onionbagblog

“There’s a solution for e-bike parking chaos - but it’s not problem-free”

Erm, why doesn’t legacy media ever talk about car parking chaos that litter the streets and pavements?

via BBC

Early evenings at The Table of Dreams are back. It’s LOVELY being able to down work tools at bang on 5pm, and then disappear for game of outdoor wiff waff with the Estuary Wilds sun still lighting us up. We had a captive audience of school kids watching us for a few games. It was a little nervy, not knowing if they were in awe of my skills, or taking the piss. Is suspect the latter, as I was battered 5-1.

To the Northern Gateway! For the first track training session of the spring! Chapeau! But first, let’s ‘service’ the road bike. It’s been in the back of the shed throughout the winter months. If you own a white bicycle, then there’s no bloody way that it’s getting an outing during the DIRTY winter months. The service involved oiling the chain and putting some air in the tyres. Job’s a good ‘un.

I rolled out, feeling a little uncertain and lightweight. The frame is so agile. I’ve been spoilt by riding an absolute bloody beast of an electric hybrid. But sometimes you want the simplicity and beauty of a bicycle that you pick up with a few fingers, and then be fancy free and FAST as you make your way over to the Northern Gateway.

Oh yeah - the bloody Northern Gateway. The complex is ACE. The track is superb to ride. It’s just an absolute arse to get there from this side of town. It’s pretty shitty that the town / city’s major public leisure complex is only really accessible in a crappy car. It would get far more patronage from me if there was at least a dedicated cycle path heading up there.

I rocked up at the track, and bloody hell - I’ve got it all to myself. I had forty five minutes of putting my foot down on the pedals and completing my own personal time trial. Windy Corner at the far end of the track was thankfully closed off with bollards. I think this was more in anticipation of the Wellbeing Wheels session that was to follow after my ride. I followed the guidance and was happy to avoid this particularly nasty stretch of the track. I didn’t change gear once throughout the forty five minutes of time trialling.

Chapeau!

The famous Forest ‘sick’ kit. I bloody hated this at the time. We first wore it back in 1995. It coincided with my move to S Ldn, and finding it increasingly difficult to stay in touch with all things Forest from afar, pre-proper the modern interweb age. The crappy kit seemed to summarise my own levels of a lack of interest. It’s now become something of a Forest icon. It was even exhibited at The Design Museum at the recent Designing the Beautiful Game retrospective. I’m warming to it, in irony, if nothing else.

Bob Dylan’s Infidels. Originally released in 1983, first came to my attention in 1983, finally bought a copy in 2026. I am nothing if behind the curve. My introduction to this most un-Dylan of Dylan albums came first through my obsession with hiring CD’s (ha!) from the local village library, and then buying bulk TDK D90’s to record them. Somehow the cassette copy and the memory of the album was lost. And then last month, following the passing of Sly Dunbar, I heard Jokerman once again as Robert Elms played it. Blimey. I had no idea that Sly and Robbie were involved with Infidels. A quick spin and reminder on Spotify, and yep, I’ll have a cheapo CD copy of that please. Dylan is sometimes at his best when he is most un-Dylan.

Did me nut in. Bailed after the first track.

⭐

Here’s a half decent find for early 2026: the debut release by Momooko Gill. It came via Gilles Petereson, natch. It’s very much of its time, coming out of the Total Refreshment Centre. What I love about the growing N Ldn jazz scene is the inclusivity. Powerful females, cool as fuck, blowing away all the old hairy bollocks about what jazz should represent. It’s not strictly jazz, either. It’s without a doubt a sound that is very much 2026, and one that could only come out of N Ldn right now. Superb.

A genuine UK soul classic. Look beyond the brilliant pop, and you have a stunning voice that doesn’t hold back with the emotions. Some of the duets with Helen Terry raise the levels of heartbreak further. Black Money pulls at the emotions. As the album title suggests, Colour By Numbers is a melting pot of what brought the band to where they were at the time. They’re proud of their UK soul, reggae, pop backgrounds. They’re all on show here, often at the same time. A classy, heartfelt, mainstream album.

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

Another B.A.D cap. It’s not quite one of the incredibly rare corduroy editions from the late 80’s. On the few occasions these crop up on ebay, prices usually start at around £100. No baseball cap is worth £100. Instead here we have a 2011 version from the B.A.D reunion tour. Job’s a good ‘un.

B.A.D were a fantastic band. Mick managed to reinvent himself post-Clash, and then continually keep on reinventing the band as the line up and technology around him changed. They were very much of their time, reflecting street style and then the early days of rave. Yet at the core was always the same punk spirit.

“That nicely sums up Labour’s problems. You’re supposed to be selling hope, not soap.”

via Novara

“People are pretty nervous about AI. And so far you have to be a scientist of some kind to really appreciate it. But the internet as a place of business, education and health care is a big global mess”

via Dave Winer