Overdue

It's been over 2 weeks since my last post and it seems this blog is suffering from neglect.  The header seems to have shrunk and my Last FM chart has disappeared. In my defence I have been quite busy of late. As well as the usual gigs, football and so on you also get the chance to catch up with friends and family, eat, drink and generally have a good time.  That's exactly what I've been doing

First up, The Vaccines at Leamington Assembly.  We arrived early.  Thinking doors opened at 6 we caught the train about 7pm. It turns out that doors were at 7 so we ended up catching all of the bounds. 

First up Howler.  I didn't want to like them because the were young and American.  They were actually very good and had some great tunes. Frankie and the Heartstrings were next and again I warmed to them very quickly despite not wanting to.  They had interesting songs with an 80s feel.

Finally, The Vaccines.  Very loud and lots of strobe lighting.  Short, sharp shocks of songs and a set that lasted about an hour.  Of all 3 bands these were the most disappointing although I don't know what I was expecting (if you'd pardon the pun).

The set list went something like this

Blow It Up
Wreckin' Bar (Ra Ra Ra)
Tiger Blood
A Lack Of Understanding
Wetsuit
(New Song)
Post Break-Up Sex
All In White
Under Your Thumb
Wolf Pack
If You Wanna
Family Friend
We're Happening
Nørgaard

The following day Clare and I went to see Hugo.  We saw the 3D version obviously.  It looked fantastic and I can understand why the film is being credited with rejuvenating the 3D format.

Twelve-year-old Hugo lives in the walls of a busy Paris train station, where his survival depends on secrets and anonymity. But when his world suddenly interlocks with an eccentric girl and the owner of a small toy booth in the train station, Hugo's undercover life, and his most precious secret, are put in jeopardy.

Directed by  Martin Scorsese and with a cast that includes Asa Butterfield, Chloe Moretz, Jude Law, Emily Mortimer, Christopher Lee, Ben Kingsley and Ray Winstone, this is a lovely story which is visually stunning and as far as I'm concerned, a must see!

Later in the week I spent an evening at an old friend's. It was good to catch up and had a really nice evening.  At the end of the week I found myself at the Westley Arms Hotel in Acocks Green for a Christmas meal.

To be honest, I wasn't expecting a lot but the staff were friendly and the food much better than I expected.  Most people opted for the carvery but I went for the vegetarian option.  I started with the leek and potato soup. I'm not really a soup fan but I thoroughly enjoyed it!  For my main I went with Pepper, Spinach and Mushroom Tart with a red pepper sauce.  It was accompanied by the veg from the carvery.  I was worried it may be a bit dry but my fears were unfounded. The sauce was lovely and more than enough to see me through my meal.

On the Saturday Clare and I took my mom into town to visit the German market.  My mom had not been before and she thoroughly enjoyed it.  We also went to Bacchus Bar for a warm drink and to the  Handmade Burger Co. for lunch.  It was busy but after a 15 minute wait for a table we were rewarded with great food and a lovely table with great views of St Martin's in the Bull Ring.

My mom had a lovely time and Clare took her on the carousal in Victoria Square. 

Last week and another meal with friends. Another carvery, his time at the Wheatsheaf in Sheldon.  Being the first to arrive we ordered drinks at the bar and whilst we were being served the rest of the staff were shouting across the bar to each other about their Christmas shifts.  It seems that most were unhappy with what they had been given.  The staff serving food seemed to lack the Christmas spirit and by the time we got to the counter there wasn't much in the way of vegetables. We waited for them to be replenished and eventually asked a passing member of staff.  The food arrived and having helped myself to the fresh roast potatoes hurried back to the table.  I was surprised to find that they were cold!  Still, it was good to catch up with friends and despite the food was a good night.

The following night it was time to wrap up warm and head to St Andrew's. Blues were taking on NK Maribor in their last group match of the Europa League.  Unfortunately qualification was out of their hands.  Not only did they need to win but they need a Braga victory against Bruges to qualify.  Birmingham did their bit winning 1-0 thanks to a Rooney goal in the 24th minute.  However, Braga could only manage a draw which meant we finished 3rd in the group with 10 points.  Bruges & Braga went through with 11 points. 

I'm not too bothered that our European adventure has come to an end.  It was nice while it lasted but I don't think anyone would have believed we could have gone on to win it.  We got there and played well but it's time we concentrated on the League.

That pretty much brings things up to date.  Just this weekend to cover.

Friday - Hatton Craft Village for late night shopping and a Christmas Nativity with real animals!  I really enjoyed it!  On a cold night, wrapping up warm and singing carols around a nativity scene. The highlight was the donkey which started braying at the end of Hark The Herald Angels.

Saturday - The morning was spent shopping and the afternoon spent wrapping.  We spent the evening Sherlock Holmes starring Robert Downey Jnr.  I enjoyed it but Clare fell asleep.

Today - Leamington Spa Christmas Market.  I have come to understand that a Christmas Market is the same as a normal market with a few decorations (in some cases no decorations).  Despite the dawning of this truth it was a lovely day.  Getting home a couple of hours ago, Clare finished the wrapping and I watched the football whilst writing this.

So there you have it, back up to date. All I need to do now is sort out the layout. Think I'll do that over the holidays.

It's Quiet

Not much going on over the last week or so.  A quiet week last week with a bit of Xmas shopping at the weekend.  Warwick seemed like a good place to go, and although we managed to get a few things, the highlight was picking up a copy of Blur's Live at Budoken CD from Oxfam for the grand price of £2.99.

Last night Clare and I popped into Solihull for a bite to eat at Bella.  Despite the Christmas run up and the shops now open until 8pm it was remarkably quiet!  Good for us as we got a good table, with no waiting for food and when it arrived it was piping hot.  It was a lovely evening all in all.

The Weekend

Saturday and despite the EDL, anti -Capitalist, and anti -Fascist rallies all taking place in Birmingham, along with West Brom and Birmingham both playing at home it was off for a spot of shopping and a bite to eat before leaving Clare and my Mom to go to the theatre. The amount of police upon our arrival at Moor Street Station was quite something! Only once have I seen a larger amount on a train station and that was at London Bridge when Blues played Millwall a few seasons back.

Having taken my mom around the Bullring we headed to the markets (talk about a contrast). Whilst browsing I ended up buying a couple of reggae sound system CDs and when I arrived back home I spent the rest of the afternoon listening to them. A great way to spend the day!

Food at the Coffee Room Bar and Bistro (formerly the Green Rooms) was OK but slightly overdone. Actually, my pizza was burnt around the edges, which was a shame as the middle bit was quite nice. The staff were friendly and the menu reasonably priced.


Sunday and it was back into Birmingham to do a bit of Christmas shopping with lunch at the café in Debenhams. I’d not been there before and although the food is pretty basic the views of the south side of Birmingham make up for it.

I tried in vain to buy a new coat and whilst looking in one department store bumped into one of the women I sat by at the ballet a couple of nights before!

Weather wise it has still been quite mild and although there has been the odd shower it is still lovely for the time of year. I think it will come as a shock when we have our first really cold snap of the winter.

Lazy Weekend

It does you good every now and again to do nothing.  Today is one of those days.  It's been quite a busy week and so it's nice to have nothing to do.

Thursday night was spent at Jimmy Spice's with a group of friends.  As usual most of my food consisted of pizza, samosas and pakora washed down with gin.  A really enjoyable night.

Yesterday was hectic and having had an early start I was shattered come last night.

Yesterday afternoon was a quick dash over to the NEC for Grand Designs Exhibition .  It's the 3rd year I've been now and I spent most of my time walking round saying "these were here last year" and "that's where we bought.... last year".  Only stopping for a couple of hours before grabbing a free goody bag and dashing home, having something to eat, and getting ready for guests.

Last night was a Catchphrase evening.  A DVD game based on the TV show.  It's good fun but is slower than TV Quiz, naturally. 

It wasn't a late night (finished about 10.30) but as soon as everyone had gone I headed straight to bed. 

The Last Five Days

The plan for this weekend had been a trip to Oxford but as it was postponed we needed a back up and so this is what we came up with.

Yesterday was a lazy-ish morning not leaving the house until gone 10am which is unusual for us.  We headed for Solihull Nature Reserve to see what birds were around.  Still all quiet.  We had hoped there might be the odd returning bird on the lake but it was mainly Black Headed Gulls and Mallard with the odd Moorhen and Coot.

After spending a couple of hours wandering around we headed for The Robin Hood for a carvery.  We arrived after the main rush and within a few minutes of entering we were tucking into our dinner.  Obviously I didn't have meat and Clare decided to go without also.  At the end we were pleasantly surprised to find that we had been charged £8 less as we had the vegetarian option.  In all the time I have had a carvery I didn't realise that I got it cheaper by not having meat!  I just assumed I paid the same as it was my choice to abstain.

We got back from the pub in time to watch West Brom versus Man Utd.  A game West Brom were unlucky not to take a point.  Rooney's early goal was cancelled out by Long in the 38th minute.  In the second half Ashley Young's cross was deflected into the back of his own net by Reid.  The final score 2-1 to Man Utd.

All in all not a bad Sunday
Saturday, and having been to the Post Office to collect a package (photos) it was off to Morrison's for breakfast. Again another lazy morning! Afterwards and it was off to the bookies for our weekly bet.

Early afternoon and we set off for St Andrew's for Birmingham's first home match against Coventry. Having had a quick drink at the bar we took our seats. I was surprised at firstly how few Coventry had brought and secondly at the lack of our own support.  The gate was just over 19,000.  Coventry, however, despite their lack of numbers completely out sung the Blues fans who seemed to be suffering from the same lethargy as the team.

The first half wasn't much to write home about. Blues opting to play Chris Wood up front on his own.  Not many chances at either end.  A change in the second half saw Wood replaced by Adam Rooney, who headed against the post before teeing-up the rebound for Keith Fahey to hit home in the 73rd-minute. The game ended 1-0 to Blues giving us our first 3 points of the season, having lost to Derby last week. 

Friday afternoon was spent in The Field House catching up with a friend.  It was great to catch up but the location could have been better.  I'm not keen on this pub.  The staff are friendly enough but if you are not a regular then all eyes are on you when you walk through the door. 

Thursday was a fantastic day!  Weather wise it didn't bode well. Waking up to grey skies I was worried about what was in store. 

England versus India in the 3rd Test at Edgbaston.  With England 2-0 in the series a win at Edgbaston would see them ranked as the number Test side in the world.  Clare and I had tickets for Day 2. England had taken to the crease having bowled India out for 224 and at the end of play on Day One they were 84-0.

Heading into Moseley, Clare and I had breakfast at Maison Mayci.  Whilst we tucked into scrambled egg on toast (with extra toast) the rain outside seemed to be getting worse.  By the time we paid the bill it had eased off and when we arrived at Edgbaston it had stopped all together.

I was disappointed to find that there were no spirits available and instead ended up drinking pear cider.  It wasn't too bad but didn't go down quite as easy as my usual gin & tonic.

Play had been delayed by 30 minutes due to the weather but when the players took the field it was dry and warm although there was still a lot of grey cloud around.  The cloud remained throughout the day with the sun breaking through.  When it did it was actually quite hot and both Clare and I ended up with a bit of a tan!

The play itself saw Cook pile on the runs ending the day 182 not out (he went on to score 294).  Strauss managed 87 before being bowled out to, what was later found to be, a no ball.  Pieterson managed 63. Bell managed 34 before being bowled out.  I was still applauding Cook's century which he had reached from the previous ball.

The day ended with England 456-3 with Cook and Morgan at the crease. They went on to win the match by an innings and 242 runs.

Making our way home we walked the last leg of our journey with a bag of chips.  A fantastic, although tiring, day out.

The Rest Of The Week

Friday night and it was time to have people round for another race night.  Everyone enjoyed themselves and as at the end of the night we gave them all a free bet. Clare had printed off a list of runners for Saturday's races and we gave them a pound to bet with, which we put on on Saturday morning.  We had a couple of winners but I wasn't one of them!

Saturday and after a lazy morning we headed for the MAC in Cannon Hill Park.  We were off to see Life In A Day.  A film made entirely of clips shot by amateurs and uploaded to Youtube. The day in question was Saturday 24 July 2010. People from around the world filmed their day. Director Kevin McDonald (Touching The Void) had over 4 thousand hours of footage to trawl through.

The outcome is fantastic although I didn't realise it at the time. I left the cinema feeling just a little underwhelmed but the more I thought about it (and talked about it), the more I realised just how good it was.

It is billed as a document of our time and that's exactly what it is to a point but I think the over riding thing is that despite the age we live in, despite where we are geographically we all have the same hopes, fears and ambitions. 

In contrast Clare and I spent the evening watching The Mechanic starring Jason Statham. An easy enough film to watch.  Statham plays an assassin who, having killed his friend and mentor, takes on his mentor's son who has his mind set on avenging his father's death.

It's not a great film but perfect for a Saturday night in.

Sunday and as we had no plans we woke up and decided we would go to a car boot sale.  We arrived early and decided we would have a wander around Elmdon Park.  I'd not been there for years and it was nice to see how it had changed since I used to go there as a child.
We also found a new bit. The Walled Garden is an old orchard that has been left overgrown as is owned by The Wildlife Trust.

The car boot sale wasn't up to much so we headed back to the park before meeting up with my parents and heading for something to eat at The Harvester in Shirley. 

It was fairly busy but we didn't have to wait long for our food.  We spent a nice afternoon in there before we headed home.

The Weekend's Here!

Saturday morning and it doesn't look like a bad day weather wise. I'm heading into Birmingham shortly but thought I'd drop by and bring the blog up to date.

Last night was a quiet night in front of the TV.

Thursday I met a couple of friends for a drink at The Coach House in Solihull.  It was a nice night.  I don't mind The Coach House during the week or in the early evening.  It's quite a relaxing place to sit and have a drink.

I was also there on Wednesday night. I met Clare and we had a drink before nipping round to Pizza Express. It was fairly busy but the food arrived quickly.  We strolled home through the park.  Again it was a pleasant evening but a bit chilly.  I can't wait for summer proper to start!!!

Must Try Harder!

No posts since last Sunday.  I'm becoming lazy!   To be honest, there hasn't been much going on.  Clare and I had a pleasant evening last night.  We popped along to Bella Italia for something to eat.  It was quite busy but the wait wasn't too bad.  Afterwards we strolled home through the park.  It was a nice evening although slightly chilly.

That's about it really.  The rest of the week was pretty quiet.

Eating Out in Solihull

I went to Jimmy Spices last night to celebrate a friends birthday.  There was about 16 of us in total with a few people I'd not seen for ages.  It was a really lovely night.

The place itself is pretty standard . All you can eat for £16.00.  The selection includes Chinese, Thai, Pizza, Indian and so on with fruit and desserts for afters. The drinks are a little on the expensive side but I've paid more elsewhere. On the whole a very good selection.

Weather wise it was a lovely evening and it made the place, which was busy but not full,  very warm. 

When the bill came they had automatically included a service charge which, as we'd served ourselves, seemed a bit much so we had the bill recalculated!

Wednesday night and a friend paid an impromptu visit.  As it was a nice evening we decided to go out.  We chose Zizzi's as we had a 25% off the bill voucher.  Again the place was busy bit not packed mainly down to one big party at the far end.  Luckily we managed to order before them! 

I went for the funghi mushroom pizza and, although a little on the small side, was happy with my choice.  The starter of garlic bread seemed a bit on the salty side. 

I really enjoyed the evening and think it was all the better for not being planned.

Oh So Quiet

It's been a quiet week although Clare and I took my parents for something to eat at Bella Italia in Solihull last night. 

Good food, reasonably priced makes Bella a nice place to eat. My parents requested we go there after we took them a few months back.  It was a really nice evening although once I'd eaten and had a couple of drinks I was ready for bed!

The weather was lovely yesterday and although it has been a bit colder today the mild conditions are expected to last over the weekend.  I'll have to make the most of it!

The Weekend (part 1)

I'm having a lazy Saturday morning.  I haven't done this for ages.  I've nowhere I have to be and nothing I need to do.  It's great!  I'm out this evening so I'm making the most of it.

The weekend had started well weather wise. Yesterday, a chilly morning gave way to a lovely Spring day.  Clear skies, sunshine and temperatures of 16C.  I  found myself in Solihull in the afternoon looking for a birthday present.  I gave up and headed for the pub (Metro Bar) and waited for Clare to arrive.  We had a drink before heading back out into the sunshine to tackle the present shopping.  

Two of my freinds had a birthday yesterday and to celebrate (with one of them, the other stayed at home to baby sit)  five of us headed for The Rainbow Cantonese Restaurant on Kings Heath High Street.  I'd not been there before and though it doesn't look much from the outside I thought the food was really good and the service excellent.  I'm not the biggest fan of Chinese food but would definitely eat there again. 

We left the restaurant at around 10.30 and we toyed with the idea of heading into Moseley for a drink but as the Hare and Hounds was just up the road we chose there instead. As usual it was quite busy in there.  The evening flew by, it seemed like one minute we were heading in and the next we were heading out again to get a taxi home. All in all a good night.

This followed on from Thursday evening where I met a couple of friends for a drink in The Coach House in Solihull.  Taking advantage of the pleasant evenings, Clare and I strolled into Solihull via the park, watching the rabbits coming out to graze.

 I went to meet friends and she headed for the library before joining up with us at the pub.

We spent a couple of hours there, sitting outside as the sunset faded and dusk set in. By the time we left it was dark.  Clare and I decided we stop off at the chip shop.  We walked back home eating chips on a chilly but very pleasant evening.

Eating Out

Tried the new place in Touchwood yesterday, Giraffe.  I believe it opened at the end of last year.

I popped in at lunchtime and it seemed quiet but filled up quite quickly.  I'd not heard of it before but my friend had eaten at the Milton Keynes branch and said it was nice.

I had the veggie breakfast off the Brunch Menu and washed it down with a coffee. The food itself was fine but at over 7 pounds it was a little on the expensive side.  For my money I got 2 x veggie sausage, scrambled egg, a small dollop of beans, 3 mushrooms and some potato wedges. On top of this were 3 small pieces of toast. The coffee, however, was lovely.

One the plus side side the food arrived quickly and the staff were polite, friendly and helpful.  All in all, not a bad experience but if I want a decent veggie breakfast I think I'll stick to Cherry Reds in Kings Heath.

Anderson's Bar and Grill - St Paul's Square

It was Clare's company's Christmas night out last night.  Anderson's Bar and Grill in St Paul's Square was the venue and a good choice it was too.

The place itself is warm and inviting, located in an eighteenth century cellar, with a small  bar area where I had a couple of Gins and Tonic while we waited for our party to arrive.  It was quite busy with the remnants of an earlier office party, and quite loud, but the stragglers eventually filtered away.

A steak house is possibly not the best place for a vegetarian but there was enough on the menu to keep me happy and although I couldn't have my first choice of main course I was offered various alternatives.  I went for Butternut Squash Risotto. It was lovely but it was nothing compared to my starter! Baked goats cheese with soft basil tomatoes, balsamic syrup and fresh rocket pesto dressing was fantastic. 

Desert was a Creme Brulee.  Not my choice, it was ordered for me and I was told to down it in one. I tried, I failed. Thanks for that Mike!

I stuck to wine during the meal, going for the Hawkes Bay Pinot Noir, a New Zealand Red which was lovely.  Afterwards I had a couple of brandys to wash it all down.

I hadn't met all of the people around the table until last night but everyone was really friendly and I came away having had a really good night although I am suffering a bit this morning!

http://www.andersonsbarandgrill.co.uk/