Monday, September 27, 2010

Another manic Monday

After yesterday I sincerely hoped today would be better and it has been so far.

I went to bed relatively early and slept very well and although I was in the office on my own today, I didn't feel too concerned with what may lay ahead for the day.

The day went by quite quickly with only the usual problems.

Seb seemed good when he got in from school and we had a bit of fun in front of the tv and reading before bed, so another positive there.

So, back to the goings on at Liverpool Football Club. I read a relatively in depth article on the BBC yesterday, firstly acknowledging the efforts of the Spirit of Shankly in staging a sit in after the sunderland game on Saturday where they estimated approximate 10,000 fans staying behind.

There is a deadline for the future of the club being decided, being 6th October. And as I see it at the moment the possible scenarios are.

Hicks and Gillett want in the region of £600m for the club.
Realistic values are being put at £420m
RBS need to recover their loan in the region of £240-£280m, variation due to unpaid repayments, fees etc.

So, the yanks are trying to refinance and we really don't want that to happen or we are seriously doomed. But no one in their right mind will offer them the £600m they are looking for.

So how determined are RBS to do right by the club? If a buyer is seriously interested, would they offer £420m in the knowledge that the bank can take ownership and recover the debt? Unlikely, so it could well go straight to the wire with buyers circling like vultures. What type of buyer will this scenario attract? Who knows, but ultimately if that is what the club is worth, disregarding the yanks valuation, then that is what it is worth, and it can only be better for the club and leave a potential buy with money for players and the stadium by save a few hundred mill!

The next few weeks are crucial for our club.


Thank you for reading

Sunday, September 26, 2010

Base! how low can you go!

I am blogging today as to be honest I feel fucking terrible.

The last 2 weeks of my life have been a real shitstorm of ups and downs, and today from memory is my lowest and worst state of feeling I can ever recall.

There are 3 main things in my life, my family, home & work, and lfc. And right at this moment in time they are all shit! Now I have started to write this I am not even sure what to say. My 7 year old son is driving me to the point of I don't know what, I cannot, under any way shape or form get him to listen to me, although there is no doubt a part that its how I am doing it, but he just has this ability to get me, very quickly to the end of my tether by not listening, continually being a pain in the arse and I cannot think of a way to try and get through to him, so I have come away from my brother in laws to get away from everyone - now I can think but have no idea what to think! Am I not cut out for parenting, am I blowing it all out of proportion, is it me or is it him I don't know but I cannot deal with it.

Firstly I have a short fuse with him anyway, which has developed over the last 18 months because of this kind of thing, but he has managed, through not listening to what I ask him to do, to get me to pretty much breaking point Saturday and Sunday for the last 2 weekends. Right now, If it wasnt for the amount of love I have for him, my wife and daughter, I think I would leave! and to even have that thought really is not a good thing, and chuck in the added pressure of nr 3 due in Jan.

I am not going to drivvel on, as I cannot self analyse and cure this emotion or how I am feeling, so I will stop here and hope and I am sure I will feel better later.

Liverpool!

What can I say, 2 points from 3 games, Birmingham, Man Utd and Sunderland. not good enough. In my opinion, although you can say it is down to the players on the pitch, I think the problem is rooted deeper and until this ownership crap is sorted out it wont improve. Hicks and Gillet must go, we need new owners who know and understand about football and not soccer and they must care!

Work - well its just bloody hard!

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

The Signs are getting Stronger!!

Firstly, despite being a mad Liverpool supporter, last nights injury to Antonio Valencia was pretty horrific and shocking and not something you would wish upon any footballer, let alone someone capable of playing at such a high standard. He has done well to move from Wigan to Manure and establish a regular place in such a talented squad. I along with many I am sure wish him a speedy recovery.



Anyway - back to the title of my blog.

The signs are definitely getting stronger that I am getting older!!
I was carrying out my 'regular' eyebrow manicure yesterday as they tend to get a bit bushy for my liking, then you get the odd super hair that appears to be thicker and longer than all the others, or the odd super long one and the worst are the white or grey ones. These ones really worry me as I don't have a lot of hair left on top of my head as it is.
So I will first admit that I do pluck these long, wiry, or grey eyebrow hairs, well yesterday, i kept getting one just catch the edge of my field of view and it started to annoy me! I located it and plucked the bugger out.
So the next part of the routine is to have a quick look, check its shape, thickness, colour etc etc - this was all fine, until...... i thought I had realised why it hurt plucking it, being that I plucked 2! this was not the case, I actually had an eyebrow hair that had a split end!! A bloody split end, I could not believe it, not much hair on my head and now FML i have split end eyebrow hair, god knows what is happening t me next! probably arthritis! (I am only 39)

Bad Mood
I went to bed in a pretty bad mood last night. Not sure why but guess a part of it was tiredness, but I was trying to blog and take my go on words with friends against my wife, who was thrashing me too. We had just watched something on TV but I thought I would watch something else I had recorded for 10 minutes while I finished off. Then, the Mrs just turns off what I was watching and started looking through the sky planner! Fcuk this i thought and huffed off to bed!! I cant wait for the baby to come to get that proper sleep deprivation feeling back, then I;l be a really miserable sob!!

Monday, September 13, 2010

The Week Starts All Over Again

The week that is!! Although yesterdays match for Liverpool away to Birmingham was pretty much same old, same old as some of the dross that was turned out last season where we just cant seem to penetrated defences. Luckily, Reina was on form or we would have lost.
I think my main concern is why Roy Hodgson seems to be playing the team in the same way that Rafa did last season, same structure, same waster in the middle of the park. I think that Liverpool have managed to sign the only Brazilian footballer who got citizenship as he was born there while his parents were on holiday from Torquay. Lucas has had 1 decent game for us and that is all IMO.
Roy should shake it up, leave him out, bring Babel in, use Pacheco, Shelvey - Paulson also looked like he didn't want to pass the ball forward, it is just so very frustrating.
Please Roy, change it or we are in the shit!

Life
My wife's, cousins, Dad is seriously ill in hospital. I refer to him in that way as he divorced my wife's aunt after only a couple of years of marriage, due to his mother committing suicide as he married a non Jew! Something I can only imagine weighs heavy on the shoulders of those closest and from the age of 2 my wife's cousin was raised by her aunt.
I don't know too much detail, but from what I understand, the uncle had an influential life in the medical world, he travelled across Africa, living rough with a band of assistants carrying out operations to tribes people that no one else would do or had done, he was involved at a high level with the world aids council and with organisations that help people on a global scale from a medical perspective.
I may not have the facts right, hence I have not named him, but I guess the point is, for someone who helped so many, travelled so much and lived in many places around the world to help people it is very sad to see him in hospital, with stage 5 Parkinson's disease, pneumonia and cancer and for him to be told this and that he has days to live, is a sad thing.

Friday, September 10, 2010

TFI Friday!

At last its the end of a busy week.

The week started with the kids going back to school after the summer holidays, but with all the preparations even that wasn't easy. Seb started at junior school and he said he had butterflies for a week or so before hand, after his trip to Anfield on the Saturday before he went with his Carra scarf, Liverpool ruck sack and Liverpool p.e bag! Good lad!
Ellie was a little more chilled going to year 2 and staying in the infants school.

Work has been ok, with the week ending fortunately with a redesign of one of our website being available which is desperately needed.

Not sure why but been feeling a bit 'strange' the last couple of days, nothing specific but a tad lethargic, and a bit of discomfort in my tummy. I think I have eaten something that has not agreed with me, and I keep having waves where I feel I make be sick or get stomach cramps prior to a big pooh, but had neither!

I had my first night back at cubs after the summer break, training to be a leader! I had about 4 nights before the break and also have another leader starting, a female whom I am not too sure about.
I have come away feeling 'not sure' about the whole thing, more so because I can't be arsed to compete. My co-trainee leader- we'll call her J, is a real Johnny 2 shits. From the first time I met her I felt a competitive edge and I was so right. When we started and we were given our learner packs, she was already ahead of the game as she had her CRB certificate already, new about health and safety from work, then the next time she had already completed one module of the training book, but she is quick to tell me. She doesn't say hi Jez how are you? Have you managed to look at the manual, it's hi, how many modules have you completed? I have done module 1 already.
I don't see any rush or competitiveness in this, but we have been interviewed by the district commissioner etc, her interview a week before mine and we need to attend a module 1-3 training morning. I have been scheduled in for 2nd October. So tonight, J is straight up to me, so have you done any courses yet? Not yet, I reply I am going on 2nd October , J they had me down for that one but I had already booked myself in for tomorrows one! Ok cool, it just pisses me off.
There was also a term planning meeting last week that she went to but not sure why, but she made it known to me that she called to find out where it was, yet no one managed to call me! Just felt left out and unsure of why she is so competitive and it doesn't matter what or how many times i have done something, she has done it once more than me! Hence i have had 1 shit, she'd have had 2!

Not sure how much sense this makes but i feel better to get it out of my system, or exactly why it has made me feel like this as it shouldn't!



Thank you for reading

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Gerrard Triumphant for England

Despite there being no Liverpool to watch, there has been England! 2 wins out of 2 so far in the 2012 qualifiers.
I will put a disclaimer in at this point of "in my opinion" as it is! But, I think England's last 2 games have been 2 of the best under Capello, the disappointment and disgrace of the world cup is in the past and as a national side we need to move forward - simple! But more importantly Steven Gerrard is emerging as an excellent England captain and rightfully deserves the armband on merit - not as a stand in for Terry or Ferdinand. He has handled the media well also in respect of Shrek's off the pitch antics and supported his team mate's capabilities as a pleyer. On the pitch he has performed well, motivated the players and been the good player we know he is. But as importantly as this, Stevie and the team have performed well without Fat Frank! All these years of trying to play them together, one always out of position never worked and now this has been proven and is fact! Frank Lampard is a waste of space when playing for England, running round like a 7 year old wanting to take all the free kicks, penalties, corners etc etc, hopefully he will realise and retire from International football - oh and don't get me started on his goal celebrations!

And for anyone interested in a pretty good assessment of Rafa, click here to read more!

1st Day Back
I did say when I started this blog there were reasons for me doing it! One to help be dump my thoughts and feelings if I need to about stuff relevant to me, but may ring bells with others out there!
Well, I go back to see my counsellor today, or pshycotherapist or whatever people want to call her! I am looking forward to sharing the revelation of the 'My Logicality' blog and talking through with her how I am trying to use it and how it is supposed to help me.
I'm not too sure if or how it is working though, as I still lose my temper at appropriate moments, maybe not as bad, but my counting is getting really good from 1-10 as that helps! But as I never had an anger problem in the first place, in my opinion, its tricky to see the improvements, but whatever, working from home, a wife, 2 kids, another on the way, running a business, sometimes its just as therapeutic to get out and talk to someone who wont form an opinion on me - even of they do think I'm a tosser - lol (just kidding NC if you read this!!)

Sunday, September 5, 2010

Thanks Carra

Yesterday was a great day out! We left home at about 7.30 am and were parked near Anfield by about 11.30, one stop on the way and a bit of congestion but nothing too bad.
I was surprised at how many people were already around Anfield even at that time, but a tribute to Carra's popularity.
I took Seb into the shop to get him a shirt and scarf, which ended up being a home shirt and goalies kit and a rucksack for school! We definitely picked the wrong queue which took 45 minutes to get served, while all the others were going about 3 times our speed.
I think at this pony Seb was a bit overwhelmed with so many people, all liverpool fans in one place.
We got to our seats to see the end of the exhibition game, which the people in front of us informed us had paid £12,500 per team to play, raising £25,000 for the 23 foundation.
Then the players came out to warm up and what a surprise to see Stevie G come out! He only played an easy 15 minutes but a great gesture and added treat to all those who were there and expected him not to be there due to his England duties.
The game was good entertainment, all played in the spirit of the day, great goal by Garcia, Babel and Joe Cole there and from what I saw of shelvey I was impressed.
I thought I heard them say that there was about 36,000 people there! Not a bad turnout by anyones standards.
But we got home at about 8.30pm and Seb said he had the best day od his life, he was shattered and had been a good lad all day and can't wait to go again.
Its a bit scary when you consider that we were out for 13hrs for 90 minutes of football, the cost of the tickets, petrol, club shop and other bits an pieces does make for an expensive trip, but as we don't get a chance to go often, all worth while.

Thanks Carra.


Thank you for reading

Friday, September 3, 2010

Jamie Carraghers Testimonial Tomorrow

And I cannot wait!! I am taking my 7 yr old son Seb for his first trip to Gods Country - Anfield. I figured for a 7 year old it should be fun, should be a good atmosphere and some good banter to add to a great day out! I am under instructions however to get a rucksack for his new school and a new football shirt, so all being well should get there with plenty of time to have a look around the shop and savour the atmosphere, and get ready to boo Michael Owen! lol.

Badminton
I played badminton last night, the first time in a few weeks due to holiday, Liverpool being on, and I was a bit concerned about my 'scar' bleeding from Tuesday but it was fine! However, the last game I went to play a shot and had this almighty pain shoot through the ball of my foot, I have no idea what I stepped on, but it had that feeling like when you step on a plug! Today, it is very very painful

News in General
My wife had her 20 week scan yesterday, accompanied by myself and the 2 kids! All went well and seems good, it looks like it is going to be a baby girl!! This was met with a great reaction from my daughter, to one of total disappointment from my son! who's words were along the line of "we have enough girls in the house, Mum, Ellie who is a pain, 9 girl chickens and even the dog is a girl, well I hope she is a tom boy!" Happy Days!

Analytics
I would recommend that anyone who is setting up a website gets some form of analytics on it, as soon as you can. Whether its a blog or a full on e-commerce website, seeing how many visitors you have, how many are new and returning, how many pages they are looking at all helps, over time to build up a picture of how people navigate your site. It may seem pointless or complicated, but spend a little time looking through it and start with the basics. At some point, you will probably look to change or re-design your site and this data can be invaluable in trying to conclude what is good, bad and indifferent with your site - giving you pointers on how to change the messages you put across or where to position them.
I am happy yo help anyone who is starting out down this road, just leave a comment or DM me @jezzat your email address and i'll do what I can - all free of course.
There are a number of packages out there, some you pay for, some you don't, but for a freebie, it's hard to beat google analytics, if you don't have a google account, set one up and follow the instructions. You may your developer to implement the code if you get a bit stuck, but its a quick and easy process for them.