Sayat, or Golden Eagle hunting, is Kazakhstan's national sport. Berkutchi, the golden eagle hunters, arrive from all over the country for an annual Sayat competition in Karkaralinsk, central Kazakhstan.The eagles compete in a hunting contest and are judged on how well they can catch and kill their prey.Hunting is a lifelong profession. More often than not, it is hereditary. A Golden Eagle will weigh up to 15 pounds, grow up to 3 feet tall and have a wingspan of up to 7 feet. A trainer's relation
A few years ago I did a series of club flyers featuring body art. Came across the files the other day but couldn't remember the artist. Still can't find his/her name but thought would post them anyway. (the ones where they are camouflaged with natural/industrial backgrounds)But I have also added in a great Australian artist called Emma Hack - her pics are the ones where the body art is like fabric, or designed to camouflage with the wallpaper or walls behind them...Remember, there is no fabric o
The 25th of January is Burns Day, celebrating the birth of Scotlands national bard, and the man behind perhaps the world's most famous song; 'Auld lang syne'. And today is the 250th anniversary of his birth!! Former Secretary-General of the United Nations Kofi Annan, delivering the inaugural Robert Burns memorial lecture, says, "Burns's poems dignify and illuminate the struggle faced by the vast majority of the world's population today… Burns has also been described as a poet of the poor, an adv
Well, it's been a rather crap start to 2009 I do have to say.
First of all, I found out the other day that the project I work for is not getting its funding renewed for the new financial year (from April) so this means I have to get job hunting again!
Then to put the icing on the cake, my landlord came to see me last night. Due to the credit crunch (and the fact that he stupidly took on more mortgages than he could handle) he is having to sell this house; and it isn't even a case of it going o
Daddy said we had to clean the house from top to bottom befor Xmas, so I got on my houswork hat and set to dusting (though I am sure there are laws against child labour) I had lots of fun playing with the xmas things as daddy found them... What???? I thought stockings were for your legs?? How was I to know you hung them up for santa?? I am ony 3!!!I think I had as much fun ripping open the presents; I don't know what to play with!!!Daddy!! What have I said about close ups when I am just out of
(Lang may yer lum reek is a traditional Scottish greeting for long life and prosperity and means long may your chimney smoke)
As the masters of the New Year celebration, I thought I would share some of the traditions and words we use at Hogmanay. (sorry it's so long)
One of the main reasons that Scots have always celebrated Hogmanay and New Year is that Christmas was not celebrated as a festival and virtually banned in Scotland for around 400 years, from the end of the 17th century to th
Currently yellow carded by a cruel and despotic ruler, but have discovered a loophole in that you can edit journal entries and forum posts although not post new ones!!!! Nyah!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Only 2 more days of countdown to go and despite some of the countdown's tunes being repeated today in another journal, still have a few left to choose from.First up today is a bit of classic animation with 'You're a mean one Mr Grinch' Did consider using the Jim Carey version, but the voice of the Grinch in
When I was going through my teenage years and listening to a lot of punk and new wave, one group consistently stood head and shoulders above not only the other bands in their genre, but above any group of the era. As someone who was becoming increasingly politicised, but who recognised the futile nihilism of those who advocated anarchy, the lyrics of The Clash struck a chord with a young mind eager for some depth and meaning to my music.They sang about real things; whether the problems facing Th
Since it is most peoples' day off today and everyone is relaxing, I thought we would have a couple of very peaceful and contemplative tunes today.The first is Simon and Garfunkel's rendition of 'Silent Night' which, when they released it was set to a collage of news images as well as a background voiveover (voiceunder??) from the 7 o' clock news.The second tune (especially for Funky-House as he thought as I was slagging this guy's work rather than the crap that is X Factor) is from the wonderful
Just a little journal to say Happy Solstice (12.04 pm 21/12/08) to everyone on TF!!The pivotal point of the Saturnalia festival (which is the principle pagan celebration that Xmas ripped off), it is also known as midwinter and, for those of us in Northern Latitudes almost marks the start of longer days. Although the 21st will be our shortest day of the year (datlight wise) it is not actually till around the 25th when we start getting those extra 10 minutes every day.For those of you with astrono
A bit of a contrast today but 2 cracking tunes nonetheless;We start off with what is, imho, the ultimate and best alternative Xmas tune ever; the utterly mental Pogues with the late great Kirsty McColl and the classic 'Fairytale of New York'Then adding a bit of soul to the mix, there can be only one; the Godfather of Soul, Mr James Brown with 'Soulful Xmas'. If this doesn't make you want to get up and shake your booty, then you are either deceased or too drunk!!Tomorrow is a peaceful today with
Since it's the weekend, thought we'd get a little funky and have a look at what the world of hip hop has contributed to the xmas song genre. First up is the superb Run DMC with 'Xmas in Hollis' set to a bit of festive Bruce Willis video action!!And then, a wonderfully funky moment from Snoop Dogg, with a great Isaac Hayes sample in 'Santa goes straight to the Ghetto' (on the first day of xmas my homeboy sent to me...lol)Hope you enjoy todays selection as we go into the last few days...
As promised yesterday, today's selections come from a comedy angle; both quite surreal in their own way but seperated by almost 50 years in time.The first tune is one of my own personal all time favourites; the utterly mad Goons with 'Walking backwards for Xmas' while the second continues the South Park tradition of offending anybody and everybody with Kyle's heartfelt rendition of 'Just a Jew'Tomorrow sees a complete change of pace as we don the bling and load up the desert eagles for a very hi
A bit of a contrast today - another 2 'alternative' Xmas tunes; one with a bit of a folky feel from the wonderfully talented Dar William's playing 'The Christians and the Pagans' which looks at the true roots of Xmas, while the second tune is a bit of a crooner's delight from Mr Harry Connick Jnr and 'Blue Xmas' set to a rather strange Star Trek video for some reason.2 more tunes tomorrow, both of which come from more of a comedy perspective...
Every year it's the same old saccharine overloaded tunes that are played 25 times a day on the radio. It's almost a sure recipe for road rage when you are stuck in traffice and 'I wish it could be xmas everyday' is drizzling into your brain for the umpteenth time.To combat this I have collected together a selection of alternative xmas tunes; from the beautiful to the offensive, from the funny to the rather strange and quirky.2 selections today. First song is dedicated to Jaya as I am sure he wil
Just saw this footage from the meteor that crashed in Canada 2 weeks ago; of course the usual nutters claim it was a UFO, but surely a superior species that could travel between stars would want to meet intelligent life...so why land in Canada??
Bagpuss creator Oliver Postgate has died aged 83, his family has confirmed. Postgate, who lived in Kent, created some of the best-loved children's TV series including Ivor the Engine, the Clangers and Noggin the Nog. His work, screened on the BBC and ITV from the 1950s to the present day, was often in collaboration with the artist and puppeteer Peter Firmin. In a poll earlier this year, Bagpuss, a saggy pink cloth cat, was voted the best TV animal of all-time. Postgate's partner, Naomi Linnell,
When I was trying to think of names for my daughter, one name kept coming back to my mind; the idea was planted from the fact that the lead singer of Catatonia was called Cerys Matthews, but rather than just being a pop star's name, it was the fact that it was a name from the original Britons and had so much history.On this brandy soaked sentimental morning, I would therefore like to present 3 songs from the very lovely Cerys Matthews; one with Catatonia, one with Space and one with the inimitab
Was asked by a couple of people to post some tunes up on TF; am currently trying to learn how to work cyber power director in order to make a video for one of my own tunes, but the gig we did on Friday night was all digitally recorded so it has now been edited (due to upload problems) into two halves. Total running time is about 2 and a half hours. Content is mainly electro house with a soupcon of acid, so if that's your thing, please download and enjoy!!!Each file is about 70mb in size, but can
Impressed by Chrisghents courage in posting his Bill gates lookalike pics (and the fact that I am still quite drunk so don't give a damn!! lol) so dug out a few archive pics. Laugh long and loud at the days when even I was innocent!!! and just a wee ad; my beloved mutt Zappa
2009 is Homecoming year for Scotland; a series of events celebrating the 250th anniversary of the birth of Rabbie Burns, our national poet, and author of arguably the world's most famous song (Auld Lang Syne). Over 200 events; from readings and concerts through to exhibitions will celebrate his life and works and all of you are invited!!!They just released this great wee TV ad, featuring some famous Scots, including the bold Sir Sean Connery and have also included Eddie Reader doing another of h
In the world of luxury travel there are hotels… and then there is the £1 billion Atlantis. This week tycoons and celebrities touched down in Dubai for the hotel's £13.5 million inauguration ceremony, which featured Kylie Minogue.
Celebs such as Sarah, Duchess of York, Richard Branson and Natalie Imbruglia walked the red carpet. Inside many more, including Charlize Theron, Rhys Ifans, Shirley Bassey and Robert De Niro sipped Dom Perignon and tucked into 4,000 oysters, 300 kilos of salmon, 5
In my, ahem, wilder days I was involved with a few sound systems. In particular I was in 2 Glasgow based systems; Desert Storm and Breach of the Peace. Lots of very silly fun was had putting on (illegal) free parties in fields, warehouses and basically anywhere we could get away with it!! The annoying thing was; I always seemed to be the one nominated to talk to the police if or when they turned up!! (and usually worked something out)Desert Storm later left Glasgow (to Nottingham, then Rome th
