Shoreditch Church) https://www.instagram.com/p/B56sXEngrM-/?igshid=1368yltzmcueq

[cityoldcitynew-blog]

‘I’ll blog weekly’, she said - S Crouch, 2015

Oh hey.

Well I suppose it’s been a wee while. By a wee while I mean the span of one whole year and a handful of months. In those months I’d say a darn lot has gone on. I haven’t found the word for it yet (though I’m sure it exists), but does anyone else ever feel that sense of panic that they’ll just forget little details of life? Experiences, old, current, new, are remembered in different lights. I look back on my first year as an Brit-In-Residence in Amuricah and I have flashes of good times, sad times, hilarious times, frustrating times (oh way more of those than I expected - the T in my ‘water’ is now a D). New York City remains to me to be a daily dose of starry eyed first time in the Big Apple-ness, seriously. Even the pee smell, the subways and their stick, confusing sports team affiliations. I’ve been writing down everything, just in enough different places that the aforementioned memory loss panic is setting in. Every place I eat, drink (lolz), run, frolic, I want to remember. And i do, mostly.

There’s been some epiphanies; I am a British person with an American passport in America. I am not an American in America. I mean this entirely in the culture-clash sense. One I did not anticipate to affect me on such a scale. 

The Clash became clear most recently with certain conversations (many frustratingly cyclical) surrounding the fun-time politics of the past couple of years, bounding towards a finish line which has been positioned on the edge of a volcano (picture the Mufasa death scene in the Lion King). A self confessed bleeding heart liberal, my views on the world, how its inhabitants should treat it and each other have been shaped by an equally liberal set of parents, but in a country that has let my liberal tendencies prosper quite happily and peacefully like fat organic carrots in an allotment. Growing free, unbothered by Nancy next-door, though you know that Nancy’s growing tomatoes and her Tomo-Growth ™ would probably hurt your carrots if they came into contact, but they don’t so that’s alright. Over here, conversations happen and they happen in a big way, and no amount of my anti-confrontational pixie dust can make them disappear. I would hot foot straight to the corner of staunch British ‘well I suppose you may be right’, I’d change the subject, I’d nod and think to myself what a load of crap I’m listening to, but I now realize that silence is compliance. Grinning and bearing it and reassurances turned to longing of ‘this would never happen in the UK’ just don’t quite cut it anymore. So I do what I can to stay informed - I read, I write, I listen - to all sides, where possible - and I teach myself how to chip in. I could put this all down to the differences between UK and US politics (of which there are increasingly less, it has become more apparent), I could put it down to a move out of my comfort zone - I think it’s probably a bit of both. It’s been a time coming, though. 

See y’all in another year and few months. 

Jk. I’ll try harder. 

[myorthognathicjournal]

Nothing about Jaw Surgery - this post is dedicated to Paris, Beirut & Baghdad...

BaPlease note: these are my opinions, this is my view, you may not agree with it, and that is OK, but I like to think this would gel with many people. I am very open minded as a person, so I hope you will read this with an open mind and share with me the mutual sadness of the tragic events like these around the world. Really devastating news about what happened in Paris yesterday, thoughts are with the women, men and children who lost their lives, those that have lost their gems, their loved ones because now their families have broken apart. Such barbaric intolerable acts, acts against humanity, with no justifiable reasons, and what is sad, is that those few and few, ie. the minority, use innocent human lives to send a deadly message, only resulting in increased conflict and violence it solves absolutely nothing. Hate spreads hate, fear spreads fear. And what makes me sad is the link that terrorism has, that local shop across the road owned by the Asian family are not to blame, the Asian employee at the supermarket scanning the items through the till is not to blame, yet even if those things were to happen, which they have, mosques have been blown up, those Sikh people who are not even Muslim, they get attacked but because they are Asian. It is so scary to think that after this, religion and immigration are going to the be biggest blame factors and yes, I can understand other view points about ‘control’ and ‘wrong-doing’; but a a lot of the times these stories are twisted, but is this the truth? No it’s not. I don’t follow Islam myself, because I am Hindu, but I wouldn’t call myself very traditional or religious, but I do take enough interest in my own culture and other people’s culture. As for Islam, I don’t know everything about it, but I know it’s a peaceful religion like other religions how people take religion itself out of context is the fire everybody knows about. Unfortunately religion is used as a ‘dangerous’ weapon in some to hurt our world, we know this because of where we are today, but the very core principles of religion, talk about peace, so why should we blame religion? Is this religion evil or ugly? Absolutely, NO it is not, I think that is ridiculous! Individuals make it corrupt.  They are a minority using religion as an excuse and this is simply immoral, because innocent people fear for their lives and their beliefs, and why should they? How sad that we live in a world where are scared to express ourselves, our identity because you’re afraid of what others will do. Of course  of the minority that use these extreme means as a way of lashing out, they are psychotic monsters. In my opinion they do not represent Islam and the innocent ones who go to work or to school just like any other ordinary person. They represent their own agenda, religion is a mask. The truth is every innocent, ordinary person regardless of their preferred religion & ethnicity, is scared. So lets UNITE, ignorance isn’t the answer, we cannot blame the immigration & refugees 'crisis’ (of those who genuinely need a home) or a peaceful religion. I want to further express my opinion, that this conflict is ALL over the world, men, women and children getting blown up and killed as collateral damage - this is NOT news flash, this conflict is very real across the world it’s merely invisible because it’s not talked about in the mainstream media.

Therefore let us think about EVERY person in the world that has been affected by this group of cruel and wicked individuals in every country/nation, whether it is close to home or not. Also, thinking about Japan, Baghdad, Beirut, Mexico & Lebanon - there were tragedies in these places too. Think before you speak, before you act. Think about the messages the media are flashing in our faces and those trashy ‘Sun’ headlines. Think about the backlash towards good people. Think about those who are never mentioned and suffering in silence. Think about all the innocent civilians who won’t ever forget. All those lives so suddenly and tragically lost. A peaceful mind is a work in progress towards a more peaceful community around you, among the hectic crazy world that this is. Spread love, not hate.

World flags: made into a peace symbol. Lots of love,  N x

[alkeating]

Skhy High. #viewsaremyown

[nickbrian]

Final hours of a day well spent...surely wont be the last. . . . . . . . #lovechicago #amazingchicago #chicagoamazing #fantasticviews #viewsareamazing #viewsaremyown #viewsarethebest #chicagostreetphotography #chicagoarchitecture #chicago #chicagoviewsaregreat #chicagostreets #chicagostreetsandbeyond #navypierchicago #daystoremember #relaxation #relaxtime😎 #relax #friendships #friendshipdays #sunset #amazingsunset #chicagoarchitecture #chicagosunsets #instachicago #instachicagoshots #instafamous #vacationmode #vacationgoals (at Chicago, Illinois) https://www.instagram.com/p/BsosChJAJ_e/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=18o5ie246mn3l

[mrholmes-minorclassics]

please don’t take my social media vernacular seriously . #TobiasPhotoADay #viewsaremyown (at Exhibition Park)

[mrholmes-minorclassics]

there could be worse views on metro . #TobiasPhotoADay #viewsaremyown (at East Boldon Metro)