not really an update

Not sure how this is going to go here. Very close to the end of my road with Live Journal. I've coped with LJ for over 5 years but technical issues have been driving me nuts over the last couple of months. I'm trying to post some more photos from Marrakech and it just isn't playing. Here goes.....

Cafe Argana, Tuesday 26 April 2011.

Cafe Argana Sunday 1 May 2011

Snow in Africa April 2011

Some old fellar at the Cascades of Ouzoud

Thankfully "just" the Cascades

Success!

Can't believe it's nearly a week since we got back from Marrakech. I thought a second visit in 8 months would be enough but in truth if Shamila shows the slightest interest in going back it would be rude not to join her. I went this time specifically to indulge in some of the all inclusive fayre and activities at The Riu Tikada Palmeraie I felt I missed out on last time. Alas, thanks to the hard to believe inclement weather (only 2 sunny days) and to my stomach teetering on the edge for most of the holiday, it didn't go according to plan. However, in spite of that and the terrorist attack 3 miles from our hotel and Osama Bin Laden being taken out while we there leading to loads of security and restrictions around the city we had a great time. I really am rather taken with the country and particularly with the berber people. I can honestly say (and this sounds barmy in view of the terrorist attack) it's difficult to remember a time when I've felt more safe on holiday. Rather than bore you to tears with rhetoric I'll just bore you with my photos if that's ok? First off with the photos of our sporting activities which were largely confined to the first 2 days. In addition to Darts, Table Tennis and Water Polo (Chris only) we also played Volleyball (a personal success if I say so myself) and 5-A-Side Football(I was a dismal failure).

Chris looking as athletic as it is possible to look playing darts balancing on one leg.

Not a pretty sight, I agree but courtesy of my pre-Holiday abstinence I suspect that's as good as I'm ever going to look from now on in!

Chris playing water polo. Too dangerous for me.

If formula 1 is a sport I don't see why playing on a toy motorbike isn't.

Ditto.

The clouds in the background say it all. Our last dry day.

Will try and post some more tomorrow night though not necessarily on LJ. Loads of technical problems again. Time might be tight mind, going to see Frank Turner at The Arc.

Some experience! Probably not the best time for me and my son to find ourselves on holiday in a muslim country full of Western tourists, what with a terrorist bomb going off about 3 miles from where we were staying and Gaddafi's son and grandchildren and then Osama Bin Laden being killed. The weather was mostly crap (one of tour guides said it's warmer in December) and I've come back feeling extremely unwell again.

All that said we really did have a very good time and I think Chris got a lot out of it which is particularly gratifying for me.

Will do a few posts about the holiday and reply to comments over next couple of days but I'm not really up to much at the moment.

So lent is over and I can return to eating chocolate, sweets, biscuits and cakes. Had a bit of chocolate after my lunch and frankly feel sick. I can't help but feel I'll be better off if it continues to make me feel sick forcing me to pack it in altogether although I suspect it won't be long before I am psychologically addicted again.

Had a busy week walking. Last Sunday, 2 circular walks around Clay Bank, total 11 miles. On Wednesday we had a charge up and down the River Tees, 9 miles and on Good Friday we got the bus from Billing to Hartlepool and walked back via Seaton Carew, Greatham and Cowpen Bewley - 10 miles. So that was 30 miles in 6 days - really tough going.

Shamila and I are taking a vey welcome break for a couple of weeks from our walks by which time the AV referendum will have been and gone. I honestly thought voting for AV was a no brainer but if I was a betting man (which I am) I suspect the country will inexplicably vote no.

At long last  Nick Clegg joined the debate today and made a welcome observation that the only parties against it are the Conservatives, the BNP and the Communists, although as we know there are over 200 Labour politicians who are inexplicably going to vote with the Tories. Hang your fucking heads in shame!

So where to Nasty Nick after the referendum? Big Brother? Pantomime?

Win or lose I think co-olition is done for. I don't necessarily prescribe to this theory that Clegg should burn in hell forever for getting into bed with Cam but once the referendum is over he may ponder if the ends really do justify the means. You can see how pathetic think the Tories think he is by the way the Vote No Campaign is ridiculing him for going back on his pre-election promises.

I leave my final word on AV (on my blog anyway) to the Mad Cow herself. Bizarrely it is clearly meant to support the No campaign!



Wasn't she bloody hilarious!

Was going to do a proper post tonight but I ended up trawling through 3 years blog posts (2006 to 2008)looking for a particular piece that took me pretty much all night. Found it though.

Mind you, if I might say so myself didn't Goffa's Place used to be fun? Please indulge me and have a look at say 5 random posts from 2006. I might do a Top Of The Pops and just re-run them. I think I'll start running the 2006 posts in 2012 so it will be 2017 when you read this again.

Seriously though, it makes me wonder why I still bother. My mojo's long gone.

Actually this is just a forced post so that I can put a song on Facebook with a tenuous religious link.

Shamila got a leaflet through the door form the Vote No Campaign. It just looks like one of those Vote Conservative pre election posters, you know the one that said "The NHS Is Safe In Our Hands". I'm convinced the Tories are behind this leaflet. It says the cost of AV will be £250m and this money could employ 2503 doctors, 6297 teachers, 8107 nurses, 35885 hip replacements or 69832 school places.

It says AV leads to broken promises pointing to Clegg of course. Job cuts, VAT increase, tuition fees and public spending cuts. "The only vote that would count under AV would be Nick Clegg's".

Apparently only 3 countries in the world use AV. Fiji, Australia and Papua New Guinea and none of them like it. Supposedly 6 out of 10 people want to return to the UK system.

I had a look on their web-site and the sporting stars that support the campaign including motor racing multi-millionaire bosses and former boss Frank Williams, Ron Dennis and Eddie Jordon and Olympic oarsmen James Cracknell, Alex Story (who) and Martin Cross (who). They've also got a couple of horse racing people with double barrell names and cuddly ex-England cricketer, Hole in The Wall captain and Tory Boy, Darren Gough.

There's a bit of a pattern here, I'm sure you will agree. The Tories want us to vote no, multi-millionaires want us to vote no, over 200 Labour MPs (including the MP for Middlesbrough) and Peers are all so keen for us to vote no. Why? Do they think we've had good quality governments and been represented by accountable politicians since 1979 (all my voting life)?

Is this the best they can do?

Busy day - Out walking around North York Moors from about 10AM to 4PM. Really tough, apparently the total climb was about 5000ft (for non-walkers that's quite a lot). It was a warm day - boy I'm going to have a red face at work tomorrow! Came home had a bath to try and ease my aching muscles, tea and then watched the end of The Sound It Out DVD.

I really could go on about all the best bits and why it is so brilliant but there are enough reviews out there. It is sad, poignant, uplifting and joyful all at the same time and whilst it focuses on negative aspects of Teesside life it is never cliched. Other than say once again that you must see this film (not just Teessiders by the way) I'll stop going on.

Mind it's being good for me as well because I've had more people visiting my blog over the last 2 days than ever before. Maybe I'm getting the hang of linking my FB page to Goffa's Place but more likely because this time I posted a link on Andy X's wall by way of thanking him for his photo (see last night's post).

Actually my viewing figures have been up quite a bit the last few weeks so I guess a few of the people that read my Bandstand and Drop posts are returning from time to time.

Thank you very much although as you may have gathered if you've been tuning in for even a couple of weeks I cannot promise any consistency in subject matter or the quality of my posts.

On a different subject did you realise it's Palm today which means next Sunday is Easter Sunday? Late this year eh? I've just had a bit of good news actually. I gave up chocolate, sweets, cakes and biscuits for lent and it's been tough, as of course as it should be. Anyway, I always thought lent ended on Easter Sunday but apparently not, so because I'm a Western Christian I only have to go until Saturday. It would have been even better if I'd been an Eastern Christian because for them lent finishes on Good Friday. A bit of an odd one but hey ho, I didn't make up the rules.

Did anybody notice that until yesterday's Piranhas song for Record Store Day my last 4 youtube links on FB had all been political songs/vids? From today until Easter Sunday all my FB youtube links are going to religiously significant. Today's song is one of my favourite reggae songs of all time, Never Get Burn by The Twinkle Brothers, and for you heathens that don't know about the connection, see Daniel 3:19-27.

Off to moisturise my face again.