Time Changing

It was great waking up this morning in a slight stupor to find out that no matter how late I was getting up....it was really earlier in the day cause the clock went back! Though its far better if this happens on a workday morning as you realise that you have another hour in bed or you get up at the time on your watch only to know you have an hour to watch cartoons and get a proper breakfast!

And so this morning I have made a pot of coffee and read loads and fixed somethings that needed fixed......and now I am going to finish the short story I started yesterday....a huge step for someone who doesn't write short stories!

Knitting Blogs

Sorry to rant again about other blogs, but I don't really get the point of knitting blogs. I know only a few people who knit and they are all in their seventies and i'm not sure the know what the internet is, never mind creating a blog and swapping patterns. Maybe thats what its for, maybe the worlds patterns have multiplied due tosharing on these on-line blogs. What is the world coming to?

Holloween

A bit of Brautigan themed poetry and prose for Holloween. He is a wonderful painter of words, an imagination that rivals many!

Changed my look

when I started with blogger about a month or so ago I just picked the first template that appealed to me at the time, I was in such a hurry to get commenting on things! So now that I have had a bit of time I decided to make that jump and pick a new templete. Of course it means that I have to add my external links again....but that will hardly take any time....though couldn't be bothered yet!

Learned today: Never eat too much chicken burger when you have a hungover stomach!

Trash Can Sinatras

Was listening to the radio earlier today and heard an acoustic session from a band I hadn't heard of and I liked it. I was going to as usual just sit and think wouldn't it be great to hear more, when a lightbulb flashed in my head and said 'do a google search you muppet'....and so I did and the link is above if you want to hear them too!

Printer

I was thinking of buying a printer for my laptop and went around and priced them yesterday in a few places. So today on the way to work I mentioned this to my mate Mel, who stopped me half way and said why don't you just buy my printer. I asked him, whats wrong with it? (as you do) and he explained that there was nothing wrong with it, only that it is not compatible with his new operating system for the Mac (so silly).....so he said with a flourish....that'll be a tenner! So, for an ink jet printer i think thats pretty good value!

Absolutely Amazing

Haiku News

This weblink displays the days main headlines as a Haiku.....its great!

Getting my Hair Cut

I just got my hair cut today in a barbers here in Belfast and it looks great, but I know that I probably won't bother keeping it like this. Instead it will grow unruly and long and I will quickly forget about my good intentions of getting it cut again soon as I always do.....

Thing is I don't really like the process of getting my Hair cut....sort of like the dentists.....I never know what to say to the man/woman cutting my hair and am jealous of people who can just sit down and start a conversation with them. Don't get me wrong its not that I don't like talking, I have no problem striking up an animated conversationabout everyday things with taxi-drivers, people on bus-stops, bar-men, women in fact most situations except in a Hairdressers. I just dry up, grimace and look pensive while they 'get it over with'.

John Peel RIP

The Godfather of BBC Radio passed away today with a heart attack. His favourite tune 'Teenage Kicks' by the undertones has been played all day on the airwaves and just shows his incredible influence.

I remember my A-Level exam years listening late into the night to John Peels' gravelled voice introducing each band in turn...he was fantastic and made me feel at ease in such a stressful time. Sad to see him go!

Glastonbury have renamed the tent for new bands after him, a fitting tribute to a true legend.

Black Books

Just bought the Black Books DVD Series one and can't wait to sit down and watch it! Its all about a bookshop in England where lots of crazy goings on happen.....

Ohh and I booked my practical driving test today....they will call me with a date soon (its that busy).....so better get prepared so that soon I'll be driving like a man who can drive....woo hoo!

Another win!

Didn't I just go and pick another 6 teams that won me money.....lallalalalaallalala....Picking up the money tonight......hopefully will walk away with a few hundred again?.....What a lucky streak for us.....surely its going to change soon!

International Rules

Ireland hammered the Auzzies in the international rules series.......International Rules is probably one of the most violent field sports out there, a cross between Galeic Football and Aussie Rules Football! Its mad seeing these tiny Irish footballers up against 7 ft Aussie Giants who spend every day lifting kangaroos over their heads! But the Aussies can't kick for shite and are a bit slow so the Irish team just kicked points with ease and ran away from their hairey arms!

Hurrah!

Goonies

Bloody Brilliant film.....Got to check it out!

Keys

Bloody left my keys in the house today.....was having a few bevvies in my mates house and needed some crushed ice so went home and got my hammer and crushed the ice.......then continued drinking and went out and came back to my mates.....about 2am i took a notion to go home and sleep in my nice warm bed and so i left and stood in front of my door.....now wheres my keys? mmmmmm bastard

So I slept on the couch and had to hang around all day till I went home to my Mum and Dads.....got a change of clothes and then the next day back up to Belfast and to the landlord for the spare key!.....my house was so nice when i got back!

Moral: don't be stupid, leave spare key in mates house and another in work just in case!

Twenty Major

Yesterday i did a quick search through blogger.com to find some Irish posters, as although the standard of bloggers out there is good....there is nothing like reading someone from your own country rant and rave about things in general. And I stumbled upon a bloody hilarious Blog called Twenty Major, with its daily rants about all things in Dublin and Ireland. Now I don't live in Dublin but I have been there enough times and know enough about it to laugh my cacks off at this! Today he is going mad about the kids in the playground and about how they never go out any more and stay in playing computer games.

Movieoke

There is a new craze sweeping Belfast! It is a little like Karaoke only it doesn't just involve singing, instead you are required to act out a whole scene from a movie of your choice! Its pretty funny and is perfect for people who are more than fully aware that they cannot sing......Its a regular night in the Empire on a Monday and I can see its only a matter of time before it catches on elsewhere!

Ohh and I bought a wetsuit in a charity auction for 100 buckeroos......so theres no excuse now when I go surfing next time!.....I have to stand on the damn board I really must!

Theory Test

Ok...so I went out last night to the empire comedy night and ok.....I drank quite a bit more than i previously planned and ok......I had to get up early this morning to take the theory driving test and ok......I had to cram a few more facts into my cranium before it started and ok.....and ok....I did overclick on one of the observation sections (its like a video clip that tests our reactions....and I clicked a bit too much at one point).....so I was sure that I was in for some bad news when I was handed my scores......

But.....I BLOODY PASSED THE THING

I got 30 out of 35 in the Multiple choice part......pass mark 30....so skin of my teeth
I got 60 out of 70 in the Observation part pass mark 44.....so bloody trounced that one despite overclicking on one.....

So....roll up driving.....this has been one lucky week! Hopefully I can win a few more pound gambling this weekend!

Shepards Pie

I have moved on from mashed potatoes, in fact I have leaped so far I fear for my ability to find my way back to where I started.........I have made Shepards pie......now it did turn out a little better than my first attempt at Lasgane (i.e. didn't look like itself).....but I will perservere and I will be a competent cook in the end! Next task is an omelete......surely then I will be making the cheapest but tastiest dinners and breakfast around........step back world!

Blog Surfing!

I Have been using Blog Explosion a few times now, searching through a vast array of Blogs to:

a) find something interesting to read that is on my wavelength (not always so easy)
b) to stimulate more visits to my site.

I spent a few hours at a time trawling through words but have been seriously dissapointed to only find 3 blogs out of at least 200 that intrested me enough to bookmark them and wish to go back. Now i understand that not everyone wants to read a fist full of unpunctuated ramblings from me on a day to day.....so I am going to start adding pictures for a bit of variety.....and also.....people might not get all my references.....so will add a few links.. But the ammount of blogs aimed specifically at the american political debate is crazy (maybe because it is central to peoples thoughts.....and it is a wonderfully free medium to exchange views.....) and can be tiring after visiting about 100 of them and blogs about newborn babies gets a bit tiring......and the ammount of blogs created by women.... All I wanted after surfing for far too long was a blog written by anything but a woman (Aliens would be welcome), which discussed everyday things and made me chortle at least once...ohh and was from the UK.......Anybody got any suggestions!

Signapore Noodles

I have never eaten in a Thai restraunt, or eaten Thai food before so I was quite unsure of what to expect when I went to Lemongrass for a meal with some people I hardly knew. I looked at the menu and did not recognise any of the dishes that were available until I spied the Signapore Noodles. I had read a book (Mc Carthy's Bar) by an author called Pete Mc Carthy in which he travels around Ireland with the task of not going past a bar bearing his surname......a lot tougher than you think when you realise that Mc Carthy is one of Irelands most popular surnames. Anyway, his diet during his trip tended to consist of Ham and Cheese toasties (or Ham and cheese specials.....as they are often refferred to in many a pub in Ireland).....and Signapore Noodles (which are significantly difficult for him to find).......

He has recently passed away to the other place where along with Christopher Reeve he is discussing the merits of a Ham and Cheese special and a pint of guinness. So in homage to him i had Signaore Noodles and I have to say i was more than pleasantly surprised. I am not normally a regular noodle consumer as I often find them bland......but this was wonderful and it contained suffiencient pork and prawn for two servings....so I was a happy eater!........So thanks to Pete Mc Carthy RIP I have a new dish of choice.......try it and see!

Winner!

Got back from surfing with the vague recollection of my mate Mark mentioning that he wanted us to start a syndicate for betting on the football scores.....I checked my mobile and he had gone ahead and chosen a bet that 6 teams would win on Saturday (today) at 40/1 and I had agreed to put a fiver to his tenner......

The Teams were:

1. Arsenal (certain winners.....haven't lost a game in 50 odd games)
2. Everton (winning a lot one-nils recently and are in good form....so slightly expected)
3. Bolton (Win more than they lose now....so 50/50)
4. Leeds (Have mixed fortunes in the lower league but can win on their day)
5. Stockport (Bottom of the 3rd Division and been on a losing streak.....i.e. no chance)
6. Boston (Haven't heard of them....thought that was in America)
   

So obviously expected to be pissing our money away.....so got in the car and stuck on the radio to hear the newscaster announce that Arsenal, Everton and Bolton were winning......but no more information about the lower teams cause normally no-one cares! Got home and ran to the internet.......checked the results.....Arsenal 3-1 against Villa, Everton won as well....Bolton won even though tight last few mins........mmmm this is tasty.....Leeds won by a lucky goal......Wheres stockport.....mmm...ohh there ohhh bottom of league ehhh......they won....holy smokes.....now....what league is boston in......quick google search........2 nil..........happy days......horrah they won......£400 between us.......£200 each.......lalalallalalaalal

I have won 2 quid on a scratch card once.......and a cuddy toy in a fair ground.......and now I'm running around £200 richer......holy smokes......I have a feeling this gambling lark might have to continue......I have to choose the teams this week.....so the pressures on!

Back to Surfing!

Finally got up off my lazy but and headed up the Coast with Suzie and Michelle to got surfing.....went and hired a wetsuit so for the first time I didn't feel like a huge waterbottle.....as I used to wear a wetsuit that was far too big and when the water entered it I ended up flopping along with no control! So obviously i thought with everything fitting i would stand on the board for the first time....mmm no luck! The waves were mushy (like peas) and I think I caught 5 waves in the space of about an hour and a half...I caught one of those waves in the first 5 mins and nearly got up on the board only to slip at the wrong time......The rest of the time was spent attempting to surf little trickle waves that beforehand looked massive (caused by a mixture of having no glasses and mother nature playing games with me) and avoiding drowning as two or three waves came at the same time! but it was refreshing and at least it created another habit to continue.....

Now all I need to do is start running again and doing weights again.....just gave both up when I moved a few months ago as well as trading my gum membership in for sky television and so now I am the most unfit man imaginable.....like a blob with arms and legs!

Corriander Pesto

The other week I did a quick shopping trip to Tesco with my mate cause he had the car and I stocked up a royal ammount of food.....the usual meat and veg and then i remembered.....feck what about the pesto.. So I ran with my arms flapping (like a swan) trying to find my pesto but all I could find was pesto with olives and pesto with corriander......I went for corriander cause it looked a bit like the other one! I was sure I was in for a taste explosion of exotic proportions.....

So it sat in my fridge for a week.....which meant I forgot i bought the wrong kind of pesto....so when i couldn't find anything in the fridge worth debating....so i grabbed the pesto jar (wish i could make my own) and the pasta and impatiently put it altogether.....

I looked at it.....it smelled funny.....then i tasted it with gusto.....and nearly fell over with a rush of sickness.......which i held back......i shouted at the jar and at the bowl of pasta and then threw them both into the bin.......the B**tards at tesco have made a terrible conncotion that i wouldn't even wish on an enemy!......

So be wary, don't go for the exoticly labelled jar in the supermarket unless you are prepared to be severly dissapointed!

Blog Explosion

Just found this site and registered with them.....you get visitors for visiting other sites? Its cool!....you should check it out! you just spend a while looking at other blogs and then you get guaranteed visitors and i have already got someone who has liked me so much they have blog marked me (i.e. kept me listed)......

Also listed with this ls blog site.....god.....i will now see the visitors multiply!

Burned Down

If you are like me, there are some mornings you wake up and hope that your work has been burnt down, especially on those days that it is raining really heavily.......well, this morning my friend Brenda found out that the offices of her work were caught up in a fire. One of the worst fires in Belfast for a few years (remember its a ceasfire now and Belfast is very small)....It destroyed a Waterstones bookshop and a jewellers and a whole pile of offices. She works in a solicitors so theres loads of paper documents gone.....its hard to see how they will ever get them back!

Think I'm not going to wish for work to be burned down any more....don't want to tempt fate!

SPACED

I went out on a limb and bought a box set without ever having seen the television show that is featured in it, so i have two series (plural...how?) bought with my own hard earned money that I could potentially not like. I was going on the word of my friend, flatmate and all round comedy buddy Colin (not double-chinned) Dardis, who said 'it's great'......and so I was confident!

Now, I also had in my hand the first season (american word for series) of 24 and i got the 'doubts' (pacing back and forth, scratching my head and looking at prices). i hadn't seen 24 and I hadn't got a personal testimonial from my comedy buddy who instead said 'my sister has it'...so i had to put it back with the intention of lending it from his sister and watching a few before going out on another limb.

Anyhow, bought Spaced, took it home and laughed so much i fell asleep and missed the phone calls from Colin telling me he was in the Empire Pub at something known as 'movieokie' (not spelled right....but basically a mix between movies and karaoke without the music and the japanese)....instead i dribbled and made my way to my real bed!......Seriously Spaced is funny so if you get a chance to buy it....then buy it cause its worth it! Still haven't seen 24 so I don't know (anyone else seen it?) ohhh and I have the definative Collectors Edition! (means it has a cover like a spoof star wars film)

Have a nice Cup of Tea and a sit down

Was just surfing the internet today when I came accross the following site after linking from the Guardian Linkblog (its cool, it gives you links to unusual sites and those of news interest)....Its a website devoted to liking tea....which I know I do! Check out: Have a nice cup of tea and a sit down Its a website even my granny would love with reviews about biscuits you can buy in the local supermarkets and the great debate about wether jaffa cakes are biscuits... I mean how can one live without this question being answered?

After I sent this link out to my many friends, I got a response with the following link (now this is too horrendous to see on a full stomach) mmmm.......danger, high voltage!

Superman has gone!

Poor old Christopher Reeve joined the almighty after nine years of struggle after falling off a horse and being paralysed in 1995. He will always be remembered as the guy who made lots of kids run around the playground with their hoods up and their coats flapping behind them!.....Such a shame!

Football

Great to see Ireland put together a strong performance against France.....was hoping that Andy Reid would nick it and it was a shame that Morrison got taken off cause he was pretty strong!

Was dissapointed to see England do so well against Wales....was hoping to see an upset there!

Portrait of an artist as a young man

I bought this book in a second hand bookshop today for £3:50......I thought it would be hard reading but it has turned out to be not so hard to get into......its about boarding school experiences so far and I find it easy to relate due to my own time in such an institution....even though it is at a different time!

Felt quite intellectual reading such a book and enjoying it!

Menagerie

There's a Great wee bar in Belfast called the Menagerie, its one of these pubs that you can just relax in. Me and my friend suzie went for a drink in it as she had never been, I had but it had been a while and we were the only people there for a while watching a tiny jack russell run around chasing a ball......it was cool.......you don't see that type of thing in belfast too often!

Also went up to Jordanstown (my old university campus) today to see what changes had been made since I had left! Quite a lot of small aesthetic changes.....but i realised that the main things were still the same.....felt a bit strange walking down to my old department of Communication science! I think if I went back I would feel like I hadn't progressed!......it sort of put any ideas of going back to university out of my head!

Broadband

I am a customer with NTL broadband and haven't been able to use my internet connection for the past few weeks..... its a disgrace that everytime I ring to explain these faults that i get put on hold for ages and then i have been told that they don't deal with it only to be put through to more holding time (feckin adverts and some tuneless music). ....it very annoying! Hopefully I can fix it soon otherwise I'm going to just cancel the service and not bother with internet connection at home....instead just use it here in work! I bloody hate these touch tone systems....just talking to someone will take a hell of a lot less time!

$olpugid $pring$

Just found a really mad writer amongst these blogs and he writes with a style that I have attempted a few times but he has just carried it on! It manic and crazy but absolutely entertaining...check him Smoking Joe out on the $olpugid $pring$

Fargo!

Watched that old Coen Brothers Classic Fargo last night and loved every minute of it! Frances Mc Dormand was amazing as the female cop....think she won an oscar for it! Alongside William H Macy and Steve Buscemi (who I think is a great actor)....it just oozed class!
I really enjoy Coen brother films, they always have a lot of quirkiness about them....like O'Brother where art thou (fantastic theme music), the Man who wasn't there (So many strong silent scenes) and the Big Lebowski (the Dude is a wonderful character)

It's getting

Bloody colder! I had to put on the heating for only the third time since I moved in last night....and the chill is getting a bit out of hand......actually felt a bit cold this morning when I got out of bed....and boy did I wish I could go back to the scratcher! Nothing worse than putting your foot out of bed and feeling cold.....Its been raining quite a lot as well!

The Caffine is too strong!

I drank way too mug Tea this morning, to the extent that when I was chatting on the phone to some clients I kept forgetting what I was saying cause my voice was going all nervous and was taking over my brain. And to think I stopped drinking coffee in work and switched to Tea because it was supposed to make a difference! .......We have to be careful of the caffine.....it can over power us and make us do stupid things!

Breaking News: Bryan and Kerry Mc Fadden to split

Top headline in the papers today as I browse my Sunday purchases!......I mean....who cares?

Ulster Museum

In all my years living in Belfast I had never made my merry way along to the Ulster Museum, but because of a few friends being up from Dublin I decided it was about time. Now, I have visited museums in many other cities on my holidays and have always found it to be a great experience while recovering from the drink or just waiting till the next one.....but I didn't realise I could have the same feelings in my own city! And....its free! They currently have an exhibition of Conflict in Northern Ireland which displays a wide range of artefacts from the early centuries......fascinating!...They even have these phone things that you can listen to.....like massive mobile phones!

There is an art exhibition at it currently and I am resolved to go and visit it sometime this week just to get some perspective on things. Good on you Northern Ireland.....love the way you can be surprised by a place even after living in it for so long!

Jam and Cheese

Had a nice coffee the other day with a friend Michelle. All was going swimmingly, we were talking about life at the moment and those usual chatty things but, then it came to ordering some food...She ordered a Bagel and I (being the innocent minded fool that I am) thought nothing more about it!

Bagels in this particular cafe often come with cream cheese and jam (raspberry) and I always felt these gave you the option of one or the other. Alas, when I looked down at the bagel after a few minutes chatting I noticed that both condiments had been added to the one area, thus creating a mess of jam and cheese. I was sure this was an error until she lifted the bagel and happily (she was smiling) munching at the whole thing! She noticed my shock and was quite taken aback by my horror.......even offering me some 'just to try it'......I did nibble a corner and still felt a twinge of sickness.......

I mean.....Jam and Cheese are from completely different ends of the food spectrum and should never mingle on anyones table.....but who am I to Judge! That is the beauty of freedom.....people could eat mud and you couldn't stop them!

Bananas in the Cupboard

make everything else taste like bananas......all the bread I have in the flat now tastes of bananas, which is a bit annoying when you have made a ham and mustard sandwich hoping to taste the mustard and the ham...only to have bananas! I reckon its a learning experience though, not to put the bananas in with the bread in the future!....well and truely learned...the hard way!

Wheely Bin

Our office has a corrugated roof and it does not have a hung celing, because 'the boss' wanted us as a design company to look industrial! Hence we get all sorts of noises from the roof anytime anything unusual happens...for example, Rain (I live in Ireland remember where rain is a constant) falls on the roof and plays a little tune, and then it falls like a stone and makes thunder....and I can't hear myself never mind the client on the other side of the phone!

The funniest noise we have is when a Plane flys overhead (we are based near an airport...cheap land....getting a recurring theme? ) it sounds like a wheely-bin (a bin on wheels) trundling along the roof...and I can't help but look outside to see if this (imaginary) bin would fall onto the pavement below.....but never does it fall!

It may take a while for someone to realise the benefits of a hung celeing.....but I wouldn't count on it!