Storywatch

Welcome to a sunny South Manchester where we find ourselves at the end of a summer where it rained a lot in July and August, yet now as September begins, we have high temperatures all week and not a hint of rain.

It’s been a busy couple of weeks and two weeks ago we were in London to see Abba Voyage, where avatars of the band performed their greatest hits. I have to say it was pretty spectacular and, being an Abba fan all those years ago, it took me back in time to the 1970s and 1980s. 

Here’s a taster of what it was like:

There were loads of people dressed up in glitter and 1970’s gear and it was very entertaining. The gig  was expensive though but I think it was worth it. We took the opportunity to see some friends too and have a big walk around the city, from Kensington to Hyde Park via Portobello Road market and Notting Hill.

It seems that every time I go to London, I do something different – and I have been loads of times. It’s an amazing city – but you need lots of time to explore it. I’ve had years and I still don’t know it that well.

Anyway, enough of that. Shall we answer some silly questions from Sunday Stealing? 

1. Did you ever have a commercial you really liked?

I don’t watch adverts these days but in the past there have been some great ones. First, I am a huge fan of Mr T and so I found this one particularly good:

This is also a good old classic that I like:

And finally, this one – a skit of a more famous advert:

2. How did you learn to ride a bicycle?

With some difficulty. I fell off a couple of times but I got the hang of it eventually. To be honest I have never been a fan of bikes because I always feel quite vulnerable when sharing the road with other bigger vehicles. It’s not good when a double decker bus overtakes you slowly on a main road. 

I have now actually sold my bike because it was just gathering dust. I probably won’t cycle ever again. 

3.How did you celebrate your 21st birthday?

I was at university and I didn’t really want to do anything big so I just invited a couple of friends over to the digs I was staying in at the time. Sadly, one of the other guys I lived with took it upon himself to invite a load of people that I didn’t know and so after about an hour I started getting bored in my own party. We lived close to Liverpool city centre so I decided to abandon my own party with five of my closest mates and go to local student dive that we often frequented, where we could have more fun and dance to music. In the end, we left that place and returned home in the early hours to find the party had dissolved – so we resurrected it again with just the six of us. I can’t recall much else about the party other than there is a picture of me drinking vodka out of a kettle spout. 

It was a good night – I think.

4. What fascinated you as a child?

I was fascinated by dinosaurs, space travel and aliens. To be fair, nothing much has changed in that regard.

5. What was one of your favourite playground games?

We used to play a game called British Bulldog and I think eventually it was banned at our school because it was deemed too dangerous. 

Basically, one kid is selected to stand in the middle of the playground while all the other kids lined up at one side. The kids then have to run to the other side of the playground and the kid in the middle has to stop somebody from getting across using whatever means necessary. That kid’s victim then joins the kid in the middle and the game is repeated until eventually there are more kids in the middle than there are at the side. The winner is the last person to successfully make it other side without being caught. 

The reason it was banned was because we used to play on a concrete playground and kids got injured when they were rugby tackled to the ground. There were always a few cuts and bruises when the game took place.

There was a variant in the swimming pool called Sharks. The principle was the same except the kid in the middle of the pool had to try to dunk kids as they swam to the other side of the pool. I preferred the pool version, although it wasn’t pleasant if you weren’t a strong swimmer.

6. What things matter most to you in life?

I’m quite content at the moment and all of the things that make me happy are the things that matter most, such as friends, family and fun. Current hobbies also matter like, reading, writing, listening to music, trying to teach myself various things like the piano and Spanish. Oh, and life wouldn’t be complete without Ziggy and Star(dust), my two bosses.

7. If you had to go back in time and start a brand new career, what would it be?

I would probably have tried to have a career in writing. I think at the time I could easily have chosen subjects that allowed that happen so rather than pursuing the maths or science based career that I am on now, I would have followed a path that led to a university course on writing or journalism or something like that. I would still be interested in science though so writing about science may have been a way of satisfying the scientist within.

8. What do people get wrong about you?

People think that I am younger than I actually am, which is a good thing. 

Also, some people think that I am a rampant extrovert because I can allow that version of myself to surface from time to time. Deep down, though, I am more introverted and shy and I like my own company. 

9. Do you believe that people can change? Why or why not?

Yes. This relates to the last question really. As I said, I am quite shy but over the years I have forced myself to combat that particular characteristic. For example, I can pluck up the courage to talk to random people when the need arises, something that I really used to struggle with in my youth. 

I think the turning point came at university when I was just surrounded by people that I didn’t know. When I arrived, I sat alone in my room on that Sunday when I could hear lots of people meeting and greeting each other in the distance. Somehow I found the courage to just go out and start talking to random people even though every fibre of my being screamed at me to go back to my room. 

I won that battle and decided to wage a war on shyness. I still haven’t won the war, but the enemy is fast retreating now. I may win by the time I’m eighty years old.

10. What is some of the best advice your mother ever gave you?

My mum basically taught me how to cook and fend for myself before I left home for university. I used to help her doing household chores, including cooking, and although I hated it, she told me that I would one day need to have these skills. She was, of course, right and I hit the ground running when I left home, thanks to her.

11. If you could see into the future, what would you want to find out?

I would want to know what new technology exists. I am a huge technophile and I love the gizmos and gadgets that have come into existence over the course of my life. When I compare the technology that existed in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s with that of today, progress has been incredible and I would love to see what exists in another 50, 100, 150 or 200 years. That is what I would use a time machine for. 

Come on Dr Who – pay me a visit.

12. How has your life turned out differently than you imagined it would?

Not really. I always thought I was clever enough to have a decent career and that I would be probably be quite comfortable as I got older. And that is kind of what has happened. 

13. What is the longest project you have ever worked on?

I worked on a project at work from its inception to completion and beyond (supporting it). The project  lasted about six or seven years and took me to Hong Kong. When I retire, I will tell you all about it. 

14. What have been some of your favourite restaurants through the years?

There was a great restaurant in Hong Kong called Café Deco that was situated on Victoria Peak in Hong Kong with a stunning view of the skyline from above. Sadly it is now closed which is a real shame, as we always tried to eat there on visits.

There is a great local Nepalese restaurant within a ten minute walk that we both love. 

In Manchester city centre there is a great Chinese restaurant called the Yang Sing, which has an equally good sister restaurant called the Little Yang Sing.

There are a couple of local Italian places that are pretty good too.

15. What is one of the best shows you've ever been to?

The Abba Voyage show I mentioned at that start of this post is right up there. It was weird because we were watching Abba as they were.

I go to a lot of shows and gigs and some of the highlights include:

Rammstein – the mad German Industrial Metal band that have brilliant pyrotechnics and special effects. Like these one:

I also love bands like Nine Inch Nails when they are live:

I saw a great gig earlier this year – Porcupine Tree at Castlefield Bowl in Manchester. It’s a weird place because it’s open air and cradled in the Castlefield area of the city but with trains constantly passing at the side. The last song of the gig was ironically called Trains. Here’s what happened.

You can probably see me somewhere if you look closely (I haven’t found myself yet it has to be said). 

And Rush – of course – my favourite band:

There are simply too many amazing shows and artists out there to mention in such a short post – but I hope you have some idea.