To Shout And Sing, Or To Not Shout and Sing?

I like to be an active participant of football matches, obviously I don't mean this in the way that Cristiano Ronaldo destroyed AS Roma last night, I mean this as in I like to get behind my team and in some cases I just can't help it.

When I'm at the game I'm allowed to forget all my problems and so on, and be part of something bigger, a community for 90 minutes. I'm allowed to be partisan and to become the kinda guy who never thinks about the problems of the wider world, or indeed my own problems. It's a place where everything else takes second place. I really do get caught up in it, not in a bad way I feel, in a good way, as I regard the club as a part of me. Now I'm not naive enough to think this is reciprocated, but of course, with no however many thousand of people like me, the club wouldn't exist, so I think it is in some way reciprocated in some way. However, I digress. I get caught up, to an extent where I take part in the game so to say, and most other things have relatively little importance. I'm sure that if I was asked me where I live or the names of the two women I have loved in my life in the middle of blistering Sunderland attack, I wouldn't be able to tell you.

But does the support that I give in the stand actually matter?

Saturday. Sunderland v Wolves

11am - In the pub, downing pints and talking with the lads about the goings on in the last week or so. This is something which I really do enjoy. Talking about drink, women and of course Sunderland AFC. 3pm - When I'm in the ground I shout myself into the ground. I try to cheer every tackle, every good thing a player does such as a neat pass or deadly bit of skill and of course a goal. Likewise, I shout at the referee, I get on the backs of players if I can see that they aren't trying hard enough. I guess I'm letting off steam. In thw words of the great Niall Quinn, being the metaphorical 12th man is important to me, and the fans including myself, are part of the 2-1 win. We win, the goals go in, and I jump around absolutely apeshit. Very good, continue to pub and a hearty well done. I end up pissed and singing 'Boogie Shoes' by KC and the Sunshine Band on karaoke in my Dad's local bar. Brilliant.

Easter Monday. Southampton v Sunderland

I was working in Newcastle all Easter Monday, it was double-time and I needed (and still need) the money. I finish at 5pm, ready for the 5.15 kick off. Meanwhile, I can't get the underground through to Sunderland from Newcastle, as I'd end up missing the first-half, which has been rearranged on Sky. I go into un-named pub in the centre of Newcastle. Meanwhile, there are so many Skunks around it's untrue, they had just finsihed a bore-draw at home to Arsenal. It isn;t a hooligans bar or anything (I don't have a death-wish!!!) but this bar is known for being a place where it can kick-off and lots of men seem to know some guy by the name of 'Charlie'!! So, I'm in an un-named pub in the centre of Newcastle for kick-off. Luckily, I know two of the bouncers and I'm standing at the bar with them and a few lads from work. However, I decide to keep quiet. Therefore, here I am, one of the most important games we have played in years and I'm surrounded by NUFC fans. I want to cheer every ball, every tackle, every throw-in. Everyone else in the bar is laughing and joking, but I'm so tense it's untrue. We go one-nil down, and our backs are against the walls, and the Skunks are loving it. I supress everything inside me. We score, and we score again. I supress everything, I cannot even raise a smile by this point, as the natives are angry. Inside I'm loving it. I go home after 3 pints, and don't sing 'Boogie Shoes' by K.C and the Sunshine Band. Brilliant.

Summary

My support in terms of being vocal matters nothing, to no one apart from me. I can't by some twist of fate change any score, but I please me in doing so, and that's the important thing.

Neil.

Where I've Been Drinking: The Howard Arms - Sunderland
What I'm Currently Reading: LEARNING FRENCH!
What I'm Currently Listening To: Happy Mondays - Yes Please

The Rumours of My Virtual Death Have Been Greatly Exagerated

Well, hello again. Has anything happened whilst I have been away? As you will all know, well some of you, I have not blogged since January. The 14th of January to be exact and it seems like such a long time ago. I would love to say this is through pure laziness, however, I was unsure whether to continue with blogging. I have hung-fire (is there are passe compose of 'hang-fire!) and have decided to continue.

However, I did have a few concerns. Firstly, I realised I was being too introspective with myself, and I know that I have a habit of feeling sorry for myself. I was blogging at a time which was personally difficult for me, the end of Teacher Training and being in a place which I on the whole don't really like very much. I didn't want to appear to the world like I was complaining about my situation all the time. Basically, I thought I was conveying a wrong impression of me to the world, and I didn't really like that very much. Secondly, I was unsure whether my blogging had any actual importance. Is my actual thoughts put to the whole wide world of any relevance whatsover. Obviously I know that President Ahmedwhatshisname may have had a bigger audience share than me on Thursday with his releasing of the British sailors, but did anyone care or was the blog literally 'shit'. Thirdly, I realised that I looking at life through the lens of the blog to an extent. That sounds dramatic, and I don't mean it to sound like that. In essence, my concern was that I was seeing and experiencing things in general life and thinkign 'that would look good on the blog' which to be frank, is rather sad. Lastly, I am a lazy bastard.

Well, I have decided to continue blogging.

What's been happening since I last blogged? Well, if the answer I gave you was not much would yoube suprised. I have now been working for DEFRA (basically the Department of Agriculture of the British Government, yes I am a civil servant) for the last three and a bit months and it's ok. It's nice having money in my pocket which is a slight change from my situation! I'm still single and moving to the other side of the world next year. I'm going on three holiday's, Amsterdam in June 2007 on a stag-do (bachelor party), Paris for the Bastille Day in July and I'm going to Canada in September, so I'm really trying to cut back on the drinking. Luckily, I have found a pub in Newcastle City Centre that serves pints for £1.20, and that doesnt cut into the bank balance too much. I am still trying to learn French for my impending life in Canada. I say the word 'trying', it can be very difficult. I beat myself up by thinking that I'm not good enough and not hitting the textbooks enough, but you know, my heart is in the right place.

Hopefully, my next blog entry will be an all-singing all-dancing affair, this one feels a bit morbid.

Neil.

Quote-of-the-day: "French verbs can be very difficult"
Where I've Been Drinking: The Lane - Newcastle
What I've Been Listening Too: Sade - Diamond Life
What I'm Currently Reading: 501 French Verbs - Chris & Theo Kendris

Football and 'Being on the Wagon' Update

The football could be best described as dire yesterday, as everyone in the U.K will surely testify - the wind has been terrible these last couple of weeks, and North-East England has been no exception. The weather played a big part in the game yesterday, and I felt that both teams struggled at times. Although, it should be mentioned that we did win 1-0 against a poor Ipswich team, it wasn’t what could be termed as an entertaining game. I think that in diplomatic terms, it wasn’t a game for the purists and it wasn’t what could be termed as an advert for second-division English football. However, 3 points and all is well that ends well. The game saw the home debuts of Carlos Edwards and Anthony Stokes, and they both played well. Edwards has been good for Luton this season, and Stokes (who was on-loan from Arsenal) has put away 14 goals in 17 games in the Scottish Premier League for Falkirk, and they both looked like they could help our promotion challenge. We played ok, but I felt that under different circumstances Ipswich could have put us away, as we cleared two chances off-the-line. We have Sheffield Wednesday away, and then Crystal Palace and Coventry at home over the next few weeks, which hopefully we’ll get 7 points out of, and subsequently will be pushing towards the top-half of the play-off positions.

I’m approaching the quarter-mark of my self-enforced no-drinking agenda. Everyone has been supportive although to an extent I can see how my social life in some senses revolves around drinking in bars and so on. I had a couple of pints of lemonade in the pre-match pubs which made me feel somewhat effeminate, especially when everyone is pissed up in the bar shouting for the Newcastle shirt to go up ‘in-flames’ as part of the pre-match entertainment. Like this; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vEQyiE1ncgE .The alcohol thing is strange, even small things like when the boys are passing around the whiskey whilst the game is on, and someone almost apologising for offering me whiskey, that type of thing. I’m saying, well its through choice, not that I’m an alcoholic or anything. It’s just I felt I was drinking too much last year!!!!! I start the new job tomorrow, so I could be off the wagon by 6pm tomorrow! The French is going good, and I must say I’m impressed with my limited progress so far. I’m finding it is like a musical instrument, the more practice and the more time that I put into it, the better I become. However, it is still very difficult, and I have nothing but respect for people who have learnt a foreign language, especially those who have done so as adults.

Neil.

Quote of the Day: “That’s fighting talk where I’m from, but I moved since”
Where I’ve Been Drinking: 13 DAYS ON THE WAGON OUT OF 57
What I’m Currently Reading: Europe – Norman Davies
What I’m Currently Listening To: The Beatles – The White Album

The New New Job and Some Thoughts On the Ashes

I guess half-decent jobs must be like half-decent women, you worry about not getting one, and then two appear on the horizon at once, and you don’t know what to do. Sort of like the buses analogy, when you are standing in the rain and snow and two come at once. Such is life. Yes, I went for two jobs this week, and quite unbelievably I got both of them, they must’ve been mega-desparate. One for the electric company NPower and one for the RPA (Rural Payments Authority). I’m going to go with the latter, partly because that one starts on Monday and I need the money, and partly because it’s a better job in all honestly. The job looks to be ok, and it is something that I can put up with until the ‘big move’. As far as I’m aware the main part of the job is working out how much government subsidies farmers in the UK are entitled to. The training lasts for a month, so I’ll get to know a lot more details after this period I suppose. Luckily, the place I’ll be working is in town, and the hours are 9 till 5, Monday to Friday, so that’ll be more than handy. I have to get the underground everyday to St. James and due to this I will have to face a montage of ‘NUFC legends’ on the wall and the thought of Peter Beardsley’s face 30ft on a wall is something that might bring my breakfast up, however, I shall persevere. Funny how they have ‘NUFC legends’ yet they haven’t won a domestic trophy since 1955, two years after rationing ended. Tossers.

So, to the cricket Down Under. I have neglected to comment on this so far, but what a shambles it is at the moment. What can I say? An embarrasment and a shambles. It seems unbelievable that the team who beat Australia in the Summer of 2005, should be the same team that suffered a whitewash this time around. In 2005, for the first time in 18 years England won the Ashes and we actually took the game to the Australians. This coupled with the fine batting from likes of Pietersen, Flintoff, Vaughan as well as the openers Trescothick and Strauss. Of course, Geraint Jones (the wicketkeeper) was poor in that Summer but nothing changes in this. From the first Test in Brisbane, all the way through Adelaide, Perth. Melbourne and Sydney the English team were second best, and sometimes you have to put your hands up and say the better team won. Supporting Sunderland this is something that I’m used to doing. On the bright side with Warne and McGrath not playing in the next Ashes (summer 2009), England do stand at least half a chance, bearing in mind that these two bowlers have taken 1300 Test wickets between them. However, I can’ help feeling with Australia is that they’ll have another Shane Warne or Glenn McGrath waiting in the wings. To win the next Ashes is a possibility, albeit that looks slim at the moment. Next summer England play West Indies and Sri Lanka at home (the home Test against W.I at Durham I shall be attending) and England will probably wipe the floor with them. England alongside India are probably the Second best test teams in the world. Australia is a different matter entirely, and are superhuman in some respects at cricket. Doesn’t make it harder to take when we get thrashed though. The one-day series against Australia and New Zealand will be interesting.

Neil.

Quote of the Day: “There’s no whiskey in any kind of jar”
Where I’ve Been Drinking: 12 DAYS ON THE WAGON OUT OF 57
What I’m Currently Reading: Europe – Norman Davies
What I’m Currently Listening To: John Lennon – Imagine

The New Job, Learning French and Being ‘On The Wagon’

New Job. Yes, so I started the new job in possibly the worst frame of mind on Tuesday and by the time I came back on Wednesday it was even worse. I mean the job was pretty humdrum, I didn’t mind that per se, as I knew what I was getting myself into. However, what I didn’t except was a change in my working-hours after 30 minutes inside the place. The hours were 8.45am till 16.45pm, then I was told I should report to work from tomorrow from 7am till 15.00pm. Now, I don’t particularly have a problem with starting work early, but I have to take two undergrounds and then a bus after, which means I would be up at 4.45am, as the bus service is shit, and doesn’t really run proper until 7.00am. Starting at 8.45am would have been ok for the public transport, but not this. This is bad enough, but I feel hoodwinked by my recruiters, which I don’t like at all. I took my complaint to the Union representative who basically told me ‘you are fucked’. So much for ‘workers of the world unite’ – lol. So, I have been doing my shifts, but I have an interview on Wednesday at 16.00pm for an energy/electricity company, which is - A) more money. B) in the centre of Newcastle, ie: one underground/subway journey consisting of exactly 8 minutes. C) Starting work at 9.00am which is ten times better. We shall see if that comes off, but I am looking elsewhere for employment. Also, in response to a text from a friend in Sheffield (hi S), there are no good looking girls there. There was an eighteen-year-old I was talking to, and she was nice, but it felt kinda wrong.

Learning French. The learning French going ok, it’s the basic stuff at the moment that I largely already know, like Monsieur and Madame Dupont want Orange-Juice and they live in house in Lyon type of stuff. But the textbook O'm using is 100% better than the BBC one I was using at nightclass last year. I’m pushing myself hard, but I have the occasional ‘light-bulb’ moments. I hope you now what I mean by that, like on the cartoons where someone like Roadrunner suddenly knows how to finally evade Wile-E-Coyote, before a huge rock tumbles onto his head in the Arizona desert. I suddenly realise why something is the way it is, and I’m just like ‘yes - I get why that word is there now’. I’m up to the fifth unit of twenty-one so far, and I have read ahead of myself, and everything (well 90%) still makes sense. There are two books of Facon De Parler, and I have set myself the target of doing both books before I fly. I have also been doing my homework, and it seems there are places in Ottawa to study French for free due to the Canadian government wanting citizens (especially English speakers) to be bilingual. I think having this preparation will stand me in good stead. In the grand scheme of things the two languages (obviously my mother-tongue is English) are pretty similar, bearing in mind English is a branch of Germanic with Latin influences. I also start the three-hours a week nightclass next week, I have a few ambitions. I know that there are French speakers who read this blog, and I promise to them have a blog entry entirely in French before the end of March. It maybe the worst blog entry since the invention of the internet, but it will make me happy. The second is completing the aforementioned textbooks. The third, in June, when I visit my friends in Sheffield before I fly, I will maintain conversations in French with the Francophones there, rather than rely on their English. Can't say fairer than that.

On the Wagon. Now then now then, onto matters alcohol related. Yes, you indeed did read the title correctly. I have decided to get on the wagon. I need to prove this to myself. This is on a temporary measure of course, I could never deny myself the pleasure of a beer in the pub for the rest of my life. Throughout the last part of 2006, and since I started university in 2002 really, I realised I was drinking far too much. This is this two-fold, firstly in terms of alcohol going into my body, and secondly, realising how much money was going into the pockets of landlords of various pubs, bars and clubs. Don’t get me wrong I can easily not have a drink or 3 or 4 days here and there, but I will try to stay on the wagon until my birthday, which is the last day in February. This is 58 days and they will be the longest 58 days ever, 53 to go. I realise in some ways my life revolves around drinking with my friends, and that will be the hardest part. The football matches during this timeframe I’m going to is; Sheffield Wednesday away, Ipswich, Coventry, Southend and Derby all at home. All no-drink affairs. Further, I have decided to meet friends in coffee-shops rather than pubs in Newcastle as temptation will be too much. Sheffield Wednesday will kill me I’m sure, the Sheffielders I know are 100% diamonds, but I know I have to avoid them until February 28, as I WILL drink! The weekend of March 3/4 I will be in Shef guys, don’t cha worry ‘bout that. No drink until then (cry) - the worlds only non-drinking Geordie. Who’d a thunk it?

Neil.

Quote of the Day: ‘Tu or Vous- who cares?’
Where I’ve Been Drinking: 5 DAYS ON THE WAGON OUT OF 58
What I’m Currently Reading: The Catcher in The Rye – J.D Salinger
What I’m Currently Listening To: Radiohead – The Bends

Doh!

So, New Year's Eve was good, messy and culminated in me being very very drunk. No suprises there then. Getting to the pub at 4pm New Years Eve, and drinking until 9am New Years Day. Spent actual New Year in a nice bar where a couple of my friends work (hey J and J) with a load of people. I then had the bright idea of drinking all-night and then watching the football in my ex-local boozers in Sheffield early doors the following day. A school-boy error if ever there was one. I went to the pub, rather foolishly at 12.30pm on New Years Day after 2 hours sleep (whilst the Who was being played at near full-blast) to watch Bolton v Liverpool, which then turned into me watching Portsmouth v Spurs and then turned into Newcastle United v Manchester United. We won 2-0 at Leicester City, which is a really good result for us, and with the January transfer-window starting I think we can make a push for the promotion places. In this time at the pub I drank two pints, that shows how bad I felt, the only comparable pissed-ness/hungover in the pub was the day after my 24th birthday.

Everyone knows about my grapples with new technology, but rather amazingly, I'm not the worst - as the quotes below testify. I hope you have a chuckle at them like I did. I especially like the Bill Gates quote (number 10) from 1981, and the famous quote by Charles H Duell (number 11) regarding everything being invented that could be invented (1899).

1. "This 'telephone' has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication. The device is inherently of no value to us."-- Western Union internal memo, 1876.

2. "Heavier-than-air flying machines are impossible."-- Lord Kelvin, president, Royal Society, 1895.

3. "The wireless music box has no imaginable commercial value. Who would pay for a message sent to nobody in particular?"-- David Sarnoff's associates in response to his urgings forinvestment in radio in the 1920s.

4. "There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home."-- Ken Olson, president, chairman and founder of Digital EquipmentCorp., 1977.

5. "Computers in the future may weigh no more than 1.5 tons."-- Popular Mechanics, forecasting the relentless march of science,1949.

6. "I think there is a world market for maybe five computers."-- Thomas Watson, chairman of IBM, 1943.

7. "Stocks have reached what looks like a permanently high plateau."-- Irving Fisher, Professor of Economics, Yale University, 1929.

8. "Airplanes are interesting toys but of no military value."-- Marechal Ferdinand Foch, Professor of Strategy, Ecole Superieurede Guerre.

9. "Louis Pasteur's theory of germs is ridiculous fiction".-- Pierre Pachet, Professor of Physiology at Toulouse, 1872.

10. "640K (of RAM) ought to be enough for anybody."-- Bill Gates, 1981.

11. "Everything that can be invented has been invented."-- Charles H. Duell, Commissioner, U.S. Office of Patents, 1899

Neil.

Quote of the Day: 'I always rated The Right Stuff above Step-by-Step'
Where I've Been Drinking: West Street Live - Sheffield
What I'm Currently Reading: The Catcher In the Rye - J.D Salinger
What I'm Currently Listening To: The Jam - Beat Surrender

A Happy New Year to Everyone

So, 2006 turns into 2007 tomorrow and this will be my last blog entry of the calendar year. The first year of my blog of course and what a year it has been. Anyhow, I wish everyone a Happy New Year who reads this, from the people I know in 'real-life', as well as those people I know through the blog. I hope 2007 brings the things in life that you want in life. Wherever you are and whoever you are with, make sure you have a good time tomorrow night. I shall be in Sheffield attending a party with some friends having drank in the pub all-day I suspect. I hope that 2007 brings me the things in life that I want, I really hope so. I think it will be a year of transition for me in a lot of senses.

I obviously have the task of moving to a foreign country. It is foreign, but I'm quite lucky as I have a lot of family over there who will help me, and I dont have to worry about being a different colour or speaking a different language compared to the majority of the inhabitants. I'm learning French and I intend to study some Canadian history and read some Canadian literature before I go, as I think this will make me a good 'immigrant' and provide a better experience for me. I say the word 'immigrant', but I have been dual-nationality since birth, but hopefully you will understand the context that I say the word 'immigrant' in. I dont know if this will be pivitol as in a permanent move after I get back from travelling Australia, New Zealand and India. When I look at rip-off Britain and it's discontents, I must admit I am tempted. Time will tell.

I have been to the Sunderland v Preston match today. This ended up as a one-nil defeat to the mighty Sunderland. To be honest, I think we have found our natural position within this leauge now. Preston are no world-beaters at all, but they outclassed us in a lot of areas of the pitch today so I thought. The teams that are above us, such as Cardiff City, Birmingham City as well as Preston have all beaten us at home and I think that says a lot. We need some more quality players, such as a stronger centre-half, a striker who can bag 15 goals a-season and a midfield- general. With Niall Quinn in the boardroom, and Roy Keane on the touchline as manager I'm sure that things will all be ok in the end. Looking towards the Premiership, Chelsea were held at home today by Fulham and Manchester United won at home against Reading. This leaves United six points clear of the Londoners and in pole position. However, Manchester United still have to visit Stamford Bridge, Ashburton Grove and Anfield, so this will go to the wire I think. It looks to be an interesting run-in.

Neil.

Quote of the Day: 'Those ball-boys are fucking useless'
Where I've Been Drinking: The Fort - Sunderland
What I'm Currently Reading: The Penguin French Dictionary!
What I'm Currently Listening To: KLF - The White Room

My Top Ten Tunes of the 2000's

I had a comedy conversation, regarding music and fashion taste, and it appears that amongst some of the guys at the football I have the name of ‘retro-boy’. Ok, it is true I wear flared jeans, and some of my tops do resemble 1980’s (especially my Fila red tracksuit top). It is also true I wear old-skool trainers/sneakers ( I’m going have remember these North Americanisms aren’t I!) and so on. It is also true that I deserve the tag of ‘retro-boy’ in respect of my musical tastes. I famously listen to pre-1990 Hip-Hop only and my Rock/Indie is thought to finish somewhere between the end of Madchester and the onset of Britpop. Perhaps most comedy of all in regard to my ‘retro-boy’ tag is my total comedic non-comprehension of new technology. Shown a piece of new technology and I suddenly turn into my octogenarian Granddad. I’m a Luddite if ever there was one.

However, here is my ten favourite tunes and bands since the year 2000, just to prove that I do live in the present;

1. Arctic Monkeys – Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzmLtgctD0g
T’Monkeys as they say in Sheffield, about the finest act outta Sheffield since the Human League, or t’League as they are known. A fucking quality tune. I always remember the big ‘Who the fuck are the Arctic Monkeys?’ poster at the bottom of the Moor in Sheffield.

2. Maximo Park – Graffiti
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGLb_6gMW3Y
A great, and highly underrated band. They are from the North-East England, and I love the way this guy sings in his real accent (which is like mine). Love it. I saw this band recently and they blew me away.

3. The Strokes – Someday
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xGr1iv1tmYU
This tune should have gone on my ‘reminiscing’ post. However, a quality act and superb act in the days of 2003. Their tunes live on like a catalogue of my times and experiences. Brilliant.

4. The Thrills – Big Sur
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_7NDXhYwNU
A quality act who should be listened to by anyone who comes from a small town and just want to break-out. I have particular memories of this tune as per my previous post. Top drawer.

5. The Futureheads – Hounds of Love
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZH1h9l0w84
This band are from Sunderland, and are fucking class. I’m not just saying this as I used to go drinking with the bass player in the mid to late 1990’s. I’m such a celebrity whore me like! The video link is crap, but it’s great song even if it is a Kate Bush cover.

6. Razorlight - Somewhere Else
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHTm0wtmWAA
A truly beautiful and heart-wrenching tune and one that I can relate to on so many levels. This one will be one of the first on Neil’s MP3 player, of course when I discover how to work it.

7. The Killers – Mr Brightside
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vFLXSfIoPHg
I think I’ve written about this tune before. However, my one abiding memory of this song is happiness, being pissed-up and having a quality time in Sheffield.

8. Kaiser Chiefs – Everyday I Love You Less and Less
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BtU5obaYW9o
I love this tune on so many levels. It is heart-felt and you can tell the song-writer has experienced these emotions, but it is also a sing-a-long tune and one which is drunkenly danced to. My favourite.

9. Kasabian – Empire
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Qo2lTANnp4
I love the dancey Indie the sound of this band. It kinda has a Madchester feel about it, in the sense of the cross over in the Jesus Jones mould. The guy has a haunting voice that I just love. An intriguing band, and one to be closely watched. Top drawer.

10. The Hives - Hate to Say I Told You So
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsm2hSKkH7E
A top-drawer tune again. Although the guys from this band look like they should be in Kraftwerk, the tune is good, and has that nice rolling guitar sound that I’m such a fan of.

Neil.

Where I've Been Drinking: The Colliery Tavern – Sunderland
What I'm Currently Reading: Lonely Planet - Canada
What I'm Currently Listening To: The Strokes – Is This It?

Christmas 2006 and Its Discontents

It’s been a quite a good Christmas really. I’ve had a really good time. This was my most enjoyable Christmas for many a year. The most boozy Christmas of course for ages, but I tell you what it has been amazing and I never expected it. I attended a cousins wedding last Friday, which was nice. Strange to be attending a wedding in Winter, but I think it worked really well. This cousin is a really lovely girl, and the guy is a nice guy and they are well suited. However, they have added pressure onto me to get ‘wed’ from the family, and I said the small factor of me having no girlfriend at the moment is somewhat a hinderance to this project! I said to the guy who married my cousin the only drawback is he joins ‘the family’, and he laughed, which I think is a good thing… I didn’t try any moves on any ladies at the wedding, as it’s strange with your family being there. I don’t tend to drink with my dads side of the family, and of course Moms is all in Canada, so its not something I’m used to. More of which later.

I went out with a friend who was visiting the Northeast (hi S) on Christmas Eve, and that was good too. We went to some cheesy as fuck pubs, that would only be found in the North-East of England. The last time I went to this part of Tyneside drinking was Summer 1999, and it ain’t changed, its still stuck in the 1980’s! I love and hate this part of England with equal measures. Aye, so my friend and I were sat discussing her boyfriend (and my friend) for ages wishing he was there for a drink with us. Nevermind, the African desert or drinking with us, what a choice. After she went and got a lift home, I then proceeded to ‘pull’ a girl on the underground back to my part of Newcastle on the last Metro. I was pissed and she was pissed. Lovely, and very classy I thought. I got off at my stop, and she was going to the centre of Newcastle. I didn’t take her number (smooth ehhhhh!) as I had other things on my mind! Lol. Anyhow, Debbie from Fenham if ever are trying to remember Christmas 2006, just think of the guy who got off at Chillingham Road and was dumb enough not to ask for your number! You gotta laugh really.

Christmas Day was good, and I have the feeling the MP3 player I received will not be worked out by me until sometime in May. The people who know me here know how useless I am with new technology. I honestly am. I’m the type of guy who masters VHS and then DVD’s come into play. I’m the guy who masters the Nintendo and the Super Nintendo comes out. I master cassettes and CD’s come out. At New Year 2006/2007 I will discover the technology of 1994. Onto Boxing Day, I then proceeded to have a drink the entire day, encompassing our 2-0 win over Leeds United, which was good. Spoiled a bit by the mass brawl that I witnessed, but Leeds United will always be Dirty Leeds United. And, to the guy who threw a brick the Sunderland disabled supporters bus, I’m glad you got the kicking you deserved. We won 2-0 of course, and Leeds are now second bottom, couldn’t happen to a nicer set of fans (wankers), players (Ugo Eghiou - lol), manager (Dennis Wise) and Chairman (Ken Bates). Hope you enjoy the trip to Rotherham next season. I loathe them even more than Newcastle United sometimes. Anyhow, I went out with the family Boxing Day night after drinking at the match, including my dodgy Uncle, and some of the stories he regaled me with were very amusing. My English uncle has some interesting stories about the characters of the North-East and it was great to be amongst that again, drinking in ‘hard as nails’ pubs instead of my usual middle-of-the-road places. They all know about Canada, and they’ve given me the most amount of support I could ever ask. I’m looking for to Hogmanay/New Years Eve in Sheffield too. Can’t wait.


Neil.

Where I've Been Drinking: Banana Joe’s - Whitley Bay
What I'm Currently Reading: Lonely Planet - Canada
What I'm Currently Listening To: Rolling Stones – Let it Bleed

New Job and New Course

So, there has been a few changes in the rollercoaster that is the life of Neilissimo over the last few days. I have managed to get myself a full-time job working for the conglomerate that is British Telecom starting in January. I was going to work in a Museum working on a slavery exhibition but two things put me off. Firstly, I’m getting slightly more money, and secondly, I would have to have worked all-day Saturday and all-day Sunday in the museum. I would’ve enjoyed the content and the day-to-day of the Museum more, but I guess the arch Capitalist and selfish beast spoke louder. This job at BT I have to work Saturday mornings but I have the afternoon off, which means that I won’t miss any football. So, this job with BT is pretty much standard office hours and easy work that I’m looking for over the next few months. I’m also thinking of getting a bar job for one night a week to get some bar experience before I fly out to Canada too. I shall see the way things pan out with the full-time job and the course discussed below.

I have enrolled for French lessons at Newcastle College for twenty weeks starting 9th of January. It is only three hours per week every Tuesday, and I enter at Intermediate level rather than absolute beginner. I also have the rest of Facon de Parler to go through, so these things will be occupying my mind, as well as http://youve-hit-the-neil-on-the-head.blogspot.com/ of course!!!! For those veterans of my blog, you’ll know I was taking French and Italian lessons at night-class last academic year. Although (and I know there’s French people who read this blog - F, C and J) I like the French language but I actually prefer Italian if that makes any sense. To me its easier as the gender is easier to spot (Italian the O at the end denoting masculine and the A denoting feminine and I being plural), whereas in French I literally am the blind man pissing into the wind. However, I feel that as I guy who is moving to a bilingual city and literally across the river from a predominantly French speaking territory (Quebec) it is my duty to at least learn the basics, and see if I can build up a vocabulary. The twenty-week course fits in with my departure date of June 28 perfectly.

Neil.

Where I’ve Been Drinking: The Percy Arms – Newcastle
What I’m Currently Reading: A Social History of English Cricket – Derek Birely
What I’m Currently Listening To: Mr Smith – LL Cool J

Songs Associated With People, Places and Situations

I don't know if it's just me, but I always associate in my mind songs with people, situations and places. You know, I'll lesiurely be shopping in town and then a song comes on in that shop that just transports me to a time, situation or person that I haven’t been with, or seen for years. I know this is a big blog entry but this has been something I’ve been working on these last few weeks. I can think of 20. Any comments appreciated.

1. Love Is A Battlefield - Pat Benatar
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuOhUa5GxA0
I was on a school trip to Essen in Germany in 1993, and I had my first real kiss (with tongues and everything!) to this song. I was with a German girl and she was wanting me to explain how such a nice thing as Love could be a battlefield!!! She asked me the English language meaning to just about every song, but I especially remember Love is A Battlefield.

2. Mr Brightside - The Killers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vFLXSfIoPHg
This tune reminds me of my time in Sheffield, being in pubs and most especially the Leadmill nightclub dancing like an idiot, pint in hand. I can remember walking back to my former residence in Hunters Bar, Sheffield from Sheffield whilst pissed with a can of Red Stripe singing this at the top of my voice. Happy days.

3. Shes Like the Wind - Patrick Swayze
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LDPacJjoJY
This tune reminds me of my ex-girlfriend of four years. I am ashamed to admit it, but there you go. It must have been her fascination with Dirty Dancing that it was. Why do girls like Dirty Dancing? Men are from Earth, and women are from god knows where.

4. Step On - Happy Mondays
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPT4iaHVFHo
This song reminds me of a Mancunian friend of mine everytime that I hear it. A drinking buddy of mine and big Manchester United fan also. I dont want to give him a big head so I wont give any compliments out as I know he reads this blog. He knows he is one of the boys though and a good egg.

5. Sitting on the Dock of the Bay - Otis Redding
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLZ6Np9UJAE
This one reminds me of another ex-girlfriend whilst I was at university. This is a shame, as I'm a big fan of Otis Redding, not that I like to sound bitter or anything of course.

6. Hideaway - De'Lacy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOcK_X4FZ98
This tune reminds me of me first going out in Sunderland, South Shields and Newcastle as an impressionable 16 year old going to pubs and clubs. I used to love this track. I'm transported to more innocent times with this song, in seedy, beer soaked nightclubs and Geordie/Mackem girls in short skirts.

7. Chasing Rainbows - Shed Seven
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bwwpu_ZIGQM
This tune reminds me of 1998, and me going to a gig in Middlesbrough to see the above band. This is infact a beautiful song worthy of a lot more praise than it's given. Most especially, this reminds me of summer 1998, and the subsequent 'lads holiday' in Corfu - to quote Bruce Springsteen for one moment - glory days.

8. Push the Feeling On - The Nightcrawlers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wk22ez4k44s&NR
I remember this tune being played in a nightclub before I had my first *ahem* one-night stand. It was also on the radio at her place. It's funny, I remember her name and other basic facts but I always associate this tune with such a random girl. I thought I was the bees-knees, lol. How times change ehhh.

9. Discos Revenge - Gusto
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-vQbo9XWVH0
This tune reminds me of the summer of 1997. I was working on building sites at the time, as I finished school in 1996. I was stationed in London and this tune reminds me of being a 17-year-old guy seeing the 'sights and sounds' of London in such places as Soho and Kings Cross. I'm from a small-town in the North-east of England and had never seen such things of a big city before.

10. Amsterdam – Jacques Brel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1oX3bdIMqk
Strangely, this tune does not remind of Amsterdam at all, although I’ve been to Amsterdam something stupid like 4 times. It reminds me of a friend who is going to Sudan on an aid-worker basis. It reminds me of drinking Ricard and beer with one of the greatest guys I’ve ever met. Again, I don’t want to boost any egos, but I guess I might’ve.

11. One Horse Town – The Thrills
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cCYC9Xnsso
This reminds me of two things, but both around the same part of time, this being the Summer of 2003. I’d split up with my ex-girlfriend of four years after my first year at university and I was working in sweet/candy factory to supplement my student income. I then travelled around Scandinavia for three and half weeks and this tune rang around my brain getting very pissed (drunk to my friends across the pond).

12. Let me Clear My Throat – DJ Kool with Doug E Fresh and Biz Markie.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qAJj5LYRU-Y&NR
This song always reminds me of two things, related and not at the same time. Firstly, my friends from my hometown who I used to go drinking with when I was 17/18/19. This song was the Sunderland ‘Miss Wet T-shirt’ song from the competition that used to happen in Marlowes Bar and it always reminds me of these two things. I seem to remember Melanie was very good at this activity. Can you tell, men from the North-East of England are very sophisticated!!!

13. World In Motion – New Order
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nQItOROYlc
It reminds me of Summer 2006 World Cup and watching England inevitably fail. I used to play this tune before going to the pub for the inevitable drink fuelled day. Idols in Newcastle for Paraguay. Bar One in Sheffield for Trinidad. Old Monk in Sheffield for Sweden. Leadmill and Howard Arms in Sheffield for Ecuador. DQ in Sheffield for Portugal. Watching the games with the boys (and girls) of all those nationalities, in what proved to be an alcohol fuelled summer. Happy days.

14. Love Generation - Bob Sinclair
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tf7ywr2SXTU
This tune reminds me of travelling around Italy this summer. You can say what you like about Italians but they love their cheesey Euro-pop that’s for sure. I can remember this song being on in every nightclub and bar that I went into during my stay. Most especially a nightclub in Milan that I went to with some Aussies and Kiwis. Such a shit tune, but so good at the same time.

15. Mistletoe and Wine – Cliff Richard
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhjpYnMllUc
Ok, I hate Cliff Richard, let’s get this one thing clear. However, this tune holds special memories for me. It always reminds me of Christmas Day back with my sister and my Mom back in the day whilst growing up. You know, unwrapping the presents and eating chocolate on Christmas Day morning– ‘not too much chocolate cos you wont eat your Christmas Dinner’ my Mom always used to say to me and the sis.

16. You Can Call Me Al – Paul Simon
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4X7tFN99sKU
I spent my 19th birthday in Amsterdam in February 1999. I had quite a bit to smoke and drink this one particular day and I can remember being in Blues club off the Leidsplein in Amsterdam singing this tune with the help of the house band at the top of my voice karaoke style! It was the most god-awful day weather wise but I had such a good time. Care free and no responsibilities - what I would give to go back to them days.

17. Crazy for You – Let Loose
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yn0aoPy_wfU
This tune always reminds me of girlfriend that I had at school. I was 14/15. This song is such a shit song to be honest, but I always have a soft spot for it. I don’t know why. You never really hear it on the radio or anything, but I was in a pub in Sheffield about six months back, and I was transported back to the time of trying to get into this particular girls school-uniform with my hands and everything else aged 14/15. Happy days again.

18. Come on Eileen – Dexys Midnight Runners
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbSwYRUpnc8
This reminds me of my 24th birthday at Hot Pants at the City Hall in Sheffield. All of the Sheffield crowd turned up that day. I was very very pissed as I was in the pub at 11am, with a Staylebridge based friend of mine, then accompanied by the whole crew. I can remember it being about 2am and everyone including a Huddersfieldion, a Boltonian, a Mancumian and Norfolker friends of mine in a big circle singing this tune. God, I was hungover the day after.

19. Lets Groove – Earth Wind and Fire
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eciZVsnBMDU
This tune reminds me of going to a nightclub called Annabel’s in Sunderland. Generally, you know any nightclub that is named after a girl is going to be shit, but this nightclub was the shittest of the shit. Sticky floors, high prices, high chav/charva element and a general menacing atmosphere. However, it was renowned as the easiest place to ‘pull girls’ and it also had the barmaids in bikinis factor. I swear, I have a one-track mind at times.

20. Charly – The Prodigy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-VdIfdnSlU
This tune reminds me of being at school so much. This was a Ravers tune. There was always a split in the early 1990’s over whether you liked Rave/House music or Indie. To be honest I always liked a bit both, although I’m firmly on the Indie side. I can always remember some guys with a ghettoblaster playing this tune very loud on the school field whilst I was in an English lesson. Trying to read Othello by Shakespeare accompanied by The Prodigy!!!

Neil.

Where I’ve Been Drinking: Bourgognes – Newcastle
What I’m Currently Reading: Free Radical – Tony Benn
What I’m Currently Listening To: Moseley Shoals – O.C.S

Sunderland AFC – A Progress Report on 2006/2007

Saturday’s home match was the first home game that I’ve missed since August, it was hard, but as you can see from my previous post on this blog, there were special circumstances. Well, we beat Luton Town 2-1, in front of a 30,000 plus crowd. Biggest crowd of the day again in the division, and third highest in England including the Premiership of course. Reading the match report in The Observer on Sunday and listening to my Dad, it sounds like a hard fought match, but one which we deserved to win. This is our fourth win in a row, and this compliments our good home record over the whole season. Next game is Leeds United at home on Boxing Day, which will stir memories of 1973 for most of us in this part of the world.

As a progress report on Roy Keane and Sunderland AFC so far, lets have a look at the facts. Keano took over in late August, as a matter of fact I found out he took over my team, whilst I was sipping a rather nice glass of wine in a bar on Via Vittorio Emmanule in Rome. I saw an interview with Niall Quinn (legend), and my instant reaction, why was he on TV in Italy!!!! What has happened??? My Italian wasn’t good enough to see what the dubbing was, and needless to say I found the nearest internet café pretty sharpish. Alas, one of the biggest names in world football and an absolute legend at Manchester United was manager of Sunderland. As for Keano at Sunderland, well yes mistakes have been made. To be honest, the guy is a new manager, and at times his decisions have been somewhat perplexing with regards to team selection. Head-scratching stuff indeed. However, on the whole I admire the mans drive, and everyone at Sunderland is behind him. Everyone knows that Keano is on a learning curve at the moment, and we appreciate this.

With the Irish money behind us thanks to Niall Quinn and the Drumaville consortium, we look to be in a position to be investing heavily in the transfer window. Some of Keano’s signing on the last day of the last transfer-window have came up trumps, in particular Kavanagh (who looks a cut above in this division) and Wallace. To be promoted this season, I think this would be a tad too soon. Bearing in mind the last two times we’ve been in the Premiership we have been the worst team in History, last time even breaking our own record of 19 points! Alas, I won’t scoff at promotion, and I know next season I will see some of our games whilst I’m in Ottawa. However, we need another season to re-adjust and to consolidate. SAFC have the potential to be one of the big-six in terms of England. I don’t think many other teams would attract 33,000 as an average crowd at home, even though we only won one game at home all season! Likewise, I think we need Premiership football. Of course, the likes of Leeds United, Wolves and Sheffield Wednesday could say the same.

I really think this is a new-dawn for this special football club. We have been a yo-yo side since we were relegated or the first time in 1958. Prior to this we were known as ‘the Bank of England club’ and up until this point we’d won the league more than any other team. Our team of every decade from the 1880’s until 1950’s was jam-packed with internationals and we finished in the top-six something stupid like 25 or 30 times. It’s funny, but the decline of the North-East as a manufacturing base and industrial centre is mirrored by the decline of it’s two football teams, the other being Newcastle United of course. Since the 1970’s at boardroom level we’ve been mismanaged and have constantly under-achieved. To think we’ve only finished in the top half of the top division twice since the 1950’s is heartbreaking. We won the FA Cup in 1973, but apart from that, nothing. Now we have Niall Quinn, the former player, in charge with his Irish consortium with big investment. I think the times could-be–a-changing. We have a chairman who is ambitious and knows the fans. We have a manager who is a proven winner. We have a world class stadium, and a great support which will fill all 48.000 seats given the faintest whiff of success. I’m convinced this place will take off. Just the playing side needs sorting. A couple of seasons in the Premiership to consolidate and then push-on. Ha’way Sunderland, ha’way the lads.

Neil.

Where I've Been Drinking: Bodega – Newcastle
What I'm Currently Reading: Lonely Planet - Canada
What I'm Currently Listening To: The Smiths – The Queen is Dead

As One Chapter Closes, Another One Begins

So, I visited Sheffield on the weekend and saw my friend off, he is working as an aid worker in Sudan for six months. Like any type of goodbye it was easy and difficult in parts. It was strange being in a place of so many memories and so many friends. I know I will visit there two or possibly three more times before I go on my epic journey around the world, but it was the sort of an end of an era for me. Dunno about the others, but it was for me. I think the alcohol over the weekend was a killer, but it was good. My friend and I were in the pub for 12 hours, although it didn't seem like it to be fair, and we saw the Frenchmen pissed. A final salute the Dookie, take care mate, and like I said, six months of you and there'll be no more genocide. Certainly he will be thinking of beer whilst in the Sudan, six months without a drop over there!!! I had a good lock-in, or what seemed like a lock-in at West Street Live in Sheffield, after hammering the beers, tequilas, vodkas and champagne. That was one of the most pissed states I've been in for some considerable time. Enjoyable nonetheless, and a real reminder of some happier times in my life. Thanks guys.

As for my trip, I have decided upon a number of things. I plan to inspect Her Majesties colonies as my Mom said to me. My plane leaves Newcastle for Toronto on June 28th, and I plan to be out of England until early 2009;

1. June 2007 to September 2008 in Ottawa. I have family there and I will try to get on my own two-feet there as soon as I can. I have no problems with Visa's and so on what with the old Canadian passport. I also plan to study French out there whilst working of course. Ottawa is pretty much a bilingual city, so that should be the ideal place in which to learn French. It's always been a thing I have wanted to do in life. I plan to spend as much time in neighbouring Gatineau/Hull and the rest of Quebec so I can to learn the language as possible.

2. September 2008 travelling across Canada. I then plan to travel across Canada by train, to Vancouver. I shall stop off in Thunder Bay, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Calgary, Edmonton and the eventually stay with my relatives for a couple of weeks in Vancouver, and British Columbia as a whole. I plan to use the relatives places as much as possible can you tell!!!!

3. October 2008. I then plan to fly to Australia. More of that in a future blog.

4. November 2008. New Zealand. More of that in a future blog.

5. December 2008. India. I can't wait to visit India, a place that I have always wanted to go to, more for the cuisine than anything else!!! It's a place with thousands of years worth of History. I also would love to visit the Taj Mahal as well as the Gate to India. I know I will find the poverty difficult to deal with, but I've been to what could be termed as the third world before. Alongside these considerations, more importantly India and England play four test matches and seven one day internationals during November and December 2008. They play in Delhi, Bombay, Calcutta and Hyderabad. I was speaking to mate (a junior member of the Barmy Army nonetheless) and he was saying to me there is watching cricket, and then there is watching Cricket in India. This is something I cant wait for.

Neil

Where I've Been Drinking: The Graduate - Sheffield
What I'm Currently Reading: Lonely Planet - Canada
What I'm Currently Listening To: Prince - Sign of the Times

Dancing With Myself

I was in Baja Beach Club in town at 2.30 am and me on the dance floor caning it. Although 'Love Shack' was being played for the 100th time, I thought of this tune.


Dancing With Myself

On the floor of Tokyo, Or down in London town to go, go
With the record selection, With the mirror reflection
I'm dancing with myself

When there's no-one else in sight, In the crowded lonely night
Well I wait so long, For my love vibration
And I'm dancing with myself

Oh dancing with myself, Oh dancing with myself
Well there's nothing to lose, And there's nothing to prove
I'll be dancing with myself

If I looked all over the world, And there's every type of girl
But your empty eyes, Seem to pass me by
Leave me dancing with myself

So let's sink another drink, 'Cause it'll give me time to think
If I had the chance,I'd ask the world to dance
And I'll be dancing with myself

Oh dancing with myself, Oh dancing with myself
Well there's nothing to lose, And there's nothing to prove
I'll be dancing with myself

Neil.

Where I've Been Drinking: Akenside - Newcastle
What I'm Currently Reading: Lonely Planet Australia
What I'm Currently Listening To: Flowered Up - Weekender

I've Quit Teacher Training

There you have it, the title is correct. This is the reason why I'm sat in my Fila tracksuit midway through a Thursday afternoon rather than trying to keep control of some teenagers. Ho hum. My return to Newcastle was a bit of a waste of time really. I'm now in a place I don't want to be in. Great! I admit it was a bit of a mistake coming back here, but like all things, hindsight is such a good thing. However, looking on the bright side it has been interesting to see how things have changed since I left for the first time.

As for the Teaching, the whole thing became too much for me and life is too short to be miserable. Okay, some of the things that have been happening over the last months. I found I was putting in so many man-hours into the subject. My life has been put on hold for while and I do regret this. Don't get me wrong, I'm not afraid of hard work. I was putting in 16/17 hour days and to be honest the stress of it got too much for me. Life is too short to be miserable, and for things to get you down. As I will say in the next paragraph, people should follow their hearts more, and this is what I intend to do. That was very serious for ‘youve-hit-neil-on-the-head’ wasn’t it.

What next for neilissimo? I have made the new and improved C.V and have been around Newcastle to a few employment agencies, and I'm sure something'll come up. At the moment I’m looking for non-degree style jobs that don't bring in much cash. I'm seriously thinking of moving to Canada for a six months next spring (April 2007) just to clear my head out and get a different perspective on things. I spoke to a couple of my cousins on MSN and they have said it’s relatively easy to find bar jobs over there, and I can walk into the country and stay as long as I like. If I was to go anywhere it'd be Ottawa, Montreal or Toronto. I would be good to try and learn some French when I'm out there. I really fancy Australia to work for six months or so too. These are ideas I’ve had in the past, and to be honest, I should follow my heart more than my head. So, if I’m seen in England during the period of April 2007 to late 2008, you have the right to kill me.

At the moment I feel like shit, but to coin a phrase - 'onwards and upwards'. There maybe good times ahead.

Neil.

Where I've Been Drinking: The Ivy House - Sunderland
What I'm Currently Reading: Madness of Cricket - Markus Berkmann
What I'm Currently Listening To: Oasis - Definetly Maybe

My Top 5 Cartoons as a Kid

1. Dangermouse
The undisputed king of cartoons. I loved Dangermouse. The scenario is that Dangermouse is a crime fighting superhero based beneath the streets of London. The cartoon is also rammed full of jokes that are understandable to adults and kids alike. His arch enemy is Baron Greenback, a huge toad dressed in an ill-fitting suit and talks like Barry White after a night on the Montecristo cigars. The sidekick of Baron Greenback was an Italian Crow, why? I don’t know. The theme tune is brilliant. Also, Dangermouse is narrated by David Jason, also know as Delboy on Only Fools and Horses. Genius.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXim_8SZjoc

2. Dogtanian and the Three Muskahounds
What can I say about Dogtanian? Well let me start and say that at the time of watching this I was fascinated. This is based upon the story of D’Artagnan and the Three Musketeers by Alexander Dumas. The story of the cartoon shows Dumas’ characters as dogs, hence the name, whereby Dogtanian travels to 1600’s Paris to become one of King Louis’ musketeers, where he befriends the Three Muskahounds. I used to love this show as a kid. I actually watched a full episode recently and I was shocked to see that in the theme tune there are the immortal words ‘drink your beer and swear they’re faithful to the king!’. Can you imagine on the playground at school singing that!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELbhKL0Qm2E

3. The Family Ness
This was a fantastic cartoon, and I’m pretty sure that this was a Brits only one. The plot revolved around the tale of a family of Loch Ness Monsters and two children who knew they existed. The monsters would all have their own personalities and the context of their personality would be reflected in their name. So, all of the monsters had a suffix of –ness, such as lovely-ness, awful-ness and so on. The two kids Angus and Elspeth (Scottish names!!!!) would make sure that Nessy catchers would be thwarted at every turn. Apart from that, the plotline was quite weak for a cartoon of this genre, however, the theme music as stuck with me for around 20 years.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gxjqMZd-BVE

4. Inspector Gadget
This one is clearly an American import. This was also recently butchered in the film starring Matthew Broderick (him of Ferris Buellers Day-off fame). The basic plot was of Gadget as an undercover detective unwittingly thwarting Dr Claw who would send secret agents to kill Gadget. The Inspector would be aided (unknowlingly) by his niece called Penny and her magic book, in which she could do anything. She was helped by a walking and talking dog called Brains. One scene repeated every episode would be of Chief Quimby giving Gadget his instructions and then the message would self-destruct exploding him. You would have thought the Chief would have learnt his lesson. Gadget also sporned the ‘go go gadget…………’ phrase popular with every kid at the time. Good stuff.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKeE3saeguY

5. Around the World with Willy Fogg
Around the World in 80 Days by the writer Jules Verne was always my favourite book as a child, so it stands to reason that this cartoon should feature in the top-ten. Willy Fogg attemptes to travel the world in 80 days following a bet that he couldn’t at a Gentleman’s Club in Victorian London. Just a note, the type of Gentleman’s Club attended by Fogg was not the same as Spearmint Rhino or FYEO!! Fogg was accompanied by a mouse who would help him in his journey over the continents. Fogg was also pursued by a Fox and a policeman from Scotland Yard on his journey who would attempt to scupper his travelling accomplishments. A classic and the theme tune os grand too.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XFbLVcFXUo&mode=related&search=

Honourable mentions also goes to the following;
Jimbo and the Jetset - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0G4lE04-cU
Smoggies - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-icMm18-SI
Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMrCSYagLqc
Bertha - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKQAiLAz4xs
Trap Door - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oe2vpM_eJRw


Neil.

Where I’ve Been Drinking: Halfway House – Sunderland
What I’m Currently Reading: How to Survive Your First Year in Teaching – Sue Cowley
What I’m Currently Listening To: Inspiral Carpets - Life

A Poem by Brian Patten

Patten is one of my favourite poets of the last 50 years. I recently went to Sheffield to see some of the guys, and thinking of an ex-girlfriend, I remembered this poem.

I Caught the Train That Passed The Town Where You Lived.

I caught the train that passed the town where you lived
On the journey I thought of you
One evening when the park was soaking
You hid beneath the trees, and all round you dimmed itself
as if the earth were lit by gaslight
We had faith that love would last forever
I caught the train that passeed the town where you lived.


Neil.

Where I've Been Drinking: Echo - Newcastle
What I'm Currently Reading: Love Poems - Brian Patten
What I'm Currently Listening To: The Beatles - Let It Be

Teacher Training Is A Bitch Sometimes

I believe it was George Orwell in his novel 1984 who said that the future history of mankind is a human foot stamping upon the head of another human being until the end of time. Now, I don't know poor old George, but one thing I do know is that he might've done teacher training at Newcastle sometime to have came up with such a metaphor. This is the way I feel sometimes about the course. Sometimes, I'm ecstatic at it. Certainly, it's different to working ina drab office. There are times when I enjoy what I do. I really love History and I really like it when the pupils are learning, but sometimes it's such a fucking drag. I enjoy the lessons that I teach, and the subject matter of the Romans, Tudors and Stuarts, First World War and so on are really fascinating. This is not really my gripe.

I find that the training is taking over my life somewhat. I find that I'm up at 6.30am, and some days I'm still working until 2am. The tiredness is a huge factor. Aside from this consideration, the most amount of work put into a particular lesson does not guarantee results. Whereas, a lesson which is not planned can go extremely well. This is different to studying History as a degree, as I know the more man-hours that I put into it, the better the mark I get. I find that I don't really do much midweek apart from work, which is again is unusual for me. I tend to do all of my planning at weekends, and I also do a Powerpoint presentation for every lesson. This takes up a lot of time. I feel like my life has been put on hold a bit. A quick example of this is that if I was in Sheffield right now a year back when I worked in a fairly menial job, I would have been enjoying numerous beers right now. With teacher training the old 'Neil-style' weekends of booze, birds , recreational drugs and football simply can't happen. That is not to say I don't go out for a drink, as I do, but the training is life-consuming in a lot of respects. I shall be attending the football tomorrow of course (Colchester at home), but it feels somehow different. At the moment I have another two weeks left in my first placement school, and then I'll have university until the end of Feburary. After that, I will be on a long placement until just until the end of the course. So, I know that I will be a qualified teacher, the quandry (my favourite word at the moment) will be if it is a career for 35/40 years. At the moment, fuck knows. However, at least I'll have a profession if nothing else.

Anyhow, just a quick line to apologise for not blogging for such a while. Hopefully, you can all put this into the context that I have just been typing about. After attending a party last weekend, one of my faithful readers of this blog mentioned that she thought I must have dropped off the planet with no blog action. Thanks M. Alas, I am alive - just.

Neil.

Where I've Been Drinking: O'Neills - Newcastle
What I've Been Reading: Love Poems - Brian Patten
What I've Been Listening To: Stone Roses - The Second Coming

Nuclear War on Sheffield in the 1980's

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIWbFT25vdE

I'm unsure how to put a full screen in, but here's the link.

Okay, there wasnt really a nuclear war on Sheffield in the 1980's but there was a public information film aout a potential war between the Capitalist West and the Communist East. The public information film about impending war is called Threads and this is the first time I've seen it in years. Although I vividly remember it. I can remember being shown this film at primary school in around 1987/1988/1989 and it scared the shit out of me at the time. It's funny, but it looks like judging by the comments that lots of other British schoolchildren were shown this in the 80's too. I have been checking Youtube for ages for it, and some kind fellow has loaded it up. This is genuinely shcoking and left me shaken for a couple of minutes. The original is much longer and involves a man and his family eating a charred nuclear hit cow. This is 8 minute film shows what would happen in the U.K under attack from a Nuclear Warhead.

Here is the Amazon review of the film, and I've just bought it;
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Threads-Karen-Meagher/dp/B0009S9LNK/sr=1-1/qid=1161661352/ref=pd_bowtega_1/026-8991391-9417267?ie=UTF8&s=dvd

For the Sheffielders who view this there are numerous places you will recognise. You see The Moor blown to hell and back, as well as High Street and Charter Square. Obviously, some of the signage is quite old (this was the 1980's) but you can tell the various landmarks. You actually see a mushroom cloud above what is Fargate!!!! It seems the Soviets had their eyes on the Steel industry in Sheff.

Sheffielders, please leave your comments. And others also.

Neil.

Where I've Been Drinking: The Chillingham - Newcastle
What I'm Currently Reading: Reflective History Teaching 11-18 - Rob Phillips
What I'm Currently Listening To: Rolling Stones - Let It Bleed

The Origins of 'Sunderland v Newcastle' - Cities and Football

This first appeared in the Observer newspaper in October 2005. Sums things up in this little part of the world very well.

Geordies v Mackems

At 1:30 this afternoon, circa one million people in Tyne and Wear and an additional million more from the North East’s diaspora, will watch and listen to what they consider, by a Chelsea-like margin, the most important match of the season. Yet, to the rest of Britain and Sky’s worldwide audience, the outcome will be observed with profound indifference.However, this is an understandable, and indeed, ubiquitous attitude held by the majority of football fans concerning the encoded history of the world’s local derbies.Without generational inculcation or knowledge of regional contexts, it is psychologically improbable that anyone will derive passionate interest in a game detached from their own team’s welfare.

The Tyne and Wear derby may be perceived by the uninitiated as a parochial and unsophisticated issue, but like the world’s greatest derbies, it has a historical conflict as its bedrock.And if anything, as a basis for a rivalry, the Sunderland-Newcastle derby is the most pragmatic and legitimate conflict there is. Some of the great pan-national derbies are based on issues that are trite and irrational: the historical class differences, for example, of the Milan derby, where Milan were traditionally the unionist, working-class club; Inter the upper-class, conservative option, is now moot, given Milan’s chairmanship of the right-wing Silvio Berlusconi. Any subsequent conflict other than league upmanship is irrelevant, and their previous, historical reason for difference has now been dissipated. The Turin, Madrid and Athens derbies can all pinpoint their violence to the notion that Juve, Real and Panathinaikos were the more affluent, royal and successful-class of support in their city, whilst Torino, Atheltico, and Olympiakos, were the working-class others; but today, without any class-based discrimination on the gates, it’s all essentially irrational dislike emanating from past conventions – the type of narrow-mindedness that non football folk relish when brandishing football supporters. Can the root of the Arsenal-Spurs conflict, which emanated from Arsenal’s move from South London to the North in 1913; to within an uncomfortable and anti-local-crowd-monopolising few miles of Tottenham’s ground, (hardly the epitome of imperialism) continue to constitute reason for hatred? The Celtic-Rangers rivalry has been written about extensively, and needs no elaboration. Other than to say, that if football can act as a metaphor for international and jingoistic warfare, then the Old Firm is the most articulate; but the Tyne-Wear derby wins in its secular and concise regional conflict.

The idea that the Tyne and Wear derby is the most pragmatic and legitimate of derbies is primarily based on the fact that it predates football by 226 years. It is a conflict that has divided two cities, 12 miles apart, for over 2 centuries.In the epoch before the 1600s, King Charles 1st had consistently awarded the East of England Coal Trade Rights (try to contain your excitement) to Newcastle’s coal traders, which rendered the Wearside coal merchants redundant and without a means of living. People died because of it. Coal and ships were Sunderland’s raison d’etre. But when, in 1642, the English Civil War started, and Newcastle, with good reason, supported the Crown, Sunderland, because of the trading inequalities, sided with Cromwell’s Parliamentarians, and the division began.It became a conflict between Sunderland’s socialist republicanism, against Newcastle’s loyalist self-interest. A purposeful enmity if ever there was one. The fighting was based on the necessity to live and feed one’s children, and benefit one’s city, and not on, like other derbies, oblique false constructs. Why this has remained in obscurity across the country, and in parts of the North East region, for this long, is as inexplicable as how Sven earns his melancholy-inducing salary. It needs to be known. The political differences between Sunderland and Newcastle culminated with the Battle of Boldon Hill. A loyalist army from Newcastle and County Durham gathered to fight an anti-monarchist Sunderland and Scottish army at a field equidistant between the two towns. The joint Scottish and Sunderland army won – and Newcastle was colonised by the Scottish Sunderland Army. It was subsequently used as a Republican military base for the rest of war.And whilst this is a lucid basis for two cities hating each other, it has, like every other modern-day derby, developed profoundly irrational manifestations.

It has been noted that some Newcastle fans refuse to buy bacon, because of its ‘red and white appearance’: the pinnacle, regardless of any jovial flippancy, of irrational behaviour; and likewise, the past Mackem boycotting of a particular breakfast cereal, because of the Newcastle-orientated marketing push of its brand, is silly beyond words. However, these are benign occurrences. In March 2000, over 70 Sunderland and Newcastle hooligans took part in some of the worst football-related violence ever seen in the U.K. It didn’t even occur during a match-day. What the police called “usually respectable men and fathers”, had decided to meet in mutual territory with their “enemies”, to fight with knives, bats and bricks. Sunderland fans boarded a ferry towards North Tyneside, found the awaiting ‘army’, and fought. One man was left permanently brain damaged. There was nothing tangible to fight for. Yet tens and tens of people were arrested, and years upon years of prison-time was sentenced. Whilst this wasn’t a biological, genetic or neurological inheritance from the past, it was neither rooted in football. The continuation of the current tensions involves a new sense of injustice. For well over a decade, Sunderland’s population has bemoaned, without any activist action, that they have been paying their local taxes to finance both the Newcastle Metro and Airport – both of which are limitedly available to them. A rigid bias towards Tyneside in the regional and national media further compounds a collective feeling of inequality.

It seems like history is repeating itself for the people of Sunderland; albeit in a less livelihood-threatening sort of way. Perhaps a more trivial, city-image-concerned sort of way.And so it seems that the Tyne-Wear derbies are, as opposed to the Council Chambers, where societal grievances are most fiercely manifested. But this makes little sense. You would expect better from the people contesting the world’s most pragmatic derby. Although, as either Ian Wright, or was it Aristotle, said, ‘people often systematically deviate from canons of logic’.Let’s just hope that despite the increasing hijacking of the game by the corporate classes; and the working-class ostracising that comes with it, there still remains in the future, terraces from which Mackems and Geordies can vent their invariably abusive opinions of each other without violence and need for civil war.

Neil.

Where I've Been Drinking: Northumberland Arms - Newcastle
What I'm Currently Reading: Reflective History Teaching 11-18 - Rob Phillips
What I'm Currently Listening To: The Beatles - Abbey Road