Guitars and Life

Any regular reader of this blog may well have spotted that my favourite kind of sport involves speed - motor-racing both cars and bikes with the series I most closely follow being F1 cars, MotoGP bikes, British Touring Car Championship, British Superbikes, British F3 cars, World Superbikes... etc but those are the main ones, British GT is in there as well esp this season which was good. So this is the time of year that championships wind up. F1 is still up for grabs but given the dominant performance in the last few races I get the feeling Vettel is going to reclaim the top crown for a third year running. It'll be a good fight back as they were not the all conquering team of the last two years and he has had to show his metal and come back into contention, but a shame as this starts to look like Schumacher at his dominant form in the 90s early 2000s. It'd be nice to get some other names up there I feel. Still some way to go and anything can happen, I wouldn't write A...

I was very lucky that a John a friend of mine had bought two tickets to see Newton Faulkner only to realise after he'd got them that this week is not in fact half term and therefore his intended partner for the night (his daughter) was not going to be able to come her being a busy newly qualified teacher who lives quiet a way away.  Since I'd offered John a spare ticket to see the Guitar Masters gig in Folkestone a few weeks back he kindly offered me the chance to see Newton live much to the chagrin of Daughter-of-Furtheron! So firstly the venue - like Folkestone Lees Cliff Hall this is an old sea-side posh dance hall venue built in the heyday of opulent summer seasons around the British coast I presume it is early 20th century, lovely mouldings around the walls and ceilings, over the top chandeliers etc.  Exactly the kind of over the top extravagance you'd never be able to get past a quantity survey and corporate accountant if yo...

I had a fantastic night out last night, Mrs F and I went to a packed Brook Theatre in Chatham to see Gordon Giltrap and Oliver Wakeman in concert.  Right - yes Oliver, not Rick who Gordon has collaborated in the past with but Oliver is now working with Gordon on a new album "Ravens and Lullabies" due out in a couple of months. Any regular readers of this blog will know that Mr Giltrap is one of my heroes having seen him in many concerts, bought a load of his albums, struggled over learning his pieces , bought one of his signature guitars and had the privilege of meeting him at a workshop some years back in Margate.  So this review will be biased! :-) Brilliant night - a couple of pieces off the new CD, one played in a "unique arrangement", i.e. I think Gordon went wrong somewhere but frankly I don't think anyone in the audience noticed at all - I certainly didn't.  Some of Gordon's famous pieces worked with brilliant accompaniment from Oliver - Isab...

via the blog world I came across  Saz  and through her to her Mum Moanie .  I was an irregular visitor/reader/commentor on both blogs.  A while back Moanie announced she wasn't well - "the Feckler" as she called it.  Last week sadly Moanie lost her battle with it. Everyday there are hassles, the everyday stuff of getting on with a job, doing the washing up, gardening etc. etc.  so many things that we "have" to do and how often do you get to the end of the day and reflect on where has any of that got you?  Life is short - I hope you make the most of yours today.  The AA programme has a lot about "living in the day", for me the endless negative projection I used to have was crippling and blinding, never seeing what was good around me there and then.  I have much to be thankful for and be happy about but my default position is to ignore all that and go into negativity.  Poor Saz and her family's loss reminds me that there was things I oug...

I've been remiss lately and not been keeping the lists on the right hand side of the blog alive with latest stuff, I believe this is no doubt due to me moving to an android mobile platform (I bought a new phone with a touchy screen thing in other words) and do a lot of my social networking and communications (reading blogs / facebook and tapping out incomprehensible emails/comments etc.) on this device whilst on the move - i.e. on the train.  It might be a good use of the commute but re-reading the spelling, grammatical etc. errors in some recent comments/emails I think it maybe not so and no doubt half of you think I've lost my marbles when you see my comments to you.  Anyway I've updated the lists. Music - there is a load of really good stuff around this year, with Rush Clockwork Angels, Marillion's Sounds that Can't be Made recently added to on the perpetual playlist with Muse's 2nd Law (different but growing), Linkin Park's Living Things (really ...

Newcomers - this is a term used in AA about people new to the fellowship, the programme, sobriety etc. Over the years I've seen Newcomers come and go, some come in and either don't want to really stop or expect someone to do it for them or whatever.  One saying I heard a long time ago was - It is no good coming to AA for back problems.  The Newcomer looks at you oddly.  You know to get your wife off your back, your boss off your back, your landlord off your back etc.  Many I think just make a show of it exactly to ease those back problems.  Some do connect and put in the effort and seem to be getting it then suddenly drop out.  I remember getting a call from one guy like that who decided to stop coming as he couldn't get the courage up to share (i.e. speak) at a meeting.  I tried to tell him it didn't matter - his choice etc.  In the end I realized he needed a justification for why AA couldn't work for him.  His choice. Anyway s...

That I popped into the world!  Happy birthday to me! The front room is full of cards - unusual I normally only get a few family ones - I should be 50 every year!  I've a finger drum kit from my brother!  Some CDs, loads of vouchers etc.  but one very special present.  Mrs and the kids have bought me a weekend pass to next years F1 GP at Silverstone!!!  How fantastic.  It has been years and years since I went to a GP so really overwhelmed with that actually and it is so good as it's ages away for the excitement to build. Finally the card from Mrs F was this box - hand made by a very clever friend of ours.  On the outside it is covered with music - took me a couple of minutes to figure out it was Voodoo Chile Slight Return by Mr Hendrix.  Open up to the inside and lyrics from Fantastic Place by the unsurpassable Marillion... How amazingly cool!