Rev Stan's other stuff

Perks of the job

Had a function in an empty office building out of town yesterday. Such a huge empty space with floor to ceiling windows and lovely end of day light through a stormy sky bouncing off the bare metal flooring. Only wish I'd had my bigger camera with me.

And then at the end of the long and busy day I got to go back to this lovely serviced apartment where I was staying with a couple of colleague. We had a duplex apartment on the 12th floor with a balcony overlooking the city. Shame I didn't get to spend more time there.

Now that's what I call making the most of Saturday

It was a lovely day so I went walking with my camera:

Smithfield meat market

City weeds

Reflections

Then I met up with Poly for a back stage tour of the Almeida Theatre as it was Open House weekend (all the pics are over here on Theatre if you are interested

After that we got the bus back into town and had a lunch stop at the lovely Soho Thai where I used to eat  when I worked around the corner on Wardour Street:

Then we went to the Curzon for a sneaky glass of wine on the comfy leather sofa's while we waited to see I'm Still Here which is definitely a mockumentary, I've since discovered, although I'd pretty much made up my mind it was when I saw it. Listed my reasons and what I thought of it generally over on film

After that we headed out west to Shepherds Bush for a cuppa and then my first trip to the tiny Bush Theatre where Ralph Little of Royle Family fame and Mackenzie Crook of The Office and Pirates of the Caribbean fame were starring in an American play called The Aliens.

Shivver me timbers, it's International Talk Like A Pirate Day

And in honour of such an occasion it has to be Mr Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow in a blooper reel from back when Pirates of the Caribbean was actually good. Enjoy.

Small things that make me go grrr

1. When Starbucks give me peppermint tea instead of green tea and I don't realise until it is too late (it's happened three times in as many weeks)

2. Hotels that have broadband but not wifi. I don't want to sit in a very straight backed chair at a desk that is the wrong height especially when there is a very comfortable bed with assorted pillows and cushions to prop myself against.

3. Taxi drivers who decide to writing a receipt should take as long as writing Anna Karenina, which only ever happens when you are in a hurry.

4. When you politely ask a simple question of someone whose job it is to answer such questions and they are curt in their response

And to counterbalance the negatives here are four things that are making me smile at the moment:

1. The cheque for £25 I got from NSI because one of my premium bonds came up

2. The prospect of sleeping in my own bed tonight after a night away for work and a hectic week

3. Having a lovely day tomorrow with the fab @polyg starting off with a tour around the Almeida Theatre, then a film, then a play.

4. Finally planning and hopefully booking a holiday to Egypt.

The curious story of the neighbour

I've been meaning to write about this for some time as it regularly crops up in conversation with friends.

My neighbour has disappeared. Not seen since last November time, her flat has been abandoned in a state which suggests someone just upping and leaving - food half prepared on the counter in the kitchen for example.

OK so there has been a little bit of a development since November. We know she's not dead. In fact she is alive and well and living not far away in some sort of weird, oblivious, parallel life.

It was rare moment of detective acumen on my part that discovered her existence via the power of Twitter and naturally my fellow neighbours and I were relieved to know that nothing dreadful had happened.

But the discovery of her existence doesn't make the story any less perplexing. The red bills have been piling up although recently she was persuaded, via Twitter, to return to check on her flat. She collected the bills and closed the living room curtains before disappearing once more.

And we understand that repossession is a threat which begs the question, why let it get to that stage and risk having your credit rating decimated and all the future difficulties with finances that that engenders? She's rented her flat out before so why not do that again if it's a matter of finance?

What sort of state of mind would you have to be in to be living in apparent denial of the flat you've owned for 9/10 years? This is someone who is intelligent  and has or at least had a good career.

It is all most bizarre.

Why does Tom Burke remind me of RPatz?

Went to see Noel Coward's Design for Living last night (review over on theatre) and there was an actor in it that I've not been particularly aware of before: Tom Burke.

Aside from putting in a good performance, I just couldn't take my eyes off him as he has a passing resemblance to Robert Pattinson with similar flat features.

OK so I am not going to say he's the spit because he isn't. He doesn't have the take-your-breath away beauty of RPatz but all evening he just reminded me of him. 

Can anyone else see it or is it a case of 'nope Stan you're on your own on that one'?

 

Au revoir Vox, Bonjour Typepad

Can't say I'm surprised by the news that Vox is closing. The writing has been on the wall for some time - inability to address spamming issues adequately, slow demise of QoTD etc.

I'll be sad to see it go though because this is my first ever blog, I've learnt a lot in using it and it holds a lot of memories for me. And I've also met, in the cyberspace sense, some really great and interesting people whom I hope will, as I am going to do, transfer to Typepad.

I feel a bit guilty that I've neglected this blog a little in recent months - the birth of the twins: Theatre and Film over on Typepad (boy am I glad I chose Typepad* as platform for those) has taken up rather a lot of my time. But I'm hoping that once Rev Stan Vox is settled in over there they'll all play nicely together and become one big happy family.

Really hope that those of you in my neighbourhood who do occassionally drop by and look at my pics and read my ramblings will be making the move also and will still stop by.

* Two of the reasons I chose Typepad for my new blogs is that it is easier for casual readers to comment but also easier to control spam.