Does Marilyn Manson Drink Orange Squash?

What an interesting few days:

1. The parent/teacher meetings continued all week and I had my final celebrity parent meeting. Strange as always but then surprisingly normal on the other hand. After all, they're just parents like any others, concerned about their children and their development. And ridiculously nice too! I got a lovely bunch of flowers and a cuddle and kiss from said celeb. Very unexpected.

2. Marilyn Manson gig at Brixton academy on Thursday night.......Wow! Not only was the venue amazing (I'd never been before) but the people watching was at its finest. There was such a mix in the crowd. Every shape, size, colour, ethnicity. Diverse I think is the word to some it up, though crazy could also be used.

The slanting nature of the floor at Brixton allowed most people to see from wherever they were stood, except of course all the tiny women (and there were lots of them) under five foot that seemed to appear underfoot. About three songs in they all migrated to the back to see if they could see any better and then shouted at tall people to move their heads. I'm neutral on this. It's no one's fault if they're tall or short but you just have to deal with it. You can't go to a standing gig and expect to see everything, it's just not going to happen unless of course you're 7foot. Then I think you could manage it.

And so Lacuna Coil supported which was pretty old school and the lady can wail! Not sure I enjoyed all their clearly choreographed hand movements though. They annoyed me. But they've definitely still got it. Raw power and gravity defying vocals. Really geared the crowd up too.

We had to wait a long while for Mr Manson. What a diva! Partly because of his black drapes which had a serious tangling issue and partly because, well, I dunno. He was fixing his hair or something.......

When he eventually did grace us with his presence, it was definitely worth the wait. Endless gut wrenching roars and demonic wails, along with countless costume, accessory, set and make-up changes. Awesome! It became slightly disjointed with the lights coming down after every other song for him to change or add an accessory, most of which were sparkly. I did like his array of hats but then after 20 seconds he'd just throw them into the crowd. Waste of a good hat really.

He really was ridiculously good and still had all that energy and power. Some of his stuff is so melodic, you wonder how people can't like it. He threw in some covers which really got the crowd going. Shame it wasn't October, maybe he'd have played 'This is Halloween' from The Nightmare Before Christmas. He he. But of course Disposable Teens and Beautiful People were phenomenal and we got to hear some new stuff as well.

All in all, a great gig! Though it did make me laugh at one point when he asked everyone to raise their middle finger, as though it was some naughty thing to do. I declined. Also when he snotted on the floor, I thought, 'And who's gonna clean that up, you dirty bugger.' Honestly, when you come home covered in snot everyday, you kind of have a different out look on it. But everyone thought it was hilarious. And when he started throwing stuff, like microphones and stands (actually at the drummer, he moved pretty quick though) I just thought, what a stupid thing to do. Do you know how much that costs. He should come to my music lessons and learn how musical instruments are very precious and should be treated so. I could definitely teach him a few things. But then I also realised that if that's my outlook, I must be getting old and that I've probably worked too long as a teacher.

Definitely my sweatiest tube journey home and one of the smelliest. But thankfully it only took 30mins to get back to Kentish Town. Excellent. That speedy Victoria line.

3. My Half-Marathon Training Guide:

This week I substituted runs for various activities due to having reports to write, portfolios to update and writing to do. Well, they're my excuses for this week anyway.

On Tuesday I did an exercise session with my kids lasting 20 minutes and believe me when I say, 'I Jump Out of Bed in the Morning' by The Sticky Kids is bloody knackering, especially when you're singing it as well. Phew!
On Thursday I chased my kids around the garden as they pretended they had stole the sun (as you do) and they kept this up for a good 20/30 minutes. "Helen. I've got the sun." "No I've got the sun." ARGH! And I'm knackered!
Thursday Night was then the gig. Mucho jumping, head banging, constant motion for 2 hours, now if that doesn't constitute a work out, I don't know what does.

So really, on the whole this week I've done well. Okay, so to those of you scoffing right now, I'll go for a run tomorrow. I promise!

4. Murray through to the final of Wimbledon.

Whoop. Finally the British prove they can do something well. We are surprisingly good at mediocre and half hearted but here we are (using the royal we of course) in the final of Wimbledon. Now wouldn't you think Murray would be delighted?

Did anyone see the interview with him afterwards? I mean talk about no charisma. The guy doesn't know how to smile. He doesn't even try to show any sort of emotion. It's just bizarre to watch. His voice instantly says 'I can't be arsed'. The interviewer was shite too. My kids could have asked better questions. In fact that would be a fantastic idea. Let kids be interviewers. I'm sure he'd be smiling when they asked what juice he was drinking, or if he needed to go for a wee wee. BBC, it's the way forward.

It's part of his job and everyone has part of their jobs that they hate but if you did them like that you'd probably be sacked. And rightly so. You are a public figure and will be even more so if you win. So deal with it and learn some sort of interview etiquette.

Do you think he'll manage a grin if he wins? Put it this way, I wouldn't bet on it.

5. And finally, I just arrived back from the fabulous Artists' and Writers' Conference 'How to get Published' in London. Some great speakers and a lovely venue (The Welcome Collection).

It centred around the debate between conventional or 'traditional' publishing routes and self-publishing and the e-book market. It was great to hear from authors from either side of the debate and agents, publishers and editors and their views. There's definitely a lot to think about, but I still want to take the traditional route. Just the idea of holding that book that I had created, or seeing it sat on a shelf, or someone reading it on the tube. That for me would be phenomenal. And so, I will be revisiting Book 1 of The Last Imagining and beginning the long re-write and edit. And following that I will be considering submissions again.

Met a lovely lady there and it was great to share experiences and talk through with like minded people and especially people that are enthusiastic. Thank you JR. I'm not good in situations full of adults. I feel uncomfortable and self-conscious and get on better with under fives, but having someone to sit with and talk to was great! We'll keep in touch.

And as for the # melarchy. I don't think I will ever understand it, though I have used it twice today on Twitter. I now have more people to follow on Twitter as well. And as they say, 'You never know what's around the corner.'

And so I leave you with a question:

Does Wimbledon make anyone else want to drink orange squash, preferably Robinson's, or is it just me?
(Currently drinking said orange squash whilst blogging.)