Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
I’ve been a big fan of Post Secret (postsecret.com) for years. I even included a positive mention of it on my website nearly four years ago.
Its probably one of the most popular “blogs” on the internet, though calling it a “blog” doesn’t really fit as far as I can tell. It is much more than that.
Post Secret started out with a very simple idea. The creator, Frank Warren, asked people to anonymously send him picture postcards containing their secrets. Many people have and many continue to send him their deepest and darkest on a regular basis. New secrets are posted on Sundays and remain on the website for a week.
I’ve been a regular visitor, making sure to virtually swing by to read the latest every Sunday, faithfully for as long as I’ve known about it. Each visit always evokes some emotional response from me, whether its sympathy, or understanding or amusement, I am always moved in some way, sometimes to tears.
It’s good to feel.
I’ve learned a lot about people and the human condition too. It amazes me how creative people are, how expressive an art form a simple post card can be, but most of all, how willing the contributors are to share their inner most hopes, fears and long held secrets.
Not only has Frank has turned his website into a thriving online community, but he has published many books and seems to be on tour, giving lectures and shows across America all the time. I own a few of his books and they include many post cards that haven’t appeared on the website. He really does get tons.
Early this morning, London time, the long awaited Post Secret app (iTunes Link here) was finally made available in the iTunes Store. It’s £1.49 ($1.99) and well worth adding to your collection. It’s expected to be available for Android soon, if that’s your platform of choice.
Frank and his designers have taken the concept of sharing secrets and built upon it, using the capabilities of your iPhone to make it so much more.
Of course, you can see other people’s secrets and there’s various ways to do that. You can view the most popular secrets, or the latest posted, but coolest of all, you can search them geographically. Don’t worry, the app won’t show your home address, just your city or town, though it appears its possible to tag it to a specific public location, like a school or business. That is very cool.
How do the secrets get location tagged? Simple, the app allows you to create your own secret post card, by taking a photo, then adding some text on top, then deciding if you want to include a general location. I haven’t shared any secrets so far, so I haven’t tested it yet…but I might someday and if I do, you won’t know it’s me, even if it’s tagged with London. I’m always anonymous online, so you can see the obvious appeal for me.
You can also “like” secrets, share them on Twitter and Facebook too.
I can’t recommend this app enough and I highly suggest you buy it right now. What are you waiting for??
Disclaimer: I have no connection to Post Secret whatsoever, and I am not profiting from this endorsement in any way.
I’m enjoying random, manic thoughts, induced by 25 hours of continuous consciousness. In my world, this is not uncommon.
I thought I would try to capture the spirit and essence of the experience, but as you would expect, now that I’m typing, the effect has disappeared. I’m focussing on being functional and typing words that might make some semblance of sense, rather than conveying the surreal nature of being me right now.
I’ve had special cookies. Its Monday morning, at 10:30am and I’m wide awake, sleep should come soon, but did I mention the heat?
Its hot here.
Glad that’s out of the way.
I really should be sleeping, I will be sleeping, once I wind down. I’ve had a rather busy and eventful 25 hours, and the week before that was a bit draining, literally, as I had a blocked one out back and it was a shitty ordeal dealing with it.
I need to blow off some steam, but its 10:33am on a Monday morning, normal people have things to do, people to see, places to be…but not me.
Also, said my sub-conscious, I got news yesterday of the sudden passing of an old friend. My friend was a couple years younger than me, just to add to the angst. I don’t deal well with death, unless obsessing about it in various abstract ways for decades counts as dealing with it, in which case I win.
Blame the internet for this sudden burst of random crap, if my download speeds were faster for my stories, I’d be watching them and not harassing the world with this stream of consciousness bullshit… because let’s face it, the deliberate act of typing this out removes any chance of sharing the state of my mind. Every word, every key stroke, forces a decision, which then forces another, which then predetermines my actions as opposed to just letting the stream of weird run free.
Or I could go check my downloads and leave all of you nice people alone. Sorry for the disturbance, please do call again.
Check out this groovy video!
Its a mash-up of the top 25 singles from Billboard magazine. Yes, its American, so you might not recognise every artist, but its cool anyway.
Dig it
(You can follow the northlondonhippy on Twitter, just click that blue button on the top right!)
Yes, another cat video, but this one is short, under 30 seconds. Go on, watch the little ginger cat spin.
The following articles provide the foundation for my “cannabis truth series”. These reports are the sources and references I used when putting it together.
A few people emailed asking if I could pull this list together — I can and I have. I hope you all find it useful. Please feel free to refer people to this page, or my “truth series”, especially when you spot misreporting or misinformation on the subject in the press. You’re going to be seeing lots of that in the near future, so please don’t hesitate in pointing out the truth to those who publish unsubstantiated lies!
Government drugs policy does not work, says report
by Alexandra Topping
Friday March 9, 2007
http://www.guardian.co.uk/drugs/Story/0„2029756,00.html
Taking the harm out of drugs
by India Knight
March 11, 2007
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/india_knight/article1496833.ece
Cannabis use down since legal change
by Alan Travis, home affairs editor
Friday October 26 2007
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2007/oct/26/drugsandalcohol.homeaffairs
Fewer young people using cannabis but more are turning to cocaine
by Richard Ford, Home Correspondent
October 26, 2007
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article2738569.ece
Cannabis use is ‘falling fast’ among young adults
By Nigel Morris, Home Affairs Correspondent
26 October 2007
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/crime/article3098871.ece
Drugs strategy debate ‘is a sham’
by Jamie Doward, home affairs editor
Sunday October 21, 2007
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0„2195985,00.html
Think Again: Drugs
By Ethan Nadelmann
September/October 2007
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/story/cms.php?story_id=3932&page=0
Legalise all drugs: chief constable demands end to ‘immoral laws’
By Jonathan Brown and David Langton
15 October 2007
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/article3061121.ece
Former prisons inspector backs call to legalise drugs
By Nigel Morris, Home Affairs Correspondent
16 October 2007
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/article3063804.ece
Skunk strength has doubled, studies suggest
by Alan Travis, home affairs editor
Monday September 17, 2007
http://www.guardian.co.uk/drugs/Story/0„2170798,00.html
Warning issued over cannabis adulterated with glass beads
by James Randerson, science correspondent
Friday January 12, 2007
http://www.guardian.co.uk/drugs/Story/0„1988627,00.html
I smoked cannabis. I went mad. But life’s not that simple
by Rufus May
29 July 2007
http://comment.independent.co.uk/commentators/article2814693.ece
Experts dismiss case for cannabis reclassification
by David Batty and agencies
Friday July 27, 2007
http://www.guardian.co.uk/drugs/Story/0„2136450,00.html
Debunked: politicians’ excuse that cannabis has become stronger
By Jeremy Laurance, Health Editor
21 July 2007
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/article2788634.ece
Reefer Madness Revisited
by Francis Sedgemore
11 June 2007
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/francis_sedgemore/2007/06/reefer_madness_revisited.html
Cherry picking data to prove a point about cannabis
by Ben Goldacre
Saturday March 24, 2007
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0„2041711,00.html
Hi there. I just wanted to apologise for the technical problems my site had yesterday. I still don’t know what was going on, but things seem sorted now. My layout went a bit crazy, but it all seems back to normal now. Special apologies if your RSS reader went a little funny too.
Normal service has now resumed!
- the northlondonhippy
My keener-eyed readers might have already noticed that I’ve added a couple of more affiliate links to my page today. I’m expanding my empire with a little bit more advertising.
I’d like to welcome the Body Jewellery Shop and Firebox.com to the growing northlondonhippy family. I think they sit along side my friends at EDIT rather nicely.
I have to admit that I don’t actually have any body piercings, but if I did, I’m sure I would purchase all my adornments from the Body Jewellery Shop. They’re run by the same people as EDIT, so you can expect the same high level of customer service and wide range of choice.
Firebox.com has the distinction of being the very first website this hippy ever purchased anything from online. It was a little keychain-torch with a blue LED and I still have it today. Since then I’ve bought all sorts of gadgets and toys from them and can recommend them very highly.
I won’t put just any shit on my page! I’m choosing my partners very carefully so as to bring you only the best selection of online retailers. If I wouldn’t use them myself, I wouldn’t ask you to shop with them either!
So please feel free to investigate all of my affiliate links, they are some of the finest web retailers you are likely to ever visit!
I spent a good chunk of yesterday off my face on some Funk Pills. It was a Wednesday, which is just as good as any other day to partake in some legal highs.
I decided to try Funk’s Twisted (Psychedelic Funk) which are supposed to be the trippy ones from their line of party pills.
I took the first capsule around 3pm on an empty stomach, then sat back until the effects began. At around 4pm, just as I was starting to come up from the first one, I took a second.
The high was to be expected from something BZP based – I started feeling up and happy and somewhat euphoric. What I didn’t get was any overwhelming psychedelic effects, just a slight sharpening of my vision.
I think that is my biggest gripe about some of these legal highs, they never deliver the trippy punch that I am seeking. As much as everyone wants them to be shroom replacements, they’re clearly not. I wish they were!
Shrooms were so much better than everything else you could buy legally, they were the best trippy drug I ever enjoyed. I wish they could come back!
The current incarnation of legal highs are good, I’m not knocking them as I do enjoy the high they produce, but they are different from other illegal highs. While comparisons can be made between piperazines and MDMA, they are very distinctive drugs.
At about 6pm yesterday, I took a third pill, which to be honest was a bit more than I needed. It was the usual story, I hadn’t come up enough from the first two, though by 6:15pm, I finally did but I was concerned I might have overdone it. I did, but only as a personal preference.
The third pill I took was a “Big Grin” also from Funk Pills, which has a different blend to the Twisted pills and consequently different effects. The combination was very pleasant; I was quite deeply monged!
I certainly prefer the “Big Grin” to the Twisted pills as the high is much more mind-numbing. Trust me, that’s a good thing.
I peaked around 9 or 10pm and by midnight I was still buzzing. To aid in the comedown, I drank a Dutch hot cocoa (made with a dash of butter and some ground hash) and took a Valerian. By 2am, I was sound asleep.
Today, I feel somewhat lethargic and hungover, which I don’t normally experience, but I’m attributing it to the increased dose and most likely I didn’t drink enough water; though it seemed like I did at the time. I’m sure I’ll be back to normal by tomorrow, but this should explain the somewhat subdued tone this entry has taken.
I need a few spliffs and another good night’s sleep and I’ll be right as rain.
Here’s a quick blast from me before I head off for yet another fun-filled night at work.
The Independent newspaper here in the UK published an interesting article about the current popularity in legal highs. Well duh!
As an early adopter and experimenter with the substances they mention, following the ban on shrooms last summer, I’ve been on the cutting edge of this stuff for ages!
But do they come to ask me for a comment on the world of legal highs?
Do they fuck!
I guess I’m just too expensive for them! This hippy don’t come cheap!
It doesn’t matter, I’m still happy to bring you a link to their article. The main point that mattered to me is that the government has said they see no reason to review the status of any substance currently available. That’s cool.
They also mention my friends at EDIT, who really are at the cutting edge of the market. They were big shroom-sellers up until the ban and they were quick to realise that a market continued for legal, recreational substances and have brought many great products to the UK market.
After this little run of nights, I’ve got some well-deserved time off. Besides wrapping up work on one of my non-hippy related projects, I’m going to be checking out some more new products to review for you. I’m really looking forward to getting off my face all in the interests of improving your life!
What other north London based-hippy has done that for you lately?
And that title ain’t no lie, fuckers!
I’m high as a kite; I’m as high as the sky. I’m so high, so high, SO high!
I’ve been test-driving “The Big Grin” from Funk Pills and I’m digging these little fuckers very much. I’ll be ordering some more of them.
I took one pill around 12:30pm and was pleasantly surprised that by 1:30pm, I was feeling some mild, yet pronounced effects.
Initially, I found it slightly euphoric, with a subtle undertow of being monged. My vision became sharper as well.
I took a second dose around 2:30pm and now it is two hours after that. It’s much more euphoric, sensual and uplifting while being more comfortably monged. Colours are quite vibrant, my vision is razer sharp.
I like ‘em these ones good!
The nicest thing about them is they are not speedy at all; no racing heart, no restlessness. You could quite easily watch a film or go out and talk utter crap to strangers for hours.
I had some comments from a long time hippyfan called Meshman which I thought I would share with you. Here’s his message to me:
“hello mr hippy, i often pop in here and check what you are up too — wasnt happy to hear about your purple ohm exp, hope you were ok in the end , however i was surprised at you for taking more than recommended — you should know better !!!!
anyways i felt it prudent to dispel the myth that you perpetuate re :- piperazines. They are not an extract or derivative of any natural substance — they dont occur in nature at all — in fact they are more related to Viagra than Pepper! Piperazines are traditionally used to eliminate Worm infections in humans — yes WORMS !!
The original ‘made from pepper‘ line was spun to help ease the possible legality / acceptance of these compounds when they began appearing in NZ as a harm reduction tool. They do have a resemblance to piperidine which is a constituent of piperine which is found in the black pepper plant, hence the link.
Some info here -
http://www.shaman-australis.com.au/Website/law/Piperazine/index.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piperazine
stay safe and always follow the instructions on the pack !!!
- meshman”
He’s right on everything he’s said. Pay attention kids!
On my ill-fated Purple Ohm fest, which was back in January, I did indeed exceed the stated dosage, which is why I had such a bad time on them. I have copped to this before, but I don’t know if I’ve ever tried to explain.
My only experience with piperazines at that point was limited to PEPs and it is very common for people to exceed the dosage, if what you read in forums online is anything to go by. It was the same with other herbal highs I had previously tried; to get anywhere you needed to take a lot.
Piperazines aren’t normal, herbal highs! They are strong and you should all follow meshman’s advice and learn from my mistake!
I am having real trouble forming coherent sentences at the moment. I’m not up to my usual game. I’m monged and not complaining!
Even better, when my order from EDIT came yesterday, it had an extra, free sample pack of Twisted (Psychedelic Funk). How cool is that?
I’m going to go back to being a sofa zombie on this fine Friday afternoon. I’ve just packed up my RooR mini steamroller and I’m going to float away happy.
Don’t you all want me to be happy? Don’t you? Don’t you??