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http://london-underground.blogspot.com/2009/11/coca-cola-sponsors-tube-buskers-to-sing.html Buskers on the London Underground have found a new sponsor in the run up to Christmas. However, alongside their normal songs you'll find buskers singing the Coca Cola jingle " Holidays are Coming". I know it's helpful for them to be sponsored, but I have the feeling I'm going to be driven mad hearing " Holidays are Coming" from the bowels of the Underground.  As well as the Coca Cola jingle, the 35 buskers will also be playing traditional carols. I imagine this will open up the doors for other brands to get buskers to play their jingles. Coke is one of the world's biggest brands and by endorsing London's buskers, it's put the underground performers into the mainstream. Previously a record label paid buskers to sing songs on the Tube from films to help push sales. The Coca Cola campaign will start from 30th November & Londonnet has more on this. Be interesting to see how it will be policed!  Are there any advertisers whose jingles you wouldn't mind hearing on the Tube? Or should the sponsorship of buskers be left purely to some ads around them? | |
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http://london-underground.blogspot.com/2009/11/subway-stops-inches-from-drunk-woman-on.html It's coming up to the time of year where you'll see a number of posters on the Tube, warning people about being careful when drunk. Although the video below (thanks to Richjm for finding it) wasn't on the London Underground, it would be an amazing ad to get people to watch their step. Fortunately all the people on the platform in Boston had the sense to madly wave at the train as it was coming into the station. That coupled with the quick reflexes of the driver, saved this drunk woman from a horrible accident. The female train driver said " I saw the people, the people were waving. That's normal after a game. The people were waving, but they were waving a little bit too much and they were really, really close to the yellow line, which they are not supposed to be. So that's obviously telling me 'slow your train down, slow your train down'.
"Then as I'm approaching, the lady pops her head up, and I'm like 'Oh my God, someone's in the pit'. So I just threw it in emergency, exactly what I'm supposed to do. And it stopped just in time not to hurt her." More information on what happened over on Channel 4 News's site.  I wonder if it would be too scary for the London Underground to show videos like this on the network? I suppose their rather sanitised images of shaky stick figures or shaky words do the job. Then again if you were as drunk as this woman & standing on the edge of a platform, nothing's likely to stop you from falling onto the track. | |
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Does anybody know of an affordable place for out-of-towners to stay for a couple of nights near Macquarie University? | |
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Then read on :-)
If you are between the ages of 12 and 59 and speak Australian English as your first language, then you are eligible to participate in a new research study at the National Acoustic Laboratories. This study evaluates a new test that is designed to measure people's ability to understand speech in noisy places.
There's only a single appointment of 45 minutes to attend, and you will be paid $20 for your time. Testing takes place at NAL's main laboratory at 126 Greville Street, Chatswood. If you're interested, please contact Helen Glyde on 9412 6976 or via email at helen.glyde@nal.gov.au.
(Posted on behalf of a colleague) | |
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2009 will be remembered as a great year for music. Lots of fantastic releases. And lots of stuff that i've got around to discovering, as well. I've had some great recommendations. I'm going to lump em all together here.
Animal Collective: Merriweather Post Pavillion
Yeah a shame i never listened to these guys before now. 9th album? wow. but i had a listen to some of the others. and this latest one seems to be the best. The first five or 6 songs i think are the happiest i've ever heard. Fun. more than fun, what a wonderful release, such exuberance, infectious giddyness. The happiest stuff i've heard in a very long while and I can't wait to see them live in a month.
Grizzly Bear: Veckatimest
At a first listen this album sadly seems like a poorer cousin to 'collective's album. But it's not like that at all. It doesn't reach the same heights, but this album is a lot more consistent overall, I think it will have a lot more staying pwer, and it sounds great to listen to 'as an album'. Standout is Two Weeks, the first single, sadly used in an advertising campaign somewhere (not sure where) and "ready, abel" which sounds full of echoing shimmery goodness (1:46 onwards). These guys are in australia for what seems like all of Janurary, you, readying this, will probably have a good chance of seeing them at some point.
Silversun Pickups: Swoon
All those references ot the smashing pumpkins arn't really fair. This is a better album, and they've evolved. I actually compare this a little to magic dirt, but this is more commercial, catchier, tighter. And theres a wall of sound here, as good as any rock i've ever heard. So it's not ground breaking music, but give a fuck, its powerful, its strong, and it's a great listen at full blast. the first 5 tracks imparticular, they are fucking unstoppable.
The National: Boxer
i spent a good portion of 2008 listening to Alligator, the first album of theirs that every really grabbed me, never really could find some affinity with the others. and i listened to it for as much as anyone can listen to anything. and this year, somewhere while i was travelling i rediscovered 'sad songs for dirty lovers...' which was great again. and now, finally, 2 years after its release, i've completely come around on 'Boxer'. its easily the best of their albums, melt-into beautiful, lush, mesmerising. theres less melodrama with 'boxer' - there's more of a quiet confidence and contentment. its hard to pick a standout favourate, although fake empire and 'ada' imparticular are very special. all the songs are just amazing. and i can see their 'arc' now, their progression. Its really great to see a band keep on getting better and better with each album release. i've never seen them live, (just missed them last time), i'd really like to. and there's a new album in march of next year.
(i've spent most of the evening letting 'boxer' fill the walls of this empty apartment, his voice fills all the rooms, the warm sound heartens everything)
Various: Dark was the night
The most stunning compilation cd i've heard in many years, curated by one of the members of the aforementioned bad, I'd really like to thank everyone who reccomended this, I can see why, its quite an incredible collage. standout contributions from dirty projectors, the national, sharon jones, the books, my morning jacket, the new pornographers, and plenty more. a very high standard throughout. its also served as an excellent eyeopener for a bunch of bands i'd somehow missed.
I've already dedicated a few posts to Neko Case. I still love her, loved seeing her in chicago, and will especially love seeing her as part of the sydney festival.
Oh, theres a bunch more albums ive been listening to over the last few weeks. I've tried to listen to as much stuff as possible. So, just some first thoughts on these:
Air: Love 2.
Theres about three good tracks on here which isnt enough for an album. And theres a couple that are really annoying, make you want to skip past. I always end up going back to Moon Safari, La femme De argent, now that is just amazing. this is not.
Phoenix: Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
Really catchy, smooth, good stuff. Not surprised to hear they formed in 1999 as the backing band for 'kelly watch the stars' by Air. I think they've surpassed Air now, they have more instruments and more cohesion. And they have a great sound.
The xx:
Remind me of the whitest boy alive. OK i guess, but not substantial. Like fast food, just seems like theres no nutritional value.
Bat for Lashes: ooh thats good! damm how did i miss that
Florence and the Machine: Lungs - No. I dont think so. I don't see anything to go back to listen to, its not beautiful nor original.
The New Moon Soundtrack - I'm going to get mocked for saying this but its actually a nice collection of songs, I just have to avoid the cover art and forget about the associated movie/product, whatever it is.
Misatbishi - Drop: The best DNB album released in aaaaaages. Nice work NHS!
Other good listenings, but they havnt quite broken through yet: Department of Eagles, Amadou & Mariam (Welcome to Mali) Dirty Projectors, Spoon, Andrew Bird (actually, Andrew Bird is well on his way), Bertie Blackman (yes!) ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead.
The best thing I've heard this year? Would be Beiruits 2007 album 'the flying cup club'. But that needs a whole other post.
Theres a lot of other stuff I've been listening to, but I havnt really formed thoughts around these things yet. Towards the end of the year, i'll post a rundown of my favourate stuff. Theres a lot of good stuff to choose from. Its been a great year. | |
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http://london-underground.blogspot.com/2009/11/winner-of-50-oyster-card-competition.html Congrats to @sunstarrr who is the lucky winner of the £50 Oyster card. Her entry was picked at random from almost 90 entries, who simply had to say what their favourite Tube station was & why. Susan's was Mornington Crescent (which came up a couple of times). She chose it: " Because of its heritage, lovely Leslie Green exterior & green tiles inside, and of course its notoriety: everyone has heard of it but hardly anyone seems to know where it is...many people even think it's a made up station!"  When hearing that she'd won she was delighted " Wow..... that's great news .. I just entered on the off-chance thankyou so much! Although I chose Mornington Crescent as my favourite station, I often travel by bus as it's cheaper, but this means I can take the tube more, and, importantly for winter, spend less time in the cold waiting for the bus!" Once again, many thanks to Vouchercodes.co.uk for supplying the prize and thanks to all who entered. Hope many of you will enter the current competition. There's five Blurb books worth £30 up for grabs. Good luck! | |
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Hi guys...
May be a long shot but I was wondering if anyone had any spare tickets to the second (17th Nov) Tori Amos show at The Opera House.
Willing to buy for cost price.
Cheers! | |
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I like getting emails from my dad. He only writes in Spanish because even after 30-something years in the States he's still not confident or comfortable enough to write or speak English. He wrote today to update me on tragic events that occurred last week. One of my cousins passed away in Mexico City. I don't think she was even 20. She'd had issues with epilepsy and from the few accounts I'd heard she was being treated and living a pretty normal life, save for the occasional seizure. Last week she was at home and her mother asked whether she wanted anything to eat. My cousin said no, she was tired and wanted to lie down and nap for a bit. And she did. And never woke up.
There was a whole lot of WTF in a few different countries when the news broke. Her eldest brother's been traveling around Europe and living in Ireland for a year or two. I'm here. We've got family in Mexico and the US. My dad and some other family from LA flew to Mexico for the funeral. I can only imagine how ripped up my aunt and uncle are to lose their youngest child and only daughter.
As much as I love being part of a massive and loving family it really stings when I lose a relative. I can't afford to fly home for every single funeral and they understand that, so I pay my respects any little way I can.
Anyway, I am actually a bit broke at the moment and need to start scrimping and saving like a mothereffer. It's Silly Season, which makes frugality difficult. There are maybe two birthdays per weekend from this past weekend until Christmas, then there's New Year's, Rainbow Serpent, Japan, and Faith No More. Gracias a la vida. | |
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Does anyone know where I can buy Mana Potions in Sydney? eg. http://www.manapotions.com/EDIT: found them thanks - Games Paradise on Pitt Street! | |
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I just stumbled across this, from hereFarmers’ markets are a great way to get all kinds of fresh organic food. Sydney has many excellent farmers’ markets as do many of the larger towns in New South Wales. A list of these markets is below.Farmers’ Markets in Sydney Bondi Junction Organic Farmers’ Market Oxford Street Bondi Junction NSW 2022 Chatswood Farmers’ Market Cnr Pacific Highway and Centennial Avenue Chatswood NSW 2067 Entertainment Quarter Farmers’ Market Lang Road Moore Park NSW 2021 Fox Farmers’ Market Hornsby Mall Moore Park NSW 2021 Frenchs Forest Organic Market Parkway Hotel Frenchs Forest NSW 2086 Every Sunday 7am – 1pm Good Living Growers’ Market Pyrmont Day Park Pyrmont NSW 2009 Every 1st Saturday 7am – 11am Hawkesbury Farmers’ Market Castle Hill Showgrounds Showground Road Castle Hill NSW 2153 Every 2nd Saturday 8am – 12pm Hornsby Organic Food Market Hornsby Mall Hornsby NSW 2077 Every Thursday 8am – 3pm Leichhardt Organic Market Orange Grove School Cnr Perry Street and Balmain Road Leichhardt NSW 2040 Every Saturday 8am – 1pm Manly West Organic Market Manly West School Hill Street Balgowlah NSW 2093 Marrickville Organic Food Market 142 Addison Road Marrickville NSW 2204 Every Sunday 8:30 – 2pm Northside Produce Markets North Sydney NSW Every 3rd Saturday 8am – 12pm Penrith Market Station Street Penrith NSW 2750 Every Wednesday 8am – 1:30pm Penshurst Organic Food Market Pole Depot 23 St Georges Road Penshurst NSW Every Sunday 9am – 2pm St Ives Organic Market St Ives Showground Mona Vale Road St Ives NSW 2075 Warwick Farm Market Warrick Farm Racecourse Governor Macquarie Drive Warwick Farm NSW 2170 Every Saturday 8am – 1pm | |
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Is there anywhere in Sydney that does screenings of the Rocky Horror Picture Show? | |
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To a German pub in Vauxhall after work for ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) lproven's 42nd birthday celebration! I was shocked to discover he's younger than me ... The beer was middling, though the pints of black lager were nice enough (any Australian who's had Tooheys Black will be happy).
Today I mostly made up for not spending all day every day this week with Freda by doing the Toddler Workout, which involves lifting her from the floor to the ceiling over and over and over. In between I was reading Makers by Cory Doctorow, which everyone should read. You can read the whole book online before you buy.
I have also spent today mulling over work-based problems and wishing I had VPN access sorted. This is not intrinsically upsetting me or annoying me. That's good, right? | |
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http://london-underground.blogspot.com/2009/11/west-ham-whoopie-love-on-tube.html Passengers waiting for a train at West Ham London Underground station on Thursday heard some sounds that had little to do with "Mind the Gap". Somehow the noises of a couple having sex got broadcast through the tannoy system & onto the platform.  TfL are looking into this as apparently it had nothing to do with any members of staff, who fancied a quick break from normal announcements. " It was definitely a couple doing it there and then," Laura O'Connor told the Evening Standard. " As the doors opened, I could hear these strange noises coming over the loudspeaker. It dawned on me what it was and I couldn't stop laughing. He was grunting loudly and she sounded like she was having a great time. The driver must have heard it, too, as the doors stayed open longer than usual." A spokesperson for TfL said " The noises heard by passengers were not from within our station. We believe they were a result of some sort of interference with our public address system," John W who gave me the heads up (& title) on this story said: " This reminds me of when (I think) Mark Thomas or some journo programem years ago managed to broadcast messages on a European train journey without hacking into the system or breaking any wires and managed to broadcast his disgust of the price or journey time or some political thing.
So it makes me wonder: How secure are these systems that are now being rolled out across the network under the hoardings of "We are improving your station" Answers on a postcard please!!!!!" | |
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So I just made a calendar of sales in Sydney if you're intersted. clicky | |
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Today I got (a) Notes 7 to work in Ubuntu (b) my boss to heartily approve me using Ubuntu officially and that he will back me up in telling IT that it's a business necessity for me to have a Unix main box, so they need to type in the office WPA key kthx and not bitch. The only thing I need now is remote access to work, and that can wait.
(The bees that power are apparently considering dumping Notes for ... Outlook. That said, Notes is actually more horrible than Outlook. Which is worse: Notes on Linux or Outlook on Windows? Outside candidate: Gmail for business. I have a visceral aversion to outsourcing such a core communications channel, but I must admit it'd suck way less than either.)
This evening we went to see the local fireworks. Freda was delighted. I got pretty good videos. And an LED butterfly with a sound chip that makes the most fucking grating "music" imaginable. I'd like to see early industrial noise enthusiasts put up with this shit. Living in the future: all this technology is for making cheap toys. | |
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Hi all, I'm moving out of Sydney soon, and I am selling off things that I won't be bringing along. Feel free to have a look; I'm selling them off at a fraction of the price I paid for them, and all of these are not more than a few months old (came here for exchange, shouldn't have bought that many things!). PICKUPS ONLY AT 185 BROADWAY, ULTIMO. (Opposite Broadway Shopping Center.) Printer and paper: $60 SOLD Brother HL2140 Laser Printer (click for specifications) Comes with all cables and tray fully loaded with A4 paper. ( image under cut )My entire collection of books: $60Complete list and image below cut ( List. )Acrylic minx blanket, Double/Queen-size: $20 HELD ( Image below cut )Stationery (tons of files, notepads, pens and markers, cutting board, box, sketchpad, etc): $10( Image under cut )Other items without pictures:- Iron (Philips Diva): $15*(*: the plug is a UK-plug; you'll need an adaptor for this) Electronic weighing scale: $15
All kitchen utensils (mug, plates, shotglasses, spoons, peelers, spatula, chopping board, etc): $5
a set of 1kg dumbells and skipping rope: $10 SOLD | |
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