chutney oclock

L.'s Chutney recipe

1kg tomatoes, roughly chopped
200g shallots, roughly chopped
1 big English cooking apple, peeled, cored and chopped
100g Sultanas
spices (salt pepper all spice) 1/2 t each
2 red chillies, deseeded & chopped
2.5cm bit of ginger
125g dark brown sugar
100g light brown sugar
300ml white wine vinegar

Cook the sugar and vinegar down for a while. Add the sultanas and cook for a bit longer. Then the rest of ingredients cook on the stove for about 45mins on a lowish heat, uncovered. Add more spices/seasoning to taste and pour into sterilized jars. Keep until Christmas then eat with cheese.

Steak Club

Its a simple dream. A search for the finest plate of steak served ever. EVER!

Our first steak club met in the cobbled streets of East London, we walked through London Fields to the closed Broadway Market to Buen Ayre

I shared a plate with D. with a 12oz Sirloin and a 10oz rib eye, two sausages, black pudding and a slice of houlami. It was an excellent steak.

The restaurant was tricky to book, had to pay 10 pounds a head deposit but if you wanted to do it over the phone, you could only do that when the restaurant wasnt open for service... Over the phone they seemed a lot more regimental than in practice.

The mean of the scores were:
Rate your steak: 3.98/5
Rate the restaurant: 3.38

The first steak club team.


For a random selection of steak shots, each steak club I shall take a photo of the person to my right. Here E. enjoys a sirloin...

Lizzie on the Plinth!

London, half one on a Wednesday morning in October. I tell you what, there's not a lot to do in Leicester Square! This is one of the only places open, and was thoroughly worth it. It should be on a things to do when in London list.

Then L went on the Plinth! How awesome is that? pretty damn cool. I was jealously taking photos around and shivering while at it! Maybe I wasnt that jealous to be up there in the cold, but what a view! Lucky L!

"history is always the first to go"

One of the best things about London has to be the ICA.

L & I do day dream about what the best thing that our combined talents could ever come up with, and it would be direct competition to the ICA. Our bar would be better and there would be somewhere for local kids to learn how to make music/ films but this place is pretty awesome. Great films, great talks, a fiver on Mondays- bring it on!

We spent last Tuesday watching Joe Sacco, author and artist of Palestine. I am ashamed to say (but not too proud to admit) that its pretty musch all I know about the place! I know! anyway, he spoke at length about his style -no computers- ink and pen, what he has seen and hasnt seen. Its just amazing to see someone speak about his life and be soooo moved and inspired, its a shame I can not draw I thought! but then, what sort of comic would my day make? well I am sure I could write it well.... you want to hear? see- its another thing! haha, this guy just up and took himself to an area he was upset to here about to see it for himself.


I am upset to hear about the shoddy infrastructure that led to the Vector being commisioned for the UK army, but none thought about the supply of parts. apparently (bbc4) it couldnt be fully loaded or the wheels fell off, and by licence they couldnt buy spare parts from the us company that supplied it because their initial contract with the U.S. meant they get first served. Uk are dropping them after only an couple of years in service. In this day in age that is a disgrace (and i know i have to stop talking now because I believe soldiers are as good as dead when they sign up- and if they live to leave,it is a miracle! but to die in todays age of planning because of faulty vehicles, in a place that the uk has fought in for how many years???.... and I am not going over there to make a comic/ film about it. so hats off to Jo.

Tomorrow might be the most exciting day of my life, with the Pixies followed by L. on the plynth! can you belive it?! I cant...
another wine I think as I turn over Dolittle on the record player.

TV at work.

This is the second every 21:9 telly to come into England, and one of 6 in Europe at the moment. At around 6 grand it offers cinema like viewing for the first time. Apparently 16:9 is technology borne of a mistake. That the basic crt started at 4:3 and everytime they tried to bring it back to 21:9 the tube imploded. They bought it back and back and back until it did not implode and that was 16:9!

All the above information was given to me by this silver fox holding court below.

Here we see 3D television. It's actually amazing!

mushrooms and chestnuts

Hampstead Heath. Its pretty much London's window into the past. We all know that Lewis came here, saw a gas lit lamp in the snow, went home and wrote that wonderful scene- we know that Spacey lost his phone while innocently taking his ailing dog on it's walk. But its possible to forget the sirens and shoulders of London here- and everyone is on their best behavior.

I walked the park by myself and found some orange and green places, mushrooms and chestnuts, pathways and dead ends.
Here are some photos of them.

open house London

For those of you who haven't been to London- the Lloyds building has a mostly aluminium alien feel to it, with its exoskeleton type lifts that ferry suits up the sides of its building and the feeling that you really can't just go in and say hello, that stands in the city of London proudly, mostly inaccessible.




Except once a year. When London opens it's doors to the public, who usually queue for streets, and these days with their canons, sonys and ngati Nikon at hand. That was this weekend just passed! hey- who am I not to grab my camera and q with the rest of them!



L. and I were constantly amazed at the history of the place, despite its ultra (80's) modern exterior. The Adam room for instance had been bought in auction and moved twice, (by the same firm- 200 years apart!). A quick note on Lloyds- they underwrite insurance companys, and pay out when they have to pay out huge sums.
They paid out for the Titanic!!

(open this photo large and you should be able to see the entry!- They still operate this loss book, which is still written - currently by this guy!- with a quill!




You have to keep reminding your self that its a place of business, a busy marketing floor with people negotiating insurance prices, and even through the tourist-murmur song you could hear the ghost chatter of a thousand voices ringing through the sound of coins piling up > bullion even!!


Historically- when a ship would sink- they would ring the bell once- (i hope this is right)- and when they found it again, they would ring it twice. Now days this bell is rung mostly as a mark of two minutes silence for a catastrophe. David here rang it for Sept 11th.



It is a lovely building, and its a fantastic time - I guess i wish that I went to more, but if you were to go to one, then it wasnt a bad one to do.

And realise youre living in the golden years

Sitting around drinking wine and listening to music. Pretty much sums up the last 20 years of my fantastic life!

This time around, I was drinking this wine from this shop I visited. It gives free, (yes Londoners- FREE!) wine tasting evenings. The shop keeper was really enthusiastic, and though she needed a bit better help than the actress with one hand in bandage, it was a really fun night with a whole lot of new zealand and australian wine. (pinot, pinot)


And while we sat around and drank this lovely drop- (that score very well on our tasting notes); we also listened to this tasty album.

sometimes even music, is no subsitute for tears

Went to the Lexington On Tuesday night to see our favorite Alabama son, who was in excellent humour and great voice, Mr Dan Sartain. He rocks that old guitar of his, and thrashed his way through his old songs in a rush to get to some new stuff.
Held a request session, which I think is an indication that he is a bit bored with it. Nick Cave does that stuff these days, and then when someone asks for something that havent prepared, he has prepared his one liner "sorry, cant play that... its got too many chords in it". hardy ha ha Mr Cave.

The venue is great, upstairs downstairs, though it took long enough to get through the queue, which I think subtracted from the buzz of the room. Once everyone had formed an orderly queue it was if they could not bring them selves to dance. like those people who survive a plane accident only to suffocate in their seats, waiting for someone else to make the move.
It had a dance floor, and a mezzonene floor for those of us, who perhaps have trouble seeing over others heads.

Beers from cans at 3 quid.

Pretty good night.

get back into blogging tember

How useless have I been? Neglecting you, my three readers? Apologies for sure.

Its all going to change, I need to change my routine, but there is so much coming up! So much more for you to check out when work is slow. but as you know, its all been going on in the last few months, sad things and happy things, but now its back to blogging.
Which is always a worrying thing to say because then if I dont- its the last thing in the blog advertising my own lies!
haha

anyhow, here is Lets Wrestle!
They were good, and despite what I said that night, the album is awesome, so go get it!


There are a lot of things to look forward to, including Dan Sartain this Tuesday, the return of photoclub this Sunday, Tattoo convention the following weekend, Londons film festival and last but not least, a new blog called Steak Club, where we go around to peoples recommendations of the best steaks and eat them!

YES!

worlds first projector camera

I think this is as big as polaroids would have been when that first came out. You know those times, you are away somewhere away from your computer with yr buddys, you are getting a bit bored of them and you dont know how to encourage them to disperse so you can get a little alone time in with your current squeeze.
Well, just whip this little bugger out and you can have a slide show anywhere! The Nikon s1000pj (catchy!) is billed as the first camera with a built in projector!
It promises pictures between 4 and 40 inches. resolution probably needs to be seen to be believed, or at least blogged- but hey, this is one camera gimmick I am all for.
Get one soon!

best live band i have seen for ages!

Fight Like Apes!

Saw them at Latitude festival, and I loved it. L and I are going to go over to Berlin in September to see them! Hopefully R. can come to, and how about you?

looking back

This should have been posted a long time ago. It's our representation of Ruth Ellis killing her husband outside the very pub she did it. If you remember, the bullet holes are still there. This was done on the anniversary, but I don't know why I haven't put it up yet?

John Landis is the Man- dis!

Midnight movies? are you mad? That means a night bus home! That seems far more frightening than some giant American werewolf prowling the town... However when I was told that John Landis, director of Trading Places and Blues Brothers would be there, I had to go. I mean had to.

And it was a pretty successful event, Mr Landis shook hands posed and signed with a rather tired looking smile, then he gave a cool question and answer thing with Empires Kim Newman. He mentioned that he had sold the rights to Dimension for a remake of AMWiL, that he was pretty pissed off when he heard that the howling was being made, and that we should go and watch the new version of AMWiL because it had all been made up for blue ray, and that it looked amazing. The makeup for the wolf looked even better in HD. He then seemed to remember where he was and said that he hoped this was a good print. It wasn't. The whole thing had a yellow tinge to it, but it was the first time I had seen it on the big screen, and its even better than the first time!

Oh- and with free cocktails!

snaps

well, so much goes on doesnt it? here are some photos from last week. Catch a glimpse of King Henry the 8th as he cruises down the Thames. See the latest protests about Hillsborough. And look at what might be the last photo i ever take in Ravenscourt Park

Please put down your hands, because I C U

Beck has a cool idea. He has bought together music friends to come into his studio and re record one randomly chosen album in one day. Then they release a song a week on this website (follow the link)!

The first album is the classic Velvet Underground and Nico. How exciting is that! The first song is the Sunday morning, which is the first song in the album, so it could be (and should be) in chronological order. It was also the first single from the original.

I guess this album has been in my life for 20 years, and you know how it is with these sorts of albums that you start off loving the hits, "waiting for the man", "heroin" etc, but then maybe you thrash those songs too much, and its the other ones- the slow releasers that stand out in the end. So not taking anything away from any of the others, if i was to choose my favorite from this album it would be ... "I'll be your mirror"

Down the Buffalo Bar.

Lovely eggs rocked the buffalo bar last week, superb. and so very friendly! Great merchandise sprung out of their travelling suitcase that I walked away with a t shirt, a handstitched badge and a signed disc.

Zoey Van Goey were very good live, a variety of classy singers, swapping instruments with some really good tunes to boot.

giant bumblebee attacks west London mall

ha ha, mall.

morning walk through the park

So with the queen throwing down her new alotment I thought I would share more pictures of Ravenscourt Park
I mean, if you were to write a blog, you would chuck flower pictures all over it right? Right?