So last night I finally caved in and paid for my first ever music download (Mr Blue Sky by Jim Bob (you know, him off of Carter) which is to be the theme for a new Radio 4 comedy written by Andrew Collins and starting next week). I'm not sure where I stand on the technological progress line between early adopter and total luddite, but I guess this step has been a long time coming.
I've been a ready purchaser of music for as long as I can remember (starting with a rip off version of the Star Wars soundtrack performed by the Sonic All Stars) but I guess I have been putting this move off for a long time. I like an object when I splash my cash, and this was the first song I have wanted to own that I can't get in a physical format. And it feels a bit odd to have it this way - do I now add it to my database of owned music or not?
It was a wrench for me when I started buying some albums on cassette rather than vinyl. While I had gathered a few that way over the years I can remember precisely the moment that size of medium and non-scratchability outweighed the ease of being able to drop the needle on any given LP track.
October 1986 and a family day trip to London during half term. Before we hit the main objective of the day (a museum visit) we had time to visit the Virgin Megastore on Oxford Street. The fact that I would have to carry them around with me for the rest of the day meant I ended up purchasing Emotional by Falco and Crash by the Human League on tape. OK, so they then went in my pockets but it somehow felt wrong. Especially as we then went on to buy a socking great dot-matrix printer around the corner on Tottenham Court Road and took turns carrying that for the rest of the day.
After that the die was cast and a succession of Walkmen were stuffed with tape after tape bought from the shops, rather than ones I'd recorded myself. Even the arrival of our first CD player in the house (and then my own) didn't stop me buying albums on tape despite the limitations of easy access to any given song and dodgy sound quality (well, they were half the price) until my final year at college in the early 90s. Something I regret now as there are stacks of them moldering away in the corner of my study and never being played.
But, if that day 26 years ago heralded the begining of the end of my vinyl purchases, have I now done the same for CDs? Probably not, because if nothing else for as long as they can be picked up on the high street or with the weekly shop I will continue to do just that. And my car stereo has no input jack so I'll need a continual supply of discs for the foreseeable there as well.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Faded Formats
Thursday, April 14, 2011
A false sense of security
We have just spent a slightly dull 20 minutes in the park at the end of the road following a security evacuation drill.
It was announced that a "specific security threat to the building" had been received and we were told to collect our belongings then given a three minute countdown to evacuation. That was the first clue that this might only be a drill as normally the policy is to leave anything behind and get out as quickly and safely as possible.
The second clue was that nobody was trying to stop traffic passing the place and the third that nobody was moving all the children on the Ipswich Town practice pitch which is right next door. If there was a chance of a bomb going off in a building with this much glass then I would have expected the innocents to be cleared away from the potential shrapnel zone. Still, it made a change from a fire drill I suppose.
We did have a genuine security evacuation about five years ago (having to leave for three hours while the Police searched every floor) but I don't think anything was found then. Given the current fuss over our leader and councillors (e.g. see post below) I wouldn't have been surprised if there had been an actual threat from a disgruntled council tax-payer.
Now, what was I doing before we were so rudely interrupted?
It was announced that a "specific security threat to the building" had been received and we were told to collect our belongings then given a three minute countdown to evacuation. That was the first clue that this might only be a drill as normally the policy is to leave anything behind and get out as quickly and safely as possible.
The second clue was that nobody was trying to stop traffic passing the place and the third that nobody was moving all the children on the Ipswich Town practice pitch which is right next door. If there was a chance of a bomb going off in a building with this much glass then I would have expected the innocents to be cleared away from the potential shrapnel zone. Still, it made a change from a fire drill I suppose.
We did have a genuine security evacuation about five years ago (having to leave for three hours while the Police searched every floor) but I don't think anything was found then. Given the current fuss over our leader and councillors (e.g. see post below) I wouldn't have been surprised if there had been an actual threat from a disgruntled council tax-payer.
Now, what was I doing before we were so rudely interrupted?
Wednesday, April 06, 2011
Protest!
Protest!, a photo by The original SimonB on Flickr.Someone is a bit upset about recent cuts to bus services and has plastered our bus station and other town centre stops with a range of stickers like this one. So now I am going to have to pay our cleaners extra to remove them all, further biting into the revenue budget that could have been used for services... I must say the perpetrator has put a lot of time and effort into producing the different stickers, but they are in many ways aimed at the wrong person. The role of the chief exec is to implement the policies set by the elected councillors after all...
Monday, March 21, 2011
Another Mr Angry on the phone
Westleton relic a photo by The original SimonB on Flickr.
OK, I know I'm ever so slightly biased as it is part of my job to decide locations for them, but I do fail to understand quite how worked up people can get over the presence of a bus stop somewhere in the vicinity of their house. And let us be clear about this, I am not talking about a bus shelter, or a raised kerb for wheelchair access or even something as sinister as a timetable display case. Just a simple sign on a pole (and often on a lamp column that was there already, rather than a purpose built post). And in at least 9 out of 10 of complaints we are talking about locations that have been bus stops (not necessarily marked with a flag, but registered with us, with the bus companies and showing up on Google Maps) for as long as anyone can remember.
Over the years I have been accused of:
Endangering lives - if people are waiting at the bus stop when I want to pull in or out of my drive I won't be able to see and may hit them/oncoming traffic. Well, try looking with your eyes, and anyway it is rare indeed for most stops to actually have someone waiting for most services.
Ruining sleep - how can I get any rest with a bus stop outside my house? This is a pretty rural county and we only have two bus services that run past 11pm, and one of those sticks to the A12, and only a handful that start before 7am. Apologies to the night shift people, but the road would be there anyway and, indeed, so would the buses be passing by.
Devaluing property - I want at least £10,000 in compensation as that's what my house has lost in value. Er, no it hasn't. In fact, in this day and age I can see people choosing a house because there is a stop handy and they don't need to buy that car.
Destroying property - my 16th century cottage is being shaken to pieces by bus-induced vibrations or people waiting are leaning on my wall and knocking it down/leaving marks on it. You can prove that can you? We survey our stops regularly so I've got photos of your house going back at least ten years I can look for cracks on...
And so much more. My pet favourite is when children can no longer play in the garden because somebody might look in from the upper deck. Which, again, they could have been doing all along as the bus route has been passing your hosue for years.
MrsB and I lived with a bus stop outside our flat before we bought the house and it never bothered us one little bit. And that had a shelter and everything. OK, so some stops get kids hanging around them with nothing better to do, but then so do 100 other street corners without a bus stop and I'm not taking responsibility for that one.
There are more pressing things in this world to worry about.
Wednesday, March 09, 2011
Down down, deeper and down
Mind the step a photo by The original SimonB on Flickr.
I'm currently reading Underground England by Stephen Smith, a follow-up to his previous book based on the capital Underground London. Both take us below the streets and fields of every day life to see what lurks beneath in tunnels, vaults, burial chambers and so forth. They also both stretch their definitions somewhat by covering issues that are blatantly above ground or underwater, but could be classed as "underground" in the sense of hidden or clandestine.
While I have never wanted to join the pot-holing or caving fraternity, I don't object to wandering about with a few feet of rock or building above my head when the opportunity arises. I enjoy the Underground in London for the simple fact that it exists despite all the engineering challenges they faced to build it as well as for it being a reasonably effective way from getting from a to b. And I'm more than happy to wander around a "show cave" in the Peak District or Cheddar Gorge when the opportunity arises.
But as well as the obvious and accessible deepness, what both of these books offer is a glimpse into the support structure of our daily lives. Peering through the gaps in the floorboards and negotiating with disinterested beuracracy is just as interesting as what becomes revealed through these actions. We all know what we do in our own daily lives, and how those we come into contact with don't often appreciate the backstage stuff that gets them their loaf of bread, bus stop or X-ray. What Smith has done in these two tomes is illuminate a whole bunch of institutions that help keep us going and also happen to be "below stairs" - literally or metaphorically.
There are more academic works out there about what goes on beneath our feet (London Under London by Trench and Hillman being one I would also recommend) but as an introductory delve I'd say you can't go far wrong with these.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
How can this be true?
So yesterday I changed the first digit of my age again. Sure doesn't seem like 10 years since the last time that happened. Been spoilt rotten over the whole weekend with some lovely meals, top presents and lots of time with MrsB.
And no, my teeth haven't fallen out, I've not gone grey (well, greyer) overnight and my knees still work.
So, now life can really begin as they say.
And no, my teeth haven't fallen out, I've not gone grey (well, greyer) overnight and my knees still work.
So, now life can really begin as they say.
Tuesday, February 08, 2011
In between the towers
So we had our first proper day out of the year on Saturday - a jaunt down to the Tower of London care of cheap coach tickets and a two-for-one entrance voucher. I'm sure the places that do still charge have got disproportionally more expensive since we got free entry to so many other museums etc. Anyway the two offers combined gave us a relatively inexpensive blast of history and we made sure to get the best value out of it. The tower website has suggestions for what to do if you only have 1, 2, or 3 hours to spare for your visit (I can't imagine anyone being prepared to spend £17 a head for only one hour, but there were people already leaving when we arrived just after 10) and we stretched it out to 6. The weather was not the best for photos as while dry the skies stayed grey all day, but clicking on the picture will take you to more on flickr.
It was a pleasant surprise to find that while there have been many changes since MrsB and I last visited some 15 years ago, they have mostly been for the better. Most of the material on display in the various towers is still presented with "here are the facts" boards rather than some ghastly interactive nonsense, and while there was one area with a trio of actors attempting to get people involved it was definitely the only one. Of course there are still plenty of Yeoman Warders/Beefeaters wandering about and giving tours (free!) as well as other custodians, but they were good at blending into the background while still being obvious for those with questions. I lost count of how many steps we went up and down through the various towers and wall walks though.
Despite never having lived there, I feel almost as at home in London as I do, well, at home. OK so we go down fairly often and always have done, and every other show on the TV manages to squeeze in gratuitous establishing shots of the landmarks even if the action takes place in some dingy back street, but that doesn't explain why I feel comfortable with the city. Take me to other large centres and I can feel very tense and nervous of crowds - maybe I just expect it here so don't notice it so much. We also had a short stroll along the river bank before heading for home whcih was nice and again highlighted a few places to add to future visits.
I do think it is important to keep visiting places such as this whenever we have the chance. It is all too easy to dismiss them as something for the tourists and forget about what we do have at home (well, not exactly at home for someone living in Felixstowe, but you know what I mean). Not sure where our next target for a trip will be. Since listening to the History of the World in 100 Objects series I do want to go back to the British Museum and see them in the flesh so to speak, but there are so many other places we haven't seen at all.
This weekend we have a trip to a local theatre for an adaptation of three Dickens Ghost stories which promises to be spooky, then the weekend after that I seem to be turning 40 so frankly anything could happen.
It was a pleasant surprise to find that while there have been many changes since MrsB and I last visited some 15 years ago, they have mostly been for the better. Most of the material on display in the various towers is still presented with "here are the facts" boards rather than some ghastly interactive nonsense, and while there was one area with a trio of actors attempting to get people involved it was definitely the only one. Of course there are still plenty of Yeoman Warders/Beefeaters wandering about and giving tours (free!) as well as other custodians, but they were good at blending into the background while still being obvious for those with questions. I lost count of how many steps we went up and down through the various towers and wall walks though.
Despite never having lived there, I feel almost as at home in London as I do, well, at home. OK so we go down fairly often and always have done, and every other show on the TV manages to squeeze in gratuitous establishing shots of the landmarks even if the action takes place in some dingy back street, but that doesn't explain why I feel comfortable with the city. Take me to other large centres and I can feel very tense and nervous of crowds - maybe I just expect it here so don't notice it so much. We also had a short stroll along the river bank before heading for home whcih was nice and again highlighted a few places to add to future visits.
I do think it is important to keep visiting places such as this whenever we have the chance. It is all too easy to dismiss them as something for the tourists and forget about what we do have at home (well, not exactly at home for someone living in Felixstowe, but you know what I mean). Not sure where our next target for a trip will be. Since listening to the History of the World in 100 Objects series I do want to go back to the British Museum and see them in the flesh so to speak, but there are so many other places we haven't seen at all.
This weekend we have a trip to a local theatre for an adaptation of three Dickens Ghost stories which promises to be spooky, then the weekend after that I seem to be turning 40 so frankly anything could happen.
Friday, January 28, 2011
25 years gone
Just discovered it is 25 years since the Challenger launch explosion put the brakes on the US space programme and changed the lives of more than just the seven folks on board. I can see the explosion happening and the SRBs spiralling off as clear in my mind as if it had happened yesterday. A real tragic event. More here.
I know the remainder of the fleet is due to be grounded this year, but I am a child of the space age. I'd still give anything for a ride into the blackness on that big white bus. My admiration for those who do knows no limits.
Still not acheived my ambition of watching something go up in the flesh, but maybe if I start saving today we'll have enough in the bank for when the Orion/Aries or whatever they do build starts to fly.
And of course this means that in a day or two it will also be 25 years since Jean-Michel Jarre's Rendez-vous Houston concert, the tv broadcast of which is forever etched in my memory due to the snippets of crown footage they slipped in between the songs that then turned up on the album as well. "Kids, get off my car". "The most amazing sight ever seen by the human eye".
I know the remainder of the fleet is due to be grounded this year, but I am a child of the space age. I'd still give anything for a ride into the blackness on that big white bus. My admiration for those who do knows no limits.
Still not acheived my ambition of watching something go up in the flesh, but maybe if I start saving today we'll have enough in the bank for when the Orion/Aries or whatever they do build starts to fly.
And of course this means that in a day or two it will also be 25 years since Jean-Michel Jarre's Rendez-vous Houston concert, the tv broadcast of which is forever etched in my memory due to the snippets of crown footage they slipped in between the songs that then turned up on the album as well. "Kids, get off my car". "The most amazing sight ever seen by the human eye".
Thursday, January 20, 2011
For those in peril on the sea
OK, this is the third attempt to commit what I'm thinking into words (and you really wouldn't want to see the previous drafts) and it is going to have to go something like this.
Having just listened to a reading of Alistair Maclean's HMS Ulysses I am once again staggered by what people go through in times of conflict and would really like to dig deeper into the ships, the convoys and general life at sea. OK, so I know that is a work of fiction, but it has a pretty good grounding in the reality of the matter. Even I can recognise a lot of the truth of the descriptions from a few cross channel and north sea ferries and a trip around HMS Belfast.
My Grandfather served in the navy during the Second World War, but like many of his contemporaries was reluctant to talk about the experience. I don't know why some people close off that whole area of the past while others go on to write books, make films, set up web sites and so forth and generally spend all their time expounding on the subject. Maybe there is a corellation between those who talk or not about their history in the forces and whether they were willingly in the fray or reluctant draftees, I'm sure the answer is out there if I wanted to look.
Anyway, I do sometimes wish that Grandpa had fallen a bit more into the latter category as there is so much I would have liked to ask him while he was still around to be asked. So here's a cheer for Stanley for going through it all when the country needed it, and thanks for those who are able to keep it in our minds.
Having just listened to a reading of Alistair Maclean's HMS Ulysses I am once again staggered by what people go through in times of conflict and would really like to dig deeper into the ships, the convoys and general life at sea. OK, so I know that is a work of fiction, but it has a pretty good grounding in the reality of the matter. Even I can recognise a lot of the truth of the descriptions from a few cross channel and north sea ferries and a trip around HMS Belfast.
My Grandfather served in the navy during the Second World War, but like many of his contemporaries was reluctant to talk about the experience. I don't know why some people close off that whole area of the past while others go on to write books, make films, set up web sites and so forth and generally spend all their time expounding on the subject. Maybe there is a corellation between those who talk or not about their history in the forces and whether they were willingly in the fray or reluctant draftees, I'm sure the answer is out there if I wanted to look.
Anyway, I do sometimes wish that Grandpa had fallen a bit more into the latter category as there is so much I would have liked to ask him while he was still around to be asked. So here's a cheer for Stanley for going through it all when the country needed it, and thanks for those who are able to keep it in our minds.
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Football unfocus
You can always tell when Ipswich Town are playing a home evening game. Large chunks of the office get up and leave early in order to go home, have a bite and get changed before coming back for the match. An equally large proportion stays late at their desks then goes straight over (the office is literally next door to the ground). This leaves the rest of us wondering what all the fuss is really about. Especially the way they have been playing recently.
With every result, hiring or firing of manager or players reported across the local media and discussed endlessly around me during the day I know far more about the workings of football than I ever thought I might pick up. While I may have watched the odd cup final or other game on the tv there is no way I could ever be described as a football fan, and yet I do seem to care about what goes on inside the stadium next door.
And good luck to the new manager as well - I can't imagine why anyone would ever want to take on a job like that. More to the point, I don't understand why it is always the manager that seems to get all the blame when things go badly, but the players who are praised when teams are winning. Surely they are both equally responsible either way?
I have been inside Portman Road on numerous occasions for meetings (it being a handy venue and all that) and also to see Bryan Adams back in 1992, but the only football I have been in to view was a charity tournament on the practice pitch. That's where the picture above comes from - a team from the office entered and did fairly well (but quite how well I can no longer recall).
I have tried to catch the bug properly in the past in order to fit in with friends, but it just doesn't grab me. Perhaps I need to go to a proper professional game but at those prices I'd rather take MrsB out to the theatre AND have a good meal as well.
So while I won't be joining those shivering in the stands tonight I will keep an eye out for the result later, if only so as not to put my foot in it when I get to work in the morning.
With every result, hiring or firing of manager or players reported across the local media and discussed endlessly around me during the day I know far more about the workings of football than I ever thought I might pick up. While I may have watched the odd cup final or other game on the tv there is no way I could ever be described as a football fan, and yet I do seem to care about what goes on inside the stadium next door.
And good luck to the new manager as well - I can't imagine why anyone would ever want to take on a job like that. More to the point, I don't understand why it is always the manager that seems to get all the blame when things go badly, but the players who are praised when teams are winning. Surely they are both equally responsible either way?
I have been inside Portman Road on numerous occasions for meetings (it being a handy venue and all that) and also to see Bryan Adams back in 1992, but the only football I have been in to view was a charity tournament on the practice pitch. That's where the picture above comes from - a team from the office entered and did fairly well (but quite how well I can no longer recall).
I have tried to catch the bug properly in the past in order to fit in with friends, but it just doesn't grab me. Perhaps I need to go to a proper professional game but at those prices I'd rather take MrsB out to the theatre AND have a good meal as well.
So while I won't be joining those shivering in the stands tonight I will keep an eye out for the result later, if only so as not to put my foot in it when I get to work in the morning.
Wednesday, January 05, 2011
Another year of reading
OK, nobody asked for it but as I've been logging my books again for another year here's the full list. As with last year, audio books are in italics.
Peter Biddlecombe - The United Burger States Of America
Ian Hislop (Ed) - Private Eye Annual 2009
Terry Pratchett - Nation
Michael Harvey (Ed) - Top Gear Top Drives
Stephen Cole - Doctor Who: Sting Of The Zygons
Simon Schama - A History of Britain III: The Fate of Empire 1776-2000
Terry Pratchett - Sourcery
Matthew Brzezinski - Red Moon Rising
Terry Pratchett - Wyrd Sisters
Ian Fleming - Octopussy And The Living Daylights
David Eddings - Domes Of Fire
Emma Kennedy - The Tent, The Bucket And Me
Terry Pratchett - Unseen Academcals
Mark Cawardine - Last Chance To See
David Eddings - The Shining Ones
Mike Parker - Map Addict
David Eddings - The Hidden City
J. K. Rowling - The Tales Of Beedle The Bard
Terry Pratchett - Guards! Guards!
Mitch Albom - The Five People You Meet In Heaven
Terry Pratchett - Eric
Julian May - Conqueror's Moon
Stuart Maconie - Adventures On The High Teas
Elizabeth-Jane Grose - See Felixstowe With Me
Kim Stanley Robinson - Red Mars
Kim Stanley Robinson - Green Mars
Julian May - Ironcrown Moon
Kim Stanley Robinson - Blue Mars
Richard Hammond - As You Do
Terry Pratchett - Moving Pictures
Dava Sobel - Longitude
Terry Pratchett - Reaper Man
Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond & James May - Top Gear: The Best Of The Columns
Terry Pratchett - Witches Abroad
Julian May - Sorcerer's Moon
Mike Gayle - Turning Thirty
Terry Pratchett - Small Gods
Alan H. Cohen - Mr Everit's Secret
Neil Gaiman & Charles Vess - Stardust
Stephen Smith - Underground London
Charlie Connolly - And Did Those Feet
Terry Pratchett - Lords And Ladies
Vonda N. McIntyre - Star Trek IV - The Voyage Home
Dan Brown - The Lost Symbol
Terrance Dicks - Doctor Who And The Planet Of The Spiders
Neil Gaiman - Coraline
Mike Durrant - Felixstowe - Then And Now
Jeremy Clarkson - For Crying Out Loud: The World According To Clarkson 3
Terry Pratchett - Men At Arms
Alistair Maclean - The Way To Dusty Death
Martin Lampen - The Knickerbocker Glory Years
Jim Lovell and Jeffrey Kluger - Apollo 13 (Lost Moon)
Will Self - Grey Area
Seb Hunter - Hell Bent For Leather
Maxwell Roberts - Underground Maps Unravelled
Martin Day - Doctor Who: Wooden Heart
Bill Bryson - Down Under
Terrance Dicks - Doctor Who And The Giant Robot
Tony Hillerman - The First Eagle
Mark Barrowcliffe - The Elfish Gene
Terry Pratchett - Soul Music
Terry Pratchett & Jacqueline Simpson - The Folklore Of Discworld
Bill Bryson - A Short History Of Nearly Everything
Oli Smith - Doctor Who: The Runaway Train
Lynne Truss - Get Her Off The Pitch
Jenni Davis & Gill Knappett (Eds) - Ghosts Of Warwick Castle
Terry Pratchett - Interesting Times
Richard Dawkins - The Ancestor's Tale
Paddy Heazell - Most Secret: The Hidden History Of Orford Ness
Neil Gaiman - The Graveyard Book
Terry Pratchett - Maskerade
Matthew Engel - Eleven Minutes Late
Neil Gaiman - Smoke And Mirrors
Boris Starling - Messiah
Terry Pratchett - Feet Of Clay
Ben Goldacre - Bad Science
Mark Gatiss - The Vesuvius Club
John Lloyd and John Mitchinson - The QI Book Of Animal Ignorance
Peter Biddlecombe - The United Burger States Of America
Ian Hislop (Ed) - Private Eye Annual 2009
Terry Pratchett - Nation
Michael Harvey (Ed) - Top Gear Top Drives
Stephen Cole - Doctor Who: Sting Of The Zygons
Simon Schama - A History of Britain III: The Fate of Empire 1776-2000
Terry Pratchett - Sourcery
Matthew Brzezinski - Red Moon Rising
Terry Pratchett - Wyrd Sisters
Ian Fleming - Octopussy And The Living Daylights
David Eddings - Domes Of Fire
Emma Kennedy - The Tent, The Bucket And Me
Terry Pratchett - Unseen Academcals
Mark Cawardine - Last Chance To See
David Eddings - The Shining Ones
Mike Parker - Map Addict
David Eddings - The Hidden City
J. K. Rowling - The Tales Of Beedle The Bard
Terry Pratchett - Guards! Guards!
Mitch Albom - The Five People You Meet In Heaven
Terry Pratchett - Eric
Julian May - Conqueror's Moon
Stuart Maconie - Adventures On The High Teas
Elizabeth-Jane Grose - See Felixstowe With Me
Kim Stanley Robinson - Red Mars
Kim Stanley Robinson - Green Mars
Julian May - Ironcrown Moon
Kim Stanley Robinson - Blue Mars
Richard Hammond - As You Do
Terry Pratchett - Moving Pictures
Dava Sobel - Longitude
Terry Pratchett - Reaper Man
Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond & James May - Top Gear: The Best Of The Columns
Terry Pratchett - Witches Abroad
Julian May - Sorcerer's Moon
Mike Gayle - Turning Thirty
Terry Pratchett - Small Gods
Alan H. Cohen - Mr Everit's Secret
Neil Gaiman & Charles Vess - Stardust
Stephen Smith - Underground London
Charlie Connolly - And Did Those Feet
Terry Pratchett - Lords And Ladies
Vonda N. McIntyre - Star Trek IV - The Voyage Home
Dan Brown - The Lost Symbol
Terrance Dicks - Doctor Who And The Planet Of The Spiders
Neil Gaiman - Coraline
Mike Durrant - Felixstowe - Then And Now
Jeremy Clarkson - For Crying Out Loud: The World According To Clarkson 3
Terry Pratchett - Men At Arms
Alistair Maclean - The Way To Dusty Death
Martin Lampen - The Knickerbocker Glory Years
Jim Lovell and Jeffrey Kluger - Apollo 13 (Lost Moon)
Will Self - Grey Area
Seb Hunter - Hell Bent For Leather
Maxwell Roberts - Underground Maps Unravelled
Martin Day - Doctor Who: Wooden Heart
Bill Bryson - Down Under
Terrance Dicks - Doctor Who And The Giant Robot
Tony Hillerman - The First Eagle
Mark Barrowcliffe - The Elfish Gene
Terry Pratchett - Soul Music
Terry Pratchett & Jacqueline Simpson - The Folklore Of Discworld
Bill Bryson - A Short History Of Nearly Everything
Oli Smith - Doctor Who: The Runaway Train
Lynne Truss - Get Her Off The Pitch
Jenni Davis & Gill Knappett (Eds) - Ghosts Of Warwick Castle
Terry Pratchett - Interesting Times
Richard Dawkins - The Ancestor's Tale
Paddy Heazell - Most Secret: The Hidden History Of Orford Ness
Neil Gaiman - The Graveyard Book
Terry Pratchett - Maskerade
Matthew Engel - Eleven Minutes Late
Neil Gaiman - Smoke And Mirrors
Boris Starling - Messiah
Terry Pratchett - Feet Of Clay
Ben Goldacre - Bad Science
Mark Gatiss - The Vesuvius Club
John Lloyd and John Mitchinson - The QI Book Of Animal Ignorance
Friday, December 31, 2010
Hippo Gnu Deer
Aargh, nightmare couple of weeks of flu and general unwellness but Christmas was great so that's OK.
Anyway, nothing special to say, just Happy New Year to all who have read and commented in 2010. I'm hoping to keep waffling in 2011 so you have been warned!
Anyway, nothing special to say, just Happy New Year to all who have read and commented in 2010. I'm hoping to keep waffling in 2011 so you have been warned!
Friday, December 10, 2010
Resting my ears
Normally about now I would be posting my top songs of the year, but as mentioned in the post below I have hardly heard anything new at all. In fact, looking at the shelves this morning I counted a grand total of two 2010 CDs. Plenty of re-issues and stuff bought cheap in sales, but only those two day of release jobs.
Personally, I blame the BBC. Ever since they stopped showing Top Of The Pops I have become completely ignorant of what's in the charts. And on Radio Suffolk I only really listen to the Breakfast Show (which is all talk) and the Flashback Year on a Sunday. But I have also not been enthusiastic about discovering anything new either.
It has been a year of cosy sentimentality and wallowing in the familiar.
Reading other blogs has kicked me up the backside somewhat though and when Christmas is out of the way and I can spend money on myself without feeling guilty I'm off to find some new musical horizons. Suggestions welcome.
Personally, I blame the BBC. Ever since they stopped showing Top Of The Pops I have become completely ignorant of what's in the charts. And on Radio Suffolk I only really listen to the Breakfast Show (which is all talk) and the Flashback Year on a Sunday. But I have also not been enthusiastic about discovering anything new either.
It has been a year of cosy sentimentality and wallowing in the familiar.
Reading other blogs has kicked me up the backside somewhat though and when Christmas is out of the way and I can spend money on myself without feeling guilty I'm off to find some new musical horizons. Suggestions welcome.
Wednesday, December 01, 2010
Questionable Behaviour 1
You've seen them no doubt, perhaps even sought them out to see who the victim is this time. Tucked away in boxouts in the news section, front or back page features or just propping up the small ads pages. Regular question and answer features with celebrities or just readers of the magazine. Always the same questions but often wildly different answers. So in an attempt to bare my soul in a different manner from my normal waffling I thought I'd tackle some of these myself from time to time. Some of them will need a little tweaking as I'm not an international jet-setting rock star, actor from a series you watched as a child or, er, slimming club organiser but I hope to stay true to the spirit of the originals. No idea if this will actually work or I'll kepp going, but I do intend to...
First up, All Back To My Place from Mojo:
What music are you currently grooving to?
2010 has been a year of catching up with bands I've neglected for years thanks to re-releases and a bit of digging around on the sale shelves so lots of Saxon, Megadeth, Sigur Ros and The Beatles recently. Also been enjoying some Hayseed Dixie concerts from the Internet Archive.
What, if push comes to shove, is your all-time favourite album?
Possibly the trickiest question known to man! There are many that I turn to over and over again when I want to drop myself into something familiar and just go along with the music. Iron Maiden's Somewhere In Time, Chumbawamba's WYSIWYG, the first All About Eve album and Ned's Atomic Dustbin's God Fodder to name just four.
What was the first record you ever bought? And where did you buy it?
This was an unofficial version of the Star Wars soundtrack in the Welwyn Department Store (Welwyn Garden City - now a John Lewis) which was in constant rotation after seeing the film. I got a lot of stuff in there in my early record purchasing days before discovering Our Price a few streets away and really going mad.
Which musician have you ever wanted to be?
Nobody in particular, I'd just like to be able to get a tune out of somethng well enough to entertain people.
What do you sing in the shower?
Whatever I've heard most recently as a rule. Which is one reason we listen to the Radio Suffolk breakfast show as they don't play music, meaning I'm less likely to scare the neighbourhood with out of tune screeching.
What is your favourite Saturday night record?
Back before I met MrsB if ever I was going out on an evening I would try to fire myself up with somethng heavy while getting ready. Particular favourites were Slayer's Reign In Blood and the first Wildhearts e.p. Mondo-Akimbo-A-Go-Go. I felt ready for anything after those, particularly if I knew the night to come was going to feature insipid chart music as a background.
And your Sunday morning record?
A perfect time for ambient electronica - The Orb, System 7, Drum Club and that ilk.
So there you have it, one down - more to follow!
First up, All Back To My Place from Mojo:
What music are you currently grooving to?
2010 has been a year of catching up with bands I've neglected for years thanks to re-releases and a bit of digging around on the sale shelves so lots of Saxon, Megadeth, Sigur Ros and The Beatles recently. Also been enjoying some Hayseed Dixie concerts from the Internet Archive.
What, if push comes to shove, is your all-time favourite album?
Possibly the trickiest question known to man! There are many that I turn to over and over again when I want to drop myself into something familiar and just go along with the music. Iron Maiden's Somewhere In Time, Chumbawamba's WYSIWYG, the first All About Eve album and Ned's Atomic Dustbin's God Fodder to name just four.
What was the first record you ever bought? And where did you buy it?
This was an unofficial version of the Star Wars soundtrack in the Welwyn Department Store (Welwyn Garden City - now a John Lewis) which was in constant rotation after seeing the film. I got a lot of stuff in there in my early record purchasing days before discovering Our Price a few streets away and really going mad.
Which musician have you ever wanted to be?
Nobody in particular, I'd just like to be able to get a tune out of somethng well enough to entertain people.
What do you sing in the shower?
Whatever I've heard most recently as a rule. Which is one reason we listen to the Radio Suffolk breakfast show as they don't play music, meaning I'm less likely to scare the neighbourhood with out of tune screeching.
What is your favourite Saturday night record?
Back before I met MrsB if ever I was going out on an evening I would try to fire myself up with somethng heavy while getting ready. Particular favourites were Slayer's Reign In Blood and the first Wildhearts e.p. Mondo-Akimbo-A-Go-Go. I felt ready for anything after those, particularly if I knew the night to come was going to feature insipid chart music as a background.
And your Sunday morning record?
A perfect time for ambient electronica - The Orb, System 7, Drum Club and that ilk.
So there you have it, one down - more to follow!
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Unravelling the branches
After a year or so of general bumbling about in the library, grabbing research done by others in the family and banging our heads against the wall in frustration we are going for a session with a genealogist this weekend. MrsB has been wanting to plot out her family tree for years (blame Who Do You Think You Are) but has been hampered by a lack of any useful information to kick us off with.
Like many other so called free resources, a lot of the census details and birth records available online only give you a brief summary for free and request payment for the full story. The trouble is we have been reluctant to part with good cold cash without knowing whether the end product will have been worth the investment. And while a couple of her cousin's have gone back five or six generations on their branches, we have a big black hole when it comes to her Dad's family. This is not helped by the fact that her Dad is no longer with us and even the surviving aunts and uncles don't seem to know much about their own parents, never mind further back.
I'm hoping a bit of professional help will guide us to some useful sources and show us whether it is worth signing up to some proper sites or not. Of course I have a feeling that we will need to devote some proper time to a trip up north to rummage in physical records, which will be emotional as we've not been back since the funeral.
For my part I'm not really bothered about where I come from. As with the good lady, one of my relatives has done a fair bit on one side of the family and we have a big gap on the other that will need a trip or two to Denmark to sort out, but I don't really feel the need to know. Maybe I'll get bitten by the bug properly when I'm older, but for now am happy to act as detective for the Mrs.
Like many other so called free resources, a lot of the census details and birth records available online only give you a brief summary for free and request payment for the full story. The trouble is we have been reluctant to part with good cold cash without knowing whether the end product will have been worth the investment. And while a couple of her cousin's have gone back five or six generations on their branches, we have a big black hole when it comes to her Dad's family. This is not helped by the fact that her Dad is no longer with us and even the surviving aunts and uncles don't seem to know much about their own parents, never mind further back.
I'm hoping a bit of professional help will guide us to some useful sources and show us whether it is worth signing up to some proper sites or not. Of course I have a feeling that we will need to devote some proper time to a trip up north to rummage in physical records, which will be emotional as we've not been back since the funeral.
For my part I'm not really bothered about where I come from. As with the good lady, one of my relatives has done a fair bit on one side of the family and we have a big gap on the other that will need a trip or two to Denmark to sort out, but I don't really feel the need to know. Maybe I'll get bitten by the bug properly when I'm older, but for now am happy to act as detective for the Mrs.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Too much information
I've seen the packets of nuts that say "may contain nuts" and the "caution, hot" messages on cups of tea and apple pies but I think ridiculous information labels have reached a new low with this one. To save anyone having to enlarge the text, this comes from a packet of Wafer Thin salt beef slices from Marks & Spencer: "Wafer thin slices can vary in appearance and may break. This is natural and will not affect the eating quality."
How crazy is that?
There can surely only be two reasons for such a notice to exist, and I'm not sure which option is the worst. Either enough people have complained to M&S about uneven, snappling slices that they felt it justified or someone high up is worried that such complaints might come in so decided to pre-empt them. The former just shows how stupid some people can be, while the latter means that people sit and think about stupidity. Whichever, it is surely a sign that the end times are coming.
Oh, and no idea why it contains celery or why people may need to be warned about that.
How crazy is that?
There can surely only be two reasons for such a notice to exist, and I'm not sure which option is the worst. Either enough people have complained to M&S about uneven, snappling slices that they felt it justified or someone high up is worried that such complaints might come in so decided to pre-empt them. The former just shows how stupid some people can be, while the latter means that people sit and think about stupidity. Whichever, it is surely a sign that the end times are coming.
Oh, and no idea why it contains celery or why people may need to be warned about that.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Strange delight on seeing local stuff on telly
A bit of idle channel hopping last night found us watching an old episode of Coast on BBC2, covering the edges of Norfolk and Suffolk. Although we had seen this one before, it had to be watched purely for the local recognition factor. The trip ended in Felixstowe and included a nice aerial shot over the town (missing our house by a matter of a few hundred metres, blast!) as well as some shots of the docks.
I can't decide which is stranger for people when seeing the place you live on tv. Being somewhere like Felixstowe where we get shown once in a blue moon, and then generally only on a specialist show like this (local news doesn't count) seeing stuff from just down the road gives a bit of a thrill. But I can't imagine what it must be like as a Londoner to see familiar stomping grounds in every other detective show, documentary or just as establishing shots in Masterchef. Does the thrill remain or is it "oh, there's another murder at my bus stop"?
Anyway, what I had completely forgotten from the previous viewing was an article about the Cobra Mist radar early warning system tried up at Orford Ness in the 70s from the building in that photo up there (now a BBC World Service transmission site). As it happens, I am reading a history of the Ness and the various clandestine activities undertaken there so it was great to see some of it in living colour. One thing I have always liked in Coast is the selective use of CGI to overlay historical views on the present scene, and they did a great job with the aerial arrays no longer standing on the beach by this block house.
Having been over on to the Ness some 20 years ago (when we had a trip up the lighthouse) and taken a river trip past a few weeks back it was once more a case of "ooh, I've been there" for me on seeing the place in the living room. Hopefully the sense of delight will remain next time something Suffolk hits the screen.
I can't decide which is stranger for people when seeing the place you live on tv. Being somewhere like Felixstowe where we get shown once in a blue moon, and then generally only on a specialist show like this (local news doesn't count) seeing stuff from just down the road gives a bit of a thrill. But I can't imagine what it must be like as a Londoner to see familiar stomping grounds in every other detective show, documentary or just as establishing shots in Masterchef. Does the thrill remain or is it "oh, there's another murder at my bus stop"?
Anyway, what I had completely forgotten from the previous viewing was an article about the Cobra Mist radar early warning system tried up at Orford Ness in the 70s from the building in that photo up there (now a BBC World Service transmission site). As it happens, I am reading a history of the Ness and the various clandestine activities undertaken there so it was great to see some of it in living colour. One thing I have always liked in Coast is the selective use of CGI to overlay historical views on the present scene, and they did a great job with the aerial arrays no longer standing on the beach by this block house.
Having been over on to the Ness some 20 years ago (when we had a trip up the lighthouse) and taken a river trip past a few weeks back it was once more a case of "ooh, I've been there" for me on seeing the place in the living room. Hopefully the sense of delight will remain next time something Suffolk hits the screen.
Thursday, November 04, 2010
Saturday, October 30, 2010
I'm scared
Why do we so like to scare ourselves for entertainment? Not just the obvious (well, obvious this weekend anyway) horror films/books imagery etc but also stuff like rollercoasters or murder mysteries that get the pulse racing and leave you with a great sense of still being alive/relief that it didn't happen to you at the end. Hmm, probably just answered the question there anyway.
I started wondering this at the beginning of the week when we were watching the last episode of Whitechapel. Partly I was debating whether I should enjoy a tale of murder and violence, especially with the emphasis on gangs (the Krays etc) and what is generally the nastier side of life. But I do - and also enjoy lots of other crime series too. Maybe it is because my real life is so far removed from most of that sort of thing - after all, where would the entertainment be in a six part drama about someone driving round beautiful villages deciding where to put bus stops and then doing a bit of paperwork back in the office?
But as the night of ghosts and ghouls and trick or treaters got closer it has developed into a more general curiosity about why scares are often craved. I know most of what happens on Halloween these days isn't exactly scary in the true sense but once upon a time these witches, bats etc had the power to frighten.
I'm therefore, over the next few weeks, going to have a stab at some scary stories that have been lying around the house unread and see whether I actually like them or not. Both in the ghost and the "crime so horrific ut counts as horror" areas. Which brings me neatly on to books (you knew it would be in here somewhere!).
The rather wonderful writer Neil Gaiman has had the rather wonderful idea of starting a new Halloween tradition. All Hallows Read is the name, and giving people scary books for Halloween presents is the game. So I have given MrsB a copy of Haunted Ipswich by Pete Jennings - which is a look at all the supposed ghosts of our county town. Maybe not as scary as actual tales but a good start I thought. And I also treated myself to Gaiman's The Graveyard Book which I have just not got round to buying until now.
So, off you go and give someone a paper-based scare yourself (and I don't mean show them a bank statement or credit card bill) and see how it goes.
I started wondering this at the beginning of the week when we were watching the last episode of Whitechapel. Partly I was debating whether I should enjoy a tale of murder and violence, especially with the emphasis on gangs (the Krays etc) and what is generally the nastier side of life. But I do - and also enjoy lots of other crime series too. Maybe it is because my real life is so far removed from most of that sort of thing - after all, where would the entertainment be in a six part drama about someone driving round beautiful villages deciding where to put bus stops and then doing a bit of paperwork back in the office?
But as the night of ghosts and ghouls and trick or treaters got closer it has developed into a more general curiosity about why scares are often craved. I know most of what happens on Halloween these days isn't exactly scary in the true sense but once upon a time these witches, bats etc had the power to frighten.
I'm therefore, over the next few weeks, going to have a stab at some scary stories that have been lying around the house unread and see whether I actually like them or not. Both in the ghost and the "crime so horrific ut counts as horror" areas. Which brings me neatly on to books (you knew it would be in here somewhere!).
The rather wonderful writer Neil Gaiman has had the rather wonderful idea of starting a new Halloween tradition. All Hallows Read is the name, and giving people scary books for Halloween presents is the game. So I have given MrsB a copy of Haunted Ipswich by Pete Jennings - which is a look at all the supposed ghosts of our county town. Maybe not as scary as actual tales but a good start I thought. And I also treated myself to Gaiman's The Graveyard Book which I have just not got round to buying until now.
So, off you go and give someone a paper-based scare yourself (and I don't mean show them a bank statement or credit card bill) and see how it goes.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
What colour christmas are you having?
This may surprise some, but I don't actually mind the build-up to Christmas starting as soon as the kids go back to school. I'd prefer it if things were delayed a bit after that (f'rinstance as we now do Halloween over here then perhaps waiting until that was over would be better), but having worked in retail can see why they like to get things up and running as soon as possible. It always kept life interesting back in the Argos days, having to juggle stockroom space for garden furniture and Christmas trees at the same time.
We spent a good half hour looking at baubles, lights and miscellaneous hanging things on Sunday after cake at a Garden Centre and I didn't want to run screaming from the room once. Unlike when we were looking at the plants before the cake. But that was more due to the call of the cake rather than any particular negative vibes over gardening. Not my favourite pass time, but better than decorating. Plus, I have to be organised when it comes to the festive season as Joan's birthday is only a few days after Christmas so I need to start buying stuff in advance to spread the cost and make sure each even gets the proper treatment.
Anyhoo, we'll be having a real tree this year if I'm still gainfully employed, rather than one of these plastic efforts.
We spent a good half hour looking at baubles, lights and miscellaneous hanging things on Sunday after cake at a Garden Centre and I didn't want to run screaming from the room once. Unlike when we were looking at the plants before the cake. But that was more due to the call of the cake rather than any particular negative vibes over gardening. Not my favourite pass time, but better than decorating. Plus, I have to be organised when it comes to the festive season as Joan's birthday is only a few days after Christmas so I need to start buying stuff in advance to spread the cost and make sure each even gets the proper treatment.
Anyhoo, we'll be having a real tree this year if I'm still gainfully employed, rather than one of these plastic efforts.
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