Yesterday's Happiness Experiment entry

Watching Inbetweeners clips with the Enfants Terribles

Listening to Rose Miller and her friends singing

Doing Christmassy errands along East Finchley high street

Trouble on the Estates

The 1st Estate:
Child abuse rife in the Catholic church in Ireland and beyond

The 2nd Estate:
Lords taking cash in brown envelopes (and largely getting away with it); Prince Andrew's network of dodgy connections; Prince Charles' marital infidelity

The 3rd Estate:
MPs fiddling their expenses on a grand scale

The 4th Estate:
Phone-hacking a widespread practice in the tabloid press

The Police: (neighbouring the Fourth Estate)
Selling stories to the tabloids

The Judiciary: (neighbouring the Fourth Estate)
Supressing the truth by enabling super-injunctions

The City: (neighbouring the Third Estate)
Gambling Other People's Money, then taking public money as a bail-out; speculating at everybody else's expense; creaming off unmerited bonuses regardless of preformance

No wonder the estates are rioting...

Quotation on advice/collaboration

I not only use all the brains that I have, but all I can borrow.

— Woodrow Wilson

Things That Are No More #3: The Word magazine free podcast

So I was out for a run round the St Pancras and Islington cemetery this morning, listening to The Word podcast as is my wont (I was introduced to it a few years ago by Steve Moore and hold it in as great affection as he does). Nile Rodgers was the special guest and just after he explained how having his guitar retuned by his mother's latest boyfriend was a revelation to him and launched him into a frenzy of Beatles playing there was a bong and the podcast was cut off in its prime - a voice explained that now only magazine subscribers get the full Monty. I understand why David Hepworth and pals feel they need to do that but somehow sad nonetheless. The sad way of the world... [cf #1: the generosity of Shadbolt's]

Things That Are No More #2: Osman's

This, together with the next entry, is what inspired this series.

I was walking up Wardour Street yesterday evening and noticed after many years the stationers Osman on the corner of Broadwick Street has disappeared. Become a choclatier. I was an occasional customer back in my Solus days (1987-89). It was a Soho landmark and I feel its passing should be marked.

{Photo courtesy of Mark Hillary}

Things That Are No More #1: Veneer of the Week

Veneer of the Week on the front of Shadbolt's factory, formerly one of the few highlights on the North Circular

Can still be found on their website but that's no substitute

This week it is: Crown Cut American Black Walnut - now that would lift any journey on the NSR

Here's a good observation from the DHM blog:
"But the sign felt generous, like Shadbolts were decent and cared about their product, and when companies make a bit of extra effort like that, it’s always repaid in good will."

And here's a remark which accords with my memories - the exotic dimension - from the Bite blog:
"Some veneers carried the mystery of far-off places: Crown Cut Lebanon Cedar. (Others less so: Curly Birch.) "

Projects

My Movie Mashup
Germ
Human Footprint
Every Picture Tells A Story (2004)
PIXnMIX (2004)
TexTips 4Lovers, 4Karma, 4Mates, Islamic Inspiration, 4Change etc.
Chancers
Ideasfactory
Omagh
Origination Insite
Lost Generation
Digital Africa
Time Team Big Dig
" Big Roman Dig (2005)
Jsd
New Shoots
Famelab
Rolling Stock
My Shakespeare (rada)
X (2005)
BtN
Make Tracks
Webit
Ia xmas cd
The Unteachables
121 (2006)
The Play's The Thing
CV:
EIGF Advisory Board (2004)
Council for Industry and Higher Ed
Melt
AHRB
Creative Licence Archive Group (2005)
ICA The Club

Monkeying around - Yesterday's Happiness Experiment entry

The monkey I introduced into Cash and Burn made its first appearance in Broadcast

Became Facebook friends with Roddy Doyle

First meeting at Cafe Kick, Shoreditch with Steven the Wasted man