I really enjoyed this short film about a guy who agrees to wear a mood monitor on his chest and be followed by a camera crew all day. He is happy to do this in order to get on TV, but he ends up revealing more about himself than he’d planned. I particularly loved the moment when he comes across something that he’d meant to hide, and his monitor instantly turns red. The end was quite beautiful too.

While I was watching I wondered how it would be if we all wore one of those devices, if our moods and feelings were open for everyone else to see. Would it make life simpler, or more difficult?

Film by Eric Lerner. Music by Sigur Ros. (via Fubiz)

When I read a newspaper I’ll often read the “Lonely Hearts” or Personal Ads column, not because I’m planning to answer an advert, but because they are quite a fun read. It’s interesting to note how specific or non-specific the descriptions are; whilst some of the advertisers are open to any possibility, others are quite clear about the size, race, interests and temperament of their imagined soulmate. It’s also intriguing that the internet dating scene hasn’t made this concept obsolete.

A fun game to play is to match up pairs of compatible ads. For instance, the attractive, young-at-heart 60 year old woman who is looking for a caring man aged 58-65, has several matches in the male ads. She doesn’t mention her size, so I’m going to eliminate Richard (59) who has requested a slim woman. I’ve got a few other possible options, but I like the sound of the “Outgoing widower, 62, likes walks, nights in, GSOH, seeks caring female for friendship/relationship.”

I bet that this guy has received loads of responses:

Short, fat, thick, spotty, ugly, unemployed single dad, early 40’s, good for nothing, seeks slim, busty, rich bird to cheat on.

And his match? Possibly the “Busty, blue eyed blonde, seeking special man who can show her a good time and make her smile again.”

And just to prove that there’s someone for everyone:

Hirsute female, no make up, any age or nationality, sought by French male, 48, educated, unconventional, for relationship.

If I were to write one of these ads I’d probably say: “Urban Recluse seeks a kind companion with a GSOH for fun and adventure.” I think that says it all, don’t you? What kind of ad would you write?

Image Source

I just happened upon a Music Intelligence Quiz via Chris’s blog, and decided to have a crack at it though I’ve never claimed to be a musical genius.

Your final score was 108/180

Birthday Party DJ (73-108 points)
You are a rabid consumer of music. You get a rush every time you hear something new but remain faithful to those artists you love. Your music collection represents who you are and what you care about and your home may even bear the tell-tale signs of your affections – posters, old band t-shirts and the odd music biography. But you aren’t a completist, you know what you like and make sure you have it. Simple as that. To expand your repertoire, perhaps there are some genres that you’d benefit from giving a little more attention to – perhaps now is the time to hear something new or get hold of that missing album from your collection.

And while we’re on the subject of intelligence, I heard about this dating site for intelligent people and had a go at the entry exam. Unfortunately when I saw the format of the exam I knew I wasn’t going to pass. I’m awful at those “complete the pattern” questions with triangles and squares and circles, and being given a minute to solve each one didn’t help. Luckily, there’s more than one kind of intelligence, and more than one way to meet your soulmate.

I can’t believe that it’s taken me nearly a week to write about my meeting with the saxy sailor. My only excuse is that I’m mentally exhausted right now. I can’t focus on anything for long.

Anyway I met G at Euston Station, and we went into a nearby cafe for a cup of tea. I don’t know what I was expecting, honestly, but he was just like he’d described himself. I hate these blind date kind of meetings, where you’re waiting at the designated meeting place, looking at any guy who could possibly be that person and wondering if it’s going to be the guy with the walking stick who’s limping and looks about 70…

Luckily it wasn’t the septuagenarian who greeted me. I was very nervous at first, almost as skittish as when that male stripper said hello to me after the show… But after a cup of tea I felt a bit more like myself.

From Euston we walked to Camden Town, and walked around the market and the assorted shops in that area. I love going to Camden Town as it’s just such a cool area. G fitted in perfectly there; a little boy even stopped him and told him that his North Face cap was “sick” and asked him where he’d got it from. (He said that he’d picked it up in Norway.)

I didn’t buy anything in Camden - I’d wanted to visit the African drum shop where I’d bought my djembe a few years ago, but it wasn’t there anymore. I’m not sure if it’s been relocated due to the fire that raged in that area several months ago. G bought himself a gangster-style Capello hat after haggling with the shop guy.

After a few hours, I was starving so we stopped at a Chinese buffet restaurant for dinner. He’s a vegetarian, and unfortunately there wasn’t much that he liked from their selection, so I felt a little bit guilty for having 2 plates of food, even if it was lousy food.

After that we walked back to Euston (it was starting to rain a little) and went back to the cafe in the station for a chat before setting off home. It was a nice day, and he was great company.

Overall, I’m still kind of confused about things with G. He’s a lovely guy, and I like him a lot, but I’m not sure whether I could have a relationship with him. The main issue is the age gap - he’s 26 years older than me. It doesn’t seem to bother him at all, and he still thinks that he’s in love with me. In an ideal world it might not matter, but in spite of myself I was thinking about what my family and my friends would say about me being with a guy so much older than me.

G is a guy who does what he wants to do. He’s done a lot and has seen a lot, and he doesn’t have any close ties to anyone who might want to talk him out of what he wants to do. I feel like I’m in the opposite situation, as long as I’m living here I’m not free to do what I want, when I want.

I’ve told G that I think that he’ll teach me a lot about life, but now I’m just wondering where those life lessons may lead me.

Due to my recent money troubles I reluctantly decided to sell some of my gear, including my saxophone. I put an ad in Loot, plus another one in the Sound on Sound readers’ ads.

One dark evening, on my way home from work, I received a call from a guy who was interested in my sax. He said that he’d been playing the saxophone for many years, and was working on a merchant ship. He said that he wouldn’t be able to buy the sax straight away, but he’d call me in a few weeks to see if it was still available. He sounded like a nice bloke, but after the other potential buyer turned out to be a timewaster I lost hope in selling the sax.

A couple of weeks ago I had another call from the Sax Man, who was checking whether the sax was still available. I confirmed that it was, and he said that he’d have some money for it at the end of this month. I told him that I hadn’t advertised it since the last time, so I was quite confident that it would still be up for grabs at that stage. I wasn’t totally sure that I still wanted to sell it, but I still needed the money.

Last Monday the Sax Man called again, to check whether the sax was still with me. I confirmed that it was. We had a nice chat about jazz, comparing our tastes (I’m more commercial, while he’s more into the esoteric experimental stuff).

I started to realise that he was chatting me up. And I didn’t really mind. Though it was clear that he’d been playing sax since before I was born, I liked the idea of being friends with a merchant sailor / saxophonist.

We’ve chatted everyday since then, and he seems to be infatuated with me, though he thinks he’s in love. We’re going to meet up on Saturday and see if we get on in person. I don’t really know what to think at this point. Plus I still don’t know if I want to give up my sax.

My friend Miguel called me on Thursday night and told me that he was hanging around a certain area of London, trying to track down the guy that he’s been seeing.
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After some thought, I’ve decided that what I need in my life isn’t a best friend, or even a boyfriend, but a partner-in-crime.

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I don’t know who is going to be the winner of Dirty Cows, but according to this article, the hostess has kept the meal to herself. Yep, Tara Palmer-Tomkinson and Alexy Van Kimmenade are dating, and were getting close even during the filming of the show!

I had a feeling that there was some chemistry between them, and the very perceptive Salty predicted it in a recent comment, but I wouldn’t have expected them to get together so soon…

It’s Mr Right all over again! Though let’s hope it doesn’t have the same ending.

I’ll still watch the show for its bitchiness and entertainment value, but I don’t think I’ll bother with the blow-by-blow reviews, unless anyone really wants me to continue.

Disclaimer: my lawyers have asked me to confirm that Alexy, Tara and Living TV all deny that T&A are dating…

…Let’s tango.

Scene from Nip/Tuck. Soundtrack: Whatever Lola Wants by the Gotan Project

My first blog reader Lillian, has made an impassioned plea for assistance in looking for appropriate wedding favours, so I felt compelled to help. (I also like looking for stuff online, dunno why.)

While I was looking for a nice dress for Lillian I came across these dresses, which titillated me immensely. They were designed by a bloke called Ian Stuart, who seems to think that a bride is destined to end up in a barn with a dashing disrobed cowboy on her wedding day. I guess I can’t argue with that suggestion! (more…)