Typecast

Blogger & Self-Confessed Social Media Addict (click it to big it)

Weirdly, I thought I would try and write more this week seeing as though I have a week off work and plenty of time to be creative with words but every which way I turn I seem to find something music-related that inspires me.  Then Nicki mentioned my "great taste in music" (her words, not mine... and no, I didn't pay her to say that either) so I thought I'd surprise you with the song that my husband and I consider "Our Song". We didn't have a proper reception at our wedding for a number of reasons so we don't have a song that we danced to.  If I get my way, we shall be reproducing the dance scene from Pulp Fiction during the party for our 25th wedding anniversary (in 5 years time... eek!).  To make up for that I choose Dub Be Good To Me as "our song" because the lyrics totally resonate with how I envisaged our relationship in the beginning and also what everyone thought about us too. And because I never stick to the rules tota...

These days I'm more of a Radio 2 girl with the occasional foray in to Radio 4 (twenty years ago I never ever thought I'd see the day where I admitted that but there you go) but I do listen to the Chris Moyles breakfast show on the way into work.  One day last week they played the Generic MP3 Player Shuffle Game  and I thought, "That'll make a good blog post," but  Seasider Clare got there first, didn't even think to tag me passed it on and I ended up getting tagged by Helen . I've done something similar  way back when my blog was a baby but I've changed my phone and my songs since then however the rules are similar.  Switch on your boom box, hit shuffle five times and post the songs up.  Here we go...

It was 1983, I had just finished primary school, was looking forward to going to high school and we were setting off for a two-week holiday in the caravan, in France - Mum, Dad, my sister (aged 7) and myself.  It was the first time we had ever ventured away from the UK in the caravan so Mum and Dad booked us onto an organised 'rally' with the local branch of the Caravan Club, we prepared for long car journeys and swotted up on our Franglish.  As we were newbies to foreign travel we were paired up with seasoned caravanners on the same rally and we were all (30 families) to meet the night before the ferry crossing in a field somewhere just north of Weymouth. Disaster #1 No-one told dad that it was advisable to disconnect the fridge from the car battery power during the ferry crossing.  After the crossing, we arranged to meet our paired couple on the dockside, we all piled into the car and... nothing.  No power to the car.  The fridge had drained the b...

Claire has challenged me with finding the ULTIMATE Christmas song.  This seemingly impossible task has already been made difficult by most of the best one's being picked already, including Claire's own choice of Last Christmas and Sian's choice of All I Want For Christmas . For me, there's only one choice.  I can name it from the first note in true " Name That Tune " style and can name every single person, in order, when not watching the video.  I received the single (yeah, kids, a 'single', remember those?) as one of my Christmas presents in 1984 and I had the 'behind the scenes' programme (Boy George turning up pissed, an atmosphere you could cut with a knife, Status Quo cutting something else with a knife or a credit card...) on video somewhere but it's long gone. * sad face * And the lyrics... hastily written but very clever.  Maybe it's the nostalgia kicking in but there is no cover that has come close to the quality of t...

Did someone mention Karaoke? *clears throat*... *takes a deep breath* ...What?  You don't want me to actually sing?  Damn! I'm a massive fan of singing at the top of my voice in the car going to and from work and I love a bit of karaoke on a night out ( *ahem* previous karaoke observations *cough* ) so this tag from Liz is a great excuse for me to open up YouTube and pick out a few stock favourites that I find myself scribbling down on  those tiny scraps of paper give out by the DJ in the pub.  Er, yes - I'm the one that can't really sing but they have to drag out of the pub at the end of the night begging for "just one more song."

All these pictures of beautiful bulging fridges full of food and interesting jars and containers are annoying me.

Oh Mrs Lister ,  where have you been all my (blogging) life?  I have found you and your wonderful Q&A post via the lovely NotSupermum .  I so wanted this to be a real Q&A for the Guardian - I even thought about interviewing myself on tape and then typing it up, but that really is a bit too egotistical, even for me. So which group am I in then?  The " get the frig off my screen, you screaming loony " bunch of people or the " I'm on my way down to yours with 3-for£10 bottles of wine, you screaming loony " type of person?  Read on to find out...

More useless information about me that you probably knew already but you're here anyway and might as well read... * ahem *

This meme is like nits - you'll do your utmost best to avoid getting it but receipt is inevitable over and over and over again...

First of all this is NOT a meme but feel free to pick it up and run with it if you need to release some pent-up anger.  I have cried laughing reading similar posts from  Bloggertropolis ,   London City Mum  and  Very Bored In Catalunya   and  and being the calm person that I am I have obviously found it very difficult to find five celebrities that I feel violent towards  had real trouble just slimming this down to just five people.  So, in no particular order...

(click to enlarge) Just something I thought about whilst "in a queue" on the phone. I don't really look like that - I just can't draw very well.

I was asked by Kate over at The Five F's to choose my Desert Island Discs - just eight pieces of music that I would be prepared to to listen to over and over again.  This sounds easy but it isn't.  Music affects people in many different ways, especially according to what mood they are in when they listen to it.  I spend more time hitting ' NEXT ' on my mp3 player than I do actually listening to the tracks. Anyway, here are a few that are stock favourites.  Songs or tunes that make me catch my breath and stop for a few minutes to sink into the arrangement of sounds and words.

Fellow blogger Pippa (from over at "A Mother's Ramblings") asked me if I'd ever thought about my life as if it was a film .  Strangely, she wasn't the first person who had asked me this question so I have decided to elaborate on my original answer somewhat.  My life story HAS to be conducted in the style of a musical with a cast of thousands - each trial and tribulation fought through the medium of song.  And just like I mentioned in the original interview, I'd tap dance at some point too.

We're having a meme-tastic time on the blog at the moment but this is one that I knew I was going to enjoy  It gives me an opportunity to talk about my favourite subjects: Me and Twitter.  This is a fairly new meme, started by Kate at The Five F's  and, as usual, there are a few questions to answer but I think I've probably gone off at a bit of a tangent...

A mate recently asked me, "Which famous people would you bunk up with if you could?" ( based on an episode of Friends ) So I'm going offer you a plethora of Gorgeous Guys that I think make me go * shwing * (but in a very feminine way, holding the edges of my skirt).  I think I am pretty safe in the fact that it will only be me who has even considered this section of the male population, especially after my Plastic Fantastic post a while back.  I was going to write a bit about each bloke but thought it would be funnier to see your reactions first.  Feel free to take the piss or scream "JUST WHY?" in the comments section. In no particular order: Howard Donald Mark Salling  Eminem    Robert Lindsay Simon le Bon    James McAvoy  Nick Knowles Simon Gregson Jon Bon Jovi

This post stems from an invitation from Kate at The Five F's to join a meme originally started by Garry from Him Up North .  The meme is based on the lyrics of a John Mayer song called 'Daughters' , Garry's lack of experience of raising daughters and the theory that the future of the world rests on the female population ( like we haven't got enough to worry about already! ).

This is my naughty step and it is not a metaphorical one... this is really the bottom step of my staircase.  There haven't been many 'time-out' moments on these stairs in recent years but I'm sure that the grandchildren will rectify that in the very near future.  I'll let you admire the new carpet for a few moments and then I'll crack on.  OK? Let's get down to business.    Now, I have a "Room 101" list as long as my arm but topping it recently is AIRBRUSHING.   For years now pictures in the media have been "touched up" to ensure perfection in the glossy pages of magazines and flawless images in advertising campaigns.  At first, the public were probably unaware how much alteration was taking place until computer programmes such as Photoshop or Picasa were easily accessible and we could touch up our own pictures.  Similarly, as more and more celebrities were used for advertising purposes, it was easier to see that the person we ...

SWITCH THAT BLOODY LIGHT OUT... I'LL DO IT... I'LL ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS!! LondonCityMum  seems to want to know more about me and has  asked me to  demanded that I share the answers to her ten questions here on my blog.   1. Name of your first pet? I had an Abyssinian guinea pig called Cuddles (and my sister had a rabbit called Flopsy - they lived in a hutch together).  If this is a thinly veiled attempt to find out my porn star name then the street I lived on was Curzon Road. First Pet Name + Childhood Street Name = Porn Star Name "Cuddles Curzon" I quite like that actually... hhmmm * ponders career change * 2. Your most delectable piece of lingerie? Erm... lingerie is not my strong point.   It it's not grey then it's an achievement.  If it matches then it's a miracle.  If I'm wearing it in bed then it gets in the way.  I'm a lost cause, aren't I?  Maybe I should hint at some lingerie companies to kit me out? 3. Be...

I know... it's like stating the obvious but at least someone has had the guts to say it. My stalker good friend Cass over at The Diary of a Frugal Family  has decided to create a new Blogging award just for me to give out to fellow bloggers who she thinks have "Brilliant Blogs".  I have acted all shocked and Gwyneth-like but it comes as no surprise...  Big headed?  Moi? *giggle* So, I now have to do the usual and pass the 'award' on.  Who do I think is worthy of this award?  You know, I don't think there are any blogs out there that don't deserve it but if I give it to everyone then the meme would just stop here and that would be boring! Here are my five recommendations for this week (and I'm trying to pick blogs that I haven't recommended before) - click through and save them as favourites because their recommendations will be just as good too:   From Marketing To Milk   Mummy Tips    Baby Genie   London City Mum ...