Crickey, time don't half fly!

Hya all,

long time no post! I haven't posted in so long I've almost forgotten how to do it!! o the irony! i really don't know where the time has gone! just been such a busy bee!

It's just been one thing after another b honest! jury service, weddings, new job and the same old same old stuff that takes up so much time!

I hope you are all doing well, missin ya! I'm gonna take a look over the posts now c how your all doin!

take care

nat
x

So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, adieu

hya folks,

well, i thought i'd mark the fact that i am leaving MAGMH by revealing what may be the worst kept secret in history (v real identity of purkul) on a blog post.

Yes twas me all along! V 1 and only Natty b!

I will keep posting in the future (don't know if you'll think that that's a good thing or not!! ha ha)

I'm not great at slushy sentiment but just wanted to say that I'll really miss u guy's! You've taught me so much. I just feel like its time 2 reassess where i am and where i want to go, its just time to move on.

Its been a pleasure and honor!

'One way to get the most out of life is

to look upon it as an adventure'
William Feather

So I am!

Take very good care & stay in touch!

nat
x

To run like you did when you were a kid!

hya all,

its a funny old game ain't it life! (and what a funny old place to start a blog!)

i went for a walk today with my niece, nowhere far away or expensive just a regular walk in the country (city country that is! but green things and ducks were involved)

& well it got me thinking of how special it is

To run like ya did when u were a kid...

how brill it must be,
to run and not know,
or need to know where u r going,
how fab it really was,
to not give a thought to falling down,
or the hurt you may have.
so liberating,
to not care who's watching,
such a joy,
not having a thing that it is that you've got to do,
not having a concept of time,
let alone a need to check how your doing for it.
to run, just for the joy of running itself.
i want to run like i did,
when i was a kid,
or as close to it as i can get
knowing what i know now,
but well, thinking about it,
knowing what i now know,
might make the run even more fun,
knowing what a precious thing that run really is.

Funny ain't it how things just grab u, i just found it to be a really profound moment really, funny as that sounds. just this everyday walk kinda thing.
Memory & our capacity to learn is an important thing, as children it stops us from putting our hand back on the cooker after finding out that it hurt the last time.
But then again in the same way such experiences, as we get older can act to self limit our opportunities and potential for the future and even dampen the present.
So i'm gonna try and give it a go.
& i wanna dedicate this post to me niece for teaching me a great lesson in life (without even realising she's done it!) cheers chicken!

purkul
x

What a night! Standing in the way of control!

hya all,

i've been itching to mark this down somewhere but just havn't had the time! well here i go!

i'll set the scene...

friday night me n me bud decided go to c the gossip in brum. we'd been on about goin but neither of us ever got around to booking the tickets for one reason or another, well we decided to go despite having no tickets and the fact that it was sold out!

we got in, watched the gig (which was beth being er usual fab self!) and after the gig we were just leaning on the barrier as every1 else left!

THEN!!!!

out of the stage door comes the one and only beth ditto! who runs over grabs me n gives me a kiss then runs back through the door! now i have to say at this point that beth is my idol! i was completely gob smacked! how ace is that!? mayb she thought i was someone else or somethin! i don't know, but i don't care cuz either way it happened!!

THEN

yes there's more...

i wanted get a limited edition album and they'd sold out. :-( the guy said go down stairs but the security guard wouldn't let any1 down, anyway after i told him y i wanted go down e let us. we get down there and beths out signing autographs and stuff. there were loads a people there & i was gutted cuz i adn't got a pen n 2 b fair that was that many people i didn't chance of getting her autograph if i did! well there was this guy 'Martin' what an absolute star! who came from behind the barrier. e ad a pen but didn't wanna giv it 2 me cuz e needed it so he said he'd go with me get her autograph! but she ran out of time. :-( so super Mart took me ticket n said to meet him up stairs cuz the security guards were moving us on. & Mart the little star came and me me with a ticket signed by all the band!

What a night! can't believe it me, them kinda things just don't happen 2 me! absolutely brill! i've met me idol!

Fabulous! I've shot a vid of the gig too and when i work out how to get it on i will!

Purkul x

I am back honest!

hya all,

I am back, honest! (not as you'd know it by my lack of posts! ) I feel like it was a million years ago that i went away. Things have just been busy, busy, busy!

to name but a few....

-Me bro n best m8 are getting hitched in 6 weeks!!!!! so plenty be gettin on with there
-having finished my room the rest of the house is under major changes, changing rooms stylee!
-i've taken on new projects at work so i'm busy there
-playin me guitar's more
-tryna do some exercise of some sort in prep 4 the weddin photo's! :-/
-going london next week and blackpool the week after 4 work things
-goin scotland on a mini break sometime soon!
-goin c the gossip again 2mora! yea!

sure there's much more goin on but i can't think at the min! keeps me out of trouble though i guess! they're all good things though so if i look at it that way i'm a lucky gal!

positive things....

me niece ate solids for the 1st time 2day! & the rest of me list really! ;-P

Take care

purkul
x

I'm Back!

Hya all,

well i'm officially back and in the swing of things since getting back from rhodes!

I had a great time, and have now realised that i'm not nearly as brown as a thought i was! :-(

the food was lovely as was the beach but i think that if i was to go again i'd go rhodes town as, falaraki wasn't nearly as 'mad fer it' as everyone makes out, and as a consequence it wasn't the most cultural of places by day, a bit like hanley with out the shops!

i'm missing the sea & also missing bobbing around in the pool as the sun went down in the late afternoon and the l8 night boogies. some of my friends are going ibiza in a few weeks and i must say i was tempted but the old finances and work commitments mean i've got to put my sensible hat on!

whilst on holiday my brother went and told me that my cat had died :-( he was my little man and i'd had him since i started high school. i picked him up on the way back from school because he was wondering in the road! kept him under my bed for a week untill i told me mum!

i'll miss him so much & i must say it did spoil the end of my hol a bit.

then to add to the chaos of getting back from hol and unpacking, i've had no bedroom or bed since i've been back because me ma n pa decided to decorate me bedroom 'big time' whilst i was away, the only trouble being that it wassn't hardly started let alone anywhere near being finished!!

o well its progress all the same. but what it means is i still havn't got a bedroom, havn't unpacked and have done nothing but paint and sand since i've been back!

& to top it all off my neice went to the toilet on her potty today!!! i rang her up to tell her what a big girl she was and she sang er song to me ( a re-working of 'what kate did' ) and kissed the phone! she's such a little star, growing up so so fast!

purkul

x

ola from Rhodes

Hello all,

just wanted to do a quick post before i cum back as i promised!
Its been really hot! i'm proud to say that i've managed to get some sort of a tan so i now resemble caspa slightly less!
but not without a few painful burns! anyway got to dash, but just wanted to continue with my jet setting blog!

purkul
x

All Hail Beth Ditto & The Gossip!

hya all,

I went to see the Gossip last Wednesday at Rock City in Nottingham & i've got to say it was one of the best gigs i've ever been to!

We were sooooo close as you can c but 2 b fair i was gutted that we weren't closer cuz she came down off stage at 1 point to the barriers!

The woman is amasing, pitch perfect & wailing on que! a legend in the making me thinx, couldn't help but think that i was a part of history in the sense that i'm sure that in time they'll be looking back making pro grammes about her, she is a total breath of fresh air in an otherwise artificial and manufactured age. I feel that now even 'unusual' and 'different' has become part of the manufactured main stream & as a consequence has lost its credibility!

anyway thats enough of me getting all deep and meaningful!

purkul
x

sayōnara, Hwyl, Adéu, Farvel, Ciao..... ( and many other way's of saying toodaloo!)

Hya all,

I just wanted to mark the fact that Emma has left the Media Action Group really. She is a top lass and the office simply won't be the same with out her. She means a great deal to a lot of people who i'm sure will share my sentiment.

i know that she'll do great where she is now & will be a total success & asset to her pastures new.

Good luck m, not as you'll need it & i'm sure we'll catch up soon!

purkul
x

hello there,

its been a wee while since i last wrote a post, basically because i've been busy more than anythin.

tryna think about whats been goin on playing catch up a wee bit,

a certain someone left MAGMH last week, i will miss her so much as a colleague and good friend, i'm sure we'll meet up again, but i realise that it just won't be the same at the office without her.

i can't wait till this wed, i'm goin to c 'the gossip' one of my fav bands of the min, i luv there individuality, disregard for the norm & the guts to embrace their non conventional image.

anyway i'll let you know how good the gig!

take care

Purkul

x

What Mind Bloggling Means To Me....

Hello all,

In quite a reflective mood of late, and so i just wanted to share with everyone just what the mind bloggling project means to me....

i had never blogged before the project and so, at first, it seemed quite an alien concept to me to have a space online because well....

what would i write?

what might people think of what i write?

have i got anything worthwhile to say that others will want to read?

where do i start?

and the list goes on......

so i just got on with it and put anything down that sprung to mind, and as a consequence i've learned that i can write what ever is in me to write, and whether anyone finds it interesting or not is not the purpose for it being there, but it is important simply because it is important to me and that therefore makes it important enough to be there. everyone has the right to be heard.

i use my blog as a catalogue of things that i have done, its a positive reminder and inspirational diary of good times, something to have a look back on when i'm feeling a little lack luster.

most importantly though i think that what matters most to me about the mind bloggling project is that it has allowed me to speak with, and connect with such genuinely kind, supportive, interesting, humorous and inspirational people from all walks of life, that ordinarily i may never have had the pleasure to meet.

so that's all really, that i can think of for now, although i am sure that there are many other things that i haven't even crossed my mind.

purkul
x

Sanity Fair 16th of June at noon with monsoon!!!

Hya all,

as you may well know it was the seventh annual Sanity Fair on Saturday 16th June. The day was a great success, if i do say so myself. The Media Action Group for Mental Health (MAGMH) stall looked fab (thanks to everyone who helped out, we really couldn't have done it without you)

Although my intended Elvis appearance didn't quite work out in the end due to wardrobe malfunctions & instead i ended up having to attend the event at Willy Wonka, which was better in the end because i luvd the hat i got to wear & we did a last min golden ticket lucky dip for the kids.

The bands were absolutely brilliant i only wish i got to listen 2 more tunes & the Planet sound parade was ab fab! And the queen, well you know who you are u were top stuff!!!!!& thankfully the rain held off just long enough for the planet sound folks to do their thang. But not quite long enough for the rest of the day!

but in spite of a freak monsoon half way through the day everyone soldiered through, stood their ground and made it through to the end of the day, to raise awareness of mental health, to promote mental well being and inform the general public of the mental health services available to them in the Stoke on Trent area.
I just wanted to say a massive thank you & well done to everybody who helped to make the day the success that it was & i hope that together we can make it even better next year! ( hopefully without the 'singing in the rain' tribute!)

Purkul

x

hunt for the big wig!

hya all,

All swept up in the preparations for sanity fair this Saturday! i can't believe how quickly that it's come around!

As you may know the theme for this year is stars of the stage and screen & not to be outdone by the fantastic sanity faries of last year i've decided to go as the king himself this year the one and only elvis presley!

but i want big big hair, i'm thinkin of making a massive wig out of foam or something because all the wigs that i've seen are just the regular quiffs but i want a massive 1! any ideas will be welcome!

hope to see you there!

purkul

x

Rocky Horror Rocked!

Hya all,

Went to the Rocky Horror show on Saturday night at the Regent Theater. & I have to say its prob the best night out i've had! Such a laugh got all dressed up & everything but i must say i felt 'over' dressed when i got there, it seemed to be a case of the lesser the clothes the better!! ha ah!

purkul x

Jules Holland Rocked the Buxton Opera House

Hya all,

Just look at this.... How fabulous is that! Its the Buxton Opera House it blew me away, now that is a venue!! Me and a few chums went to c Jules Holland & his rhythm and blues orchestra there last night.

They were amazing. I've been to quite a few gigs but when you go to a 'music' gig rather than a band gig there's such a massive difference, its less about the concept, image, and who's playing and instead its about what's being played. Pure Talent, nuff said!

The only other gig I've been to of that kind was when i went to go and see, Antony & the Johnson's at the little civic in Wolverhampton, the difference being that the majority of their material is quite melancholy and slow, where as Jules was a complete contrast, big sounds n neats that you couldn't help but tap your feet to!
At one point everyone was on their feet dancing away, FAB! the show included a woman named Ruby turner i think, well that woman can really sing. Effortlessly she belted out such a rich and powerful sound. The whole band in fact were true 'artists' Just Fab.

One problem though... made me realise just how much i've got yet to learn, i'll av a good go trying though! ;-)

purkul
x

Penthouse!

Hya all, Just a quick post really. Went to Nottingham over the bank hols with me friend who i don't c as often i'd like.
We went to c girls aloud at the ice rink, girls aloud not being my general taste but an opportunity for a girly laugh & night out as much as anythin! twas fab had a brill time & we even got upgraded to the penthouse apartment, n for 1 sec we convinced ourselves that girls aloud were in the next apartment cuz we heard singing! spose we'll never no! Anyway just wanted to mark the occasion.

Bye 4 now Purkul x

New Love!

Hya all,

just wanted to introduce you to a new love in me life.

Epiphone Casino!

Just hope i'll be able to do it justice one day who knows...







... ok ok, i know but someone once said if ya aim for the moon and miss then - well at least ya amongst the stars!

purkul
x

happy accident

Hya all,

done my homework blueshawk!

only sorry to say its with me trusty camera phone again rather than a decent camera.

found this new panoramic feature whilst tryna find the flash but didn't quite realise what it did & made this picture by mistake (hense the darkness as still ain't sorted the flash!!

c ya soon

pearl of wisdom...

money comes and goes but talent grows!

purkul

Progress?

hya all, i'll leave ya with this pic i took yesterday, its the view i c 2wice a day as i get into my car.

on the one hand i c it as quite historic really and for some reason i can't quite put me finger on poignant. purkul x

Great News

Hya all,

Don't worry its not me!!! ha ha

I've ad a right old great bit of news of l8. My life long best friend is pregnant.
For reasons that i won't go into, not major ones but just one of those things really. we haven't seen all that much of each other for some time.
But having said that she's sent me a pic of her scan and made my day so i thought i'd share it with ya!

purkul
x

May i introduce you to Ruby Mae!

Hya all,

how proud am i!? the very happy aunt of a Miss Ruby Mae as of yesterday, she made her appearance at 2.38 p.m weighing in at a whopping 8lb 3oz!!!!

Just wanted to mark the occasion by blogging about her! how cute is she!?

also

on another positive note i bought an electric guitar today. £50 for the guitar a small amp, a carry case, strap and all the leads etc!

Fair enough its not exactly my dream choice of an epaphone casino but a start all the same!

Positive thing....

Did you read the rest of my blog! ;-)

on me bike!

hya all,

just wanted to mark the fact that i went on me bike last night for the first time in over ten years! The pic above - my hood! its amazing what you miss unless your looking ain't it!

positive thing...

i'm getting all active in my attempt to loose a sizable amount of weight in a reasonably short amount of time (don't worry i'm not gonna be daft) i've done it before so there's no reason i can't do it again but last time i did it all with diet where as this time i'm doin the whole exercise thing as well, and what better excuse than getting out into the great outdoors with all this sun and such nice views at my door step!

Apedale was ace!

Hya all,

went on a photographic workshop trip out to apedale yesterday with fellow mind blogglers! I've never been there before twas really nice, def worth another visit!
turned out to be a totally top day, great weather, great views, greatest of all.... great company! top stuff!
thought i'd put a few of the pics on but its taking far too long so if you go to the following link there's a few on there!

http://www.mindbloggling.org.uk/mind_bloggling_group_activities.htm

positive thing....

i'm sorry to keep on but how fabulous is this sun!

Reasons to be cheerful 1...2....3 (& then some)

Hya all, just been inspired by etcb's latest post which features things top to ones self here goes..... - music - music - music - and did i mention music - gigs - friends (full stop) - sunny days - starting a laughing session for no particular reason - kids laughing - viewing art - viewing sculpture - doing art - doing sculpture - blue sky - looking at photographs of happy times - playin a new tune on the guitar - going for long drive to nowhere in particular with top tunes blasting and not having to curb the decibels when singing along - thinking! (believe it or not! ;-) ) -dancing to top tunes
- me cats
- feeling a genuine connection with people especially when i don't expect to!
- gerbra's (fav flower in the pic thats lasted since my birthday!!)

positive thing...... read the rest of the post! ha ha

let the sun shine in!!!

hya all,

my i take this opportunity to say what a difference a bit of sun makes!!!!

normally i'm not a great fan of the sun on account of being generally uncomfortable, hot and bothered and the fact that it reveals just how much weight ya need to loose mean as though everyone else is doing the whole beach babe goddess thang!
 but that said i'm loving it! just seems to make the whole concept of getting out of bed in the morning and then doing something worth while once your out of there that little bit easier!

postitive thing...

its sunny! let the sun shine in!!

birthday weekend

hello all,

well twas my birthday yesterday, so i'd like to say thanx to every1 who helped me celebrate!

i went for dinner at la bella napoli in hanley with the folks from work and my birthday twin! u know who you are!! :-)

went to see TCTC ( the cooper temple clause) on frinday and saturaday in leeds and birmingham! they were top stuff!

positive thing....

just a thought. today will be yesterday tomorrow!!! ;-)
& i can now play hotel yorba by the white stripes on my guitar!!!

Andorra March 07

Andorra on me butt!

hya all,

just a quick post, in andorra at the mo on a skiing holl!

avin a great time, was a little worried at first that there wasn´t gona be any snow, was dead weird we turned a corner and there it was a big snowy mountain!

must say i´ve been on my bac side most of the time i´ve been here but avin a great laugh all the same!

top stuff!

i´ll stick sum pics on when i get home!

purkul
x

Jet - Top Stuff

Hya All,

Just a quick post to say how great Jet were at wolverhampton. would you believe it we missed the opening. We thought that it started at half past but in actual fact it started at 9, didn't miss all that much though because we wanted get there early to get to the front!

I may not get a chance to post again for a while because i'm going on hol on sunday. I'm going sking in france. A pair of 1st's there!!

Positive things....

well to be honest the rest of my post is positive points so well i'll leave ya with that and a few more additions to my gig slide show!

artist in the making me thinx!

Hya all,

Here's a wee pic my niece drew on her birthday. you wanna c er go she's got all the committment of polock making her mark!

Also how fabs this... a heart shaped plum! almost felt bad about munching it!!

Positive things...

just thought i'd share some quotes i like...

Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else. -Judy Garland

Work like you don't need the money, love like you've never been hurt and dance like no one is watching. -Randall G Leighton

I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work. -Thomas Alva Edison

Art Inspired

Hya all,

Through work of late i've had the opportunity to meet some thoughouly nice and extremely tallented people.

By tallented i specifically mean their ability and passion for art!

I used to do art at A-level but i 'dropped it off' when i went to uni because well, i didn't think a qualification in foundation art would be as universally useful as a more 'academic' qualification, as i didn't really know what i wanted to be so i didn't wanna narrow my options down that much. Then on top of that in my usual way because i didn't 'have' to produce any pieces for my qualification or anythin i just didn't!

Well that is gona change, thanx to my inspirational peeps i've met of l8, i'm gona dust off me art stuff n get to doin some bits again.

i've included a couple of pics on this blog of a piece i did at GCSE of my cat Pipper! i've included a close up to show the detail and that, basically as an example for a few of the artists who i've spoken to that would like to do similar things in order to show off their work!

Positive thing....

Its my nieces birthday today she's 2! happy birthday chicken i love you loads and loads and then some!!!

also

thanks to all the artists i've met of l8! you've inspired me to get back in touch with something that means a great deal to me!

purkul

x