GroanUp

The Wonder Years: September 2020

Absolute rare classics from Red 5 and Apollo, brilliant remixes from Fatboy Slim, Pascal, Freemasons and John Jacobsen.

Holiday

We took the gamble and booked a holiday to North Wales. We stayed in Conwy – in a brilliant cottage just on the edge of Conwy, facing the town walls.

We visited Conwy, Llandudno, Rhyl, Beaumaris, Benllech, Bango, Llanfair PG, Caernarfon, Colwyn Bay and Llanberis. It was so good to get a change of scenery. We all had a brilliant time – just what we needed. The absolute highlight of the year!

Due to Covid restrictions we weren’t allowed to go into our holiday home until 5pm. So we decided to book a trip to the Welsh Mountain Zoo for the day. This is a lovely zoo and we always love visiting. After arriving at the holiday home we went to do some shopping. Unfortunately I bumped my car slightly in the supermarket car park. How annoying. We bought chips for tea on the way back.

On the Saturday we went to Caenarfon and Bangor on the Saturday. Neither place was particularly special. Carnarfon was particularly rough. There was some sort of conspiracy rally going on where literally muppet who could hold a microphone was allowed to speak. Nightmare. We called at Penmaenmawr beach on the way back. That night my brother and I went out in Conwy. It was a bit weird with all of the Covid restrictions but we managed to get a drink at a secret beer garden behind a beer shop. It was great!

On the Sunday we stayed in Conwy. My other brother’s family came up to see us and spend the day in Conwy. We had a brilliant time. We went on a boat ride which was good and explored the town and did some crab fishing.

On Monday we went to Llandudno and had a brilliant day there. My third brother and his wife joined us for the day. It was great! We had chips back in Conwy which were great!

On Tuesday we went to meet our little boy’s friend and his family in Rhyl. It gave us something to do as it literally rained all day. We had a meal out, taking advantage of Eat Out To Help Out.

On Wednesday the weather was better. We went to Angelsey. We visited Llanfair PG, Benllech and Beaumaris. Some of our favourite places! That evening we went out for another drink – the pubs were harder to get into that night.

On Thursday we went to Llanberis. We visited the Slate Museum (normally a nice day out, but due to Covid changes it was rubbish this time). We went on a train ride around the lake afterwards which was great. That evening we went on a walk around the town walls which was amazing!

On The Friday it was rubbish weather again, but we spent the morning looking around some shops in Conwy. A nice, relaxed end to the holiday.

Here are some photos from the holiday.

Spelling Mistakes that get my goat

I am a stickler for good spelling. Here are the mistakes that annoy me most.

Defiantly instead of Definitely
This is the one that winds me up more than any other – and it’s probably the one you will see most on Facebook. “I defiantly agree… I am defiantly not going to do that…” This just makes you look like an idiot.

Thankyou instead of Thank you
Yes, it is two words. This one has started creeping in to Facebook and text messages. I don’t know why – have I missed a memo?

Loose instead of Lose
You might think we are going to loose the match but you are still a loser.

Lightening instead of Lightning
Stop being a moron – learn to spell.

Alot instead of A lot
If you care about something a lot, then spell it as two words.

Suprise instead of Surprise
Okay, so you are surprised by how to spell ‘surprise’. That doesn’t mean you should get it wrong.

Best Movie Explosions

Here are some great movie explosions!

Lethal Weapon 3: As a young teenager, this explosion was so impressive. Please ignore the fact they manage to grab a cat and run out of a car park in less than four seconds.

Fricking awesome!!

One of the best scenes from one of the best films. It’s even better when you find out that Heath Ledger improvised parts of it!

A great film. Cheesy dialogue. A great explosion! I feel bad for the guy driving the truck pulling the plane. No one seemed to care about him!

James Bond is so cool.

The Wonder years: August 2020

More cracking tunes for August’s Wonder Years playlist!

Favourite Cover Songs

Here are my six favourite covers of all time. I’ve tried to choose covers that are completely different to the original, not just a good vocal performance.

The Fugees – Killing Me Softly
This song brings back so many memories. People of a certain age will know exactly what you mean when you go, “One Time!” I wasn’t really aware of the original version by Roberta Flack back in 1996. When I later heard it I could barely believe it was the same song. The Fugees version is awesome.

Mark Ronson featuring Amy Winehouse – Valerie
The original, by The Zutons, was great. But Amy Winehouse’s performance of it took on a life of its own. It’s impossible to hear it without singing along. An absolute classic!

Michael Andrews featuring Gary Jules – Mad World
Originally by Tears For Fears, the Gary Jules version is so different that it’s hard to believe that they are the same! This version is the only good thing to come out of the overrated crap movie, Donnie Darko. Mad World is the standard for stripped back acoustic covers which became all the range after this!

DJ Sammy & Yanou featuring Do – Heaven
On hearing Heaven for the first time, it was just a brilliant dance single. But it was only later that I released that Bryan Adams had originally recorded it. DJ Sammy’s version is brilliantly uplifting, cheesy, but respectable. It was great in a club and is great turned up loud in the car. Bryan Adams’ version is more melancholic.

Disturbed – Sound of Silence
This is such a powerful cover. In my opinion it totally eclipses the original. This is a song that makes you sit up and listen. Just brilliant!
(I did once try to listen to something else by Disturbed and immediately regretted it.)

Pet Shop Boys – Always On My Mind
What an awesome song! To take such a sweet Elvis Presley love song and transform it into a pop banger is no easy feat. The Pet Shop Boys’ version is sublime!