The health drive

A recent phenomenon has swept the nation's food, and it is driving me
round the bend. Basically, patently and blatantly unhealthy food is
being re-designed and re-made into healthy food. Whether this be by
removal of sugar, salt, fat, additives or all of these.

Now I fully appreciate the obesity problem that we have, and that
people should be encouraged to eat more healthily, but surely that
should be done by having a greater selection of cheap healthy food, or
healthy alternatives. I object to 'old classics' being rendered
tasteless. If I choose to have a packet of salt and vinegar hula
hoops, I expect wonderfully salty, tasty, slightly oily and moreish
little rings of reformed potato. What we have now since the 'new
improved' recipe has been introduced are simply rings of reformed
potato. Dry, boring, and unsatisfying. The same is true of McDonalds
food as of late. My point is this - if I choose to have an unhealthy
snack, then I should be allowed to have one. If I want something
healthy, then I would make another selection. I do not want lifeless
McDonalds chips and dry Big Macs - I want them positively oozing with
grease and taste.

As a nation, we are being treated as total retards who are unable to
work out for ourselves that reformed mechanically retrieved beef,
mixed with additives and fried, before being placed between 3 sugary
slices of bread and plastic cheese IS unhealthy. We all know it is
deeply unhealthy, but sometimes, we crave unhealthy. Frankly, if you
ate a McDonalds meal every day you deserve to keel over and die at the
age of 30. But for the rest of us, who want an occasional indulgence,
why can't we be allowed to make our own choices about the snack foods
we want to eat? Life is hard enough without taking our little
pleasures away!!

New Bicycle!

Just thought I'd give a little update to the nicked bicycle story,
that makes me happy. Last week, I popped to King's Street Cycles to
buy a cheap city bike to keep in London to reduce my commute a
little. And lo and behold, what did he have for sale for the princely
sum of £55 but a Raleigh Esquire identical to my stolen one! I bought
t then and there, and despite it not being in as good a condition as
my old one (the chain guard is missing, for example), it rides
beautifully, and I feel like my old friend has returned. So hooray!

I'm a simple character really!!

Oh, and just to complete the story, the cheap red 'Challenge' bike
that I was using to tide me over has been consigned to the cycle
racks in King's Cross for daily commuting (ab)use.

Goodbye Bicycle

Today, some callous bastard has stolen my beautiful pride-and-joy bicycle, that I have owned and treasured for three years.

Just in case you happen to spot it, it is a brown Raleigh Esquire, gentleman's three-speed city bicycle, with a large wicker basket and dynamo lights. Particularly distinguishing features are that the front right hand corner of the basket suffered an injury and so was a bit broken, and the chain guard a bit dented and put back on with a shiny silver nut. Also, the reflector was cracked in half on the right hand pedal.

May you rest in peace.

Oh, and to top it all, there is nothing similar in any of the bike shops around Cambridge (and it's hard work going round them WITHOUT A BICYCLE).

I've seen 46 out of 239 movies - I have a life, wooooo!!!

Apparently, if you've seen over 85 movies, you have no life. Mark the
ones you've seen. There are 239 movies on this list. Copy this list,
go to your own MySpace account, and paste this as a bulletin. Then
put an X next to the movies you've seen, add them up, change the
header adding your number, and click "Post" at the bottom.

Have fun!

(x) Grease
(x) Pirates of the Caribbean
(x) Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man's Chest (though I slept
through most of it)
( ) Boondock Saints
(x) Fight Club
(x) Starsky and Hutch
( ) Neverending Story
(x) Blazing Saddles
( ) Airplane

Total So Far: 6

( ) The Princess Bride
( ) Anchorman: The Legend Of Ron Burgundy
( ) Napoleon Dynamite
( ) Labyrinth
( ) Saw
( ) Saw II
( ) Saw III
( ) White Noise
( ) White Oleander
(x) 50 First Dates (couldn't finish it though - far too painful!)
( ) The Princess Diaries
( ) The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement

Total all together: 7

( ) Scream
( ) Scream 2
( ) Scream 3
(x) Scary Movie
( ) Scary Movie 2
( ) Scary Movie 3
( ) Scary Movie 4
(x) American Pie
(x) American Pie 2
(x) American Wedding
( ) American Pie Band Camp
( ) American Pie Naked Mile

Total all together: 11

(x) Harry Potter 1
(x) Harry Potter 2
(x) Harry Potter 3
(x) Harry Potter 4
( ) Resident Evil 1
( ) Resident Evil 2
( ) The Wedding Singer
( ) Little Black Book
( ) The Village
( ) Lilo & Stitch

Total all together: 15

( ) Finding Nemo
( ) Finding Neverland
( ) Signs
( ) The Grinch
( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre
( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning
( ) White Chicks
( ) Butterfly Effect
( ) 13 Going on 30
(x) I, Robot
(x) Robots

Total all together: 17

(x) Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
( ) Universal Soldier
(x) Lemony Snicket: A Series Of Unfortunate Events
(x) Along Came Polly
( ) Deep Impact
( ) KingPin
( ) Never Been Kissed
(x) Meet The Parents
(x) Meet the Fockers
( ) Eight Crazy Nights
( ) Joe Dirt
(x) King Kong

Total all together: 23

( ) A Cinderella Story
( ) The Terminal
( ) The Lizzie McGuire Movie
( ) Passport to Paris
(x) Dumb & Dumber
( ) Dumber & Dumberer
( ) Final Destination
( ) Final Destination 2
( ) Final Destination 3
( ) Halloween
( ) The Ring
( ) The Ring 2
( ) Surviving Christmas
(x) Flubber

Total all together: 25

( ) Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle
( ) Practical Magic
( ) Chicago
( ) Ghost Ship
( ) From Hell
( ) Hellboy
( ) Secret Window
( ) I Am Sam
( ) The Whole Nine Yards
( ) The Whole Ten Yards

Total all together : 25

(x) The Day After Tomorrow
( ) Child's Play
( ) Seed of Chucky
( ) Bride of Chucky
( ) Ten Things I Hate About You
( ) Just Married
( ) Gothika
( ) Nightmare on Elm Street
( ) Sixteen Candles
( ) Remember the Titans
( ) Coach Carter
(x) The Longest Yard
( ) Gridiron Gang
( ) The Grudge
( ) The Grudge 2
(x) The Mask
( ) Son Of The Mask

Total all together: 28

(x) Bad Boys
( ) Bad Boys 2
( ) Joy Ride
( ) Lucky Number Seven
(x) Ocean's Eleven
( ) Ocean's Twelve
( ) Bourne Identity
( ) Bourne Supremecy
( ) Lone Star
( ) Bedazzled
( ) Predator I
( ) Predator II
( ) The Fog
(x) Ice Age
(x) Ice Age 2: The Meltdown
( ) Curious George

Total all together: 32

(x) Independence Day
( ) Cujo
( ) A Bronx Tale
( ) Darkness Falls
( ) Christine
(x) ET
( ) Children of the Corn
( ) My Bosses Daughter
( ) Maid in Manhattan
( ) War of the Worlds
( ) Rush Hour
( ) Rush Hour 2

Total all together: 34

( ) Swimfan
( ) Miracle on 34th street
( ) Old School
( ) The Notebook
( ) K-Pax
( ) Krippendorf's Tribe
( ) A Walk to Remember
( ) Ice Castles
( ) Boogeyman
(x)The 40-year-old-virgin

Total all together: 35

( ) Lord of the Rings Fellowship of the Ring
( ) Lord of the Rings The Two Towers
( ) Lord of the Rings Return Of the King
( ) Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
( ) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
( ) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

Total all together : 35

( ) BASEketball
( ) Hostel
( ) Waiting for Guffman
( ) House of 1000 Corpses
( ) Devils Rejects
( ) Elf
( ) Highlander
( ) Mothman Prophecies
( ) American History X
( ) Three

Total all together: 35

(x) The Jackal (assuming that this is the original 1973 'The Day of
the Jackal')
( ) Kung Fu Hustle
( ) Full Metal Jacket
( ) Shaolin Soccer
( ) Night Watch
(x) Monsters Inc.
(x) Titanic
(x) Monty Python and the Holy Grail
(x) Shaun Of the Dead
( ) Willard

Total all together: 40

( ) High Tension
( ) Club Dread
( ) Hulk
( ) Dawn Of the Dead
( ) Hook
(x) Chronicle Of Narnia The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe
( ) 28 days Later
( ) Orgazmo
( ) Phantasm
(x) Waterworld (though may never have seen it all)

total all together: 42

( ) Kill Bill vol 1
( ) Kill Bill vol 2
( ) Mortal Kombat
( ) Wolf Creek
( ) Kingdom of Heaven
( ) The Hills Have Eyes
( ) I Spit on Your Grave aka the Day of the Woman
( ) The Last House on the Left
( ) Re-Animator
( ) Army of Darkness

Total all together : 42

( ) Star Wars Ep. I The Phantom Menace
( ) Star Wars Ep. II Attack of the Clones
( ) Star Wars Ep. III Revenge of the Sith
(x) Star Wars A New Hope
( ) Star Wars The Empire Strikes Back
( ) Star Wars Return of the Jedi
( ) Ewoks the caravan of courage
( ) Ewoks The Battle For Endor

Total all together: 43

( ) The Matrix
( ) The Matrix Reloaded
(x) The Matrix Revolutions (slept through the whole thing)
( ) Animatrix
( ) Evil Dead
( ) Evil Dead 2
(x) Team America: World Police
( ) Silence of the Lambs
( ) Hannibal
( ) Red Dragon
(x) Anger Management (a terrible film!)

Total: 46

I am posh, apparently.

UNPOSH SECTION

▪ [] Lived in a terraced house
▪ [] Lived in a council house
▪ [] Don't have a back garden
▪ [] Shared a room with brother/sister
▪ [x] Went to a state primary school
▪ [x] Went to a state secondary school
▪ [] Left school at 16
▪ [x] Own Reebok clothing
▪ [x] Own tracksuit bottoms
▪ [] Own Burberry clothing
▪ [] Own a football shirt
▪ [x] Own Fred Perry clothing
▪ [] Own Puma clothing
▪ [] Have done graffiti
▪ [x] Used overdraft on bank account
▪ [] Shop in Asda/Lidl/Aldi/Morrisons
▪ [x] Shopped in TK Maxx
▪ [x] Shopped in Matalan
▪ [] Smoker
▪ [] Use 'prick/wanker' regularly
▪ [] Have a tattoo
▪ [] Piercing [not ears]
▪ [] Drink Lager/Cider
▪ [] Parent(s) is/are unemployed
▪ [] Parent who earns under £15,000 a year
▪ [] Both parents earn under £15,000 a year
▪ [] Parent(s) in Trade Unions
▪ [] House has fewer than 3 bedrooms
▪ [] Live in an urban area
▪ [] Don't own a car
▪ [] Own a car older than K reg
▪ [] Support a football club
▪ [] Member of a Snooker club
▪ [x] Own a bike
▪ [x] Been on a Caravan holiday
▪ [] Had summer holiday in Britain more than abroad
▪ [] Been to Lanzarote
▪ [] Been to Costa Del Sol
▪ [x] Been to Blackpool
▪ [x] Have/had a minimum wage job
▪ [] Microwave meals every night
▪ [x] Eat GM food
▪ [] Use the term 'Prep/Jock/Rah' as derisory
▪ [] Hate posh people more than chavs
▪ [x] Parent votes Labour/Lib Dem
▪ [x] Use the NHS
▪ [] Both parents vote labour/Lib Dem
▪ [] Believe tax system favours the rich
▪ [] Hate Margaret Thatcher
▪ [] Love Karl Marx

TOTAL: 15
__________________________
__________________________

POSH SECTION

▪ [] Went to a private primary school
▪ [] Private secondary school
▪ [] Parent is a millionaire
▪ [x] Parent owns a business
▪ [x] Parent is a lawyer
▪ [] Parent is a doctor
▪ [] Parent who earns over £50,000 a year
▪ [] Both parents earn over £50,000 a year
▪ [x] Parents live in a detached house
▪ [x] En-suite bathroom
▪ [] Have a games room
▪ [] Own Jack Wills clothing
▪ [] Designer clothing
▪ [x] Own an item of clothing worth over £100
▪ [x] Savings account with over £5,000
▪ [x] Have your own car
▪ [] Own house/flat
▪ [x] Mobile phone
▪ [x] Ipod
▪ [x] Own tuxedo/prom dress
▪ [] Play an instrument
▪ [] Expensive perfume/aftershave
▪ [x] Shop in Sainsburys/Waitrose
▪ [] Drink Ale/Gin and Tonic
▪ [] Call your parents 'Mummy/Daddy'
▪ [x] Use 'crap/damn' regularly
▪ [] Have a double-barrelled surname
▪ [] Live in the countryside
▪ [x] Parents own a 4x4
▪ [x] Parents own a Mercedes/Jaguar/BMW/Porsche/Audi etc
▪ [x] Parents house has more than 3 bedrooms
▪ [x]Parents have a guest room
▪ [] Member of a gym
▪ [] Have private healthcare
▪ [] Member of a golf club
▪ [] Support a Rugby club
▪ [] Do Yoga/Pilates
▪ [x] Been to America
▪ [] Been to Australia
▪ [] Been to Africa
▪ [x] Had summer holidays abroad more than in Britain
▪ [] Eat some organic food
▪ [x] Home cooked meals almost every night
▪ [x] Use the term 'Chav/Pikey/Pleb' as derisory
▪ [x] Hate chavs more than posh people
▪ [x] Parent votes Conservative
▪ [] Both parents vote Conservative
▪ [x] Believe there are too many immigrants in UK
▪ [] Like Margaret Thatcher.
▪ [] Hate Karl Marx

Total: 23

Bicycle

I want a Raleigh Superbe. Also here.

Super Freak

Just watched Little Miss Sunshine. Excellent - Go watch!

Sorry, and 1984

Sorry I haven't written anything for a little while (not that anybody actually reads anything I have to say anyway). I have been rather stressfully house-hunting, which takes up a surprising amount of time.

Anyway, I just thought I would point to some comments I made on Brian's blog, rather than reiterate them here (I am volvo340). Enjoy!