[via Salon's In Box]
‹ 29.3.01 / 0 comment(s) ›
Think of the most evil of evil flowers in the whole wide world. Can't do it? Meg can ... capers are ick(le).
‹ 28.3.01
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Pesto Tagliatelle with Lime and Garlic Chicken
Tell flatmates you'll cook them dinner. Instantly regret decision due to the overwhelming performance anxiety of "The First Meal" situation. Rack brain. Go to supermarket and buy:
1 lime
1 bulb of garlic
3 chicken breasts
1 packet of fresh tagliatelle
1 tub of double cream
1 jar of pesto
chilli powder (or paprika)
olive oil
parsley (optional)
Arrive home, consume beer, smoke cigarette. Then, start dinner. Chop chicken into bite-sized pieces and place in bowl. Add juice and grated zest of lime, 4-5 cloves of crushed garlic, a sprinkle of chilli powder and/or paprika (for red-ness), half a handfull of chopped parsley (if desired, for green-ness) and a slosh of olive oil. Stir to combine. Cover bowl in cling-film and refrigerate for 20-30 minutes.
After marinating, stir-fry chicken for 8-10 minutes, or until cooked. In the last 2-3 minutes of frying, cook pasta in plenty of salted/oiled/boiling water. Cover base of a large serving dish in double cream, add a dessertspoon of pesto and stir to combine. When pasta is finished, drain and transfer to the dish. Toss pasta in cream/pesto mix. Stir cooked chicken into pasta. Serve with salad, crusty bread and chardonnay to one + one appreciative flatmates (and the chef, of course).
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‹ 28.3.01 ›
The weekend was a fairly pensive one - booze, fags, friends, disappointments and reflections, of which I'll only go into the latter. It's now a year since I stepped off the plane at Heathrow. Three-hundred and sixty-five days. It may as well be three-hundred and sixty-five seconds. I've seen some amazing things and met some amazing people ... so much has changed and yet so much stays the same (as one of those amazing people often says).
‹ 26.3.01
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Full stops are ickle ==> . <== See? I told you so.
‹ 26.3.01
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Always stunning: the Life Online Picture of the Day. One (somewhat disturbing) example proves that the eyes have it.
‹ 24.3.01
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Iain threw this little gem my way just now: How To Dance Properly. Yes, you too can get down and dirty by doing the "Who's Your Daddy?", the "Elaine Ripped Me Off" and the "Stir The Pot, Of Love". As we say a fair bit 'round the new pad ... pass the pipe!
‹ 24.3.01
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I think you'll find that they wobble but they don't fall down.
‹ 24.3.01
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The horny geeks of "analogue" game company Wizards of the Coast:
"Best of all, though, we would fuck like rabbits. On "Who Knew? Day" employees wore badges proclaiming their sexual orientation. Intimate relationships sprouted like mold on bread, cutting across departments and seniorities with the hierarchy-smashing fervor of our consensus-driven team meetings. Heedless of status, even peasants and princes coupled, and fell apart."I don't even want to think about what would happen if we had a day like that here.
‹ 24.3.01 / 0 comment(s) ›
Please, for the little children, won't you buy Tom's PC?
‹ 24.3.01
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He may look like a dwarf who's been dipped in a bucket of pubic hair (as Boy George once said) but that certainly doesn't diminish his ickleness.
‹ 23.3.01
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Sheeeeee's baaaaaack ...
‹ 23.3.01
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Tip for young players: work out life frustrations by listening to loud dirty breakbeats and post-grunge rawk. It's working for me as we speak.
‹ 23.3.01
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Salon announces "Salon Premium": $30 a year is a fairly reasonably price to pay I think, for extra content and no ads. Plus I feel as if I "owe" Salon something ... they've been slogging it out for years now, creating quality content I've consumed for the price of a cup of air. The net result of all this effort is that the site has become essential daily reading for myself, and for a lot of you too I suspect. So, if they make it easy enough for us non-U.S. types to fork over our pennies, I'll be there in a flash.
‹ 23.3.01
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A selection of the finest dodgy drinks available in the UK, thanks to cultdrinks.com: all will be gratefully received at the impending flatwarming :)
‹ 22.3.01
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If only I had a skewer ... I'm guessing there wouldn't be much resistance pushing it through either. And in other pop news, S(pliff) Club 7?
‹ 21.3.01
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What's green and orange and smells of chocolate? Evil confectionery helpers, that's what.
‹ 21.3.01
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Ah, moving house ... it holds such memories. As I think I've mentioned before, varsity days saw a move to a new flat (with a new cabal of flatmates) each year, following the traditional "land grab" for the premium pads around campus. Disassemble your life. Load it into boxes. Rinse. Repeat.
No matter how much stuff you think you have, for some reason it always seems like there's a whole lot more of it when it's packed away in cardboard. I arrived in London almost one year ago with a pack on my back. That was it. I now have enough junk to fill the majority of a Transit. How?
So anyway, the move from East Acton to Hampstead last Saturday went surprisingly well - a long and muscle-ache-inducing experience but one which was well worth it. The new apartment is taking shape remarkably quickly and I could now swing a large sabre-tooth tiger around my room if I so desired. This is a good thing. The weekend also saw me lose my Ikea cherry in a frenzy of modular furniture and tchotchke action - never let me near that place again.
A big thank you to Steve, Tom, Catherine, Niki and Bridget for all their selfless assistance over the course of the weekend ... you guys are the best. And to Meg and Luke, muchas gracias for taking this displaced kiwi under your collective wings. Game on!
‹ 21.3.01
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Cathedrals are mostly large ... but sometimes, they can be small.
‹ 20.3.01
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Business Busyness abounds! I'm currently working furiously after successfully ensconcing myself (along with Meg and Luke) in the new digs over the weekend. Full match report to follow ...
‹ 20.3.01
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The most boring place in the world to stay?
‹ 17.3.01
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Hey Meg! Hey Luke! I've found something for us to do on those quiet Sunday afternoons in the new place: please, won't you jazz up a plain frame with me?
‹ 17.3.01
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‹ 17.3.01 / 0 comment(s) ›
Most cartoon dogs are big. Some are ickle. And damn annoying to boot.
‹ 16.3.01
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"No need to sell your soul with today's flexible financing" ... just lease it!
‹ 16.3.01
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Tea bad. Beer good.
‹ 15.3.01
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It isn't easy being green: petit pois are ickle.
‹ 14.3.01
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You too can relive those halcyon days of the late 70s by hitting seven shades out of the Muppaphone, Marvin Suggs stylee. (NB: The owner of this weblog does not necessarily endorse faux-fur assault for the purposes of audio pleasure - indulge at your own risk).
‹ 14.3.01
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"It's okay, we're the US Military!": Following the fourth major military accident since Bush's inauguration (in which one New Zealander dies), NZ Defence Minister Mark Burton says, "We are now looking for an urgent, detailed explanation as to how such a training exercise can go so terribly wrong." Good. And Bush says, "I am reminded today of how dangerous service can be." Silly fecker. "Sorry" would've been nice.
‹ 14.3.01
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Another fine night spent in the company of friends old and new last night, most notably at Meg's OnAnonish soirée - killer Long Island Ice Teas and sparkling conversation made for a happy Dave. And I even managed to weasel Meg's age out of her ... she must've been drunk ;) The rest of the evening was memorable too ...
‹ 14.3.01
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Continuing our journey through the tiny and wee, I present for your delectation the planet Pluto.
‹ 12.3.01
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Much lurve and reee-spect goes out to Meg on the occasion of her XXth birthday. The consensus is, my dear, that you rock from way up high ... a conclusion I most heartily agree with.
‹ 12.3.01
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Voice-recording sweeps the weblog world: Meg, Luke and Caroline partake, amongst many others. Caroline sounds remarkably like my friend Jo which is a tad bizarre while Meg and Luke sound like themselves, natch, just twisted slightly by the magic of technology. I have no voice to offer the world ... the combination of (a). no microphone, and (b). a complete dislike of my recorded voice, tend to knock that one right on the head.
What I do have however is an excellent recording of my Dad interviewing me when I was three years old. It's sitting on a cassette at home, not yet having deteriorated in the intervening twenty-three years and one of these days I'll get organised enough to throw it online for the world at large. I was such a precocious child ... "has anything changed?" I hear you ask? Anyway, the best I can do for this meme is to show me listening to all those fascinating vignettes - and enjoying them much more than is otherwise apparent ...
‹ 12.3.01
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Another enjoyable movie-going session this evening just past with the L-M-T collective: this time to cracking "Best In Show" ... and you thought webloggers were weird, try dog people. Sheesh.
A fair swag of rest of the weekend was spent in the charming company of someone six years my junior. Yep, an "eighties baby". And a cheeky, cute one with nice brown eyes and nice white teeth at that. Oh hark at me, I'm giving away some details of my personal life on my weblog ... where will this madness end?
‹ 12.3.01
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Training the colonials to be British:
"This is Spectramind, one of India's newest and most sophisticated call centres: a place of soothing pastel colours, tasteful lighting and expensive green carpets. The entire four-storey building exudes the smell of fresh paint - and of colossal corporate self-confidence. Here, recruits receive a 20-hour crash course in British culture. They watch videos of soap operas, including The Bill, Emmerdale, Brookside, Coronation Street and EastEnders, to accustom them to regional accents. They are told who Robbie Williams is. They learn about Yorkshire pudding. And they are taught about Britain's unfailingly miserable climate."Now I know where I'm going wrong.
‹ 10.3.01 / 0 comment(s) ›
Hey, you know what's ickle? Liechtenstein, that's what.
‹ 9.3.01
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Crumb trail for last night: Bierodrome » Strada » Walkabout » Escape. Something for everyone!
‹ 9.3.01
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Prequisite at any good NZ party: the
definitive onion dip ...
1 x packet Maggi Onion Soup mixThere'll be lashings of it at our impending housewarming, guaranteed.
1 x can Nestlé Reduced Cream
juice of ½ a lemon
Mix all ingredients thoroughly. Chill. Serve.
‹ 9.3.01 / 0 comment(s) ›
When memes collide: Am I ALL YOUR BASE or NOT?
‹ 8.3.01
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Tired of arranging a spouse for your child the old fashioned way? Try the interwebnet!
‹ 8.3.01
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T-minus ten days 'til we hit the new pad: the paperwork has been mostly signed, sealed and delivered so it's all go from here! West Hampstead won't know what hit it ...
‹ 8.3.01
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Wednesday at ickle.org: Björk.
‹ 7.3.01
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Playing busy bee today, so no posts save this one: an intense new project at work has begun (code-named "Rainbow" - no comment) and I've withdrawn a small African nation's GDP from my bank account in preparation for the move. More news as it comes to hand ...
‹ 7.3.01
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Prepare yourself for the most disturbing soft toy you'll ever have the opportunity of buying online <shudder>
‹ 6.3.01
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Magician.org.uk: is there nothing we gbloggers can't do?
‹ 6.3.01
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 | Announcing the launch of ickle.org: dedicated to all things tiny and wee. The first entry? Money spiders. Comments and feedback welcome! |
‹ 6.3.01 / 0 comment(s) ›
Ladies: prove you're the hottest supernatural crime-fighter on the block by stealing Sarah Michelle Gellar's look. You'll never leave the house looking like death again.
‹ 5.3.01
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I know why they call them "splinter groups" now. It's because they're fucking annoying.
‹ 5.3.01
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David and Iain chronicle their ongoing adventures "down under" at this year's Sydney Mardi Gras ... for God's sake come back in one piece boys! :)
‹ 5.3.01
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Happy Blogday to Darren's Linkmachinego - one year of quality publishing and still going strong! And as one blog celebrates, another passes on - it's farewell to Meg's Megnut which has closed its doors for the forseeable future.
‹ 5.3.01
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I'm now the 4000th member of Metafilter ... let the good times roll!
‹ 5.3.01
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Prior to last night's explosive events, I was at "Proof of Life" with M-L-T (no, not the new sandwich craze that's sweeping the nation). I've never felt so ambivalent about a movie for as long as I can remember - a completely average, neutral film which elicited no response on either side of the love-hate continuum (note: Russell Crowe kisses men better than he kisses women).
‹ 5.3.01
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I'd just taken my headphones off last night when I heard two loud bangs: a car bomb had exploded outside the BBC Television Centre in White City (one tube stop to the east). Once it sinks in that it wasn't a car crashing or backfiring, your heart skips a beat and you literally freeze - a very unsettling experience. The pictures bring it home even more. Suddenly the prospect of moving to an NW postcode seems just that extra bit appealing.
‹ 5.3.01
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Sometimes the world seems just a little too loud.
‹ 4.3.01
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Rupert Murdoch has a global media empire but still admits to wasting half his life. We endorse this particular lifestyle choice most heartily.
‹ 3.3.01
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We think this guy likes his trailer a little too much. But who are we to judge?
‹ 3.3.01
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Mobile phone ring tones we can't abide any longer:
- Eric Clapton - "Layla"
- Survivor - "Eye of the Tiger"
- Cornershop - "Brimfull of Asha" (!)
‹ 2.3.01 / 0 comment(s) ›
Urgh. We're pleased to report that the move back to the flat we'll be staying in for the next couple of weeks went successfully. Momentary stress moment is now concluded. We thank you for your understanding.
‹ 2.3.01
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‹ 2.3.01
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Ian on the recent blogmeet™ photographs:
"There are photographs from last Friday's blogmeet. No, I am not going to link to them: I look as if I've been drinking in Soho for too long. About sixty years too long. The only consolation is that David looks even worse, like both the subject and object of a child-maintenance order. And yes, the bomb should be going off on somebody's server just about...now."Tell us your secret Meg! How do you end up making us all look so damned fox-ayyyyy?
‹ 2.3.01 / 0 comment(s) ›
Dogs of the stars.
‹ 2.3.01
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Geeklousy (n) : the sensation you get that you need to be a better nerd to keep up with the tech Jones' you keep meeting, but you never actually attempt to do anything about it because you realise you'll be crap at it. Commonly experienced at blogmeets™ and anytime anyone mutters "XML".
‹ 2.3.01
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A Happy Saint David's Day to all Davids [ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, etc. ], all Welshpersons and especially to all Welshpersons named David everywhere! As the man said, always remember to "do the little things" ... they're the ones that count.
‹ 2.3.01
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Apologies for the lack of postal action yesterday - here's the skinny ...
I'm staying on in my existing flat in East Acton for another three weeks or so before I move in with Meg and Luke. So, since yesterday was the last day of the month and therefore the lease, there was a flat inspection scheduled. But this was not your ordinary flat inspection, oh best beloved. It was the mother of all flat inspections.
The girls who moved in a month ago are taking up the new lease. As mentioned, I'm bunking down there for a few weeks as well. So you'd think we'd be able to leave our stuff in wardrobes or not the tops of beds or some such overnight? Oh no, that's not how it works I'm afraid. We were required to physically remove all our personal possessions from the flat and to vacate it for the evening.
WHAT THE FUCK?!
So, a big thank you to my gracious hosts, Anna and Richard for putting me up at the last minute, and for giving me some space to store my accumulated guff for the evening. Now, all I have to do is schlepp everything back to the flat tonight. Bugger.
‹ 2.3.01
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