Urgh, lurgi

Not been great since Friday.  Someone in work assumed I was hungover after a gig on Thursday, but I knew it wasn't a hangover.  I've got the lurgi.  Spent Satuday and Sunday in bed with a raging temperature, and a head full of mucus.  On Satuday I wasn't eating as I felt nauseous, and it was only last night I felt ok with food.

Still not back to normal, so I'm off work and doping myself up with lemsips.

The plus side to this is that I can veg out and watch The Beach (this is one of my "fall back" movies).  The weird thing is that Robert Carlisle's character is even freakier when you're running a temperature.

Lifestyle re-boot

Ok, I need to do a clear out.  Seriously, I need to get rid of stuff.  I buy new t-shirts with the intention of them replacing some that I have in a drawer, then never do the replacing part.  I could also do with downsizing the cd/dvd collection as well.  There's stuff I've bought because it was cheaper than renting at the time, and I've watched once and that's it.

I also need to stop snacking during the day.  It's not good, and I know it.  I don't have a weight problem or anything, but if I don't give it a rest, I'll NEED to diet. It's also a brutal waste of money.  Boredom eating sucks.

So basically my plan for a healthier happier me revolves round letting go of material stuff (after all it IS just "stuff") and eating better.  I've sort of started on the eating better with buying a tagine and cooking meals in that.
I get 3 to 4 meals if I just go by the quantities in the recipes, and with Karen not eating meat, it's all mine, so that's one to eat straight out the tagine, and 2 or 3 to freeze for later.  Result.
Here's one I made earlier.  Chicken with honey, onion, tomatoes and chickpeas. Mmmmmmh!

Nom!

Graphicy goodness

More comics stuff.

Last night I finished reading The Dark Knight returns.  The story is great (Frank Miller is great), but I'm still not sure about the art.  There's some of it I think is really cool, but some of it - specifically the mutants - I just don't like.  On the whole though it's good, and the since the story is great, it's well worth a read.  It's not my favourite Batman book though, that still has to be The Killing Joke, but I've still got Arkham Asylum sitting waiting to be read, so we'll have to wait and see.

I've still got a pile of Walking Dead books that Ed gave me a loan of, that needs my attention, and I think both the Luther Arkwright books are in need of a re-read.

Weekend stuff

On Friday, there was the Rock Radio Farewell gig at the Cathouse.  That was in the previous post, so I won't go over it again.

Saturday, we hit Silverburn, where we did a bit of shopping and had a bit of a wander, before going over to visit Simon & Wendy.

Yesterday, was in-line skating again which was fun, after which, K went round the shops and I went for a pint or two in Lauders :-).  Back at the house, we watched Daybreakers, which was a pretty decent take on the vampire myth.

Lunch. Lauders style.

Rock Radio Farewell tour

Friday night was the Rock Radio farewell gig.  The 3 dj's who have been sacked as part of the corporate makeover where there, along with the Legend that is Tom Russell.  It was a great night, with three bands, and lots of crazieness onstage.

So Bye to Donald, Billy and (the biggest nutter to grace the airwaves) Ted.  It's been fun, and Ted, cheers for the namecheck on your final show, that was cool man.

Anyway, got to meet the Legend that is Tom Russell.  Pictorial evidence as well.

Thank you DC...

...for re-booting your universe.  I'm now collecting comics again, and it's all your fault :D
I'm now a card carrying standing order owning customer at FP instead of just a customer.  The really cool thing is that I got standing order number 6.  "I am not a number, I am a standing order!"

For those of a geeky nature, I'm breaking myself in gently with only three titles.  Detective Comics (Batman), Action Comics (Superman) and finally, a title I used to buy intermittently waaaay back in the day, Swamp Thing.

*happy dance*

Wheelie good

Apart from one (I think) post before I'd tried it, I mentioned I was going inline skating.  I've been going twice a week now for about three weeks, and I'm loving it.  Last night was good, as some of the ice skating stuff I could do is coming back to me and I'm slowly getting them on the inline skates.  Specifically forward crossovers, and mohawks (forwards to backwards, not the other way round. Yet.).  I also tried and managed a spin stop.  It might have been a tad wobbly, but it did what it was meant to and I didn't fall, so I don't care that it wasn't graceful or cool looking, I'm claiming it as a success.

The only problem is that now I've got these fun new skills, the weather is conspiring to keep me indoors, and not try them outside.  I mean Largs seafront must be perfect for skating this time of year.  Well, as long as the wind stays away and doesn't (a) blow me into the sea or (b) blow the sea onto the prom.
On second thoughts.....

Grumpy old man

Don't know what's up, but yesterday (and to a lesser extent today) I've been grumpy as f*ck.  I was feeling run down yesterday and seriously couldn't be arsed.  People in work got my hackles up just by walking into the room.  It didn't help that I had to spend half a day chasing students out of a room that had signs saying "Room closed, NO ENTRY", and that was basically a building site!   I mean seriously, would you walk past a no entry sign into a building site to look for a stapler.  Colour me confused, but I thought university students were supposed to be intelligent.  Maybe it's just the department I work in, who knows.

By the time I had finished work I had a hell of a headache.  Whether this was down to chasing students out the building site, or down to lack of caffine I don't know.  Either way, I went for a nice de-stressing pint before heading home, where I watched someone more stressed than me on tv (Gordon Ramsey on Hells Kitchen).

Today I don't feel stressed, but I am full of that "can't be arsed" feeling.  Think I need to win the lottery and get the hell outa Dodge.

Weekend stuff

Firstly the ceilidh.  It was ok, but just ok.  The band seemed to have changed line-up, and there was no guitar/bass, but there was a keyboard, manned by one very enthusiastic band member.  It sounded sort of cheesey.  Not great.
Think next time we'll try the one at Sloans.

Saturday, I FINALLY got round to watching Resident Evil: Afterlife.  It was worth the wait.  Pretty fun movie.
Later we headed into town so K could do the shake plate, while I went for a pint and excercised my drinking arm. Later we went to Exotic India in Renfrew for a curry, which was excellent and I highly recommend them. Back home we watched Vertigo.

Yesterday, we picked up Robbie and went to Costco and Tesco so he could do a bit of shopping.  When we got back to the house we vegged out and watched The Extraordinary Adventures of Adele Blanc-Sec, which was good fun.

And that, as they say, was that.

Wee video camera

Well the credit card bill came in, and the wee cheapo video camera I picked up to play about with on holiday was a pleasing £34 thanks to the exchange rate.  If I find I'm playing with it on a regular basis, I'll put my hand in my pocket and invest in a decent one, but at the moment, this wee toy is fine to experiment with.

I'm really looking forward to Friday night, as we're off to a ceilidh, so it'll be time to dig the kilt out and have a wee swoosh round the dancefloor. (Kilts "swoosh" apparently).  Anyway, should be fun, there's 5 (maybe 7) of us going, so it'll be a good night.

Hectic social life ahead

You go for long enough without any gigs/nights out, and then they all come at once.

This Friday I've got a ceilidh at the Renfrew Ferry, Saturday we're off out for a curry, next Friday, it's the Rock Radio farewell bash, at the end of the month it's Whole Lotta Led.
Next month, on the 5th, it's Motorhead, and on the 30th it's the Quireboys.
Throw in a night at the theatre, and 2 SF meet-ups a month, and a day course at karate, and that's me socially for the next couple of months.

I may need a holiday to recover.

In the meantime, things at work are still trundling on.  There's been no resolution to the change to the ordering system, that actually sets us back about 3 years.  The resource room that we fought for years to get has, of today, ceased to be, and I've spent most of today binning stuff.

On the plus side, I'm now helping out with some sample testing for the RICH centre, or at least I will be when they get the samples in, so that's going to be good.  I'm looking forward to it.  The PILLS project is starting to wind down, or at least the sampling part is, so I'll be involved less now, as it's now over to the lab for analysis.

I'll be needing a holiday soon at this rate.....oh, wait, I've just had one. (arty pic below)

Back from holiday...

...to droppage from Amazon. French zombie flick Horde, Big Bang Theory Season 4, and a box set of classic 50's SF B movie gems (including Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Tarantula and This Island Earth).  These wee gems should keep me going for a bit :-)

Things in work are getting....interesting.  Some things changing for the better, but with the merger, there's also been a decided step back in a certain area, pretty much because that's the way some people have "always done it", and they don't seem to want to get up to date with the everyone else.  But hey, it's makes my life easier, even if it creates more work for others.

Currently rocking out to.....

Alex Harvey live at the BBC. And rather excellent it is too.

This post was brought to you by "Currently rocking out to..."

Ignorant arse

Got off the train this morning, and when I was walking across the concourse, a guy in front of me just blatantly stopped reading his Metro, and dropped it on the concourse.  I hat idiots like this.  Where the hell were the litter wardens with their £50 fines?   Too busy fining women who's kids in a pushchair have spilt a pack of crisps on the ground (I HAVE seen this happen on more than one occasion).

Aaaargh.

Monsters

Yesterday, after an in-line skating session (fun fun fun), we stuck on the latest movie from LoveFilm, Monsters. It's brilliant.  A sort of SF road movie.  NASA probe crashes with samples of alien life, which then grow, resulting in what's called the "Infected Zone", a huge swathe of land between America and Mexico, which is pretty much a no-go area.

Cue rich American girl who's father is determined that she's getting home, and who tells a photographer who works for his magazine, to make sure she gets home safe.  After missing the last ferry of the season to leave for the US, and having their passports stolen, the only option left is to travel overland through the Infected Zone.

It's a cool movie, and there's a quite touching scene when two of the creatures encounter each other at a gas station our couple are sheltering in.

Monsters is genuinely different to other movies, and is well worth checking out.

Dammit...

.....I'm knackered.  TFIF :D

Plan for tonight - laze in front of telly.
Plan for tomorrow - take Rosie to vet to get weighed.  Grand Ole Opry at night
Sunday - in-line skating.

But for now, I'm outa here.

WIDATW

Friday after work, fellow zombie nut Ed came over to drop off a stack of dvds he'd borrowed.  Think he might have pulled a girl at work, as she was constantly texting him.  He's worse than me at picking up on signs.

On Saturday morning, there was an extra karate class which was good fun.  Especially as there was bo and jo staffs involved, and we were going over basai dai, which is a kata I've just started learning.  So there was plenty to take in.  Really need to pick up staffs for me and K.

On Sunday, we went in-line skating.  There's a class at the gym at my work on a Sunday morning, and it was a blast.  The instructor managed to get me to do things that I couldn't do when I was ice skating, so I was really chuffed.

Good fun weekend.  Only two weeks now till the holiday :-)

That was awesome

As you may or may not know, I'm a huge horror fan.  I'm especially a fan of all things Lovecraftian and zombie.  For a fan of zombies, the last week and a bit has been amazing, as I was working as an extra on WWZ.  The experience of spending a week working on a film was incredible, but the cherry on the cake was the fact it was not only a horror, but a zombie flick.

I'm so happy I got the oppertunity, and I'm gutted it's over.  I'm also relieved it's over, as I don't have to get up at 5am every morning now, so there's a silver lining.

Really looking forward to seeing the movie when it comes out.

Plugging the gaps in the dvd collection

Got given a gift card for HMV, so at lunchtime, I picked up a couple of movies I've meant to get for some time.  The latest Romero zombie flick, Survival of the Dead, the latest Resident Evil, Afterlife, and one I missed at the cinema, Scott Pilgrim.  That should keep me going for a bit.

Sunshine

I know a lot of people hate this movie, but me, well, I love it.  I don't really care about the dodgy science that everyone goes on about, I just really enjoy this film.  It looks good and it's a good story.

I was supposed to be doing something else today but it's been delayed, so it's sunshine, then lunchtime karate for me.