Sturm, Hendrix, Tango and New Year’s Eve . . .

Having spend the last day or so recovering, I am now in a fit state to catch up with a few posts . . . .

30th Dec I was invited to sit in with a Hendrix Tribute Band– great fun! This was a band that went up to 11! – for those of you don’t get the reference and surely there can only be a handful– then check out ‘This is Spinal Tap’ a wonderful  film.

The following night, New Year’s Eve was wonderful – I was a little concerned since it was minus 2 at the soundcheck and Giacomo- the bass player – observed with some dis-belief that his hands did not appear to be moving . . . .

The tango trio were brilliant – but played quite a short set as I think hypothermia was setting in for the dancers and Mario – the sax player was playing an instrument, that was approaching absolute zero to the touch. However things seemed to warm up– or at least, get less cold. We played until about 2.30 am  – – it’s amazing what a lot of adrenalin and a little alcohol will achieve– or was it the other way round….. anyway a great way to spend the New Year’s Eve- on stage playing my socks off with some great friends who are also great musicians, with a piazza full of people dancing.

you can see a video clip here –

Happy New Year to my reader(s?)

Well I hope you all had a great Xmas and New Year  and those of you(us) who still indulge in alcohol, do feel good or at least satisfied that you have a hangover concomitant to  the colossal amount of money you spent last night in order to consume industrial quantities of life threatening liquids. Good fun though, wasn’t it? In fact, if you are reading this on Jan 1, I will be probably be

(a) still on stage at an open air gig in the next town frozen/drunk/exhausted and deliriously happy

(b) at home in in a semi coma  . . .      and still  drunk/exhausted and deliriously happy – note that I’m no longer cold. . . now, that’s progress

(c) buzzing around the house with so much adrenalin in my system that I can’t sit down let alone sleep!

Anyway it’s New Year so as ever a few changes – hopefully for the better !

This site will continue to grow hopefully and this year, I intend to include other posts apart from those taken directly from my journal!

Also I’ve started a new site – some of you may have noticed a Page dedicated to this project- My Imaginary Lives my illlustrated (fictional) diary- each entry Anyway, each ‘incident’ starts from fact and then rapidly dissolves into a heady mix of fiction and absurd fantasy. The reader, without the need for hallucinogenic stimulants nor industrial quantities of alcohol, travels on a somewhat bizarre fictional journey which wanders into worlds as diverse as blacksmithing, jazz, antique fountain pens and tattooing, with a cast which includes the Archbishop of Canterbury, Joanna Lumley, Grace Jones, Anaïs Nin and Arthur Schopenhauer, and, of course, my alter ego RJ.

The first ‘chapter’ is published in full, just so you get the picture as to how it works. Future ‘episodes’ will be published a step at a time – – avoiding premature exclamation by allowing you a week to absorb the enormity of it all!

So please come and join me and RJ on this flight of fantasy!!!

Cheers!

O sleep, O gentle sleep, nature’s soft nurse….. I wish

Bags, three-dimensional mathematics and the Mobius Loop

Being unfamiliar with the term Mobius loop, Lesley was intrigued by my demonstration of the idea with a piece of paper and some sticky tape. When I quoted the description as it being ‘ a chiral object  and a developable surface as it has zero Gaussian curvature.’ She agreed wholeheartedly . . . though I had no idea what it meant . . it’s amazing what level of insight two beers and a glass of prosecco can achieve . .  . .