The weather is not good for my health. It's not that wet and damp is getting to my lungs, it's just that in this very wet weather ("More than two month's rain in 48 hours" screamed this morning's newspaper) it's not been possible, or sensible to cycle into the office. So having started the year well, it' snow over three weeks since I put foot to pedal. As it's the only exercise I do, I can feeling the muscles wasting away and the flab piling on. So I'm hoping for a turnaround in the the grey skies for the sake of my health and well being.
Hope you've been following the Leveson Inquiry...it's entertaining stuff even if you're not much interested in newspapers or politicians. Essentially you seem to have one bunch of grubby little men (and women) having a pop at another bunch of grubby little men (and women). And none of them come out of it with any credit. Would you give any of them house room? I know I wouldn't. This week we have The Murdochs (junior and senior) realising that their goose is cooked so far as having any real influence any more...and therefore adopting a scorched earth policy...taking down everyone they can. Nice. It would be good to think that at some stage we will have reason to admire the political and economic elite rather than just gaze on at their unrelenting awfulness. Wouldn't it?
You may have noticed that we have quite busy lives. This can be fun. Indeed it is fun. We like it that way. But has its downsides. Exhaustion being one of them. Hence the need to be fit, to keep up the pace. We're flagging a bit.
Last night The Cat's Mother and I took ourselves off to Pizza East...the cutting-edge pizza restaurant in uber trendy Shoreditch. We were the oldest by about 50%. Damn we must learn to act our age. It was good that The Cat's Mother was there because the last time I was ate at Pizza East, it was a Saturday night and I was with friends without her. Some of her friends spotted me, and it caused something of a scandal. Even though everything was innocent and above board. It was just that I'd abandoned her ill at home in bed whilst I went out gallivanting. Totally innocent.
We then went downstairs to 'Concrete' to enjoy and intimate cabaret...Chabaret!...we estimate the audience was 100 - 150 folks. The evening was in aid of Twelveathon - a mad bugger running twelve marathons in 2012 to raise £12,000 for UNICEF and a less well known but very worthwhile cause Scene and Heard.
As ever with cabaret there was a mixed bad. Compared pretty spectacularly by Radio 6 DJ Shaun Keaveny we got to enjoy the delights of:
A unnamed juggler who's work was cut out by the low ceilings...ever tried juggling with the ceiling just a foot above your head? He was excellent, so I wish I had his name. He even managed to apparently cut his arm off by throwing a knife. Of course we ALL KNEW it was a trick...but, but, but it provoked uncontrolled hysterical laughter. I was weeping with mirth...
"The Blue Peril – Benjamin Louche from the Double R Club is the world’s newest superhero. You’ll believe a man can fly. Just not this man."
Shirley and Shirley - I can't tell you what they did with a slice of Brie, nor a two foot long sausage, but they were very funny indeed.
Ginger Blush who did a slightly odd 'burlesque' version of Back to the Future, which nearly went hideously wrong when she couldn't clip her bra. I couldn't find a video of that performance, but here's another for your delectation
Sarah Louise Young as Bernie St Clair - the bitterest mother you'll ever meet. Funny if you're not a mother. She's also one member of Fascinating Aida, so this gives me an excuse to post my favourite piece by them (although she's not actually in it)
The very hilarious Mandy Muden, magician
The very funny Richard Herring, who told us about his life philosophy - "The enemy of my enemy is my friend". Which worked well until his enemy chose "Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer". He then went on to talk about his wife of thirty nine day's list of 100 things to do before she dies which he first read when the met years ago. Number three was build a Ferrero Rocher pyramid..as per the ambassador's ad. Not difficult, but as he pointed out, she couldn't be bothered to do it. So he decided to help her out by buying her a Ferrero Rocher on their anniversary. Second year he realised this was going to take a long time so he bought two. Year three he realised he'd got to buy four, then 8, 16, 32...you get the picture. Evidently by 2020, he'll be having to build some two million full size pyramids. But then he'd discovered she'd been eating the chocolates. Well you probably had to be there. Here's a clip
And finally, Frisky and Mannish who do very clever, very funny mashed up versions of your favourite pop songs in the style of other pop stars. It got quite confusing with Old MacDonald Has A Farm...but we laughed ourselves off our seats.
