I’m trapped in an abandoned building
Come find me now
We’ll hide out
We’ll speak in our secret tongues
Will you come back to my corner
Spent too long alone tonight
Would you come brighten my corner
A lit torch to the woodpile high
My current earworm is the Frightened Rabbit song, above, I love the you-and-me-against-the world lyrics, a bit soppy maybe but it’s the certain romance that appeals to me, I’ve always believed companionship to be the most important thing – so here are the woozy romantic questions:
1. What’s the sweetest, or most romantic thing you’ve ever done?
2. What’s the sweetest, or most romantic thing that’s been done in your direction?
3. What’s your favourite thing to take the edge off?
4. Did you ever run away anywhere? Where did you go, how far did you get, were you with anyone?
5. I know I banned music questions from EOTWQ, but what’s your favourite romantic lyric?
kisses xx
Good review of the new FR album in the Graun! Seems they like them in America…
1 A Valentine – I nicked a milk crate, filled it with 19 bottles of chocolate milk (my beloved’s drink of preference) and one red rose, drove to his house at 3 in the morning and left it on his doorstep.
2 From the same person, a birthday present of a hand coffee-grinder. It showed that he understood quite a bit about me (which most people don’t do). Have I still got it? I most certainly have. Do I use it? Er – no. But I have done.
3 Er…the edge off what? I’ll be polite and say a frozen margarita.
4 Yes, I’m a bit famous for this – I’ve done it three times (possibly four). When I was 19 I had two things I’d never had before – a place at university, and an actual boyfriend. I was scared shitless of going to uni, because I thought if I went they would find me out. The Youth Theatre I belonged to was putting on two shows at the Edinburgh festival that year, so I went to Edinburgh with my boyfriend and never went home again. (I did write to the university to say I wasn’t coming.) Shacked up with him and started having babies.
5 My love is like a red, red rose
That’s newly sprung in June :
My love is like the melody
That’s sweetly played in tune.
As fair art thou, my bonnie lass,
So deep in love am I :
And I will love thee still, my dear,
Till a’ the seas gang dry.
Till a’ the seas gang dry, my dear,
And the rocks melt wi’ the sun :
And I will love thee still, my dear,
While the sands o’ life shall run.
And fare thee weel, my only love,
And fare thee weel a while !
And I will come again, my love,
Thou’ it were ten thousand mile.
Just to clarify, the person who features in answers 1 and 2 isn’t the same as the person in 4.
I first read your answer to #1 as “nicked a milk float…and drove to his house” – - – !!
and, yes, q#3 is deliberately ambiguous
AND I LOVE that you’re famous for running away, so good!
1) Deeeerh ?????????????
2) Dooooh ???????????????????
3) A large spliff. Or a nice single malt.
4) Did you say run ? I’ve been running most of my life. First tried it aged about 12. Next go was at 16. Got as far as Chester. Made it at 19, getting away to London. Broke up relationships God knows how many times. Have had at least 31 jobs during my working life. Get so far, can’t stand it, leave. Simples.
5) “Because I’m still in love with you,
I want to see you dance again.
Because I’m still in love with you,
on the harvest moon”.
Errrr…………………….
this harvest moon
re #3 – but which one is the best??
re #4 – I think you totally have the right attitude, so many people endlessly put up with a less than desirable situation (out of fear, or wage addiction, or a million other reasons) which makes them unhappy for-basically-ever. Remember that advert that had the refrain “hate something? change something.” – very true words. I’ve jacked in two well paid and secure jobs in the last 7 years because I was bored/not happy in the end, and no amount of financial remuneration can make up for it. I’m now self employed, just about getting by, and happy.
#3. As I get older, the taste of a fine malt.
#4. The very best parts of my working life were when I was self employed. Yes, I worked longer hours and often 7 days a week. But I didn’t have to put up with days that morphed into nausea, knobhead line managers kiss-arsing their way to promotion and, worst of all, having to be someone that I’m not just to be able to pick up a cheque at the end of the month.
1. What’s the sweetest, or most romantic thing you’ve ever done?
I’ve designed one-off books – produced unique artworks – still pore over mixes for cd’s with intensely analysed lyrics … created our children on our birthdays (those two might not have been properly thought through as romantic) …
But it’s not really for me to judge – I just like making things for people –
Probably the funniest thing that HAD started out as romanic – was a tape I made for an ex while doing some recording .. we had extra time so people started playing and faffing around with samplers – so I started recording and then went off in free flow rhyming mode producing 35 minutes of tracks in a sort of 5 part segment. I then got my mate to loop in a drum part and we got a bit wasted and fiddled around with extra bits.
Thinking this was ace, and all that, I gave it to my then squeeze – it’s not often you get a totally individual recording produced just for you … when playing it to her I had a sudden realisation that on part 4 I’d spliced in samples from Why d’ya do it and Everybody Knows.
She did find it funny – we did split up – but she’s still my bestest mate.
1) I proposed to my wife just seconds before midnight Y2K. I’ll never get the chance to top that.
2) It’s just a bit kinky. Think “aerodynamic”, and that’s all I’m gonna say.
3) 80 grit sandpaper. Works like a charm.
4) When I was single, I had a brief stretch of time where I could write my own work schedule. We had never taken many holidays when I was young, so I engineered four-day weekend for myself to just drive solo to see the country. I once went all the way to Venice, Louisiana which is at the edge of the Mississippi River Delta and about 70 miles down a dead end road which ends unceremoniously by a bunch of oil refineries and chemical plants. It was a rather boring drive, come to think of it.
5) In terms of a “lyric,” the chorus to “In Dreams” by John Waite is just a perfect vision of marital bliss: Sunshine knocking on my window
Couldn’t wake me from this dream we dream
’cause baby anywhere the wind blows
I will follow you it seems,
That in my life, I still believe in dreams
But “Built To Last” by Mêlée is the absolute perfect romantic pop song from start to finish. Simply gorgeous lyrically and musically.
2. What’s the sweetest, or most romantic thing that’s been done in your direction?
I had been sofa surfing for a few years after a particularly hard split (you know the one – where I gave up the flat as long as I kept the record collection) – I was staying in a friends studio when some people turned up – it was about 2 am we were still playing tunes – there were two blokes and this woman who was mates with my pal. She sat next to me, chatted away briefly – (10 minutes maximum) and then was dragged off as they needed to be on their way elsewhere. As they left, she demanded my mobile number and said she’d see me at the anti war demonstration in London on Westminster bridge in a few days time. I was drunk at the time so said ‘yes’ to everything.
Then, bizarrely, I did get on a train – she did manage to find me in 3 million people – she did look after me all day (as I’m petrified of crowds) – we didn’t stop the illegal war .. but she wiggled her arse in my general direction and gave me a proper snog. … before she got back on her coach. And on the 15th of this month it’ll be 10 years together/ two children/ house in the sticks/ bit saner sometimes. Extra romantic points as the eldest son is obsessed with the Iceni – where did the Ms. find me by Westminster bridge?
Awwwww.
ooh…our anniversary is February 15th too (7 years this year).
Nothing to do with V Day, Mrs Panther’s Bday is on the 16th and she really wanted to get married before she turned 30 (some long ago prophesised thing apparently), so we got married on the very last day of Mrs Panther’s 20s!
Ha! My sister got married last year on the day before her sixtieth birthday because her intended said that he wanted to marry a woman in her fifties. (Golly, it’s nearly their anniversary then – glad I remembered!)
1 – When I was 16 I had my first serious boy friend who I loved very much indeed. I was in High School but he was older and was working as a motorcycle mechanic. On Valentines day in Japan it is the tradition for girls to give boys a present of chocolate. I stayed up nearly all night making and decorating a chocolate cake in our dorm house kitchen and because I could not make cakes very well our dorm house captain helped me. He liked it a lot, but it was so much work I will never do that again ! ! !
2 – Japanese men are not famous for being romantic . . . . .
3 – I am not sure I understand the question, but to chill out when I am feeling stressed if the weather is nice I love to sit on the balcony of my apartment and watch the sun set while listening music and drinking green tea.
4 – I have never run away from home or anything like that, I love it too much ! ! !
5 – My favourite romantic lyric is from Winter Rose by boy band Tohoshinki
The end of the verse is:
Itsumo close to heart, close to your love
Tokimekiwo kasaneau kokorono nakani winter rose
In English this is:
Always close to heart, close to your love
Our love blends together, in our hearts, winter rose
I love the love blending together. I think it is a super romantic image ! ! !
1. What’s the sweetest, or most romantic thing you’ve ever done?
Um. Not sure; whenever I’ve tried to do something romantic, it always seems to go horribly wrong – Mrs A’s current dvd is Doc Martin, and, while I can reassure myself that I’m not nearly that hopeless when it comes to reading other people’s responses and saying something that isn’t completely wrong. there is a great deal of fellow feeling. I used to put an enormous amount of effort into Valentine’s cards – composing poems in French, writing acrostics and the like – does that count?
2. What’s the sweetest, or most romantic thing that’s been done in your direction?
You want me to tell the story of how me and Mrs A got together again?
3. What’s your favourite thing to take the edge off?
Alcohol.
4. Did you ever run away anywhere? Where did you go, how far did you get, were you with anyone?
No; I’ve always been the depressingly sensible and reliable one who stays home, gets sent out to look for wayward brother etc. I think my parents must have indoctrinated me at an early age that running away is a sign of moral weakness.
5. I know I banned music questions from EOTWQ, but what’s your favourite romantic lyric?
I’ll be there for you, though the rain starts to fall.
I’ll be there for you, as I’ve been there before.
Yes that song says it all.
3. What’s your favourite thing to take the edge off?
the sea.
4. Did you ever run away anywhere? Where did you go, how far did you get, were you with anyone?
First time I headed off was at 15 – portfolio, back pack, train ticket to somewhere in ‘Europe’ – friend from school was doing an interview for a college on the coast so I waited for him – we were going to see if any pubs would let us have a sneaky half. A tutor had a chat with me, looked through my work and offered me a place there and then. So didn’t get far.
When I was 19 I walked out of the private viewing (were my work was being shown) in Covent garden (a competition win) – took a few crates of the sponsors lager with me and had a brilliant chat with a couple of homeless guys about modern art – next morning hungover I cashed the cheque – and decided I was off to America to follow the Happy Mondays and Pixies on tour together – then out of the corner of my eye (on TV) I noticed people on the Berlin Wall – I walked out of college and hitched 3,000 miles – I had to get an emergency passport, bribe border guards and got shot at. And had the butt of a gun crack my kneecap – What’s the good of witnessing history when you miss Pixies and Happy Mondays on the same bill though?
There were many, many, more – the last meeting about my graphic novel was an interesting one. Met up with the agent/promotor/ publisher bloke – left them with a portfolio of the book – 50 finished pages (up to 8 designs on each page) – contact address and numbers – they left happy – I felt empty. I walked out into the night, put my phone down, never went back to where I lived and lost about a decade. I believe it was fun.
The final time I decided me and the Ms. (from part two) might as well call it a day – nothing bad – just had an offer to set up a record label in Germany – so I disappeared off there .. la de da de da .. came back to England for a visit and found that my birthday send off had produced an extra present. Best thing that ever happened to me.
5. I know I banned music questions from EOTWQ, but what’s your favourite romantic lyric?
or
Love everyone’s running away stories. In 1996 I came home to help the family for for a while but also blagged my way into a trainee job editing videos. The guy offered me a full-time job. It would have solved everything as I was 30 and had nothing except a girlfriend. Of course, I went back to Finland and had then dumped my woman for no good reason (we’re still friends). I was at least five years away from being close to the sort of person who could make a romantic gesture and then sustain it.
1. I don’t ‘do’ romantic.
2. Came home to find the boyfriend had bought ALL the flowers from the little florist down the road and put them individually in crates of empty beer bottles throughout the kitchen (maybe he used to know tfd?)
3. Get Bono to give him a shove?
4. Still trying to get home…
5. I don’t ‘do’ romantic.
3.
Aw Blimpy – you sweet sweet man, and on my anniversary as well! Can’t believe you remembered. I told them they were wrong about you….
1] Well, my lovely girlfriend tells me it happened this corresponding Sunday four years ago when I cooked her a meal – three courses, the dessert being zabaglione at 3 in the morning. Stumbling for something persuasive to say a few days earlier, I’d told her I was a good cook. I think she was blown away by the realisation that I wasn’t making it up.
2] Now, you see, this one’s got romantic as a sort of default setting so the difficulty is picking out one gesture. I’ll go for something quite recent which, if done by a fella for a woman would be held up as one of those “you really get me” moments: she bought me a book called Listography, pages and pages in which to write various categories of lists of bands, songs, albums, gigs, etc – right down each and every one of your streets. It’s recognising what a sad, anal, obsessive music tosser I am and that being one of the things she likes and encourages….
3] An episode of University Challenge. Yes, I said it, and I ain’t taking it back.
4] Not since playing Knock Down Ginger on a gentleman my friends only helpfully informed me was a policeman after he’d chased me the length of our estate.
5] “And if you leave me a hundred times
A hundred times I’d take you back
I’m yours whenever you want me
I’m not too proud to shout it,
tell the world about it, cos I -
I love you -
this ol’ heart of mine is weak for you….”
2] ace.
Bless! Happy anniversary, May & Ms May
1. I don’t do romantic. I used to make cards and write soppy letters, which might be construed as sweet (or sick, depending on your level of jadedness).
2. My then ‘boyfriend’ traveling 200 miles to see me and then saying he wasn’t going back. I was too shocked to argue.
3. Getting completely out of it by whatever means available.
4. I walked out of my own home, leaving my then boyfriend in it, and got a flat with the person from (2) above. Yes, there was an overlap and I’m not proud of it. Running away has often seemed like a good option but it gets complicated when kids are involved.
5. Romantic lyric?
Possibly:
“We’ll gently walk and sweetly talk
Till the silent moon shines clearly
I’ll grasp thy waist and, fondly pressed,
Swear how I love thee dearly
Not vernal showers to budding flowers
Not autumn to the farmer
So dear can be as thou to me
My fair, my lovely charmer”
or
“O Western wind when wilt thou blow
That small rain down can rain:-
Christ, that my love were in my arms
And I in my bed once again.”
Thanks Blimpy! I’ll forgive you the topic (bah humbug, etc.)
1. What’s the sweetest, or most romantic thing you’ve ever done?
I used to be good with ‘romantic’ gestures towards women I admired from afar, but I think I was playing safe rather than being romantic. MummyP liked the tickets for Mary Poppins in London, for our first Christmas when Benjamin was on the way.
2. What’s the sweetest, or most romantic thing that’s been done in your direction?
My 50th birthday cake was lovely…
3. What’s your favourite thing to take the edge off?
Comfort food… Not always good for a diabetic but there are ways of coping !
4. Did you ever run away anywhere? Where did you go, how far did you get, were you with anyone?
No… I sometimes took my time getting home from places, but never ran away.
5. I know I banned music questions from EOTWQ, but what’s your favourite romantic lyric?
Jerome Kern / Oscar Hammerstein II You are the promised kiss of springtime, that makes the lonely winter seem long. You are the breathless hush of evening that trembles on the brink of a lovely song. You are the angel glow that lights a star, the finest things I know, are what you are.
1. I’m not good at romantic gestures,
2, I wanted to get married in a AnnaBelinda dress but couldn’t afford it. Three years later my husband bought one for me. I gave it to a friend two years ago as I’m never going to be size 12 again and now that I have white hair, the colouring is wrong for me. She got photographed by Vogue wearing it
the dresshttp://www.vogue.co.uk/spy/street-chic/2011/07/port-eliot/hannah-matthews
3. Pethidine (but I’ve only had it in hospital). 2nd choice alcohol.
4. No, I’m a homebody but I do like getting lost occasionally.
5. My Funny Valentine – “You make me smile with my heart”
Ah, Lorenz Hart, yes indeed.
1. What’s the sweetest, or most romantic thing you’ve ever done?
When the woman to whom I am married and I got married her father was quite ill and in the hospital and we weren’t sure he’d live (he did), so we got married in my parents living room with my family and a few friends in Baton Rouge and 8 months later had a big party with her family and friends out in Colorado where she hails from. 25 years later, I managed to get my three siblings and their kids and her five siblings and their kids in my parents living room (now conveniently located in Colorado as well) for what she thought was going to be a birthday party and asked her to marry me again in front of all of them and we had a ceremony and party and great fun and it still makes her smile.
2. What’s the sweetest, or most romantic thing that’s been done in your direction?
Just last year for Valentine’s Day that same sweet gal made over her office which is in our house as if we were in a nightclub and in her still beautiful voice sang a set of romantic standards she had worked up; it was kinda amazin’.
3. What’s your favourite thing to take the edge off?
1. music
2. the woman to whom I married
3. a glass of Flor de Caña and a nice, medium size Cuban cigar
At any given time in any given order, mind you.
4. Did you ever run away anywhere? Where did you go, how far did you get, were you with anyone?
When I was three, shortly after my parents brought my new twin siblings home from the hospital. I packed a small bag and made it about ten feet down the driveway in front of our house, where my parents found me sitting, stuck because I couldn’t yet cross the street by myself. They were amused.
5. I know I banned music questions from EOTWQ, but what’s your favourite romantic lyric?
1. I’m in love with the radio on (J Richman)
2. Yeah and it must have been one hell of a starry night. Yeah The moon was so bright guess it must have knocked out all of your lights. Guess thats the night that ya fell for the silvery light. (JJ Walker)
3. She’s good bad, but she ain’t evil (J Thunders’ version)
per #3, I suppose in certain situations, morphine is also a lovely thing, if a wee problematic…
1. I took her hand.
2. She took my hand.
3. Music. Currently, it’s Femme en Fourrure’s “Pretty Boy”. It certainly knows how to take the edge off.
4. Never. But if you want to get deep into it, you could psychoanalyse the reasons why I ended up in Finland. Actually yes! I packed a bag when I was about four, or so I’m told. I think it was probably very much like an episode of Outnumbered.
5. Sorry, it’s in Finnish: Samae Koskinen – Hän, jolla on kaikki “Our love survived everything”.
Or maybe it’s Yona & Orkesteri Liikkuvat Pilvet – Vaikka tekee kipeää, ei haittaa
“You make everything more bearable.
And though it hurts, it doesn’t bother me…
You make heaven and earth anew…
And though the fog is thick.
You know the path through.”
Yes, it’s that. Today, it’s that.
1. Too rude to print
2. See 1.
3. Morphine.
4. Once got as far as the end of the street to the sound of me Dad singing ‘Happy Days Are Here Again’ loudly through the upstairs window, when I was about 8.
5. “Since I was eight I’ve loved you
Through garden gates I’ve shoved you
Then there’s the time I slashed you
And you had to go to hospital”
Ah! Sweetness. HMHB – Reflections In A Flat
Oh and re 3. Very nice build up, but takes fookin aaaaaaages for dem sweet love bells to ring when UTI!
*Under The Influence not Urinary Tract Infection
1. hmmm….quite a lot of small things, but nothing dramatic. On our first Christmas together I secretly made up a stocking for Mrs Panther and stealthily hung it up while she was asleep. She was completely surprised and pretty thrilled to receive her first Christmas stocking as they are not common in Japan. Of course, ten years later and I still have to do a bloody stocking every year….grumble, grumble…..!
2. Getting an original 7″ for Valentine’s Day of a tune I’d only mentioned in passing as my favourite love song…ahhhh!
3. At this time of year a wee dram of hot sake does the trick. Or a rifle through the record racks of the nearest vinyl emporium usually relieves most stress too.
4. Probably the meanest thing I have ever done was when I was about 14 or 15. Me and some mates run away from our other mate ‘cos we thought he was a bit of a loser. It was our cowardly way of breaking off friendship. I still feel really guilty about it, he was, and I’m sure still is, a super nice fella. Hmmmm…maybe I should look him up on Facebook!
5. Not sure it counts as it’s ultimately a song about a doomed relationship, but the line:
“Well, you and I
Collapsed in love”
…just gets me every time. That image of ‘collapsing’ into each other; minds, personalities, bodies, whatever…. is just so great.
1. What’s the sweetest, or most romantic thing you’ve ever done?
Often make romantic gestures but the one the got the ‘biggest’ reaction was a photo album I put together for my wife’s 40th birthday with pictures and momentoes collected from family and friends.
2. What’s the sweetest, or most romantic thing that’s been done in your direction?
Mrs LIAB is not romantically inclined so a surprise candlelit dinner for two on my 30th birthday was very special. She hand wrote the menu on a parchment and tied it in ribbon.
3. What’s your favourite thing to take the edge off?
Excluding the obvious (decent red wine). love to go for a mountain bike ride early in the morning when there’s no one around and race through the woods getting mud splattered. Freedom!
4. Did you ever run away anywhere? Where did you go, how far did you get, were you with anyone?
Nope. Never been inclined to. Enjoy what I have.
5. I know I banned music questions from EOTWQ, but what’s your favourite romantic lyric?
We said we’d walk together
Baby come what may
Back from the twilight
Should we lose our way
As we were walking
A hand should slip free
I’ll wait for you
Should I fall behind wait for me
Blimpy – thanks for the EOTWQ and the introduction to Frightened Rabbit. Love it. Will explore some more.
Very welcome LIAB, glad you like it. Frabbits are fab, and the new album is great too, I have the vinyl preordered and it should hopefully turn up sharpish next week. Until I get that, my fave FR songs are “Keep Yourself Warm”, “Nothing Like You”, “Modern Leper”, “Swim Until You Can’t See Land”, and “Floating In The Forth” cos it mentions Fife, where I live.
Blimpy – just listened to Swim Until You Can’t See Land; a very good track to. I see the new album is out tomorrow. Methinks I’ll be purchasing it.
Am a big fan of Biffy and Marmaduke Duke and whilst Biffy is slightly heavier I trust you won’t mind me saying I see some similarities in the two songs I’ve listened to so far. Probably a daft thing to say without hearing some more.
I do like the Biff’ also, there isn’t such difference really, just a heavier aesthetic I think.
Lovely answers, I’ve very much enjoyed reading them. May ‘run away’ now!