Been spending a few days with my family in Manchester.
Came over Wednesday night, after work and a meal. Couldn’t find a few of the things I’d intended to pack, so will be going back tomorrow.

Thursday morning I spent getting my car through it’s first MOT. No problems, but it appears a little heavy on the front tyres. In the evening I helped my parents dress the house for Christmas. With my sister moving in they havn’t had much time, but even this late in the day my mum wanted to go the extra mile on everything.

On Christmas Eve I went to the pup where my old friends from Ventures usually meet up, and surprisingly a few of them were there. Most of us have moved on and were only in the area because our parents still live here. It seems unlikely that we will meet there in future years, as the Pig on the Wall is not what it once was. After that brief outing I joined my parents at St Johns for the late night service.

Christmas Day we all got up late, and packed the presents in the car before heading to my sisters for a change. It's the first time my mum hasn’t cooked Christmas lunch since she got married. And of course the big surprise was we actually had a white Christmas.

Today has been a lazy day at home. Anna and Emily came round as Darren was working at the football. Have been watching some Doctor Who videos I picked up in Stockport while my car was being serviced.

Tomorrow I return home, and Tuesday I join some ex-BUSAG members in the lakes for a few days up to New Year. After that a few days spent at home before returning to work. And that will have been my Christmas.

Alternative Vote 2005

AlternativeVote2005 is a site set up by some people intending to hold a mock election.

Freedom of expression

There was a furore in religious circles over Birmingham Rep's staging of the play Behzti, which features scenes of murder and abuse in a Seikh temple. And just a big a cry of outrage when they pulled the play.

Some have expressed dismay over politicians who say with freedom of speech comes the responsibility not to offend. Artists have countered with Freedom of expression is nothing without the freedom to offend.

I will have to depart from the line taken by my younger liberal coleagues here. With rights and freedoms come duties and responsibilities. They go hand in hand. With freedom of expression comes the responsibility not to abuse it.

I can't comment directly on the merits of Behzti as I know nothing about it beyond the crude precis the media have presented. However I will say that I consider that if the play seeks to offend simply for the sake of causing offence then the playwright may be abusing his freedom of expression. However the play may very well be making a good point, and be exploring important issues, which may excuse the offense caused.

Shopping

Went over to McArthurGlen and York today and finished off my Christmas Shopping. I then went to Manchester to find a parcel from Amazon had arrived, even though I'd only ordered late Thursday night.

I have now bought all my presents and wrapped them up, and written and sent all my cards.

I'm off work from Thursday till the new year.

Unanswerable questions

Yesterday I was asked:

"What's someone as handsome as you doing [here] with losers like me."

I couldn't answer for three reasons.

• I didn't want to label the questioner as a loser
• I don't think of myself as handsome
• I didn't know.

Featured link

BreakTheChain.org, A site dedicated to debunking chain emails, hoxaes and scares.

My Music

Been meaning to do this for days. I don't have that extensive a music CD collection, mainly because of buying spoken word CDs and driving cars with tape players. So when I get those music memes I find it easier to list what I do have, rather than what I don't.

So here goes.

• Bon Jovi - New Jersey
• Kate Bush - The Red Shoes
• Clannad - Pastpresent
• The Cross - Shove It
• Dire Straits - Love Over Gold
• Dire Straits - Money For Nothing
• ELO - The Very Best of The Electric Light Orchestra
• Ian Hu & Mark Lambert - Tracks for Anoraks
• The Levellers - Mouth to Mouth
• Meat Loaf - Hits out of Hell
• Madness - The Business
• Monty Python - Monty Python Sings
• Muse - Origin of Symmetry
• Queen - A Kind of Magic
• Queen - Innuendo
• Queen - Greatest Hits
• Queen - Greatest Hits II
• Queen - Made in Heaven
• Queen - The Miracle
• Republica - Republica
• The Saw Doctors - If this is Rock and Roll I Want my old job Back.
• The Saw Doctors - All the way from Tuam
• Simple Minds - Glittering Prize
• The Stranglers - Greatest Hits 1977 - 1990
• Roger Taylor - Happiness
• Various Artists - Shine
• The Who - Then and Now

I may have forgotten a couple, but that's most of them. I added links to the CDs on Amazon I could find.

You can see my early 90s obsession with Queen there can't you. My latest purchace was Muse in Virgin, because of their "Feeling Good" cover.

Any hints on how to develop my musical tastes, use the usual methods of communication.

Last week was hectic. Explorers on Wednesday, the Now Show on Thursday, the Birmingham SAGGA Christmas party on Saturday. And on Sunday I went to Lincoln to see the Christmas market with my friend from York.

Tonight my dad and my Uncle John came over from Manchester to deliver some furniture. Anna and Darren have finally moved house, but as everything is still in boxes, they'll be living at my mums for a couple of days.

The Now Show

Wasn't this weeks Now Show great. Oh I'm sorry you havn't heard it yet. But I saw it being recorded tonight and got the full directors cut. The show takes about an hour to go through with a warm up before hand and retakes afterwards. They went through quite a few of the audience questions, many more than will be broadcast. Some of which were unbroadcastable.
Marcus Brigstocke was good on Sorryeverybody.com and the Bush presidency in general, but there was one line about the website having more hits than [celebrity's name]'s wife, which may get cut for legal reasons. The audience didn't get that he was calling [celebrity's name] a wifebeater anyway.