Happy Birthday C!

C, my lovely wife, turned 30 today - Yay! She opened her pressies, then I cooked her smoked salmon benedict (without the hollandaise) for breakfast. A fun day to come. Many congratulations baby!

Counting down...

Once again, a few weeks between blogs so here is a bit of a catch-up. Things have been hectic, but good - the weeks are flying by and summer appears to have passed us by with little more than a semi-burn (I blinked and I missed it), but the world keeps turning and I have lots to be thankful for:

A fantastic day two weekends ago was Eddie and Lucy's wedding - What a brilliant, happy day! Lucy used to be a chorister in Bristol Cathedral when she was younger, and as such is permitted to also be married there! It is a very impressive building and it made the day all the more special. The reception was held on the top floor of Bristol's Science Museum - another amazing venue. Met some lovely people; was lucky enough to eat and drink like a king and danced like a tit in a West Country Ceilidh. As with all weddings the day sped by through having much fun, but we all had a great time sharing Lucy and Eddie's special day (they looked so happy) and it brought back fond memories of out wedding nearly a year ago to the day. After a wander around Bristol (and what a lovely city it is) with sore heads we headed back to London, did our chores then set about celebrating our first wedding anniversary:

The first Wedding Anniversary being Paper, C and I read each other's minds and bought tickets as presents - Bloc Party from myself, Billy Elliot from C. We had also put some pennies back and treated ourselves to an amazing slap up feast at our fav. local restaurant Chez Bruce - yum, hic, burp. Sunday was pretty much a write-off, but in the evening we went to see Rock'n'Rolla at the flicks. A return to form for Guy Ritchie, but basically it was more of the same - easy enjoyable viewing.

The week of work that followed was pretty full-on. I feel a 36hr day might just be enough to get on top of all the projects I am involved in, let alone the ad-hoc stuff that takes up most of my day anyway. I am keeping my head about water without much trouble, but some stuff I am barely denting. I can multi-task so well I put some women to shame these days though! My beloved Wacom tablet gave up the ghost after 3.5 years of punishment - I am lost without it these days. Currently writing a business case for a souped-up replacement in a work environment where non-fee earning staff have trouble fighting for investment. Anyway, some good stuff done this week - my Flash work is progressing and I really enjoy the projects. It's been fun to chug out a load of print work for a change, plus my involvement in some Global projects is getting welcome recognition.

Broke the week up on Wednesday by meeting Mark lad after work for our usual noodle dinner, then wandering London chewing the cud, flicking the shutters and larking about. Heather stayed over on Thursday for more of the same - all good fun and cool to spend some quality time with her.

Friday I powered though work then bobbed on the train up home to Harrogate. Popped straight in to DragonDropHQ where Tinanana's birthday was being celebrated. A chilled time sat round the firebin in the backyard chatting, a few beers and having laughs. Nice surprise to see my mucker PaintMonkey there too - lots of lovely catch ups. Saturday heralded a slight return for summer so my folks and I went for a walk in the countryside near Pannal - we picked enough blackberries for mum to make 7 jars of scrummy jam. Dinner with La Familia at Brio's in the evening, then went round to see my old friend Rhiannon who is about to embark on an epic year long round-the-world trip with her hubby Jonn - lucky so-and-so's - have an amazing time guys! Sunday I went to see my dear old Nan, then went to pick up my Godson Felix from cub camp, followed by a GeoCache hunt near Glassehouses with Matt and the kids. Note to self - don't where sandals in the Yorkshire countryside after the wettest summer on record - footwear malfunction! Cool to spend some quality time with my bestest bud and his lovely offspring (Sophie not pictured). A big sorry to Sophie Pie for knocking her head when I lifted her out of the car! :( Matt dropped me off at Leeds Station (I barely recognise the city where I went to Uni anymore). I shared a very enjoyable journey home chatting and sharing a bottle of wine with two seasoned and wise old travellers from Ohio - Pat and Mauren. 

I've been whiling this week away ahead of a much needed break with C (who was at her show at the NEC most of the week). Saw Swervedriver at Scala with Maria and Rus on Wednesday - they've improved with age and were great. Reminded me why I liked them back in the early 90s. All loose ends are now tied up, voicemail and out-of-office activated. Artwork pre-flighted, packaged and deployed. Sites synced. Temp files trashed. Shutdown...wind down...depart...ciao...

The flaming altar of the modern temple of power

Last Saturday I fulfilled a dream I have had for a long time - I got up close and personal with Battersea Power Station. This iconic building has always fascinated me, long before I moved to London and even as far back as childhood. For me it has always been a beautiful beast - a true design classic that loomed almost protective between north and south London. I used to almost fantasise about being let loose inside and finding all the old workings, control rooms and marveling at the superstructure. Sir Giles Gilbert Scott was a clever chap indeed - he also designed to Red Telephone Box and Bankside which now houses Tate Modern.

The power station has had several attempts at regeneration since the 80s, all of which were rejected or failed to raise the capital necessary. The creator of Alton Towers had a crack in 1993 with the idea of creating a theme park - it didn't get off the ground (good job - it looked awful), but much of the art decor interiors were ripped out during the preliminary work - this made me very angry when I found out! The current and successful idea is ambitious to say the least - it is a controversial project that will dwarf the power station when complete, but is very aesthetic, environmentally friendly and will put Battersea even more firmly on the map (they even diverting the northern line to create a new tube station)!

So then, I got down to the site first thing Saturday morning, which was the last day the power station was open the public before works begin...ever! Not surprisingly there were loads of photographers and a real sense of excitement in the air. We were led to a brilliant visitors centre then basically had the freedom to roam around the perimeter. The interior was unfortunately out of bounds due to health and safety, but this didn't spoil the whole experience. Brilliant morning - loved it. I will watch the regeneration with interest.

Spent the rest of the weekend doing odd jobs and giving out little flat a good old clean. Last night we went over to Thames Ditton to see Andy and Kath who have just moved down from Harrogate (Andy is going to study product design at Kingston Uni). Cool to have some new (old) friends down here to play with.

All for now - more soon.