You're not going to believe ...

Spam While I was away in Cardiff, I recieved the following. It seems to be a fairly unbelievable offshoot of the Nigerian scam:
Hello

I am Miss Josephine Wright, 18 years old duagther to Mr.Kartikar Wright,My father was the chirman of Texaco Oil company in Monrovia Liberia.

My father happens to be a victim of the plot which claimed many life/souls in September 11, 2001 terrorist attack in America at the World Trade Center Towers in New York City at The Pentagon house in Washington.

On 12th august last year, the personal attorney to my late father called me and told me that,he have not given me this because of my age; when i asked him what he was talking about he brought a Will written by my late father and i was suprised about the content.It is about my Inheritance there in a bank which i will tell you later.

Please get in touch with me via my Email address to enable us discuss further on this matter,

Awaiting your response.

Best Regards,

Josephine Wright.
Deplorable. My email didn't appear in the 'To:' section of the email so its obviously a mass mailer. Lacks some scruples really.

Liverpool Biennial 2004

Art Having missed the Heritage Open Days last week I felt it a duty to visit the Liverpool Biennial this week, today, on the first day. And what an exciting day it's been. More than ever before Liverpool city centre has been turned into a giant art centre, with objects and initiatives at every turn. Frankly someone would have to be actively avoiding the Biennial to miss everything. If the Yoko Ono's nipples and privates feel like a misstep much of everything else is a joy and a beacon as to what is possible in this my city and a great example of what might be happening in the run up to 2008.

My original plan was to use the map in the small brochure and work my way across taking in as many venues as I could. This changed as soon as I saw the map and how many venues and site specific pieces there are. I realized this was going to take more than today so instead I visited all of the so-called main venues or the International section, working from The Walker through FACT, Open Eye, Blue Coat Arts Centre and Tate Liverpool picking up on as many in street objects as I could on the way. I'll be going back another day to find the Independents.

I felt slightly dwarfed by it all. Not really being familiar with most of the artists on display I found myself just letting it wash over me, getting very involved in some places offering the odd glance in others, spending ages watching some pieces all the way through but only jumping in and out elsewhere. But everywhere just felt very positive - due respect was given even to work which was either unbelievably challenging or not too interesting for whatever reason. One unusual bi-product of all searching for exhibits was dodging into parts of the city centre I'd never been before and/or knew existed. Searching for art and venues I found that Duke Street has some very nice Cafes and a very exclusive looking club called 'Society'. On Parr Street there is a tiny concert venue and another bar kitted out in 70s brown leather and widescreen tvs showing The Matrix Reloaded. But it also happened within the exhibition because most of the video work on display takes Liverpool as its inspiration, so in that case I suppose I was seeing my own city in a way I hadn't ever before.

Something which I hadn't experienced before: in some venues, The Tate or Blue Coat, the artists themselves were on hand talking to visitors and enjoying their reaction to the work. It was intriguing to see how well they blended in. For example. I'm on my way out of The Tate and there is a piece by Germaine Koh. It consists of a VDU screen hooked up to a tunnel light fixed to a wall. The visitor is asked to text a message to a number given. The message then turns up on the screen and it beats out automatically in Morse code on the light. There was already a message there about something which had been sent in the morning but there hadn't been anything since so I decided to give it a try. Giving due reverence to the appearance of the original Star Wars trilogy on dvd on Monday I sent: "Do you speak Baachi?" Seconds later it appeared on the screen and started giggling in surprise. An attractive woman appeared behind me and started giggling as well. She was looking at the screen.
Her: What B..baa
Me: Baachi?
Her: Yes.
Me: It's a quote from Star Wars.
I suddenly feel like the geekiest man on Earth. Couldn't I have sent my original choice 'To Be or not To Be'?
Her: Oh. Is it a person?
I'm unable to stop myself.
Me: No. C3PO is being sold to Luke's Uncle by the Jawas it's the question he asks the droid.
I pause. Is penny is dropping. Its dropping. Its ?
Me: Is this yours?
Its dropped.
Her: Yes it is.
Me: Fantastic!
So here I was explaining a Star Wars quote to one of the artists. I was a bit star struck to be honest, even though neither knew who she was or hadn't seen her work before. I think it was because I've visited my exhibitions and usually the artist is some faceless entity who put them there in the first. Usually they're also dead. I asked some dumb questions about how it worked, how long she'd been in Liverpool and whether she was enjoying herself. I congratulated her on the work and exited via the lift.

Being the first day I also saw a number of journalists milling around. One of my games for the day was trying to work out which one would be writing the review I'd be reading in The Observer tomorrow. It's amazing how nervous the artists would get around these fellow humans. I saw Jill Magid (think Neve Campbell without the freckles) giving an impromptu press conference in front of the entrance to one of the gallery spaces and I'd never seen even an American speak so quickly. Quite rightly, she didn't want to leave any stone unturned or anything misunderstood in the brief time she had with them. I was impressed with her passion, but this was a passion I saw all across the board. Even in the exhibits which I didn't that much of an emotional connection with, I knew that the mind behind it care deeply about what they were doing. This was the best they could do and this was important as anything else they'd done. They cared so I did too.

[If you are coming up to Liverpool or you're already here I'd suggest you pick a big venue then work your way outwards from there. You won't see everything - like any festival you'll probably miss something really good. I've created a list of my favourites at Delicious but I'm sure you'll find many others.]

[Further update: I've just posted a Liverpool Biennial Map Key which I've been using to work around rather tricky guide book]

Links for 2004-09-18 [del.icio.us]

Links for 2004-09-18 [del.icio.us]

  • 'The making of the painting', Andrew Grassie
    [The Walker: John Moores 23]

  • 'Bayonet 13mm (1/2") steel tacks', Leo Fitzmaurice
    [The Walker: John Moores 23]

  • 'Hideaway I', Covadonga Valds
    [The Walker: John Moores 23]

  • The Stuckists: Paul Harvey
    [The Walker]

  • 'Happy Together', Choi Jeong Hawa
    [Lime Street Station]

  • 'Close To The Sea', Yang Fudong
    [FACT]

  • 'Prologue', Ursula Biemann
    [Biennial Centre]

  • 'Natura: The Mersey Valley Case', Francesco Jodice
    [Open Eye Gallery]

  • 'Beethoven, the headbangers', Amanda Coogan
    [Bluecoat Arts Centre]

  • 'Trigger', Yeondoo Jung
    [Bluecoat Arts Centre]

  • 'The Commons', Neil Cummings & Marysia Lewandowska
    [Around Liverpool]

  • 'The Pole Of The East', Huang Yong Ping
    [Albert Dock]

  • 'Relay', Germaine Koh
    [Tate Liverpool]

  • 'Trust', Jill Magid
    [Tate Liverpool]

  • 'Grandeur et decadence d'un petit commerce de cinema', Dorit Margreiter
    [Tate Liverpool]

  • 'Kitchen Stories' is out on dvd
    Never has men sitting on stools in the corner of the room been so touching

  • Nose-steered mouse could save aching arms�
    But what happens if you also get a crick in the neck?

  • Film of the Day: The Peacemaker (1997)
    Well I think it's underrated.

  • Back to 200m

    The Road To Beijing Abi Oyepitan contests her favourite 200m distance.

    The Rub

    Life This is something I've been meaning to write for some weeks but a new post from Robyn has sort of given me a reason to get around to it. Aaah. Hmmm. Well. There are certain subjects I don't cover on the weblog which aren't in the The Rules but which for some reason I just never mention. I've never been sure why. Some of it is to do with the readership, which I think generally tips towards the feminine, but otherwise because I'm not sure if it's the done thing. I think the writing here has a tone and I don't want to lower that tone. But since I want to respond to Robyn I feel the need to go there, so here we are. The taboos for no reason list:

    (1) Swearing. I always think long and hard about bad language on here. I only ever include the 'f' word if its entirely necessary, as in part of a quote or emphasise a point for a certain effect. Otherwise its gratuitous and I hope I'm cleverer than that.

    (2) The Weather. Even when I'm at my most desperate for subject matter I don't talk about clouds. For one thing I also have an international readership so if I talk about how cold it is outside, someone in Melbourne (for example) is looking out at the sun. I have talked about the rain if it leads onto something else, or I'm again making a point. But what's the point in small talking?

    (3) Kvetch. I don't make it a habit to bitch and moan about things. We all the know the world doesn't work to some degree but letting off steam online in something like this isn't going to help anyone. Again unless its about something usually my own inadequacies (see a few paragraphs down from here). And finally ...

    (4) Girls. For some reason this never happens here. Well not never. There was a something a few weeks ago about Nicole Kidman on movie posters but apart from that I don't tend to write about this or that girl or whatever. And here the rub. It doesn't appear to be something other webloggers in what you could call my sub-genre have an issue with. Most of my regular reads mention the opposite sex on a regular basis, sometimes with clean pictures. And you know what it is?
    (a) Blackeyes Dennis Potter's tv series Blackeyes. From many years ago. I was very young when I saw it (not my parents fault) and I have only a few memories, but most of them seemed to be of the man saying some not very nice things about women.

    (b) I'm 19 years old and at my Student Hall formal. For various reasons its not been a very good night (I'll write the whole story some time) and I'm hiding in a toilet cubicle pretending just so that I can get away from an increasingly bad situation. As I sit there looking at the deep blue door I hear two people come in and use the urinal. One is talking about his girlfriend, the other someone he's been chatting up. At no stage during their conversation do they mention the girl's names. Instead we have 'the woman', 'blonde #1', 'blonde #2', 'her' and some bits and pieces which I won't bore you with.
    I just don't want to find myself being in the position of fulfilling my promise as a hormonal testosterone fuelled alpha-male hell bent on the objectification of women, at least not on the weblog. I have an idea of myself and how I want to project that idea and I want that to be fairly/very feminist. So I feel like if I decide to write about some girl I saw working somewhere or met somewhere else and through into the mix all the reasons I like her that it would be wrong in someway -- a step too far. Which is silly. Really. I have those feelings. I communicate those feelings to friends in the real space so why not share them with my friends in cyberspace?

    So the line is drawn here. I'm relaxing, taking a few breaths and breaking a few taboos. Not about the swearing or the weather. But. I kvetched a lot last night about the horrible signage in Cardiff and it felt great to get that off my chest. Next step. I'm going to do three things.

    (1) Here is number 42 in my 100 things about me ...
    "someone with a personality. not a sheep, someone who speaks her mind. unpredictable but rational. willing to go out on a limb, be spontaneous, but responsible. someone interested in the world, who like me wants to discover the possibilites and how everything works. someone funny without being purile, spritual without banging on about religion all the time. who doesn't mind making an idiot of themselves if the outcome is pure."
    I've always let that hang there. I wrote it during a webchat with someone and as it scrolled up the page I was amazed at how I'd captured things. And also how it doesn't mention appearance.

    (2) I've been in love many times. Some have got married, some I don't know what happened to them, some are other stories for other times. My Julie Delpy, the girl I fell in love with on a train was called Andrea (I think). Much like Jessie in Before Sunset I've written about her on this weblog. That post is here. Unlike Jessie I didn't talk about how I really felt. This was one of the few occasion were in the about fifty minutes of the train journey I met someone who I could utterly communicate with and simply wanted to know for the rest of my life. She talked about the problems she was having in her own family with her own relatives and as you can see it made me think about my own situation (the post is fairly self-contained anyway). It all got pretty intense to be honest and whether it was because I was there being some random who she could confide or something else I'll never know. But I can still see her in the back of my mind now, the English Rose with the long dark blonde hair, home knitted cardigan and water bottle. I wanted to write all that back then but something stopped me, so here it is now. There have been other occasions when I've wanted to embelish, but I've picked that example fairly randomly. To finish the story, I actually bumped into her again in Manchester the following Christmas outside the town hall. I found out she hadn't ended up moving to Liverpool at all but somewhere else away from everything. But we swapped telephone numbers. And I rang her but it felt wrong. It didn't fit anymore. As someone said on a tv drama this week, the timing was wrong.

    (3) And back to this. Who my Movie Girlfriends are/were ...

    - Laura Fraser
    - Gwyneth Paltrow
    - Minnie Driver
    - Parminder Nagra
    - Alyson Hannigan
    - Kate Winslet
    - Elizabeth Shue (in Adventures In Babysitting)
    - Franke Potente
    - Julie Christie
    - Kate Nelligan (in BBC Shakespeare's Measure for Measure)

    [Plus there are the givens, Julia Roberts, Carrie Fisher and Meg Ryan. But surely everyone'd pick those?]

    See that wasn't too difficult. And now relax. Please feel free to link with the phrase 'Stuart comes to terms with his sexuality (thank goodness)'

    Literal baggage

    Cardiff All of the time I was away I had a paranoia about my bag, my Gap bag. In various situations for various reasons I had to leave it in places and for the time it was there I would worry about someone else putting their hand on it. Like a snail carries his home, it felt like my bit of home I was carrying about with me. So when I was in a little bookshop and had to leave it near the counter while I hunted for back issues of Sight & Sound upstairs I didn't know was going through downstairs. In Cardiff Castle when it felt wrong and too heavy to carry around the interior and I left it in what I can only descibe as the cloak hut, for much of the time I was walking around looking at the fabulous ceilings I was concerned that someone would be in the hut trying on the extra t-shirt I had with me. When I went out for the evening and left it in my hotel room, again I kept wondering if I'd left my hotel room door open (when I returned to my room on my last night in Paris it was unlocked). On each occasion I kept rationalising that I only had a walkman, some cds, extra clothing and some books and if they went it wouldn't be that big a deal. And on each occasion when I returned it was unguarded -- at the bookshop the owner was helping customers at the other end of the shop, at the castle no one seemed to be paying much attention to the hut and when I returned to the hotel room it still sat on the couch. Each time I knew I was being completely irrational. Then I wondered if that's what being a father was like and whether I'd learnt something good about myself.

    Links for 2004-09-17 [del.icio.us]

    Links for 2004-09-17 [del.icio.us]

  • London Plan
    I think this may be someone who is working towards running in the London Marathon. See what you think...
  • How I became a Girl Aloud
    Caroline Sullivan of The Guardian spends a week with the girl group. See if you can spot which one she is from the photo. For some reason she looks like a late-thirties Avril Lavigne
  • Film of the Day: The Wizard of Speed and Time (1989)
    Before computers there was. Bonkers animation from Mike Jittlov. Whatever happened to him?
  • Greetings from Joss Whedon on the completion of shooting for 'Serenity'
    "The incessant meddling of the studio: where was it?" I like quotes like that. They're so shiny.
  • How to rip from vinyl or tape
    But it just seems like so much work.
  • John C Reilly interviewed by The Onion A.V. Club
    Really nice, but they fail to ask him the important question ... 'Why do you seem to be in every film ever made?'
  • Not the film of the day: National Lampoon's Gold Diggers (2004)
    To quote one critic: "Nothing's quite so painful as failed comedy, and this atrocity is equivalent to a compound fracture."
  • A9
    I like it. But compared to Google it does seem to spend a hideous time loading on my dial-up
  • Yes I'm plugging it again...

    Site News I know I've only been posting there for a few days but I'm really enjoying the experience of using del.icio.us/feelinglistless. It feels more natural and practical to put the quick links there and leave the longer writing for the main weblog. Once they work out how to allow the links to be reblogged into the main that won't matter so much but you read this, for now you should be reading that as well, otherwise you're only getting half the story. Usual feedreading issues apply. Incidentally there will be more about Cardiff to follow over the coming days ...

    This may save a few pounds...

    Books I've just discovered(after the rest of the world perhaps) the Amazon Library LookUp from Jon Udell. It's just great. Here's why: You're browsing through Amazon.co.uk and you find a book you really want to read. It's a tight month so you wonder if your local library might have a copy. But rather than having to find their site, entering the details of book and hoping, now you just have to click on a bookmarklet whilst on the book's Amazon page and it searches the online library catalogue automatically for you using the ISBN number then pops up a window with the page in the catalogue showing availability. It's hard to explain to be honest but wonderful in use.

    Setting things up is bit fiddly though. If your library isn't on one of their lists it is a case of fishing through the catalogue looking for the vital URL which is being used during the search and using trial and error. But I was amazed to find I could work it out, so happy to say that if your in the Liverpool area and want to make use I've worked through the system and created a bookmarklet. Just drag the following link -- Liverpool City Libraries -- to your linkbar. Find a book on Amazon.co.uk then click this new button and you'll see what I mean. Also, because it uses the ISBN, it works around any errors with the way the title may have been entered into the system (for example LCL sometimes have issues with just including the subtitle on a book which means that something don't appear on title or keyword searches -- with this thing it doesn't matter). [via]

    [Incidentally I've only tried this in the Firfox Browser and it works just fine. Should be OK in IE and Netscape though I should imagine.]

    'Oh yes, I got a phone caaall...'

    TV In the event, the only time I brushed past one of the main reasons for going to Cardiff was in a really undernourished coffee shop near the castle. One of the baristas, a tall, loud theatrical man was loudly telling his colleagues and by proxy everyone else in the place that he'd received a call from Cardiff Casting asking if he wanted to do a few days on Doctor Who. Ironically he seemed only to be thinking about it. I would have left my job and home and moved to Cardiff just to walk past in the background. They'd apparently been looking at him because he was a particular height, weight and proportion. I took comfort in the fact that if he took the job he'd more than likely be encased in latex and wouldn't be seen anyway, sweating his way through the three days. I'm not bitter about these things you see.

    Links for 2004-09-16 [del.icio.us]

    Links for 2004-09-16 [del.icio.us]


  • Time Out : Film
    New website coming soon which include a version of the annual film guide. I swear by their reviews so it'll be handy to have access to them without having to buy the magazine and before the book is published (assuming that's how it'll work).


  • Domic Diamond returns to Video Game programming
    Frankly I'm with the Guardian Gamesblog reader: 'It'll be nothing without Patrick Moore.'


  • The Lesbians On Ecstasy
    According to the website "It's kd lang, but it's different somehow... "


  • No Friendster of mine
    "One week after Friendster fired her for blogging about the company, Joyce Park opens up to Red Herring." A week. It feels like ages ago.


  • Flip Flop Flyin's 'Minipops' has s book version published in October
    Craig Robinson little people were one of the first thing to get me really excited about the possibilities of the internet and I'm pleased to see he has a book coming out. I'll just have to give this as a gift this Christmas.


  • The clothing shops of Bon Marche to slowly become Macy's
    But will it happen in the UK? I'm not sure because the Macy's name doesn't quite have the strong brand visibility here


  • Belle de Jour leaves us (for now...)
    See you Missy Miss


  • British History Online
    But not Liverpool. Yet.


  • Film Of The Day: Nina Takes a Lover (1994)
    Nina (Laura San Giacomo) has an affair with a photographer in an attempt to rekindle her marriage but things get wildly complicated. It's a romantic comedy with the tricky structure of something like 'The Usual Suspects' and is just spectacular.


  • CliffsNotes on King Lear
    Filed for future reference. The one play I get lost in. Ironically, as soon as the old man hits the moors I get lost. With any luck I'll finally understand ...


  • New Hauppauge box "enhances reception"
    Freeviewers will understand what a joy this thing is. Pulse Killer technology" that aims to reduce picture breakup due to electrical interference.


  • Orion Slave Girls return to Star Trek
    They really are wanting to return to the old school ...


  • Ono's artwork on show at Liverpool Airport
    And in Church Streer according to the photo. Wasn't Woody Allen chased by one of the these in of his films?
  • 'I'm back and it's about ...'

    Life I'm back from Cardiff then, feet aching, head aching, eyes itching and I've got the sniffles. How come whenever I go on what's supposed to be a relaxing holiday I come back in worse shape than when I left? It's probably because I try to cram in more than I should in as little time than is allowed (see also Paris and Nottingham). It was an exciting time, many things happened and I'm going to try and tell you as much as I can. The first thing which struck me as I left Cardiff Central railway station on Tuesday morning was how familiar everything was. The signs are in both English and Welsh, a law passed about twelve years ago to reinvigorate what was a dying language. But the first shop I saw was a Londis, and beyond that a WH Smith. I don't know what I was expecting being on the same mass of land, but I don't think I was expecting that. As I walked around the city centre, it seemed like most others - all of the usual high street suspects were there, if not always in the same order. There are the massive shopping precincts and small markets. I just suppose I was expecting something other. But then it became clear that Cardiff is a city which has treasures underneath and in corners, and finding them was part of the fun. If my own senses and keen eye for idiocy didn't get in the way.

    Problem #1. None of the various maps and bits and bobs which I'd download and printed matched each other to some degree or else didn't bare any relation to the city centre as I was experiencing it. Something which I would encounter time and again over the following forty or so hours would be that nothing seemed to make any sense -- in places streets would double back on themselves like an Escher drawing and at other time it even felt like they were moving around. Which sounds crazy, but on more than one occasion I'd spend a good twenty minutes to half an hour walking to a place then hours later of the next day, I'd go a slightly different way and I'd be there in five minutes. How can they be so geographically so different unless they were moving around. Some of you might wonder if it was more to do with me having a lack of a sense of direction, but that brings me to ...

    Problem #2: The street signs openly and at times flagrantly contradict each other. The first thing a tourist might naturally do stepping into a city centre for the first time would be to go to the tourist information office. Outside the station is a sign with 'Information Centre' on point towards the middle of town (why everywhere can't be like Leeds and have a T.I. at the station saving everyone some excitement I'm not sure but I digress). I follow the sign until I find another and then another then another - then another. Although this was a good way to see the city centre it was becoming abundantly clear that I was walking around in circles and not getting very far very fast. It came to a head when I walked down a street in the what I later learnt was the café district and found a sign point in the direction I'd just come, which another sign in fact had told me to go. If I had no common sense, if I'd just mindlessly been following the instructions of those signs I could have been walking back and forth in front of that coffee shop all day. So I stopped someone and asked, and she said it might be at the back of a nearby building which it was. As I entered, probably looking a bit bedraggled, I told the clerk that they were difficult to find. He put his head down and sniff and said something along the lines of 'Yup' seemingly as powerless as I was to affect change. Then he sold me another map which felt like just another other version of the truth.

    Links for 2004-09-13 [del.icio.us]

    Links for 2004-09-12 [del.icio.us]

  • Grace in the city
    Anyone else miss Caroline? Just a lovely banner...
  • An American Werewolf in Paris (1997)
    This is my first movie recommendation. It has a fantastic opening few moments which show an unbelievable view of the Eiffel Tower and to some extent demonstrates to some extent what Julie Delpy was up to between Sunrise and Sunset.
  • If someone with gold teeth is cremated, what happens to the gold?
    Would you believe a rocket ship is featured in the answer?
  • Why aren't all Weekend newspaper magazines online?
    As good an explaination as any I've read as to why some newspapers and magazines don't republish everything online.
  • Report on Battleship Potemkin live in Trafalgar Square, with soundtrack by The Pet Shop Boys
    Although BBC Four are missing a trick -- they're screening the film on the 18th September but haven't licensed this new soundtrack which might have created more interest. I'll still be watching though.
  • Star Wars Episode III to be PG-13?
    Which would somewhat suggest that it will be the darkest of the six. I wonder how the BBFC in the UK will handle a mess like that. I'm guessing a 12 with maybe an A.
  • 100 Photographs that Changed the World
    Some of them. From LIFE magazine.
  • Boston Harbour Tea Chest
    Commemorates the 1774 Boston Tea Party, a familiar wonder to the millions who've played Sid Meier's game Civilisation.
  • I've got Six Gmail invites up for grabs
    For readers of the new del.icio.us feed. Full name and email address via feelinglistless(at)btopenworld(dot)com
  • Suw reviews the 'Shaun of the Dead' dvd extras so I don't have to ...
    ... and gets everything completely correct. I've not long finished listening to the Nighy / Wilton commentary which is very special. 'Yeah, baby, yeah!'
  • Cardiff @ Wikipedia
    Two castles and a Liberal Democrat council. I should feel right at home.
  • Sofia Mini
    Sophia Coppola endorsed wine in a red tin can.
  • Google Alerts
    I'll have a look at this when I get back
  • Cardiff: The Movie

    Meme

    He's going on a journey.
    Into the unknown.
    Alone.
    Except for his Gap bag.
    And some spare underwear.

    [Well I tried!]

    'I thank the lord I'm...'

    Life My bags are packed, I'm ready to go. Here is the plan for the Cardiff trip. Shopping on day one, culture on day two. Looking through stores just seems easier when you're slighty hazy (and I will be after getting up at a shocking 5 am) and hopefully I'll absorb the historical aspects of Cardiff Castle more after a night's sleep. See you when I get back.

    It works!

    Feeds Incidentally I've tested the Feedburner and it does include posts from both here and delicious. So if you can I'd suggest you use it instead of the Atom in your reader to get the full picture.

    'Someone's scaled palace. Light the Bat Signal. Oh ....'

    News In case you're missing the blanket news coverage, there is a man dressed at Batman standing on a ledge at Buckingham Palace. Three things I've noted from the tv coverage -- the moment when one of the negotiators smacked his fist into the palm of his hand ala the Sixties series the protestor's costume is referencing; his partner in crime (who was captured before entry) was dressed in the Robin costume from the films (red and green not available at the costume shop?) and that senior security officers have said they would have shot him as a terrorist if he hadn't been dressed like that. Which pretty much signals to terrorists that if they turn up dressed as Spider-man they can get on with whatever they're up to.

    'That's delicious. Would you like to try some?'

    Site News In another barnstorming attempt to jump on the bandwagon, I've also begun a del.icio.us feed to collect links that I want to get around to reading and which might not always fit within the flow of the blog proper for whatever reason. Joshua is working on a way to fit them within the main body of the weblog which will be great when it happens (and will lead to much rejoicing), but until then, try looking here if there's no action on the main site, or if you've a feed reader, you can use this just for the links ... or if you're feeling really sophisticated, try this feedburner thingy, which should combine both of them. I think.

    Seventh?

    The Road To Beijing In Berlin's Golden League, Abi Oyepitan claimed seventh place in 11.36secs, with the race won by Commonwealth champion Debbie Ferguson in 11.14secs. As I said, concentrating on the 200m might be a serious option. She just seems more comfortable there.

    Links for 2004-09-12 [del.icio.us]

    Links for 2004-09-12 [del.icio.us]

  • Spacey's Darin film hits Toronto
  • Tom Baker: Make me The Master
  • The feathered cost of the Tribute In Light
    The beams which commemorate 9/11 have attracted some tragic visitors
  • "Scattered Crowd" by William Forsythe, Espace des Blancs Manteaux, Paris, Nuit Blanche
    Some extra-ordinary photos playing with light in an installation of balloons
  • Firda is coming to the UK
  • View towards Liverpool City Centre

    Photography


    View towards Liverpool City Centre

    This is the view from our balcony. Some day I'll post one of the incredible sunset which we have. For some reason the clouds look self aware and ready to jump down and and eat up whole sections of the landscape.

    Field, Sefton Park with River Mersey in the distance

    Photography


    Parade Field, Sefton Park with River Mersey in the distance

    This is the view from my bedroom window. We've been having one of those, grey, dark, blustery days in Liverpool. But it's hardly been raining, just spitting here and there. What strikes me about this scene is how the Sunday footballer seem to be dwarfed by everything around them.