music

Thursday, May 28, 2009

A Quick One

Now in the throws of term and so far so good. As I finish at 11.30 everyday things are rather relaxed. I do 3 private classes during the week which keeps me quite busy thinking up new things to teach.

I am really enjoying the Ipod and am DL more and more music. I have just got around to Seasick Steve which many folks have been urging me to get. I am also after the version of "Hounds of Love" by The Church which Jimmy V played me on my trip to UK. Quite hard to find for a pirate.

Oi and I are enjoying quite a chilled time as she reaches 7 months now. We have both been playing Plants Vs Zombieds which I have now finished. I am also enjoying Necrovision, Hell's Highway and Age of Empires Asian Dynasty.

In the evening I often lie on the rear balcony, indulge in a little happiness and listen to a podcast from the BBC website. They make great documentaries and it is a great way to relax.

It is pretty hot here right now so showering often is essential to keep cool.

Still no word from Peter in Sri Lanka. I assume he is busy working and getting things together.

Old Man Don is in good spirits. Tom is a bit lost after his US trip and may be moving to fresh pastures before too long. Kinda sad but everyone must follow their call.

Take care all.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

First Few Days

Wednesday now and I get off work at a ludicrus 10.30. I had Dim Sum with Phit and then came home.

The kindergarten kids are funny and this week we have a fun time for them in the playroom - songs and games. Next week I shall introduce the hard line of work and give them a little shock. Generally I let let into the playroom once a month.

Between classes we are still looking for a new house. We have looked at three so far and am going to look at another today. It's a tricky thing to do, and I want to make sure we get a good deal. My boss and Thai collegues have all been super in helping us.

Oi, not working, has made the present house very nice and evrything is hunky dorey.

I have been downloading podcasts like crazy. I got some great ones for meditation and falling asleep. The BBC Radio 4 ones are great. Generally, I DL a few, then spend the next couple of days lying on the rear balcony listening to them.

Oi is six months pregnant now and is getting bigger, though not too big yet. I was a bit scared that she would be massive and that there might be problems, but so far so good.

Later...

Monday, May 18, 2009

All New Picassa Online Photo Album

Here it is, the long awaited, all new, all dancing, absolutely fabulous, of stage and screen, for one night only, singing and dancing, all the way from Chicago, for the very last time photo album extravaganza of me.

http://picasaweb.google.com/jimwilson605

Please bookmark this and view at least once every two clucks past chicken.

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Letter to Peter


.....Broadsword calling Poppy.....Poppy?.....Can you hear me?

Can't hear you with all the bullets whizzing about overhead. Do hope you're all right. Hope I haven't sent you into a bloody warzone!

Nevermind. Chocks away, eh Old Sport?

I sincerely hope your teachings are going well and that all is fine with you and loved ones in the tropics. Is it devilishly hot out there?

Everything's fine here in deepest Siam, old chum. Back to the old school house tomorrow morning. I have to get up bright and early and whip the little buggers into shape. Spare the rod and spoil the child, I say! Keep them down where they can't hurt you.

Have made two rather expensive and select purchases of late which may be of interest to you. One is a Nano Ipod and super speaker system that can fair blow the bollocks of a Siamese Tiger Fish I shouldn'y wonder. I have since transferred a great and diverse selection of tunes, known to you and I, to the said speaker which I play at very loud volume when needs fit. Unfortunatley I, as indeed are you, am getting on therefore loud does not necessarily mean loud and the concrete walls here are extremely dense making it almost impossible for sound to transfer between dwellings. Still, I digress.

The second is a ginormous television set of a massive 40". Fantastic for movies, Peter. Fantastic for movies. I watched Nicholas and Alexandra today, Peter. It was fantastic. The sweeping Russian plains and the beautiful ballrooms of St. Petersberg, Peter. It was breathtaking. I do hope you can pop over one day and catch one with me.

Control is wondering why you have not yet established an operational HQ as of yet. Control is somewhat perterbed at this news and lack of progress. I hope Glowworm is not reclining in the hammock a little too much while he should be establishing internet contact with Mother, Control and Tony, for that matter.

Now we're all just sitting around waiting for the baby to arrive. It's a little off-putting. It's so calm and serene right now, I hopes it's not going to be too much of a shock. Then again, you're the man to ask. I will still get time to do all those wonderful things I do to fill up my day, won't I? Peter, I emplore you, Tell me it is so!

Oh! You beast. You're worse than I am. How dare you imply such a thing!

Oh well, times a ticking and I had best be getting along.

Take care, old fruit and love to the family

JJ.

Saturday, May 16, 2009

School Beckons

I was told I am going back to school on Monday. Actually, this is quite good as the boredom cloud has been lurking. At least now I can get stoned knowing that I will be working soon and don't have to look at endless days lying around drinking coffee.

We checked out another new house yesterday. The bitch landlady wanted 4 months rent in advance, would not lower the 7,500B asking price and also refused to carry out any repairs prior to moving in. I think we will let this rich, bitter, maggot-infested whore rest on her golden shit-throne and suck off at peasants with money begging for a place to stay. Poor old dotty Pee Doi went to see her and the bitch gave her thr slow rising stare from the feet up. Pee Doi said she was glad she had dressed up on that day.

We are enjoying tremenously the Ipod+speaker and giant TV. My favourite new pastime is listening to Alan Watts on the ipod headphones while lying in my little garden on the rear balcony. It is richly screened with a green blanket of hanging plants and very private. One can smoke pipes there with no fear of spying eyes or nosy neighbours. Alan Watts is compelling and multiple listens reveal greater understanding.

Oi is very content and reading these English books I buy her. Among the new ones is The Prisoner of Zenda. I never read it, but I remember my brother doing so.

Tom is back in town from the Grateful Dead megathon and he clocked up 10 concerts all over the States. He is still pretty jet-lagged and also jobless. So is not quite in party-mode yet. Hopefully he can find a job, otherwise he might be looking at BKK which would be really sad.

Don is in good spirits and I saw him last night. He has started back already at his school.

The great thing about the ipod is the tons of new music you can chuck on it and slowly become familar with as you play it on "shuffle". I heard for the first time some Frank Zappa Mothers of Invention. I was glad I was wasted before I heard it.

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

New TV

Continuing the recent splurge of cash and utilizing the newly found ability to use by debit card over here, a 40" Samsung TV is the latest purchase. Yet to be delivered, Oi did not put up much resistance, though we are now resisting watching anything now on the older, smaller TV. I have 2 Star Trek movies lined up (First Contact & Insurrection). It will be great to view these on a bohemeth screen.

That will be about it for grande purchases.

The only remaining thing we need to do is to move house. Feelers are out feeling, but due to a complete lack of estate agents, though I am sure Mr. Fry would be delighted, it tends to make finding a new house rather difficult. Finding such an abode must be sought by word-of-mouth or riding all over the town on a motorbike trying to find the little piece of card saying "house for rent" in Thai language.

Still, I phoned up my boss and have recruited her to help find the home.

Still getting used to the Ipod, I have been downloading audio books for listening pleasure, namely Peter F. Hamilton's The Dreaming Void (Peter Collett take note) curtesy of The Pirate Bay and a bunch of Alan Watts lectures. Incidentally, those who have not yet heared any Alan Watts are urged to start listening to this great lecturer.

Oi is enjoying me being around once more and I bought her some slightly harder English books to read, namely "Black Beauty" and "White Fang". I am convinced that reading books is a great exercise for improving English for someone of Oi's ability.

I have been going to bed after midnight lately, to combat waking up before 3 in the morning. This action has led to me rising at about 9 and before I know it, it is nearly nighttime again. I think I preferred getting up at 4 or 5 and having a few hours "quiet time" in the early morn.

I bought some hanging plants for the rear balcony to make use of the height and the area makes quite a dinky little sancturary to read a book or contemplate nature.

Rambling now...

Saturday, May 9, 2009

Home Life

Back at home things have been very cosy.

We've been playing Scrabble, watching Reggie Perrin and listening to a ton of music on the incredible Harman Kardon ipod dock. It the best thing I have bought in years and way beyond my expectations. Thanks to all who helped me come to my cruxifying decision to make the purchase. Lucky Hat Yai had such a great system on sale.

So I have been loading up the 16Gb ipod with tunes (and deleting when I was put the same tune in 3 times).

It really solves my keeping track on music problems. I just chuck on all the new albums, play it on "shuffle" and when something comes on I like I can check who it is.

It seems the financial backwave is finally hitting Thailand. I am reading a cost increase in many products here, like beer. In my opinion, Thais should learn how to make beer before increasing the price. It just tastes like chemicals to me and gives you a headache. I haven'y had a single beer since returning to Hat Yai and, as Henry stated at Bobbo's wedding, "Lose weight by not drinking beer." It seems the singular best answer to not being a fatty - just stop drinking beer, espescially shit chemically induced beer.

The Thai satelitte TV service UBC is another total rip off. Expensive, problematic and crap. I am glad folks are moving away from TV and onto PC's. People are using their time how they want to.

I see Rupert Murdoch is planning on bringing the free information age to an end. I think he will find people will not pay for his fear-inducing news. But it supports Don's reason to get everything now while you can. The level of freedom on the internet may well come to an end one day.

On my brief stop in BKK I went with Joe to a games shop and bought Necrovision and Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway.
Of limited interest to most, Necrovision is like a trip back to Return to Castle Wolfenstein. WW1 shooter in the trenches before encountering ghosts and zombies etc. The stabbing bernet (?) attchment is excellent and a fun game once yo0u pass the "what the fuck is going on" stage. Hell's Highway is a great single person shooter/manage assault team game based on a Bridge Too Far in Operation Market Garden. Very nicely put together and the shoot-outs are great fun.

I have my timetable for the new school term. 15 hours a week. 8.30 to 11.30 as thought. Very nice of my boss, but I do do a good job in the school and the kids learn ok. On top of this I will teach private classes with Gee.

Oi is very happy and enjoying the easy life right now. We are both very content pottering around the house, though we are keen to move somewhere with a garden as not being able to go outside is annoying. Just to get some light to the brain. Strange that in a country twice the size of UK and the same population, so many people have no garden or park nearby. Most Thais live in rabbit hutches stacked on top of one another. Then again, that might be decided by the fact that most are paid nothing and the rich shit that owns the apartment block feeds off their poverty.

Yes, Oi is lucky to escape the life of servitude most are forced to adopt here and it's very cool that we live together so easily.

As mentioned in UK, I would urge some to start their own blog for idle reading and keeping up with chum's adventures in the mind or otherwise.

JJ

Thursday, May 7, 2009

Ipod amd Harman Kardon Speaker

My post holiday assault on my life began with the aquisition of a 16Gb Ipod Nano.

Last night Don lent he his spare speaker. Light weight devise.

Today I went back to the Apple shop and bought a Harman Kardon Go + Play Speaker.



It has the most AMAZING sound. Very good bass, high volume, no distortion.

Check out some reviews. Everyone says its amazing.

Go buy one.

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Back to Mine

After 4 days of tiring travel I finally jumped off the tuk-tuk and gave Oi a big hug.

Train and coach to Hrathrow, flight to Adu Dabei, change planes, flight to BKK, taxi to town (try to get bus home, failed), hotel, book train ticket, meet Joe at MBK, 18 hour train journey to Hat Yai. Left on Saturday afternoon - got home Tuesday morning.

Phone starts ringing immediately and I am summoned to a work meeting the next day!

Great to be back with Oi and I gave into the big news - it's a girl!

I brought back a ton of presents, games and books and photos to accompany my trip.

It was mammoth and awesome and being away from Oi for so long was quite tough. We vowed not to separate for so long again. But it was great and an odessey I had to undertake. I'm just so glad I got home safely, and above all else, had an absolutely terrific time with all my family and friends. There wasn't a dull moment and LOTS of magic moments. I thank you all for making it so special.

I have a ton of new ideas and list of things to buy floating around in my head.

Unfortunatley the new house has fallen though so we ain't moving quite yet. That's ok. I can wait.

My new term at school is only 15 teaching hours per week which is awesome. On top of this I will teach private to keep the readies flowing in. It's all looking pretty good so far.

Positive Affirmation has made a big difference to how I feel and I would recommend it to anyone. Check it out.

That's all. Thanks again.

Saturday, May 2, 2009

Last Night in England






A great night in Portsmouth where I finally got to see my old guitar teacher, Kev.

Also there was Marc, Marsha, Andy, Jimmy V, Jackie, Steve and Paul.

More laughs backs at Marc's house and slept over at Marsha's house. Jimmy V kindly gave me a lift back in the morning. Now packing and preparing for the long journey home.

Thanks all,

JJ

Friday, May 1, 2009

End Game

I leave for Thailand tomorrow after a great holiday, as Don's affirmation had instructed. There were some trying times but I was fairly successful at countering an influx of negative thought but remembering to recite the lines allocated to me. As a result peace and serenity and general overall niceness has dominated this trip.

Everyone has been extraordinarily kind and I have enjoyed many chats and walks with my friends.

I have drunk many pints of ales and, in particular on this trip, I was reminded to drink cider. So, a quick list of beverages quaffed;

Ringwood Forty Niner
Tanglefoot
Spitfire
Bulmers Cider
HSB
London Pride
Old Speckled Hen
Old Peculiar
Black Sheep Ale

In Spain;

Amstel
Mahou
San Miguel

There are some more, but the little gray cells are failing me.

I have bought some wonderful gifts and games for folks back home (Thailand home) and, as Don suggested, childrens's books from charity shops.

It has been most pleasant walking around Petersfield and a fantastic walk to Steep Marsh and the Shoulder of Mutton. I sat on Southsea Common with Marsha in brilliant sunshine and wandered down the famous Albert Road. I walked the Wiltshire white roads with the famous Beck Brothers and ate generous lunches at The Harrow with both Steve Cannings and Charles Collett. I drank pints up at the Pub with No Name with Kate Collyer and watched a great band standing beside Jimmy V. I saw his children on Harry's birthday and met Marc's wife to be, Jackie. Sorry I will miss that wedding. Of course, the reason for my trip was my brothers wedding and I have never seen him so happy. Mum outshone everyone with infinite bound and energy and Nicholas's burps, whistles and cheeps gave a hilarious soundtrack to the whole duration, reminding me that there is never anything to worry about. I spoke to my own angel, Oi and kept track of the baby news, I found new music and philosophy from the ever beaming and friendly Dr. Andy Jenkins. Alas, I missed Mary, but we did speak. I also had some laughs with sister, Tish and brother in law, Andre. I even got smacked on the head by an angry seagull and got blasted by water jets in a luxury spa. Thankfully, I sorted by bank card and got a flashy new driving license. I cuddled venerable Shamus and indulged in some cat-sniffing. I danced and behaved wildly at my brothers reception and sank beers with Richie and Raffa. I saw a ton of great movies whilst resting in mum's cabin and got hold of some great books handed to me. I ate a Melton Mobray pork pie and a new peanut KitKat with the great majestic demi-god himself, Joel Uden. Some things I missed but I won't dwell on those, and I apologise if I left out any treasured moment someone can recall. Thanks so much for making my trip the best ever.

So as the hours close, there is still time for a few more memories to create. With acoustic guitar I will board the plane tomorrow and traverse the globe to steamy Bangkok, and catch the overnight sleeper train down the elephant's trunk to old Hat Yai, where my love lies waiting, silently for me.