Christmas adventures 2011

Ho ho ho! This wasn't the kind of Christmas entry you would of expected a year back don'tcha think but it says a lot about how I feel about me that it's here
This year was special and I do intend to do a end of year piece and one way in which it is is this Christmas had a little side to it of which the first thing was Theodore who kindly wrote about himself yesterday.
The other crazy thing was my sister in law came on over and both of us were singing and making actions to along to that great rockin' number Wombling Merry Christmas by the Wombles as it was on the local radio station as she arrived! This didn't phaze her partner either.
One thing I missed for long time was a tradition of boxes containing a selection of candy usually chocolate children always have presented to them and this year the Hello Kitty selection box put in an appearance.
As well we had annuals and this year I had the Beano annual a comic I grew up with remaining a barrel full of child like fun I could sit on the floor and read. I like Minnie The Minx and the Bash Street Kids.

The initiated know I love reading not withstanding the difficulties I have with both holding books and also with my reading abilities and so I had this years Jacqueline Wilson annual which apart from having some drawing sections, also has some new short stories to read and I adore her books loads.

After going out to eat, I watched Ratatouille on the tv which was fun as for some reason I'd missed seeing it at the local movie theatre and made a note to get the dvd as anything that funny could help on either rainy days or when I'm not well.

A word from "The Bear"

Hewwo. I'm Theodore the IInd I am. I came into Joanne's life today this magical day called Christmas to add a bit of sparkle into her life as she just loves teddies bears giving the most loveliest hug to us bears.
I was at a bit of a loose end at the bear home when she told a woman she really wanted me for Christmas and you know what? Not once did she peep at me until today! I'm hoping she'll have some great adventures with me.
Regards Theodore II

Christmas edition

Well depending where you live you may have not only your own outdoor Christmas trees but trees that are for everyone.
This tree is ours - a joint venture between the local Council and the wider community here - that was put up and illuminated a few days ago ready for Carolling by. I just love singing carols.
It may be a small thing but it makes people feel happy which is great.


I'd like to say in advance Happy birthday to Kita Sparkles for Monday hoping you have a super time.


I don't know for sure but the may not be a blog update until after Christmas day at the earliest so
HAPPY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

The Nutcracker

The last of the two inspired by posts are for a great story-writer who is into also into games  plus contributes generously to 'the community'  although her partner, being poorly, needs her attention too.
She loves ballet and this one is a favourite of hers and also of mine.


The Nutcracker which is based on the E T A Hoffmann tale The Nutcracker and the Mouse King music by Tchaikovsky.
It was originally choreographed by Marius Pepita and Lev Ivanov being premiered at the Mariinsky theatre, St Petersberg and seems to be the most ballet being staged in the UK this Christmas season.
Here are two images from the Northern Ballets' production in 2010

I also see we're getting a few more readers which is great news so if that's you, thanks a bunch!

Christmas adventures

I suppose the first words for this entry was it wasn't planned, honest, it just came to me that there two entries inspired by comments by two people I respect in 'the community' that I felt like making.
I think I'll begin by saying this one is for a person who really has a way with words and isn't afraid to express her convictions, something that at times we all need to do.
Presently, she's doing a series of posts on her blog, Sparkle (link in my favourite sites tab) for advent about various things with a season connection and yesterday's was a story around family get together involving children and a chance gender role play reversal.
Well within my family the cross-dressing element didn't happen as such but it was generally the case that I played along side my female cousins in various games involving teddies, dolls, and super cute animals, leaving my brothers to play with cars or computer games that I had no interest in at all.
Like most of you there was always a bit of a fuss about what to wear which is where the story departs from the normal cos I tended to wear things a like a cherry  blossom print shirt that would pass a blouse really and unisex pastel pink cord pants under which I did wear tights as mommy had put me in them pretty early on. She's full of contradictions and stuff like that like not buying you actual girls attire but then giving you stuff positively girlie to wear!
We'd play pass the parcel which was always fun while the grown ups had a sherry or two being relied upon to keep good order among ourselves that I guess those of you who see me at two forums can probably spot the years of experience at it!
One of the highlights over Christmas was, when I was at my Nan's, Grampa who'd swing me on the swing at the end of his garden something Mommy was terrified of, never letting me at home fearing my poor co-ordination would result in a messy accident but I managed it okay.
Christmas's were always memorable for us never more so for te chance to be a bit more like my inner self.

Ballet Time

First of we've gained two new followers which suppose shows what a bit self publicity can do.
Seeing we're on the build up to Christmas needless to say the other events that take place during this season have already started and amongst them is the grand tradition of the Christmas ballet show. I  love the dances, costumes and music to many of these ballets.
Coppéllia
Coppélia is a sentimental comic ballet with original choreography by Arthur Saint-Léon to a ballet libretto by Saint-Léon and Charles Nuitter and music by Léo Delibes. The ballet is based on two macabre stories by E. T. A. Hoffmann, Der Sandmann (The Sandman), and Die Puppe (The Doll) premiering on May 25 1870 at the Théâtre Impérial de l´Opéra.
The story of Coppélia concerns a mysterious and faintly diabolical inventor, Doctor Coppéliuswho has made a life-size dancing doll. It is so lifelike that Franz, a village swain, is infatuated with it, and sets aside his true heart's desire, Swanhilde, who in Act II shows him his folly by dressing as the doll and pretending to come to life. It's a favourite of mine having bought many years ago the Mari recording of the music on an imported HMV UK record.

Change

Where shall I start this week?
I suppose I could start by saying I managed to straighten out some differences at work with people that were beginning to really bug me because while I like what I do and it has it's 'little' opportunities  that many sadly don't have, this 'big' stuff was taking the shine off it.
Also I feel a bit more at ease with past events, events that really shook me, being able to go about everyday business without having that must be  'watching over your shoulder' feeling all the time.
I'm also winding down yet another part of my internet existence as this particular place has lost much of its functionality and as so few really visit it, I've come to the conclusion the time I spend on it is better spent on my 'little time' . It's that much more rewarding.


Anyway to fashion and this was a Pansy flared dress while aimed at and in groan up sizes sizes isn't a million miles removed from a teen dress available from top shop:

I thought it was cute working well with a few accessories without being too fussy (I don't like fussy designs).

Malory Towers and more

Well I guess the good news is I'm feeling better than I was around this time last week as was really down in dumps with some work related stuff best not gotten into on a publicly accessible blog and wanting more 'little' time something I understand most of us struggle with.
Thanks to everyone in chat this week including our guests from US camp.
I've already gotten two self presents sorted so it's just a question of putting some money aside for a few things for my family as like a good many others facing big bills we've decided to par down what we get each other.

As I think I've mentioned  the odd time in Chat I've been re-reading Malory Towers, the classic story of a all girls high school on the coast of Cornwall, South-west England directly overlooking the sea as written by Enid Blyton.
I bought a set of the original six volumes recently with the front cover of the slip case using this illustration the girls arriving at school. My school skirts are very similar to that of the girls on the far right which is more junior/middle school one. The current editions use some ghastly cheap computer generated images of girls while this 2004 set is more classy.
So far in I've just finished the Fifth volume.
Her books were a big part of my childhood that I loved mainly for their sense of innocent adventure, well observed characters and moral tales interwoven into the narrative.
With Malory Towers we see the world of this  boarding school which is a Castle like building with four wings, mainly through the eyes of Darrell, a first year boarder aged 12 getting to grips with induction procedures, new school rules, making new friends who as the series progresses we learn all about, their strong points and well their failings and learning to take on more responsibilities for themselves.
Each wing has inter-house competitions and for some sports their are coveted matches with other schools, the values of giving your all for your team and team mates, honour and being a gracious winner are write right through.
We also have escapades, ill thought out actions like going awl to perform and becoming so ill we can't sing, playing tricks on teachers and even some serious stuff like poison-pen letters not to mention theft.
For some such stories were (possible are even) a fantasy -a school life in childhood never experienced but preferable to the one they had - but to me much of this was very much like the reality apart from the poison-pen letter bits.
Newsflash: I did play tricks on people back then!
You could say it was really a guide cluing me in to what I was to experience making the transition from day school easier. 
I hope to re-read a few more of her series in the upcoming year.

Teenbeat III

Coming the month before Christmas is white might be the last Teenbeat  edition of this year tm with part of a trend thought the last few years in Europe at least of offering older albums in special low price packs.

To me Steve Lukather, Jeff Poraco and Bobby Kimball were not just in demand LA based session players gracing many albums in the 70's an the 80's - just check the notes on your albums from that era for the extras!  - but the core of a talent group going under the name of Toto who released many albums but to which with the exception of 1982's IV with it's clutch of hit singles like Africa and Rosanna don't register on the general public's index of sings they know.
Tot's music is perhaps best characterized by strong arrangements involving horns, keyboards and other instruments as well as fairly thoughtful lyrics in a sound which does also rock 
Their first album shows promise with Child's Anthem and Hold The Line which as I recall was a 45 but the first side is lacking a bit of something, the second - you can tell I was brought up in the lp era - is a strong set.
The next album in the pack is 1979's Hydra which has more of uniform concept showing the potential of rock to be musically challenging in the title track especially and is the home to '99' a Favourite of mine..
1981's Turn Back I feel got lost in a clutch of splendid releases that year although it contained Goodbye Eleanor a fast paced rocker and is a very strong album.
The pack does include IV which was huge seller and a good album but one I felt was a bit too mellow and almost too polished while it's follow up Isolation from 1984 has more of a rock feel with songs like Carmen, Holyanna and Stranger In Town the video of which is etched in my memory.
If you've ever been curious about Toto or just wish to explore some classy music this set is a cheap way to do it.

Presents of the past

Somebody mentioned in Chat last week - might of been Sam R - about the new range coming to ToysRUS in time for the upcoming Christmas (and other) festivities.
This got me thinking about some of the things I had and maybe you did too from your chronological childhood and I feel like talking a little about them this week.
At the time there were at least in my country quite a number of shows on the television featuring Magicians who invited members of the public to take part in their acts and these shows really held my attention.
It was just so super exciting to see something disappear and then by magic reappear at the waving of a wand or a chant so my folks bought me a magic set with a wand, hat and a few other things to try these tricks out.

 It was something a bit like this one but in white background box going by memory.


I also had something quite useful as I have dyspraxia  which makes trying to write neatly something of a pain and that was a basic Child's Typewriter with a small frame, limited to A5 or maybe going as far as A4 paper.
Iused that to write short stories, thank you letters, lists and labels for school projects on.
This dear reader was well before the personal computer was widely available with word processing programs like Word Star came about never mind MS Word so you really didn't have too many choices!
We didn't have the spell checker - hurrah for the Can-E spellchecker on here! - so you had to use a little erasure and overtype this  being before even correction fluid became widely available for budding typists.
Mine was a Petite a bit like the one below which I kept until high school when I got a grown up manual typewriter.

Fun and Games edition

Seeing it's the annual Greenland's Bonfire and ghoulish weekend to which a number of my friends are attending although I'm going through a pawley spell so aren't, I thought I'd add something from a far as a contribution in kind to that magical spirit.

Pumpkins will be carved making them into lanterns, food will no doubt be consumed and finally that there bonfire will be lit which I think is a British tradition.
Meanwhile all the stores are gearing up to Christmas time getting new stock  in and starting the promotions for toys and games which kinda reminded me of one we used to play both at school and at home.

The great thing about Junior Scrabble the word based games is there are two tways of playing.Younger players can begin with the exciting, ‘Words and Pictures’, a game expressly created to help with the recognition and formation of complex words. Once someone has mastered that there's ‘Rainbow Scrabble’, which is the more challenging version intended for younger players of age seven and upwards. The scoring system is identical to the ‘grown-up’ version, yet far easier to use and keep track of. In a clever move both games are also conveniently located on each side of the board, making it easy to swap from ‘Words and Pictures’ to ‘Rainbow Scrabble’.

Tean Beat II

Golly gosh another entry with a difference about music.
Well I don't know about you but one of the highlights during the year at our high school was the School Disco which we were lucky in that we had a proper dj set up and mc spinning the discs  some of which we supplied from our own modest collections.
One the most in demand request for discs was from the group Chic which I had a decent set of 45's at the time to which we danced to loving funk and Soul music at the time.
This takes me to a recent 2cd set issued by Music Club a budget UK label called Chic Magnifique which I purchased.

This disc has 37 recordings by them including  all the hits we loved such as Le Freak, My Forbidden Lover, Good Times, Hangin' as as well as a few tracks from the 1992 Chic-ism comeback album .
It comes with excellent notes that reveal just how many of these tracks have been sampled by today's R&B/Rap acts and reminds me so much of those 'Good Times'.

Also up on the deck but for different reasons is a disc by the noted singer-songer writer Linda Ronstadt except that for me at least this was amongst the stuff we heard on FM radio back especially at weekends and evenings in the dorm then so frequent that although many of her hits from that period are burnt into my brain I never bought any albums by her then or afterward.

Born in 1946 in Tuscon, AZ, Linda's career started in 1967 with the Stone Ponys which is represented on this disc by Different Drum but then sh went solo recording for Capitol having a huge hit with You're No Good and Asylum/Warner with a swathe of hits throughout the 70's such as Blue Bayou, It's so Easy and Hurt So Good. Later on she explored jazz-pop with Nelson Riddle and Mexican folk which is also covered on this set with such tracks as What's New but inevitable it's the 70's material you come back to and has the lion's share of generously packed discs.
An artist who plows a musical furrow for a while and moves on is hard to compile and at times it's almost as if you've put Linda's songs on shuffle but outside of shorter less value themed collections it's hard to see what else the compilers of this set could do. It's certainly better value from both volumes of her Greatest Hits sets.

Narrow Boats

Well well well! After last weeks scary moment I'm feeling much better and have been busy doing Something Else over the weekend. As well I have my broadband back.
Jennifer seemed to like the boat picture I took and obviously loves the Trent & Mersey canal part of which goes through here to Runcorn via Northwich. Also if I'm not mistaken wasn't there a tv program called Rosie and Jim set on a narrowboat shown over here???
Anyway the upshot of this is I've decide to post a couple of pictures I took a while back but not previously published on this blog or any other site so it's a kind of exclusive for you!
The first is of a Narrowboat decorated for a Festival that passed this way with flowers and plants the second taken during the summer when we have a lot of boat people pass by and use our stores.

Every cloud has a silver lining edition

Hey people did you know this blog has had over 5,019 page views since it's conception and is read people people on two continents? Quite something, eh?
Well yesterday was quite something in a bad kind of a way cos I was halfway on the commute to work when I senses an 'aura' the warning sign of  migraine which are a lot worse than just a bad headache and had to make my way back home.
Now that of itself doesn't bother me but for two things I was feeling dizzy, the local taxis were all tied up with school runs so I couldn't get one home and critically I'd left my cellphone at home on charge!
Not good as I had to walk though quiet country roads home.
Anyway I got home taking my time and ensuring I kept to where there were houses that if needed assistance I could get some from and the weather was pretty good  - so good -  that decided to take a picture by the Trent and Mersey canal; something that Jennifer had written and taken some pictures of elsewhere.

The "Give us a twirl edition"

Hey! It's another week so I'm super excited with the thought of Chat even if it doesn't always behave itself throwing people out, we're going through a unusually hot period here and a certain someone has made there first post at a site having joined a while back. All I'll say honey is sure can't beat baby steps for getting going, so hugs!
Fashion, that's what's been on my mind for the last few weeks what with the London Fashion Week and also with recollections of fashion in the recent past for girls and how they compare with what we see while we're about with today's girls.
Depending on where you look and sometimes the circles you may move in you often here a refrain that regrets what is seen as a combination of the emasculation of girls fashion such as almost universal wearing of jeans, the tendency to dress all babies in boys attire with just  switched colours  and the spread at the other end of bling festooned 'ma b****' moll of the gansta rapper with low cut tops and incredibly small skirts that leave next to nothing to the imagination being sold to this age group as the 'cool' look.
Indeed at one point I did wonder if we'd see the end of anything feminine, modest and age appropriate but actually when you look around it's still there but updated for the modern miss to wear.
For instance I noticed new in at M&S - a well known middle brow department store in the UK -  they have a line in of lovely children's dresses at reasonable prices and going up to age 16 in sizes.
Here's an example of what I mean of a patchwork seemless dress from Girls Limited that looks so good it's no wonder the size 16yrs has sold out as I'd love it too.

And they other similar twists on classic designs available to in colours including pink!
All of this is great for those of us looking for inspiration to put together a contemporary LG look as for me it sure doesn't have to rooted rigidly in the past.

Teen Beat Edition

Following from my liking for structurally simple uncomplicated songs about romance I slowly graduated toward more complex music such as that by Kansas ( I couldn't really get into four sided concept albums) but the majority of their albums I had were on tape so I was mighty glad to get this cd set recently.

Beginning in the 70s from their hometown of Topeka, Kansas, the group produced a wild mix of rock anthems, introspective ballads, and loose jams on their studio albums.

Many of you have heard of "Carry On Wayward Son" on Classic Rock radio stations which was a smash hit for the group back in '76. Well that's from an album called Leftoverture that happens to part of this extremely cheap 5 cd set."Dust in the Wind" (off the featured '77's Point of Know Return album) is hardly indicative of the full-bodied, keyboard-and-violin-fueled anthems that grace most of their albums.

The albums included are:-

Kansas (S/T)

Song For America

Masque

Leftoverture

Point of Know Return

The discs are the Sony Legacy remasters from the 2000's that happen to sound extremely good to my ears coming with bonus live tracks too in card lp style covers.

I have the US 1996 re-master of Monolith from 1979 featuring the hit People of the South Wind as well Audio-Vision which had the hit Hold On.

I first bought Drastic Measures as a lp record in August 1983 shortly after its US release and following a selling off period in the late 80's while I was trying to build up my cd collection, I have been without a copy!

This was a pity as it was a enjoyable album the Prog rockers when John Elefante joined the band taking lead vocals.

It came out briefly on cd in 1996 and I bought a copy although it is long period out of print (England's Rock Candy re-issued a few months ago but that not as good sounding)

The song Mainstream takes a pot shot at the label people who stifle artistic development and Fight Fire With fire is a up tempo rocker.

YouTube - Kansas - Fight Fire with Fire

I also got the matching 1996 Legacy cd of  Vinyl Confessions the 1982 album with the hits Play The Game Tonight and Play On both of which shared as did most of tracks the bands strongly felt Christian beliefs.

The 'From Lausie with love edition'.

 Great start to the day today with flat fire closing off the high street making getting into work later than it should of been, the rubbishy IT system we changed to was reversed to old one and storms raging here meaning I had to leave early too. Such fun!

Well in chatting with Lausie a few topics came up and I thought it would a good idea to post about them subject to the usually "all locations and full names  removed cos this is the internet' stuff:

So you wanna know about boarding school?

Well I went when I was 11 and 1/2 and it probably as as well as there were lots of problems at home revolving around Dad that were affecting me emotionally.

As much as I'd love to say I went to this gorgeous old building with orchard and that, it was actually a very modern boarding school on the edge of a small town and as close we got to an orchard was a field with wild poppies growing in it.

The school was what you call co-ed so not just being a girls school one didn't need any kind of spray Elspeth might of concocted to get in!

I quite liked it because it gave me security, a host of friends and more of a chance to be myself because for once I was in the right place at the right time.

When you mention boarding schools people tend to weigh in with opinions from either 'my Island horror story' or 'the very making of me' but oddly enough I think the best portrayal is in fiction specifically Enid Blyton's Malory Tower or St Clares series that you might possible of read before those who had it in for Enid removed her books from libraries in England.

Her portrayal is very similar to my experience in that it's a multifaceted thing because you are part of a social unit who live and breathe together for all of the time so everything is that much bigger.The good and the not so good.

If you live a way from people as I did it's a great thing because you have a ready made supply of playmates available form daybreak to sunset from different backgrounds plus my family had issues amongst themselves (still does!) so it provided a bit of an escape from them.

I suppose the first thing to say when I arrived was there were more boys so when the first morning had began it obvious the head boy had rather more to 'take care of' so standing very nervously by the wall, the Head Girl puts her arm through mine and says "I'm Jo and I'll take care of you".

This leads to the biggest tear stain heart to heart ever as I explain what stuff is like at home and why I really hate how I looked to the point of hurting myself deliberately all with a vocabulary of a nine year old as my English wasn't terribly good then. She doesn't really understand it all but says she'll help me which is good enough.

By a stroke of luck while the individual Dorms are gender separated, they alternate along one long corridor and so long as you didn't snuck in rooms over night or when people were getting changed, you could visit anybody in either, so I spend quite a bit of my my time with the Head Girls Dorm with her friends who become mine.

As well she realizes how the imbalance may affects Games we'd be down for Rounders and Netball and has a masterstroke. She takes me in tow to the Games Mistress and Having explained the potential problem says can I join them? After a while It's agreed so all I had to do was go to were the girls were playing and anyway Swimming was mixed.

In my school, the  Dorms for us held about 3 or four to one room in which  which you can put up some of your own things such as posters, dolls and you could have your own tv and tape player

If you wished although in the common room where you could read watch tv and have drinks before getting dressed for bed and lights out. No talking ever after lights out!!

Generally we could play in our dorm, the hall, outdoors in good weather under supervision, in in our common room although that's where we'd listen to music mainly in and sometimes we could arrange activities or school would take us out to places like the movies or the theatre especially when we were older.

The other side of being in a boarding school was you had to accept this space had rules and you had staff who would see you looked after yourself when it personal appearance and hygiene because that was their responsibility.

We also wore uniform outside class grey skirts or trousers with grey or red jumpers and white blouses -nothing really fancy (I'd of loved a blazer!) which I didn't mind cos at least nobody was able to be nasty about clothes you had.

The first thing you learned in your first term as that the 'social ground rules' were different, so If anyone said anything catty regarding another it would last well beyond communal mealtimes and 'broadcasting' your thoughts willy nilly or making wild accusations was a very silly thing to do cos the group would be upset for ages and you couldn't escape it.
You'd pretty much have to apologize to the person and the group and take whatever sanction they'd apply so we all could move on. Yes that was one lesson I learned from the Head Girl of the form the hard way!

In hindsight that was the best training for using the internet ever ('Everything seen cannot be unseen') as well as being very useful in large organizations dealing with group issues.

So you see my school experience was actually pretty good not because of some big idict from above but just from being flexible and showing compassion.

The saving a dollar entry

Yes folks I'm not alone if your blogs are anything to go by that we like even need sometimes to save a bit of money to ensure we've enough to do the things we really enjoy what with increasing grocery and utility bills and what not.

I'll start of with something that has always troubled me in connection with computing and that is the high price of the manufacturers ink you buy for your printer with it being sometimes as dear as the price of newer discounted printer itself.
Faced with a bill in the region of £50 or more Pounds GBP to get it reloaded, I looked around and found I could get remanufactured ones much much cheaper and what's more they even had typical twice as much ink in them.
Jet Tec in England has a very good reputation for it's replacement cartridges  especially for the quality of the ink they use which is where replacement ink has been criticized before.
Jet Tec
I bought a black and colour set that came to about GBP 17.99 including shipping and they're great meaning I can get on using it for less than I paid last time fior the black cartridge alone with double the capacity for good measure so they'll last longer.
Cool, eh?

Cheap anime: Funimation in the States has a budget line called S.A.V.E for older titles so for thiosw whose dvd player will do Region 1 discs you can save a bit too while building a collection.
One I really liked  was this:
THE GALAXY RAILWAYS

 "The Galaxy railways" is an adventure series set in as the title suggest on the Galaxy Railways, linking all the galaxies together by railroad with a team of crack railway security people, the SDF, whose job it is to keep them safe for terrorists and the like.
Surprisingly this title has never been issued in the UK but can be bought from UK Amazon as well as Amazon.com

K-on

I was very fortunate to get the this recently released DVD of this acclaimed series that had only been show in Japan in 2009 that I had watched via streaming.

K-On!'s story revolves around four Japanese high school girls who join their school's light music club to try to save it from being abolished. However, there are the only members of the club, and at first Yui Hirasawa has no experience of playing or reading music. Eventually, she learns how to be an excellent player of the guitar. The rest of the club helps her to buy a guitar, and they perform at the school festival. As well a cd of music from the series was issued to great sucess in Japan.

Main Characters:



Yui Hirasawa -Pictured above,A first year high school student, she plays a Les Gibson Heritage Cherry Sunburst electric guitar as well as being a vocalist for the group. Although when recruited she felt it was easy as she'd be playing the castanets but the group feels different! She is said to have perfect pitch but is known to forget lyrics in mid flow a symptom of her inability to concentrate on more than one thing at once!
Ritsu Tainaka: Drummer of the group and President of the Light Music club
Mio Akiyama: Shy left handed Bass Guitarist who while being a 'straight A's student can't handle macabre story telling. She is a friend of Ritsu.
Tsumugi Kotobuki: Keyboard player. a wealthy girl with a gentle and sweet personality she had been taking piano lessons from age 4 and won many piano contests.
Azusa Nakano: Guitarist. In same year and class as Ui, she is a self-proclaimed novice guitarist who has been playing the guitar since she was in the fourth grade. Her parents are working in a jazz band.Personality wise she's not comfortable with the socializing and cosplay aspects of the light music club.

Perfect!

This post wasn't planned - shock horror - but while looking at some stuff I saw this image and thought to myself "Wow! I really have to use it".

You see it's an idealized  one of the childhood I'd of loved to had  just stepping out into the world and what I love about is the costume with the circular skirt portion of the dress all  puffed out, the school like blue ribboned straw boater hat and that umbrella. The dress is a close match to that of one of my dolls too.If you're anything like me you'll just go all weak at the knees looking at it.

James Taylor

Way back in time in my early childhood there was guy I didn't know much about but to which I heard this record 'You've Got A Friend' which I think was the first 45 I ever bought myself and so begun a love affair with some of his singles.

Because it was the early 70's I had no albums by him and so many decades after the event, I'm building up a small collection of his albums for the first time on cd a number of which are from labels specializing in higher than average sound quality.

James was born in Boston, M.A. on March 12th 1948 moving to The South in his childhood, learning to Cello and the guitar by 1960.

In 1967 following episodes of depression he moved to London, England making contact with Peter Asher the A&R man of Apple records - the company founded by no less than The Beatles - and was signed on the strengths of his demonstration recordings. Whilst there he wrote Caroline on my mind and released an album James Taylor on Apple which was remastered in 2010.

In October 1969 He signed a new contract with Warner Brothers and with help from Songstress Carole King released the album Sweet Baby James in February 1970 with the hits single 'Fire and Rain'.

This album is held to be a masterpiece of folk rock winning many wards over the years.

In April1971 he issued Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon that featured the single by him I first heard with backing vocals by Joni Mitchell that went top ten even in England.My current copy  is the Audio Fidelity high quality version in April 2012 although I did have the stock European issue from the 1980's

The concept album One Man Dog was issued in November 1972 with the lead off single Don't let Me Be Lonely Tonight' but this only reached #18 on the US charts which was a sign the album wasn't selling well.

Much the same followed Walking Man issued June 1974 which only sold 300,000 copies in the States with the title track issued on 45 missing the hot 100. These first four Warner albums are out on Audio Fidelity as is Gorilla his 1975 album issued in 2013, however another label Mobile Fidelity (Mofi) of Chicago Ill. are tackling the later ones such as the acclaimed 'comeback' album JT from 1977 album, Flag and Dad Loves His Work from 1981.

An Education

I felt inspired after last nights chat to talk a little about about my education with all the usual cravats about internet postings when it comes to online security.
The first school I went to was in a Country district in a really old building Victorian no doubt set up when the powers that be decided we all needed a bit of an education  with formally separate girls and boys  doors that we had to line up by at the start of day, during recesses and depart through in the afternoons.
It was made from brick, had outdoor toilets and a big playground that we'd mark up for hopscotch plus a field for games.
Classrooms would no doubt shock some today and have others calling for their retention as they were locked very much in the era of the building, with one for each year group.
At the front of each classroom near a window stood a old big wooden desk where you teacher sat with a clear view of the entire class and half a view to the classroom door where the Head Teacher would look through from time to time which was a pretty powerful incentive to be good.
The rest of the room had shelves for reference type books for our year as we didn't have a proper school library then but the biggest difference compared with schools shortly after I left was with the seating arrangements.
The classroom had rows of separate wooden desks (like the picture above) with lids that lifted up to get your exercise books out, a compartment for your writing equipment and an inkwell. Yes really an inkwell cos in year 4 and above you were expected to write in cursive writing in ink, refilling your pen as you went along.
We also were taught written and spoken French from a very early age which is very useful.
I think ours were made from polished and varnished pine as were the chairs.
You had a fixed table position in alternating girl, boy fashion which I suppose was really to encourage the boys to pay attention but in my case lead to much whispering!
Anyone not paying attention would be called out and if you persisted then you'd be punished in class or sent to the Head Teacher returning with a red face and more than just hurt pride.
Although I had bullying issues there, I liked the school a lot not least for what seemed like endless games of rounders but I transferred to another school building  so I had to learn all about where everything was all over again!
This new school was well brand spanking new with bigger grounds and a library so I had to learn the Dewey classification system and how to book out books I wanted to read and it also had its own kitchen which my old school didn't have (they bought in meals to warm up and serve in a community hall instead).
The first major difference was we didn't have form classrooms, but area - they called them Home Bays - that we'd start out from moving to different parts of the building for science for instance and that this school was open plan. I think part of idea was to encourage to go do stuff for ourselves and earn the respect for being able to do it without as was the case at my first school being stood over all day.
They had these half hexagonal tables that we did work on that were supposed to help with group work but we just kept giggling between ourselves most of time, especially when like my friend and I we'd forgotten our PE kit so we were meant to be doing extra classwork with another teacher popping in to keep an eye on us!!!
The noise at times was problem so much so that everyone had to reminded to talk quietly and the younger ones got screens put in to keep their screaming out of our ears as we struggled with long division (and I still do)!
We did a lot of music, recorder groups, plus playing with triangles, Xylophones, drums, glockenspiels and so on as either performances or in all school year assemblies. The assemblies at my first school were much instructions, worship and public admonishment sessions all in one.
Usually in the late mornings our year teacher would do a storytime for us reading books like Emil and the Detectives aloud and we'd talk about the adventures as a group work.
It was a good school but I felt it lacked some structure that could lead some astray as much it was nice to feel trusted going about your independent learning.

Music from the past

Do you know something?

I had this craze for a pop group that was more than just a liking, it was a obsession at the time where I had to have, watch and generally speaking experience everything connected with them taking chunks of my time and dare I say it my allowance.

It also had a certain social cache helping me make friends as we exchange gossip, played their records and worked on our scrapbooks together during the day and in the Dorm.

Now the thing is I've still got those records the very ones I had back then when I had my very first stereo phonograph that also had a built in AM radio to hear the pop shows featuring singles chart countdowns and the new records played by the DJ's.

Although compared to my current stereo that phonograph was primitive and the record deck played the discs with a bit more playing force than you'd use today, those discs by the Bay City Rollers play extremely well which I suppose has something to do with the care I took of them back then.

I got today a new to me copy of original hit single from late 1973 called Saturday Night in a picture sleeve that was made in what was West Germany.

In North America a re-recorded version was issued in late 1975 and this became the no.1 hit  in the States in January 1976. 

The version I got didn't have Leslie on Vocals which the version on the UK Rollin' and North American self titled album did but the original vocalist Nobby Clarke together with it's UK b side Hey! C.B.

Here's the cover:

Here's the 1976 Annual from the UK I had back then that needless to say got read from cover to cover hundreds of times including at school.

Storytime pt.2

Well we all know about me and reading from the last entry being very much rooted around my inner core self so I don't need to go over that again but I have been reading another book by the same authoress as the last one.
Called Little Darlings, Jacqueline Wilson tells the story of two very different girls both struggling with what passes for family life in very different surroundings.
Destiny is very much down at heels living on the better part of a rough social housing estate with a mother in debt working in three part time jobs trying to makes meet.
Sunset is in some respects the spoilt well off girl living in gated world with assistants and security people who can have whatever she asks Daddy a vain aging rockstar for.
Mom is a young woman to whom Daddy has left a few others over the years but the fight a lot with Daddy running off.
Sunset hates the phony posh schoolkids she sees every day who are into just expressing themselves and longs for some structure in her childhood and an end to just being an appendage to a celebratory make believe life.
But these two girls have more in common than either of them thought as they are in fact sisters with Destiny being the offspring of a short lived relationship with dad Danny who denies her very existence to keep up the whole rock star happy families image!

What I like about it is the gritty well drawn picture of what is the reality for some, split families,  well drawn characters that reference contemporary pop culture (for good or ill) and the spirit that leads the girls into a friendship that bridges the divide.

Tartan HK!

No, that's not my tartan although it's adorable but it's the jersey/skirt this lovely Hello Kitty plushie  made by Ty is wearing  that I recently bought. I take it  to work with me to make the groan up side of life a bit more bearable.
You have to be a bit careful with plushies as some of the cheap ones are made from reused materials like hospital waste and not treated so always check they are licensed from the people who have the rights for your favourite character in this case Sanriotown inc.

Also this week I finally school based anime Suzaka of which there is a feature on tagged Anime so just click on the topic index  on this blog to see it. (It doesn't bite you know!)

In other news,several of our group went to camp having a wonderful small time of it as they played  children's games and activities together. One day I may join them, you never know!
Doo joined the gang in chat on Tuesday  appearing to have a good time of it in that great mix of the serious and the random that usually leaves me in a fit of giggles ready to fall of off the chair.

I noticed outside of the usual traffic sources like GT and IK, a few people from Christie Luv's revamped site a paid a visit last week. If that's you by any chance then welcome to the World of Joanne_Chan, bookmark this blog which is super clean and if you wish, formally follow it!

Suzuka

This anime is one I've just completed watching over the last few weeks having bought it a while back.
It's in Funimation's really cheap re-issue series called S.A.V.E and was not issued in it's entirety in the UK as ADV who had a license only issued the first three before hitting financial problems and dropped it.
The best way to describe this anime is really a slice of life school romantic comedy albeit one set around a track and field school club.
If you remember high school you just might recall relationship status and how to improve them figured a lot in your thoughts as well as peer popularity pressure. Our hero is Yamato who has moved to Tokyo to attend high school but is very clumsy with relationships, a bit immature and not to put too fine a point on it a slacker.
Yamato has just moved in with his Auntie at an all girl bath house and he has fallen head over heels in love with Suzaka, the school's number one athlete. One problem - she hardly realizes he exists. In an attempt to try and win over the girl, Yamato tries his hand at sports and finds that he has a hidden talent when it comes to sprinting. Not only this, but he soon becomes the object of love and admiration from TWO other girls at school , while Suzuka battles with her conflicting emotions over him.
It may hardly be groundbreaking but it has a good heart, is hugely enjoyable as RomComs go and shows it's never too late for the loser to be the first cross the finishing line.

Meet the gang!

Roll The Bones

The Hard Rock Canadian Group Rush, this month have a specialty cd reissue out of an album that originally came out in 1991 called Roll The Bones which was the follow up to 1989's Presto, the first for their deal with Atlantic records.
This album saw them move further away from longer compositions, setting the tone for all newer albums such as Snakes And Arrows and Clockwork Angels.

 As you can see it is pressed on gold plated disc for better light reflection leading to less errors on reply that your cd player has to correct.
This edition, mastered using the HDCD process to allow better resolution on equipped players has improved bass definition and better dynamics

New Term at Sanriotown

Yes, we're in that period where school at least in the UK is out for Summer with 8 whole weeks off and so all the people who sell the stuff we and our kids (in some situations) need to have their new wears in.
Stationary is one example and W H Smiths has a new Hello Kitty range in with the Kitty Shades designs covering everything you just might need.
For my new term I bought the new pencils that are double ended with two colours per pencil and some new HK stickers.
See below:

Card Games

Hi folks!

How many of us can remember and for that matter still have playing cards from our pasts?

I sure have!

Some of my earliest memories of playing cards were of playing with Gran, who's sadly passed away several years back, such games as Snap during school break up or when my folks had to deal with groan up stuff and granny had to look after me.

I didn't have much to do with Grampa cos he was a bit crotchety and he couldn't understand my English.

At school recess we also payed card games but from the Top Trump range where from one themed pack you'd choose one subject and whoever got the most  of some criteria or other won the round and you'd begin again.

Actually when was having big problems my school friends took me to a store to buy some to help me re-intergrate with the group.

I stil have those cards and several others I've collected down the years such as these cards from the Fox TV series The Simpsons from around 1990 that came in a set of 88 cards.

The have cartoons on the front and questions on rear to ask your friends about all the characters in the show.

Enjoy.

More classical music

As you'll recall from my last entry on this topic my love of classical music goes back to my childhood and with the advent of the compact disc, I began building my core collection in this format exclusively.

First off, I kind of got off on a lopsided approach to Beethoven, missing out on his Violin and Piano Sonatas completely plowing through the Symphonies and then the Piano Concertos before meeting the Violin Concerto Op.61.

Well, I got the discs in the old DG Galleria series of Wilhelm Kempff's masterful Piano Sonatas cycle from the mid 1960's that as recordings weren't unfamiliar to me as I'd borrowed tapes from the public library of them before. I think there was a big box with all thirty two of them but I kinda thought it would be overkill.

I eventually got the cd in the same series yesterday of Menuhin and Kempff's account of the Sonatas for Piano and Violin numbers Five and Nine from 1970 that remains one of the finest ever recorded. I also picked up used the Violinist Anne Sophie-Mutter's recording with Herbert von Karajan of the Triple Concerto from 1980 which was a full price disc issued 1985 with three overtures tacked on to fill up the disc.

Berlioz and his Fantastique symphony was an early obsession of mine something a psychologist I saw picked up on and I've been hunting for years for a recording I really could enjoy that was in print. I found it although sadly it's not available in Europe on the American arm of EMI Classica 'Angel' in the form of a recording by the London Philharmonic Orchestra from 1960 conducted by André Cluytens a conductor whose records I like.

Dvorák: Well I always had a soft spot from his work but outside of the odd Piano Sonata plus recordings of his Cello and Violin Concertos, hadn't gone beyond his famous Ninth symphony (the New World).

I bought a re-issue of a 1991 cd set packaged in a cardboard box and card sleeves of Rafael Kubelik's complete cycle of nine symphonies recorded 1968 thru'1973 for DG, something I'd always dreamt of getting as a kid which were amongst the strongest interpretations ever and anyway I've always loved theses performances having the Ninth on lp.

I also got a complete set of his Violin Sonatas recently too by the Prague Quartet

Finally to Brahms. Poor thing I kinda neglected him beyond the cat gut works and a recording of his Second and Third symphonies I inexplicably picked up in the early 1990's. I've finally added his First and Fourth symphonies as performed by Herbert von Karajan (1978 and 1988 respectively).