27
Films, Films, Films
The other night I spent the evening browsing the ‘Watch Online’ section of lovefilm in an attempt to make the most of my subscription and also watch a few films I’ve wanted to for some time, a few I love and take a risk on finding a gem amongst the few thousands titles available. In the end I came up with two-sides of A4 of films I want to see.
They include:
The General
Fanny & Alexander
Lady Vengeance
Cries and Whispers
The Beat That My Heart Skipped
Intolerance
Steamboat Bill Jr
The Three Ages
This Sporting Life
The Terror
Autumn Sonata
Jamaica Inn
His Girl Friday
Distant Voices, Still Lives
Fantastic Planet
Scenes from a Marriage
Silent Night, Bloody Night (watched it, it was shite)
Existenz
Don’t Tell Mom The Babysitter’s Dead
The Idiots
Days of Being Wild
Broken Flowers
Cashback
Lilya 4 Ever
The Piano Teacher
The Last Mistress
All About Tesla
Happy Go-Lucky
and many many more…
If you can tell me any from that list I should avoid then please tell me now before I start working my way through them one at a time. I suspect it will keep me busy until at least Autumn, unless my social life suddenly explodes into life like the Universe after the Big Bang. At the very least it will give me something to review on here.
21
My Favourite Music Videos: Part Four
Rick James is one musicalist that I haven’t listened enough over the last couple of years, I had a few of his tracks playing last night it reminded me why he is one of the greatest.
This is the video for the song that MC Hammer made famous by stealing the instrumental, I think the original is better (video and song).
Enjoy it, bitches.
20
Started my new job
As the title suggest I started my new job this week and it has been an interesting mix of doing some things and not doing much. I forgot how hard it was completely learning new concepts behind a job, I’m just lucky I have some familiarity with the systems I use already. Anyway, I have another job interview, for the office I just started in, but for a permanent position rather than a secondment. It is only two days a week but would be a good step up.
I have reached a crossroads though, I’m completely uncertain as where to go with my life, particularly at the end of the summer. More education? Training? Complete change of direction? I’d like to focus on my creative things to be honest, but it is funding such exploits that is the problem or at least funding the normal life whilst doing fun things. Could say more, but it’d be muddled.
In May I am looking forward to two trips to London and I believe we have two Bank Holidays (three days in total), good old local government. Maybe we shall do something more filming of something new OR get a few scenes in for the newly scripted Dozen. Need to try and get it finished soon so it meets the “coming in 2010″ tag I put on the trailer.
Really enjoying my new toy, I mean smart-phone. It is pure awesomeness in a hand-held device.
Lucky Soul have a new album out, I might buy it tonight and give a listen if I’m not too tired to just lay there listening to music. There is also a new video by them in every way for their song Whoa Billy! I like it.
Lucky Soul – Woah Billy! from Ruffa Lane on Vimeo.
They’re playing down the road from me at the weekend but alas I have no one to go with. BAH. Probably ain’t go the money for it anyway.
17
Spotify Mobile
So to go with my HTC Desire and savings I’ve made by canceling and reducing a few Direct Debits I decided to give Spotify Mobile a whirl. At first I had my doubts but I did enjoy walking around town on my lunch break the other day listening to my Spotify playlists so now I am thinking maybe the £9.99 might be worth it, I’ll see how it goes. On the plus side £9.99 is a lot cheaper than going out buying a load of CDs and then transferring them to my PC only to put them back on my mobile memory card. There are also offline playlists, although they do absolutely fill my memory card, probably have to stick a bigger one in, yet I also get this on my PC. There are no adverts which is pretty cool and the sound quality is better with Premium.
Anyway to celebrate, if you can call it a celebration, I have created a nice little playlist of some of my favourite songs of the year mixed in with some I have been listening to lately. There are lots of cool new songs stuff by the likes of Gorillaz, Chiddy Bang, Delphic, Lucky Soul, Darwin Deez and Robin Guthrie as well as some songs from recent years by Ballboy, Jenny Lewis, Local Natives and a cracker by The Beach Boys.
Here is the link : APRIL PLAYLIST
Another bonus of having subscribed is that I have some invites for free Spotify, I used one up but still have one left. So get in touch if you’d like this. First come first served.
15
Best things about 2010 so far or 20 Citi Moments of Success
Just a big old list, cause I like lists, of the 20 things that have been good about 2010 so far. In no particular order of bestness. 
1 Passing my driving test first time with only seven minors.
2 Getting my own car.
3 Everton finally finding some form (and then losing it when it mattered).
4 Yeasayer – Odd Blood – This has been on rotation in my car more than anywhere else, it’s my favourite album of the year so far by some distance.
5 Mad Men – Third season of the magnificent shows about TV advertising chauvinist pigs and the ditsy women that surround them. Why the BBC waste all our money on buying such a great foreign import and then stick on BBC4 is beyond me.
6 Caprica – the prequel TV series to the remake TV series Battlestar Galactica. It can be a little slow some times but I love the ‘world’ everything is happening, from the cool tech things to the fact that Little Bill Adama’s uncle is a married-to-a-man-mafioso. The cliffhanger has left me wanting more, which could be a long wait.
7 The Bird and The Bee – Interpreting the Masters Volume 1: A Tribute to Daryl Hall and John Oates – Essentially an album of Hall and Oates covers, plus one original song, it’s fantastic and completely does the genius of the original songs justice. Get involved. Here’s a Spotify link.
8 Crabbies
9 Wonders of the Solar System – Prof Brian Cox, who looks like a member of The Cribs does a great job of explaning the things in the title of his programme. This should really have been prime time BBC1 viewing like something Attenborough would voiceover about komodo dragons and water buffalo.
11 Glee
12 South Park – It is back and as ridiculously preachy and disgustingly hilarious as ever. I hope it goes on forever.
13 Getting my monthly phone bill reduced by 25 quid and being on a 1-month rolling contract instead of a hellish 2-year one.
14 My beard. I’ve had more compliments than ever, apparently there are pictures on Facebook but I have no personal account on there so I can’t show you. You’ll have to make do with this snazzy piece of Photoshopping.
15 My new mobile phone a HTC Desire. It is awesome.
16 Double wins on the Gold Cup and wins on the Grand National and the FA Cup Semi-Final have been a nice economic treat.
17 Getting a new job.
18 The IPL has been fantastically good fun.
19 Getting back into filming with my pals, hopefully we’ll do more soon.
20 My new boots, can you tell I have ran out of ideas?
8
My Favourite Music Videos: Part Three
Well Hall and Oates had to feature but which Hall and Oates classic video/song, there are just far too many greats. So I thought fuck it, it’s my blog, I’ll post two. So here you go, enjoy the nonsense video for Adult Education and there slightly less nonsensical video for Family Man, featuring an entire family of Halls and Oateseses.