Thursday, 27 December 2007
Hawkwind on BBC4
BBC iPlayer for Mac
Unlike the Windows version, which enables users to download programmes to watch any time within 30 days, iPlayer for Mac streams programmes broadcast during the past seven days through your web browser.
Metallica album update
After working with Bob Rock for many years, the band has made some comparisons between Rock and Rubin:
Kirk Hammett said: "I have difficulty wading through all the ideas because I'm biased - I think everything we do has a lot of merit to it. In that regard Rick Rubin is great because he will just say, 'Such and such a part is not good, so come up with something else.' He just leaves the problem up to us and we just solve it between ourselves without too much interference from his side."
Hetfield has high hopes for the album: "We don't want pretty good, we want excellent and Rick is getting us to try and achieve that. Rick's very good at getting the essence of an artist out and bringing that back to the top again."
The as yet untitled new album is due in spring 2008.
Meanwhile on Metallica's website, there appear to be some European tour dates to coincide with the new album. Sadly, nothing for the UK yet.Monday, 10 December 2007
Mike Patton in the movies
Patton's shape-shifting vocals will be heard in movie theaters across the country this month as he lends his voice to the dreaded creatures in "I Am Legend", the post-apocalyptic film set for release on Dec. 14.Also due for release is Patton's debut as a film composer with the film noir short, A Perfect Place, the directorial debut of Derrick Scocchera:
The score creatively reflects the style and tone of the film, which focuses on a pair of bumbling friends trying to dispose of a body. The film, shot in anamorphic black and white, will be packaged as a double-disc with the score and distributed together via Ipecac Recordings in March of 2008.I'm still waiting to see Firecracker, in which Patton appeared in 2005. Although it has now been released on DVD, it appears to be available on NTSC only. Ho-hum.
Wednesday, 28 November 2007
The world’s unfunniest joke
Thankfully, there is a page of jokes to lighten things up a bit. Here's a good one:
Q: How many vegans does it take to change a lightbulb?Well, that's me convinced. I'm off to get a Big Mac.
A: None, vegans can't change anything.
Monday, 26 November 2007
Give Vista a chance!
…exhorts Windows users not to give up on Vista features a side bar starring Justin Long (Mac) and John Hodgman (PC). The two discuss an on-page ad component that sits at the top of the screen in the banner position. This states: "Don't give up on Vista."As with all the other Apple ads things don't go so well for poor old PC.
Sunday, 25 November 2007
Praise the Lord!
We weren't disappointed either.
The doors were due to open at 7pm and we arrived just after to find a huge queue. By the time we got in, the support act, Fair to Midland (who are on Serjical Strike, Serj's own label), had already started. They were pretty good too, the singer was looked like he was plugged into the mains electric. Take a look if you don't believe me!
Serj and The FCC (Flying C***s of Chaos, apparently), got off to a flying start with 'The Unthinking Majority':
I'm pretty sure he played all the songs off the album, as well as a couple of covers. Including The Dead Kennedys 'Holiday in Cambodia' and The Beatles 'Girl'.
For the final encore he played 'Elect the Dead' on the piano, solo. The perfect end to a perfect evening.
It was great to see a band in a small venue again, especially after seeing Metallica at Wembley in the summer. A totally different vibe. Man.
Thursday, 15 November 2007
Metal roundup
- Kian Egan of Westlife is a fan of Metallica, Kerrang! reported on a story from The Sun.
- Also in Kerrang! Ozzy auctions off his quad bike quad.
- Metal Hammer ran a story on Scott Ian and Jerry Cantrell with Meat Loaf's daughter, Pearl, doing an acoustic version of Pink Floyd's Wish Your Were Here. Very good it is too, you can catch the video here.
- Alice In Chains perform Led Zeppelin classic reported in Metal Hammer. Video is here.
Tuesday, 6 November 2007
Autumn walk to Frittenden
Thursday, 1 November 2007
The force is with me!
I had a problem trying to get it running under the kids user accounts so contacted Aspyr. They were pretty quick at responding and got the problem sorted within a couple days. It was all down to those pesky permissions!
Just wish I could find R2D2, so I go back and open some doors in the first scene.
Tuesday, 30 October 2007
Walking in the Peak District
Fantastic views all round.
Apple sells 2 million 'Leopards'
Apple said Tuesday that it sold over two million copies of Mac OS X Leopard since its release on Friday, far outpacing the first-weekend sales of Mac OS X Tiger, which was previously the most successful OS release in the company's history.In fact, it took six weeks to shift this many copies of Mac OSX 10.4 Tiger, after it's launch in 2005.
BBC News 24 Click's Rob Freeman takes a look at the upgrade to Apple's OS X operating system in this video.
Serj Tankian on 92.3 K-Rock
SYSTEM OF A DOWN frontman Serj Tankian recently stopped by the K-Rock studios in New York City to talk about his solo debut, "Elect the Dead", with K-Rock's Nik Carter.
Tuesday, 23 October 2007
434,930 of our cows are missing!
It's a serious problem. Countless bovines have disappeared from dairy farms everywhere. And the numbers of missing cows are on the rise.There is some pretty compelling 'evidence' here, I think you will agree.
Sunday, 14 October 2007
Time to roast some roots!
A couple of nights ago we, had roast root veg, Yorkshire pudding, vegetarian sausage and gravy. Sorry, I wasn't as organised as Nic, so no photo of the finished dish. However, this is roughly how I made it:
Roast root veg, Yorkshire pud and red onion gravy
4oz plain flour sifted
1 egg
1/2 pint milk
pinch of salt
2 medium carrots
1 medium parsnip
1 small sweet potato
1/2 small butternut squash
Olive oil
Black pepper
Salt
1 small red onion
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp plain flour
1/2 pint veg stock
1 tsp Marmite
Black pepper
Cauldron Lincolnshire Sausages
- Make your Yorkshire pudding batter, putting all of the ingredients into a hand blender and whizz it up into a smooth batter. Leave to stand for 2 hours.
- Cut some carrots, parsnips, squash, sweet potato or any other root veg you have to hand, into chunky batons. Place them into a large bowl, glug on some olive oil, throw in a few springs of fresh thyme, grind some black pepper and chuck on a bit of salt. Give it all a good stir and leave to stand if you have time.
- Pre-heat over to around 200°C, gas mark 6. Place veg on a backing tray and place into top of the oven for approx 30 minutes.
- Once the veg are looking part roasted, move the tray to the middle shelf. Pour a some Sunflower oil into Yorkshire pudding tray and place on top shelf of the oven. Turn the heat up to 220°C, gas mark 7.
- Put the sausages onto another baking sheet and place in the oven, or cook them in a frying pan, or under the grill. Keep warm once cooked.
- When the oil in the Yorkshire pudding tray is very hot, pour some batter in. It should sizzle. Place back into the oven for about 20 minutes, or until the puddings are well risen and golden.
- Heat the olive oil in a saucepan and gentle fry the red onion until soft. Stir in the flour and keep stirring for a minute over a low head. Add a little stock (dissolve the Marmite in the stock first) and mix well to eliminate any lumps. Add more stock a little at a time. Bring to the boil, while stirring continuously, until the gravy starts to thicken.
- Serve with a nice red wine.
Thursday, 4 October 2007
The unthinking majority
The first single The Unthinking Majority is worth a look too - fine use of toy soldiers!
There is a message from Serj on the website, which starts like this:
Borders are the gallows of our collective national egos.Thought provoking stuff, I think you will agree. He has a book of his poetry out too. It's called Cool Garden. Although, I'm not big on poetry (sorry Nic), I may well buy it.
Subjective lines in the sand, water and air are separating plants, animals, and atmosphere.
Fear! Fear is the cause of separation for this imposed illusion, this cordoned off space from pre-birth.
Tour dates too!
Wednesday, 3 October 2007
Delicious vegan flan
SPINACH AND LENTIL FLAN
Serves 4
Preparation time: 30 minutes. Cooking time: 45 minutes
100g wholewheat flour
1⁄2 teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt
25g butter
25g solid vegetable fat
1 teaspoon brown sugar
2–3 teaspoon water
2 teaspoon oil
1 tablespoon sunflower oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
175g red lentils
350ml vegetable stock
350g spinach
1 tablespoon lemon juice
salt and fresh ground black pepper
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
- Mix the flour, baking powder and salt together in a bowl. Rub the fats in with your fingertips until you have a mixture resembling fine breadcrumbs.
- Dissolve the sugar 2 tablespoons of water. Mix in the oil and add this to the flour mixture. Add a little more water if necessary to bind the mixture. The dough should be on the wettish side. Leave to rest for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to gas mark 6 or 200°C.
- Roll out the dough to line an 18–20cm (7–8 inch) flan dish. Press it in well, prick the base all over and bake for 5 minutes to set it.
- Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large, heavy-based pan and gently fry the onions and spices for 3–4 minutes.
- Add the lentils to the pan together with the stock. Bring to the boil and simmer, covered, for 10–15 minutes until the lentils turn to a stiff purée.
- While the lentils are cooking, wash the spinach, drain it well and gently cook in its own juices in a covered pan for 6–8 minutes until just done. Drain and chop. Mix it into the lentils with the lemon juice and seasoning.
- Spread the filling over the prepared flan base. Cover loosely with foil and bake for 25–30 minutes until the pastry is cooked and filling hot. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve hot, warm or cold.
Monday, 1 October 2007
Stuck for Christmas gift ideas?
My favourites are this, this and this.
Mac marketshare increasing?
In September 6.7% of computers that accessed the Internet were Macs, the highest proportion since the company began measuring operating systems' share in 2004, and a 50% increase in 2007 alone.
Sunday, 30 September 2007
Silent but deadly
Why it's green to go vegetarian.
The Vegetarian Society has a new campaign highlighting the impact that meat production has on the environment.
Studies on world food security estimate that an affluent diet containing meat requires up to 3 times as many resources as a vegetarian diet.As the poster says 'Makes you think doesn't it?'.
Wednesday, 26 September 2007
Something else you can do with a courgette
COURGETTE GRATINI don't always have parsley around, so use more thyme instead. Very nice with a jacket spud.
Serves 4
Preparation time: 20 minutes Cooking time: 45 minutes
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 onions, thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, crushed
350g courgettes, sliced
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 teaspoon chopped thyme
salt and fresh ground black pepper
4 large tomatoes, peeled and sliced
25g butter or margarine
25g plain flour
300ml warm milk
100g vegetarian Cheddar cheese, grated
1 tablespoon fresh wholewheat breadcrumbs
- Preheat the oven to gas mark 4 or 180°C. Heat the oil in a pan and cook the onions until softened. Add the garlic, courgettes, herbs and seasoning to taste, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Put half the mixture in an ovenproof dish and top with tomatoes, then spread the remaining mixture on top.
- Melt the butter or margarine in a saucepan over a low heat and add the flour. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring. Gradually add the milk and bring the sauce to the boil, stirring constantly. Simmer gently for 2–3 minutes. Add half of the cheese, season to taste and pour over the courgettes.
- Sprinkle with the breadcrumbs and remaining cheese. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes until golden.
Monday, 24 September 2007
Enter 6cam mix!
There is one view taken from high up the stage left side of Wembley, which is roughly, where we were sitting.
The guy that made this, has also posted Master of Puppets and Creeping Death, and says that he is 'making the full show mix'. Only about another two hours to go then.
Friday, 21 September 2007
The memory remains...
Say yes to a full pint
Monday, 17 September 2007
Three 'Fallen Angels'
I visited the HDRA Organic Garden at Yalding yesterday for their Hop Festival. The lack of hops was a bit disappointing but the food from the cafe was delicious, and Fallen Angel Brewery had a stall selling their bottled beers. Naturally, I had to buy a few to try at home later.
I'll post again when I've tried them all.
Thursday, 13 September 2007
Eisteddfod is a winner!
Wednesday, 12 September 2007
What to do with a courgette
One of my favourite recipes for courgette is from Rosamond Richardson's Sainsbury's Complete Vegetarian Cooking, which goes something like this:
FARFALLE WITH BASIL AND COURGETTESIf I don't have any basil to hand I usually stir some green pesto into the cooked pasta.
Serves 4
Preparation time: 10 minutes. Cooking time: 15 minutes
375g Farfalle pasta bows
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
250g small courgettes, thinly sliced
175g button mushrooms, sliced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
3 tablespoons fresh, chopped basil
salt and fresh ground black pepper
finely grated vegetarian cheese, to serve
- Cook the pasta bows in plenty of boiling water for about 10 minutes, or until cooked, but still firm and drain.
- Meanwhile, heat the oil in a saucepan, add the courgettes, and sauté over a very gentle heat for about 5 minutes, or until they begin to soften. The add the mushrooms, increase the heat a little and toss them in the oil until they too begin to soften. Lower the heat and stir in the garlic and basil. Cook very gently for a few minutes, stirring gently to mix, and then season to taste.
Sudoku satisfaction
Today, I finished it again. Unfortunately, I didn't get anywhere with the crossword, probably because I didn't have Jean's help.
Tuesday, 11 September 2007
Leak at Dungeness B
No radioactive material was released in the incident on Monday morning.Phew, what a relief!
Top 5 Sabbath albums
Thanks to Nic for the idea, here are my top 5 Black Sabbath albums:
- Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
- Master of Reality
- Heaven and Hell
- Volume 4
- Black Sabbath
I'll probably listen to some of these tomorrow, and change my mind!
Monday, 10 September 2007
Heaven and Hell - DVD clips
Now, I know there are a lot of Black Sabbath purists out there (Nic!), who only like Ozzy era Sabbath, but the first Sabbath album I bought was Heaven and Hell. I like it all Ozzy and Dio stuff.
I'm going to put the DVD on my Christmas list. So there.