Laura Kane

Laura — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 18:25:40 +0000

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Protected: Just testing something — please ignore

Laura — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 16:55:50 +0000

Ho ho ho!

Laura — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 11:43:25 +0000

Finally, Christmas is close enough to start getting excited about! I’m not a Christmas loon but I do enjoy a little bit of festivity once December rolls around and it’s getting harder to tell when an innocent comment about the impending holiday will elicit groans rather than cheer from anyone in the vicinity. Assuming the very thought of Christmas doesn’t offend you, please carry on…

I have a real tree again this year and, for once, it isn’t the last sad, tired looking one from B&Q I usually end up with. A bit of forward planning and one excellent supplier recommendation later and I have a very pretty little (well, nearly 6 foot) Nordman Fir. I managed to get this one for a bargain price of £25 but I think I may have been very lucky with a sympathetic and very helpful tree salesman — after breaking my washing machine yesterday morning the saving was very welcome. If you’re in Glasgow and looking for a tree I’d definitely recommend them — they’re on Algie Street, just across from the Church on the Hill. I don’t know them, their trees are just some of the nicest I’ve seen in Glasgow — if I had a bigger house and a bigger budget I’d have gotten one of the beautiful spruces with a log base.

The downside to my lovely tree is the bare base reminding me I have no presents to put under it. Every year I spend hours poring over websites weeks in advance, planning everyone’s presents in meticulous detail before panicking about whether I’ll be able to get the packages and deciding against online shopping at the last moment. How DO people who work full time get packages? My local Royal Mail collection centre serves a huge area of Glasgow that comprises mainly of flats (so most people struggle to get packages delivered) and yet only opens business hours during the week and on Saturday mornings. I once waited three and a half hours there on a Saturday morning only to be told they had to close and I should come back on Monday — not a particularly workable service. So, I expect I’ll be spending the two days before Christmas in the city centre, fighting my way through the least festive bunch of people around — the late Christmas shoppers. I suspect a few Festival beers from the German Christmas market will be required to get through the torture.

I’ve made a couple of Spotify Christmas playlists which should come in handy to drown out the screeching/wailing/shouting/swearing of my fellow shoppers. I’ve separated the tunes into two lists — Christmas (songs that your Mum would like) and Alternative Christmas (songs your Mum probably wouldn’t like). Track-listings after the jump if you’re interested.

Christmas (Spotify Link)

John Lennon – Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
Band Aid – Do They Know It’s Christmas?
The Pogues Featuring Kirsty MacColl – Fairytale Of New York
Sarah Brightman – I Believe In Father Christmas
Elton John – Step Into Christmas
Wizzard – I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday
Slade – Merry Xmas Everybody
Choir of King’s College, Cambridge – In Dulci Jubilo
The Ready Set – Wonderful Christmastime
She & Him – Little Saint Nick
Glee Cast – Christmas Wrapping (Glee Cast Version)
Gabriella Cilmi – Warm This Winter
Mariah Carey – All I Want For Christmas Is You
Michael Bublé – Jingle Bells
Kylie Minogue – Santa Baby
Jona Lewie – Stop The Cavalry
Bing Crosby – White Christmas
Nat King Cole – The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You)
Ella Fitzgerald – Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!
Cliff Richard – Mistletoe And Wine
Harry Belafonte – Mary’s Boy Child — Mary’s Boy Child
Adam Faith – Lonely Pup (In A Christmas Shop) (1960 Version)
Brenda Lee – Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree — Single Version
Bobby Helms – Jingle Bell Rock
Kay Starr – (Everybody’s Waitin’ For) The Man With The Bag
John Denver – Twelve Days Of Christmas
Dean Martin – Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer
Westminster Cathedral Choir – While Shepherds Watched
Mahalia Jackson – Silent Night, Holy Night
Steeleye Span – Gaudete
Stephen Cleobury – In the bleak mid-winter
The Galway Christmas Singers – We Wish You A Merry Christmas
Jethro Tull – Ring Out Solstice Bells
Stevie Wonder – What Christmas Means To Me
Harry Connick, Jr. – Frosty The Snowman
Jackson 5 – Santa Claus Is Coming To Town
Pretenders – 2000 Miles
East 17 – Stay Another Day
Aled Jones – Walking In The Air
Chris De Burgh – A Spaceman Came Travelling
The Priests – Ding Dong Merrily On High
David Essex – A Winter’s Tale
KT Tunstall – Lonely This Christmas
Cliff Richard – Saviour’s Day
Chris Rea – Driving Home For Christmas
Frank Sinatra – Winter Wonderland
Ella Fitzgerald – Baby It’s Cold Outside
Wham! – Last Christmas — Single Version
Bing Crosby – Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
Celtic Woman – O Come All Ye Faithful
Norah Jones – Peace
Abba – Happy New Year
Jackson 5 – Little Drummer Boy
Susan Boyle and Amber Stassi – Do You Hear What I Hear?
Elvis Presley – Blue Christmas
She & Him – Sleigh Ride
Michael Bublé – I’ll Be Home For Christmas
John Williams – O Holy Night — Voice
Hot Chocolate – Brand New Christmas
Ella Fitzgerald – The First Noel
The Galway Christmas Singers – Away In A Manger
Nat King Cole – Deck The Hall
London Philharmonic Orchestra – Troika from Lieutenant KijÚ
Barenaked Ladies – I Saw Three Ships
The Priests – God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
London Symphony Chorus – Fantasia on Christmas Carols: This is the truth sent from above
Bugge Wesseltoft – Stille Nacht
Westminster Choir – Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
Elvis Presley – Santa Claus Is Back In Town
Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters – Here Comes Santa Claus — Right Down Santa Claus Lane Album Version
Eddie Fisher – That’s What Christmas Means To Me — That’s What Christmas Means To Me
Ella Fitzgerald – Santa Claus Got Stuck In My Chimney — Santa Claus Got Stuck In My Chimney
The Beverley Sisters – I Saw Mummy Kissing Santa Claus
Michael Bublé – I’ll Be Home For Christmas
Perry Como;with Mitchell Ayres & His Orchestra & The Fontane Sisters – It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas
Dickie Valentine – Christmas Alphabet
Josh Groban – What Child Is This?
Glee Cast – The Most Wonderful Day of the Year (Glee Cast Version)
Glee Cast – O Christmas Tree (Glee Cast Version)
The Priests feat. Shane MacGowan – Little Drummer Boy/Peace On Earth
New Kids On The Block – I Still Believe In Santa Claus
Handel – Messiah — For Unto Us A Child Is Born
Mary Chapin Carpenter – Bells Are Ringing
The Refreshments – What A Merry Christmas This Could Be
Roy Orbison – Pretty Paper
Frank Sinatra – The Christmas Waltz
The Andrews Sisters – Christmas Island
John Williams – Carol Of The Bells — Voice

Alternative Christmas (Spotify Link)

Tom Waits – Christmas Card From A Hooker In Minneapolis
Rufus Wainwright – Spotlight on Christmas
Crash Test Dummies – Winter Song
Dave Matthews Band – Christmas Song
Badly Drawn Boy – Donna And Blitzen
Eels – Everything’s Gonna Be Cool This Christmas
Belle & Sebastian – O Come, O Come Emmanuel
Saint Etienne – My Christmas Prayer
Snow Patrol – When I Get Home For Christmas
Calexico – Gift X-Change
Low – Just Like Christmas
Ron Sexsmith – Maybe This Christmas
Jimmy Eat World – 12.23.95
The Raveonettes – The Christmas Song
Smash Mouth – Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)
John Cale – Child’s Christmas In Wales
Sufjan Stevens – Put The Lights On The Tree
Frightened Rabbit – It’s Christmas So We’ll Stop
Reuben – Christmas Is Awesome
The Flaming Lips – A Change At Christmas [Say It Isn’t So]
The Go! Team – The Ice Storm
Julian Casablancas – I Wish It Was Christmas Today
Sally Shapiro – Anorak Christmas — Piano Mix
LCD Soundsystem – Oh You (Christmas Blues)
Big Star – Jesus Christ
Fountains Of Wayne – I Want An Alien For Christmas
The Wedding Present – Step Into Christmas
The Ramones – Merry Christmas (I Don’t Want To Fight Tonight)
No Doubt – Oi To The World
The Fall – No Xmas For John Quays — Peel Session 6/12/78
The Ronettes – Sleigh Ride
Saint Etienne – I Was Born On Christmas Day
James Brown – Go Power At Christmas Time
Smokey Robinson & The Miracles – Christmas Everyday
Boyracer – Every Day Is Christmas With You
Mew – She Came Home for Christmas
Half Man Half Biscuit – It’s Clichéd To Be Cynical At Christmas
Casiotone For The Painfully Alone – Cold White Christmas
Hefner – The Little Baby Hefner’s Xmas Song For Holland
Emmy The Great – Christmas In Prison
The BellRays feat. Lisa Kekaula, Tony Fate and Bob Vennum – Mary Christmas
Nosferatu D2 – It’s Christmas Time (For God’s Sake)
Eux Autres – Merry Xmas Everybody
Kurtis Blow – Christmas Rappin’
Donny Hathaway – This Christmas
Lucky Soul – Lonely This Christmas
The Kinks – Father Christmas
They Might Be Giants – Santa’s Beard
Squeeze – Christmas Day
The Beach Boys – Morning Christmas
Trembling Blue Stars – Christmas and Train Trips and Things
Luna – Egg Nog (Remastered)
Hello Saferide – iPod X-mas
The Killers – Don’t Shoot Me Santa
The Darkness – Christmas Time
The Polyphonic Spree – Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
Au Revoir Simone – Christmas Time Is Here
Kate Havnevik – Winter Wonderland
Slow Club – Christmas TV
Of Montreal – Christmas Isn’t Safe For Animals
Cyndi Lauper – A Christmas Duel
Marah – New York Is A Christmas Kind Of Town
blink-182 – I Won’t Be Home For Christmas
The Who – Christmas — Remixed Album Version
Third Eye Blind – One Of Those Christmas Days
KIDS Allstarz – Merry Xmas Everybody
RJD2 – Christmas Eve Montage
Kid 606 – Xmas Funk
Daz Dillinger – Christmas In The Hood
Glasvegas – A Snowflake Fell (And It Felt Like A Kiss)
Radar Brothers – This Xmas Eve
The Vandals – My First Christmas (As A Woman)
Deerhoof – Xmas Tree
Mogwai – Christmas Steps
Reverend Horton Heat – Santa On The Roof
Harry and the Potters – Wizard Chess
Ben Kweller – Rock Of Ages — Full Mix Album Version
Matt Harding – Purple Snowflakes
Hot Club De Paris – Will You Still Be In Love With Me Next Year?
The Handsome Family – So Much Wine
Everclear – Hating You For Christmas
Sparks – Thank God It’s Not Christmas
The Ventures – We Wish You A Merry Christmas
The Walkmen – No Christmas While I’m Talking
Buff Medways – Merry Christmas Fritz
Camera Obscura – The Blizzard
The Ladybug Transistor Family And Friends – Christmas Extravaganza
Junior Varsity – Don’t Believe In Christmas
Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band – Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town — Single Version
Wild Billy Childish And The Musicians Of The British Empire – Christmas 1979
Deerhoof – Xmas Tree
Far – Do They Know It’s Christmas
Paul Kelly – How To Make Gravy
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah – In This Home On Ice
Pearl Jam – Let Me Sleep (It’s Christmas Time)
Fiona Apple – Frosty The Snowman
Galaxie 500 – Listen, The Snow Is Falling
Saosin – Mookies Last Christmas (Acoustic)
Los Straitjackets – A Marshmallow World
Over The Rhine – Goodbye Charles
The Late Greats – Sleigh Ride (From the Film ‘New Years Eve’)
Aerospace – December Slow
Parenthetical Girls – Festive Friends (Forever)
Something Corporate – Forget December
The Reindeer Section – You Are My Joy
Mazzy Star – Flowers In December
The Trekky Yuletide Orchestra – All I Want For Christmas Is You
the bird and the bee – Carol Of The Bells
Mojave 3 – Breaking The Ice
Dwarves – Drinking Up Christmas
Glo-Worm – Holiday
Postcode – I’ll Be Shoegazing For Christmas
A Change of Pace – Christmas On The Coast
Remington Super 60 – Here Comes Christmas
The Format – Holly Jolly Christmas
The Dandy Warhols – Every Day Should Be A Holiday
Everything But The Girl – 25th December
1990s – Jingle Bells
Envelopes – Pink Christmas
Sufjan Stevens – Sister Winter
The Killers – A Great Big Sled
Bert Jansch – In The Bleak Mid Winter
Je Suis France – Baby, Please Don’t Get Stoned — It’s Xmas
Sixpence None The Richer – Christmas For Two
Simon & Garfunkel – 7 O’Clock News/Silent Night

Finnieston Crane

Laura — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 16:05:09 +0000

On creativity

Laura — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 12:45:16 +0000

Image via Design Crush

Staying creative is a tricky beast — with so much information being thrown at us from all directions, it can be hard to release your mind from the distractions and really focus on creating something new.

I’m working on a personal project to get my creative synapses properly firing, but I’m finding it hard to really get it off the ground. By the time I get home from work my ability to think creatively has been used up for another day and the minutae of running a household takes over. How does one find the time to think and work creatively while there are towels to be washed, pots of pasta to stir, cat litter trays to empty and gym memberships to ignore?

Number 2 on this list is finally working its way into my daily life: for all the years I have loved Moleskine notebooks, I’ve always been terrible at actually using them. I’ve collected all the part-used notebooks and put them in a pile by my front door to remind me to take them with me when I leave the house, so now all I just come up with something to go in them.

Number 11 has also been taken on with some gusto lately, but is faltering as I inevitably find myself listening to my three ‘new’ bands (at the moment Frightened Rabbit, The National, and Bon Iver) on repeat and forget to look for anything else. A Spotify subscription should hopefully resolve this. Are you listening Santa?

Next, I’m going to take on number 31 — my workspace is currently wherever I end up with my laptop, usually on the sofa in front of the TV… not the most inspiring. I’ve decided there shall be two spaces for work in my flat: my dining table for hanging on to the kitchen winter warmth and the study for the serious ‘get your head down’ stuff. Now where do I find the motivation to tidy up my workspace so I can have the motivation to work?

Coincidentally, I picked up the first issue of Innovator Scotland at lunchtime which has an interesting piece on creativity. Read it — and the whole magazine — here (page 22).

iPhone 4S Launch Pricing

Laura — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 11:19:35 +0000

This is mainly for my own use but as others seem to be finding it useful I’ll publish it here. (Full spreadsheet can be found at Google Docs)

Thanks, Steve

Laura — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 09:33:53 +0000

by Jonathan Mak

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Woe is meow

Laura — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 00:08:22 +0000

from Instagram: http://instagr.am/p/OFWld/

Bulls on parade

Laura — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 13:02:22 +0000

Pic via @TintoHill

See that wee fact I shared a few weeks ago about a collection of Highland cows being known as a fold? Came in handy this weekend: a fold of Highland cows escaped from Pollok Park on Saturday morning, with one ending up cornered in the Battlefield branch of National Tyre Centre and the rest wandering around outside the Victoria Infirmary presumably trying to convince patients their doses were too high.

Clearly this was distressing for the animals, and indeed for those that crossed the path of the fierce yet cuddly looking creatures, but there’s still something quite amusing about the whole debacle. My mother’s quite serious concern for which route they took (Haggs Road then Titwood Road, apparently), @Sunniestbunny’s amusingly dry description of events: “Not often you see Highland cows running through Shawlands followed by 2 fire engines”, and the predictable “udder chaos” headline from local news outlets has kept me chuckling about it all weekend.

Amusing as it all was, though, I do hope they find the idiot whose dog started the whole thing by running into the field and startling the cows — dugs on leashes people!

(Bonus rock points for you if you recognise the title.)

A very Scottish scene

Laura — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 13:59:10 +0000

Taking a wee wander through the Glasgow Airport complex this lunchtime, a strong whiff from the wild thistle alerted me to this hitherto unnoticed, very twee, Scottish scene. I pass it every day but have somehow failed to notice it before; perhaps the National Theatre of Scotland play I saw last night, The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart, has raised my ‘Scottish’ awareness? (Do see the play at the Edinburgh Fringe by the way, it’s really very good.)

Hopefully not long until the next iPhone hardware refresh — I’m getting very sick of the 3G’s very poor performance in low light, though admittedly most of the things that are wrong with this picture are more to do with the hastiness of this snap than the phone… Thank goodness for Instagram!