Warning, cute critters alert - it is truly amazing what you can find in the deserts of Mongolia, big ears and hopping about like some kind of mini kangaroo.
Check out the story and then watch the video footage - you would need a hear of stone to not go aaahh.
Monday, 10 December 2007
Sunday, 9 December 2007
The Wedding Present
My favourite band from Leeds, formed in the mid eighties they came to the attention of John Peel and through him to the rest of the nation. They recorded a number of sessions for him at at his encouragement did one of Ukrainian folk songs.
Here are a couple of tracks form their first album George Best, My Favourite Dress and Everyone Thinks He Looks Daft.
The lead guitarist ( Peter Solowka ) left in ‘91 and co-founded The Ukrainians with the fiddle player and mandolin player who had joined them for the Peel Session. Still going strong today, here they are playing Cherez Richku Cherez Hai.
Here are a couple of tracks form their first album George Best, My Favourite Dress and Everyone Thinks He Looks Daft.
The lead guitarist ( Peter Solowka ) left in ‘91 and co-founded The Ukrainians with the fiddle player and mandolin player who had joined them for the Peel Session. Still going strong today, here they are playing Cherez Richku Cherez Hai.
Saturday, 8 December 2007
£35,000 Cocktail
Read about this in the paper this morning and could not believe my eyes. What kind of deranged fecker would spend that amount on a single drink I think to myself and then read that the nightclub peddling this is called Movida in London.
I had read that this place was a hang out for “celebrities” and Premier League footballers - ah ha, that some of the footballers in question play for Chelsea and earn over £120,000 per week.
That explains it then, these guys have a hard time spending their measly wages and obviously need to find new ways to lose their cash before it explodes on them.
It does not sound to me as though it is going to taste any good, nobody says that these guys have any taste - the cars they drive are a dead giveaway.
Their money would be far better spent on a bottle or 175 of Penfolds Grange (about £200 a bottle for the ‘97 vintage) and the taste is said to be amazing - but don’t take my word for it.
“The 1997 Grange (a blend of 96% Shiraz and 4% Cabernet Sauvignon) looks to be a classic Grange, although slightly softer and more forward than the backward 1996. The saturated purple-colored 1997 offers a gorgeously sweet nose of blackberry liqueur, cherries, camphor, chocolate, plums, and mocha. The wine is opulently-textured, extremely soft, layered, and seductive, with Grange’s tell-tale personality well-displayed, but in a seamless, seductive style. This is a superb Grange that can hold its own against the more heralded 1996. Anticipated maturity: 2005-2022.”
(Robert Parker - Wine Advocate)
I had read that this place was a hang out for “celebrities” and Premier League footballers - ah ha, that some of the footballers in question play for Chelsea and earn over £120,000 per week.
That explains it then, these guys have a hard time spending their measly wages and obviously need to find new ways to lose their cash before it explodes on them.
It does not sound to me as though it is going to taste any good, nobody says that these guys have any taste - the cars they drive are a dead giveaway.
Their money would be far better spent on a bottle or 175 of Penfolds Grange (about £200 a bottle for the ‘97 vintage) and the taste is said to be amazing - but don’t take my word for it.
“The 1997 Grange (a blend of 96% Shiraz and 4% Cabernet Sauvignon) looks to be a classic Grange, although slightly softer and more forward than the backward 1996. The saturated purple-colored 1997 offers a gorgeously sweet nose of blackberry liqueur, cherries, camphor, chocolate, plums, and mocha. The wine is opulently-textured, extremely soft, layered, and seductive, with Grange’s tell-tale personality well-displayed, but in a seamless, seductive style. This is a superb Grange that can hold its own against the more heralded 1996. Anticipated maturity: 2005-2022.”
(Robert Parker - Wine Advocate)
Friday, 7 December 2007
Hero
I heard this lady being interviewed on the radio this week and she is definitely a hero.
Rosebell Kurungi was an IT consultant based in the UK, nine years ago she was in Africa flying from Uganda to the Congo. The plane crashed in the middle of nowhere and she was lucky to escape with no injuries.
She walked 100 miles in ten days (without any food) before being rescued, unfortunately she had developed infections in her legs on the journey and on her return to the UK both of her legs had to be amputated below the knee.
Not only did she learn to walk after this but she went on to play tennis and to swim. Since then she has established two charities to help fellow amputee victims, you can find a much fuller account of her ordeal on this site.
Now that makes for a real hero in my book.
Rosebell Kurungi was an IT consultant based in the UK, nine years ago she was in Africa flying from Uganda to the Congo. The plane crashed in the middle of nowhere and she was lucky to escape with no injuries.
She walked 100 miles in ten days (without any food) before being rescued, unfortunately she had developed infections in her legs on the journey and on her return to the UK both of her legs had to be amputated below the knee.
Not only did she learn to walk after this but she went on to play tennis and to swim. Since then she has established two charities to help fellow amputee victims, you can find a much fuller account of her ordeal on this site.
Now that makes for a real hero in my book.
Heroes
Season 1 of Heroes finished the other night on terrestrial TV and it was a blast, they showed the last two episodes back to back.
The pace of the last six episodes was pretty intense and they managed to pull various story threads together in a satisfying series end, while leaving room for interesting plot lines for season 2.
Have really enjoyed watching all of this, I like TV that does not dumb down and assumes a basic level of intelligence of it’s viewers. Great story, scripts, acting and really well shot.
I have read some negative reactions to the season 2 stuff that has been on in the US this autumn but will wait and make my own mind up when we get to see it in the middle of next year.
The pace of the last six episodes was pretty intense and they managed to pull various story threads together in a satisfying series end, while leaving room for interesting plot lines for season 2.
Have really enjoyed watching all of this, I like TV that does not dumb down and assumes a basic level of intelligence of it’s viewers. Great story, scripts, acting and really well shot.
I have read some negative reactions to the season 2 stuff that has been on in the US this autumn but will wait and make my own mind up when we get to see it in the middle of next year.
Thursday, 6 December 2007
“Dead” Man Reappears
This story has all of our meeja in a spin at the moment, in summary he disappeared while canoeing in the North Sea five years ago and was declared dead one year later.
On Saturday he walks into a police station in London and states that they might be looking for him as a missing person, he claims to have no memory of the last seven years.
It then emerges that his wife sold their two houses six weeks ago and has migrated to Panama, then a photograph of him and his wife taken one year ago in Panama appears in the press over here.
He was arrested yesterday and is being questioned by the police, meanwhile his wife has disappeared from her luxury apartment and is believed to be staying under warps at the expense of one of our tabloid newspapers.
No doubt the full story will eventually emerge but the people I feel sorry for are their two sons who have spent the last five years believing that their father had drowned.
As an aside, I had no idea Panama was such a fine place to escape to, low cost of living, no tax liable on your overseas investments and a great climate. If I spoke Spanish I would seriously be considering selling up here and retiring down there.
On Saturday he walks into a police station in London and states that they might be looking for him as a missing person, he claims to have no memory of the last seven years.
It then emerges that his wife sold their two houses six weeks ago and has migrated to Panama, then a photograph of him and his wife taken one year ago in Panama appears in the press over here.
He was arrested yesterday and is being questioned by the police, meanwhile his wife has disappeared from her luxury apartment and is believed to be staying under warps at the expense of one of our tabloid newspapers.
No doubt the full story will eventually emerge but the people I feel sorry for are their two sons who have spent the last five years believing that their father had drowned.
As an aside, I had no idea Panama was such a fine place to escape to, low cost of living, no tax liable on your overseas investments and a great climate. If I spoke Spanish I would seriously be considering selling up here and retiring down there.
Wednesday, 5 December 2007
Petrolhead Post 1
So time to confess one of my previously undocumented passions - the motor car. All shapes, sizes and countries of origin are welcome - it started when I was at school and over the years the condition got worse.
Probably peaked in the mid eighties but I still enjoy admiring them and while I could never contemplate spending in excess of £25,000 on one that does not mean that I cannot appreciate them.
We have a couple of TV shows over hear that cater for like minded individuals the original Top Gear and the young “upstart” Fifth Gear.
This clip comes from Fifth Gear and is basically a comparison test of the Audi A8 against a Porsche 911 - only petrolheads need bother to watch
Probably peaked in the mid eighties but I still enjoy admiring them and while I could never contemplate spending in excess of £25,000 on one that does not mean that I cannot appreciate them.
We have a couple of TV shows over hear that cater for like minded individuals the original Top Gear and the young “upstart” Fifth Gear.
This clip comes from Fifth Gear and is basically a comparison test of the Audi A8 against a Porsche 911 - only petrolheads need bother to watch
Tuesday, 4 December 2007
Young Chimps Have Better Memory Than Humans
A scientific study in Japan has shown that young chimps perform better than their mothers and university students at a simple short term memory test. The subjects are shown numbers on a screen and then have to remember which numbers were where.
The chimps had previously been taught how to count from one to nine and the results indicate that they may have a photographic memory. Could be that by using students instead of "normal" people skewed the odds in favour of the chimps.
Maybe it would be safer to entrust our personal data to these chimps instead of the chumps running our government?
You can read the full story here.
The chimps had previously been taught how to count from one to nine and the results indicate that they may have a photographic memory. Could be that by using students instead of "normal" people skewed the odds in favour of the chimps.
Maybe it would be safer to entrust our personal data to these chimps instead of the chumps running our government?
You can read the full story here.
Monday, 3 December 2007
Cyanobacteria
The world’s oldest living organisms? Only heard about these critters last week, they first appeared around 3.5 billion years ago when our atmosphere was pretty murky and not really suited to life as we know it.
These guys changed all that with their abilities in photosynthesis they started pumping Oxygen into the seas of that time. Initially the Oxygen combined with the Iron in the water generating considerable Iron Oxide deposits - pretty handy considering the large number of ways that we find Iron to be useful.
After all the Iron had gone from the seas there was nowhere else for the Oxygen to go except into the atmosphere - which from this point on gave us the starting place for all the life on earth that followed.
They are still around today so let’s here it for these plucky fellows without whose help the rest of us would not be here.
As a by product they left behind a fossil record of Stromatolites which are described and shown over here.
These guys changed all that with their abilities in photosynthesis they started pumping Oxygen into the seas of that time. Initially the Oxygen combined with the Iron in the water generating considerable Iron Oxide deposits - pretty handy considering the large number of ways that we find Iron to be useful.
After all the Iron had gone from the seas there was nowhere else for the Oxygen to go except into the atmosphere - which from this point on gave us the starting place for all the life on earth that followed.
They are still around today so let’s here it for these plucky fellows without whose help the rest of us would not be here.
As a by product they left behind a fossil record of Stromatolites which are described and shown over here.
Saturday, 1 December 2007
King Creosote
Hailing from the Kingdom of Fife King Creosote is the “stage” name of one Kenny Anderson. He is a very prolific songwriter who has released many CDRs on his own label Fence Records.
Part of a loose musical scene based in Fife and known as the Fence Collective (most famous alumni being KT Tunstall) KC’s work is now reach a much wider audience. His latest release (Bombshell) has found him and his band touring the UK and appearing on Jools Holland.
He writes really interesting lyrics set against some fine tunes and sings in his own local accent.
Here are a couple of tracks from the new album performed on Later, You’ve No Clue Do You (has to be the best/only? reference to a board game in a song) and then Home In A Sentence.
Finally one caught at a music store signing Cowardly Custard - his ability to not take himself seriously really shines out on this one.
If you want to know more check out his web site (includes a link to his MySpace pages).
Part of a loose musical scene based in Fife and known as the Fence Collective (most famous alumni being KT Tunstall) KC’s work is now reach a much wider audience. His latest release (Bombshell) has found him and his band touring the UK and appearing on Jools Holland.
He writes really interesting lyrics set against some fine tunes and sings in his own local accent.
Here are a couple of tracks from the new album performed on Later, You’ve No Clue Do You (has to be the best/only? reference to a board game in a song) and then Home In A Sentence.
Finally one caught at a music store signing Cowardly Custard - his ability to not take himself seriously really shines out on this one.
If you want to know more check out his web site (includes a link to his MySpace pages).
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