money

Can't be arsed putting up pictures to go with this blog entry. Like a lot of us (well, me, our Mick and me Mum) we've kept up with the transfer window.

An absolutely sickening sight seeing Fernando Torres, complete with gormless grin, holding a Chelsea shirt, and vomit-inducing was his interview, shown on Sky Sports, about how wonderful it is to play for Chelsea.

I thought he was better than this. But obviously, his motivation for money is unerring. I don't believe he's gone to Chelsea to further his career. No footy player worth their salt goes to Chelsea in the wish of winning trophies. Because when they do, it's at the whim of the billionaire owner. And not organic meticulous management of highly-skilled footballers.

It's arse. Like in most industries, the shareholders / owners want quick, successful returns.

I can't really comment on our signings because we've gone with the flow. I knew nothing about Carroll until he appeared for Ing-er-land earlier on this season, and he reminds me of a young Duncan Ferguson. Suarez couldn't stop scoring for Ajax, and let's hope that trend continues.

numbed

Just numbed by this piece of speculation / news / bullshit /etc......

It's no secret that Torres has been out of sorts this season, and last term for that matter. He's shown gasps of brilliance rather than his regular genius. It's the look of a severely distracted man.

I have no problem with El Nino looking for a move elsewhere to further his career. But his timing is awful, and nothing short of a slap in the face on everyone involved with Liverpool Football Club.

At a time when Kenny is urging us all to stick together, and things seem to be going in more positive direction, Torres' is seriously undermining everything we're trying to do at the moment.

Special mention has to be made to Guillem Balague, the Spanish football journalist very close to all things Spain and Liverpool Football Club. I thought he had more brains than to erupt bollocks like this. He is impeccably placed to speak for Torres, and I feel he's done us a great disservice by opening his rather large mouth and speaking in generalisations rather than hard fact.

But if Torres doesn't want to play for us now, and Chelsea can't come up with the cash, I'd happily stick him in with the reserves for the rest of the season as a lesson on how not to upset and anger those people who've put so much faith in him.

Not nice......

seething

I'm really, really offended. Some knobheads on YouTube have complained that some of my videos I've posted playing old ELO and Move vinyl is too fast on the turntable.



And they're right. My turntable is too fast, but I've had it over 20 years and it's done me so well over that time, particularly transferring all my Beatles vinyl to CD.

But I'm still seething. Because all I'm doing is trying to share some vintage vinyl with folk that's unusual, rare and interesting, and all they bloody do is moan that it's too fast.

When they themselves have these priceless (to me anyway) relics, then take the time and patience to transfer these old 45s, and are in a position to share the them with everyone - then they have the right to criticise me and what I do.

I just wish some people would just shut up. If they haven't got anything nice to say, don't say anything at all.

Glitter

I hate saying this but one of my favourite records of all time is "Rock and Roll Part 2" by Gary Glitter.

The fact that he had squidildy-pop to do with the recording is doesn't make me feel any better. It was basically a solo recording by Mike Leadner (he who wrote the string arrangement for the Beatles' "She's Leaving Home") to cash in on the Glam Rock fad and Paul "Gary Glitter" Gadd needed a job and became a brand.

The rest is a sort of history.

I love the record, though, I've just put it back on my I-Tunes, but I still have misgivings.

I have no time for Gadd/Glitter as a person. He is a vile, twisted and sick individual who's still deluded enough to think he's done nowt wrong. Or is his naivety just an act? Probably never find out.

There was a docu-drama a year or so back on Channel 4 called "The Execution Of Gary Glitter" in which it envisaged a Britain that had re-introduced the death penalty. And Mr Gadd got it. It was one of the most disturbing pieces of television I've ever seen - mainly because I disagree with capital punishment. I also thought it was beyond decency to use Gadd as an example, I felt it sensationalised the serious nature of the programme.

I wish I could listen to these records without knowing what I know - Rock doesn't need dilemmas like this.

Wolves

Dunno what Kenny said to us before a tricky away visit to Wolves, but this was the best Liverpool have played (in an attacking sense) for a very, very long time.

Let's not beat around the bush - there's no mugs in the Premiership. Every team will pose us a different set of problems. But Kenny was spot-on yesterday, and for the first time in many a month Fernando Torres was supported by a rampaging midfield every time he got the ball.

I've not been overtly impressed by Raul Meireles in recent weeks - his distribution and general awareness have been sorely lacking. But his screamer against the Shite was just a warm-up for the contender for goal of the season against hapless Wolves. Talk about a perfectly executed first-time volley! No keeper in the world would've gotten anywhere near it.

Everything Meireles did was top-draw. His support for Torres was excellent and, on this form, Steven Gerrard would have a real problem getting back into the side.

We're still quite nervy at the back, but that was over-shadowed by the urgency to get bodies forward. What Rafa and Hodgson never really got to grips with was the way you win games is by scoring goals, something Kenny has been quick to put into action.

In his Saturday footy column, the spot-on Brian Reade rightly put forward what a lot of fans secretly desire but won't say, meaning the next full-time Liverpool manager would be Jose Mourinho. He'll be wanting if Kenny keeps us on this sort of form.

supernatural

I don't understand weather that much, so when we've had a couple of days of fog, I'm still at a loss to explain it. It's gone very, very cold in Liverpool again too. Both things must be related - so I say!

Below's a pic taken from the Radio City website showing the fog over the shrouded River Mersey.

There's something truly spooky about images like this in my city. Maybe I'm in this reflective mood because I've started reading most of Tom Slemen's "Haunted Liverpool" books again - the library in Fazakerley has loads of them. And there's nothing quite like sitting off between chippy deliveries in Crosby on a cold, misty Scouse night and delving into my city's often gruesome and illogical past.

Another good ghostly Internet phenomenon is ex-Radio City broadcaster Howard Hughes and his Unexplained podcasts and website.

The only real supernatural experience I've had was the time I was on Crosby Beach in the dead of night on walk because I couldn't sleep. That in itself wasn't particularly "supernatural" but I swear blind that those Gormley statues were on the move.

I'm quite an analytical person who thinks a spade is a spade. And I get frustrated sometimes because I probably miss a lot of otherworldy stuff going on around me because of it.

venues

Both me and Jayne are making gentle enquiries into possible wedding reception venues.

There's two we're quite interested in - one's a Catholic social club, and the other is (takes a deep breath) the local Conservative Club!

I can just imagine my wedding speech, "well, it's a real political struggle for an ardent Communist such as myself to be standing here in this bastion of capitalist dogma, etc, etc....."

Both venues are really nice and relatively inexpensive to hire. We're doing our own catering too, so not only will we enjoy ourselves, but it's likely to be a lot of hard work too.

scared

The good and the very bad were on show at Anfield yesterday.

The "good" in the fact that our first -half performance was as good as anything I've seen from Liverpool this season. Torres terrorized the Shite's backline with some vintage running, and Merieles' first goal for the club was a good one. Tight at the back too. Couldn't complain.

Second-half was woefully "bad". I don't know what Gollum said to the Shite at half-time but they tore us to shreds for the first fifteen minutes. The injury to Danny Agger didn't help matters because as much as I like Soto The Greek, he's badly matched with the liability that is Martin Skrtel. I thought we were lucky for the draw by the end.

No matter how much Kenny juggles this side around there will be problems, because the majority of the players are simply not good enough. We're relegation fodder on this sort of form at the moment - I hate saying that, but it's true.

Hyypia, Alonso, Garcia, Finnan, Riise, Arbeloa, Crouch, Bellamy, Keane and Mascherano have not been adequetely replaced. We've scraped around the bargain bins buying players who have no right to wear a Liverpool shirt. Or a Liverpool reserve shirt. Zingari League and all that.

Henry, who was at the game, and Werner really need to be made acutely aware of the mess this Liverpool side are in, and do everything in their power to remedy the situation. Fast. Because this is one mess that will go away before the end of May, I tell you.

I'm scared, I really am.

swimming

I went swimming tonight at the Ellergreen Leisure Centre in Norris Green. Or was it Croxteth? Or Clubmoor? Or Dog & Gun? I really didn't know except Anya was locked up and all valuables were kept out of sight. But the Centre itself was functional, bright and clean. Thumbs up there!

As seasoned readers will know I am the world's worst swimmer - if I'd been on the Titanic I'd have been with de fishies!!!!

I have absolutely no hand to leg co-ordination at all. As a consequence I probably expel as much energy keeping things together doing a length of the pool than most folk doing twenty lengths. I've been trying to teach myself to do the breaststroke for the last twenty-years with little success. I figured that if there was nobody else in the pool I'd have a better chance rather than swallowing ten gallons of chloride-tainted water.

But I'll give it a regular go from now on. Have to. I never used Crosby Baths as much as I should have when I lived round the corner.

At the other end of the spectrum, I took Bethany to her regular swimming lessons last week. And she's a mermaid. Very impressive. I barely learned to do the doggy paddle at Butlins by the time I was ten. I ain't much better now.

dishcloth

Another pearl of Jayne's wisdom.....

She just asked me, "can I have a Coke please?"

"Do you want it in a glass?" I asked innocently.

"No," she replies, "on a dishcloth....."

See what I have to put up with?????

MS

Anyone who follows what our kid's up to will know he's doing a charity walk from Waterloo to Southport during May 2011 to raise money for the MS Society.

His page on the Just Giving website explains his motives and condition a lot more concisely and coherently than I ever could. Like him, I would ask y'all (and I know I have readership in Australia, Singapore, Greenland, and Southport) to consider making a donation, however small, to this utterly worthy cause in the hope of finding a cure to combat the onset of MS. Ta!

defeats

Two games and two defeats for Kenny.

Some awful refereeing has contributed to his second spell as boss. But, mainly, it's a lot to do with the attitude of some of the players. They're not good enough.

I once saw an interesting way of rating players in an Everton fanzine. It went like this......

PLAYERS WHO WOULD IMPROVE BEING PART OF THE 1970 BRAZILIAN WORLD CUP SQUAD - Raul Meireles, Daniel Agger, Fabio Aurelio, Joe Cole, Maxi Rodriguez.

PLAYERS WHO COULDN'T IMPROVE BEING PART OF THE 1970 BRAZILIAN WORLD CUP SQUAD - Pepe Reina, Jamie Carragher, Steven Gerrard, Fernando Torres.

PLAYERS WHO WOULDN'T GET ANYWHERE NEAR THE 1970 BRAZILIAN WORLD CUP SQUAD - The Rest!

It's the last batch who get too much of a chance in my opinion. There's probably kids in the reserves with all the talent in the world, yet coaching staff or managers won't touch them because they're scared of the consequences of failure. Immediate results are the norm now, though that's never been a worry for Ryan Babel.

It's like pop music. Record companies won't gamble anymore. They don't see the wisdom of nurturing talent, because both parties will gain in the long term. Market forces override ethics.

Unless you're Chelsea or Manchester City and have owners who sort out a player problem by buying any suitable player in the world, you have to juggle and try and get it right. But as Kenny's finding out, and Hodgson before him proved, it's a hard road. My main grouse with Hodgson was bending over backwards to the likes of Ferguson. Not good.

PLC

Not particularly surprising result at the Mancpit today. Personally, I thought we acquitted ourselves quite well and I came away from it not too despondent.

Whether Kenny is the right man to take us forward is still pretty much an open question? But the signs today were an improvement in onfield attitude by most of the starting eleven compared to the dirge that went on at Blackburn.

It was never, ever a penalty, but Danny Agger should know better when he's close on a horse like Berbatov. Typical of the bias and close-mindedness of the sponsors, they gave him Man of the Match. The reality is he's an outright cheat.

But where the vastly-overrated Howard Webb made a mistake giving PLC an early penalty, I have no complaints about his straight red card to Steven Gerrard. It was a horrendous tackle that could've been a lot worse. I'm all for us putting our feet in and taking a man out, but for shit's sake, at least make some contact with the ball. Which the Whiston Wonder didn't.

The most worrying aspect of this match was the indifferent form and attitude of Fernando Torres. If he's keeping his head down in order to secure a move elsewhere, it may backfire on him. The other argument is he's being played up-front alone, and it's too much to expect him to hold the ball up for others to come on too. With Gerrard off the pitch, and Kuyt doing his usual headless-chicken impression, El Nino had another quiet game.

It's very early days again with Kenny. And he has the job of his life on his hands. Good luck, mate!

sleeplessness

Me and Jayne went to collect Bella from the Dogs' Trust in Huyton yesterday.

She's been an absolute joy so far. Very well behaved for an eight week old puppy. And, crucially, she gets on with our cat, Bayley. I think they each think the other one is a cat / dog and have taken to each other like brother and sister.

The first night with her, though, was a nightmare. Bella slept in our room, in her new bed of course. But I was up with her most of the time. At about twenty to six, I gave up trying to keep her asleep and came downstairs with her. We dozed on and off until just after 8am, when Jayne got up.

So what did I do? That's right, I went back to bed! The night shift was over.

We're hoping to keep her in her new den downstairs tonight, but we expect sleeplessness! For now....

Jayne

Jayne put this as a post on her FB page.....

If you have a wonderful man, who helps balance your whole world...who isn't perfect, but is perfect for you...who works hard and would do anything for you. Who makes you laugh and drives you crazy, who is your best friend, who you want to grow old with, and who you are thankful for everyday, and who you could NOT live without then post this as your status

I said to her, "is that all about me?"

"No," she replied sardonically, "it's the bloke across the road!!!"

I fell off the chair laughing. It doesn't take much does it?

Dad

Dad died sixteen years ago today.

The last time I saw him is worth mentioning here. It was two days before. The odd thing is I'm living a stone's throw away from where he passed on so it's a strange feeling being so close, yet so far.

I'd been up to Manchester that day with a mate, and bought some bits and pieces. Later on, I said to Mum I was going up to Fazakerley Hospital to see Dad. He was back in there, another relapse, it wouldn't have been anything unusual except I now had confirmed what I already knew - he was dying. We'd been told on the Thursday just gone.

He was in a ward room on his own on the ninth floor. That night, he was also being visited by his mate from the T.A, Steve, and we chatted amiably for a bit.

Steve got off and left me and Dad alone. I'd bought him a book from Manchester, the full, unabridged version of Douglas Adams' "Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy". It was a massive volume - a full 600-pages. He was just getting into reading all these sci-fi/fantasy books - Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels being a particular favourite.

I said to him, "there you go, something to keep you amused."

And I didn't click it at that time, but his reply summed up the reality he was facing - "I won't get through that, son."

I had to take a chair back to an adjoining room before I left, so I passed him again sitting upright in bed. I stood there at the doorway to this wardroom. I smiled at him, he smiled back at me.

It was the last time I saw him. Less than two days later he was having a chinwag with his maker.

The thing about death is there's very little you can do about it. You can't do that much for the dead, it's better to concentrate on the living. So I kept away from the aftermath, looking back probably wrongly.

Take care, Dad, wherever you are xxxxxxxx

charade

This charade's gone on for long enough.......

The fact that Hodgson cancelled his Friday press conference (or it was cancelled for him) to the safe confines of an inoffensive grilling at the hands of the club's website suggests that not only has Roy lost the fans, the dressing-room or the support of the board. He's also lost his job.

I expect to see him in the dug-out for this Sunday's target practice at the Theatre Of Delusion. But he won't have picked the team, or have anything to do with the way it will play. He's there as a figurehead. A scapegoat, if you like, for all that's gone wrong with Liverpool Football Club.

Because there's a train of thought that not much of this current trouble is his fault. Sure he's so tactically inept it's not worth talking about. At Blackburn, how the liability that is Paul Konchesky was given a run-out in place of the immensely more talented and solid Fabio Aurelio at left-back defied belief. But two seasons ago we lost two of, arguably, the most influential players in European football in Xabi Alonso and, sadly, Sami Hyypia. Neither has been adequately replaced - if they ever can.

Such a huge gaping wound was bound to cause problems. This was on Rafa's watch, and as a consequence, he endured a miserable season last year. This one's gonna be even worse.

Hodgson has done the best he knows he can under the circumstances. But he's either been played for a fool (maybe?), set up (more likely?) or just out of his tree (yes, that's it!)

It been a bad day for people called Roy. Mr "All-credit-to-debit" Keane went at Ipswich. Now his namesake at Liverpool is a dead man walking. Sad, but inevitable.

widdleplop

It's taken me forty years to do it, and this might seem quite unbelievable considering my track record, but I have. Yes, that's right - I've had an Indian.

Not in the sexual way, no, no, no - that's way too coarse and private to talk about on here. No, I mean "Indian" of the takeaway food type.

It was Jayne's idea, obviously, I mean can you see me suggesting it? Because, I'm very close minded when it comes to food. I used to have a deep, deep suspicion when I was younger (erm....30!) about eating anyone's grub but what Mum cooked.

I knew you wouldn't be too surprised.

Jayne went on that JustEat website and ordered a load of veggie Indian food online. Guess who paid? Yes, and as will be seen by later events - in more ways than one.

The scram arrived and apart from the Onion Bhajis, poppadoms and naan bread, I couldn't tell you what else I ate. It was spicy and some form of curry.

Setting aside by aversion for trying anything new, I hungrily woofed down a load of Indian curry and rice that tasted quite, quite splendid!!! So much so that I went back for seconds.

The repeat serving was more heavy-going, but it was an experience and I was glad I took the plunge.

Five hours later, and I've just come from a good 30 minutes on the bog where my poo has altered from "solid" and "hefty", to "watery, brown widdleplop". My favourite.

As much as I liked the food, I think the next time we do it I won't be attacking the palette with the same unbounded vigour as this time just gone.

I still prefer jam butties.....

suffered

The current "EastEnders" storyline involving cot death and reaction to it has been much in my thoughts recently. As the blog's recently learned, my Jayne lost a baby and current events are way too close to the bone for her. She said on FB that she wouldn't watch "EastEnders" again, but she did the following night, as did I. You don't wanna see it, but can't keep your eyes off it all the same. It's car-crash television in the bleakest context possible.

I personally wish they were not running this storyline.

Because however worthy it is to highlight the tragedy of unexplained infant-death, and bring the condition to the forefront of the nation's minds, I doubt the producers and writers of the show - however much they edited the more emotionally-distressing scenes - will have covered base as the reaction for people, like Jayne, who have suffered this awful trauma.

I am angry with "EastEnders" because there was sweet f.a I could say or do to comfort Jayne when she bolted from the living room, very, very upset at what she'd seen.

It's all very well giving out a helpline number (or a warning at the before the soap begins) for those affected by the events. And, in their way, they do help. But we're all at home as a family unit and we should be able to support each other in times of need. And I genuinely felt I couldn't.

Be careful what you watch.......

Anglophile

As the responsible adult I am, I'm giving Aaron a guided tour of Rock. And I swear his Kiss fixation had nothing to do with me - for a change.

So I gave Aaron a little background about Kiss, and told him that they wouldn't have happened without Slade. Both Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons will happily admit that Slade were a catalyst for the kind of thing they wanted to do with Kiss. Stanley and Simmons saw Slade perform in New York during the summer of 1973 and were transfixed by what they heard and saw. So now, when you see videos of either band side by side, there's a very, very similar vibe to what each are doing.

Although Slade didn't really mean much to mainstream American music in the early-mid 1970s, they left their mark on Cheap Trick, as well as Kiss. CT bass player, Tom Petersson, always recounts the story of where they got their name from because he and Rick Nielsen saw Slade perform on this same 1973 American tour. He says that seeing Slade made him think they "...used every cheap trick in the book...."

And Cheap Trick have recently excellently covered Slade's "When The Lights Are Out" from the "Old, Borrowed and Blue" album of 1974. Brilliant stuff. I've always admired Cheap Trick's taste in covers.

There's a particular strain of American Rock that took all, and I mean, ALL its' pointers from what was going on concerning British guitar pop of the late 60s/early 70s. Cheap Trick are so Anglophile it's untrue. Much the same can be said for Kiss.

Here endeth the lesson!

Bella

We're getting a new puppy - Bella.

She's currently eight weeks old and is a Collie Cross-Breed. We went to the local Dogs Trust branch and fell in love.

We've been talking about getting another dog since Leah died back in the summer. Now feels around the right time to start again. There's a home-check to be done, which is one way of getting the kids to help get the house tidy if anything else!

Bella is a beautiful little thing who'll likely grow into someone huge. But that's good, I think we all need the exercise and so will she.

Keep you posted as to Bella's progress.

Bolton

Much, much needed win yesterday.

I don't think the status quo's changed. Hodgson's hanging onto his job by a thread, and I doubt a last-gasp winner from Joe Cole will have brought the manager too many plaudits.

Bolton set their stall out much the same as Wolves, but this Liverpool side had a lot more purpose and drive about it than midweek. Still, a 2-1 win is hardly a corner turned, and the problems that beset the manger before the game are still glaring him in the face after it.

I've done a lot of mooching over the interweb in recent days, more so after the Wolves debacle, and I tend to agree with much more learned people than me that Hodgson is a stop-gap until something more permanent's sorted out. Many say he has a three-year contract, but I say so what?

Sadly for Roy, the spectre of both Kenny and Rafa hangs over him. He's lost the respect of the fans, if he had any in the first place, and that's the death-nell at this club.

normal

I don't like New Year - never have and never will.

I find it incredible that for just ONE night a year there's a certain amount of "peace and goodwill", "all the best" and all that malarkey. And then everyone goes back to being normal to each other again.

The best of the Human spirit should carry on all year round, not just for ten minutes either side of midnight on the 31st December / 1st January.

God knows I'm the worst person in the world to pontificate, but at least I'm consistently inconsistent in just being me.

Tonight, I did a shortened chippy run, and went to join the family at Jayne's folks' house. We left early, mainly because Bethany was tired. But I think there was a part of us that couldn't be arsed about NY.

Going to bed now, the fireworkers round Fazak have had their fun.