Today is our seventh wedding anniversary. Hurrah! In September, we will be celebrating our seventeenth year “together”. Hurrah! I find anniversaries, birthdays, seasonal holidays all so depressing. It’s another reminder of the passage of time, as if looking in the mirror wasn’t enough. I am still the no good, worthless bum that I was when I was seventeen. Of course, I am different. I have learnt lessons of humility and tolerance, but essentially I still feel the same. Don’t get me wrong – I am not miserable about the anniversary or the amount of time we’ve been together – it’s just those little reminders that prick you and tell you that you won’t be here forever. I am one of those people who can’t stand having his photo taken. There are two reasons for this: 1) I am physically repulsive and 2) I can’t stand looking at photographs. When I look in a photo album, it brings on abject misery has frozen moments of time remind you of happier times, when everyone was here and when you were a younger, more handsome idealist. You could do anything if you wanted to. But you got scared and gave up too soon. So I hate photo albums despite The Missus’s insistence that she takes a snap of me whenever we are somewhere or if she’s come to the end of a reel of film in her camera. Me and the dog are usually the last two pictures. Oh well, buck up, cretin. You are stll here and you can still feed yourself and fuck. Be grateful for that, eh?
Anyway, I bought The Missus a nice present that she wanted, there were some nice flowers from my mum and cards from the in-laws. At least her folks remembered this time (unlike the year they forgot my birthday and our anniversary).
In the post (last Thursday): the second set of VDGG remasters. Yay, these are pretty good fun and I had forgotten what a great album “Fool’s Mate” is. Not so sure about the “extra tracks” on the VDGG remasters – they are rubbish sounding bootlegged live performances and in the style of the VDGG “The Box” set, fricking unlistenable. Anyway, gets me pumped up for Friday. While listening to Godbluff in the car, the Missus remarks: “You know what? I think I’ve finally got VDGG. They’re really great. Better than King Crimson live.”
That’s my girl… 😉
As for yesterday’s Live8 concert, I watched the whole thing and thought it was a lot more slick than the original. I thought the concert at the Eden Project had more charm, better music and atmosphere. Though when the reunited Pink Floyd came on, I had to pinch myself. It was a remarkable performance.
As for Live8 and G8, I am going to leave the Africans to tell you how it is:

Its all funny because 95% Africans living in Africa have never heard of Bob Geldof or Live Aid. Obviously all the money from the last one has gone but we in Africa have not seen the effect.
Gabriel, Lagos, Nigeria

I’m rather pleased with all the effort put into the event. It certainly raises awareness and puts pressure on politicians but, all the aid in the world won’t make poverty history. I’m of the opinion that the most effective way to make a difference would be to fight the corruption that diminishes any positive effect that can be made by financial aid. Billions of dollars have been donated since the 70s and yet, several countries are worse off than they were then. So it’s obvious that the problems aren’t just financial.
Sujo, Lagos, Nigeria

It will take centuries to liberate Africa…and I’ve already done my bit by voting in Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, the architects of this plan to drop the debt. But until a solution can be found where the poor are no longer repressed by their own, corrupt politicians, the likes of Geldof will be chasing their tails.

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