End of a Crazy Week

Glad to see the back of this week. Work has been busy and the M1 even busier.

Also, had to say goodbye to my parent's dog, who had reached the grand old age of 16, but had come to the end. Rest in peace, old fella.

Hopefully, the weekend will be a relaxing one. Can't remember the last time that happened!

And Here She Is...

The Story of the Guitar

Sad Claude has mixed feelings about tomorrow.

I have decided to splash out on the guitar I have always dreamed of. I found a very nice one (online) at a shop on the south coast, so am making the long trip there tomorrow.

The guitar is a 1959 Custom Shop Reissue Gibson Les Paul. These are not cheap. To part fund it I am trading in my old Gibson Les Paul Standard - a wine red version from 1996. I bought this from a shop in Luton in January, 1997 and it has been used on recordings and many gigs I have played.

So, while I am very excited about getting the guitar I have always aspired to, I am sad to say goodbye to my old axe.

Snow? In England?

Yes, 'tis true dear readers. Heavy snowfall hit England today and Claude was not spared travel disruption.

We do seem to struggle in this country, with major traffic jams and panic when even just a few flakes land. However, today was genuinely quite bad and my journey to work was slow and tricky at times.

Before lunch time it was getting worse, so with encouragement from colleagues I decided to set off for home and work from there. The journey back was OK and it was nice to be able to spend some time building a snowman and throwing snow balls at the mutt.

Tomorrow looks to be even worse - so I may well be stranded at home once more. Please, no need for sympathy.

That's Special, Duke

Claude and good lady took in an evening's entertainment at Sheffield's Leadmill club last Saturday night.

The gig was the amazingly-haired Duke Special, who delivered an excellent show. He creates an amazing sound, especially taking into account that his "band" was just himself on vocals and piano accompanied by a rather insane drummer.

What made the experience even more "special" was that on several occasions he took to playing a piano positioned right in the middle of the audience. Also, after he had finished performing he gladly spent time in the bar with his fans chatting, signing autographs and having his photo taken.

He is an exceptional artist and a top guy.

Back To Work

First day back at work for Claude today. After the initial shock of remembering just how hideous the M1 is in the morning, I spent most of the day wading through 114 emails. All-in-all it was OK and just good to get that first day over and done with.

So, Xmas is over for another year. This one was pretty uneventful, but it was very good to catch up with friends. A very good friend of mine going back to when I was at school was visiting from Japan and it was nice to meet him and his wife.

And The Winner Is...

Announcing the Sad Claude Awards for 2008:

Best Film
In Bruges

Best Album
Only By The Night (Kings of Leon)

Best Gig
Crowded House - Sherwood Forest Pines

Best TV Show
God on Trial - BBC

Kings of Comedy

I was musing today on which are the greatest TV comedy shows of all-time. I am positive not everyone will agree with my selection, but in no particular order, here are some of my favourites:

• Steptoe And Son
• Curb Your Enthusiasm
• The Simpsons
• The League of Gentlemen
• Fawlty Towers
• I'm Alan Partridge
• Bottom
• Blackadder
• The Office

Gun Nuts

Texans. How we love 'em.

This quote is taken from a Texas gun store's website (the incorrect spellings and poor English are left in):

"Now that America has voted in the most Liberal Gun Hating president in the history of the USA, be prepared for the worse possible nightmares to happen. With the possibility of Obama hooking up with the UN in the world quest to wipe out the sale of small arms and setting the old Clinton assualt ban back in place. Guns such as your semi-automatic 22 : Model 60 Marlin, Ruger 10/22 or even your Remington 1100 would be added to the ban list. Dont set idley by. Join the NRA, GOA or some other group that has lobbying power to preserve your 2nd Ammendment rights."

And these people form the most powerful nation on earth. Luckily, most Americans are not like this at all, and hopefully neither is the new President. Please, Mr Obama, don't set idley by...

Christmas Is Coming

It is that time of year again. Ho ho ho. Time for a pre-season ditty

A week away from Xmas hols
And work is such a slog.
I'm getting quite impatient
For my chocolate yuletide log

I will try to make the best of it
No meetings please - I'm bored
Just one more final thing to say
Happy Christmas all, from Claude

In Today's News...

Oh Boy, George

So, it seems that George O'Dowd is going to jail for tying a male escort to his bed. O'Dowd is, of course, better known as Boy George.

He may be quite overweight now, an escort-abuser and former drug addict, but I like to remember him in his 80s technicolour peak.

Say what you will, Karma Chameleon is still a classic.

Sick But Warm

Hooray. I looks like we have finally got our central heating working. At least, it seems to be OK, who knows how long that can last.

It took nearly a whole day of fussing and fixing with the plumber and boiler repairman, but so far it appears to be doing its stuff.

Sadly, it wasn't in time to stop me developing some kind of bug. My throat is raging and swallowing is difficult. I am not even enjoying the cup of coffee I am drinking right now. Every gulp feels like I am swallowing a mouthful of pins.

Woe is Claude.

Brass Monkeys

Bbbblimey iiiiiit's ccccccold aaaaat tttttthe mmmmoment.

The freezing temperatures are not helped by the fact our boiler is on the blink. It turns off every 5 minutes, meaning when we return to the house or get up in the morning the whole house is like an igloo.

Roll on summer...

Overheard

I heard a group of teenagers debating where in the world McDonald's have restaurants.

One, obviously sharp individual, commented "Well, they definitely have 'em in America 'cos I saw one once."

McDonald's in America? Nah.

Driven To Distraction

It is my company's policy to send all company car drivers on a defensive driving course.

I had put it off for too long, so today I trotted down to Nottingham looking forward to seeing lots of videos of car crashes and idiotic driving.

It wasn't quite like that. We actually had to drive while someone made notes and then pointed out all the things we had done wrong. It was like taking my test again.

Then, at the end, we had to drive for about 30 minutes and give a commentary and what we were doing and could see. This didn't include criticising other drivers, laughing at women parking or abusing old people crossing the road. I was at a complete loss.

Is It a Bird?

I am quite a big fan of the first two Christopher Reeve Superman movies and was slightly disappointed with Bryan Singer's Superman Returns.

However, if this story were ever to happen I might feel a tingle not experienced since the epic and wonderful Lord of the Rings trilogy...

Children In Need

OK, it is a worthy cause and I am not denying that the charity deserves the money it raises.

However, the TV "feast" we get subjected to, year-upon-year, leaves me feeling like tearing my eyes out and sticking them in my ears to spare me the horror.

This is just a sample of the "spectacular" events gracing the BBC this year. I quote:

"The cast of the Bill do the jailhouse rock at Sun Hill in their tribute to the Blues Brothers."

"Gok Wan shows the residents of Coronation Street How To Look Good Naked in Weatherfield, followed by live music from Girls Aloud and Leon Jackson."

"East meets West as the cast of EastEnders put on a showstopping West End musical spectacular from Albert Square, and there's an exclusive performance from Take That."

Awful. Just painfully, painfully awful.

Nothing Stays The Same

I was in Sheffield the other day, mooching around and just killing time.

I ventured onto a street where there used to be a couple of good record shops and thought I could burn some minutes there.

No such luck. The stores (independent and with a good mix of music) had both gone. Lots of other stores had disappeared too and all that was left were some tacky-looking theme pubs and lots of coffeee shop chains.

It was all rather sad.

Gridiron

I am a fan of American Football and have been since the 1980s. I was lucky enough to see the first International Series game in London last year between my team, the Miami Dolphins, and the New York Giants.

The second of these games in London was played last night, with the Saints defeating the Chargers in a cracking game. I didn't get to this one - as I am not a fan of either team and I have already seen the Chargers play two years ago in the US.

I am hoping that the game next year will feature a team I have an interest in, as it was a great occasion.