Archives June 2014

These days we don’t really get to Abandon the Cube as much as we’d like, but this week we’re in sunny Atlantic Beach living the dream.

And by dream I literally do mean living a more vivid dream. I read once that people along the coasts dream more vividly and live life a bit more wildly. At the same time, more great thinkers, philosophers and dreamers have come from coastal cities than inlanders. I knew this before we arrived at the beach and I was looking forward to insane dreams with M.C Escher stairs with droopy Salvador Dali animals running up and down. Oddly enough, the sun has made me more tired so I haven’t been dreaming at all. On the other hand, I had an awesomely deep conversation about the pitfalls of the Machiavellian state vs Confucianism this morning, which was unlikely to happen back inland so there is that….

Dreaming

One thing I’ve always hated about the beach is how commercial it is. And it’s not just American beaches. I went to the beach in Turkmenistan a few years ago and there was a guy selling inflatable bananas, crocodiles and beach balls just like the guy on the coast here in sunny North Carolina. The only beach I’ve ever been to without capitalist swarming all over it was in Olympos, Turkey.

Olympos, Turkey

You had to hike through a jungle following a wall built in the Hellenistic period and the jump around a wall made during the Roman Empire to find this stunning blue lagoon full of hippie backpackers. It was paradise. If I found out tomorrow I had an incurable disease you’d find me the day after on the beach in Olympos looking out of crystal waters with ancient ruins behind me in the jungle. Truly awesome.

Atlantic Beach

And the beach here in North Carolina could be like that if it wasn’t so developed. My uncle has a place along one of the canals and across from his home is an uninhabited island jungle that looks amazingly fun to explore. I bet the pirates of old have buried treasure out there somewhere.

Pirates of North Carolina

I’m also reminded, while looking out at the ocean, how close the Nazi subs were to this very area, and how many ships met their doom at Nazi hands right off the coast here. As one historian put it, “It wasn’t the US Navy or Coast Guard that controlled the Atlantic coast in 1942, it was the Nazi U-boats.”

One U-boat captain told his son (who survived him through the war) that he was most amazed at how life continued on as normal in the US despite it’s being at war. People were on the beaches every day, boats went out on joy rides ride near the lurking subs (unbeknownst to them obviously) and at night the coast was lit up from all the bars, parties and general merriment. This may be one of the reasons Americans have a reputation abroad as always jovial, never serious.

U-Boats Prep for the Atlantic Campaign

Pretty stunning how much history there is right off the coast. (Not even counting the stuff in Kitty Hawk–the first flight of the Wright Brothers.)

Wright Brothers in NC

While the words “bachelor holiday” inspire a certain level of apprehension in parents, other halves, hotel and restaurant owners and flight attendants, getting away with your mates isn’t always a sordid, drunken affair filled with bright blue vomit, public urination and questionable sexual escapades.

However, there’s a wide range of things, some of which are listed below, that groups of male friends can go abroad to experience and do without their wives or girlfriends fearing the worse about what they might get up to. Every holiday needs the perfect soundtrack so that, when a certain song comes on the radio in twenty years, you’ll immediately flash back to the magical week you spent getting sunburned and drunk in Malia after your A-Levels. Here, then, are the songs that will soundtrack any lads’ holiday.

The island holiday: Get Lucky (Daft Punk)

There’s one tune every year that becomes the world’s unofficial “song of the summer”, leaking out of bars and clubs from Ibiza to Miami. It dominates the season (often being released in April or May so it can build a reputation before June-September), has an infectious beat and singalong lyrics and is usually crowned the biggest-selling single at the end of the year. We’ve had “Crazy In Love”, “Umbrella”, “I Gotta Feeling” and “Gangnam Style” in years gone by, but nobody yet knows what the 2014 song will be. With that in mind, we’re going to go with last year’s song of the summer, “Get Lucky” by Daft Punk, as the track of choice for your island holiday.

The football tour: Three Lions ’98 (Baddiel, Skinner & The Lightning Seeds)

With the World Cup in Brazil just around the corner, what finer adventure could you have this summer than following and supporting the England team around the country? Not only will it be relatively cheap (because there’s no way that England are going to qualify from their group, and you can save money on flights at http://www.easyvoyage.co.uk/flights/comparison), but you’ll get to experience the entirety of one of the most vibrant countries in the world, rather than just Rio or Sao Paulo. When you’re four hours into a baking hot minibus journey to the next game, there’s only one song you should be playing on the stereo: the immortal “Three Lions ’98” (it’s lyrically better than the ’96 version). Football’s coming home…but probably not this year.

The stag do: White Wedding (Billy Idol)

These days, more and more men are embarking on stag weekends, rather than stag nights, as the demand for extravagant celebration of the death of a man’s lothario lifestyle grows. Whether you’re travelling up and down canals on a barge or having a few days in Prague, Billy Idol’s sneering ode to matrimony, “White Wedding”, offers the perfect hard rock alternative to all of those disco classics and saccharine-sweet love ballads you’re going to be subjected to at the wedding itself. Try not to let it get into your brain, though – it won’t make a particularly good impression if your bride hears you humming it to yourself at the altar…

The ski trip: Surfing With The Alien (Joe Satriani)

Obviously you’ll be listening to music while you’re enjoying yourself après-ski, but many people like to listen to music played via their iPods or iPhones while they’re tearing down a mountain at fifty miles an hour. Unless you’re an experienced skier, it’s probably best to keep your hearing clear, but it can be hard to resist the driving tempo and spacey solos of Joe Satriani’s signature guitar instrumental, “Surfing With The Alien”. Just make sure you use your hands to guide yourself down the run and not to play air guitar – you don’t want to ski off the side of the slope!

The Vegas/Monte Carlo blowout: Luck Be A Lady (Frank Sinatra)

If you decide to push the boat out and hit the casinos of Las Vegas or Monte Carlo, then you’ll need all the luck you can get to ensure that you don’t have to declare bankruptcy when you get home. The best Sinatra version of “Luck Be A Lady” from Guys and Dolls, the quintessential musical ode to gambling, can be found on his album Duets II and features Chrissie Hynde as Lady Luck. With just the right amount of swing and style (as if Ol’ Blue Eyes would have had it any other way), this is the song to play to get you in the right frame of mind before you hit the casino floor.

Traveling: I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles) (The Proclaimers)

Finally, you might decide to travel around Europe or America or the Far East for a few weeks, and there’s only one song that you should be uploading to your iPod to pass the time spent on trains, buses and planes. It has unlimited re-play potential and a jaunty tune that no-one in the history of the world has ever got bored of. It’s also a one-hit wonder by two identical twins from Scotland who, presumably, have also never become bored of playing it instead of the hundreds of other songs that they’ve presumably written and recorded. Yes, it’s “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)” by The Proclaimers, and it’ll make you feel excited for the journey you’re embarking on and wistful when you think about your eventual homecoming.

As many of you know, traveling takes money. One way to make that money is at the table. Naturally, we don’t encourage unsafe gambling and all gambling is just that– a gamble with your money and time. That being said, we do know some travelers who funded amazing adventures with cards. So, below is some information on blackjack.

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If used properly, blackjack basic strategy can reduce the house edge and make it easier for you to win.

This minimum edge can be as low as half a percent but will only be achieved if you learn the basic strategy and apply it correctly. Learning basic strategy is now more popular than card counting as most players do not have the concentration, patience, and persistence needed to do this properly.

What is the basic strategy?

Based originally on the mathematics behind the game, this strategy has been refined and tested using computer simulations. There is a basic strategy chart but minor adjustments can be made depending on casino rules and for multiple and single-deck games.

The chart dictates how you should play the first two cards depending on the up card of the dealer. You will then need to learn how to make decisions after you take a hit. The best place to start is by translating the basic chart into simple English, explaining how you should play a hand when three or more cards are involved.

Hard hands

These are hands involving starting cards not containing an ace. Basic strategy says that you should always hit if you have an eight or less. If you find yourself with nine, double if your dealer has between three and six, otherwise hit. Ten – dealer has two to nine – double, otherwise hit. 11, dealer has two to ten – double but hit if dealer holds an ace. 12 – hit when dealer has three or two, stand if between four and six, otherwise hit. 13-16 – hit unless dealer has two to six. Always stand if you have between 17 and 21.

Soft hands

A soft hand is one containing an ace. If you hold an ace 2 or 3, double if dealer has five or six, otherwise hit. Ace 4 or 5 – dealer has four to six so double, otherwise hit. Ace 6 – stand if dealer has two, seven, or eight; double if dealer has three to six, otherwise hit. Always stand if you have ace eight or nine.

Pairs

Always split with a pair of eights or aces. Twos or threes – split if dealer has two to seven, otherwise hit. Fours – split if five or six, otherwise hit. Fives – double if two to nine, otherwise hit. Sixes – split if two to six, otherwise hit. Sevens – split if two to seven, otherwise hit. Nines – split if two to six, eight, or nine. Stand if seven, ten, or ace. Always stand with a pair of tens.

Card counting

If learning the basic strategy is not for you, card counting is still an option. The most common version of this is based on statistics that say that high cards, in particular tens and aces, are more beneficial to the player than the dealer, while low cards, particularly fours, fives and sixes, are better for the dealer.

A point score estimating a card’s value is assigned to every card that the counter sees and they then keep a tally of these. These values should reflect a card’s EOR, or Effect of Removal, indicating the impact on the advantage of the house.

The most basic scheme is known as a high-low system but there are more complicated versions that can increase accuracy, such as Wong Halves and Zen Count. There is a debate, however, about whether these complicated systems detract from a person’s ability to play. It may, therefore, be more profitable to play the simple version quickly than to play a more complex count slower.

Advanced strategies

There are many advanced techniques that studious gamblers will try, such as shuffle tracking and clump reading, but these are so labor-intensive and complicated that it may be more profitable to simply use a basic scheme and test yourself against the Full Tilt Casino house.

Only players with supreme intelligence and flawless attention to detail can even attempt these techniques in a traditional casino and, even then, some form of subversion is also usually needed, such as a calculation device or observation help. This is a huge risk when both of these are usually banned by the house and are actually illegal in many cases.

The following is a guest post by Anna Jones.

Broaden your horizons – and your mind

Further education isn’t just about lectures, seminars and books. An equally valuable part of your university experience is learning about culture, social integration and life itself.

Why you should consider studying overseas

The high price of tuition fees and the increasing cost of living in the UK has prompted many young people to look overseas for alternative options rather than studying at a university at home. With an increasingly complex global jobs market, graduates need to demonstrate other skills as well as a good degree. Studying overseas may equip young people with these additional assets. There are numerous universities across the world, including the RRIS-Israel study abroad programmes , ISP USA, CIEE Netherlands, and many more, where you can enjoy a totally novel life experience as well as completing your studies.

Explore the world through learning

When you read accounts of famous peoples’ college days, it’s usually not the subject matter of the lectures that’s recalled, it’s the friendships and the adventures that play the most important part of any narrative. If you choose to study abroad, you’ll be joining the 22,000 other students who are enjoying the experience of living and studying in a different country. The British Council suggests that personal development is as important as a professional qualification for future employers as well as your own aspirations.

Different cultural experiences will improve your mind

Whether you choose to study art history in Florence, or go to Israel to study psychology, you should discover as much about your chosen destination as possible. Some of the questions that you should be asking will concern language and accommodation costs as well as the curriculum. Do try to go on a language course as part of your preparations. You may think that if the course you chose is in English, you won’t have to bother, this is not the case, and you’ll be constantly frustrated at not being able to communicate fluently with others. A recent article in The Guardian, written by a blogger who had studied chemistry in Belgium, gives a useful account of the benefits of living and learning abroad. Cultural differences should always be embraced, suggests the blogger.

Experience a new country and discover the true meaning of education

It’s no use studying abroad if you miss out on the national culture and the fun. Culture can mean ancient cities, and archaeological sites, so even if you’re not keen on history, visit these places to try to understand the national passions of your fellow students. Alternatively, culture can mean films, bars and festivals, as well as conversation in the shops with some locals. You’ll want to enjoy your new experience, and that does include having fun.
Take the plunge – study abroad

In previous decades, and even centuries, overseas study was restricted to the wealthy. You’ll discover that contemporary degree courses vary greatly in cost, as do living expenses, but some will find their chosen course and the country much cheaper than the UK. The Independent has published some useful facts about universities all over the world. If you learn abroad you’ll not only improve your chances of getting a job, but you’ll also become a better-informed and insightful adult.

I’m happy to announce that I have begun selling my artwork. You can find paintings, custom hand-painted furniture and home decor by me at Fernweh Originals on Etsy.com, Facebook or browse originals and reconstructions at Melange in Winston Salem, NC.

Original artwork and headboard by Fernweh Originals

I want to thank all of you for being supportive of my art over time. It has been amazing hearing many of you encouraging me to list and sell my artwork. I want to thank my family– and Kristin and Heidi in particular– for their recent encouragement.

Gallery Showing:
I will be holding my first exhibit this summer. Please stay tuned for more information!

Lauren: Designer at Fernweh Originals

What’s Online?
My paintings and home decor are listed on Etsy.com, and include shipping costs. As friends and family, if you would like to buy a painting you can contact me directly and I can arrange to deliver it to you if you live on the East Coast (The D.C area to N.C).

Original artwork available on Etsy.

What’s in North Carolina?
Much of what I have for sale is presently in the Piedmont. You can find larger items (like refurbished furniture, chandeliers, home decor, etc.) at Melange off University Avenue in Winston Salem. You can also find items at Farrago, off Hanes Mall Drive. Contact me if you see an item you like and I’ll direct you to it’s location!

Custom, French-inspired piece. Available at Melange in W-S, NC.

Custom Artwork:
I will be creating commissioned, custom artwork in addition to the selection you can find online and in the Piedmont. To order a custom piece, please contact me directly with your ideas to receive a quote.

The Process:
You can find many of the items I’ve created for sale in my blog roll. I sometimes have before/after photos of furniture I refurbish, as well as art pieces that are on-going or over-sized. To find anything related to my art, search Fernweh Originals as a keyword on the ATC blog, or DIY.

Thank you all for your ongoing, loving support and for encouraging me to pursue my dreams!

Love,
Lauren

Abandon the Cube !!!