Raul Duke: There he goes. One of God's own prototypes.
Some kind of high powered mutant never even considered for mass production.
Too weird to live, and too rare to die.

Ok, who am I? I study Mechanical Engineering at Bath University (masters year at fucking last), I am driven by an obsession with sustainable development, and my professional work thus far has been centred on aspects of this.
I am also getting increasingly involved in working with Engineers Without Borders (UK), a voluntary organisation of young professional and student engineers who organise development work in disadvantaged communities around the globe. The work undertaken is very much about working with communities to give them tools to improve their quality of life- rather than World Bank initiative style fuck ups.

I'm from New Zealand, I play some sports (football, rugby, tennis), lots of music, organize gigs, go to festivals, travel about, attempt to draw/ paint/ sculpt/ photograph, dance like a lunatic on nights out.
When I am not in Bath, I'm in Edinburgh or around London....
It's kind of hard to sum yourself up in a few words, to people with so many different view points in life, if you want to know more just ask.

Main focus in life is the environment, nature and wildlife. It's why I'm on my course: renewable energy, sustainable development, conservationism etc... I try not to take life too seriously, but sometimes I get completely enraged by injustices, selfishness and the darker sides of humanity. I don't do too well when I lose my sense of humour- it helps me deal with these things.

I am introspective but outwardly focused, I think posessing Empathy is essential in life.
I spend a lot of time daydreaming and I end up thinking about pretty much anything, my mind does not work in a linear way, jumps around a lot and this makes my conversations pretty irregular and random at times.

I can end up lying in bed till stupid hours unable to stop my mind racing; ideas and inspiration don't really care for working hours- I can get very bad insomnia...

I am slow to trust, and I learn to trust by searching peoples hearts, reading their actions and the reasons behind them

I have enjoyed leading 'the student life'for about 5 years now, and i am beginning to chill out wiht my 'old age'. I have cut out all smoking, and cut well down on drinking too.. a recent health/fitness effort has seen me attempting to cycle 10 miles to and from work every day. Something i have managed.. sometimes. I still am up for fun, though trying to behave better and not dip into old hedonistic patterns as much.

The earth provides enough to satisfy every man's need, but not every man's greed Mahatma Gandhi

Most of my friends are students, or have dropped out/ graduated already. They party pretty hard, and between us have amassed ridiculous debt… but had legendary parties, nights out and times. Have met some of the best people I could hope to since my gap year and at Bath University, just hoping that time wont see all of us drift apart.

I have a very dark and twisted sense of humour. Some people don’t really get why I find some things funny... but a sense of humour is really important to me, and reflects many things about a person. The ability to not take life too seriously, and have a laugh and a good time... the alternative is to feel down about it all, tried it myself and that’s no fun.

I love tattoos, I design my own. Body art and modification is a growing interest of mine...

One last thing. As a character, I am made of a strange shifting balance of drives and perspectives rolled into one.

I think we are all made up of many, apparently contradictory drives and impulses, we just have to try and keep a balanced perspective, and maintain our integrity. Try not to fall too deeply into disillusionment, and retain some compassion DESPITE all the shit in this world.

I have a passion for music, photography, painting/drawing and sculpture in particular. I have a portfolio full of life drawings from a couple of years back, and hope to get far more involved in these things once more. I have a profile on DeviantArt as well, with what art I’ve managed to upload so far and the occasional rant XD- this is extremely outdated... meh

- Gro Harlem Brundtland - Bill Hicks - Douglas Adams - Gerald Durrell - Armour Mitchell - Nikola Tesla - Mahatma Gandhi - Dr William Rees - John Pilger - Sebatiao Selgado -

With people- I like honesty, honor, humour, integrity, open mindedness, a balanced perspective on life, and understanding.

Music, all the time, love music. Some poetry, most art, photography, graphic design, generally thought out forms of expression, eloquence...

I have a girlfriend called Hannah whom I love dearly.
We share a disturbed sense of humour, macabre and fun as well as many silly stories and jokes. I spend as much time as I can with her, and she is the most important person in my life.

Festivals, Gigs, Raves... live music or DJs, house parties. I fucking love partying, proper nights out and after parties till the sun is high and so are we..
I am not the best DJ, but some of my friends are damn good and I am organising parties and gigs in and around Bath, involving mainly Drum and Bass, Psytrance (and other trance), break beat, metal, Leftfield, Old School, EBM, Industrial....
If you can make it to any let me know.. =)

Environment, natural beauty, conservation, the sea, animals and most life, beaches, waterfalls, full silver moons and the night sky, sunsets and dawn.

Ideals of peaceful protest and democracy, developed by many of the greatest minds. Ghandi, M L King for peaceful protest. too many to list on democracy, despite the view that: "Democracy is the art of running the circus from the monkey cage."

Mythology, history, archeology, ancient cultures, belief systems (philosophies, theologies, practises)... I love trying to understand them, why they are the way they are and their origins. The symbolism involved in many of these cultures fascinates me and i draw on it heavily in my own art and in analogy.

I also love Tolkien's writing, and fantasy worlds (I've wished many a time i was in one...lol): dragons, elves, greek mythology, vampires (cliche on here? never...)

Gothic clothing/culture/fashion: fishnet things, spiky things, shiny things, black, fetish, UV stuff....
Cooking really nice food and having a meal with friends, with lots of wine.
I love talking, properly, with people, exchanging ideas on life, or just having really random conversations regardless of what state your in.
Tai chi, kung fu, meditation, chi gung, buddhism, Taoism.

Random things: feathers, (Paua) shells, incense, baths, glowsticks, sunglasses, hippies, ravers, industrial gothic fashion, Fishnets..., corsets, thumbcuffs, real cuffs, dreamcatchers, cats, lucid dreaming, New Zealand *sigh*, castles and various ruins, considerate little actions, cute smiles, entrancing eyes, querkyness, playfulness, wading through breaking waves, hot tubs, sudden random feelings of contentment...

If I weren’t doing the degree I’m doing... I'd love to study in an arts college, or do Politics Philosophy and Economics, or Psychology, or a million and one other things that I can’t fit into the hours of each day.

Throughout my life, my main goal has just been to help people: make a difference of some kind, in a positive fashion, to as many lives as I can, and this world. Working for the UN, an NGO (VSA, VSO, Engineers Without Borders, Friends of the Earth...) or for the NZ government would be a dream.

this dream is becoming a strange irony as i also grow less patient and tolerant of the majority of people i encounter in day to day life. I am developing a kind of split personality, part misanthrope looking dispairingly at what excuse for humanity plunders this world. Part hippy, trying to make everything better, peace, love, harmony and all that jazz.

I am incredibly ambitious, and gradually have formed more precise ideas on what I would like to do and how.
Most of this relates to the fight against climate change, and to prevent irreversible degeneration of this planet not only for us, but for all life.
So,I hope to introduce a Hydrogen Economy, catalyse the evolution towards high standard, affordable, environmentally friendly housing, pursue goals of social justice and equality...
I am trying not to get overly technical, but thats essentially the core of it, there is much more I would like to do, but one bridge at a time eh?

Self interested, selfish folk. Those who put themselves before all others for personal gain.

Dishonesty, GREED, manipulation, Propoganda (spin and sophists), war, unneccesary suffering, pollution, corruption, cruelty to people or animals.

Self harm, and anything apparently glorifying it. It's not something i view as healthy, and have many reasons for disliking it..
Totalitarianism, Police/ Martial States, Far Right Political Idealogies (e.g. neo conservatives), Hypocricy (of which I am guilty too...), isolation, brutality...

Narrow minded judgemental *I'm superior* types. Those who patronise and condecend others without any justification... arrogance, narcissism, prejudice. Alpha (fe)male wannabes.

Mosquitos, parasites in general. free loaders, country western music *shudder*. erm... small yappy dogs, ignorance, snobs, nuclear weapons....

Apathy, sloth- i dislike these within myself, but i lapse into them all too often....