Manly man
Time has got away from me and I find I haven't updated for too long... yet again. Here are the highlights from the last few weeks.
On Saturday 25th July I went to see Gary Numan at the Shepherds Bush Empire. He was fantastic! I have to admit to not keeping up with his releases - so there were a few songs I'd never heard before - but they were all good and well performed. This meant hitting iTunes when I got in and downloaded the last two albums. Highlight of the gig was the crowd singing the synth melody from the chorus of "Are Friends Electric?"
Strange(st) moment in the gig: Everyone (and I mean everyone) was dressed head to toe in black, and most had quite pale complexions. The lights went down and there was a sea of floating heads. The blackness beneath them was total - and it stared back into me. This amused me greatly.
Dora and I met up for a game of pool... but were thwarted by the Elbow Room being closed for renovations. We settled for a couple drinks and a chat where she told me about going to Bestival this year. Highlights of which include a headline for Elbow and Kraftwerk. I said I would look into getting tickets. Several nights later I find seatwave.com - a fan to fan ticket website. I spot a ticket for the weekend for £200 which is just £60 over face value. I do some "android maths" in my head. I'd pay at least £40 to see Kraftwerk and Elbow. I'd pay to see Lilly Allen, La Roux, MGMT, Fleet Foxes, Doves and Dan le Sac Vs Scroobius Pip (say £20 each). Which comes out at £200 already. I'd also like to see Florence and the Machine and Little Boots although I'm not sure I'd actually pay for the privilege...
Full line up can be found here.
Unfortunately £200 doesn't quite cover it. I don't have a tent, and my sleeping bag isn't really designed for outdoor use. I pay a visit to Blacks where I get myself a tent, a sleeping bag, and a sleeping mat. I paid a visit to a bricks and mortar store because I wanted to see how heavy this stuff was going to be before I bought it. I'm glad I did as a couple of the items I had picked out on the web site were either bulky or heavy or indeed both!
The following weekend I practiced putting my new tent up and taking it down in my parents garden (mine is covered in concrete!) I just wanted to make sure I didn't make a complete arse of myself in front of a field full of strangers. I can put it up in under 30 minutes... and take it down in about 15. I will practice some more (not because I want to get faster, just so I don't make the same mistakes I made the first time I tried to put it up!) There may well be photos. I bet you can't wait.
Edit 2: Dora and I did manage to get to Elbow Rooms last Tuesday. It was quite insanely busy for a Tuesday night and very hot and sticky. We made good use of the waiting time and ordered some food. Our table became available and we had almost finished our food. We managed to keep the table for a couple hours where there was some spectacular pool moments. (I'll leave it up to you, dear reader, to wonder if they were spectacularly good or not!) Even the rude horde of people on the next table blocking the fan and generally getting in the way could not dent the awesomeness of a good night at the pool hall.
The Great British Bear Festival was last week. A few of us went from work on Thursday. We introduced Thane to real British beer - he introduced us to biltong. I think that's a fair cultural exchange!
When I got home I gave Misty a call. We chatted until I started drifting off to sleep.
Friday I managed to get out of bed before mid-day! Dad arrived about 10:30 ish and we did some gardening while we waited for a van load of wood to arrive.
I am... that is Dad and I am making some cabinets, shelves, cupboards and a computer desk. Dad is also making a new back gate as the current one has rotted itself to pieces. The wood was due to arrive "after lunch" ... but ended up arriving "into the evening." I understand that any time after 12:00 could be considered "after lunch"... but it is a little misleading to say that when you mean any time in the second half of the day.
We stashed the wood in my garage. Somehow having £400 worth of wood in my garage made me feel more manly than when it wasn't there. This was nothing to the feeling on Sunday when I got to use my router for the first time. I was covered in sawdust but it felt great. I have started looking around the house for other things that "need" a nice bevelled edge. I am sure I will get bored of it... eventually!
Over my long weekend Dad and I managed to cut all the pieces for the TV cabinet, and we cut and installed my new computer desk. It still needs to be stained, but I am quite pleased with how it turned out. There are pictures which will be appearing in webspace near here soon™
edit: First pics are here.
Late Sunday afternoon after another fabulous dinner Mum, Dad and I watched another couple DVD's of The West Wing. If it is only half accurate I still wonder how the hell anyone gets anything done in politics.
On Saturday 25th July I went to see Gary Numan at the Shepherds Bush Empire. He was fantastic! I have to admit to not keeping up with his releases - so there were a few songs I'd never heard before - but they were all good and well performed. This meant hitting iTunes when I got in and downloaded the last two albums. Highlight of the gig was the crowd singing the synth melody from the chorus of "Are Friends Electric?"
Strange(st) moment in the gig: Everyone (and I mean everyone) was dressed head to toe in black, and most had quite pale complexions. The lights went down and there was a sea of floating heads. The blackness beneath them was total - and it stared back into me. This amused me greatly.
Dora and I met up for a game of pool... but were thwarted by the Elbow Room being closed for renovations. We settled for a couple drinks and a chat where she told me about going to Bestival this year. Highlights of which include a headline for Elbow and Kraftwerk. I said I would look into getting tickets. Several nights later I find seatwave.com - a fan to fan ticket website. I spot a ticket for the weekend for £200 which is just £60 over face value. I do some "android maths" in my head. I'd pay at least £40 to see Kraftwerk and Elbow. I'd pay to see Lilly Allen, La Roux, MGMT, Fleet Foxes, Doves and Dan le Sac Vs Scroobius Pip (say £20 each). Which comes out at £200 already. I'd also like to see Florence and the Machine and Little Boots although I'm not sure I'd actually pay for the privilege...
Full line up can be found here.
Unfortunately £200 doesn't quite cover it. I don't have a tent, and my sleeping bag isn't really designed for outdoor use. I pay a visit to Blacks where I get myself a tent, a sleeping bag, and a sleeping mat. I paid a visit to a bricks and mortar store because I wanted to see how heavy this stuff was going to be before I bought it. I'm glad I did as a couple of the items I had picked out on the web site were either bulky or heavy or indeed both!
The following weekend I practiced putting my new tent up and taking it down in my parents garden (mine is covered in concrete!) I just wanted to make sure I didn't make a complete arse of myself in front of a field full of strangers. I can put it up in under 30 minutes... and take it down in about 15. I will practice some more (not because I want to get faster, just so I don't make the same mistakes I made the first time I tried to put it up!) There may well be photos. I bet you can't wait.
Edit 2: Dora and I did manage to get to Elbow Rooms last Tuesday. It was quite insanely busy for a Tuesday night and very hot and sticky. We made good use of the waiting time and ordered some food. Our table became available and we had almost finished our food. We managed to keep the table for a couple hours where there was some spectacular pool moments. (I'll leave it up to you, dear reader, to wonder if they were spectacularly good or not!) Even the rude horde of people on the next table blocking the fan and generally getting in the way could not dent the awesomeness of a good night at the pool hall.
The Great British Bear Festival was last week. A few of us went from work on Thursday. We introduced Thane to real British beer - he introduced us to biltong. I think that's a fair cultural exchange!
When I got home I gave Misty a call. We chatted until I started drifting off to sleep.
Friday I managed to get out of bed before mid-day! Dad arrived about 10:30 ish and we did some gardening while we waited for a van load of wood to arrive.
I am... that is Dad and I am making some cabinets, shelves, cupboards and a computer desk. Dad is also making a new back gate as the current one has rotted itself to pieces. The wood was due to arrive "after lunch" ... but ended up arriving "into the evening." I understand that any time after 12:00 could be considered "after lunch"... but it is a little misleading to say that when you mean any time in the second half of the day.
We stashed the wood in my garage. Somehow having £400 worth of wood in my garage made me feel more manly than when it wasn't there. This was nothing to the feeling on Sunday when I got to use my router for the first time. I was covered in sawdust but it felt great. I have started looking around the house for other things that "need" a nice bevelled edge. I am sure I will get bored of it... eventually!
Over my long weekend Dad and I managed to cut all the pieces for the TV cabinet, and we cut and installed my new computer desk. It still needs to be stained, but I am quite pleased with how it turned out. There are pictures which will be appearing in webspace near here soon™
edit: First pics are here.
Late Sunday afternoon after another fabulous dinner Mum, Dad and I watched another couple DVD's of The West Wing. If it is only half accurate I still wonder how the hell anyone gets anything done in politics.