Some Random Tangentiality and Pigeons

Spot The Pigeon

A friend was surprised that I could find a elucidate about stuff related to Peru , and set me a task to find a song about pigeons. Two immediately sprang to mind "Pigeons" by Genesis from their Spot The Pigeon EP and "King of Rome" which I have only heard as a cover by Half Man Half Biscuit, but found this live performance by The Unthanks at the 2012 Folk awards. So here's a thing , leave a comment if you want me to write about some random thing and supply an appropriate piece of music. That could lead down an interesting trail similar to Radcliffe and Maconie's The Chain.

Here's the Wikipedia guff on pigeons:


"Pigeons and doves constitute the bird clade Columbidae, that includes about 310 species. Pigeons are stout-bodied birds with short necks, and short, slender bills with fleshy ceres. They feed on seeds, fruits, and plants" See here for  the RSPB definition.

Also pigeons play a part in the history of the Happy Mondays , but I'll leave you to look that up or you can watch this:



Sorry this is just a short post , although I noticed my last post was the 900th on this blog , so I've probably written enough to fill a book, although it would be quite incoherent but filled with interesting stuff. Anyway I hope you comment and leave your suggestions for the next post.

A Question of Balance

I think this will be short. I've finished my first book of the year, started on the second , both by Stuart Maconie incidentally and started making inroads into the TV backlog on BBC iPlayer on my phone. How do I do this?

Basically book on way to work, means I feel I've done something worthwhile and learnt
ed something and made an effort, then coming home I watch stuff on the TV (well my Samsung Note 2). Having said that I do need to fit the TED talks in there somehow as there are a few that I really want to check out, but I will find time somewhere. There are 24 hours in a day after all.

Only one song give the title of the post. From the Moody Blues album A Question of Balance.

Bagpuss On The Bed With Glasses

This will be very short, but I am going to keep posting , just because I can. I came home tonight to find Bagpuss had got glasses, courtesy of my cleaners (APM). It really cheered me up. I'm still reading Stuart Maconie's "The People's Songs" which is also making the train journeys fly by enjoyably. Sometimes you have to talk the calm and peace where you can find it.

Bagpuss On The Bed With Glasses

I saw one of these Facebook maxims that essential said live in the present , if to concentrate on what has happened you will stagnate and if you concentrate on what might happen you will worry and get yourself down, so if I wake up at night I just enjoy being warm and cosy in bed , and I deal with things when they need dealing with. I'm actually finding it very therapeutic , so will keep it up.

Had a nice lunch today for a friends birthday (which was yesterday) and tomorrow at work we'll be giving her a cake. It is really nice when good people can find something to celebrate together..

Anyway it's time for bed now, and I am going to enjoy my sleep.

Actually it's turned out to be quite a reasonable post, I was expecting it to be one or two lines, but it's amazing what you can do when you know friends are looking out for you and caring for you , and that makes you more positive in your outlook and able to deal with things and keep a smile on your face.

Well this looked like it had crashed, so I took a copy of the raw page and saved it just in case, but it seems to have saved now , so think it may be a good time to go to bed now.

Burned Out

Not posted much recently and realised I hadn't even read a book this year, so I started the new Stuart Maconie tome and am surprised how relaxed it makes me feel on the train. I've watch a lot of TV recently and maybe that is stressing me out, though the fact that you don't really have to do anything may be having some kind of weird adverse psychological effect. Maybe BBC's iPlayer is not the cure all or whatever I thought it was. Yes it is very clever and useful, but no use if it just eats up time that can be better and more usefully spent doing other things.



I also listened to the Steve Miller Band's Greatest Hits while reading , which was a sort of double good whammy and hence the brilliant song that I've chosen for this post.

Coincidentally Opencast

New OpenCast  Office

Often things happen and because of some other event we notice stuff that we maybe wouldnt have noticed . This week a number of things happened that are sort of tenuously connected and are sticking in my mind because  of the way things happened. It started with an instagram post by a great friend of mine CEO of Opencast Software referring to the Happy Mondays song . This came about when they were asked to do a cover for Rubáiyát: Elektra's 40th Anniversary album. They loved John Kongos' He's Gonna Step On You Again , and covered that , Shaun Ryder lifting the "Twistin' My Melon Man" from a quote from a Paul Newman film.

 Anyway apparently (and this has been verified by the Guinness Book of Records) , He's Gonna Step On You Again by John Kongos is the first commercial single to use a sample (the Africa Drum Loop). So here is its to listen to:

Tokolshe Stalking a Mad Dog

The band liked their cover , re-titled "Step On" so much they released it as a single and covered another John Kongos song Tokoloshe Man. Now listening to Mark Radcliffe and Stuart Maconie they were talking to a guy about the top record covers , and that included the Happy Mondays "Step On" which most people don't realise is actually a cover. Aparently when Kongos was stuck for inspiration he would ring his mum and one of her suggestion was Tokoloshe Man, and the Tokoloshe appeared as a voodoo dwarf in the last series of Mad Dogs.

So if you want a copy of the Happy Mondays Tokoloshe Man you will have to hunt down the album or get Loaded.

There were many other coincidences that happened this week but that's all they were  , but it is sometimes amazing how many things coincide when you dont expect them to 

Another Saturday

Well this is another post today. Interesting writing a blog post with no internet access but I'm using my iPad with my rickety case cum keyboard. Minor Injuries is quiet today at the RVI but foot is painful so hopefully can get something sorted today. But there are other things to distract my attention today.

 They have WiFi in here that will cost you a pound an hour. It's amazing that they can charge that when you can get superfast broadband for around twenty pounds a month. It's also amazing the number of people who walk in here expecting to be treated immediately. These are probably the same people who thing the NHS should be privatised to save the 5p in the pound of their taxable income.

Anyway today Newcastle United's Gallic army go to London to take on Tottenham Hotspur. Last year it was a five goal defeat courtesy of Harry Redknapp's team. They got rid of Harry and now have Andre Villas Boas , so it will be interesting to see the outcome, although it isnt likely I'll see the match and by the time I post this I will know the result. As a back for entertainment I have a copy of Stuart Maconie's Hope and Glory, which is entertaining but not as entertaining as the people watching I'm doing. An elderly couple complaining there are no shops, a group of girls , one in a wheely chair after a good night out.

The staff are al good natured and at times places like this must be dreadful. Have you ever noticed you can never easily pass an old person on a footpath. This confused me for years until it dawned on me what was happening. Normal people normally move slightly to make room so you can pass. Old people don't. It happened this morning, an old guy in front of me just stopped. He managed to take up the whole width of the footpath with his shopping bag so to get past I had to walk in the road I got to the bus stop and when he arrived he just parked himself at the front of the queue.

 Just heard the receptionist say that her husband has deleted her as a friend on Facebook. Quite funny. Apparently she now has a license to have a good time. The old couple nearby are getting on my nerves with their moaning. Well it's the wife actually. The husband is trying to make things easier and she's having none of it. Some folk are only happy when they are miserable.

 Now a charver family has appeared , screeching child in a push chair , moaning mutha and I think it's a daughter who has come for treatment. The Newcastle match is about to kick off so I am going to give this a rest.

Oh Tottenham beat Newcastle 2-1 with two excellent Gareth Bale goals

Casualty Blues

I'm writing this in the Casualty Department in Newcastle's Royal Victoria Hospital. I'm using a document producing office suite on my iPad , and like anything new still a bit unsure of how to use it. Text is coming out at a reasonable speed using my blu tooth keyboard and the spell checker is good but unobtrusive.

Anyway last time I was here there seemed a lot less people, but this time I've just turned up because of a possible bone fracture in my left foot. After this I have to go up a ladder to fix a gutter and that has to happen. The two situations however are mutually incompatible. I always criticise people for not following doctor's orders but I have a feeling that today I will be one of those. I've noticed the announcement system is not very in your face so I am slightly worried I may miss my appointment.

I've just had a thought I hope this office suite can do a full cut and paste or I will be more than a bit miffed.

There's no mobile signal in here so I cant even look for outside entertainment though there are plenty of people franticly messing with their phones in the forlorn hope of finding a signal. You shouldn't use your phone in a hospital for similar reasons why you shouldn't use one on an airplane. It could interfere with sensitive equipment. As I say almost everyone here is messing with at least one phone.

It is quiet and I will soon save this and go back to reading Stuart Maconie's Hope and Glory, which is proving more laborious that expected as I zipped through his previous books Cider With Roadies and Pies and Prejudice , but it may be just my current state of mind (exhaustion). I've just read Shaun Ryder's Twisting My Melon and that was a fairly easy if unexpectedly hefty read.

Anyway when I realised I would have another two hours to wait decided to make an appointment with my GP and get myself sorted that way.

Seven Days In Dublin Again #2

Just reading the rather excellent Pies and Prejudice by Stuart Maconie and the man from Wigan points out that Dublin's name is extrapolated from the gaelic "dubh" meaning black and 'linh" meaning pool. So Dublin is Ireland's very own Blackpool!! I think generally the name is about the only thing the two places have in common.

As this was our second time we managed to track down decent places to go and hit the target every time.

The Ha'penny Bridge pub , next to the Ha'penny Bridge (no surprise there) , serves an excellent pint of Guinness (to everyone in the pub when I was there) , and managed to screen the Manchester United and Celtic matches simultaneously , and still provide a warm welcome and superb service.

Across the Halfpenny Bridge is The Winding Stair and book shop cum restaurant (Michelin Guide Listed) that scores highly in both departments. Some excellent and unusual books are on sale and the food was absolutely gorgeous, though I get the impression that you do have to book , so make sure you phone if you fancy a meal there.

Also this there seem to be fewer beggars , being split between sad cases who sit holding out a McDonald's cup and the cheery ones selling The Big Issue or plaing some musical instruments. The latter ones actually brighten up the streets and walkways so got some donations from me.

Also checked out Tower records which among the normal stuff had many unusual psychedelic gems and is recommended. They were playing Beefheart and Amon Duul over the PA , not something you hear everyday anywhere!!!

As well as that we visited some museum in Dublin Castle which had a Japanese art display and a green area decorated with snakes in the form of a Celtic design . Well worth a look.
Another thing about Dublin , is the preposterous number of pharmacies everywhere. The Irish don't strike me as being a particularly ill race, far from it. Maybe it's because of the number of pharmacies that they manage to stave off all the possible ailments. Theres one particularly pleasant example in Dalkey (out of the four that I noticed , which is the one below.