Wrestling dinosaurs in the snow

A good mucker of mine advises that the unofficial rule of blogging is 'don't think, just blog'. I haven't been taken by writing much of late, but the mood has taken me so here we go...

Snow, snow, wonderful snow. What an amazing blanket of white chilly fun has descended on our Isles. The last time I can remember being 'snowed in' was in Yorkshire when I was about 10, so to be in the same situation in London (urban hear island remember) at 35 was quite a treat! I worked from home on Monday and Tuesday as transport was crippled and work requested a no-show for all of us. I am always more productive working from home, though miss the banter of my fellow team-chums. I couldn't resist a few reckies down to the common to partake in en-mass snow ball fights, snow-person building and take some photos. There was at least 6 inches on the ground on Monday and it was great to see the young nippers enjoying it - most of which will have never seen more than a scattering in the past. Now of course it's all ice and more lethal than fun - good to back working with other peeps though, as I was starting to get cabin fever.

Given my new situation I have been keeping myself busy, rediscovering things, finding new interests and trying not to spend too much time on my own (despite having always been comfortable with it). Friends (and family) have been amazing and some who were more distant before have quickly brought me in closer which has been so much appreciated. I have been diving into troughs and leaping out into peeks rapidly emotion-wise, which is nothing new for me unfortunately, but something I have resented for a long time for the consequences it yields. Some dark places have been visited, but exited eventually - it's very hard work and my thoughts are very much with others who are riding the same and different waves in their own way. 

Anyhow, here's a wee round-up of the past week:

Mark - A night in Soho with my old chum from home. Japanese nosh, waffle, twitter and flickr fun. He never ceases to amaze me with his creativity, wit and intelligence.

Neil - Pints, designer talk and cud chewing with my one time mentor and predecessor. A top bloke, true Scouser and spoke spinner.

Dinosaur Pile-Up - Went to Koko with Maria and Rus to see top new (and very young) band. Clearly borrowed a few of their older sibling's worn Nirvana albums and added their own unique ingredients. Was down the front for all of it, felt 10 years too old, but loved it. Check them out.

The Wrestler - My now weekly Sunday night solo jaunt to the flicks. Great film and a return to form for Mickey Rourke. A man whose career is killing him, but is all he knows and loves, whilst trying to hold on to the threads of his fragmented family life. Great film. 8/10.

Chris and Lou - A few pints, chats and footy on the telly in a proper London boozer in Warren St. Lovely, lovely people.

Aside from that it's head first into work and the usual. Looking forward to the next few weekends out of London and celebrating, commiserating and contemplating passing my mid-thirties and helping others celebrate less vintage years. Deep breath and on we go...

Oh, whilst I'm really trying not to be too self obsessed at the moment, this seemed relevant given our (as in all of us) current situation. Puts it all into perspective really.

Until next time.

Bad Film Club

Had to blog a top night that was shared with myself, da Maria, Rus and Richard yesterday. Trotted down to The Barbican after work for Bad Film Club. A simple concept really - show a really terrible film, have two comedians (Nicko and Joe) sit at the front with laser pointers ripping it to shreds, get the audience to join in, pass round free sweets and let everyone drink booze as well. Genius. Basic Instinct 2 was on the menu tonight, and it is indeed unspeakably rubbish, so much so they even let Stan Collymore have a cameo (possibly the most unconvincing screen death ever). Great night and I laughed...a lot... for probably the first time in a couple of months. Felt better and got to work at 8am with a heavy head, but a wee skip in my step. A long day of rush-designing (wow factor according to the brief) exhibition stands took the skip slightly out of my step, but I still kept chuckling to myself. A bit sad face again tonight, but tomorrow is Friday which is officially a good thing.

Deathray Exposure

Deathray Trebuchay are a Ska/Punk/Surf band from East London, and their performance was without doubt one of my highlights from this year's Latitude Festival. Llewelyn from the band got in touch and has asked if they can use my photo as the main image on their MySpace site. Check them out - they're boss!

Thanks for the exposure guys.

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.

Into the heat

For the first part of last week I was in recovery - just can't do 4 days in a row anymore (see Latitude). Actually, let me re-phrase that...I can party 4 days in a row, but my body takes another 4 days to get over it. So anyway, had Monday and Tuesday booked off and relaxed plus felt a bit guilty when my wife (who is younger, so technically doesn't need as much recovery time) went to work. I was greeted by the usual 120 emails on Wednesday and spent the rest of the week ploughing through them, so didn't actually get to any of my projects until Friday...when it was time for another weekend - Yay!

There was a bit of a family crisis (more a need for us to pull together to help an injured party), so we cruised up the A1 home to Harrogate after work. Mum and Dad were on really good form. We spent much of Saturday sat in their garden reading the papers, drinking lemonade and avoiding sunburn (I failed), popped in to see my Nan then a great night out with lots of old friends outside Blues Bar - just like old times. Brilliant. Sunday drove over to that there Knaresborough to see PM and the adorable Moo - drinks down by the river and nice walk in the sunshine. Also picked up the fantastic paintings he has done for us - so chuffed with them I can't tell you! Just need a flat big enough to do them justice now! Had a quick lunch with Jonn and Rhiannon (who are going on an epic travelling odyssey - lucky so and so's), then did record time back down to London with daylight to spare.

It's seriously hot down here now - so much so that the Northern Line is getting a little saunaesque and horrible. I really should be cycling to work or something, but the thought of getting knocked off and squashed by a bendy-bus is putting me off. Even the over-land option is a sweat-fest, so I just grin and bare it. Drinking lites of water a day though and feeling the detox. Managed to loose nearly 3/4 of a stone somewhere in the past 6 weeks too - not sure how, given I've eaten some right lardy feasts.

A cool weekend to come once this mentalist week of work is finished. C is away on another Hen (that's not the cool part I should add), but PM is coming down for a relaxing weekend in The Smoke...if such a thing exists. Really looking forward to spending some quality time with him and praying the weather stays good - expect much micro-blogging and Flickring to follow.

Both PM and MN mentioned feeling on the cusp of something in recent blogs - must be something in this heat because I've felt the same recently...just got to work out to what the cusp belongs...or what to do about it.

Weather permitting

Not too shabby a week all in all. C and I have appeared to do swappsies on the having of late nights. I finished 'on time' most of the week whilst she (being the socialite that she is) was out nearly every night. Had an impromptu after work drink on Wednesday, that turned into drinks which was a fun. Suffered the next day - I'm rubbish at work on hangovers...in fact my hangovers are generally pretty rubbish these days...listen to your body is the message there I think!

My old Harrogate friend Heather stayed over on Thursday which was great - the three of us had a right old catch up and made it to bed far too late and cidered for a school night - two in a row, doh! Luckily I was working from home on Friday (waiting in from 9-6 for the gasman) which saves having to endure the now summer heated tube with a sore head (not to mention the imminent lack of sympathy from colleagues)! Work have graciously given me a new IBM Thinkpad and a company mobile, so now I can work from home almost seamlessly (once I'd spent an hour on the phone to IT sort teething problems out). I was actually busier than if I had been in the office - I seemed to spend the whole day on the phone and answering emails. Also every workman in Wandsworth was working on our road, so it was pretty hard to concentrate above the sound of drills and stone blasting. Nice to sit around in shorts and t-shirt with the radio on and a decent cup of tea to sip on whilst I worked though.

C had driven to North Devon on Friday morning with the girls for Lucy's hen do - sounds like a right laugh. The plan was surfing, BBQs on the beach, games and liberal dose of pub time. I pitied the other people staying on the caravan site though! So I had another weekend to myself then. I'd arranged to meet Lou's boyfriend Chris and his mate Arthur for some drinks in town in the evening. We started at The Blue Posts, then as we were all a bit skint systematically searched out every Samuel Smiths pub we could in Soho (not hard, there's loads, plus the beer's amongst the cheapest and tastiest in the capital). Top night - talked the arse off every subject going and put the world to rights. Got kicked out of the last place (because it was closing, not because we were being naughty) and got home on auto-pilot. No more drinking for a good few days. Forgot to say - Banksy's latest piece was outside The Blue Post - the little tinker!

As per usual after a heavy night I woke up at the crack of dawn, so got up and after popping to buy the papers and polishing off brekky, I finished a bit of work that had been bugging me then carried on to enjoy my weekend with a 'clear' head. The sun was shining brightly and I fancied a good old hike so...got the train to Victoria, walked to Buckingham Palace then down The Mall; popped into the ICA; headed to Trafalgar Square, down Strand to Embankment; over the river to the South Bank (mooched around a bit), back over the river (watched a brass band near Charing Cross) walked through St.James' Park and back to Victoria. Train to Clapham Junction, bought pesto and herb plants at the Northcote Road farmers market then walked home though Wandsworth Common - great long walk and the sun shone on me all the way.

It poured down with rain most of today, so bar a quick visit to Kings Road I was flatbound. Did loads of experimenting with movie footage I had taken with iMovie - not bad for an entry level video app. Resisted the temptation to use most of the quirky 'filter' effects (as also resist with Photoshop). Can see the potential to do some great stuff, so watch out for more video on Flickr. Check out my latest photos also. Our TV died on Saturday morning and although it's been annoying not be able to watch Wimbledon I have listened to loads more radio than I usually would and really enjoyed it - Radio 2, 6, XFM and NME.

Top tune purchase this week has been The Bees - Sound Selection. An excellent album of covers inspired by the band's pre/post gig DJ sets. A band I only discovered a few years ago, but can thoroughly endorse their tripped out blues funk..er...stuff. Some choice versions on this album as well. Get it - it's great low slung summer music.

A fairly intense week ahead (during the day at least) - several deadlines to hit and a few lateys expected. Counting down the days to latitude - preying for some forgiving weather.

Pip pip.

Taste My Bloody Eardrums

Still feeling like a bit of weekender. Last week was an 8 on the bonkersly busy scale - did loads, loads still to do, annoying set backs, lots of achievements. Although we are working to a deadline of July 1st it has become more apparent that the teething problems after launch will make things just as nuts. Bring it on - I'm feeling energised and motivated.

Left work bang on 5:30pm on Friday - the earliest for a least a month. C has a friend who works at Channel 4 who very kindly gave us some tickets for Taste in Regents Park. A foodie festival basically where top London restaurants, food producers and chefs set up stalls and punt sample dishes to the gastronomically minded. All good fun and very well laid out event. Had some great 'samples' of nosh - finally tried Wagyu Beef from Cocoon - (yep, it's damn good), some amazing Gelatti and Anthony Worrel-Thompson's hog roast. The only thing I will say is it was very overpriced for what you got. If we had paid it would have been £25 each to get in, then as each (very small) sample dish starts at £5 and you need at least 5 to feel even slightly satisfied it gets very expensive, even though the food is exceptionally good.

Saturday we chilled, then went round to see Mike and Lou in Croydon. Good fun night playing games, chowing down, messing about with light sabres and being merry. Got totally lost trying to get out trying to find the M25 next day, but eventually got on our way to Amersham to see C's Grandpa and her Mum who is down to look after him for a few days. Lovely relaxing summer Sunday in the home counties. Sunday Roast, G&T in the garden, games of boules...all very civilised. Lovely and hot and great to see Clare and Robert again. We bought our tent to put up in the garden - reason being we packed it away damp in 2006 after a festival and haven't opened it since! It ponged, but nothing a few hours airing and a squirt of air freshener couldn't solve. C drove home and I jumped on the tube back to Marleybone - how nice to be on a tube that is above ground and travelling through the Buckinghamshire countryside instead of dark sweaty tunnel...

I last saw My Bloody Valentine on the Rollercoaster tour in 1991 with Dinosaur Jr, Jesus and Mary Chain and Blur. They have always had a special place in my record collection and are a truly pioneering band. Their seminal album Loveless will often be found in any '50 albums to hear before you die' listing. On first listening they can be an uncomfortable band to appreciate - they employ huge layers of guitars, effects, disjointed harmonies and awkward melodies...but, the more you listen to them the more they grow on you and eventually you are hooked. It really is addictive stuff. The vocals are thin and ethereal and basically lost in the mix, but it just doesn't matter, because the spiralling whirlwind of everything else just binds the whole thing together. All I could remember of the '91 gig was they were very good and very, very loud. Well, 17 years later and they have reformed to finish the album they started of the same year and play a few gigs. Myself and some friends bought a load of tickets months ago for Sunday's gig at the Roundhouse in Camden Town - a fantastic and very famous venue in English contemporary musical history (The Doors and Pink Floyd played early gigs there). In short they were fantastic - incredible sound and visual effects. They played the same set list as their last gig and it was faultless. The last song is their single 'You made me realise' which is famous for it's 30 seconds of white noise shit storm in the middle...at this gig it lasted 20 minutes! When the venue staff handed out ear-plugs on the way in I thought it was a PR stunt or 'statement', not a necessity. I had to move further back to stop my tonsils sweating and my ribcage caving in. I have never heard such a monstrous, but beautiful sound. Although it is near painful, it is totally entrancing and you couldn't tear yourself away from it. Definitely in one of the top 5 gigs I've ever been to. 10/10. Can't wait for the new album, though at their current rate of production I will be an old man by the time they release it!

Tunes of the week: Vampire Weekend's and Fleet Foxes's new albums. Top stuff - check them out.

Finally a massive thank you to PaintMonkey. We commissioned him to put brush/palette knife to canvas for us a good few weeks ago and he has created a beautiful piece of work for us. We look forward to growing old with it on a wall wherever we call home.

Until next time...

Forgot to mention...

...this chap is now the Mayor of London. Give him a go I say - I will watch with interest.

Aircon on the tube would be a good place to start please!

Well, at least sales of hair bleaching peroxide will go up.

Bye Ken, it's been nice (most of the time).

Sun, Fire and Juno

Where did this amazing weather come from?! I was walking around in a t-shirt today - others were in shorts and flip-flops! A freak 2 days of glorious sunshine that unfortunately isn't going to last, but we have well and truly made the most of it. An uber 3hr walk in Richmond Park on Saturday and a good old romp around Clapham Common today - soaking up all those rays and getting those vitamin D levels back up.

So then, a bit of a hectic week - won't dwell on work too much in this post, but it's fair to say I am a busy bee at the mo'. Crazy deadlines, notably one that meant bailing out some peeps for 'forgetting' to get an exhibition stand designed...and remembering just a week before the event. Someone owes me a few pints...they know who they are. 

Pancake Day was celebrated in the traditional way, with some pretty rubbish attempts at making them - we got it right in the end. Caroline was in Stockholm on Wednesday and had her leaving do on Friday, so I had some shed time - played a load of guitar and started to re-do my portfolio website which is long overdue. February is a really expensive month for us with so many birthdays and a 5 week pay period, so decided so some cheap nights in was a good idea. Despite this Saturday night we went out for dinner with Maria and Rus - a sort of mini-b'day celebration/dinner club thing. Top notch french meal at Mini Mundus in Wandsworth Common. Great little restaurant serving very traditional and cheap french tucker. My mate Mark rang me mid-meal and told me that Camden Market was on fire! Checked the news when we got home - much of the canal market has been destroyed, as has the (in)famous Hawley Arms pub. Mark took some amazing photos showing the extent of the damage. Luckily, there were no casualties, but I feel for those poor stall-holders and poor old Camden Town. It is fantastic place and this is a real tragedy. 

After a long walk today, we went to the flicks to see Juno - what a lovely, heartwarming and wickedly dry humoured film. I have to say that the trailers didn't sell it to me, but a few friends highly recommended it. Ellen Page more than deserves the Oscar nomination. 9/10 - go and see it now. Settling down to watch the BAFTAs now.

Got a new book on the go: Pies and Prejudice - In Search of the North by the brilliant Stuart Marconnie. A long time fan of his work, I am really looking forward to this read. I can highly recommend his book Cider with Roadies, which looks at how he fell into music journalism and all the madness that resulted. 

Fav. listens this week: Led Zeppelin - Mothership; The All Star All Stars - Radiodread; Paul Hartoll - The Ideal Condition; Thom Yorke - The Eraser. 

A final note for my brother Stu - welcome to cohabitation and hope the swelling goes down soon.

Koko no-no

After a fairly frustrating day at work (seemingly spent it sorting out other people's issues and not my own) I made my way to Camden to meet a few mates. Chowed on a some quality Dim Sum at Teachi on Parkway, then made our way to KoKo via a few pubs.

Teenage Fanclub are one of my favourite bands - I have loved them since first hearing Bandwagonesque and seeing them at Reading circa 89/90. Tonight should have been a nostalgic night listening to old favs and new stuff from the melodic scots. It was not to be: Firstly they were so quiet - not that they are known for being a really noisey band, but still I like my eardrums to rumble at least a little bit when I see a band. They played a good selection of old and new (including my favs StarSign, The Concept and Radio), but to be honest they seemed to just be going through the motions. I was actually bored and didn't seem to be alone in feeling that. The whole gig had a weird, egdey vibe. What really finished the evening for me was when a friend was told to 'be quiet' whilst saying something to me (quietly)! I left early - something I have rarely done at a peformance of any kind, and luckily Caroline was still up when I got home. (she's just returned from a week away at a show at the NEC)

Hmm...maybe they just had a bad night. Hey ho - nearly the weekend!

Bugged

Dragged my poorly self into work - had lots to catch up on even after just one day off. Still feeling like the new boy in my job and forming relationships with lots of people - some sit next to me, some spread across Europe, plus expectations and responsibilities are a lot higher now. It's cool and I have a lot more autonomy and influence than I did before, but it's a wee bit scary still. I still feel pretty ill - screaming headache, stomach cramps and hot flushes, but had to go in for a bit - deadlines and all that - pah! The tube is particularly nasty when you are ill which didn't help, and even nastier when it's the Northern Line at peak time! I just put my headphones in and bury my head in my book - the journey generally flies then. At least it's not as hot as in the summer. It can get very sauna like (without the towels). Apparently temperatures regularly exceed the level that is legal to transport cattle in the UK...and we pay for the pleasure! Definitely one of the down sides of living in London. I could always cycle in I guess, but have seen how people drive in rush hour!

Currently reading 'The Joke's Over - The Memoirs of Hunter S.Thompson' by Ralph Steadman. Great book so far - a fascinating, anarchic, excessive and chaotic ride through a variety of globe trotting assignments with the father of Gonzo journalism, written and illustrated by Wales' finest satirical/political cartoonist. 9-5 didn't apply to these blokes! 

Not going to make a habit of posting what I'm having for dinner, as it could get quite boring (though I love food so you never know), but on the menu tonight is Pork, Bramley Apple and Black Pudding sausages with carrot, tatties and chive mash - yum. Caroline is back tomorrow after a week away at her show - can't wait, though better get some 'shed' time in before I loose control of the TV again!