the smiths

The album that never was - luckily there is a bootleg, but more importantly - what a fantastic cover. One the Smiths should have used when they were still going, if Morrisey had been more upfront about his gayness, rather than just alluding to it. Loud and proud, that's what I say!

toodle pip

einstein illusion

Close up it looks like a genius. From a distance, one of the greatest sex symbols of our time.
Is life an illusion? Are my eyes working? Am I going mad?
Whatever - talk to the wrist coz the face is pissed
toodle pip

best and charlton

These are the two latest books I have read. The George Best on was a lot more interesting, even though I had read most of the stories before. The Bobby Charlton one was what I expected really, nothing too exciting or groundbreaking, but it did have some good parts, mainly about Munich in 1958 (as you would expect) and his fallout with his brother Jackie. One thing I learned from the books was that Charlton was as fast, if not faster than Best when sprinting during training (Best admits it). I would never have guessed that.

The Bestie book was better towards the end, unlike Best himself. I know he did not want pity, and in lots of ways he was having the life he wanted, but towards the end he was a bit of a sad bastard. The fact that he was controlling, jealous, unreliable and aggressive when drunk is a real shame, as a lot of people who would have come into contact with him when he was like that will just remember him as a twat. As for Alex Best, in the book they have just celebrated their second anniversary, but already there have been rows and walkouts, plus physical abuse from both sides. Alex defends George for hitting her, saying she provokes him. He says she can dish it out as well as anyone (and admits he has hit women before). Classic stuff that I have heard a million times, let's face it, it was never going to last. I am kind of glad I never met George, they say don't meet your heroes, and if I had met him in his later years, I would definitely have been disappointed. Might make an exception for Cantona though.

another trophy

Sad to say I was back at work yesterday, coming home this afternoon (Sunday) at 2pm, luckily, to watch the League Cup final (in old money). It wasn't so bad being back at work (I guess), although I have stuff to catch up with, we did have a take-away for tea, so that cut back some of the jobs that needed doing in the evening. On my return home, the glorious United won 2-1 against Aston Villa, with little Michael Owen scoring the first, but then having to go off injured before half time. Not a bad sub to bring on, a certain Mr Wayne Rooney, did the business as well, scoring the winner.

Louise and Dazzer called round and surprised us about 3.30pm, so I had an excuse to have a few bottles of beer with Dazzer, (although I was drinking red wine when they arrived). They didn't stay for long after the game so in the evening it was pretty quiet, just pottering around and pratting about (it's all go oop north).

I have however, been a sad bastard downloading and listening to bootlegs, mainly the Stones. Having a good time doing so though. Takes my mind off work I suppose. Some of the decent ones are above (for me anyway).

Christ, I need to get a proper life!

toodle pip

Billy Casper plays football (Kes)

This was PE when I was a lad ( and it made me the man I am today).

Harry Enfield and Chums - The Slobs Win The Lottery

One day.......

madeira

The TV has been showing a lot of the flooding and the clearing up of Madeira today. It all seems a bit weird, as I was only walking those very streets at the end of October last year, so I can actually relate to it more than other disasters. The bottom picture is what the drainage canals looked like when I was there. Obviously the others are when the floods happened. There's quite a bit of a difference, that's for sure.
Just shows how random life can be, I pity the poor bastards that got swept up in the crappy water and died. What a way to go (and so unexpected).

Might stick to open ground in the future. Mind you, I will probably get struck by lightning, or attacked by a camel or something. Sod it, think I will do the usual. Ignore the danger (unless it is really obvious), and go for it. No point in worrying too much, it gets you nowhere.

the wild west

The aftermath at Wounded Knee

Robert McGee

Bison Skulls 1870

As I have had a lot of time off dossing (and unable to do anything strenuous because of my neck injury), I have been reading a lot, including a load of stuff about American history. It certainly was a completely different world back then, even though it was not that long ago in the great scheme of things. The photo of the bison skulls is amazing as it is just one pile of skulls. There would have been a lot more around the country. There must have been a lot of fat Indians or settlers by the look of that pile.
As for Robert Mcgee, he was scalped when he was younger, by the Sioux chief Little Turtle, in about 1864. It is one thing to survive the scalping and look like he did, but just try to comprehend the amount of pain he must have gone through, being scalped, and then having to put up with the barbaric surgery and stitches afterwards. I bet it bought tears to his eyes, even though men were men in those days. I assume a lot of hard liquor must have been taken beforehand, so it had it's plus points.
Wounded knee is a long story, but basically, a massacre by the American cavalry. There is a really good book about the whole episode (and many others), called 'Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee' by Dee Brown. I am sure there was word that it was being made into a new feature film. I hope so, but with Hollywood, it will either be really maudlin, or just crap.
Thank fuck I was born when I was, no wars to join, no one attacking me (apart from soldiers in the nightclub), lots of available sex, and loads of modern gadgets. Also travelled a lot abroad and have access to TV and music when I want. Magic!
toodle pip

off to the docs

Things are still looking good work - wise, I am still off and do not have to go back to work until Saturday afternoon. Unfortunately, I had to drag myself out of the house today to go to the doctors, at 9am in the bloody morning, just to get my grubby little mitts on my sick note. Snow was everywhere, which I wasn't so bothered about, as it made a bit of a change having a walk out in it. I felt like I was in a disaster movie for some of the walk, it was emtiness everywhere around our place (see pictures). Busy by White shops, but no-one about again on the way home (which suited me, as I am a miserable git). My neck was a bit sore by the time I got back at 10.30am, but at least my trainers were clean, as I walked along kicking the virgin snow all the way home.

On return, I chucked all of the clothes I had been wearing into the wash, got my trackies on and settled down to doss about again. Marvellous. Christ, I wish I was loaded. What's the saying? "Only boring people get bored". I may well be boring sometimes, but I certainly do not get bored when off work.

Also been staying up really late, (later than usual), and only having about 4 hours sleep, as there is so much to do, so little time. My head is full of even more crap than usual (if that's possible). Bring it on!

toodle pip

'orrible creatures

Vampire moth

Spider crab

Sea spider

Coconut crab

Barreleye see through fish

What a strange old world it is out there. I wouldn't like to meet some of these close up

toodle pip

wayne coyne's house

This is amazing looking and it's the kind of thing I really like, kind of 'A Clockwork Orange' look about it. Wayne Coyne (from The Flaming Lips) calls this his home. Makes a change from all the bland shite that is always shown on Cribs, here's a man who knows his own mind, even if that mind may be a little off kilter. That's the kind of stuff I would like in my bathroom, wait until I win the bleeding lottery!

Respect to him and toodle pip

weekend fun

A man comes out of prison after accidentally shooting a policeman, and then starts seeing the policeman's wife, and his old flame

Mystery as a mother comes back from the dead and a husband is killed

I think I may have dropped my trousers at this point

Miserable boy

Another fine weekend has flown by (like the great pumpkin again). On Saturday, Robbo and Kerry turned up unexpectedly, just before the United v Everton game (3-1 to the Scousers). I watched the game with Robbo (after he had gone to Tesco's to get some food), and Kerry and Mandy went to the Farmers Arms for lunch. A fine morning, even though we chatted too much during the game, as we had a lot to catch up with. I think maybe too much piss taking was done after the girls got back, for which I blame alcohol and stress. After they had gone, Mandy went and got a couple of bottles of wine, so that was the evening taken care of. We did watch Volver, which was a bit slow but great. A Spanish film (subtitled) staring Penelope Cruise, it was a murder mystery and also humorous. It's the second film by Pedro Almadovar that we have just seen , the other one being Live Flesh (also subtitled), based on the Ruth Rendall book of the same name. Both of them were well worth the effort so I am currently looking out for more of his to watch, it is years since I saw Tie me up, Tie me down, and I can't remember if I have watched Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, so these are next on the list.
As usual, it was Match of the Day later, then pratting about on the computer until about 3.30am.

Sunday morning, had a read of the papers (The new look Observer!), then we got picked up by Rook and Deb as we were going to Louise and Dazzer's for Sunday lunch (even with my sore neck!). Dazzer did well, only dropped about 4 parsnips and 24 potatoes, but at least it tasted nice. I accepted his apology for being a grumpy git the week before, the girls got pissed, and we were back home by 6.30pm, so everything was hunky dory. Mandy conked out when we returned home, so I watched the Sunday Supplement, The Simpsons, American Dad, some of Gerry Adams talking about the life of Jesus, Match of the Day 2, then back to the computer until 4am. What a life. No work till Saturday, what bliss (even though United were beaten).

toodle pip

getting old

Here's a picture that has been on the wall by the rabbits cage for the last few years. It's my old mucker Robbo, and by old mucker I mean exactly that. Time catches up with us all, I don't know what year this was taken, (I would guess at 1992 as he is wearing my hat), but he is 50 this year. Time flies by (like the great pumpkin).

toodle pip

I am legend

So, I have just finished reading 'I am Legend' by Richard Matheson. It was really good, a vampire/science fiction novel originally published in 1954, mainly to do with loneliness and isolation. I had already seen the Will Smith film based on it, plus the Charlton Heston one (although I have not seen the Vincent Price one from 1964 (The Last Man on Earth). I preferred the book to the films but I would have enjoyed the films more if they stuck to the story, instead of throwing in all the Hollywood cliches.

In the book, Neville is by himself until he sees an injured dog out in the daylight. He spends weeks trying to feed it and bring it indoors, trying to build up the dogs trust in him. He eventually gets the dog inside, where it is still terrified of him, until it gets caught up in a blanket and Neville caresses and soothes it for hours. The dog then licks Neville for the first time. A week later, the dog is dead, as Neville could not save him. This brings home how lonely Neville is and his absolute despair at having hope in something, and losing the only companion he has found (Ruth does not appear till near the end, and she does not have a child with her, unlike the Will Smith film).

Also, as the Will Smith film wants to make him out to be a hero, he dies protecting and hiding the girl and child, plus he finds a vaccine which he gives to them to take back to the other live humans, thus saving mankind and becoming the legend of the title.

In the book it is a lot better. Because Neville has been killing the vampires risen from the dead and the live humans who have the infection, when he is caught at the end, he realises people have learnt to live with the disease (drugs and bacteria mutating), and he, because he had been going out and killing them, had become something fearsome to them, rather like the Dracula myth had been. He was the only human left without the infection, but he had become the freak/odd one and they were going to execute him (plus he never found a cure). Therefore he was a legend to them, a terrifying one, not a hero like Will Smith.

Don't get me started on the Charlton Heston movie, that is shit. He even gets captured and nearly burnt at the stake in Dodger stadium at one point. He also saves humanity with a serum and then dies in a Christ like/Crucifixion pose. Bloody Hollywood.

Looking foreward to the Vincent Price one!

toodle pip

happy birthday old trafford

The Gods themselves, Best Law and Charlton

Sir Matt

The Stretford End back in the good old days

Theatre of Dreams

Old Trafford, home of the Gods, is 100 years old today. The first match was against the arch enemy Liverpool, on 19th Feb 1910 (Don't ask the score), and although it has changed a lot over the years with it eventually becoming 'The Theatre of Dreams' (Bobby Charlton called it that), it's still Old Trafford to me.

I have had many a happy day out there, plus some days that were not so rewarding, but there's always another game on the horizon.

It's a shame the Stretford End is no longer what it was like in the picture above, and it is now so expensive to see a game. Football may well implode in on itself at some stage, so make the most of it all now.

toodle pip

nature photos

I can't remember which newspaper these were from (Telegraph?), but they are all pretty special.
It would be good to be able to take photos as good as these, but what with the equipment, time, effort, practise etc, let's face it, I have no chance of doing so.

Guess I will have to stick to multiple digital ones of holidays and family do's.

Can't go wrong there, always get the odd decent one! (photo, not family do's)

toodle pip

even more 3D art

out at the weekend

Went up to the Boro at the weekend for Louise's 40th birthday do. had to pick up Nora first as she was getting dropped off at Ken and Anne's. Also called in at Darlington to pick up the cake for Dazzer, and dropped that off with Nora in Stockton.

Stayed for a quick drink and chat, then off to Nunthorpe to Kerry and Robbos, for a couple of drinks and a longer chat, before Rook and Deb turned up (who were staying at Robbos and Kerry's with us).

Got a taxi to the restaurant (the Stables in Wynyard) and met everyone else there. Had a pretty good night, even though there was about 20 of us there. Managed to get a menu but it got streaks on it from the laminate cracking, as I had to roll it up to nick it. Damn!

Taxi back to Nunthorpe afterwards, where lots more booze was consumed and everyone (apart from me of course) was dancing till after 3am.

Still pissed the next day when we went to the Cross Keys for lunch. Rook and Deb went home (leaving Nora as far as I know), but we were joined (eventually) by Louise and Dazzer, plus John and Maria. They probably regretted coming as we (OK, mainly me) were a little bit loud and annoying, but hey ho, it's how Keith would behave.

Called in at the Lodge on the way home, which was bloody freezing, so we went to JT's instead, which was pretty full because of the rugby (yawn). Only the one drink and back home for a clean up and bed.

Got up and potted about on Monday, then went to the Wine bar to meet Joe. Unfortunately (or rather, stupidly), I did not have any food before going out (or when I got back). I went to use the loo later on, got out of bed, walked to the loo and then BINGO! lights out. Don't remember anything apart from Mandy trying to get into the loo and waking me up, asking if I was OK. I must have collapsed and banged my head on the toilet or the side of the bath, as I now have a sort neck and back. Luckily, I spoke to my boss at work and I don't have to come in until Saturday - result! It's worth the pain to be off, watching films and listening to music (plus United beating Madrid 3-2 at the San Siro). I have got to remember to eat in the future though, as I could easily have fallen down the stairs and ended up somewhere dodgy, with someone like me taking care of me.

I'll have to stock up on chocolate or something for future occasions.

toodle pip

more 3D art

3D art

This all looks amazing - 3D art on pavements. Very clever indeed, I may put some more up later

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