Ad Libbed

U don't wanna touch this

2012-02-01T08:12:00.001Z

Happy Birthday wherever you are Rick James
1st February 1948 - 6th August 2004

Rick James was probably more famous for his wild lifestyle than his music. He was a known cocaine addict and his habit brought lawsuits, charges of abduction and torture and a stint in prison down on his head. His grave stone reads:
I've had it all
I've done it all
I've seen it all
It's all about love...
God is love

This is probably his best known track, not least because that baggy trousered rascal M C Hammer sampled it on the annoyingly catchy 'U Can't Touch This'. Rolling Stone magazine ranked it 477 of the 500 greatest songs of all time. I suppose it could be termed disco funk maybe? And what a video, glittery dreads, bad wigs and a collection of dancing girls who may or may not have been casted straight off the streets. Well, whatever it is I still love this song, even if it does make me feel slightly dirty afterwards...

Super Freak
Reached No 16 in the US Billboard Hot 100 in 1981

Pretty but not Vacant?

2012-01-31T08:14:00.001Z

Happy Birthday John Lydon

31st January 1956

Two of my lovely friends Zoe and Paul share their birthdays with Johnny Rotten himself - so Happy Birthday to you two as well!

I appreciate punk as a musical and cultural event but have to confess my music collection only included Never Mind The Bollocks and The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle, Punk is less something to play quietly in your room and more something you mosh too in a scabby club so I wasn't that heart broken when my CDs got nicked.

We won't talk about those advert for a certain type butter John, even though it is ironic that Public Image Ltd biggest commercial hit was a song inspired by accusations of selling out.... and that was back in 1983....

This Is Not A Love Song
Reached No 5 in the UK Charts in 1983

Cool cat on a hot tube

2012-01-24T08:15:00.000Z

Happy Birthday Jools Holland

24th January 1958

I would quite like to be Jools Holland. He was in Squeeze, he presented the tube and on Later... he has featured and preformed with pretty much anyone worth listening too. From Suggs, Tom Jones and Kylie to Metalica, Trombone Shorty and everywhere in between. The Hootenanny has featured in every New Years Eve worth remembering since 1999, (that was a stellar New Years Eve for several reasons).

I love how droll Holland was on The Tube, I remember taping re runs late on channel 4 religiously while feeling most put out that my teenage years didn't have a Tube for the 90's to educate and illuminate. Holland is also credited with crashing the Tube juggernaught, uttering the infamous phrase 'be there or be ungroovy fuckers' during a live trailer aired pre watershed. The show was taken off air for 3 weeks as a result, Holland had his knuckles wrapped and another series was not commissioned. Proof that the ungroovy fuckers rule the roost even at Chanel 4....OK, OK to be fair the watershed exists for a reason but the odd slip is what you pay for employing genuienly amped up, enthusiastic muso's for rather than plastic puppets a la Top Of The Pops...

Cool For Cats (with added Kenny Everett)
Reached No 2 in the UK Charts in 1979

My favourite Squeeze song is actually 'Hourglass' which I discovered when listening to my brothers double tape edition of Now That's What I Call Music 10 *weeps silently* it was my introduction to Squeeze. I played it a lot. Cool For Cats has a place in my heart for a different reason.

Growing up we used to go visit my only Auntie, Uncle and cousins most weeks. My parents were going through what might politely be called a 'difficult' divorce and these Saturdays with my mum's sister were a welcome escape from a tense and fraught house.

Anyway, my cousins and I used to run a 'radio station'... I believe all tapes have since been destroyed and can not come back to haunt us. (We also had an accompanying newspaper, we obviously understood the concept of media megalomania at ages 11, 10 and 8 x2 respectively) The thing is, along with the Kylie, Big Fun and Sonia records we played, the adults also let us loose on their original Beatles singles, there was Van Morrision in there too and probably lots of other heavy hitters from the 60's and 70's. I feel ever so slightly sick to the stomach now about the total lack of respect we showed these records... They would probably be worth quite a lot now for a start.

So, where was I? Squeeze. OK well, I don't remember any other presents I got for turning 13 but I do know my auntie and uncle gave me a tape called 'best of 1979'. Great, I thought, more old music! But I stuck it in my walkman anyway and I loved it. There wasn't just 'Cool For Cats' but also 'My Sharona' (I was singing that on Lips at the weekend - he IS a perv!) 'Please Don't Go', 'Ring My Bell' and 'We Don't Talk Anymore'. I used to dance round my bedroom making no noise, lip syncing into a hair brush. It took a while but eventually I got it, it was a well thought out present. It is the type of present I can see me giving my girls as they get older. So I chose this one because it is a song that reminds me in particular of someone I loved and who isn't here anymore. I probably never even said thank you properly or told my Auntie how much I loved it but I think she probably did know.

Annnnd a cuddly toy!

2012-01-22T09:19:00.001Z

Happy Birthday Andrew Roachford

22nd January 1965

I could quite easily do a Roachford top 5. They were a band who effortlessly took the soul lyrical sound that seemed quite prevalent in the late 80's but rather than play it R&B pop style (The Pasadenas) or partner it into dance tracks (Soul II Soul) they mixed it with rockier guitars. Permanent Shade of Blue (1994) is one of my favourite albums. 'This Generation;, 'Lay Your Love On Me' and 'Only To Be With You' are all timeless, clean and lacking that very 90's sheen of over production.

But I choose this song because it was their début and my Roachford introduction. Back in the days when we made mix tapes not playlists this one was always heavily featured. My brother had the 12 inch single, the guitar riff opening was longer so I always played the intro at 45rpm so it it was slowed right down, trial and error followed until I found exactly the right place to flick it up to 33rpm - it was the nearest I could get to sound effects and editing at home on my chipboard hi fi.... It was so satisfying too. This was around the same time I wanted to be a DJ.

Anyway, love this song, it is impossible not to sing along and the guitar riff detracts somewhat from the less rock theme of (nah I don't cheat, I have a teddy in my bed and that is all). I think Roachford played Sheffield in either 1994 or 1995 but I was either 15 on 16 and the venue was 18 and over so I missed out.... What? I was well behaved, well and terrified of going to a concert on my own.. Maybe that is why my first ever gig was Joe Cocker....

Cuddly Toy

(Eventually) Reached No 4 in the UK Charts 1988-9

At Last

2012-01-20T17:00:00.000Z

Etta James has passed away today. I was hoping to post this in celebration of her birthday on the 25th but instead I will post it in celebration of her life.

25th January 1938 - 20th January 2012

Never to be Partoned

2012-01-19T10:44:00.000Z

Happy Birthday Dolly Parton

19th January 1946

Dolly Parton had, by all accounts, a rough childhood and a hard life and yet she remains perky and pristine. Every interview I have ever read with her paints the picture of a pocket dynamo, tiny and driven, super successful and shrewd but not shrill. I am not a fan of country music as a genere just specific tracks, this song choice is one of them.

I fell in love with it the very first time I heard it. It is so plaintive and sad. Dolly looks like the woman who might entice your man away not the beaten down, desperate woman left behind. When it came on I was crouched in bed listening to my radio, I didn't have headphones and it didn't have an extension cord. I am not entirely sure if my Dad knew I still had a radio but I didn't want to risk him finding out so I used to lay with my ear pressed to the speaker and the volume as low as it would go while I could still hear. I was all of about 12 I imagine and I still 'got' the central themes of betrayal and abandonment. It hardly got heavy rotation, even on Classic Gold FM, but I remembered it from just one play.

All the songs I like be it then and now suggest mini movies, storyboards, images or videos to me. I had less to draw on then but it still painted a vivid image of a dowdy and tired woman pulling back her curtain, staring out at a dark driveway in a Southern American small town waiting for her man to come home. It was interspersed with images of said husband in a spit and sawdust bar enjoy the attentions of a buxum and brassy blonde (not so far removed from Ms Parton perhaps) who stops briefly before the end of the song perhaps hit by a brief feeling of unease..... Well, it was just an idea anyway... I have seen True Blood since then, I could add a LOT more detail...

Jolene
Reached

The Nicest Man in Rock...

2012-01-14T10:17:00.001Z

Happy Birthday Dave Grohl

14th January 1969

Times Like These
Foo Fighters
Reached No 12 in the UK SIngles Chart in 2003

It's times like these you learn to live again
It's times like these you give and give again
It's times like these you learn to love again
It's times like these, time and time again

Chris chose the birthday track for Mr Grohl. I'd have gone for Heart Shaped Box (which reminds me, I must track that album down - or at least that track). Anyway he likes the song because it is great but also because the lyrics seem pertinent to him right now.

I'd stick around but I am still recovering from Rosies birthday party, am in the midst of a sea of presents she has already opened and trying to write thank you notes. I am sure the nicest man in rock writes his own thank you notes too, so he'd understand.....

He's a rude birthday boy...

2012-01-13T08:23:00.000Z

Happy Birthday Suggs

Born 1961

Ah, Suggs.. where do I start? Well, maybe with 'don't write me off as an internet stalker'?
ANYWAY, I have been slightly in love with him for 17 years and yet it shamefully took me 15 of those to finally see him and the rest of Madness live. I read and loved his book about London and now he is doing a one man tour (and it isn't coming to Sheffield. I totally understand this is merely an oversight on his part and I am sure he will remedy this before my birthday in August.....) In fact as long as autobiography comes out one of these days I'll be happy!

I didn't even know where to start trying to pick one track to celebrate his 51st birthday. Do I go for a Madness track? There are a LOT of tracks to choose from. There is slightly less solo stuff but having spent a week trying to narrow it all down to 5 it merely confirmed isn't a Suggs or Madness track I don't like. So I have decided instead to go for a track that didn't get enough airplay at release and I have never heard since...

I Am
Reached No 38 in the UK Charts in 1998

Cause What You See is what you get
Yeah my friend, we haven't started yet
One small step for a man
One giant leap for mankind

The Avengers.... Now there was an odd film. I spent 2 and a bit hours in the Odeon being perplexed and waiting for the end credits. This song made the whole evening worth while. I still love it now and am more perplexed as to why it didn't chart higher than what the film was about, (even Ralph Finnes admits he wasn't entirely sure).

Madness was the first band that gave me an 'identity'. Suggs was on Something For The Weekend on Sunday and Tim Lovejoy commented that teenagers used to 'pick their look' from Top Of The Pops, Lovejoy saw Madness and went 'rude boy'. I heard Our House on my 'free with Q CD', investigated via VH1, started buying the entire back catalogue having decided I wanted to be Suggs. I went for a number 2 all over, doc martins, a bomber jacket and then got mistaken for a member of the BNP so dialled it back just a notch.

I revised my GCSE Science on an exercise bike with their albums blasting in my ears (which may partly explain the grade I got... well that and the fact my father removed me from school for a lot of my secondary level education). I had a blow up saxophone pinned over my bed and a billboard sized MadStock poster. I didn't eat much as most of the wages from my 2 jobs went on CDs, 7" singles and videos.

The internet hadn't been invented so I thought I was the only person who still loved this band. I couldn't find merchandise anywhere and got ripped off more than once replying to ads in the back on NME that promised me t-shirts, fanzines, badges and Suggs home address. If I'd got his address lord only knows what drivel I would have written. When Pete and Caelia got me tickets to see them in Nottingham they also tried to get me a back stage interview pass for Penny Black. I am almost grateful they couldn't as I think I would have embarrassed myself totally.

HMV did manage to order me my Madness beanie hat. It cost me £12 and I have loved it for 17 years. My mother says it makes me look like a potato picker (which is nothing compared to her reaction when I had my hair shaved off and started wearing big boots). It is the oldest item of body covering I own. OK I have dribbled on for a while now but I struggle being concise and clever when it comes to me and Madness!

Happy Birthday Suggs :)
x

A Very Special Request

2012-01-10T18:02:00.000Z

On the 26th February 2011 my lovely friends lost their beautiful daughter Molly at just 13 months old to Krabbes Leukodystrophy.

Molly was diagnosed at just 4 months old. No one would have blamed Rob and Emma if they had collapsed from the shock and pain of such awful news. I think the rest of us did. But they didn't. Instead they set out to fill Molly's life with as much love and happiness as they could. Molly had her first donkey ride, had a fabulous Halloween, Christmas and a first birthday party all the more special because getting this far was a testament to Molly's stubbornness.

Krabbes disease is a degenerative disorder which effects the myelin sheath of the nervous system. Molly was in pain, she couldn't feed and had a tube fitted after her diagnosis and had a multitude of other physical and mental complications to contend with. Rob and Emma had to learn an extensive medication routine over night and their life became almost soley about keeping Molly safe and comfortable.

But their house was not a sad one, it was full of love and laughter as well as tears. Molly was a beautiful girl with a cloud of soft brown curls. She loved toys, especially those that flashed and changed colour. She was a Minnie Mouse kind of girl and her favourite programme was Timmy Time.

Rob and Emma knew that there short time with Molly was coming to an end. Having been supported by Bluebell Wood Childrens Hospice in their own home already they moved in full time in late January 2011. When I visited I immediately felt like I was being hugged. The staff were looking after Rob and Emma as well as Molly. It wasn't a sad place to come even though we all knew what was going to happen. Molly loved the sensory room and the jacuzzi.

Rob describes one of the most important things Bluebell Wood did for Emma and him:

"Molly passed away at Bluebell wood on 26th February 2011. As a family we stayed with Molly until the day of her funeral at the hospice in a specialist bereavment suite. I cannot begin to explain how valuable this facility was for me and my partner and family to be able to say goodbye to our little Molly monkey."

Bluebell wood continues to offer us support and will always be close to our hearts.

As I have already blogged Rob is chucking himself out of a plane on the 1st July 2012 to raise funds for Bluebell Wood. If you haven't already sponsored him then you can do so here.

I know these are tough economic times but I am also going to ask you to sponsor Rob, Emma, me and lots of other people doing something else too.

To mark the anniversary of Molly's passing we are doing a sponsored walk along one of Mollys favourite walks. We are going to release red balloons for Molly, red was her favourite colour. We are doing this to remember Molly and to raise funds for Rob and Emma to be able to place a memorial bench in the little Monkeys honour on the back lane in Wentworth. The walk with take place on Sunday 26th February 2012. This means we haven't got a just giving page for this event and instead would ask that you donate directly to Rob via pay pal using the email address RFFRIEND@BLUEYONDER.CO.UK We need to raise £350.

During her short life Molly raised money for Bluebell Wood and the Childrens Hospital at her parties and her funeral, now we would like to help Rob and Emma raise the money for a lasting tribute to their very special daughter.

I miss Molly every day and I am so glad she came into my life and was my little friend even if it had to be for only a short while.

Thank you for reading

This Bassey back to Bowie..

2012-01-08T10:27:00.000Z

We hear you loud and clear man?

Sorry.
Anyway, we have our first double birthday celebration...

Happy Birthday David Bowie

Born 8th January 1947

How can David Bowie be 65? How? And while we are asking questions just how did the foxiest of Goblin Kings manage to breathe let alone strut in trousers that tight? (I have seen Labyrinthine on the big screen. They are tight) How am I going to choose one Bowie track to try and sum up a career based on being flexible, undefined and generally chameleon like? Well I know the answer to the last one at least - I am not.

Bowie is an artist with such range, history and talent I just can't condense his back catalogue into a couple of paragraphs. Instead I'll just choose one of my favourites...

Back in the dim and distant past, in my first year at college, I was an extra in an indie film based on the premise that a teenage boy discovers his absent father is David Bowie. He tracks Bowie down to challenge him (and presumably claim back 16ish years of child support and pocket money). Mr Bowie is apparently playing the seediest, flea pit of a some time strip club in the wilds of Sheffield. Well, that is where we were dancing to this song in a painfully self concious way.... As my BBC debut on Jackanory has never found it's way on to Youtube, I assume this masterpiece of Northern Grit remains hidden in a vault somewhere too....

What makes me smirk now is I thought I was such a rebel when I was 16. I had no idea have safe and vanilla I was then!

Rebel Rebel

Reached No 5 in the UK Charts in 1974

Which Bowie track is your choice?

Happy Birthday Dame Shirley Bassey

Born 8th January 1937

Dame Shirley Bassey, what can I say? She is an institution, a national treasure. She was possibly the only recording artist in existence my Grandfather and I agreed on. She always seems like she'd be quite fun to meet but Divaerish enough not to disappoint.

She preforms with such gusto and drama and bling and wawa pedal. Her voice is huge and I just love it. It seems impossible now that in her youth people told her to shut up rather than sing louder. She's Welsh, she's proud and I want to look that good at 32 never mind 75.
Goldfinger
Reached No 21 (I know!) in the UK Charts in 1964

Gibbons Glory Box

2012-01-04T09:14:00.000Z

Happy Birthday Beth Gibbons

Born 4th January 1965

Secret Santa bought Chris the Portishead Roseland NYC Live dvd which we watched a couple of weeks ago. It was fabulous and a real blast from the past. I worked out how old I was when I first heard Portishead and then wanted to weep...

ANYWAY, the band preform with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra and is so damn cool it hurts. Gibbons drinks beer and smokes fags (back when such things were allowed indoors) while crooning her lyrics in her trade mark 'little girl with a big voice' style. The audience sit and sway, Portishead are not a band you dance too as such.

They are a band you listen too otherwise the languid and slow trip hop style can distract you from the bite of the lyrics. Then you listen to them meaningfully in groups or with at least a potential partner. You should do this wearing black, drinking wine and smoking.... well so I was told by a particularly posey and self styled troubled soul at college. He had a point. But he was still a tosser. I just like Portishead because they were different to all the Britpop I was also listening too in 1995 and still sound as fresh today.

Glory Box
Reached No 13 in the UK Charts in 1995

'give me a reason/ to be a woman'

Welcome to 2012

2012-01-01T12:10:00.000Z

How was your New Years Eve?

Mine was fantastic thanks for asking. Several of my closest friends, Chris and my girls all together playing Pointless and toasting the New Year with champers. The girls defied my prediction and despite looking like they might fall asleep where they sat several times they lasted till 2am. I am still giggling about how bad a counsellor I am to my friends, Lee's bibblybib noises and riding the purple dragon... OK you had to be there...

2012 is going to be a fabulous year (assuming the world doesn't end). We have so much stuff to look forward too. I'll get my results of the assessments on Friday and then start making some decisions about where my life goes next.

I got a copy of a letter yesterday my brain injury physio has sent the hospital. She wants them to do some investigations because there are issues with my balance and the like. I was assessed on berg balance scale and Romberg (which sounds suspiciously like a newly discovered race in Star Trek.) and there were other issues too but I am doing pretty well, it sounds like it can be fixed or adapted too and most importantly I know I have a team of professionals and really nice people with me who have got my back.

Also it is the start of the year of birthdays and we kick of proceedings with the greatest hip hop record ever. (Wiki tells me It is the first Hip-Hop record ever to be added to the United States' National Recording Registry of historic sound recordings.)

Grandmaster Flash
The Message
Reached No 8 in the UK Singles Chart 1982

Happy birthday Joseph Saddler. 54 today...
This song might not have been the first to narrate the struggles and alienation of the ghetto but it was the first to do it with a slowed down beat. The song is credited to Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five but what makes this track stand out is the fury is more controlled and measured and so much more sinister.
He isn't rapping fast and loud, 'don't push me/cos I'm close to the edge/I'm tryin' not to loose my head' is a real warning of a pressure pot about to explode.

I still here samples from this used fairly often in TV films, documentaries and trailers. It is a classic.

Goodbye 2011

2011-12-29T10:51:00.000Z

2011 well, it has been a memorable year, not always for happy reasons.
But for all the pain, physical and emotional there has been so much good stuff too.

You Got The Love
Florence and the Machine
There is no point wishing the NCF hadn't happen because it did and those I love were mostly 7 types of amazing both to me and each other and I will always be grateful for it then and now.

Chris says if we have a first dance it would be this. I say it would be 'I Believe' by Stevie Wonder.
A couple of years ago I bought the 'Lungs' album on New Years Eve because I fell in love with this song. As our anniversary is New Years Eve and it had been 10 years it seemed fitting. It has a slightly different meaning now. I am all for self sufficiency, ask Chris sometime I am too much about doing it all myself and shutting everyone out. I don't like being vulnerable and experience branded the concept of self relience front and centre of my brain pretty early on. This year I had the choice to relay on others removed and actually it wasn't nearly as bad as I feared. Everyone else has done a far better job of looking after me than I would have managed, especially Chris.
Sometimes it seems that the going is just too rough
And things go wrong no matter what I do
Now and then it seems that life is just too much
But you've got the love I need to see me through

Don't Loose Your Head
Queen
Remember love's stronger, remember love conquers all (even The Kurgan)

Clusterfuck
Electric Six
Sorry mum's 1 and 2 for the language but occasionally there are situations that only anglo saxon words can adequately describe and convey in one easy step. Neurological Clusterfuck sums up the reality far more neatly than subarachnoid haemorrhage. Plus I love this song, it makes me grin like an idiot.

Unwritten
Natasha Bedingfield

I would never have expected this to be the song that encapsulates this year but it does. The idea that only you can live your life, that only you can experience your reality and that what comes next is unknown is a lesson I have learnt hard and fast this year. This isn't a sad song though, its upbeat and uplifting and hopeful.

I have hope.

Edwyn Collins
Come Tomorrow Come Today

For me, Edwyn Collins combines fabulous music with a voice that understands better than most where I have been this year. I feel a little silly comparing what we went through as his NCF was, in many ways, much more devastating than mine. He is inspirational (as his wife Grace Maxwell) because they accepted the way their lives had changed and got right back to finding what their new normality would be. I return to his album Losing Sleep time and again firstly because it is a very good album but also because it feels personal to me. It is honest and uplifting.

Unforsaken, no excuses
Seize the moment, it's worth all the strife
There's a message and a passion
In an instant, control of my life

That awkward sense of being alive
That awkward feeling deep inside

Come tomorrow, come today
I ain't lying, no more tears

So, I don't know what next year bring on a personal level but I do on a blog level. There reason for less postings than usual this month is because I have been busy starting to research and collate information for next year. 2012 will be the year of birthdays. I figure it is the perfect excuse to share all those tracks I love but don't really suggest a top 5 to me.

The year of books is also drawing to a close and will be replaced with 2012 - the year of film. I should really start with the film 2012 but I'm not sure even the presence of John Cusack can entice me. I will probably just watch High Fidelity and Say Anything again. My adopted Granny sent me some Mary Higgins Clarke FILMS for Christmas, 3 of them, that will provide a nice link between the old (books) and the new (film) pages. I am a lucky lucky girl......

We are done, now let's start

2011-12-14T17:30:00.000Z

I was listening to this on my way to the Brain Injury rehab unit this morning. It made me smile (as did the Tram Conductor dressed as an elf).

Unwritten
Natasha Bedingfield
Reached No 6 in the UK Charts in 2006

I am unwritten,
Can't read my mind
I'm undefined
I'm just beginning
The pen's in my hand
Ending unplanned

I suddenly feel like a weight has lifted. The last assessment is done. I get the feedback on the 6th and then we stop looking at what doesn't work so well anymore, stop thinking about quantifying problems and work on solutions instead.

I bumped into Caroline down there too and said hi in person. I suspect bikes and writers group may feature in my future, she is very persuasive and more motivated than me :-)

The eye tests weren't too painful, not least because they confirmed no nerve damage. How I got away with that I don't know. My astigmatism has got a bit worse because the muscles are weaker so I need to wear my glasses all the time. I thought I would end up looking like Velma, it has happened before but I was watching 'Every Day Is Like Sunday' and once Manda has finished shaving the back and sides the hair combined with glasses might mean I actually become Morrissey... if I dye it red it will be Morrissey mixed with La Roux....

The Great Christmas Countdown

2011-12-13T20:42:00.000Z

My New Year resolution is to give up locats...

The nice list, because not all Christmas songs are sentimental crap or they are slightly but I like them anyway...

Fairytale of New York
The Pogues with Kirsty MacColl
1987

The truth about how likely peace on earth and joy to all men really is! Sometimes I think a lot of people would find Christmas easier to cope with if we didn't heap so much expectation on one day, it can't take the strain!

I Believe In Father Christmas
Greg Lake
1975

Pointed digs at consumerism....

Stop The Calvary
Jona Lewis
1980

In the dim and distant past I volunteered for a couple of years on a radio station which broadcasted for December only to raise money for um stuff. I had Christmas tune overload. I never got tired of this one though, the Christmas element is mostly incidental which helps.

Walking In The Air
Aled Jones
1985

Last year the girls watched The Snowmen on an almost daily basis. I love this song, it reminds me of being small when I still believed in Christmas, before my father banned it completely on the grounds it was actually pagan. It is pretty miserable being 11 and not allowed to leave your bedroom until 3pm on Christmas day, no presents and no nice food.
In fact it is so crap it is why I try extra hard to make Christmas special for my children, the death of the snowman aside....

The Waitresses
Christmas Wrapping
1981

Favourite Christmas song even though I have never learned close to half the words. It annoys me there is no proper video for this. Last year we had synchronised Christmas lights, this year we have guitar playing Santas. I suggest playing it loudly and dancing whilst ignoring the video...

2011-12-06T11:09:00.001Z

With the lack of Mo Music to fire my muse I am sat staring at an empty blog post....

I am working on a couple of Christmas posts because I am nothing if not predictable. Like the Santa Arbitrator of Christmas tunes I have a nice list and a naughty list but when I started writing that at the weekend it ended up too much Scrouge and not enough Tiny Tim. Although the cold is killing my feet and my head so I have more in common with the lame little one than you might immediately think....

Anyway tomorrow is the penultimate assessment. My key workers, Occupational Health lady and I are going out into the community. I used to be several peoples key worker, I used to work with people out in the community too. I think it is maybe difficult to explain how confusing a role reversal I find this. I am not depressed by the thought or upset I just find it weird. In the same way I was confused at the first Headway meeting I went too.

The Christmas Craft group has finished now. I'll miss it. I still struggle a lot with motivation but if something is pre planned I simply turn up no matter how rough I feel. One of the tutors has a 'crazy quilting' course starting next month, 2 hours on a Friday morning. If I can get on the course I think I'll try and do it. It's nice to meet people who don't know about the NCF, have no expectations and I need to keep trying to make my brain learn new things.

Anyway I chose this song because Ruth and I talked about it briefly at the weekend. I put it on my wall when I first heard it because I love the bittersweet dreaming of paradise combined with the great escape elephant. I always feel I should dislike Coldplay, maybe because the band themselves can be a little smug. I don't feel strongly either way about their music generally but this one makes me smile. Maybe if I keep smiling I can write a far cheerier Crap Crimbo Countdown 2011...

Crap Crimbo Countdown The Second

2011-12-03T15:14:00.040Z

Like Santa I have made a list of the naughty and nice in the Christmas song world.....

First we have the bah humbug selection:

Millennium Prayer
Cliff Richard
1999

Ah Cliff, he is just so nice and good and everything that it feels very uncharitable being mean about him. That said he did hit my big brother in the head with a guitar once. I can't remember where or why but he did and sure he said sorry and my brother turned the other lobe but still....
Anyway I understand this was well intentioned and for the kids but really Cliff doing his Cliff stuff in front of green screen scenes of starving children looks smug and self satisfied even if it isn't meant too.
Sorry Cliff.

Driving Home For Christmas
Chris Rea
1988

This song isn't anything more than meh. I guess it is meant to tug at the heart strings and stir up images of Rea battaling through the snow and wind to get home because he will risk his life driving in dangerous conditions because he loves you soooo much.
If he really loved you he wouldn't be reckless and risk death. Wow, through exaggeration I just managed to make the song sound almost interesting. It isn't.

Marys Boy Child
Boney M
1978

It gets stuck in your head and is all warm and happy and tropical and while it might envoke a climate much closer to the one Jesus was born into, we all know the real meaning of Christmas is cold, snow, minimal daylight and getting stuff.

Also, now I know where East 17 got the idea for the first version of the 'Stay Another Day' video...

All I Want For Christmas Is You
Mariah Carey
1994

I might like Mariah Carey if she sang more and warbled her scales (whistle included) less. This is more saccharine sweet than a king sized duvet made of candy floss. Yak yak yak!

All I Want For Christmas Is You (Superfestive)
With Justin Bieber
2011

This is even worse, I don't understand why it exists. Carey is flirting with a child and Bieber is autotuned to death.
I don't even really want to sully the blog with the video... But it is the worst Christmas song.... I am going to have to aren't I? OK well I am not embedding it...

So what would be top 5 worse Christmas tunes? (Please don't let them be ones on my top 5 best ones!)

Hello December

2011-12-01T07:49:00.000Z

We start the month with the advent tree

(But how can it be nearly Christmas already? I do understand that time has passed since last Christmas but in my head I only just got finished with Christmas 2010......)
A clean shaven husband

And a return to no Mo focused music just as soon as all the assessments are done for the week....

Goodbye, so long...

2011-11-30T19:08:00.000Z

Ah Mo long...

Mo Mather, newly wed, neat and ginger

And the man I love *starts laughing again and doesn't stop for quite some time

Day 30. It's The End Of The Mo As We Know It

2011-11-30T15:11:00.000Z

To celebrate the last day of Movember we are having one last Motabulous visual and musical feast - including 2 songs that actually have Mo's in the title.....

Nirvana
Mr Moustache
From Bleach 1989

Sparks
Moustache
From Angst In My Pants 1982

I also wanted to include some of my favorite tashes which I could not include else where:

I get moustache right yes?

Your clean shaven baby bottom face? Frankly my dear I don't give a mo

Dali, mad as a box of frogs and I love his work. The more I think I understand what I am seeing the more I know normal is overrated.....

Dick Strawbridge, he made historically correct cheese and apple pudding for re-enactors and proved the Masterchef judges wrong. Actually re-enactors DO notice exactly that kind of thing...

Eddie 'The Egale' Edwards - soon to be played by Rupert Grint in a film biopic. I KNOW! A tash that says having a go is the important thing.

Hello? I am the wet effect 80's stalker you ordered...

More mo = More vavavoooom?

Finally Mo Mossah Tom Selleck proving that some faces just look a lot better with the addition of facial furniture.

I am proud of my husband for his month long Mo Brohood. Yes, I have complained about the rashes and tickles and furiness but actually he is the one on whose face the tash has resided. So my suffering is secondary.

So here we are - the 30th day. The razor, foam, wax, tweezers and sandpaper are all primed and ready to go........

Day 29. Tash Shack

2011-11-29T07:46:00.000Z

Dig, Lazarus Dig!!!
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Reached No 66 in the UK Charts in 2008

No 66? Sweet mother of marshmellows I DESPAIR! Swagger flibberty Jagger is a hit but real swaggering by a man with a real hard core porn tash gets only as far as 66?
What world have I brought my children into?
Well, the inevitable end times aside, this is an amazing song, it is downright dirty with that bass line and gets stuck in your head within 10 seconds. It is nigh on impossible to actually dance too as proven by the video but it makes me smile and nod my head like a chicken anyway. My love for Mr Cave is not a physical one though, that is all I am saying about that.....

How much is Chris working his Nick Cave look?

Good but too smiley yes?

Please make my suffering worth while!

Day 27. House Of Mo

2011-11-27T09:36:00.000Z

Ah lazy Sundays are the best. As I am in sole charge of the smallest people in the house and it sounds windy and cold outside the current plan is to remain in our pj's all day.

Plus this week I have 4 more assessments and hospital physio not mention the DLA/DWP issue to try and sort out so a day doing nothing ins't so much lazy as spoon banking.
Anyway, on with the Mo music - it is the final countdown!

You're The First, The Last, My Everything
Barry White
Reached No 1 in the UK Charts on 1974

The walrus of love, o yes. The love god that made The Biscuit dance and all of us (not even thoughts of twinkles in anyone's eye in 1974) to do the dance. What better soundtrack for a smooth Sunday?
I choose to ignore the extra face furniture on this one because he does have a mantastic mo and it is Barry Freakin' White people. The other option was Lionel Richie, Hello?
The end is sight and I lost sight of most of Chris' face sometime ago...I'd show you but he scampered off to Newcastle to go run around in their woods like the furry Narnia animal he is. The children are now asking me if he can keep it.
I've said no.

Sheffield's Slimline Walrus of Loooooooooooooove to meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.

Go donate baby

Day 25. Tash Oddity

2011-11-25T08:06:00.000Z

Theme from Shaft
Isaac Hayes
Released in 1971

DAMN RIGHT! I AM JUST TALKING ABOUT SHAFT!
That is how I am getting away with the greater bearded and lesser Mo'd Mr Hayes. John Shaft has a magnificent Mo but didn't sing his own theme tune (he isn't Dennis Waterman) meanwhile Mr Hayes has too much facial hair but goddamn he can sing (even while wearing a sort of coat thing fashioned from paper clips)

You love me, go on admit it - you love me! You can play this risque (well it was in 1971) soul, disco, funk mash up of all round fabulousness loudly AND it is for charity! Everyone is a winner! It is Friday people, let the dancing commence!

So turn the volume up, feel sorry for me at the protrusion of facial fuzz I am now enduring on a daily basis, and if you haven't already donated to Mo'sters Inc shame on you and get right to it!

Shaft or Sucker? Watch your mouth!

You know you love it, now gimme my money honey

24th November 1991

2011-11-24T08:19:00.000Z

My dad told me Freddie Mercury had died.
He did it with all the tact and understanding anyone who has ever even spoken to the man once by phone let alone met him would expect. None.

It wasn't the worst pain in the world. Sadly (but not unexpectedly) I have experienced far more devastating losses since then. But when you are 12 and it is an idol and your first experience of death it does stick in your mind. In a very confusing and turbulent life music was the one constant, and Queen was a huge part of this and then one day the glamorous and seemingly immortal frontman was gone.

And now it is 20 years later. 20 years! I can remember that bus journey to school still.

Anyway, any excuse for another song yes?

Barcalona
Freddie Mercury & Montserrat Caballe
Reached No 8 in the UK Charts in 1987 and No 2 in 1991

Not many people can make the leap from rock to opera or opera to rock. Russel Watson, are you listening?
But of course Mr M could and did.
I adore this song. I saw it played to a firework display as part of the 1992 Summer Olympics. I was 13 and volunteering in a hospital dedicated to the care of those with dementia. It was a huge eye opener, a life changing experience and although it was sometimes scary it set me on the course of social care that I followed for another 10 years. I was sat with a gentleman, he was sadly not so much older than I am now and suffering from very early onset dementia. He got angry a lot, well who wouldn't. But we watched the footage of this display with rapt attention and he smiled.

Godwilling we will meet again someday

Day 23. We Will Mo You

2011-11-23T09:09:00.000Z

The Pretender
Foo Fighters
Reached No 8 in the UK Charts in 2007

Dave Grohl, the nicest man in 'rawk' and our lastest tastic tash. This song was released the day before Mirrie finally appeared in the world, both her and the song arrive with a bang. I love the deep breath mid song before it all explodes in drums, screaming guitars and the snarling, magnificent nicest man in rock.

No picture today sadly as we are both a little under the weather with bubonic plague but I will be sure to get an extra Mo in the next one somehow....

Thank you for all your donations. You rock too!

Viva Life!

2011-11-22T18:09:00.000Z

Tomorrow at 1pm the lovely Ms Ruth Deller will begin her viva for her Phd. It is going to go fantastically well naturally, well done Ruth, I'd say the end of academic work is in sight but I know you already have more stuff lined up for the future....

Ruth is probably the most scarily smart and brainy academic I know. I present songs about Vivas and some other random (nearly) Dr Rad related stuff...

Viva Las Vegas
Elvis Presley
Reached No 15 in the UK Charts (reissue 2007)

This video messes with my mind. It is enough out of synch to make it look like your average Saturday night X Factor stage death. Plus whenever I actually watch Elvis footage these days he looks like an Elvis impersonator.
Viva La Vida
Coldplay
Reached No 1 in the UK Charts in 2008

I like a bit of orchestra with my music...
Viva Forever
Spice Girls
Reached No 1 in the UK Charts in 1998

The kinder egg surprise video! With added child abduction! Posh Spice was actually that size....
Schools Out
Alice Cooper
Reached No 1 in the UK Charts in 1972
(Not forever, this is Ruth - but maybe for 5 or so seconds)

By far the best version of this song, if you ignore the slightly annoying laughter track
Dr Who Theme
Composed by Ron Grainer

What does this have to do with viva's or education or success or being far too intelligent? Nothing really but Ruth loves Dr Who. Really loves it, a lot. So what else could top this countdown (well Roxette or Kylie maybe but I went with this anyway)... I couldn't decided which version to use so thank god for Brian Rimmer. I love this and hope you will too.

Go knock 'em dead!

Also rans: Sister Are Doing It For Themselves, Dressed For Success, Respectable, Pink Sunshine, Did It Again

Day 22. Everything I Do (I Do It For Mo)

2011-11-22T10:48:00.000Z

Sorry for the late update.
I started my Brain Injury assesments yesterday. There are appointments every day this week (and more over the following 3 weeks) and by the time I got home last night I had a bad headache. Then I got the plauge for about 3 hours and then got better but I wasn't up to blogging....

Anyway, the end is in sight, we are two thirds of the way there.
Mo'sters Inc members Dan and Chris are planning a Mo quiz at work for the final week to raise extra funds.

Maneater
Hall & Oates
Reached No 6 in the UK Charts in 1982

In researching this and looking for photos I find that Hall and Oates have latterly been pictured having swapped tashs and none tashes between each other. We will ignore that and work on the basis that I chose this song in honour of John Oates marvellous, manly moustache. OK?

So we have some nice sleazy 80's lip glossed, stiletto'd and saxophone soloed slow dancing to appreciate the wonder of Mo too. When I used to go clubbing (in ye olden days when life was in black and white) there was an older woman who used to frequent the club nicknamed 'the black widow'. This was because her particular combination of Brian May hair, enormous boobs, curves encased in a skin tight black mini dress and towering heels never failed to ensnare some bloke who would leave with her..... and never be seen again.

This song always makes me think of her.

Tashs 'R' Us

Hey, ho, let's GO

Day 19. I Would Do Anything For Tash (But I Won't Do That)

2011-11-19T10:29:00.000Z

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
The Beatles
Released in the UK in 1967

4 tashes for the price of 1! I like pretty much everything The Fab Four released but prefer their later stuff to the synchronised head shaking mop tops of their early years.
Surely everyone knows that listening to 'Strawberry Fields' is a suitably 'chilled out' state is a rite of musical understanding passage... Just me then? Well, I have also listened to 'Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds' as interpreted by William Shatner which is a whole different type of musical experience.

ANYWAY, this video is taken from 'Yellow Submerine' and includes Mo's joined up to mutton chops which aren't allowed so I submit photographic evidence to prove this was a valid choice:

This song is also a bugger for including on mix tapes seguing as it does into With A Little Help From My Friends, I wore the pause button out on my first hi-fi trying to get that right!

Tash fact : The Beatles gave away cardboard mustaches with their album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.

Todays Tashtastic Photo

Don't wait - donate!

Day 16. A Tash And Kicking

2011-11-17T08:06:00.000Z

We are more than halfway through and he we have another Rock god to help us celebrate.
No, if we are being uber strict todays growler might not technically make to Mo Only grade. But I would simply direct your attention to this quote from the movie Airheads:

Chazz: "Who'd win in a wrestling match, Lemmy or God?"
Cop: "Lemmy",
Rex imitates a "wrong answer" game show buzzer,
Cop: "... God!",
Rex: "Wrong, dickhead, trick question. Lemmy IS God"!

Ace Of Spades
Motorhead
Reached No 15 in the UK Charts in 1980

So, can you imagine Lemmy without his tash (and mutton chops)? No? Exactly! Without them he might be less icon and more ordinary slightly moley bloke! The first time I ever saw this song preformed was on an episode of The Young Ones called 'Bambi', Madness played on The Young Ones twice. Funny and musically first class. Today you get tash and free classic comedy. Also, I should have gone to Scumbag College...

Todays Tash Shot

Noones more surprised than him....
Don't make me send Lemmy round, donate here

Day 15. Alright Mo

2011-11-15T09:36:00.000Z

Half way through and boy is my boy hairy! He kissed me goodbye this morning and it felt like 1000 electric shocks and not wholly in a good way.... Still he has now declared himself 15% more manly and he was pretty manly to start with. As the lone hairy wolf in a pack of girls maybe this is just his way of standing out?

Today's Mo Music:
The Boys Are Back In Town
Thin Lizzy
Reached No 8 in the UK Charts in 1976

Phil Lynott, there was a man with a great if understated tash (who also happened to be the lead singer and bass gutarist in a well loved rock band).
Lynott didn't just write and perform classic tracks, he was was also a poet. He died at the age of 36 following years of drug and alcohol use. Sometimes I think genius and creativity all too often leads to self destruction.

Todays progress report

Yes, he is smug but then a lot of work has gone into that Mo....
All the cool kids are clicking and coughing up their lunch money here

Day 13. Right Here, Right Mo

2011-11-14T06:57:00.000Z

Sorry for the late update. I accidentally got smashed on Saturday night at a birthday party and the chainsaw pain in my head, shakes and vomiting only took a very VERY long time to stop.

I know, I know, own worst enemy right? Teetotal is definitely the way forward now I think. That and a major health kick... I might start listening to the DS Carol Vorderman in my pocket now....

Anyway - on with the MO!

Fat
Weird Al Yankovic
Reached No 8o in the UK Charts in 1988

80? Are you kidding me? This is an a grammy award winning, neatly combed midi tash right there. Some people just don't appreciate well executed parody.

Two Week Tash
No photo, my bad! I will be updating again tomorrow though, so really I am just building the anticipation...
The mo is not quite at the thoughtful stroking phase but it is coming along nicely. Strangely I am slowly warming to the idea of Chris growing a goatie in December - but I am not wholly of sound mind so make of that what you will.....
Go rate and donate please

Day 11. I just Can't Get You Out Of My Mo

2011-11-11T08:06:00.000Z

The eleventh of the eleventh of the eleventh!

Cry
Godley & Creme
Reached No 19 in the UK Charts in 1985

The iconic and hypnotic video pre-dates Micheal Jacksons morphing from black to white (and back again) by 6 years. Today's terrific tash belongs to Kevin Godley, although I sort of wish Lol Creme had been the moustachioed music maker - for the name alone.

But let us not get too sad. It inspired Flight Of The Conchords 'I'm Not Crying' too.

Movember is to raise both awareness and funds of and for men's cancers, in particular prostate cancer. My own Mo Bro is doing this in part to annoy me with his facial fuzz, in part to raise money to help those already affected and partly to hedge his bets. (Chris has increased risk factors for prostate cancer due to his illness and medications).

Tash Tracking

Mo Mercury no?
More Mo Mather

According to Lee's very new wife El, the photo doesn't do it justice and it is 'very tachey'.
Meanwhile, in Our House:

Yesterday someone Chris works with approached him and donated £5. Her dad died of pancreatic cancer. Music and joking aside, that is why Chris, Lee, the rest of Mo'sters Inc and thousands of men across the world are doing this. Please help them make a difference and sponsor here.

Day 9. The Mo Don't Give A F&$!

2011-11-09T09:02:00.000Z

The world of Mo Music is a varied and changing place. Yesterday I went into town, alone - go me! I haven't really been in town much since February and it feels like a lot of shops have changed. I don't think they have really but it was foggy and I get confused easily.

Anyway on of those purveyors of house essentials like 50 inch plasma HD TVs and patterned sofas which may of may not induce fits - all available for 3p a week (for 345 years at 2937% interest plus your soul) was playing a music channel as I strolled past. As the video was playing on 67 plasma screens of varying sizes it grabbed my attention and I stopped. It was The Red Hot Chili Peppers featuring in 'Rocks Greatest Topless Men' countdown.

Really!

I know and it wasn't even 10am! I stopped and stared, not at Mr Kiedis' contorting torso, but at the very fine Mo he was sporting on his top lip. Mo's are like pregnant women, never any around for months but once you see one/become one/get one they are everywhere. Was he supporting Movember I wondered? He did look slightly like a seedy porn star I thought...

Then I realised I was stood staring at a bank of topless male imagery which might be misconstrued should my fellow shoppers notice. It was a grey, wet and thoroughly miserable Monday morning so I was reasonably safe as everyone else stared at their shows. More pressingly if I didn't move soon Iggy Pop was bound to appear and I didn't need that!

But enough of my moustached musings and on with today's marvellous mo music DAY NINE.....

Big Bottoms
Spinal Tap

Oh Mr Derek Smalls, you pint sized, porno tashed puddle of lukewarm water.

There is not quite enough Mr Smalls in the above video. So today you get another free gift photo. 100% extra free tash. In theory I could be related to Harry Shearer on my fathers side..... but life just ins't that kind.

Meanwhile in the wilds of Sheffield, this is currently infesting Chris' face....

That is a proper Dad photo. Partly because he looks more and more like his Dad did with a tash and partly because he is shattered like any decent Dad should be. Both the girls seems to have bubonic plague and last night he got relegated to the sofa because Mirrie was so wheezy and choked up I needed to keep an eye on her. I got no sleep either. She spent hours coughing in my face......

Donate dude!

Day 7. If You Tolerate Mo, Then Your Tashes Will Be Next

2011-11-07T07:59:00.000Z

Nearly a week in already..... Time for.....

Y.M.C.A
The Village People
Reached No 1 in the UK Charts in 1979

Lee Mouton, you leather clad, chains and whistles strutting gay icon you. I can't embed the video, so go watch it here, play it loudly and do the dance. Don't argue, this is for CHARITY - go and do the dance.
There is no need to feel down!

Mo Mather

Fellow Mo'sters Inc team member Lee Mather's Day 6 Mo. Someone asked him if he was going for a Village People vibe but he insists this has more of a 'My Name Is Earl' vibe. Meanwhile..
Other Tash News
Chris can now do a disconcertingly accurate Ron Mael impression. I am weighing up the chances of getting him in leather and chains and 'young manning'. Luckily, for my marriage, I think the chances are low...

I papped him this morning, there he was minding his own business on the packed lunch detail and next thing he knows he has a mobile phone shoved in his face (the batteries in the camera has gone, no tell tale plinky beep when it's turned on to alert him).

Still feels like I am having some brand new from LA soon to be covered exclusively and in graphic detail skin treatment where younger skin is achieved by flaying the old crap straight off....
Donate here please! We are nearly at £100 already. Thanks to all who have already donated!

Day 5 Take Mo

2011-11-05T14:42:00.000Z

Hu-frigginhellishtantrum-rrah!
After 4 hours of arguing with my netbook I have a picture! Look at the majestic M shape of that Mo....

Day 5. Sorted for Mo's and Tash

2011-11-05T11:40:00.001Z

Happy Mo Fawkes Night!

If only an extra bit of facial furniture was allowed I could fill this posts with V For Vendetta pictures. But they aren't, so I won't...
Instead:
Sharp Dressed Man
ZZ Top
Reached No 22 in the UK Charts in 1983

Get your extreme facial fuzz on, stand on a street corner and swing your arm in sync and be the only one called beard, in a band famous for it's beards, that has a tash instead.
Frank Beard we salute you

Tastic Tash Fact : By 1914 and the advent of WWI, the military mustache was well-established. Generally, the shape of the tash suggested rank: As a man advanced in rank, so did his mustache become thicker and bushier, until he ultimately was permitted to wear an ever fuller beard

Tash Watch day 6

We have definitely migrated from stubble that could be construed as accidental to a mo with purpose...
Wait, what? Yes I would like to know where the bloody picture is too. Blogger has been testing my patience for the last couple of weeks and now it is refusing to upload my photo!

I will try later (assuming I haven't taken a lump hammer to my netbook in a reasonable and proportional response to the crime of making me FURIOUS).

Donate here!

Day 3. Fake Plastic Tash

2011-11-03T08:45:00.000Z

The lovely boys joining in with Movember have all been debating on facebook which type of facial furniture to cultivate. The firm favourites so far seem to be 1. The Porn Star 2. The huge one with wax in the ends and 3. The Hitler......

This Town Ain't Big Enough For The Both Of Us
Sparks
Reached No 2 in the UK Charts in 1974

Ron Mael is a true icon of the tash world. He is also a true icon of sitting motionless at a keyboard with an expression that is simultaniously blank and plotting the horrible demise of everyone around him

True Sparks Fact: They appeared in an episode of The Gilmore Girls. Who saw that one coming?

Track-a-tash day 3
I am liberally bathing my face in Vaseline to counteract the stubble burn I am currently suffering and surprising myself by dreaming of the day (7 by my reckoning) when the sandpaper is replaced by soft(ish) Mo...

True Tash fact: There are between 10,000 and 20,000 hairs on a man's face (and I am being flayed by all of them on a regular basis)

Any spare change? Donate to the epically named Mo'sters Inc here

Day 1 - One Tash

2011-11-01T09:32:00.000Z

So, Chris is going all Mo Bro and growing a moustache for the entirety of Movember. It may be for a good cause but I was freaked out enough when he had one for a few days to complete his Nick "Goose" Bradshaw look in honour of my 30th birthday.

I am not anti tachist. After all Freddie Mercury is number 1 rock god round these parts. My older brother loves him so much he started growing a tash as soon as puberty hit him like a cricket ball in sock round the back of the head. He is 10 years older than me. He has had a moustache for my entire conscious life. I do not want to think of my brother when I kiss my husband.

I could think about kissing Freddie Mercury I suppose but I am brain damaged not deluded.

ANYWAY, if we are having a tune and tash photo every 2 days to track the tash trajectory, who else was going to occupy the first iconic tash spot?

Living On My Own
Freddie Mercury
No More Brothers Mix reached No 1 in the UK Charts in 1993

Tash Tracking
First thing, before his Movember regulated shave

As per the rules Chris has had a shave today and is as clean shaven as he gets. I bet you flumps to marshmellows I get stubble rash when I kiss him hello later.....

Spot the difference eh? It is no wonder I never need exfoliate! Anyway enough of my epidermis related woes. He is doing this for a fabulous cause.

You can donate to this Mo Bro's Movember page here:

2011-10-28T15:02:00.001+01:00

A big shout out today to inspirational lady, fellow blogger and blog follower Caroline Waugh who is featured in todays Sheffield Telegraph

She really is inspirational and gives me hope that one of these days I might get somewhere with writing about brain injuries from the inside and cycling somewhere else than in my lounge.

I have so far chickened out of going to the cycling events in Hillsborough and The Write Way book launch which happened for off the shelf. In fact despite being sans children since Wednesday today I couldn't even decide if I wanted/dared venture out alone and got very confused and tired and have been sat on the sofa since 8.30.

Anyway, enough about the crap let us celebrate the good stuff. Well done Caroline! Well deserved recognition and I love the photo! x

Why Movember

2011-10-27T08:45:00.000+01:00

The nights are drawing in, the air is cold, what better time for a man in add a little extra insulation against the elements in the form of that most majestic of facial furniture - a Mo.

Putting aside my own feelings about friction burn etc I am supporting my husband Chris, and his ingeniously named band of cohorts Mo'sters Inc as they spend November growing ever larger Mo's and raising money in the process. You can donate via Chris' page here.


Not Chris

Chris. Pointing at a metal rabbits bottom.

Today I hand over the blog to the soon to be moustachioed one to explain why he is in a Mo Bro:

Movember.

So, why am I growing a 'tash for Movember this year? Well for starters it's something I wanted to do last year, but never got sorted in time.

I really like the idea and style of Movember, ever since I first heard of the event. Many types of cancer have their own awareness campaigns, the most obvious of which is breast cancer. It wasn't so long ago that this was a topic that you couldn't discuss in public, breasts still being deemed too taboo, but the fantastic efforts of the campaign have done a great deal to reduce this stupid social barrier.

Movember aims to do the same for men - particularly prostrate and testicular cancer. Raise awareness, take away the social stigma and make it okay to talk about it to your mates, your family and to your doctor.

I have something of an ulterior motive in this regard. I have Ulcerative Colitis, a form of Inflammatory Bowel Disease. The chances of me developing bowel cancer increase every year and I'd like to do something about it now - raising awareness and also a bit of cash seems like a good idea. Plus I reckon I can grow a mighty mo in 30 days and I'm looking forward to the challenge.

According to the Movember website, a significant percentage of men don't talk about their health, don't even see their doctor, especially if it involves anything below the waist - well as someone who has had a lot of bottom conversations with a multitude of health professionals I can assure you there's nothing to be embarrassed about. They certainly won't be. Chances are they've seen it before. If it's nothing, then you get peace of mind. If it might be something then that's a hell of a lot better than ignoring it, right?

For Movember I will be mostly dedicating the blog to Marvellous Mo and Tashtastic type posts - and photos of Chris' progress.

Blog, blog me do...

2011-10-26T21:01:00.000+01:00

I have been a bit busy today.
I can't talk properly and keep dropping things so sitting on the sofa with my laptop firmly on my knee seems the safest option. I can't type that well either - thank god for spell check!

Anyway I have updated my personal blog and the book page. I have come up with a plan for what 2012 will be a year of but I'll tell you about that another time. I have also drafted out an entire months worth of posts for next month, I'll tell you about that tomorrow.

I have also started work on revamping my Penny Black Website Of The Month column. From next month I am going to be concentrating on other music blogs and hopefully interviewing their writers. I love writing my blog and I want to talk to other bloggers about theirs.

I have already got a couple of sites lined up but if you have any suggestions, be it your own blog or one that you read please let me know via the comments, twitter, facebook, text message, talk to my actual face....

Every day is like Sunday

2011-10-23T19:35:00.000+01:00

Sunday, Sunday, can't trust that day....
This is a house of skintness and boredom and we don't even have school to look forward too tomorrow. However as bored people are apparently boring, the girls amused themselves dancing like loons to the below er eclectic selection of songs.
They took the xbox microphones and went for it with more style than your average heard of X Factor wannabes. Mirrie throws herself around with such abandon that the moshpits of the future should consider themselves warned.
Meanwhile Rosie is too busy discussing how she would interpret any given song via the medium of dance to actually do much dancing, but still what she does manage has definite pizazz...

Dog Eat Dog
No Fronts

Test The Theory
Audio Web

Pumping On Your Stereo
Supergrass

Word Up
Gun

She's My Man
Scissor Sisters

On a different note, I really hope you can view this link
My friend Rob is aiming to raise £800 for Bluebell Wood Childrens Hospice. Bluebell did a fantastic job of looking after Rob and Emma's daughter Molly who sadly passed away in February of this year. The staff didn't just make Molly more comfortable, they surrounded Rob and Emma with love, support and understanding too.

Bluebell is a happy, special place and they shouldn't have to relay so much on donations because the support they provide is priceless. Every little helps, so please donate if you can.

I will be blogging more about Molly and another event planned to raise money in her memory soon.

Thank You

Simply The Best

2011-10-20T10:16:00.001+01:00

17 years ago today I got my first CD. There had been the bargain bin HMV tapes before that yes but 20th October 1994 my mum bought me my first CD, I remember because it was a thank you for looking after my oldest nephew Freddie while his younger brother James finally made his entry into the world.

The ads had been everywhere since it's release a few months earlier but its £14.99 price tag was way out of my reach. I still only had the one job at this point and all my wages were being eaten up literally with food or bus fare to get to said job. A month later I would take a second job after school and weekends in a newsagents and be able to fund my new CD habit myself. I wanted this 2 disc album solely because it featured 'Pride (In The Name Of Love), buying albums on the basis of wanting one track is a habit I am not entirely out of even now. One of the biggest benefits of reviewing music is that I have to give an album at least one full outing in order to form an opinion. I hate to think how many brilliant album tracks I have overlooked in the last 17 years.

Anyway the early to mid nineties seemed awash with rock compilations occasionally hidden under the guise of 'driving rock'. Most where about 80/20 decent tunes to fillers but this one has hardly any of the later. Choosing just 5 has been very difficult, so much so that you can assume the 'also ran' list is pretty much the rest of the track listing.

5. In The Air Tonight
Phil Colins
Reached No 2 in the UK Charts in 1981

Phil Colins does get a bit of stick, but this is an epic song. Even a gorilla drumming for Dairy Milk can't take anything away from the breathless anticipation in this song as we all wait for that drumming climax. If you have never seen footage of Colins preforming this song live (and even if you have) click below. Showmanship and drumteasing and the hair on the back of your neck standing up. Promise.

4. Won't Get Fooled Again (full length version)
The Who
Reached No 9 in the UK Charts in 1972

Long before CSI started using The Who for their theme tunes I was being Roger Daltrey around my bedroom, blasting this very ludly (into my headphones). Organs, guitars and screaming combined with biting, maybe political lyrics = perfect combination when you are a pissed off 15 year old.

3. Since You Been Gone
Rainbow
Reached No 6 in the UK Charts in 1979

They may not have written it but any band with Richie Blackmore and Cozy Powell featured on a very extensive membership list were never going to suck. Another song with an immediately recognisable intro and an addictive chorus, if you play it they will sing...
I wonder if I couldn't get funding to run a study of the songs that people have to sing a long to whether they like it or not. It would be more interesting than those studies that show people who eat more marmite live (on average) 3.6 minutes longer...

2. Are You Gonna Go My Way
Lenny Kravitz
Reached No 1 in the UK Charts in 1993

Baring in mind that my mother reads my blog, all I will say on this one is that at the age of 14 Mr Kravitz gave me the funny feeling in my tummy last experienced at the age of 7 in relation to Mr Harket.
However, this time I had a FAR clearer idea of what I wanted to do to him.....
Also that guitar is drrrty!
PS The drummer also rocks...

1. Pride (In The Name Of Love)
U2
Reached No 3 in the UK Charts in 1984

U2, now there is a band who divide opinion. Yes, they can be over inflated by their own importance (hello Bono - what was with that Live Aid performance? You nearly imploded your band with the entire world watching, smooth) and their music can occasionally be sentimental and self indulgent (hello Sweetest Thing). They are mocked for their philanthropic endevours, which if they come from their hearts, I find cruel and for The Edge's silent stoic nature and facial furniture, which I do not.

ANYWAY, the song. There is some disagreement over the lyrics. They seems to refer to Ronald Reagan and Martin Luther King but if they do they are inaccurate for the latter. What makes this song work is a pounding bass line and a chorus you can howl too.

It's the end of the world as we know it

2011-10-19T10:37:00.000+01:00

Following the demise of REM recently I blogged about my favourite REM tracks.

PennyBlack have run an article this month collating other members of the teams thoughts. You can read it here and I suggest you do, it is funny and there are opinions from both ends of the great beyond.

Once you have read it you will want to go and youtube this, so I have saved you the effort.
I know right? How nice am I!

Can you feel it?

2011-10-18T21:50:00.000+01:00

No, not a post about bees, instead one about hives, and not bee hives either....

Yesterday I went to see the GP about a couple of things. Sadly the all knowing Mr P has not informed the doctor exactly what meds he wants me on for the migraines so still no cigar on that front. They are going to chase it up. I can understand that they want to be sure they prescribe me the correct stuff and maybe it will have the added benefit of getting rid of this constant low grade headache I have had for ooo 8 months now, but I do just want this sorted now. These migraines are scary and swift when they hit and I am scared of it happening when I am out alone or with the girls.

We also discussed the possibility of me having PCOS and the option of getting sterilised. I won't bore you with the ins and outs of all of that (phew you say) but I did end up with a prescription for 3 - 4 months of antibiotics to deal with a couple of the symptoms. All fine and dandy yes?

No!

I took 1 tablet. 1 bloody tablet and within 3 hours 80% of my entire body has become a mass of itchy, hot hives. I had to laugh, it was just ridiculous. I got about 2 and half hours sleep, so I could actually be hysterical. This morning I was reduced to trying to scratch my back with a nail file the itching had got so bad. I briefly contemplated allowing Cooper to lightly flay my my back, she would have no doubt obliged, but I needed to go back to the doctors and not star in a remake of Silence Of The Lambs....

ANYWAY, my body's inability to do anything correctly is both infuriating and giving me the giggles. The antihistamine has mostly kicked in.... except on my knees. I still have very allergic knees...

Soo hives (in my mind) automatically means Voice of the BeeHIVE, which is good because Woody, drummer of Madness just happens to be in VOTB and so that is nice because anyway to shoehorn a bit of Madness in is always good....

Don't Call Me Baby
Voice of the Beehive
Reached No 15 in the UK Charts in 1988

Olympfit: Oh Carol

2011-10-16T13:50:00.000+01:00

Olympfit: Oh Carol: My Carol Voderman Active Health DS came and new activity meter (aka pedometer) didn't arrive till last Tuesday....

The Big Purple One

2011-10-15T23:11:00.001+01:00

Yes well, it is certainly purple. Very, very purple.

Freddie obviously approves and what better way to celebrate my head than with party pigmentation?

The obvious music to accompany this would be Purple Rain by his Purple Pixiness (the artist formally known as and now known again as) Prince. But I hate that song and I don't much like any Prince song. So, instead:

Right, well, the school run is going to be much brighter on Monday....

A Change Is As Good As A Rest

2011-10-14T22:40:00.000+01:00

Right?

Well, now the weddings are over I feel it is the right time to play around with all this hair I have finally managed to grow back.

When I say play, I mean finally get the clippers, bleach and hair dye out. From what Mr P said it will always feel odd over the operation scar. I sometimes get a strange (but thankfully not painful) sensation of being hit on the top of the head by lightening but physically it has been nearly 8 months now and my head is healed. I was slightly worried that the clippers would be too loud and the vibration sensation too much to handle but it was fine.

My top stylist combo of Bex&Panda have taken full control. First we take it shorter (such a thing is actually possible), then we bleach and then we go purple, or pink, or maybe both... I figure now I have no brides photos to spoil if it goes wrong what the hell. If we do it and I hate it then sod it, it is only hair, we can shave it off and start again. Due to jobs and a misplaced sense of what I am 'ment' to look like I have never taken the plunge, these days I have a pretty good sense - basically whatever the hell I feel like. It is my hair, my head (my 50+ - sorry it just slipped out).

In honour of my Billy Idol, lets have some Hot In The City (heat wave predicted this weekend) and then some Inxs...

Hot In The City
Billy Idol
Reached No 13 in the UK Charts in 1988 (re-release)
You know, if I could perfect my sneer, peeping tom, big belt buckle wearing, Mr T jewellery wearing (and domantrix sex persona) I might just keep it blonde

Suicide Blonde
INXS
Reached No 11 in the UK Charts 1990
Obviously Mr Hutchence watched the above video, got some ideas and a sad loss to Australian music occurred
Open shirts, necklaces and flowing locks agogo....Will this make me look like Paula Yates?... (Yeah I know, I wish!)

No blonde jokes please......

2011-10-10T13:17:00.002+01:00

I am free - well just about!
My kick ass neuro surgeon took about 30 seconds to review my notes and test results and decide that there is currently nothing more serious going on than cluster migraines. Painful, vomit inducing, royal pains in the arse yes. Life threatening and surgery requiring no.

In fact he is so happy with me that not only am I fixed, he wants me back in 2 years to form one of the cases inflicted on final year neuro students just before they qualify. Apparently a lot of them fail and my particular combination of OI and NCF made him literally rub his hands and laugh in glee!

He does want me to to start carrying a medical alert bracelet because, in his words, 'if you were to have another aneurysm, and they started to drill your skull again *makes the accompanying hand gestures, he loves the hand gestures* you need them to know you have an unusual skull, they don't want to drill into your brain. You don't want that either...'

He is right there!

So secret santa, that's your job sorted this year!

What a relief! I feel like I am coming out the other side of all this finally. I know I still have 2-3 weeks of assessments and tests to quantify the brain damage (and more scarily I need this information to make decisions about my future fitness to practice) but medically speaking I am good. The ongoing issues are dealable. I will be dealing with them forever, might as well take my time.

I spent a fabulous weekend at El and Lee's wedding. They looked amazing, my friends were all there and they looked amazing too. We laughed a lot, we danced (badly if you are me) and my feet were smashed totally by the end (but I knew they would be and did it anyway). I felt like the old me then and now I feel good, I feel happy and I feel very luckily.

Freedom! 90
George Michael
1990

Movin' On Up
Primal Scream
1991

The Only Way Is Up
Yazz & The Plastic Population
1988

It is!

Don't Stop Believing
Journey
1981

I know I know but Chris said to me earlier 'Not the end of the road but def a big chunk of the journey is over.'

Move On Up
Curtis Mayfield
1971

2011-10-03T14:41:00.000+01:00

I am starting to feel a tiny bit more confident and a little less scared.
I have still had no test results, I don't expect they will ring me now, I think they will wait until my appointment with the big boss brain fiddler himself a week today.

I can't wholly embrace the idea that no news is good news, previous experience has not exactly born that out. But, it isn't playing on my mind so much now. I have some self confidence, self belief and self esteem to get on with rediscovering. I have bought hair bleach and purple hair dye but I keep changing my mind about what to do with them! If it isn't good news, I'll deal with it next week. If it is good news I think I might actually get discharged (for the next 5 years anyway).

On my i-pod this week......

Sisters Are Doin' It For Themselves
Eurythmics & Aretha Franklin
Reached No 9 in the UK Charts in 1985

So I have borrowed a lot of music from Lin, including a lot of Eurythmics. Ah this just makes me smile, it requires playing loudly and it is true, they may be fooked but I am standing on my own two feet. I don't even wobble quite as much anymore.

The Great Beyond
REM
Reached No 3 in the UK Charts in 2000

I know I said Lotus is my favourite REM track but this is a very close second. (Then it is Crush With Eyeliner which featured heavily in my uni dissertation. There once was a girl who talked aloud to a poster of Freddie Mercury (who talked right back) and had a small fixation on boys with heavy kohl habits. Autobiographical? Moi?)

Anyway there is a sense of spirituality, questioning and things beyond our understanding in these lyrics. I fear I maybe the elephant I am trying to push up my own stairs though...

Life's What You Make It
Talk Talk
Reached No 16 in the UK Charts in 1985

Because it is really isn't it? I think I have stopped trying to figure out what my new life is going be and am trying just to live it instead. I am rapidly coming to the conclusion it is just easier than trying to over think everything. Ruth told me I was 'bloody minded' on Saturday. She is right. I just forgot that for a bit...

Addicted To Love
Florence & The Machine
B-side to 'You Got The Love' released in 2009

I only heard this for the first time recently and I love it. The original is almost joyful, it revels in the slightly self debasing idea of addiction to love (or should that really be sex?) This is darker but beautiful.

I do get excited when I hear new stuff that I like straight away or old stuff done in a new way.

Let's Get It On
Barry Jive & The Uptown Five
High Fidelity 2000

So shoot me but I do not like the Marvin Gaye original. I don't like Sexual Healing either. There is no subtlety in sex and smooooth. Give me The Divinyls touching themselves any day of the week. Anyway, I do love this version (have I mentioned I love the film it features in too?)
I love Jack Blacks singing, man is he feeling it? Come on... ooow

2011-10-02T11:41:00.000+01:00

So Olympfit has been updated. The sun is gone in, I have lost my pedometer and I am fully intending to buy a Carol Vorderman branded product. Hmmmmm

A Year In Books has been updated too.

This week has just flown by. I did mean to post a top 5 to commemorate the end of REM but never got round to it and somehow that moment has passed. Instead we will just skip to the end and go straight for my favourite.

Lotus
Reached No 26 in the UK charts in 1998

One Week

2011-09-30T17:09:00.000+01:00

The sun is shinning. It is very hot.
I still have no idea if my skull in incontinent or not but have finally stopped gazing at my navel and no longer care. Lots of good stuff has happened, is happening and is going to happen. I have a random top 5 to celebrate.

My mother in law is about to tell my children a week today they will be taking delivery of this:

This being a she cat about to be named Cooper also to be known as Dr S Cooper aka Super Copper which brings us to:

Super Trouper
Abba
Reached No 1 in the UK Charts in 1980

Cooper has been a stray for a long time, when Chris went to visit the family who have been feeding her for over a year he found her behind a shop sleeping in some weeds. Cooper is being rehomed via Rotherham Rescue Rangers and being checked out, chipped etc before anyone thinks we are just picking up random cats.

The girls have wanted a pet for a long time. I think they pretend to be cats on a regular basis to try and guilt trip us into getting them one. They are about to be very happy...

Do To Me
Trombone Shorty
Released 19 September 2011
I saw this performed on Later With Jools Holland last week. It is fabulous and I just loved it from the off. Watch the video and then go and download the song and if you insist go buy my the back catalogue from Amazon. No? Ah well.
There is little in life that can't be improved by a good brass section.

Dry The Rain
Beta Band
Champion Version - Released in 1997 originally and then featured on The Three E.P's in 1998

In a spoddy 'I was there the first time man' I honestly did love this song before it featured in one of my top 5 best films of all times. We watched it again this week. It is getting so we can quote more of this than Wrath Of Kahn. I should own a record shop. And a proper telephone. And a Sonic Death Monkey t-shirt.

We went to bed listening to The Three E.P's the other night. It was 2000 again and I had just watched High Fidelity for the first time at the Virgin Cinema for my 21st birthday.
Now either stick the CD on loud or play this instead and go lay on some grass and stare at the clouds.

Doctor Doctor
Thompson Twins
Reached No 3 in the UK Charts in 1984

My lovely and very clever friend Ruth submitted her thesis today. I can't call her Dr Rad for a couple more months apparently but still a celebration is in order and what better than some flouncy 80's androgynous make up and big hair?
By the time I am finally allowed to call her Dr properly I will have constructed a top 5 for her but for now we shall just celebrate the fact that the girl done good.

(How long does a thesis have to be? Can I construct one purely out of top 5 countdowns? Answers on the back of a student loan deferment please!)

Third Finger, Left Hand
Martha Reeves & The Vandellas
B side of Jimmy Mack released in 1967

This time next week El will have married Lee and we will all be in a lovely hotel in Rochdale working our way through food, wine, speeches and then there will be the dancing. Knowing El, there is going to be a lot of dancing. I can't wait! I have flat shoes, ear plugs, a lot of pain killers and an awful lot of friends who will be there too. El is going to make a beautiful and serene bride (yes you are, don't argue) and I suspect Lee might cry (well, you might). Also, the children will be here with Granny Ann and their new cat so they will be happy. We will be in a hotel. We will be happy.

There are a wealth of wedding songs I could have chosen but this one doesn't get chosen enough - evidenced by the fact my own husband says he has never heard it.

P.S I saw this news story yesterday. Naturally I agree with the results and wonder if I can go and do this kind of research if my planned phd in procrastination doesn't work out...

I Like The Way You Move

2011-09-26T09:41:00.000+01:00

Music has been proven by more than one person I am sure to improve the mood.

Assuming it is good music and not, you know Radiohead* or something.

I dropped off some nice specimens to the hospital on Friday. They let me come home as long as I rested. I did. I was very bored for a lot of it but Lin and Paul with cottage pie and Big Bang Theory helped. Anyway, the doctor told me her would ring today or tomorrow with my test results. If I am not leaking brain fluid after all then it is all good. If I am, well then I am still not 100% sure what that will mean exactly. I am fed of of thinking and talking about it. So on to more important things.

I am feeling nostalgic for the time I liked dance music, when I understood it and was not so old it all sounded like boom boom boom music....

No Good (Start The Dance)
The Prodigy
Reached No 4 in the UK Charts in 1994

I was 15 and this video delighted and terrified me in equal measure. I could do the windmill dance, I practised in the privacy of my bedroom and I wanted to go to derelict warehouses and dance. But I was equally terrified of all the E dropping and boys that would surely accompany such an outing. And anyway I was podgy and totally lacking in style having only just broke free from the almost Amish confines of life with father.

It made me want to dance though. And gave me my first glimpse into feeling like a bad girl...

It's A Fine Day
Opus III
Reached No 5 in the UK Chart in 1992

This is how I could have regrown my hair. Damn, why didn't I think of it earlier...
Anyway, it is happy and upbeat and hopeful and there are no obvious drug references which brings us to..

Move Any Mountain
The Shamen
Reached No 4 in the UK singles chart in 1991

Bittersweet this one. Love the song, love the vibe, but it was during a visit to Tenerife to film this video that band member Will Sinnott drowned.

That aside it is big and a little bold. Big fish, little fish, cardboard box.

I'm Free
Soup Dragons
Reached No 5 in the UK Charts in 1990
'Cause I'm free
To do what I want
To be what I want
Any old time
I said I'm free
To be who I choose
To get my booze
Any old time

Another seemingly druged up dance tune meets gospel backing via Madchester (in my mind at least). I still don't have enough hair to accurately recreate the nodding dog but I do have a sufficiently shakey concept of dancing to just about make it worse...

Hello
The Beloved
Reached No 19 in the UK Charts in 1990
so welcome to the world, yeah...
all you late-comers, just step onboard
i'm happy, glad you came
so welcome home again!

Dance, space age and lyrics that make sense and mean something. Or maybe they don't. Who knows? Who cares? It is the end of the night, lets all slump on these beanbags and nod along meaningfully...

*Disclaimer - I know Radiohead are not depressing. I love Radiohead. Radiohead are getting their own top 10.

You Talkin' To Me?

2011-09-20T10:55:00.000+01:00

I have been trying to bake more recently and so far there have been no major disasters either taste wise or me forgetting to turn off the oven and 'burning down the house'.

Still, the song got stuck in my head and it was swiftly followed by 4 companions and a top 5 sprang into being from the ether. I am sure David Byrne would approve of order arranging itself from chaos.

Sometimes carelessly flung under the heading of New Wave, Talking Heads seem to have taken a little from any style of music and clothes that took their fancy right then to produce ecclectic and clever music that spans several decades (on and off). Their song 'Radio Head' is also the reason a certain band I like have the name they do. These are my 5 favourites.

Take Me To The River
Cover of Al Green original.
Released in the US in 1978

I don't know why I love her like I do
All the changes you put me through
Take my money, my cigarettes
I haven't seen the worst of it yet
I wanna know that you'll tell me
I love to stay

Not even that godawful Big Mouth Billy Bass toy that was everywhere 11 years ago could ruin this song for ever. The original is a classic and discovering Talking Heads had covered it was at once incongruous and perfect. Also - check out the shoulder pads on Mr Byrne...

Burning Down The House
Released in the US in 1983
Watch out;
You might get what you're after.
Cool babies;
Strange but not a stranger.
I'm-an-or-din-a-ry-guy.
Burning down the house.

I admit I like the smoother version as produced by Tom Jones and The Cardigans in 1999 but the jerky original is still the best.

Once In A Lifetime
Reached No 14 in the UK charts in 1981
And you may ask yourself
What is that beautiful house?
And you may ask yourself
Where does that highway go?
And you may ask yourself
Am I right?...Am I wrong?
And you may tell yourself
MY GOD!...WHAT HAVE I DONE?

This was the first time I heard synths perfectly replicated the catoonish sea and bubble noises that played in my head whenever I endured repeats of Flipper on the TV. It was the first Talking Heads video I saw and the start of a small none sexual crush on Mr Bryne I hold to this day. He scares me to death and I fully expect should I ever meet him he would cut me dead with one withering glance - and I'd expect nothing less. See also...

Psycho Killer
Reached No 92 in the US in 1977
You start a conversation you can't even finish it.
You're talkin' a lot, but you're not sayin' anything.
When I have nothing to say, my lips are sealed.
Say something once, why say it again?

This is a fabulous performance from The Old Grey Whistle Test. How could this song only reach 92? How? Everyone knows this song don't they? Psycho killer, qu-est-ce que c'est? It is sinister and dark and has the best sing a long chorus. I didn't like American Psycho, the book or the crap film. Not even a topless Christian Bale could save that one. It wasn't helped by the fact that I had this is my head the whole time I was in the cinema and it gave me the giggles.

And She Was
Reached No 17 in the UK Charts in 1986
She was glad about it... no doubt about it
She isn't sure where she's gone
No time to think about what to tell them
No time to think about what she's done
And she was

And she was looking at herself
And things were looking like a movie
She had a pleasant elevation
She's moving out in all directions

Apparently a song about a girl who used to take LSD in a field, it's another brilliant song accompanied by a clever and oft copied video. One of the reasons I first became aware of Talking Heads was VH1's fondness for using bits of their songs and videos fragments in their idents.

I like its straight forward and unapologetic presentation of mind bending facts. There should be more of this in life in general....

2011-09-18T12:34:00.000+01:00

I am having a funny old life at present. I am not sure what is happening with my health, my long term goals or several relationships.

I have tried several times to put together a coherent top 5 this week but coherent just isn't cutting it. Instead I bring you randoms that reflect the resonation of recent erm events. (Alliterations come in 3 anyway yes?)

Keep Moving
Madness
1984
Hurry up
Don't slow down
Pick a time
Don't let hands pull you down
If you're waiting
I have blogged about my continuing fitness challenge over on Olympfit and this song came to mind as I was writing. It has a wider meaning to me too. I need to keep moving, I need to get on with the school drop offs (my own private hell at the moment) and pick ups. I need to keep moving towards increased independence and health. I can't let uncertainty and worry hold me back.

And it is a Madness song, any excuse for a Madness song

We really must be going there's no time to delay
We have to leave our message because we can't stay
It really is important so remember take care
Please keep on moving 'cos there's nobody there
This should have been a single. The pace just carries you along and the video would have been brilliant. Well, the one I'd have directed would anyway.

Foux Du Fafa
Flight Of The Conchords
2007
Je voudrais une croissant
Je suis enchante
Ou est le bibliotheque?
Voila mon passport
Ah, Gerard Depardieu
Un baguette, ah ha ha, oh oh oh oh
Ba Ba ba-ba Bow!
Foux da fa fa
Foux da fa fa fa fa
Foux da fa fa
Ah ee ah

Well, I did go to France last week. Chris kept singing this to himself and got told off by his sister in case her neighbours overheard and were not FOTC fans.

The wedding, the village, the place where we stayed were all beautiful. It was great to spend some time with our family, for the girls to stay up as late as we did, to experience a totally different culture and the food (the lack of flump cake aside) were all fabulous.

Outside the houses are shuttered, sun bleached and battered. Inside they are warm, unconventional and in Claire, Jason and Olivias case, like walking into a big hug. It was stressful to get there both financially and medically but I am so glad we made it. I wouldn't have missed it for the world.

Jailbird
Primal Scream
1994
Come in my kitchen

I've got hop head soup for grease
Just shake your hips
And let it rip
And let the spirit free
Ride on Baby, ride on
Let your crazy horses loose
Give it all you got
When you're hot to trot
'N' wave bye bye to the blues
Shake it to the east
Shake it to the west
Shake it with the very one
That you love the best

This and 'There's No Other Way' by Blur are the songs of my fresher year at uni despite being released in in 1994 and 1991 respectively and the year in question being 1998. I drove one of my best friend Zoe mad I think insisting they were both played as we got ready to go out.

We got the best of Primal Scream this week. We couldn't afford it but we got it anyway. HMV have yet another 2 for £10 on. Chris smugly noticed that Coldplay albums were in the offer but The Bends by Radiohead is still ten whole pounds on it's own. He reminded me I was working on a top 10 by Radiohead. I should get a shufty on with that really.

Anyway, so I played this loudly, thought of Zoe and all the freshers currently descending on Sheffield looking all young and fresh faced. I thought too of Ruth who did her fair share of dancing and drinking on these nights out now preparing to teach those freshers on the degree we all did.... Weird.

Blood On The Dance Floor
Michael Jackson
Reached No 1 in the UK Charts in1997
Susie got your number
And Susie ain't your friend
Look who dug you under
Seven inches in
Blood is on the dance floor
Blood is on the knife
Susie's got your number
And Susie's says is right

We also got MJ's Number 1 Hits album. 'Scream' would probably more accurately reflect my thought process most of this week but it wasn't included and this is one of my favourite Jackson tracks. Chris nipped out the the doctors, the sun was shinning and I whacked it on quite loud (by my current standards) and danced around the kitchen. No one saw so it was fine and unlike a certain Linda Husband I am not capable of Moonwalking so I stuck with singing badly and shaking my ample booty in some semblance of rhythm while my head refused to join the party.

It made me laugh.

Back To Life (However Do You Want Me)
Soul II Soul
Reached No 1 in the UK Charts in 1989
Live at the top of the block
No more room for trouble and fuss
Need a change a positive change
Look it’s me writing on the wall

This makes me smile too. I have been slightly in love with Caron Wheeler since I was 10. Partly because she has an amazing voice, partly because she is beautiful and partly because at the grand old age of 10 I realised she was 'larger' aka normal sized compared to every other female singer I saw on Going Live! on a Saturday morning. Sad but true. As a ahem 'well developed' 10 year old (being the first girl in middle school to get a bra, the necessary boobs and hips is not fun) I had already well and truly absorbed the 'skinny is sexy' message.

If I wanted to do cookie cutter philosophy I might say that after 7 months it feels like my life is starting again but that is not strictly true so I won't. I am taking on more parental responsibility but the rest of my life is up in the air. I am trying to get it on track but emails and the odd phone call aren't being returned.

I see my ortho surgeon tomorrow and fully expect him to discharge me with a sympathetic shrug, the fookedfoot isn't constantly painful so that I suspect is that. I am hoping the Brain Injury Unit can get answers from the hospital about my leaky skull. Despite my best efforts the guy helping me appeal the DLA decision has still not got back to me and I think our time is up on that one. AND my children refuse to eat courgette muffins despite them tasting amazing because they can see the courgette....

I made it to the Fat Cat earlier in the week and had a pint or two of shandy in the late afternoon sun. I can't remember when I was last in the pub in the afternoon!

It was good fun. Lin, Phil and I chatted and laughed and he left with a book on Goldfish care. We talked about lots of things good and bad. I said this bit was actually much harder than continuing to breathe. But I have also always known I am lucky in the friends I have. They listen sometimes, they poke me with sticks to make me more stoic, they tell me what I need to hear or they keep quiet until I come to the realisation myself.

So sorry Chris but I have had Tubthumping by Chumbawamna in my head too.

(The truth is, I thought it mattered)
(I thought that music mattered.)
(But does it? Bollocks! Not compared to how people matter)

(We'll be singing, when we're winning, we'll be singing)

I get knocked down, but I get up again
You nay ever gonna keep me down

2011-09-08T09:43:00.000+01:00

The view from my hospital bed

Anyone who endures my company on facebook will know I was in hospital from Monday night to last night. I had a monumental headache, a migraine I thought on Sunday and went to my GP on Monday hoping for some appropriate pain relief.

I mentioned that as well as the pain and vomiting I also felt like I had fluid coming down my nose. She got worried because back in late March that was thought to be water on my brain leaking down my nose.

She called the hospital, they called me and off I went for a CT scan.

Only I had the CT scan and then spent 2 days trying to leave. They said the CT scan was fine and so were my blood tests but I wouldn't agree to a lumber puncture (mostly on OI grounds) and they kept telling me that I could leave but if I was leaking from my brain I could get meningitis. Even the smallest gap was all it would take and I could die. Course if that was what I wanted.....

Yesterday, finally realising I wasn't going to be intimidated into agreeing to the lumber and explaining for the millionth time that I wasn't being obstructive they decided to do a fine cut scan which looks at each layer of bone. In my head I picture a 3D Puzzle of a brain. This doctor says they will do it and if there is a gap and I insist on leaving they will give me antibiotics for meningitis to take in case I do get it so I 'have a shot.'

After being promised they will come back it takes around 6 hours but eventually a doctor does appear to tell me there is a gap and I am leaking brain fluid.

I go slightly cold. Inside I am still chanting 'no it is just a migraine, JUST A MIGRAINE'. What does it mean I ask? Well depending on the size it might need patching. Patching, so presumably another procedure near my brain then? Well it turns out she doesn't know the size so no idea what happens next.

Half an hour later a nurse tells me I can go. Here is some apparatus to catch the fluid if I start leaking again and we will see you in clinic. Bye. Hang on, so I do have the thing you told me could mean instant doom and now you let me go?

So happy I am home? Yes, of course. Confused as to what the hell is up with me - if anything and what that means in terms of treatment - if anything? Absolutely!

Celebrate

2011-09-05T07:48:00.000+01:00

5th September 1946 - 24th November 1991

Today it seems appropriate to share one of my favourite tracks of all times sung by one Mr Larry Lurex.

This is one of my top 10 all time songs (several of the other 9 change). The few weeks I couldn't bare to listen to music where confusing and scary to someone for whom music is such a huge part of life and identity. This song was the reason I wanted a very small tattoo of a musical note near my ear. For all the other people I have been since I was very small, for all the changes I have been through, being a music lover and Queen and Freddie fan has never changed and only got ever more deeply ingrained.

Happy Birthday

I can hear you calling me through the airwaves

2011-09-02T12:39:00.001+01:00

I have read (and enjoyed) the memoir of Pauline Black, lead singer and light of the 2-tone movement. As I was washing my hair the other morning I found myself humming a certain radio related Selector tune and in 10 seconds flat (impressive huh?) had come up with 4 other radio related songs and thus this top 5 comes straight from the radio waves of my mind to you...

The Selecter
On My Radio
Reached No 8 in the UK Charts in 1980
It could have been 3 Minute Hero too but this is the one stuck in my head. It is fast and frantic and like a lot of 2-tone stuff, the live version I have is even shorter and punchier. It's almost as if there is a battle within the band of who can finish first.
Another featured on the epic GCSE revision mix tape of 1995... If only I'd absorbed more science and pogoed less eh? Actually maybe not.
The song was well received and garnered a lot of radio play which is ironic for a song critical of radio not playing the 'new music'. The Selecter toured with Madness and The Specials and all 3 graced 1 episode of Top Of The Pops, I did have that somewhere......

Rush
The Spirit Of Radio
Reached No 13 in the UK Chart in 1980

What is this? A Rush track short enough to be listened too on it's own? Without the need to listen to the entire album that spawned it? O I love prog rock, in smallish doses. I have a great affection for Rush even if they do occasionally make me think of Spinal Tap. They are consummate showmen and look at all those guitars and drums!

The Buggles
Video Killed The Radio Star
Reached No 1 in the UK Charts in 1979

The first video played on MTV on August 1st 1981. Ironic no? A perfect pop song. The first time I heard it was huddled under the blankets at my fathers house with my contraband radio turned down as low as possible and pressed to my ear. The mental images it created were of old glamorous, movie stars that were as perfect as marble statues and puppets of their studios toppling the humble radio from the hearts of the world. Radio was so old fashioned and boring, films are where it's at.

The video was just a little bit different...

Luckily Trevor Horns vision has never quite come true. Anyone who is anyone knows there is more quality stuff being pumped out on Radio 4 that most cable channels combined. There is a music station for every mood.

Latin Quarter
Radio Africa
Reached No 19 in the UK Charts in 1986
10 years after he was with his band on Top Of The Pops, Mike Jones of Latin Quarter was teaching a bunch of smart arsed kids media in a Sheffield College. O we were dicks about the fact he had been in a band and mocked him endlessly about it. We proclaimed ourselves the Latin Quarter Fan Club - 7 members worldwide. O how we laughed. O what stupid, egotistical idiots we were.

Putting aside just for 1 moment the fact that Latin Quarter were a politically aware band who also happened to be talented musicians, he had been on Top Of The Pops... TOP OF THE FRIGGIN POPS! Hello? We were on a media course, we were all going to be the next big things of some description but hell, let's not let us bother listening to a guy who has experience of the music industry from the inside eh? O no, no NO lets just carry on making stupid sheep jokes because he is Welsh yes?

Latin Quarter are back together and working on a new album for release next year. Good news indeed but sad that so many of their songs are still as relevant now as they were then.

Queen
Radio GaGa
Reached No 2 in the UK Charts in 1984
But of course this was going to be here. I decided against the Metropollis themed video, great as it is, for one of my all time favourite TV moments. The one where Freddie Mercury holds the world in his hands, changes the course of the bands career and charges round that stage in the height of fitness. Live Aid. There are no self indulgent band fracturing swan offs into the audience al la Bono. There is just pitch and professional perfection, not a hint of nerves just the self possession we expect of our rock gods.

All 4 of them nail the song perfectly and the sea of hands doing a little clap and punch back with them still makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up and my eyes prickle. Then he gets Wembley to do opera scales along with him. I watched this (silently under pain of death thanks to my big brother) when I was 5 and even then I knew this was something pretty amazing.

Full Moon Fever

2011-08-25T14:25:00.000+01:00

It is sunny today and sort of still.

I walked to Meadowhell and back listening to Tom Petty's first solo album, 1989's Full Moon Fever. I bought it for one track and fell in love with the whole album.

This isn't a top 5, just a couple of tracks that are stuck in my head!

Free Fallin'

I originally bought it because I love Free Fallin' so much. It was getting pretty heavy rotation on VH1 sometime around 1994 or 1995.

There is something of a surrender to the past, to the future, to roots and too the unknown. It felt apt then and feels apt now.

Runnin' Down A Dream

Del Shannon references and a video directed by Jim Lenahan. This is the opposite of Free Fallin', a much more energetic and very slightly hysteria edged riff. The video shows confusion and not nightmares exactly but maybe vivid dreams.

Ad Libbed: 2011 - A Year In Books

2011-08-25T11:28:00.000+01:00

The book page has been updated. Just over 3 months left, I am expecting the page to break everytime I update it now. She canna take no more Capt'in.......

Ad Libbed: 2011 - A Year In Books: For a year I will try and keep a log of every book I read because I like books and I like lists. 25th August 2011 I don't normally inc...

A Little Late... Like The Lady Herself

2011-08-24T13:19:00.001+01:00

It seems I must unflounce off into the NeverNever. My friends have told me (in a lovely supportive way) that to close the blog is silly, they like reading it and I should carry on.
So I may have over reacted a little bit. The combination of a serious brain injury, a difficult double anniversary, lack of sleep and pain may have clouded my judgement.

Luckily for me, my lovely friend Phil managed to catch the post below before I deleted it and since I worked so hard to write it I will post it. A couple of days late is fitting for the girl who brazened out 10 whole days extra in utero after all.

And my last word on the subject of abusive comments. By all means disagree with me on my music choices, tell me what I forgot to include and argue the merits of your choices. But don't try and tell me how it feels to have survived a SAH or how I should deal with this new and still unfamiliar landscape I find myself in. If I don't respond in the manner you find appropriate then maybe bear in mind I am different and will live with the brain damage I sustained in February for the rest of my life. Don't assume, don't attribute your motives to me and don't think that because I choose to face this latest challenge with humour I am flippant.

I have lost the life I had upto 8.55pm on the 21st February but in many ways my life is much richer. I don't blog the darkest stuff, I talk to those I love and that love me then just because it's not here doesn't mean I don't feel it.

OK and we are done. Now to the music and the smallest (just) daughter...

On Monday my youngest daughter turned 4 and just like her sister deserves
her own top 5 to celebrate the occasion.

Dream A Little Dream Of Me
Mama Cass
Always my lullaby of choice. There was a period probably totally 18
months of Mirries life when I seemed to be singing this on a permanent
loop (sometimes with the odd verse of 'Leaving On A Jet Plane' thrown
in to mix it up) in vain attempts to get Mirrie to calm down and/or
sleep. For a long time Mirrie struggled, when she was awake she was
mostly screaming, headbutting me or the floor, biting and being
generally miserable, bruised and bloody. All night every night she
would scream (I suspect she had an ongoing and pretty bad headache)
and was unable to settle.

It would take hours, we would be beyond tears or anger, just washed
out from it all and finally she would give in and fall asleep while I
stroked her hair and sang to her.

Sweet Child O Mine
Guns & Roses
She's got eyes of the bluest skies/ As if they thought of rain/ I hate
to look into those eyes/ And see an ounce of pain/ Her hair reminds me
of a warm safe place / Where as a child I'd hide /And pray for the
thunder /And the rain /To quietly pass me by

Parenting Mirrie through her 'problems' was hard, lonely, confusing
and all consuming and yet we never stopped loving her. Of all the
tough parenting times I faced this was one of the most valuable if
difficult lessons. Yes, dear god, I wished she stop for all our sakes
but I sat there while she went pompii all over me because it never
occurred to me or her Daddy to be anywhere else.

Then we decided to start putting her in our bed to sleep. It took
less than a week and the toddler who didn't even respond to medically
supervised sedation slept. Because she slept she woke up smiling,
because of that she stopped the Linda Blair style tantrums. Just like
that. She is now generally much more laid back than her sister,
placid and none confrontational to the extent that I wish she would
stand her ground more at playtime.

The Pretender
The Foo Fighters

Once the headbanging hell had come to an end, her Father decided it
was time to expand her musical horizons. He started with this and we
were straight back to the head banging but this time of the
constructive metaller type. Devil horns and hair clouds a plenty.
Top choice of song too, my favourite FF's track without doubt and I am
gutted I can no longer join in properly having neither the ability to
throw my head about or the hair required.

Monster
The Automatic
Mirrie loved this song, possibly because originally I changed the
lyrics to 'what's that coming over the hill/ Is it a Roooobarb? Is it
a ROOOOBARB? and then found it 'worked' quite well with 'a Mirrie' in
the same place. Also she dances like the aforementioned monster, well
like that crossed with a rabid Bee Gee.

The original video is very funny but as I can only link and not embed
I shall share this outstanding reinterpretation too. Also, small
people headbanging? How apt....

She
Elvis CostelloShe/ May be the song that summer sings/ May be the chill that autumn
brings/ May be a hundred different things/ Within the measure of a
day.
This is my song for Mirrie, because with her sister: She/ May be the
reason I survive/ The why and wherefore I'm alive/ The one I'll care
for through the rough in ready years/ Me/ I'll take her laughter and
her tears/ And make them all my souvenirs/ For where she goes I've got
to be/ The meaning of my life is /She

Having experienced the real fear that I may never see my children
again (and that is a kind of pain even I can't make glib quips todistract from) I know the truth for me in those lyrics.

This is my daughter Mirrie. She is 4 today. She is stubborn, verbose
from birth and painfully accurate in her observations. She has her
mothers eyes, her fathers eyelashes and dimples. She pouts often but
laughs more - and believe me she has a dirty laugh. She's been
through a lot in 4 years and taught me a lot too. She smells like
cuddles, she is my girl and she rocks.

2011-08-22T15:48:00.000+01:00

6 months ago today I had 7 hours of brain surgery and it saved my life.
4 years ago today I gave birth to a beautiful, clever and imaginative girl called Mirrie.

I had spent several hours writing a blog post in Mirries honour, most blog posts take me quite a long time to write. The brain damage, confusion, forgetfulness, headaches, visual disturbances etc make it more difficult some times than others. But I have kept writing this blog right from the very early days of my recovery because it helped me organise my thoughts, say thank you, talk about music I love and try and make sense of this new life I have been given.

However it seems I am too self absorbed, too flippant. I am not sorry enough for those that didn't beat the odds. Despite coming so close to dying myself, losing and grieving friends, the way I choose to deal with this is offensive to strangers I presumably have never met. I don't know for certain as they don't choose to put their names to their comments.

I am sorry me being me is offensive to you.

I accidentally deleted the post in honour of my daughter because I was so upset but now I see maybe that is a good thing. I wouldn't want to post that and have her subjected to the same abusive messages.

So for now, you win. I don't feel emotionally robust enough to deal with this and I certainly don't intend to open up my children to ridicule too. I may re-open my blog again in the future but for now it is closed,

It's all about me....

2011-08-15T08:21:00.000+01:00

It's my birthday. I'm 32. I made it to this birthday, no mean feet you might say. I never thought I'd be so pleased to see any birthday post about 27 but it seems pretty petty to whinge about a mere number when I am actually just pleased to be alive!

I thought long and hard what top 5 I could post today. The birthday theme got as far as Altered Images and Stevie Wonder and hit a brick wall. I pondered posting this top 5 for a while. It appeared in my inbox on the 25th of May, unexpected but hugely appreciated. It is from my husband Chris, it made me as close to a full of bawl as I am capable of, it might make you a bit tearful too.

Anyway I debated posted something so personal but it's like one of those fabulous presents you really want to show everyone because it is just so special. He has written me numerous love letters over the years and he said this one was OK to share..

The You & Me Song - Wannadie

Yes, a pretty obvious choice. But it is one of the first songs we liked together and for a while it was 'our song' (is it still our song?). I think we both liked the line "stay in and watch TV/Until we fall asleep/Not very exciting..." I remember thinking that would be nice, to be so comfortable together that we could just do that and not in a boring way. And now look at us... Love you.

Into My Arms - Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

I like the sentiment in this song, and it's always felt appropriate for us (even if the video is mostly of people crying). I remember sticking it on your Facebook years ago and I put the lyrics in our first wedding anniversary card. It's a very peaceful song, too.

Sneaker Pimps - 6 Underground

This could have been any song my Morcheeba - it would have had the same effect! Those first weeks when we were getting to know each other were amazing and still makes me smile - staying at yours until 3am, watching Monty Python and strange films with beach balls. Listening to your fiber optic lamp (with which you first seduced me!) and with Sneaker Pimps on constant replay all night long. It's almost funny looking back now, but at the time I had no idea what I was doing (not entirely sure you did either!) but it was definitely fun finding out.

She Is Suffering - Manic Street Preachers

For some reason I associated this song with you a while before we properly met, and certainly before we started going out (so I was probably still in your phone as 'Hutchingson' if I was even in it at all). Anyway, I was talking to Becky about you, I think it was a bit after you'd seriously messed up your head. She'd told me that you were being bothered by some ex-boyfriends and that you had these guys following your around everywhere or something. And I found myself thinking of this song ("beauty is such a terrible thing").I still find it odd that I had song for you, even though I'd only met you once or twice back then, and didn't know you well enough to 'fancy' you even. But I'd asked Becky about you so it's obvious that you were on my mind right from the very first moment.

Candy - Paulo Nutini

You know I've still not listened to this song since your haemorrhage. It's the song I link to that night - we'd been talking about it before I left the house, I think because it was on your list of funeral songs. I listened to it on the bus into town about 3 or 4 times and it was probably still going through my head when you rang me up, and when I sat on what felt like the longest bus journey ever, and when I ran from the bus stop to the front door, and for the 5 hours afterwards.I know the line, "I'll be there, waiting for you" was going round and round while I was waiting for news - it gave me some comfort thinking that if the worst happened then I would see you again one day, eventually. But I think it's going to make me sad every time I hear it now.

He is a lovely, lovely man.
And since it is my birthday maybe you will permit me a soppy PS of my own

and also

Olympfit: Oh for shame....

2011-08-14T13:04:00.000+01:00

Ouch!

Olympfit: Oh for shame....: "Lets just cut to the chase, this week I have been slack. I have done no cycling again and only got readings for walking from 2 days. I kno..."

We Are Party People

2011-08-14T09:31:00.001+01:00

As it is my birthday on Monday, the partying was done this weekend.

Since drunken clubbing till 3am is neither possible or enticing. I chose instead to spend the day having a picnic in clumber park so that my children and those of a select few could enjoy it too. Later it was a grown ups only bbq at Chez Lin&Paul.

What we did was secondary to the people who were there. I only wanted my closest friends (who could reasonably attend, there were honorary bangers consumed by me in honour of El, Toni,Tata, Zoe, Tom and Ellie) there. The people who have been there for me, Chris and the girls through all this crap. Not just because they have been so fantastic at looking after me but because more importantly I've realised how special they are to me too. Near death experiences are meant to giving you an epiphany of some kind as a consolation prize for all the crap they also bring. I think mine was something along the lines of 'don't sweat the small stuff, quit the drama lamas, the friends that are really your friends are worth all the time and energy on earth, the others are not so stop expanding energy where it's not accepted or respected.' I considered getting that tattooed somewhere and then I reconsidered it....

ANYWAY

So today's top 5 is ultimate seriously random party tunes because a) I love them and b) they defy any other description and c) if you don't at least shuffle a bit in your seat when you play them you are way more abnormal than me....

Too Many Dicks On The Dance Floor
Flight OF The Conchords

Disco Inferno
The Trammps
Get you flares on and groove like its 1976 (or 1978, depends if it took the success of Saturday Night Fever for you to love it).

Tribute
Tenacious D
Jack Black, Kyle, demon, win

Love Rollercoaster
Red Hot Chilli Peppers
Beaves and Butthead AND animated Flea? O yes thankyouplease. It is the coolest Messers B and B ever got.

Roam
The B52's
I know normally if you say The B52's most people say 'Love Shack' (or 'Rock Lobster' if they are trying to show off, o.. wait....) and I have certainly spent nights wailing 'TIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIN ROOOOOOF.... RUSTY' more times than I care to mention. But this is actually a better song and video. It is 1990 American alternativebutnot distilled into 4 minutes.
Take it hip to hip rocking through the wilderness....

Thank you everyone who made this weekend so special, it was just what I wanted :-)

Freaky Friday

2011-08-12T17:36:00.000+01:00

After writing about Mondays on Monday I debated writing a day themed post every day this week. But once I started I realised 5 songs I liked with the relevant day in the title was going to be pushing it.

Friday doesn't suffer from this problem and this Friday in particular deserves to be celebrated. It's the start of my birthday weekend! Today the girls, Chris, Mum2 and I have walked miles around the Yorkshire Sculpture Park and tomorrow it is a day of picnics and bbqs with my closest friends. On Monday I make it to the grand old age of 32!

All that matters to me this weekend is celebrating with the people who have been there for me, looked after me, put their own upset and fear to one side when they came to see me and I was a battered incomprehensible wreak and THEN told me I could pull off no hair and a big scar no problems. The same people who have taken me here, there and everywhere, hugged me when I needed it, poked me if I attempted excessive stoicism and prodded me if I was in danger of disappearing into my own navel.

Not everyone I'd love to be there can make it but they know who they are and that I will be eating burgers in their honour (while everyone else gets a bit sozzled in mine)

In a total break with tradition we are going with a top 3. There are other Friday songs available but these are the 3 I really love which seems much more honest than 3 I love and 2 fillers including Lindsey Lohan I am sure you will agree....

Friday Night Saturday Morning
The Specials
I am sure I mentioned before that I revised for my GCSE's on an exercise bike whilst listening to a Q free complilation tape featuring amongst other The Specials. Then I went and splashed out on an entire album of their work (once I had bought all the Madness album).
(I also now have Saturday Night, Sunday Morning in my head by Madness, which is a natural follow on.)

She Left Me On Friday
Shed Seven
Yay for more computer karaoke! Altogether now 'SHE LEFT ME ON FRIIIIDAY AND RUINED MY WEEEEEEEEEEEKEND'....
This (along with other songs like 'No Other Way' by Blur and 'Jailbird' by Primal Scream) were played nice and loudly while me and best friend Zoe prepared for another night of drunken fresher mayhem.

I miss you Zoe.
I don't miss hangovers.

Friday I'm In Love
The Cure
This song is far FAR harder than you expect if you try and preform it on Lips... Not as hard as 'Kiss From A Rose' eh Becky? Still it is much more involved than foppishly flopping around proclaiming ones self to be in love..

Emotionally Motivated Outpouring?

2011-08-11T12:34:00.000+01:00

Ah 'emo', it gets mocked and knocked (quite often by me as much as anyone else)

I googled 'emo girl' for an illustrative image. I didn't know whether I was more horrified or slightly jealous of the hair colours.

Thing is there are a lot of songs I hear dismissed as emo not so much because they deal with themes of pain, isolation and a lack of understanding from a cruel world but because teenagers and the terminally miserable play them repeatedly (usually at 2am, slightly sozzled and chain smoking).

The thing is the reason they get chosen as anthems of pain, fear, drunkeness etc is in no small part just because they are good. So slam your bedroom door, proclaim loudly that no one in the world understands you and then play loudly and pointedly at life in general.

Boulevard Of Broken Dreams
Green Day
Reached No 5 in the UK Charts in 2004
I walk alone? Broken dreams? Heavy eyelinner? Checkerty check. Also I have to sneak in the mash up featuring Green Day V Oasis V Travis V Aerosmith 'Boulevard Of Broken Strings' because it is my new favourite mash-up.

Weak
Skunk Anansie
Reached No 20 in the UK Charts in 1996
Rod Stewart covered this. Sweet baby J....

You Oughta Know
Alanis Morissette
Reached No 22 in the UK Charts in 1995
The first cut is the deepest huh? I just realised most of these were released when I was 16 or 17. God I am so predictable sometimes I bore myself.
ANYWAY
Much more satisfying to spit this out between swigs of wine when your heart is broken than 'All By Myself'. Bridget Jones would have had more balls if she had replaced Eric Carmen with Ms Morissette...

Hope Street
Levellers
Reached No 2 in the UK Charts in 1995
Heavy guitar riff into and chorus to smack pillows to, mournful strings and verses describing the utter hopelessness felt by a disenfranchised youth and an older generation that had its jobs and dignity systematically stripped over the proceeding couple of decades. Or at least that is what I was seeing where I lived.
Every day I look at you/ Dressed up in your ties of blue/ Saying there's not much that you can do/ To help the kids on Hope Street/ You don't seem to even care/ That it was you that put them there/ Seem to think they like it there/ Hangin' out on Hope Street.

Wide Open Space
Mansun
Reached No 15 in the UK Charts in 1996
I love this song so much. It wrote my dissertation for me in the end. It is soaked in too much angst, vodka and fag ends for me to listen to it (or the fabulous Attack Of The Grey Lanterns) much these days. Of all the stories which made up my eventual anthology the one inspired by this of an emo girl, a devilish demon and a hellish night club which may or may not have been modelled on the Corp night club is my favourite. I didn't see the video(s) until at least 2 years later and the underlying themes I used are evident there in spades, my vision involved more blood though....

Glory Days

2011-08-10T13:18:00.000+01:00

The Boss has been stuck in my head for days. I once read a book in school about a kid who deals with all the problems being a teenager brings by writing to Bruce Springsteen, I must see if I can track that down. I already have one in a similar vein but the letters are written to David Bowie. I guess I missed the boat writing my own epic where I deal with my life by writing to Suggs.....

Ah well.

Back in the dim and distant past I may or may not have strutted round my bedroom to this whilst playing a class of zebra stripped air guitar on it's own, with my shirt sleeves rolled up and the worlds tightest fitting jeans, spitting this out with my very own bandaned muppet version of the E Street Band....

I have never been so pleased to be approaching a birthday as I am right now. I always said I was going to be much better at being in my 30's than I was at my teens and 20's. I would have been mighty pissed if after all those years of waiting I'd only got an 18 month crack at it. So putting all the difficulties aside for a moment, these are my glory days. 6 days after my birthday I'll be 6 months post hem and the day after 6 months post brain surgery.

I am slowly making peace with the fact that the pre me is gone and accepting and maybe celebrating the fact that the post me is here. This is going to be a bigger and steeper uphill challenge than I realised but it isn't insurmountable because I can still kick ass and take names (and then hide behind my friends). This time I will pay attention to the good stuff when it is happening and not wait until long after the fact to recognise the glory days. I don't play baseball Bruce but I can still hit a home run....

With This Conchords You Are Really Spoiling Us

2011-08-10T09:22:00.000+01:00

I am slightly in love with Brett and Jemaine. Partly because they are very funny and mostly because they manage to sing songs that are not only very accurate parodies but damn fine tunes in their own right. But I am not some curly haired, love sick stalker married to the phyco cop from Damages. Just saying.

Because I am an amazing wife I bought Chris a couple of their CDs and not at all so I could out them on my i-pod. No siree bob....

Anyway after days of rioting, looting and lunacy (by other people not me) I thought some cheering up may be in order..

Carole Brown (Choir Of Ex Girlfriends)
Who organised all my ex-girlfriends into a choir and got them to sing?

Mutha Uckers
There are indeed too many mutha'uckas 'Uckin' with my shi' There's too many mutha'uckas 'Uckin' with my shi'

Business Time
My husband choosing to come to bed with his socks on has taken on a whole new meaning...

Frodo
If Lord Of The Rings was more like this (and not 12 hours long in total) I would like it far far more. Seriously, 4 hours per film? And I get crap for liking Twilight? The balance of suffering comes down in my 'favour' I think.

Hurt Feelings
It is serious and heart felt man. No one compliments my meals either *sobs* *lying*

It's that time of the week already....

2011-08-08T10:00:00.000+01:00

Monday, it gets such a hard time. I woke up with the first of my top 5 in my head and I am not in a bad/love lorn/ depressive state. While I laid there for the unexpected but very welcome 5 whole minutes of silence, I was awarded this morning I considered doing a countdown but without the usual Mama and Papas, Boomtown Rats or New Order crooning to accompany it, which isn't to say without 1 or 2 of the usual Monday tracks.... variety is the spice of life and all that...

Rainy Days And Mondays
The Carpenters
Released No 2 in the US in 1971 and reached No 63 in UK Charts on reissue in 1993
Appropriate as it is both Monday and a rainy day however neither of these things taken separately or together is enough to get me down. Well, unless I am in an emoesk mood where I can find something to upset me before I have even properly woken up of course.....

Monday, Monday
Wilson Philips
2004
It is tempting to refer to Wilson Philips as the Mama and Papas lite but that is just lazy so I won't. Their parents recorded one of their finest, grammy award winning songs complete with call and return, false ending and recognisable songs 2 or 3 years before the members of Wilson Philips were born so I suspect this song was probably genetically encoded in their DNA. This is the acapella edit, I didn't originally like it much (it sounds ever so slightly auto tuned to me) but it grew on me because the fact the lyrics sound so different from the original is the whole point.

I Don't Like Monday's
Tori Amos
2001
One of my favourite West Wing double episodes is 20 hours in America Parts 1 & 2. In the first the story behind the original song is told and in the second this version performed by Tori Amos is featured. (It is beaten into second place behind CJ, her agent and 'Hallelujah' by Jeff Buckley) I love the Strange Little Girls concept, covers of songs reinterpreted from a female stand point almost as much as I love Tori Amos (and The West Wing) for straight forwardly existing.

Blue Monday
Fats Domino
1957
Ah Mr Domino, the lyrics are all about how crap Monday is, what a ballache working all week is and how fantabulous Saturday is by comparison and yet its sung to a tune that is so damn happy you almost forget this is a mournful lament (nearly)

New Moon On Monday
Duran Duran
Reached No 10 in the UK Charts in 1984
You can't beat the New Romantics when you need some dramatic wailing and flamboyant video action to accompany it (there is a 17 minute 'movie' version of this little beauty). According to Wiki and Andy Taylor the whole band hate the video, especially the little communal grove they all have at the end. What a bunch of killjoys! They don't look in the slightest bit out of synch or painfully uncomfortable. Belt out one round of the chorus and Monday will automatically seem much better. Come on altogether now...
I light my torch and wave it for the/ New moon on Monday/ And a firedance through the night/ I stayed the cold day with a lonely satellite

Have a good day :-)

Olympfit: Week 2

2011-08-07T13:29:00.000+01:00

The second weeks update for Olympfit is up. There is excuses, Garfield and photos.....

Olympfit: Week 2: "O this week has been shit for many and varied reasons. And I will tell you right now I have not done as well as I would have liked on my..."

Thank you for the days

2011-08-06T20:29:00.000+01:00

Today started off just shite, the appropriate end to a mostly shite week, I could tell you why but my blood pressure just came down so maybe another time.

With the help of my best friend Linda and my children I had a good day at last. After rehoming lots and lots of books in Oxfam we went to Millhouses Park. Did the girls listen when spoken too? Not so much but in a wide open space with not too many others around it didn't matter so much (except when trying to prevent them falling in the river). They had a picnic, played with their bubble swords (both thanks to Auntie Lin), they ran around, picked daisys and got to row their own pirate ship across the boating pond. Had Lin not been there I don't think I could have let them go out on the seven seas alone knee deep water or no. They climbed up and down an assault course more than once and ran about. They acted like carefree kids, tiring but bloody nice.

We wondered the length of the park and back missing all the crowds and being rewarded after a few rain drops with bright sunshine. I came to a decision and acceptance or two, felt like the girls mum a bit more than I did on Tuesday night and now a little more like myself.

Collecting more raw product having pressed Auntie Lin into sweat shop style labour providing daisy chains, bracelets, hair decoration, crowns...

Mirrie's new pet, he crawled around her for quite a while

Yar Me Hearties! You had to be there, they tried to direct the boat with a force of will and ear blistering level of shouting, sometimes their swords as paddles and occasionally using the handles connected to the paddles...

Blame It On The Weatherman

2011-08-05T20:50:00.000+01:00

Over on her blog Ruth has been pondering who has the best weather related songs and which type of weather wins overall in the cool song steaks.
So here are my all my weather choices, random and off the top of my head but rearranged slightly as I call it a clear win for RAIN:

Rain comes in with a controversial 6 picks:

So near and not so sunny, sunshine gives us 5

Hurricanes are 2 for 2:

A lack of sun combined with storms gives us 3:

Bushed

2011-08-05T13:57:00.000+01:00

It has been a hard week. Somebody far clever (and 5 and half years further on in her SAH journey) wrote that she tried to compare herself to the person who came out of hospital to monitor her progress, not the person she was before. Wise words indeed.

I tried to go to Meadowhall again last night on my own to meet Lin and I just couldn't do it. I managed the walk OK but couldn't really handle being inside the temple of mammon. Too hot, too much noise, too many people. I had got there early on purpose to shop and instead found a seat outside, cooler and calmer I watched the world go by. I was a bit bemused when Lin arrived to realise I had been sat there for half an hour. I'd been listening to my i-pod, specifically Kate Bush and constructed this blog post.

So I bring you a fabulous Friday top 5 Kate Bush tracks

Wuthering Height
Reached No 1 in the UK Charts in 1978
Bad dreams in the night/They told me I was going to lose the fight

Can't have a Kate Bush countdown without it. It does remind me of the hellish Wuthering Heights unit I had to complete in college which involved watching all 3 film versions and writing about how they all differed in their interpretation. Beyond Timothy Daltons dastardly Heathcliffes most fabulous and romantic 'fancy a tumble?' line, the rest has been blessedly purged from my memory.

The first version of this song I owned was on The Best Of Top Of The Pops 78 on which the current top pop picks of the day were re recorded in a toilet by smirfs. Still I loved it even if the squeaky and shrill vocals took away somewhat from the drama of the original.

Just before I started Uni I was on a camping holiday somewhere in Wales. It was far too foggy to see a foot in front of us never mind where we were on the map. We were bellowing out alternative lyrics, they involved cream, grease and bras and someone called Malcom I seem to remember. When a slightly traumatised group of boy scouts suddenly appeared from the fog we quickly shut up.

For a change I went for the 'red dress' US video, not least because everytime we talked about the birth of video effects at college the 'white dress' UK version was quoted. They got the trail effect by filming a TV playing the original footage of Bush dancing apparently...

Rubberband Girl
Reached No 12 in the UK Charts in 1993

A rubberband bouncing back to life/ A rubberband bend the beat/ If I could learn to give like a rubberband/ I'd be back on my feet

In 1993 I was 14 and a week or so after my birthday I decided I had reached the end of my tether where my father was concerned and left home. Within 6 months I had 2 jobs to feed myself and was in the process of getting myself back into formal education which he had removed me from 2 years before. This was getting heavy rotation on Hallam Fm, particularly late at night and I wasn't sleeping. Feeling like a rubberband being pulled in all directions was accurate but already old news.

I love the dance moves in the video, it is almost hypnotic and relaxing to watch. She ends up in a straight jacket...

Cloudbusting
Reached No 20 in the UK Charts in 1985

But every time it rains/ You're here in my head/ Like the sun coming out/ Ooh, I just know that something good is gonna happen/ And I don't know when/ But just saying it could even make it happen.

I love watching clouds, I was doing it last night and this was the first track to come on putting the whole blog post in motion. It has optimism and provided a great hook as utilised by Utah Saints. And ignore the fact Ms Bush reassembles Ron Weasley - yes that IS Donald Sutherland.

Running Up That Hill (Deal With God)
Reached No 3 in the UK Charts in 1985

It doesn't hurt me/ Do you want to feel how it feels? Do you want to know, know that it doesn't hurt me? Do you want to hear about the deal that I'm making? You, It's you and me/ And if I only could/ I'd make a deal with God/ And I'd get him to swap our places

I could have chosen any of the lyrics or all of the lyrics. I love the spikey venom running through the veins of this song, the total opposite of the I'd do anything for love type vibe. There is anger and energy powering through this song, paced in the heartbeat drum sounds perfectly captured in the video.

When I was 15 and slightly in love with Ms Bush I decided to take advantage of the advert in the back of NME which promised to supply me with her personal address (along with Suggs') so that I might write to her and explain to her just how much she understood me and how totally amazing I thought she was. Writing the perfect fan letter is obviously an art know only to very few. How exactly do you tell a stranger how awesome they are, talented, beautiful, creative and that they really get your soul and stuff. That if only you could meet, you just know they'd be your bestest best friend FOREVA! How to put that down without sounding like a Stan, a creep, a try hard, sad or all of the above? Answer? No idea and we can safely assume that as no fan letter I have ever written has had a response (bar an email to James Denton before he was on Desperate Housewives which he apparently replied too) that I have no idea.

Consellation Of The Heart
From 1993's The Red Shoes Album

I want a full report/ That's it/ What do you mean, "That's it?"/ That's all you get/ You'd better do something 'bout it/ What am I supposed to do about it?/ We don't know, but you can't run away from it/ Maybe you'd better face it/ I can't do that/ C'mon face it!/ I can't do that/ C'mon, c'mon face it/ What am I gonna do?/ It is gonna hurt, it is gonna hurt me bad?

Oh why wasn't this a single? I love me a bit of internal monologue, wrestling with uncomfortable feelings and some call and returning. It doesn't remind me of anything in particular, it is just a great, great song.

Also rans, Babooshka, Hounds Of Love, The Man With The Child In His Eyes, The Red Shoes and Don't Give Up.

Rome Wasn't Built In A Day

2011-08-01T17:15:00.000+01:00

So says my orthopaedic surgeon. We aren't quite where he wanted us to be, or more accurately he can bend my toes/foot using his hand much further than I can using the power of my mind. Healing is going to take a while longer I guess, my body is tired from trying to fix my head for months on end so it makes sense it's taking than longer to get to gripes with a mere foot problem. Add to that the fact I got so tired and flustered I couldn't speak properly for a few minutes. He was kind and patient but I just feel like an idiot. I go blank, brain and mouth stop and the more stressed I get the worse that gets. It makes me feel vulnerable, vulnerable and an idiot.

So, a combination of frustration, pain and bone weariness left me feeling truly crappy earlier (and that was before my Dad called yet again. He refuses to understand the concept that I can't deal with telephones or him). Anyway I had a good chat with a friend, ranted on twitter, pressed the drama button a couple of times and discovered the joy of metal meets Rick Astley and now feel much more mellow though I also have an impressive headache.

Unsurprisingly the Morcheeba track has been stuck in my head ever since Mr Foot uttered the line so I thought I'd share it with you.

Ad Libbed: 2011 - A Year In Books Updated

2011-08-01T09:36:00.000+01:00

Monday again already?

Depending on the verdict from the hospital I might be back later but for now I just wanted to draw your attention to the fact I have updated the book page. Consider your attention drawn....

Ad Libbed: 2011 - A Year In Books: " For a year I will try and keep a log of every book I read because I like books and I like lists. 1st August 2011 I had a massive clear..."

Only The Lonely

2011-07-31T22:20:00.000+01:00

I feel lonely tonight, stupid really as I am so rarely on my own these days. Maybe it would be more accurate to say I am lonely because I miss my old self sometimes. The more self assured and independent one who didn't have to double and triple check anything and everything and STILL end up feeling that somehow, somewhere she'd ballsed something up. I can not shake that feeling tonight and I don't even have the luxury of reassuring myself I am over reacting because I can't be sure I am.....You're not paranoid when they are really after you *rolls eyes, drags gaze away from navel*

ANYWAY. My actual point is that rather than sit her feeling sorry for myself I thought I would make the mood work for me. Like most depressing subjects, there is a wealth of fabulous songs on the topic of loneliness, a veritable laden tree just waiting for me to pick the top 5 plums from....OK not sure where THAT came from......

5 - Carole King
So Far Away
Carole King doesn't ever need an explanation.

4 - Roy Orbison
Only The Lonely
It was very nearly 'Crying' which I love much more than this but I am saving that for a really EMO post :-)

3 - Yes
Owner OF A Lonely Heart
The video is just a bit batshit mad, so it it never fails to cheer me up perversely. There isn't a video that can't be improved by a bit of cold war paranoia....

2 - Del Amitri
Nothing Ever Happens
We'll all be lonely tonight and lonely tomorrow.
Del Amitri are another band who should have been much bigger.

Now before it seems I have totally melted into a puddle of self absored nurotic gloop I should probably remind both of us that tonight is tonight and tomorrow will be tomorrow. I'll have slept by then and regained my equalibrium and either accepted (for the millionth time I think) that my brain is a law unto itself (yes, even more than pre pop) and there is no point fighting it. Besides I don't have to try and make sense of this all on my own, and for that I am very grateful....

1 - Joe Cocker
With A Little Help From My Friends
Brian May on guitar hurrah and Sheffields own Mr Joe Cocker. The first gig I ever went to was to see him play Sheffield Arena. I was 15, I went on my own, I was the youngest there by oooo 30 years minimum and he was just amazing, blew me away.

What would you do if I sang out tune?
Would you turn round and walk out on me?

Well, they haven't yet.

Olympfit: Drum Roll please....or maybe not....

2011-07-31T18:36:00.000+01:00

The week 1 update for the 2x500 mile challenge is up over on...

Olympfit: Drum Roll please....or maybe not....: "So here we are, at the end of week 1. Lise and Helen below have been very honest about where they are in terms of their weight, fitness an..."

Lets Get Quizzical

2011-07-28T09:48:00.000+01:00

So first child free day with Chris. Not sure what the plan for the daytime is (have to wait for him to wake up first, he hasn't really had much in the way of lie in's for a few months) but tonight we are going to our first local Headway event.

It's a quiz night. I figured I'd make the most of the girls being off having fun with grandparents and just go with Chris since it's our first time. I'm not sure what to expect and I am nervous. My loss of words and thoughts is exacerbated by nervousness as much as it is fatigue. Still I figure I couldn't really be in a better place, if I loose the ability to talk or think totally, I know the other people there will understand. I casually explained to a lovely friend of mine earlier in the week that I am brain damaged. It's getting easier to say it, I am not sure it's getting any easier to accept.

I met a couple of other Headway members at the Brain Injury Info event a couple of weeks ago and they were lovely. A couple have children of a similar age to me and the other events for the year planned so far would be suitable to take the girls too as well.

ANYWAY in honour of this momentous (to me) event. I bring you the kerwizzical top 5....... or top 4 with 1 dubious entry...

(The Final) Countdown
Europe

Ok I know but what the hell. Any excuse for this one right? Just me? O well, I still love this one and I am not ashamed. A particularly rodent esq ex friend of mine from uni days once tried to embarrass me by requesting this in my honour in a rock club. Er, hello? For one thing I never get truely embarrassed by my musical peccadilloes and for another have you ever seen this song played in a place where more than 4 people are gathered? It was head banging and air guitar a go-go. (The more I think, the more this should be the song playing at my funeral when the crem curtain drops actually.) ANYWAY it's nearly the weekend, it is sunny (here) so open the window and crank up some Joey Tempest and friends

Who Wants To Be A Millionaire
Frank Sinatra and Celeste Holm

I can feel my Nana shaking her fist somewhere in heaven that I chose something featuring 'that bloody Frank Sinatra' (just you wait till you see the next book page update Mabel *gulp*). I would choose High Society over Chris Tarrants gurning. Would I like to be a millionaire? Probably too much hassle but I would like to never worry about money again....

Wipeout
The Ventures

This is going to be stuck in your head all day now, I'd say I'm sorry but I'm not. I want to be able to play drums like that, I now also have the over whelming urge to track down a Sega Mega Drive and a copy of Cool Spot. Sorry Messers Daniels and Monkhouse but you were never quite as cool and hip swinging (more hip replacement eh Jim?).

Block Buster
Sweet

I still giggle at the words 'can I have a p please Bob'.... yes, yes I know mature. Ah I loved Block Busters, it was one of the very few things my dad would let us watch, well until I beat him one day (I was 10) and he banned me from ever watching it again....

Going For Gold
Shed Seven

Always preferably to Kelly twittering on about who he is. Why weren't Shed Seven bigger? I saw them live and they were brilliant (I am pretty sure it was the same gig where everyone but me thought Symposioum were all kinds of awesome, 'the other' Uni charged us 5p for cups of tap water and Gary from Reef looked right at me when he was singing 'Lay Your Hands On'.. but I digress).

Positively Positive

2011-07-26T18:25:00.000+01:00

I took no painkillers at all yesterday. I spent the afternoon in some random pub I found with my friend and enjoyed good food, no booze and talking about life, the universe and everything. I am in a good mood. My new life is really pretty good.

Plus I have finally decided my favourite Queen song. I remember singing this to my brother when I was 5 and he played this album constantly, to myself whilst attempting (badly) to climb my first tree at 9, while sat crying in a bathroom the first time I had my heart broken at 18, to my first daughter when I was 26 and just wanted her to sleep and this morning when I was 31 and just pleased I managed to walk to the garage and back, buy the stuff I went for and nothing hurt in the 10 whole minutes that took me.

There were a few weeks there when I thought I might not be able to ever tolerate music again and it felt like a huge part of my life might just disappear, but it didn't. This means I can still dance around (in a fashion, not in a way that is in anyway fit for public viewing), sing this song, my song, loudly. I bet next door enjoyed that so much they'll be thrilled with my (relearning with Linda) ukulele concert encore tonight...

You're My Best Friend

2011-07-25T15:48:00.002+01:00

So Monday, looking forward, hoping for a good week and with no children I intend to try taking myself out and doing some stuff on my own, like normal people do.

I have mentioned how wonderful lots of my friends are several times I think. Originally I planned a top 5 songs about friendship but really I could just put-

and we'd be done with it.

I could come up with a song for everyone I know but we'd be here forever. You have sanctimonious status updates to get annoyed about on facebook I need to get cracking towards the 500 miles of walking and another of cycling..

So this top 5 is songs that remind me of my friends regardless of whether the song is about friendship or not.

Step On
Happy Mondays
Reached no 5 in the UK Charts in 1990

One of my closest friends is called Rob, or more accurately Monkey Bob.
This is partly because he is virtually Mancunian (yes yes Glossop I KNOW but it is nearly Manchester) AND he dances like a monkey that's had one too many hash brownies. And somehow for a reason I long forget since we started going to clubs together sometime in 1998 we always danced to this song. I say danced, I mean shuffled around on the spot like zombie monkeys. This song makes me smile everytime I hear it (and nod my head like a doped up dog).

Sweet Home Alabama
Lynyrd Skinner
Released in 1973

I am sure it is just coincidence that a couple of my closest friends now live on the other side of the world. Tata now resides in Nashville but we got to borrow her for a couple of years earlier on this century when she came here to marry Mr Awesome, er I mean Marc and they stayed for a couple of years.

I don't think we exactly ever went in search of trouble but it seemed to just find us, along with hair dye, wine, piercings and bad singing.

For her hen do we went to 'cock rock world' in Manchester and I was the sober responsible one.... Dressed as Tennessee angles with Stetsons, fairy wings and wands (which set off our trainers and combats nicely). ANYWAY so we needed to request a song for her that they might actually play. Alabama was near Tennessee wasn't it? Well hell, America isn't *that* big eh? So then THIS song will be PERFECT, o ooooo guys I have an even better idea - we can LINE DANCE to it - in the middle of a packed rock club!

Yep, so that is what we did -and more than once. We had the DJ in the palm of our hands and he complied. It is possible the crowd surrounding us was too busy being wowed by super strutting to join in, or maybe they were just scared of us but anyway they let us get on with it.

Scooby Snacks
Fun Lovin' Criminals
Reached no 22 in the UK Charts in 1995 and 17 in 1997

Ah Pete, it could be any FLC track really couldn't it? I am sorry this video is the bleeped version. When I was about to give birth to Roo back in icy winter of very early 2006 Pete was both designated Goth Father and hospital driver. Unbeknown to us at the time I did need to get to hospital quite quickly, what I thought at the time was usual labour pains and vomiting was actually the onset of pre-eclampsia and HELLP and within a few hours the staff would be fighting (and succeeding to keep me and Roo alive).

But back to 5am in Pete's car, luckily he was driving like a demon down the most potholed road in Sheffield, I was in the back, holding a bucket, belting out Scooby Snacks (with extra emphasis on the swearing) between upchucks. About 4 years later, for my 30th birthday, Pete (and his lovely wife Caelia and daughter Ada) bought me tickets to see not only Madness at Nottingham but the FLC's too. This meant Pete and I both got to sing along to this one live, right at the front. Not even a lot of rain that day could spoil it.

O and Pete has now interviewed Huey. Twice. Just saying.

I'm Sick
Mark Morriss
Released 2008

A while ago I asked my friends for their song choices for a countdown of brain injury songs and similar. Helen being Helen went one better than a suggestion, she brought me the Memory Muscle album as there were a few songs from it that she thought might fit the bill.

I love the album (and I loved The Rocky Horror Show which she also sent me when I mentioned on twitter one day I hadn't seen it) and wasn't just touched that she went to all that effort for me but also that I found an album I instantly fell in love with (not a frequent occurrence) that I wouldn't have heard otherwise. There is an idea floating around from somewhere that we are friends with the people we have the most in common with. In my experience nothing could be further from the truth. My friends all have different hobbies, apperences, fingerprints and taste in music. That is what makes them interesting.

Tame
Pixies
From Doolittle released in 1989

Tame lasts 1 minute and 55 seconds. It took less than 20 of those to realise the tall, dimply bloke I was dancing with in the old (aka proper) Corp nightclub in December 1999, had a very 'individual' way of dancing. Still it isn't exactly easy for anyone to dance too, especially when you are trying to keep your hair from turning into a giant knot (o I had hair back then- a LOT of hair) neither is it romantic but sod it, I fell in love with him anyway.

There are lots of theories on what makes relationships work, I have no idea if most of them are true all I do know is being married to your best friend seems to work for me. The one who sees all the bits that make up your life (and if you are married to me I fear that will involve more hospitals, bodily fluids you weren't expecting and serious conversations you would frankly rather not have about life insurance etc) and loves you anyway. 'Our' song/s technically do not include this one. But this is me after all. We were never going to have just 1 song were we?

Olympfit: Monday, Monday..

2011-07-25T13:08:00.000+01:00

I have a plan Batman. Olympfit update

Olympfit: Monday, Monday..: "A good enough day to start I feel so here we are. I have decided to combine walking with 'cycling'. When I say 'cycling' I mean this: OK..."

If there's any justice in the world..

2011-07-24T21:52:00.000+01:00

It has been a weird few days with news reports of starvation in Africa, the attacks in Norway a new member of the infamous 27 Club and countless other tragedies, some made the news too and millions more did not.

I have had a few songs floating around in my head. It is Sunday night, it seemed the right time to share but not wallow. I shook my ear worm and this is what fell out.

White Room

Cream

Reached no 28 in UK Charts in 1968

Addiction isn't actually fun. It is telling that finding a decent live version from 1968 is seemingly impossible.

At the party she was kindness in the hard crowd.

Consolation for the old wound now forgotten.
Yellow tigers crouched in jungles in her dark eyes.
She’s just dressing, goodbye windows, tired starlings.
I’ll sleep in this place with the lonely crowd
Lie in the dark where the shadows run from themselves.

Why
Annie Lennox
Reached no 5 in the UK Charts in 1992
It's what everyone always asks and there is never really a satisfactory answer.

Meet On The Ledge
Fairport Convention
Released 1968
I saw Fairport Convention preform this live, it makes me want to cry and smile. If it is a song about confronting death (Richard Thompson wrote it at 17 and had to sing it, as per her will, at his mothers funeral) then it feels to me like a song or acceptance and peace. There is little of either right now.

Is This The World We Created
Queen
From The Works in 1984
Inspired by reports on the famine in Africa that led to Band and Live Aid more than 25 years ago, it is sadly still just as relevant today. How can the world still not be fed?

Shout
Tears For Fears
Reached no 4 in the UK Charts in 1985
In violent times, you shouldn't have to sell your soul
In black and white, they really really ought to know
Those one track minds that took you for a working boy
Kiss them goodbye, you shouldn't have to jump for joy
You shouldn't have to
Shout, shout, let it all out, these are the things I can do without
Come on, I'm talking to you, come on

They gave you life, and in return you gave them hell
As cold as ice, I hope we live to tell the tale
I hope we live to tell the tale

Norway

2011-07-24T09:30:00.000+01:00

I am thinking about the tragedy in Norway too. Last night I tweeted the world feels a very complicated and difficult place to be tonight. Sadness more abundant than happiness, more worry than peace.

I haven't seen much of the news coverage. I am trying not to let the children see other children being gunned down by what seems to be one mad man. So I don't know the why and wherefore. I just know it is a sad, terrifying and pointless act of total destruction.

Learn from my mistake

Leave what others take

Speak when spoken to

And do what others do

Silence always wins

So silence everything

It will be all right

In the morning light

Just silence everything

The 27 Club

2011-07-24T08:45:00.000+01:00

Some of us get to 27 finally able to deal (mostly) with the pain and hurt of life without carving into our skins and livers.
Some of us don't.

14th September 1983 - 23 July 2011

I wish I could say no regrets,

And no emotional debts,

Cause as we kiss goodbye the sun sets

So we are history,

The shadow covers me,

The sky above a blaze that only lovers see