Commonwealth Games Fever

The Commonwealth Games are nearly upon us. After several games let downs I managed to get a ticket to the track cycling for Friday afternoon's session. I'm hoping (and praying) that Sir Bradley Wiggins will be competing in the individual pursuit which is taking place in the session I got a ticket for! woohoo.

I made my way to Glasgow on Sunday for my usual Sunday cinema trip and to pick up my ticket. Upon reaching George Square I joined the queue at the ticket office (a portakabin with 3 windows). After about twenty minutes I realised I hadn't moved at all, the line hadn't budged up, and you could see people were starting to get a bit restless. On average they were taking at least fifteen minutes to serve someone. Plus there wasn't a separate window set up for collections only. That would've been useful I thought. When I was nearly there, at the start of the queue, there was a guy about 3 people in front of me who was experiencing a problem with his tickets he'd booked online. I hoped there wouldn't be a problem with mine. After just under an hour of waiting it was finally my turn. I said I was here to collect a ticket. The guy asked for my postcode, name and for some ID. Within five minutes I had in my hand a booklet with my ticket enclosed inside. I cannot wait. Friday 25 July, Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome, track cycling. Will be great!!

After ticket collection I went into the Glasgow 2014 superstore. Which is basically a giant marquee tent with all manner of games related t-shirts, towels, Clyde miniatures, key rings, pens, bags and umbrellas. I bought a tea towel and a pair of striped laces that also helps Unicef. Can't grumble at that really.

Cool Glasgow 2014 pictograms

I love these stripes on the ground in George Square

From there I headed along to the merchant city to search out the Irn Bru pop up. Found it! You can't really miss it. Three giant Irn Bru colours containers with merchandise and a mini exhibition inside. Profits from sales goes towards the Prince and Princess of Wales Hospice. I bought myself a pair of Irn Bru branded pj bottoms (but I'll wear them about the house as my comfies). Cool.

new pj's

Since I had my new boots on I weighed up whether or not I should try to find the Jim Lambie pathway that opened on Saturday. I decided to go for it.

from where I stood - new Balenciaga boots have cut my heels up!

I headed further along the London Road and there it was, Barrowland Park with a pathway made up of coloured strips of material with band names and dates in them. They represent all of the bands and artists that have played at the Barrowlands over the years. I love all things colourful and multi coloured and this really appealed to me. The area it is in is nice as there is grass on different levels that i'm sure people will sit on and enjoy the sunshine (when we get it!). I sat for a little while and put some plasters on my sore feet - those new boots! After that I headed back into the city centre and to the cinema.

my ticket!

I can't wait for the games to begin now. It seems like months that it's been building up. I can't wait to see Sir Brad - hopefully! And I can't wait for our country to shine.

Angela

Fuji XE2 - my first few snaps

Stirling

After much deliberation I finally settled on a Fuji XE2 camera. It was the right decision. I've had for a little under a month now and have enjoyed taking pictures with it, even though there haven't been many opportunities. And you always see a picture when you haven't got your camera or when you're driving along and there's nowhere to stop!

In saying that I had some willing (and reluctant) models in the form of my nephews as well as an impromptu flying visit of the Red Arrows over the village as well as some buildings and street scenes in Glasgow and Stirling.

For my first batch they're not too bad.

The camera itself is a sleek black affair. It now dons a little red slow shutter button, a nice addition I got on Amazon. Another item I had to buy was a card reader as I hadn't realised that camera never came with a cable to transfer your pictures to the laptop. I was advised the card reader would be much quicker than a cable and it is. I'm still trying to get my head around all the buttons and settings but i'm having fun seeing what this little black picture box can do for me. The size isn't too small but it is much less bulky than a Canon DSLR and in my opinion much better looking than any Canon could be.

Anyway, that's a quick mini first impression. Let's move onto the pictures.

Connor, the shy boy!

Ryan, love his freckles

curl selfie

Glasgow

Glasgow

#myview

Stirling

him again

selfie

These are straight up unedited pictures. Overall, i'm pleased with the results.

Angela

Glasgow Photowalk

A few Sundays ago I headed to Glasgow not for my usual Sunday cinema trip but for a photowalk and workshop with a bunch of strangers. Standard. This was arranged by Ashley over at Girl With A Camera and since I couldn't go to the first one, I sure didn't want to miss this second one. Armed with nothing more than my iPhone 4S I made my way there.

I was late. Only by a few minutes and only because the queue for the car park was looooong, then i had to catch the underground. But I did make it and they hadn't started yet. Phew. When I arrived there was a room of people sitting in dim light on various shapes of seating, kinda like a house party! I took a seat and waited a few minutes. Then it began...

Ashley welcomed everyone and introduced today's guest, Dan Rubin. Someone I actually have followed in Instagram for a while. Great photos there. He gave a little talk about what we'd be doing, then about some of his favourite photographers, then techy stuff about cameras. Myself and one other person were the only ones using smart phones - iPhones to be exact. Yikes. Everyone else seemed to have huge all singing all dancing camera equipment with them. It was all very interesting though since I am in the middle of deciding which camera to buy and what use i would get out of it. (As is the norm for me, I'll have to go through my 6 month uhming and ahing research and gestation period before i nail the final one down. By which time a new model will be in the pipeline!). Anyway, I felt a little bad for just having my iPhone but then Dan said it doesn't matter what equipment you have, it's what you see that's the main thing - or something along those lines. He put a list of apps that were useful for phones and luckily I had almost all of them on my phone already.

After about an hour of slides and tech talk and pointers about what to talk pictures of we set out on our walk. It wasn't raining but it was dull and grey. No harsh sunlight though which was apparently good. We wandered out into the lane and everyone set about taking their pictures. It was good to see how other people worked and what they wanted to take pictures of. Some were portraits, others were buildings. Me? Well I like looking up. Buildings, skies, clouds, architecture. Portraits are quite hard on an iPhone unless you are able to use your elbows to get to the front. My elbows seemed to be out of action that day...

However, in the lane next to the workshop venue there was an old bike, a worn old crumbling painted door and a great wall. I took one of my best pictures there. What do you think?

I shot this on the VSCOcam app, then edited it later on at the workshop after a few hints and tips from Dan. It's my best picture form the day, or one of them at least. When I uploaded it to the Glasgow Photowalk Flickr group then opened it on my laptop, I loved t even more. The quality is pretty decent for a 3 year old iPhone 4S camera.

We walked around Ashton Lane, the headed to the University of Glasgow and back around in a loop to the workshop venue. I was glad as it was getting pretty cold and my hands were numb from taking pics on my phone. My battery was almost at zero too! Damn you iPhone and your rubbish battery.

Back at the venue we got sandwiches and tea and then were told to each pick about 3 photos to edit. I had a hard job deciding. In the end I opted for the bike shot above and the two below.

Not a bad days work and a great way to spend an early spring Sunday.

Hopefully I can make it along to the next one. And you can too! check out the website.

Angela x

Ange meets Burger Meats Bun

I'm no foodie, but I do know a good bit of meat when I taste one. No supermarket meat ever passes my lips these days. Fresh local butcher meat only.

Ever since I became obsessed with watching the Food Network on Freeview, I've been craving one of those giant burgers Guy Fieri stuffs into his mouth like a ... well, like a foodie eating a giant tasty burger, since forever. Cheese dripping off of it. Burger sauce running down my chin. Juicy beef tickling my taste buds. Let's face it, you ain't getting that at McDonalds.

Last week a new burger place/restaurant/joint (what's the word?) opened in Glasgow. Some people were talking about it on Twitter (some frankly overdoing it with their over-enthusiastic tweets, calm down people, you hadn't even sampled the wares yet!). I decided that with all of the hard work I'm putting in at the gym, I deserved some kind of treat. I would head to Burger Meats Bun and see what the fuss was about. I'm not going to go into the story of who they are and why they're there, I'm not going to pretend to know these people. You can read all about it on their website or over on James Vs Burger for an in depth review. Instead I'm just going to tell you my story, in search of a decent burger.

After failing in my shopping tasks - folks, the autumn winter stuff is already making it's way to stores...WAY TOO EARLY! Anyway, having failed to buy anything other than a one hole punch and a fridge magnet set, I ventured down a set of stairs and into the place. To my surprise (but secret delight) it was fairly quiet with only a few tables taken up. I had my choice of seating. But not before a much needed toilet break. (What's with those heavy doors!).

I took a seat near the back, or side, depending on which way you're looking. Basically I tried to find a quiet spot that wasn't too close to anyone else because I don't much like eating in public with my brace on my teeth. Food, pieces stuck, me picking it out.... you get the picture.

The waitress came over and gave me a menu. The menu is a simple affair on a cute little wooden clipboard. I ordered a Coke. She delivered it and I was so pleased it was a can, and at only £1.50 too! After my last visit to Glasgow for burgers when I realised that I'd paid £5 for less than half a litre of Coke, this was a total bargain and a pure delight. The menu isn't vast - great I thought, too much choice can kill you. I always knew I'd be getting the Big Cheese but I scoured out the other items, just in case.

The cool simplistic menu on a cute little clipboard

The waitress came back and I ordered a Big Cheese beef burger, no tomato, no pickle. I hate tomato, I hate pickles. I like burgers, and cheese! As well as that I ordered the chips with maldon sea salt. I'd leave the Thai chilli cheese ones for another day. After a few minutes she came back and delivered half a kitchen roll, and a tin can with a fork and steak knife in it. Handy I thought, as I need to cut my food up pretty small these days, and a burger in a brioche bun would certainly need to be halved at least.

I read some of my book on my phone whilst secretly listening to a conversation at a nearby table. Oh come on, we all do it! A little while later my order was delivered. The burger neatly wrapped in white greaseproof paper with a cute little sticker on it, the chips in a white paper tub bowl type thingy. I loved the simplicity of this. No fancy schmancy wooden slabs on which to try and delicately eat a big hulking juicy burger. Oh and I hate those effing slates, imagine eating off a slate!?... It would go for my teeth.

Anyway, I digress. I opened the burger and there appeared to be no cheese. What kind of tomfoolery is this? I thought. I took the crispy brioche top off and there was definitely no cheese. Nope. Worse still, there underneath the burger lay tomato and pickles. I hate tomato, I hate pickles. I hesitated. You're in a new eating establishment that ain't no McDonalds prices and you're order seems to be wrong. Pop quiz hot shot, what do you do?

I managed to catch the eye of someone and mentioned that I didn't think this was my order. I said it should have been cheese with no tomato, no pickle. He apologised, took it away and came back to say it'd be another few minutes for my one. From my vantage point near the kitchen door, I heard someone call for him to send apologies (which the nice gentleman had done already, thankyouverymuch). A few minutes later, he brought me out another one wrapped up. I was hoping there was cheese on this one as by now I was hungry and was trying not to fill up too much on the chips before having even tried the burger.

To my delight, yes, there was cheese. There was no tomato and no pickle. Hallelujah. I halved it all and got stuck in. The scene didn't resemble that of a diner or dive on the Food Network though. There was no cheese dripping down my chin like I'd hoped. I was secretly disappointed. However the burger was nice and certainly juicy. It was a little pink in the middle which I like. But dammit, I wanted more melty cheese!! and definitely more of that burger sauce. Now that right there was tasty. The bun held together well even though I'd quartered it. But I still wanted more cheese, and tasty sauce!

bowl of chips, half a burger, some menu

I didn't wolf the burger down. I can't really with a mouthful of steel these days. I savoured it, and those chips. Wowsers. I love my food salty and the flakes of salt on them really made my lips tingle, just the way I like my chips to be (except I could've done with a bit less of the burnt look on the chips. Just me?). Boy was I glad to be sipping on that £1.50 can of Coke between mouthfuls of food.

I came to the end of my meal and decided that I liked it, despite the order mix up. Although I wouldn't be having dessert. I'm not a fan of mikshakes and my stomach couldn't have squeezed in those doughnuts with dipping sauce. Well, maybe I could have if I'd had more time. But no, no dessert.

There was a guy asking customers how their food was. Not in a weird random-asking-folks-about-their-food kinda way. He must've been a 'someone' in the establishment. He came over to me after I'd finished. Fine, I replied. It was all I could muster. I wasn't being rude. I was just trying not to talk to a stranger for fear of having bits of meat and chips stuck in my brace. Imagine the embarrassment. So, if you're reading this Sir, I apologise, but you try having a mouthful of metal and eat discretely in a public place on your own! I would've chatted, maybe, but I'm positive there was a bit of your burger stuck in my teeth. I'm sure you understand. :)

I paid for my meal and headed off into the late afternoon sunshine. Stomach full of nice food.

Like I say, I'm no foodie, but I know my meat. It was nice. Juicy. Nice taste. But MORE CHEESE PLEASE (sorry I can't let this one go). And more burger sauce. And be careful processing customer orders!! I'll put that down to first week hiccups. The place was very nicely fitted out. Bright enough, despite being lower than street level. Cool wooden and metal stools. Nice red no fuss benches and tables at the back/side. Cool music in the background, loud enough to take the edge off a silence, not so loud you can't hear yourself think! Nice, friendly staff are a bonus too.

10/10? For me, no. But with it being just a few minutes walk off Buchanan Street it's worth a visit to see for yourself.

Angela x

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British National Road Race Championships: NRRC

Last Sunday I enjoyed my first ever cycling road race event in Glasgow. It was the National Road Race Championships. There had been time trials in the preceding days but I was only there to catch the men's road race. However I did arrive in time to see the end of the women's race.

When I arrived I was surprised at there being so few people out to watch. But perhaps they'd drifted off as I caught the last lap of that race only.

I opted to stay around the city centre area to watch. First up was a spot at the top of the Buchanan Street section. Right outside the Apple store. It was a nasty left hand turn and with the spots of rain that started it made the first few laps a bit tricksy there. Thankfully I only saw one faller and he was as quickly up and away on his as he was when he fell off.

To say it was utterly exciting to see people such as David Miller, Ben Swift, Mark Cavendish and more on the roads was a massive understatement. I was starstruck. It was brilliant. I kept snapping pictures and videos then had just about enough time to rush into the Apple store to recharge the phone up some more.

Around lap 6 I decided to head up St Vincent Street as there was a bit of an incline, and how would they fare on this. It's not of Alpine proportions but a little bit of a punt up there no doubt. The pavements were fairly quieter up there. Plenty of room to catch a great view of the leading train. Well, there were 2 leaders for a long time then the Cavendish, Miller, Kennaugh and Swift group for a good few laps. Towards the end that lead group was down to 4. They were flying. It was great to actually see this in person having watched the grand tours for most of my adult life on TV. I can only imagine what it's like on a stage of the TdF. The whooshing of the wheels, the clicking of the gears, the chatter... Magic.

By the last lap I'd made my way around to the George Square side and got a quiet spot on the pavement to have a wee seat. I watched for the last time as the leaders flew past at an visibly more increased rate. Wowsers. It was time for my train home and since I was nowhere near the start/finish line I'd watch it all unfold on Twitter from my comfy train seat.

Mark Cavendish won. You wouldn't really bet against him in a spring finish now would you. Brilliant racing from everyone who took part. And good organisation from everyone involved. Scottish Cycling; British Cycling; Glasgow City Council and the volunteers and event staff who were on hand all day to shepherd you across the route and give a little whistle to let you know the riders were on their way.

All in all a great day out in Glasgow, Miles Better! ;)

Angela x

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Burgers, at Palomino

...not involving horsemeat. I hope!

A few months ago I discovered a blog (via Twitter) called James Vs Burgers. Yes, it's about James eating his way through most of the burger joints in Glasgow, and beyond. I read it and my mouth watered with every page click. I decided that I wanted to try some of these burgers.

It's been a while since I ate a proper nice burger. Any burger really come to think of it. I haven't eaten a fast food burger for about a year. Phew. I decided that I'd take a few day off in March for my birthday and so me and Linda decided we would head to Glasgow for a little day out and go to one of those restaurants selling burgers.

On Monday we headed on the train early to Glasgow. We stopped off at Cafe Wander and had breakfast. A much needed bacon roll and tea. We headed out onto the thankfully quiet streets and wandered about, shopped, wandered some more and shopped. Then it was time for lunch. 

Via James' blog, I had set my sights on The Butchershop Bar and Grill but it's a bit of a way out of the city centre so looked at other places. Next I wanted to go to Cocktails and Burger but that didn't open until 5pm. Then i saw Palomino. The review was pretty good - if you don't count the skinny fries. It was on Bath Street, prefect. We wandered along there about 12.45 and went inside. It's a nice place. Dark furniture with downlights above. We sat in a comfortable booth so we could sprawl out after a morning on our feet. There was only about 4 other people in at this point. That didn't bother us. 

We ordered a drink then set about looking at the menus. It's two courses for £13.95 lunch menu or you can do an express lunch at two courses for £9.95. We opted for this. I chose the sliders (cheese royale burger and pulled pork), Linda chose two cheese royale burgers. With that comes a bowl of skinny fries. (The sliders are £7.50 on their own). The food came around ten minutes later. Nicely presented on an oblong plate with a little silver bowl of skinny fries. The little slider burgers were perfect looking. The brioche buns shining in the low light.

only got one picture. pulled pork on left, cheese royale on right.

I tucked into the pulled pork in BBQ sauce. Wowsers it was tasty. I got it without the grilled pineapple. It was sweet along with the bun but not like dessert sweet, just BBQ sweet. Tasty stringy pulled pork like I've never had before. Yum. I savoured that for a minute then ate some fries. Next I tucked into my cheese royale. This too was tasty, although I'd have preferred more runny cheese. The burger was really juicy, I squeezed it to test it. There was pancetta ham on top too which added to it. I had to cut both burgers in half as i find it hard to bite into anything just now with my brace but i coped well with the halves of these little sliders. I finished off the fries too. The were quite salty, which is good because I like salty fries. But they were just fries, nothing more. 

In between times we were being asked if we wanted more drinks. We didn't. And do you want to know why? Because what they served as drinks was a 200ml mini glass bottle of Coca Cola. And guess how much that was, for one bottle? £2.50... Yes. Two Pounds and Fifty Pence for a 200ml bottle of Coke. In the end, 2 drinks cost me the same amount as half of the food I ate. A FIVER!!! Oh my God! Now come on good people of Palomino. You could at least serve the decent sized bottles of Cola. Or a can. Even a can of Coke for £1.50. It's lucky we were in a good mood because as Linda pointed out we could've got 3 cans of Coke for £1 from the Poundshop just down the road.

For dessert we had sticky toffee pudding. It was nice. I'd say the square slice was a bit too big but it's fine, i left some. Luckily we weren't being hassled to get out as it was Monday lunchtime and the place was near empty, but the lovely waitress kept asking if we wanted more drinks. There comes a point you just have to get up and move.

We'd had nice food and a great chat and I would go back. Next time i might have the full sized pulled pork, it was that nice.

Angela x

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My night at the Mumford's (and Sons)

On Wednesday night i set off to Glasgow to see Mumford and Sons play at the SECC. I'd been wanting to see them for aaaages and when the tour was announced i snapped up a ticket straight away. The gig sorta came around pretty quickly but i couldn't wait to see them.

I'd seen a few performances on TV and liked what i saw. I like a band who can play 'live' and still sound the same - hello Kings of Leon!

I like this style of music. I won't label it as some people are really persnickety about these things, but folky rocky pop might just about do it some justice. They played hard for about an hour and a half and I swear it sounded just as good as it does on the cd. Various other musicians came on stage at certain songs; trumpets, violins, drums... GREAT!

I'm not really a fan of the SECC as a venue. It's just a big warehouse really and that night it did stink a bit from the chicken stall. Frying fat smell... eeuww.

The gig was really great. They played new songs and old and the crowd were pretty into it. I did wish i was in the standing area until i was reminded why i'll never buy anything other than a seated ticket to a gig - the stupids who throw beer tumblers and it goes everywhere. Why people, why?!

Anyway, it was a good gig nonetheless and i couldn't but think that I wished I was sharing these moments with someone...

Here's a few photos. iPhone shots so they may be 1) blurry or 2) quite far away. Enjoy.

Angela x

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UCI Track World Cup, Glasgow

I'd waited on this weekend to arrive for months. Only a few months mind, but it felt like longer. This weekend I attended the UCI Track World Cup cycling event at the new Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome in Glasgow's east end. Oh man i was sooooo excited for it.

Sunrise from the railway bridge in Stirling

I headed on the train early to catch the very handy free shuttle bus from Buchanan Street bus station to the venue. I haven't done this journey so wasn't sure how long it would take. Turns out it was only about 15-20 minutes as there was some traffic. On arriving in the area I remembered it well. It's been a couple of years since I've been to the football at Celtic Park. The velodrome sits directly across the London Road from Celtic Park. Together they are a formidable sight. The Emirates Arena houses the velodrome incidentally.

I leaped off the bus and headed up the staircase where we were greeted by cheery 'gamesmaker' types at the front door in nice pink jackets. A welcome surprise on this sunny but chilly morning.

Once inside the foyer area it wasn't that big for a venue that will see thousands come through it's door at the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games. But hey it was was fairly quiet. In the middle there was a refreshment concession that served drinks, pizza, hot dogs, popcorn(?) and crisps. Thankfully Golden Wonder (good choice). It wasn't too badly priced either i thought. £1.20 for a 500ml bottle of Cola, £1 for a small tea/coffee. Pretty decent. The hot dogs however were £4.50 - i don't eat them so wasn't sure if this was expensive or not. they were pretty huge though.

I headed into the velodrome and wow... First thing that struck me was how small it was.  I mean, I'm not sure what I expected but the track was small to me. Perhaps it was because the cyclists were flying around it at speed that made it seem small.

iPhone Panorama of the venue

I found my seat (a great seat on the start finish straight) about 4 rows from the front. The place started to fill up, which made it seem hotter than it's 26 degrees. There were a variety of spectators gathered. Mums, dads, kids, babies, boys, girls. The people I was sat beside were pretty friendly too, bonus. A few Twitter exchanges and I managed to spy @Pyllon busy doing some work in the track centre.

The action was happening at a pace. Not too long to wait between races. Good stuff. The daytime session was the qualifying for later rounds. Men's, Women's sprints, keirin, omnium and lots of different nationalities.

The noise rose when a Team GB rider appeared. It was amazing to see competitive cycling up close like this. And Olympic and World champions among them to boot! Wonderful.

Behind my seating zone was the BBC commentary position hosting Chris Boardman and Hugh Porter - the cycling commentary voices I've grown up with. High up to the right hand side of the start straight was the BBC TV commentary position. It's not all glamorous. Scaffolding! In the seat was Jonathan Edwards and Craig McLean.

On track Laura Trott was going through rounds of her Omnium. She's currently the World Champion at that. Jason Kenny was safely through his round of the men's keirin which was see him race later at night. Can't wait.

In the middle - track centre - i spied the GB area. They were all there. The riders, the coaches and the guys who work behind the scenes fixing the bikes, going through each step with precision. I needed a toilet break so headed up the back and there i spied David Brailsford himself. I'm not that bold as to ask for a picture with them so instead, what you have here is the back of his distinctive head! :)

He really is a legend, not only masterminding several Olympic champions but also, this year, Britain's Tour De France winning Team Sky. Wowsers.

Back to the action and i couldn't stop taking pictures all the while conscious of the fact the Instagram really runs your iPhone battery down low. I had to ration it's use. The racing for the daytime finished around 4.30pm so i headed back on the bus into Glasgow to grab a bit to eat and charge my phone. Thankfully i found myself in Eat which had both a plug and a panini to see me through.

Back to the evening session. I had chosen different seats. The back straight this time. Right in the middle and in the front row. AMAZING. I kid you not, you could feel the backdraft whooshing past when the men's scratch race was taking place. The phone and camera took a battering too!

whoosh!

I even caught the aftermath of Jason Kenny's fall, which he tweeted later on!! Thanks Jason!

Ouch. Jason Kenny after his fall in the Keirin heats

I'd decided i didn't want to hang around Glasgow on a dark November Saturday night so i left the venue around 9.40pm to get the bus back in time for the 10.18pm train. I'd be home around 11.15pm. Sorted. Or rather it was until the Stagecoach bus driver got us lost so much we almost ended up on the M8 motorway going east. Thankfully a passenger put him right and I found myself jumping off the bus and sprinting down North Hanover Street to catch the train. It was 10.16pm, and a long shot but i tried. I got to the station and missed the train by 2 minutes. I could've cried, real tears too. Grrrrrrr to the stupid driver. I had a half hour wait on the next one. Driving home the stars and planets in the sky were so clear. Driving into the village I caught my very first shooting star. It was bright and cheered me up again. I was so knackered when i got home that I fell asleep in anticipation of the next day.

Sunday saw me rise earlier, and drive to Glasgow this time. I got there dead on 9am and parked in Buchanan Galleries, £3 all day on a Sunday, and I wouldn't need to worry about catching a train later. The bus took us to the venue in short time as there was less traffic. Caught the bus and headed into the track. This time it was a little empty. Only to be expected. But the action was just beginning and it was the heats of the women's keirin and men's sprints. The big guns. Sadly Jason Kenny wasn't racing due to last nights crash but young Philip Hindes was. As were Jess Varnish, Becky James and Laura Trott.

Philip Hindes after a little meeting with the boards - ouch, again.

The omnium time trial (women's) saw Laura Trott do a superb ride and immediately after she got off her bike, she almost threw up over in the waiting area. After a wee lie down for 10 minutes she was back up and on a col down/warm up for the final race that would come later. What a champ!

A little check on Twitter and the @TrackWorldCup account told me that the man himself was in the building. Sir Chris Hoy of course! He was interviewed in the track centre by Dougie Vipond but not before they played a film of all of his Olympic and Commonwealth medals over the years. It was really emotional but great to be reminded of them. And he looked so young in 2004!

Sir Chris and the Deacon Blue drummer...

As each race passed the atmosphere grew as the velodrome filled up. We were now on the afternoon (and sadly the final) session of an amazing weekend. I snapped away photo after photo and soaked it all in. then came the final race in the women's omnium. Could Laura Trott snatch victory from the Australian girl Ankudinoff? You bet she could! Brilliant rider she is.

Trott, before her final race of the weekend. So tiny, but so strong!

Laura Trott receives her Gold medal.

Next up was the men's sprint. Germany V Germany. who would win? Would it be he of the gigantic thighs, Robert Foerstemann or would it be Stefan Boetticher?.... It was Boetticher, surprisingly! I ventured around to the bend to try to catch a few pics on the ramp. Man it was steep. This picture kind of shows it...

Foerstemann in front, Boetticher behind

Now it was time for me to head home after a thoroughly brilliant weekend. I was on cloud nine after my first live cycling event. I'll be back. But I won't go before telling you who else was there, at the end of my row... Redbull trickster himself, Danny Macaskill. I didn't have the guts to go and ask for a photo but plenty of kids did. He was very accommodating too. Nice to see. He seemed really quite shy at one point when Dougie Vipond was over hassling him for a wee interview. Head in hands and beetroot red face at one point. Wee shame.

Danny Macaskill, with Sir Chris Hoy in the background in the BBC commentary position

If I had to choose I'd pick rows D to H of any of the zones. Front row was great but the metal railing around the barrier got in the way when snapping away.

Between each race and the riders coming to the start, a musical soundtrack was played. Good pumping tunes. My only complaint was that it could've been a little bit louder to get the crowd going more. Nonetheless the atmosphere all weekend was great.

I had the best weekend. The volunteers were nice and helpful. The venue was really great. The racing was fab. And I can only imagine what the atmosphere will be like at the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games. I for one cannot wait. Thanks to everyone involved in that weekend. And to the @TrackWorldCup tweeter, great tweets. And to British Cycling for my heavily male orientated members goodie bag! Anyone want some Adidas mens shower gel?!... haha.

Angela x

What an awesome week!

What a week! Feels like I've been on a whirlwind merry-go-round that i never want to get off but i have. And what i've been left with is a stuffy nose, a dry cough and a throat so tight it's taking all my effort to drink my tea. This week has been filled with fun, excitement, nerves, aching-gut worry, cinema, music, birthday, lunches, dinners, baby and the most excellent friends a girl can have. And mostly all thanks to Twitter, and me of course.

Tuesday saw a long overdue lunch and window shopping in Glasgow with gorgeous wonderful friend Nicola (@Lilacswizzle). I really have to thank her for the much need confidence boost and wise words I would never have thought of under the circumstances. I have so much to thank her for this week, you don't even know!

Later on Tuesday I ventured cross country from West to East to Edinburgh, where I was attending a preview screening of new movie Warrior, via RBS Film First. This time it would be a solo trip as cinema buddies were busy. Panic started to set in on the train when the battery indicator popped up like a looming message of doom... 20% battery left. Argh! how would i find my way without google maps?! How would I check in on FourSquare?! How could i review this movie afterwards and let the whole of Twitter now how it was?! But still i continued to refresh my timeline. The train was nearing the East and the signal is really fucking patchy isn't it. So all I had was the O2 O of doom and no 3G. Panic, panic. I sent out a desperate tweet: Edinburgh, where can i find a bite to eat and (more importantly) a plug to charge my phone?!! Refresh.... Refresh.... Switch off... No signal... BUZZ! a reply! "well @illegaljacks of course. Ask nicely and you might get to charge your phone :)" Yay. I immediately sent a tweet, asking nicely of course, and the reply was yes, it would be waiting. Phew, what a life saver. Safe in the knowledge that my phone would soon have juice in it, i settled back to enjoy the remainder of my journey with plenty in my thoughts. Well as much settling back as you can do on a Scotrail train seat without thinking about all the other heas that have touched that spot where yours is... yes this is what i think about?! *shudder*. I digress...

The train arrived and I made my way to Illegal Jacks. It was a lovely not-quite-autumn-but-getting-there evening, a bit windy but the sun was still shining and embracing me in his warmth. Wandering along the street it occured to me that I seemed to be heading in the complete opposite direction to the masses. Rush hour. There were suits, numerous. All shades of dark. Navy, Grey, Black, Charcoal. Suits. But what I did notice that stood out were the sensible women who'd opted for trainers and suits when running to catch the train. I mused how they must've had a pair of work shoes hidden under their desks like me. Just in case, you know...

Anyway I reached Illegal Jacks and ordered from the menu then sheepishly asked if there was a plug. I was pointed towards the window, sat myself down and plugged in. PHEW! It really is a disaster when your phone runs out of battery but all was now well. A few minutes later my very tasty cajun spiced chicken wings arrived. They were hot, hot hot and spicy hot. Lovely. I sat and recharged and watched the world go by out the window. I do love a good people watching session! I exchanged tweets were back and forth from various people and then what a lovely surprise that Kelly (@Macfack) had dropped by to see me. (She saw i was checked in on FourSquare). We had a wee chat then it as time for me to head to the movie. This was the purpose of my visit afterall. I unplugged, 73% battery should see me right.

I walked along to Cineworld, not too far really, and headed into the cinema. The screen wasn't ready yet so we waited about 10 minutes before being let in. I had a wee chance to think a little. I'm always thinking. I was wishing that i had a companion with me, it would've been nice. Sadly, not this time. They opened the screen and we filed in. I checked in - obviously and tweeted a few people. Then the ads came on and it was time for the film. Thank goodness there weren't any noisy popcorn eaters in my vicinity. It was bad enough on Sunday.

The film began. Warrior. I thought it was about boxing but it was in fact about cage fighting. It was shot nicely and leads were Tom Hardy, Nick Nolte and Joel Edgerton - who you may remember from that Australian programme that used to be on BBC2 years ago, The Secret Life of Us. I loved that show but they never showed it again here. Anyway, Warrior. It was good. It was kinda predictable towards the end but well shot, nicely acted and the emotion caught me a bit at the end. Loved it really. I'd recommend it. Here's the trailer...

Out of the cinema i was a little bit scared walking these strange streets at night. There were one or two people around but as soon as i got back to the train station i was fine. I was freezing cold but. Shivering. And there was still a half hour wait on my train, darn. I was kept company by a few lovely people on Twitter. It's so great for that eh. Soon enough the time passed and my train would arrive on 5 minutes but not on platform 4 like what was on the screen. It always gets moved at Haymarket to platform 2 at the last minute! Grrr very annoying. Anyway the train was warm and I enjoyed a little convo with a totally awesome person via DM. There was something I wanted/needed to tell them but somehow the right words didn't come out. It would have to wait.

Platform clock

I woke on Wednesday with a dry mouth and chesty cough. Bugger it. I was heading out tonight, again! and there was no time for petty ailments. But I smiled when I checked my phone and had a wondrous text. Lovely. headed to work for another busy day answering loads of emails from students and every other thing that needed doing. But i didn't care. For tonight was a surprise do for Lovely Ian, the Surf Punk (@surfpunkian). Today was his birthday!!

The Mayor's Birthday

He'd told me previously he didn't like surprises but i was sure he wouldn't mind this one organised by one of his friends. I left work early at 4 to catch the train and headed through again. Fast becoming a regular jaunt for me. I arrived at Illegal Jacks a little after 6 and a few people were there. He said he was surprised and didn't have an idea. Nice. And he was parading about with a FourSquare Mayor t-shirt, a present from someone. Cool. By such a coincidence, a lovely girl, Andie (@MissAKis) i've followed on Twitter for nearly 2 years was in town with her work and she would be in Illegal Jacks for dinner too. I couldn't wait to meet her and when i finally did she was chatty, bubbly, lovely and such a warm person and a totally brilliant raconteur. Loads of stories. LOADS. Great.

All too soon it was time for me to head to my train and so I said my goodbyes to Andie, she was recounting her days spent in and around Newcastle to the group, and had a little chat and said goodbye to the wonderful birthday boy. I think he had a good birthday...

Heading home i had a few things on my mind. I wanted to kick myself, for a good reason. I wanted to turn back the past few weeks and do a thing differently but you can't can you.

Thursday i woke and was feeling pretty rubbish to be honest. Tired. Knackered. Flu-y. Coughy. Still had work to go to, boo. But i was visiting Linda and baby Kai tonight for a good old gossip and dinner. It was a good night. We had cheesburgers and chips and tea and juice and sticky toffee pudding. A treat indeed. I filled her in on everything from work to me and my past few weeks of fun. All the while Kai snoozed, fed, played on his mat and farted loads. I mean loads. For a month old baby he was farting like an old man. haha so funny and so beautiful. I headed home about 8.30 for an early night but i had a sinking feeling in my gut. You know when you get that? Bleh. I was glad to get to bed that night.

Friday was work and then spin class. And full on flu symptoms. I couldn't even eat the packet of marshmallows i've had for about 2 weeks. What's wrong with me?! I must be sick.
So that dear readers was my full on non stop crazy exciting wondrous gut-achingly massive week. It was emotional...

How was yours?

Angela x

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My BucketList, an update

My bucket list if you'll remember from here, was somethings from my bigger bucket list for the year that I wrote way back here in May 2010. It was something to spur me on to get out more and to do new things or things i haven't done for a while. Well, it's safe to say that I haven't really been doing anything on it except i have seen more movies at the cinema (hello Cineworld Unlimited card!!). I really really want to score a few things off the list but they are mostly things that can't, no, shouldn't be done on your own. As a little reminder, here is the summer list....

1. I want to see a real life piece of Banksy art, if you know where there's one please shout out now! Even better, come with me, YO!
2. I want to go to Alton Towers. I've not been to the funfair for years and I want a blow-out I'll be scared and scream but I want to go! Go go go go go.......
3. I still ache to walk along a Scottish beach, be it sunny or windy or rainy or whatever. I will do it.
4. Another trip to Londontown. I like it and it will help when doing the first thing on this list. Won't it?
5. Climb more hills. Well at least one. Which will be one more than last year. Yes it's been that long.
6. Seeing lots more new films. I've not been to the cinema for a couple of few but that will be rectified this weekend with a cinema fest.
7. go to Edinburgh festival to see a friend perform. Can't wait for that. My first time at the festival!

So number 6 is so far the winning bullet point. In the past month i've seen Bridesmaids, Horrible Bosses, Captain America, The Devils Double, and i'm sure another but can't remember. All good films in my opinion. The first two were great for a laugh and to take your mind off other stuff for a few hours. Go see them.

Number 1 and number 4: Hhmmm well the trip to Londontown will have to wait until early next year i think and so unless Mr Banksy comes a paints some art on the hut in my garden, the chances of me seeing one in real life before the year's out is slim. But i can wait. More time to research their whereabouts!

Number 2!!!!!! Alton Towers, a theme park! I so want to go. Before the weather turns too bad. Will someone come with me please?!! we could hire a minibus and take a few bodies too. Come on? for a fun filled day out. Let's do it, dudes!! (Sorry for the excess use of the exclamation mark).

Number 5. Yet another that i long to do. But i'm reluctant to go off up the hills on my own. I just won't do it. I'm a fearty.

Number 7. Aah Lucky number 7. The Edinburgh festival is in full swing and alas I still haven't been. But, but, but, I'm off for a long weekend from this Friday and hopefully I'll be popping along to see the wonderful Mr Neil Fox in The Great Brain Robbery. Now running daily from 1.45pm for an hour at The Caves. Get tickets here!! If you wanna come along on Friday with me, tweet me @Ange77H.

And finally number 3. Well his time next week i should be able to blog about this. Fingers crossed the weather is nice. I'm looking forward to that mini adventure!

Now, enough with the things i haven't quite done yet and onto the stuff i have been up to. Well mostly working and spin classes. I'm averaging 4 spin bike classes per week but things aren't quite going to plan. I do think I need to pick it up a bit and do other forms of exercise. I'm just so nervous about going into the gym though. I prefer to go at quiet times but the gym is so good that it's mostly busy up until about 8pm. Is that too late to be gyming? I tend to find that once i'm home I can't quite get the motivation to go back out again. It's just laziness probably. Definitely. Since the gym is but a 10 minute drive away.

Spin class

Results aren't too bad but could be better.

I've recently become obsessed (nah, not really obsessed, what's another word for it?) with painting my nails in loads of different colours. Tropical Paradise pink, Strawberry Margarita, electric blue, bright purple as well as Glitter in the Rain - a fave. Previously, i was a barely there pink kinda girl but that's changed.

What else? Let me see....Well, I've met new people and have even visited Illegal Jack's in Edinburgh. Very nice it was too. Although my use of a fork and knife to eat a burritto was mocked. There's a way to eat it apparently. I also dined at Jamie's Italian on a lazy Saturday afternoon. It was nice. Except the cotton napkin appeared to be all fluff which ended up all over my purple trousers. Not a good look.

Jamie's Italian - Carbonara

Illegal Jack's - burrito...with fork and knife! AND ice cream as my fellow diner had just become Mayor! :)

Overall it's been a fun summer. But could've been a lot better. Now i have to go and draw the window over. The crisp early autumnal wind is blowing in.

Angela x

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