Colindale, London, England // 1.06 pm // Mostly clear 6ºc / 43ºf
Saturday, 31 January 2009
Thursday, 29 January 2009
One happy licence fee payer
Colindale, London, England // 5.08 pm // Mostly clear 4ºc / 39ºf
Last night Celtic played Dundee United in the Scottish League Cup semi-final. I knew about the game in advance and it was due to be screened on BBC One Scotland, which I don't have at home. Usually, therefore, I'd go to the Celtic pub in Kilburn, but it wasn't really an option last night as I was due to be in bed by 10pm, and it takes me a good 45 minutes to get to (and from) that pub. So I resigned myself to the fact that I'd just have to listen to it on the radio.
A few minutes before kick-off I had a sudden thought. On Freeview, which is the service that I get my TV from, the BBC has a service called BBC Red Button which is effectively a few video streams "hidden" behind the red button on BBC TV services. I thought I would check it out, just for the very small possibility that those lovely people at the BBC decided to let us ex-pats in England watch the game too. I went to Channel 301, which is one of the streams, and was presented with the most beautiful of sights:
"Coming Next: CIS Insurance Cup Semi Final, Celtic v Dundee United". How happy I was!! I actually couldn't believe it.
So I got to watch the game, although it did disappear a couple of times during extra time and penalties as the game moved from BBC One Scotland to BBC Two Scotland and back again, meaning whoever was in charge of playout at BBC Red Button had to try and keep up! It was one of the best cup ties I've seen for years, really intense towards the end of normal time and throughout extra time. And the penalty shootout was something else! It lasted for ages, over 20 penalties, including goalkeeper vs goalkeeper twice! Thankfully, we won in the end but it meant going to bed a good 45 minutes later than initially planned!
On the way back from work tonight I saw two kids playing kerby in the street. For those that don't know, kerby is when you stand at the opposite sides of a road, and you take turns at trying to bounce a football off of the opposite kerb. Every time you get it, you then stand halfway in the middle of the road and keep doing it until you miss. Every time you hit the kerb, you get a point. So simple but soo much fun. I used to love playing it when I was a kid, and was almost tempted to join in, but quickly decided against it before I was reported as being a "strange man" (!)
So, one of the main things I was looking forward to when I moved to London was going to more gigs, and being able to stay later, not having to rush for the last train back to Reading. Since moving here 6 months ago I have been to this many gigs: 0.
But that will change this weekend, as I'm going (for the first time) to see Talc perform live tomorrow night in Kilburn, followed by Joey Negro and The Sunburst Band at Cargo on Saturday night. I might also be seeing Tremain, a band involving my friend Lee (ex-Kaldera) at indigO2 in a couple of weeks. And then I'm hoping to see Incognito perform at the Camden Centre sometime in, I think, April.
Last night Celtic played Dundee United in the Scottish League Cup semi-final. I knew about the game in advance and it was due to be screened on BBC One Scotland, which I don't have at home. Usually, therefore, I'd go to the Celtic pub in Kilburn, but it wasn't really an option last night as I was due to be in bed by 10pm, and it takes me a good 45 minutes to get to (and from) that pub. So I resigned myself to the fact that I'd just have to listen to it on the radio.
A few minutes before kick-off I had a sudden thought. On Freeview, which is the service that I get my TV from, the BBC has a service called BBC Red Button which is effectively a few video streams "hidden" behind the red button on BBC TV services. I thought I would check it out, just for the very small possibility that those lovely people at the BBC decided to let us ex-pats in England watch the game too. I went to Channel 301, which is one of the streams, and was presented with the most beautiful of sights:
"Coming Next: CIS Insurance Cup Semi Final, Celtic v Dundee United". How happy I was!! I actually couldn't believe it.
So I got to watch the game, although it did disappear a couple of times during extra time and penalties as the game moved from BBC One Scotland to BBC Two Scotland and back again, meaning whoever was in charge of playout at BBC Red Button had to try and keep up! It was one of the best cup ties I've seen for years, really intense towards the end of normal time and throughout extra time. And the penalty shootout was something else! It lasted for ages, over 20 penalties, including goalkeeper vs goalkeeper twice! Thankfully, we won in the end but it meant going to bed a good 45 minutes later than initially planned!
On the way back from work tonight I saw two kids playing kerby in the street. For those that don't know, kerby is when you stand at the opposite sides of a road, and you take turns at trying to bounce a football off of the opposite kerb. Every time you get it, you then stand halfway in the middle of the road and keep doing it until you miss. Every time you hit the kerb, you get a point. So simple but soo much fun. I used to love playing it when I was a kid, and was almost tempted to join in, but quickly decided against it before I was reported as being a "strange man" (!)
So, one of the main things I was looking forward to when I moved to London was going to more gigs, and being able to stay later, not having to rush for the last train back to Reading. Since moving here 6 months ago I have been to this many gigs: 0.
But that will change this weekend, as I'm going (for the first time) to see Talc perform live tomorrow night in Kilburn, followed by Joey Negro and The Sunburst Band at Cargo on Saturday night. I might also be seeing Tremain, a band involving my friend Lee (ex-Kaldera) at indigO2 in a couple of weeks. And then I'm hoping to see Incognito perform at the Camden Centre sometime in, I think, April.
Wednesday, 28 January 2009
Too Hot To Handle?
Colindale, London, England // 4.55 pm // Mostly cloudy 7ºc / 45ºf
It's once again getting to the point where every weekend in the foreseeable future is completely jam packed with stuff to do. From now up to at least mid-March, every weekend that Elle and I have is spoken for, mostly meeting up with people and doing social stuff. Not a complaint at all, but I do hope I get to do a bit of resting and recouperation every now and then too.
It all started this past weekend around 3pm on Friday afternoon when I finished work and headed across the road to the pub to meet up with my friend Shuv and his other half, an hour after I gave them a tour around my place of work. We had a good few drinks there on Carnaby Street before I headed up to Chalk Farm to meet up with Stu and Jenn for a few more, by which time Elle arrived back from work and we went for a meal in Camden. It was still early by the time we got back to the flat, but I'd already been out for 7 hours and it was time to call it a night!
The following morning, for the second time, I put on my £1 accumulator bet on the outcome of 4 SPL matches (not including the Celtic or Rangers games). I was listening to Radio Scotland's coverage of the games while getting ready to leave for Dan and Hannah's wedding reception later that evening in Warwickshire. Just before we left, the three of those games being played on Saturday were all the complete opposite of the results I had bet on, and with only 10 minutes to go I decided I had lost.
On the way to the wedding we picked up my friend Pete at Leamington Spa train station. The venue for the wedding reception itself was absolutely in the middle of nowhere. Elle + (B roads x sudden dips in the road x complete darkness) = much praying. That's all I'll say.
But we got there in one piece, and it was good to see quite a few people from uni that I hadn't seen for ages. And for Elle it had been even longer. We were at the wedding from around 8pm till 1am before driving back.
Pete came back to London with us as there was no way for him to get back to Oxford at that time of night. I had to wake up early to regulate my sleeping, and as Pete was asleep in the living room I sat in bed reading my emails in bed. I thought I'd just check on the final scores from the previous day's SPL games, and was absolutely astonished to find that those three games I had bet on had completely turned around in the last 10 minutes, and all of a sudden I had three out of three results correct! It all rested on the one final game later on Sunday afternoon, and I had bet on an against-the-odds result.
Stu came round in the afternoon and we watched the Arsenal game on Setanta. This was after I had finished compiling the radio magazine for the weekend. During the latter part of that game I was keeping an eye on the Kilmarnock v Hamilton score. I had Hamilton down to win, which wasn't likely. Part way into the 2nd half, Hamilton scored! And it was a tense wait till the final whistle, but the game ended 1-0 to Hamilton! Logging into the Ladbrokes website confirmed my success - my return for a £1 bet? £39.30!!
On Sunday night Elle and I went to our local Wetherspoon's on Edgware Road to have, of course, the annual Burns' Supper! The haggis was probably the best I've had for years, although the whole thing lacked a bit of gravy. Nonetheless, the meal was great and fantastic value for money complete with a pint of lager.
My day off this week was Tuesday. In the morning, our handyman finally came round to fit a new extractor fan in the bathroom. However, as he predicted, it has made no difference - there is still far too much moisture from the shower but it looks like it is simply something we need to deal with.
Later on Tuesday I went to Asda to pick up all the ingredients for the latest meal that I was cooking - lamb phall, the hottest kind of curry money can buy/make.
And my god was it hot! Still, it's nothing new to me and I finished it all, as did Elle. It was really really good - another success :-) Next time I'm cooking will be two weeks time, in fact it'll be around my birthday/Valentines Day. But from yesterday I now have a big tub of ghee that I need to use up in 4 weeks, so I'll need to pick my recipes around that.
Recently Walkers Crisps have brought out certain flavours of crisps that members of the public have designed. I think there are 5 in all, and they are limited edition. The idea is that you try all 5, and then vote for your favourite on their website. In the end, the most popular flavour will be retained as a long-term Walkers flavour. So far I've tried "Fish and Chips" and "Builders Breakfast". "Fish and Chips" was ok. It's always a bit odd having a potato snack tasting like fish. I couldn't distinguish the "chips" very well, but I could taste what I assume is supposed to be vinegar. "Builders Breakfast" was ok, but the overall distinctive taste was fried egg, with a slight hint of beans. The only place I've seen these so far is the shop inside Colindale tube station. I think they only other one they stock is "Onion Bahji"...so it might be tricky to track down the "Cajun Squirrel" and "Chilli and Chocolate" varieties!
It's once again getting to the point where every weekend in the foreseeable future is completely jam packed with stuff to do. From now up to at least mid-March, every weekend that Elle and I have is spoken for, mostly meeting up with people and doing social stuff. Not a complaint at all, but I do hope I get to do a bit of resting and recouperation every now and then too.
It all started this past weekend around 3pm on Friday afternoon when I finished work and headed across the road to the pub to meet up with my friend Shuv and his other half, an hour after I gave them a tour around my place of work. We had a good few drinks there on Carnaby Street before I headed up to Chalk Farm to meet up with Stu and Jenn for a few more, by which time Elle arrived back from work and we went for a meal in Camden. It was still early by the time we got back to the flat, but I'd already been out for 7 hours and it was time to call it a night!
The following morning, for the second time, I put on my £1 accumulator bet on the outcome of 4 SPL matches (not including the Celtic or Rangers games). I was listening to Radio Scotland's coverage of the games while getting ready to leave for Dan and Hannah's wedding reception later that evening in Warwickshire. Just before we left, the three of those games being played on Saturday were all the complete opposite of the results I had bet on, and with only 10 minutes to go I decided I had lost.
On the way to the wedding we picked up my friend Pete at Leamington Spa train station. The venue for the wedding reception itself was absolutely in the middle of nowhere. Elle + (B roads x sudden dips in the road x complete darkness) = much praying. That's all I'll say.
But we got there in one piece, and it was good to see quite a few people from uni that I hadn't seen for ages. And for Elle it had been even longer. We were at the wedding from around 8pm till 1am before driving back.
Pete came back to London with us as there was no way for him to get back to Oxford at that time of night. I had to wake up early to regulate my sleeping, and as Pete was asleep in the living room I sat in bed reading my emails in bed. I thought I'd just check on the final scores from the previous day's SPL games, and was absolutely astonished to find that those three games I had bet on had completely turned around in the last 10 minutes, and all of a sudden I had three out of three results correct! It all rested on the one final game later on Sunday afternoon, and I had bet on an against-the-odds result.
Stu came round in the afternoon and we watched the Arsenal game on Setanta. This was after I had finished compiling the radio magazine for the weekend. During the latter part of that game I was keeping an eye on the Kilmarnock v Hamilton score. I had Hamilton down to win, which wasn't likely. Part way into the 2nd half, Hamilton scored! And it was a tense wait till the final whistle, but the game ended 1-0 to Hamilton! Logging into the Ladbrokes website confirmed my success - my return for a £1 bet? £39.30!!
On Sunday night Elle and I went to our local Wetherspoon's on Edgware Road to have, of course, the annual Burns' Supper! The haggis was probably the best I've had for years, although the whole thing lacked a bit of gravy. Nonetheless, the meal was great and fantastic value for money complete with a pint of lager.
My day off this week was Tuesday. In the morning, our handyman finally came round to fit a new extractor fan in the bathroom. However, as he predicted, it has made no difference - there is still far too much moisture from the shower but it looks like it is simply something we need to deal with.
Later on Tuesday I went to Asda to pick up all the ingredients for the latest meal that I was cooking - lamb phall, the hottest kind of curry money can buy/make.
And my god was it hot! Still, it's nothing new to me and I finished it all, as did Elle. It was really really good - another success :-) Next time I'm cooking will be two weeks time, in fact it'll be around my birthday/Valentines Day. But from yesterday I now have a big tub of ghee that I need to use up in 4 weeks, so I'll need to pick my recipes around that.
Recently Walkers Crisps have brought out certain flavours of crisps that members of the public have designed. I think there are 5 in all, and they are limited edition. The idea is that you try all 5, and then vote for your favourite on their website. In the end, the most popular flavour will be retained as a long-term Walkers flavour. So far I've tried "Fish and Chips" and "Builders Breakfast". "Fish and Chips" was ok. It's always a bit odd having a potato snack tasting like fish. I couldn't distinguish the "chips" very well, but I could taste what I assume is supposed to be vinegar. "Builders Breakfast" was ok, but the overall distinctive taste was fried egg, with a slight hint of beans. The only place I've seen these so far is the shop inside Colindale tube station. I think they only other one they stock is "Onion Bahji"...so it might be tricky to track down the "Cajun Squirrel" and "Chilli and Chocolate" varieties!
Wednesday, 21 January 2009
Sunday, 18 January 2009
Early bird
Colindale, London, England // 11.14 am // Partly cloudy 6ºc / 43ºf
It's quarter past 11 on a Sunday morning, I've been awake for an hour and I'm pretty much fully awake. I don't know why, given that I had a very late night last night. I think I'll pin the blame on getting up at 4am midweek for early shifts. Still, this morning was originally my last lie-in until next Saturday. I know I'll regret this later tonight/tomorrow morning.
Had a good long weekend so far, just over halfway through it. On Friday I did a good bit of catching up with things, and had one of my more productive days of late. I finally sent off to the estate agents the big wad of mail that had been sent for the previous tenants, plus a few other bits and pieces. The handyman from the estate agents was supposed to arrive in the morning to replace the extractor fan in the bedroom. However, there was absolutely no sign of him, and he wouldn't answer his phone. I really need to chase that up.
Eventually I headed to Asda to pick up ingredients for the meal I cooked on Friday night, which was chop suey. It turned out really good, with a whole lot of vegetables too which can't be bad at all. I really do enjoy cooking and it's turning into one of the highlights of the week. Next meal is tomorrow night.
On Friday I started using a new piece of software for chat and social networking. It's called Digsby and it integrates IM programs like MSN Messenger, Gmail Chat, Facebook Chat etc, social networking websites like Facebook and Twitter and email services like Gmail and Windows Live Mail, all in one application. It's a really nice piece of kit and is highly recommended.
Yesterday I did get a bit of a lie in, more because I went to bed fairly early rather than waking up early. I listened to the build-up to Saturday's SPL games on the radio and decided to place a bet on one of the games. So I put £1 on Hearts to beat Kilmarnock, which they did, earning me around £2.60. I think I might end up putting £1 on each weekend's fixtures, but on multiple games, to increase the chance of winning more. I'm only betting on non-Celtic or Rangers matches, which is actually quite good as it gets me more interested in the rest of the Scottish league.
Eventually Elle and I headed out last night and after going for dinner in a chippy we went to a comedy night in a pub in Belsize Park. We saw 5 acts, and they were all really good. I wouldn't be surprised if a couple of them go quite far.
Even just in the time it's taken me to write this I'm starting to feel bloody tired! I can't really go back to bed now, it's against my unwritten rules! Today I'll be watching the Celtic v Aberdeen game hoping we can go 5 points clear at the top of the SPL.
Thursday, 15 January 2009
Video blog: Gas man my arse
Colindale, London, England // 5.44 pm // Mostly clear 5ºc / 41ºf
Since last night on TV I've watched BBC One.
Since last night on TV I've watched BBC One.
On radio I've listened to Kiss 100.
Wednesday, 14 January 2009
Video blog: Increasing girth
Colindale, London, England // 6.20 pm // Mostly clear 5ºc / 41ºf
In the last few days on TV I've watched BBC Parliament, Channel 4, BBC One, Setanta Sports 1, E4+1, Fiver, TMF, 4Music, Sky Sports 1, BBC News and Sky News.
On radio I've listened to Absolute Radio, Magic 105.4, Classic FM, Kerrang, BBC Radio Scotland, WWOZ (New Orleans), BBC Radio 4, Real Radio Scotland and Jazz FM
Thursday, 8 January 2009
Goo
Colindale, London, England // 8.34 pm // Hazy 2ºc / 36ºf
So getting up early on a day off to stay in a sleeping pattern isn't easy at all. I went to bed just before 1am last night, compared to 10pm usually. Ideally I would've worken up at 6am, compared to 4am usually. But I thought I'd give myself an extra hour, so set my alarm for 7am. In the end, I woke up at 8am. Still, I'm pretty sure I'll be tired enough to sleep tonight, especially after what the day has in store.
Last night I made Toad in the Hole from BBC Good Food cookbook I bought Elle for Christmas. It looked like it was straight out of the cookbook when viewed from above. However, I did use the wrong kind of dish, using a glass pyrex dish instead of a metal tin. So underneath the browned sausage and crusty pastry was white sausage and goo. Still it was edible and rather nice, but not one of my best creations.
Today, after a trip to Asda for supplies, I'll be heading off on the third installment of my Northern Line pub crawl, which is part of a larger personal project of mine to have had half a pint of lager at the closest pub to ever single tube station on the London Underground network. So far I have done so at the following stations:
Morden, Tooting Bec, Clapham Common, Kennington, London Bridge, Charing Cross ,Warren Street, King's Cross St Pancaras, Mornington Crescent, Finchley Central, Highgate, Hampstead, Edgware, Old Street, Balham, Colliers Wood, Goodge Street, Burnt Oak, Golders Green, Chalk Farm, Tufnell Park, East Finchley, Woodside Park, High Barnet, Archway, Euston and Tottenham Court Road.
Today, my route is as follows: Hendon Central, Belsize Park, Angel, Borough, Oval, Clapham South, Tooting Broadway, Clapham North, Waterloo and Leicester Square.
I'm quite strict with the rules here. Firstly, I have already been to Leicester Square for a drink. But never a half pint as part of the pub crawl, hence it is in there. Secondly, I will spend no more than 5 minutes looking for a pub in the direction for the tube station that I think is most likely. If I can't find one, I get back on the tube and head to the next station. Eventually, after doing some research online to find the nearest pub, I'll return to the stations where I failed to find one. So far that is the case at Brent Cross, Bank and West Finchley
After today it will leave me with the following stations to visit: Colindale, Camden Town, Kentish Town, Mill Hill East, Totteridge and Whetstone, Moorgate, Embankment, Elephant & Castle, Stockwell and South Wimbledon.
Again, you may notice that Colindale is there, and Colindale is also where I live. Surely I've had a drink here? Of course. But I've never got off the tube, walked to the local and had half a pint! So it stays in there. And once I've finished the Northern Line, I plan to move onto the Bakerloo Line.
Since last night on TV I've watched Channel 4, Sky News, BBC News, BBC Four and Channel 4+1.
On radio I've listened to Soul Central Radio, Capital FM, Supreme Dance, Hot 96 and Eagle Radio (Guildford).
Wednesday, 7 January 2009
Fairly standard
Colindale, London, England // 6.14 pm // Mostly cloudy 3ºc / 37ºf
Last weekend was a fairly chilled one. We had the chance to go out on Friday night but we both opted to have a quiet night in, which was definitely on the cards. Elle cooked and we spent most of the night watching TV and just generally chilling.
Woke up on Saturday afternoon with the alarm, rather than a lie in, so I could make it to Kilburn in time for 3pm for the Celtic v Dundee United game. Despite being the completely dominant team in the first half, we lost the plot in the second half and the game ended up all square. Rangers capitalised on that the following day, so now the gap is only 5 points at the top.
Saturday night and Sunday were spent doing not very much at all. I've made a good start on my tax return for the Tony Ryan show. Through the start of the week I've been trying to gather together all the documents, bank statements etc that I need to complete the return. I expected to have to try and get loads of stuff reprinted and resent to me from the bank, as my filing system is completely non existant. But incredibly, I've found every single page I need to complete the tax return, which I plan to do by the end of the this week.
Been working 5am till 3pm Monday - Wednesday this week. I'm off tomorrow, but still need to wake up early to stay in the sleeping routine. I'm planning an early morning trip to Asda to do some shopping before heading out on the 3rd leg of the Northern Line pub crawl when I plan to visit another 10 stations, and 10 corresponding pubs for 10 half pints.
The weather lately has been so cold. I'm actually not really that bothered by it. I quite like it this cold, it just feels more seasonal and a bit more like home. Actually, I would have liked a bit more snow than what we've had already.
Not sure if it's related to the weather or not but my skin has broken out in some kind of reaction again, mostly on my arms. I'm pretty sure it's eczema, but at the moment I've got nothing to treat it, so it might be an idea for me to finally enrol with a doctor in North London, which is something I've not done since moving here. I've also joined the dental scheme at work, which is good as I'm due a checkup very soon.
As I said before, I'm making a point of cooking more. Tonight doesn't actually count, because it's not one of my own picked creations, but Elle has asked me to try making Toad In The Hole tonight for her getting back from work, so I'm gonna try and make a start on that shortly.
Since the end of last week on TV I've watched: CNN.com Live, Setanta Sports 1, Channel 4, BBC Parliament, Polsat Sport Extra, ITV1, BBC News, Sky News, ITV2, BBC Three, CNN International and 4Music.
On the radio I've listened to: Soul Central Radio, Solar Radio, BBC Essex, BBC Hereford and Worcester, RNE 1 (Spain), NPS Radio 5 (Netherlands), BBC Radio 4, Option Musique (Switzerland), BBC Radio Kent, WDR 2 (Germany), MDR Info (Germany), Rock y Gol (Spain), Gold Luton and Bedford, France Info, BBC Radio Devon, on3radio (Germany), BBC Radio Scotland, SER Radio Madrid, Radio Euskadi (Spain), Rai Radio 1 (Italy), BBC World Service, Radio Sawa Egypt, WWCR Nashville, Radio Canada Int, Cadena Cuscatlan (El Salvador), LBC 97.3, Voice of Russia, WHRA (USA), WYFR (USA), WHRI (USA), Voice of America and Kiss 100
Friday, 2 January 2009
Video post: And there it goes
Colindale, London, England // 6.38 pm // Partly cloudy 4ºc / 39ºf
In the last two weeks on TV I'm been watching: BBC One, BBC Two, Setanta Sports 1, E4, BBC News, 4Music, TMF, BBC Three, BBC Parliament, CNN.com Live, CNN International and More 4
On the radio I've listened to: Capital FM, Kiss 100, Magic 105.4, Soul Central Radio, CNN US audio, Galaxy Birmingham, Jazz FM, Gold Wolverhampton, Beacon Radio (Wolverhampton), Gold Birmingham, Heart 100.7 (Birmingham), Mercia (Coventry), Touch FM (Warwickshire), BBC Radio Oxford, BBC 3 Counties Radio, Gold London, Kiss 104.1 (Atlanta), BBC Radio 5 Live and Desi Radio.
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