Pre Holiday Post

Ok, I’ve spent all afternoon, ironing, packing, washing, cleaning, drying, hoovering, recycling, tidying the flat, putting clean sheets on the bed, watching pr0n on my laptop, redirecting email to my GMail account, and downloading music to play on the group ipod - and I am now, just about, ready for my holiday.
I can’t imagine I’ll be taking much time out of trip to Mexico to sit in Cyber Cafes blogging or uploading photos from my G7, so this is almost definitely it for the next two weeks. Have fun, don’t forget to put the bins out, and the cats get fed one scoopful twice a day.

Here’s a track I contributed to the group music pool. Listen to it - you’ll like it.

For Lovers

Slightly wonky sound, there’s a clearer sounding TOTP version here.

Toothy Popjustice

This lunchtime I was watching a Sophie Ellis Bextor video on Popjustice. Although she looks kinda purty, the tune was crap so I paused it.
This is what I got: it made me spew my pasta over my desk, so I thought I’d share it.

Not so purty now - eh catface ?

A Gap In The Market?

Have you ever been sent an email from someone who clearly hasn’t thought
through their email before sending it to ‘everyone’ in the office?
This afternoon, I received an email advertising a new restaurant
(Magdalen) on Tooley Street - due to open next Monday. Their sample menu
included:

Hot foie gras, pickled quince and sherry £10.00
Snail and bacon salad £7.00
Braised hare leg and späetzle £14.00
Poached veal head, chopped egg, parsley and cornichons £13.50

I’m a vegetarian of almost twenty years standing, and an ardent believer
in animal rights - as such, at least two of those items offend me deeply
(the other two are just weird). Intruding into my working day, making my
blood boil and distracting me from my work.
Maybe I’ll send round an ‘everyone’ email later in the day highlighting
the new abortion clinic round the corner and see what response that
gets… I can guarantee it would be perceived quite differently by the
idiot hordes.

…and breathe.

Running From Camera

Originally uploaded by muggezifter.

Found a cool new photography blog yesterday called ‘running from camera’. Essentially, it’s a collection of photos where the photographer has set up his camera on auto timer (for two seconds) and then ran away from the camera as fast as he can in the direction of the shot.
It’s a great idea, and an easy way to get some exciting, original shots.

Since many of the shots can be found on muggezifter’s flickr site, I thought it might be a good idea to set up a flickr group so everyone can submit their shots to a central location. Give it a try and let me see your results!

Les Suceuses

Last night I went to see the new exhibition by Anne Pigalle at The Aquarium L-13 Gallery in Farringdon. The name of the exhibition was ‘Les Suceuses’. Normally I really appreciate the art displayed at The Aquarium: they have some great Jamie Reid, some cool Jim Cauty, and some beautiful Billy Childish works - and as on most opening nights there was plenty of free wine and beer, which is always appreciated. However, this time I was distinctly underwhelmed by the quality of the works on display and the rather ambitious price tags attached: £30 for a crappily painted golf ball? I don’t know, maybe I was just missing the point… It happens sometimes; but it seems to me that this is someone who is most definitely trading off their name, rather than any quality inherent in the work.

According to Anne Pigalle’s blurb on The Aquarium website, ‘Les Suceuses’ translates as ‘Women Who Suck’, and this work certainly fits that bill.

You Know I’m No Good

Possibly my favourite track from the latest Amy Winehouse album, I’m please to see it’s been released as a single:

Apocalyptoed

Went to see ‘Apocalypto‘ at Islington VUE last night on my tod. I’d emailed around some mates to see who might want to go, but received the usual nil replies - bar one., and she changed her mind when she realised it was subtitled and over two hours long… I decided to go on my own, as I was quite keen to see it in the context of my upcoming trip to The Yucatan.
In the event the subtitled sections of the film probably lasted no more than twenty minutes, a longish bit at the beginning that set the scene and established the relationships between the characters, and a few bits here and there throughout the film. The film itself has a simple plotline (which I won’t give away here), but the sets and general photography are stunning, just a bit of a shame about the slightly hurried, cheesy ending; and the one serious-ish bit near the end where much of the audience actually laughed at the sheer cheesiness.

Oh, and thanks to the loudmouth sat beside me with his girlfriend for giving away the ending in advance, loudly. Fuckwit.

Childish Reading

Since it was chucking it down pretty much all of Saturday, I decided not to go and do my usual weekly voluntary stint at Freightliners, but instead sat indoors listening to some tunes and making a start on my new Rough Guide to TheYucatan book in preparation for my upcoming holiday.

By 3pm though, and depsite the quite ridiculously wet weather, it was time to don my waterproofs and Vespa it down to Farringdon Road and the new Aquarium L-13 gallery for a book reading by thee one and only Billy Childish. Billy read from his book “The Man With The Gallows Eyes” and sang a couple of songs: most notably a version of ‘Black Girl’, also known as ‘Where Did You Sleep Last Night’ (as covered by Nirvana) . He also put paid to the rumour that Nirvana had covered the song after hearing his version (Kurt was a big fan of Billy’s) explaining that they’d “got the idea from… someone else” and clarified that he had never “knowingly” met any of the band: although he often saw some “people with long hair” in his audience “perhaps that was them”. I sat on the floor near the front and took some photos with my new camera - you might like to see them: they’re here.