The Titles of Budgie

I was originally going to title this "Nude Disintegrating Parachutist Woman" which is one of the many startling titles from the Welsh Heavy Metallers Budgie. Other titles are "It The Grip of A Tyre Fitters Hand" and "Breadfan" the latter covered by Metallica here among other places.

Their titles also vaguely remind me of the titles that Amon Duul II had on their albums which only just about made sense.

This morning I awoke from a dream it which lots happened but most has melted away now although one thing I remember was going back to the office except walking in was more like a packed church, withe everyone at their desks , then I realised I had forgotten my laptop so had to go back home , but it was pointless going back to the office because there was no place to sit anyway.

My mind is empty tonight (as usual) so I will leave you to enjoy the Welsh metal.

Breadfan

September this year seems a bit weird for me. I feel there's a least a week left in September but it ends on Monday meaning that Tuesday we're into October and incidentally my birthday. Thought the week after it's my daughter's birthday and I always think I have more time to sort her card and present out and often end up consulting her Amazon wishlist the day before. I will do that this weekend.

The other day I went to the Strawberry and was thinking while I like their toasties I'm not really that much of a bread fan these days. Really if you are trying to keep the weight off bread is best avoided. That reminded of the seventies Welsh Metal band Budgie who had a song called "Breadfan" (covered by, among others , Metallica who do a more than decent cover) and thought that would be a good title / subject for a post. Some more of their excellent titles include "In The Grip of A Tire Fitters Hand", "Nude Disintegrating Parachutist Woman" and "Crash Course In Brain Surgery" (Budgie not Metallica).

Still on "The God Delusion" and it is teaching me a lot about Cosmology and Physics and I'm finding it more scientifically instructional than anti God / Religion although Dawkins has no time for ignorance and using God as an explanation for things we don't yet have an answer for.

So it's Friday morning , time for work, and I'll leave you with "Breadfan" by Budgie with excellent static Roger Dean cover.

Clock Mathematics

I was completely unaware of (or had forgotten about) the concept of clock mathematics. We all use it every day and when used in applied mathematics it can apparently be very useful. Basically its working with a  limited series of numbers which rill over when you get to the end. So an example that we may use every day is that if you say that you will see someone in four hours at eleven o' clock you both know you will meet at three o' clock. Therefore 11 + 4 = 3 not 15 because after 12 we roll back to 1. Apparently it's useful in Elliptical Theory. This is another concept that I have been (re) introduced to in Simon Singh's brilliant "Fermat's Last Theorem" ,and another reason why I love reading books.

As I'm writing this the sun has really come out and it's looking like a definite walk into work today.

Yesterday I put Half Man Half Biscuit's "Trouble over Bridgewater" and it has some great titles that maybe the songs don't quite live up to such as "Uffington Wassail" ,  but "Irk The Purists" is good and then I got hit with the absolut classic "Gubba Lookalikes" which is followed by the excellent "Mathematically Say" but then we are hit with the totally brilliantly funny "With Goth On Our Side" plagiarising Bob Dylan's "With God On Our Side".

The opening line is:

"Oh my name it is Dai Young"

And that is a brilliant play on words when the song is based in Wales and it's subject matter.

But I will share "Gubba Lookalikes" with you before I set out for work.

Just A Few Words

Play The Game

It's nice to actually get up on time and have time to make a cup of tea without having to rush out the door to get to work. This is what I intended to do yesterday , but the alarm was running an hour late. I'm listening to Radio 6 and about to run out the door after finishing my tea.

Tonight Wales play Portugal , a big match for both teams , but Wales do have the most expensive player in the world in Gareth Bale , and he can deliver , ad he has a team round him that can do it's job so don't be surprised to see Wales in the Final though all the money will go on Portugal.

Anyway enjoy your Wednesday , it's half way through the week and the sun is shining and "Everything Counts" by Depeche Mode is on the radio ,  but I will choose The Referees Alphabet by Half Man Half Biscuit as today's music.

"Wouldn't it be Fun

If They Gave The Ref A Gun"

Stay Happy

Didn't get out to AKQ Stottin' last night but I know Trillians would have been packed and it meant that I could watch some good films and get a reasonably early night. Today looks incredibly dreary , grey , wet and not exactly the ideal summers day.

I also didn't realise that England and Wales were in the same UEFA 2016 group , and Wales are top and Russia got a last minute equaliser although the bits of the match I saw looked fairly good, but whether Russia are meant to be the group fall guys I don't know ,  because Wales are looking good.

Anyway today is going to be a relaxing day , I will be practicing songs , listening to music , perusing the papers , getting irked by the Red Tops whicjh will tells us how immigrants will cost Europe £20 Billion (while the UK allows Corporate Tax Evasion / Avoidance of £200 Billion) ,  but knowing that they are rags written by idiots for morons.

Stay Happy

Anyway today is going to be another positive day, enjoying the abundant greenery , maybe taking awalk with a hat or an umbrella , because walking is good for you and does make you feel better and does not cost you anything but time and energy and you can find lots of unexpected things if you go in a random direction. And that thought has given me a song for this piece , George Harrison's "Any Road".

There are so many reasons to be happy , find them and have a great Sunday my wonderful friends.

Seven Days In North Wales

Just back from an excellent holiday in North Wales that way exceeded all expectations.

On the way down we stopped for lunch at a pub called The Black Swan in Ravenstonedale. The menu was not extensive, but everything on it looked absolutely gorgeous and we sampled the Lentil based Shepherd's Pie and Fish Pie . The service and staff were really friendly , and it was so good that we stopped there on the way back , and made the mistake of having starters this time , which just meant we couldnt finish the main course , full marks each time. Their website with all relevant information is here.


We arrived at the cottage , The Old Threshing Barn at Babell , near Holywell , to discover a superbly fitted place , with lots of room , and great sun deck and sun room . The hook and chain and low beams in the bedrooms are slightly disturbing , but this definitely rates as one of the best places we've ever stayed. You can check out the details here




Though most of the holiday was for relaxation , we had some excellent days out in:

• Chester , where we took a boat ride on the Dee , discovered and excellent pub called The Brewery Tap and a great rock T-Shirt shop called Sohos staffed by two totally great "rock" guys and gals. I ended up buying 5 T Sirts there. The website is here.
• Conway , which had great views , a superb castle and some excellent cafes, shops and eateries , and the smallest house in the world!!
• Bodnant Gardens , a National Trust site which is well worth a visit. Check it out here.
• Pictures from the holiday can be found here.

One amazing thing was that I didnt come across a single record shop during the week , which is a bit disturbing. I wouldn't like Tesco as my only source of music.
All in all a major success and we'll be going back again.