My Cubs are Ace!
So the ranting about the tabloids is over for the moment, what I want to say is what a great bunch of kids my cubs are. There is a famous bit of film showing Baden Powel saying something like people say that British boys have lost their sense of adventure but he didn't believe them. Well they are saying it again now and I don't believe them either, but I just happen to include the girls as well!
For 4 days and 3 nights 10 of my monsters (it was a small affair) worked hard, played hard and had a brilliant time. There were plenty of bumps, scrapes, grazes, insect bites etc simply because they were busy jumping over and bridging ditches, building dens, running at full speed through the woods and generally making the most of being outdoors. They went climbing and crate stacking and shooting and abseiling and did a 5 mile hike in 27C heat. Not one of them wanted to go home.
I was particularly chuffed with one of my sixers, this girl had a daft grin on her face from the moment she got there until, well, probably still has it! She just kept going and going and going.
So when people tell you how rubbish kids are don't believe them, kids still want to be out there having an adventure, they just have to be given the opportunity to get out there and do it!
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Past Mortem
It's an old favourite folks, it's book review time!
This time it's Past Mortem by Ben Elton.
Now you may remember my comments a couple of days ago to the effect that Ben Elton isn't really funny any more. Now perhaps I was being overly critical because while I still think that he is well past his sell by date as a stand up comic he is still capable of producing a rattling good read. While his early works such as Stark were all about his brand of slightly OTT comedy his more recent stuff has been a bit more subtle. That's not to say it is subtle per se, Elton hasn't changed his spots that much, but they do take a different tac, generally looking some form of pop culture, poking gentle fun at it and making a serious point all at the same time. It's still not exactly Charles Dickens but he does have more substance to him than some may credit him for.
So anyway, Past Mortem. It takes a look at all those websites like Friends Reunited and asks some unsettling questions. It is also a rattling good who dunnit, as we follow Det Insp Newson in his search for a serial killer who appears to be tracking down former school bullies through Friends Reunited and bumping them off in pretty gruesome ways. It also follows Newson's hopeless attempts to seduce his (police) partner Natasha, a sub plot that while being slightly cheesy, is gently amusing.
Like I said, this book is slightly unsettling. A whole series of unhappy characters are seen using Friends Reunited to contact old flames and rekindle things and also to dig up old arguments and enemies. And it's all so tragic. Now I have to confess something, I am a member of friends reunited and I have got back in touch with one old friend through it who I had genuinely lost touch with through circumstances. However i have mainly used it to just be bloody nosey, I'll admit it I'm an old fish wife! I do wonder though if I am the exception. I know of others who have tried to rekindle that old flame and I think that if anyone who has done that reads Past Mortem they are going to be made to feel very uncomfortable indeed because this book asks some very awkward questions about their motives and what is going on in their heads.
What was more personal to me though is the part about school bullying. This book makes no great break through into examining the causes of bullying, it is well known that much of it is about power and the bully themselves being inadequate. Instead this looks at the fall out from bullying and what happens to its victims later on. And from experience Elton is spot on. And I know because I was bullied at school. There were moments when his incite was so spot on that I do wonder if he was bullied himself.
First of all the fact that it is so hard for the victim, at least at the time, to admit what is happening. Trust me, I know. I wont go into what happened to me, I left it behind me (something we'll return to, ironically) shortly. All you need to know though is how hard it is to admit to it, it is utterly humiliating.
Second is the power the bully has. There is a moment in the book in a school reunion where one man encounters his former bully, many years later and becomes a gibbering wreck. That was me. About 3 years ago I was having a drink with friends in a pub when in walked one of my bullies. He actually sat at the table next to me. We didn't speak, and we didn't even acknowledge each others presence, but I was reduced a from a self confident talkative 20 something back to a cowering, gibbering 13 year old I had once been. It was a horrible moment and one that I hope I never have to endure again.
Finally how people react later on. I'm not the only victim of bullying, there are many out there, I'm friends with some of them. And all of us have a choice. You can move on or you can't. And many of Elton's characters have not. And this is what is so unsettling. I know people that have not moved on and I know what they are like, but we wont go into that. I, thankfully, took the other option. I chose to move on. It's not forgotten, the incident in the pub proves that, and indeed I don't want to forget. To do so would frankly be an insult both to myself and to other victims. And I know how easy it would be to remain angry and bitter about things, I could let myself do it quite easily and slip into being someone quite different, but I choose not to. And the final climax to the book demonstrates this choice as Natasha finally moves on from her bully.
Overall this book is not that subtle, but it is insightful. If you know nothing of bullying or what happens to its victims then go read it.
It's an old favourite folks, it's book review time!
This time it's Past Mortem by Ben Elton.
Now you may remember my comments a couple of days ago to the effect that Ben Elton isn't really funny any more. Now perhaps I was being overly critical because while I still think that he is well past his sell by date as a stand up comic he is still capable of producing a rattling good read. While his early works such as Stark were all about his brand of slightly OTT comedy his more recent stuff has been a bit more subtle. That's not to say it is subtle per se, Elton hasn't changed his spots that much, but they do take a different tac, generally looking some form of pop culture, poking gentle fun at it and making a serious point all at the same time. It's still not exactly Charles Dickens but he does have more substance to him than some may credit him for.
So anyway, Past Mortem. It takes a look at all those websites like Friends Reunited and asks some unsettling questions. It is also a rattling good who dunnit, as we follow Det Insp Newson in his search for a serial killer who appears to be tracking down former school bullies through Friends Reunited and bumping them off in pretty gruesome ways. It also follows Newson's hopeless attempts to seduce his (police) partner Natasha, a sub plot that while being slightly cheesy, is gently amusing.
Like I said, this book is slightly unsettling. A whole series of unhappy characters are seen using Friends Reunited to contact old flames and rekindle things and also to dig up old arguments and enemies. And it's all so tragic. Now I have to confess something, I am a member of friends reunited and I have got back in touch with one old friend through it who I had genuinely lost touch with through circumstances. However i have mainly used it to just be bloody nosey, I'll admit it I'm an old fish wife! I do wonder though if I am the exception. I know of others who have tried to rekindle that old flame and I think that if anyone who has done that reads Past Mortem they are going to be made to feel very uncomfortable indeed because this book asks some very awkward questions about their motives and what is going on in their heads.
What was more personal to me though is the part about school bullying. This book makes no great break through into examining the causes of bullying, it is well known that much of it is about power and the bully themselves being inadequate. Instead this looks at the fall out from bullying and what happens to its victims later on. And from experience Elton is spot on. And I know because I was bullied at school. There were moments when his incite was so spot on that I do wonder if he was bullied himself.
First of all the fact that it is so hard for the victim, at least at the time, to admit what is happening. Trust me, I know. I wont go into what happened to me, I left it behind me (something we'll return to, ironically) shortly. All you need to know though is how hard it is to admit to it, it is utterly humiliating.
Second is the power the bully has. There is a moment in the book in a school reunion where one man encounters his former bully, many years later and becomes a gibbering wreck. That was me. About 3 years ago I was having a drink with friends in a pub when in walked one of my bullies. He actually sat at the table next to me. We didn't speak, and we didn't even acknowledge each others presence, but I was reduced a from a self confident talkative 20 something back to a cowering, gibbering 13 year old I had once been. It was a horrible moment and one that I hope I never have to endure again.
Finally how people react later on. I'm not the only victim of bullying, there are many out there, I'm friends with some of them. And all of us have a choice. You can move on or you can't. And many of Elton's characters have not. And this is what is so unsettling. I know people that have not moved on and I know what they are like, but we wont go into that. I, thankfully, took the other option. I chose to move on. It's not forgotten, the incident in the pub proves that, and indeed I don't want to forget. To do so would frankly be an insult both to myself and to other victims. And I know how easy it would be to remain angry and bitter about things, I could let myself do it quite easily and slip into being someone quite different, but I choose not to. And the final climax to the book demonstrates this choice as Natasha finally moves on from her bully.
Overall this book is not that subtle, but it is insightful. If you know nothing of bullying or what happens to its victims then go read it.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Cotton Wool kids
Regular readers will be well used to me going off on one about the Mail, Express and occasionally other tabloids but tonight I'm afraid my wrath is going elsewhere. Tonight it is aimed at the Guardian and specifically this article by Maggie Brown
I read this and despair, I really do. So I'm going to dissect this crock of shit bit by bit.
I'm not even sure where to begin. So lets kick off with the very beginning, a very good place to start (according to Mary Poppins).
"Ever since my son became a Scout four years ago"
Right, if her son became a scout 4 years ago then he is presumably 14 and almost certainly a patrol leader. This means that this writer's son has been selected as someone with the maturity and responsibility to look after younger kids both at scouts and on camp. This woman should be proud of her son.
"I have bought the line that this century-old movement is a very good thing for boys,"
The first hints of cynicism here I think, and complete ignorance as well. We've let girls in since 1989 love, or hadn't you noticed? FFS, you would have thought the Guardian of all papers would have been aware of this. Clearly not
"In fact my son's troop is booming so much it has had to move the annual meeting to a bigger venue"
OK Maggie, wakey wakey. Your son's troop is fighting kids of with a stick. Much like groups across the country. Are you aware that there are 80,000 kids on scout and guide waiting lists across the country? Are you? Clearly not. And has it occurred to you why that might be? I'll leave you to think about that one for a while. We'll come back to it later.
"For the second year running I'm starting to question what is character-forming or even much use about spending 10 days under canvas in the middle of boggy fields as the rain pours down relentlessly."
Look Maggie, be honest, do you really think that the deliberate aim of camp is to sit kids in the middle of a muddy field and let them get wet? Really? Are you as dumb as you sound? I bloody well hope not. The point is all about self reliance. It's a point we'll return to.
"The clumps of patrol tents and cooking fires looked like a refugee camp, spread out under a grey sky. Wet clothing fluttered on makeshift bits of string in a vain attempt at getting them dry."
And I suppose that sunny Islington or wherever it is you live looked absolutely spiffing in the rain didn't it? Has it occurred to you to think about what your son is getting out of this? this sense of responsibility not just for himself but for his mates as well? I remember camping in a mud bath, I remember lending my dry kit out to those that had run out. Doesn't it make you proud that your son was probably doing just the same thing? Doesn't it?
"I know, the stock response is that boys like this sort of thing, they don't notice the discomfort, they like being free to roam, build fires, go cycling down exhilarating country lanes with barely a tractor to contend with, and try out activities such as riding and sailing."
Have you wondered why that response might be? Is it because maybe, just maybe, it might be true? Kids love going out and having an adventure, of trying something new, of pushing themselves to their own limits. It is a hell of a lot better than being sat in front of a tv screen, i can guarantee you that. Look at the list you wrote in the sentence, would you rather your son did those or sat at home with his play station. And think carefully before you answer. Please.
" My son, by the way, has just returned with a suitcase of damp clothes, ponging to high heaven. I asked him what it felt like to be home.
"Weird," he replied. "Everything is so easy." With that he went, voluntarily, for a deep bath (leaving it filthy), fell on a roast dinner, collapsed in bed and slept around the clock. "
So your son has worked hard, has appreciated what an easy life he has at home, has looked after himself and others and can physically put up with nasty weather and, it would seem is happy to go back for more, and you're moaning? You seem to want to wrap your son up in cotton wool and stop him learning these lessons. What the fuck are you thinking?
With parents like this then what chance have kids got of growing up with any back bone whatsoever?
Regular readers will be well used to me going off on one about the Mail, Express and occasionally other tabloids but tonight I'm afraid my wrath is going elsewhere. Tonight it is aimed at the Guardian and specifically this article by Maggie Brown
I read this and despair, I really do. So I'm going to dissect this crock of shit bit by bit.
I'm not even sure where to begin. So lets kick off with the very beginning, a very good place to start (according to Mary Poppins).
"Ever since my son became a Scout four years ago"
Right, if her son became a scout 4 years ago then he is presumably 14 and almost certainly a patrol leader. This means that this writer's son has been selected as someone with the maturity and responsibility to look after younger kids both at scouts and on camp. This woman should be proud of her son.
"I have bought the line that this century-old movement is a very good thing for boys,"
The first hints of cynicism here I think, and complete ignorance as well. We've let girls in since 1989 love, or hadn't you noticed? FFS, you would have thought the Guardian of all papers would have been aware of this. Clearly not
"In fact my son's troop is booming so much it has had to move the annual meeting to a bigger venue"
OK Maggie, wakey wakey. Your son's troop is fighting kids of with a stick. Much like groups across the country. Are you aware that there are 80,000 kids on scout and guide waiting lists across the country? Are you? Clearly not. And has it occurred to you why that might be? I'll leave you to think about that one for a while. We'll come back to it later.
"For the second year running I'm starting to question what is character-forming or even much use about spending 10 days under canvas in the middle of boggy fields as the rain pours down relentlessly."
Look Maggie, be honest, do you really think that the deliberate aim of camp is to sit kids in the middle of a muddy field and let them get wet? Really? Are you as dumb as you sound? I bloody well hope not. The point is all about self reliance. It's a point we'll return to.
"The clumps of patrol tents and cooking fires looked like a refugee camp, spread out under a grey sky. Wet clothing fluttered on makeshift bits of string in a vain attempt at getting them dry."
And I suppose that sunny Islington or wherever it is you live looked absolutely spiffing in the rain didn't it? Has it occurred to you to think about what your son is getting out of this? this sense of responsibility not just for himself but for his mates as well? I remember camping in a mud bath, I remember lending my dry kit out to those that had run out. Doesn't it make you proud that your son was probably doing just the same thing? Doesn't it?
"I know, the stock response is that boys like this sort of thing, they don't notice the discomfort, they like being free to roam, build fires, go cycling down exhilarating country lanes with barely a tractor to contend with, and try out activities such as riding and sailing."
Have you wondered why that response might be? Is it because maybe, just maybe, it might be true? Kids love going out and having an adventure, of trying something new, of pushing themselves to their own limits. It is a hell of a lot better than being sat in front of a tv screen, i can guarantee you that. Look at the list you wrote in the sentence, would you rather your son did those or sat at home with his play station. And think carefully before you answer. Please.
" My son, by the way, has just returned with a suitcase of damp clothes, ponging to high heaven. I asked him what it felt like to be home.
"Weird," he replied. "Everything is so easy." With that he went, voluntarily, for a deep bath (leaving it filthy), fell on a roast dinner, collapsed in bed and slept around the clock. "
So your son has worked hard, has appreciated what an easy life he has at home, has looked after himself and others and can physically put up with nasty weather and, it would seem is happy to go back for more, and you're moaning? You seem to want to wrap your son up in cotton wool and stop him learning these lessons. What the fuck are you thinking?
With parents like this then what chance have kids got of growing up with any back bone whatsoever?
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Robert Murrat
It's been a few days now since the news that Robert Murrat has accepted £550K in damages from a combination of every British tabloid for the disgraceful stories published about him over the last year or so. And I have spent a few days pondering it. Many bloggers including Obsolete and The Enemies of Reason have welcomed the verdict and indeed the verdict itself must be welcomed. For an ordinary person to win in the libel courts buck a worrying trend whereby the press seem to be able to get away with printing what they want.
However, what are the consequences?
£550K. Between 11 papers. including the Sun, Mirror, Mail and Express. £50k for each of them. That is a piss in the ocean for all of them. It will be of absolutely no consequence. It will be of no deterrent to do it again. The tabloids shifted millions of extra copies over the Madeline McCann affair and continue to do so. The press could do this again and will because they have more to gain then they will ever lose. No one was sacked, no individual was made to stand to account for the damage done to Murat's reputation.
Even now search for him on the daily Mail website and what do you come up with? Not one story about him winning in the libel courts, instead all the smears and lies are dragged up again.
There has been no printed apology in any of these papers, not one, nowhere.
So no consequences for the tabloids, no attempt to put things right in terms of publicly apologising in a form that their readers will see and no deterrent to not do it again.
And yet Murat has allegedly won.
What a total disgrace.
It's been a few days now since the news that Robert Murrat has accepted £550K in damages from a combination of every British tabloid for the disgraceful stories published about him over the last year or so. And I have spent a few days pondering it. Many bloggers including Obsolete and The Enemies of Reason have welcomed the verdict and indeed the verdict itself must be welcomed. For an ordinary person to win in the libel courts buck a worrying trend whereby the press seem to be able to get away with printing what they want.
However, what are the consequences?
£550K. Between 11 papers. including the Sun, Mirror, Mail and Express. £50k for each of them. That is a piss in the ocean for all of them. It will be of absolutely no consequence. It will be of no deterrent to do it again. The tabloids shifted millions of extra copies over the Madeline McCann affair and continue to do so. The press could do this again and will because they have more to gain then they will ever lose. No one was sacked, no individual was made to stand to account for the damage done to Murat's reputation.
Even now search for him on the daily Mail website and what do you come up with? Not one story about him winning in the libel courts, instead all the smears and lies are dragged up again.
There has been no printed apology in any of these papers, not one, nowhere.
So no consequences for the tabloids, no attempt to put things right in terms of publicly apologising in a form that their readers will see and no deterrent to not do it again.
And yet Murat has allegedly won.
What a total disgrace.
The Ministry of Crap Design
Many years ago when Ben Elton was funny (yes ladies and gentlemen he actually used to be quite good as a stand up comic) I remember him having a rant about things so crap that their design could not have been a mere accident. Somebody must have actually sat down at designed it. His particular hate was for those nasty little tea pots at motorway services that have somehow been designed so that you cant get the tea into the cup, it just dribbles everywhere. Not being a big fan of tea this has never caused me a problem however I can confess that the ministry of crap design is alive and well. How do I know? Ladies and Gentlemen I give you the insanity, the byzantine nightmare that is www.tesco.com
This website is so crap that somebody, somehow, must have designed it that way.
This time yesterday yours truly sat down to do the shop for cub summer camp. At 14 people for 3 nights this is not exactly a jamboree but nevertheless that is a lot of meals to serve up and on a budget to, so there was a lot of shopping to do. Eventually I gave up, saved what I'd done and got stuck back into it at lunch time today.
So far so good.
Except that when I had completed my shop and tried to buy it, that's right, tried to give Tesco money (something which I gather they are rather keen on) it simply changed my order back to what I had saved last night.
So I assumed I had done something wrong.
So I started again.
And again.
And again.
Tesco kept on refusing to let me give them money.
This is such a crap peice of design that it cannot, simply cannot, be an accident. What utter berk, what cretinous little pollock managed to design something that crap? Who designed a website to sell stuff that keeps refusing customer's money? No. No one can be that much of dick head, it must have been deliberate.
So beware ladies and gentlemen, the Ministry of Crap Design is out there. And its out to get you.
Many years ago when Ben Elton was funny (yes ladies and gentlemen he actually used to be quite good as a stand up comic) I remember him having a rant about things so crap that their design could not have been a mere accident. Somebody must have actually sat down at designed it. His particular hate was for those nasty little tea pots at motorway services that have somehow been designed so that you cant get the tea into the cup, it just dribbles everywhere. Not being a big fan of tea this has never caused me a problem however I can confess that the ministry of crap design is alive and well. How do I know? Ladies and Gentlemen I give you the insanity, the byzantine nightmare that is www.tesco.com
This website is so crap that somebody, somehow, must have designed it that way.
This time yesterday yours truly sat down to do the shop for cub summer camp. At 14 people for 3 nights this is not exactly a jamboree but nevertheless that is a lot of meals to serve up and on a budget to, so there was a lot of shopping to do. Eventually I gave up, saved what I'd done and got stuck back into it at lunch time today.
So far so good.
Except that when I had completed my shop and tried to buy it, that's right, tried to give Tesco money (something which I gather they are rather keen on) it simply changed my order back to what I had saved last night.
So I assumed I had done something wrong.
So I started again.
And again.
And again.
Tesco kept on refusing to let me give them money.
This is such a crap peice of design that it cannot, simply cannot, be an accident. What utter berk, what cretinous little pollock managed to design something that crap? Who designed a website to sell stuff that keeps refusing customer's money? No. No one can be that much of dick head, it must have been deliberate.
So beware ladies and gentlemen, the Ministry of Crap Design is out there. And its out to get you.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Pranks
Once upon a time this started out as a blog about being a cub leader, so I just thought I'd share something with you which may seem a bit rambling but bare with me.......
I'm an occasional visitor to e.scouts, it's a discussion forum for scout leaders to exchange ideas and can be quite useful. Over the last few days this discussion has developed For info I am the poster cambridgeakela.
In summary a Canadian Rover Scout came on asking for ideas for pranks to pull on camp and some individuals went off on one at him and told him how selfish he was, as you can see I defended him. Two points to make here, which lead into each other.
First, forget the uniform and the promise and the history, first and foremost scouting is meant to be fun. Those involved should come back with a smile on their face. They may be cold, muddy, tired etc but they should also have had a brilliant time. Being a leader can be dam hard work, it really can but I keep going because of how much fun it is, it's difficult to put into words just what a buzz it can be. And that is why I keep going. And part of the fun is the practical jokes, I've pulled them and been the victim. I ran one leader's bra up the flag pole once, I've tee peed tents (for the uninitiated that means wrapping them in loo role over night), I've stolen shoes left outside tents. Equally I've returned to my tent to find it containing nothing but a giant inflatable palm tree (I'm not kidding!) and been cable tied inside it as well. All very childish at times but utterly hilarious when you are in a group of like minded people.
Which leads me onto point 2. For scouting to be fun, you need fun leaders. They have to have a sense of humour. And this isn't about being young (I became "Akela" at the age of 24, terrifyingly young as this species goes!), it's about being young at heart. Take a look at the responses on that thread, just look at them. Just how much of a sense of humour bye pass have some of these people had?
If people like that are the voice of scouting then it's no surprise that in places we cant recruit and retain leaders. My group has plenty of leaders, I like to think that's because we have brilliant time together, we look after each other as all friends do and we also tease each other mercilessly when its appropriate. We do it to the kids as well! I've lost track of the number of kids I've sent looking for a long wait or stripey paint etc. Unfortunately this attitude to jokes etc reflects a general attitude amongst certain leaders which I think is best described as being officious little gits. The best example is that I have a Girl Guides promise badge on my uniform. Officially I shouldn't but generally no one minds, it is simply a symbol of friendship between two organisations closely linked. It was given to me as a thank you after I turned out to help look for a missing 13 year old girl at 2am who had vanished on camp (found safe and well by the way). Some jumped up little berk of a commissioner tried to get me to take it off. A minor point but one that pissed me right off.
Thankfully scouting both in the UK and across the world is thriving, numbers are heading out of control just about everywhere but we could be doing better if we had the number of leaders, but who wants to be a leader with some of these miserable fuckers as your friends and colleagues?
Once upon a time this started out as a blog about being a cub leader, so I just thought I'd share something with you which may seem a bit rambling but bare with me.......
I'm an occasional visitor to e.scouts, it's a discussion forum for scout leaders to exchange ideas and can be quite useful. Over the last few days this discussion has developed For info I am the poster cambridgeakela.
In summary a Canadian Rover Scout came on asking for ideas for pranks to pull on camp and some individuals went off on one at him and told him how selfish he was, as you can see I defended him. Two points to make here, which lead into each other.
First, forget the uniform and the promise and the history, first and foremost scouting is meant to be fun. Those involved should come back with a smile on their face. They may be cold, muddy, tired etc but they should also have had a brilliant time. Being a leader can be dam hard work, it really can but I keep going because of how much fun it is, it's difficult to put into words just what a buzz it can be. And that is why I keep going. And part of the fun is the practical jokes, I've pulled them and been the victim. I ran one leader's bra up the flag pole once, I've tee peed tents (for the uninitiated that means wrapping them in loo role over night), I've stolen shoes left outside tents. Equally I've returned to my tent to find it containing nothing but a giant inflatable palm tree (I'm not kidding!) and been cable tied inside it as well. All very childish at times but utterly hilarious when you are in a group of like minded people.
Which leads me onto point 2. For scouting to be fun, you need fun leaders. They have to have a sense of humour. And this isn't about being young (I became "Akela" at the age of 24, terrifyingly young as this species goes!), it's about being young at heart. Take a look at the responses on that thread, just look at them. Just how much of a sense of humour bye pass have some of these people had?
If people like that are the voice of scouting then it's no surprise that in places we cant recruit and retain leaders. My group has plenty of leaders, I like to think that's because we have brilliant time together, we look after each other as all friends do and we also tease each other mercilessly when its appropriate. We do it to the kids as well! I've lost track of the number of kids I've sent looking for a long wait or stripey paint etc. Unfortunately this attitude to jokes etc reflects a general attitude amongst certain leaders which I think is best described as being officious little gits. The best example is that I have a Girl Guides promise badge on my uniform. Officially I shouldn't but generally no one minds, it is simply a symbol of friendship between two organisations closely linked. It was given to me as a thank you after I turned out to help look for a missing 13 year old girl at 2am who had vanished on camp (found safe and well by the way). Some jumped up little berk of a commissioner tried to get me to take it off. A minor point but one that pissed me right off.
Thankfully scouting both in the UK and across the world is thriving, numbers are heading out of control just about everywhere but we could be doing better if we had the number of leaders, but who wants to be a leader with some of these miserable fuckers as your friends and colleagues?
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
A Crying shame
From somewhere, I wont say where, I can hear one of the worlds more irritating songs, right now. You know the one, the with the chorus that says "you and me baby aint nothing but mammals so lets do it like they do on the discovery channel". It's a crap song, it really is. How could any song writer put their name to it? I don't know who wrote or sung it and I don't care.
But you know what the crying shame is? Listen to it, the start, the very start, and listen to that gloriously melodic riff that it starts with. Its so simple but so catchy, just like the Beatles came up with in their prime. And it could have been used to craft some glorious bit of pop music, something whimsical and dreamy.
But no, it had those frankly dreadful lyrics set to it.
I'm no muso, my record collection while respectable (other than the avril lavigne, but we all have our skeletons in our closset!) is not huge and I can only butcher half a dozen chords together on a guitar, but I despair when I hear music butchered in this way.
From somewhere, I wont say where, I can hear one of the worlds more irritating songs, right now. You know the one, the with the chorus that says "you and me baby aint nothing but mammals so lets do it like they do on the discovery channel". It's a crap song, it really is. How could any song writer put their name to it? I don't know who wrote or sung it and I don't care.
But you know what the crying shame is? Listen to it, the start, the very start, and listen to that gloriously melodic riff that it starts with. Its so simple but so catchy, just like the Beatles came up with in their prime. And it could have been used to craft some glorious bit of pop music, something whimsical and dreamy.
But no, it had those frankly dreadful lyrics set to it.
I'm no muso, my record collection while respectable (other than the avril lavigne, but we all have our skeletons in our closset!) is not huge and I can only butcher half a dozen chords together on a guitar, but I despair when I hear music butchered in this way.
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