Squid Vicious

I'm not really a bag person; APC aside, I lust over Mulberry, Prada and Hermes as much as the next blogger, but I just can't bring myself to pay that much for a bag. So it was lucky when I was on holiday and spotted this gem, as it was only 10 Euros. It's a simple raw canvas duffle bag; a style I've not really seen much, but somehow seems quite appropriate for summer. With an opening at the top rather than along the side, you can fit more stuff in, and the canvas is more waterproff than it might look. Also, the strap is quite short, so it sits really high on my back, which is great when cycling and doesn't drape in the way of the light. Finally, the ridiculous octopus print is pretty unusual; it reminds me of all the seafood I was eating when I was away and I've nicknamed him Squid Vicious, merely because I thought it was quite an amusing pun...Anyway, awful jokes aside, I'm really loving carrying something a little different from the norm that also has a bit of practicality. Especially as it was so dirt cheap that I don't worry when I put it down, get it dirty or leave it on the floor of a pub - totally washable. It's that weird blend of slightly ridiculous yet oddly practical which makes a Staple, and this bag is definietly going to be glued to my back for the next few weeks...Other Staples:
Canvas octopus-print duffle bag
Dalston Superstore on a Sunday Night
Discovering that my Macbook has (brilliant) internet radio
The Bottle Apostle in Victoria Park with the expert knowledge of one Mr. S. Holian
Imperial College Union
Correctly-pumped bicycle tyres
Friends escaping serious injury on the roads

It Would Be So Nice

It's been 2 years since I went on a holiday. I mean, a proper holiday with beaches, suncream, and swimming in the sea. A holiday where you come back refreshed, chilled and brown. Not feeling broken like after a festival, or buzzing from the excitement of a city break and weighed down with extravagant purchases. Last time I went on a proper holiday the best thing about it was its simplicity; the biggest decision of the day was whether to have fresh pineapple or mango for lunch. It's not often that you can say that about your day when you live in Britain, let alone in central London. When my parents invited me on a trip to a little Greek island, I was a little reluctant at first - it's hardly rock and roll to holiday with your Mum and Dad - but then I realised that was precisely what I needed; time away from everything and with nothing specific to do for a week or so in the sun. The necessity of taking a proper holiday is undeniable, and I can't believe I'd left it this long since my last one! But when you only have 20 days of paid holiday a year, It seems incredibly greedy to use a third of it just doing nothing. Not so. We reverted to a simple routine of getting up late, going straight to one of the 2 beaches on the island, swimming and lazing in the sun, returning for a siesta, then heading back to the beach for an afternoon, often until 7pm. Then we'd head home again, and go out for dinner. Where we'd eat the most luscious, fresh and delicious seafood I've tasted in a long while. The freshly-caught squid stuffed with vegetables and feta was so good that I had it three times in the space of a week; I mean, when are you going to get that in London? And then we repeated the same routine every day. It sounds dull, but it's the ultimate luxury - having the time to do absolutely nothing. I've come back feeling much more chilled out (well, almost; the return journey was LONG) and recharged. I've said it before, but it;s so important to get out of an urban environment as often as you can, to reconnect with nature and switch yourself off. I'm sounding a bit Mother Earth, but I'm serious. I've always been of the opinion that relaxation time and sleep are just as important to your sanity as work, and this holiday has proved it. Next summer I'l be off to a beach again somewhere, and I urge you to do the same. Relaxation is the ultimate Staple, and the only was to do that is on holiday. Other Holiday Staples:
The beautiful island of Halki with my family
An iPod full of electronica
Stuffed squid from Remezzo
Mythos lager
A woven straw hat from New Look (with some Liberty fabric wrapped around the base)
Prescription sunglasses
Havanaias flipflops

Minehead Music Mayhem

As summer begins, so does Festival Season. As for the past few years, my holidays are going to be mostly taken up with music-based events across the country; Bestival, Field Day, Secret Garden Party, and doubtless a few more here and there. Last weekend was my first residential one of the summer (Camden Crawl/Turning Point don't count as they're down the road from me); All Tomorrow's Parties. It's one of those festivals with a line-up of bands that 99% of the population wouldn't necessarily know (and I certainly didn't), but also peppered with better-known acts like CSS, Foals and Bon Iver. This particular ATP (there are several throughout the year) was curated by the Breeders, giving it a more mature and more guitar-based slant than I would perhaps have liked, but was still great fun. Having Butlins in Minehead, Somerset as a backdrop certainly helps; it's refreshing to do something other than get leathered once the sun comes up - I screamed like a little girl on the 'Black Hole' water slide - and also to be able to sleep in a proper bed once the day/night of partying is through. And while we saw some pretty fab bands that we wouldn't normally have encountered (Holy Fuck were amazing and seeing Tricky live is mesmerising), the party vibe was continuous throughout the weekend, especially as we had converted one of the rooms in our 'chalet' (more bedsit than alpine ski lodge, but it did have a warmth, shower and electricity) into a disco room, complete with makeshift fridge, laptop/speakers and 'sofa'. The crowd were mostly quite static, but I guess that's to be expected from such a muso-y festival, and we still had a good old dance to CSS and Foals when the tunes hit. Definitely one to go to if you get the chance; the vibe's more relaxed & mature on account of actually staying in a building, but being inside was a definite advantage given the weather, and there's still plenty of people up for a party; we all appreciated the honest, unpretentious fun of a Butlins. Festivals are definite summer Staples, and given the amusement we got out of this ATP, I think we could even be back for the Winter one. For now though, roll on the rest of the summer's fun...Other Staples this week:
ATP curated by the Breeders at Butlins, Minehead
Enterprise car hire's drop-off service (and in-car iPod connectivity)
DJing at a chalet with a laptop/iPod
M&S Chocolate mini-bites
Post-festival saviours: Waitrose smoked-salmon pâté/Kiehl's facemask
Having a brilliant boss for the last 2 years; Adam, you'll be sorely missed!
Delays' second album 'You See Colours' (more iPod-based rediscovery)

We're All Going On A...

I've blogged before about getting out of town, but this weekend was so exceptionally good, that it deserves an honourary mention. Now that my parents have moved out of my old hometown (Ilkley, in the unlikely event that you didn't already know), I can't even have a big Xmas Eve piss-up with my mates, and we've always talked about having a weekend together, so this year seemed like the perfect time to get together for the now Annual May Bank Holiday Get-Together. We hired a murder-mystery appropriate mansion just near Whitby for the weekend and spent our time chatting, watching DVDs, paddling (or swimming if you're MAD) in the sea, playing boardgames and drinking Jeeves (aka Pimms). It was bliss. Lovely to catch up with all my fabulous home-friends, and for all of us to leave the real world behind for a stress-free, lazy, junkfoody weekend of indulgence. Getting away from it all is such an essential; although I've always been one to set aside time-out, actual, proper holidays are such a Staple. Something to look forward to, enjoy and return from feeling refreshed. Especially when you're cut off from the phone/internet, and paddling in the sea. It's the first of a few mini-holidays I'm taking this summer (decided that 8 festivals is a little much) and I cannot wait for more...Other Staples this week:
A relaxing Mini-break in Yorkshire
Having the whole of First Class to myself on the train (same price in advance)
Cycling to work
The Final ClubRees@the Fly (but there will be more!)
A big parcel from ASOS
Friendly Fires gig at The Forum
Ultra-large jars of Nutella

Stapler's Voyages - Berlin

This time last precisely a week ago, I was in Berlin, napping, preparing to go out for the third night in a row. There's something about that city, where nothing seems to close, every other person is an artist and there's always room to move that gives you a sense of possibility. The wide open boulevards, huge construction projects and pop-up shops and galleries are testament to this. Wandering around, the atmosphere is similar to my favourite city, Paris; relaxed, chilled and Just Right. Obviously a weekend of crazy clubbing in another city with a big group of brilliant mates is going to be pretty special, but splicing in drinks at the Fernsehturm, the amazing AquaDom, a bit of aimless wandering and a very quick trip to the shops (another Acne tshirt; I must seek help) really made it extra-good for me. On returning to London, the crowds of people crammed on the Tube had me down; Every time I come back from a European city, it always reminds me just how high the quality of life is in Continental Europe. Yes, this is through the rose-tinted haze of brilliant weekend, but simple things like having enough - and relatively inexpensive - taxis, really makes me think that it's time to move. I've been in London for 6 and a half years now, it's my city, but I think the dream of a Parisian balcony, a Berlin studio, or a Milanese apartment needs to be explored. If I don't do it soon, then am I going to do it at all? Anyway, enough whimsy; Berlin is amazing, go now while the flights are cheap, and the beer cheaper...

Blogged Down

I've been a bit blogged down of late; there's just so much good stuff going on across there (to the right ->) that I'm not getting time to write. Added to not having internet at home, and a rather hectic week last week, I've not posted any Staples yet. This week I've been chilling in preparation for a long weekend away to Berlin; full details on the return. God I need a holiday! I might even get a post or two in from there. In the meantime please enjoy this photo of me in my new All Saints clobber, from Saturday (brandishing my DJ book - a Touch of Frost branded notebook) and here are this week's Staples:
All Saints end-of-sale-sale (yes, I am still shopping!)
Finally being paid
Lena jazz bar on Great Eastern Street
Seeing Grace Jones (of course)
Looking forward to Berlin
Saturdays=Youth by M83
The new issue of 10+ Men

Bonnie Scotland

I'm writing this from the summit of one of the highest railway passes in the UK. Corrour in Scotland, on the line between Fort William and Glasgow, at just over 1400ft is just staggeringly beautiful. There's still snow on the ground, mottling the palette of browns to a frosted chocolate. Although the clouds are low, the light across the glaciated terrain is clear and crisp; the rough grass has seemingly not been touched in millennia. The senses of both emptiness and remoteness are all-enveloping, and it's easy to forget that you are in Britain. It's a million miles from Oxford Circus, in every sense. And it's so heartbreakingly beautiful, especially with the light icing-sugar dusting of snow all around, turning to a thick covering as the altitude climbs. Dropping down a little lower, a fine mist covers the train and turns the clear sun into a hazy squint. This is so beautiful, so still and so superlative that I've run out of appropriate superlatives. The train is mostly empty, with a couple of tourists like myself and several locals who seemingly make this commute a few times a week. It's impossible for me to imagine making this journey without staring open-mouthed through the window, my eyes and brain struggling to compute the scenery unfolding. Extended train travel always provokes this reaction in me: I know I've said it before, but the most civilised and simple way to appreciate your surroundings as well as have time to think and just be , is on a train. If anything was a Staple, this journey is.

Parental Guidance

I love it when your parents go on holiday - you get the house to yourself if you're younger, they get some time out, and when they get back they are infinitely more relaxed. And, if you're lucky, they bring you presents. In my parents case, they've moved on from souvenit t-shirts (but only after repeated requests) to culinary delights. This time, after a recent trip to the Pelopennese, they brought these melt-in-the-mouth Kalamata olives. Succulent and gloriously (almost aubergine) coloured, these little pearls of joy are almost gone despite me only getting them yesterday. There's something wonderfully decadent about olives, their salty taste is that of holidays, and the stones mean that you always have to have a receptacle with you; they're terribly social and deserve more than most, the term amuse-bouche. So next time yours go away, drop a gentle hint for some food; failing that they'll bring you a bottle of plonk - but if you're lucky, they'll bring you both. Bizarrely for me, this was quite a culinary staple, but I have to give an honourable mention to Nigella Lawson, whose fabulous inflection and insistence on decadent easy food has inspired me this week, amongst other Staples:
Olives
Wahaca Mexican restaurant
Wearing shirts with the top button done up and no tie; the 'air tie'
Pine Nuts
The Salisbury Pub in Covent Garden
Nigella Lawson's Express Italian programme
The National's album, 'Boxer'