So far this week I have been out canvassing twice, went to the candidates’ debate on Wednesday, tonight and Saturday I am out canvassing again, then delivering leaflets on Sunday.

Last night was a bit different; I watched the “Leaders debate” on TV and used Tweetdeck to follow the #leadersdebate stream.

Both the debate and the stream were very lively. Twitter has yet to be been colonised by party hacks (with the possible exception of me). It was refreshing, genuine and amusing. There were lots of sharp comments and observations.

The main complaint was that with so many tweets being sent, Tweetdeck was not updating fast enough.

The big news is that Nick Clegg didn’t fall on his face, so the momentum he generated in the first debate will continue. I had to get this song in at some point. This version is a cover by Chelsea Staub and Jake Johnson.

Not the orriginal, but that is the whole point really.

It has been an education for me. In Stevenage at least, you can never judge by appearances who is going to talk, or how they will vote. Despite worries of big money corrupting politics, the LibDem campaign in Stevenage still comprises the candidate and a small band of volunteers knocking on peoples’ doors.

Last night Nick Clegg, the LibDem candidate for Prime Minister, easily won the leaders debate. There has been a boost for the LibDems in the follow up polls. It’s still along way to go, but it will be interesting to see how this all affects our reception on the door step.

I am in the Town Centre shopping precinct tomorrow morning, a good opportunity to see how the atmosphere has changed.

There has been speculation that with the LibDems now scoring well we can expect the dirt to come flying our way. So this track is for anyone facing the dirt.

I went to The Offside Bar in Islington with Garry last night. Another London England Fan meet.

It was great to mix with other people who are going to South Africa this summer. I know no one locally who is. Comparing itineraries is fun.

We were talking to someone who knows Cape Town well. He told us there is a great night club near to our hotel by the beach. It looks like we have found our temporary home for the trip.

Each meeting has a theme. This one focused on personal security in South Africa. There was a panel comprising of the FA, the police, the Foreign Office and some others. It was interesting.

All the speakers had the same message:

Yes, crime is a problem in South Africa, but there will be lots of extra police on duty for the World Cup. Be sensible, as you would in any city such as London, and you should be OK.

There was a consensus that possible problems had been exaggerated by the British press.

Normally before the World Cup the British press are busy exaggerating the possibility of trouble from England fans. This time they print scare stories about trouble FOR England fans.

That’s progress of sorts. But they have to peddle fear and loathing of someone, it sells newspapers.

As for some of the comments about SA President Jacob Zuma on his recent visited to the UK. What was the point?

You have to wonder if there is an agenda.

blue blue

Bad news, I’m going to spend it in a blue bubble.

There have been a couple of beautiful days this week. I’m considering taking my hiking boots of for the year. But my usual pleasure at watching Stevenage burst into spring from eight floors up is diminished by the scaffolding and blue stuff I’m encased in.

Then there’s the drilling.

I had a note through my letter box, telling me that the drilling will only take a day and would be carried out on Tuesday 2 March. I took all ornaments off window sills and pictures off externals walls and went out for the day.

I came home to find the drillers turned up around 16:00 for a couple of hours and left again. The caretakers, nor anyone else, has a clue what’s going on.

Same ol’ same old.

They started drilling again 11am today. Ten seconds drilling, 5 seconds break. Repeat until insanity sets in. And as they get nearer my floor it gets louder.

And I can’t go out today because I am waiting for my new TV to arrive. Nor can I put on my iPod loud, in case I miss the delivery.

grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

This song by David Bowie trips through what is left of my mind every time I look out the window. The fit to my life right now is scary. Must have been arranged by aliens.

Blue, blue, electric blue
That’s the colour of my room
Where I will live
Blue, blue
…

I’m going to sit right down
Waiting for the gift of sound and vision

Or just possibly, I may murder the drillers when they reach my floor.

Alice is another Tim Burton / Johnny Depp movie. They’re are a great combination. But I’ll probably not go to the cinema to watch it.

A nice coincidence, Avril has the title track. Life down the rabbit hole would be cool enough if Avril was there with an off-the-shoulder Goth look…

As ever, the Youtube embed feature has been disabled, so here’s a fan video.

The official video here Avril Lavigne – Official ‘Alice (Underground)’

This is my least favourite time of year. Christmas is gone, and now a couple of months until spring and warmth returns.

This year will be quite eventful. A general election due around about April. Then I’m off to South Africa in the summer. It’ll be winter there then. But I avoid the sun anyway, so it’ll be no great loss to me.

And I am launching a new blog this year. I start work on Monday. That’ll keep me occupied until South Africa.

A full six-months planned, but the money situation is still not so good. The South African trip will blow a hole in my finances. Which will be good motivation to get out into the world again. I really need to get off of my backside and into action.

A song to accompany the new blog. This sums it up best I think

“Can you see what it is yet?”

I’d already seen most of the first two series. I’ve been watching one an evening since October, and it’s been great viewing. I’m just getting to the end of series 4.

The Wire is a powerful stuff. It’s overpowering when you watch all 60 episodes end-to-end. And depressing, the US looks completely dysfunctional. Perhaps the fact that TV shows like The Wire are being produced is reason for optimism.

I love the theme tune. I hadn’t realised that there’s a different version for each series until I watched them back-to-back.

Here’s Tom Waits with a live version. I think it was him on series two.

Which reminds me, It’s about time I went down The Blues at the Red.

The days are grey and the nights are drawing in. It seems incredible that only a month ago I was wearing shorts. To mark the dead days of November, I thought to play something different. I have picked a classical piece.

Classical music reminds me of school days. It was the only place I ever heard it. But I own some now. This being one of the CD’s I bought as a cheap lot a few years back.

Vivaldi’s Four Seasons is one of my favourite classical pieces. It is a very popular. Spring is probably the better known than Autumn.

Four Seasons evokes mixed emotions for me. Parts were played my friend Paul’s funeral. I had known him for twenty years as a hard core Black Sabbath fan. I never knew that we shared a liking for this music until he was dead.

Grey thoughts for a grey November afternoon.

You can probably tell by the lack of posting. I haven’t been able to focus on anything for long. I’ve made little progress anywhere.

It hasn’t helped that my email has been on the blink for the last couple of days. I didn’t realise how much I missed it ’till It was no longer there.

I need a song to reset my mood.

I need this….

On 5th of November, 1605, a bunch of despicable Catholic conspirators attempted blow up the Houses of Parliament, MPs, King and all.

The dastardly plot was foiled. Guy Fawkes was caught red handed with a pile of gunpowder underneath the Parliament building.

Protestant UK still commemorates the failure with firework and bonfires. But, as we live in enlightened times we no longer burn real live Catholics. Instead we make do with burning effigies of Guy Fawkes.

The way the country is feeling these days, you suspect most people would prefer to burn an effigy of the local MP. If not a real live MP. This seems an appropriate track from the Levellers.

Who’s got the paper bag with all the holes?