Mr. Nokia goes to Ludlow

What the Nokia made of the trip up the Malverns..

So, the December pay day cd...

Here's how it turned out...

And the playlist?

Obviously just a personal view, and open to criticism. Adele? Well yeah, I haven't got the album but you've got to admit that she's got a cracking voice. It's good to hear someone belting out a tune but not in an x-factor "get as many notes into 3 minutes as you can" mariah carey type emote-athon. And the lyrics to this particular tune? "never mind I'll find someone like you"? Raw stuff. And to stand in the middle of the 02 with just yourself and a piano and sing like this deserves props. Whatever they are.

Anyway. Here is the first in an annual cd best of the year compilation entry. Same time next year? 

The last year of a Christmas tradition (an R.E.M. 'look what came in the post' special)...

Now, I don't know where you'll stand on this one. It is pretty sad case activity, and if you are easily offended by geeky behaviour you had better look away now...

Every year the R.E.M. fan club sends out a fan club only Christmas package. It used to contain a ltd edition 7" vinyl as part of the package but recently its been CDs. Some times they'll go to town and record  some sort of novelty cover version just for the release. Other times they just stick on some live versions of their tunes that haven't been released before. Well, anyway, I joined the fan club back in the nineties (it was acceptable in the nineties, it was acceptable at the time) and have kept up the membership since. It's pretty darn cheap (about 6 quid a year) and for all that they send you it must actually be something the band have to subsidise themselves as everything is posted out from their home town of Athens, Georgia. Due to R.E.M not actually existing anymore, this is the last year of the Christmas package. So here goes with some amateur step by step photography in the traditional style. Regardez......

Ltd. Edition 3510. It's got a nice ring to it, eh? (It's a CD of live tunes, by the way).

You're not my boss. I am your boss.

A winter stroll up to British Camp, Malvern Hills.

More clearing out..

Here is another blatant archiving of guff that I found at home. Here are a selection of programmes from when I used to go along to watch the local team play in the Hampshire league. Usually in a relegation dog fight. There's a vaguely entertaining story to be told of the time I went to see them play an away game on the Isle of Wight, but that's for another time. Here is a typical team sheet. The goalie (Stuart Binfield) lived in our road and I used to play with his brother when I was little. My sister went to school with Karly Cleeve's sister. Dave Stanbrook was the son of the school librarian. Him and Danny Pidduck were tricky wingers if I remember correctly. Pirelli General is a typical team name for this division- lots of the teams were work teams for local factories. I only went to 10 or so games a season, usually when Saints played away from home, back in the day when I used to go to every Saints home game. The ground was 15 mins from where I lived. None of this is of any interest to you. But I have now kicked this photo into the cyberspace cloud and can safely bin the actual programmes. What was I thinking, hanging onto them for so long?

I think this drainpipe may have a leak.

What the...?

In the Hereford Cathedral Close they have these edging stones around the lawns with dates for various events that took place in Hereford. Strolling around there this morning me and ADLP noticed some events THAT HAVEN'T EVEN HAPPENED YET....

The banks are in crisis again. A shot from the Nokia earlier this afternoon...

Espresso and Q.

Nostalgia for those Tiaki days..

Some of these are a little cheesy but....

http://thingsweforget.blogspot.com/

....I quite like a few of them.

December Pay Day CD. Best of the year.

So what's the plan?

11 songs. Released this year. One song per artist. Either individual track greatness or one track picked from a great album. No reissues. No best ofs. No deliberate esoterica- pop is allowed as long as its good.

All compiled, burnt and in the drawer by December pay day? Game on.

Plain helvetica..

Excellent cd sticker-ing by The Black Keys..

Saw this board game in WHSmith the other day. Social stigma around mental health problems you say? Tasteful bit of family fun? Hmm..