Step Into My World

New Job - Games Writer

Sun, 11 Dec 2005 18:14:15 +0100

After a telephone interview and a face to face interview with www.hexus.net I was delighted to hear the news that I will be working full time for Hexus in their gaming section.

It's really weird because it's a job that I have wanted for many years and finally the hard work has paid off.

I will be writing Games reviews, previews and gaming articles, as well as gaming news posts and event coverage.

I'm also working from home! Woohoo!

I started December 2nd and hopefully I can make an impact on the website.

Articles written so far are:

An Article On Trash Talking
View link here

View link here

Halo 3 rumours
View link here

PGR 3 :First Look
View link here

Perfect Dark Zero - first Look
View link here

Hexic - First Look
View link here

Condemned - First Look
View link here

Comments

White Christmas! Black Christmas! Who cares?

Mon, 28 Nov 2005 15:41:41 +0100

The yearly debate around the West Midlands has began. Should the words 'White christmas' be changed.

There is a section of the community who feel it has racist undertones.

My God, even recently there was talks about nursery rhymes being changed in schools. No more Baa Baa Black Sheep!

It really does get taken totally out of proportion.

Isn't it called 'White Christmas' because the snow is white?

I think the problems with racists and racism in general is that there are far more serious issues that should be dealt with, rather than changing a name that has been about for 100's of years.

Pah!

My snowman has a black hat on, does that count?

Comments

George Best R.I.P

Mon, 28 Nov 2005 15:34:13 +0100

God Bless you George Best!

I know he isn't exactly a great advocate for young footballers but perhaps his life will serve as a lesson to those young footballers.

His personal life doesn't matter anymore and he was one of the World's greatest footballers. He deserves all the accolades.

R.I.P Best!

Comments

Busy Busy Busy

Mon, 28 Nov 2005 15:30:53 +0100

I've been so busy that I've neglected my blog.

I'll be keeping back up to date from now on.

I'm concentrating on getting a job within the games industry and I'm now on my 3rd interview to a Games guru. That is - to play games all day and review them.

Fingers crossed I should find out by the end of the week

Comments

Princess Day!

Fri, 30 Sep 2005 17:30:58 +0200

Well the idea came from SuperNanny(or a program like that) and it involves making the day extra special for your loved one.

We've been having Prince and Princess days for a few months or so. Maybe once every two weeks.

It is supposed to be for kids but you're never too old.

Last Saturday was Princess day, which meant. I wake up before Chante and bring her a crown and a cup of coffee in bed. I then cook a full english breakfast and we eat it in bed.

She is then free to do anything she wants all day. I will fetch her drinks, make her favourite tea(I made cheese and potato pie), she can have foot massages or head massages whenevr she wants. I do all the housework.
Also on Princess day she chooses which film she would like to watch at the cinema. We went to see Pride and Prejudice. And finally she can choose what she wants to do in the evening, whether it be just watching her favourite video or going out for a meal.

I have Prince day to! Everyone should have one, I really look forward to it!

Comments

This Week

Fri, 30 Sep 2005 16:46:33 +0200

It's been a strange week.

Yesterday I was on Jury Service again and spent all day sitting about waiting. I managed to read a whole book in the time I was there.
Robin Hood- The Myth which examines whether Robin Hood was a real person or not. *yawns* gosh it was boring.

However I have been shortlisted for the major trial which goes ahead shortly.

I had dinner around my sister's new house (jacket pots,steak,salad). Yum! She's in hospital today so I'd like to send her my love and I'll see you later!

Tomorrow I'm heading for Loughborough University for BXB LAN 6. It's being filmed for Games Network TV and basically involved Xbox competitions and lots of beer.

I'm doing a review of the event for www.xequted.com so hopefully we'll have a great time!

Comments

Journey To Hollow Earth

Mon, 26 Sep 2005 19:37:51 +0200

A few weeks ago I began to write a book(fiction) which I have been thinking about for some time.

I know by looking at my blog you may think that I am not very literate, but that's because I'm lazy on my blog. I wouldn't say I'm particularly talented at writing but a book is something that I have always wanted to write.

The book is inspired by the likes of Mary Hoffman's Stravaganza
http://www.stravaganza.co.uk
Terry Pratchett
and J.K Rowling

The main inspiration and the idea came from my interest in conspiracies and fortean subjects.

I've been reading a lot of stuff about the Earth being Hollow, the theories behind it and the accounts of people who claim to have visited the inner earth.My book will involve this alternative world and hopefully be an amazing adventure.
The book will be children's/teenage fantasy.

I'm really excited because so far it is certainly a book I would like to read, and although it is in the initial stages I have a clear framework and characters.

Whilst researching material for the book I was dumfounded to find a website that is offering a journey to find Hollow Earth. The whole subject is absoultely fascinating.

There is a team of people who are planning to travel to the North Pole and attempt to make it to the Pole to try and discover whether the theory that there is an entrance to the underground world is true or not.

What an adventure! If only I had the money to join them.

Check it out! This is truly out of this world

http://www.voyagehollowearth.com

Below is one theory and an artists impression of what the Hollow Earth would contain.

Comments

Jury Service Starts Today!

Mon, 26 Sep 2005 19:10:04 +0200

Well today I headed for court and spent the day sitting around twiddling my fingers.

What a waste of time! Firstly you have no choice but to do Jury Service. The facilities are really poor and you are crowded into a room with a hundred or so other would-be jurors.

Boring!

Comments

Pride And Prejudice

Mon, 26 Sep 2005 18:58:30 +0200

On Saturday I went to the cinema with my fiancee to watch Pride & Prejudice. Personally I would have preferred to watch Guy Ritchie's new film, but the reviews were awful.

I thought it was a great film!

The portrayal of the Bennett sisters was superb and Kiera Knightly was radiant!(my god I'm even speaking like an extra from a Jane Austen film!)

Comments

Working For Mercedes Is Over!

Fri, 23 Sep 2005 22:17:11 +0200

I drove probably the last Mercedes I'll ever drive.

The job that I took on for Mercedes two weeks ago is now over.

I knew when I started it was only a temporary job, but hoped it wouldn't be THAT temporary.

I've never been into cars at all but I've had the opportunity to drive a lot of different Mercedes models this week. It has truly been a pleasure.

The C Class Sports edition was my favourite. Pure style and comfort.Fitted with Global Satellite positioning, rain sensing window wipers, dvd player,heated seats and so many buttons I didn't know what to press. I normally get lost wherever I go but you type in the address you are going to and the car directs you to the doorstep.

Today I went to Milton Keynes, following the instructions from Tamworth. It took me right to the doorstep!

It's sad to leave so soon but I do feel priviledged to have drove such great cars.

The car below is almost like the one I drove today. But it bonnet slopped down more. It looked more sporty than the one below.

Comments

Gaming website

Fri, 23 Sep 2005 22:04:20 +0200

A friend of mine from http://www.alphasiege.com also has a gaming website with all the latest news.

I though I would give it a quick plug. If you are into gaming check it out!

http://www.gaming-360.com/

Comments

Turkish Hair Cut

Sat, 17 Sep 2005 17:04:31 +0200

Whilst on holiday in turkey a few weeks ago I felt brave enough to gamble with a hair cut an authentic Turkish barbers.

It was fantastic! They used a cut throat razor to trim the sides and back. He told me to take my t-shirt off and relax! They lit some cotton wool things and he burnt the hair out of ears! Next he tilted my head back and used a small pair of scissors to cut my nasal hair.

At this point I thought it must be over but he grabbed two pieces of string andtwisted them between my eyenbrows. Ouch!!!

I felt sore when I left the barbers.

His name was Cheeky Charlie and it certainly was an expericence I won't forget!

Comments

Petrol Crisis

Thu, 15 Sep 2005 21:40:07 +0200

Why are people queueing at petrol stations? They have told us numerous times that there is going to be no protest.These puppets rush to the station causing traffic chaos to fill up when they don't even need petrol.

There was a report in my region of a man filling up a wheelie bin with petrol and also fights breaking out.

I think it really shows our nations mentality.A few imbeciles panic and then the hoards of followers who can't think for themselves decide they need petrol too.

The petrol prices will be reduced as a result of more oil production, meaning the greedy people who filled up lose out. Great!

Comments

Jury Service

Thu, 15 Sep 2005 21:32:07 +0200

I've been called up for Jury service. The strange thing is I was talking about how much I would like to be on a jury a couple of days beforehand.

I'm a bit nervous and really hope the case isn't too upsetting, but I'm really excited at the challenge awaiting.

Obviously I won't be able to detail the case on my blog.

Just call me Inspector Frost.

Here are some two real quotes from criminal cases:

Lawyer : Could you see him from where you were standing?
Witness : I could see his head.
Lawyer : And where was his head?
Witness : Just above his shoulders.

Q: Can you describe the individual?
A: He was about medium height and had a beard.
Q: Was this a male, or a female?

Comments

New Job

Thu, 15 Sep 2005 21:30:11 +0200

At last I am back online.

Loads has happened in the past month and I'm going to try and document it over the coming days.

On Monday I started a new job at Mercedes-Benz in Tamworth.

I love it so much! I've been driving around in some amazing cars. Today I had to drop of an SLK Sports Coupe(see below). I've never been so scared of smashing a car in my life! So far I've driven around different types and even though I've never been a big car fan I must buy one of these one day.

Comments

On Holiday

Wed, 27 Jul 2005 19:01:54 +0200

My blog will be quiet over the next couple of weeks as I head off to Altinkhum in Turkey on Friday.

See you when I get back

Comments

Man Shot Dead At StockWell Underground

Sat, 23 Jul 2005 16:33:02 +0200

I've took this article direct from Prison Planet.tv but founf it an interesting read:

The news this morning that a 'suspected suicide bomber' had been shot dead at a London train station and that other house raids had resulted in individuals being shot to death by police has been received with barely a mumur of questioning as to who these individuals were and why police needed to use deadly force.

Reuters is now quoting Sky News in saying that the man shot five times at Stockwell was not one of the would-be suicide bombers who attempted to detonate bombs on Thursday and whose CCTV photos have been released.

Experts told the BBC that the shooting was likely carried out by special forces, although eyewitnesses also said police were involved in the pursuit.

The man was pursued, tripped, pushed to the ground and then shot five times in the torso area. If the police and special forces pursuing the man knew he had a bomb that he was potentially about to detonate then why would they risk setting the bomb off by shooting at it?

BBC quoted Roy Ramm, former Met Police specialist operations commander, as saying,

"The fact is that when you're dealing with suicide bombers they only way you can stop them effectively - and protect yourself - is to try for a head-shot," he said.

Former government intelligence analyst Crispin Black agreed there was no other way of stopping someone who was an "immediate threat to life".

So here we can establish that if the police suspect this guy had a bomb strapped to him, they would go for a head shot. Therefore we can conclude that the police knew he didn't have a bomb so they shot him in the stomach and chest area.

So then why does BBC contradict itself by quoting Professor Michael Clarke, professor of defence studies at King's College London, as saying,

"The fact that he was shot in this way strongly suggests that it was someone the authorities knew and suspected he was carrying explosives on him."

Excuse me? We were just told that the only safe way to deal with a suicide bomber is to go for a head shot, otherwise you run a high risk of setting the bomb off. But now they flip it 180 degrees and tell us the opposite, that they were right to shoot in the area where the explosives would be. This doesn't make any sense.

This is a blatant attempt to justify the cold blooded pursuit and murder of a man that was not one of the suspected suicide bombers involved in yesterday's attacks and a man who the police knew did not have explosives strapped to his body, which is why they shot him in the torso area.

And what of the witness reports of a bomb belt and wires coming out of the man's jacket? They seem to have been swept under the rug. The modus operandi is simple. Put out the story that this guy was a suicide bomber with wires hanging off him about to blow a train up and the public have no problem in accepting the response of the police in killing him. The later retraction that he was not a suicide bomber goes under the radar as the British population prepares to go on a Friday night drink binge or curl up and fester in front of the television.

So these are the new rules we have to live our lives by? If you're late for the bus or train and are seen running then the police can just mow you down no questions asked?

If, as in the case of this individual, you're wearing a heavy coat on a relatively hot day (and it certainly hasn't been as hot today in England as it was last week) then that's also a sure fire sign that you're about to blow yourself up?

What about people from scorching hot climates who haven't adapted to the British weather? What Brits call hot, someone from Pakistan would call mild.

It appears that law enforcement has been granted the same powers as President Bush. If the suspect is defined as an enemy combatant or a terrorist they can be located and killed on the spot. No evidence, no trial, no questions asked.

The British public needs to ask serious questions about who is really behind these bombings and what these outrageous new police abuses mean for the future of freedom in this country.

Comments

Harry Potter Fever!

Tue, 19 Jul 2005 18:51:23 +0200

So who's read it yet? My girlfriend bought it on Saturday and had finished it by Sunday and looked rather upset at the outcome.

Now I am a Harry Potter fan but have only read the first book and watched the three films. So now I'm dying to know what has made her upset, but it will take me ages to reach that point (PLEASE DO NOT POST SPOILERS!)

Don't you think it's strange how a book can cause so much hype and excitement! In the U.S it sold 6 million copies in the first day and in the UK 2 million copies.

I'm sure it must go down in history as the biggest book launch ever!

[img]http://images.google.co.uk/images?q=tbn:r2ykL_bHeaIJ:images.amazon.com/images/P/074758110X.02._SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg[/img]

Comments

Charisse Graduates!

Fri, 15 Jul 2005 11:45:38 +0200

My fiancee's sister graduated yesterday. We travelled to Leicester and stayed overnight.

Congratualtions Charisse!

On a personal note I felt I learnt something about myself on the trip. I spent some time with a male friend of Charisse, and his two children, aged 6 months and 2. We walked around Leicester for a couple of hours. I really enjoyed myself and found the children absolutely delightful. I think this is the first time in my life that I feel ready for children. I think I would make a good father and the experience left me feeling overjoyed to be around them. Perhaps it's the male version of broodiness!

All I need now is the rest of my life to fall into place and maybe kids will just be around the corner.

Comments

London Bombings

Thu, 07 Jul 2005 17:53:33 +0200

The thin line between life and death becomes all the more prominent when such horrific events take place.

As I write this, three bombs have gone off in the subways and one on a bus. I can only imagine the horror of being involved.

I've always hated the London tube and I doubt I will ever travel on one again. I live just outside of Birmingham and I feel great empathy towards Londoners. It is their home which also happens to be the nation's capital and a number one terrorist target.

It's hard to know what to say. We struggle to understand why such people do such horrible things. The propaganda that some of these terrorists have been subjected to, probably all of their lives, plays a major part. All they see is the Western world destorying their society and killing innocent people in their county - may be even family members. Their country's governments and organisations tell them that the Western World is to be blame.So they fight back in the only way they understand. It's hard to know how to change these views.

It's a dark day, and although I'm not religious, I will be saying a prayer for all those affected, you never know eh?

Comments

Live 8 Concert - Edinburgh - I was there!

Thu, 07 Jul 2005 17:45:58 +0200

On Wednesday 6th July I headed for Edinburgh for the Live 8 Final Push on the day that the world's top leaders met at the G8 summitt. Luckily we arrived early in the morning so had the chance to look around the city. This was the first time I had been to Scotland and within 5 minutes of getting of the plane it started to rain - typical!

We walked through the cobbled streets and amongst the quaint shops of the Old Town, passing the magnificent Edinburgh Castle, which provides a stunning backdrop to almost everywhere you stand in the city. The Old Town was very quiet. We were expecting to see thousands of people protesting in the streets as Bob Geldof had called for 1 million people to head to the Scottish capital to protest against third world poverty. Somewhat disappointed at no protests being held we decided to experience some Scottish culture and headed to the Art Museum.

The museum housed paintings by not only famous Scottish painters but more reknowned paintings from the likes of Dagas, Rembrandt,Van Gogh and Constable.

After the museum we headed for the New Town and Prince's St (the city's main street). we stumbled across around 500 protestors who were barricaded into an area by a circle of policemen. The protestors were waiting for coaches to head up to GlenEagles and were vocal but placcid in their protests.

After stopping for a spot of lunch at Jimmy Chong's Chinese restaurant, very impressive!we decided to return to the hotel in preperation for the evening's festivities. On the way back to the hotel it dawned on me that it was hard to escape the real reason why we had travelled to Edinburgh - to lend our voice to the Make Poverty history campaign. Banners and flags hung from windows across the city and many people wore the t-shirts with that slogan. We walked through another protest which had an unpleasant atmosphere. Protestors were squaring up to riot place and numbers were swelling fast. There were police dogs, riot vans and riot police everywhere. We decided not to hang around as we felt it may get ugly. So back to the hotel, get changed and head for the main event.

THE CONCERT

On the walk up to Murrayfield the anticipation and excitment was transparent. Revellers were lining the streets up to Murrayfield 2 and half hours before it was even due to start. Local pubs were packed and despite the rain everyone was in high spirits.

The queue seemed huge but we were in the stadium for around 5pm, 2 hours before showdown. We could not believe we had seat tickets, and not only that, the seats were right near the front with a perfect view of the stage. In heinsight, after seeing the atmosphere it would have been nice to have stood up with the hardcore but we still had a whale of a time, and by the end of the night I was glad that I had sat down and conserved my energy for the long walk back into Edinburgh.

I had really been looking forward to this event but I didn't realise how big it was acutally going to be and how crazy the atmosphere would be.

It was a truly inspiring night and one I am so very greatful to have been part of.

Here are the people who participated in the event and my thoughts:

Lenny Henry - the black country comedian was on form and was a great crowd pleaser. His impression of a blues singer was hilarious

9/10

Proclaimers - They opened the show with 500 miles and the crowd erupted with everyone boucing up and down. A sight to behold. The Scottish sure know how to party

9/10

Jamie Cullum - All You Need is Love
Totally professional. He draped the Scottish flag across the piano -good move and got the crowd singing along to this classic.

9/10

Jamie Cullum & Natasha Bedingfield - Woohoo. natasha Beddingfield is far better live then I thought she would be. Her voice has real emotion

9/10

Wet Wet Wet - Another Scottish favourite who the crowd went mad for. I don't think they sounded great in the stadium but who cares!

7/10

Davina McCall & children - I love Davina and didn't know she was goign to be there!. She spoke about the plight of Africans in her empathetic way.

10/10

McFly - All About You - they were greeted to a few boos but that all went out the window with this catchy tune. Even the people booing sang along. I thought they put in a great performance and sounded great live

8/10

Eddie Izzard

Hmmm. he struggled a bit with trying to entertain the crowd and at times I felt slightly awkward for him. Don't think I would want to see him live.

6/10

Sugababes - Stronger - they were also greeted by a few boos but to be fair they sang very well. I'm not really a fan but I can't knock them

7/10

Bono

Annie Lennox - One of the highlights of the night. She was unbelivable. I could feel the hairs on the back stand on end. Her voice has so much emotion. She sang Redemption song and Sister's are doing it for themselves. She then spoke about the campaign in an emotional couple of minutes

:: Kumi Naidoo

Bob Geldof - The place exploded and sang along to an old folk song which I can't remember the name of but knew the words! Everyone waved their hands in the air. The atmosphere was unforgettable. He played the rock and roll number Rat Pack as the crowd went wild. who cares that he's not the greatest singer, he means it when he sings and you can feel it.

10/10

The Thrills - Probably one of the only acts that I couldn't understand the words he was singing. however it didn't really matter as everyone else knew the song and waved their arms in time to the music.

8/10

Midge Ure & Guy Chambers - He sang Vienna and you could argue that he can't sing it as well as he used to. However the chorus sent a chill up my back and he still has a great voice that moves you

9/10

Peter Kay - He only cam on for a bried spell when he played the pan pipes - it was hilarious and everyone sang along.

9/10

Feeder - They played their famous song which escapes me right now.I didn't know they were playing and neither did most people. It was a great performace and the crowd jumped up and down in time to the rousing chorus.

10/10

Embrace, Neneh cherry and Will young
Excellent performance althoug Neneh Cherr'y mike did not work in the stadium.

8/10

Youssou N'Dour -A new found talent in the UK although he has been famous for years. He has agreat voice and the crowd loved him

Youssou N'Dour & Neneh Cherry - 7 Seconds
For the first part of the song Neneh Cherry's mike didn't work but she held her compsoure and gave a great second half performance of the classic hit

8/10

George Clooney - My fiancee swooned when he came on stage. Thanks for turning up George!

8/10

Ronan Keating - He gave a good performance with mixed reactions. He sang Life is a rollercoaster which at least you could sing along to. Not really my cup of tea

7/10

Beverly Knight & Guy Chambers - She blew me away. What an incredible voice which surely could be heard from Gleneagles. She performed Angels. It was stunning

10/10

Patrick Kielty

Texas - They performed two songs. Time for a toilet break I think! I don't really like their songs but she sang well and the crowd loved her - well they would they're Scottish!

Katherine Jenkins & Choir - Nessun Dorma
I'm not a big fan of Opera but the place was silent whilst listening to her haunting voice. Another great moment

9/10

Snow Patrol - I've decided that I'm now a fan! They were great and although they only performed one song they ruled the stage and got the crowd worked up.

10/10

Travis - Fanntastic. For some people this is what they had been waiting for and I'll never listed to 'Why does it always rain on me' in the same way again. It was electric and my inhibition left me as I jigged along and sang along with every single person in the stadium.

10/10

The Corrs & Bono- Another toilet break. Don't like their music. Bono singing was a complete suprise and livened up a static performance

7/10

Wangari Matthai - Noone had heard of this guy but will never forget his performance. The crowd clapped along to the musicians guitr playing and haunting voice.

9/10

James Brown - What can I say. The concert had overran and Mr Brown came on stage at 11.45pm. He played 4 of his greatest song and the night was complete. We danced to every song and were transifxed to the stage. He is definately a master at what he does.

10/10

Bob Geldof and Bono Speach - What a speech. I was glad I was there to hear it as I'm sure it will be echoed in many years to come. They called on everyone to make as much noise as possible and the noise was deafening. I can still hear it ringinig in my ears.

Bono wasked us to sing Flower Of Scotland. You could tell who the English people were as they didn't know the words. Everyone else sang along with passion.

The concert had been beyond my expectations. The Scottish crowd were up for it before it had even began. They sang, jumped up and down, danced, had waved and made the most incredible noise throughout. I hear that many artists are saying the atmosphere bettered the Hyde Park gig.

As we walked back toward Edinburgh with thousands of others you could hear the excitement as people were still singing and dancing all the way home.

I arrived back in England this morning only to find that my car wouldn't start at the airport.I had left the lights on whilst I was away. After much fiddling about and some friendly passers by helped me out, the excitement of the night before disppeared as I heard about the London Bombings. (see next post)

Comments

We got the Olympics!

Thu, 07 Jul 2005 16:45:41 +0200

So Britain has won the Olympic bid for 2012. I was extremely suprised that many of our daily newspapers decided to lead with this story on their front pages,rather than the more important G8 summitt.

To some people, mainly Londoners,business's, who will have have money to make from the event and those people directly involved in Athletics this is fantasitc news. I personally could not care less.

Stratford in London will be the main site for the new multi million pound stadium to stage the Olympics. Having been to Stratford the whole place is a run down mess with comparitive poverty. The area is in need of re-generation and I'm sure the area will be improved as a result of winning the Olympics. They can improve the area because of a sporting event but not because they want to help the residents? - this will purely be so it looks good for visting foreigners. This should have been done years ago.

England 2012 is now a chance for the fat cats and business's to make a lot of money whilst the general public will get to see a great sporting event. WOW! - I can't wait - NOT!

I wish the crowds who gathered in London to hear the results would have lent their voices and enthusiasm to something more worthwhile. Whilst they were celebrating this victory, thousands of others were lending their voices to help Make Poverty History- a slightly more important issue.

Damn, I sound really bitter! These are my initial thoughts and perhaps my judgements may be slightly clouded, but I stick by them for now.

Comments

Live 8 Review

Sun, 03 Jul 2005 21:02:32 +0200

Yesterday I only moved from the TV for a toilet break. I was glued from 1pm till the early hours of the morning for Live 8.It was an emotional day, at times I felt upset and other times overjoyed. A great day indeed.

Here are my humble opinions:

HIGHS

ColdPlay with Richard Ashcorft singing the superb Unfinished Symphony

Dido and Youssan D'our singing Thankyou

Stereophonics singing Maybe Tomorrow

REM were fantastic!

Ms Dynamite singing Bob Marley's Redemption song

Travis singing 'Why does it always rain on me' whilst the crowd put up their umbrellas

The whole of Razorlight's amazing set

Madonna singing Like A Prayer

Robbie Williams crowd pleasing performance.

The Who and Pink Floyd's breathtaking music.

Kaiser Chiefs from Philadelphia

LOWS

The Killers (didn't really feel the vibe)

Pete Docherty's embarrassing performance with Elton John

The BBC cutting out of REM's final song to interview Razorlight

Snow Patrol (don't like their music at all)

Velvet Revolver (very disappointing apart from Slash's guitar solo)

All in all it was an amazing event to watch and I'm glad I didn't miss a moment.

I head up to Edinburgh on Wednesday for the final gig and jsut can't wait

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Why Do Pirates Wear Eye Masks?

Fri, 01 Jul 2005 15:19:30 +0200

I stumbled across an interesting fact today. It had never occured to me why Pirates wear eye patches. I just assumed they had lost sight in that eye.

However almost all pirates had two perfectly good eyes. By wearing an eyepatch at all times, the covered eye would become highly sensitive, making it ideal to navigate at night using the stars.

Modern day soldiers are taught a similar night vision technique during basic training, to assist them when fighting under the cover of darkness.

Strange what you learn from the back of a crisp packet!

Please note this is not me!

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Alpha Siege International Launched

Thu, 30 Jun 2005 10:38:43 +0200

One of my hobbies is gaming on Xbox Live. I am captain of a UK team and we have just expanded to become the first team in the World to have three different teams playing under the same banner with different websites.

Here is the press release:

On July 1st Alpha Siege International will be launched. A community comprising of three Xbox Live clans, Alpha Siege Uk, Alpha Siege Juniors and Rogue Cell Alpha Siege U.S. They hope to promote Xbox live communities and compete against clans from across the globe. Alpha Siege have high morales and promote fairness and modesty alongside a fierce competitive streak that they hope will enable them to take the Xbox World by storm. The idea was born through the founding team Alpha Siege Uk who have been an established U.K clan since the dawn of Xbox Live.

The idea is unique. The three clans will operate from three seperate websites within the Alpha Siege domain. The members of each clan were hand picked based on their competitive yet fair approach to gaming. All teams aim to work together as a community to help not only their own clan but Alpha Siege as a whole.

"This is just the beginning" said Alpha Siege UK captain Steven Williamson. "We hope to expand even further and already have plans in the pipeline. We hope to continue to build a large community of clans playing under the Alpha Siege banner whilst promoting good,clean gaming. We plan to work in unity to achieve recognition within the Xbox World as being a 'model' clan and hope to pick up many friends along the way!" he added

Alpha Siege are securing their status as the new breed of 'Super Clan' and with the launch of Xbox 360 just around the corner the Xbox World is their oyster.

Alpha Siege are sponsored by Xequted and The Last Man Standing.

Check out the three teams at www.alphasiege.com

Many thanks to all of the team for their help in making the launch a success

Comments

Identity Cards and Micro Chips

Tue, 28 Jun 2005 10:25:38 +0200

Today they are debating the National I.D card in the House Of Commons. Britain is moving slowly but surely towards the Big Brother state. I do not want a National I.D card. I think it is a waste of money and totally none democratic and intrusive.

People laughed when conspiracry theorists said that we will one day all be micro chipped. This is already happening. Could it really be goodbye to freedom, thought and movement? The I.D cards are just the first step.

In the U.S it is common knowledge that a covert goverment organisation called Echelon aims to monitor movement and manipulate the population. Some insiders have come forward with the information and been silenced!

IBM have already developed such a chip and BT have been involved in the manufacturing of chips.

Millions of military personnel around the world
have been micro-chipped - for reasons of "security."

Millions of domestic animals have been micro-chipped - for reasons of "security".

Countless thousands of innocent civilians have been covertly micro-chipped against their will by their government during routine operations - for reasons of - "security?"

Fundamentalist politicians and government representatives are increasingly suggesting all prisoners and criminals be micro-chipped - for reasons of "security."

The same "Mindless Fundamentalists" are suggesting that laws be implement enforcing the mandatory micro-chipping of all new-born babies - for reasons of "security".

This was from a 1990's article about micro chipping:

"The next computer you buy may be the last one you will need. In future, scientists want to insert electronic chips into our heads so that we can plug directly into the information superhighway British are among international teams working on an implant to translate human thought into computer language. In a generation, one group says, people with a peppercorn-sized chip in the back of the neck will be able to talk to machines."

WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS

Suppression of will

I just hope it's all not true but I have a horrid feeling.

Chekc out here for more information

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GlastonBury Come and Gone.

Mon, 27 Jun 2005 10:10:14 +0200

I was glued to Glastonbury all weekend. Once again a muddy, rain drenched festival!

The highlight for me was The White Stripes. There were unbelievable live. I've just bought the album, which I thing rates alongside their 'Elephant' album. They are by far my favourite band of the last 10 years and I can only dream of having a small percentage of the flair that Jack White shows on stage.

Razorlight were also fantastic and a band I must listen to more.

glastonbury has really got me in the mood for my trip to Live 8 next week. Can't wait!

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Pagan Day Out?!

Mon, 27 Jun 2005 10:04:31 +0200

On Saturday Chante(fiancee) celebrated her 29th Birthday.

During the day we went to a Summer's Fete and in the evening I treated her to a head and face massage followed by Hoppie Ear Candle treatment whilst trying to regress her into a past life. Very strange day indeed. In fact I'm suprised we didn't watch the Wicker Man in the evening.

Apparently I was pretty good at relaxation techniques and almost managed to help her drift in to her subconsience.

If you haven't tried Hoppie Ear Wax treatment my fiancee would recommend it. I have tried it and found it quite uncomfortable.

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Great University Result

Thu, 23 Jun 2005 20:26:49 +0200

Woohoo my fiancee's sister Charisse today gained a 1st in English from Leicester University. She has worked really hard and I feel really proud.I'm sure she'll go on to great things!

Well done Charisse!

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Rules for Being Human

Thu, 23 Jun 2005 17:00:16 +0200

This is taken from the book 'Chicken Soup For the Soul'.

I just thought this was relevant to my life at the moment. I know what I'm supposed to do but something blocks me from doing it.

RULES FOR BEING HUMAN

1. You will receive a body

You may likeit or hate it,but it will be yours for the entire period of this time around

2. You will learn lessons

You are enrolled in a full time informal scholl called Life. Each day in this school you will have the opportunity to learn lessons. you may like the lessons or think them irrelevant and stupid.

3. There are no mistakes, only lessons

Growth is a process of trial and error.Experimentation. The "failed" experiments are as much part of the process as the experiment that ultimately "works"

4. A lesson is repeated until learned

A lesson will be presenterd to you in various forms until you have learned it. When you haev learned it you go on to the next lesson

5. Learning lessons does not end

There is nopart of life that does not contain its lessons. If you are alive, there are lessons to be learned.

6. There is "no better"than "here"

Where your "there" has become a "here" you will simply obtain another "there" that will again look better than "here"

7. Others are merely mirrors of you

You cannot love or hate something about another personunless it reflects something you love or hate about yourself

8. What you make of your life is up to you

You have all the tools and resources you need. What you do with them is up to you. the choice is yours

9. Your answers lie inside you

The answers to Life's questions lie inside you. All you need to do is look,listen and trust.

10. You will forget this.

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