Ring Out The Old

Well almost.  Will be glad to see the back of 2014 and the odd years are normally much kinder to me so here's to 2015.

If memory serves me correctly my blog will be 9 years old tomorrow.  Not really sure where to go with it really.  I never thought I'd keep it going so long and in a way that's all that keeps me doing it.  Until this year I generally received 20 to 30 views a day which made it worthwhile to me but this that has really tailed off.  And so far the post before this one has received no views.   Probably not surprising given my 8 month absence.  The 44 year old me wouldn't have been bothered but sadly Goffa circa 2014/15 is.

Hey ho, I'll give it a go for a bit longer but if the nil pwa gets to say 5 posts I'm out of here.  It's not like I'm  a natural writer anyway.  Some of you might find it hard to believe but it's sometimes tough for me to write this rubbish.  Partly because I'm terrible at typing but also because I have such an appalling memory.  I often find that by the time I come to the end of a sentence I've forgotten the point I was trying to make.  Crap, I know but I've got to be honest.

Not just that but since this latest batch of posts I've managed to delete one and duplicate another one.  So what's new I hear you me say?  At least now I can blame the drugs.

Seriously though, feeling shit has become my normal state of health and I really could just post everyday about how I'm feeling.  I can live (or die) with my heart disease but I find having to take 7 tablets a day to feel this rubbish so hard to bear.

Anyway to make things more interesting (for me) I'm starting a hand-written, warts and all diary tomorrow.  I got the idea from my friend Don who let me read his me his moving, funny, libellous moanathon commentary of his life (and shoe insoles) from about June 2009 to September 2010.  I don't know how it will go and knowing me it might not last long but I'm going to give it a go for at least a couple of weeks.  It will hopefully be more fluent than this and I can promise (myself) lots of uninhibited moaning and libellous comments. Oh and lots of spelling errors.

So before I sign off for the year.  Resolutions?

1.  My hand-written diary
2.  To learn more about music theory.
3.  What's that stupid saying that people use?  Less equals more.  Not really but something about making better use of my time.  Wasting less time doing things like reading the teletext and browsing the Internet will give me more time to do good stuff.  I've tried this sitting around watching the football and it's ok but it's just not me (this doesn't include watching Boro.  I never get sick of the Boro).  Forgotten the point I was trying to make.
4.  Go out more?  Mmmm.....  I know I need to.  We'll see.
5.  Be here for new year 2016 blogging or not.

Happy New Year

PS  I've remembered, No Hootananny this year!!!

Worryingly starting to believe...

It's been a few years since I've enthused about the Boro and it will inevitably end in tears but I loved Boxing Day's 3-0 win against Nottingham Forest.

There are few things in life I can say I've always loved but it's true about football.  Not always watching and there are lots of things I despise about modern football, the money, the cheating, the gamesmanship, most of the TV punditry and more but I always loved (past tense? - probably) playing.  And although I've gone a bit quiet in recent years I've never stopped loving the Boro

Our supporters are taunted "You're just a small town in Yorkshire"  

And of course we join in.  For long periods of my adult life "we" have punched way above our weight.  Yesterday reminded me of the successful period over the 10 years or so from 1997 and it was great.  I always knew our success would come to an end so never took it for granted.  Those days are gone,  football's moved on.  The rich clubs are so dominant and poorer clubs like Boro are so up against it.  The local economy of a club's location is becoming more important.  Historically lower league clubs are becoming bigger e.g. Reading, Brighton and even MK Dons (watch this space).  Boro?   Say no more.

It's been a barren period since we got relegated from the Premier League and thoughts of a  promotion campaign seemed like blind faith to me but just maybe ......

Yesterday's crowd was 32277 including 1399 from the city of Nottingham.  The highest crowd in the Championship so far this season.  We are away to Blackburn tomorrow.  The small town in Yorkshire has sold out it's away ticket allocation of 7000.  According to the Lancashire Telegraph the largest away allocation in the Championship this season.

Everybody supports their team but the fact is we are ...... and supporters of other teams are not.  End of.

Merry Christmas.

Was going to have an Internet free day but I forgot that smartphones don't allow that sort of behaviour.  I got a message, replied and that was that.

Had  a good day.  Woke up at Shamila's, went to see her parents, home, the Eagle with Mark, then home again for lobster and salad for Christmas lunch washed down with over half a bottle of wine.  The lobster was only meant to be my starter but hey ho.

I retired to my front room to listen amongst other things my albums of the year.

As I said the other night it's been a shit year for live music in Goffaland but not for the recorded variety.  I'd go as far as to bold say it's been one of my best for the LP/CD/album.  Somebody at work described my taste as unconventionally conventional and I'll take that.  I just love pop music and this year has been glorious.

The playlist can be split into 4 categories,

The Old Guys

Vic Godard's Northern Soul offering, 1979.  Uplifting, joyful, surprising.  Great songs.  And Happy Go Lucky Girl should have been saved for Eurovision.  It wouldn't have won but would have got more points than "we" usually get.

Dexys - Nowhere is Home - Astonishing is a strong and overused word to describe music but this triple album is.  The first 2 discs are a full live recording of their Duke of Yorks Theatre show from 2013.  Disc 1 is a live performance of their last album, One Day I'm Going To Soar and Disc 2 is a jaw dropping re-working of some their (not so) extensive back catalogue.  Best song - A weep a long Tell Me When My Light Turns Green.

Note to self - See Dexys live.

The Girls

Regulars will know I unashamedly love the girls and mine are  Caitlin, Beth Jeans, Elizabeth and Jocie (photos Richard?) and this year I've loved the Arc Iris album and Allo' Darlin's We Come From The Same Place

The Scottish Crew

All critically acclaimed, King Creosote, Withered  Hand and one that surprised me, the Glaswegian rap band, The Young Fathers.  It won the Mercury Prize which is irrelevant to me but a lad at work lent me the album.  It's brill in a Public Enemy meet the Black Eyed Peas sort of way.

Americana

No surprises but genuinely great albums

Single Mothers - Justin Townes Earle
All hail to The Felice Brothers - Favourite Waitress  (review is a joke) and
the acceptable faces of rock Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Only Run and Work and Love by Elliott Brood (I suspect I am the only fan).

I go in peace.

Back to work and....

Back to work today and not the horror it's been for most of this year.  And and only 2 more working days this year.  That's not too bad.

Had an early finish and went to take a few photos of the traffic on the A66 with Brigitte.

We didn't have much time, but it was good fun.

Had good intentions to do proper post but too tired.

Still not with the latest tinkering of settings but after a few clicks here and there I'm back in.

Yeah, it's been a shit year for me and I've been distracted for most of it so haven't got much to say.  Boro are picking up and I'm even going on Boxing Day.  Would love to see us in the Premier League again.  It must be close to the longest we've been out of the top tier of English football since 1974/75.

I've kept my eye on the politics and ..... what can I say ..... dismayed by what the public will put up with will have to do.  It's no wonder that UKIP are so popular.  They do offer something different.  The fact that most of the public are too thick and ignorant to realise you can't get a cigarette paper between them and lots of the BNP is not relevant.

Facebook friends (17 and no plans to increase) may have seen my stance on voting or (more to the point) not and   ....  again, just disbelief really that people are willing to put up with the mediocre shite governing our country of whatever colour.   Radical thinkers?  My arse.

Obviously I've got to put my money where my mouth is again next year.  I caved in at the last minute in 2010 and voted for Labour in my very marginal constituency last time.  Do you know?  I shouldn't have bothered.

I don't think I've missed much on the live music scene or have I?  Obviously I didn't make my beloved EOTR but to be honest I don't think I was going to go anyway.  I had a shed load of unused tickets for local shows but I don't think I missed much.

Back to the tele.

Laters.