The Long Road Ahead

Meeting my hero, aka my fanboy moment

I attended a private event/ dinner. It was great; there was me, Steven Bonnell and 15 others. It was a meet and greet with him followed by a private talk; we began by getting to know everyone; of course, those of us who were there to see Steven already knew him, but we were joined by a group of 6 people who had no idea of who he was, and so we sheepishly began to chat I was pretty amazed here was a person I looked up to who I watch on my computer, phone and tv now here beside me. I will die on this hill sounding even more American than when I watched him. 

We chatted about topics mostly centred around the UK and the EU, our media in terms of how the press handles news and how the different papers handle specific issues regarding our leaders.

• Our healthcare: the interesting thing I learned from a couple of doctors is how doctors can manoeuvre around specific problems to get their patients seen quicker than they would through normal channels. For example, if you’re having problems with headaches, say you both conclude that you have an aneurysm, but you can be seen for whatever reason, but if the doctor “thinks” you have epilepsy, you could be seen quicker in the latter than the former. That was something that has stuck with me ever since, and as someone who likes to think about things in a more technical way of thinking of things. 
• Our countries and the EU in relation to Brexit, how it has impacted us over the last 5-6 years, and how the shift away from the EU has affected us. Also, the difference in travelling around the EU and the convenience of their infrastructure, such as inter-city travel or the roads, the ease of access to everything compared to the Americas, where they seem to be behind on those things.
• Our schools compared to American schools and how the education authorities differ from America or even the EU or the fact that schools seem more segmented compared to America where we have primary, secondary and college, and they have k-12 education, which keeps people together right up to college age where they then split off.
• Our economies, the roles that the UK has taken on from Brexit, how COVID has impacted our work sectors throughout all sectors, and the impact on the health sector, which is one of our economy’s most overloaded sectors.

Day 2

This was more relaxed. I was still trying to find my way around the place as it was quite large, plus it wasn’t as though they had a huge sign saying where things were. Also, I’m keeping an eye on my mental and physical stamina throughout the whole event, so I only attended a few shows every day throughout the entire event.

The game of life 

I saw the brief but exciting conversation on the gamification of life with Slavoj Zizek, Steven Bonnell, and Lisa Miller and hosted by Myriam François. Their back and forth between Zizek & Bonnell. To be honest, I was in awe that the two of them seemed to be so engaged in the conversation. Still, I was a bit peeved that Lisa Miller would cut in and try to manoeuvre the conversation down a more spiritual route. Still, I enjoyed it nonetheless. Sadly, due to the scheduling of the event, the conversation ended very abruptly. The Q&A was cut entirely.

The whole talk is linked here: https://iai.tv/video/the-game-of-life

I wish there would have been more; I did some prep for this and had a couple of questions for both of them. After the talk, there was a book signing/chat with Destiny. At the same time, Zizek went to his next discussion. I also took another photo and had a more extended conversation with Steven and Kelly-Jean, who was dressed up like an actual life princess. 

After the chat, I went to get food, and I ended up sitting with a fellow fan of Stevens, who his grandfather accompanied. We had a great conversation, and he opened up to me about how crazy the guy’s life is and that he is studying astrophysics and doing great despite the stresses he has on his shoulders. Alex, if you’re reading this, I hope Shanghai was great and that the time with your uncle was well spent. You got this. I believe in you!

Also, it would’ve been nice to have got photos with several people, but they were busy going from talk to talk. Hopefully, there’s a next time.

Standup: Priya Hall

It was a great 45 minutes. I was a great set; I loved the routine about her grandad’s five languages. It made me appreciate that there is more out there than the leading big names of comedy, which is what I’m used to. I loved the whole experience.

Day 3

The centre of the universe