Thursday, 16 November 2017
Wednesday, 15 November 2017
Half Way There: A Rap Verse about a Troubled Footballer
If
you're doing NaBloPoMo, come on say yeah
I'm
not Bon Jovi but we're half way there
When
taking on the challenge, one of my fears
Was
not planning forward and and running out of ideas
It
hasn't happened; there's a few in reserve,
But
I won't divulge, gonna keep them preserved
But
while we're on it, dunno if you missed it,
Trevor Sinclair is still being a dipstick
While
he's embroiled in this drink drive palava
He's
probably forgotten that time in Baa Bar
At
the height of his career back in two thousand and three
Where
he pretty much literally bumped into me
Tripped
over my foot, and thought it was my fault
Thought
that I'd pranked him just to be spiteful
He
leaned over me and gave me a slap
Obviously
thought that I was aiming for a scrap
But
why would I bother? He was twice my size!
It
wasn't long before the doormen took him outside.
I
went to the papers, who talked to the bar,
but
'cause they wouldn't comment the story didn't go far.
I
see he's forty four, from the site in front of me,
And
that right now, he's still held in custody.
We
don't know whether he'll be sentenced or not,
But
you know what they say about leopards and their spots.
Tuesday, 14 November 2017
Touch Typing Record Breaker AT LAST
Right
back at the start of July, I blogged about returning to touch typing
to try and up my speed.
I'd managed 40.9 wpm previously, then after a quick bash on Mavis
Beacon, I hit 43.0 wpm. It was my plan, that either at home or at
work as part of my training, I'd beat that.
In
both locations, though, I couldn't seem to log into the program. I
downloaded it a few times, but it wouldn't work. I tried Klavaro
again, another free package that I'd had some success with before. At
work and at home, though, I couldn't get that working either. I put
the typing on the back burner and hammered a few other blogging
projects instead.
In
a recent 1-1 in work, my new line manager and I agreed we'd look
around for something else. She found BBC Dance Mat,
a free typing tutor aimed at primary school age kids.
It's
very bright, colourful and musical, with animated characters guiding
you through the keys, but the underlying teaching is effective. I
spent an hour each work day over the last couple of weeks working
through the games and levels. The lessons get progressively more
difficult, and include the full range of keys and letters. They come
to a close before you can develop to a decent adult standard, though,
so you don't quite get the full benefit that you might from Klavaro
or Mavis Beacon. But it's free, so you can't complain.
By
the time I'd finished the last level, I'd hit 47 wpm. If it works for
me, it will for you!
Monday, 13 November 2017
Which Manchester Club Nights Died on their Arses This Month?
Gluttony
is an emotional escape, a signal that something is eating us.
-Peter
de Vries, American writer
Tell
me about it, Peter. I'm back up to 82.6kg, after dipping to 79 some
time between now and the 5th.
I've been too busy to properly get into being a pisshead, but I
assure you I'm working on it: I'm currently polishing off the remnant
of an old Wild Turkey bottle as I write this. So obviously, I'm
imagining I'm Hunter S Thompson Reincarnate.
In
other news:
I've
passed the 1300 follower mark on Twitter.
Meetup
has redesigned: viewing and uploading events is a little simpler and
more straightforward, although the homepage remains reliably
identical. Unfortunately embed links are no longer supported in the
new design according to the site's Twitter.
Deansgate
bar The Red Door, starting place for a few meetups, appears to have
shut. A friend mentioned the venue looked closed during peak hours,
and their Facebook and Twitter accounts have disappeared. Oh well, it
was a bit too 'Bob's Country Bunker' for me.
And
this week? I was going to upload a meetup for
Inked, a new night at
Impossible on Peter St, but they
haven't updated their social media since Halloween. It doesn't look
like it runs any more. It did go up against
LIV's hugely popular Thursday night
slot, Socialite, a tough act to
follow.
Taboo
also seems to have folded- no updates on Facebook or Twitter, no
response to my Facebook message. Oh well. I thought Taboo was a lot
better in Tiger Tiger, and their
replacement Playground night is
just as good.
No
weekend meetups of my own planned yet. I should put something in as I
usually pull whenever I have a haircut. And as of Saturday, I've been
rocking the Rose Namajunas look.
Keep your eyes on Manchester Cool Bars.
They're headed to History, a new swanky
club. I may be putting something up very soon too...
Sunday, 12 November 2017
Dirty Martini Opens to the Public
Manchester Cool Bars
dropped back into Dirty Martini on
Peter St for their official public launch on Friday. The gorgeous new
cocktail bar, on the corner of Peter St and Deansgate, opened their
doors with dance, house and RnB music accompanied by live sax. The
additional 2 floors were also open, revealing a little more of the
venue than the previous night.
Nice
atmosphere, tasty-looking cocktails, a cloakroom and impressive glass walls
looking out onto the two intersecting roads make this an attractive
new venue. I was driving (again) but will try out that cocktail menu
soon...
Saturday, 11 November 2017
PR Request Re Male Mental Health and Financial Difficulties- Please Pass On
Hi! I'm wondering if
any of my blog readers might be able to help with an inquiry I've
come across. Nicola Bond from the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute contacted support group
Andy's Man Club recently.
The institute is a 'charity established by Martin Lewis to research
and tackle the links between financial difficulties and mental health
problems.'
Nicola is hoping to
'reach men with experience of mental health problems, a group whose
views are crucial to our research, but whose experiences we hear less
often.'
If this is something to
which you feel you could contribute, please email
nicola.bond@moneyandmentalhealth.org
If you know anyone who may be able to share their experiences for a good cause, please pass this info onto them.
Friday, 10 November 2017
We blagged our way into the Dirty Martini launch
New
cocktail bar Dirty Martini opens
their Manchester branch to the public tonight, and Manchester Cool Bars is
going!
The
launch took place last night, and me and a couple of friends decided
to try and get in. We only had guestlist organised for the Friday,
but as we were polite and dressed well and claimed to have spoken to
someone, the clipboard guy allowed us through.
The
DJ blended up contemporary RnB with old skool house and garage, a
unique mix helping the bar to stand out from the rest of the Peter St
establishments.
It
turns out singer Will Young was there!
@willyoung partied with a flurry of VIP guests at the launch of @Dirtymartiniuk #Manchester last night. We're excited to visit ourselves! 🍸 pic.twitter.com/bfekFt24mt— The Glossy Magazine (@TheGlossyMag) November 10, 2017
I
didn't recognise anyone in the bar, although it's possible that the
VIP people may have been earlier on. And I'd know, I hammer Twitter
looking for whichever reality TV star was in the club at the same
time as me.
I
was driving but I had a tiny sip of a friend's Chocolate Martini.
Incredible.
I
think I'll not drive tonight, and see what the rest of the cocktails
are like!
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