doctor recommended

in the spirit of the end of the year, and because josh and dave asked me the day that i left and i didn't really give them an answer, here is my album list of 2008. in no specific order.

top ten :

Atlas Sound - let the blind lead those who can see but cannot feel

Joan As Policewoman - To Survive

Wild Beasts - Limbo, Panto

TV On The Radio - Dear Science

Fleet Foxes - Self Titled

Hercules and Love Affair - Self Titled

Erykah Badu - New Amerykah

Vampire Weekend - Self Titled

Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago

Deerhunter - Microcastle/Weird Era Cont.

but also : 

Jamie Lidell - Jim

Department of Eagles - In Ear Park

Beach House - Devotion

Pivot - O Soundtrack My Heart

The Roots - Rising Down

Titus Andronicus - The Airing of Grievances

and most importantly : the albums not released but discovered in 2008 (and ultimately my favourite albums this year)

Smog - A River Ain't Too Much To Love

Bill Callahan - Woke On A Whaleheart

i know that's actually a lot of music and i haven't really committed myself to any one album in particular. i'm sure if i was really forced i could name one but i don't have to and you can't make me. so long 2008, bring on 2009.

hello...

rivington place by david adjaye. for some reason i was surprised to find it on rivington st the other day. it snuck up on me, and then delighted me. haven't been inside yet as it's closed (along with almost everything else in the area) for the holidays.

breaking news

the snowman is ellie. she hides it well.

premature nostalgia

on boxing day (well, boxing night, we stayed inside and in our pyjamas as long as possible), ellie and i walked down to the barbican to see 'australia'. it. was. amazing! it was soppy and silly and romantic and long, but isn't that what it was always going to be? nicole's eyes were too white and shiney all the time so my one wish is that ben mendelson played lady ashleigh instead of nicole (he was the english captain and australia's most under-rated actor). oh well.

the barbican is pretty amazing too. they're having a bit of a corbusier love-fest in the new year. i think they heard i was coming.

and josh, that is the a.p.c. coat. glad you approve.

waifs and strays

a sensible start to the day (filled with love).

tula is confounded by racing pigeons.

evolution from dinosaur to bird, as told in christmas presents.

we decided a festive jaunt through london fields was in order.

and i am incredibly jealous of this girl and her red velvet dress.

a necessary expense.

two sophies, duncan, me and katya. (taken by ellie)

me, katya and kat. (taken by duncan. he's a photographer and he didn't let us forget it.)

ellie, ready to play sensible scrabble after team sophie was able to get away with 'yioweee' as the sound of burning yourself on the christmas roast. they got 45 points.

pud!

a blackrock christmas

mum and dad are home alone at blackrock for christmas.

snowy has been taken down as a 'margaret river town car'. she loves the open road so i'm very happy for her.

photos courtesy of mum and dad, presumably on the leica or panasonic.

christmas eve

a very fresh ice-skating rink.

for some reason the british seem to associate christmas with germany, more specifically bavaria, more specifically cologne. this is the christmas fair in hyde park but there's another couple (that i've seen) german-themed markets at the natural history museum and at southwark.

 

the most upsetting christmas gingerbread. try as we might, we couldn't think of a good context for that particular message. there was another that said 'please marry me' so send out the word that ellie only wants to be proposed to via gingerbread.

we then made our way down to mark and debbie's just to spread some christmas cheer and say hello. but when we got there, they were all heading out to the children's service at church (it's the much less religious service) and there was a bit of resistance, but debbie got her way in the end! we've set a date for debbie to cook us a feast and catch us up on gossip. should be very interesting. was great to see all my cousins though, however briefly.

i tried to jump into this chalk drawing. don't let mary poppins fool you, london pavement isn't as magical as she lets on.

ce soir

i made red beans and rice and listened to tom waits ('rain dogs', not 'small change' - it would have been too much). it was surprisingly tasty considering i only found the fresh chilli in the fridge when it was completely cooked. it kind of turned out as a poor man's risotto (with much less stirring) and could have been a lot worse. needed salt though.

tea, kings and leica talk

this is ellie and king edward at 'time for tea' where everything is second-hand and for sale.

that brown box/case to the left of ellie, to the right of the clock is a leather leica box, for storing leicas in of course. we got talking to the owner man about leicas and he has a 1933 nazi naval leica which he managed to pick up for an almost unbelievable 300 pounds or so. 

ellie thinks he is lying.

oh dear.

more markets

columbia flower market.

and surrounds (filled with babies - why on earth you would bother with a pram in such a situation is miles beyond me.)