Sites I like
I like the "lived in" look
As I wade through mountains of clutter in order to pack up the possessions I might possibly require after we move home, I wonder how on earth I came to own this much stuff. A hoarder by nature, I avoid chucking anything away if it might possibly come in handy at some point in the next 50 years and, boy, does it build up fast. Occasionally a massive clear-out is followed by several visits to charity shops, posts on Freecycle or, if the worst comes to the worst, trips to the dump - but that's only when the patio is filling up with the likes of a old microwave oven, rubbish PC cases and a grotty blue bathroom suite! In the last four years, it appears that I have been acquiring a lot of what essentially boils down to junk. I can tell it's junk because hardly any of it is worth listing on eBay - the postage costs (and time/effort involved in getting to a Post Office in opening hours) would far out-weigh any winning bid.
While the house is currently in the it-looks-worse-before-it-looks-better stage of tidying, I still have to go to work so I'm spending these last couple of days on the internet. Imagine my joy to discover an article in today's Guardian all about not bothering to keep your house as spotless as Anthea Turner's. My favourite part is where Sarah Dempster says, "Frankly, why anyone would choose to remove bits of eggshell from the back of the fridge or, for that matter, the hall carpet, when they could be a) watching Deal Or No Deal, b) reading a cracking book or c) peering at their reflection in a kettle, is beyond me."
I so need to buy a chrome kettle for the new flat.
Posted on August 24, 2006 | Comments (2)
Starting all over again
It's nearly time for me to say goodbye to Manchester. For the last six and a half years, I have lived amongst some of the friendliest people in the country and have experienced the sort of warmth and variety that only a small city can provide - it's great to feel like you truly belong somewhere, whilst also enjoying the benefits of all the entertainment you could wish for, practically on your doorstep. Not everyone can say they went to see the Foo Fighters play to over 40,000 people, and then walked home in 40 minutes.
Next month I'll be job-hunting yet again, but this time in London. It's never taken me longer than 30minutes to get to work, but something tells me that's all about to change. The last time I attempted to ditch my car and take public transport to work on a regular basis I ended up in hospital - hopefully that won't keep happening! Still, there are so many more galleries, arthouse cinemas and places to take photos of, that I have been getting excited about the good bits of moving. Looking at a map of the area I will be living in, it reminds me of a school visit in 1987 when we went to the see the Thames Flood Barrier and rode on the DLR. Surely something that reminds you of being a kid again must be good? Ooh, this is going to be fun.
Sun is in the sky, oh why oh why would I wanna be anywhere else?
Posted on August 22, 2006 | Comments (5)
Pussycats look to S-Club for inspiration
If you thought that six was too many members for a group whose songs appear to feature only one vocalist, you'll be excited to hear that the Pussycat Dolls have announced plans for a television series to find a new addition. At least S-Club 7 had a few talented vocalists who shared the workload on their big hits (come on, you can't say you hate Don't Stop Movin'), but this glorified dance troupe really do seem to have only one singer. If they admitted they are a solo artist with 'backing dancers', I wouldn't be quite so bothered, but they seem to think they're more than that. What exactly will a seventh member do? Perhaps they will try to recruit a second woman who can actually sing.
This is all pretty irritating on its own, but the worst was still to follow. The 'President of Entertainment' of the television channel responsible for this waste of airtime said, "At its core, this show goes beyond just finding a new Pussycat Doll - it's about female empowerment, self-discovery and personal transformation". Female empowerment? What exactly is empowering about songs with lyrics like "Don't ya wish your girlfriend was hot like me?", "I'm a do my thing while you're playing with your...", or "I'm telling you loosen up my buttons baby"? Compared to these hits, the Spice Girls' Wannabe sounds like a feminist manifesto! And, let me guess, the self-disocvery involves women realising they too can be hot like the Pussycat Dolls, and the transformation involves exactly the same FHM-stye makeover that the rest of the 'girls' seem to have had. Why do people feel they have to dress up this trash as something worthy, when it's not? I'd have no problems with them if they had become famous for being burlesque dancers, as at least that would be honest. Pretending to be pop stars just means that they have legions of young female fans who now don't mind that boys only like them for their looks, because their idols say that's OK. At least burlesque is targeted at adults. Come on... the Suicide Girls are one hundred times more feminist than this bunch. Now, I'd like to see a TV show about them.
Posted on August 04, 2006 | Comments (3)
Revelations (and black holes)
I'm sat at work, but my mind is elsewhere... soaring above the nasty black rain clouds that are currently covering Manchester after weeks and weeks of baking sunshine. It's amazing how one song, in an entire day's worth of bland radio playlists, can lift your spirits and take you away from everything. A few months ago, it was Sigur Ros' sublime Hoppipolla, which sadly only made it onto daytime Radio One because of its use in the BBC programme Planet Earth. Today, it's Starlight by Muse. Matt Bellamy's vocals combined with a beautiful, and extremely 'hummable', piano part serve to temporarily lift the gloom from my Tuesday. It's not just this one track either because the entire album is beautiful, exciting, magnificent and thrilling. No two tracks sound the same and each one reminds me slightly of something else, but not in a bad way, they just remind me of the way I used to enjoy music when I was younger. I'd buy an album and listen to it over and over again, but not as background music. I'd just sit in my room and listen. This was the first album I'd bought in ages that made me want to sit down and just listen, memorising all the track names and entering another world. I haven't adored an album this much since Depech Mode released Songs of Faith and Devotion, and I haven't looked forward to seeing a band in concert this much since I got tickets for DM at Crystal Palace in 1993. When I see Muse at the MEN Arena in November, it's going to be like I'm 18 all over again.
Posted on August 01, 2006 | Comments (7)