| Surprise of the week |
[Feb. 23rd, 2006|11:31 am] |
Sardine curry tastes like sardines!
Yep, despite all the spices, tamarind, garlic, ginger etc. I put in, it still just tasted and smelled overwhelmingly of sardines, just as if I opened a tin of the damn things. And now I've got a cupboard full of jars of things and spices and no more meat or fish. Next time I'll get some prawns or chicken.
How long, now I've opened them, can I keep my jars of tamarind pulp and ginger/garlic paste in the cupboard before they start going mouldy? |
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| (no subject) |
[Feb. 20th, 2006|10:06 am] |
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So why not let's see if I can be the first to post about the IMSoc Curry and Par-tay last night :-). The Kashmir Halal on Cowley Road was the venue, and it was very good. Seems to be a popular choice for clubs in Oxford and they are clearly well experienced in keeping big groups happy. They let people bring their own drink which is always good, and there certainly was a lot of 'buzes' on the IMSoc tables. The curry was pretty average, but Patia is always a risky and variable choice so I've only got myself to blame really. Pilao rice isn't usually yellow.
Glenn (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) fragolata) invited me, and I met up with lots of other people I knew at various times in my time at Oxford: Trev (trevordubya, thedeathdisco, azureskies, wicker_girl, Andrzej, David, plus loads of 'newer-school' people who I met for the first or second time last night. Afterwards we went to Het's.
Assorted highlights and memorable things:
- "I threw the frozen ice on the grill because I wanted to see what would happen"
- Don't eat the salty cream!
- Seb's video @ Het's - Poison Food Subscription Department!
- Shoes are back on the power line!
- "Stop wasting buzes"
- Singles bands
- "I know everything about bosoms"
- Falling over twice--somehow I didn't hurt myself!
- You're not playing Nellie The Elephant
- Where are you on the Snog Web?
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| (no subject) |
[Jan. 13th, 2006|12:59 pm] |
Went out with beingjdc and friends for Thai buffet last night. This is a good excuse to post something in my LiveJournal, given that I found out about it from here.
Note for future reference: Greek Street has two Thai restaurants, both offering AYCE vegetarian buffet for £6. The food was very nice (and patchily made a good go at pretending to be meat), apart from the weird ginger sauce, which somehow tasted exactly like the wasabi you get with those sushi take away boxes. On the other hand, there was a lovely "chicken" curry with lots of yummy lime leaves in it, and the "soggy duck" with plum sauce worked surprisingly well.
I went to "Love Your Enemies" after that, but wasn't sufficiently in the mood to stay for longer than about 15 minutes. I heard one cool sugar-pop song (by a band called Morgan's Baby, who aren't even on Google apart from one obscure compilation). I suck at clubbing.
Further in keeping with the tradition of talking about music in every LJ post, here are some good songs I've heard in the last few weeks:
o The Hazey Janes - After All
o Weezer - In The Garage
o Eels - Hey Man (Now You're Really Living)
o The Sounds - S.O.U.N.D.S & Mine For Life
o Not Bit Of Wood - Lie In
o Morgan's Baby - Boogie Boy
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| (no subject) |
[Nov. 16th, 2005|12:03 am] |
| [ | Tags | | | memes, peptone | ] |
| [ | mood |
| |  happy | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Peptone - Candidate For Wax | ] |
As usual, no idea how it's worked out, but it's from fragolata so I had to give it a go:
| How to make a ijgrieve |
Ingredients:
5 parts intelligence
5 parts silliness
5 parts leadership |
Method:
Blend at a low speed for 30 seconds. Add a little cocktail umbrella and a dash of lustfulness |
Personality cocktailFrom Go-Quiz.comToday I bought a compilation CD from the wonderful Music & Video Exchange in Notting Hill Gate. I haven't got all the way through yet because one song's such an indie-pop, cheesy-synth-tastic cracker that I keep playing it over and over again. I do love it when that happens :-) Even better, its available on the web for free download so you can all have a listen: http://homepage.ntlworld.com/sean.murricane/peptone/radio/yay. |
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| (US) Sony Audio CDs Install Spyware |
[Nov. 2nd, 2005|11:08 pm] |
http://www.sysinternals.com/blog/2005/10/sony-rootkits-and-digital-rights.html
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=342821
It has emerged that the DRM (Digital Rights Management) software included on some new US-released CDs as "copy protection" installs spyware and 'rootkit' software on computers on which the CDs are played, without informing the user, after requiring users playing music to be logged on to Windows with Administrator rights.
The software:
-> Hides itself from users not using specialised security software such as that deployed by the sysinternals blogger.
-> If identified and removed, renders the PC's CD-ROM drive useless by erasing its drivers.
-> Allows any other files with the prefix $sys$ to be hidden on the computer--a potential aid to virus writers.
-> Scans running processes on the system every 2 seconds, consuming almost 2% of CPU cycles on a high-end PC.
-> May also communicate back to Sony information including IP address and ID of CD which installed the software. |
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| Political Meme from Rob |
[Nov. 2nd, 2005|10:33 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  grumpy | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Charlotte Hatherley - Bastardo | ] |
Although some of the questions were not appropriate for Brits (but still had to be answered--there wasn't a "No Opinion" button) I think the results came out about right. |
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| (no subject) |
[Oct. 3rd, 2005|11:36 pm] |
Here's the wordy titles meme (from azureskies) for your delectation. I cheated a bit by shuffling 20 at random then selecting 10, otherwise you would have got songs by bands such as Spookey Ruben and Pohoda, as well as Track 6 from Michael Moore's audiobook.
1. It's the current capital of Turkey, as opposed to that city's former name.
2. It's dark, and I should go to the pub, or perhaps the off-license.
3. This man is envious.
4. The cuboidal container belonging to Adrian Mole's girlfriend.
5. In a queue, perhaps.
6. Cranberry juice that you might find in the Pacific.
7. I'm not going to be John Lennon's wife and in addition belong to you.
8. I am not interested in your question.
9. The constitutional right to bear arms (US).
10. Were AM and FM, flavoured by orchid, as is ice cream. |
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| Lyrics Quiz! |
[Aug. 13th, 2005|01:07 am] |
I tried this on another board I post on, and it went down quite well. See if you can answer the questions from song lyrics:
1. Easyworld: What is it 'just not fun' to do?
2. Green Day: What does Billy-Joe "pledge allegiance" to?
3. Charlotte Hatherley: For what did Antonio leave Charlotte?
4. Beautiful South: What have you "a knighthood" in?
5. Blur: What does Damon "dream of" on a Sunday?
6. Radiohead: What will Thom be doing "if London burns"?
7. Ozma: When do chances last a finite time?
8. Futureheads: What do you do "on your dinner break"?
9. Idlewild: At your lack of what do I laugh?
10. Beautiful South (again): If the pound is replaced by the Euro, what properties is it likely to maintain? |
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| (no subject) |
[Jul. 7th, 2005|05:15 pm] |
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Just to say (for those who know I'm studying in London now) that I'm OK and back home from the centre now. |
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| Interview questions (meme) |
[May. 17th, 2005|12:05 am] |
| [ | music |
| | Queen - Keep Yourself Alive | ] |
At long last, my responses to the Interview Meme, questions posed by glamwhorebunni
1- It's ten years into the future. What are you doing?
Going out to buy a textbook of the brand new 'Sumatra' computer language that has been creeping up as the new big thing in my field and that I've only just been made aware of in the last week! Yeah, probably still working as a PostDoc in computational biology.
2- As well as doing that, you decide to launch a club night. The Best Night In The World! What do you call it? Why?
Given my feelings on clubbing in the last week (ergo, my other post) probably not. But forget about the last week or so, and it'd be cool to have a club night for indie-pop and pop-punk (of the Ozma variety, not the Blink 182 variety). It'd be called Milliways, after the Restaurant At The End Of The Universe in the Hitch-hikers Guide to the Galaxy and would have really futuristic deco with lots of neon and glitter like the windows in Selfridges during their Vegas Supernova promotion last month.
3- What is this club night like? I mean, Panic was pretty corking. But how do you improve it?
It would be a bit more specific in terms of music as described above. It would mainly be 90s, playing some of the lesser known 90s indie bands. Helen Love, Kenickie, Symposium--the sort of thing that you'd get on the Damaged Goods compilations. More recent stuff such as The Features and Futureheads. Basically plenty of bubblegum guitar pop and pop-punk. There wouldn'tbe much of the sort of thing that all the other indie clubs are playing--there's loads of sameyness between different indie nights here in London
4- The night is having a grand opening, where a superband is launching it with a live show. Who's in this dream band? (Dead people are allowed to play, as we've got time-travel powers)
It'd have to be Ozma, since I never got to see them. Easyworld would be there too though (and would play the B-sides like Everyone Knows and Better Ways To Self Destruct, plus Feensong from Beachy Head, but I can't see them and Ozma amalgamating into one band too well!
5- Which lucky 5 celebrities from the world beyond music are on the guest list, and why? (Again, dead people can be included due to our magic time-travel abilities)
Of all the celebrities I'd like to meet (mostly because I think they'd be fascinating to talk to), I can't think of many (apart from the first one) who would enjoy being at an indie-pop club night. Oh well.
-> John Peel (the obvious one)
-> Douglas Adams
-> Michael Eavis
-> Jimmy Carr
-> Susan Blackmore
Q's from bunni
Anyway, if you fancy taking part in the meme, reply to this psot saying "interview me!", as I did with bunni's post, and you'll get 5 questions. If I don't know you (not unlikely), the questions might be rather generic. You have been warned ;) |
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| Music Predictions (2005) |
[Jan. 1st, 2005|10:05 pm] |
Happy New Year everyone!
In a probably rather obvious attempt to get some comments, I ask you all to put in your music prediction(s) for 2005 (what we is now in ;))
2004:
Album of The Year: 'Who Do You Love?' - King Adora
(2nd: 'The Flame' - Dover)
Single of The Year: 'How Did It Ever Come To This?' - Easyworld
(2nd: 'Mono' - Courtney Love)
Gig of The Year: Green Day at Leeds Festival
(2nd: The Dawn Parade at the Infinity in Mayfair)
Highlight (other): The Pettit Project
Lowlight (other): Easyworld splitting up |
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| In a meme mood... |
[Dec. 6th, 2004|11:10 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | Tipsy | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Beachy Head - Feensong | ] |
From martinv
1. What did you do in 2004 that you'd never done before?
- Oxford finals.
- Lived in London.
- Travelled alone in Europe & on a plane.
2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
- If I did make any New Years Resolutions last year they were vague ones and I've forgotten what they were.
- I'll probably make at least one this year. I haven't decided what yet.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
No.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
No-one that I personally knew. I'm still inclined to say 'John Peel', though.
On a more flippant note, the bands Easyworld and Ozma will be missed.
5. What countries did you visit?
Holland, Denmark.
6. What would you like to have in 2005 that you lacked in 2004?
A relationship that lasts longer than two days!
7. What dates from 2004 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
May 25-28: Finals days
June 18: Received results
September 2: Found out about upgrading to 4 year course.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Finals results.
9. What was your biggest failure?
Am still too undecided about which way to go relationship-wise.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Not really. Had a nasty cold in spring and that's about it
11. What was the best thing you bought?
King Adora's 2nd album--it's great!
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
My parents during finals week.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
I shouldn't really say--they might be reading this.
14. Where did most of your money go?
Accommodation, food, tube passes, drink (the usual, in fact)
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Going to Copenhagen, and then later, going to Amsterdam.
16. What song will always remind you of 2004?
Lots. 'Somewhere In My Heart' by Aztec Camera was my finals song. Also, 'Skrika' by Oslo, anything by the Pettit Project, 'How Did It Ever Come To This?' by Easyworld, 'Another Day' by Ninkasi.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder? Probably slightly happier.
b) thinner or fatter? No different (could I get any thinner?)
c) richer or poorer? Richer, due to studentship.
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Getting to know good new music--my idea of good British music is limited to the Futureheads and Do Me Bad Things at the minute.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Worrying myself sick about my Finals in May. Being pissed-off in general.
20. How will you be spending Christmas?
With my family in Newcastle. Trying to outdo myself in terms of present-buying as always. (I'm quietly confident this year ;))
21. Did you fall in love in 2004?
No of course not.
22. How many one-night stands?
None.
23. What was your favorite TV program?
TV's been shite this year. I still remember 'Shattered' from January though, so I nominate that. 'I'm A Celebrity...' is always good for a laugh if nowt else is on.
24. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
David Blunkett, for relentlessly pushing for ID cards & other Big Brother measures while actually being a complete sleazebag in his own private life.
25. What was the best book you read?
Am not a great fiction reader. Can't think of anything that really stood out right now.
26. What was your greatest musical discovery?
The Pettit Project, then Do Me Bad Things.
Although yes, I had been a fan of a song or two for many years beforehand, this definitely counts as the discovery of the year. And the Magnetic Fields.
27. What did you want and get?
A first in my Finals. A place on the MSc in Bioinformatics at Imperial.
28. What did you want and not get?
A worthwhile relationship.
29. What was your favorite film of this year?
Of the 3 I've seen, 'Fahrenheit 9/11' just shades it.
30. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
My birthday was in the middle of Oxford Hilary Term. I was 21.
31.What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
See 28.
32. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2004?
Not much. Comfortable, generally sports-related clothes. Some new glasses. Maybe some more 'trendy' trousers.
33. What kept you sane?
Music: Easyworld/Ozma/Pettit Project etc. Getting a first. Not getting fucked over too badly at any point in the year. Not drinking as much as in previous years.
34. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
None stand out especially.
35. What political issue stirred you the most?
The US Election! (I tried not to think about politics after Nov 3!)
36. Who did you miss?
IMSoc people: Martin (who I got this meme off), Het, Jonas & Pippa, Seb & Andrzej in particular. The bar staff at St Catz (Laima, Chris, Dan Robson etc.). My tutor Angela McLean. Trev of Spare Half Hour who was from Catz. Russell the DJ. Dan Dockery. Simon, Owen the anarchist from St Catz, Toby, John & other Ian who were in the JCR all the time, Simon Noble. (I realise this is getting Oscar-speech-like by now)
37. Who was the best new person you met?
Michael Stumpf
38. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2004:
I underestimated how much I knew for my finals and was convinced I didn't know enough.
39. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year
Maybe later I'll think of one. The one that pops to mind right now just isn't appropriate. |
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| Hi |
[Dec. 3rd, 2004|02:32 pm] |
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I haven't posted in here for a while and I've given my journal a bit of a new look, so tell me what you think (come and have a look if you're viewing this from your friends page!) |
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| Crazy article |
[Oct. 15th, 2004|11:13 am] |
I've only seen articles cocked up as badly as this in Gobfrey Shrdlu books before now, but I stumbled across this on the web today and thought I'd share:
Oxford bans roulette
Oxford bans foul side of campus ritual
Best games with free sofware downloads, and get up to 0 FREE gambling free online internet keno
casino bonus guide and free games at online blackjack bonus game seeker.
Fearing it's gotten out of hand, online casinos authorities on Friday proposed sanctions, including fines of to 0 (30 to 70 pounds) on students who throw food or blackjack or who spray champagne or shaving foam.
But we do ask that they consider the views of those living around the [central] Merton poker baccarat, who may not appreciate waking up to buckets of pig's offal on the poker or being pelted with blackjack or silly string on their way to work. The online casinos says that the proposed code was introduced after a run of rowdy parties last year.
Throwing glitter or confetti are still allowed. "Thames fruit machines slot machines spokeswoman Lucy Ferguson said there had not been a lot of complaints from the public, "but enough for us to think about how you strike balance between those living in the baccarat and those just wanting to have a laugh.
There were too many student finals celebrations getting out of hand," a online casinos spokesman said, speaking on condition of anonymity."
We have never demanded a complete ban on the celebrations."
"In a s
tatement on the Thames fruit machines slot machines Web site, Superintendent Keith Ringsell said slot machines "have absolutely no wish to dampen the genuine high spirits of the students. Even those found carrying such items "with the intention of using them" could be punished, the online casinos said."
from http://slotsonline.freewebpage.org/oxford-bans-roulette.html
Huh? |
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| Welcome to misteryguest etc. |
[Sep. 28th, 2004|12:33 am] |
Hello,
It's a while since I posted in here. This is largely due to the fact that I haven't been doing much that's very exciting since I went to the Leeds festival back on August Bank Holiday weekend. Mostly just surfing the web, shopping and listening to music (hence the music-related posts last month).
However, next week I'm moving to London. Yes, I commence a new postgraduate course in Bioinformatics at Imperial College on October 4th, so there's a good chance I'll be able to see many of you again either through meeting up with you in London or popping across to Oxford as I plan on doing occasionally.
For those of you reading who are familiar with Imperial/London, for the first year of my new studies I should (paperwork permitting) be staying at the Clayponds complex which is near Gunnersbury Park, north of Kew Bridge.
If anyone who has lived/is living in London or studied at Imperial has any last minute advice for me, please feel free to post it below and help improve my woeful recent post comment tallys :)! |
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| Interesting Crimea CD |
[Sep. 13th, 2004|04:16 pm] |
If anyone who's into the Crimea (the band which formed out of the ashes of The Crocketts) is still reading this, could you tell me what you think of this?
I found a CD in the cheap promo section of the record shop in Newcastle:
On the disc in black CD-writer pen is marked 'THE CRIMEA Album Possibles'. It contains 19 Crimea tracks, including those from the album and the B-sides from the White Russian Galaxy single. There are six other tracks, one B-side from an earlier single and five unknown/demo ones.
This is as close as I can get to a tracklisting:
1. White Russian Galaxy (Single, Album)
2. Baby Boom (Single, Album)
3. The Miserablist Tango (Album)
4. UNKNOWN TRACK (Sample Lyrics: "They made me a soldier in the army of regret")
5. Tragedy Rocks (B-side)
6. Bad Vibrations (Album)
7. Six Shoulders Six Stone (Album)
8. Opposite Ends (Album)
9. Lottery Winners On Acid (Single, Album)
10. The Great Unknown (Album, B-side)
11. Howling At The Moon Won't Make It Better (Album)
12. UNKNOWN TRACK ("Kindliness(?)")
13. Bombay Sapphire Coma (Album)
14. UNKNOWN TRACK ("All Conquering")
15. UNKNOWN TRACK (Sample Lyric: "Almost cracked a smile for the first time in my life")
16. Lasinoco (B-side)
17. Out Of Africa (Album)
18. UNKNOWN TRACK ("Allah Was Wrong")
19. Girl Just Died (B-side)
Hmmm |
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| Coldplay & Geneva |
[Sep. 12th, 2004|01:06 am] |
| [ | mood |
| |  listless | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Coldplay - Trouble (bet you never thought you'd see that) | ] |
Anybody remember Geneva, the mid 90s indie band with a male frontman with a high-pitched voice before it became the in thing?
Get this:
Geneva - Worry Beads (From 'Further' 1997):
"A gallery of memories
Which appear inside my head
Exhibit all the things that I wish I hadn't said"
Coldplay - Trouble (2000)
"And I lost my head
In thought of all the stupid things I'd said"
Why are Geneva probably the most underappreciated indie band of the 90s? |
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