But welcome to Lancing, West Sussex at any rate. Quite the change from bo-ho Brighton. Despite some reservations though, I’m already feeling positive effects from the move.

For a start I really feel like I can focus properly. Brighton’s so full of distractions and suchlike whereas here, there’s a main road, a beach, a lagoon, my Mother’s cramped home, and no where good to go or anyone to hang out with for about 7 miles in either direction unless you fancy getting glassed in one of the locals.

I plan to use this voluntary exile to put myself to task about matters of finance, fitness, creativeness and education.

I’m already reading far more than I used to thanks to the 40 minute bus ride to and from Brighton.

The circuit of Widewater Lagoon consisted of Brighton Road, Shoreham beach and Lancing Green is a perfect jog, especially when shrouded in fog – the beach path takes on a certain void-like quality with sodium orange Will ‘o’ the Wisps peering through the gloom from the other side of the Lagoon. 5.4km in 31 minutes felt good and can be improved on.

The process of moving out has enabled me to shed a vast amount of crap that I acquired over the years. Stripped my belongings down to not much and there’s still stuff to shift.

The journey into work each morning has me realising that I have never had a proper morning routine and the lack of one living here and not being able to Drive is the difference of getting into work for 9am or getting to work for 10am.

I have a particularly positive outlook at the moment. It’s been tempered by moments of doubt and frustration but I feel like I’m kicking in all the thinking that I did last year and setting about putting ideas into action.

The limited space issue extends to the kitchen so no eating crap for me as it won’t fit in the fridge, freezer or cupboard (and also, no fucking about foodwis as nearest decent supermarket is a 30 minute walk away).

I am shackling myself. And it feels good.

I thought I’d do a little promo for this site on here for my UK fans. This is a kind of 2010 Birdland wants list, so feel free to contact me for me address so you can send me sweet merch (and someone get me the 2009 WS knit hat as it’s fucking freezing).

This one’s for Scott Eyre and Brett Myers.

1. UNCLE CHOLLY HAS A POSSE

Buy me this and we’re best mates instantly. I’ve wanted this since I saw it but the Young James black flag rip and Phillies No.1 took precedence. Grey crewnecks are cool enough. Add a Shephard Fairey inspired print of Charlie Manuel and you’re quids in guaranteed to get my attention. Sweet merch.

2. BASEBALL HEAVEN

This just plain works. Outlined CBP Liberty Bell on it. Phillies red. Sorted. Sweet Merch.

3. I’M WITH DUBEE

Yes! Phillies pitching coach, Rich Dubee in play-on-words association with marijuana cigarettes. Amazing.

4. PANAMANIA

It’s Chooch – the Phillies Panamanian catcher. The man put his back into the post-season. I think he made something like one error and then also got a dressing down from Pedro Martinez for chatting to A-Rod. Mix his image with one of the greatest WWF wrestlers of the 80s (behind Jake the Snake and Randy Savage) and you’re on to an Andre Winner. Sweet Merch.

5. PSYCHEDELIC DOOB

Shit on me! Birdland out do themselves by taking the magic of “I’m with Dubee” [spliff, spliff] and whacking it on to a tie-dyed t-shirt. This is truly the next level. Chris Curran saw this and immediately backed the Phillies. I’m stunned by the brilliance of this. If only Watford fans would produce something as amazing (that said, someone did a Graham Taylor shirt so it’s not all bad). WOOT!

Honourable mentioned need to go to the following designs,

• Harry Kalas tribute – I’m not going to try and act old school, this guy meant a lot to a lot of the hardened Phils fans. Fair play to them for honouring is memory.
• Fuck Yeah, Jimmy – a defining moment of the 2009 NLDS.
• Pay-Dro – first game I watched was a 8 inning shutout of the Mets by Pedro so despite his shaky 2009, this shirt needs mentioning.

Sweet merch. Now go buy me some.

Still, here it is and they are all positives. I think each speaks about different aspects of me. Have a butchers after the break.

1. New Hero / It Is Still 1985

New Hero used to be called Lavish and prior to that Club New York. It was an OK place but not somewhere that could be considered a top 3 choice places to go on a Saturday night in Brighton (looking back though, the alternatives weren’t really that great). Then around spring time this year a couple of us ventured there for an 80s night we’d heard good things about. That ended up becoming a regular haunt for most of the year until I realised I’d been going there a bit more than I should. OK, so this is a bit of a superficial highlight but I had some of the best times in here with some good friends, singing all manner of classic 80’s hits at the top of our voices. It’s a great place, check it out.

2. The Night Marchers

The Night Marchers is the newest musical venture of former Hot Snakes musicians John Reis, Gar Wood and Jason Kourkounis. I had the pleasure of seeing them again in 2009 after having my mind blown by them in 2008. They didn’t disappoint and upsatirs of The Prince Albert pub seemed fittingly swish for such a band. My enjoyment of their performance may or may not have been aided by the not insignficant man-crush I have on John Reis but there you go. The night ended, as all good gigs should end, with a discussion about bass guitar tone with the bass player, Tommy.

3. UFC

Photo courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/deskounlmtd/3627975489/

UFC has gripped 83 Brading Road this year. Thanks to Setanta (and then ESPN), we’ve watched most of the UFC events of the latter half of the year. Admittedly, staying up til 6am to see the main event has been a slug but generally worth it. Just remember not to go out on the town prior to the viewing as you’ll fall asleep and wake up as Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan are saying farewell. My top five fights that I watched live would probably be (in no particular order),

1. Stephan Bonnar vs Jon Jones @ UFC 94
2. Frankie Edgar vs Sean Sherk @ UFC 98
3. Diego Sanchez vs Clay Guida @ The Ultimate Fighter 9 finale
4. Josh Koscheck vs Anthony Johnson @ UFC 106
5. BJ Penn vs Diego Sanchez @ UFC 107

Now go and support UK fighters, Dan Hardy and Paul Daley.

4. Star Trek

Fuck yes! I’ll admit, I’m a borderline Trekkie. I watch Star Trek whenever it’s on TV and know most of the plots and characters from The Next Generation onwards. Not actually too much of fan of the original TV series though and I’ve never been to a convention and don’t own any merchandise. Even still, I was excited to see what JJ “Lost/Cloverfield” Abrams had done to the Star Trek franchise. It was pretty much film of the year for me. Visually amazing, narratively smart (thanks to a nifty application of time travel which I don’t think has worked in movies since Back to the Future).

5. Denial of Death

I eventually finished reading Denial of Death by Ernest Becker (I won’t say how long it took but let’s just say, I don’t read too much). I love this book. It really opened the door to a number of existential ideas and spelled out a certain truth to me. In a nutshell, fear of death drives people to do insanely stupid things.

6. Juretic Media surf trip

I talked about this earlier this year but this was a lovely highlight. All the Juretic team of the time, together under one roof and out amongst the waves. I still think I’ve got the best job I’ve had for a long while. Can’t rest on that thought though. 2010’s the year I step it up a notch (that mean’s actually stand up on a moving surfboard).

7. Abandon Ship Reunion

Photo courtesy of Matt White

Matt Devine came back from his trip abroad and we got the band back together for a jam in our old practice rooms. Invited some select bods and had a right laugh. It was also Andy Devine’s birthday so double celebration (plus Andy in full-blown drag later that night). Such a good day.

8. Phillies

Photo courtesy of Bravo Whiskey

Oh Yes! 2009 was the year I became a Phillies fan. ESPN, as well as broadcasting UFC and the odd Premier League game, also inundated the UK audience with as much US sports as they could get the rights to broadcast. I generally ignored the baseball until one evening in September when I sat down with my tea and decided to have the baseball on in the background. A Rocky George look-a-like called Pedro Martinez was pitching and shut out the NY Mets over 8 innings. It really was a “wait, that’s actually REALLY good” moment. I started following the Phillies from then on all the way to their run in the World Series (the loss of which actually got to me more than Watford being relegated to the 2nd division). The more I watched, the more I learnt. Turns out Pedro’s display is a rare throwback to his heyday at the start of the last decade. Phillies 2009 was all about Cliff Lee as pitching goes. The man was ice cold throughout the playoffs and World Series. Staying up until 4 in the morning on a school night never felt so good. If you want the lowdown on the Phillies, read The Fightins blog (they also have a sideline in sweet custom Phillies merch).

9. Pen Yr Fan

Pen Yr Fan is the highest peak in the UK south of Snowdon. In November, accompanied by Smallface, her infant daughter, her parents, and her ever faithful hound, Dylan, I walked up that there mountain and beheld a view of the world I’d never seen before…Well, I beheld a hell of a lot of mist and what seemed to be the end of the universe but the descent did offer some amazing views of the Carmarthen Fans in West Brecon. Despite the fact that I am acquainted with a disproportionate amount of Queen scouts compared to anyone else in the country who’s never been involved in the Scouts organisation, I’ve never taken to the active life and along with the surfing, I’m not sure why. It’s taken me until I’m 32 to realise this.

10. She’s back in my arms

Save the best til last. I let her go in 2007 and I count that as probably the worst decision of the last decade. Come 2009, after and eventful year for her and a somewhat frustrating one for me, we found each other again. Fairytale stuff, I tell thee!

So 2009, not so bad. I intend to have a lot more shenanigans occur in 2010 though. Fuck the quiet life.

1. Get rid of almost all of my debts
2. Learn how to drive and get a car
3. Get my own flat

These are the ends I have in mind.

Thanks to books read last year, I feel like I have the mental tools to get them done.

Here’s to 2010.

This is my pet project. It’s a Raleigh Retroglide that was rebuilt by a fella who worked out of Shabitat in Brighton with the noble cause of trying to keep bicycles out of landfill sites. The bike was cream and racing green when I first got hold of it.

Soon after it’s purchase, I had an accident on it down on Brighton seafront that saw me garner a cad-ish scar on my upper lip and the bike be put square out of action.

Not being the most devoted cyclist, I got back to walking everywhere and the bike sat unattended for quite a while. Over the course of the last year or so, I’ve slowly (like, really slowly) been putting it back together – stripped it down, replaced the front fork, stripped all the original paint off and sprayed it all flat black, sprayed the rims cherry red, and just the other week, bought some much deserved whitewall tyres from Ridelow in Manchester.

I put what I had so far together, in the kitchen, while my housemate and I listened to Megadeth. That was in the evening after work. It was only on Sunday just gone, when I got home in the afternoon and took it out on to the patio that I really saw the beauty of what I’d created.

Yeah, it could do with this, that and the other (oh by the way, I’m not being daft – I do know it needs brakes, a derailleur, shifter, cables and chain among other things) but just looking at it, the flat black paint being offset by the wheels and tyres, I just felt an overwhelming sense that I’d molded my universe a little more in the way I’d like it to look.

I really hope, with the help from the people at Cranks bike shop, that I can get this badboy on the road by Sunday afternoon if not before. Wish me luck.

Disclaime first. Haute cuisine this isn’t. I’d say my diet is some way more stodgy than other people’s so don’t expect light and fluffy food that melts in your mouth. Do expect something that will leave you with a satisfied “I can’t eat another bite” feeling though.

So, ingredients. For the meatballs You will need,

1 sachet of sosmix or equivalent *
2 small chillies, de-seeded and finely chopped
3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped (this can be amended to taste – I like a lot of garlic myself)
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 tablespoon of mixed herbs
1 tablespoon of paprika
Salt and pepper to taste
300ml of water

For the sauce you will need,

1 medium onion, finely chopped
4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 tin of chopped tomatoes
1 jar of passata (sieved tomatoes)
A dozen fresh basil leaves, washed and finely chopped
1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon of paprika
salt and pepper to taste

1. Mix all the dry ingredients for the meatballs in a bowl.

2. Add the water slowly and only add enough that the mix absorbs the water and has a thick dough-like consistency. Place the bowl of meatball mix in a fridge for at least 10 minutes.

3. Take the mix out of the fridge and take table spoon sized amounts and roll them into balls using your hands. You should get about a dozen or so meatballs just over a an inch wide.

4. Heat some olive oil in a frying pan to a medium heat (you’ll know it’s hot enough as if you add a small bit of onion, it’ll start to sizzle – if it’s starting to smoke, the oil’s too hot). Add the meatballs and fry them until the outsides are browned. be sure to keep them moving so that they don’t stick to the pan. Remove from the frying pan.

5. Add olive oil to a saucepan and heat to medium heat and fry the onions for the sauce.

6. When the onions are starting to colour, add the garlic.

7. Fry for a minute and then add the tomatoes, passata, balsamic vinegar, basil, paprika and seasoning. Stir the ingredients together and cook for 5 minutes.

8. add the meatballs for the mix, cover the saucepan and reduce the heat to just below medium.

9. Put a pan of cold, salted water on to boil. Add spaghetti when water is boiling along with a small amount of oil to keep the spaghetti from sticking.

10. Keep stirring the meatballs and sauce regularly. Warm some dishes for serving.

11. When the spaghetti is cooked, turn off heat on both the spaghetti pan and the meatball pan. Drain the spaghetti and serve into dishes. Pour the meatballs and sauce over spaghetti as required.

Voila! Rob Camp’s spicy non-meatball in tomato and basil sauce served with spaghetti. Enjoy.

* – There seems to have been an upset with regards to sosmix and all. As far as I can tell, the sosmix you need is Symington’s Sosmix. If you find a health food shop like Holland and Barrett, they should have the stuff. Burgermix works just as well if they don’t have sosmix.

I’ve never tried this recipe with anything like vegemince such as quorn mince and such like. The dried sosmix stuff works due to it’s sticky consistency. Let me know if the non-sticky mince stuff works as well.

Started off by setting up all emails on it and then went about adding apps. For some reason, couldn’t use either of my cards to set up and iTunes Store account so rooted around the web for a solution.

Thanks to Techdreams.org for supplying the know-how for creating an itunes store account without a credit card.

I think I may have missed the point of the iPhone as my first apps were a compass, a spirit level and tool for converting measurements….yep, exciting life indeed.

I did find a nifty app that gives you a different image from space agencies such as NASA every day. That’s bound to keep me in daydreams for a good while.

A 5am start from Brighton saw us in St.Buryan near Lands End by lunchtime – perfect time to hit the beach.

I’ll keep the details brief but the weather was on and off. The surf was similar. The alcohol flowed at a comfortable rate come the evening and the company was top-notch.

Now, while I didn’t completely master surfing (well, the getting up part at least), I do think I might have caught some sort of surfing bug. I am so up for trying this all out again real soon.

An added bonus of the trip was a long overdue return to the land of my fathers. I do have such a soft spot for Cornwall. It takes me back to a childhood time when everyone seemed happy, things weren’t as complicated and my family could be in the same room for longer than a day without getting at each other. Admittedly, we were a fair bit more south than Port Isaac, Polezeath and Delabole, but the country has the same rugged, wind swept look to it from the minute you cross the river Tamar.

If that wasn’t enough, I then found out that the village we were staying in, St.Buryan, was the location for the Sam Peckinpah film, Straw Dogs! It could only have been better if I found out we were staying in one of the locations for the island of Summerisle from The Wicker Man.

All in all, a great weekend. I can’t wait to get back to Cornwall and of course annihilate some waves while I’m there.

Massive props need to be given to Neven who sorted everything out.

“Thou art the Great Cat, the avenger of the Gods, and the judge of words, and the president of the sovereign chiefs and the governor of the holy Circle; thou art indeed…the Great Cat.” – Inscription on the Royal Tombs at Thebes

It’s got a nice interface for blogging with ease without having to login into anything else.