The Lair

Ah, the seven facts. I’m sure quite a few of the people who read this blog already know a couple of these. I may have even mentioned them before. I’m nothing if not unoriginal.

1. I’m a confused southpaw. Basically, I write with my left hand; but I’m sure my right hand is the stronger (I play tennis/badminton/table tennis right handed, my primary joystick and wiimote hand is the right). I used to get lots of stares in school because I write with my hand curled over the top of the page. Don’t ask me why, it just is that way.

2. I absolutely adore pineapple. Most (all?) fruit, but pineapple in particular. I will even buy pineapple off the dodgy vendors who walk along the beach with filthy polythene covered basins. Mind, this is not the saddo tinned pineapple travesty you get in the wintery climates, but the awesome sun ripened stuff.

3. My desert island discs are mostly electronic music. I know and like other genres and I’m an 80s kid; but electronic fits most of my moods. I fight not to direct {elitist-musicsnob} comments at the trance obsessed johnny-come-latelys. Oh and the 80s stuff I listen to? I blame childhood indoctrination by my siblings.

4. It was widely believed that offering me interesting books to read was the only way to prevent me breaking stuff. I was allowed to read pretty much anything I wanted from a relatively young age. Yup, Wilbur Smiths, Clive Cusslers and Evelyn Anthonys were early teens or pre-teens reading. This had the potential to shock many people so I kept it a secret (until now, that is). However, in a display of unassailable parental logic, my parents didn’t allow me to watch so-called adults only TV till I turned 18.

[A Sri Lankan cultural reference from the 80s follows. Look away now] This is fine, until you realize that Dynasty was given an 18 or over rating and I couldn’t watch it but Falcon Crest was considerably more raunchy (I think?) and I was allowed to watch that. Bitter much? No. But I protested so much that it’s a family in-joke.

5. My middle name is after my maternal grandfather, who died 20 years before I was born. Pity, because I’m sure I would have gotten on well with him based on his rather extensive library. Why yes, I do judge a person on their library.

6. I can usually go to sleep on cue. I’m also a sound sleeper (ie:, it’s rather difficult to wake me up). No amount of background noise makes any difference. I’ve fallen asleep in noisy discotheques, slept through a couple of minor earthquakes, slept through a minor celebrity getting shot outside our house one night. Inconveniences like time of the day don’t stop me from grabbing a quick catnap, in the manner of a true sloth. My extended family don’t always understand, but they’re used to my narcoleptic behaviour and general eccentricity.

7. I wanted to be a professional chess player in my teens. Fortunately, I found something a bit more diverting to do with my life because I definitely don’t have the temperament to do it for a living. I still miss it sometimes though. The adrenalin rush from a competitive blitz game has to be experienced to be believed.

And that’s that, I guess. Anyone reading is welcome to pick up the meme baton and write their own. Or, alternately (and perhaps more interestingly), you can tell us what your desert island discs might be. Let’s set basic rules. Five discs only. Can be singles, albums or compilations (compilations probably need a link to a tracklist). It doesn’t need to be your favourite music necessarily, but stuff you’d take if you were going to a desert island. Is there a distinction? Well, yes. I’d probably take along a non-electronic compilation disc to remind myself of what human voices sound like. It is, after all, a desert island, right? Hell, I might pack a Rosetta Stone disc to “Learn Latin” in there.

And with this humble offering, I hope to appease the gods of meme.