we've talked often in the past about how our house will come into its own during summer...
...but now that summer weather has finally stayed with us for more than four hours, i am really reaping the benefits. our kitchen has an enormous ceiling, with a wooden floor in the eating area and faux brick work in the cooking part. i think that this all makes it feel loads like the kitchen of a farm house - it definitely reminds me of the converted barn in cornwall where my aunt used to live. the kitchen is also adjacent to the back garden with glass doors which allows loads of light in. so we have this huge, rural-looking, bright kitchen which, since i tidied it over the past two days, has been amazing. i feel like i live in france or something!
i've also discovered the compost bin in our garden. it's dead exciting. when i found out what it was over the weekend, there was a massive ants nest in there (which is probably where all the ants have been coming from). i've done some online reading about compost though, and have now started using it (vegetable matter, coffee grounds, tea bags, a bit of cardboard, grass cuttings!). the ants nest looks to have dispersed, i imagine they are all going to work on the compost! after our interspecies war/massacre of earlier this week, i am happy to announce that we are now working in tandem. compost takes 6-9 months to degrade into compost, but i am impatient so i've been checking it every 2 hours. after 3 days of biodegrading action, it has begun to whiff a little (yassssss!).
on tuesday, pete and i went to see final fantasy at taylor johns house in coventry. there were more people i knew there than i had expected (james & lydia turned up, my ex-flatmate anna was there looking like a scenester, alex from pictures paint words was there with friends, and i also saw ellie who i used to sort of know through big james). i had a brilliant awkward conversation with anna, after ninety seconds of which she effectively turned her back on me!
the venue became unbelievably hot, but the band were super. it's just one guy (owen) who sings and plays a violin (with the assistance of a relay pedal). so he'll play little bits, record them on his pedal and have them loop over, then play more live and sing - and all the while there was a girl on stage with him who was using a projector to show images about magic! i really liked how layered it all was; every time he introduced, or re-introduced, a different musical phrase it was brilliant. he also sang some songs on the piano which i didn't like so much. i also quite liked how, when he fucked up a song, he'd stop suddenly and say "shit i screwed up" rather than ploughing on regardless. on the first song, he even kept playing the introduction and then said out loud "i haven't played this in so long, what's the first line...?". it made for quite a funny experience.
i'm compering at the jug & jester tonight. here's the myspace bulletin i just sent out about it:
hey everybody,
i'm compering at the jug & jester in leamington tonight. okse is doing a preview of his edinburgh show (find out about his breakdancing crew! and his witty son!), and the marvellous johnny sorrow is supporting so it should be a spectacular night of delights. come share in the mcvities goodness, and i will bend your ear about my new compost heap and why liam neeson is the crappest batman villain ever.
tom xxxx
i've just bent your ear about my compost heap. but if you want to find out about liam neeson in batman (HE'S THE GUY FROM SCHINDLER'S LIST! THAT'S NOT A BATMAN VILLAIN THAT'S THE GUY FROM SCHINDLER'S LIST!) then come along and i'll happily bore you about it!
i've also discovered the compost bin in our garden. it's dead exciting. when i found out what it was over the weekend, there was a massive ants nest in there (which is probably where all the ants have been coming from). i've done some online reading about compost though, and have now started using it (vegetable matter, coffee grounds, tea bags, a bit of cardboard, grass cuttings!). the ants nest looks to have dispersed, i imagine they are all going to work on the compost! after our interspecies war/massacre of earlier this week, i am happy to announce that we are now working in tandem. compost takes 6-9 months to degrade into compost, but i am impatient so i've been checking it every 2 hours. after 3 days of biodegrading action, it has begun to whiff a little (yassssss!).
on tuesday, pete and i went to see final fantasy at taylor johns house in coventry. there were more people i knew there than i had expected (james & lydia turned up, my ex-flatmate anna was there looking like a scenester, alex from pictures paint words was there with friends, and i also saw ellie who i used to sort of know through big james). i had a brilliant awkward conversation with anna, after ninety seconds of which she effectively turned her back on me!
the venue became unbelievably hot, but the band were super. it's just one guy (owen) who sings and plays a violin (with the assistance of a relay pedal). so he'll play little bits, record them on his pedal and have them loop over, then play more live and sing - and all the while there was a girl on stage with him who was using a projector to show images about magic! i really liked how layered it all was; every time he introduced, or re-introduced, a different musical phrase it was brilliant. he also sang some songs on the piano which i didn't like so much. i also quite liked how, when he fucked up a song, he'd stop suddenly and say "shit i screwed up" rather than ploughing on regardless. on the first song, he even kept playing the introduction and then said out loud "i haven't played this in so long, what's the first line...?". it made for quite a funny experience.
i'm compering at the jug & jester tonight. here's the myspace bulletin i just sent out about it:
hey everybody,
i'm compering at the jug & jester in leamington tonight. okse is doing a preview of his edinburgh show (find out about his breakdancing crew! and his witty son!), and the marvellous johnny sorrow is supporting so it should be a spectacular night of delights. come share in the mcvities goodness, and i will bend your ear about my new compost heap and why liam neeson is the crappest batman villain ever.
tom xxxx
i've just bent your ear about my compost heap. but if you want to find out about liam neeson in batman (HE'S THE GUY FROM SCHINDLER'S LIST! THAT'S NOT A BATMAN VILLAIN THAT'S THE GUY FROM SCHINDLER'S LIST!) then come along and i'll happily bore you about it!