Glasto 15'

So I’d like to apologise for the radio silence. Things have not been great, but I’m working on it.

However amongst the ups and downs I have had the epic high of working at Glastonbury again this year.

And let me tell you… It was as insane as ever.

This year, my friend and I decided to go earlier as last year we were left lugging all our crap for miles. This was a super smart move as we managed to cut it by half the distance by being able to park closer, which is well worth it- believe me!

By going earlier it also allowed us to have a look at more of the stalls than last year. Sure, we didn’t get to see EVERYTHING, but in all honesty I think that’d take you at least a month!

As per, the acts were on top form. It’s got to be said that Jungle were my fave this year. (I always seem to find better acts on ‘The Other Stage’ opposed to the ‘Pyramid’) For those of you who decide to go next year- I highly recommend you hitting up this stage.

This is the thing with Glasto, sure you’ve got the Pyramid stage with all of your headliners. But in all honestly it’s difficult to enjoy the acts there- as you generally get rammed in like sardines, unable to move your arms. This is why you must visit the other stages too, not just the popular ones. For example, this year I got to see Gregory Porter at ‘West Holts’ which was phenomenal- while yes, a smaller stage- I could actually enjoy the performance.

The night life was as manic as ever, but also, as brilliant as ever (and that’s all I shall say).

The people that you meet are half the experience too.  I met guys who were completely off of their faces and just chatting amusing crap. I met people who had an ‘undying love’ and wished to share that with me. I also met people who just wanted to meet EVERYONE. This is half the fun, just meeting people that you would never meet otherwise; you must be pretty open minded because there is such a variety of people. Not gonna lie though, it does make me sad that I’ll never see them again…

Additionally things seemed to be more reasonably priced this year, opposed to last year. By this I don’t just mean food but the items you are able to purchase there too. I was super happy about this as last year things did seem rather extortionate. However it did mean that I ended up spending most of my money by the third day.

People’s costumes were amazing- such effort was put in. There’d just so much to see and do- the earlier you go the better!

Overall I had a very different Glastonbury to last year, I’m not sure if it was better, but it was surely different.

I highly recommend going for those of you who are unsure; even if it’s just for the experience.

Go get your Glasto on. 

Pictures and videos are available via all the usual outlets e.g. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and web pages.

Birthdays Y'all.

They can be great and they can be not so great.

Sure, it’s amazing being able to celebrate it with the people that you love. But it also makes you realise what has happened in the last year. Whether this being good or bad. For me this year, it was a mixture of both.

The amazing thing is that it’s the one time of year you can see who actually gives a shit.

I was extremely fortunate to have a bunch of amazing friends who helped me party hard over a whole week, and I also received a big o’ bunch of lovely cards and messages too. It was bloomin’ marvellous.

However, if you’d have asked me say four/five months ago “who’s coming out for your birthday/who do you think will send you a card/message etc.” I would have told you pretty much a completely different group of people- apart from a few exceptions. And this is the thing; you never know who you’re going to meet, and what they’ll mean to you. Which is awesome.

The sad fact is that you also realise that people who you would once consider as some of your best friends, no longer are. This isn’t always a bad thing as it may actually be for the best depending on the situation. However, sometimes it comes a shock.  Luckily for me, I kinda saw it coming. Sure, I hoped that I would be wrong, but knew what would more than likely happen. And it did.

It’s also made me realise how easy it is to move on. Of course I wanted to remain close friends with all of these people, but in reality it wasn’t going to happen. The proof is in the pudding after all.

One way to look at it is that it means that you no longer have to waste time on certain people, but also spend time with people who actually matter, which is way better! (It’s also given me an excuse for a Facebook cull, which is actually rather exciting! No more derogatory thoughts going through my timeline!).

I’m not saying that if people don’t spend time with you or send you cards or messages on your birthday that you should stop talking to them, that’s ridiculous. What I am saying that if there has been a fractious relationship with individuals up to that point it gives you the ability to revaluate your relationships with them. This is what I have done anyway, and I’m happier for it.

All in all, I was an extremely fortunate person to have all of these people- a mixture of new and old friends, celebrating my birthday with me in various forms, a massive shout out to them.

Much love to all of you reading this overemotional crap. Let me know your thoughts on birthdays and what they reveal - get in touch via the usual alleyways.

Also, if it's your birthday soon... "Happy Birthday!".

For now, lets see what the next year brings.

Shake It, Shake it, Shake it like a Polaroid picture.

Firstly I would like to apologise for neglecting this blog but I have been a super busy bee and FINALLY I have a moment to myself, so here we go!

 

In this post I would like to have a little natter about Polaroid’s. For those of you who don’t remember the hype of their second revival in the late 90’s/early 00’s fear not. IT’S BACK WITH A VENGANCE.

DISCLAIMER: The word ‘Polaroid’ is mentioned an obscene amount in this post.

For those of you who do not know what Polaroid’s are pictures that are pictures that are printed instantly from the camera itself & you’re generally told to shake it, but tbh you don’t have to.

To be honest, I’m pretty happy about this. It’s really been happening over the past year, but I’d say it’s the last few months that people have really stepped up their Polaroid game; and I have been receiving many Polaroid’s in the post.

This is the thing, while digital is amazing, very few people actually print out their pictures. Which makes me ask the question…. What’s the point of taking them? Sure you can upload them onto various social media sites, and that’s great. But for those anti-technology days you may just want to have those photos in a physical form.

Polaroid’s take all the hassle of getting your film/digital photos developed out.

Granted, they’re not cheap. Yes. You can pick up the camera itself for a pittance if you don’t mind second hand bits and bobs. However if you want to get a brand new one it can get pretty expensive, considering that it is in fact old technology. Have a look here

Another cost that you must take into consideration when venturing into the Polaroid world is the cost of the actually Polaroid paper itself, which works out more expensive than getting your pictures developed.

But if you’re happy with all that, run with it, there’s nothing quite like a Polaroid.

However for those of you now thinking. Oh crud.  I can’t be dealing with all this cost. DO NOT WORRY.

There are other ways that you can get the look of a Polaroid, and that is by downloading a template, adding your picture and then printing them off on your own accord. Sure, it’s a load more of work, which kinda defeats the idea, but if you’re after the polo vibes at the fraction of the cost, this is how you’re going to have to do it.  See this fellow blogger.

So ladies and gents, either get ready to shake it or fake it.

Go get your Polaroid on.

New music be blarin'

 

So in the last few months I’ve found that there’s been a bit of a lull in new decent music. Of course this is all subjective, but that’s just my opinion.

HOWEVER. In the last week or so I’ve found an abundance of new music that’s got me thinking “I should download that when I get home”. I don’t know if it has been the mix of me having a really quiet day at work which resulted to me actually listening to what the music channels were playing opposed to just considering them as a bit of soft porn in the background while I was serving drinks. Or whether I was just oblivious to all these new acts emerging, and now with the force I’m actually paying attention.

Either way, it’s about time.

I take a lot of joy in finding new artists and being ‘that friend’ who is always suggesting new stuff, so for me this is ruddy wonderful…

Consequently for those of you scrolling through your iPod thinking “crumbs, this could do with a massive update” DO NOT FEAR, THERE’S GOOD STUFF ON THE HORIZON.

Another thing that I’ve started to do is googling “if you like *artist/band* then you will like” and there are loads of message boards with a plethora of suggestions. It’s kinda like dominos when you do this, you find one you like and then a whole load of others come knocking down in your direction.

My suggestion for you deal pals is that if you had the same views as me earlier that you do this, there is really a lot of new stuff coming out at the moment and I’m sure you’ll find something to tickle your taste buds.

If you really feel like it, drop me a message and I’ll offer you up some suggestions.

 

Much love as always.

Autocorrecting autocorrect.

 

So AutoCorrect has become the bane of my life. (slight exaggeration right there).

 

Lets be honest,  auto correct is meant to make us seem smarter than we actually are.  Got problems spelling long complicated words. Autocorrect/Autofills’ got yo back.

And that's great.

However, when it comes to the mediocre every day words, it just doesn’t cover it. At no point when typing “It’s” have I meant “tsunami” or wanted to turn “fucking” to “ducking” or “sure” to “sensuous” or even “out” to “overpowering”, and these are just the ones that I can think of now! What I want to ask is why? Why WHY W H Y. I'd like to ask my phone when have I ever needed to use the word “vitriolic” in everyday life? (It means mean btw), and why does it feel necessary to somehow slot it into nearly every text?

Well, autocorrect is just being VITRIOLIC. (Happy now?)

The other thing with Autocorrect/autofill is that when you’re trying to be sassy as fuck it’ll just screw you over. Look at the example below.

 

 

 

This is basically my friend bailing on me, by telling an obvious lie, so a “K” would be the perfect response right? NOT ACCORDING TO AUTOCORRECT. AUTOCORRECT WANTS TO MAKE ME LOOK LIKE A FOOL.

Why can’t programme developers (or whoever is in control of this) just sort out every day language before getting all clever on us?  Seriously, don’t run before you can walk sunshine.

Am I the only one who has problems with this? Let me know!

But for now,

Dear Mr/Mrs/Dr /Professor Autocorrect.

Sort your life out.

TOTAL (actually partial) ECLIPSE OF THE HEART (actually sun)

Those of you who know me personally and for those of you who don’t, I love space.

Not as in the space around you (although I do appreciate that) as in the galaxy and all the other bits that are kinda essential to Earth.

Luckily for me, there’s going to be a solar eclipse. Tomorrow. 

And I’m super excited about it.

For those of you who don’t know what a solar eclipse is, it’s basically when the moon blocks out the sun for a little bit, and plunges us mere mortals into darkness for a few minutes.

However I must mention that if you Google it (other web-browsers are available) you’ll see how pretty awesome it looks. Yet if you decide to watch with your own peepers tomorrow WEAR PROTECTIVE EYEWEAR. Have a look online to see various suggestions, as your sunglasses from last year’s holiday to Barcelona will simply not cut it, and let’s be honest, you’d rather look like a bit of a prick for a few minutes than go partially blind for the rest of your life right?

When can I partially blind myself for the rest of my life I hear you ask? Well my loves, you’ll have to set your alarms because its 08.00 GMT, and those of you in the UK should see around 90% coverage. So for those of you who are willing to peel yourself away from the warmth of your bed I’m sure it’ll be worth it as it rarely happens.

If you guys are interested there’s going to be a special show on the BBC after it has happened on the subject so you can get educated on all of the sciencey stuff or just marvel at all the cool pictures.

I hope that for those of you who do decide to watch it that it’s awesome and you enjoy it.

Peace out.

Selma [Film]

At last I’ve seen Selma.

As most of you know, this blog is generally me being quite angry/disappointed or just downright rude about certain things. If you’re new to this- hello & welcome.

But unfortunately for me, I can’t be demeaning to Selma and am seriously having problems faulting it.

Let me give you a brief overview on it… It focuses on Dr Martin Luther King Jr. in both his political and partially his private life. Set in the height of the American Civil Rights movement it show the struggles Black Americans had, and their fight to have the same rights as White Americans, it’s one of the most notable fights within modern history (I should know, I studied it at A Level) that has really influenced modern day society as we know it today… Anyway, this is a history lesson, although if you want one, let me know & I’ll happily give you one.  

In many of film awards this year it has held a fair presence, while not always winning its categories it has won some- which is better than none right!?  Although in my opinion it should have won way more than it did, as they were all so well deserved.

The directing is on point and has three wicked producers, one being Opra Winfrey, who also stars in it, tbh I didn’t even know she was in it until I saw her and was all like errr… Opra? But she acted her character really well. So kudos to her.

DOP has got some amazing shots that really help to take the film to the next level. Meaning that, even if you’re not into the subject matter, you should go and see it just for the technical aspects and score.

A little more on the score- while a little cliché having gospel music amongst orchestral (N.B. I have nothing against gospel music and quite like some of it.) It just seems that considering the subject matter it was the easy go-to option. This is literally my only criticism. I’m not in any way saying that it was bad- just predictable.

The performances by the main actors and actresses were outstanding, and deserve more notation then they have already received. They help to turn historical fact into a truly emotional and consuming film.

Yet again like most of my reviews, I don’t want to tell you the whole plot- especially if you wish to go and see it. But I will say that it is one of the best historically accurate films I’ve seen in a very long while. For now, here's the trailer to have a look at.

Go and see it, but just to warn you- take a hankie.