Joanna Newsom

So, Joanna Newsom - I've read several reviews which have all raved about how awesome she is, from writers who are usually OK, but having heard some of her stuff this week I now realise that it's all a joke, or maybe one of those emperor's new clothes type things - I mean come on! I don't mind a bit of Kate Bush, and Bjork certainly had something, but this, this is just a little boy squeaking a bit, with some nice harp music in the background....

Looking across the valley

I look out from our bedroom window. It's just getting light. Across the valley on the old Merthyr Road I can just make out four coaches parked in a line ready to ferry the kids from the school that burnt down, across town to their temporary home; luckily another school had just closed down, up behind the railway station, so there is a ready made replacement for their burnt buildings.

Cheeky

Funniest news story of the year:

To anyone who has been residing for the past 48 hours on a planet other than Earth (in which case, be warned, fanatical stargazer Mr Opik will doubtless have you in his sights), the story runs thus: ITV weathergirl Sian Lloyd has broken off her protracted engagement with said quirkily-named MP after he ran off with one half of the failed reality TV chart-topping Romanian identical twin duo the Cheeky Girls.

But the unlikely mix of trashy low-brow and Westminster politics guarantees it a place in just about all the papers, from the Mirror (headline: Cheek to Cheeky) to the Telegraph (Sian Lloyd's MP fiance runs off with Cheeky Girl). The Independent even runs a leader on the story, concluding that the pair's east European background means they might well have bonded over the issue of EU enlargement. Phnarrr.

In which I get a job...

The weather forecast said heavy showers, and for once they were quite right. With hail! Cleverly managed to do my walk and visit docs for flu jab, without getting soaked. River high, wide and not too handsome.

In other news, I have got a job, 2.5 days a week, as a Job Search Officer, going back to my careers adviser roots. Hurrah. Bit scary though...I have to go for a medical, so am still a bit concerned in case this is a problem.

December

Still haven't heard about the job I went for on Tuesday. They said they'd let me know in a couple of days, so it would be nice to hear before the weekend.