Everyone likes a good craze and at the moment it is all about K-Pop and PSY's Gangham Style.
Your probably like me and going, WHAT! Unbelievably the K-Pop craze (music style from Korea), I actually heard about through my 50 something mother - it wasn't even me who heard it first : ( And then as for Gangham Style, I only heard this about a week ago and I LOVE IT!
Gangham Style is like all popular songs that start a craze, it has a catchy tune, with simple but iconic dance moves and normally a good video (but not always as you'll see from some of my other examples below). Gangham style is definitely the first craze on the 2010 decade and thank god, cos boy I miss a bit of wholesome cheesiness!
As you'll see in the video link below, the lead guy has charm, is humorous and he's added a bit of fun to the current popular culture of Dance music - what a genius!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bZkp7q19f0
And like any great addictive song, there is always a host of parodies to follow and the best of these I've found so far is below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKwdDbdPego
I have to say, I love a good craze! Since I was a kid, I have not only grown up with crazes before my time, but enough that have appeared in front of my eyes. The thing that makes me laugh is not all of them have been aimed at young people (or been suitable) and yet we all know them.
I have decided that I didn't want to make this particular article just talking, so below have added some of the particular song crazes and tracks that made me smile as I was growing up (some because of the weird lyrics, some because of the routines). Many are quite weird, but I was born in the 80s, when people just released what they wanted, lol
Star Trekking: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCARADb9asE
The Chicken Song: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-247969462851854200
Gangbang (I kid you not): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5grN83P-jC4&feature=fvwrel
Wigwag Bam: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rF9cUmT_IGs
5,6,7,8: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4NO-h9PFum4
Saturday Night: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOvcytygY_M&feature=relmfu
The Ketchup Song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6IQ0snWgef0&feature=related
Superman: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Le-mYN3dl0
Oops upside your head: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlMIzAl_nDo
I would have put the Cha Cha Slide, but for some reason, you can't access any of the videos online - random!
Well, I hope that has entertained you for a bit. Until the next instalment...
The blog title today comes from a song that literally tells you what will happen when you listen to a popular song too much: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4VK9_CfOLQ
Decided to go to the theatre with a friend last night and see a bit of fringe theatre. For someone that has worked so much in this industry, I am quite picky about what I see. Mainly because I don't want to pay a lot to see a show, don't want to see a show I've worked on and I want something different, not the same sort of tosh that everyone produces.
I booked us two tickets to see a show called Tick Tick Boom. The reason I chose this was because it was about a guy turning 30 and how he wasn't copying very well with it and thinking it was a roll reversal of how I felt, thought it might be interesting (for this blog and myself).
Let's say, I'm glad I didn't buy the programme! This play unfortunately slots into the bad side of fringe theatre.
First, let's go back to before the show. After downing three cocktails each (it took us ages to get served in the place we had gone to and landed up drinking our "special offer" cocktails very quickly - they were generally good though) we headed to the venue. En route, I said to my friend that I hoped this wasn't one of these shockingly bad fringe shows, because that sometimes happens when you get offer tickets (I was thinking bad American musical trying to hard and moany). When we got there, we were told the bar was round the other side of the stage, so I suggested we sat there (who doesn't want to be near the bar at the interval!). What a huge mistake!
The show goes up late and so finally the lights dim. Nearly as soon as the first guy has opened his mouth, I am regretting my decision (we should have stayed in the cocktail bar). Guess what it is moany, American and awful! The show is a three-hander (which is fine for the right storyline) but they are trying to play too many characters. The storyline is emotionless and so I feel nothing for the characters. The bits that are meant to be funny aren't. The songs don't relate enough to the initial story ("the little green dress" and "trapped in a cage, ask the birds" - WHAT!).
Well, if the show wasn't bad enough, it didn't even have an interval. We couldn't leave. Due to me, we were the wrong side of the stage near the bar with no exit, so we had 1hr 30mins of this awful tosh! I kept apologising to my friend at different points when the lights dimmed, she couldn't look at me because it was so bad and she wanted to laugh. Thank god no one was sitting next to us, as I spent most the show with my hand on the bag getting ready to exit. I can see why we managed to get really cheap tickets.
It was a shame, as the singing/acting wasn't horrendous, they had just signed up to the wrong show. Asides from the performance itself, it was hard to ignore technical issues such as the white tape stuck to the man's neck holding the mic on, the awful designer dress the actress was meant to be wearing and the constant buzzing coming from one of the mics - it felt like amateur hour!
I have to say this show has now gone on the list of 5 of the worst fringe shows I have EVER seen, mainly because I wanted to leave as soon as it started. This is impressive as the other four include: someone being resuscitated by his own hand puppet, a man forcing patrons to do obscene and disgusting things, a cast member coming out of character to wake my dad up because he's fallen asleep and Tony Blair the musical (where the show was rubbish and it was so hot in the auditorium, we left because two of our group nearly collapsed). At least these all happened in Edinburgh, where you expect good and bad shows at the fringe, but to transfer to London - whose supporting this awful writing!
It's such a shame because there are so many great pieces out there that people should see/fund and yet this was a poor example of what turning 30 feels like and money badly spent. The only thing this show fuelled was conversation and more alcohol - I suppose at least we got something out of it : ) Oh and the lyrical title, that's because like the title of this play, the script should be blown up rather than performed!
Blog title comes from a popular track from the early 90s: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4AVWZwZq_QU
So today is just under a month until I turn 30 : s Boy how fast time has gone since I started writing this blog - it seemed so far away!
So how do I feel? A little nervous, a little frustrated but overall not too bad. The main problem is it's hard enough realising that your in your late 20s, but trying to think that I'll be joining the 30 somethings soon is mind boggling! There's nothing wrong with it (many of my friends are older than me) but it just doesn't seem right. Why me! Where did my 20s go?
Overall, I have just not been thinking about (which is the best thing for it) but it's hard for it not to slip back in there.
You see, my problem is, I still feel that I haven't achieved enough before this birthday and one month is just not enough time to do it all in. I know that I won't turn 30 and be trapped in my house apart from going to work, but for some reason, that's how my mind sees it.
I know many girlfriends of mine that have got passed the 30 mark, so there is light past the birthday, but I'm still scared : s
I think the thing that made me think of it the other day, was the change that I will need to make to the title of this block. It is currently Route to Thirty and I have decided I am enjoying writing it so much that I don't want it to end, but the title needs to change. I want it to have the same chatty, blog manner where I natter about life but I will be past 30. Do I really want it to be Route to 40? That makes me feel even older so soon from this first great shock. But what else am I heading towards. I'm not planning on having children at the moment, I'm not getting married and I hope to have a proper job soon so don't want it to be Route to Work (that and it sounds lame). It will be a Route to something I just don't know what. Maybe to growing up? Maybe I don't want to do that yet.
That's the main problem, I don't want to grow up! I prefer my life as an adult but now want to stay this age (kind of like an adult Peter Pan, lol). I don't want to be the old one in the club that still likes dancing to hits - it makes me sad, I will always like dancing!
I know I'm probably looking into this too much but hey ho, I'm a woman hitting the 30 sign without being able to drive - it just doesn't seem right!
Well, for now, I'm going to stay in denial and watch some Mad Men which makes me feel sophisticated, young and on the pulse. If your not watching it, you just don't know what your missing!
To cheer us all up, my title today is from one of my favourite musicals of all time, The Rocky Horror Show. So get your dancing boots on and click the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opOsgzzDPdw&feature=related
Everyone was talking about over the summer and now I'm reading. Did you guess it? If not, I'm talking about 50 Shades of Grey.
Now I didn't buy it and certainly didn't originally plan to read it, but everyone has gone on about it so much, my friend lent it to me to see what I thought.
I have to say I am quite disappointed by it and I am 4/5 of the way through. My biggest problem is I dislike the two lead characters. So there's Christian Grey, who from the descriptions in the book has long fingers (creepy like a horror film), is arrogant, likes possession over everything and can't take no for an answer. Then there is Anastasia, she's SO naive (I used to be naive but not like her, she's just stupid), annoying (any girl that causes her sexual area "my sex" needs to be slapped) and she is so caught up with her feelings she doesn't listen to the one reasonably sensible person (she has her moments) in her life, her friend Kate.
I mean, who is this book for: Is it young girls who are being told it's fine to fall for the weird older guy stalking you, older women looking for a gritty storyline or for men thinking of new ways to pursue young women?
I am not disgusted of it because of the content (I'm nearly 30 and have watched/read things far worse), I am disgusted because it is so popular. I just can't see the interest. Everything from the capital letters at the start of important sentences to the fact that Christian Grey is just a sex addict and rarely thinks of anything else. Why have people been reading this?
The problem is, personally as a women, I either want a romantic story with a bit of lust or sex in it or I want a piece that has bits of unexpected sex scenes that rial the senses. I would have more thrills having some Hotel Chocolat's than reading this - at least I would get pleasure from that!
I have to say with the likes of some of my favourite programs on box set (including Mad Men, Smallville, Tudors and in general anything made by HBO), I just can't wait to put this book down and get into some real drama. To think I put this book first in front of a queue of books by great authors - how disappointing!
I won't be reading the next two (it has been a waste of time reading the first) and I can't wait to hand this Fifty Shades of Bollocks back.
Blog title is from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzfo4txaQJA
Isn't it weird how important things in your life just seem to change over time. My boyfriend and I have been together nearly 7 years and when we first got together the excitement of jumping each others bones (yeah, I'm being dirty, lol) was thrilling and frequent. Now it is still very enjoyable, but different (in a good way, as in you know the person really well and your more comfortable with them than when you first dated) and not that often.
Now there is no one to blame about this apart from ourselves. Like many of us, work has taken over our lives and everything else seems to have taken a back seat - something I am not happy about and want to change!
First problem is definitely the fact that we live in London. London may have everything you need and be open 24 hours, but that is the exact reason it is a problem - we work in an industry where people want to be entertained all the time. Due to both of us working in the Arts, we do not work regular hours and our shifts can go from 7am to past midnight (any day of the week). And this is without the crazy travel we do (I had a job recently where I had to go to Wembley and one way it took over 2 hrs to get there : s) It's hard enough spending time together just to see each other, let alone anything else.
Second problem is our actual jobs. We both have times when we get told the day before that we have to do an extra shift or day and have to change our plans. Most the time we work around it, but it is still annoying - I have missed weddings, birthdays, Christmas parties etc for this : (
The thing is, even when we want to do "stuff" we are tired and so it's best not to do anything than it be rubbish and leave it to another day - sometimes I also feel flirty but not dirty and that's cack too. It's so complicated!
My boyfriend and I were talking about "the future" (that scary adult talk that occurs around this age) and he was talking about having children. Now, he's a little younger than me (by a year or so), which is good, because when I actually became an adult (not 18 when you can drink and think your grown up), I realised I wanted some kind of career before children and that it would take a few more years for him to want any. But there's a few other things asides from career I want before this: at least once where we get to go on a mini travelling expedition (a couple of months will do, to learn how to drive (yes, I'm a loser - actually no, I live in London, why drive, it's too expensive) to have more fun sex before it becomes "planned" sex (lol) and a signed agreement that the babies we have don't turn my tight special place into a cave - sounds wrong, but I'm currently happy with it down there, lol. The thing is, he is now interested in having kids in the next couple of years and I don't know if it is cos I am getting older, he is or both of us are. I didn't really think that guys worried about getting too old for kids, until I read the article "Hear that? It's my boyological clock ticking!" in Glamour.
Russell Kane wrote a rather interesting piece about wanting kids but having not met the right women yet. He suggests that men have a boyological clock, it's just in their brains rather than in their organs and that they like the idea of being an active young dad, than a tottering middle aged man. The thing is, he suggests, that most men don't realise until they are already past they're ideal age and it's too late.
I have to say, if this is the case, I'll have to start taking my fella more seriously. I do want kids but the moment has to be right - after all I'm the one with 9 possible months of agony and then a kid for life. You can't just say yes on a whim!
I do know that although I am career minded, I have my mother's nature for wanting kids and have become a bit broody at times (cute little girls at wedding, the young dads dancing round with their tiny sons, a baby's laugh - there is just something about it that I want). However, first he better put a ring on it (power to Beyonce) and then I will reconsider in time. I'm not even 30 yet, there's time and much more fun to be had first : )
Blog title comes from the one and only, cheesily good, STEPS: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QnN3YATAe7o
I actually saw them live recently at one of their reunion shows and here's one of the pics : )
It's the Sunday morning after another wedding reception. It's been quite good this year as all the weddings we've been to have been for people we are close to, so we've known lots of people and have been so happy to be at their big day. But it does start to put the pressure on with your own relationsship and the fact that we're getting older.
My boyfriend and I now go to about 3 weddings a year (this ones a super year and we are actually going to five - we work in Theatre and have a lot of mates outside of the industry, so someone's always celebrating something). At one point I was sick of hearing about weddings and feeling that I should care. Not because I am a horrible person but because it was always the topic of conversation and always came back to when we were getting married, when we weren't ready and couldn't afford it (we still can't but that doesn't bother me too much at the mo).
Luckily, as I said before, we started going to more weddings for people closer to us and although "wedding" was becoming my least favourite word, at least it was finally seeing close mates truely happy.
Before my guy rolled out of bed this morning, I decided to read my current copy of Glamour (still reading it at the moment, lol - connected with a previous blog). There was a really interesting article called "He's 29? Run!", which talked about this new form of early mid-life crisis that guys (especially from the 80s babyboom) are having between the ages of 25 and 35 (funny enough, I think my brother started his about a year ago and is still having it) but mainly occurs on the lead up to the big 30.
Through reading the article and through personal experience, it seems that women do a similar thing but generally a lot more internally and only discuss with friends when the question is broached. As for the guys in this article, they seem to have made brash decisions and decide to change the whole of their life to deal with the worry of getting old - asides from the guy that had realised he was gay and hadn't told his girlfriend (that was just unfair on both the girlfriend and himself|).
The thing is because men and women's minds work so differently, it is difficult at times to communicate and understand the differences and similarities between the mental states we go through in our lives. I really like reading articles like this which help to break down those barriers and sometimes allow you to have conversations with your own mates/boyfriends that you wouldn't have discussed before.
I am 30 in less than 2 months and I feel the inner pressure going on in my head. I know that day will be no different to any other, yet it seems like such a difficult milestone to past. And no, I am not going to give up everything and go to the other side of the world, but there is the thing in my mind that I have not achieved in the way I should have. There is nothing I can do about it apart from carrying on working hard and still striving for the things I have always wanted. At the moment for me this is: a happy home, a happy relationship, having and keeping my amazing friends and a job that excites me and makes me want to be there each day - it sounds like a lot but I know it's achievable! (I also want to state that I have had all of these, but it is hard to have them all at the same time).
I have read another male article that interests me to do with kids, but I will blog this tomorrow - don't want to overfill anyone's heads on a Sunday.
Today's blog title is based on: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4JhvGLjgqY&feature=related
Does anyone remember the big event that happened in London a few weeks back. Yeah, the Olympics! Well, actually I don't. I was working in Oxford over that period with no TV, so the only thing I saw was the opening ceremony before I left and the closing ceremony (because we managed to get a live link on our computer at work).
I have to say, I wasn't that bothered about the Olympics. We had had all the hype for years, were told about the awful transport we would have in London and I was just desperate to be away from home for it. Unfortunately, when it came to it, it wasn't as crazy as they had expected and I've probably missed out on something cool.
However, asides from that, I was looking forward to being back for the Paralympics.
First of all, channel 4 should be congratulated on not only broadcasting the event but on their amazing advertising: They truly built the lead up from the Olympics to the Paralympics with their adverts alone.
Secondly (but not less importantly), everyone involved and participating in the Paralympics should be congratulated. This is one of the first times that the sporting event has been noticed in the way it should be and I can tell it is already going to be an amazing week and a half of coverage.
I watched the opening ceremony yesterday and it was great to see the likes of Steven Hawkins alongside dance act Orbital, an array of arial acts, the history of science and much more. The evening was innovative, clever and inspiring and really showed us the greatness of the United Kingdom and what we can be. I also love that Beverley knight finished with "I am what I am" whilst everyone else was dancing in the background - great choice!
Today, I have been watching the swimming and having previously been a swimmer as a youngster ( 3-16 years old and my main discipline was speed swimming), I am SO impressed by the competitors. One guy won the backstroke who had no arms and all his power came from doing backward butterfly kicks for 100m and another women with cerebral palsy, mainly used only the power in her arms to win. Watching today really puts life into perspective and makes you realise how many incredible people live and work around us. Everything I have trained for seems nothing against what some of these people must have gone through to get where they are today.
I hope, like me, you will enjoy and support the Paralympics and make the most out of this incredible sporting event that we are lucky enough to host.
My blog title comes from a very fitting song, which is a favourite of mine: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRhq-yO1KN8
