Ear we go...

Apologies for the attrocious pun, but it really does seem that the whole World Cup is governed by the cat ear headband in this picture. Well, so Tim and Butch seem to think. I obtained the headband as a resource for a lesson that I was going to teach in the partnership room at school, but it has taken on a more legendary status after last night.
The World Cup is a marvellous sporting event, it really is. It brings out the best in everyone. In several cities in the UK (including London, Liverpool, Manchester and Leeds), the authorities put up large screens in central areas so that the general public could join together in support for their country's team. And so that they could charge an undescribable fortune for drinks from the portable bars at the venues. However, Millenium Square in Leeds is the only one still up and running, because the rest have been plagued with violence. We really know how to celebrate a victory, don't we? With a healthy dose of rioting.
Despite the fact that Leeds is the only one of those cities to have escaped mob rule in the last week, I have decided not to risk it, and have watched the games at my friends' houses. For example, I saw last night's clash with Sweden in the lounge of my next door neighbour, Tim. (Although I joined Steve Darke and friends for a bit of cake at half time).
Butch, Ches Den and I all decided to wear headgear to Tim's for the game, and, seeing our efforts, Tim popped upstairs to fetch himself a nice flat cap. When we scored our first goal, I was wearing the headband. When Sweden equalised a little later, I had taken it off, and so it came as no surprise to my friends that the cat ears were having an influence on the goal scoring. I had taken them off again later on, when Ches Den shouted loudly at me: "Put the ears on! Put the ears on!". I did as she asked, and we scored approximately three seconds later. Hmmmmm. All the evidence points to the truth of their claim. (Well, except the fact that Sweden scored again while I was wearing them...)

Whatever the reason for it, England managed a 2-2 result against Sweden, which, although it means that we have STILL never beaten Sweden, for the first time in 4 major tournaments, we have emerged as the clear front runners in our group. We have also successfully avoided a second round clash with Germany. Good for us. I shall be wearing my ears again, then, on Sunday, when we will face Equador. Sash!, I hear, will not be playing.

Rome and home...

I went to Rome with my dad. It was pretty stinking awesome, actually. We only went for three days, but we squeezed so much into those three days it was ridiculous. It all started about five years ago, when I first went to Canada. My sister was a bit fed up that I was jetting off around the world (even though I paid for it myself), so my mom took her to New York for the weekend to keep her happy. My dad promised to take me away for a few days ever since then, to make up for it. I wasn't bothered about not getting the same thing as my sister, but neither was I going to pass up the chance of a boys weekend away.
We've been talking about going to Rome for some time, because we went when I was ten, but only for a day, which is never long enough. Plus, my dad couldn't get into St. Peter's basilica on the day we were there because he was wearing shorts, and at the time you had to cover up your legs to go in.

So, in half term week, we boarded a plane in Nottingham, and flew to the Campino airport on the outskirts of Rome. We arrived late, took a bus to the centre of Rome, and then a taxi to our hotel. From there, it was three days of walking in one of the most beautiful cities in the world. The eternal city, as they say.

We started off on the first day with the Vatican. We wandered past the Pantheon on our way (built 1700 years ago, still in use today as a church). It took us about two hours to walk across the city; mainly because we kept stopping to look at things. It certainly wasn't built in a day. Everywhere you look, there's something else to see.
When we finally crossed the Tiber, and headed towards St. Peter's Square, the crowds thickened. We walked up the road towards Vatican City, taking in familiar sights as we went. When we finally reached the square, we realised why the crowds were so large. Il Papa himself was out on the steps in front of the church, doing his thing! Yep, we went to Rome, and we saw the Pope. He was a good way off, but, as you can see from the picture, we were provided with video screens around the square that allowed us to see what was going on up there. That was pretty funny. We watched him for a while, then went to the Vatican museum.

I could bore you for weeks talking about all the amazing things that we saw. It's such an incredible place. The Colleseum, the vast collection of fori, the columns and statues and fountains and churches. We think that we're so clever in the 21st century; that we have everything. When we were in Rome, we saw Traijan's markets. This is an 1800 year old five-storey shopping mall. Entirely true. We saw a temple that had been turned into a burial place for a loved friend of an emperor. The 1700 year old bronze doors were still fully intact. And the archeologists had found the key. And it still worked. Ridiculous.

Since I've been back, things have been a little bit mixed. Things have not been going so well at work, and I have a lot of work to do in order to get up to speed really. There were a number of contributing factors; nobody is without blame. My Nana is very seriously ill in hospital, and things don't look good there. That's quite emotional, really.


There's been ups too, though. Extra days at college to learn about how to teach PE are pretty good. My class at college is pretty competitive, which has led to some fairly amusing situations. And, of course, we played a show on Friday night. It went pretty well, and, although there was a smaller crowd than we're used to, we still rocked it out. We showcased a couple of new songs, and bust out our good friend Sarah Tee on the saxamophone. We have a recording of the show, and a couple of tracks might find their way onto our myspace soon enough. You should really check it out.

So, Bethany arrives in less than two weeks. I have a bunch of work to do; we have more gigs to play, and more to organise; I have a book to write (which Bethany has illustrated fantastically), and some assignments too; we still have a wedding to plan; I have someone to visit in hospital; I have a car to fix... the list goes on. And so, my motto for the summer of 2006:

When in Rome, do as the Romans do; when at home, realise that your vacation's over.

Love...

Gig day...

I love gig day. Really, I love it. Preparing for the show, moving all the sound system in, setting everything up. All the work that goes into it, and then the hour or so on stage, rocking out. It's so stinking hot here today, it's going to be even hotter in that room tonight. I can't wait...