There are a raft of alternative/indie/alt country bands coming to Wellington early next year. M. Ward on the 11th of Jan, The Handsome Family on the 7th of Feb, Joanna Newsom on the 11th of Feb, Calexico on the 21st of Feb, and Camera Obscura on the 7th of March. I fear I will end up at most of the these gigs by myself. Does anyone else want to go to any or know of anyone going?

Ze best o' '06

songs: Legendary, Lou Barlow; True Love, Elliott Smith.
albums: Ys, Joanna Newsom; Together We're Heavy, The Polyphonic Spree.
books: What Saint Paul Really Said, NT Wright; From the Holy Mountain: A Journey among the Christians of the Middle East, William Dalrymple. (Probably the only two completely read!)
movies: Kill Bills
conferences: NZIC Rotarua
cities: Edinburgh
lectures: Prof Dave Macmillan at NZIC
live act: Radiohead
most expensive CD: The Divine Comedy's Fanfare for the Comic Muse
reaction: rearrangement of my unsaturated benzyl sugar in deuterated chloroform/the weird synthesis of the ene-phosphonate in failed Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons (HWE) reactions
highlights: First experience of backpacking around Europe, the massive Pukkelpop Festival, Edinburgh festival, making brief foreign friendships, road trip to Mahia, NZIC conference with my otago chums, indoor soccer at lunchtimes, my garden
lowlights: friggen HWE reactions!, hitting a car on my bike, QBC issues, the faltering flat

All in all its be a veritable treat. Bring on 2007.

Ever since one terrifying story on 'The Extraordinary' about 10 years ago in which I was asked if I could see the skull of a murdered lover in the rocks of a waterfall, I have looked for faces in walls, floors or any other ordinary item. In the lounge carpet at 23 James St I found Elvis. Every now and again he would fall into sight as I sat musing on the couch. I regret never obtaining photographic evidence of my lost friend. But alas, now I have what appears to be Pacific Island chief looking towards the heavens, just above the urinal on the 4th floor of Laby. I wonder if he's found what he's looking for.

Joanna Newsom (with Smog) 11th of February 2007!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh yeah!

Another successful dinner party has been and gone but the roast has grown old. What culinary peak shall I climb now?