Ok my wonderful friends, bloggers, followers and influencers.....scrap that, influencers aren't welcome, you can go and sell products you don't really believe in but get paid to push by the companies to the mugs who follow you on DikDok , Fakebook, X~aggerate and Instaspam.
We've been very busy bees these past few weeks and we have become culture vultures....well sort of.
The last time you read of us we were in Birmingham to watch Only Fools & Horses, The Musical and since then we've been to the theatre another 3 times!!!! Amazing, i didn't know i had it in me but Sian is definitely more cultural than me, don't tell anyone but Sian used to be part of an Am/Dram group who toured such exotic places as Roath, Lisvane, Rhiwbina and Splott. In all fairness Sian does have an amazing singing voice and she can remember lyrics so easily, HOW? It drives me nuts as i can just about remember the title of a song let alone 4 versus and 4 choruses, mind boggles!
So we start of this journey locally to Utilita Cardiff to see "The War of the Worlds" We've seen it before but with a different cast. I preferred some of the first to the second show and preferred some of the second to the first show.
The Journalists thoughts in the first was the original album version singer Justin Hayward, in the second Charlie Simpson from Busted, Winner ~ Justin Hayward
The Artillery Man in the first was Kevin Clifton the dancer, in the second Rou Reynolds the lead singer of Enter Shikari, Winner ~ Rou Reynolds
The Parson in the first was Duncan James from Blue, in the second Max George from The Wanted, Winner ~ Duncan James
The Parsons Wife in the first was Claire Richards from Steps, in the second Maisie Smith from Eastenders, Winner ~ Claire Richards.
In saying all that it was still a brilliant show and we'd go to see it again no matter who was in the leading roles and that's the first theatre event after the Birmingham Hippodrome.
Don't we look so cool, moody, brooding, wonderful and amazing, we're chocolate, we could just eat ourselves, JOKE!
And it's back to Birmingham for our second theatre event this time its at The Birmingham Rep, The Shark is Broken.
It's basically all about the down time of the 3 main actors when they were on the boat out at sea when Bruce ~ The Shark was breaking down and it broke down allot for days at a time.
It was an absolutely brilliant play, so much so we both wanted to see it again the next night but unfortunately we saw it on the last night in Birmingham and then they were finishing the tour in Dublin, such a shame, i've never been so drawn in by a theatre show before and we've been to a few.
It's all about to start, DUH, DUH!......... DUH, DUH!
We're very good theatre goers, we never film or take pics during the performance but try to get a few pics before and after, here's Sian with the boat, Orca.
The 3 actors were amazing they looked and sounded exactly like the real actors and when Robert Shaw's (Quint in the film) son Ian Shaw does the USS Indianapolis Ship speech it did send a chill down the spine as it was perfect even down to the movements and timing.
Ian Shaw with Richard Dreyfuss
That was Saturday, we literally arrived, threw the bags in to the room, had a few drinks then in to the theatre.
Sunday. More thespian connections.
"Is this a dagger i see before me?" No, it's a statue of William Shakespeare, YES, we're in Stratford Upon Avon, the home of the worlds greatest playwright, William Shakespeare.
Now then folks, sorry to pooh pooh that statement about good old Will being the worlds greatest playwright but i think he's terrible. I have read Merchant of Venice, Much ado about nothing, Midsummer nights dream, Hamlet, Macbeth, Julius Caesar and of course Romeo & Juliet, and yes i can read but these plays are just rubbish nonsense. Now i think the reason why they read that way is because they weren't written as a book, they were written as plays which when you see them on the stage it makes more sense but as a book which you have to read for studies in high school it's ridiculous clap trap of the highest order, burn all the books of his plays and just go the theatre to watch them.
Will the wordsmiths house.
Will the Countdown champ's garden, "Is this duth a garden that thy eye has fallen upon, so how thy heart beats in time with thow winds that blow" , see, utter bunk gobble~de~gook.
Will the barista's coffee shop. "Love bourne ecstasy that is, wilt thou bring us but two cups of the browned juicings of that naughty bean you call coffee", again utter garbage.
Also there is a Beatrix Potter shop in Stratford upon Avon which is bizzare as she never lived there but it was a good shop as Sian could look like Squidly, Squidly wasn't sure when i showed her.
I honestly can't remember the name of this church but it was very impressive and so peaceful inside.
The River Avon which had a food festival on it's banks while we were there and it all smelled amazing.
Really liked all the oldy worldy streets.
"Fe Fi Fo Fum, i am a giant looking at the sun" I'm the height of the door frame. Shame its a short door frame.
And Sian is up to the top of the window frames.
How is this house still standing? How would an estate agent list this? "It needs a little bit of attention. I wouldn't buy any furniture that are on rollers and you may have a problem with drinks and foods that contain liquids" I just noticed the "Police" sign, is this the police station for The Keystone Cops? Look it up kids.
We only came up to Birmingham for 2 days Sat to Mon as we've been there so many times there's not much more for us to see anymore......or is there? YES THERE IS!
After getting back from Stratford upon Avon we had a quick change of clothes and went out to look at a very posh hotel and have a drink in their bar. Now, i can't tell you the name of the hotel as then you would know where we found a secret bar and it wasn't the actual hotels bar. The bar is stunning and played rock music which was perfect. The drinks are a bit more expensive but totally worth it for the comfort and music.
It's the Mafia Mom, "I'm gonna give you a drink you can't refuse"
Quite a few actually.
It was so chilled and the decor was so different.
And that's another Birmingham trip over with for a few months, i think we're back there for another show and Christmas market in November, so roll on November.
Eurovision. It's all a bit of nonsense and we watch it for the nonsense fun songs, not all the serious crap, it's meant to be enjoyable and fun celebration, not political and down beat and don't get us started on the winner, we wanted Tommy Cash to win:
But, it's not about the songs and the acts it's about drinks and SHOTS SHOTS SHOTS SHOTS! It can get quite messy.
Our shot station.
And that's it for this update, just a short one this time as the next one will be a long read due to having 2 vacations back to back. First, Athens & Hydra then we arrive back, wash our holiday clothes, repack and off to Paris to see Imagine Dragons in the Stade de France so lots to write about for you all to fall asleep to.
Oh yes, the first few paragraphs of chapter one of my autobiography that i promised you, i'm a man of my word, enjoy!
A SIMPLE MANS LIFE IN GREECE
Chapter 1 ~ The Welsh Odysseus, The journey begins
Where shall i begin this tale of trials and tribulations, joys and victories.
Unlike Odysseus my journey didn't begin with a physical war before his journey home but with a war of the mind. We need to go back to Cardiff, April 25th 2001, 20 years to the day when i started writing the first words of this story. In fact it was also around this exact same time (Midday) that i was boarding my plane from Gatwick to Majorca, YES Majorca that's where my story of travel and adventure begins.
The previous month i was struggling with a little blip in my life of a minor meltdown, depression? No not really as i had been through a manic depressive episode in 1991 so i knew it wasn't that.
Nervous breakdown? More than likely, mood swings, insomnia, stress, anxiety but no depression. I had been running bars and nightclubs since 1995 and the pressure with hitting targets, dealing with drunken customers, having to answer to clueless ivory tower idiots who have got there by study not by real hard graft from grunt level and endless hours of work was starting to take it's toll.
People don't realise that running a bar or club consumes your life. You go in about 8am ready for the deliveries as your never given a exact time they'll arrive, set up the bar and open for 11am. The bars closed between 11.30pm and 3am if a city centre bar and then you'd leave about 4am only to be up again the next day at 7am and do it all again, a bit like Groundhog day (Great film).
Sure you have a assistant manager, trainee manager and supervisors but the buck stopped with me, can't blame anyone below me if targets aren't met or bar isn't running smoothly. It got to the point that i was sleeping in the bar and not getting home.
I digress, all that is for my full autobiography.
I made an appointment with my GP to see what could be done. I'm not in to taking tablets or drugs of any kind, unless its for my medical research of course so my doctor signed me off from work to take a break and get away.
There is one slight problem, my brain works 100 MPH and my body won't allow myself to rest, what do i do? I know, i'll go abroad and work, that way i have the sun, relaxed lifestyle and still staying busy in mind and body.
In those days the internet was just a fuzzy dial tone with a page change speed of a asthmatic turtle. In fact the Internet at that time was mainly just to find knowledge like a giant online encyclopedia to expand your mental horizon or send emails, how times have changed. Now its for watching brain dead videos or brain dead people doing the slightest thing to try and become an overnight internet sensation.
"The Fur Ball Challenge" "Look at this guy/girl eating his/her own hair and trying to cough up a fur ball like a cat", do you see what i'm getting at, brilliant, absolutely outstanding, Darwin, Sir Issac Newton, Michelangelo and Socrates (The Philosopher not the footballer) would be proud, that's sarcasm for those who didn't know.
No online job search for me so it was a trip to the local job centre and stare at all the white A6 size job cards posted on the walls and there amongst the Till Cashiers and Door to Door sales jobs was a "Jobs Abroad" Section.
This is the beginning of my Odysseus journey.
Which do i choose, Manager/DJ of a Nightclub on Majorca called "Oscars" in the resort of Cala Millor or Cocktail Barman in a bar called "Tropicana" in Argassi on the island of Zakynthos? I'll apply for both.
I sent the emails off as soon as i got home, well, that's once I've waited for 30 mins for my connection access to the World Wide Webb and folks that's where WWW. comes from. All i can do now is wait for a reply if any.
About a week went by and then i received emails from both of the jobs abroad.
I opened the email from Majorca first from a English gent called Simon, he was pleased to offer me the position of Manager/DJ Starting April 28th 2001. YEEEEEES! OK, lets open the second email from Zakynthos. It was from a Finnish lady called Mia, she was pleased to offer me the job of cocktail bar person starting May 5th 2001. Eeeeew, Right! Now what do i do? After taking a little time out of oooooh at least 30 minutes i decided to accept both jobs.
Now i know what your thinking "How can he accept both?". Well one started a week before the other, so if the first job was rubbish i would just leave and fly out to the next, simple! Time to get cracking with the packing.
Now at this point just before i left Sian my now wonderful partner had been my friend for 5 years and was looking to rent a house. What great timing, i needed someone to take over the house i was renting off my sister and a dog sitter for my amazing little border collie girl "Teengy". Sian immediately agreed and with Teengy dog in safe hands and someone to take over the house i was off not knowing that 16 years later our paths would cross once more even though Sian would come out to visit me later that year.
Majorca flight booked, bag packed, passport up to date and i'm ready to go.
Said my goodbyes to my mum, family, friends, Sian and Teengy before leaving with a spring in my step and a positive stride i was off to the coach station.
Coach was on time from Cardiff and not that busy which would help with choice of seats, back 3 seats it is for a nice stretch out and hopefully some sleep, the journey begins.
Unlike Odysseus my journey didn't begin with a physical war before his journey home but with a war of the mind. We need to go back to Cardiff, April 25th 2001, 20 years to the day when i started writing the first words of this story. In fact it was also around this exact same time (Midday) that i was boarding my plane from Gatwick to Majorca, YES Majorca that's where my story of travel and adventure begins.
The previous month i was struggling with a little blip in my life of a minor meltdown, depression? No not really as i had been through a manic depressive episode in 1991 so i knew it wasn't that.
Nervous breakdown? More than likely, mood swings, insomnia, stress, anxiety but no depression. I had been running bars and nightclubs since 1995 and the pressure with hitting targets, dealing with drunken customers, having to answer to clueless ivory tower idiots who have got there by study not by real hard graft from grunt level and endless hours of work was starting to take it's toll.
People don't realise that running a bar or club consumes your life. You go in about 8am ready for the deliveries as your never given a exact time they'll arrive, set up the bar and open for 11am. The bars closed between 11.30pm and 3am if a city centre bar and then you'd leave about 4am only to be up again the next day at 7am and do it all again, a bit like Groundhog day (Great film).
Sure you have a assistant manager, trainee manager and supervisors but the buck stopped with me, can't blame anyone below me if targets aren't met or bar isn't running smoothly. It got to the point that i was sleeping in the bar and not getting home.
I digress, all that is for my full autobiography.
I made an appointment with my GP to see what could be done. I'm not in to taking tablets or drugs of any kind, unless its for my medical research of course so my doctor signed me off from work to take a break and get away.
There is one slight problem, my brain works 100 MPH and my body won't allow myself to rest, what do i do? I know, i'll go abroad and work, that way i have the sun, relaxed lifestyle and still staying busy in mind and body.
In those days the internet was just a fuzzy dial tone with a page change speed of a asthmatic turtle. In fact the Internet at that time was mainly just to find knowledge like a giant online encyclopedia to expand your mental horizon or send emails, how times have changed. Now its for watching brain dead videos or brain dead people doing the slightest thing to try and become an overnight internet sensation.
"The Fur Ball Challenge" "Look at this guy/girl eating his/her own hair and trying to cough up a fur ball like a cat", do you see what i'm getting at, brilliant, absolutely outstanding, Darwin, Sir Issac Newton, Michelangelo and Socrates (The Philosopher not the footballer) would be proud, that's sarcasm for those who didn't know.
No online job search for me so it was a trip to the local job centre and stare at all the white A6 size job cards posted on the walls and there amongst the Till Cashiers and Door to Door sales jobs was a "Jobs Abroad" Section.
This is the beginning of my Odysseus journey.
Which do i choose, Manager/DJ of a Nightclub on Majorca called "Oscars" in the resort of Cala Millor or Cocktail Barman in a bar called "Tropicana" in Argassi on the island of Zakynthos? I'll apply for both.
I sent the emails off as soon as i got home, well, that's once I've waited for 30 mins for my connection access to the World Wide Webb and folks that's where WWW. comes from. All i can do now is wait for a reply if any.
About a week went by and then i received emails from both of the jobs abroad.
I opened the email from Majorca first from a English gent called Simon, he was pleased to offer me the position of Manager/DJ Starting April 28th 2001. YEEEEEES! OK, lets open the second email from Zakynthos. It was from a Finnish lady called Mia, she was pleased to offer me the job of cocktail bar person starting May 5th 2001. Eeeeew, Right! Now what do i do? After taking a little time out of oooooh at least 30 minutes i decided to accept both jobs.
Now i know what your thinking "How can he accept both?". Well one started a week before the other, so if the first job was rubbish i would just leave and fly out to the next, simple! Time to get cracking with the packing.
Now at this point just before i left Sian my now wonderful partner had been my friend for 5 years and was looking to rent a house. What great timing, i needed someone to take over the house i was renting off my sister and a dog sitter for my amazing little border collie girl "Teengy". Sian immediately agreed and with Teengy dog in safe hands and someone to take over the house i was off not knowing that 16 years later our paths would cross once more even though Sian would come out to visit me later that year.
Majorca flight booked, bag packed, passport up to date and i'm ready to go.
Said my goodbyes to my mum, family, friends, Sian and Teengy before leaving with a spring in my step and a positive stride i was off to the coach station.
Coach was on time from Cardiff and not that busy which would help with choice of seats, back 3 seats it is for a nice stretch out and hopefully some sleep, the journey begins.
So until next time......
Serve All, Love All, Peace All......Kevlar, Mrs. P. and Squidly Out!
