One of the folks in work is due to visit the US soon. He’s been looking up details on the new passport requirements system etc etc. We were joking about this in the office and then talked a little more about it at lunch yesterday.

Several people had plans to visit the states this year. Two trips to NYC were in the pipeline. I had myself been hoping to get over there for a holiday. However the general feeling now is fuck that. While all of us don’t actually have to be finger printed upon arrival (due to being Irish or English or other EU citizens), there is quite a lot of thought that no-one wants to go and visit somewhere which is so inhospitable. There is also the thought (and this one doesn’t apply to me but it does to others) that no-one should have to go and get a new passport just for the sake of one country. I have a 10 year passport, it’s pretty recent (not that recent I have very very short hair in it) but if it was a couple of years older it would not have the required barcode and I’d have to change in a perfectly valid passport for new one and pay for the privilege.

America, so-called “land of the free”…maybe one day there will be some hospitality back but until then I suspect a little suffering in your tourist industry.

Listened to U2 Go Home 2001, live from Slane and watched bits and peices of it as I was playing Eve this evening. A couple of the Pop tracks they played are really good stuff so I’ve dug the album out to have a listen. For a couple of reasons, If you wear that Velvet Dress reminds me of a girl I use to know in Dublin that I had a crush on (yes another one to add to the list). It’s a bit of association I guess but it does…and I’ve not even heard it recently it was just thining of the album lead to the song, lead to herself.

I had loaded it into my discman with the intent of a late night walk to get some stuff from the shop and to give it a listen. As the very last two minutes of Alias came on, my flatmate walked in from a party and we got chatting and now I think it’s really too late to go out for a walk despite still thinking I want to.

Stuff
– shame the new Mini iPods were not anything like the under $100 rumours
– Moon base and men on Mars? Go for it…but how about fixing your home first?
– I need to unpack and organise my books and find O
– It’s amazing the demands for choclate and coke from the vending machine when I’m stressed and working late.
– I really don’t have anything else and am now going to bed.