Bagpuss: I met Emily

Emily's Cat Bagpuss: The most Important, the most beautiful, the most magical, saggy old cloth cat in the whole wide world.

I met Emily the other day. In fact I have met her twice but she kept very quiet about it the first time.

Emily, is one half of totalpap
http://www.totalpap.co.uk/
an artist and illustrator, I went to visit her as part of the artists open house. She has a mad garden, with several sheds, workshops and a diving bell. She is a lovely woman, and looks remarkably like someone I once knew which shocked me last time as well.
Anyway, there was a dog angel looking at me and I have now adopted it.

Greetings from San Fran

I thought I would write this now before I get home and the real world takes over.

Ten things I love about San Francisco:

• my sister obviously otherwise I wouldn't be here
• the food: the Senagalese and the Afghan restaurant particularly stick in my mind
• the bookstores: I have bought loads of book bargains including a wonderful book on London travel called the London Spy, written in the 70s. Its hilarious
• Yosemite: not strictly in San Fran but wonderful none the less. All the better as we narrowly missed the massive landslide that hit the camp in the days after we left
• Alcatraz: so interesting. I never knew that the Indians claimed it for 19 months as their land.
• village people Christmas tree decorations in sausilito
• the mission, where the cool kids hang out
• the castro theatre: never have I enjoyed Bridge on the River Kwai so much
• finding spots that were the inspiration for Tales of the City. Including the legendary Safeway's.
• Japantown: full of great Hello Kitty purchases.

Five things I hate about San Francisco - I actually couldn't think of 10!

• Haigh Ashbury: commercialised hippiness at its worst
• attracting too much attention: worse than walking through West Croydon!
• tax on shopping: I don't do maths, I can't work it out and now I have an change mountain
• nutters on buses: yes I know it happens in London too but I'm on holiday and they smell
• hills: are you trying to kill me! after hiking to 6000ft in Yosemite I need a nice gentle stroll.

Seasick Steve - all washed up...

...For me anyway. Lovely guy, brilliant musician, but the Royal Albert Hall killed it for me. Some people unfortunately don't suit being famous and he is on of them.

The evening though was hilariously helped by two guys having a punch up because one of them was singing too loud.