Some sons do ave em!

Me: I'm going to an inquest tomorrow.
Dad: What happened?
Me: Some woman fell down the stairs.
Mum: OMG! Is she OK?!
Me & Dad: .....

Now I know where I get it from.

Sunday, Sunday

Sunday's are so often a day of reflection for the week that's been and gone, and preparation for the week that is to come. This would explain why I often have such difficulty in understanding whether Sunday should be the first or the last day of the week on the calendar. I also wonder that if we dressed Sunday up as another day - maybe Tuesday? Or perhaps Friday? - then the usual descriptions we associate with the day would pop like bubbles. It would no longer be "grey", or "boring", or "pyjama-day" (although apparantly that's now any day of the week), but all manner of other 'doing' and 'describing' words (for the more educated among you, verbs and adjectives).

There's a lot to be excited about in 2010. Why, there's a lot to be excited about this month. In fact, even this week. Or this day. Actually, why not just click on the links below and start getting excited right about... now.

Goldfrapp - Rocket
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eF8-eIL5WZM
If I told you that the first thought that popped into my head upon hearing this was The Pointer Sisters' 'Jump', I'd worry about how many would click on that there link. So ignore what I just said. I can only diagnose this track as a serious case of the 80s, full of euphoric synth jabs, and like all great songs grows into this deliriously giddy chorus. It's more in vein with what they produced back in 2005 with their Supernature album, but there's something about 'Rocket' that is less 'try-hard'. Supernature, as much as I love it, came across as Alison and Will saying "we can do commercial just as well as ANYONE", following the success they had with 'Strict Machine'. And whilst 'Rocket' suggests the band's forthcoming LP will be more in-line with that album's sound, rather than the pastoral elegance of Seventh Tree, this time around it seems somewhat less... contrived? Nonetheless, I'm happy to witness the return of Goldfrapp.


A Single Man, directed by Tom Ford
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aypyJtHzC70
The fact that Tom Ford has directed this shouldn't be an indication of quality, but - let's face it - it's an indication of quality. I've not read the book, so the film will be brand new to me, and with a promising cast led by Colin Firth, it's bound to be pretty good isn't it? A Single Man opens with Firth's character mourning the loss of his male lover in a car accident. So... not really Avatar then? Looking set to be a whole load of melancholy, wrapped up in Ford's stunning cinematic flair, A Single Man is due to be released this Friday in the UK; just in time for Valentine's day. Althogether now, "ahhhhhhhh!"


Williams British Handmade
http://www.williams-handmade.com/
Why wax lyrical about something when you might as well just see what all the fuss is about for yourselves? Has the phrase 'thinking outside the box' ever been more appropriate? Ho ho, how many more clichés can I fit in...! Regardless, the designer Sarah Williams has inventively managed to weld together a streamlined look that is completely contemporary, with a design that harks back to those vintage values that we're all so fond of nowadays. I suddenly want to bully my farcical notion of a suitcase with its silly wheels. What does it think it is, A CAR?!

Bossy boots

Have you heard the saying that when getting dressed in the morning, you should start at the bottom and work your way up? Sounds exactly the same advice that's given about careers, doesn't it? Well, seeing as I'm tentatively testing the first rung of my 'career' ladder - a word I hate, but let's save that for another blog - it seems appropriate to spend some quality T.I.M.E on footwear.

I feel that shoes are often something of an after-thought for many people. They buy something black, that will go with everything... and then that's it.

But it's high time we all paid a little more heed to the shoe. Yep, the boot and the brogue need to get their boss back on, as what you throw on those little pinkies should dictate the rest of your life... oh wait, I mean outfit.

Irregular Choice is an example of a company that never put their feet up. Constantly creating some of the most inventive designs around, some of the stuff is a bit too unconventional even for me, but a great deal of what they have to offer is uniquely brilliant. Plus, each set of shoes has its own ridiculous nickname. So, without further ado, may I introduce you to Fabbydo and Justin-Bobby, amongst others...

http://www.irregularchoice.com/

Jokes!

Q: What luxurious beverage would you buy Alison from Starbucks?

A: A gold-frappé.

BA-DOOM-BOOM-BISH!

Right to be wrong?

I'm not a cynic. No, really! I'm not. But there's something about February 14th that just does not sit right with me. I can barely stand to look at it, let alone allow it to sit in my lap. Some see candy and flowers and birds. I tend to see so much sugar I wanna be sick, profits that, er... roll like puddings and roadkill (RIP Pidgey).

The idea of romance is vastly overrated, particularly in this day and age. Romance is just not the same, and pledging my allegiance to Valentine's day would be like sleeping with Tiger Woods: just doing something because apparantly everyone else is. Let's take a look at modern love shall we? In the past week we have had the breakdown of John Terry's marriage due to his indiscretions with a teammate's ex-girlfriend; a 19-year-old girl in New Zealand who has sold her virginity for £20,000 to pay for university tuition fees; and the Pope denouncing equal rights for gay members of the public. Not that I'm condoning the Black-Eyed Peas, but come on: where is the love?

And it's reasons like this that make real love today so important. We don't need it to be sold to us. I'm a single man, but if I was lucky enough to find someone that little bit more sparklier than the average chap, I wouldn't want it shoved down my throat in the shape of some over-priced, over-iced cookie. Love is not a business, and thus businesses need to mind their own business.

The solution? Aside from embracing spinster-hood in all its vodka-fuelled glory, I would suggest a trip to Liverpool's A Foundation on the night of the 13th or 14th. Presenting an alternative view of love, it promises to get your heart racing in other ways, through a mixture of live art performances and installation pieces. Titled 'Wrong Love', DazedDigital have interviewed Travis Street, the Texan artist who's put together this true labour of love http://www.dazeddigital.com/ArtsAndCulture/article/6449/1/Wrong_Love

I want a bite of the apple

I've fallen prey to it.

For years I've managed to resist. Of course, I've enjoyed mild flirtations, but now they have me in their grubby little paws. Having always dismissed them as a case of style over substance, an overblown 'craze' that would surely die down eventually, I now find myself in the embarassing situation of being swept up in the latest hurricane of hyperbole - and I want a piece of that windy hype.

It must have been Apple's latest gizmo, the iPad. Now, I'm not that tapped. However, the fuss about its new sprog has forced me to check-up on the first born. And I'm broody. Put simply, GIMME THAT MACBABY!

Pyjama-rama

Apparantly it's not limited to a selective few oddballs. It's not even an act that is considered embarrassing. In fact, it's supposedly becoming a national phenomenon. I'm referring to Britain's movement towards a more pyjama proud populus - specifically in the aisles of our fruits and veg. Supermarkets have had to explicity state on signs outside their doors that customers must be wearing appropriate dress and footwear, i.e. not your slips and nightgown. Some customers have remarked that those who shop in their loungewear cause them to be "embarrassed" and "offended".

I can't decide what to make of this. On the one hand, the image of myself doing the weekly shop in my pyjama top and bottoms causes my face to screw up in dread and I can't suppress the instinctive reaction to snort in derision. But I also can't help but enjoy the fact that people feel comfortable enough with what they are wearing (albeit not much) to go out in public like this. To be honest, with the recent surge in popularity of those grey trackie bottoms that every man and his dog seem to be wearing, coupled with the resilience of the fuggin' ugg boot, it's not suprising that we're taking things back to basic. Emphasis on casual comfort and... wearing what you sleep in? Perhaps this is a new market the fashion industry can tap into a little more. It's the only item of clothing that's still not produced in any manner that can really be considered 'high fashion', isn't it? Hell, if Britain is known for its multi-culturalism, perhaps it can be known for its 'multi-couturism' too...?