Work, parents' visit, apple bobbing, blogging, The Beatles and Che Guevara!

So more of the same for me.
Working most days or evenings - had a busy one last night as there was a function (as there usually are on Thursdays) in the Horton Suite, a long bar and conference hall used for companies whenever they have their annual do's. Last night's was for a media and advertising company, although I'm damned if I can remember the name. It looked great cos they had a stage set up, lights, a sound system, and they presented it like an awards ceremony, handing out trophies to teams that had achieved the best adverts etc. They had hired a cameraman, techie team - the works...looked really fun. And I suppose if a career in theatre goes south side for me then there are always live events I can work at...There are gonna be plenty more of the same events as the hotel gets busier in the run up to Xmas - already...

Parents were up on Sunday, took me out for a nice meal at The Bell just off Harbourne Lane. It's a lovely pub, and you'd think you're in a stereotypical sleepy English village if you didn't know you're only a few minutes from a key inter-city road! Anyhow, it was great to see them as always, and as per mum brought up enough food and supplies to keep me going for a long time!

Was at Adam C's the other night for a gathering, and this was the night that I was to attempt apple bobbing for the first time! And to be fair I was fairly adept - whereas others went for the gentle "see if I can get a grip on the apple" approach, my tactic involved swooping in and attacking the unsuspecting fruit like a shark may go for its prey. Now why was that the first simile that sprang to mind...?

Good to see Alec has started a blog (www.alecsammon.blogspot.com) he's a very deep-thinking guy so has a lot to share I suspect. Although like me I guess too much thinking can be a dangerous thing...that's what I told myself whenever the uni library got too dull. I never intended for mine to be a day to day account of my life, more a means of keeping distant friends apprised of what I'm getting upto, hence the lack of updates sometimes!!

Afraid there is to be no song of the week this time folks, simply have not been at home too much to listen to stuff. If anyone's looking for something new to try out, I recommend the Walter Trout Band (got their Greatest Hits off Geth). Have been practicing The Eagles' Take It Easy, and will attempt John Lennon's Jealous Guy when I'm slightly more proficient! Ah! Just remembered I've been listening to The Beatles' Revolution a fair bit - a fairly aggressive song considering the tame earlier hits that made them superstars. Interestingly, although Lennon is often remembered for being something of a socialist demanding change in the world, Revolution is a stark warning to those seeking to actually instigate mass change - "But when you talk about destruction/Don't you know that you can count me out...You say you got a real solution, well you know/We'd all love to see the plan...If you go carrying pictures of Chairman Mao/You ain't gonna make it with anyone anyhow". As aptly demonstrated by Stalin's reign of terror, revolutions tend to come full circle - Lenin's Bolsheviks wanted to end Tsar Nicholas II's despotic rule, revolted, leading to the "dictatorship of the proletariat", in which Stalin exploited his position as Secretary of the Communist Party to isolate any opposition.

Incidentally, why the hell do people wear shirts with Che Guevara on? You could argue that one man's freedom fighter is another's terrorist (and I can lean to the Left on a lot of issues), but he was nonetheless a guerilla terrorist, guilty of mass murderer, and certainly not a suitable symbol of liberation if you ask me. Cuba is a relatively safe country (and its health and education services are pretty solid – no university fees! Cheers Wikipedia…), but there are still many serious problems. Had he lived he would be there with Fidel Castro imposing restrictions and committing gross human rights violations. These revolutionaries all have the people in mind until they get into power, and then they cling to their power. Absolute power corrupts absolutely...

But then again something tells me the world is focussed elsewhere these days, oh I don't know, maybe somewhere in Asia...

J x