Monday 18 January 2010

Speaking of sexy things....

Christina Aguilera has a new album out on March. It's called 'Bionic'.

Apparently it's going to be very upbeat and fabulous. It also has some production from Goldfrapp on it.

Most exciting.

Why is our Sex Education Failing?

There has been lots of media coverage today about our countries (UK) Sex Education in schools. The stastics for Teenage Pregnancies and STD's are still shocking.

Whilst everyone argues about the rights and wrongs of how we are tackling it, people are looking to other countries for inspiration. The Netherlands has a very different attitude towards Sex and this has proven to be successful in reducing unwanted pregnancies and the transfer of sexual diseases. Someone made a very valid point about how the Netherlands tackle this issue. They have a very different set of family values. For example: familes sit and talk to each other.

UK culture has obviously taken quite a battering over the 40/50 years. My grandma used to tell me stories about her younger days and how family was important. She used to talk about 'extended familes' and how friends and neighbours would rally around to help each other. Of course life was very different in those days.

It seems a shame that we have lost some of that. Although I've never had a particularly close relationhip with my family. It's clear that we need to set the seeds of cultural change sooner or later, because we are not heading for a positive future unless we change how society views each other.

My friend and colleague Lisa told me a funny story this morning. Her husband and teenage son Sam were shopping in Boots the chemist. Sam noticed a large display of condoms and asked his dad about the different types. His dad was quite embarrassed, but in spite of that he answered the question as best as he could. The story made me chuckle, but then I thought about how fantastic it must be to have that kind of relationship with your dad. I would have never asked my dad a question like that. They are a very close family and it's clear to me that they will always confide in each other, even when tackling difficult subjects such as Sex Ed. Maybe some of us Brits do have a Netherlands attitude towards sex after all?

Sunday 17 January 2010

Dannii's happy news


I was really pleased to read about Dannii Minogue's pregnancy news. She's had a rough ride over the past few years.

There was a time when Dannii's ex X-Factor colleague Sharon Osbourne seemed to be slating her in every interview. Graham Norton also seemed to revel in making nasty comments about Dannii on his TV show - which is pathetic considering the fact that Graham is basically a one-trick-pony, lacking in any form of depth or emotion. He's basically no different to any other bitchy queen that can found in every gay bar across the country. Somehow he has forged a career from it?

Head First

I am sooooooo excited about the new Goldfrapp album, 'Head First'. It's out in March and the single 'Rocket' should precede it.

Isn't the cover artwork lovely?

Pop 2010

So, we're half way through January and my mind has turned to thoughts about what the rest of the year will hold. In recent years, Pop Music has had sort of a rough ride, with very few artists showing actual personality. For example, Pixie Lott for one. A 'nice' girl with some 'nice' enough songs - but she's not exactly a force to be reckoned with in the personality stakes.

...and... It's not that I'm opposed to manufactured pop - although some would say that this is to blame. There has always been manufactered pop music. It's not a new idea and it will continue for many years to come. If we didn't have manufactured artists, we wouldn't have 'Girls Aloud' - one of the saving graces of Pop in recent years.

I guess I have issues with quality control. So many songs in the charts are depressing. I miss the days of chirpy popstars - artists that are genuinely having fun. Creative artists...Vocal artists...Happy artists!

I tire of the depressing songs and I really don't want to read the negative stories anymore.

Of course we should have variety in music - but I really hope that 2010 brings back the fun in music.

Kylie will be back with a new album this year. Sophie Ellis Bextor is too....and hopefully there are many more 'fun' artists gathering momentum, smiling and planning their 2010 chart assault in a 'postive' light...because let's face it, 2009 was pretty sh*t for most us. I think it's time to bring back the fun in pop.

Punk Forever

Though I was very young in the late seventies, I've always been interested in Punk music. In fact at one time, I desperately wanted to be Siouxsie Sioux (crazy hair and all).

There is a Punk Art exhibition in Bangor, Wales which I'd just love to go to. I'm off to Wales soon for my friend Rhiannon's hen party (Girls and Gays only) but I don't think I'll be able to make this exhibition. It's titled 'Punk Forever' - indeed!

This is the official website: http://punkforever.co.uk/index.html

...and this a marvellous mini gallery of what you can expect: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/north_west/8462088.stm

Rock on!

Supermarket Rage

There is something about Tesco's that sucks the very life out of me. Infact, I'd also include Asda in this catergory.

Walking around the store is like pacing around a cattle market. A sea of ignorant individuals, walking blindly, unaware and to be honest....quite ugly too. **Apologies to those Tesco's customers that are both handsome and intelligent. It's just that I don't see them when I go.**

This morning, we went into a local Tesco's as we'd found out that the exchange rate on Euro's was pretty good. Well done Tesco's. As we were there anyway, we decided to buy a few groceries and so we spent the next half hour dodging a terrifying collection of characters from all walks of life (and death...trust me). As usual, when we reached the checkout there were massive queues on the tills. So we decided to use the 'self service' scanners - big mistake. Why does this always seem like a good idea? It was another half hour before we left the store after finally finding someone to assist us and the crazy scanner.

Shopping at Tesco's would be a much better experience if it was set in a Roller Disco. I wouldn't mind the dodgy checkout issues if I could be skating around the store to the sound of Donna Summer whilst searching for a large jar of Helmans.. Take note, Tesco's!

Taping it....

I love our Hard Drive recorder for our TV. It's a fantastic piece of tech - but I still keeping refering to it as taping programmes, despite there being no actual tape involved. No matter how many times I tell myself this, I still can resist saying it.

My friend Neil is a real techie. His idea of heaven is to spend hours in Maplin browsing through the various electronic gadgets. Now that I'm 36, I'm finding myself increasingly drawn to Lakeland (http://www.lakeland.co.uk/) to browse through the hundreds of useful and completely useless items. It's become another of my obsessions.

Sometimes I feel terribly old - but thankfully when I look at most of my peers I'm reminded of how youthful and fabulous I actually am, despite my Lakeland issues...