Shanghai or bust

Well hello there happy campers it's Nick back with more interesting jargon for you to chew over at a big table. Shanghai. My latest adventure set for the middle of May and if the picture on your left (right if you favour pc usage hanging down from the ceiling) is anything to go by, then I'm gonna need a coat full of spikes to get through the throng (I said "throng" you dirty scoundrels, you know who you are!) - But enough about pants, I mean crowds. I've never been east before so for all those who wish to give me useful tips on how to eat and things, please feel free to post some advice. A good friend of mine has already very kindly pointed out not to venture into a KFC. They have a different outlook on best parts of chicken. And that's even after explaining to me that choosing from a local menu is like Russian Roulette. Only deadlier. That being said I am excited by this new adventure, testing unknown waters east side. It will certainly be the furthest east I've been since that trip to Croydon. So as I sit in the chilly January breeze my mind can wander to the soaring heat (May isn't flood season is it?) of Shanghia. I do intent on loosing a bit of belly fat before I head over there - I'm sure it would be noticable even in a sea of thousands you could probably spot the tubby manx lad waltzing through the crowd whistling "slow boat to china" - obviously realising prior-take off that another airline has bitten the dust and gone to meet it's maker in the......sky? The attempt at a healthier lifestyle is all targeted around this years Parish Walk in June (more on that to follow later I'm sure) - this time the aim is to carry on being healthier "after" the walk. Last year post-parish goodness lasted about half an hour. I was crumpled in a chair, my crippled body reaching out for pizza and beer. The good life? I'll tell you what it's like in July.....Stay tuned for more interesting drivel...

So this is Christmas......

All we are saying is give peace a chance as John Lennon once sang. Tomorrow marks the 28th Anniversary of his untimely death at the hands of a deluded and psychotic Mark Chapman. If John were around today he'd be one of the first to acknowledge that peace is still a long way away, maybe even further than when he were alive. Lennon also stated in his Christmas song "Happy Xmas (war is over)" that "war is over, if you want it" - indicating that it is all of us together as human beings that have a choice. At Christmas time more than ever people take stock of their lives, their situations and their aims for the future. After all the whole essence of Christmas is about peace (yes and love Ringo) stemming from the arrival of Jesus Christ to cleanse us of our sins and show us the righteous path to salvation. However Jesus, like Lennon, would also note the sheer distance we all are from peace in todays world, from the wars being fought sporadically on Jesus' doorstep in Jerusalem and the ongoing conflicts in Afghanistan to the gangland cultures in most jurisdictions. It is the people responsible for and involved with such misery on this Planet that we all want the message of peace to reach the most. Can I see it happening anytime soon? The unfortunate answer is no, I can't. Throughout history there have been many people wanting to dominate and oppress others and as we all know it would take a titanic effort to change the mindsets of people who see power, at any means, as their birthright. Yet I don't want to leave this on a pessimistic note so I won't! Instead I'll leave you with a thought provoking quote from the philosopher and author Ralph Waldo Trine:

“To be at one with God is to be at peace ...peace is to be found only within, and unless one finds it there he will never find it at all. Peace lies not in the external world. It lies within one's own soul."

As this is probably my last blog of the year may I take this opportunity of wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and good luck for 2009.

Nick

17 Years to make the emperors new clothes

So Chinese Democracy is finally coming out and it's arriving before the advent of Chinese democracy (which most never said it would!), 17 years since the last G'n'R originals album, 15 years after a contractual fillers album of cover versions and there's nobody left from the original line up in the band, save Axl Rose. It's obviously been a labour of love/ego *delete where appropriate. Various tracks that were alledgedly recorded for the album have been leaked over the last few years, in fact when the recording for this started, there wasn't really an "online" and the only way to get hold of unreleased songs from a band was tape trading! Back in the day, this band could do no wrong at all, they were hailed as the embodyment of "Rock and Roll", but in these more "enlightened" times, does this still hold true? Is there still a place for a band that trashes dressing rooms if the Evian isn't chilled to 1.5 degrees and a brown M&M sneaks its way in to the backstage bowl? I think there is... In this age of reality show created celebrity, it's refreshing that someone like Axl comes back to haunt the kingmakers of the music industry by reminding them of the way things used to be when bands were signed on the quality of their songs and musicianship (as well as some marketability admittedly). Kind of Marleys Ghost for the remaining shreds of the record industry.

Question is though musically, is it a valid product for the 21st century? It's not a question of whether this album is any good, it's more of a case of is it worth the wait, has Axl and his crack team of studio musicians and occasional live band hired hands been able to make something that is listenable? The issue of whether it's a progression from the Use Your Illusion albums is plainly moot, too much water has passed under the bridge since then for one, but the main reason is that it's a completely different band since those albums were recorded.

Back in the days of Appitite' I used to be a big fan, but does the older me still connect with what the 18 year old me enjoyed? Sadly on hearing this, the answer is a resounding meh! It's not that it's a bad album, it's just not a memorable one. There's nothing that I've heard that really make me sit up and take notice. It's not even a case of saying "17 years and this is all they did?" it's more a question of what was he doing for 16 years and 9 months and then chucked this out since this summer?

I'm not going to go into the merits of individual songs here as there's a variety of disparate styles (while still being in the same genre) and some of these might sit easier with some than others, but objectivity ends up being chucked out of the window when you're dealing with something like this. I really wanted to like it, I wanted this album to be the masterpiece that itwas threatened to be and thats where the problem lies. It's been too long in the making and too hyped to be just another album and sadly that's all it is

Titanic - shaping maritime future

At 12 noon on April 10th 1912 the most luxurious and ambitious ship in engineering design built for it's time set sail from the dock of Southampton bound for New York. It never reached New York. Instead it found itself confound to the History books for all time. The Titanic whom the press had dubbed "unsinkable" struck an iceberg and sank into the icy depths of the Atlantic at 2.20am on April 15th 1912 claiming the lives of 1,517 passengers and crew. Many theories have been given as to why this great Ship came to such a short, tragic end. Vast shortage of lifeboats, no binoculars on the crows nest, ice-berg warnings going amiss, no lifeboat drill training on the morning prior to the collision with the iceberg, the ship carrying on full speed ahead in spite of iceberg warnings being received from other liners, no ships coming to Titanic's aid, to name but a few. My belief is that it was simply a disastrous recipe of all the above ingredients. A cross between man made errors and pure fate if you believe in that. Going back to Maritime law of the day, it was standard practice to retain speed (which in Titanic's case was around a quick 22-23 knots) even when iceberg reports came through - hard to imagine I know, and it was no coincidence that any sailing post-Titanic would be guilty of negligence if they did the same thing.

So what other changes did the Titanic disaster bring about? First and I suppose obviously, in the future there would be enough lifeboats per craft for those on board. Also implemented on Ships therafter would be mandated lifeboat drills, 24 Hour ship radio with back up systems, red flares were to be officially recognised as distress signals (a famous rumour on Titanic was that their red distress flares were taken as celebratory firworks by nearby ships, therefore delaying any rescues.) In addition to these changes, the International Ice Patrol was founded which to this day still patrol the Atlantic for potential hazardous ice-bergs, sheet ice, etc.

So from one great ship came a set of new rules and standards that make todays nautical journeys all the more safer and secure. It's just unfortunate that, like so many things, mankind learns the important lessons needed for progress from a tragedy, in this case a tragedy that took the souls of so many innocent people and such dedicated crew....the ultimate price to pay for shaping our maritime future.

Can't actually see the difference

I got a surprise today when I switched my PC on, it turns out that the ADSL speed has been upgraded by our switched on monopolistic ISP. Trouble is that there is absolutely no difference in the speed of pages/downloads/connections whatsoever. Now I do know that there is a contention rate of 50:1 on the local exchange and that the download speed relies on the upload speed of the machine that I'm connecting to, but to see absolutely no change whatsoever is still a little bit puzzling. After doing a little research I've found that while the actual connection speed is now 3 times the previous amount, ISP's can still throttle the amount of traffic for certain services and types of connection. So while they are still claiming to offer speeds of up to 8Mbps, they can (and do) only let you have access to a certain percentage of these. What is the point of this? The only one that I can think of is that they want to pay lip service to the fact that they can offer the same service that companies (including themselves under a different name) in the UK have available, but don't actually have to provide the same end result. What can we do about this? At the moment next to sod all if you've not been with them for the requisite amount of time to change your contract and move to an alternative provider (that they are supplying wholesale to, so it probably makes no odds anyway)

Boss, drop that champagne and just come and have a look at this...

Lewis Hamilton may be a sane young man but unless you are Ferrari, Brazilian or both, no one begrudged him going round the bend today to clinch an amazing and historic World Championship title in what had to be the tightest title deciders in F1 ever. From the moment the rain lashed down on the starting grid, the race ebbed and flowed for 71 long laps as the racers fought hard, their biggest enemy being the elements. As pit crews nipped up and down checking for drops of rain, Massa led the way with Lewis driving the most conservative race of his life (no doubt due to a dear lesson learned on the same circuit last year when his aggression cost him the crown) - this race had every twist and turn in the F1 handbook - even more than the track itself! With 5 laps remaining, rain deciding to make a further appearance to up the heart rate with the leaders back in the pits getting tyres changed quicker than a Russell Brand insult. The scene was set for a dramatic finale. Hamilton came out of the pits in 6th place knowing that with Massa leading, he had to finish at least 5th to clinch the title. As the race entered it's final rain soaked lap, Hamilton seemed to buckle and with Massa cruising over the line to win the race the Brazilians were going wild. Then came the final twist (or turn, depending on what side you're on) - with two corners remaining and with Glock in that all important 5th place, Hamilton made his move and sneaked through to clamber over the line as World Champion. However it did take some time for the news to filter through, Hamilton himself didn't know if he'd done enough. The Ferrari team likewise had just opened the champagne cabinet as they started to celebrate the title, only for the pit monitors to break their hearts in cruel fashion. A pulsating end to a great season and a momentous moment for Lewis Hamilton. Eh Mr Ferrari, do you still have that champagne?

I don't like cricket (well not right now anyway)

When they said "20/20 for 20" they didn't mean that was the score to beat in the final, can someone pass that on to KP & crowd please?