I’m sorry to report that the absence of blogging which has marked recent times is set to continue for a little while longer. I will return at some point, hopefully before too long. I’m recovering right now from the breakdown of certain hopes and dreams. I don’t think it’s sensible for me to write blogs whilst I’m hurting too much. I shall return when I’m feeling better.
Fear not though, for I do believe my recently rediscovered ability to hope and dream will survive all this.
Youtube is amazing. Check out this retro primary school moment. This surely will bring a smile to the face of all people born in the mid 80s, who went to school in the UK…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-Gq17O-HRc
That’s why the next generation can’t spell as well as us! 
Oh and this is just amazing!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcDnBIekm6g&feature=related
The tune will be stuck in your head for hours though.
And I think this… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5keP9_zYCjU&feature=related explains a lot!! It’s a lot creepier than I remember it ever being!!
Enjoy all you fellow eighties children!
God is great. I’m trying to live for Him.
I love coffee. It’s quite possible I have a caffeine addiction. I don’t know for sure because I try to never go without coffee and in doing so I avoid the chance of finding out.
I find Kevin Spacey very very very creepy.
I do not believe The Sun, The Mirror, The Daily Star or anything in that vein deserves to be called a newspaper. When they fabricate the subject matter it isn’t news, it’s fiction. Using words of only one syllable, and mainly pictures.
I have a (possibly slightly irrational) intense dislike of Hugh Grant.
I prefer red wine over white, no matter what I’m eating. I don’t like beer at all. I don’t understand how people find going out and getting drunk a fun pass time.
Rugby is the best sport.
Tennis players are great athletes.
I think whichever government is in power will eventually screw up. I don’t believe a word most politicians say. The exception is my local MP who has actually impressed me by being active.
Will Ferrell isn’t funny.
I don’t have to know everything technical about the cars to enjoy watching motorsport.
Danny Wallace is a genius. In a weird kind of way.
I like both cats and dogs, and don’t feel the need to chose a side.
I enjoy taking photographs of everything. People, places, nature, random objects…
Lame euro-dance music should be banned. Especially when they take classic 80’s songs and ruin them.
I think Venice is more beautiful than Paris.
Right now I’m feeling pretty sorry for these guys…
And no, not just because they were once in a cheesy band with very little credibility… but becase it turns out they were just a little ahead of their time. “What is this nonsense?!” I hear you cry! Allow me to explain. Between 2002 and 2004 Busted were really pretty successful in the UK, Europe and Asia. They sold over 3 million albums and entered the record books for selling out Wembley 11 times in one year, despite only ever releasing 8 singles (4 of which hit number 1 in the charts). So far, so merry. The tale doesn’t yet elicit much sympathy, but stay with me dear readers.
2005 is where it all went wrong for Busted. They decided to attempt to break America and failed spectacularly. The aftermath led to the band going their separate ways to various solo/other band projects. “Their sound would just never have worked in America” people said, and Busted were consigned to history.
But in 2006/7, across the pond, this lot popped up…
My that’s an original looking album cover. Anyway it has come to my attention that these young whippersnappers (and I can call them that as wiki informs me the oldest is younger than me) have covered two of Busted’s songs! Their cover of “What I Go To School For” was only used as a track on their debut album, but Year 3000 was released and made number 10 on the itunes top 100 – making it the band’s second most successful single.
I have two things to say about this:
1) the irritating part is that the Jonas Brothers versions are just more bland than the originals, and therefore worse.
2) the amusing part is that they’ve changed some of the lyrics to make them more “family friendly” which, given how Busted were viewed over here, says a lot about the American market!! I won’t go into detail but I recommend you check out the following links to the youtube videos for each of Year 3000.
For the original… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w43EwRJCq4U
And for Jonas… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNPg2j4B1r4
The lyrics changes are actually a lot bigger in “What I Go To School For” in that they’ve changed the entire concept of the song. The Jonas brothers aren’t in love with a teacher, they like a senior. It’s more proper. Or something.
That said I just realised, since the guys in Busted wrote the song themselves, they’re probably not quite so cut up about the whole thing. In fact I expect they’re laughing all the way to the bank!
“Open up the window and jump into the blue.
Things could be marvellous…”
- Lightning Seeds
Sometimes it’s easier to find the courage to face something you really don’t want to happen than to have the guts to chase after something you really want. I think it’s easier because you have nothing to lose. Whereas if there’s something we want more than anything in the world, we don’t want to have to confront the possibility of discovering it’s never going to happen. So we do nothing.
If you never try you can never fail. But you’ll never succeed either. Much as it pains me to admit, I have often declined to follow up on opportunities in life because I fear that failure too much. It sort of links in with what I wrote about dreaming a couple of months back. Dreaming is the first step. Finding the courage to push to make those dreams reality is a whole different challenge. I’m learning, gradually. It’s a slow process! I have a few good examples around to show me how though, most particularly my dear Giraffe-a-licious sister, whose writings are now popping up on websites here, there and everywhere. She finds the courage to put her skills under the scrutiny of unknown critics, and she’s succeeding 
Now God has answered my prayers and enabled me to dream again, I pray that He will give me the courage to follow through and fight for those dreams.
