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Manu Chao

Went to see Manu Chao last night in Brixton. One of the first nights out with Kaz was Manu Chao at Shepherds Bush almost exactly 6 years ago. That night the crowd was full of Spanish, French and Latin Americans and not many Brits. The place smelled like a dope dealer's convention. Things have changed a bit in the last 6 years; his audience (in this country at least) has become a lot bigger, whiter, British and middle class. Also gone with the smoking ban is the smell. Not quite the same.

Manu put on a good show. A shame that getting a drink at Brixton Academy is such a chore (three bar staff serving about 1000 people!) and it's not really helpful closing the Victoria line at 10:30. Still, a good gig.

Purple Rain

We went to see Prince on Friday at the 20,000 capacity o2 arena, which is bigger than most places we go to concerts at by about 19,750 people. A strange show with bits of brilliance rather marred by a lack of momentum and lacklustre ending. Good dancers though.

People We Love #1

Went to see Howe Gelb again last night. We love Howe, the man is just a genius. I like this video because last night he was saying how he never gets the chance to write songs anymore because he is in a generational sandwich with his children and his parents living with him, so his time between interruptions has gone down from 12 minutes to 9 minutes. Judging from this video, 9 minutes is a bit optimistic....

Coincidence?

Is it just a coincidence that England start playing much better as soon as Frank Lampard doesn't play?

Bobby Byrd RIP

Sad news that Bobby Byrd has died. Known mainly for his work with James Brown, but also this great record. He was also the man that did most of the vocals on Sex Machine. Some legacy.

Lynda LaPlante

I can't say I was ever a huge Lynda LaPlante fan, but after listening to the overtly racist, offensive trash that was coming out of her mouth on the radio today, I'll make sure I give anything else she is connected with a wide berth. You can listen to a quite extraordinary piece of radio by clicking here and listening to Robert Elms' Monday show.

Middle of the road

It's a Swissgrace

That the Swiss ruling party is using this poster for campaigning is a disgrace. The fact that the Swiss people let them get away with it and the fact they have even increased their lead in the polls since it has come out is even more of a disgrace. The Indy had an article on its front page yesterday asking if Switzerland is now the heart Europe's heart of darkness. On CNN they interviewed a young black guy in Geneva and he said it came as no surprise that they were using blatantly racist campaigning, but he was surprised by how blatant they were about it.

In my last job I worked with a lot of Swiss people and found the vast majority of them very materialistic, arrogant, racist and not very happy. What a horrible country.

Majestic lion

We saw this lion at Chessington. It was really interesting watching him feed. A zookeeper hid meat around the lion's enclosure and then let him out to "go hunt". We were told it's the way the zoo endeavour to keep the lion as active as possible and to mimic life in the wild as well as they can in the circumstances. It was truly fascinating to see the lion at work; we've never been on safari! Si and I agreed that the animals at Chessington look well looked after and certain healthier than other animals we have seen in captivity. This grand ol' master has got some mating coming his way as there is a serious shortage of his breed and apparently he's of "very good stock", if your a lady lion and so inclined.

Chessington rocks!

We went to Chessington yesterday and can't recommend it highly enough for a family day out. We were lucky to pick our day, as it was pretty much empty (post schools going back) and it was great to keep going around on your favourite rides without queuing at all! No queues =very happy Pacuare People. The Log Flume was a huge hit for our fearless 4 year old. The combination of zoo and rides is a great one and the park is really well landscaped for a place of its genre. The sun shone and the 4 of us had such a super time. We'd be pretty lucky to replicate the "no crowds and lots of sun" formula again, but we'd highly recommend the place for a fun day out. Top tip: get vouchers for entrance tickets, it is expensive, but aren't all these places.

T's "favourite things" cake

This is my version of the Power Ranger cake, but I put Scooby Doo on there too, the dapper dog is also a Pacuare juniors' fav. I went for a double choc victoria sponge cake in the end with some cardboard Power Ranger cut outs; the selotape and cocktail stick solution proved a goody.

I was asked the other day how you make a Vicky sponge cake - my nana always says 3 eggs, 6oz self raising flour, 6oz sugar and 6oz marg/ butter. If you want chocolate you add some cocoa powder and reduce the flour. The easy way to remember is: pick your number of eggs ( 3 0r 4 will do for standard vicky sandwich tins) and then put double the amount, in ounces, of all other ingredients, with slight adjustment for chocolate. Two tins and an oven at around 175/180 degrees F. 25-30 mins and there you go. Your canvas is prepared for all sorts of decor experiments.

Cake expectations

I am just trying to get my head around how I can rustle up one of these in a jiffy. And also, just how much damage all that red coluring could do to a party of 3 and 4 year olds. It's a shame T does not have an obsession with car wheels or anything else that is round and victoria sponge tin-like. I sense the solution could involve cocktail sticks, selotape, the internet and a printer - stay tuned for the 3D Power Ranger cake creation.

Power Ranger world

We are currently riding the crest of a Power Ranger wave, read obsession! It seems to me they are like Transformers (which apparently are also all the rage again), but can move faster and don't run the risk of turning into a car or plane at an inappropriate moment. Great outfits too! Also, it's very important, I am told, to remember they are called Power Rangers Mystic Force, so as not to be confused with any other Power Rangers you may bump into.

Google Earth Flight Simulator

Tried my hand at the flight simulator on Google Earth, hoping to land on our house, but unfortunately didn't get very far out of Heathrow before crashing. Would have made a lousy pilot.

Coffee

I really like this guide to what makes up your coffe done by Lokesh Dhakar

The wisdom of Miss Teen USA

Please just go....now!

What is it with Tim Henman? As if boring the country to death with his gallant losing for as long as I can remember isn't enough, he has to stretch out his retirement forever.

Not content with just announcing his retirement, he had to announce on Monday that he is going to announce his retirement soon, thus ensuring even more publicity. And he hasn't even retired yet, he's going to play more tennis and then retire! He's stretching his retirement out even longer than one of his defeats.

Saints Fan Of The Season (so far)

The bald bloke in the picture is called Snowey. He follows Saints everywhere. On Saturday he was ejected from the ground by some over-zealous Norwich steward. Snowey says he didn't do anything to justify being chucked out of the ground. Anyway, didn't matter, two minutes later he was in his hotel room in the Holiday Inn next door watching the game. Rather pathetically, he has now been banned from the Holiday Inn!

According to Snowey:
"For the record I was asked to leave the ground for allegedly telling a steward to F off. Very surprising as I had not had any conversation with the steward in question until he and his support came to ask me to leave. I had spent most of the match sat down but was standing at the time of their request for me to leave. The chap next to me was standing as were several hundred other Saints fans but nothing was said to either he nor they! The steward had singled me out for attention for no apparent reason at all and was oblivious to all of the other fans around me at the time who were protesting my innocence.On arriving at the window I did wave my Saints shirt to attract the attention of my friends and show that I was OK but the reports of me shouting and singing are totally incorrect as anybody who was in the ground will testify. There were no 'hotel rules or regulations' regarding the wearing of football shirts of not wearing a shirt or opening of windows. To be accused of behaviour likely to incite a riot are ludicrous and a gross exaggeration of the situation.At the time I was fuming at being asked to leave but kept my head as I knew that if I had kicked off, I would have been arrested and ejected. If that had happened then a report would have been made back to SFC and I could well have faced a lifetime ban. Those of you who know me know how devastating that would be, and for what, some jumped up little prat saying that I had sworn at him. A bit harsh don't you think? If it had been the likes of Man U or MIllwall or Cardiff, to name but a few, the stewards wouldn't be so eager to go into the crowd to throw innocent fans out. I sincerely hope that SFC don't latch onto this incident and withdraw my season ticket as a result of this incident."

The BBC report of Snowey is here. Top man!

Go Go Go

Nothing like some hot chilli salsa and lunchtime drinking to fuel some whacky races. Contrary to appearances they hadn't eaten one hot chilli too many! West Dean is a truly beautiful spot in the West Sussex countryside, with plenty of grounds to explore when the chillies and crowds get too much. A real find of a day out if you enjoy outdoor space and tasty treats.

Hot Hot Hot

Had a great day at the Chilli Festival on Saturday at the lovely West Dean Gardens. The sun shone and lots of hot sauces, chutneys and general condiments were duly acquired.

Dear oh dear

The season couldn't have got off to a much worse start. But here are some thoughts:
1. It's going to be a long hard season for Saints.
2. It can be turned around, but we need to buy some decent defenders now.
3. Jens Lehman's comedy goalkeeping was great.
4. I think QPR will be dark horses in the Championship this year and could well end up in the play-offs.
5. Newcastle will do well under Big Sam (top 6 at least) and Bolton will go down under Little Sam.

Clarkie Case Notes 4 - Argentinian TWS

Argentina was our host nation for what was a great night of wine tasting and conversation. Wines tasted, with brief notes and team score, as follows:

1. Banderas de La Tierra; Chardonnay 2005; label said: ripe tropical fruit salad flavours and vanilla notes; we said: citrus-y, thick and smooth, wants to be a red wine, very new world (blended by an Ozzie winemaker); £5.99; 7/10
   
2. Norton; Barbera 2006; label said: deep colour, rich aromas and flavours; we said: short on tannin, easy drinking, food wine; £5.99; 6.5/10
   
3. Tupungato 2006; Cabernet Sauvignon & Malbec; label said: luscious blackberry fruit and soft silky tannings; we said: drinkable and rich; £6.99; 6.3/10


4. Finca Flichman; Malbec 2006; label said: plums and strawberries; we said: not very much, and gave this £4.99 bottle a team score of 6/10
   

Winner of the night was the Banderas de La Tierra Chardonnay. Quite a turn up for a white wine to win the night's 1st place - but it suited a wonderful Summer evening very well indeed!

COYR

I think through comedy glasses will be the best way to view this season for Saints fans. Selling all your best players and buying nobody is hardly the recipe for success. I'm tired of all the behind the scenes wrangling, and I'm sick of the club seemingly being run by a bunch of muppets. When Lowe went I really felt it was a new dawn, but it only turned out to be a false dawn. Anyway, if Kenwyne doesn't go to Derby, I think we've still got the best forwards in The Championship and I'll support them through thick and thin. COME ON YOU REDS....

Skilts Website

Our friend Rich has his new kilt website up and running. Lots of photos of Rich in "Skilts" and some interesting style ideas for men who want to embrace the Skilt logo "Be Your Own Man". Well worth a visit, if only out of interest. Prepare to be surprised by the clothing's versatility.

Scrap

From the Guardian's YouTube round-up, the number 11 is great; he wants to retaliate but knows he's just not big enough.

Bye Bye

The Ozzies flew home today. We really enjoyed our time spent with them and T loved getting to know his cousins from down under. Despite the best efforts of the weather we also have some fabulous outdoor memories too. And I'm happy to report the English contingent faired pretty well in beach cricket ...

Haystacks and Camp Fires

Haystacks, paddling in the sea and running through fields made for a great first family camping trip. Evenings of barbies, camp fires and amazing sunsets made us feel that the halcyon days of Summer had returned for good. New friends made and a brilliant time enjoyed by all of us here at Pacuare People. The folks at Eweleaze have all the ingredients and know how to create the setting for a fabulous camping adventure. It's a very special place on a beautiful part of the South Coast. Since our return it seems haystacks are now cooler than bouncy castles in the eyes of one particular 3.5 year old.

Camping

Back from a great camping trip at Eweleze Farm. It was T and F's first taste of camping and thankfully they loved it, with perfect weather helping. The campsite is in an amazing location. It has very simple facilities, but is very uncrowded and perfect for families.

Rain stops Shakespeare, in the heat of our Summer?!?!

I took my mum to see "The Lord Chamberlain's Men" perform Romeo & Juliet at Wisley Garden's last night. They were really very good ... as much as we saw of them. The rain came down and the play was abandoned. Steely British spirit abounded, as did some serious amounts of alcohol (plenty of people were determined to have a very jolly night, alas I was driving!). Everyone seemed to have a really fun time which was almost as refreshing to experience as the rain. A very sparky teenager made the observation "Oh well, at least we're not up to our necks in sewage", a very good point well made! The outdoor events at Wisley are really worthwhile. I went to see the Music of Dirty Dancing with some friends a couple of months back and that was really fun (and dry and sunny) ...

Tug of (Dads') War

WOW! The guys at T & F's Sports' Day only had to be asked once to stand up, ripple their muscles and take their sides in the annual battle of testosterone. It's certainly a proven highlight for the dads. This year Si held back and chose his team wisely, and tried very hard not to make it look too obvious that he'd sided with the big blokes! Seriously though, much more hunger for the Dads' Tug of War title than the mums' egg and spoon race. No one could steal the glory from the kiddywinks though, all the children at the school looked to have a great time. The kiddies are still of the, "it's the taking part" frame of mind; apart from the big kids answering to the name of dad! I should add that this photo was not posed, the "bigger dads" just instinctively tried to intimidate the other team.

Sports Day

The big sporting event of the summer (for T and F anyway) took place yesterday. Freya did well in her sprint, but was hampered by being the youngest in her class and she has only been walking a few weeks, so her running is not quite there yet.

Thurston did well in his relays, but his team mates let him down. A poor start and the other athletes cutting him up did for him in the solo sprint, but there's always next year.

One consolation is that I won the Tug of War after making sure I was on the same side as all the fat dads.

Skittles Ad

Love this ad.........

Ski Iran

Very interesting article in this month's Outside about skiing in Iran. The skiing there is very good, with a long season and good snow. The old regime used to be very into skiing, but after they were overthrown in 1979, the investment has virtually ground to a halt. Since 1979 skiing has been seen as too Western, but the current regime just about tolerates it. Dizin is the main resort and the rich young folk from Tehran like to go there to let their hair down and apartments there go for about $250,000. For the women it is a place where they seem to get away with wearing make-up without fear of being beheaded.

On the above piste map, the first legend is for a mosque - very handy when skiing! Apart from the decrepit lift system, another downside of skiing in Iran is the lack of any real apres ski. The only drink you seem to be able to get in any of the resorts is tea.....

Broad beans can be exciting

Another vegetable that has successfully cropped in Si's veggy patch are the broad beans. Over the last 3 years we have found some exciting things to do with this much derided bean, really, and certainly a little imagination and effort can reap great rewards. Si has started lightly boiling them and then frying them up with some chorizo sausage to make a delicious appetiser. I'm not a sherry drinker but Si reckons sherry a perfect accompaniment. A real quick, easy, tapas style snack. They're also great in a cold salad with peas, mint and lemon. Whatever you do with them, avoid the larger leathery ones, or if you can't, then boil them up, food process them and stir in lots of garlic, chilli, olive oil and lemon. You should end up with a nice dip for crisps in the garden - if the sun ever comes out again!

10 days in yellow, and gone!

Rasmusson has been sacked by his Rabobank team. It may be the tip of a huge iceberg, but at least the wave against cheating and/or not taking testing seriously, seems to be gaining momentum. Si's predictions are proving scarily correct too ..... scarily because he did not have even the smallest flutter!

How gutted must Wiggins be?

His team "mate", Cristian Moreni, has failed a drugs test too, and that's the end of Wiggins' tour as well. The story is here. It's great that they are catching the cheats, or two of them, but how do these guys have the arrogance/ stupidity to believe they are beyond being caught - because they've got away with it for so long???

Beetroot-tastic

Si has grown some beetroot this year and they taste amazing. We only ever cook one beetroot recipe which involves roasting them for an hour, sauteing with garlic and adding single cream. Served with pasta and grated Parmesan/ Gruyere it's a delicious, shocking pink treat. And something Si cooks better than me, along with his fantastic curries. I have been looking for some more interesting things to do with beetroot before the rest of ours get drowned and there is a whole cheery website dedicated to the shocking pink veggies. It looks like the creators have done a funky, fact full site for celery too; no use to us but maybe to someone out there.

Bye Bye Vinokourov - and good riddance!

"Tour director Christian Prudhomme says professional cycling needs a complete overhaul in the wake of the latest drugs scandal to rock the sport." Full story here.

Mr Prudhomme seems to be saying the right things: "The re-conquering of cycling has to be done with the Tour de France". Let's hope talk of an overhaul leads to action.

New Forest

Had a really great time down in Bournemouth. Forest on Saturday, beach on Sunday.

Action shot from weekend...

... or audition for Karate Kid XII?

Greg, she made it! As did the boys.

Scary sky: 3pm; 21st July 2007

The New Forest rocks; even in the rain when it's supposed to be the height of our Summer.

Big bikes and alleged cheats

Perhaps the Tour de France guys need to be issued with a silly bike and an extra passenger. If the leaders keep fueling doping suspicions and open themselves up to accusations of cheating, then the organisers may as well just turn it into a fancy dress/ silly bike competition. Such a shame that a great event can't prove itself clean, and that some of the big name cyclists can't even turn up for doping tests when they know how crucial it is to the Tour that it regains credibility. ALL riders should be behind restoring confidence in this great event and stop making excuses. How can someone, specifically Michael Rasmussen, be banned from representing his country in the Olympics but be deemed clean enough for the Tour; the organisers need to get tougher too.

Mooooo!

How to survive the floods

Stupid photo, but I quite like it. Any cycling photo........

Clarkie Case Notes 3

Plantagenet, Hazard Hill, Shiraz 2004 - Western Australia. I have to agree with the writing on the label: generous fruit flavour; versatiliy and definite drinkability. The liquorice and blackberry flavour were all there to taste. Given it's July 2007 and the wine is labeled up as 2004 it tasted, as advised, like we were sensibly enjoying it while it (or us?!) were still "young and fresh". A professional's tasting notes are here.

I need new jeans

I love the way they promise that if Chuck's jeans ever wear out, you can get the next pair for half price, confident in the knowledge that they would still be selling Chuck's jeans in 20 year's time.......

Holiday books

Chalk and cheese but William Boyd's "Any Human Heart", and Victoria Hislop's "The Island" both proved a great read. I found The Island a bit disappointing for the first 20 pages, but then I got drawn in and really ploughed through it. Also, it's set in the Elounda area of NW Crete, where we have enjoyed a family holiday, so it was nice to have some personal knowledge of the the area and to have actually visited the island of the title, "Spinalonga". It's a really touching story and full of emotion. "Any Human Heart " is really compelling. Apparently Boyd's focus is on writing books for men, and part of why I found the book so interesting, as a girl, was the way emotional and physical incidents are described and assessed from a male perspective; I think it's brilliantly written.

Some holiday tunes

Now that the sun seems to be shining a bit more it seems right to share some holiday tunes from last week. Si introduced Pacuare People to "Romantica" a couple of months back and two of their songs, The Gulf of Mexico and The National Side proved to be great for sunny (and rainy) holiday driving. You have to listen more than a few times to catch the words, or you can just sing or tap your feet along as you please!

A Dog's Life

When I used to live in France I rode my bike to work and there used to be horrible dogs on the way. It seems even the best suffer though. What gets me is that they are able to ride at great speed with only inches between their wheels and then a dog comes out in front and they don't seem to know what to do. Amazing that the bike was mangled and the dog just walks away. Surely that hurt??? Also, don't know what language the commentary is in, but love it when he goes "and smack!"

Stevie scarpers

Following on from Si's entry - what was Gerrard doing throwing around leaflets? Going to hassle Putin seems a strange choice of hoilday for a newly married Liverpool player. Looks here like the man with the big eyes scared him back to Scouser-land pretty quick. Note to SG's lawyers: I realise that is NOT Gerrard with the BIG EYEd man but wow, has he got a twin?

The Man With The BIG EYES

You may have seen the story of the man with the big eyes going around recently. Basically, a very brave, or stupid man stormed into a Vladimir Putin press conference and started throwing leaflets around. Putin handled it very well, probably safe in the knowledge that the man would be taken out back and shot as soon as the conference was over. He told the man to give him a leaflet and then to sit down. As the man sat down, the camera caught the man with the big eyes, who seems to have captured the imagination of Russia. The full story is here.

Anyway, at first I thought the man must be from the KGB, but then thought he bore quite a resemblance to Karen's Grandad:

Gardeners in kilts

Do the children in Scotland laugh or look away like this when they see a man in a kilt? Or is it just kids "down sarf" that have the early gender-imprint that a man wearing a kilt (read skirt in their eyes) gets what he deserves. Apparently they make very flexible, rugged (and airy?) gardening wear when fashioned in a hard wearing design. Also Rich, our friend with the kilt business, made his first sale of his new stock - hopefully a sign of good things to come at his Sunday morning market stall in Spitalfields (plugplug). Dressing like Mr Incredible, by the way, is totally acceptable at any time of day - that is not a fashion police pixie in the picture.

King Gus

For those of you who know him as we do, you'll know the bear deserved his moment of glory. And why we were prepared to cope with the embarrassment of waiting his turn for him.

Cooler stuff than Nemo

We swapped the queue to find Nemo for a really great stunt show; I now know the trick of driving very fast, around a sharp corner, backwards - but Mr Disney won't let me share. Plus there is so much great stuff to enjoy with your children/ partner/ mates, that it would be a shame to tell rather than let you find out for yourself. If you enjoy crowds as much as we don't then definitely work around mainstream holidays - you then get to see Minnie Mouse this close!

Clarkie Case Notes 2

Glenhurst 2004 Cab Sav Syrah, South Africa. Originating in the Stellenbosch wine region. Delicious wine for food and apparently better with cellaring. Very rich, velvety taste with chocolate and strong berry flavours. If you don't like heavy wines then this would not be one for you. We thought it would go well with strong cheeses, but we did not have any to trial that thought with. We had some great wines in France last week, and some may appear as Clarkie Case Notes inthe near future, but there really are some great South African wines available at reasonable (less than £6) prices. Our £1 French bargains yet to be reviewed. Glenhurst 2004 is available from TWOS.

The Holiday Spectrum

From beautiful, peaceful bolt hole to fun filled, all a go, incredibly fun Disneyland. A great time had in both destinations; though I'd bet my lucky Disney Dust that the bolt hole will see more of us over the coming years. Top Tip - if you plan to go to DL Paris any time soon -the Finding Nemo ride is about a 110 minutes wait more popular that the Studio Ride so if you are faced, as the doors open, with a 5 minute wait at both, go and find Nemo first. No queues on the river ...