Hey You…

Eleven months after buying the tickets, the day finally arrived.

 

Last night I saw a 67 year old man perform The Wall.  He hadn’t performed it for nearly 30 years and his voice finally fitted his music.

I saw Pink Floyd in 1994 at Earls Court and this felt like the missing link.  Aside from the music, the show was fabulous – an absolute treat to the senses.  The iconic Teacher was menacing, as he was lowered down on to the stage.

 

 

As the show progressed, a wall was built, hiding the musicians, onto which projections added to the visual impact.

 

 

The finale was the wall coming crashing down.

 

Finale

 

Given the chance, I would go back for every night of the tour to hear my favourite song ever.

 

 

19 :: Twinkle…

My shopping arrived at 1am, on the dot.  I felt so sorry for the driver – he must have had a horrendous day but he was still smiling as delivered my shopping!  No2 and I carried it into the kitchen, put the fridge and freezer stuff away and left the rest until this morning!

In case you are interested, I did the ironing, made the tiramisu (I must post this recipe one day.  It was given to me by an Italian lady who lived next door to my friend when she lived in Warwick.  It is heavy on grappa, but oh, so good), wrapped a few presents and did some hand-quilting to while away the hours!

 

My Christmas tree is now in the living room and I spent a leisurely afternoon decorating it after clearing the car and drive of 8 inches of snow.  That’s a lot of snow for London.

 

At last, I have some twinkle.

 

When my parents moved house they gave me a couple of boxes of old books that belonged to my uncle’s father.  I decided to use them to decorate my fireplace.  I had put a couple on the mantle a couple of weeks ago and so added some more to the hearth.

 

 

Some of the titles are quite intriguing.  I think I might read them and better myself.

 

I am enjoying sitting here by candlelight, listening to my latest teenage tendency that has been on repeat for some time now.

 

 

I have lit my orange and clove candles and the room is filled with a Christmas aroma.  Just wish I’d made some more mince pies… perhaps tomorrow.

 

The Wall...

Thank you for all your sweet comments yesterday, they were truly appreciated.

~~~~~

Today something arrived in the post that has cheered me up no end.  I have a date in my diary for next year to go and watch Roger Waters perform The Wall at the O2 and I can't wait.  I bought the tickets a while ago and wasn't really expecting to get them until a few weeks before the event.

I love Pink Floyd and was lucky enough to see them at Earls Court about 15 or 16 years ago.  Roger Waters was no longer with them, so this will complete my Pink Floyd experience.  My favourite song of all time is Comfortably Numb which comes from The Wall.  Whenever I mention my love of Pink Floyd, most people say "what? Another Brick in the Wall?" which is, for me, the worst song ever from them.  I would consider that I have a pretty diverse taste in music but I have remained loyal, and still listen to regularly, Pink Floyd.  Roger Waters has made some brilliant solo albums too, which feature on my most played list on my iPod.

♥ Paolo Nutini ♥ ...

Is it immature for me to use those little hearts?  Is it a bit girlie?!  Here's the reason...

 

...all part of Richard Thompson's Meltdown at the Southbank Centre...

...I'm a bit short on words, but he was just fabulous!  An amazing singer and it felt so intimate for some reason too.  But then I have posted about my teenage tendencies before!

Make a selection...

Sorry for being a spoilsport! I kinda forgot to show what arrived after I wrote this post!

Some of you guessed it! It was made in 1962 so is older than I am by 5 years!




It used to cost 10p a go, but I've got it on freeplay cos I'm generous like that!

There is something for everyone - how about a bit of Dusty?

Or David Bowie?

Make your selection - the buttons have a nostalgic twang to them.

May I present my Juke Box:

My Dad bought it for my Mum's 40th birthday - I remember it coming in the house to wide eyes! It seems to fit perfectly into my living room - as though the space was just waiting to be filled.

Viva la vida...

I. CANNOT. WAIT.

Sunday Recipe...

Somewhere along the line, there has been a decision made that 'we' - me and my two sisters - will do Sunday lunch on a rota. Funny, I wasn't there as part of the decision-making team, but while it's summer and we can be outside, I'm happy to be part of the plan. That means that every third week I have to cook for 15. Although with a friend of No2's plus an unexpected visit from my cousin, it ends up being 17! I find myself a bit twitchy with routines now. I don't like being tied down to stuff, particularly family stuff. I'm aware that I don't often write of my family here. There's a big gaping hole in my family so I find it hard to be part of the family scene now.

Yesterday, it was my turn...again. Fathers Day, as it happens. My Mum insists on taking a photo of my Dad surrounded by his three daughters. He looks nonplussed and we look amused.

I spend the morning preparing food. I like doing that bit. Nothing particularly special, just BBQ-ed sausages and burgers, some salad stuff. Homemade pudding - apricot crumble, made with fresh apricots but with no almonds on top because my sister has a nut allergy, which is a shame because apricots and almonds are great together!

Everyone turns up and we eat our way through an outdoor feast. The children play football on the grass and there's a bit of a fight with No2 and one of his cousins! Beer and rosé wine are drunk merrily and my brother-in-law has me and my sisters in stitches at some very rude jokes, out of earshot of the children! And my Mum!

Before we know it it is teatime and so get stuck into a Victoria Sponge and some banana and cinnamon muffins (all part of the morning's work). Everyone leaves complaining of having eaten too much! I put the dishwasher on for the second time and crash on the sofa. No2 asks why I want to go to bed at 9.45pm - he doesn't get that entertaining is tiring but likes the fact that there has been a full house for the day.

The other crucial ingredients are balmy weather, pink geraniums giving the deck fabulous pools of colour, carefully picked music on the iPod dock and a bright pink tablecloth...apparently!

Teenage tendencies...

Every now and then I get them... You know, like when you keep playing the same song over and over.



Like this one:



Paolo Nutini - Candy

I love it! The album is great too...

My Literature Log...

As predicted, it has become difficult to fit everything in to each week now, let alone day. I feel like I'm juggling lots of balls in the air since I started studying. At the moment they are all staying up - I wonder how long that will last...

Surprisingly, I'm not that bothered by dog hair swirling around the floor anymore or the fact that my garden looks a bit wind-battered. Maybe I'm mellowing into student life. My weeks are flying by and my brain is fit to burst. This weekend I have made a plan - to have a day of rest from uni on Saturday, and then today, Sunday, to get everything up to date from the previous weeks studying. I can report that my plan has worked. I even managed to fit in a quick half hour in the garden, planting the last of the pansies I bought last week.

On Friday we started 2 new modules - English and Maths. The dreaded maths... I've always considered maths to be my weakest subject. After just one lecture and one seminar, I have been inspired to take a fresh approach to it and I feel challenged to teach it well. My brain just seems to say 'aaaargh...' at the mere mention of the word, and I found I was not alone in this! Even with a grade 'B' 'O' level, I was not convinced I had a sound knowledge of the subject. Perhaps I can change my misconceptions over the course of the next few weeks.

I just know I'm going to enjoy the English module. My tutor is particularly brilliant! There is something about her that just appeals to me. Our first seminar was about children's literature and over the course of the next year, I have to compile a log of about 500 examples of children's literature. The work that I've done in our school library over the last 2 years is going to help me enormously, plus it is the perfect opportunity to trawl through the shelf upon shelf of children's books here at home, re-reading and making notes.

My favourite children's author is Eric Carle. I love everything about his books - the rhythm, the richness, the illustrations and, of course, the story. Of all his books, The Very Hungry Caterpillar is my absolute favourite. It has an extra special place in my heart as it was Tom's favourite book. If ever he was having a difficult day, I would read it to him or play it on his CD player, and he would usually calm down and eventually smile or get that twinkle of pleasure in his eyes. Have you ever heard the audio version? The music is particularly lovely. So lovely, that I played it at his funeral as an introduction. Whenever I hear the story now, the music is in my head the whole time. It makes me smile.

Before Tom became ill (he was 4...), his other Eric Carle favourite was The Bad-tempered Ladybird. He used to love saying the line 'hey, you, want to fight?'. He was such a gentle soul, it seemed incongruous to hear him say such a thing.

What are your favourite children's books? Any additions to my log will be most gratefully received, so do leave me a comment!

2000 miles...

According to my calculations, by the end of the summer holidays, I will probably have driven 2000 miles.

The week spent in the Wonderful Wet Wales clocked up 900 miles on my car - that's 260 miles each way from door to door, plus another 400 or so driving round...and round...trying to avoid the rain.

Last Saturday found me driving to my favourite Cotswold retreat as a pit-stop to carrying on up to Manchester the following morning. We had tickets to see REM at Lancashire County Cricket Club, as part of No2's birthday treat.

We checked into a hotel on Salford Quays and after a quick bite to eat at the Lowry Mall, we joined the crowd and made our way to the ground. I think No2 found it hard going on his feet (bless him!), as we had to stand around for 3 hours until REM came on.

Anyway, in a word, REM were fantastic. They played my favourite song - Electrolite - to which we all had to hold our mobiles in the air. When the camera panned across the ground and it came up on the giant screens, it looked amazing!

We drove home the next day, wearing our gig t-shirts, of course!

The following morning had me off in another direction. This time west, to Cheltenham, to meet up with a friend. It was the perfect opportunity to pay a visit to No.9. I had the absolute pleasure of meeting Anna and Rob, and I can report that my favourite hazelnut latte was expertly made and was delicious when paired with a slice of bakewell tart.

I wish you every success, Anna, it is the perfect space for All Things Lovely. I only wish I lived nearer!

Tomorrow we are off on our last trip of the holidays. Glamping, again! This time we are going up to Pettywood Farm in Lincolnshire. I have only one thing to say: PLEASE DON'T LET IT RAIN...

Seven songs...

I was tagged by Gingerbread - my kind of tag!

Here is the tag:

"List seven songs you are into right now.No matter what the genre, whether they have words, or even if theyare not any good, but they must be songs you’re really enjoying now.."

My ipod is always on in the background, so I put my 4* playlist on shuffle and this is what came up:

Bell Bottomed Tear - The Beautiful South

Viva la Vida - Coldplay

Space Oddity - David Bowie

Pure - The Lightening Seeds

Closer - Travis

Confusion - The Zutons

Around the Sun - REM

If you click on the title, you can watch the video on Youtube.

I should pass this on to 7 others, but as it's the end of term and I'm feeling lazy, I'll let you decide if you want to play!