1. House fire!

    January 27, 2012 by admin

    Bloody hell I just set fire to my bloody flat!

    The hob here is fooking stupid in that the knobs are in the wrong place and defy any human logic.

    I regularly turn on the wrong ring, but usually the only problem is waiting longer for my food and a bit of wasted power.

    Not this time though.

    I’ve taken to using an old fashioned expresso machine again, pretty little thing from IKEA actually, and it has the advantage of making loads of noise when it’s ready. So I put it on, go into the study type room next door, and do a bit of work with an ear out for the coffee.

    This I did today but had my usual issue with the ring and turned the front left on instead of the front right. Little did I know the danger I’d caused until something fell onto the floor in the kitchen, I wasn’t even going to bother looking, but something made me want to see what had happened.

    And then it hit me as I walked into the main room.

    Thick acrid smoke, and through it, bloody great flames!

    There was a carton of butter on the other ring which had melted and caught fire, with flames licking around the extractor hood.

    I was paralysed for a moment, but then grabbed a tea towel and threw it on the flames beating them out, but then didn’t removed it, so a few seconds later that flared up too. Whoa! Next on goes the oven glove and I throw the fire into the sink and turn on the pathetic pressured tap.

    Calm restored. Just couldn’t breath in the kitchen for a while and the hob’ll need some serious elbow grease.

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  2. Bit of online gaming anyone?

    January 26, 2012 by admin

    I’ll occasionally go to a casino with mates at the end of an evening when we don’t want to go home, but also don’t want to go from the relative calm of a pub, to any kind of a late night venue like a club. But really I just can’t be bothered.

    When we were at uni I used to think it was fun because there’d be the not very good sandwiches and free tea going around, but even if that happens now we still avoid it.

    What I do like is a bit of online gaming as its now called, gambling being something of a dirty word. When everyone had left last night and we demolished the curry and a slab of Stellas the Evans logged on to my favourite online casino and had a flutter or six. OK, so i might have got through a few quid, but it’s strangely fun.

    So this morning I woke feeling a bit guilty about that. With a bad head from the beers, and worse, Jamie brought a bottle of Jamieson as is his wont. And the place stinks of curry. And men. Great!

    Left the windows open when i left for work, hoping no bugger decides to climb in, but also that the stink climbs out.

    Sweet eh?

    Taking it easy in every department tonight I promise.

    Category Drinking, Gaming | Tags: | No Comments

  3. Cooking up a great curry!

    January 25, 2012 by admin

    Look. Really I don’t cook.

    Even at uni when all the Swedish guys were turning out lovely food to guarantee their shag I couldn’t be bothered.

    Since then I’ve dabbled with a few chilies, and scrambled egg, toast even. In fact quite a lot of toast. But never anything you’d actually call cooking. No sauces, no roast even, actually especially no roast, that looks really hard getting all those bits to be ready at the same time. No wonder most of our grans turn out mushy veg.

    But what I do like is cooking up a great curry.

    I have every spice I need, and none that I don’t.

    I line them up and gradually add a bit of each to the oil before I throw in the onions. I even use those little pod things that seem to go into anything Indian whether savoury or sweet. And fresh chilies, always too many. Then I like using chicken or beef. Although I love lamb in a curry house I never do a very good job of it at home.

    And then beer. Lots of beer.

    Tonight there’ll be six of us and the flat is already smelling gorgeous.

    Though it won’t seem so clever come tomorrow morning!

    I don’t do breads or rice, I just get one of the gang to stop off at the Raj down the road on their way here.

    Perfect. Just not for girls.

    Category Drinking | Tags: | No Comments

  4. Micro light flying

    January 24, 2012 by admin

    Last night I watched the maddest programme. It had the potential of being boring, but then so did the whole TV schedule last night. I ended up watch The Real Magnificent Men and their Flying Machines. A silly little programme patched together about a few guys flying micro lights and the madness of the round Britain rally they hold every year.

    I didn’t care for the so called adventure of it all, but I was transfixed by the nature of the things they were flying in, or on as the case maybe. Someone referred to them as deck chairs with a lawnmower engine strapped on, and that’s about it. Some looked a bit like proper planes, but most were hang gliders with some sort of engine. Utterly mad, and actually looked like it could be good fun.

    Shame they actually travel so slowly – like slower than a car in general. It would be a great option for getting to mates if you lived near an airstrip, ah but then they’d need to as well. OK, crap idea.

    Off to Leeds at the weekend to meet some friends to go to a music bar they’re always on about and then on to Agra’s for a good curry I hope. I’ve just been onto City Visitor to book a haircut on Saturday morning, just looked for hairdressers in Leeds and ’twas all there. Easy! There’s two reasons. One is that it gets us to town, rather than just going to the lovely pub in Headingley where they want to go every day if they could. And it’s booked for half ten so I’ll have to get up rather than just lying in bed moaning like a student.

    Ah yes – and the fact that I need a haircut.

    Category Cars | Tags: | No Comments

  5. Taschen

    January 23, 2012 by admin

    The Evans Shag Machine is not a man given to long bouts of arduous reading. The only time I’ve taken on the classics has been when there has been a sexy bird to be pursued who was a bit of a reader and needed to be impressed. That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy the stuff I read when I actually did so, just that I don’t know where people find the time.

    However i do love what folk seem to refer to as coffee table books.

    Odd that. What the fook is a coffee table anyway?

    That little dig aside. Yeah, you know? The big fellows with fab pictures and just enough words to let you know what’s going on. They might be about architecture, or fashion, or National Geographic or whatever.

    Anyway, yesterday I paid attention and realised that the ones I love seem to be published by Phaildon or Taschen. So last night I spent a bit of time browsing the Taschen site. And ordering all sorts!

    They are bloody expensive, even though I was in the slightly damaged section – I liked that, it felt a bit like me!

    So now I sit and await the ring of the heavily laden postman, bringing me books aplenty.

    Then I just need to get some people around to see what a clever boy the Evans aspires to be!

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  6. Senna!

    January 20, 2012 by admin

    Last night some friends invited me to their rather random film society in the basement of a bar on Shoreditch High Street. Sounds like something from school, or university, and actually it was just as much fun.

    You could get a drink from the bar. You sat on hard plastic old school chairs, and their were Krispy Creme donuts!

    I didn’t care what we watched, just the set up had me enchanted. That and the girl running things, who probably casted for The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. You who? Weird. Slightly scary looking. And damn sexy.

    But then the film?

    It was something I wanted to see but didn’t want to waste on the small screen. Senna.

    Wow!

    The whole thing was made with original footage, starting with him coming to Europe to race in karts, then the joy of getting his first F1 race. His genius in the wet, and his first Monaco GP where he lapped all but one car (then crashed out). There was this amazing bit of on board camera film where he comes up behind another two drivers as if they were stopped, and flies past.

    And of course it all ends in tragedy and controversy.

    Such a waste, and such circumstances that still make the blood boil of anyone who knows the story.

    Go see it.

    And go to a cinema society. It was the best fun.

    Category Film | Tags: | No Comments

  7. Blogging

    January 19, 2012 by admin

    Hey. I’ve been at this blogging business for a few weeks now and I thought I’d explore some of my own thoughts on the subject.

    One of the main things is that I’ve realised that I can’t type the word “THE”. I hadn’t realised that every time I type it in word it corrects my spelling from teh to the automatically. That’s all very well and dandy, but because I was only vaguely aware of it the mistake has become so ingrained that I’m finding it really hard to break out of.

    OK, that’s one thing. the other is that getting sat down and writing pretty much every day is a whole lot easier than just doing it when you think you have something to say – hence the rather random nature of some of my posts!

    Getting set up was easy. I was told to use WordPress and so I did. I needed a WordPress hosting company and was told to use 34sp because they are good, easy to deal with, and sensibly priced. So I did that too. Most unlike me to do what I was told twice in a row. And I’m reaping the benefits as it’s easier than an easy thing.

    What’s difficult is remembering to only speak my mind to a certain degree as the moment you start telling people you write a blog, the silly beggars go looking for it and then reading it and then. Then they get a little uppetty if you’ve been a tad too open in describing their antics. Or worse than that your mother (Hi Mum) reads it because your annoying if lovely sister showed her how. And then even your dad isn’t safe.

    So I try to make a rule of all clean fun. Well. Sort of.

    Category About me, My thoughts | Tags: | No Comments

  8. Wot? No Wikipedia?

    January 18, 2012 by admin

    I love the fact that Wikipedia has taken itself down for the day in protest against the anti piracy lays proposed in the states.

    In a way I hate it as it makes me realise just how much I use it, but it shows the power of the tool doesn’t it? Just think what would happen if Google did the same thing? I guess it can’t on the basis that people pay to use its services, even if only through advertising.

    How will journos check their supposed ‘facts’ without their favourite tool? They’ll have forgotten how to do any real research, and probably sacked all their researchers.

    Shame I don’t know enough about these anti-piracy proposals to make any comments. Whatever is put in place I’m sure folk will find a way of getting their tunes for free somehow or other.

    I heard this morning that ailing Yahoo were offered $40bn by Microsoft a couple of years ago – and turned it down!! That’s confidence for you. Blind and stupid maybe, arrogant probably, but what a hoot. Now the fella who made the decision is out on his ear, but I can’t imagine he’s too bothered can you?

    I can’t actually even contemplate a million let alone a billion. But I bet I could spend a million, and quite sensibly too – maybe £100k to waste, and a cool car and property with a few hundred thou, then stash a couple of hundred for up keep. Bugger. Maybe a million isn’t enough!

    Category London, My thoughts, People | Tags: | No Comments

  9. Catch up

    January 17, 2012 by admin

    Oops, I’ve been slipping and haven’t written a jot in nearly a week. But there hasn’t been that much going on. I’m cutting back spending a little to try to clear the Christmas credit card in just one foul swoop, so I’m behaving, running in the mornings and not getting so drunk (notice I didn’t mention anything daft like stopping drinking).

    I’ve been home to the folks at the weekend to help dad put up some smart wooden venetian blinds in their living room. It’s a big, bright and airy room that everyone loves, but in the winter when the sun is low you can’t see in there as it’s just too bright on a sunny day. Up go the blinds and suddenly there’s control wrestled back from nature. Dad just wanted someone to be there I reckon as he’s completely capable. Holding the end up at times was just about worth going for, but mother could have done that.

    The big advantage of going there is I’ve been fed like a king, and only spent a few quid on the train fare rather than a small fortune in the boozer had I stayed at home.

    The cold snap has been great in the mornings. Going for a 30 minute run is superb in the crisp air, provided you don’t take a tumble of course. I feel really quite virtuous!

    Category About me, Home | Tags: | No Comments

  10. The Evans Motorcade III

    January 12, 2012 by admin

    Hey I just remembered I was going to catalogue all the awful cars I’ve owned.

    Last up I talked about my Marina, hand painted, nice! The second Morris 1000. The Van, Vincent.

    Vincent Van died in France under strange circumstances. My then long term girlfriend had dropped me for some very valid reason, and I’d started seeing someone else pretty quickly. A mate was getting married in Le Mans, France in the summer, and the old gf suddenly made it clear that she still intended to come. Birds! She was too good to loose altogether, so after rivers of tears and shouting old gf and I set off in Vincent. But it died just after 100,000 miles showed on the clock. We had to be towed home, including the ferry!

    Vincent was replaced by my first half decent car, a Vauxhall Carlton. I loved it! No CD player, so back to tapes. But comfortable, my first automatic, not awful on fuel, what a cruise!

    Four of us went to France in the Carlton for Mark Acky’s stag do. Luxury. Well, to us anyway.

    There were no real evens with the Carlton, I kept it two years and only sold it when I was given a company car, and that’s when some crazy miles kicked in. I quite look forward to writing about the Golf at some stage soon.

    Category Cars | Tags: | No Comments

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