Wales World Cup Squad

Forwards: Tomas Francis (Exeter Chiefs), Paul James (Ospreys), Aaron Jarvis (Ospreys), Gethin Jenkins (Cardiff Blues), Samson Lee (Scarlets), Scott Baldwin (Ospreys), Ken Owens (Scarlets), Jake Ball (Scarlets), Luke Charteris (Racing Metro), Bradley Davies (Wasps), Dominic Day (Bath), Alun Wyn Jones (Ospreys), Taulupe Faletau (Newport Gwent Dragons), James King (Ospreys), Dan Lydiate (Ospreys), Justin Tipuric (Ospreys), Sam Warburton (Cardiff Blues).

Backs: Gareth Davies (Scarlets), Rhys Webb (Ospreys), Lloyd Williams (Ospreys), Gareth Anscombe (Cardiff Blues), Dan Biggar (Ospreys), Rhys Priestland (Scarlets), Cory Allen (Cardiff Blues), Jamie Roberts (Harlequins), Scott Williams (Scarlets Hallam Amos (Newport Gwent Dragons), Alex Cuthbert (Cardiff Blues), Leigh Halfpenny (Toulon), Matthew Morgan (Bristol), George North (Northampton Saints), Liam Williams (Scarlets).

Double feature

Listen To Me Marlon is out in UK cinemas on October 23, followed by a digital, DVD and Blu-ray release in November.

It's impossible for words to describe what is necessary to those who do not know what horror means.



These two movies,  a pizza and a wine box. Now that would be a night worth staying in for.

the morning after

I am firing this post up before I leave London for Cardiff. Never having got round to Saul Bellow before I have downloaded an audio version of The Adventures of Augie March.

It is over 22 hours long so it may be a while before I let you know you I got on with it.

weekend

Uncle Michael's funeral is today; my godfather and my mother's brother.

three sided football

3sf was originally conceived by Asger Jorn, a Danish artist and philosopher, in 1966 as a method of explaining his refinement of the Marxist dialectic (resulting in something Jorn referred to as "triolectics"). Jorn was a member of the Situationist International, a loose organisation of anarchists, Marxists and avant-garde artists who had become disillusioned not only with the promises of the increasing technological rationalisation of everyday life under capitalism, but also the dogmatic responses of the anti-capitalist intelligentsia at the time. They sought creative alternatives to all facets of life, seeking to deconstruct the limits of work, play and everything in between. Although Jorn's theoretical reworking of a central Marxist tenet never really took off, his attempt left a legacy that is increasingly felt around the world.

"Jorn was hopeless at trying to describe [triolectics]," said Dyson. "He was coming completely out of left field, and no one had a clue what he was talking about. So he came up with the metaphor of three-sided football to explain it."

In keeping with the anti-authoritarian spirit that gave birth to the sport, the rules of 3sf are few, and considered more as guiding principles than steadfast laws. In general, the game should involve a ball, three teams and a hexagonal pitch – anything beyond this is subject to spontaneous revision.

Unlike conventional football, a team doesn't win by scoring the most goals, but rather victory is predicated on how few goals a team concedes to its opponents. This arrangement is supposedly meant to expose the ideological underpinnings of conventional football, which is confrontational, aggressive and deterministic: there is generally a clear winner and loser, and players must operate in accordance with rigid rules and well-defined strategies.

Off me head son.

Kindle Owners' Lending Library

Borrow one Kindle book per month from over 500,000 titles for free on any Kindle device with no due dates.

I have worked out that you can't get at the Kindle Owners' Lending Library from the Amazon website, you have to do it from a Kindle device directly. My stumbling block now is finding anything worth "borrowing."

Emergency. Paging Dr Beat

I was back at the Antelope quiz last night for the first time in four weeks what with one thing and another. We drew for first place but only got the second prize of a £25 quid bar tab as Andrew got beaten in a rock, paper, scissors tie break.

We should really have won as I identified Dr Beat by Miami Sound Machine in the music round, but dropped a point when the stand-in quiz master would only accept Gloria Estafan as the artist. We were right and he was wrong. When I worked in Fluor there was a draughtsman in the control and instrumentation department who used to sing it all day long. It drove me nuts at the time, but the song has been in my bones ever since.

The team didn't win or even place at all while I was unavailable. There is an atavistic side to me that doesn't really mind.

A beginner's guide

Nominations opened on June 9. The voting process began on Friday 14 August 2015 and will close on Thursday 10 September 2015, with the results announced on Saturday 12 September 2015. This leadership election feels to me as if it has been going on forever.

Renato Guttuso

I stayed in last night. Herself is away on holiday so I had to be on duty to feed, water and lodge the bomber when he got back from stray cat strutting the environs.

I watched a show called Sicily Unpacked - Andrew Graham-Dixon and Giorgio Locatelli take viewers on a journey into the heart of Sicily and introduce one another to the food and art of the island.

I was very taken by a painting by Renato Guttuso  called La Vucciria that featured in it. Note to self: find out more about Guttusso.

99p

99p ain't too shabby for a movie with Best Picture, Actor and Adapted Screenplay, among other, nods at this year's Oscars.

The Bomber and I finished season 1 (all 23 episodes) of Arrow last night on Prime Video. Is Amazon taking over the world?

Ashley Madison

I am (hat tip, Kali) fairly sure that this will not be the thing that causes the collapse of western civilization.

Nemesis in Echo and Narcissus

This is pretty much how I feel staring at my computer screen this morning.

I busted a mirror and got seven years bad luck, but my lawyer thinks he can get me five.

Fire stick

Mr D. says:

Why does Fire Stick not work with Prime Music? Every attempt at loading my library has failed...despite the party tricks (previous posts). It works on all my other third party devices!...just not yours!....😒

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In reply to an earlier post on 28 Jul 2015 16:43:58 BDT
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HartWud says:

I had that problem initially, but -
Step 1: go to Settings and select Applications, then select Manage Installed Apps, then select Amazon Music and Force Stop then Clear Data,
Step 2: then disconnect power from your FiresStick (Restart is usually ok, but I needed to disconnect power too),
Step 3: wait a few secs, then reconnect power to the FireStick and it will restart and reload everything

- my playlists and everything now show up fine!

So do mine (see Icons passim). Thanks HartWud. I also added a new album to my library last night after I had done the Force Stop and Clear. It showed up on the Fire Stick in real time so this is a once and for all fix, which is a relief. The only caveat is that you can't manage your library on the Fire Stick. Adding music has to be done on a different device.

Moksh

I was watching Great British Menu - Series 10: 11. Wales Starter on the iPlayer last night and was intrigued by chef Stephen Gomes of Moksh, whose modern Indian fusion cuisine with elements of molecular cooking has apparently made it the the best Indian restaurant in Wales.

I should try and get along there for “chocolate orange chicken tikka” or “chicken with cinnamon nitro essence” next time I am in Cardiff. It is in Bute Crescent down the Bay.

The tasting menu ought to hit the spot.

Straight Outta Morden

I'm back to London and to work. Same old, same old. People need killing.

iSkin

iSkin: Flexible, Stretchable and Visually Customizable On-Body Touch Sensors for Mobile Computing.

Play the video and tell me that the voice of the narrator is not precisely what you have always imagined Dr. Strabismus (Whom God Preserve) of Utrecht would sound like.

Early Years

Nursery teachers and parents face uncertainty about their school's future after owners submitted a planning application to turn it into a four-storey block of flats with a basement extension.

The Early Years Day Care Nursery in Cavendish Road, Colliers Wood, is a privately-run nursery which looks after 37 children aged between three months and four-and-a-half years.

Nursery owners submitted the plans to Merton Council earlier this month to convert the building into 10 three-bedroom flats.

But it was only after parent Branwyn Darlington, who lives in Cavendish Road, received notification about the plans from the council that nursery staff were informed of the proposal.

The HR manager and mother-of-two said: "We are all upset. We all want the nursery to stay open.

"The thing that is really upsetting to a lot of use is that their initial planning application went in April which was rejected and now they have put this one in and they never said anything to anyone."

Nursery owner Dr Mahadeo Bhide has not yet responded to requests for comment.

Sharon Mills, who has been manager at the nursery for the past 15 years, said: "It was a shock. I only found out on Monday last week from one of the parents.

"The staff are upset of course. We don't know how long we have got."

Councillor Nick Draper, who represents Colliers Wood, described the plan as "outrageous" in a letter of objection to the council's planning department.

He wrote: "It's a nursery, and should in my opinion remain as such. If that isn't sufficient reason in itself, it's an awful plan, with low ceilings and pokey rooms, with a frightening basement, barely fitting into the site. Please reject it."

Seven people have already written letters to the council objecting to the plans, including Councillor Laxmi Attawar and a police crime prevention officer.

You can see the full planning application here.

Ben went to the Early Years nursery, so I know Sharon and still bump into her occasionally round and about. A nursery it should stay.

THE HATEFUL EIGHT

Warren Gatland has dropped British and Irish Lions trio Mike Phillips, James Hook and Richard Hibbard from his 2015 World Cup training squad. They are joined by less experienced players Nicky Smith, Rory Thornton, Dan Baker, Rhys Patchell and Jack Dixon in having their tournament hopes dashed.

He can't be accused of ducking difficult decisions.

Clockwise from top left: Rhys Patchell, Mike Phillips, Richard Hibbard, Rory Thornton, Jack Dixon, Dan Baker, James Hook and Nicky Smith

may the endorse be with you

Labour faces 'annihilation' under Jeremy Corbyn, Tony Blair has warned in a dramatic late intervention, yet here he is with C3PO and Luke Skywalker. Blair turned to the dark side a long time ago.

Darth Vader: Your powers are weak, old man.

Ben Obi-Wan Kenobi: You can't win, Darth. If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you could possibly imagine.

Grub

Why shouldn’t there be a canon of taste, like other canons of our civilisation, those of literature, art, music, architecture, religion and science? We have a global palate now, and with that, a new willingness to cross-pollinate and revivify regional foodways – and even ways of staging food at the table.

I'm back in harness now. Did I tell you my paella was very well received last night at the camp site?

This Canon of Taste article, has also brought Southern Provisions: The Creation and Revival of a Cuisine into my purview and a copy should be winging my way shortly. Whatever happened to Route 55...... or Dixie Zen?

Now think on't, dot dot dot dot dot ...

Off the grid

The Bomber and I are off on a trip to James and Claire's new camp site, so I will be off the grid and out of the gym until them middle of next week.

We're glamping in a handcrafted gypsy style, furnished camping pod with two real beds, an electric kettle, an electric cool box and heater, so I will be able to sit outside blowing the froth off a cold one tomorrow while the rest of the party struggle with their tents.

Ludi Cruz

Candidate Ted Cruz will participate in today's televised Republican presidential debate. When he is not doing that he likes to prepare breakfast by wrapping the muzzle of a machine gun with bacon and squeezing off a few bursts of fire to cook it.

That said he may be preferable to the pestiferous, billowing cloud of attention-grabbing antimatter we've seen in the form of Donald Trump, a flesh-contoured steam vessel piloted by a series of tiny, frightened goblins with expired real estate licenses. Hat tip, Esquire.

Wikipedia:

Cruz graduated cum laude from Princeton University with a Bachelor of Arts in Public Policy from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs in 1992. While at Princeton, he competed for the American Whig-Cliosophic Society's Debate Panel and won the top speaker award at both the 1992 U.S. National Debating Championship and the 1992 North American Debating Championship. In 1992, he was named U.S. National Speaker of the Year, as well as Team of the Year, with his debate partner, David Panton. Cruz and Panton represented Harvard Law School at the 1995 World Debating Championship, making it to the semi-finals, where they lost to a team from Australia. Princeton's debate team later named their annual novice championship after Cruz.

After graduating from Princeton, Cruz attended Harvard Law School, graduating magna cum laude in 1995 with a Juris Doctor degree. While at Harvard Law, he was a primary editor of the Harvard Law Review, and executive editor of the Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy, and a founding editor of the Harvard Latino Law Review. Referring to Cruz's time as a student at Harvard Law, Professor Alan Dershowitz said, "Cruz was off-the-charts brilliant." At Harvard Law, Cruz was a John M. Olin Fellow in Law and Economics.

It does make you wonder why he feels he has to put on this "he may be a fool but he's our fool" redneck act.

alcoholic architecture

How often has a crowded bar ruined your evening? Wouldn't life be easier if you could just get your kick from the air around you? Bompas & Parr's new "alcoholic architecture" bar in Borough Market allows you to do just that, filtering alcoholic vapour into a small, extremely cloudy room and letting your nasal passages do the rest.

What with this and the Mayor of Scaredy Cat Town, I think that there may be a whimsical and affected bar-hopping session in my future.

Prodnose: Bompas & Parr's Alcoholic Architecture bar is at 1 Cathedral St, London SE1 9DE.

2lander II

Commit this to memory. If I know Jack it could easily be in the movie round at the Antelope quiz tonight even though it hasn't been released yet.

Effin' 12!

The burglar says that Windows 10's new Edge browser has an F12 emulation mode so we should still be able to run any of our IE optimized products (like the Drumbeat CMS) in it.

Unfortunately this is of merely academic interest to me at the moment as I think have left my Surface Pro behind in Wales and that is the only updated Wintel system in my life as we speak.

The beginning of a beautiful friendship?

The Windows 10 upgrade seemed to go quite smoothly over lunchtime yesterday while I  was at Virgin Active. This post was actually lined up on Friday as I am due to be down in Wales checking on Mum and Dad again this weekend and they remain resolutely off line.