There are so many layers of geekiness to this story I’m not really sure where to start. But anyway: you recall that I bought a load of books and then facetiously suggested that I would feature Mary Wollstonecraft as the next celebrity on this blog? Well, after starting to read her works I got a tweet from the woman herself agreeing to an interview, which is a pretty significant scoop for someone who died in the eighteenth century. But hey, if Psychic TV can flourish, why can’t I?
In an ideal world, this would make the Metro
Talking of freedom: Caroline and I worked our way through a suitable amount of wine last night arguing about the proper meaning of the word with respect to politics, conservatism and so on. Which was good, because I think I came as close to being persuasive with left-wing politics that I will ever manage, although that well be a magnificent illusion brought about by said wine. (This was after we saw Polly Toynbee and David Walker discuss their book on New Labour at the LSE. What’s sad, really, is how far away that government now seems. Just running through a huge list of what it did over those years – both good and bad – is almost nostalgic, especially given how many of its projects and schemes are now falling away to nothing. Sigh.)
Oh, and last weekend was lovely! Abbi and Paul’s engagement party on Saturday night – now a blur of very nice cocktails, drunken dancing and mysterious Italian dudes in my head. Best moment was when all of the men at the party had a collective urge to form a circle and dance/jump/spin to Brimful of Asha. We’re so cool. And then Sunday was spent at Oliver’s, scraping meals. (Honestly, you know that’s the case when even Abi has gone home and I’m still merrily helping myself to lasagne with his family…) Still, there’s nothing like the hospitality of others. Much love 
Over the past two weeks*, I have partaken of food or drink with the following:
The source of my Y chromosome, the source of my mitochondrial DNA, the source of her mitochondrial DNA, a GP (retired), a faux-Liverpudlian, a globe-trotter, a zombie star and the owner of a pink BlackBerry pearl. Then there was the boy with the black car, the girl with the giant lawnmower (fictive) and the revolutionary who always made it to school. Someone only wanted a little wine, another desired only her lover, while my tea (milk, no sugar) with a third was only grudgingly allowed. Three more joined me for hot, tasty chips, carried home through a dark autumn evening and tasting all the better for it. I stayed talking with a future investment banker (perhaps) until closing time. A man in a blue shirt bought me a glass of wine (small) as a team discussed tactics. And let’s certainly not forget my employer, my compatriot, two tweeters and their proud father. Or the homeless man I took to Costa yesterday who, Brent informs me, fails to meet their ‘vulnerability criteria’. I bet he’s cold tonight.
(*Measured from about 6ish yesterday.)
Required: even more shelf space
Thank you, Caius, for your final parting gift of book tokens Wandering about Waterstone’s Piccadilly was just such enormous fun, and I now have a great pile of books to add to my already great piles of books to read. Yay! Books are awesome. [Pre-emptive reply to sarky comments about the lack of fiction: (a) 40% of that is fiction! (b) there are many classic books downstairs in the office that I plan on reading, too.]
So the trip to Waterstone’s was merely one part of a great day out with Katie which also included Forbidden Planet, dodgem cars and an assortment box of Krispy Kremes. Awesome in and of itself, obviously, but you haven’t seen who we bumped into yet…
A bottle of True Blood
Katie and me
Katie and (gasp) Noel Clarke!
I’m sure it could get annoying to be accosted by fans every time you pop down with some mates into the geek joy that is Forbidden Planet, but nonetheless he was very gracious about it, so hurrah. (Who shall be next celebrity spot on this blog, I wonder? My money’s on Mary Wollstonecraft.)
Working backwards in time: yesterday I had the pleasure of meeting up for lunch with Maryam, who is busy sitting actual interviews for actual jobs in offices and suchlike. Get her. We then ended up with a bunch of medical students at King’s bar, who I naturally got talking to me all about their school lives, because these days I can openly do so with an apologetic smile and a “it’s part of my job to ask this, you see…”. And then last weekend was spent visiting the ever-wonderful Andy Kings in Bradford – which I’m reliably informed is up North a bit – and just generally chilling out, whether it be to Goodness Gracious Me in the media museum (forever funny), X-Factor joys (which doesn’t really deserve italics) or The Social Network. I can echo Abbi and Paul’s earlier recommendations for this film, if for nothing else than for Aaron Sorkin’s razor sharp dialogue which is instantly familiar to anyone who’s ever seen any West Wing. Having said that, I can’t help but feel a bit sorry for poor old Mark Zuckerberg, even though (all things considered) the film finishes on a rather sympathetic note. I’m sure most of us could have our youth portrayed unflatteringly, if only we did anything noteworthy enough to get noticed.
I actually really like this view
Playing Space Invaders (not fantastically well)
Enjoying th’ paper with a pint
It must be love, love, love…
Ah, Paris. In the endless internal debate over whether I feel more American or European, there’s nothing like a quick trip to Paris to remind me that actually I mostly feel like a Londoner: a big city lover who respects anywhere else that has a kick-ass underground system. And really, there is something truly magical about walking to Willesden Green station and then not leaving either a train or a station building until you emerge in the middle of another country. Of course, not speaking the language might have been a bit of an issue – scroll to around 2.27 for more – but luckily I was expertly guided around by Tash and Beth (thanks guys). And speaking of Tash – it was just really, really nice to hang out with her again – and I’m totally looking forward to visiting Manchester already
More photos on Facebook, but here’s a taster:
Hitting the art (before Disneyland…)
Enjoying cocktails
(I love the fact that there’s an actual man or woman here we’ll never see)
Yeah. We totally met him.
At the top of the rollercoaster, just before the plunge
One final thing about Paris: as much as the ‘world city culture’ was very much in evidence – albeit with admittedly more beautiful surroundings – one thing that really struck me as different from Britain was the presence of the army. I’m sure it’s just what you grow up with, but as a Brit, I still find it a little odd when you see our own police officers armed with guns. Much as it may be sometimes necessary, I can’t help but feel glad that we still don’t consider it necessary for our police to be armed as a matter of course. Yet in France, not only were the police armed but so too were on-duty soldiers: most incongruously, just outside Disneyland, where they could so easily have been costumes and props but were, of course, real soldiers with real weapons. I’m not saying any of this really matters much: obviously, the British state could call in the army to its own streets if it wanted to, and has done so in the past. It’s just a feeling, and maybe a romantic one, that most of the time we don’t want or need such an obvious show of force to live in peace.
On a more prosaic note, yesterday was dad’s birthday and so – back in London – the family went out for a really nice dinner and then, as a surprise, News Revue. (See, told you I’d mention it again…) Which now means their song parodies are ever more firmly lodged in my head!
And finally – you might want to check out Regimented, a new site set up by Alex Trafford to host a series of debates on a variety of topics. I’ve kicked off the proposition for the opening debate on digital piracy, which – I should point out – is a position that was arbitrarily assigned, as it will be for everyone. Nothing on the site necessarily represents what any of us actually personally believe. But if you are interested, give it a read…
Linda Moffitt on Colombia: “Such a sweet memory of the four of you meeting up in Colombia!” Dec 2, 07:42
