An Angry Addiction

Despite two visits into Canterbury, I have become dreadfully lazy
and static, due to spending most of today with my attention drawn
to Angry Birds on my Smartphone.

It was only a matter of time wasn't it? Luckily, there's a fair
bit of radio listening on the agenda, so at least I'll have a good
reason for doing so then.

I don't want this to become a serious addiction however, and
if worse comes to worse, the least I can do is delete the app from
my mobile.

Or remove the icon from my main desktop at least.

That said, I'm rather bored of being stuck on the level I'm currently
on, so I may have fought off the craving, at least for the time being.

Sorting out my own meals tomorrow, ahead of the punk rock
night at The Maiden's Head where the Half-Wits will be amongst
the acts playing.

Here's hoping it goes well, seeing as it's the first punk night
at the venue under new management.

Divulging In Dementia

The April showers seem to be vanishing in Canterbury, leaving
us with clear blue skies although the temperatures aren't exactly
ideal for having barbecues.

I may have spoke too soon mind, as the weekend isn't looking too good.

Tonight sees the second part of Louis Theroux's Extreme Love series
where dementia is the focus.

Many of the blurbs and newspaper previews suggest that it's
a tougher subject matter than the autism episode last week
and with that in mind, it should be a compelling watch.

There's no signs of stopping for the presenter, as in an interview
on Simon Mayo's show earlier in the week he revealed the next
project to be televised is one he recorded about the decline of 
the US porn industry.

Here's hoping it will be more light-hearted, although it's
safe to say that if last week's episode is anything to go by,
Extreme Love has been one of the most well produced, 
thought-provoking series so far this year.

A Night With Milos

It hasn't been too eventful a day apart from receiving an e-mail
about my show on CSR, where as far as next month goes, it's
business as usual.

So overall it means that I'll be remaining in my usual timeslot
every Sunday (well, save for the occasional week off) and it will 
hopefully continue to improve.

I guess it's good to have brief periods of anxiety like the one on Monday
as it helps me to understand that things could be a lot worse
than I perceive them to be, and they make day to day life more interesting.

To pass the time this evening, I've chosen to indulge in a "Milos Marathon"
with two films directed by Milos Forman, them being One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest and The People Vs Larry Flynt.

I'm at the halfway stage and bizarrely I had never seen the former
before despite it's popularity and it's certainly more darker than
Larry Flynt.

Still a good film mind.

But despite the subject matter of Cuckoo's Nest, there's one scene
in Larry Flynt that really does ring true with my manic episode,
where Mr Flynt rings up his LA offices from a mental psychiatric
prison and in his depressed state, fires all of his staff.

Just being reduced to a state of losing all enthusiasm
for what you enjoy, and wanting to throw it away like that.

It's just a shame that there's a lot of those who haven't been
through such an episode themselves, who don't understand how
hard that is to deal with.

Punk'd Out

Very busy this Tuesday.

I was London-bound to meet up with Joey where went to a nearby
Italian restaurant not too far away from Western House.

I went for what turned out to be a delicious tag bol, although
Joe trying to stay healthy went for a salad dish.

Things are looking good as just a few days after my own birthday
I will be heading back up to Hampstead Heath to celebrate Joey's
where he's organising the "JOLympics".

It will be good to see plenty of old faces as well including
Dan P and Jacko who I don't think I've seen for nearly five years now.

It's going to be quite a hectic week on that of my birthday.

As for tonight, I made my way over to the Cherry Tree for
tonight's gig with Ted Dibiase, realising halfway that I'd 
left my camera at home.

It turned out to be just as well as the gig ended up being pulled
due to the headline act getting stuck on the M6.

However Stuart, Aaron, and their friend Stacey were still present
and were later joined by a few of the musicians from The Halfwits
who will be playing at Maidens this Saturday.

I may well pop along to that.

Despite drinking mainly pints of water, it didn't prevent me from
getting rather tired so after 10:30pm I opted to turn it in.

However I'm certain it's another gradual step to positive progression.

"Giving Me Road RRReej"

If there's one thing I have been getting better at this year, it's
resolving anxieties within a day, rather than hold onto them for 
days on end. 

Or for a better description, realising anxieties aren't really 
problematic after all.

I met up with the CSR team as planned where there was a good
turn out with Mel, Ryan, Daryl, Shona and Milli to name a few.

I've now sorted out my initial worries about the change in my
timeslot as I can't do Fridays or Saturdays, and it looks as
if things are looking good in terms of not making too many changes.

I'll find out the resolved timeslot by the end of the week.

As for the night itself, I don't think I can go into what 
was discussed, but let's say that cocktail pitchers
aren't the best intoxication for conversation.

A few of them headed over to the Cuban in Canterbury town
centre later on, although I decided to leg it back home in my
usual manner.

Partly because I didn't want to hear progamming manager Dan
providing unlimited choruses of Catatonia's "Road Rage"
possibly influenced by Cerys Matthews appearance on The Voice
this weekend gone by.

London-bound tomorrow, meeting up with the great Joe Schmo
(as he used to be known before switching Evans for Mayo)
and I'm back in Canterbury again tomorrow to see Ted Dibiase
take on the Cherry Tree again.

There will probably be some photos and all.

"Soul Destroying?"

It had to happen eventually.

Just when you think everything is getting better, a setback comes along
and injures you in a very painful place.

In my case it has been receiving an e-mail from one of the programming bods
at CSR with a new schedule for specialist shows and they have moved
me to a slot on Saturdays between 10pm and midnight.

I understand the mechanics behind this as they want similar sounding
shows to be placed within the schedule more coherently, therefore
they've placed me after a jazz show.

But with my DJ nights in London about to start, and the possible
prospects of them going further, I cannot be in a position to be present
one week and be absent the next.

And no. Pre-reccing is not an option.
That's even more crushing.

Yes I'm known for taking many a week off from the show but very
few people are listening to the radio on a Saturday night and
understandably so. 

On the plus side, I will be seeing a fair number of those from the
station tonight in Canterbury, and will tell them straight about how
I feel without resorting to any nonsense.
But with the prospect of losing listener interaction, and possibly
the show altogether, I am gutted.

Flashing My Back

I really need to stop being selfish with the sound levels when
presenting my radio show, as I noticed that the knobs on the desk
were adjusted lower than normal for the first couple of links.

Listening back to it, it sounded a lot less distorted as a result
until I altered them back to "my comfort zone".

Not too good.

From next week onwards, the mic-popping will be put to
one side.

Only took me 101 shows.

That said, a good response on the e-mail and the Backflash
feature went down well, where I played a wide set of tunes
from two decades ago.

Weird to think that the XL record label now home to the likes
of Adele and Bobby Womack, was in 1992 providing us with
delights such as "On A Ragga Tip" by SL2.

Tomorrow evening I plan to head to the Westgate Spoons in
Canterbury where most of the CSR team will be meeting up
for possibly the first time since last month's awards.

Again, I'll probably stick to pints of water.

The Listening List - W/E 21.04.12

What's been inside the left, right and centre of my head this week?

Jessie Ware - 110%

Rising from the underground, an offering from another superb vocalist
called Jessie, with a tune that simply stands out. 

There's no artist or record currently around that bears a
similar resemblance to this offering and having listened
to a few of Ware's other tunes, the ethereal sound 
is Ware's signature sound.

The minimalist style within "110%" is reminiscent of Madge's
"Justify My Love" although nowhere near as raunchy lyric-wise.

An album has to be released sooner rather than later. 

Jamie Cullum Podcast - BBC Radio 2

When there's a lot to listen to every week, it can be a struggle
to make time even for programmes you have to listen to.

Or in my case, I had been watching Eastenders when the show
was going out live.

Seriously though, I'm really muddled as to why other music
based shows on the radio don't adapt to this podcast format
giving 30 second snippets of each song played in the show
(very well edited) and Jamie's links in full, all in the space of 20 minutes.

Jamie's podcast is very accessible, especially if you're one of those
who may find it hard to get through a not so good track that's
longer than it should be.

All in all, the man knows what he's talking about, and if there's a tune
I really like in there, I will want to go and either download it or listen
to it in full on Spotify.

The highlight of this week's podcast comes in the form of an interview
with Blues stalwart Dr. John promoting his rather superb new album
"Locked Down" co-produced by The Black Keys providing a raw tinge
the the tracks on offer.

Long may the show continue to provide the good stuff and carry
on converting people who have previously misunderstood the jazz genre. 

This American Life: Our Own Worst Enemy - WBEZ 95.1, Chicago

One from a series of podcasts that I've been waiting to include 
on the site, and I'm pretty sure it won't be the last.

This episode of the renowned radio series looks at how people
deal with struggles of which they have to do things their own way.

Whether it's down to allergies, physical or mental traits,
they find it impossible to control problems of their own making,
and spend the majority of their time thinking over why their mind
works in such a negative way.

One part that's worth drawing attention to is 25 minutes in, focusing
on conversation.

In this case, a phone call between two individuals Ben and Erykah,
where at first, the listener hears how Ben hears his conversation
in his head when he's making the call.

Then you hear how it really sounded and he sounds more
surly and rude in his attitude. 

That's creative use of audio, to the point of me having the play back
the first phone call just to make sure it sounded different.

There's good use of music as well, on a personal note it was nice to
hear "Creole Love Call" at 12:19 as at a very early age living in 
London, it was "rotated" quite a lot on the front room CD player
on a Cotton Club compilation CD.

My only constructive point, is that there's no formal introduction
although the website itself and the podcast blurb gives enough
information to set the story, and tempt the listener into listening
to learn more.

Overall it's a good insight on how other people go through
periods of anxiety and personal problems, and how they overcome them.

"Our House Is Dadless"

I forgot to blog again yesterday, as a result of spending a fair amount
of it staring at multi-tracks.

It paid off however, and if you listen to me on the radio tomorrow
you'll hear the results.

Dad's heading abroad again today, this time to Taiwan as part
of a project he has organised which will last about 10 days in total.

He won't be staying in Canterbury for too long on return as he'll be
Cuba bound in mid-May therefore missing out on my 27th birthday.

Then again I've got a lot going on around that time anyway, a lot
of it spent in the big city.

In fact on the Whitsun Bank Holiday, the Leicester Square Theatre
will be my destination again to see Richard Herring interview
Charlie Brooker for his new series of podcasts.

I was initially going to turn this one down, but it's too good
to miss and I'm sure I can wait slightly longer to save up for 
my radio recording equipment.

Whether I'll get a photo with Brooker remains to be seen, 
in fact I'm more than happy for him to call me a c*nt.

He'll be added to the list of broadcasters who have done 
that which at the moment only includes Jon Holmes.

Round Quantic's Corner

I've been up and down at various points of today, getting anxious about
things I shouldn't be getting anxious over.

If (frankly unlikely) future circumstances regarding possible work get
to me, then I know I'm more than capable of telling someone
to prevent myself from getting shaky and agitated.

That can happen, and has lead to uncertain circumstances.

But why should I be worrying about this?

The next couple of months have got a lot lined up, with two lengthy
DJ sets I'm playing in North and South London respectively, and a
Radio Academy event in June devoted entirely to jingles.

I may have said in the past that I would opt out of future
jingle events North of Watford, but as it's an RA event 
it's a bloody big deal.

There's really no time for worrying, and lots of time to start sorting
things out in preparation.

One anxiety cure was provided by listening to Quantic and Alice
Russell's new album "Look Around The Corner" earlier this afternoon
and it's superb.

Every one on that album a winner.

Unfortunately, because of my rule of mentioning this on
a separate blog post, I can't review it on my listening list,
so my work will be cut out tomorrow finding more podcasts to review.

The ultimate cure for writer's block.

Dirty Broadcast Investment

My mealtime plans have changed again as on my visit to the
freezer, I spotted some mince that needs using, so what with me
wanting to economise, I'll use what is left in the cupboard to sort out a
penne bol later on.

I'm certain that by the end of the year I'll be in a better financial
state, although this sort of leads on to an article I have found 
about the wrong way to go about making a desperate buck.

Radio Academy Chief Executive John Myers, has published
a well observed bog about bad business people which has once 
again got a lot of points across that I have been too stupid to work
out beforehand.

And yet it still had me laughing, and shouting in agreement
like I've gone bonkers.

Whilst it's sad to see Channel M go under, Myers makes good
points about what I'd describe as a stupid attempt to invest
in local television as if in today's climate it's going to attract
the punters in their millions;
 

“I tell you what I’m doing this weekend, I’m going to get the pizzas in
and settle down to a North West Tonight marathon!”
(David Mitchell, 10 O’Clock Live, Channel 4, 20.01.2011)

Moreso it brings to mind why many of the tiny local radio stations
failed in areas already served by ILRs and why it sounded like they
weren't even trying.

Especially in the early days of Canterbury's 106 CTFM in the late 90s
which was a rather bland station save for an early appearance of
Jon Holmes along with partner Andy Hurst.

Invevitably the near the knuckle antics got them the sack,
for refusing to stick to the script.

Or liner cards to be more realistic.

Anyway I'm straying.

To cut it short, it's all down to the actions of one person that
can influence others and lead to results either good or bad.

And I've lead myself up the garden path for too long thinking
that things "just happen".

At least I can laugh at previous mistakes rather than mope at them.

A Mental Appetite For Change

Whilst the week ahead is looking generally positive, today hasn't
really involved anything worth blogging about. 

All I've really been up to has been making two shopping visits
into Canterbury, and putting the pre-produced bits for this week's
radio show together.

The phrase "Show and go" is certainly not in my agenda.

Although it may be a case of "go" on it's own if I continue to
break the rules. No one's noticed yet.

I'm at a loose end on what to cook tomorrow as I've made
both a chicken, and pork stew earlier today so I may go for a more
back to basics route. 

I was thinking of attempting a steak with boiled spuds, only
I've realised that it's rather pricey.

Or even better, something I hadn't had in a long while but really
enjoyed first time, smoked river cobbler with rice.

I'd best get searching tomorrow as it's bound to kill time.

The Transparent Aural Cupboard

I always like to think that I am making a fresh start on a Monday.

What with things back to normal at home and a positive
visit to Chaucer Homecare this afternoon it has gone well so far,
but things have been slightly hampered by my left ear, still recovering
from the wax flood over the weekend.

It's now in a state of sounding like I'm in a cupboard, to the point
I can't have a proper conversation with Mum and Dad at the
dining room table because I can only partially make out what they
or even I am saying.

I do hope this is just a temporary hindrance, and that in a few
days time or shorter, my left channel will go back to it's old self.

Other than that, things are gradually ascending.

Centenaries And Further Celebrations

What a way to return to the airwaves of Canters, my 100th
Blam Jam show, and an amazing victory for Chelsea over the White Scum.

Although it's fair to say that we may have not deserved the second
goal, and the behaviour of some of the Blues fans in the 2 minutes
silence for Hillsborough was uncalled for, no matter how we may
feel about Liverpool FC as a whole.

That doesn't mean things are good as a whole back at home
as at the moment we are out of fruity fizzy stuff to drink.

An outing to Sainsbury's beckons tomorrow as I'll be en route
there for my appointment at Chaucer Homecare.

As for the rest of tonight I shall be listening to Radio 1's Surgery
as Aled and the team are covering mental health and it will be 
interesting to hear what stories and advice they'll have on offer.

Just a shame that while I was going through the worst of it
myself, Radio 1 had hired Kelly Osborne to present said show,
and if this audio is anything to go by, it's no surprise as to why
she didn't last long.

Knowing Which Way To Go

The physical pain showed no sign of departing as today I had to cope
with an irritating headache.

It may have been caused by staring at a screen for most of today,
but whatever it was, I'm hoping it's the last of such bugbears.

Tonight's episode of The Voice was once again superb where
it was understandable how tough it was to reject some of the
chancers.
The girl who gave a fantastic rendition of the Four Non-Blondes
only hit, being one such example.

If anything though, here's hoping show as a whole will result
in John Legend's "Ordinary People" hitting the charts due to 
it being sung twice, with the most notable being that of Jaz Ellington
who doesn't just have "the voice" but also "the name".

I hope to take things easy for the rest of the night, maybe
getting some early shut eye which isn't like me on a Saturday night.

It's all good preparation for tomorrow mind, and I'll be back at
Canterbury's CSR for the 100th edition of Blam Jam.

No telegrams unfortunately, not even a free drink from
the station manager, but I'll give it a good go.

The Listening List - W/E 14.04.12

Another week of wireless and audio listening, here goes;

Mr Blue Sky - BBC Radio 4 09.04.12

I've never gotten into many radio based sitcoms, but on the basis
that it's written by Andrew Collins and the first series got a good
critical response, I thought I'd give this a go.

Add to that, the main protagonist Harvey Easter (Mark Benton)
is an eternal optimist always trying to see the positive way of life
even in extreme circumstances, which doesn't seem to rub off
on the rest of his family.

The opening episode of the first series deals with issues
such as setting a tight economic family budget, and son Robbie
(Tyger Drew-Honey) sets his sights on becoming a hip-hop
DJ under the influence of his friend "Kill-R" (Javone Prince).

Whilst not hysteric inducing overall, the subjects covered are easy
to identify with, and unlike certain comedy programmes
on the radio, there's no air of the listener being told when
to laugh under an air of smugness from the performers.

It's impossible not to find a familiar name in the cast list
although you'd be forgiven for wondering whether Claire Skinner
is getting bored of playing mother roles.

Not to mention that having the same fictional son as on
television, but it manages to work reasonably well on the noise-only box.

Best to see how the rest of the series develops.

Obenewa - "What Can I Do" - Soundcloud

Expect to find many creative covers posted every now and
again on the blog.

None moreso than this offering from London musician and vocalist
Obenewa (O-Ben-e-Wa) as her interpretation of the Corrs' 1998
top 10 hit interprets it in a way no one would expect.

If the above audio has turned any ears around, then by all means
lend a listen to Obenewa's original material that can also be found
on her Soundcloud page with personal favourites being "Bed" and
"Make It Better" which never seemed to be away from my 
music playing software last year.
The girl will go far.

Annie Nightingale's Eternal Jukebox - BBC Radio 2 09.04.12

A really good radio show is normally one that leaves you
wanting more.

Annie Nightingale's Radio 2 presenting debut achieved just that
as 90 minutes wasn't long enough for this eclectic
and entertaining show linking listeners requests and songs
of Annie's choosing both within the same theme.

In the very likely chance of the above paragraph not making any sense,
such segueways include Fleetwood Mac's "Rhiannon" followed by
"Unfaithful" by Rihanna, and Adele's "Someone Like You" preceding
"Thinking Of You" by Terry Hall and The Colourfield.

The presentation harks back to the days of Annie's Sunday night
Radio 1 show in the 80s and early 90s providing many a listener's accompaniment to last-minute homework, and yet it still stands the
test of time, all down to Nightingale's down to earth presenting style
with no signs of pretence.

I certainly wouldn't complain if they dumped Sunday Half-Hour
for this as a permanent addition to Radio 2's schedule.

Please take note Roger Mosey, if you happen to be reading this.

Is Mum Enough? - BBC Radio 5 Live 09.04.12

Following his probe into gang culture on BBC Three,
Reggie Yates looks into those who have grown up living
with only their mothers as guardians.

Having grown up in that situation himself, Yates gives
a sensitive and compelling look into how others have dealt
with the experience of growing up without a male role model
to look up to.

In the case of some of those interviewed, they've ended up
joining gangs to alleviate the problem but inevitably
creating worse problems.

It's also good to hear from the parents' side of the story
as well, including mothers who have been left on their own
to deal with debts, and how they go to take on
stressful responsibilities.
 
Most importantly, it manages to draw attention how many
children under the care of a single mother take that
for granted, when there are others in far worse living conditions.

It's rather odd to hear a documentary of this style on 5 Live,
although having thought about it, it's a subject that requires more
depth than a 10 minute segment on Radio 1's Surgery, and on
the whole it's very accessible and revealing investigation.

Manchester State Of Mind

Today has been fucking rotten. Yes, it is Friday the 13th and I was fearing
the worst by expecting bad news to arrive in my e-mail inbox.

Instead I ended up with an annoying ear infection which wasn't
helped by it occuring in my left ear which is perforated.

Squirting ear clearing spray at the suggestion of my Dad wasn't 
the best idea, but gradually and with the help of pain killers
it has been getting better.

I also managed to ease the agony by eating the Rowntrees
Randoms I was given for Easter whilst listening to a bit
of 808 State. "Olympic" to be more Pacific...

Sorry. That was awful.

"Olympic" itself happened to be used by Channel 4 as the theme
tune to the late night 90s favourite The Word although they
used a bassier uptempo version rather than the nice
chilled rendition above.

Nothing really planned for tomorrow apart from The Voice,
Britain's Got Talent, and an early visit to Christ Church University
to sort out what will be the 100th Blam Jam show for Sunday.

It's going to be a laugh. And by laugh I mean an utter joke.

Losing The Plot (Or Struggling To Find One At Least)

The much anticipated (if anticipated is the right word) Derek has just
aired on Channel 4, scheduled after a repeat of Peter Kay's Bolton
Albert Halls stand up which goes to show that Channel 4 assume that
viewers want to go back to 2002.

Only that this "new" offering from Gervais was an even further cry
from The Office in terms of humour and likeability.

As to why I've placed "new" in quotation marks, it turns out that
Ricky Gervais has done his Derek character in the past within his 
stand up, and on Channel 4's 11 O'Clock Show in the late 90s
where it was just as rotten back then.

The episode tonight didn't look as if it was going anywhere
or developing, and despite an almost amusing turn from Karl Pilkington
it was hard for me to warm to. 

Not even the tacked-on "emotional scene" towards the end could
change my perception, even if Satie was used in the soundtrack.

It's more than fair to question if Channel 4, or any broadcaster would have
given a comedy based on such a theme the green light, had Ricky Gervais
not been involved.

Then again it's even more foolish to do so knowing that Gervais 
has already established himself for dealing with disability
in such a childish despicable manner.

Gradually Climbing The Rungs

Once again it turns out I was wrong, Mum has managed to book a
table for us tonight at Prezzo in Canterbury.

Elsewhere I'm still looking for possible jobs, and even voluntary positions
as at least they'll still give me something to be occupied with.
 I just need to be careful I don't get put into something I feel to 
anxious about, to the point of it taking over my day-to-day life.

Well actually, no it doesn't take over day-to-day life, but when
anxieties get to you, it can be hard to think of anything else and
time does start to slow down.

And having read the second paragraph above, I don't get "put into"
situations, I put myself into situations, either good or bad.

Luckily I have an appointment with one of the advisors at Chaucer
Homecare on Monday, the first since my Dunelm placement so I'm
sure something will come about.

But it's best not to dwell on employment worries all the time,
when I try to focus on more positive things. 

I spent two years doing the former and it didn't get me anywhere
at all.

Best to go through things by day, rather than speculating.

Disposing Of Dust

As planned, my room is cleaned to a fairly improved standard than
it was beforehand. That said it's only a matter of time before
it becomes not so pleasant but there we go.

I'll try and keep the habit up of making it as welcoming as possible
as at least it gives me something to do when things are rather quiet.

With Mum still having time off work, I used it to our advantage by
going with both herself and Dad on a short walk from our house to
Chartham, a village just outside Canterbury which on mentioning
to Kate, doesn't ring any bells her end.

Contrary to what I wrote in yesterday's blog post, Kate's still sticking
around in Canterbury for a bit longer, and tomorrow we're going
for a meal in Canterbury with Mum and Dad, possibly at Prezzo's
provided that they're not full up.

I won't hold my breath.

"The Perfect House Bachelor"

A right miserable day in terms of weather, and it doesn't look like it's
going to get any better later on in the week.

Nothing in particular is planned, although I hope to change that 
tomorrow by finally giving my room a thorough clearout and vacuuming.

There's a lot of things either under my bed, or on my shelves
that I have preserved compulsively, despite the fact that I'm unlikely
to read the magazines that are in big piles.

It's like watching a DVD boxset one episode after another, 
as too much focus on one thing in a day or two days, does your
nut in.

Then again, many of my "radio friends" tend to like living
that way but each to their own.

It will take time to re-arrange everything as a whole, but at
least I will be acting in a productive manner rather than lazing
about.

And what with Kate and Olly departing tomorrow, I may be able
to help out with other jobs needed in the house, such as emptying
the dishwasher.

Mainly to prevent Dad from going spare if anyone put
anything dirty amongst already-cleaned cutlery.

And My Spell Checker Doesn't Recognise "Makaton"...

More mid-90s nostalgia, and Toby Anstis' last but one day at CBBC
from August the 31st 1995.

I'll cut to the chase by saying that my personal highlight
is the trail at 3.06, voiced by Chris Jarvis and promoting the
new programmes shown "every day" at 4:35.

I bet the producers had a field day deciding what song to use,
but I think they made the right choice...

On a similar note, Chris Jarvis and Mr Tumble came up quite a bit
in conversation at lunchtime, as both Kate and Laura see them
on television quite a lot in their respective jobs as care workers.

It then lead on to the subject of Makaton, where one
of the early purveyors of the art was one Dave Benson-Phillips,
who myself, and Laura's brothers bumped into at Chessington
World of Adventures some 22 years ago, where "The Notorious
DBP" was a stilt-walking sideshow.

Unlike Mr Tumble AKA Justin Fletcher, DBP didn't have
a second-life as a Tweenie, despite the striking resemblance
between himself and Mylo.

No idea what my plans for tomorrow are, although as far as
radio listening goes, Annie Nightingale on Radio 2 tomorrow evening
will be one worth keeping in mind.

Perplexed In The Parrot

Another outing was in order last night, this time back at the Parrot
in Canterbury where Josh and his mates were present.

We had a few more who made their way over as well with
his lovely sister Xanthe and her partner, and it turns out
that Xanthe happens to know my Mum through her job
as a social worker.

I didn't have a lot to drink, staying on water and lemonade
but it was probably the better idea.

As for today, what with Mums elder sister staying over,
it will be really good to see her daughter Laura again,
and Kate is coming back over from London for the day.

Aside that I may fill the rest of the time by catching up
on last night's Voice and BGT, and as I'm taking a week
off from the wireless, I may have a listen to tonight's
606 on 5 Live.

Especially as Greeny will be hosting, and Arsenal
are up against Man City.

Let's hope the situation of the Gunners will be identical
to that of last Easter.

The Listening List: WE 07.04.12

So what's been on my audio radar this week?

Michael Grade: On The Box - BBC Radio 2 02.04.12

For too long I have been fed up with snobbishness over forms

of entertainment. 

From personal experiences, television always gets the brunt of it all,
over film and more recently radio, although that's all down to me

hanging about with "radio geeks".

This documentary proves that both mediums can work well together,

a documentary about television on the radio?

Well I had to give this a go.

Grade adds his own style to the narration, with his tongue in cheek

in certain places including when Doctor Who is mentioned.

Although in all fairness and this is the Whovian coming out of me,

it's unfair to state that Michael Grade cancelled the original series
when all he did was put it on hold for 18 months, before bringing
it back and shortly sacking Colin Baker as the Doctor.

Add to that a great set of contributors for both in front and behind
the camera, and of course, plenty of archive audio, including
certain ident jingles.

This series has got great potential, but I have to be honest, I don't
think it's a "must listen" for those who have an interest in broadcast history.

It's a compulsory listen.

One Direction In America - BBC Radio 1 02.04.12

Now here's a band who's tunes have driven me to insanity
during my 8 weeks working at Dunelm Mill.

So listening to Radio 1 Stories' dissection into their crazed fans
in the States has helped to give a better idea as to why 
girls will go hysterically crazy over the boyband as a whole.

Moreso than they would do for The Jonas Brothers, or dare
I mention his name, Justin Beiber.

It's a fly on the wall doc to a point, allowing you to get
a mental image of goings on, from the antics that take place
on the tour bus, to performing to large crowds who are
more than willing to join in, word-for-word.

Some of the songs when performed live and acoustic
actually sound really good as well.

Social interaction plays quite a big part with the hashtag
"#radio1direction", hopefully designed to wind up Capital FM
even further after the slip of the tongue at the Brits.

If anything, the documentary as a whole goes to show how
the internet now plays a big part in bringing British acts
to America, to the point that fans become fans before they've
even released a single or appeared on television.

Mindcast: Bipolar - Wise Buddah

On reading the list of nominations for this year's Sony Awards
the one that caught my attention the most was this one in
the Best Internet Programme category.

Presented by Heart's Matt Wilkinson, it's a simple interview
with a woman called Siobhan who has gone through the ups
and downs, giving a frank and sensitive account of her journey.

I may go on about my episode a lot on my blog, but if anything
has helped me understand it more, it's podcasts from those
who have been through similar situations to what I went through,
and more importantly knowing that they can come out stronger.

And it has to be said that it takes a lot to talk about such
subjects openly.

Wireless Nights - BBC Radio 4 05.04.12

If there's anyone who has broken out of their profession
to become a radio broadcaster and actually bother to make
creative use of the medium, then Jarvis Cocker comes out on top.

Having done so with his 6Music show on Sunday afternoons,
BBC Radio 4 have given the Sheffield songsmith his own
4 part series on Thursday nights taking the listener on an
aural journey and putting the old "theatre of the mind" analogy
to great use, eavesdropping on the tales of individuals and their
nocturnal occupations, or habits.

I won't go into too much detail on this, but I would recommend
listening to it at night for best effect what with the well-chosen
music, range of voices, and Cocker's dry wit.

If anything, any airline reading this should consider putting
this series onto their in-flight entertainment if this first episode
is anything to go by.

Apps To Keep Me Awake

There's no denying it. The antics of yesterday are now starting
to have an effect on me.

For what other reason would I be blogging at this rather ridiculous time
of day where bizarrely it's still dark?

Well, it maybe because I am rather excited about purchasing
my first smartphone later on this morning, as a reward of sorts
for completing my placement at Dunelm.

I'm a bit confused about prices however as the one I want 
to get is a Samsung Galaxy Ace on pay as you go, which in the
Canterbury branch of Carphone Warehouse is just below £120
but on the website it's £170.

Whatever happens, this will make a big difference to how I go about
day-to-day life, and open me up to trying new things.

If anything, it will be a solution to anxiety if I wake up
earlier than planned.

Bankered In Whitstable (For Want Of A Polite Title)

Well, today was chaotic.

I opted to walk my way to Whistable on the A290 and arrived at
the Tea And Times which was our first watering hole.

On the journey itself I managed to spot two Ratmobiles.

 

One for those born before the 90s there...

Joining us on our crawl was Josh himself, Dave, Ally, and
Helen who all provided amusement throughout.

No booze was served at our first stop off, but one of the attendees
brought along a bottle of red, so I got rather sloshed and the usual
topics started flowing such as Adam & Joe, Knightmare etc.

With us being on the top floor near the window, we got a good
view of the goings on of Whitstable high street including a spotting
of town resident and stand-up Chris Addison doing a bit of shopping
at the nearby groceries. 

This was the best shot I got of him;
















We then made our way to The Spank, I think it was,
a Sheperd Neame pub behind the Whistable Budgens
where I had a good go on the jukebox which was giving away free plays.

As you'd expect most of the tunes that got played were from 
the 1988-1992 period.

Then it was onto the Peter Cushing Spoons where a few of us
got some grub, but I opted to resist due to my planned penne bol.

That's not to say my drinking was as relaxed as these shots
will prove.

The main protagonist himself, Josh.

 

 Helen graces her presence.

We then went onto one more place before I chose to turn it

in at around 8pm, and waited for more than I planned at a nearby

bus stop.
Inevitably a car sped by, with those inside branding me and those

with me as "bus wankers".

It's more than likely that such festivities will continue tomorrow

as Josh is planning a visit to the ever popular Canterbury boozer

"The Parrot" where I may make my way to if invited.

It's just a case of deciding whether to go there or stay at home

where my cousin Laura will be arriving with Alison and Phil

to indulge in Dad's pizzas.

Either way I won't be going anywhere near
the "Napalm Death" topping.

Unsober By The Sea

The good news (and on Good Friday at that) is that I haven't got out 
of the habit of waking up at an early hour even if I've had a late night beforehand.

I plan to put my energetic self to good use as I will shortly
be walking from Canterbury to Whistable as Josh has arrived
back from Manchester for a few days and he's invited some mates
from near his home town to go on a drinking spree of sorts.

So, if there's booze involved, and we're in a seaside town, 
I am automatically game.

The weather's looking superb too, I was expecting it to be
pretty bad, not least after yesterday's rather cold temperatures
at Goods In, but no looking back, only looking forward.

Especially as I am once again breaking Good Friday tradition 
by still sticking to a meaty meal when I get back as I haven't
had a bol all week. 

But then again, Whistable's good a good reputation for fish
so I may risk attempting something I have never tried before
if we pass the market, possibly of the eel variety.

I've no idea what's going to happen really, but it will
be good either way.

Bye Bye To Baling

That's it then. My time at Dunelm is now done and dusted,
and despite being modest, it has gone very quickly.

In spite of what I said in my last blog post, I held myself together
throughout the day as there were three deliveries in total in
Goods In, and the door to the warehouse wasn't closed until 
just before home time.

Well, my home time anyway.

A few minutes before leaving I decided to have one last 
potter round the whole store and it did hit me a tiny bit
as going through all the different sections in one go
felt like the end-credit sequence of Zelda: Ocarina Of Time.

Although I'm pretty sure it took me longer to complete
the game than it did to complete my work placement.

So what happens from here onwards?

Well my plan for next week is to give my room a good cleaning
and vacuuming as well as disposing (maybe recycling) of
10 year old printouts from radio discussion forums which 
in all honesty cause a lot of depression.

Although having said that, there must be some anorak
who wouldn't mind indulging, so these could be worth a
fair bit.

Departing Dunelm

It had to happen on the last day, my alarm went off at 6am, and
I chose to go back to sleep, not waking up until an hour later.

Definitely not a good idea as I dreamt I was back in the hall
of my old primary school where a talent show was taking place,
and for some reason I was with a fellow university student whose
name I won't mention here.

To paint a clearer picture they were one of those I was with who
only liked to see me when I was drunk and didn't care about my
goals etc, so when said student does a "repulsive bodily act"
towards the main stage I grass him up, and he takes it badly.

As a result I ended up feeling bad for grassing him, so I'm
glad I've woken up.

The dream must have come about, partly because Daniel,
one of the managers at Dunelm told me he was in the same class
as my sister Kate at primary school.

However another reason maybe because I was having a chat with
another colleague about letting go of those who want you
as part of company, but only as comic relief, uttering
sexual innuendos for Youtube videos, or to be woken up in the
middle of the night being told there's a taxi outside my house.

It all reminds me of the line from The New Radicals only top 10 hit,
which goes "Frienemies, who went you're down ain't your friends,
every night they smash a Mercedes Benz".

Or more realistically, knock over a Portaloo.

Sorry, I'm straying.

I said it yesterday, and again I will miss everyone at Dunelm
as they have been just amazing over the last 8 weeks.

It's been good to have a daily structure where even at weekends
I seem to be waking up pretty early and not resorting to having
any naps in the middle of the day.

Avoiding them just takes a few shakes of the arms,
and you feel energised again.

A lot of good things have come about during the time period
and if I hadn't done the placement, I would have slowly resorted
back to my old ways after the motivation of Radio Fast Train Day
the week before.

I now know I am fully determined to not let that happen as there's
too many good things around the corner for the rest of April
into May. 

And hopefully further onwards too.

The Goods-In Crush

The Wednesday that feels like a Thursday, and it's gone pretty quick
actually.

At work I've been perched up and paper shredding, whilst in between
the "cooling off periods", I unpacked some curtains and cushions
to the point of the Goods-In section of the warehouse being very
crammed, and near impossible to walk through.

I didn't unpack them all myself, of course.

I still cannot get it round my head that tomorrow is my last day.

It's very possible that I may break down which I never thought
I would but if that should happen, I'd rather it did then
rather than me moping about not being there weeks later.

Then again, there's a lot going on in the rest of April into May,
meeting up with some special people who if I'm being really honest
have kept me going in spirit, what with me knowing we'll cross paths.

As for tonight a night in front of the box, (or iPlayer tab on my browser
to be more realistic) beckons with my main priority being a programme
on BBC 1 with Gabby Logan looking into whether there is a prominent
sense of sexism in football.

It still angers me that sexism still prevails in society as a whole,
but thankfully, those on the receiving end seem to be developing
thicker skin by the day to take such backwards-minded people on. 

And certainly in my chosen area of work, there are a lot
of talented and delightful "Sound Women".

Exhaustive Shredding

A much needed shower of rain arrived in Canterbury this evening, 
although there's no sign of any snow that was rumoured this
Easter weekend on the latest forecasts.

Certainly not with the temperatures at a low of 8 degrees celcius.

At work this afternoon I spent a fair bit of time with the paper shredder
disposing of used spreadsheets from the warehouse office
although the job itself may take longer than anticipated due to
the shredder itself needing regular 10 minute "cooling off periods"
due to the heat from being plugged in at the mains. 

At least it gives me something to do when there's nowt to unpack,
although due to my last day being on Thursday, it means that I'll
have to work with a bigger delivery than normal.

And I'm not complaining.

The Day-Early Dunelm Departure

So, into my eighth and final week at Dunelm Mill, although a week
would be a loose sense of how long I'm there for as due to no deliveries
on Good Friday, I have been given the day off, so my last day is on Thursday.

To have the warehouse job full time would actually be rather cushy
if that's the case as I would get Bank Holidays off, although I'm
not sure how Christmas works out.

I guess it's a case of being as busy as possible and being productive
as possible if deliveries are sparse, which most of the time they are.
As for Good Friday itself, I may take the entire Crab And Winkle
route to Herne Bay as I was going to go there anyway to see Josh
from College who is making a visit back from Manchester.

As I haven't drunk much bright coloured stuff recently (save
for a free WKD at the CSR St Patrick's broadcast) it may be
a good time to let myself go.

Although as I seem to have mellowed down over the last 8 
weeks since starting my placement, the last thing I want to
do is to automatically revert to my old self.
If others don't like me being different, that's their problem.

Not A Fool In Sight

Just a fairly normal day really with nothing particularly exciting to blog about.

The radio show earlier tonight went very quickly, and I'm starting
to wish I savoured it more as I'm taking a break next week for Easter.

I wouldn't want to risk coming in to a closed Christ Church campus,
and as for pre-reccing, nah.

As for tomorrow, so begins my final week at Dunelm Mill and that's
gone quickly too.

The staff seem to think so at least even though the last four weeks
have gone quicker than the first in my opinion.

I guess it's all been down to making what were problems, things
to look forward too and with a lot set to happen after I leave,
I just need to find even more things to keep me occupied with
work routine out of the way after Friday.