Day #345

Hello there. 

I've just cleaned up the house after a big house party while my parents were in Derby (That'll teach them to trust me). Obviously that didn't happen...

25 more days, just 25 more posts until it's all over. Last month I had the largest number of views in a month, so thank you. You are all so awesome! Let's make it all count...Or at least some of it. 

For the last day I want to do something awesome, go somewhere great and take some great photos. If anybody has any ideas or offers, please do not hesitate to mention or ask. 

Anyway, today I was pretty bored and lazy. I woke up at around 8, fed the dog, put him in the garden, got him back in and went back to sleep until around midday when I woke up, spent abit longer in bed and finally dragged myself to the shower. I wasn't feeling too great and I had nothing planned so the day was free to be mine. I spent it playing 2 hours of Xbox and a few more hours of Peep show - a Channel Four comedy, not an actual peep show...calm down. Nan. 

Tonight my mum, dad and I watched the Paralympics. The first photo was taken in my garden, the second was taken in the sink with yet more water! And the third, well the third I have only uploaded because some water photos are like watching clouds and sharing what you think they look like. In the third photo I see a man's head, turned sideways looking like Elvis spitting water (not me, actually made out of water). The Elvis water man is about an inch below my left eye.

Until tomorrow

Will :)

Day #344

Hello there. 

Only 21 days left until the end. Okay, so I didn't get a great night sleep. I went to bed at two in the morning and woke up at four, then again at six because my family were off to get my brother settled in to his flat for a year...Complicated. 

When I woke up, had gotten showered and breakfasted I decided to rescue my music stand that I had left in the folk club last night. They had put it in a cupboard, nobody had stolen it and it was folded up neatly. Yeah, I belong here. The first picture is of the shiniest pound coin ever! It is dated as 2011 but I think it just fell from shiny heaven. Photo number two is water falling on my lens cap and photo number three is me flicking my lens cap into the air...Heads or tails?

Until tomorrow

Will :)

Day #343

Hello there. I have just had an awesome night and I have exactly 20 minutes to do this blog. Enjoy some top class rambling. 

So today, Laura, Teddy and myself met up and decided we would show our faces at the local music club and play a couple of tunes. The 'couple of tunes' turned into four songs and by the end I was telling jokes and dancing! Me...Dancing! Normally the folk club that we go to is full of old people and egos that barely fit in the room, but tonight we felt like locals, discussing music with 'Martin' in the bar and asking people what key they were playing in. I only ask that because it makes you sound like you know your music. 

But tonight there were two other teenagers, Fliss and Sarah. They sang some of the best harmonies you could imagine. Our last song came and we busted out 'Rattlin' Bog', during which Teddy and I broke into solos and guitar offs. The crowd of only about 30 actually laughed and sang along, something that the half-drunk people at the beer festival did not do quite so well (apart from you Dad, you did it very well). The end came and I had to get the two girls' numbers, mainly because we wanted to work on some music with them. Yes. Really. The story ends with me having the girls' numbers but forgetting my music stand and leaving it in the pub... 

The moral of the story is to think with your brain and not with your …y'know.

Until tomorrow

Will :)

Day #342

Standing in the heavy rain with a broken umbrella with two best friends waiting for the chip shop to open. Yeah, 'Wish you were here'. 

Today, we, the band, got nothing done. When I say nothing I mean that. I went to Laura's, we walked to Teddy's, sat in Teddy's kitchen, talked for an hour about a drink none of us liked, walked to OUR chip shop and then went our separate ways. Same again tomorrow? Also today my awesome mum took me clothes shopping, I got some photos done for my bus pass and I picked up a package. When I was sitting in the photo booth and looking at the photo of myself on screen, I wondered does anybody ever look good in these photos? I do not look happy, and how come in the photos we aren't allowed to smile?!?. Chronologically, the blog post today is a bit rubbish but I bought some bright blue chinos followed by some bright red chinos. I am going to look like I have been attacked by a highlighter pen and they won.

Until tomorrow (Friday-The Cure)

Will :)

Day #341

I went on two walks today. Count them. Two. 

I was watching TV and playing xbox and generally being lazy until about 2 o' clock, at which point I wanted some natural light. When I got outside, I realised that there wasn't any. 

Whilst walking along the seafront, I found the sweetest song I have ever heard in my life - 'Heartbeats' by Jose Gonzalez . On the first walk, I found a vodka bottle, a sea gull, a Nikon lens cap and the old crazy golf place that my family used to go to. 

On the second walk, there was a rainbow and I was trying to race the clouds to the end of the pier in order to get the rainbow over the wind turbines in the channel. I got distracted and the clouds won. I realised that I am actually looking forward to winter because nobody goes out and these are ideal photography conditions: nobody staring at you, getting in the way and, best of all, I can wear my Bellowhead hat from Day #142.

Photographers and guitarists are the most jealous people on the planet, even if we deny it.

 I could be watching a guy take a photo with his family on his little camera, just for a memory of being there and find myself mumbling some profanities about how he doesn't deserve his camera. I could also be listening and watching a young guitarist, just learning to play Twinkle Twinkle on an out of tune classical guitar and I would suddenly feel envious. This is stupid. Really stupid. Photography helps people to see, I have that on my own blog! I am just a hypocrite if I say I'm allowed to see...but...you aren't and nor are you. You never see more than three guitarists in a band because usually their egos never fit in the same room together.

 Confusing rant over.

Until tomorrow

Will :)

Day #340

Yeah, that's right, it's a box containing Laura's two Blue Peter badges...Two! I haven't even got one!

Today's post is brought to you by some classic songs, I Wanna Be Your Dog by The Stooges, The Passenger by Iggy Pop, and Boys Don't Cry by The cure. 

Boys don't cry by The Cure was actually the first thing that I learnt on guitar. The riff was taught to me by my brother. 

Today was chill day. I met up with Teddy and we walked to Laura's. I always tease Laura because she says she has a gold Blue Peter badge as well as a blue one. I say that I don't believe her because I hadn't seen them but when I turned up at her nan's today, she handed me a box in which the two sat. 

After picking up a pint of milk, Teddy and Laura headed to look at some ukuleles in Deal's music shop. I went to the library. I did my school's compulsory work experience in a library so have always had a soft spot for libraries. The fact that it was warm and every sofa just made me want to fall asleep was wonderful. Also the books. 

I needed a new library card. The only thing I did not anticipate was the Who Wants to be a Millionaire-style questions that the little old lady asked. "How old are you?", "are you still attending Dover Grammar?", "what's your address?" Even I was shocked when I managed to remember my postcode - having moved to Deal so recently.

After my ordeal I felt like I needed a sandwich. Not just any sandwich. One from Subway. 

Having eaten my huge sandwich and regrouped with my friends, Teddy drew a few more quotes on my guitar. I now feel like when I play that guitar, people are going to be focusing more on the quotes and than listening to me play 'Stairway to heaven' badly. Kudos to anyone who listens to 'Stairway to heaven' all the way through.

25 Days until it is all over

Until tomorrow

Will :)

Day #339

Literally too much stuff happened today, way, way too much.

I woke up feeling pretty naff. After a coffee, a hot shower and the sobering thought that my friends would be round in about half a hour I was full of energy (artificial energy mind you). 

We ran through the songs for a final couple of times, decided enough is enough, Teddy's mum picked us up and the next thing I knew I was crammed in with my camera, guitar, music stand, Teddy's instruments and Laura's stuff in Teddy's mum's car.

I felt ill, really ill. 

When we arrived at the music festival, I was a bit uneasy, tuning up while another folkaholic played their songs. 

When my family arrived, I suddenly felt some more energy, like we needed to be kinda good. We were told that we would do two songs at a time. We had six, so this worked out perfectly. 

The nervous situation that I was in was not helped with the fact that sitting across from me was my primary school teacher.

I was wearing a waist coat. What did he think society had done to me? 

We got up, came straight in with You go by the Keston Cobbler's Club, which went down really well, followed by Hallelujah which was pretty well received. 

As we took our seats again, we heard from the next people on, "...and that was 'For folk's sake. It's safe to say folk music is in safe hands with those guys."

I was now relaxed. 

I saw my family and friends standing at the back of the bar and decided I would go and be sociable. "Hiya mum, how goes?" 

"Thomas, thanks for coming." 

"Nan, ho-", 

"I've seen your blog WILLIAM!"

Oops. 

Our six songs were seemingly up. We had played quite well I thought and I was now happy to get home and go to bed when suddenly Adrian the organiser comes over, gives us each a coupon for a free drink and says, "you guys were absolutely fabulous, would you come out and play for us in the beer garden?"

"Yeah sure," I replied when I was actually thinking, "ah but I kinda have plans to be shooting some bad guys on my Xbox."

After getting outside, we were announced: "if you add up the total age of the next three people, they are still younger than me and most of you. Let's hear it for the wonderful For Folk's Sake."

Song played. Gig played. Festival done. Photo one is just before we went on at the beer festival. Yeah, I'm rocking a waistcoat. Photo two is the poster with our name circled. Thirdly is us playing in the beer garden. Last is me pulling my hard man face. I did this literally as I walked off hence why Laura, camera guy and lady in purple are staring at me. 

Okay, here's the last bit, the punch line if you like. although this music and beer festival has now been done, we have now been asked to play at 'The Maritime Festival' on September 15th. So yeah, who knows what the future holds for For Folk's Sake.

The big gig, not in the sky, in a very small pub in Bekesbourne

Morning all. This is just a very quick little post. I have woken up, tuned up and thrown up. I normally get quite nervous before gigs but after I texted Laura, "you ready?!?!?" with her response being, "I was born ready," I am now a lot less nervous. This was until I found out that Teddy has only just woken up...

Until tonight where I will tell you what went down and possibly have some photos and videos (if my nan can use my camera correctly).

Will :)

Day #338

With the gig coming up tomorrow I have taken to sex, drugs and rock and roll. Well actually...it's watching Alan Partridge talk creepily about sex, 2 paracetamol for my headache and playing folk music quietly so my neighbours don't get annoyed... 

Today was the final proper band practice for straightening out the kinks in the songs (is that an analogy that people use?). I now have to work on my front man skills. My plan was to tell a few bad jokes, but apparently they are really appalling. 

About a week ago, I received a card through the post from my nan. It said on the front "New Job?" This seriously confused me, but I took it as humour that I didn't get and stuck it on my shelf. Today my brother comes into my room. He'd received a card saying "You've Passed!" My nan had given us the wrong cards! Nan, you are treading thin ice. 1 strike out of 3. Another 2 and it's off to the home... Only kidding, it's been two strikes already... 

Only kidding, I couldn't put you in a home, not after you bought me this awesome new alarm clock. I haven't worked out how to turn it off so that it doesn't just ring but hey, that'll be a nice surprise for me to wake up to tomorrow.

Until tomorrow (Unless my nan has killed me)

Will :)

Day #337

The rule of thirds in a photo? (The rule that the subject has to be to the left or right of the frame) I think I just broke that rule with number one, what are you going to do? Throw me in photography jail? If anyone should be in that jail, it is Bruce Gilden. What he does in the linked video is jump in front of people, blinds them with a huge flash and takes a photo of their reaction. This ,in my opinion, is wrong. By all means, Stand your ground but Bruce Gilden gives photographers a bad name. I'm wary to even point a camera in anyone's direction because I am unsure how they will react.

About a minute ago I found out that Neil Armstrong, first man on the moon has died. This blog is "one small step for man...one...giant leap for mankind!". Today's post is also brought to you by two songs, Too close by Alex Care and End credits by Chase and status. Tomorrow is the final proper band practice before the big gig on Monday. Some final changes need to be made and whoever is there will bear witness to me telling some pretty awful jokes rather than just providing awkward silences. I also need to mention that I had a thought while unloading the dishwasher: when I become an old man, I am going to subscribe to all the old man traits and the old man uniform. By that last part I mean I will be rocking a flat cap, socks and sandals and a fanny pack. You know it makes sense.

Until tomorrow

Will :)