Month: February 2004

I grew up with a dog. No, not JUST a dog…

She was part of the family, always there, she went everywhere with us for the most part. She was a bit daft, as golden retrievers are prone to be, but she didn’t have a nasty bone in her body. She loved giving people presents (including the oft recalled ‘tortoise incident’). I miss my dog. I miss taking her out for walks. Brushing her, playing in the back garden, taking her to the park. I miss Sintra.

The nearest park to us was Levengrove (Dumbarton Common was the nearest piece of ground but was surrounded by roads) and every weekend, and some week nights, we’d pile into the car and drive over. The park sits at the junction of the River Leven (which runs down from Loch Lomond) and the River Clyde.

The minute the boot opened, Sintra would leap out and head straight for the water. There was no stopping her, so we’d just let her run off and trail after her, maybe kicking a football, or throwing a frisbee (or an aerobee – remember them?). When we caught up with her she’d be waiting in the water. Now those of you who had a dog may well remember this kind of thing. The expectancy. The patience. That dog would stand in freezing cold water for as long as it took to make you throw something. Silly dog.

So you’d pick up a pebble and chuck it and Sintra would leap into life, dashing for where she thought it would land (thinking back it was a bit dangerous chucking stones near to a dog… we weren’t throwing AT her!). Then she’d do that thing dogs do when something lands in water. They’d try and .. well.. bite the splash. Obviously doggy brains can’t quite handle the fact that, despite the fact they are standing IN the water, items landing on it will not stay on TOP of it. She’d stand there, staring at the spot where the pebble had splashed, utterly bemused that it had vanished.

You could repeat this for several hours, or until your arm dropped off. Silly dog.

Louise grew up with several dogs, all retrievers too, but we only ever had one. Anymore would’ve felt… I dunno… disrespectful or something.

Anyhoo, thanks to weedavid.com for the memories. His pictures of Levingrove Park (and Dumbarton Castle – a volcanic plug don’t ya know) have left me with a nice ‘homely’ glow.

I wasn’t allowed one. It wasn’t a sensible choice. I knew that. I’m not sure if I even asked or pleaded or begged in the usual “I want, I want, I want, I want…” way that kids have perfected (I’ve tried similar techniques recently as I want to get a new car… the reaction from my wife is… well it isn’t the one I wanted. I digress.)

So here I am. A thirty-something with disposable income. So imagine my elation this morning when I read in the paper that: “Classic Chopper makes a comeback”

At last. I can own the bike that was cooler than cool. Although there are a couple of potential disappointments that I’ve already spotted. Firstly the seat is now ‘split’ so no more banana seat which I’m presuming will mean that you can’t set the seat waaay back and have the handlebars set low like a bad boy Harley Davidson (Did I really think like this when I was 12?). Secondly, where are the gears? One of the coolest things was having that ‘car-like’ gear stick in the middle of the frame. Without that, well, it’s just a bike…

And yes, I know I will look utterly ridiculous riding a Chopper aged 30, with beer belly, bald spot and all. But I might not care.

I’m off to phone the wife… “But I reeealllly want one, I want, I want, I want….”

Jeepers it’s been quiet round here today. I don’t just mean the few comments on my riveting posting.. I mean generally numbers are down by 40 – 50 or the usual.

Has there been issues getting into the site? Just curious… Stats whore? Me??

Anyway, I promise to try and be a bit more positive tomorrow. But hey, that’s what you get when you read a personal site. Ups and downs. Good and bad. In sickness and in health.

I do.

* PC – Politically Correct

Brian has a bit of a dilemma for you: It concerns the “issue of people with behavioural problems being in public places”.

Interesting one this. No correct answer I guess, just a situation to be handled with great tact. Go and leave some comments at his site.

A big empty white space.

That’s it. All I’ve got. As far as I can get. So many things are flittering about in my head but I can’t grasp one long enough to form a coherent thought around it (or even OF it…).

Blunkett’s latest immigration laws. The Pelamis energy convertor ‘wave power machine’. The sickening pictures of George W smooozing his way onto stage as he launches his campaign for re-election (although the fact that he is starting it early is a good sign… running scared I hope). Obscene profits by the Royal Bank of Scotland.

Then there’s real life. A friend going through a hard time. A general malaise descending on everything. Professional stagnancy. Waiting on payday on Friday. Heating knackered again. Car needing a service.

And I think I’m coming down with something, which is probably why even typing this much has left me drained.

Of course it’s only now that I realise I shouldn’t have scoffed the last of the Chelsea Whoppers last night. Dammit.

Ohh and I’ll expect you all to have tried that Crimson Room puzzle (linked in the Miniblog on the right) by tomorrow.

Historic Online Protest: Grey Tuesday

“It’s time for music fans to stand up and demand change from the music industry’s copyright cartel. Tuesday, February 24 will be a day of coordinated civil disobedience: websites will post Danger Mouse’s Grey Album on their site for 24 hours in protest of EMI’s attempts to censor this work.

DJ Danger Mouse created a remix of Jay-Z’s the Black Album and the Beatles White Album, and called it the Grey Album. Jay-Z’s record label, Roc-A-Fella, released an a capella version of his Black Album specifically to encourage remixes like this one. But despite praise from music fans and major media outlets like Rolling Stone (“an ingenious hip-hop record that sounds oddly ahead of its time”) and the Boston Globe (which called it the “most creatively captivating” album of the year), EMI has sent cease and desist letters demanding that stores destroy their copies of the album and websites remove them from their site. EMI claims copyright control of the Beatles 1968 White Album. “

Errr… right you are then.

“Historic” you say? OK, hands-up everyone who’d heard of this Grey Album?