Boris bikes

I didn't vote for Boris and I never will but I was all excited about his cycle hire scheme. And today I actually used one of them. And it was great. My morning journey threatened to turn into a bit of a farce when I couldn't find a docking space. I had to go to three ranks before I did and ended up walking slightly further back to my office than makes sense of hiring a cycle in the first place. Still, it all took under 30 minutes so was free anyway. Looking up my homeward journey on my activity log reveals that the usual twenty minute slog has been transformed into a mere seven minute breeze on the bike. What will I do with all the extra time?

Llareggub

When it all gets too much (any day now) the plan is to head for the hills. In Wales. And live in a house in the ground. And listen to the Incredible String Band. Years ago I was intrigued by a fleeting reference to them somewhere which just said that they were very different. I don't really know that much about them - I recently read White Bicycles. A good read but not massively detailed. The Incredible String Band feature and the basics are: they're Scottish, their girlfriends were a bit of a pain, they got into Scientology. I feel sorry for Scientologist celebrities - the amount of stick they get. Is it any more ridiculous than any other, bigger religion? Shadowy leader, ridiculed followers - it wouldn't surprise me if in a thousand years' time it's become the official Earth religion. Still, I admit it was a bit of a bummer to hear that Beck was a believer.

Anyway, shortly after my curiousity had been piqued I was rooting around in a cave-like bric a brac shop in Bowness (since closed) and I found a copy of "The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter". Like a lot of folk music (at least the stuff I like) it's got a bit of a chilly sound but that doesn't stop it sending me off to a happier place. Maybe it's a childhood thing - all the music in Bagpuss is cold, cold folk. It's something in the production I think. I remember reading in his autobiography that Oliver Postgate would run off to Wales from time to time as well.

This track is actually from "The Big Huge" and is quite crackly (still working on the anti-donk and crackle software). More bands should have harps in their songs.

The Incredible String Band:The Circle Is Unbroken