Happy New Year: 2014

     Happy New Year everyone. I hope 2014 will bring you all many days of awesomeness.  At the start of the new year, we recollect on the great times we had in the past year as well as all the hardships, and some people may think it best to not look at the worst parts of the year gone by but in a way, isn't that the whole point? Humans cannot help themselves but dwell on any worries they had, any lingering regrets, any mistakes made, etc. However, when looking over the hardships we have faced over the year, we recall what helped us survive them; what helped us defeat them; what helped us reach today and still have the energy to face the next day. We look at the aid that was given to us in our hours of need, and we use it to help us develop, to help us fight any obstacles that we come across and help us become better people.
     2013 was not only a special and significant year for me, but for billions of other people all over the world. To name a few things that have made a big impact on 2013: Doctor Who's 50th Anniversary (including the departure of Matt Smith as The Eleventh Doctor and the introduction of Peter Capaldi as the Twelth), the sad passing of the wonderful Nelson Mandela, the birth of a new royal baby to be third in line for the throne, the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson, the typhoon that hit the Philippines  and so much more.
     2014 will be the bringer of many significant events. The Commonwealth in my home city of Glasgow; the Scottish  Independence referendum on September 18th; series 8 of Doctor Who with Peter Capaldi taking over as The Doctor and the third Scottish actor to play the role; after a two year wait Sherlock series 3 starts on January 1st at 9pm; Winter Olympics to be held in Russia and so on.
      Obviously living in Scotland, the first two upcoming events of 2014 to which I mentioned, will have a great affect on my day to day life. I have no doubt that the Commonwealth will be a great event and will make me proud to be Scottish. As for the vote for or against independence, I will be 16 by the time that the voting starts, so I will be eligible to vote and I personally will vote no for Scottish Independence.  I wont start ranting about it or try and persuade any Scottish readers to agree with me, but all I'll say is that I just feel we are stronger as a  part of the UK Anyway, though I may still be heartbroken by the departure of The Eleventh Doctor, I excitedly await for the proper arrival of The Twelth Doctor and anticipate what the next 50 years of Doctor Who will bring.
      I have had many very special moments in 2013, some that I will hold close to my heart for many years to come but I have also suffered many difficult situations. It was a great surprise for me to have made so many more friends, I thought after 2nd year that process of making new friends will draw dormant, whereas in actual fact upon joining Nerdfighters I met tons of people who I now hold as my dearest friends and even at school as well I have been given more friends. Maybe the multitude of friends I have made are more than I deserve? Whether or not this is true, I am still hugely grateful to have met them. Obviously, with Doctor Who being very special to me 2013 was an extra special year for myself and other Whovians; since being brought into the Whoniverse in 2005 the show has significantly changed my life and I have loved every minute of the show. There were a number of occasions that really hit me hard, but most of the time I had someone who supported me and I am truly grateful for their help. Finally, having done my first Prelims at the start of December and having done fairly well, I try to forget the stress that they gave me and try to look forward to the nearing final exams with more optimism.
       2013 is a year that I will definitely remember fondly more so than I might look back with regret and I hope that 2014 will come to the same standards, if not more. I hope you as well share how I feel, and that any hardships you have faced in the past year, will be left behind and you can start afresh in 2014. Happy New Year, lets all make 2014 one worth celebrating.
                                                           
                                                Geronimo!
                                                  Stephen.

1,019 Views

     Wow. 1,019 views. I am quite proud about reaching such a high number. Thank you to everyone who bothered to take time out of their schedules to visit my blog. If you've read my previous post about reaching 500 views and are concerned whether these kind of posts will become a habit-do not fear. It is simply because this is my first blog and 1,019 views is quite significant for someone still fairly new to Blogger. It's at moments like this that I rejoice for starting my blog. Making this blog certainly has given me a boost in confidence; to know there a large number of people, even in other countries, that are  interested in what I have to say is very comforting. Honestly, I would really appreciate any kind of comment on my posts to reassure me. Thank you all for taking a look at my blog and I hope you all continue show an interest.
                                                   
                                                         Geronimo!
                                                           Stephen.

Equal Marriage

     Stephen: Greetings, my apologies for the considerable gaps between each of my posts but I am trying my best bring an end to this. This latest post is written by guest writer and my good friend Elizabeth Rose Hamilton. I wanted to do something a little bit different and I knew Elizabeth was the right person to ask to write this article. As you may already have guessed from the title, this post covers the controversy over equal marriage, where Liz will give her opinion on the matter.  I hope you enjoy reading her article as much as I have. 

Elizabeth: The topic of equal marriage has been widely discussed for a great length of time. There are several arguments both for and against the notion, but I am here to give my viewpoint.

In my own opinion, I feel that equal marriage shouldn’t even be debated upon. I feel it is a necessity, that it is a right to anyone, heterosexual or not. So why do I feel this way? Well, I have a few things to say about that.

First of all, gay rights are human rights.

They are no different from any other human being; so why shouldn’t they have the same rights as other human beings?

Second of all, even religious Christians that I have met have told me that they accept homosexuals as people with rights.

While yes, homosexuality in Christianity has a very clear viewpoint, it also has another; ‘Judge not lest ye be judged.’ The core teachings of Christianity, I feel, are of love and acceptance. As I myself was previously a Christian, these were always the teachings I tried to follow, and still do, despite my movement from the religion. So why is it that so many Christians refuse to accept homosexuals?

Another point I’d like to make is that times have changed. Society has changed. The world as a whole is different. What was once an unspeakable sin is now acknowledged as an orientation that people can't just choose. So why is it a loving couple may not partake in the sanctity of marriage, simply because they are the same gender?

You know who's homosexual? Neil Patrick Harris (Barney, How I Met Your Mother). You know who else is homosexual? Jim Parsons (Sheldon, The Big Ban Theory). And John Barrowman (Captain Jack Harkness, Doctor Who). Look at that. Real, successful people. Who also happen to be homosexual people. Does that make them any less of a person? No.  

Homosexuals can serve in the army. They can become doctors, fire-fighters, any number of life-saving jobs.

But no, they cannot marry.

And this is what infuriates me most. 

                                                             

                                                            Ollie Outie!

                                                              Elizabeth.

Stephen: I hope you found Liz's article interesting and feel free to comment. Also, if you wouldn't mind, make  a visit over to her Tumblir; there's some pretty cool stuff on it. 

http://epiclyra.tumblr.com/

                                                              

                                                                                   

R.I.P Nelson Mandela

""No one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes naturally to the human heart than its opposite."- Nelson Mandela

     For those of you unaware, the Nobel Peace Prize winner Nelson Mandela, has passed away at age 95. This quote here truly shows how great of a man Nelson Mandela was, who was responsible for shaping South Africa into a multi-racial democracy. Elected first black president in 1994, from then on Mandela become a true leader, a symbol of hope and inspiration. Without this wonderful man, the world would be a very different place; Obama wouldn't be president, there would still be segregation of black people and the words courage and morality would have no true meaning. . 

      He is a credit to this planet, he is someone whom we will always look up to and deserves more than our respect. I hope your thoughts go to his friends and family at this time. So few people in history have endured oppression with such little ranker or overcome the oppressor with so little bloodshed. That is what makes Nelson Mandela truly remarkable. Despite all the hardships he faced, this brave man chose not to surrender. I could go on and on about how much of an amazing human being Nelson Mandela is. 

     I can't understand why anyone would be so ignorant as to not know who he is, but lets not dwell on that. Even in the time of his death, it is not the time to sorrow over the loss of a great man but celebrate the outstanding achievements of an outstanding human being. Thank you Nelson Mandela, from the bottom of all our hearts; thank you for not only for shaping South Africa into a place of equality, but for shaping the word into a more equal society and for creating a brighter future for the human race. Thank you Nelson Mandela, for being born. May you rest in peace. 

""Our nation has lost its greatest son,"- Mr Zuma 

            R.I.P Nelson Mandela (July 18th 1918-December 5th 2013)

                                                           

                                             Geronimo! 

                                               Stephen.

Matt Smith: A Mad Man With A Box

     Firstly, I would like to start by apologizing to you wonderful people, for the considerable gaps between each of my posts. This is either due to school, sheer laziness or because my mind is not allowing me inspiration to write. I will try my very best to shorten the gaps between each post and if I may request, any comments on my posts would be very welcome, so that I do not feel as if I am wasting my time with this blog. 

     Anyway, as most of you will hopefully be aware, not too long ago was the 31st birthday of Matt Smith; the fantastic actor who brought The Eleventh Doctor to life. When first announced that he would be the wonderful David Tenants successor- a number of fans were almost in shock(including myself if I am perfectly honest) because no one had ever heard of Matt before, he had some roles in television beforehand but none to make him generally well known. It was a bit of worry for fans, that he wouldn't have such an outstanding acting ability (being the youngest actor to play The Doctor at 26) and they weren't exactly wrong. The first series, he did show some excellent talent as an actor but it wasn't until the end of series 5 that he truly settled in to the role and grew amazingly well as an actor. At the end of his time as The Doctor, there was news of a number of roles in movies,etc that Matt had accepted and it was great to see that not only is he seen more as an actor now but he hasn't been typecast. 

       Considering the point I made in the first paragraph, I wanted to make a post to keep you going and assure you that I am still alive. It just turned out to be a happy coincidence that Mr Smiths birthday gave me this idea. I wanted to do something particularly special to celebrate Matt's run as The Doctor. A few ideas floated in my mind, but some of them I didn't want to put into action until closer to date of Smith's last episode. So I decided that I give a list of some of my favorite videos on YouTube in tribute of Matt Smiths era as the mad man with a box.  

     Note: I did not create these video and all credit goes to the people who made them.

     

1. A Tribute to the Eleventh Doctor (Matt Smith)- by Mrlazarus01

     Compared to other videos, this one will be seen as "slow" and for some of you  that may be a bad thing, but that is not quite true. One of my reasons for choosing a video that I think you will see for all of them, is the music. This video particularity, had the most powerful music in my opinion; from the series two episode of Sherlock: A Scandal in Belgravia. I absolutely adore the music, it just gives me so much feels and the scene that it is used for in that episode just makes the scene so emotional. Another reason for this video reaching the top spot, was the number of memorable quotes put into the video and not with the music from that episode, making the video feel cheap. My favorite quote in the video due to how effectively it is used, is the speech made by The Doctor in the divisive series 7 episode "The Rings of Akhaten." When listening to the speech, and seeing clips of episodes matching what The Doctor is referring to-such as: "I have lost things you will never understand" and we can see the timelord putting on Amy's glasses to read the sad message she left for him in Rivers book. So many feels accompanied this video and the music only intensified the pain that fans such as myself would be suffering. A magnificent video, a wonderful tribute for Matt Smith and well deserving of the top spot. 

2. Doctor Who, Series 5-7 Mega Trailer, 1,000 subscribers video (Matt Smith) - by taridselliot

     Compared to the previous video, I feel this one covered Matt's era as The Eleventh Doctor a little bit better and the music was quite good, however the music combined with the powerful quotes in the other video, made for a more effectively emotional video and it is for that reason mainly that this video isn't at the top of the list. The build up at the start was quite nice, I liked how they began with clips from Matt's first episode "The Eleventh Hour" and Amy's voice could be heard referring to him as her "imaginary friend" and what set them off on their adventures together. It then touches on his other companions, such as Clara and the beginning of The Doctors endeavour to find out who she really is. As well as River Song, where we are given a quote from the first adventure that The Eleventh Doctor meets River and people who have continued to watch the show afterwards will know how significant that quote can be. From then on, the music got more fast paced and more exciting, that's why I quite liked about this video was that it covered a lot of his era at an exciting pace.Another thing that caught my interest, was the way that the Cybermen, Daleks and Weeping Angels all got a special mention in the video and was quite well done. The arcs of The Eleventh Doctor were touched upon quite nicely as well. This is a very excellent video but sadly didn't have that emotional edge to grab my attention. A well deserved second. 

3. Ultimate Doctor Who Era Trailer, Series 5-7, Matt Smith- by tardiselliot 

     Another exciting video by the same YouTuber. Originally, this video had found itself in second place, but just as I was about to write the description of it, I re-watched both the videos and I believed the other was more deserving of the spot. My reason being, is that the video felt better structured and that it covered Smith's era better; the second video does also cover his era quite well but I felt it was a bit jumbled up in a bad way. Also, a few of the quotes or clips were used in the same order as the previous video but I didn't feel they were used as well as the other one. One thing that allowed me to quite enjoy this video, was the use of the guitar; it just felt right and built up the video quite well. I also, like the use of the last scene from "The Name of the Doctor" not only do I absolutely love that scene, but i thought it was placed perfectly within the video. It is quite unusual to hear guitar music quite clearly with Doctor Who (not that it hasn't been done at all) and it worked quite well together. To me, it felt that tardiselliot was trying to get across the dangerous, action-packed adventure that can come with traveling with The Doctor and they certainly did do that. It really did feel like a good trailer to advertise to a non-Whovian ( just the thought of it is horrible) and would surely prove to be very enticing to them.

4. Doctor Who: "The Matt Smith Era"-Ultimate Cinema Trailer-by TheAfroThunder1

     A small conflict took place in my mind as to what position this video deserved?  Quite simply because of the music; with the excellent use of clips from Matt's first episodes at the start of the video combined with the music, gives that "fairy tale" feeling to it. A very popular and well used theme of Series 5. However, I don't feel like this video touched on the best and most important parts of Matt's era as the previous two have. It still proved to be a very pleasing video, the music was quite catchy and enticing. I think what partly let this video down was the time that it was created; only being released the month after Amy and Rory's heartbreaking departure, they didn't have clips from the remainder of Series 7 at their disposal. Granted that this would not allow them to tocuh on Clara, but they could have looked a bit more at River and the arcs of Matt's run. However, one thing that I particularly liked about this one, was the specific scenes that it looked at. For example, the scene between The Doctor and Oswin, not the most significant scene of NewWho or the most powerful, but this was a very excellent scene and very well intensified with the music. A great video and a great shame for the time that it was made in. 

     

 

5. Doctor Who, Series 5-7 Ultimate Trailer, The Pond Era (Matt Smith)- tardiselliot

      The word to describe the music which accompanied this video would certainly be epic. They did take their time to actually get into it, to go at a more faster pace but from around 38 seconds onward, it did feel quite thrilling. What was nice about this one is that it did touch on the main arcs of Matt's era at the beginning but it just wasn't so spectacular to top it's successor, even with it's lack of coverage of the arcs. With this video, I made an exception because it was a pretty good video but it's time of release meant they had no clips of the Clara era as did the previous video. As long as it covered the majority of Matt's run then I would allow it to be a contender. I am really repeating myself a lot when analyzing each of these videos, but nothing else really comes to mind that I should be looking for in the videos. A good video none the less, it had a nice build up and quite entertaining. 

6. Doctor Who, Series 5-7 Mega Trailer, Matt Smith- tardiselliot

     I feel like this video had potential; it contained movie-like trailer music and generally felt quite exciting. One thing that let this video down, was the little to no quotes. The only one that was satisfactory was Doriums speech about "the question that must never be answered". Afterwards, only three more remained and even then they weren't very significant ones, nor could they be heard very well and some of the original music from the scenes could be heard seeping into the video; making it feel cheap.  Again, the music did generally give a sense of it being epic. It did definitely feel like tons of clips were thrown in with no apparent order. As well as the previous one, I made an exception if it didn't cover Clara's ear so far, as long as it covered the majority of  Matt's era. Compared to tardiselliots other videos, this one is disappointing  Although applauds to tardiselliot, for filling four out of the six places.

     I do apologize once again for being quite repetitive when analyzing the selection of videos. Also for how technically late this post is. If there is any videos that you think I have missed out, I do apologies but I have either seen them and not deemed them worthy of reaching the top contenders ( I sound like some kind of God) or I may have just not watched them myself. I didn't make full scale search for the best Matt tribute videos on YouTube, for I already had a few in mind and it would have required to much effort and taken up a lot of my time which should be spent studying for my Prelims. 

      All I hope is that you found some entertainment from watching these videos and this post has made you ponder over your own favorite Matt Smith era videos. 

                                                               

                                                               Geronimo!

                                                                Stephen. 

My Obsession With Quotes

  "Old words are reborn with new faces.” ― Criss Jami

     I don't know either. I was never aware that I had an obsession with quotes until I made this blog. Within this blog, are a a total of 30 quotes from TV shows, Films, famous people, etc. That will answer anyone asking: "what poppycock is he talking about?". However I sincerely hope that none of you chose that particular word.

   At the very beginning of creating my blog, I often looked at the blog of my good friend Rosemary; in search of hints as to how I should display my blog. One particular thing that caught my interest (which should be fairly obvious) is her display of a few quotes within her blog. I decided then that I would do so as well, but I did not foresee what outcome this would bring. 

     I later came to the decision,  that I would not display every single quote that I find of interest (otherwise this blog would be overthrown with quotations) and even later, that I would try my very best not to limit the quotes to ones from Doctor Who. Whatever message they may bring, I agreed that some kind of emotional, inspiring or meaningful message would have to come across that would appeal to myself and most other people. As well as the exception of the odd funny quotation every once in a while. It came across to me, that whenever I searched up quotations to post on my blog that fell into those categories; they never seemed to fail at inspiring me and boosting my self-confidence. 

     This quote at the top matches this post perfectly and the topic of quotations in general. In the sense that, there are words of people decades dead  and they are still inspiring to people living in the modern day. For the words of someone long gone, to still have an inspirational affect on  people, they must either be someone of great significance in History or someone of great wisdom (not always both).  The fact that, the words of someone else can still be used after so long, almost links us to the past and shows two things: that they are not forgotten and/or how the world has been shaped by their words/actions. 

      It is because of this epiphany, that I have decided to create a separate page on my blog for all the quotes that really appeal to me. I have been looking for something to create a third page around, and I have finally found it. Quotations are not just words of the past that appeal to the people of the present, but they are a way in which people can express themselves. They can show us who we are, particular quotes don't just appeal to people for no reason, but because they relate to that person. Whether it is because they refer to something that someone has experienced (i.e bullying) or touch on something they feel strongly about (i.e war). 

      I never realized how significant quotes are, or how important they feel to myself and obviously other people as well. This is something that I was glad to come to realize and I will leave you with this. When you live your everyday lives, aspire to inspire yourself and in that, you will inspire others. If you do so successfully, your words will be remembered not for their significance but for their wisdom. 

                                                            Geronimo!

                                                             Stephen.

   

Doctor Who 50 Years Trailer

     Many Whovains will have had the pleasure to watch the brilliant trailer, celebrating 50 years of Doctor Who, on it's very first release on BBC One earlier tonight. Others will have come across it online very shortly after it's televised release. This purpose of this post, is quite simply for any unfortunate soul who is unaware or been unable to view the wonderful video.

     Fans were aware for some time before it's release, that a special trailer was being produced and what we could take from that was that it would not contain actual footage from the 50th special. Some Die-Hard Wovians who have become overly frustrated with the lack of a 50th trailer containing actual footage of the episode, will of course no have been exactly pleased. I assume, especially not when closer to the date of release, it was made quite clear that the trailer was celebrating "50 years of Doctor Who". At first, I was guilty of growing in anger when the BBC continued to fail and release an actual trailer, but I have come to terms with it. Part of this, may have been due to the several rumors and fake tweets that were created and raised fans hopes that a trailer would be released on a particular date, but were later diminished. 

       Myself, and many others for sure, had anticipated that the celebratory trailer would be of very good quality, seeing as it has been made by professionals who know what they're doing and the insanely huge budget that has been spared to celebrate the iconic Brisitsh TV show. Instead of the end result, proving to be just a mash up of clips made by an amateur video maker. We were definitely not mistaken, when the cleverly crafted video brought us countless references and Matt as the narrator supplied a little speech that only intensified our excitement of the approaching Doctor Who 50th Special. The trailer was exactly what we were promised as we traveled through the shows long history. A particular thing that made the trailer so ingenious, was how they jumbled up different parts of different episodes into one place and made it feel very wilbbly,wobbly, timey, wimey. For example, a fez in a junkyard or Sarah Jane and K9 in front of an number of 60's Daleks, 70's Cybermen and in the background, a Dalek ship above Big Ben in what appears to be an invasion of London. 

      The trailer was such a fantastic achievement of the BBC, at celebrating 50 years in only one minute. A trailer for all the fans, for those who have stayed dedicated to show from the very beginning or for those of us who entered the Whonivers back in 2005. If a short trailer can achieve such a task, then surely an hour and fifteen minute special can do better, can't it? I have no doubt that it will do so but don't forget Who fans, as Mr Moffat has made quite clear, the 50th special is as much as celebrating 50 years as it is creating the next 50 years. I happen to agree with him and can only look forward to what will surely bring a new peak for the show to have achieved. 

Geronimo!

Stephen. 

500 And Counting

     Seeing as I am struggling to write two new posts for my blog and it has been a while since I have posted anything, I thought it would be worthwhile to bring this up. As of today, I have 506 views of my blog. Since the 30th June, in nearly two months, I have reached the hathway mark to a thousand views. I don't know about you, but I think that is a pretty good achievement; there is without a doubt, people with blogs who have gotten that amount of views in an even shorter time because they have something interesting to write about. I would still like to thank everyone who has taken some time out of their busy schedules to read my blog. Even though my good friend Jenny is still my only follower, I will try not to be disheartened and concentrate on the positives. However, if anyone would wish to officially follow my blog, I would be very grateful, as it would assure me further that my efforts to making this blog have not been in vain. None the less, thank you very much for reading my blog, I hope you have found some enjoyment from reading it and that anyone else to read it will do so as well. 

                                            Again, thank you very much. 

                                                       Geronimo!

                                                        Stephen. 

T'was A Weekend of Awesome

      Last weekend was definitely one with an exceeding amount of awesome (I know this is quite overdue but one is often quite busy).  Not only did I have the pleasure of going to my first Scottish Nerdfighter gathering, but on the day after it, I also met up with my friend Lauren, where we discussed   many topics that surprisingly hasn't put us in the loony bin.  Full of hugs, laughter, Nerdiness (a LOT of Nerdiness), deep talks, awesome people, writing, hugs, cool hats, sitting, standing and an unnecessary amount of running.
     In the early weeks of being decreed a "Nerdfighter", my attention was brought to an event page on Facebook declaring, that a Scottish Nerdfighter gathering would take place in Glasgow Green on Saturday 31st August. Not only was I pleased to be given such a grand opportunity to meet lots of awesome people, but rather surprised, considering the fact this was posted very well in advance, in February/March. After a long time of waiting, the gathering was upon me.
     Prior to the gathering, the members of "We are Nerdfighters" going to the gathering, agreed on a place of meeting before we advanced to Glasgow Green. I decided to come fashionably late (in other words, I was just being a lazy ass hole). The day before, I had made the use of Google Maps to refresh my knowledge of the correct path to Glasgow Green, but my friend Sophia had took it upon herself to be the guide and directed us  through a different path. The area itself I recognized, just the way to Glasgow Green from that point, was unknown to myself. Eventually, we reached Glasgow Green, and upon reaching the center part, we glanced at a few people staring at us. Whispering between ourselves, we questioned whether these people were Nerdfighters or just random strangers. We directed the typical Nerdfighter hand sign to clarify if they were one of us, followed by a delighted cheer, we had found more of our kind.
     I found myself, as I'm sure my friends did as well, a little surprised, due to their only being four people already there to greet us. We moved over to a grassy bit beside a nice tree so we could have our bottoms seated. Not long passed before a couple more members appeared, one of them having a Minecraft sword in their possession (which if you didn't know, is awesome). Then the reminder of the group followed subsequently. A few people brought their Ukuleles, which turned out to be very entertaining.
     Later on, a group of us decided to play Duck, Duck, Goose. I was awful, though I am excused as we did play it on a bit of hill, so my feet would go a funny way and hurt. We also made a pile of leaves; my friend Andrew started it, but a few of joined in. We are so mature aren't we? A small conflict occurred between myself and Andrew, unknown to me as to what influenced these actions, Andrew picked up some leaves and threw them at me. Then I retaliated, this went on for a while, before we agreed on a peace treaty. On a number of occasions, my dear beanie hat, was stolen from me by some of the members. There was no real ill intention to this shameful act, just a bit of fun to pass the time, thought I did not overly enjoy it as it required me to run. Then, Robert (the guy with the awesome Minecraft sword) guided most of the group to the St Enoch Center to get food. Not that most of us didn't know our way, he was just given the role of guide.
     Upon arriving at the food court, myself and my friend Sophia were not too keen on purchasing food from any of the fast food shops. Sophia wanted to get some vegetarian food and I generally refuse to eat at McDonald's or Burger King. If given the choice, I would rather starve. So on wards we went to the Tesco, I myself purchased a bottle of diet coke and what proved to be a very tasty bottle of orange juice. Sophia bought a number of items (biscuits, orange juice, cookies, tablet), originally, I thought we were buying food just for ourselves, but then I understood that she wished to buy enough food for a few members of the group.  When returning, we met most of the members on the top floor of the food court, enjoying some humorous conversations and consuming our purchased food products. My friend Chloe, requested that we pick her friend (who she refers to as her brother) at Central Station. Eventually we reached the station, it all went pretty swiftly. As the group exited Central Station, it was brought to my attention that my sister was leaving, so after saying my farewells, I continued on wards with the group. we had to wait for some of the members for they were taking some time. We got into trouble with the police, seeing as we are such rebels, because we were kind of getting in peoples way so we kind of had to leave.
     Anyway, when we finally returned to Glasgow Green, we got up to some entertaining activities. The more younger members, decided to play toilet tig but with our own little Nerdy twist. My friend Rosemary (who sadly was unable to come to the gathering) had thought up the ingenious idea of Sherlock tig. The rules explained that if you were tug, you would stand still and stretch both your arms out and say "elementary my dear Watson" until someone came behind you, repeated the line and caught you as you fell backwards. The worst part of playing this game, was that I was the first to be given the role as tigger, which meant I had to do an unnecessary amount of running which proved how unfit I was. I did do a decent job, but I managed to convince everyone to enroll a second person as the tigger as a considerable number of us were playing. The person chosen, ran sometimes, but generally just refused to run and just walked most of the time. Eventually, we moved on to the typical chain tig. That proved most enjoyable as well as exhausting, and proved to be daunting when the chain reformed, the members no doubt plotting their next evil scheme and finally charging towards the people still remaining. To my great surprise, myself, Sophia and this other cool guy who's name I have forgotten, were the last three and technically the winners. This came as such a shock to us, Sophia continually stated she hadn't run in years and I just question how my unfit body managed to escape them. This literally defied logic, it was some amazing scientific discovery.

     We later moved slightly across Glasgow Green for no real apparent reason. A lot of pictures and hugs were taken, but I didn't want to make this post a gallery of photos so I chose my favorite out of them. All of a sudden, a large group hug started to form and I couldn't deny the opportunity to join in. It was such a bonding moment, it was like the group was a herd and we were trying not to separate. Though, a number of people kept on tripping up as we walked, until we all fell over. I was under so many people, I could barely move. I assumed it would be ok for a few minutes, as I was still able to see. Until one member decided to pile on, right on top of me. I literally could not see a thing and I was terrified in case  my glasses broke. I was literally shouting "someone is on top of me, someone on top of me! I have galsses and someone is on top of me!" I think it was after that that I got the most pictures of myself with another person, i literally just went up to people and said "i don't know your name but I am going to get a picture with you anyway".
     One of the people that I got a picture with was Manus (ha, ha). He is freaking awesome, he is a writer, a singer, a gamer and just generally an awesome guy. I will need to find out where his opinion lies in Doctor Who, but he does have the potential to be my new best friend.  At first, when talking to him and his other friend, I thought I was talking to two seventeen year olds and felt rather awkward but as it turns out, Manus was only 14 and his friend who was considerably taller than me was 15. I was happliy surprised, and when a lot of the members went to Geek Retreat, we just joined in conversation in our natural habitat. It was so much fun that this post can't even explain how much fun it was.
    

    The worst part was saying goodbye, I feel a part of my soul die whenever I have to say goodbye to my Nerdfighter friends. Myself and Sophia, got the same train home, which lead to a nice conversation before I was no longer accompanied by a Nerdfighter. I thought another day with such awesomeness like this would never appear again. but the next day, as you will already know if you remember reading the start of the post, I met my friend Lauren on another day of awesome. I was running a little late, of which Lauren made very clear. Then I decided to steal her hat because it was awesome, but then I gave it back of course, I'm not that cruel. We wondered around town for a bit,looked at some cool hats, we had no idea where we were going, but then we went to the Waterstones and I got a Diet Irn-Bru and a yummy chocolate muffin. We talked non-stop for over four hours; many dirty jokes were made as well as some surprising amount of deep conversations. It was just so much fun, and carried on the awesomeness. Then, we went to meet her parents at Primark before I departed. Despite the post being very late, the weekend still remains to be one of my absolute favorites and I will never, ever forget it. 

                                                      Geronimo!
                                                       Stephen

4th Year Of Secondary School

     Today officially brought me into my 4th year of high school,the first year that I shall be given an end of year exam. How daunting? My first day back after the Summer Holidays was surprisingly entertaining; I found it strangely easy but also enjoyable to get back into a normal routine. After a Summer of boredom, I was relieved to reflourish my friendships and that my day was not spoiled by anyone who has a tendency to irk me. My gratitude was expressed towards the continuity of my favorite teachers, and where a gap was left at the end of my third year, I was given an excellent teacher for Biology. As well as another teacher for Geography and the same teacher for PSE (Personal and Social Education); this teacher in particular did take me for Geography in second year and though I find them to be a good teacher, they are no my first choice. 

     Otherwise, I still have an excellent selection of teachers as I did last year, and I shall try not to decide on which day is my favorite (subject wise) until I have experienced a full week of school. Not a lot of effort was required of me today, which is always a good thing, though my mind was somewhat concentrated on the school blazers. I myself, do not particularly wish to wear a blazer, I do not see anything wrong with the uniform just now and I feel they are just wasting time by trying to enforce an addition to the uniform. 

     At this moment in time, I do find myself a tad befuddled; leading up to the beginning of fourth year, I was unaware whether blazers were compulsory or not? Then I met with my friends whom I walk up to school with, they were all wearing blazers, but this was no surprise as they already dressed like so for some time now. They informed me that it was compulsory and that before the end of third year, a uniform letter was handed out; I was unaware of this as well as hoping that the first point was false. On arriving at my Registration Class, I was disappointed to discover, that after three years of the same registration teacher and two years as a French teacher, I would no longer come to their classroom at 8.55am. Instead, I received a perfectly acceptable new teacher who has just joined the school in the Geography department.  The point still stands though, that it felt like an end of an era, and that I felt closer to the end that I was the beginning. Anyhow, after an hour of registration, sorting out the usual letters handed out at the start of every year, the teacher went through the uniform and we were told that blazers were not compulsery, I advanced to Music later on, where I was informed by my teacher that she had a discussion with the head teacher, and it appears that pupils must acquire a blazer by the end of the month.  Although, the rest of the day, from teachers and pupils, I had gotten the impression that they were not compulsory? Who knows, it is the first day back so everything is still to be completely sorted, so I shall wait a few days until I come across some concrete information on the topic of the blazer. 

     Another thing that didn't make my day a perfect day, was the introduction of the "warning bell"? It is simply a bell that sounds exactly the same as the real bell, and is set off five minutes before the actual bell to inform us it is coming. In the grand scheme, this is understandable for before school begins, as well as break and lunch time. Though I recall, leaving Music for break, then as I walked through the social area with my friend, the bell went off again and we puzzled over whether break had just started or finished? If I am not mistaken, I remember it activated during a class, then when we advanced to the next class, the bell went again; proving that we had left too early for the next class. My scheduling for class is pretty acceptable, the only main problems is that, last two periods on a Monday, I have PE (Physical Education), followed by the dreaded French. As well as the fact that Monday, Tuesday and Friday, begin with the evil antagonist that is Maths. 

     Overall, I had a very enjoyable day and my anxiety is at some level, when looking into the near future and seeing the terrifying exams. Hopefully, I shall have a good year, as last year turned out to be quite successful both socially and educationally. My classes are acceptable so far, so I do hope that the good fortune will continue at least until the end of this week. If you enjoyed reading this, then great, otherwise.... well I don't care, I must sleep now. 

                                                             Geronimo!  

                                                              Stephen

Review: Cloud Atlas

     The film Cloud Atlas is an adapted version of the book, written by British author David Mitchell. Critics describe it as: "one of the bravest and most ambitious pieces of film making for years". As well as "an incredible feat of filmaking". Released in October 2012, with Tom Hanks and Halle Berry leading an all star cast, this review is rather late, but today is the first time I have watched it with a blog. Six timelines, six stories; everything is connected as characters meet from one life to the next. Past, present and future their actions generate consequences. Cloud Atlas combines science fiction, action, mystery, drama and romance together tremendously. 

     Without a doubt, it is my absolute favorite film. The unique idea sells itself. One of the things that especially makes the film so enjoyable, is the similarities between different timelines that makes the viewer realize how ingenious it is. Each timeline being practically a different genre, is to show that the charterers can still be linked across time despite the circumstances. Another thing, is the tremendous monologues for some of the characters; allowing us a brilliant insight into the characters mind and follows with some good character development. Cloud Atlas entails some very creative speeches, some extremely heartwarming but also heartwrenching. Not forgetting the amazing talent of the actors/actresses and the makeup team, with every actor/actress playing more than two character and some looking completely different to each other. Some of them even change race and/or play a character of the opposite sex, giving a believable performance.

       Each timeline had such an enticing storyline, that they each felt like six different films which is the genius of the movie, as they succeed in combining all six of these together to make one epic film. Throughout the film, we see some of the things that connect the characters. .The two most noticeable things, is the comet birth mark on many of the characters and the "Cloud Atlas Sextet". Cloud Atlas is mainly about reincarnation and for people to become better or worse through different life cycles; the birthmark is an indication of a soul passing through another body but the fact it is a comet, also indicates something scientific but mythical about the whole process.  The Cloud Atlas Sextet is a piece of music created by one of the characters, and is used to link together stories. 

      I'd rather not go into full detail as to what each of the timelines entail as that would take some time and you would be very tiered of having to read so much text. Instead, you will just have to take my word for it when I say this is an outstanding film that is an absolute must see. It is quite a complicated film, you may have to watch it a second time to fully understand it but it is well worth it. If i had to rate it, it would for sure be a 10/10. 

                                                        Geronimo!

                                                          Stephen

    

     

Nerdfighter Forever

     Since February of this year, I have been a part of the wonderful group known as "Nerdfighters", created by Vlogbrothers.  The two participants being author John Green and his brother Hank Green. The title Nerdfighter, means Nerds that fight, usually against popular people. As well as fighting to increase awesome and decrease world suck. Nerds whom take pride in being Nerds and instead of being made of cells, organs and stuff, they are made of awesome. Being such a popular group for millions of Nerds, many smaller groups follow under Nerdfighters. The one of which I am a member of is "We are Nerdfighters".        
                  During my time as a Nerdfighter, I have met a great number of amazing people who I hold as my  dearest friends and on my list of favorite people. The number of interests shared between the group is unbelievable, and has given me a large number of people to obsess with over different genres of fiction. Whenever I am in the company of these fantastic people, I have nothing to be sad about. I can honestly say, that within this group of people, I have found a second family. I know myself that other members of the group feel the same way, and that if we were mad enough (check) and had enough money, that we would all live together in a big house so we could be happy forever.

     Although, there is no story without some evil plot twist. Despite the fact that every so often the group has a gathering in Glasgow Central, a large number of members are not situated in the city. Located in other parts of Scotland, most of them living just a bit under an hour away from Glasgow. This proves it to be difficult for us to meet as for some, the train tickets are considerably more expensive that those who already live in Glasgow. So they are unable to sum up the money to buy train tickets for every gathering.
   The group has been able to meet on a regular two week basis on most occasions. Though to my sad regards, around a month ago, a dispute between the members occurred. No one was 100% clear as to what exactly happened, but most members agree it to be "a lack of communication" between the group. After every gathering, members of the group and the number of people at each gathering started to increase, so many people found it inevitable that such a big group would fall out at one point. Ever since then, there has been no official gatherings. Some members have left the group chat on facebook, but not  the actual group itself and two of the members have completely left.

     The majority of the group are still communicating through facebook and the group is slowly rebuilding. We are yet to have another gathering, but I am confident that one is just around the corner and we shall return to the normal schedule. I highly advise any Nerd to join Nerdfighters as I am quite certain that you will make some wonderful new friends as I have. DFTBA (don't forget to be awesome).                                                                  
                    Geronimo!
                     Stephen
         
   

Peter Capaldi is the Twelfth Doctor

     After many longing weeks of speculations on who would take on the role as the Twelfth Doctor, after Matt Smith performed magnificently as the Eleventh Doctor, our prayers have finally been answered. Peter Capaldi is the man to take on the role of the iconic hero, and I'm certain that I speak for many of us when I say, fantastic! Peter is a brilliant actor, having appeared in the fourth series of Doctor Who, episode two "Fires of Pompeii", as well as "Torchwood: Children of Earth". Not only is the man himself a Whovian, but he has put himself in the record books as being the third Scottish actor to play The Doctor.
     The 55 year old Glaswegian, award winning actor, stared in the BBC comedy "The Thick of It",  he has appeared in the BBC Two drama "The Hour" as well as having been seen on screen in the film "World War Z". This Autumn, he will appear in the forthcoming film "The Fifth Estate" and the Disney film "Maleficent". Capaldi is also in the middle of filming a new BBC drama series called "The Musketeers", set to be broadcast early 2014.
     So it appears that it may be another few years, until the decision is made to change the Doctors gender or colour. It is of my personal opinion, that when the sad day in the hopefully distant future comes, that Peter Capaldi will pass on the TARDIS keys, to someone different. In the majority of cases, Doctor Who excels at change, and there is no good reason that The Doctor couldn't be black or female. If such a decision were to be made in the future, it would open up a huge range of people to take on the role and help assure another 50 years of Doctor Who. Everyone has had that Doctor that they weren't too sure about at first, then once they got used to them, they couldn't bare without them. The only things that should concern anyone about a new Doctor, is that the actor or actress is talented and is written well.
      My congrats still go towards Peter Capaldi and I look forward to his time as The Doctor.Now fans can only wonder what kind of Doctor he will play, as well as what his outfit will be and his catchphrase. It is to my understanding, that according to some rumors, the Twelfth Doctor is to be revealed as very dark and I think Peter would be perfect in that kind of role. My trust in Moffat is not altered, and I am certain he will  think up another lovable incarnation of The Doctor.  I wish both of them  all the luck in the world and I look forward to the wonderful journey ahead of them.

Geronimo!

Stephen 

Doctor Who Live: The Next Doctor

Sunday 4th August 2013.
     Two days. Two days until the Twelfth Doctor is revealed to us. As other Whovians have been doing, I too, have been speculating over who could possibly take on such an iconic role. So I decided that I would post it on my blog, to give you an insight on who I think should take on the role, as well as my thoughts about the live broadcast and other topics that surround the mystery of the Twelfth Doctor.
     First things first, let's take a look at when the theories began to go topsy turvey. Before, we were just perfectly innocent Whovains, enjoying another excellent series of Doctor Who, with no idea Matt was leaving so therefore little speculation on who the next Doctor will be. On 18th May 2013, as the series 7 finale "The Name of the Doctor" drew in ever so closer, fans went crazy whilst constantly speculating over three things: what the Doctor's greatest secret could be, whether his name would be revealed and  the answer behind the mystery of the impossible girl. The latter, was the first to be answered; Clara turned out to be echos scattered across the Doctor's timeline, and then later John Hurt was revealed as the Doctor, but was somehow his greatest secret and somehow not the Doctor? "I said he was me, I didn't say he was the Doctor".So it seemed it would be another 50 years until we find out his name.  Fans were then left with one of the greatest cliffhangers in Who history. Whovains all over have debated about what Doctor he could be; to this date, his most popular titles are "The Forgotten Doctor", "The Twelfth Doctor" or "The Eight and a half Doctor". In June, after fans speculated plenty on who Hurts Doctor could be , the sad news was released that the wonderful Matt Smith, who took on the role as the Eleventh Doctor for four years, will end his run as the iconic hero on December 25th 2013. Merry Christmas from the BBC. The speculation on who the Twelfth Doctor could be went well over-proportion, leading up to the live broadcast this Sunday.
     Before the new Doctor is even revealed to the public, there are a lot of questions about what the new Doctor will be like. What clothes will they where? What changes in personality does the new Doctor have? Will they be tall, short, fat, skinny? Will they have brown hair, blonde hair, or for the sake of The Doctor's sanity, will the last of the timelords finally become... ginger? The list goes on and though these may seem like trivial questions to some people, they are very important questions to us die hard Whovians. Though the greatest question, for this Doctor especially, is whether the Doctor will be male or female? Very early into series 7, there were speculations that after 50 years, the Doctor will become a woman. Many interviews later, it started to sink into fans that Moffat didn't seem fixed on it, but he was open to having the Doctor change his gender. In just two days we will find out, whether this evil genius has decided to play it safe and keep the tradition of the Doctor being male, or if he has taken one of the biggest risks and made one of the biggest changes in Doctor Who history? Then once the secret is out in the open, we will enjoy interviews from some of the beloved actors who have played the timelord, as well as companions, celebrity fans of the show and of course Matt, Jenna and Moffat. Hopefully with some hints about Matt's last two episodes and the Twelfths Doctor's future.
     Now we have reached the point where I inform you of my on personal opinion on what path Steven Moffat should have taken when choosing the next incarnation of the Doctor.If I am perfectly honest, I couldn't care less if the Doctor becomes a man or a woman. We live in a day and age where woman are considered as equals to men, more than they ever have before. So why shouldn't a woman take on such an iconic role? Not that women aren't considered equals in Doctor Who, as there are a wide range of important female characters.  As long as the person that takes on the role is an excellent actor/actress and that they are well written, that's all that should matter.  Well because Moffat is the one in charge of the next Doctor, I think think we can tick off the latter. If he does decide to make such a big change to the Doctor, it is a very big risk as a lot of fans are not supporting the notion of a woman Doctor. To assure that fans continue to love the show as they have previously, if not more, the actress must already have an acting ability up with the standards of David Tenant and Steven should be very careful how he writes her. The reason that I think they should be very cautious, is because this would be the first time they have done this. In the past the showrunners could be more relaxed about it because they already had a system that worked. This system has went on through 50 years, so Wovains have gotten too attached to the notion that the Doctor is a man. So if they do choose to make him a woman and she is a success, then they can be a bit more relaxed when choosing the next female Doctor. Though if they decide to keep him male, I think it would be a good idea to make him black, or even Asian if they found a good actor. So that we may prove to some of those idiotic critics that the show isn't racist.
     Many actors and actresses have been rumored to have been offered the role, many of which, I myself was not pleased with. Though there were those few actors that I couldn't resist thinking "what if they were the Doctor"? One of my favorites, was Benedict Cumberbatch; sadly, there is a zero chance that he would want to play the Doctor. After thinking about it for a while, I don't think it would be right anywayy. One actor for two VERY popular shows? Also, seeing as Doctor Who has more episodes and is a bigger show altogether, that would be both Benedict and Moffats main priority. Since Sherlock fans have been waiting for about two years just for a third series of the show (which I understand is in the middle of being filmed) they might have to wait even longer for a fourth series.

 Another one which did interest me but wasn't at the top of my favorite list, was Daniel Radcliffe. Starring in the film series that become a world wide phenomenon, as the young wizard Harry Potter for 10 years, probably from the fifth film on wards, I began to notice how talented he was as an actor and how much potential he had. My greatest worry for Daniel, as I'm sure others have felt for him as well as towards Emma Watson and Rupert Grint, is that they might be typecast. For anyone who doesn't know what typecast means, it is when an actor/actress, is assigned to the same type of role. Which makes it difficult for them to get a role in different types of genres, so they don't like to stick to one role for too long. As has been part of the reason for Matt and David's departure of  Doctor Who. Daniel, Emma and Rupert are prime examples of this, not to say they haven't had any different roles after Harry Potter, but not a lot to my knowledge.  So a big show like Doctor Who, could really help Daniel as an actor.

     At the top of my  favorite actresses to play the Doctor list (if they have made such a decision) would be Lara Pulver. Despite the fact that I have only seen her in the first episode of Sherlock series 2, "A Scandal in Belgravia", I was stunned and amazed by her performance. Not only was the story magnificently written by Mr Moffat himself, but Lara give a wonderful performance, full of cleverness,, humor and just ticked all the boxes for a strong willed female character.  I know that she would be hilarious in Doctor Who, but I also believe she would be excellent at sad moments as well.

If  we were to keep the kind of tradition, and the Doctor remains to be male, I think now is the time that he should become black. As I have said before, so we can prove to the critics that show isn't racist (which doesn't really need proving anyway), but there is a black male actor who I would love to play the Doctor and that is Idris Elba. Even though I have only seen series three of the show and not the previous two, the way he portrays the main character Luther in the BBC crime drama "Luther", is absolutely amazing. The type of character itself, I find really interesting; the rough hero who always have the "good cop, bad cop" question weighing on his shoulders. He is very talented and according to some rumors, the Twelfth Doctor is meant to be a very dark Doctor, so I think Idris would be fantastic in that kind of role as he has already proved in Luther.

 Finally, if the Twelth Doctor was to continue as a white male. At the top of my list of  white male actors, is an actor who as of this week, joined the top of the list for rumored actors to play the Doctor. Peter Capaldi is a brilliant actor, and has shown this talent of his in examples such as the enticing "Torchwood: Children of Earth" as well as in Doctor Who, series four, episode two "Fires of Pompeii". Peter would do well at an angry Doctor and I would be very interested at what kind of Doctor he would be.

     There you have it, that's my opinion on everything connected to the Twelfth Doctor. I hope you have been enlightened by this post and maybe it has helped you form your own opinion on who should play the Doctor. Thanks for reading. I anxiously wait for the truth to be revealed and hope that it will be at least a nice surprise.

                                                                Geronimo! 

                                                                 Stephen .

   

A Nerdy Guide To Glasgow

Are you a Nerd looking for a place in Glasgow where you can feel like you have found a second home? If yes, then great but if no, then surely by the title of this post you should have guessed this is not for you. Unless you plan to show it to a friend or relative whom happens to be Nerd, then you are welcome to continue reading. Though the interests of  Nerd-kind  reaches a notable length, a lot of these interests are shared with the majority of Nerds, which makes it easier for myself to compose this Nerdy Guide to Glasgow. Every destination that has been included in the list, are places that I feel are at the top of the  must see list, for a Nerd in Glasgow. 

Waterstones- Any Nerd that is in a dire search for a book shop as magical as Hogwarts (in the muggle word at least), or as comforting as hearing some mad man say "trust me, I'm the Doctor" then your search is at an end. Waterstones is a fantastic book shop with hundreds of books at reasonable prices. The pictures of Waterstones to your left, are both in Glasgow Central; the top one is literally a couple of minutes outside of the train station at 174- 176 Argyle Street and the bottom one is at 153-157 Sauchiehall Street. The interior layout of the shops are just lovely and well thought out. Not only do they sell an excellent range of books, . but also some stationary as well as kindles. If you still require some convincing, I should probably mention that inside the shop, is a costa cafe! So you shall be able to enjoy the luxury of siting in a comfy chair, with maybe some tea and biscuits at your disposal, whilst you are lost in the imagination of the writer and are surrounded by a multitude of books. What else you could ask for?


CEX- This stands for "Central Entertainment Exchange", a second hand goods shop that buy, sell and exchange a range of technology and entertainment products. These include: mobile phones, video games, DVD's, Blu-ray movies, computers, digital electronics, TV's, monitors and music CD's. For a second hand goods shop, the quality of their products are considerably higher than you might initially think. The shop is located, literally a few seconds away from the Waterstones in Argyle Street. Any gamer who is looking for all of the most recent games in CEX, you may be out of luck. Though it is surprising how recent some of the products they sell are;  some of their products in their stalls are ones that have been released in the current year, depending on what time of the year you visit the shop, but more likely the year before that.  There are also many games or DVD's from a number of years ago and remain to be of good quality. One of the main reasons that sealed CEX a place on my Nerdy Guide to Glasgow. was the fact that you are able to donate to a good cause through the shop, when selling a product to CEX either in store or online. Whether you wish to donate the full value of the product or just some of it, it will be donated to the charity of your choice. Though if you give 100% of the value of items in one transaction, then CEX will add 10% on top of that to your chosen charity. It is a brilliant shop and I would recommend it to anyone.

Forbidden Planet-   A science fiction, fantasy and horror bookshop. As well as books, Forbidden Planet sells  comic books, graphic novels, manga, posters, a variety of toys and other collectibles.The only thing about the shop that I would consider a "problem" is that it is quite a small, cramped shop; especially if there are a lot of people inside it. Otherwise, it is a very good shop with merchandise based on a varied amount of our favorite hero's from Doctor Who, Star Wars, DC, Marvel and so much more. Located at 168 Buchanan Street, it is very close to the Glasgow Royal Convert Hall, almost directly opposite from another place in this list, and ins't that far from the Waterstones in Sauchieall Street. It is definitely worth a visit.                                                
Game- From the title, you should already have deducted that this shop sells games; video games to be precise. Along with consoles and accessories. Game is another shop which allows you to buy and trade in your items. In return you are given a voucher to match the value of the products that you have traded in. So it is quite useful when trying to save money. In Glasgow there are three Game shops; one is found in the St Enoch Center on the ground floor, the second is on the first floor of the Buchanan Galleries (a couple of seconds up from Forbidden Planet) and the last one is situated across the road from CEX. It is the place to go for gamers who are looking for the most recently released games as well as some good prices as well.

Hamleys- Please understand, that it was not my intention to include Christmas trees into the top picture of Hamleys.  Therefore making you all depressed, by reminding you it is still five months and twenty four days until Christmas. It was the best one I could find. Yes I did count how long it is until Christmas! Why shouldn't I, it's a wonderful time of the year that goes away so quickly. Anyway, this shop is one of the worlds best known retailer of toys and in Glasgow, it is located on the third and top floor of the St Enoch Center. With two entrances, one of them is seconds away from the Waterstone   in Argyle Street and the other is right beside some of the seating areas for the food courts. For children of any ages, or for anyone who is still a child at heart  but cannot get the Kids Go Free train ticket. Any type of toy you can think of, Hamleys will most likely have it. Whether it's action figures, arts and craft, soft toys, outdoor stuff, vehicles, dolls, build it, or preschool toys, you'll find it here. A place as fun as Willie Wonkers Chocolate Factory (though I would advise that you don;t eat any of the products as I do not believe that they are edible).                              

Mr Ben- Here we have a lovely vintage shop, located at King Court, 101 Kings Street. Within contains a diverse amount of items of both time and fashion. Such as old fashioned cameras, kilts, skirts, trousers, shoes, dresses, jewelry, etc. It certainly is a shop full of stylish clothing and other interesting items. I have only been twice, but it certainly is a place that I would suggest to someone who is in search for old looking, but stylish clothing. You wont regret paying a well worth visit to the wonderful Mr Ben's.

Paperchase- Almost directly across from Forbidden Planet, Paperchase is the perfect for the stationary nut or arty person to go to. Full of stationary, gifts, gift wrap, cards (as well as personalized cards), art materials and  collections. Beautifully laid out with a great cafe upstairs. The shop is a great place to go to if you are starting you ambition to become an artists, looking for stationary for your first day
back at School, College or University and if you were just hoping to sit down and have a nice cake.  Speaking of cake, *leaves room to get cake then returns ten minutes later*. Anyway, what was I talking about... Ah yes, it is a fantastic shop and it is very difficult for any Nerd to just leave Paperchase.

Riverside Museum- Previously known as the Transport Museum, before being moved to the River Clyde, at 102 Pointhouse Rd; the museum is known as Scotland's Museum of Transport and Travel. Winner of the European Museum of the Year Award, when moved to it's new destination, it was given a brilliantly unique, quirky design. Inside all the cars, trains and other examples of history in the museum are well laid out and a great place for people to visit for fun and educational purposes. With a  wonderful cafe as well as outside food stalls and seating areas. Behind the museum is a Tall Ship in fine condition after being refurbished by the Clyde Maritime Trust; inside they have created a wonderful cafe and gift shop, as well as some play areas for children. All over the ship are some information points, giving you an idea f what sailors lived like in their day. I myself have visited it many times ever since I was very young, when it was at it's original place. I enjoyed it so much, that I decided to do my fourth year work experience there this November. It is a great place to visit.

Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum- Since the 2003-2006 refurbishment, the museum has been the most popular free-to-enter visitor attraction in Scotland and the most visited museum in the UK out with London. Located within Argyle Street in the West End, on the banks of the River Kelvin. It is a wonderful place with examples of history spanning over hundreds of years. Different types of old art can be found, as well as to size modals of different animals (including dinosaurs). As well as models of war airplanes, with many examples of British history and Egyptian history.  Not forgetting the "floating" heads. There seriously is so much interesting stuff that I can't simply describe it all too you, you need to see it for yourselves. It's that good.

Thank you so much if you bothered to read this whole thing, and I sincerely hope that this has helped at least one person in some way or form. So that this hasn't just been a complete waste of time because that would be quite depressing. These are all wonderful places, you must visit them!

Geronimo! 

Stephen