Saturday, October 25, 2008

Quote me...

I have been meaning to put this one up for a while....but here 'tis now..

"...love comes in spurts. A little then a lot. It's not a permanent wave of happiness."...."Love is an hors d'oeuvre, a caviar-encrusted canape, not a staple diet."

Care of.........Katy Lette - "How to Kill Your Husband"

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Everyday I love them more & more, the Kaiser Chiefs

Last night was my fourth time seeing one of my favourite bands, the Kaiser Chiefs and well they still rock. The first time I saw them was at the Reading Festival in 2006 where they headlined on the friday night of the festival and I was a newbie to English rock bands outside of Oasis. This was followed by seeing them at Rock Werchter 2007 (in Belgium), then at Earls Court in December 2007 (where I was right at the barriers of a very jammed and massive venue) and last night at the tiny venue called the Forum in Kentish Town in North London (almost Camden, so as famous as Koko in Camden).



The Kaiser's have a new album out, in fact it was just released on the day of the concert so perfect timing. It seems most of my favourite bands are bringing out new albums at the moment, Keane, Snow Patrol, Razorlight, the Kings of Leon (a new favourite, I have not been a fan of their music previously) and the Killers (who I love). So my visits HMV may have to increase, whilst my bank balance dwindles just a bit more. That and new albums mean new concerts - poor bank account again - for which most are sold out. Though that doesn't mean I won't go, it just means I get tickets closer to the date when they are cheaper on eBay, either that I score some from the touts on the night. Though experience tells me it won't be necessary to get them from the touts.



Anyway, I went along to the concert with Michael, Kerry and Mark, all seasoned festival/concert goers with a hearty preliminary dinner at both KFC and McDonalds - yes we are that awful to have eaten that rubbish - we were geared to enjoy the show. We had intended to have a couple of drinks at the concert, but with my bladder all but bursting minutes before showtime, only one was the go. I simply could not chance it. Also when your jumping around at the front of the stage you don't get much chance to drink, more like have a bath really. I didn't really care, I was already a drowned rat from the pouring rain that was dumped on London yesterday evening. Michael would be familiar with the warm beer experience as after all, he wore a beer about halfway into the concert.



Well they were just brilliant, Ricky Wilson (lead singer...and a God) kicked off with an oldie (I cannot remember with what he started with exactly....have no idea why), before diving into the new songs including "Never Miss a Beat" which is a great song in general, but one that completely goes off at a concert. "Ruby" got a mention (my favourite) as did "Modern Way". The played a few new ones, we sang Happy Birthday to the drummer and they also played a few others including "Everyday I love you less and less", "Oh my god", "Heat dies down", "The Angry mob", "Thank you very much", "Na Na Na Na Na", and they finished off the encore with "I predict a Riot", which predictable almost caused a riot!



Ricky was totally into the crowd, and being up the front enabled me to get pretty close to him. Firstly he was leaning way over the barriers and I got right in ther for that, right up close. Then a bit later he got all the crowd at the front to part - not unlike the red sea (lets say in this case the "Ruby" sea) - and he ran down through us so he could climb up to the bottom of the balcony.



Of course, the enthusiastic crowd including myself hindered his way within moments (he got there eventually) , BUT ....huge BUT.....before he finished making his way through the crowd, I got to touch him. Touch him.....his neck in fact, i was estatic. It now sounds so silly to re-call, but I have not had a crush on a musician before so to see him AND touch him all in one night was just too exciting. He also did some crowd surfing, for which Michael was over joyed to have him pass over the top of him. I got a couple of great shots of that.



Though in all I did not get too many photos; seriously I was way too busy enjoying being right at the front, in the thick of it. The joys after the show - alas which was too short - of course amounted to mosh pit like queues for coats to sticky wet clothing, which is a mixture of sweat and beer - joy!

I had tickets to the Kaisers for both the Monday and the Tuesday night, but I sold my Tuesday tickets to Jade, so I am hoping she has a good time as I did, which I am sure she will. I was tempted to go twice - almost - but after the experience which shall be now ever known as "touching Ricky....." *sigh*, well I wasn't going to beat that. I will see them again in March next year, when they do their major show at the O2 venue in North Greenwich, so until then....

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Lost in Transit

Am wandering around Singapore Airport, its a fabulous aiport, but mainly if you've got lots of money to shop at all the luxurious brand name shops, ie Prada, Bottega Veneta, Tiffany, Coach, Gucci, Hermes....I could go on. Alas that is not the sort of money I have to spend, duty free or no duty free.

My excitement of this visit to the lovely Changi Aiport, Terminal 2...and Terminal 3 (why are they Terminals....I am leaving from here, but I suppose I arrived too..oh well...another question to ponder in perhaps another blog) is a massage and an eyeliner from Chanel. Sigh.

I might...just might have a peek in Tiffany's too, after all I keep promising myself something from there and just never get around to it. I was going to wait for my trip to New York, but the way the money situation is these days (boring.....*snore*), the pound may no longer match off nicely with the US dollar with the benefit that any shopping in the US being like a massive 2 for 1 sale; gone and soon by the seems. Though I am still optimistic...

Anyways...I am counting down the minutes (2 min left) on my alloted 15 minutes here...so I am off.

Thursday, October 09, 2008

Sunset from my house

And it was more beautiful than I can get from the photos, and I was not really trying very hard as I am doing housework....yes...I am cleaning, and now I cannot stop, where was the duster again.

Enjoy the photos
Front yard view complete with Footy oval to the side (see white goal posts)

Pretty.....

Still Pretty.....*sigh*

Where in the world am i?

Well this amazingly is in Adelaide and you know what, it's somewhere I had not been before!

This photo was taken along the Linear Parkway between town and Henley Beach. It is about a 40 minute bike ride, and its quite bike bum and lazy leg friendly, with lots of lovely greener, beautiful houses, horses (yes, oddly) and with the gorgeous *sigh* Henley Beach at the other end.

I had forgotten how lovely ol' Henley was, so it was definately worth the trip, oh and the ice cream on the beach as a reward.

Ps watch out for more "Where am I?"s

Wednesday, October 08, 2008

The Park, the Sun and other things...

That was my mum, she made me happy, my sister and my Dad happy; my Dad most of all. They were each others lives, my Mum and Dad.

On the plane over this time I could not sleep, but made the most of my 3 seats to myself by getting all my feelings out and writing about how I felt and how I feel now, so some of this was modified after re-writing for events that have now come to pass, with recent feelings being added, since it has now been 5 weeks since that flight.

I am on my third trip to Australia for the year, to see … for what was to be the last time ever, my Mum. I spent a great deal of time with her on my visits during the year, and thinking back I had seen her more, much more then I did when I actually lived in Adelaide. Despite what some might have considered a curse that I had chosen to live in the UK; having done that actually had given me the opportunity to come back and do nothing but devote my time to my Mum for 3 weeks straight at a time, each time. Something had I been living in Australia I could not have done.

I can always know that I was there when it counted, even though I was a long way away. I was trying to make my hope work for me and I felt that while I was there I was giving up, and accepting that the end was near. I was not there for 5 weeks between my second and third visits, which may have been one of the hardest period of my family’s lives, but I was on the end of the phone to my dad every couple of days, which was as close as I could be.

It certainly was not the same being back in the UK when it came to going out and doing things, and it won't be the same for a while now anyway, but one (gosh how English is that) must earn a living and pay the bills.

I had so much hope, which is why I returned to the Uk after the second trip, I hoped she would be well again, I made plans for her to be well again. I hoped to see my family at Christmas, to take both Mum and Dad to the Farnborough Air show, to Silverstone (my mad motorsports Mum, and Dad for that matter), to Wimbledon, to see the Pharaohs in Egypt, to the Cotswolds, to where I live in London and most of all to Paris.

I wanted to show her my world, a world she knew of from my phone calls (far too infrequent), my photos, my emails and my blog. I know she was and still is proud of me and loves that I am doing what I wanted in life, from what she has told me herself and from what others (thanks Laura) have told me via my Mum.

It has been several weeks now (5 weeks since I arrived, 4 weeks since she died and 3 weeks since the funeral) and it is still very weird not having my mum around, I don't know how I should necessarily feel about her being gone. I know I have accepted it (that she is physically gone part only) sort of, but it does not make it easier that is for sure. No matter how someone leaves you, the hardest part is that they are gone at all.

The best piece of advice I had about how to feel, and what to feel, was "you feel what you feel when you feel it, don't have any expectations". That made me relax and not be too stressed at how I was feeling, or worry what I was doing or being worried if I was feeling the right things. It helped me to especially realise that grief is a very personal experience, even if you are grieving over the same person.

I think the most important thing is for me now is; to know I care, to know I miss her, to know my family are here, to know they love and miss her, to know she loved me, to know she only wants us all to be happy and to know I will always love her.