More of wot I have heard…

If You Wait by London Grammar

I fine young band with a mature yet fresh sound to them. Two guys and a girl the band is described as being Trip-Hop, however they are much more accessible than that label might lead you to believe. Keep an eye on them; I think they will go far.

More of wot I have read…

Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman

I have read several books by this author and loved American Gods and the Neverwhere TV series. This is a book with a similar theme and has the same humour and lightness of touch as those others, well worth a read.

‘Fat Charlie Nancy’s normal life ended the moment his father dropped dead on a Florida karaoke stage. Charlie didn’t know his dad was a god. And he never knew he had a brother.

Now brother Spider’s on his doorstep – about to make Fat Charlie’s life more interesting and a lot more dangerous.’

The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness

This is the first part of a trilogy of books for young-adults that is set on another planet where several groups of settlers are trying to recover from a devastating war. The protagonist is a boy on the verge of manhood who finds himself on the run from the only place he has known into a new world that makes him question everything he thought was true. It is an interesting proposition but because it is spread over three books it takes a while to start to reveal itself, nevertheless the journey is quite exciting.

‘Todd Hewitt is the last boy in Prentisstown.

‘But Prentisstown isn’t like other towns. Everyone can hear everyone else’s thoughts in a constant, overwhelming, never-ending Noise. There is no privacy. There are no secrets.

Or are there?

Just one month away from the birthday that will make him a man, Todd unexpectedly stumbles upon a spot of complete silence.

Which is impossible.

Prentisstown has been lying to him.

And now he’s going to have to run…’

Face to Face Gaming…

On a semi-regular basis I get together with a few friends to play games (board games, card games, role-play-games and such like). Recently we met at Martin’s and we played these games:

Firefly The Game

this looked like a complicated game and we were becoming increasing uncertain about it as the length rules were being read out, but once we started playing it became clear it was not too difficult once you get the hang of it. It retains quite a lot of the feel and humour of the show and we soon got to enjoy it. It does have a lot to it and we did not have the time to finish a game but we definitely would give it a go again.

Betrayal at House on the Hill

this is a fun game that pulls together many of the iconic characters and situations from the horror (pulp) genre. It starts out co-operatively for a while until the ‘haunting’ begins where it is revealed that one of the players is a betrayer hell bent on the destruction of the others. From then on it is just a matter of time until he destroys them all or the hero’s thwart his evil plans. The tile based board and the many various situational haunting means that the game would seem to have a good re-playability to it. The only down side is that a player can be killed off and has to watch as the others continue to the end of the game.

SmashUp

This is a card based game where various stereotype fantastical factions are paired up (such as robots and pirates, dinosaurs and magicians, ninjas and undead etc.) to battle each other for dominance. I find these sorts of games difficult and I was having a hard time knowing what to play when, but the others seemed to enjoy much more.

Cards Against Humanity

This is another card game though it is only for very considered and select groups of players. It is possible the most un-PC game in the world with the very real possibility that it will offend nearly everyone. That said if you play it with like minding folk who have a very sick sense of humour then it is absolutely hilarious.

Very similar in game play to another great game called Apples to Apples you have a selection of cards with bizarre answers on them. Each person takes turns to pose a question and the others then select a suitable (unsuitable) card which the questioner then selects what he finds the most humorous from.

Probably don’t play this with relatives or those of a sensitive nature.

Just for a Laugh…

Recently we had a night out with Jodie and Lou at the Red Bar & Lounge in Dorking that hosts the Out Of Bounds comedy show as it travels around. For the princely sum of £4 each we got to see five artists try to make us laugh (with mixed success). The headline act was Katherine Ryan who has broken through to TV where we had seen some of her comedy before. She had a confident and engaging manner and put on a polished performance.

The venue is interesting as it is not ideally suited for performances as it is spread around the bar in a U shape such that half of the bar you cannot see the stage, here they got around that by broadcasting the show to large screen TVs.

New Wheels…

Vauxhall Meriva 1.7 Cdti 110ps SE automatic in Pepper Dust

This is a marmite vehicle that inspires quite dramatic love/hate views. Some of the ‘quirky’ features include the rear ‘suicide doors’ that open counter to the front in a barn door style to give easy access but can take some getting used to. Inside there is a feeling of space in what is quite a compact vehicle that is enhanced by the upright seating positions with their commanding view and the full-length panoramic glass sun/moon roof that floods the interior with light.

I was not looking at this model of car initially when my company BMW 1 Series was due to be replaced and my primary motivation was to get a practical smallish vehicle with an automatic transmission. Unfortunately the revised car list had a limited choice so after many months of waiting for the yet to appear revised list I was offered a choice from the pool cars (those cars that were surplus to requirements). I had settled on a BMW 3 Series somewhat reluctantly when I was advised it had gone and looking at what else was there I saw the Meriva. In addition to being automatic it was more practical than the BMW saloon and was cheaper too, so I jumped at it. Sue was not so impressed and felt the glass roof made it feel like the Pope-mobile and has christened it the ‘magic mushroom’ due to its colour.

I quite like it for it has a more comfortable ride than my previous sport tuned car, though it feels less positive in the corners. I like the higher driving position that gives me a better view of the traffic and the internal space is better. The build quality is not quite as high (but then neither is the price). I am still getting used to it and it seems to have its quirks so my view might change in the next few years that I have it for.