Is the TV Series Riot Women any good?

 We've just binge watched the first series of Riot Women, on the recommendation of a few friends (mostly ladies of a certain age), who said it was amazing. It was recommended to me on the basis that I like everything and anything to do with bands, music and rock and roll. I will start by saying my lovely wife Clare thought it was brilliant. Then again she's not been in a rock and roll band, so she just saw it as engaging TV light entertainment. I had rather hoped that it would be an advert for women of a certain age to go out and form bands. Being in a band is the best thing I've ever done with my clothes on! But I am not entirely sure how many women would watch it and think "I really want some of that". This is a real shame, because they should. It seemed to me as if every character in the show was lurching on the edge of a precipice and none of them had anything else to pull them back from the edge. Of course there are plenty of people in such situations, and writer Sally Wainright has to make engaging TV, but for me, the sheer joy and fun of being in a band is missing from the series. There were far too many plot distractions for me. I wish that the writers had spent some time with such a band. 

I will give one example. The scene in the recording studio was all about the sexual relationship between the (female) bassplayer and the (male) younger recording engineer. I was so disappointed that so little effort was made to portray the sheer joy and excitement of taking a track you have written and hearing it sound like a proper record. In the career of The False Dots we've had plenty of smirksome moments in the studio, but they are dwarfed by the joy of hearing the music sound how you want it to sound. Now credit where credit is due, the scene was one of the funniest moments on TV of the year and should be in there, but the moment where you listen to the final mix wasn't and that is a sin. When you are in a band, you never really know what you sound like until you hear that. Often, it all sounds a bit ropey and weird when you are putting backing tracks down. There was none of the bits where a band member chips in and suggests some tiny change, that makes a song. You may think "that would go over the head of most of the audience", but it is the absolute key to a recording a great track. There is another aspect, that may not be appreciated. Everyone in a band should have an opinion that counts, and an opportity was missed to show that it is a collective and sometimes the best bits in music come from the oddest places.

I also felt that the songwriting process was note explored properly. The compromises made, to ensure a song works, the choices, the debates as to whether you are geting the message you want out there. Given the complicated challenges some of the band members had, this would be a great way to get into this. Having had numerous female members in the band, I also felt that the opportunity to show the sort of creeps female musicians can attract was missed. Although the scene with the singers son's stepfather was put in, sadly it is not people who can simply be smacked in the mouth. It is people who exploit artists and then seek sexual favours as a sort of payoff. It is also not usually done in a crowded place. I would have preferred to see these sort of leeches explored, rather than just generic horrible men. An opportunity was missed to cast a spotlight and show some of their dodgy practices.

So all in all my verdict? I'd give it a 7/10. It was pretty good, it kept the viewer engaged. It could have easily been an 8 or a 9 if they'd done a bit more homework on the key theme, getting a band together.

And why does it matter? Well let me put it this way. When I play at the Dublin Castle with my band, The False Dots, I always nick a poster for my wall of fame at home. Here are a few of them that are on the kitchend wall. Here they are

Of all the bands on the wall who played with us, only one are all female. A big shout out to the wonderful Vampyra. A few of the bands have key female members, but the vast majority are all male. There is no earthly reason why females should not form bands. During the Punk era, we saw a few such bands break through, The Slits being the most memorable for me. The industry didn't know how to market them and had little interest in giving them major support. They are quite happy to have pretty girls in vocal groups, but anything more authentic and real is something they have no interest in. One aspect of Riot Women which was really spot on was the decision to make the key song about HRT. I'd be well up for a campaign to make it the Xmas number one. 

I was curious as to how much of what we actually heard was the actresses playing. Being a purist, I'd have liked to see them actually playing, even if it sounded ropey. That is how bands sound when they start. It would have been great to see them actually progress. 

Click for cheap advance tickets

Finally, one last comment. I guess I owe Sally Wainright a word of thanks. After watching it, Clare said "Blimey, I thought you were bad, you are an angel compared to the blokes in this" (or words to that effect). 

I cannot pass up the opporunity to plug North West London's finest Ska/Punk Band The False Dots and our next gig. Please come down. We may not be Riot Women, but I do predict a riot as its our annual Xmas Party!

The Sunday Reflection #70 - Is technology destroying the humanity in human beings?

 Is there any such thing as morality anymore? Now I am an ageing punk rocker. I have always stood against the hypocricy that I saw in society. Single mothers marginalised. Children born out of wedlock marginalised. Paedophile priests lecturing us on morality are a few examples of where morality was completely subverted for me as a teenager. However, there are many aspects of morality that I think are important and beneficial to society. Kindness and decency are important aspects of this. Be it offering a seat to an old lady with shopping, apologising for mistakes (and accepting genuine apologies) and not seeking undeserved plaudits from ones peers. In the last 20 years, we've seen the rise of social media. My first exposure to this was Friends Reunited. This gave us the opportuiinty to catch up with school mates we'd lost touch with. That was superceded by Facebook, Twitter (X), Instagram and TikTok.

When I first logged on to Friends Reunited, I didn't realise the Pandoras box I was opening. I've learned many things about friends and acquaintances which I really wish I didn't know. We no longer find partners by meeting them at the pub. We go on to dating apps. When I met my wife, we clicked and found out that we had things in common. We've had a lot of fun over the years. These days, it would be easy to swipe past someone who you might get on with like a house on fire. If we set up dating profiles, I doubt we'd have too much in common. I see so many pretty girls, who have been surgically enhanced in some way. Oddly, I rarely think that this is an improvement, but I presume it makes them think they will be more attractive on a dating app or will help them get more views on tiktok? 

What really concerns me is that we seem to be sacrificing our basic humanity on the alter of technology. I suspect some people would only offer a seat for an old lady on the bus, if they could post it on TikTok and have all their friends say they were marvellous. Is this really the society and the image of humanity that we want. I quite like it when people do acts of random kindness and don't brag about it. I always think that having someone say your marvellous is a wonderful thing, but only when it is unsolicited. We will not see the demise of such platforms any time soon, so we have to get used to it. All I can say is that I do hope we realise that what we see on social media platforms is not the real world. There is more to life and I think a lot of us would be a lot happier if we spent a lot less time on line and worried far less about what strangers had to say about us.

The Saturday List #368 - My top ten favourite dishes in Indian restaurants

 Yesterday was an unusual Friday night. I didn't go for a curry! There were two reasons. The first was Hadley FC had their Xmas lunch and drinks and I was unavoidably detained in Barnet. The second was because I had a curry on both Tuesday and Wednesday. I was catching up with friends. Sadly at this time of year, all of my good resolutions for refraining from overdoing it go out of the window. I actually managed my two days of abstinence and dieting, but the calories and exercise columns are in the red. But hey ho, it is good for ones mental wellbeing to catch up with mates, drink and eat curry. 

However, I woke up this morning and was thinking about curry. Our football team boys had our night out at The Mill Hill Tandoori on Thursday and we got a selection of starters, which we shared. I thought a few of my readers might appreciate a few tips.

Starters

1. Onion Bhajis -  If I don't have these, I feel like I've not had a curry. The Mill Hill Tandoori do excellent Onion Bhajis.

2. Tandoori Lamb cutlets - As I usually go for a curry and don't eat meat on Fridays as a rule, I rarely have these, but they are one of my favourites. We had them on Wednesday and it was a treat.

3. Vegetable somosas - One of my favourite restaurants in town is The Halal in Alie St. You now have to bring your own booze. They always give you complimentary somosas that are wonderful. It might be the best value meal in Town. They even let you bring pints over from The Swan over the road.

Main Courses

4. Tandoori Salmon - This, IMHO is the best dish that the MH Tandoori do, delicious. As I eat fish on a Friday, it is rather handy.

5. Tandoori Mixed Grill - My meat feast for when I go with mates and it isn't a Friday! Clare doesn't eat meat at all and we like to share, so this is a rare treat.

6. Lamb Madras - I do like a good lamb madrass. If it has a good kick and the lamb melts in your mouth, it is excellent. My friend Romel who runs the Day of The Raj does a great takeaway Lamb Madras. I rarely get a takeaway, as I like to eat curry in a restaurant. I actually hate dishes out of plastic containers.

7. Bhuna King Prawn Masala - I didn't eat meat at all between 1984 and 2000. This was my go to dish.  After I started eating meat again, I didn't have one again. Maybe I will soon....

Side dishes.

8. Tarka Dal - As most of the dishes I like are dry, this adds a bit of spicy sauce. I like lots of chillies in it, Clare doesn't, which causes a few issues on occasion.

9. Brinjal Bhaji - I do love a bit of aubergene. If we do get a takeaway, I will save some to warm up for my lunch the next day. 

10. Garlic Naan - These are the one thing that you can only really properly enjoy in an indian restaurant, when piping hot. The imitations that you get in M&S etc, are really awful.

As an aside, on Tuesday, we had our curry at the Great Nepalese on Eversholt St. I started with a Mas co Bara (lentil pancakes), a Nepali speciality, in Tamarind sauce. The main course was Lamb Khursani, accompanied by a Garlic Naan. Delicious.

I hope I've not made you too hungry.

I will end with a date for your diary. Please come down to The False Dots Xmas party at The Dublin Castle on Sunday 21st December. It will be fun!

 

Rock and Roll Stories #51 - Sartorial Elegance and Rock and Roll

 Back at the dawn of time, well actually the dawn of The False Dots, in 1979, Paul Marvin, son of the the legend that is Hank B. Marvin of The Shadows was the drummer of The False Dots. Although Paul wasn't a great drummer, we thought that having him in the band would open a few doors. Maybe Hank would put in a good words with their label EMI. Sadly, he was none too keen on our then lead singer, so this never happened. There were three things that he did do that were pretty cool though. The first was he wrote a guitar lick for us for our punk classic, Not all she seems, which we play to this day. 

The second thing was that he let us jam in his private studio and play with his guitars and amps. They were amazing. The third was that he gave me some advice. The one thing that he said that stuck with me was "Always where good shoes when you gig, people do not want to see someone who looks like they have just walked out of a builders yard playing guitar". He also advised me to make sure I'd had a proper hair cut before we did gigs. Being a punk, it took a few years for me to take his advice seriously.

We were anti everything when Paul Marvin was in the band, maybe Hank wouldv'e been more helpful if we had been a bit more respectful and nice. I have always tried to be polite around people, but our lead singer was not. I thought his behaviour was a bit off, but in his opinion, Hank Marvin was a boring old fart. What I didn't really appreciate then was that Hank had a wealth of experience. He was also right in his advice that the band should take our look seriously. I am just back from a weekend at Butlins for the House of Fun festival, with Madness and a host of other bands. Over the weekend, I think we saw 14 bands. All of the bands were decent bands who play regularly on the UK live circuit. Most were Ska bands and what struck me was that the level of effort different outfits made with their attire was massive. There were a couple of bands that were musically excellent, but made no real effort to look the part. For me, they made a mistake. Once you were in the festival, you could watch anything you wanted. It seemed to me that the bands that looked the part seemed to engage with the audience better. I don't know if its a subconscious thing that if someone looks the part, you take them more seriously, but it certainly seemed to be the case to me.

I can recall one gig, many years ago, where The False Dots decided that we would go for a French look for a gig. We appeared wearing berets and stripey t-shirts and introduced the songs with silly mock gallic accents. I think it might have been Bastille day, but we had a laugh with the audience and it went well. We were the support band and the headline band were verys sniffy and snooty about our act. We were sharing a dressing room, and one of them said "We are not into being posers, our image is that we have no image". Paul Hircombe, our then bassplayer replied "You are confusing image with personality".  After that, there was a rather frosty silence between us. They did not go down particularly well and it seemed to me that they seemed to think that because they played long, boring guitar solo's well, they felt entitled to a great reception. I heard one of them say as we were all packing up "I hate playing places like, this where the audience knows nothing about music". I remember watching them pack their van and go. Paul said to me "Do you think that there is a market for slob rock?". I laughed and said "Not if tonight is anything to go by".

The truth is that all of the best rock stars look great. It is not an accident. Although The Sex Pistols were thought of as dishevelled punks, they were dressed by Vivienne Westwood. The Beatles had a look, as did the Rolling Stones. People put posters of them up on their walls because they looked great. I think that we thought Hank Marvin was telling us to wear suits, he wasn't. He was telling us to have a cohesive band look which would appeal to audiences. In hindsight, he was spot on

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You can't trust AI! Lee Thompson of Madness is alive and kicking, contrary to what Google has to say!

 On Saturday night, I was watching Madness at Butlins as part of the House of Fun weekender. I am mates with the sax player Lee Thompson as well as his sons Daley and Kye. A friend who went with us asked me how many kids he has. I said I thought the nunber was three. She decided to google it and the Google AI search confirmed it. It also confirmed a rather more disturbing fact. It informed her that Lee had passed away in 2024, but his legacy lives on. 

Now given that we'd just seen him perform on stage, this was quite disturbing news. Had Suggs roped in a doppleganger and not told anyone. In truth, there will only ever be one Lee Thompson. I have no idea how such a stupid AI algorythm could get it so wrong. I was chatting with a mate, who is an AI guru yesterday and they explained the problem. If someone starts a malicious rumour for a popular personality, it will get shared thousands of times and get millions of hits. AI engines see this and pick up on it. As people often realise immediately the information is a load of old cobblers, the truth is not propogated in the same way, so the false rumour appears to be the legitimate story. Of course, AI is developing all of the time. The people who work out the algorythms will get better at getting things right, but the sad truth is that if someone posts a fictitious story on Twitter that gets massivey circulated, current AI I models can get spoofed into making all sorts of nonsense up. As often such things trends, AI will pick up on it as people are wildly asking and will see the latest info. Now of course, my explanation is a very simplified view of what AI does and how it learns. But it is clear to me, as someone who sometimes uses AI to research blogs, you have to be really careful. 

There was a fascinating article in the Guardian yesterday about AI, by Robert Booth. It seems that there is a South Sea Island boom in AI stocks. We all know what happens next, don't we? 

BTW, just for fun, I asked AI if Robert Booth was the last President of the USA. This was the answer it gave me

AI Overview

No, Robert Booth is not the last President of the USA

; he is a fictional character from the Judge Dredd comic series who is a villainous former president. The last real President of the USA was Joe Biden, who succeeded Donald Trump. 

• Robert L. Booth: A fictional character in the Judge Dredd comic series who serves as the main antagonist in the "Origins" story arc.
• Fictional role: In the comic, he is the last President of the United States and is responsible for the Atomic Wars of 2070.
• Real-world President: The most recent President of the United States is Joe Biden. 

So there you go, I am sure Robert will be pleased to learn that AI thinks that he is a fictional character. 

Three days without listening to the news. You should try it!

 I've been in Minehead for the weekend, at the House of Fun big weekender. I am absolutely shattered and need a good nights sleep. Whilst my liver is less than happy with me, my brain is more than happy with a break from the stress of everyday life and especially the news. Normally, I watch it every day and listen to Radio London with regular news updates. I didn't at all for the whole weekend. When we got home at around 4pm today, I went to the gym. When I got back, I put on the TV and I realised that it is so unremittingly depressing at the moment, that I really don't have the inclination to watch it. I actually feel fsr better and less stressed not having the constant barage of bile and stupidity that Global, National and even local politics has become. It's not that I don't care but it seems to me that the whole world is falling into the clutches of moronic, narcessistic egomaniacs, who seem to offer nothing but political willy waving on one hand or a bland dearth of solutions and ideas on the other hand, with uncharismatic,dullness intent on not upsetting their rich backers. I am, by nature an optimist, but I am also a realist and as we have no politicians of note in the UK who seem to offer anything but either moronic populism or capitulaion to big business and the markets, there is nothing to be optimistic about. The sad thing is that I think that the major parties actually actively seek to dissuade anyone with a modicum of intelligence, passion and desire to put things right from participating. We have not got where we are overnight. This mess has been 45 years in the making, from the day Margaret Thatcher was elected. Thatcher destroyed the post war consensus that Great Britain was governed to improve the lives of ordinary people. She followed the right wing economic guru Milton Freidman, who believed that free markets and rampant capitalism was the answer to everything. That is why our railways, energy markets and water companies rip us all off. There is no regulation, so dodgy companies, almost always foreign owned rip us all off continually. Everything is more expensive in the UK than the rest of Europe apart from Healthcare and if Thatchers heirs (Badenoch and Reform) have their way, the NHS will follow British Rail etc into private hands and we'll end up being robbed blind for crap service. I just hope I am dead by the time they get their way. And I hope my kids generation don't fall for this crap in the way my one did

The Saturday list #367 - Five age related benefits since I became a pensioner!

 On Wednesday. I went to see Ed Kuepper's new incarnation of Aussie Proto punk band The Saints. They were the first punk rock band I saw, back in June 1977. They were brilliant. I can't get my head around the fact that this was more than 48 years ago. It made me think about all of the age related benefits I've had since turning 60.

1. A free Oyster card. I used this on Wednesday night, it has saved me thousands.

2. All of my prescriptions are free. 

3. I got into a football match cheaper last year, as they had an over 60's discount (most are over 65)

4. I can now join U3A, a wonderful organisation, sadly I have no time.

5. I can now kick youngsters out of seats on the bus reserved for pensioners!

Every cloud has a silver lining!

Leadership and accountability

The world is in a strange place right now. Not a day seems to go by without Trump, Starmer, Netenyahu, Zelenski, etc cropping up in significant news stories. If I was to ask you to pick one who was doing a brilliant job and one who should have never been let a million miles near leadership, I am sure that whoever you pick, there will be someone who has the opposite view. That is he nature of leadership. I watched the response to the Budget speech by Kemi Badenoch yesterday and I was shocked at just how bad it was. Given that the speech had been leaked early and presumably she knew the key points, I simply couldn't get my head around the fact that she chose a highly personal attack on Rachel Reeves, rather than a forensic dissection of the key areas where she disagreed with the Chancellors approach. After she'd finished, I did a search on Twitter for the word "Badenoch". I was not surprised to see almost universal disdain for her efforts. I then did a search on the phrase @kemibadenoch. That provided the opposite. Tweeters using her proper handle clearly thought she was marvellous. I was actually quite shocked at the way this group of people loved the personal attacks. If it was a comedy routine at the Dog and Duck, maybe you could excuse it, but Parliament is where laws and rules are made and people should not be happy when there is not proper scrutiny. 

It got me thinking about the subject of leadership. I have had some very good and very bad bosses over the years. I've also been in a position of leadership in various businesses, charities, clubs and even in my band. When I watch the likes of Trump and Badenoch, I despair at the fact that they seem to break all the rules of good leadership, which have been drummed into me over a career in business, etc that started 47 years ago. So what are the rules that I try and apply

1. Keep calm and do not get drawn into heated arguments where possible. Never be rude or aggresive towards people, especially underlings. If you have to have harsh words, be polite. 

2. Respect the other person, especially when they disagree with you. They have reached their position because their life experience is different to yours and they may have good reason to hold their viewpoint, based on experience or information you do not have.

3. Follow the rules, laws etc, when it comes to dispute resolution. These may seem like an unnecessary encumbrance, but they are there to pretect both sides, and when the boot is on the other foot, you may be very grateful for them. 

4. Do not make spur of the  of the moment, rash decisions. If a decision can wait until you have had time to properly consider the facts with a clear head, take that time. Sometimes, this is not possible, if there is a crisis, but where there is time, use it.

5. Try and read the room and ensure your allies are onside.

6. If you are a situation, where you have to deal with people who are unreasonable, you should still let them have their say and listen to them. Just because they are being difficult does not mean they don't have a point.

7. When you have to take decisions which will be unpopular, ensure that you have thought through the difficult questions which you may be asked. If you can't answer them, then it will undermine you. It is also worth bearing in mind that if you cannot answer important questions, your decision making may be flawed.

8.If you make a difficult decision, which is unpopular, but is the right decision, stick by it. Don't change tack, to placate people who do not have solid arguments.

9. When you have to make difficult decisions, make sure you thank your allies when they support you. 

10. Be magnanamous in victory. Share the credit around for good decisions you have pushed through, which can be demonstrated to be successful. This will buy you good will with your allies.

11.  Do not seek to humiliate and destroy your adversaries, always offer people a dignified way out where possible. Give them a chance to leave with their pride intact.

12. When you are dealing with difficult people and you are anticipating a confrontational situation, ensure that you prepare and know what you want as an outcome, also work out what is the worst case compromise that you feel you can accept. Give yourself wriggle room and if you don't get everything you want accept that civilisation and decency are built on compromise.

 It is worth understanding that sometimes people mishear things or misinterpret them. When I worked in IT, a co worker reported me to HR for "rudely telling someone who worked they had F****D UP". I was bemused. I was called into a meeting and asked to explain my behaviour. I honestly had no recollection. I asked if HR had spoken to the person I was alleged to have abused. I was informed that they hadn't. I suggested that they ask the person exactly what I'd said to them. This was done and when asked, they said "Roger asked me to transfer a file from one system to another using the FUP DUP utility", which was a command on the IT platform we worked on. It was all a misunderstanding. I was very annoyed at the time, but in hindsight, my co worker was right to have acted on what they perceived as rudeness.

Leaders should be accountable and should have to be able to account for their actions. It strikes me as very bad governance for leaders to have no accountability.  

 

The Sunday Reflection #69 - All things sexy!

When I saw the number we'd reached, I thought let's have some fun. I guess many subjects that I've chosen to talk about in this piece are a tad dry. But the truth is life is fun and a bit of sexiness makes it even more fun. Now don't worry, this blog isn't going to be a discussion of the mechanics of such business. I'm not going to discuss my private life, as that is my business and it would probably be a bit dull. Sexuality and sexiness is a strange thing. It is something that the British seem to have a problem discussing in a sensible way. When I was at school and first started noticing girls, I was quite alarmed that I found that many of the girls I developed a crush on were not pretty in what seemed to be what we are lead to believe is a sexy way. 

For people of my age in the UK, the first time I saw a mature womans breasts was on page three of The Sun. We'd look at the models and all go 'phwoar'. What really alarmed me was that I didn't really find the pictures attractive in any way. Even more alarming, was the women who were catching my eye and actually exciting me were a rather strange and mixed bunch. There was a scene where Catwoman tried to seduce Batman in the Adam West TV series that totally blew my mind. Nancy Sinatra singing "These Boots were made for walking" was another. What baffled me was why I found women with clothes on more interesting than the topless models on page three? I also realised that I'd be a very poor caped crusader, as I'd not have resisted Catwomans charms. Perhaps my biggest crush of the 1970's was when I saw Leslie Ash in Quadrophenia. I always get rather cross with Phil Daniels character for making love to her down a grotty alley. I felt such a beauty deserved a better spot for such attention. 

Luckily for me, my late teens coincided with Punk Rock and for a glorious couple of years, the stereotypical 'sexy' look and behaviour went out of fashion.  Now it would be ridiculous to claim that Debbie Harry isn't sexy and beautiful in a classical way, but as lead singer of Blondie, Debbie Harry never performed semi naked. She did it without getting her kit off. Sadly (IMHO), the heir to her mantle, Madonna was the opposite. Nothing was too overtly sexual for her. And none of it was in the least bit interesting to me. 

When I actually started dating girls and having relationships, I found that I have always instantly clicked with people from the first second I met them. I may be wrong, but I don't think any of the girls I met were dressed in a sexually provocative manner when I met them. To me, they were all hugely attractive and sexy, but in my head, they were like a wonderful Xmas present, to be unwarapped and savoured at a time when it was appropriate. 

I have thought about this long and hard. I suspect that what really is sexy for me is the fact that there will be a pleasant surprise for me somewhere down the line. One of the features of Twitter/X is that hardcore porn is there for whoever wants it (or often who doesn't). Over the years, on many occasions, attractive women have followed me, sent me inviting DM's and when I've looked at their feed, it is full of close up pictures of their private parts. I really don't find such things attractive when I see them on social media. In fact, I have often thought, I thought she was really pretty until I saw that picture. I nearly always check out people who follow me and generally block such accounts, as I don't want that on my feed. There was one account, who followed me after a music post, and she posted quite interesting stuff about music and it was only when I followed her and intimate photos started popping up on my feed that I realised she was selling porn on Only fans as well as posting about punk rock. What was strange to me was that the music stuff was interesting, informative and witty and the posts trying to sell porn simply felt a little forced and uncomfortable. I was tempted to ping her and suggest she had two accounts, as I was sure that many people like me, who would happily interact with the music posts, didn't want to see the porn posts. I found it all a bit sad and stopped following her. Occasionally, she still comments on my music posts and I feel a bit sad about the whole thing. 

The thing that I can't get my head around is that for me, the sexual element of my life has been a lot of fun, but it seems that there is nothing fun about the porn industry. As for the music industry, it seems to me that requirement for female artist to dress and act provocatively is hugely detrimental to their artistic creativity. My favourite female artists, Patti Smith, Poly Styrene, Carrol Thompson, Dawn Penn, Aretha Franklin, etc made/make great music without that distraction. So what I am really saying here is that I think sexiness is a great thing. I love films with sexy moments, I love songs with sexy subject matter when done properly, but when it is overdone and completely in your face, with no subtlety at all it ends up being the opposite of what it should be and is just a bit off putting.

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I'll leave it here with a clip of Venessa Sagoe singing "When a man loves a woman" with The False Dots in 1984. I think this exemplifies what female singers should be doing IMHO!

The Saturday List #366 - Ten things that have changed since Lockdown in my life

 This week has seen the culmination of the lockdown enquiry. What really disappointed me was the fact that they didn't look at how Lockdown changed the everyday lives of people in the UK. So here are my findings, in a list, and it hasn't cost the public a billion pounds. 

1. Cash. I rarely use cash and often don't have any on me. I was reminded of this last night. We visited friends and picked up a takeaway from Tangs at Apex Corner. They only take cash, so I made a special trip to the ATM. I couldn't remember the last time I went, I think it was before The False Dots played at the Dublin Castle on the 2nd November. I had to go then as my barber only takes cash. I had a look at our studio income. In 2019, 25% of our business was cash, now its less than 5%. It feels wrong, but TBH cash is a bit of a hassle. When the banks security are hacked and our money all goes up in a puff of smoke, we will regret not having a suitcase full of tenners under the bed, I assure you!

2. Puzzles. I never used to do them. Now I am a bit of a Soduku addict. I used to see it as a complete waste of time. I still do. But during lockdown, I had time to waste. I am jsut pleased I didn't get into heroin instead!

3. Binge watching TV series. Again, I never really used to do this. However during lockdown, we caught up on fifteen years of telly (I don't watch much). Now, if I start watching something, I want to watch the whole lot!

4. Eating habits. I did a lot more cooking during lockdown. As a result I rarely, if ever get microwave meals anymore. I nearly always prepare fresh food.

5. Calmness. I had worked like a lunatic since I was 21. Building studios, working in IT, playing in a band, I always felt on edge. I realised that I am actually a lot calmer. An enforced break was good for my mental health. I think I am also more lazy. I don't like this, but I find it harder to motivate myself to do things I don't want to do. 

6. Appreciaton of natural beauty. We did a lot of walks and I took a lot of pictures. This is a good habit and I enjoy looking at them. I think I've become a better photographer.

7. Driving less. During lockdown, we almost never used the car. Some of this is because I am now an OAP and have a free travel pass, but I tend to walk far more. We did a lot of walking in lockdown and I do tend to enjoy it.

8. Holidays. We are taking far less holidays than we used to. This is not by choice. Lockdown devastated our finances and our business. We do not have the same spare cash.

9. Business. In 2019, our business was thriving. Now it is just about surviving. All of our plans to expand have been shelved. For the first time ever, the last five years has seen me seriously think of chucking in the towel. Although I am past that at the moment, the business is not in the position where it could survive another financial shock. There is a budget this week and the last one destroyed our small profits. I am dreading it. My business is a passion so it hurts.

10. Family. I think we became closer during lockdown. I lost an auntie and a cousin my age to covid. It hurt.

I'd be really interested in how your life has changed.