February 2005 Archives

The training scheme for my knee involves a lot of cycling, pushing and lifting of sorts with the help of machines. This to strengthen the muscles and to oil the joints.

I tried aerobics once and it reduced me to tears within 5 minutes, but I noticed there's some kind of sick pleasure to be derived from doing the machine exercises, 4x25, 5x20, 4x15, etc.

Which means I could probably get used to some kind of fitness regime if it involved machines. Now all I need to do is find a club high on ordinary people and low on bodybuilders.

Funnily enough, it's not really the music features that have tickled my fancy when it comes to MP3 players. As I've mentioned before, I don't like listening to music while I'm en route. It's the idea of podcasting that's made me half-keen on spending my next Google ads cheque on a player. I'm sure I wouldn't even persevere. I'd probably listen twice and then give up. Just like I tell myself to listen to the radio more, and never do. But still. Wanna try. It's that pathetic need to be an early adopter.

So I'm kinda, sorta interested in Evan Williams's new enterprise: Odeo: Listen, Sync, Create.

"Odeo aims to enable this new distribution channel and medium by creating the best one-source solution for finding, subscribing to, and publishing audio content."

So it's like a podcast portal? Whatever, I'm so in. I signed up for an invite. Thereby committing myself to acquiring the dread machine. I'm sad.

Update: Has anyone every *tried* to buy one of these things? There are a handful of Mac shops in Amsterdam. None of them have *anything* in store. Everything has to be ordered and they can't say how long it'll take. Brilliant.

Went to see a physiotherapist for my gammy knee. Turns out it's not too bad, my knee cap's irritated, but if I don't take care I'll be having problems for a long time. He'll be setting up a training scheme for me. Meanwhile I...

* can walk briskly but should not stroll
* shouldn't stand for too long
* should avoid bending knee when sitting down
* must avoid the stairs as much as I can (take elevator)
* should play more sports (tennis season about to start, am considering fitness club)
* must ride my bike more often, but not overdo it (I avoid the bike in winter because of the cold. Wimp.)
* could do with losing some weight (I'd be ok if I were taller, but my shortness makes me more sensitive. Grr. My shortness is the cause of so much trouble.)

Jason Kottke has quit his web design job to do Kottke.org full time.

(pregnant pause)

He's asking for people to sponsor him (instead of taking on site advertising). It's crazy and awesome. I've enjoyed 0sil8 and kottke.org since the dawn of time, so why the hell not:

I'm a kottke.org micropatron.

Good luck with that, Jason. Meanwhile, Vaughan will blog for MicroCompliments. He's wonderful, that Vaughan.

Party scene. Crowded. He brings her in, comes over, kisses me while she avoids me. They sit down at the table behind me. I can hear them fight.

"I can't do it with HER here," she says and I turn around.

She is laid out on a silver plate. Her hair is done up and wrapped in a black nylon balaclava like the queen in Disney's Snow White. Her neck is Modigliani-long. From the shoulders down she is... fish. Sashimi. Glittering cuts of silver and blue herring.

I wake up.

Good news. After a day (and night, let's not forget the nights) of feeling worse, as of Wednesday pm I'm now officially feeling a little better. I've almost had a full night's sleep, my appetite's returned and my temperature's finally dropped. Wrap up well and wash your hands, darlings.

BBC reports Michael 'Jesus Juice' Jackon's has been rushed to hospital with a severe case of the flu.

It wasn't me.

Have been quite ill since Thursday afternoon. I've felt exhausted since my last flu (late November) and this time the virus struck an already wrecked system. Fever rose quickly to 39.5 (103F) and hovered around that for four days. The worst (I hope) was last night as I could not find sleep and had to turn down the heating and sip ice water to cool down. The bed was uncomfortable - when I'm flat on my back or on my side, I start wheezing and eventually coughing - so I moved to the couch so I could prop up my back a little better and stay upright. I came close to phoning emergency, because I just didn't know what to do with myself anymore. The fever broke in the morning, but the thumping headache stayed. Took a gamble and took some migraine meds. Seems to have done the trick. I can't say I've been having the happiest thoughts.

Hotpress announces Sinead O'Connor's comeback.

Pray she keeps it together this time.

She's still feisty:

"Religious songs with bad words, that’s the best way I could describe it!" she explained. "Been thinkin’ for years the religious area of music has a huge gap in it. Needs a bit of punky filling. I kind o’ had the feeling for years, that God must be pretty sick listening to a lot of the awful shite religious stuff there is out there. Reckon he or she’d like somethin a bit more thuggin. For thuggin big G.

"Like, if I was God, I’d be using a lot o’ bad words. Given all the shit people be carryin’ out in God’s name like. So that where I coming from on God and music. Musically speaking, to rescue God from religion."

God damn The Frames's audience who didn't have the decency to shut. the. fuck. up. during Ben Christophers' support slot in the Paradiso an hour or so ago.

His songs are so brittle and how beautiful they sounded in that quiet 14th century church in Dingle late last year.

I don't think Ben enjoyed fighting the Paradiso din. He rushed through his encore.

Made a bad decision and ended up on the wrong side of his guitar, which makes for shite photos (Flickr set) and I didn't feel like moving to the other side. George (because it was George and not that guy I knew in high school he looks a lot like which always confuses me) gave me his Sigma 70-200 to shoot with and I didn't feel too good and didn't feel like talking, especially with Ben playing.

I think I've a cold coming on.

And fuck the Frames anyway, I left before they came on. Thinking about that Sigma, of course. Fuck.

Deep down I think I find 'money money money' quite distasteful and I'll avoid thinking about the act of paying. This means I end up paying full price for everything everywhere I go and would rather die than dispute a bill.

Just a second ago while booking my hotel room in Dublin, I was quoted 70 Euro for a single room en suite ('weekend charge'). Having paid 50 to 60 for same on previous occassions, in a surge of assuredness, I said 'I'm a returning customer, have stayed with you many times, can you do anything for me?' and was given the same room for 60.

I feel quite the adult.

Do you haggle?

I had black sesame ice cream at a Japanese restaurant here in Amsterdam the other day and though it had a hint of chocolate, unlike the white sesame and the green tea ice cream in the dessert.

Mikan Moblog has some info on Japanese style choclates with a sesame filling.

~E was there at 1.30 and was first in line, lazy me showed up at 3.50am and was second. It was a long wait till 10am=, but we had a pretty good time with numbers 4 and 5 in line, a bloke from South East London and his friend from Norn Iron. Unresearved standing tickets (GA, a.k.a. the good tickets) for the 13/7 gig were gone by 10:05. Since we were first in line we were sorted, but then we sort of fucked up because the guy in charge said he didn't think the second (and third) concert would be announced till later in the week. So we left to check the web and then got a call sales for concert #2 had started already. We rushed back and found 25 people in front of us (a lot of them holding up sales starting at the bloody seating chart for 10 minutes). By the time it was our turn again, no standing tickets for #2 and #3 were left. Unfortunately, our friends who had queued up elsewhere, had the same problem. We now have 26 #1 tickets between us and have to hit the swap market hard.

We picked a relatively unknown outlet, that's why our queue was 'short'. Queues at other outlets, particularly outside of the main cities were much, much longer and started earlier. City folk are a bit spoilt I think.

"I can't imagine wanting to queue up at 3am for anyone." (a friend)

I believe we were hypnotised back in the 80's. Overnight queuing was the norm if you wanted to get tickets to any good show. We'd start around 8pm the day before, sleeping bags and all. By midnight there'd be close to 500 and the box office (a corner shop in Utrecht Noord) would have to open on police order. And you'd be grateful for the pretty tickets in your hand.

I've got pizza in my bag and a woolly hat for my head and am awaiting a call for the word 'go'.

# Everybody's wearing the same jacket as I am. Different models, same brand.

# Fuck off out of my way.

# I haven't even stopped to think about the year 2004

# At least no one died

# Stop. whistling.

# Do these people ever read before they post?

# Stop. giggling.

# I'm so tired

# Still haven't written about Brussels and Dingle

# Shut up. Shut up. SHUT UP.

# I wish I was smarter. I wish I'd gone to university.

# Stop thinking like that.

# There are things you can't write about. But then you could write about not being able to write about them. Etc. etc. etc.

# I suppose it's all champagine and caviar now

# When am I going to learn something again?

# Stop. drumming. fingers.

# No, I DON'T know how Irish phone districts work. Or switchboards.

# Is that B. in the background?

# I'm always going to miss John

# If I had a baseball bat, I'd like to smash it through your head. Whoever you are. I can't see you on the other side of the train

# I like building communities, as long as I don't have to take part.

# You make me laugh. Happy.

# I really need to pay off those bills.

# That's great. But what's it about?

# No, but I'd like some.

# He said 'if'. That probably means no.

# I need to see a doctor.

# I wouldn't miss them.

Finally a reaction from the band: U2's Larry Mullen writes open letter to U2.com members. It reads rather nicely, until the added PS. Ouch. A bit petty, but very... Larry, whose favourite statement is F.O.A.D.

U2 have never been good at taking criticism. Let it slide, man.

Funny French. The Cannes festival has in the past refused to show Jim Sheridan's My Left Foot (awards), and Neil Jordan's The Crying Game (awards).

The only Irish film to open at Cannes has been John Boorman's The General. Fuck sake.

Oh well... cross fingers for Petit-déjeuner sur Pluton.

U2 may be making it hard for us to go see them, and then have the gall to apologise but not acknowledge their mistakes, but we won't be discouraged.

Tickets schmickets. I'm sorted for Dublin, Paris and Brussels, have an option on Gelsenkirchen and can pull a tiny string for a show of my choice. Will be queuing up for the Amsterdam shows this Saturday.

Guess they'll have to endure my craggy old face one more tour.