'Positives' from this week

So. After an incredible weekend, I then had a very dull week. 

There were some positives: I got Insta inbox messages from a few contributors from the Carnival event last weekend- Kathy Brown, Freemasons, David Dunne, Visual Architects. 

The other positive was actually a negative: I tested positive for COVID. Well. That’s a first. Someone else I’d been out with also tested positive first, so I was expecting it to hit me. Tested negative all week, then on Friday, 2 bars showed on the test cassette. What a bastard. 

Currently, 2 other legends- former US President Barack Obama and Brit comedian / star of Bottom Adrian Edmondson are also positive. (Jurassic Park’s Sam Neill may be too. )

New Venue for Manchester Andy’s Man Club

Men’s support group Andy’s Man Club continues to grow and grow. With 85 groups in operation across the UK, and averaging over 1700 attendees a week, the movement is helping more and more men to address their mental health. 

In Manchester, our group has grown substantially. Due to this, and some other issues with the 86 Princess St venue we currently use, we’re looking to move and expand. 

This coming Monday, the 14th March, will be our last meeting in Princess St. 

Monday 21st, we will be moving our operations to Regency Court, 62-66 Deansgate. Thanks go to Sedulo for providing this. Brewing facilities (sorely missed by many for the last few months), fulling functioning room lights (again regarded as an occasional luxury), glass-walled meeting rooms and plenty of seats are all provided. Take the virtual tour! 

To reiterate- this Monday, we’re still at Princess.

About That Carnival Post... 2

Recently I blogged about the second Manchester Made Me Funky Carnival, a celebration of 2000s-era funky house music in Manchester’s Bowlers Exhibition Centre. An amazing night of house music royalty- singers, DJs, huge set builds and great people. 

After the initial event last November, I wrote a second post- one I wouldn’t tag contributing acts in- where I could detail a few negatives- the stalkers, crank anti-vaxxers, and apparently the paranoid offspring of politicians. (I never did find out which politician.) 

This time around, the Carnival was another blinding night with great DJs and superb stage acts singing classic house tracks. Again, there were some moments I felt ideal to leave out of that upload. 

The same anti-vaxx woman from the first event, who went ballistic at me over something the government didn’t even do (instate vaccine passports), was in attendance again. I’m not sure she recognised me, although I was definitely trying to ignore her. It seemed she was reciprocating, ‘til she eventually came over and made a gesture to her nose. I thought she was suggesting there was something on my face (there wasn’t.) I think it was the next day before it dawned on me she was asking me for coke. (I was driving, and wouldn’t share with some nutter I didn’t know even if I was carrying.) 

All it would take is the UK government to instate vaccine passports – like Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal and Slovenia have done, to name a few- and we wouldn’t have to deal with weirdos like the aforementioned woman, AND we’d have a lot fewer cases and wouldn’t have to deal with the COVID-related earache for quite as long. 

But no. Johnson knows his base is poorly educated and easy to manipulate, so he’s not gone for passports and has given no explanation why… although we know. 

The only other notable moment for this post was some Brummie claiming I looked like footballer Michael Owen, which I’ll take. 

Official pics willl be on the Mancheter Made Me Funky Facebook page soon.

Manchester Made Me Funky Carnival 2

Saturday night saw the return of the Manchester Made Me Funky Carnival, a night of 2000s-era house music in Bowlers Exhibition Centre, Trafford Park. After the first event last November, the organisers quickly set up a second one. A fresh new lineup this time featured some great singers and DJs. 

 

 

David Dunne, who most thirty-to-forty-year-olds attending the event (the main demographic, tbf) would remember as a regular on from Galaxy Radio, played a set in the smaller popart-themed room. This replaced the neon jungle theme from the previous event. 

 Vocalist Kathy Brown graced the main stage. 

 

 Here she’s singing Soul Central’s Strings of Life (Stronger on My Own). 

 

 and Praxis’ Turn Me Out

 

I’ve been trying to see house music producers The Freemasons for years. Over the years, every time I’ve seen them advertised on a club night’s lineup, I’ve never managed to get there. Russell Small, who it turns out is also one half of Phats and Small was in attendance – I’m not sure I saw James Wiltshire. Their set was a highlight for me.

Jason Herd, one half of duo Herd ‘n’ Fitz, polished off the night.

Set builds and dancers were provided by the ever-impressive Visual Architects. Brilliant night, as was the last one. There is another MMMF Carnival night planned for Halloween in Knutsford but is a much more intimate (and pricey) affair. 

 

My Kevin Sinfield Pic in The Oldham Times

Over last weekend, local news site The Oldham Times posed the following question to readers on Facebook: Who is the most famous person you have ever met in Oldham? 

 

I shared this school play pic from 1992 featuring an 11-year-old Kevin Sinfield MBE playing the titular role in Joseph. 

 

The photo found its way into the article, which also listed a few local celebs including soap stars and musicians. Oldham is loaded with celebs if you know where to look. 

More details on the Sinfield story. No word from Sinfield himself who appears not to be on social media.

Renegade Psych Patient

I’ve been on 15mg of Mirtazapine, for depression, for about 4 years, with a year before that spent on other mental health drugs. Has it worked? 

Hard to tell. I’m certainly more confident, but then, is that due to antidepressants? Doubtful. Time spent with professionals in the NHS, and weekly sessions with men’s group Andy’s Man Club have been the dual driving factors in overcoming the problems I’ve had. I think it’s time to come off them. 

My GP explained that antidepressants wouldn’t make me any braver, but would stop my mood from dipping. So, how has my mood been? During the pandemic, I’ve actually been okay. Aside from stressing about my family’s safety, and aside from other people’s idiocy with lockdown breaches and, later, anti-vaxx sentiment, I’ve kept positive. I’ve kept busy with self-imposed fun projects. But as were were in a pandemic, I didn’t see any benefit to changing my medication routine. 

The lockdown has long-since been lifted, and the government have released their ‘Living With Covid’ (i.e. ‘Dying with Covid’) plans. It’s a clusterfuck. Daily deaths are still in 3 figures. 38 million out of 66 million people have received their booster. There’s no vaccine mandate and vaccine passport plans were scrapped. 

But whatever. For the forseeable, things are not going to get any better. So why come off Mirtazapine? 

The main reason is, I’m fat. I’m always hungry, as Scarface’s Alvira Hancock would say, and should try starving. I touched 90kg a few weeks ago. I’m currently 83kg. 

I reckon if I went down to half-dose first, my sleep would be disrupted for the first few nights, but it would soon settle. My appetite would start to decrease to something reasonable. I could fit back into my suit trousers. My cardio would improve (it’s terrible right now). From the age of 17 I’ve always done something for fitness: boxing, weights, Muay Thai, Mixed Martial Arts, occasional running. I’m still a regular gym-goer, but a lot of my personal bests are years old. I just can’t get back to where I was in my early 30s. 

I turn 40 at the end of July. I’d like to be off mental health meds by then.

MMMF Carnival Returns

Last November saw a night of 00s-era funky house acts descend on Bowlers Exhibition Centre for the Manchester Made Me Funky Carnival. Born out of a secret Facebook group, the event brought together the members – all clubbers from back in the day – for one more night of funky house music, featuring the singers and producer / DJs that created it. 

The event was such a blast that very quickly another event was scheduled, with a new lineup. Headlining this Saturday night are Kathy Brown - vocalist on Soul Central’s track Strings of Life (Stronger on My Own) – and house maestros The Freemasons (Love on my Mind, Beyonce’s Ring the Alarm remix, Uninvited). I’ve been trying to see Freemasons DJ for years, but every time they’re in Manchester, something gets in the way. 

Nothing will this time. There are still tickets: get involved!