venta

I don't feel like I've done a proper update in a while, and now everything's too long ago to be interesting.

However, in summary:

The Designated Hero of the Week for last week is

leathellinand

hearthfire. The Leathellin half of the heroism was by managing to snag a bunch of tickets for the Jools Holland "Summer Swing" concert in Kew Gardens. The Hearthfire half is for providing a stupendous picnic to munch on before, during and after said concert. When eight people arrive carrying their own bodyweight in wine, and someone warns you that this is only the nibbles which begin your five course picnic, you know you're in for a good evening - and that's even before a fourteen-or-so strong Big Band makes it on stage.

In order to recover from all that glamour, picnic, upmarketness and fireworks, I went to the Tin Pan Alley festival on Denmark Street on Sunday: one little stage in a very scruffy street full of equal parts of people, rubbish and blazing sunshine. The Unstrung were quite interesting, Steve Diggle was surprisingly dull (partly thanks to having the world's dullest drummer), Art Brut seemed OK, and The Subways were really quite good for a band which thinks two notes to a bassline would be an indulgence. The sound system was poor, though, so I'm not 100% sure what I thought of some of the bands.

Incidentally, [Poll #537044]

My discovery for this month is that BBC 6Music is fantastic. It is my new favourite thing. In particular, it has already introduced me to The Dresden Dolls - and you've got to like a band that describes itself as Brechtian Punk Cabaret. Anyone willing to navigate their oh-so-pretty but vaguely unusuable website can download four mp3s, which are well worth a listen in my opinion. Or if you're not willing to wrestle with the interface, go straight to the download page.

Last Easter, I broke my watch (terminally). About three weeks ago, I finally managed to get round to getting a new strap for my slightly posher watch. It's a nice watch, but it doesn't fit my very specific requirements of an everyday wristwatch. Still, it tells the time, which is good enough for now. Since I started wearing it, I've had an uncharacteristically large number of people asking me what the time is.

Accordingly:

[Poll #537045]

The remainder of this post is a local post for local people. Where local means lives in Oxford, lives near Oxford, has formerly lived in Oxford, has a vestigial interest in Oxford, or is bored enough to read any old drivel.

This evening, walking up Cowley Rd, I spied some interesting looking stencils on the wall in East Avenue. One was a picture surrounded by the words "US Justice ? UK Justice", and one was, er, I forget what it said exactly (something about "for the people?") and featured a row of people hanging as if from a gibbet. I'd kind of like to photograph them for my collection, but sadly they've both been half spray-painted over.

But you wouldn't got out and do just one stencil, would you ? No, of course not. So there must be others somewhere. So, your homework is to tell me if you see either of these (or any other interesting stencils that look new, really). OK ?

Further down Cowley Rd towards the Plane, around the time when the roadworks go crazy, there was a poster on the wall. It was one of those affairs with little tear-off strips which are usually posted to advertise rooms and so on.

All it said was:

"Turl Street: it would be better without that there" is eBay item number: 7338091392

Intrigued, I took one of the little strips. I can't help thinking that it wouldn't be better if Turl St wasn't there - getting to Lincoln would be a pain - but am willing to listen to reasoned argument. Besides, I very much approve of people auctioning opinions and rants on eBay.

"The roadworks on Abingdon Rd are really starting to piss me off." What am I bid for that fine opinion ? Anyone care to open the bidding ? All reasonable offers considered. Postage free.

Disappointingly, it's actually all quite serious. But wondering what it might be kept me entertained all the way home :)

Incidentally, the entry about the red car and the blue car was just to see how many people instantly thought of (and could quote!) the Milky Way advert. Being remembered by a reasonable proportion of the population is pretty good going for an advertising jingle which was broadcast around fifteen years ago. I don't believe many things have that much staying power (apart from, of course, the bloody Budget Windows advert, which probably noone reading this other than

jiggery_pokery ever had the misfortune to encounter).