Goldfish syndrome » london http://www.goldfishsyndrome.com Sun, 30 Jan 2011 19:55:02 +0000 en hourly 1 Keep on running http://www.goldfishsyndrome.com/keep-on-running/ http://www.goldfishsyndrome.com/keep-on-running/#comments Mon, 27 Apr 2009 10:40:17 +0000 JamesT http://www.goldfishsyndrome.com/?p=10 The London Marathon is a fantastic event. It's about the only thing we can organise properly in this country (even taking into account troublesome Tamil protesters), and hearkens back to a bygone era in London where communities came together in some good honest family fun. And whilst the coverage on BBC is one of the most boring things on earth, the live experience is something else altogether.
The whole day is always conducted in such a wonderfully good-natured attitude that it almost leaves you with a Hovis warmth in your heart. Millions of people of all ages pour out onto the streets to cheer on people dressed as rhinos, carrots, leprechauns, Mr Stay Puff and the Beatles. Countless charities and good causes sit back and watch their coffers fill up and just about everyone has a great time (except for the poor 35,000 buggers who had to run in pretty unpleasantly hot conditions yesterday).
When I did it back in 2000 it was the support of all these Londoners, as well as the Status Quo tunes being pumped out of pub stereos and the Sally Army bands dotted around the course, that really kept me going. To help you forget the pains and aches that are running through every bone from your ankle to your hip. To keep you smiling whilst everything is hurting. To help you remember that sport can be fun too, and isn't just about inflated salaries, egos and having a nike swoosh tattooed on your arm. So well done London once again. Let's just hope that we can carry this spirit through to the Olympics…

]]> http://www.goldfishsyndrome.com/keep-on-running/feed/ 0 Requiem for a gaybar http://www.goldfishsyndrome.com/requiem-for-a-gaybar/ http://www.goldfishsyndrome.com/requiem-for-a-gaybar/#comments Thu, 16 Apr 2009 14:00:38 +0000 JamesT http://www.goldfishsyndrome.com/?p=13 London Boys

Christ on a bike. With the benefit of 20-20 hindsight, a song that I really liked when I was 9 or 10 is in fact one of the gayest things ever.

London Boys were a duo of ballet-dancing muscleboys who were clearly master chocolatiers. One of them even bore a passing resemblance to a camp Sylvester Stallone. And somehow, as a child not only did I fail to notice this, but also my parents never thought to point it out. Maybe they didn’t spot it either.

And that, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, is why I’ve turned out to be the kind of person who thinks that wearing bright red trainers is perfectly acceptable behaviour.

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