Adam’s Cerebral Spillage

Is it just me or is it starting to feel distinctly Autumnal? Maybe that’s a bit of wishful thinking, as I write this it’s gorgeous outside and very hot, but that’s been the exception over the last few weeks rather than the rule. I know I probably sound like a bit of an idiot, wishing away summer, but I love autumn. Hell, have a search here for that word and see how much I do. It feels like the year’s speeding up now, and I think that’s the impending Bank Holiday making me feel like that, either way I’m looking forward to it.

Training’s still ongoing, and I’m still really enjoying it. I’ve finally nailed Jinto into my subconscious, and it’s really nice being able to concentrate on the performance of the moves rather than which one comes next. It’s a really tricky form to get right, there are very few ’standard’ moves in it, save for a few punches, and so execution is going to take me a while to get right. The cats are already getting fed up with me stomping around the kitchen practicing – getting excited as I get near the food cupboard, and then shouting at me as I go back the other way again. The most difficult part so far is nailing the balance during the crane stance parts of the form.

I don’t normally have too much of a problem with crane stances in other forms, I feel relatively solid during Chil Sung Sam Roh, Sip Soo and Rohai, and to be fair even in Jinto. The problems come with the transitions from the crane stance to the snap and precursor for the front kicks. The snap entails a 90° rotation of the upper body and a repositioning of the arms, but in order to do that it means a lot of torque which needs to stop abruptly and in a very solid position, all while balancing on one leg. In itself it shouldn’t be as hard as it is, but because it’s a very unnatural movement it’s very difficult. I think the root of my problems lie with not applying the same amount of torque with the top half as the bottom, and because they’re moving in opposite directions it means if more force is applied in one direction than the other, I keep moving when I intended to stop. This throws my balance off and leaves me hopping around like someone who just had their foot run over.

Unfortunately there’s no short-cut to getting it right, I’ve learned now that there’s only one way to make it happen, and it’s just repetition, repetition, repetition. But repetition done correctly of course! It reminds me of something I read somewhere once, but I can’t remember where, or how it goes exactly but it’s along the lines of: “If you practise a form 1,000 times you’ll know the form. If you practise it 10,000 times you’ll be able to see your opponent. If you practise the form 100,000 times, other people will be able to see your opponent”.

Technorati Tags autumn, Jinto, practice, TSD

Who’d have thought I’d be pleased to be back at work? Well today, I am. That’s mostly because I’ve spent the majority of the time since Saturday lying down on either the sofa or bed, within dashing distance of the bathroom, thanks to a particularly horrible gastric thing. Today I managed to eat and keep down some breakfast, and despite feeling weak as a kitten got my backside dressed and into work. I had to come in on Monday morning to help set up a new starter, but that was a really bad idea which I soon regretted. It’s nice to be vertical again, and the thought that there’s only three days until a weeks leave is a good one.

My time reclined hasn’t been wasted though, oh no siree, I’ve been wisely investing it in some quality time with the Xbox as it’s not had much love from me recently and I thought it was long overdue some. I managed to pick up a very cheap copy of Assassins Creed 2 and got around to sitting down and playing it, and I’m really glad I did. I haven’t had this much fun with a game since the very excellent (side note: whenever I write ‘very excellent’ I hear Bill & Ted saying it, just like in the film when they introduce the very excellent barbarian, mister Genghis Khan!) Batman: Arkham Asylum.

Most of the game is set in 17th century Italy in areas like Florence, Venice and Tuscany, and it’s all beautifully rendered with a real sense of attention to detail. Ok, there’s some artistic license, but it’s all very believable. I love the sound of the tiles slipping underfoot as you run over the roofs. Without wanting to ruin the story (which is great), for the most part you play a character named Ezio, who inadvertently finds himself learning the assassin trade in order to avenge his family. Ezio’s a nimble chap, and apparently free-running was all the rage 350 years ago in Europe, so you find yourself clambering, climbing, swinging, running and jumping through the ancient architecture. The sense of freedom works really well and it never feels like the acrobatics are shoehorned into what’s actually a very linear platform game, a la Prince of Persia. The main story is a great draw, but what’s really been eating into my time is all of the side missions and distractions.

There are ‘viewpoints’ to discover and scale, and making it to one of them and hitting Y reveals more of the fogged map. Then you get the fun of swan-diving from ridiculous heights into bales of hay or carts of leaves – entirely unrealistic but spectacular. At the same time as working your way through the story there’s loads of other things happening, like finding ‘glyphs’ painted on certain buildings. Scanning one of the glyphs opens an abstract puzzle, and solving it unlocks a couple of seconds of video. I imagine once I get them all I get to re-sequence them and see what the ‘truth’ is. You also spend your time distracting guards to liberate ‘codex pages’ which again, reveal something once complete.

There’s a real high to be had when you know the city guards are all out to get you, and you’re using your blending skills to hide among the crowds of people, or desperately trying to find a hiding hole as they chase you over rooftops. The assassin tomb side-missions are also great and really test your platforming skill; it’s satisfying to find yourself in the top of a massive cathedral and look back down at the route you’ve taken to get there.

You can pick it up for less than fifteen quid brand new now, and less than a tenner second-hand, and for that money I’d really recommend it. It’s a bit slow for the first hour, but get past that and the game world opens up and sucks you in like a Dyson. If you’re looking for something to play and don’t want to spend forty pounds on something brand new, pick it up. I was more than pleasantly surprised.

Now all I have to do is get some food in me, get some strength back and get back to training. Watching sucks, doing rocks.

Technorati Tags 360, Assassins Creed 2, ill

One glorious week in very sunny Spain, that’s what I’ve just come back from, and it’s thoroughly depressing. The weather here is grey, rainy and horrible, and I don’t seem to have my own swimming pool any more, what’s going on with that??

Seven of us had a really nice flight out to Alicante from Newquay (after a few beers in the airport, and a few gins on the plane), and landed in Spain to the traditional Ryanair ‘fanfare’ which saw a slightly merry me cheer out loud. I’m surprised they didn’t charge us for hearing it actually, they charge for everything else… Anyway, after a quick beer in the airport we found the hire cars and made the 110KM journey up the Spanish coast to Javea, the town that was to be our home for the next seven days. The drive up was gorgeous, the motorway was empty and the scenery varied between beautiful coastline, mountains, gorgeous and the very alien Benidorm lit up like some kind of sci-fi moonbase from a ’50s comic book. The sat-nav guided us straight to the villa where we met up with the London contingent who got there earlier after flying into Valencia instead. There’s only one thing to do when you get to your villa – claim a decent room and get in the swimming pool! Ok, it was 1:30 in the morning, but that first swim was fantastic, I’d arrived. The villa was fantastic; six bedrooms, two kitchens, two lounges, our own pool, roof terrace and no-one within ear- or eye-shot.

Our pool, home of some of the finest pool volleyball ever seen!

There was a bit of an incident the next day when our eleventh somehow missed our greeting party at the airport and lost her phone, spent the rest of the day driving to the wrong town and arriving to find herself locked out of the villa as we’d all gone out for a meal, but that was quickly forgotten. The reason I was so descriptive with our journey to the villa is because the week itself was (thankfully) largely uneventful. We swam, lounged, read and drank a staggering amount of San Miguel and Cruzcampo beers. Pool volleyball was the flavour of the day again, although the amount of exercise it gave us was far outweighed by what we ate and drank. The evenings were when we mainly came to life, and we had a good explore of our surroundings.

Arty shot from the balcony at night, 30 sec exposure

One night we walked into the old town of Javea which was beautiful, and had obviously had some recent money poured into it, and ate at a lovely tapas bar. It wasn’t too cheap eating out, so nights out were mixed with more sedate nights barbecuing on our roof terrace/balcony thing, which included a murder mystery kit that someone kindly left at the villa and was hysterical. By far my favourite night out started with a wander along the promenade at Arenal beach in Javea, where we found a restaurant called Lungo Mare. It was an Italian place and packed with people, which is always a good sign when you’re looking for somewhere to eat. I’m so glad we did too, because despite not being overly keen on Italian food (hey, I don’t really like tomatoes or cheese – Italian’s normally a dead-end for me), I can safely say I had the best meal of my entire life there. Fresh Tortellini filled with beef and Spanish ham served in garlic and chilli oil – it was obscenely good, I could happily eat only that food again for the rest of my life. After stuffing ourselves stupid on pasta and the largest pizzas ever, we found an amazing cocktail bar and had a few more drinks (are you spotting a theme here?) before finding our way to Bora Bora.

The promenade at Arenal beach, that's Lungo Mare on the right

Bora Bora is a karaoke bar near the beach with a seemingly non-existent closing time, and although it was quiet when we got there we owned the place! I was still trying to pick a song to start with when my name was called out to go up. Unbeknown to me one of my cohorts had put my choice in for me, so I got up and belted out (at least that’s how it seemed in my head) my rendition of Ain’t No Sunshine by Bill Withers. It just got better from there, more beer flowed, more gin (which seems to come in measures of at least triples!) and more songs including The Lion Sleeps Tonight and Suspicious Minds. It was an absolutely epic night which left me trolleyed and grinning from ear to ear. The restaurant was so good we went back the following night for our farewell dinner, but the free Limoncello shots after the meal finished me off I’m afraid, and led to the less-than-educated decision to that night paint half my face blue when we got home. To whoever owns the villa, I’m sorry about your towels and bathroom(s).

These little guys were everywhere at night, so cute!

The drive to back to the airport the day after was very quiet, not through hangovers but just because we were leaving our own little paradise and coming back to reality and work. We stopped off in El Campello for lunch and a last walk in the sun, and as much as I love flying, the flight home was bittersweet. Javea is a beautiful area and I’d thoroughly recommend it (and the villa) to anyone.

Technorati Tags holiday, Javea, Lungo Mare, Spain

Early on Saturday morning I was picked up by three of my friends on th way to Newquay Airport for a weekend away in the capital. We planned ages ago to go and watch some boxing, so that’s exactly what we did.

Despite being in the departure lounge as early as quarter past ten on Saturday morning, it was definitely time for a beer, so we decided to get the weekend started with some ale and Guinness before boarding the little turboprop Dash-8 to Gatwick. It was a gorgeous flight up, really sunny and with almost no turbulence. I like flying at the best of times, so it was a real treat for me, although it was odd to be sat in the sunshine in a plane, drinking a gin and tonic and listening to music and not being on my way abroad. I love the fact you’re above the clouds so it’s always glorious up there.

Once we landed it was a quick dash to the Gatwick Express for the half-hour ride into Victoria station, then a short trip up the line to Oxford Circus to find a pub to watch the FA Cup final in and get some food (and a few more beers…). Stuffed, merry and dazzled by the sunshine outside the pub (it’s weird how when it’s darker inside and you’ve got a beer in your hand, your brain assumes it’s night-time!), we hopped aboard the tube and then the DLR to Beckton and the hotel. We didn’t get long there, just enough time to freshen up and get changed, then it was back on the DLR and tube and off to Upton Park for the evening’s entertainment.

It wasn't exactly packed when we got there....

Frank Warren put on a full card of decent fighters, but we got there too late to see Billy-Joe Saunders and Frankie Gavin. It didn’t matter too much, the place was still filling at that point and the atmosphere was a bit subdued, but I did get to watch Danny Williams doing what Danny Williams does best lately – not throwing any punches and getting his ass handed to him. Chisora needed less than two rounds to finish the fight, and with a bit of luck, Williams’ career. On his day, he was a good fighter, but recently it’s been almost painful to watch him lumbering around like a walking punchbag, I hope he retires now for his sake.

Once dusk set in the stands started filling properly and we got on to the two fights I really wanted to see. First up was James DeGale taking a shot at the interim Super-Middleweight title, and he was on top form. Between him and Haye we’ve got some exciting boxers coming through now, and he went in swinging as soon as he realised that a) he was hurting Horton, and b) Horton couldn’t hurt him. It only lasted a few rounds and the combination that finished him off was awesome, I can’t wait to see how he develops over the next couple of years. Last up was the main event as local boy (local to West Ham at least) Kevin Mitchell took on Katsidis. I know a lot of people wanted to see Mitchell win, but I really didn’t think he’d be able too, Katsidis on his day is awesome. Katsidis didn’t disappoint either, he destroyed Mitchell over four rounds with an amazing display of power.

...but things soon picked up.

The atmosphere in the ground was brilliant, I’d never sat in the terraces at a big ground like that, and the Hammers fans singing and chanting really added to it. There were a few ‘tense’ moments when die-hards looked like they were looking to start something, but luckily it died out. Marching back through the streets with ~15,000 other people was an experience, and one I’m glad I don’t have to repeat on a regular basis. By the time we’d fought through the crowds on the underground and made it back to the hotel we were flagging badly; a combination of tiredness and a hangover I think. Still, the night’s boxing action wasn’t over yet, so we headed to bed with an alarm set to get up and watch the Khan vs Malignaggi fight from New York. Khan absolutely schooled him after a frantic first few rounds, it was great to watch, and I really hope he avoids any big money fights against has-beens and goes straight for unifying the division. The way he’s going, it’s looking very realistic now.

The trip back was pretty much the same as the way there, nothing to speak of really, except for just avoiding the ash cloud before the airports got shut down this morning. A massive hotel breakfast was the perfect end to a great weekend away. Being back to work today was a bit depressing, but with the prospect of a holiday in Spain just 10 working days away, I’m not going to complain for now .

My mementos from the weekend, which should really include Plymouth Gin miniatures

Technorati Tags boxing, DeGale, flying to London, Katsidis, Khan, Mitchell, Upton Park

It’s about time I updated I think. I had the week off last week and spend 5 days of it up with the in-laws on holiday in Somerset. It was a nice relaxing time and I got to spend lots of time with my extended family, especially my niece who insisted I went on as many rides as possible at the nearby theme park! I visited Longleat for the first time too which was awesome, there’s so much to see and do and feeding the deer through the car window while we went through the safari area was hysterical.

But now it’s back to normality and back to work. Luckily the unseasonably hot, sunny weather is still with us and I’m loving it. I’ve already managed to get a couple of barbecues under my belt (literally, with the amount of meat I ate), and it’s when I’ve been sat in the back garden in shorts and a t-shirt, relaxing with a beer in the sunshine that I have to remind myself it’s still only April! Long may it continue I say.

I’ve got loads lined up over the next few weeks, starting with a rock night before too long. It’s been AGES since we had a good club night out. I’m looking forward to hopefully having a few(!) beers this time and getting my mosh on! I’m feeling in the need for some excessively loud metal and a lot of leaping around with like-minded folk . With a bit of luck we’ll entice some rock night virgins up too and get them well and truly initiated (and inebriated). After that I’m off up to the bright lights of London for a weekend with my mates. It’s smack-bang in the middle of birthday season, so we’re going up to watch a night of boxing at West Ham’s Upton Park ground, featuring some of our latest Olympic stars such as James DeGale and Frankie Gavin. It’s on the same Saturday as the FA Cup Final, so it’s going to be a great day. Football, boxing, then back to the hotel to watch Amir Khan’s fight in the States on the same night – good times! Finally, the end of May sees our long-awaited holiday. Twelve of us are packing our bags and heading to sunny Spain (volcanoes permitting…) for a week of lounging in the pool and relaxing. Despite the fact that it’s Seni that weekend (noooooo) and the Eurovision Song Contest final on the same day (double-noooooooooo), it’s going to be great. I’ll just have to buy more pointless weapons and awesome Muay Thai shorts another time .

Training’s great at the moment, the change of each class to be focused on a specific grade has meant I’ve revisited a lot of the very basic stuff I take for granted now, and taken them apart only to rebuild them incorporating concepts I wasn’t introduced to the first time I learned. I can already see just how powerful those simple techniques are with proper use of shin chook applied, not to mention just how much better they look when done that way. I’ve always thought you can tell how accomplished a martial artist is by how natural and easy they make things look, and I’m hoping this is just the start of working towards that. I’m still struggling with the recurring hip injury I’ve been carrying for literally years now, and it’s really painful (not to mention annoying) at the moment. I ought to go back to the doctor again but they just seem to shrug it off, the most I’ve ever had done is some simple exercises from the self-referral physio. Ho-hum, maybe I should just take a leaf out of Bill Wallace’s book and only kick left-sided .

Technorati Tags barbecue, boxing, holiday, tang soo do, training

I’m listening to Paul Simon’s Graceland and looking forward to the weekend, so I thought I’d have a go at writing an update for this. I’ve been at a bit of an impasse for the last couple of weeks where I’ve wanted to write something, but just haven’t been able to muster up the enthusiasm or subject matter. Not really writers’ block, more of a general brain block.

It’s only a week before the European Championships now, and I’m nervous and excited. More excited than nervous for the time being, but we’ll see how long that lasts. The big team sessions we’ve had lately have really helped pull the clubs together, and I think it’s going to feel like a really good, big family unit going u to compete. I’m confident in at least knowing the forms I’m going to be competing with, it’s just smartening them up and practising again and again for the next seven days that I need to do. I’ve always stuck to just sparring at previous competitions which has suited me just fine, but it’s a loooong day just waiting for your category to get called and I’ve never really tested myself with my forms in front of a high-ranking group of strangers. I really hope don’t let the chang bong slip out of my hand!

Before I even get as far as the competition though I need to get better. I’ve had colds and sniffles on and off for weeks now, literally weeks and weeks, and just as I seem to be getting over one another one comes along and kicks me in the ass – or more accurately the lungs. This latest one has made itself right at home unfortunately and has turned into a chest and sinus infection, and the most irritating cough I’ve ever had. It tickles and tickles and never clears, and it meant I got about 3 hours sleep last night. People who know me know I don’t do well without a good night’s sleep, I’m like a zombie, so I’m amazed I’ve even written this much today. It doesn’t bode well for poor Murphy who’s meant to be going back to dog agility tomorrow morning after two weeks off due to Crufts and a local competition. Sorry Murph, we’ll be back to dog school soon.

On the games front it’s been pretty quiet. I milked Batman Arkham Asylum for all it was worth and finally gave it back yesterday, but it’s been such a long time since I played a game I enjoyed as much as that that I’m itching for more. So much so that I went into town and made a random purchase yesterday thanks to a sale at the games shop and a new reward card so I could at last spend the points I’ve had saved on there for ages. I bought Dragon Age: Origins, despite the graphics really not looking that great (although my last few games have probably spoiled me), but mainly because it’s a Bioware game and they have a tendency to make very good role-players. I had a couple of hours on it last night and really enjoyed what I’ve seen so far, even though there’s an unusually small number of race and class choices. I’m still waiting to borrow Assassin’s Creed 2 too, it’s supposed to be very good. Oh, and Blazblue Calamity Trigger is out next week too, more 2D fighting goodness from Arc Systemworks, the genius behind the likes of Guilty Gear XX (which is still the pinnacle of that series if you ask me).

So yeah, that’s me. More inspiration and less boring updates next week with a bit of luck!

Technorati Tags EMTF, European Championships, games, ill, tang soo do

So Audley wants the Klitschkos? Oh dear, oh dear.

Audley Harrison and Albert Sosnowski

Now I know being a heavyweight champion by-and-large requires a certain kind of self-confidence and arrogance, but you’ve got to be there first. Quotes like this…

“No disrespect to David Haye, but no-one is talking about David Haye,” said Harrison, an Olympic champion in 2000.

…do you no favours Audley. Haye is by far the best chance British boxing has had to produce a Heavyweight champion. Yeah he’s brash, yeah he’s sometimes offensive, but he has the skills to back it all up. At Cruiserweight he got back up off the floor to beat Mormeck in France and take the belt, and he’s already beaten Valuev. Ok, that wasn’t the greatest fight in the world, but it showed that he’s got the brains and endurance to make it as a champion. Anyway, this isn’t about Haye, it’s about Harrison. If (IF) he beats Sosnowski, does he really think the Klitschkos are going to be beating a path to his door to get a fight arranged? What’s in it for them? A fight against someone who was a good amateur but has been a terrible pro? Dream on Audley.

I went to London last year to watch Audley’s ‘last chance’ when he fought in the Prizefighter tournament. Danny Williams was an embarrassment to himself more than anything, but I was keen to see how Harrison would fair after so long away from competition. My overriding feeling at the end of the tourney was one of ‘well, it was ok….’. He just comes across as mediocre, and it’s frustrating as much as anything. He’s got a hell of a punch on him, but he never seems to want to throw it. Watching him plod around the ring soaking up shots and never going on the offensive makes me want to tear what remains of my hair out. He needs some fire in his belly! The punch he threw to knock the other guy out in the final of Prizefighter was a peach, but why did it take so long to come? The same goes for his pro fights, it’s infuriating to watch. It’s no wonder MMA is taking so much attention away from boxing when you’ve got lumbering bulks leaning on each other for twelve rounds – remember Williams v Skelton? *shudder*

I think if Harrison wants to fight the Klitschkos he should have to go through Haye first, and that’s a fight I’d pay to watch! The Heavyweight division is stale at the moment, and that’s a result of the lack of decent American fighters and the showmanship and over-the-top hype they bring to the ring. Here’s hoping Audley turns it on and produces a demolition in April, but sadly I think hoping is all it’s going to be. Please prove me and the rest of the British public wrong.

“I want to get my London fans in their St George’s T-shirts and I want to get nostalgic and hear chants of ‘Audley’, ‘Audley’, ‘Audley’.

“I want to hear the fans of boxing, the fans of Audley, the fans of perseverance and the fans of overcoming adversity and get back to boxing.”

If you want to hear them, put on a boxing display, otherwise the only chant you’re going to hear will be ‘Auuuuudreeeeey, Auuudreeeeeeeey’ again.

Technorati Tags Audley Harrison, boxing, Sosnowski

Machine Head are playing in Plymouth tomorrow night and I’m going to see them! I can’t tell you how excited I am, I’ve loved this band for a long time now, ever since the first time I heard the double bass drumming on Davidian (where this post’s title comes from), and this will probably be the only time I’ll have a chance to see them this close to home. I’m going up with a friend who shares the same love of very loud, very heavy and very excellent music, and despite having to work the next day, I already know how awesome it’s going to be.

I’m still in the hire car I was given after mine was written off a couple of weeks ago, and while it’s nice to drive a swanky brand new car around, I know that I won’t be buying a new Astra in the forseeable future. There’s something I don’t really like about it, something I can’t really put my finger on. Maybe it’s a combination of little things, like the way the indicators don’t click down into position; you have to press it down once to indicate left, then the arm resets back to the middle while the lights stay flashing. I’m tall and from my seating position it’s almost impossible to see the dashboard lights telling me if they’re on or off, and with music on I can’t hear it either, which means I have to duck and peer through the steering wheel to see if I’m still indicating… not good. The windscreen wipers work in a similar fashion, it’s a small niggle, but it makes the driving experience that little bit more annoying. The Focus we just bought though, despite being 8 years old, is brilliant, I really enjoy driving it.

No new games to speak of, I’m tightening the reins for the time being, I’ve got loads to be going on with and a bank balance which seems to be freefalling toward the end of the month. There’s another big squad training session this wednesday with an eye on the European Champs in April, and I’m looking forward to trying to smarten up my competition forms and sparring again. Plus it’s always good to mix with the guys from the other clubs.

On top of all of that, it’s sunny and beginning to feel like Spring! The sunshine on  the beach yesterday was actually warm! Can you imagine!

Technorati Tags Machine Head, Plymouth Pavillions, spring

We’ve been a two car household for a long while. Both of us need our own cars for work and other things, and last week Mrs Adamr sold her car with a view to getting something a bit more comfortable, which meant we had to rely on mine until we got a replacement. On the weekend we chose one, but someone up there thought they’d have a bit of a laugh at my expense first.

After we chose the car (a Focus if you care) we went back home to get the deposit, but on the way back down to the car sales place (which is only a mile away), someone driving a taxi decided to pull out of a junction straight into the front of my car. I wasn’t driving, I wasn’t even in the car, and getting a phone call from your other half telling you they’ve had a crash isn’t a pleasant thing. Luckily she’s ok other than a few bruises, but it also meant that my car’s been written off. From two cars to no cars in three days.

After a very long weekend of phone calls to insurance companies, car hire places and the like, I had my replacement car delivered yesterday at work, a lovely shiny brand new Astra. It’s being paid for on the other guy’s insurance as he admitted liability at the scene with the police present, so I’ve got that until the insurance company take my car away, do the engineers report, and then send me a cheque to the amount that my car was worth. Quite what I’m going to find to spend the fifty quid on I have no idea . Before it’s taken away I had to go to the recovery yard and get my personal belongings out, so I headed down and did that after work last night. There was surprisingly little I wanted to keep, but I did find some trainers, shorts and a training uniform I forgot I had, as well as a drum kit for Rock Band and a wire cooling rack.

Once I’d loaded up the boot of my posh new car I took a minute to have a last look at my poor Polo and it was quite sad. I racked up over 30,000 miles in that car; it took me to Bristol, London, Cardiff and all sorts of places, and never gave me a minute’s trouble. Leaving it alone in the yard with only my old (scratched) CDs for company was surprisingly difficult – it’s only a car after all. Still, at least it doesn’t have to drag my sorry ass to work in the freezing cold any more.

I can’t wait to see how much they’re going to give me in settlement, but I’m not going to get overly excited, I think I’m going to be driving a much older car than the one I’m in at the moment. If I get anything as good as the last one, I’m going to be very happy.

RIP Polo - You earned your rest.

Technorati Tags car crash, memories, Polo

Happy New Year everyone. If you’re finding it hard getting back into the swing of things with getting up early for work, you have my sympathies, I’m not managing very well either.

The Christmas break was very welcome, although I’m feeling the effects of it now. I shudder to think how much I ate and drank over the ten days off, but as if by some miraculous coincidence most of my clothes seem to have shrunk over the last month. I’m beginning to suspect alien involvement! Christmas Day was the first time I’ve ever cooked the main meal, and with twelve to cook for I was apprehensive to say the least. Usually Christmas morning for me is spent with a glass of orange juice while we open our presents, so it was a bit strange to find myself in the kitchen at 7:30 brushing molten butter onto three turkey crowns. It was worth it though, even just for the delicious smell permeating the house through the day. I think the meal went well, the turkey was well cooked (probably a tiny bit overdone if I’m being critical), and noone could complain of not having enough to eat. The plates were piled high with meat and veg, and with the addition of a small table we comfortably sat all twelve which was really nice. It felt good once it was all done and out of the way and I could properly relax, and as always happens when I get the festive period off, my sleeping pattern slipped drastically. Going to bed between 1am and 3am is strange to me now, but I enjoyed not even waking up before 9, and then having a good lie-in.

Like the rest of the western world I’m starting the new year with a bit more of a healthy eating kick, mostly to lose the holiday weight, but also because I found myself really missing it. I remember craving fruit and veg, and I feel a lot better for having got back on the wagon so far. I already know I can do it, I proved it to myself last year, so I don’t feel any pressure. Murphy is next in line for getting back in shape after a couple of weeks of no agility, eating a huge amount of turkey and gammon, and joining me in my sleep patterns. He loves being lazy, it’s a nightmare getting him up in the morning to go next door and stay in with their dog while we’re at work.

I’m currently loving Valkyria Chronicles on the PS3, it’s a great mix of old-school tactics games and a regluar 1st/3rd person shooter. Adding the third dimension to a turn based strategy game has added a huge amount to it, and the characters and presentation are real top-drawer stuff. I’ve got Metal Gear Solid 4 too (bought during the same cheap game mission), but I’m struggling with finding the patience for ’stealth’. Modern Warfare 2 is still getting a large amount of my free time too, but the BBC Iplayer channel is such an unexpected bonus, I love it.

Some pretty big non-Christmas, non-game based news coming soon.

Technorati Tags Christmas, Happy New Year, MGS4, Valkyria Chronicles