I have some unfortunate news. I have been dropped like
a lead balloon by my dearest brother Pavneet Singh Khural.
He dropped the bombshell via MSN last Wednesday, I was gutted.
He is going to catch The Dark Knight with his workmates
Barry and Scott this coming Thursday at Vue, Oxford
early evening 5pm showing. I am really annoyed. Mainly
because he is my cinema buddy but also because we went to
see the first movie in the reboot of the franchise, Batman
Begins back in June 2005.
In fact it was a momentous occasion, as it was the first
time we met up with each other to go to the cinema since
our college days (we had met up for the first time in Maidenhead
in May a month earlier). I remember it very well, as I had
to get directed from his old flat to his new house in Emmer
Green via his sister on the telephone. It became a trip
down memory lane as I took a camera phone photograph of
the old number plate of his Proton. In any case, there is
an unwritten rule that if we see the first movie together
we have to see the sequel. This has been the case with Fantastic
Four and erm, I cannot think of any others at the moment.
So to rub salt into the wound, Pav cut and pasted his e-mail
confirmation from Vue into the MSN window last week and
that annoyed me further. I feel I have no option to block
him on Friday just in case he lets something slip.
Batman is perhaps my second favourite superhero of all time (after Superman) and a touch higher up the scale than Spiderman (he is a bit too much of a boy figure in my opinion). So you can imagine my joy that the franchise was to return with Christian Bale donning the cape of the saviour of Gotham City. I have thankfully been able to make plans to catch the movie on Friday evening at 8pm, at the same establishment with my friend Clive and his friend Edwin (over from France). I am really looking forward to this movie, from the moment we saw Batman pick up that Joker card on the top of some skyscraper on that night in June three years ago (can you believe it has been three years). I remember smiling with Pav and saying I could not wait for the sequel as a hero is only as good as his adversary. I am trying my best to avoid getting sucked into the reviews but it was unavoidable to hear that the late Heath Ledger deserves an Oscar for his performance. When the villian is stealing the show so well (similar to Hoffman in Mission Impossible III) you know you have a great cinematic experience on your hands. My only disappointment is that I will be sharing the experience with my dear friend Pav. Although we will be in the same multiplex, allbeit fifteen hours apart.
It is a bit early to be discussing the weekend but I have been invited to a barbeque at the Medfords' to celebrate Elvis and Jennifer's wedding anniversary (seven years) so will be there on Saturday evening. The rest of the weekend pans out as usual. Gym on Sunday morning and trying to sort out my friends computer as well as the family desktop if I have time.
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Sunday 20th July 2008
Today started quite well, I got myself out of bed just after 8am, got myself down the gym for 8.38am and left at 9.38am. (I struggled with the shoulder press but more on that in another post). I got home, changed and then headed for my piano lesson in Thame. Towards the end of my lesson I noticed bright blotches in my vision. I was getting a headache. I left and turned down the option of lunch and drove home. I called Ricki on the way but it was a brief conversation. I got home and went straight to sleep. It was about 1.15pm and I did not get up again until 6pm. After some food, I went back to sleep and got up at 8pm in time to watch Top Gear. A wasted Sunday afternoon which I am trying to make up for.
Last night at Egg was fantastic! It was perhaps a milestone in my clubbing experience, so I thought it would be an ideal moment to look back at my clubbing history. Particularly as the majority of the early days (1999-2002) are PB (pre-blogging days). My clubbing life seems to start with Pav. Back in 1999 we would go to Level One. A dingy club built into a car park to the west of the town centre. I went there three or four times but it was never anything special. We then moved up a level to Utopia, which was outside the town centre and actually just off Junction 12 off the M4. (It has recently reopened as J12). This was my first experience of a quality venue. The dance floor was massive and we got big group of us together and my Dad even hired a minibus for a few trips. One memorable trip was in Christmas 1999. I just remember as the club closed, to get everyone out the DJ played The Hamster Dance. I can remember quite well, the lights coming on soon after the song blasting out of the speakers and everyone darting for the exit. Oh the memories, in any case, that was one of handful of visits to Utopia.
In September 2000, the move up to Leicester meant many
things but also a change in direction. While I still enjoyed
going to the commercial dance venues, the new friends I
made were into a different music scene. An urban and more
street based music style. I got introduced to Garage for
the first time and went to some amazing gigs. I remember
Garage Nation at Zanzibar which was a sellout and absolutely
crazy. I also recall my birthday night out in Mosquito Coast
(what a fantastic name for a club) which was headlined by
DJ Luck & MC Neat in November 2000. I am trying to remember
the names of some of the clubs but many have been refurbished
and changed (during and after) my time at university in
the city. I refer to these as the lost years because I was
completely lost touch with Pav. He was back at Henley College
(re-sits) during my first year and then in Birmingham studying
Engineering before dropping out to get a job in the real
world.
We got back in touch in 2005 and I remember some of his first messages to me.
He was 'really' into his dance music but also did some DJing
from time to time. I was quite shocked. (This was the guy
that had really liked Alice Deejay like me but perhaps he
did not want me to post that admission on my blog). I remember
the first few early mixes he had send me during the later
days at college. He mixed A-ha Take On Me, with Lenny Kravitz
- Fly Away. I might even have the mp3 file lying around
on a archive CD somewhere. In three short years I have been
introduced to a whole range of music and amazing venues.
The super clubs across London and some more local venues
such as Phatz Bar in Maidenhead. I also went to two music
festivals and plan to go to many more.
Kev picked me up around 9.30pm and we headed down the M40 to London. There were road works just before Park Royal with the three lanes converging into two, so it was about half a mile tail back. Plenty of time for Pav's set, he was not due to take over the decks from Stevens until 11.30pm. We turned left after Kings Cross and dumped the car in the fist available spot and then worked up York Way. We noted that the number near by was thirty something and we had to get to two hundred. As we crossed the road, we saw two minibuses pull up. The free courtesy Egg taxi but we opted to walk rather than jump in. (We were under the illusion that the club was right the corner when it was about a mile (or at least three quarters of a mile away). We continued walking but the rows of shops and houses changed into industrial park land with their high silver gates. We were started to lose hope but Pav then noticed the bright sign up at the top of the hill (I saw it a few moments later). The Egg logo on a white lit board. We were here.
Outside there were more staff than actual customers. In
fact we were the first customers and told to queue up in
the paid queue. We then were let through, I had to empty
my pockets and go through the scanner and we were in. The
interior corridor was plush, all in white with an exotic
almost Continental feel. I was looking forward to the night
out. Kev misplaced his mobile phone, so went back to the
car with his girlfriend Deun. (They caught the Egg shuttle
bus to the car and then parked the car right outside the
club. I went to check the place out. Walking through you
went into the garden area which was under a marquee. Through
the door and to the right you were in the basement, the
Crescendo area with Paul already on the decks. I then got
some drinks in and the evening could start (once Kev &
Duen had got back by then). It was a great night, just took
a while to get going. The place was practically empty when
we arrived but by midnight the place was banging and Pav
(using his new name for the first time (Breezy has official
been dropped but I think the web
site remains). A great night but after a while I went
to explore, there were two rooms upstairs (the second I
discovered later with Pav). They were playing more commercial
/ vocal based dance tunes and it was rammed! We stayed here
for a while before heading back downstairs for the end of
Pav's set and the beginning of Russell's. They had the ceiling
lights on and there was a great atmosphere on the dance
floor. Here are a few of my favourite pictures, (all courtesy
of Pav, I opted to leave my camera in the car!)
You can view the rest over on FlickR. We left around 2.30am, and I remember getting home just before 3.30am, still buzzing from the fantastic night. I am looking forward to the next Crescendo night, whenever it may be. Plus I had missed the last event a few weeks back at Pascha so enjoyed being back out on a Saturday night having a good time (for a change).
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Saturday 19th July 2008
It is a lazy Saturday afternoon approaching 3pm and I feel somewhat empty with no football to speak off. (Although Arsenal play their traditional first pre-season friendly against Barnet). I was actually hoping to post an entry last night but did not have the motivation or material. I feel only slightly better prepared now. I am looking forward to Egg tonight in London. Kev is giving me a lift, so no problems with logistics. More on that later, for now let me quickly recap what I have been up to for the past few days.
A busy week in the office but I met my deadline (just) and also got a great deal off my chest. Time will tell if it will fall upon deaf ears. In the gym, I had my review with Matt on Thursday evening. My weights programme has been improved, with two new machines added and also weights on all previous machines increased. In two month's time, he will add a free weights programme so every time I get to the gym I will have the choice of three programmes (cardio, fixed weight or free weight). Although I have a confession to make, I have not been using the machines properly. I have been rushing through twenty four reps straight, when I should do twelve and then have a rest of up to a minute (bare minimum of thirty seconds) before doing the second set of twelve. I was wondering why all the machines 'beeped' at me constantly from reps thirteen to twenty-four and beyond. I will be giving my new programme a first run through tomorrow morning. I will of course let you know how I get on.
Tomorrow morning I also have a piano lesson but I am seriously considering dropping out. I have e-mailed my tutor but so far have had no reply, perhaps he is too shocked to even contemplate a response and will speak to me firmly at the lesson. I have to confess that I find it very difficult to find the time to sit down to practice. I am suppose to manage thirty minutes every day but that is nearly impossible. I think I squeezed in two sessions last week but one of those was doing my theory homework so should not count. When one has focus and discipline he can achieve, without these characteristics you found yourself lost, lacking motivation and actually deeply frustrated.
I happened to stumble upon Tasmin Lucia-Khan presenting
E24 on BBC News on Thursday evening just after 9.30pm and
was surprised to hear about the Emmy nominations. One show
had received twenty-three nominations but at first I thought
it was a movie but after seeing a clip we were informed
it was eight hours long and then the penny dropped. It was
a HBO miniseries, and the Emmy awards are for television!
(D'oh!). Anyhow, I went and had a look on Wikipedia to read
up about the drama and take a look myself. As you may know,
American history fascinates me, particularly the American
Revolution. (I always here the voice of Radio Five Live
Up All Night presenter, Dotun Adebayo say, "The British
Are Coming"). Therefore I got hold of the first few episodes
and watched one last night and the second this morning.
Absolutely fantastic, great acting and story telling. It
is worthy of all those nominations and I would not be surprised
if it did sweep the board at the ceremony. It is something
reading about the great (but short) history of the American
people on Wikipedia, it is something else seeing it played
out in such dramatic fashion on the television screen. The
casting also has been perfect - I am particularly impressed
with George Washington. (Not easy for an actor to step into
the shoes of the "Greatest Man On Earth"). I am looking
for the next five installments which I will try and catch
during the week. If you enjoy your period dramas or just
like to learn about the birth of a new country, I highly
recommend you catch the show (unsure when it will be aired
in the UK).
Last night I also watched Harold
& Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay. It was good
fun but somewhat predictable from the moment it started.
It was good that they literally continued a week later from
the previous film (which is four years old - the longest
week of your life?). I felt the situations they found themselves
in were quite hilarious but it was the deputy head of Homeland
Security that stole the show. I do not think I have seen
such a stupid character in a movie in my life. It was a
nice way to waste away a couple of hours and leave my brain
somewhere out in the garden. Would I have gone to the cinema
to see it? No, this is not in the same category as American
Pie (Kumar even rips it out of Euro Trip) but entertaining
fun nevertheless. However it is not for everyone and if
you did not enjoy the first movie, then you will not enjoy
this second outing. I just home the story ends here (we
all like happy endings after all).
Looking forward to my first clubbing trip to the capital since the end of May. As you know by now, I do not go to your average, run-of-the-mill club. I go to venues with character and soul. The Egg, with it's roof terrace and three big rooms will be impressive. You can tell just from the photos, I just hope the weather stays dry so we can enjoy the roof garden area. Pav's set is at 11.30pm - 12.15am while Paul Stevens kicks off the show at 10pm to 11.30pm. I need to charge the batteries on my camera to make sure I get some good photographs this time around, the ones from Club Aquarium were not even FlickR material.
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Wednesday 16th July 2008
For some jobs you have to be prepared. For some jobs, you know you are taking a step into the unknown. Pav is never scared of a challenge. I would have run away from the silver 52 plate VW Polo. Even a spec of dust on a carpet is untidy for my car. This car is in a different league and looks as if a nuclear bomb went off inside. Thankfully the Coca Cola bottle found a rightful place among the mess. How can any human being drive around in a vehicle in such a state?
Crystal Detail are the ultimate professionals and no job is too big, even if
they should put on a radiation
suit. The real question is how long will the car remain
in A one tip top condition? I give it less than a week before
it returns to car care hell.
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Sunday 13th July 2008
I had to get up early today and even though I went to bed earlier, I did not feel that fresh when I woke up and eventually dragged myself out of bed. I had left the radio on (a regular bad habit) and remember getting up around 2.30am to switch it off. When I got up, I quickly had some breakfast (Crunchy Nut Cornflakes not toast) and then jumped into the car to check the tyre pressures. As I reversed back onto my drive I heard my phone buzz in my pocket. It was a text message from Pav, he was on his way but had forgotten his photographic device and hoped I had charged up my batteries (62 quality photos uploaded to a fresh new FlickR set - two thousand seven hundred in total in just over two and a half years). The time was 8:01am. The sun was shining and it was a glorious day, so I took some photographs before Pav arrived. While I waited for him, I jumped on my laptop and did a quick update on Facebook and Twitter. Just as I was done, I heard an engine outside, it was the distinct sound of that Honda engine I knew. A Honda engine inside a 216i Rover. Pav pulled up and was pretty much ready to go, I got him to park up and helped him get his gear out. We were up and running and it was 8.39am or so (based on the first photograph I took). It took over an hour to polish all the panels. Pav did the hard work and I applied the wax. The bonnet took a few coats but overall the final results were very good.
We then hit the motorway, I was in the fast lane close to treble figures in a rush to get there as soon as possible. We got there for 10.47am and parked up in the Show & Shine slot, directed by Calvin. Four cars had arrived before us and had just started washing their cars (with collapsing buckets?). We opted to just buff up and finish off but when we saw the state of the front bumper, we could have done with a jet wash. There was a swarm of dead bugs that had landed there along with the windscreen. I started polishing the side windows and let Pav work his magic on the rest of the car. I felt most of the time I was just getting in the way and was actually glad when Pav gave me something to do. We had until noon to get the cars finished.
There was a lovely S3 next to be in black with black custom alloys and the
owner, Andy was from Caversham (of all places). He spent
a good hour washing and waxing his car and Pav got chatting
to him, a potential client. I did something useful by cutting
up some business cards for Pav as he finished off the car.
I checked with Nick and Calvin what the timings were for
the rest of the day and we headed inside to the cafe to
get some food. We beat the mad rush before 1pm. After a
leisurely lunch we decided to take a look around the mueseum.
I of course, had been here before (but without camera) so
there was nothing in particular I wanted to look at but
Pav had a good look around, particularly the contemporary
vehicles such as the Aston Martin and the JCB
Dieselmax. We then headed outside to check out the how
the Audi Meet was going and also the other car stands (there
was a Ford event taking place with a range of vehicles including
Transits). I looked at the competition and gave my verdict.
The yellow TT, retro fitted with some RS parts and BBS alloys
was light years ahead. The engine bay was so clean, it looked
as if the car had just come off the production line. It
was that insanely clean. I am obsessive about my car being
clean but the owner was taking it to another level, I would
be afraid of driving the car if I got it this level of godliness.
We then had a look around at the Ford area, there were some
modified (to the extreme) Cougars and Fiestas. A couple
of great Mustangs (which I took photographs of) but apart
from that not much to see. I spotted a great vehicle with
the Transits (the Bat Van - ideally as The Dark Knight returns
next week)
We had a sit down on the benches by the grass area outside
the Centre main entrance and just chilled out for a while.
The PA system was playing the greatest hits of The Beach
Boys. However while Pav and I were chatting we missed the
presentations. We rushed over but it was all over. As expected
the TT had won and Caversham S3 man had won the raffle (free
Parrot car kit installed by Ritcher - one of the event sponsors).
It was around 3pm now and the show was starting to come
to a close (a lot earlier than I had expected). The Revo
team were packing up and I thought it best to call it a
day. I thanked both Calvin and Nick for their time in organising
the event and looked forward to the next meet as the winner
had his photo shoot courtesy of Drive By Shooters. As I
drove home on the M40, I saw some bright xenon lights in
my rear view mirror. It was Andy, I let him pass and he
tooted his horn (even that is more impressive than the one
I have on my A3!) He was stuck behind a car for a while
giving me a chance to keep up but the second the fast lane
was clear he was away and gone. The acceleration was just
breathtaking, particularly considering I knew the speed
I was doing to begin with. It was too late the car was gone!
As soon as I got home (minutes before 4pm) I said goodbye to Pav (with a gift of some somasas) and then grabbed my gym bag and headed to Castle Royle. I just had to get down there before I got comfortable at home. To my surprise the gym was dead with only a handful of people there. I got out just after 5pm and finally settled down at home at 6pm. The evening was mine to enjoy but after Top Gear there was little to satisfy me on the television, I should have just read my book.
I watched Step Up 2 - The Streets last night, it was marginally better than the
first movie. Mainly because the story was slightly more
believable (but only just) and it featured Cassie Ventura!
(Although her part was far too small and almost insignificant
for my liking). The dance moves were better and the storyline
was not as raw as before. However it still did not do everything
for me. Sure it was good to see the little guy(s) (and girls) come out on top in the end but I just felt it meandered far too much in the beginning, although the opening was very clever. I will not be rushing out to see the third one, even if it is filmed in 3D? (Target audience of six year olds?)
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Saturday 12th July 2008
Timing is everything and after a rather lazy morning I decided to actually go and wash the car (or finish from where I left off yesterday). Just before 3pm, (14:39) I got up from my slumber on the sofa, had a shower and got outside. I wanted to wash the car and I knew my window of opportunity was small. I got everything done within an hour and just as I finished, it started to rain. Perfect timing. Typical, as I begin to the type this post the sun has come out and there is glorious sunshine across the garden and back of the house. Well I have done the best I can considering the weather report I received (sponsored by those lovely people at Crystal Detail)
I am hoping that tomorrow morning it is try to enable Pav to give all the main
panels a hit with his polisher. I have even decided to postpone
my morning visit to the gym and go in the evening instead.
I am going to work on the interior in the morning while
Pav works hard on the exterior before we then head over
to the Heritage Motor Centre in Gaydon. Then, it will be
micro fibre cloth and last touch detailer spray at the ready
for the final touches. I am quite confident that my car
will not win but it is more an opportunity for Pav to showcase
his talent and make some all important contacts.
Sixty four days to go and September is going to be a bumper month. Not just
the return of Heroes,
but Big
Bang Theory, Chuck
and Terminator:
Sarah Connor Chronicles. I asked Pav to take some photographs
of the location that will be feeding the DivX files, so
I have put up a few images (geek warning, nothing very exciting)
onto a set over on FlickR
but cannot give too much away. There is still a great deal
of preparation work to be done, I have not been given the
new FTP account details yet. I am looking forward to the
4 kbit/s download rate. There is a while to go yet and of course, I am actually really looking forward to tomorrow's Audi Meet.
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Friday 11th July 2008
It is 15:52 as I begin this posting and the heavens have opened outside. Out the window goes the plans for washing my car (I had made a start actually but more on that later.) A Friday off and a long weekend. A lot planned but as usual I got up later than I had anticipated, in fact it was 8.22am and I was hoping to be in my car on the way down to Nationwide by then but never mind, I left just after 9am and dropped my car off at Nationwide Autocentre in Desborough Avenue. However, as I walked down Desborough Road into town, having text Jen I got a phone call. It was from "Nationwide". I was confused and though the guy and got the wrong number but I had actually forgotten to give the key for my car, so rushed back to give it to them. Wish companies would have different names to safe all the confusion. Then, I headed back into town and waited along with a handful of people for the library to open. It was opened just after 9.30am and I headed upstairs to level 2 (via the stairs, I could not be asked to wait for the lifts) and renewed my books, then asked one of the staff the location of the reading area. Although there were small chairs around, I opted to go to the study area upstairs. I sat down towards the back and continued reading The Catcher In The Rye. I stayed here until 11am and then rang Jen to see where she was. She was just feeding Aiden and would text me when she was coming into town. I decided to make the most of the thirty minutes I had to go and walk into town, go to the bank and have a look around a few of the shops. A suit is on the agenda, so I took a look at a few in M&S. As I came out of the department store I noticed I had a text, Jenny was downstairs. (or so said the one word SMS). I tapped her on the shoulder as she returned a big load of books and placed them in the shoot. We then headed over to Starbucks Coffee for Tazo Tea (Earl Grey). It was nice to catch up and it was the first time we had seen each other in over a year. Aiden was asleep in the buggy and looked very cute. I looked at a bunch of photos on the FinePix camera.
We then went over to La Tasca for lunch which was very nice. It became a bit
of a names game with us bouncing old school friend names
at each other. Some were a bit of a surprise and shock but
most I could not put a face to the name (hence the need
for Facebook). After lunch Jen gave me a lift back to Nationwide,
even though I had been happy to walk. After I paid the damage,
I got into my car and headed home. I wanted to wash my car
before the weather turned and I knew it was a race against
time. It was just gone 2pm. However I could not begin without
watching Break
The Ice music video on XBMC. Eventually I got out there
and vacuumed the interior and decided I would give it a
polish tomorrow. When I started to rinse the car down there
were a few rain drops but nothing serious, so I continued
and loaded it with the snow foam and left it to rinse. However
as I went to take my Poor Boy's Shampoo and fill up a bucket
but the rain started. I rushed back outside and rinsed my
car down a little. Pointless with the rain water but I thought
it better if I rinse off the snow foam with my clean water
rather than the dirty rain water. I then had to scramble
to get all the kit put away before I catch a cold. Then,
typical, as I write, no type this, the sun is out and the
rain clouds have disappeared. The wash will have to wait.
So what is all this in preparation for? Well it it the 2nd
ever Audi
Meet on Sunday and I have Pav coming along in a professional
capacity to help make sure my car gleams in the Show 'n'
Shine competition. Although the weather does not look at
that wonderful for Gaydon. I last went back in early March
(Mother's Day in fact). Do you think I should warn my neighbours
that on Sunday morning they will be woken by the amazing
noise of a polisher?
I must mention a song. A song I could listen to non-stop (and frequently did in the early months of 2000). I heard for the first time in many months on Sunday morning. I had gone to fill my sister's car (a regular occurrence recently) and on the drive back it turned 10am, it was Sunday 6th July. Dick & Dom were about to start their show and their second song was this.
This was the moment when I stood up and took notice of All Saints. An absolutely amazing band and this is by far my favourite song. The lyrics and melody just take me to another place and I can never grow tired of listening to the vocals. The girls are not the best singers but something magical happens when their harmonies combine. Oh and no, I still have not see The Beach.
An extremely social week, with two meals out on Tuesday and Wednesday (Marlow and Cookham respectively) so yesterday was my first 'me' night for a while. Strange how much I miss the internet when I do get a chance to log on at home. So, the end of an era which I should really go and reflect upon over on the work log. I will do that at some point over the weekend but for now I am going to actually get around to enjoying what remains of my day off.
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Monday 7th July 2008
A early week entry to round up events from the weekend. I had a headache last night so could not begin writing my post until now. I really should not of been on the computer at all last night but wanted to burn a new CD for the car. Right, let me give a quick recap. On Friday night, after the cinema and a trip next door to the Ivory Lounge (I am sure it was called Bar 38, last time I was here) I went home. Well actually I did not. I dropped off Emily and Pav and then drove over to Charlie's in Woodley. He had some computer problems and I had no tools apart from my brain. I felt ready and after about fifteen to twenty minutes had resolved the problem. The issue was permissions and cascading them down from parent to child folders. All I had missed was ticking a box to allow this to happen. Easy when you know how. I knew that would fix it, but it was the train of thought to get to the correct window in Explorer. Charlie was happy and even though Annie was on her way and quite close by and it would have been great to meet her for the first time in ages, I opted to jump in the car and head home. I was tired and had a busy weekend ahead. Made a change for the Admiral calling on Terry Rescue Services.
I had quite a lot planned for Saturday but still did not get to bed until gone
2am. I got up around 9.30am and was in the town centre just
over an hour later. I had to return a book to the library,
it was my first time using the new self check system in
the ground floor. Return book, get a receipt (optional -
think of the trees) and then deposit book down the hatch.
Job done and completely painless. Then I went over to get
my haircut at Jerry's, it was not too busy considering the
time of day and week. Once that job was done, I headed back
through Eden to Tesco. I bought some milk and waffles (to
toast). A very helpful lady directed me to the self service
machines to make sure I was not stuck in the queue for long.
I then headed back to the bus station, as I got around to
stand F, I could see the time was 12:00 on the screens above.
The next bus was around in a few minutes and I got on and
headed home. Mission complete, well the first part in any
case.
When I got home, I showered had some breakfast and then went to watch Eastenders
(Friday's edition) on BBC iPlayer (version 2.0 now in beta)
via IE7. After this I sent down to work, to complete the
updates for a web site. It took me most of the afternoon
and I did not finish until 6pm. Yes, these updates were
quite involved and took up a lot of time and concentration.
Then it was a case of preparing myself for the final episode
of Doctor Who.
It is difficult to quantify how big a Doctor Who fan I
am? As the saying goes, you always chose your favourite
Doctor from your childhood and mine is Sylvester McCoy (but
I also had a crazy crush on Ace at the time also). However
people should note that mine was the generation to have
the show cancelled by Michael
Grade. The show was something I forgot about in my teens
although it did make a muted return in 1996. I recall rushing back from a weekend in Paris with my parents to get home just in time to catch the movie on BBC1. I quite enjoyed it but shortly forgot about it (think Championship Manager was more higher up the priority list). It was not until four years ago, when the return of
the show close that I got back into the show and watched
endless shows on the BBC web site (the animated episodes
featuring Richard E. Grant). I was hooked and looking forward to 2005 and the return of my childhood hero. It could not have been better.
Three years later, I sad to see the show take an extended
break but in a way glad for the rest. The Beeb has gone
into overkill at times (they cross promoted the show everywhere,
even Eastenders). It will give the marketing machine a time
to calm down. I still think Christopher Eccleston was a
better Doctor than David Tennant. Onto the season finale
then, it was okay I suppose. A good twist with the regeneration
that was, then wasn't. Although several things annoyed me
in the episode. The Doctor (be he in half human form or
not) never ever gets into a relationship with an companion
(past or present). It is just wrong! Okay, there had to
be some closure but this was not it. We prefer these things
a bit shady around the edges. Secondly there was too much
time spent setting up series three of Torchwood at the end.
Doctor Who saves the day once again but perhaps for the
first time I did not want him to succeed. I am getting bored
with the good guy winning all the time. Perhaps I am just
showing my age and cynicism. Who will be the Doctor's next companion? Or will it be a rotating celebrity female?
While in John Lewis on Sunday my sister bought me a fantastic Quicksilver travel bag come case. It has wheels and is relatively big, the ideal weekend item I was looking for. The bags I have are on the end of two extremes of being too small (e.g. my gym bag) or two big, (e.g. my suitcase on wheels). Now I have the right case for those weekend trips away but typically at the moment there is nothing planned.
I also wanted to mention the few movies I watched over the remainder of the weekend. On Saturday night (while eating ice cream) I watched the Disney movie College Road Trip (not due out here until August). Good wholesome family fun which made me laugh out loud about twice. Then yesterday morning I watched Step Up. It was good but I expected more and the storyline was predictable, plus the secondary story lines (which were more important in terms of a human story) should have had great prominence. I will watch the sequel next weekend. Although it was great to finally get the name of the model (whom is actually an actress and singer and not just dancer) in bright yellow from the Give It Up To Me music video. I also watched Just Friends in the evening which was a complete waste of my life. It was so bad, that I got a headache during the closing credits and had to go to sleep. It was 6pm. I got up at 8.30pm and the tennis was still being played!
|
Friday 4th July 2008
It could have been very different. It could have been the
usual Friday night at the movies. We could even have gone
to Maidenhead (to Trance Planet at Phatz Bar) afterwards.
But we were overruled, but enough about that, let me bring
it all back to the present day. So the plan was to go and
watch Wanted at the new local multiplex in town on Friday
night. However my sister was not feeling well, so I postponed
for 24 hours, looking at the 21:15 screening on Saturday
evening. However she went out with friends so I postponed
until later in the week. Wednesday was the day chosen, I
confirmed with my sister, Samantha that I would book tickets
for the last showing while I was at work. I called her as
I pulled out of the gym cark park before 7pm. She had e-mailed
me earlier that evening but at 17:26, eleven minutes after
I leave the office. She recommended I take my other sister
Natalie, whom I then called. She was out with friends not
happy to be 'forced' to be treated to the cinema. I hung
up and headed home. By the time I got there, I called both
sisters again but this time around my Mum spoke to them.
Both of them were heading home and landed a few minutes
apart. Samantha did not want go, so Natalie took her place.
What a mess for a simple trip to the cinema. I had some
food, while watching Murray crash out of Wimbledon. We left
soon afterwards and parked up in the Eden car park, it was
deserted. Headed across down to the cinema, there was a
long queue for the ATM outside M&S. Schools have not
even broken up but there is already a display for Back to
School in the window? It is July? Are you going to put up
your Christmas display in September?
We made our way up the escalator to the foyer, around the
corner behind the box office were the pre-booking machines.
However the signs were not good, I put in my credit card
but nothing happened. In fact on the first machine I tried
I got a Switch To or Retry message appear. Cannot remember
what they look like? Let this be a reminder.
I tried another machine but it just did not accept my card,
so I headed over to the box office and got them to clear
my card (it had to be checked first, so the guy on the test
called a colleague upstairs to check my card number. Then
our tickets were printed. I checked the display stand behind
the employees (very scruffy uniforms and lopsided name tags,
by the way). The time was still on GMT, it was 19:44 according
to the display, when in fact it was actually 20:44. Surely
someone could have got that fixed by now, it is over three
months since the clocks changed. Plus shouldn't that be
an automated process? We headed up another shorter escalator
to the main area. There was a long queue for popcorn. A
supervisor did arrive to get another member of staff onto
the till. However, just as we got to the front of the queue,
our server, Leah had disappeared. She had gone to the little
girls room but a little message to say she was off would
have been nice. Once we got our popcorn and drinks we headed
to the screen. Screen 3, but it was closed for cleaning
so we waited and looked at the movie posters of up coming
posters. I had already decided in my mind that I would never
be coming to Cineworld again. We were let in eventually
and took seats on Row E but I soon discovered my arm rest
was missing so we moved up to Row F. The screen was relatively
empty with half a dozen people inside (a few more came as
the ads rolled). It was perhaps the smallest screen at the
twelve screen venue, although being closer to a smaller
screen did help with a action movie like this. Carlton Screen
Advertising, oh how I miss Pearl
& Dean. The first advert was for Radio One (believe
it or not!) Jon blogs about it over here
and if you want to take a look for yourself, the UToob
link! Personally I think the advert is too long and a total
waste of licence payers money. It could have ended after
a minute or two after all the DJs have described the types
of music they play on their shows but going into all the
introductions was a waste of time. Thankfully I do not listen
to Radio One after 7pm for their new music slot and the
only DJ I liked from the line up was Trevor Nelson, whom
I've listened to on the odd Saturday night in the car. Although,
I have to admit the line from Annie Mac was great though:
“You know when you are in line waiting to get into a club,
and you can feel the rumble of the beat and then you know
you're in for a great night”. The one benefit of coming to my local cinema was the fact that it was local, it took less than five minutes to get home and we did get a fifty pence rebate on the parking to make the charge one pound.
Wanted was very good, I would give it seven point five
out of ten overall. The action set pieces are just breathtaking,
particularly when Wesley meets Fox for the first time. Personally
I did not think James would be able to pull of an action
like this but he does well. Perhaps because he is so believable
as the office loser that anything beyond this mundane role
is extraordinary. The main draw for me in the movie were
the action scenes, particularly from the trailer. It was
similar to the Matrix and the story itself is on similar
lines. I enjoyed it, it was good fun. Perhaps a bit gory
to get the 18 rating but there was just enough that I could
handle. However there were some major flaws. The story was
not that great and my sister worked out the twist a while
before I did, although it was quite obvious when you actually
thought about it. The way targets are selected was a bit
far fetched for my liking but I suppose it was original.
The supporting cast was very good, but I wish Jolie's role
had been bigger, she deserved to have more of an input into
the action and perhaps ending. Overall, great action at
times mindless violence, but well worth seeing at the cinema,
if only for the crazy set pieces. The story was not brilliant,
could have been much better but never the less enjoyable
and it does keep you guessing for a short while. Only hard
core fans of this genre would really take the step of going
to catch it at the multiplex. I am sure, other wise a great
DVD to rent one lazy weekend.
Right, onto my next movie review. I had wanted to see Hancock
and originally it was going to be just myself and Pav for
the 8pm showing at Vue Reading (in the biggest screen 4).
However by Thursday evening, Poole had invited herself along
(no problems at all). Then on Friday morning, Phil and Sazzle
also wanted to come along. I had to check with Pav if there
was anyone else, and yes, there was the small possibility
of his cousin coming along too, but eventually we learned
she was busy. I was going to check if the homeless guy on
the bench had time in his schedule (away from the Super
brew) to come along too! I booked tickets around lunchtime
at work and was glad it was all confirmed. I had my dinner
early and was out on the road before 7pm. My weekend officially
began as I was at junction 8/9 of the M4, waiting at the
lights to get around the roundabout to the westbound slip
road. My CD player was set to random and had selected Work
(Freemasons Remix) by Kelly Rowland and I hit the gas and
screamed around onto the motorway. The weekend was officially
here.
I went to pick up Pav and Emily and then headed over to
the Oracle. (If felt a bit strange to be taking a different
journey to the shopping centre but never mind). Parking
up, we all noticed some idiots tooting their horns as they
went up the ramps to the various floors of the multistorey.
Strange! We made our way over to the cinema and found Phil
and Sarah at the cash point and went inside to get our tickets.
There was a bit of a queue but eventually the five tickets
were dispensed, then we headed up the escalator to the food
area. Pav was in the queue for a while and I watched on
the screens up above as the time ticked by. It was 20:01
by the time we headed in and I thought we may have missed
the famous music. I was wrong, we got to our seats and sat
down, just as Asteroid was played. Perfect timing once again!
It was not the best place to sit, so far up but at least
I was quite central. Then the movie experience could begin.
Hancock
was great, it did everything you expected and a bit more.
Will Smith was his usual self, enjoying being a loser and
transforming himself eventually into the superhero. However
I was not expecting the twist in the middle but from then
on, I wondered where the story would go. It was a shame
the end was rather more emotional than I would have wanted.
Come on people, I'm a bloke, I want guns and bombs going
off and some serious action sequences. Well worth going
to see at the cinema, it was great fun and very very funny.
Was it a good superhero movie? No because the only think
that makes a hero great is a worthy villain and no such
person exists in this movie, apart from Hancock himself.
I would not be surprised to see a sequel in a few years,
but then again, considering it has taken over twelve years
to get this movie produced, who knows what will happen.
|
Counting down to Heroes Season 3: 2008-9-15 08:40:00 GMT+00:00!
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