5 Influential Songs...

Its amazing how much animal magnetism I have for menopausal women. While their husbands and grandkids are watching my helicopters, they're watching me. Never before have I felt like the girl who stands next to the fancy car ('Do you come with the car?')...

The final day is here. I get a day off tomorrow, and the next day, and the next, and they're gonna be epic. Tonight there's a Halloween gathering at mine and Pills apparently, tis a bit of a rush job, but I got some foodies for it. Tomorrow, I think I'm gonna go home for a Hallow's Eve Belated Gathering of the Big End Crew, and kip at home probs. Saturday, obvs what I'm doing I hope. Fireworks in the Park, getting smashed, and having a good time for Red's Berfday! Sunday, recover, with the chance possibility of a meal for Red's Berfday!

Easy. Now I thought about telling you about 5 songs that I think have influenced my life, or their meaning to me, memories etc. and I'm only doing it for the lolz. Apparently. I don't talk about anything coherent any more so this'll have to do for today...

Chasing Cars - Snow Patrol

Okay so it was late in my teenage years, and it was quite popular and beautiful for obvious reasons. But most people just hear it and picture the first dances at weddings and the charismatic sky when the meteors of the summer cascaded through it. Though, there's only one thing that I picture every time I hear it now, and that's a funeral. Sorry for the downer, but there was a friend I had in school, who was always around the TechLabs, building something or other. He was a couple of years younger than me, and he had an old soul. But that summer, he was the victim of a hit and run, and that summer I can only ever picture his funeral with this song. Just like when I try and say the word solemnity I picture my grandfather's.

Moving on...

All Star - Smash Mouth

A brilliant choice, and perhaps the first time I had learnt all of the lyrics to a song without them being hymns or Christmas Carols/Songs... It also appeared in Digimon Movie, Shrek, and Rat Race (though Rat Race has somewhat become over played nowadays) So what's wrong with taking the back streets?

Come With Us - Can't Stop Won't Stop

A great summery song, though it was summer 2012, and I spent it mostly inside, wondering why life was cruel, and receiving my first rejection letters from publishers, and hearing nothing back from job vacancies and the like. I spent most of that summer with Tag and Cherry watching the Lympics, so things weren't all bad.

The Way I Tend To Be - Frank Turner

Of course Frank had to be on here. He's sort of marked the beginning of a new year and lifestyle for me, moving out, big city life, long summer evenings, wine, cider, drinking, friends, brilliant fun, and a superb 2013. And his music reminds me of Red every time, just like Tarantino and Spaghetti Westerns remind me of Tag, Fairy Tales and Fantasy remind me of Cherry, Halo of Clarey, Purple of Wodgey, and I'm sure the list goes on and on...

How Long Will I Love You - Jon Boden, Sam Sweeney & Ben Coleman

I don't think I've ever experienced anything quite like when we saw About Time, so I'll just leave this here, and hope you agree...

So that was my five. They weren't really overly special (just one or two), but I hope you like them nonetheless. What're yours?

And now for work time. 

See you later, Carpe diem...(same syllables)

Nov Eb Ner...

I just bought some music I've been planning on buying for a while, namely some Imagine Dragons and the rest of Frank's Album, that I neglected to believe existed. But then I saw a category called TV Music, and found the Advert Music section, so I now have things like Icona Pop 'I Love It' and Masters in France 'Playin with My Friends'...

Happy PayDay morning to me. 

It's almost time for a day off, just 2 days to go, and the dawning of a month I know oh so well. November holds, for me, a lot of happiness and other life events. I've always had a birthday in it, and despite my complete lack of birthdayness, I don't think I've ever been disappointed with a birthday (okay, maybe the 18th, but the 19th, 20th, and 21st, were epic.) But soon I'll be 24. Just a number at the end of the day, and no time what so ever in the actual span of life that I plan on receiving (perhaps I'm tempting fate), though, I know now that all the people I know, and enjoy my time with, I want with me, throughout. No matter what. 

And I don't think I will be doing Movember. 

Things with Pill and I are going okay. We know we're not going to be living together forever, and now we're actually talking about getting a temporary flat, large enough, and without damp, for me, he, and DarkHorse to reside in quite comfortably. And in town of course. 

I completed my Birthmas List for Mother the other week, and sent it in a nice note/letter/email which sort of went like this:

Hello Santa-Mother, this year I would very much like to be healthy, wealthy, and wonderfully stealthy: however, in the unlikelihood of you being able to provide any of that, I would like any number of the following things:

- All the stuff I wanted...

And I believe that's it for now. I know you have your own ideas Santa-Mother, and I'll be grateful to see those as well. Hope you are well, enjoy the North Pole.

Thomas Edward Ajax-Lewis,

The house without a fireplace,

Cardiff.

And gladly, as my mother is my mother, she played along in the response, which went like this:

Thank you little boy for your email to Santa, we shall see what we can do this end. Do not worry that you have no fireplace because Santa Mother is very stealthy and will find a way to deliver your presents as long as you have been a good little boy!

Love

Santa’s helper. xx

So yes, things seem to be okay this week. Though life does like to change. Partying and Fireworks on the Weekend for Red's Birthday, and I'm gonna have to walk to the post depo on Friday to collect what I assume are her presents. If they're not, I don't know what else it could be...

Carpe diem you brilliant people!... 

Day 9 Of 11...

There's nothing quite like the tiredness you get from 11 Days of working, in my opinion (with the exception and foreknowledge that I haven't ever done anything Wodge is currently going through, and I know we've all got our bad experiences, so ignore me if you will)...

To be fair, I'm almost to the end. Today will be day 9, and it's not a real full time 11 Days, but it has certainly given me the inability to not switch off, so I wake up tired, gain a tremendous sense of deja vu every walk into town, start work, clean up, repeat. 

I don't have a good firm grip of the English language, I've decided. It's more a soft glace in English's direction when ever I open my mouth. I don't know why, but my brain does like to try and over complicate things, a. in life, and b. in the way that I talk. 

Like I was telling Cherry last week, and more for the most part, if you know me, I sound far better in text format than I think I ever will verbally. I've been through a few speech therapies in my life, mostly to remove a stutter and restore some self confidence. It's an odd thing to try and explain, but going from crippling public speaking problems to the job I have now has certainly been quite an existence. 

So just try to understand me if I get my words around the wrong way, or I'm trying to explain something but I'm going the wrong way around it. Some of you already do that, I know. You can understand the nonsense that I drivel sometimes, and for the rest of you, you'll get used to it, and perhaps one day you'll also hear me sneeze. But not too soon, we require some mystery I think.

It's Red's birthday on the weekend and the order to dress up 'Sexy as Fuck' is certainly one I hope to adhere to. And although I shall endevour to accomplish my goal, I shall possibly fall short if everything doesn't arrive before Saturday. We're hitting the town, and before we do there's gonna be fireworks outside the house and down the street. I think a group on Cardiff Bridge watching fireworks from Bute Park would be epic. But I might be wrong. The fires start at 7pm. They're the big people ones. I'm not sure why there are kid ones and adult ones, and the concept even sounds amusing. Perhaps they'll set the car alarms off again they were so big/loud. Apparently it'll be the biggest display in Wales and one of the largest in the UK. I suppose we'll have to see it to believe it...

Have a tremendous day, and I look forward to seeing us all again, Carpe diem...

TRANSMISSION #1

Greetings Subjects...

It has been a huge success but now we have access to this platform of existence as well... 

Now we will spread the word and begin testing immediately. Please, for your own enjoyment, do not take too much enjoyment from this test as that might pervert the outcome. Remember your school days of testing and how much fun they were? That is the correct level of fun to have with our tests as well...

Let us begin...

1. There are five cows and two chickens in a room. *Sounds like a tasty meal.* Ha ha, I am so funny. Stop having fun. The cows are blind and the chickens are deaf. You are locked in this room with them, with no way out and no way to survive. You are a vegan. Which would you prefer to be eaten by the Five Blind Cows or the Two Deaf Chickens?

2. Google defines desert islands as: a remote tropical island, typically an uninhabited one. If you were left on a tropical iceberg with nothing but a coat. Would you rather freeze to death on the iceberg, drown to death in the waters, or burn to death from the hot sun?

Testing is fun. Reminder, you should not be having fun, this is a test...

3. How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood? He would chuck, he would, as much as he could, and chuck as much as a woodchuck would if a woodchuck could chuck wood. With this in mind would you rather be beheaded by the Axe Psychopath hiding in your cupboard one late night in October, or hang yourself with the shame, and a rope, that you stopped the Axe Psychopath?

4. For this next question please apply the correct pronouns to your situation. Would you rather meet a man/woman/other who was pleasing to the eye and apparently superb in every way but get brutally chopped into little pieces while you were still alive in their front room on the very night you meet them. If you ask me, any one who goes back with them after one night deserves it. Am I right? Or would you rather meet a man/woman/other who was a hideous monster and would follow you forever if you wanted them to or not and die alone in their arms?

5. Would you rather walk around with no reproductive organs at all and die alone without any offspring, or would you prefer to have reproductive organs on your face for everyone to see, with the possibility of offspring? It is only a possibility, after all, you will have a reproductive organ on your face.

And that concludes the test for this time. Please leave your answers below and we shall calculate the findings.

Transmission over...

Talks...

Yesterday was a day of talking, and a lot of talking at that, to lots of different people. I grew, I developed, and I learnt new things about myself and the others around me. It was a very productive day, so much so that waking up to the darkness of morning was a hardship of mental exhaustion...apparently.

So there it was Coffee with Tag and the almost drunken slurs of tired people, mumbled across the beverage fumes. We didn't talk about much, just work, and writing, and life in general. Accepting that we had grown up and looked at ourselves, even at the start of this year, knowing the Starbucks staff members and pretending to be adults having coffee before work. A series of memories that just continue to be made. And then he went to work, and I went home to await my work start time.

In the meantime there was an argument with Cherry, and a discussion with Wodge. Both very productive, and nice catch-ups. But I was playing GTA at the time so conversations didn't continue for very long, until Pill and DarkHorse arrived home and I knew I had to go to work. A 5-8, weird shift wouldn't you agree? It was a staff induction for the new Christmas Temps. And I had a whale of a time. And then I returned home where Pill and DarkHorse had waited for me to serve the dinner. It was nice, and we watched TV while Pill Rimmed the Sky (nice image).

And then came bed where the conversations with Wodge and Cherry continued. I messaged Tag and Red too, but to no avail. The chatting continued long into the night, and I even got to watch a few more episodes of Downton Abbey - don't worry it's almost over...and then I can watch it live on telly.

So remember, don't listen to the voices, don't over think, and above all, don't picture any number of possibilities and get your tail in a spin. I seriously think some of us need to consult a head doctor at one point or another.

4 days down, only 7 to go. You guys keep me sane. Keep doing that, and I'll keep pretending to be a needy sonofabitch.

Today's feel good song is...

Surrender to the Strawberry Ice Cream and have a superb day, you brilliant people! Carpe diem...

Good Start...

Life is a game in which the player must appear to be ridiculous...

There aren't many better ways to start the day than at dawn, with a warm shower and then out into the fresh crisp morning, before the sun has crept over the buildings of the city to have a walk down the river to the station. All the while with a big grin on your face from the music your iPod is coming out with. And then you merely run into, by chance, a friend at the station and wander round for a good catch-up and a coffee.

Love the one you hold, and I'll be your goal to have and to hold, a lover of the light. Followed by...

There's an old voice in my head that's holding me back. Well tell her that I miss our little talks, soon it will be over and buried with our past. We used to play outside when we were young and full of life and full of love...

And needless to say a man chat followed...

*The details have been deleted and no records can be found.*

It was nice to hang out with Tag again. It's seemed like such a long time. And things appear to be hotting up in Downton Abbey. The Lord's Wife nearly died, and he's been having a bit of a fling with a House Maid, meanwhile a Maid and a Butler have been married and he's subsequently been arrested for the murder of his former Wife. And now it's Christmas. 

All in all, it's been an alright day of far. I've even been to the market, and done the washing. Red came to see me last night as we were shutting the shop and she made me think in a more positive fashion than I have done so in a while. It was a good thought. And so far, these 11 Days of work before a 3-day weekend seem most worthwhile.

Positivity and Prosperousness be among us all. Carpe diem...

It's Only Wednesday...

So, I read something yesterday that seemed to hit the nail on the head and leave a couple of feelings in me, the first being, glad I'm not alone, and the second being things always look greener on the other side. I shan't go into details, but I will say that I told Pill last night that if he moves out of Cardiff, I shan't be going with him. I'm not ready to go back to small town living, no matter how cheap it is. He seemed quiet sad and taken aback by my decision and then went on a rant about how he actually hates this house and how he can't sleep and shit like that. 

I might offer to swap rooms with him as he doesn't like the lights or the noises and the like, but I don't think all his furniture will fit in this room. One of his arguments for me staying with him was to get a bigger place, and I'm not sure that was entirely for my benefit. 

I find it odd that almost all of my friends are thinking of moving somewhere else: Caerphilly, Bath, Italy... Perhaps I'm seeing everything through rose-tinted glasses. I like to think couples love each other and have no problems in the world, I like where I live, but obviously no one else does, and strangely enough I do enjoy most movies. Maybe I just don't have as high standards in some parts of my life as I do with others.

And strangely enough I was in a conversation with someone who moved to Bath and I mentioned that a couple of my friends wanted to move there and they replied that although the pyramids are beautiful, you wouldn't want to live there and lose the magic would you? I thought it was an interesting point. 

Don't you love those little things that make your week go by even quicker and make you think its an awesome day? I had one of those moments last night, and Monday morning. You may remember it was pouring down on Monday, and as I walked to work I turned the corner into St Mary's Street and faced the storm head on. As I passed the Goat Major the rain stopped, the clouds parted slightly, and the Sun rose over the rooftops of Cardiff for the shortest of seconds...

And the second thing happened to me last night as I walked back and Passenger started to play on my iPod as I crossed Cardiff Bridge. I stopped for a short while just listening to the lyrics and watching the river beneath one of those fake lanterns. It was a good moment. 

Have a bodacious day! Carpe diem...

Waking Up Alone... (a working progress, and off the cuff set of lyrics that have no melody just yet and probably won't make sense and sound more poetical than anything)

In the morning light, when it felt so right

I woke up next to you, next to you.

Your warmth in my arms and your thoughts on my pillow,

A perfect moment made of dreams

But recently I've been waking up alone, waking up alone.

Where have you gone? We were special

The thing of dreams, the thing of dreams

(Meh, that's a bit crappy, but this album won't write itself!)

Reconsidering...

I think the likelihood of me living with Pill next year has dropped dramatically since he announced that Caerphilly might be an option. I don't know whether he was being serious or being a dick, but either way the amount of one bed unfurnished flats for under £500 in the surrounding area is a bit scarce, but that's just within a quarter mile from here. How nice is this place?

I think it's a bit odd thinking Caerphilly, although quite nice (I've passed through it on occasion), is a possibility. I have friends from there who have difficulties getting to work due to train and public transport problems and just think it's only 20 mins away by train (he said sarcastically). And if they do move there I can see them becoming more and more detached from our little sect. Which I suppose, as they are engaged now, would have probably happened anyway. Either way, the announcement has certainly made me reconsider his motives. 

He's also started this thing of seeing how far I'll go to help out or be generous to my friends, and enjoys telling me I've failed every time I do something useful. I believe he's testing me, or conditioning me, I'm not entirely sure. I don't think he likes how I said I was going to get everyone something for Christmas anyway. I do every year, so I don't know why I should stop now. And I don't even know why we still do Secret Santa if we all have money now. I doubt I'm going to stop being myself but he's starting to make it difficult. 

He's also started pushing me a lot (I'm not sure whether that's for my own good or not), saying I should probably start writing again, and when am I going to start writing again, and what am I currently writing, and just stuff like that. I keep telling him that I haven't stopped writing, which is true in a sense, and not so true in others. I am currently planning a NaNoWriMo I think, though I'm not sure I'll get much time to do anything in November - but all, I'll say is Real Magic 2: Magic Just Got Real, might be a thing...

I was really quite tired and laidback last night, so to have all this conversation and all the while speak with Lee (a nice guy), Pill's Mentor, about life, life stories, and radiation, gave me a headache and I actually went to bed early (about 10:30)...

I'm really enjoying all the Imagine Dragons songs I've been linked too (thank you Red, you were right). And I've also realised that I've heard some of them before without actually knowing they were Imagine Dragons. Who knew?

It's raining rather dramatically at the moment. I'm concerned that the river might swell too much a wash this place all away. I hope not. Have a brilliant day guys...

Carpe diem...

P.S. Has anyone noticed that this last month's blog titles could be seen on the back of an Album? Perhaps I'll write and sing all the songs...

1. Waking Up Alone
2. An Odd Quickie
3. Nothing At All
4. Bangers And Mash And Zombies
5. Over-Achieving Blowjob
6. Cinema Grill
7. Drugs Help
8. And I Will Always Be With You
9. Quiet Contemplation
10. Bay?
11. If I Ever Stray
12. The Birthmas List
13. Bute Wall

Waking Up Alone...

Its rather odd waking up in the dark, but I think it's even odder waking up alone. Now, I don't mean alone in bed, because I've always done that, for 23/24 years, and I know no different, and I don't care anyway... (forever alone...hashtag)

But I do mean alone in the house. Even upstairs was gone. I couldn't hear her shuffling or bashing and crashing (she's quite clumsey from the sounds of things). And it was an odd feeling considering that I had spent the evening with all the guys, even GG, and went home with both Pill and DarkHorse.

So, I woke up alone, and then spent the day washing the dishes, eating Nachos and Dip, honing my artwork, and playing GTA 5. I even discovered that they weren't to be returning that day via a text sent at about 4ish. But, by that time I had caught up on television and was deep in Downton. 

I can see why people are so addicted to it.

It's going to be a strange week. I have a day off on Thursday, but before then I'm working a 9-5, a 10-7, and a 11:30-8:30. Fun times ahead, from the sounds of things, and hopefully a couple of hang outs throughout too.

Carpe diem...

An Odd Quickie...

Bit of a quickie here today, like a little insight into how my mind works. And it's taken me a long time to realise the thing I'm going to tell you, and like most epiphanies, it came to me in the shower.

Week's ago, when the Summer was slowly in decline and the people of the world were wondering why the darkness of night was creeping back into their evenings, Red took a picture...

And I filmed a video...

Post by Thomas Edward Ajax-Lewis.

And it occured to me that all that finally ammounted to just one thing, on the same moment, of the same month, of the same day...

Have an awesome day, you can do anything you put your mind to...

Carpe diem...

Nothing At All...

I remember being asleep, and expecting to wake up very early on into the night. I don't know why, perhaps I was just uncomfortable, but then this morning I woke up, into the darkness of an October morning thinking about Marriage and Minecraft...

Tis an odd one I hope you agree, unless of course you know the connection between the two, because I sure as hell don't. I think three couples I know have become engaged this year, with a potential two more on the way. Which, to put that into perspective, before this year, I had only been to two weddings (counting my eggs before they've hatched), and probably five funerals. So in just a few weeks they've given me the potential to go to just as many weddings as funerals, if not more (do wedding receptions count?)...

And any way, Minecraft, I was thinking of moulding a castle and battling some spiders or some shit like that. Good gracious, why aren't my blogs about anything at the moment? I wonder...

Perhaps I feel my writing ability has somewhat become dulled by this repetition and routine, although with routine comes perfection (well, not really). It's certainly not dull. By most people's standards I live quite a remarkable and extraordinary life. I go for breakfasts, lunches, and dinners, cinema trips, telly days, different apartments and houses, all with people I love (j'adore), adore, and admire. And after all, for writing's sake NaNoWriMo's around the corner (should I do it again?)...

There's going to be an opportunity for me to attend a party thrown by my Big End Friends soon, but I don't think I can go. It's funny how we can all swim in different circles but then come together as if nothing in the world has changed and everything is perfectly fine. That's why I like seeing Wodge, that and she's always got a story, a jiggle dance, or a panda to show us.

And then I was thinking of publishing a list of girls I had fancied throughout my life and trying to figure out the link between them all, apart from all being pretty, but then I realised the list was far too small for a man with my reputation, and a reputation this good took me 23 years to build after all. I can't have people thinking that beneath this callous, rapey, and oddly-attractive exterior lies a warm, pleasant, and pleasing to the eye individual. Wouldn't you agree? Quite right...

Perhaps next time I won't talk so much shit...

Carpe diem...

Bangers And Mash And Zombies...

And he's gone silent for a couple of days. Who wondered where he had gone? Who even cared? Well, not me, I was playing GTA and hanging out with friends trying to find, shag, and kill hookers...

So, I accidentally bought Grand Theft Auto 5 the other day, and because I had two days off in a row, I decided I would play it. I've not been a fan of GTA since 3 - though saying that, I haven't played the others - but so far I'm enjoying myself, and I'm understanding why everyone's so crazy about the game...

But anyway, apart from going completely psycho on the game, killing rednecks, flying planes out of military drugs compounds, and pulling off a jewelry heist, I've been living a pretty normal life. The guys came over last night for bangers and mash and a movie. I made Apple Crumble too - I thought the crumble was far worse than the bangers and mash (What is this? Oh you didn't put cinnamon in this did you? Dick!) I do put cinnamon in my crumble, when All Spice isn't around. And occasionally (always) I enjoy putting raisins in there too. But normal, straight, apple next time I feel. 

Thankfully Red decided to stay when food was eaten and cooked. I hadn't watched all of Jackass with you guys at all! And we put World War Z on instead. Action, Action, and Action, with a bit of tense zombie scene, and a drizzle, but not too much, of family plot...

It wasn't lads night. I was expecting Lord of the Rings and a quiet time. Not so much the vest tops and cargo trousers, but I'm glad I now know how to dress like a douche. That shirt was so thick.

This post has been successfully short and about nothing in particular. There was a congratulations card for Pill and DarkHorse's engagement, a comment made about present cheating couples, and more raping with Cherry (more?). But now, here's something funny I found on the internet...

(...do you think they should make iPhones for babies, cos I do...)

Carpe diem...

Over-Achieving Blowjob...

So, where were we? Ah yes...Friday Night. After a much accomplished day of work I traveled to the homestead to begin preparations for the much needed drunken debauchery. The guys arrived soon after and we were out and about again by about 8:30. Somewhere in the inter-meaning time the Boiler broke and someone arrived to fix it again...

We found ourselves in Borroco (is that how you spell it?) with Cocktails, Tag and I spoke with the Bar Maid, I got ID'd (it's so weird being told I look young), and I pretended to check out the room from the bar, in my blazer looking sexy as. Admittedly we were all looking hot, and I mean hot hot (just saying). We moved on through town, Brewery Quarter, Mill Lane, Le Lake Poob, and we sort of lost it at about Missoula - I know there were two toilet breaks after that in Revs de Cuba and Live Lounge - but they're so close together? - and there was lots of reps trying to entice us into their clubs, only two of which I can remember - Hayden a jolly chap who got paid £6 an hour (under minimum wage) and the skinny guy who was trying to get us into Floyds Bar. There was a lot of hand holding, hugs, general affection, and finally to Revs to pop Red's Rev's Cherry (as it were). There was where the night ended, there was where the night could have began, and we danced and celebrated. Had some free Chili Shots (they didn't go down well - Tag's idea), and then Tag bought some White Chocolate Shots (I suggested them and they were tasty). Cherry mugged Red for cash for a final pitcher, and we danced and mingled and danced some more. Red and Cherry got hit on my a few guys and Tag and I waded in to see if assistance was required. Needless to say, a short while after that we ended up home, after a short bought of carrying a few people, barefootedness, and then complaints that we didn't go get chips...

I don't think it would have worked that well if there were more of us, but then we'll never know...

And then came the morning after. I woke up and threw all my pain pills (got pills here) at the others who were somewhat feeling a little rough around the edges and then got them to go to Truffles via Primark for breakfast. It was nice in there. Food was required and some of us felt much better for it, and some of us didn't. Cherry and I walked Tag and Red to work, and we started the day rightly.

I went home to visit the Famille on Saturday. It was more or less the usual stuff. Talk about things I've already talked about, watch a movie (it was B-list but it was good), watch some Grand Prix, and eat too much. Mother and I went out shopping, and I bought a new jacket (you guys have got to wear this thing. It's like being in bed), and I searched endlessly for a cheaper version of GTA 5 - I think I'm going to buy it today. My sister has decided that she probably won't go to the interview I stuck my neck out to try and get her, and I've decided I'm not going to try and help that selfish bitch again. You know the sort of relationship I and my family have with her. Anyway, I got to see Clareg and in fact the whole Clareg famile plus Clareyloo as we had popped over to drop over some cards. Clareg's Mother (my Italian Mama) demanded to know why I hadn't seen her in such a long time, and I couldn't leave until I promised to come back and visit her on her birthday (which I fully intend to do). It was really nice catching up. It was warm when I last went home, and now winter is well and truly on its way.

Anyway, Sunday evening rolled by, and I came home to visit the Thompsons, before going out with the guys to go see Dan Sloss and Kai Humphries down the Bay in the Glee Club. I laughed harder and harder, and I was sure I was starting to annoy a few people in the audience (probably the guys too). But since then I've been thinking about Holidays next year - making actual solid plans - and doing the Bull Run. Could you imagine the experience? Kai Humphries can, google it. It was just nice, and even better, it was a completely sober evening too. We can tolerate each other for long periods of time without alcohol (we are friends, we are laughing). And we even got some Free Hugs from the acts afterwards too (who am I to turn down a Free Hug?), and Dan Sloss was making a lot of eye contact with almost all of us from what I could tell.

And that concludes this round of The Extraordinary Life of the Swingers, but I hope and undoubetly believe that there will be more to come. Just keep your eyes out and your nose to the ground...

Have a superb day...

Carpe diem...

Cinema Grill...

I have to say, my blogs haven't really been about very much recently. Life, or my concept of it at least, as plateau'd waiting for the extraordinary to happen - and do you know what? The extraordinary happened...

There was a cinema trip, and a night out, and tonight there's dinner and a show. Things be coming up Milhouse. But anyway, starting from the top and finishing some time tomorrow (as work begins in just 15mins) Let's say that the cinema trip was a lovely way to wind down Hump Day. 

Catch a car ride with your friends, travel all the way to the Bay and hang out in a small and quiet pub, that's friendly and well stocked enough that we could have easily stayed to play cards. We drank and ate our fill (actually a lot more than our fill) to which some of us regretted it. Large Mixed Grills aren't the way to go. Tasty, but I couldn't have one every week. And yet Hot Dogs? Either way, we downed pints (bad idea) and ventured out into the brisk night air. Red discovered that she could hide, quite well inside my jacket, bag and all, and we found seats in the cinema to see Filth...

Now, I enjoyed that movie, it was funny, dark, and dramatic, a brilliant role of Mc-Cavoy's. It even showed you more, and less, than you were expecting to see all most all of the time. There was also a whole thing where all of the music was a cover of something else and some underlying themes stretching throughout. I would get all studenty on it, but I'm not a student, so fuck-it. And now we all know the definition of Furious Masturbation.

But I digress. Time has now run out, and I require to tell you all about Friday Night and then tonight also. Please stay tuned for the next installment of The Extraordinary Life of the Swingers...

Carpe diem...

Drugs Help...

Thanks to a sniffle and a short cough, I saw Pill wrapped up in a blanket watching telly last night as I returned home. It turns out he has also caught a slight Cold, but very much thanks to a 'Fuck You' attitude I've completely stolen from my peers, I don't intend to have one for very long. Also, drugs, drugs help...

I, yet again, have very little to say, and thus I sit here and think about what happened to me yesterday. It was quite uneventful bar smashing my phone upon the earth and watch it struggle to work, the touch screen being paralyzed from the neck, down. The good news, however, is that my Mother (efficient as she is) is sending me another identical handset in the post in the next couple of days. Needless to say, I was weighing up the possibilities and prices in my head and thought about doing something Pill has wanted to do for a while, and pit Tag and Red against each other for the best deal and better phone. 

Obvs, I'm not going to make you fight, but I'll weigh up the pros and cons I suppose. Who knows, might still happen. 'I've been a loyal customer for 25 Years!'

Do people buy broken phones?

I tried drawing a badly drawn character the other day, and it's okay - but I've somewhat lost quite a bit of the non-skill I had before, I'm going to have to practice, and that goes the same for the bigger picture I was doing. I'm not pleased with it (DIE!)...

I'm listening to The Dragonborn Comes, and reliving my times before Cardiff, and countless hours spent in creative worlds and different, non-money-making ideas. I don't care how geeky it sounds, I'm listening to it, it's cool.

And now I've just found a brilliant mime video that I vaguely remember, but I don't acutally remember putting it on my playlist. We should make a video (cooking with Red?)...

...it's really cheesy, just a warning for you...

Carpe diem...

And I Will Always Be With You...

As nothing much happened to me yesterday apart from the contraction of a Cold, I'll tell you about my weekend as a whole...

Saturday I worked, though, and don't you love it when you have plans that make you forget that you worked that day? I know I do. Tag, Cherry, and I found ourselves travelling to Red's for a movie night. We crept into her building behind someone with a Pram, Tag helped them through the door with it (a quick whack over the back of the head and they were using the buggie as a wheelchair), and we ascended in the lift wondering why all the signs were scratched out and nothing else...

We rang the bell (and Tag did his Milhouse gag) and Red answered with a vast amount of enthusiasm and amusement at the gag (#sarcychick) and we sat, discussing days, and then food. The telly was on, and I had no idea what the program was, but then New Girl came on and I knew what that was (it's been almost a year since I had television)...

We settled on Pizza, and Tag and I were nominated to get more drink (crisps and cookies too, though I wasn't told to get those). We returned, and then the pizza guy arrived and we had to get that too - he was a really nice chap actually. And then the movie fun could begin - The Internship and This Is The End. Both were really good films. 

The Internship was a typical American Comedy/Drama/Romance film (i.e. it had a happy ending), and I enjoyed it. Especially the Bearded Google Search Programmer (BGSP = GOD) who turned out to be a badass in the end - I knew it was coming. (STP means soo many things, I just Googled it)...

This Is The End was something else. Wonderfully entertaining, and everyone was type-cast (as always) with Seth Rogan and Jay-whatever-Baruchel being the unlikely heroes, James Franco being the eye-candy, Craig (Kreg) Robinson being Craig Robinson, Danny McBride being the dick, and Jonah Hill being penetrated by a demon dick. You know, the usual. Also a Channing Tatum cameo that can't be missed.

After that we played a game of Fuck You, which would be far better with more drinks, and went our different ways at 1am. All-in-all, a very successful evening. And, I completely forgot I had worked that day. A plus in anyone's book I'm sure. 

Kodaline have made a second music video - that follows from the first - for the same song 'All I Want'. It's a bit odd, I don't know why, apart from extra coverage. Both videos could be seen as stand alones, though Part 2 has a lot of references to part one.

Part 1:

Part 2:

Today I work until 8:30 and I'm going purchase plenty of Cold Relief, Vitamins, and Fruit, ain't nothing gonna drag me down...

Carpe diem...

Quiet Contemplation...

The red sun rises on the fifth day, coffee steams on the bookcase, and How Long Will I Love You is serenading me from my iPod...

I hate to say it, but all these things are needed to get me out of bed this morning. I tried, in my fatigue (not mentally) to wake my body up through exercise. Unfortunately, my body decided that enough was enough and gave up half way through. So, that's a little bit of exercise Thursday Night, Friday Night, and now this morning - that makes for one workout right?

Tonight we chill and get this party started riiiight!

We're going over Red's to hangout: movies, telly, food, what excitements will we have in store. And I've got to remember to get the flavoured water... (psst, like I'll forget)...

Last night, I didn't get up to much, Pill's away this weekend, so I came home to a quiet house, but still with the washing up to do from when I cooked on Wednesday. So, I phoned my mother - she's back from her holidays with Dad, and then I turned my tunes on and jammed to all the ballads and danced and sang whilst I washed and cooked. I caught my reflection in the kitchen window, and I didn't think there was a fat man singing there any more. Don't get me wrong, I've got a long way to go just yet, but I'm actually thinking I'm not that fat any more...

I suppose I got the hint, when I had to go buy a new dinner jacket because all the other ones could go around me more than once (perhaps Dad wants them)...

I made the food I will be eating all weekend, a sort of bolognese with bacon instead of mince, and settled in to watch a completely rubbish RomCom with Reese Witherspoon, Paul Rudd, Owen Wilson, and Jack Nickolson. It was awful, I don't even know why I watched it. But it gave me hope that if something that rubbish (even the Last Airbender movie) could be made, then there's room for me somewhere up there.

And no one's really told me what they thought of Bute Wall yet!

So, that was my evening of quiet contemplation and exercise. Bit of a let down really, but then I was tired. Roll on 7:30!

Carpe diem...

Bay?...

You've had an entire week of blogs!...and that's how uneventful this week has been, except last night.

Yesterday started like most days, and then it got a whole shade awesome when I purchased a new jacket from New Look, who were getting their rave on, and then I went down the Bay with the Swingers to welcome back Red to the sheltered harbour of our madness. 

We wandered around for a short while before deciding to go to Bellini's (purely because Signor Valentino was empty - that ain't no good advert) for a very nice meal. There was a lot of shared food - namely my veg and Tag's tortellini. We had wine and food and company and it was really nice, and almost all of us were dressed up (way to let the team down Tag). It was an adult evening, and yet not. It was our evening. 

Afterwards we got cocktails from Terra Nova, and then we went for a walk and finally achieved a life long ambition of getting our picture taken with the giant glowing globe. I wish I could have touched it, and I was a little disappointed that it wasn't actually bigger. Either way we left the boat place very soon before we were asked to leave ('You're not welcome.') and went for the Secret Beach. 

It was brilliantly dark (fireworks over the Bay there is going to be fantastic - possibly). We exercised on the public gym equipment, and some of us slightly abused it...

Then we started our wonderful dawdle towards Pennarth and The Custom House. We found a new nocturnal species of sea cockroach, that no one else in the world knows or has ever seen, and we saw happy ducks, evil swans with glowing orange eyes, and the Eye of Sauron before he was cool. There were also a few instances where we got to do a Kate and Leo:

The night ended rather abruptly when we were staring out at the sea and Tag pointed out a man who was staring at us (a tall white slender man). Obviously we didn't believe him, he being the moment raper, and then I turned around and saw him. We moved shortly after the discovery, and marched back to the car.

Never before has a night of walks, Lord of the Rings quotes, and Italian food ever been so eventful and wonderfully adapted by a foursome ever before, ever!

Welcome back Red, you can't say Nougat in derp...

Carpe diem...

If Ever I Stray...

There are more minutes in a moment, than you can expect years in a lifetime...

That is a. very depressing, and b. very beautiful (I think). I'm not sure if it makes sense, but I thought about it while listening to a bit of Frank (If I Ever Stray) and I think I might add it to the series of one-line beauties that I've been coming up with recently...

Sure, they're not all good, but I'll eventually hit the nail on the head.

Yesterday, I went clothes shopping and bought very little. Remember how I don't want anything? Well, turns out that's an issue when I start shopping. And it's getting increasingly annoying, because I just tried on a few jackets that used to fit me, and realised just how much smaller I am to how I was almost a year ago (that's a lie, perhaps 8 months). I'm living a more sociable, healthy, and productive lifestyle, and I'm loving it. This week's been hellish though. I've had three days off alone now, and the madness didn't settle in once, can you believe it?! It has been boring though. I managed to complete Bute Wall, and I started playing a new game since finishing Saints, and I have helped Cherry set up her new website for Curiouser and Curiouser (her bookshop) - that was fun, and reminded me of the creative collaborations we used to have. Maybe I'll go back to the drawing board with wearethewritingpeople.co.uk...

GG has started asking me for more comics (Red, you haven't met her yet), and by God, I hope to supply. I've just got to think of all the funny stuff we've been up to - obviously introduce Red as a character (as everyone else already is) - I have been working on a group picture, in a slightly un-badly drawn, and yet badly drawn style. If I get it to a stage I like, perhaps I'll show you. 

And then there's the Skyrim Escapades. I told Pill last night, that if he was to start playing Skyrim, I would have to start playing again, to which he said something along the lines of, he'll be playing it, and won't bother investing in any new games and when the 360 peters out of use, he'll not buy another console because he's got better things to do with his time. And then I said to him, but why don't you do all that stuff anyway, even though you've got an xbox? And his reply was that he had an xbox, so he wouldn't get any of that done. 

I looked at him oddly and chose not to argue back. I don't know about you, but if you've lost your self-control to a games console, and want to be doing something else other than gaming, then surely you would get the fuck away from your console and go do something 'better' (or his perception of better) with your life? Wouldn't you? I like to think I would. 

I use gaming as a release, and I don't game very often, as I have many an outlet (this, the secret blog, actual writing, occasional artistry, walking, exercise, etc), but I don't think Pill has any hobbies bar drinking and magic the gathering. 

Out with the guys tonight! It's gonna be good to see them all again - though saying that Tag and I had some drinks yesterday, and had manly chats (as we could and should do more often).

See you later!

Carpe diem...

The Birthmas List

The Birthmas List, a very powerful tool in the life and year of Big Tom. It is not only a free pass to all my wants and desires, it is also a way of achieving them all (within reason)...

The only problem being, I never want for much. I've always been like that though - I always go, I could use a new camera, though saying that I don't really need one, my old camera works perfectly fine. Or, I could want this video game right here, but then I do have a few video games to complete first...

And this wanting has only gotten worse as the years have gone on, and especially when I've gone and got myself a Full-Time job. Nothing seems out of reach, as it were. So, what the devil do I want for my Birthmas list?

Ah yes, it's the added difficulty of having to write two lists at once. I realised at a very young age that Santa delivered both my Birthday and Christmas presents, so I thought it was easier to just write him the one letter. That, and I was told to write just the one, one year (somewhat destroying the illusion). I suppose that's the difficulty with having a birthday so close to Christmas (not as close as some though). My mother has already bought me something I don't think I asked for. Perhaps it'll be my Christmas Jumper! Though saying that she said it was a Birthday Present, hmm...

Either way, I suppose I'll go check out my Amazon Wishlist and see what it says. It contains lots of books I don't think I'll get round to reading, games for a console that doesn't exist yet, and DVDs I seem to be acquiring via digital media at the moment anyway. It's a tricky one. 

Maybe I'll go out today and browse for ideas. 

Pill, DarkHorse, and I watched Sorcerer's Apprentice last night (before I watched Bake Off alone) and that was a good movie - though I think I may have seen it before. However, the song in it was quite good:

I think I probably just like the Cello bit and the dramatic and epic chorus...

Have a very fine day...

Carpe diem...

Bute Wall

It's here, it has come! But before all that, don't you think it's weird if you think about your funeral too much? You know, who'll be there, who won't be there, etc.

Well, that went a different way to the way I was intending.

Yesterday I educated myself with Les Mis and I thought it was a very good movie/musical/story and it kept me singing long after I had watched Avengers, and well into the night, much to Pill's annoyance. 

Hairy Toad Callus!

We went shopping in the market, where Pill was looked at like filth by the Fishmonger, putting the mong in monger. He asked for a pound of Muscles (I don't know fish either) and the Mong looked at him in disgust.

'You want a paand?' he said in utter disgust for the question. And then went off on one about how it would leave three people wanting if they were to just have muscles. So, we walk away, instead, with 1.5 kg of Muscles instead and have loads left over. And if we do the maths, 1lbs = to about 500g, and if Pill asked for 2lbs and told the muffafucker where to go, we might not have had such a fishy evening.

Pill looked at me for guidance, but I don't know fish (or molluscs as they are) and remained silent. Needless to say we had some pasta to accompany our muscles, rather than the other way around. A very fishy meal indeed. And then the bleeping continued to happen so Pill climbed the 10ft to reach the machine of the Fire Alarm and realised that he'd prefer to have his bond back than to smash the thing off the ceiling. 

We watched Real Steel, which is a very good feel-good movie involving Hugh Jackman (Pill thinks he looks weird) and a robot with feelings - or that's implied though it's never brought back or mentioned any more than getting the thing to wake up after its had the shit kicked out of it. But, either way, 'Merica!

But I suppose I should get down to it. I've completed what I like to call the 'Friend Edit' of Bute Wall, namely the one I think I'm happy for you guys to read and let me know what you think before I go any further with it. I posted it on my other blog, the one with all my secrets on it, but I'll let you have a read if you want...here!

Have a nice day...

Carpe diem...