A couple of you have pointed out that I have no right to complain about the Christmas tree dumping holocaust, as
I have been a part of it myself. It's true. I am a part of the problem and not the solution. But at least I have the decency to hide my victims in the woods (or amongst trees anyway). Which thinking about it is maybe doubly sick. Their living brothers wake up to find the corpses in the morning.
Back on 6Music this morning as our six week spot sitting in for Adam and Joe rapidly approaches its first anniversary. Collings surprised me with a new feature where he asked me Mastermind style questions about my actual preferred subject (that I wasn't allowed to do on the TV) "This is Spinal Tap". I did pretty well given that I hadn't done any prep for this. Although even hearing the clips that he'd taken from the show made me feel a bit wobbly. We're doing it every week. If you want to write ten questions on a subject to see what a Mastermind I am, then email them to Andrew. Don't email them to me or it will make life easy.
We discussed his Star Wars transfer diorama which gave me an opportunity to secretly swear on live radio as we discussed Obi Wan Kenobi. On my Radio 4 show I gave the full "wank a nobby", but in this instance I stuck to the safer correct pronunciation with only the slightest linger on the "wan..k". You would have to be incredibly paranoid to complain about that and if you did I would insist under torture that I had merely said the name. And no one would ever find out the truth. How could they? As a man who has repeatedly said "fucking" and "wanking" on Sunday morning television (under the disguise of the crowning the king song on TMWRNJ) it is good to have some more surreptitious swearing under my belt. Ha ha ha. I am laughing in the face of the censorship idiots at the BBC. I can see no way this hubris can rebound upon me.
Evenso I was trumped by the newsreader who made an unfortunate stumble midway through saying "Pakistani". Goddamn her cleverness.
If dogs and owners start to resemble each other then maybe we also choose the football clubs that are most like us (even if I chose mine because it is the nearest one to where I was born). York City rest in the middle of the Conference (essentially division 5) and today they played Bolton who are 7th in the Premiership. It should have been one sided and it turned out that for much of the game it was. But surprisingly in York's favour.
I was only listening on the radio, but they battled hard, showing spirit and pluck, almost scoring a goal near the end. It looked like they would be getting a magnificent draw at least. But then at the end of it all they conceded 2 goals and lost.
Even though they remind me of myself, I am proud of the team, even if the final scoreline didn't represent the game. Oh how my team gives me hope, only to dash it. York City turn out to be Lucy holding that American football for Charlie Brown. I keep trusting and they keep pulling it away.
Don't worry - this blog isn't going to become about sport any time soon, even if I am getting more interested in it as I get older. But maybe I should start supporting Manchester United.
Then again, last time York played them at Old Trafford we won 3-0. I'd rather be a giant killer than a giant.
Better news tonight with over 300 people in. It's amazing how much difference it makes when everyone is relaxed and laughing from the start and you are able to ride the laughs. I am pretty good at this job on a good day. I might have to carry on. Keep fighting, working hard and losing. Better than stopping fighting and giving in.
Hopefully it's a sign of better to come. But I think I will have to wait until next weekend to see as many people in the room again. But a night like tonight reminds me of the rewards my job can give me and how much I need to keep pushing onwards to ensure this becomes the norm. Only two weeks left to see the shows Londoners.
