Milo

OK so my friggin key board is playing up. I cannot see what I am typing as there seems to be a delay. I may be running low on memory, which reminds me I need to get this whole system backed up like tomorrow for fear of loosing all my pics and now more importantly work stuff. I have been working on a spreadsheet for weeks and have used my noggin - I email it to my gmail account each time I amend it - Just in case.

I also have a blank work document in Word which will not delete from the screen without me turning the whole caboodle off. WHY? Gosh, this is frustrating.

OK so what is happening in Harper's world? Not very much, I am thinking about getting out of my place since A) I have aquired a gorgeous cat, and B) My shoes are now living under the bed, due to severe lack of room. That's what you get if you live in a granny flat I suppose.

The cat is called Milo, and it is a Norwegan Forest Cat - see pic. He/she what the hell? Is so lovely, I am trying to get rid of it on Craig's List but have not had much joy. Not that I care 'cause I want it all for myself. Only snag is I am not allowed any pets according to my lease agreement, so I could solve the lack of shoe space if my Landlady catches sight of my pussy.

How did I acquire a cat? Well, funny story - I was given it at a petrol station a week and a day ago. Maybe because I was wearing a Cheshire Cat t-shirt at the time, some Dude decided to approach me, with his sister's kitty, which had just been rejected from entering Davis College. The guy was obviously distraught, and was mumbling about having to take the poor little gorgeous bundle of fluff to the pound. Which is like the Green Mile. Of course I jeopardised my living situation and took the poor thing, cardboard box and all with me in my newly acquired Jetta.

So here she is- a right Royal pain in the ass, the fluffiest cat I have ever had the pleasure of grooming - Yeah grooming! I have to brush her fur cause she has already started Dreading-up, poor little thing. She has no claws too, and I don't think she has ever set a paw outside the door, until now that is.

I hardly see her, she just squawks and looks at the bowl of food I refresh each day. She doesn't like these bits I give her, she is going to have to get used to them because I bought a sack load, mind you she did get a treat, a small pouch of food from Safeways , which she just sniffed at and walked off - tail in the air. I cannot paint a full picture of snobbish behaviour from my little fluff ball. She cries to come in at 6am most days, and I let her on my bed (with a protector sheet of course) and she gets the scratching of her life, since she has no nails I feel it necessary to give her a good rub and she really does appreciate it - I can only describe her body of that of a Koala Bear when she's purring her head off, clinging on with all four limbs to my arm as I try and tickle her.

OK better get on Milo literally walked in my room for her daily groom.

4th July. The Aftermath

Well, I warned the boys I was not keen on D.I.Y. (Do it Yorself) fireworks and sparklers. But I was not to be the party pooper on the 4th July, yesterday. Here it is Independence Day so you have to don red white and blue, wave the flag and say "Happy 4th". Maybe not. Any excuse for a firework, rocket, snake (load of crap) and bloody sparklers.

Now us Brits see a sparkler as a harmless shiny wondrous wand of glowing gorgeousness. Takes an hour to light them but they are worth it for the 30 second of "awws" and "ahhs" they omit. Sparklers in America look like Tommy guns, they have an extra handle shaped like a gun and throw of large molten globules of hot 'aluminum' arches of white hot mini firebombs.

If you are unfortunate enough to be stood under some lasses waving their light saber-like death sticks above your head. You get a bald patch (see picture 1 - look at parting closely). Yeah, daft biatch Jo was rained upon, as she stood under a sparkler shower.

I had a fit. Immediately wanted to go home, after asking Matt to take this picture so I could 'zoom in' on the damage. Mortified. The bald, burned patch of course felt a lot bigger. It was a shock when the meteor hot rock landed on my head. I felt a hot sensation and smelt my hair burning, grabbed my hair and a massive clump came out in my hand. I was stood near Mike at the time and his face was a picture when I showed him the hair! So that made it worse for me. I shed a few. My hair man. All I kept saying was that it was bad for me 'cause I was a girl!

The boys carried on with the firework nonsense, totally wasted. Irresponsible if you ask me, but no one does, so on this instance, my opinion did not count. The day prior to that incident was spent playing drunken soft ball with my friend T's mate's in Potrero Hill, San Francisco. Drank loads of beer, started with a few cheeky Snakebites. Don't you like a cider on a hot summer's day?

We all took meat and veggies to the softball field and there was a sound system with a mike and a keyboard, so the Baseball tunes were being busted out. It was a laugh. I went with my boyfriend Matt, my friend and Matt's room mate T, her mate Sarah and then loads of people turned up who we all knew so it was day of good people and food. Well, I won't mention the kebabs eh Matt?. Yeah, they seemed to take forever to get going. The coals were never hot enough. What would I know about BBQ-ing anyway, I am a Brit? Yorkshire Puddings anyone?

The game was a laugh. I wore the mascot costume beer can, I will add a pic here, but I think I have to rotate it, and it is a hassle right now- so later. Or just go on facebook, you'll see the full album on that. Can I just say, I was bitten by a spider on the way home last night (yeah, Happy 4th!)? My leg is swollen and my foot just got red. So if you don't hear from me again, that's what did it... Just make sure you cover my bald/burned patch up when you get me sorted for the crematorium!

See Ya.

Frig - What happened to June?

OK - I always apologise here, the part when I feel really guilty for some reason I am not keeping this thing up to date. God forbid if I do ever have kids, they will be pissed off to see Mammy kept all the sunniest goings ons for her eyes only. I should not have to apologise really though because there is only one person who reads this shite on a regular basis and it is only my x-boss, so it does not really cause too much stress, well, it does, I am waffling on about it, yes I feel guilt as Marianne Faithfull said three weeks ago when I saw her at the Fillmore.

If only to brag about all the gorgeously live gigs I have been to since Coachella in April (I still need to put the line up on my blog re this event, and also gather more pictures, although most are to risque for publication, and Madonna already did that book so I guess I will sneak them in the old archives somewhere; I tell you when I am 65 I will not be able to rely on my seriously deteriorating memory to bore my Grand kids to death with - THIS will be my only tool for recollection and I really should document more for my benefit). (Breathe).

I am just gonna list the gigs I have been to recently.

Joan Armatrading at Mountain Winery, Seratoga.
She was great, the first note induced a serious eyeball flooding. Her music evoked so many childhood memories, I just had to shed a few tears, she was real, her voice not a note out from her CD's. I had to use itunes for the first ever time for purchase, as I needed to download her greatest hits just to brush up before the show. My Mum and I went along, and sat in the outdoors with a near-on full moon. Question: Why do Americans feel the urge to talk all the way though a sit down $50 show? About what they are having for tomorrow's dinner and such. The conduct in the cinema is far more disheartening and this gig was the first one I had to ask someone to stop being so disrespectful and downright rude. They moved seats! Always polite - never too aggressive, well a little since it was Joan and there were a fair few 'butch' biatches about, so I had to be a bit firm.

Fratellis at The Fillmore, San Francisco.
Brilliant show, right at the front of the stage. I must say though the roadies provided nearly as much entertainment as the band. Brilliant Scottish looking blokes, Mum actually reckoned the amp man was the glass collector from the band's local! Mum, Stacey and Zoe (visiting from Keighley, Yorks UK) and Christine (visiting from Edinburgh) her half sister Pier and myself went together and danced and shouted our heads off for a very good set, which needed a little bit more audience participation if I have to make a comment. The lead singer did not engage with the audience quite as much as I'd have liked. They left my favourite song 'Chelsea Dagger' for the encore and what an encore, the crowd went crazy.

Sierra Leone Refugee Group, Great American Music Hall, San Francisco.
My God, these boys and lady could play! I cannot really put my finger on a genre for this band, they were thrown together in a refugee camp and obviously decided to pass time by banging on a few instruments, singing, rapping and dancing. A feast for the ears. Never seen a bassist with grey dreads down to his ass before, he insured my eyes did not suffer fatigue, in fact if I wanted to I could have taken the cheeky chappy home. Got very drunk this evening all because of the amount of dancing I was doing.

Hot Chip, The Fillmore, San Francisco.
The best band at Coachella Music Fest. By far, they rocked and my second dose of them made me firmly believe that there are one of the most original, entertaining in a quirky way, lads from home who are causeing riots here. The police stated the next day that this was an illegal rave, seriously guys it is not exactly in a barn in the middle of Kent, we bought tickets and from what I know no E's were being flogged. Rave! It rocked. But I could not liken it to any of the raves I ever attended in my youth (listen to Granny here!). They are so good live, their CD doe not do them justice, you have to see these boys live.

Marianne Faithful, Guess where? Yeah the Fillmore, San Francisco.
Seated at round tables elegantly lit with votives, Mum and I, I treat her for her birthday, sat in a very different Fillmore than what I am used to. It was all very civilized, until Marianne opened her mouth! I have some of her CD's and have only played them a few times, however after this show I cannot stop playing her. She is fantastic. Girls, she is one for the ladies.

OK so there's a few. I have tickets for The Kings of Leon in September will be stood in line at Popscene in two weeks for Maximo Park, this venue is really small, and tickets can only be bought on the door, so it is a pain in the ass, but the last gig I went to there was the Teddybears and they were worth the wait on a chilly foggy night. So I am in line for that one. The Klaxons are plying next Thursday for $15 so I may pop up to the city for that one.

OK, back to Howard Stern on Sirius. He is having a butr ring hoopla game at the moment- all very entertaining I am sure ;-)