ally's journal

i like this one too. just indulge me, okay? :P

i wrote some lyrics to a new song earlier. i wonder if i'll ever have the chance to record all my songs? i'd hope so, or they'll be lost forever. they'll die, just like these leaves you can see in this photo will die. they're gorgeous now, but in a few months they'll be gone. such is life.

oh, that's too depressing a thought to end on. so let's just enjoy the lovely colours while we can and take as many photos as we can, while we can.

when the sun decides to come out here in autumn there's some really beautiful colours going on. i was wandering aimlessly on sunday and just took some snaps when i was out and about. the sun was setting and the day was dying. here's what i saw. strap in.





the top photo was taken in the botanic gardens in the west end of glasgow. sometimes it's nice to get a coffee from this curious looking blue place directly above this text. this is a converted police box. if you know of the television show 'doctor who' then you'll recognise this as the tardis. they're not in use any more, but still have loads of character so i reckon this is a really imaginative use of a lovely old part of our heritage.

anyway, you can get a decent coffee here (you can't sit in) which you can take into the park and sit on one of the many wooden benches scattered around. the coffee tardis even give you a little biscuit. plus, you don't have to sit and listen to inane chatter that you're often subjected to when drinking coffee alone in a coffee shop. also, it's nice to drink coffee when it's cold outside and when you have control of the mp3 player. sometimes i hate being in these shops coz they usually are far too warm and it's really uncomfortable. anyway, i digress. as you can imagine, only one person can fit inside it this converted police box. i don't even know if they can turn themself round either. it's pretty cosy. i guess there's no toilet though so the person must just have to close up and leg it to a public loo.

right beside this is the botanic gardens that i mentioned. here's another nice photo of this.



one more of the botanic gardens then... contain your excitement please.




look, you can see someone sitting on a bench reading the sunday papers . i like to hide up here. there's some old people wandering about looking at plants. old people love plants.

finally (i don't want to overdose you with the excitement levels) here's the hilton hotel, just outside of the botanic gardens. george clooney stayed here once apparently. i just mentioned that to keep you reading. but really, he did. so did samuel l. jackson but he was a bit huffy apparently . if i had the money i'd probably live in a hotel.



i hope this helped you sleep :)

Jack: Do not drink too much. Do you hear me? I don't want you passing out or going to the dark side. No going to the dark side!
Miles: Okay
Jack: Try to be your normal, humorous self. The guy you were before the tailspin. Do you remember that guy? People love that guy.

it's been a while since i blogged. it's been a while since i've left felt i could blog. it's been a while since i've had a proper conversation with myself i think. does that make sense? i really feel the season is changing now. right now the wind is howling and blowing all the brown, decaying autumn leaves from place to place, randomly i believe. or maybe i should believe it's not random, that might help. but that's a whole new can of worms i've been thinking about. i've been a bit like those leaves recently; drifting in the wind and not quite knowing where i'll end up. it's exciting sometimes, really scary other times.

wow, the wind is coming through the windows, even though they're closed. nature is going wild on this planet just now, don't you think? sometimes it's good to take a step back. i'm one of these people who gets too close to a situation or a feeling and can't see beyond it. i've written a lot of songs recently and had a lot of crazy dreams. one thing about entering this new season is that it's colder. that gives me an excuse to take a lot of baths. i love lying in the bath in the dark, some lester young floating through from my hi-fi. that could make me sound like a big girl, but i don't really give a damn. it's the only time at the moment i feel i can shut the world out and really think deeply about events in my life or what i've been doing or how i can approach a thought differently to prevent it from eating away at me. quiet reflection i guess. some people do it by sitting cross-legged and staring at a stone. i've a vivid imagination and that can be a good thing coz i can channel that into something positive and creative but it can also take me to some pretty dark places. sometimes i need to stop and try and prevent my mind from going there. it's a bit of a battle sometimes.

oh, the flat is creaking now. taxis are taking the drinkers home. i wonder if they're going to feel okay when the alarm wakes them in the morning to summon them to begin their working week. i won't be awake as they get up, scratch their heads and wish they could see something different. i'll be in the middle of some absurd dream.

the two best films i've seen of the year so far have both been american. first i'd go for 'me and you and everyone we know' and 'sideways'. i hated garden state. i stopped the dvd half way through and felt cold. napoleon dynamite didn't do much for me either; it's not a patch on my two favs. maybe coz i can relate more to these two. both these quotes are from sideways. rent it if you can.

Maya: You know, can I ask you a personal question, Miles?
Miles: Sure.
Maya: Why are you so in to Pinot wines?
Miles: [laughs softly]
Maya: I mean, it's like a thing with you.
Miles: [continues laughing softly] Miles : Uh, I don't know, I don't know. Um, it's a hard grape to grow, as you know. Right? It's uh, it's thin-skinned, temperamental, ripens early. It's, you know, it's not a survivor like Cabernet, which can just grow anywhere and uh, thrive even when it's neglected. No, Pinot needs constant care and attention. You know? And in fact it can only grow in these really specific, little, tucked away corners of the world. And, and only the most patient and nurturing of growers can do it, really. Only somebody who really takes the time to understand Pinot's potential can then coax it into its fullest expression. Then, I mean, oh its flavors, they're just the most haunting and brilliant and thrilling and subtle and... ancient on the planet.