Lost Ticker Tape

So here is 2012 in all of it's shiny new, cold, dark, stormy glory. This new year I have one resolution and that is to be happy. It seems so pathetic when written down, most people make tangible resolutions like lose weight, learn a new language or quit a particular vice which are all admirable but I want for nothing more right now than to simply be happy. I have spent huge chunks of the last two and a half years being really unhappy due to my health, the health of my family and due to the employment that keeps a roof over my head but enough is enough. Things are so very different now to how they were a year ago, huge shifts in friendships, relationships and just life in general mean I have no idea what I am doing, where I am going or how I am going to get there but I am figuring it out day by day. While all of the above may seem a little gloomy I am actually happy and I aim to keep it that way. I am about to get involved in music again (hopefully with people that...

The impending release of Build A Harbour Immediately by Adam Stafford , on a yellow cassette, got me to thinking about tapes. First off, Adam (ex-Y'all Is Fantasy Island) really is an incredibly talented man, I could write for ages about all of the things he has done but it's better that you see/hear/read for yourself: http://www.accidentalmedia.com/adam_stafford.php Oh, and go and see him play in Stereo this Saturday 20 th August! Anyway, back to tapes. I was fascinated by tapes as a kid, I wondered how all of the voices and instruments were held on this piece of plastic (this partly explains my study of Music and Audio Technology). I still own tapes and still have something to occasionally play them on which fills me with nostalgia. Cassette tapes are a little piece of my teenage years that I can't leave behind. There are so many people who will wax lyrical about the humble cassette and the time, effort, thought and patience that went into maki...

Normal service is resumed! I have been thinking and I can not let this little outlet for whimsy and things I love fade into the backgroud. If anything, it is more important now than ever before to make time for it. Little things that made me happy today: 1. Speaking to my 71 year old grandmother who told me she went whitewater rafting on holiday last week along with my grandad and 60+ aunt and uncle. Incredible! 2. Hearing my musical moniker being read out on radio (I was tweeting, I have not yet written anything radio worthy!). 3. A beautiful email from a friend I haven't seen in a while. 4. Being sent new music. Sometimes the simplest of things make the day better than it would otherwise have been. More soon!

I am finding less time to get absorbed in things which are not political at present. I fear that normal service of whimsy and nonsense will never be resumed as life changes and priorities shift. I could write for hours about this but I have strike action to prepare for, I will be there on my picket line and at the rally in George Square in Glasgow on Thursday June 30th. If you are free on Thursday please try to make it to a local rally or picket line and show your support to PCS, NUT, ATL and UCU strikers.

The orange bike above is mine, bought from Glasgow Bike Shed, it is old and a little flaky, the seat squeaks and the breaks scream (so much so that everyone within 100 yards turns to stare) but I love it! It has no name other than 'my lovely orange bike' so suggestions are welcome. Spring sunshine, bike rides and reading in the park were the main features of last weekend. Getting somewhere under your own steam by bike is remarkably satisfying , even more than if you were to walk that same distance. I forget just how much I love being on a bike just enjoying the sunshine, the breeze and the sense of freedom it allows. I like the idea of cycling to work however I reckon I would be squished by a Glasgow bus within a week as the drivers seem to have an almost pathological hatred of cyclists. So, it will be leisurely trips via scenic routes to parks and gardens around Glasgow. Any takers for bike rides in the sunshine?

So, as time goes on this blog reveals a little more about me. Apart from my love of music, dancing and whimsy I do have other things on the radar. Some of you will already know this however a few of you may be surprised to hear that I am a trade union rep. With my diminutive stature, being female and under 30 I'm not exactly what you picture when you think of a union rep, however it is something I am fiercely proud of. I won't go on extolling the virtues of unionism as this isn't the forum for it however I did want to post about what I will be doing next weekend. I will be joining hundreds of thousands of people in London to march for the alternatives to the cuts the Conservative government is making (see http://www.pcs.org.uk/ for more info or google March for the Alternative). It has been proven that these are ideological, unnecessary cuts and I for one will be adding my voice to the call for the alternative. I can post line after line of anti-cuts rhetoric but if ...

There is something about 'the nights fair drawing in' that makes me nostalgic for the winters and bonfire nights of childhood. I know the history behind Guy Fawkes night but for me it's all about being 5 again and standing in my Aunt's garden all snug and warm, wooly jumpers having being dug out for the winter ahead, watching the fireworks explode over her garden and jumping every time a really loud one went off! When I was older it was the muddy walks in the dark to Crawl Park, with wellies and waterproofs where there would be a huge bonfire and us kids would be allowed sweets and sparklers (not at the same time mind) and we would watch the display with huge grins on our faces. I would stand with my head tipped skyward and watch a woven gold brocade falling towards me and fountains of coloured sparks that are bright only for a moment. Stars burst and light up the dark then drift slowly to earth, fading as they fall. Beautiful tracer trails fill the night ...