Funk Publishing: Feeds

blogs (100 unread)

More Than Two Extinct Species Per Year In England

Posted: March 11th, 2010, 8:08am GMT by Dean

More than two animals and plants a year are becoming extinct in England and hundreds more are severely threatened, a report published today reveals. Natural England, the government’s agency responsible for the countryside, said the biggest national study of threats to biodiversity found nearly 500 species that had died out in England, all but a dozen [...]

Into The Blood

Posted: March 10th, 2010, 12:14pm GMT by Dean

Almost always I feel peaceful after meditation. I’m more focused and aware as I get about my tasks. Sometimes, I feel like I’m cruising about on an invisible Segway; at other times, I get a rush of energy which requires managing. It’s often creative, but also, despite the ongoing and increased calm which meditation brings – [...]

Fire!

Posted: March 9th, 2010, 7:14pm GMT by Dean

It started with a bleep bleep bleep… Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Fear

Posted: March 9th, 2010, 9:44am GMT by Dean

I’m told that I’m quite brave. Certainly I am socially unafraid. However, I did spend a week climbing Cornish sea cliffs once, which I loved, except I forgot to pull out the climbing gear, and being the last one up, I had to go back down the overhang I had just overcome, pull out the [...]

Met Office: 100 Studies Show Evidence of Man-Made Climate Change

Posted: March 9th, 2010, 8:06am GMT by Dean

It is an "increasingly remote possibility" that human activity is not the main cause of climate change, according to a major Met Office review of more than 100 scientific studies that track the observed changes in the Earth’s climate system. The research will strengthen the case for human-induced climate change against sceptics who [...]

Extinctions Moving Faster Than Evolution

Posted: March 8th, 2010, 9:05am GMT by Dean

For the first time since the dinosaurs disappeared, humans are driving animals and plants to extinction faster than new species can evolve, one of the world’s experts on biodiversity has warned. Conservation experts have already signalled that the world is in the grip of the "sixth great extinction" of species, driven by the destruction [...]

Lost and Found

Posted: March 7th, 2010, 6:34pm GMT by Dean

I found this little scrap of paper while I’ve been going through the many boxes which filled when I started refurbishing my place back in September. I locked up memories, everything from the meaningless to the irreplaceable, in no particular order, mixing the important and unimportant according to size, just to get it out [...]

Metamaterials: The Next Photonics Revolution

Posted: March 7th, 2010, 10:08am GMT by Dean

Phil Saunders of SpaceChannel.org and Nikolay Zheludev of the University of Southampton, U.K., have graciously permitted OPN to reproduce this fascinating video, which is related to Zheludevs October OPN feature on metamaterial-induced transparency. It explores the science behind metamaterials-crystalline-like sub-wavelength arrangements of electromagnetic resonators that can exhibit exotic optical properties such as negative refraction and [...]

Dark Dangerous Asteroids Near Earth

Posted: March 5th, 2010, 3:56pm GMT by Dean

An infrared space telescope has spotted several very dark asteroids that have been lurking unseen near Earth’s orbit. Their obscurity and tilted orbits have kept them hidden from surveys designed to detect things that might hit our planet. Called the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE), the new NASA telescope launched on 14 December on [...]

Just Broke (4 Deaths)

Posted: March 4th, 2010, 8:58am GMT by Dean

Nice bloke Back of his throat Just broke Made him choke Dreadful scene Left his greens Chips, bacon, beans Aged 12, 14 Nice old git Stuck around a bit Sudden fit That was it Swallowed his tongue Collapsed his lung He wasn’t young Can’t have been fun Nice young man Suntan Chelsea fan Transit van Went back Sudden crack Caught him smack IKEA flat-pack Nice old dear Tad queer Front and rear Dodgy beer Overnight Drowned in shite Dog died of fright Awful sight

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Chilean Earthquake Shifted Earth’s Axis, Created Shorter Days

Posted: March 3rd, 2010, 12:49pm GMT by Dean

The earthquake that struck Chile on Saturday may have shifted the Earth’s axis and created shorter days, according to scientists at Nasa. Richard Gross, a geophysicist at Nasa’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, said the 8.8 magnitude quake could have moved the Earth’s axis by 2.7 milliarcseconds (about 8cm) – enough to shorten [...]

Liberation

Posted: March 1st, 2010, 2:13am GMT by Dean

How do you describe liberation to somebody who has never experienced it? It’s a tough one, that. My mother lost her partner, her soul mate, my father, just over six months ago, and in the time since then, we’ve had a series of remarkable conversations. I’m minded to let our conversations branch wherever they will and to [...]

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Caribou – Skunks (The Pink Room)

Posted: March 1st, 2010, 1:29am GMT by Dean

I love Blip.FM – the greatest music discovery channel ever invented. Here’s a wonderful track by my new favourite band, Caribou, aka Dan Snaith. Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

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Les Oiseaux de Céleste

Posted: February 27th, 2010, 4:30pm GMT by Dean

French artist Céleste Boursier-Mougenot creates works by drawing on the rhythms of daily life to produce sound in unexpected ways. For his installation in The Curve, Boursier-Mougenot creates a walk-though aviary for a flock of zebra finches, furnished with electric guitars and other musical instruments. As the birds go about their routine activities, perching [...]

Albert Lewis: The Follow Up

Posted: February 27th, 2010, 1:47pm GMT by Dean

-- Sent from a tip-of-my-tongue organic speaking device ® See and download the full gallery on posterous Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

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Massive Iceberg “May Disrupt Ocean Currents”

Posted: February 26th, 2010, 7:20am GMT by Dean

A vast iceberg which broke off the Antarctic continent this month could disrupt the world’s ocean currents and weather patterns, scientists warn. Australian researchers say the iceberg – the size of Luxembourg – could block an area that produces a quarter of the world’s dense and very cold seawater. They say a slowdown [...]

Albert Lewis, Tech Support Champion

Posted: February 25th, 2010, 5:14pm GMT by Dean

Chat Information – Thank you for contacting support. Please be prepared to answer your Security Question when we begin chatting. To enhance our security protocols, we’ll need you to provide the answer to your Security Question at the beginning of our conversation. If you have not yet set your Security Question and Answer, please log [...]

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Plastic “Rubbish Patch” Found in Atlantic Ocean

Posted: February 25th, 2010, 8:03am GMT by Dean

Scientists have discovered an area of the North Atlantic Ocean where plastic debris accumulates. The region is said to compare with the well-documented "great Pacific garbage patch". Dr Karen Lavender Law of the Sea Education Association said that the pieces of plastic she and her team picked up in the nets were generally very small [...]

What is the Fastest Land Mammal?

Posted: February 24th, 2010, 9:40pm GMT by Dean

Q: What is the fastest land mammal? A: The usual answer is the cheetah. But the actual answer is the whale. We never see it onland because unknown to science, it also has the power of invisibility. Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Man Falls Over In Tweet

Posted: February 24th, 2010, 9:35pm GMT by Dean

Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

10 Reasons Why Lists Fail

Posted: February 24th, 2010, 1:19pm GMT by Dean

1. Lists 2. Are 3. The 4. Refuge 5. Of 6. The 7. Insecure 8. And 9. Lazy 10. There is no ten… (Originally from Tips for Speakers) Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Almost Birthday Present

Posted: February 24th, 2010, 10:26am GMT by Dean

Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Deliberately Unfunny Joy

Posted: February 22nd, 2010, 11:47am GMT by Dean

Am I the only one to derive enormous pleasure from constructing and telling deliberately unfunny jokes? I do it often, it really makes me laugh, knowing that nobody else will laugh, and that the joke is utterly pointless, except for making me laugh, at which it excels admirably. I generate a variety of blank looks, half-smiles, [...]

Consumerism: Desires Overshadowing Needs

Posted: February 21st, 2010, 11:07am GMT by Dean

Sometimes comments are better than the article. David Mitchell in The Observer, writing on corporations using children to market brands to children, provoked this succinct comment from “HiddenLaserTrap” : There was a time when products were advertised and sold purely for their functional value. This changed In America after the war when the corporations still had a [...]

Good Riddance to Old Sockage

Posted: February 20th, 2010, 12:45pm GMT by Dean

I don’t like any of these socks. Look at them. Black, boring, and with elastic that’s just too tight. I’d rather go barefoot, but in the coldest winter for 30 years, that’s not wise. If I keep wearing them, my feet will come off after being starved of blood over the years. I’ve seen it [...]

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Underworld – Jumbo

Posted: February 19th, 2010, 2:38pm GMT by deanwhitbread@gmail.com (Dean Whitbread)

Enclosure: [download]

Some electronic music vastly exceeds its space-you-out-and-dance remit. Underworld were a rock band before they ventured into their celebrated and highly individual take on the genre and they remain (alongside Orbital) my favourite of the post-rave electronic artists. Their compositional sense elevates dance music to a sophisticated level, but their rave roots touch upon worlds beyond this one.

Don’t quite know what it is about this that makes me feel so very emotional.. I’ve yet to work it out. It’s something to do with the uplifting optimism of the music with the intimacy and banal delivery of the vocal, and the “found” collaged speech.. it opens up a crack in reality, into which I fall.

The Leisure Trail

Posted: February 19th, 2010, 8:57am GMT by Dean

Here’s an interesting side-effect of Google Buzz, which I’ve been playing with for around a week. I started to re-think what I’m doing with feeds, extending reach, and how I appear in search. Today, I’ve gone into FriendFeed and narrowed the stream right down, removing half a dozen feeds, using the handy "remove entries" option. I’ve [...]

Nuts and Fruit

Posted: February 18th, 2010, 8:29pm GMT by Dean

My favourite nut is the Wal I don’t like some others at all But with Almond or Walnut or Cob I can happily fill up my gob My favourite fruit is the date But for Christmas I simply won’t wait To Apricot, Date and Cherry Add a litre or two of fine sherry [...]

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48% of Primates Face “Imminent Exinction”

Posted: February 18th, 2010, 7:49am GMT by Dean

Almost half of the world’s primate species – which include apes, monkeys and lemurs – are threatened with extinction due to the destruction of tropical forests and illegal hunting and trade. In a report highlighting the 25 most endangered primate species, conservationists have outlined the desperate plight of primates from Madagascar, Africa, Asia [...]

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Something of Mine from the 80s – Lucy, by Habit

Posted: February 17th, 2010, 1:48pm GMT by Dean

Oh, the popinjay 1980s. Lucy was my breakthrough song. Theoretically, I am making royalties from YouTube. I wonder when they will reach my bank account.. Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Climate Impact Of Food Far Higher Than Thought

Posted: February 17th, 2010, 11:28am GMT by Dean

The climate change impact of the food we eat is much higher than previously thought according to a major new report by WWF and the Food Climate Research Network (FCRN), published today (Monday 18 January). [1] The two organisations believe no one solution alone can reduce emissions but that greater effort and new approaches will [...]

Kitchen!

Posted: February 16th, 2010, 9:23am GMT by Dean

Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

One Way Journey

Posted: February 15th, 2010, 7:32pm GMT

I wrote a story in December which I published in January - such is the wonder of modern ePublishing.

It's called One Way Journey and it's available here as a paperback and a PDF and also on Amazon Kindle.

I'm going to write a lot more books, and probably a lot less blogs from now on.

Looks like Blogger is discontinuing FTP support, so I will also have to change this blog, which I've been writing since June 2004. No idea what I'll replace it with yet, but whatever it is, it will be equally boring.

I'm very happy that all my interesting stuff is elsewhere.

Bill Hicks Makes Me Totally Normal

Posted: February 15th, 2010, 9:25am GMT by Dean

I love Bill Hicks. He has kept me sane. In this tightly focused rant, particularly like “the anger dollar – huge in a time of recession” … Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Very Proud of this Tile Pattern

Posted: February 12th, 2010, 6:00pm GMT by Dean

Its careful symmetry pleases me like a budgerigar with a mirror and bell. 2am design. Oh yes. Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Early Spring Light

Posted: February 11th, 2010, 9:42pm GMT by Dean

A month and a half past winter solstice and while the weather is still freezing, the light is returning. These shots were taken in my road and local park. Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

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Google Buzz – Are We Bees, or Locusts?

Posted: February 11th, 2010, 10:57am GMT by Dean

So Google has launched Buzz. In rush all the early adopters, because here is something new and shiny to play with. But let’s be self-conscious, aware and critical in our adoption. First – is Buzz any good? Second, what are the wider implications in the social web? Upsides: Text longer than 140 characters – though this relies for [...]

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It’s Counter Intuitive, But It Might Just Fail

Posted: February 10th, 2010, 12:08am GMT by Dean

After years of fiddling around with Facebook, equivocating and cursing, I’ve climbed the garden wall and created my own page. http://bit.ly/deanfacebook – please join! It’s quite a lot of fun taking my writing this seriously. Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Ozzie Rozzie Second Edition: Paperback, PDF, Kindle

Posted: February 9th, 2010, 1:22pm GMT by Dean

Ozzie Rozzie, a 14,500 word story I wrote in 2005, and published in 2007 is now out on Kindle, PDF eBook, and paperback. Blurb: Ozzie Rozzie, misfit country boy, confronts bullying with unexpected consequences, in this short story set in 1970s London suburbia. Most recent review: I really enjoyed ‘Ozzie Rozzie’. It brought the atmosphere of the 70s rushing [...]

Do We All Live In A Giant Hologram?

Posted: February 8th, 2010, 5:01pm GMT by Dean

DRIVING through the countryside south of Hanover, it would be easy to miss the GEO600 experiment. From the outside, it doesn’t look much: in the corner of a field stands an assortment of boxy temporary buildings, from which two long trenches emerge, at a right angle to each other, covered with corrugated iron. Underneath [...]

Mindlessly Rooted in the Present

Posted: February 6th, 2010, 11:23am GMT by Dean

There is much to be said for daytime rest. We ignore apparent archaism at our peril, lest we lose ways previously discovered. What is the first thing your eyes see upon waking? Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Cookering

Posted: February 5th, 2010, 10:29pm GMT by Dean

Download now or watch on posterous cookering.mp4 (16471 KB) The first vegetable is the sweetest. Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Tiles

Posted: February 5th, 2010, 2:56pm GMT by Dean

Muted colours with a matt / satin finish to finish off my kitchen. Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Monster Proof

Posted: February 3rd, 2010, 12:02am GMT by Dean

Keeping fumes at bay, I am resorting to ludicrous cardboard horror film props. Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Seventeen Minutes

Posted: February 2nd, 2010, 7:54pm GMT by Dean

I saw the sky reflected in the wet pavement and began taking photos. Seventeen minutes passed… Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Wellboing

Posted: February 1st, 2010, 9:44pm GMT by Dean

I love my language. I love its flexibility and endless capacity for development, and I want to change some English words to make them more descriptive. For example, wellbeing. Why not change the second e – after all, there are two – for an o – after all, there are none. Wellbeing can become wellboing. Boing is an [...]

Old Kitchen Stripped To Her Underwear

Posted: February 1st, 2010, 5:31pm GMT by Dean

Like a 72 year old lady, exposed as she’s carried downstairs in her underclothes, on her way to a final hospital, my kitchen gives up its secrets. Ancient Gas Plumbing Future Stained Glass Grey, White, Yellow, Sienna – the colours of mid-period Mondrian Ceramic meets Wood – the shock of the [...]

Full Moon Through Trees

Posted: January 29th, 2010, 9:06pm GMT by Dean

Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Water vapour caused one-third of global warming in 1990s

Posted: January 29th, 2010, 12:55pm GMT by Dean

A 10% drop in water vapour, 10 miles up has had an effect on global warming over the last 10 years. Scientists have underestimated the role that water vapour plays in determining global temperature changes, according to a new study that could fuel further attacks on the science of climate change. The research, led [...]

The Magic Eraser

Posted: January 29th, 2010, 12:06pm GMT by Dean

Episode 153 in the Lithuanian soap opera. Today, they are joined by plumbers, and demonstrating the power of the Magic Eraser. Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

In Praise of Lithuania

Posted: January 28th, 2010, 6:16pm GMT by Dean

Eggs: Not All They Are Cracked Up To Be

Posted: January 28th, 2010, 4:45pm GMT by Dean

Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Fingertip Control

Posted: January 28th, 2010, 12:07pm GMT by Dean

Gintas carefully destroys a kitchen with fingertip control. Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

My Manor

Posted: January 28th, 2010, 12:27am GMT by Dean

Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

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Apple iPad – A Prediction from 2007

Posted: January 27th, 2010, 8:52pm GMT by Dean

It’s all true! Please don’t make me explain how it works… Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Tips for Speakers

Posted: January 27th, 2010, 4:07pm GMT by Dean

A presentation is not the dry transfer of concepts from one to many. It is transmission. It requires your physical concentration and your presence of mind, as well as a combination of skills and attitudes. The first thing to note is that everyone is different, and everyone has the same chance to be good. I am going [...]

QR Code for One Way Journey, Kindle Version

Posted: January 26th, 2010, 7:29pm GMT by Dean

Keeping it digital… the image links to http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0034XRU1W Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

My Lithuanian Kitchen

Posted: January 26th, 2010, 1:18pm GMT by Dean

After 25 years, my new kitchen is being put in by two very capable and charming Lithuanian workmen, Gintas and Victor. They are a comedy double act. Mostly they get it right. Sometimes the language is a barrier, but mostly not at all. Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

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At the end of the day, it’s a sunset

Posted: January 24th, 2010, 3:54pm GMT by Dean

I can’t believe I’m the first person to make this joke… but as far as Google is concerned, I am! Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Copenhagen: The Most Important Message Was Missed

Posted: January 24th, 2010, 11:51am GMT by Dean

We constantly confuse the window with the view. The media is at once our view on events and also the events themselves. Post #CopenhagenFail * little has been said or done on the subject of ecology, despite the fact that nothing has improved, and no replacement route for improvement exists. Once Copenhagen ended with only the [...]

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Len Edgerly’s ‘The Kindle Chronicles’

Posted: January 23rd, 2010, 6:43pm GMT by Dean

Enclosure: [download | play]

Len Edgerly is an early adopter and lover of gadgets and new technology. I met him first via podcasting when I attended Podcamp Boston in 2007. Len was showing a room full of slightly astonished people how he was able to use Second Life to show people fine art, flying up to view the ceiling [...]

Chumbag

Posted: January 23rd, 2010, 12:06pm GMT by Dean

Definition - chumbag (noun): A friend who is not the nicest person From chum (friend) and scumbag (a despicable person) (first coined here) Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

One Way Journey: Paperback Now Available

Posted: January 21st, 2010, 7:24pm GMT by Dean

Very pleased with the results. http://bit.ly/onewayjourney – get the book here.. Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

One Way Journey

Posted: January 20th, 2010, 9:36am GMT by Dean

I went to Egypt over Christmas and to my surprise, I had a life-changing experience and wrote a short story about it. I’ve published it as an eBook (PDF and Kindle versions so far) and a slim pocket paperback which will be listed in Amazon as soon as I’ve received the physical proof. The synopsis is: As [...]

The Writing Drug

Posted: January 18th, 2010, 12:22pm GMT by Dean

Songwriting is powerful. One reason I love writing in general is because it completely absorbs me. It is a drug, it takes me away, alters my state, removes thoughts of self-preservation; and songwriting with the intoxication of melody, harmony and rhythm is the most addictive drug of all. When I’m songwriting, I’m useless for [...]

Window: Urban Ambience

Posted: January 17th, 2010, 3:38pm GMT by Dean

Even when you practice safe walking habits, slipping on ice is sometimes unavoidable. It takes less than two seconds from the moment you slip until you hit the ground. Video for Cinema du Lyon composition, "Slipping on Ice" (free download) Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Astonishing Chinese Transportation Growth

Posted: January 16th, 2010, 2:23pm GMT by Dean

The Chinese National Bureau of Statistics has a lot of interesting data. The world has never seen anything like this Chinese industrial machine. China is becoming increasingly car-centric, versus rail-centric. If present trends continue, the Chinese expressway system will likely grow larger than the US interstate highway system within the next couple of years, and [...]

My Running Track: Highbury Fields, Islington

Posted: January 16th, 2010, 12:57pm GMT by Dean

Highbury Fields at various times of year. Today it was extremely wet… Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Portrait of Mark A.M. Kramer

Posted: January 15th, 2010, 11:13pm GMT by Dean

I didn’t let Mark become the Mayor of my flat on Foursquare… but it was great to see his smiling face and south american hat. Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Record Rise in Methane From Arctic Permafrost

Posted: January 15th, 2010, 12:28am GMT by Dean

Experts say methane emissions from the Arctic have risen by almost one-third in just five years, and that sharply rising temperatures are to blame. Methane emissions from Siberian Arctic permafrost increased by 31% from 2003-07, figures show. The discovery follows a string of reports from the region in recent years that previously frozen boggy soils [...]

Funch Of Twucking Bats

Posted: January 13th, 2010, 12:04am GMT by Dean

Enclosure: [download | play]

var agent=navigator.userAgent.toLowerCase(); var is_iphone = (agent.indexOf('mobile')!=-1) && ((agent.indexOf('iphone')!=-1) || (agent.indexOf('ipod')!=-1)); if (is_iphone) { $('quicktime_embed-vpcswAiAqH').show(); $('flash_embed-vpcswAiAqH').hide(); } else { $('flash_embed-vpcswAiAqH').show(); $('quicktime_embed-vpcswAiAqH').hide(); } A story based entirely on a spoonerism. (story originally published here – audio originally published here) Posted via [...]

Islington Alley Stitch

Posted: January 12th, 2010, 8:19pm GMT by Dean

The cut through to the Almeida Theatre Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

When I Grow Up, I Want To Be Pablo Neruda

Posted: January 11th, 2010, 4:30pm GMT by Dean

Sonnet XVII I do not love you as if you were salt-rose, or topaz, or the arrow of carnations the fire shoots off. I love you as certain dark things are to be loved, in secret, between the shadow and the soul. I love you as the plant that never blooms but carries [...]

Thaw Haiku

Posted: January 10th, 2010, 11:13am GMT by Dean

Snow thaws, reveals shit But it’s people, not the dogs, Who are saboteurs Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Wisdom in the Face of Mortality

Posted: January 9th, 2010, 7:17pm GMT by deanwhitbread@gmail.com (Dean Whitbread)

Enclosure: [download]

I’ve loved Warren Zevon since Werewolves of London first came out of the radio in the 1970s. Much later in his life, he was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and wrote this reflective, self-aware, poignant masterpiece, My Shit’s Fucked Up. Warren manages to deal with the subject of his imminent death – remarkable in itself – with great diginity and using simple language which anyone can acknowledge. It’s emotional without being sentimental. This is a truly great performance.

If I can be as sanguine about my own fate, should it come to that, I will have achieved something of great merit.

Trapped in Blighty: How to Survive A Currency Collapse

Posted: January 9th, 2010, 11:09am GMT by Dean

Much as I love this country, the thought of being trapped in Blighty does not fill me with a shivering glee of happy anticipation. I’m not a rich person. I have no pension. I have no children to care for me as reach my dotage. Therefore my mind is focused on two things – the quality [...]

Dangerous Trees

Posted: January 9th, 2010, 9:39am GMT by Dean

These were really giving me the eye as I walked down their street This one was carrying a heavy metal bar This one was clearly on steroids and very aggressive Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

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The Great Freeze of Twenty Ten – From Space

Posted: January 8th, 2010, 12:26pm GMT by Dean

Courtesy of those marvellous people at NASA. Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Would You Like a Seat?

Posted: January 7th, 2010, 11:12pm GMT by Dean

Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Thick and Noisy Snow in Islington

Posted: January 6th, 2010, 3:42pm GMT by Dean

Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Freeze Does Not Defy Climate Science

Posted: January 6th, 2010, 2:32pm GMT by Dean

Sceptics are failing to understand – single events are not trends People across the northern hemisphere are now facing the fact that a warming planet doesn’t get rid of winter. The woes extend far beyond Britain’s extended snow and chill. On Monday the heaviest snow in modern records plastered Seoul. Later this week the central US [...]

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Suicide is Man’s Way of Telling God, You Can’t Fire Me – I Quit

Posted: January 6th, 2010, 11:17am GMT by Dean

Near Denmark Street, London Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Hawaiian Snowbather

Posted: January 6th, 2010, 9:37am GMT by Dean

Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Meditation: How Low Can You Go?

Posted: January 4th, 2010, 3:42pm GMT by Dean

In the final phase of my meditation today, I had a sudden vision of myself. It was not quite a decade ago. I was low, negative, depressed, self-destructive, trapped. I was in what we’d call in south London where I grew up, a right state. It was such a surprise to see such personal detail in my [...]

Something Tweet

Posted: January 3rd, 2010, 2:15pm GMT by Dean

I fell asleep on an aeroplane and was awoken by the stewardess with the question, “Something Tweet?” Of course, there being no internet connection I was immediately confused. Then I realised she was asking me if I wanted food. She’s probably been saying this for years before Twitter came along and ruined her perfectly [...]

Stewie Griffin Writes a Song

Posted: January 1st, 2010, 10:45pm GMT by deanwhitbread@gmail.com (Dean Whitbread)

Enclosure: [download]

A striking and consistently brilliant feature of Family Guy, a superb popular animation which breaks taboos and flies in the face of American conservatism as it pokes fun in all directions, is the music. Seth MacFarlane the writer / producer is musically very gifted and it’s no surprise this emerges.

In this episode, impossibly precocious child, Stewie, meets another baby and writes her a love song. In the event it turns into a screamingly funny version of “Everything I Do, I Do It For You” which totally sends up the hit. But at first, he strums away and sings about the music he is writing. It’s the most wonderful self-awareness, and in the middle of this hilarious comedy, manages to be genuinely educational.

Take it away, Stewie:

Once in a Blue Moon

Posted: January 1st, 2010, 8:17pm GMT by Dean

A blue moon is the second moon in a month where two occur. So, once a year, since there are 13 lunar months to our solar year, there is a blue moon. "Once in a blue moon" comes to mean "exceedingly rare" – and over and above the astronomy, there is that rare quality in time [...]

Opportunities: The Power of Random

Posted: January 1st, 2010, 9:55am GMT by Dean

I believe in the power of random, and I apply this to my life, with great results. Unplanned opportunities are everywhere, every day, small, medium and large. Whether you believe there is a cosmic plan, fate, destiny, or whether you think this life is entirely random, you don’t have to grab everything you can to [...]

The First Sun of Twenty Ten

Posted: January 1st, 2010, 8:41am GMT by Dean

Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Ten Years of the 21st Century

Posted: January 1st, 2010, 12:41am GMT by Dean

A simple song, written at the stroke of midnight GMT on New Year’s Eve 2010. It wasn’t meant to be depressing, though it’s certainly not a cheery festive little number… Ten Years of the 21st Century I say goodbye To two thousand nine And twenty ten Is coming in with a full, blue moon So that was then And this is now And [...]

Full, Blue, Partially-Eclipsed Moon, 31st December 2009

Posted: December 31st, 2009, 7:47pm GMT by Dean

Taken 19:23 as the clouds cleared Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Is Everyone Ready for the Scottish Alphabet?

Posted: December 31st, 2009, 2:42pm GMT by Dean

Hogman A Hogman B In Sober Is Ma Middle Name Hogman C U Jimmy Hogman D Ye Thunk Ye Cd Lend Us Ten Quad? Hogman E R Ite? Hogman F I Cd Juss Get Another O’ These, Please Hogman G Wannae Tek It Ootside? (please continue below…) Posted via email from Dean [...]

Moustache Haiku

Posted: December 28th, 2009, 5:02pm GMT by Dean

My moustache was long, Beautiful, grown patiently. Thank God for razors Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Egyptian Taxi Disco Heaven

Posted: December 28th, 2009, 11:08am GMT by Dean

The cab driver played a marvellous music selection as we sped to Dahab – a true DJ of the roads. Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Permalink for 'Blog_of_Funk/2009/12/19/Copenhagen_Climate_Talks_Failure_%e2%80%93_Now_What_'

Copenhagen Climate Talks Failure – Now What?

Posted: December 19th, 2009, 9:39am GMT by Dean

My middle name is Radioactive. When I was 11 years old, I learned that since the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, background radiation on Earth had risen by 500%. The phrase "ecologically unsustainable" entered my life along with the unshakeable feeling that I really should do something about this. That point in my life marked the beginning [...]

Permalink for 'Blog_of_Funk/2009/12/18/Ruth_Wallis_%e2%80%93_the_Madonna_of_her_day%e2%80%a6'

Ruth Wallis – the Madonna of her day…

Posted: December 18th, 2009, 8:01pm GMT by Dean

I’ve been a Ruth Wallis fan since finding her records in a bargain basement in 1991. Ruth was a combination of Madonna and Benny Hill, or perhaps Bette Midler, but with all the sexual references sleight of hand and a expert glint in the eye. This song “Johnny Had A Yo-Yo” was responsible for [...]

Snow is Evil

Posted: December 18th, 2009, 1:54am GMT by Dean

Snow is evil. This video is the proof. Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

Does Dark Matter? Scientists On Verge of Breakthrough

Posted: December 18th, 2009, 12:21am GMT by Dean

For 80 years, it has eluded the finest minds in science. But tonight it appeared that the hunt may be over for dark matter, the mysterious and invisible substance that accounts for three-quarters of the mass of the universe. In a series of coordinated announcements at several US laboratories, researchers said they believed [...]

Julian Smith is in my Local Paper

Posted: December 16th, 2009, 10:40pm GMT by Dean

Posted via email from Dean Whitbread

The Ballad of Katy Price

Posted: December 15th, 2009, 11:40am GMT by Dean

Download now or watch on posterous the ballad of katy price.mov (7868 KB) "She’s a sick puppy, but we love her… " Well, I don’t, but lots of people do. At least, that’s what the papers say. When they aren’t slagging her off. Posted via [...]

Funk Publishing: Feeds » blogs

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blogs (100 unread)

Posted: March 11th, 2010, 8:08am GMT by Dean

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Posted: February 19th, 2010, 2:38pm GMT by deanwhitbread@gmail.com (Dean Whitbread)

Enclosure: [download]

Posted: February 19th, 2010, 8:57am GMT by Dean

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Enclosure: [download | play]

Posted: January 23rd, 2010, 12:06pm GMT by Dean

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Posted: January 15th, 2010, 12:28am GMT by Dean