Year: 2006

Well, not Paul‘s curry per se, but the-one-he-organised.

Except he didn’t organise a time. It was always a bit up-in-the-air because it depended upon what time Ruth and JTA would have finished their cock-beating activities.

Well; I’ve done the research for him and collated that with his proposed times, and we get 7:35pm as the final time. There. Now you all know.

As Matt said, there’s an open mic night at The Angel, tonight at 8pm, £2 on the door. In the past, these open mic nights have been variable, with some really good performances and some less good ones, but the audience demonstrates it’s Aberystwyth spirit and is welcoming to pretty much anybody.

So, I’m going to pick up the microphone, and, this time – as I’ve been given about eight hours notice rather than the eight minutes I got last time – I ought to be able to rustle up a couple of “knock knock” jokes in advance, so I don’t just have to rip off everybody else‘s material in a methodical manner.

Want to see some of Aberystwyth’s upcoming comedy talent? And me? See you at The Angel.

Ahoy there, mateys. Troma Night tonight will be kicking off simultaneously at Adam‘s and at The Place at 7pm sharp for Doctor Who, and then reconvening at The Place for the rest of the evening.

If you’re not coming along for Doctor Who, then try at least not to turn up at half-past seven, just as the Doctor will be legging it from the cybermen, or you’re likely to be glared at most severely. By 7:30 you’ll have already missed your chance for a coveted spot on the couch, anyway.

I’ve no idea what we’ll watch. Paul‘s got at least one Troma flick we haven’t seen, as well as a mammoth collection of Mystery Science Theatre 3000 I’d love to make a dent in. And I’ve got a copy of Howling VI: The Freaks, who’s 3.7 star rating on the IMDB gives it’s fans the right to call it the “best sequel” to the original Howling. That should be sufficiently dire.

As far as good movies are concerned, I’m open to suggestions.

Just over a month ago, sick of the interest rates, I paid off my NatWest credit card by going into the Aberystwyth branch and saying “how much money do I have to give you to have you cut up this card and never bother me about it again?” I paid three-hundred-and-something pounds, direct from my bank account, then had the lady behind the counter cut up the card. There we are, done.

This morning I received a letter from NatWest Credit Card Services indicating that I’d missed a payment. I called them up to complain, and was told that the branch must have made a mistake in calculating the sum I owed them, because my account was labelled as being active and I still owed forty quid.

Then they said that it must, therefore, be their fault – the mistake of the branch that had mis-advised me (they took my word on the conversation I’d had in the branch) – and closed my account, dropping the remaining debt.

While it’s obvious that this was the correct thing for them to do – it was, indeed, their mistake that had caused the problem – I was impressed that they behaved in this way. They are, in the end, a bank, and over the years we’ve become used to banks screwing us over with ludicrous charges, seemingly just for the fun of it. Meanwhile, NatWest have consistently provided me with excellent customer support and an attitude of genuinely trusting me as a customer.

Bravo, NatWest. I have no problem with continuing to recommend you as a bank.

Original picture.

Some friends and I are off to Snowdon, somewhere in the galaxy of the universe. They are made out of meat, but I won’t hold that against them. We’ll be taking two nuclear physicists, just in case.

It was a somewhat unusual Troma Night, which goes some way to explaining why I’m talking like this.

Troma Night is on as normal tonight, so, if you’re not going to The May Ball (who’s web site, I maintain, should allow web-based ticket purchases as I suggested last year), come along! It’ll probably only be a “two-film” night, as a number of us are celebrating Sundeep‘s birthday tomorrow with a walk up Snowdon, and it’ll be a long enough day without having only a few hours sleep, to boot.

Turnout should be medium-to-low: we expect a dozen people, maximum, so there shouldn’t be any fight for seats. For those who enjoy Dr. Who we’ll be kicking off at Adam‘s at 7:15pm, and Troma Night itself will start at The Place at 8pm, as usual.

In other news, Claire and I are going to have to move house… again! We’re not yet sure where to and when we’ll be moving, but we’re hoping to move early in June, if possible. If anybody has any great ideas for a themed Troma Night for the last ever one in The Place, we’re open to suggestions.

EDIT: As several people have quite rightly informed me, Adam is working until late: Dr. Who will be shown wherever-you-can-get-it. We’re going to try to sort it out in The Place, but no promises yet: check with me on the RockMonkey ChatRoom or by phone for updates.

EDIT: And Dr. Who is at 7pm, not 7:15pm, tonight. Ho hum.