2020 Visions! (… And a look at the Past) (Blog 174)

Obviously 2019 has just ended. But is that a good thing? In many ways, yes. First up, think of the numbers themselves that we’re leaving behind. For the previous two decades, we’ve been in the noughties and the tenties. Doesn’t that sound dumb? The ‘twenties’ sounds far better, as it’s a word that actually exists. It’s not that I’ve been depressed for the last twenty years, just a little frustrated. But no more, especially as the thirties, forties, fifties, sixties, seventies, eighties AND nineties are ahead of us!!

Tragically, I had a mild toothache a few days ago that lasted a whopping 10 minutes. Not the END of the world, but why should anyone have any kinds of aches in this day and age? Mankind is supposed to be advanced. I would imagine if the money that went into computer games went into dental research, we would all be better off. I mean do games REALLY need to be any better? They seem pretty crazy already. I want to send console companies a letter saying they’ve had their fun, we all have, but wiser investments really need to be made. Hopefully that business gets sorted out.

On another note, would you believe that my local gym had a christmas party, so no one except staff was allowed in? What was that about? ‘Sure have a party every now and then right?’ No! I pay a yearly subscription to go to the gym! its like a guitar teacher saying to his subscribed student ‘sorry i couldn’t give you a lesson, I went to a disco’. Yep, as you’ve expected, I hope that never happens again, too. It’s basically an insult.

On the plus side, 2020 is an exciting time for me in terms of music composition. You may have noticed I’ve posted two of my works with me going ‘boo!’ and ‘oooo!’ on them. I have to be honest, here; when I had the concept of them in my head, they were a lot funnier. In actuality, they made me sound a bit weird. That certainly wasn’t my intention, believe me, but am I going to stop making them? No. Deal with it. I actually have lots of ideas for the future. Me going ‘booo!’ over a hiphop beat, does sound interesting to me. Funny though? Sure. Just not in a good way, again. :(

How have I celebrated the celebrations with my family? Well, on New Year’s Eve, I went round my brother’s house to meet with my nieces, mother in law and of course brother, etc. My dad suggested I should play my ‘Boo!’ song on my sibling’s DJ mixing equipment, but I’m glad I didn’t. What if my baby niece heard it? Deep down in her subconscious, she could end up associating parties with a mysterious figure making nonsensical sounds. Picture the scene: It’s 2040 and the now 21 year old hears in her head alone as everyone else parties ‘booo, booo, booo, boboboo!’ That would be terrible. She can’t quite work out what’s going on and that’s what’s most terrifying of all.

Before we all partied to a whole new number, we ordered a Chinese meal and played more Monopoly. Is the board game harmless fun, or does it take a deep look at the justice system and make one ask philosophical questions? Think about this: Why can’t you build houses or go to jail before passing ‘Go’ for the first time? I have a theory: The players are before the age of criminal responsibility. Yep, who’s ever heard of a child going to jail? (Or rather a young iron/car/etc. or the Friends Monopoly equivalent?) Yep, that was me being positive, last time I was very close-minded. I’m sure the game offers people a sense of welcome escapism, too. Isn’t it a nice thought that you can get out of jail in minutes with no repercussions? Still, it’s a little scary you can get arrested for throwing the wrong number on a dice.

What was the takeaway like? I’m not sure how Chinese ‘chips in curry sauce’ is, but it did work along with the more traditional stuff. A more honest description of the meal would have been simply ‘food’, rather than ‘Chinese food’ but I guess the vagueness would be very off-putting. Who is happy eating something that could be anything? On the other hand ‘Chinese food and chips’ isn’t exactly a catchy name for a restaurant. In the end, I guess the food company made the right decision. I on the other hand, didn’t. Was it really necessary for me to eat a mix of vegetables and spices? Maybe not. Very painful.

What did we all do the moment December became January? Watch fireworks and Craig David on TV. I was expecting the pyrotechnics, but not so much the choice of musical act. Again, it seemed random. Or was it? English Chinese food and old acts celebrating new times… Maybe it’s all a sign suggesting the future is going to be just as bizarre if not more so. Maybe we can all expect taxi companies selling CDs and music stores giving financial advice. Speaking of taxis, me and my dad got one home once I got tired of overanalysing what I saw. Nice and legal. Drink driving is bad.

On New Year’s Day, me and my dad planned a stay in my brother’s house again, where my mother-in-law would be home-cooking a dinner. Before getting there, I drove to a local petrol station where my dad bought some wine and I bought some Tony’s chocolate for sharing. When we got to the house, I did indeed offer my Tony’s. Would you believe people weren’t too excited when I claimed it was literally the best chocolate I’d ever had?? In all my 31 years, the very best?? No lie. Consequently I had to eat most of it, almost against my will, which is kind of creepy on reflection. It was just too good. I guess people’s lack of interest implies everyone was more excited for the dinner which has to be a good thing, I suppose. (Either that, or people found me annoying).

The dinner was good though. The Yorkshire puddings were a little burnt, but not in a bad way. They tasted of toast. Toast puddings? Is that a new idea? Who knows. The Brussel sprouts on the other hand smelt awful. I can’t comprehend why anyone would ever want to eat them. I can fully understand why a whole bunch of them apparently only sold for 1p. Even starving tramps can afford to eat better food than sprouts. I would have eaten the Christmas pudding, but when someone pointed out the fact I ate nearly all of the massive bar, I felt self-conscious and decided I really need more self-control. Having said that, milkshake day is coming up for me, and I’m not going to give that up. But when that’s gone, I should be fine for a while. (Till Tuesday, when I go into London).

Ok, that was the day really, other than a bit of hanging around, so until next time…. Bye!