Category: Diary

Microwave Ovens without Turntables are Wonderful!

On: By: Philip Wake
On Monday morning when I cooked my porridge the microwave blew up. I had to open the window and use a hair dryer to disperse the smoke. It was over 7 years old (Samsung ME733K from Argos 6 July 2015 £49.99) but I never thought its life would end like that! I drove to Asda Fareham to buy a new one and came across a George Home Flatbed one for £50 which means it had no turntable. I liked that idea because turntables are a pain in the ass. They limit the size of the rectangular containers you Read more [...]

Liquid Skin Glue!

On: By: Philip Wake
I managed to create a sore patch in the corner of my mouth a few days ago when I was grinding down my lower right canine tooth to be the same size as the front teeth on my dentures so the the back teeth of the dentures would meet properly for chewing. The corner of my mouth gets wet all the time of course and it didn't stand a chance of healing. I searched for and found this product which arrived today after being ordered on Sunday. I have now applied it and can feel it working already. Unlike UHU Read more [...]

My first year of Salsa Walking to Keep Me Fit for Salsa Dancing!

On: By: Philip Wake
I've been working at my goal of walking 4 metric miles every day in an hour – around 7,500 daily steps – a marathon weekly – for 365 days now as exercise to keep me fit in lieu of going salsa dancing 6 nights a week which was my raison d'être until it was rudely interrupted by lockdown in March 2020.  From the beginning I wore headphones and walked to the beat of salsa music to make it more interesting and, because I‘ve always found walking hard work, this made my Read more [...]

Happy Valentine’s Day to All My Favourite Salseras!

On: By: Philip Wake
These are not all my favourite salseras from 2003 to 2019 - just the ones who are in my collection of pictures of salseras I have danced with! I'm so much looking forward to dancing with you all again soon! AnyDaniellaDaniellaLisaLisaLisaLisaKatrinahKatrinahKatrinahKatrinahHeatherKatrinahAncaDonnaDonnaHeidiHeidiHeidiLizLizJennyHeidiHeidiLizAncaKatrinahLorenaLorenaLorenaDonnaDonnaLorenaLorenaLorenaPenniGraceSilviyaHeidiGery VakufovaKarinaGery VakufovaEmaKarizmaVendulaVendulaAmyKatrinahAncaElenaCassandraSonyaRasaRasaSoniSoniSimonaHeidiKatrinahKatrinahKatrinahMarzenaHazelMarzenaMarzenaLorenaLorenaKateAgnieszkaBarbaraBarbaraHazelHazelMelinaMelinaMelinaEmilyAnnabelAnnabelAnnabelAnnabelMindiRenataRenataMichaelaAngelaMindiAnnabelRenataEmaGoretiEwaMadalinaNikolettaSaoriKasiaKatrinahKatrinahKatrinahRaluIngaAnneta Read more [...]

All Washed Up!

On: By: Philip Wake
The original of this report may be found here on facebook. Below I have copied it and added some useful webpage formatting. . Philip Wake Day 318 Salsa Walk The forecast was 100% chance of precipitation and I felt like I needed a rest so I decided to give my salsa walk a miss today. I always do my washing Monday night using half price electricity after 0030 but when it finished at 7:45 GMT just before the full price electricity cut in (it's always 17 minutes late) I discovered that Read more [...]

Salsa Walking to Keep Me Fit!

On: By: Philip Wake
I've been working at my goal of walking 4 metric miles every day in an hour – around 7,500 daily steps – a marathon weekly – for 309 days now as exercise to keep me fit in lieu of going salsa dancing 6 nights a week which was my raison d'être until it was rudely interrupted by lockdown in March 2020.  From the beginning I wore headphones and walked to the beat of salsa music to make it more interesting and, because I‘ve always found walking hard work, this made my Read more [...]

Alone but not lonely!

On: By: Philip Wake
I may be single and alone but I'm never lonely as I'm always surrounded by some of my favourite salseras! The slide show below is from the collection showing in the above picture on my TV screen which is acting as an extension to my laptop! This slideshow normally shows as wallpaper on my laptop which plays all day for me to see when I'm not actually using it! AncaKasiaKasiaAgnieszkaTatianaAudeKasiaTatianaKasiaSarahSarahNikolettaNikolettaCristinaMichaelaMadalinaAgnieszkaNadiaNikolettaMadalinaMadalinaAgnieszkaKasiaSarahCristinaMadalinaNadiaDanaKatrinahBoikanyoAnnaAnnaAnnaZoeVeroVeroCuban Read more [...]

My Stolen Life!

On: By: Philip Wake
Artur's birthday today reminded me of his great pictures of me dancing with gorgeous ladies which remind me of how much I am missing during this period of suspended animation while I'm waiting for my stolen life to start up again! You know, the one where I went dancing 6 nights a week as opposed to wondering why I'm bothering to get up today! Lol <Original facebook post> At the age of 75 I could be forgiven for thinking that the government is wasting what could be the last few year's Read more [...]

Digital Bathroom Scales at Last!

On: By: Philip Wake
I've been using old fashioned bathroom scales for years and knew they were rubbish because I weighed something different every time I stood on them. However, I found a way of using them and apparently reduced my weight by 33lbs from 14st10lb on 19th April to 12st5lb on 27 November but I finally got fed up with the innate inaccuracy of scales which use a physical balance to turn a circular disk to tell you what you weigh. I found a site which recommends The top six best digital scales for Read more [...]

If the suit fits!

On: By: Philip Wake
Well that's a good sign - I was just looking through my wardrobe to see if there was any clothes I could donate to charity and spotted the suit I haven't been able to wear for many years because the jacket was too tight to button and the trousers wouldn't even think about doing up round my waist. Now it fits perfectly. So I tried the slim fit shirt on too and that fitted perfectly too - I couldn't button it up before and the neck was too tight. Looks like 12st5lb is a good weight for me but I'll Read more [...]

TV Brightness v Power Consumption!

On: By: Philip Wake
When I read my Economy 7 electricity meter on 3 October and registered the reading in the spreadsheet that I use to monitor my electricity usage, I noticed that the day time usage had increased from 2.8kwh to 3.3kwh during September. It's been around 2.8 for a long time so I was a bit puzzled. I wondered if perhaps I had left my kitchen spotlights on too long because there are 3 of them rated at 20 watts. All my other lights are low power ones using 6 watts or less but the spotlights are very Read more [...]

Debit Card Laundering!

On: By: Philip Wake
You've heard of money laundering but what about debit cards? I always set my washing machine at midnight on Monday to turn on at 5am to do an 82 minute eco wash. My alarm went off at 06:35 as usual as it usually takes 90 minutes or so depending on the amount of washing but unfortunately the machine had not done its duty. I can only presume that there was a short power drop before it turned on. I set the machine to do a 26 minute rinse instead as I was determined to finish the 80 minute tumble Read more [...]

Archiving Facebook Birthday Stories

On: By: Philip Wake
I woke up today on the 75th anniversary of my birth day to some facebook posts from my salsa dancing friends wishing me a happy birthday but then I noticed some birthday stories too which I didn't realise you could do. I've had a quite a few so far but it occurred to me that it would be nice to view the archive of these stories when they disappear after 24 hours but then I discovered that facebook don't do that any more. Not to be frustrated, I used AirDroid to mirror and record them from my mobile Read more [...]

I just love cottage pie!

On: By: Philip Wake
I was about to go for my daily walk when a lovely old lady who lives near me asked me if I'd like a cottage pie. She explained that she was expecting another neighbour for dinner the previous day and he didn't come. I told her it was my favourite dish and would love to have it. She was very pleased that it wouldn't be wasted and so was I! I should have taken a picture of it before I ate half of it for lunch the following day but I was too impatient to get it into my tummy when I took it out of Read more [...]

Day 138 Salsa Walk

On: By: Philip Wake
Philip Wake Day 138 Salsa Walk I felt stronger today and walked the 3 miles at 65% tempo in 54:00 which is 71 seconds faster than yesterday so I must have taken longer strides. I walked the first mile in 20:33 (to Dioumte & Abibou) and the Military Road mile in 18:13 (to Lindas, Temedi & SonFo) which shows how much faster I walked to the faster music. Pugger Lander I would love to see dancing down the street. Or a picture of a remarkable site along the route? You really have Read more [...]

Day 128 Salsa Walk

On: By: Philip Wake
Philip Wake Day 128 Salsa Walk My left foot didn't seem to be improving but I thought it might be a good idea to test it out so I did. I tried walking at 58% of the Africando Mix tempo on a circular route for 6/10 of a mile taking around 15 minutes. It felt good with no pain so I'll do that a few times before I even think about walking faster! Philip Wake Later it turned out there had been some healing and that some of the toe joints were just a bit stiff and needed exercise to loosen Read more [...]

Day 125 Salsa Walk

On: By: Philip Wake
Philip Wake Day 125 Salsa Walk 0850 ONLINE CONSULATATION WITH A FRIENDLY NURSE I explained the problem and sent her the above picture from Day 123. She said that it's probably just a reaction to the soft tissue injury rather than an infection which would usually have an infection site and result in the whole foot swelling up. I explained that I had had some blisters over the last few weeks which drew blood and could have provided bacterial entry points but she didn't think the swelling Read more [...]

Day 123 Salsa Walk

On: By: Philip Wake
Philip Wake Day 123 Salsa Walk Oh dear - I seem to have overdone the interventions on my crossed over left toe. As you can see from the picture my foot is actually swollen now so I'll have to rest until it recovers. You can see the difference from my right foot which has a crossed over toe which I have managed to straighten - believe it or not - but is not causing me trouble. To see this report and all the others on my daily salsa walk click here and scroll up and down. . This Read more [...]

Day 117 Salsa Walk

On: By: Philip Wake
31:23 + 30:31 = 61:54 (new record for the 4 mile return trip) On an overcast late afternoon in a cool breeze I knocked over 2 minutes off the old record set only 2 days ago. It looks like I'll only be able to walk to the ferry as fast as I walk back home if I warm up before I start walking! There seems little doubt that walking to salsa music is motivating me to walk faster with a passion I didn't feel before! Thank you whoever provided the tempo reduction app - it was just what I needed! I Read more [...]

Day 116 Salsa Walk

On: By: Philip Wake
Walking so fast yesterday seems to have disturbed the crossed over toe on my left foot. The first little toe crosses over the big-toe because I wore split sole jazz trainers that didn't have enough space in the front region for my wide feet when I first started salsa dancing in 2003. The high heels of jazz trainers made it worse by forcing more weight onto my toes thus compressing them even more into a space not wide enough for them. As I couldn't find my gel toe separators, I thought I'd Read more [...]

Salsa Walking to Keep Me Fit!

On: By: Philip Wake
(Featuring slow motion salsa music!) I‘ve been walking 4 miles every day – 10,000 daily steps – a marathon weekly – for 114 days now as exercise to keep me fit in lieu of going salsa dancing 6 nights a week. I wore headphones and walked to the beat of salsa music to make it more interesting and, because I‘ve always found walking hard work, this made my walking smooth like dancing and therefore easier for me!  However, as I reduced the time taken from a very Read more [...]

Salsa Walking to Keep Me Fit!

On: By: Philip Wake
(Featuring an attempt on my life by an ignorant motorist!) I‘ve been walking 4 miles every day – 10,000 daily steps – a marathon weekly – for 105 days now as exercise to keep me fit in lieu of going salsa dancing 6 nights a week. I wore headphones and walked to the beat of salsa music to make it more interesting and, because I‘ve always found walking hard work, this made my walking smooth like dancing and therefore easier for me!  However, as I reduced the Read more [...]

Amazing Belly Dance Body Isolations!

On: By: Philip Wake
I've enjoyed watching good belly dancers ever since I got roped into doing it with a belly dancer in Tunisia who was offered to me afterwards as an hors d'oeuvre by the patron at a special price at her request because she had enjoyed dancing with me so much, but it was still more than I could afford and I was a married man after all! Also, I've always been interested yoga and specialised in the Nauli Kriya exercise which I have been doing 3 times a day for many years. So, I particularly Read more [...]

Philip’s Fitness Progress

On: By: Philip Wake
21 June 2020: 9 weeks ago I noticed my weight had gone up to 14st10lb having dared to weigh myself at last and realised that my cheating on my Natural Low Density Eating had gone too far. Instead of having chips only twice a week, I was having them every day as a reward for walking the first 2 miles of my daily salsa walk. I had also started to include hard cheese because I discovered that all the lactose in the milk had been digested by bacteria, but of course it is nevertheless not a natural food, Read more [...]

Sleeping on my Electric Sofa

On: By: Philip Wake
I was sleeping quite well as usual last night on my bed-in-the-wall but when I awoke for a drink and pee in the middle of the night I decided to try sleeping on the new sofa and I have to say it was very comfortable. I think the v-shaped inclined position suits my posture and digestive system better! I put the other side up too so that it was easier to handle the duvet when I de-reclined my side to go to the loo! When I got up in the morning I felt even more refreshed and ready to go than usual! Read more [...]

An Electric Settee for Me!

On: By: Philip Wake
The leather settee I bought 20 years ago for my old house and moved to my studio flat in Gosport 4 years ago finally collapsed so I was excited today to go out shopping for a new (second hand) one for hopefully £150. The only second hand furniture shop I could find open locally was Gosport Furniture Shop in Stoke Road. I walked in and there it was - just what I've always wanted. A high backed settee with leg-rests that come up at the touch of a button followed by the back-rests going down. Read more [...]

Somebody’s Getting Absent Minded!

On: By: Philip Wake
I did a small shop at Asda Gosport just after it opened at 10am for a few items which had sold out when I went later in the day yesterday to Asda Fareham - namely the cheap Ibuprofen (40p for 16x200mg - was 35p), Dates (£2 for a 500mg packet) and Sweetcorn (45p for 198g can - was 35p). I had to make do with the 65p packet of Ibuprofen which is better than Nurofen at least which is £2 for the identical product made in the same factory! I found the Dates I wanted though and bought all 3 packets Read more [...]

Salsa Walking to Keep Me Fit!

On: By: Philip Wake
I‘ve been walking 4 miles every day – 10,000 daily steps – a marathon weekly – for 91 days now as exercise to keep me fit in lieu of going salsa dancing 6 nights a week. I wear headphones and walk to the beat of salsa music to make it more interesting and, because I‘ve always found walking hard work, this makes walking smooth like dancing and therefore easier for me! I produce a report every day and I have copied yesterdays below! You will have to follow this link and scroll down Read more [...]

The Trouble with Night Storage Heaters!

On: By: Philip Wake
My night storage heater Night Storage heaters do save money by using cheaper night time electricity to store heat in bricks which then warm the room they are in during the day. They work in combination with the Economy 7 rate which all electricity suppliers offer. It turns on at 00:30 GMT and off at 07:30 GMT every night. The night rate is typically half of the day rate which in my case is 8.1p per kilowatt hour at night and 16.6p during the day so a lot of money can be saved! I only Read more [...]

Salsa Walking to Keep Me Fit!

On: By: Philip Wake
I've been walking 4 miles every day - 10,000 daily steps - a marathon weekly - for 81 days now as exercise to keep me fit in lieu of going salsa dancing 6 nights a week. I wear headphones and walk to the beat of salsa music to make it more interesting and, because I've always found walking hard work, this makes walking smooth like dancing and therefore easier for me! I produce a report every day and I have copied yesterdays below! You will have to follow this link and scroll down to the last couple Read more [...]

CELEBRATION OF MY 74TH BIRTHDAY ON 2SEP WITH MY DAUGHTER JENNIFER IN BRIGHTON!

On: By: Philip Wake
Had a fabulous time with my daughter Jennifer and my grand-daughter Jessica celebrating my birthday on 2 September and Jennifer's on 20 September. Jessica almost took her first steps trying walking towards me to sit on my lap! These two represent a lifetime achievement for me! . FACEBOOK COMMENTS – click a date to see the original post Read more [...]

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD – LIFE STORY

On: By: Philip Wake
Being appreciated is wonderful and I thank Miguel Mayana London from the bottom of my heart for this LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD - see 2019-08-02: Que Rico Salsa Party at White Eagle Club Balham – Awards Night! for details. I'm writing a book about my salsa life and here's how it begins: In 2003 at the age of 57, after 2 years of being parted from my first wife, I occasionally used to go to The Pyramids in Southsea to enjoy simulated Summer time on the beach. One night as I Read more [...]

ON THE HOTTEST DAY OF THE YEAR!

On: By: Philip Wake
I'm reading a book sitting between my flat door on the chain with a cushion keeping the door open and two wide open windows. There's a breeze of cool air passing over my nearly naked body and I'm feeling very comfortable. Am I going to put my clothes on to go out salsa dancing tonight or am I going to save myself for the weekend which will be a lot cooler? Silly question! 🙂 . . . SEE YOU TOMORROW . . . Click to see the original facebook post Read more [...]

SALSA PLAN FOR FEBRUARY 2019

On: By: Philip Wake
<Calendar> <Last Month!><This Week!> WEEK 1 Completed – click the day to see my blog report on that event! 5th  Wed 30: Salsa Explosion Wednesdays at Bar So Bournemouth (Enrique Perez)5th Thu 31: Salsa Bailando Thursdays at Drift Southsea (Dale Afro Entertainment) Too much snow!WEEK 1 FEBRUARY1st Fri 01: I love Que Rico but I've been going to The Venue in Brighton for over 10 years! However, from March onwards I'm going to each Read more [...]

SPARE KEY BLOWS CAR

On: By: Philip Wake
I have a Mitsubishi Carisma Elegance DI-D 2003, 5 Door Hatchback, March 2003, 1870cc car which does 60 miles per gallon which means for example I can drive to London and back for less than £15. It is therefore a valuable asset which is essential to the pleasure of this gentleman of leisure - that is to his salsa dancing - for which driving to Portsmouth, Bournemouth, Reading, London, or Brighton 5 nights a week is standard!I lost my main car key on Tuesday so on Wednesday I called out a mobile Read more [...]

SALSA PLAN FOR JANUARY 2019

On: By: Philip Wake

<Last Month!><Next Month!>
WEEK 1 Completed – click the day to see my blog report on that event!

1st Wed 02:

Salsa Explosion Wednesdays at Bar So Bournemouth (Enrique Perez) Not on!
Salsa Katanga Wednesdays at  Portsmouth Irish Club  (Salsa Katanga)

1st Thu 03: Salsa Bailando Thursdays at Drift in Southsea (Dale Afro Entertainment) Not feeling well so giving it a rest tonight!
1st Fri 04: I love Que Rico but I've been going to The Venue in Brighton for over Read more [...]

ARTHRITIS CULPRIT IS LECTIN NOT GLUTEN

On: By: Philip Wake

I recently went back to having my two poached eggs on toast daily at 4pm but this time with gluten free bread to avoid the arthritis in my knees effect. However, after a couple of weeks I noticed my knees were hurting again. I ran out of gluten free bread a few days ago and noticed today that my knees were hurting a lot less. It would therefore seem it's not gluten that I'm allergic to so I looked around for another culprit which turns out to be lectin! Some lectins leak from the gut and cause the Read more [...]

SALSA PLAN FOR DECEMBER 2018

On: By: Philip Wake

<Last Month!><Next Month!>
WEEK 1 Completed – click the day to see my blog report on that event!

1st Wed 05: Salsa Explosion Wednesdays at Bar So Bournemouth (Enrique Perez)
1st Thu 06: Salsa Bailando Thursdays at Drift in Southsea (Dale Afro Entertainment)
1st Fri 07: Salsa in Brighton every 1st Friday at The Venue (Jimmy Lobe) Xmas Edition!
2nd Sat 08: The Christmas party at Pimlico replaces the usual event at Bottlescrue!

Christmas Party Special at Pimlico Read more [...]

SALSA PLAN FOR NOVEMBER 2018

On: By: Philip Wake

<Last month!><Next Month!>
WEEK 5 OCTOBER Completed – click the day to see my blog report on that event!

5th Wed 31: Salsa in Bournemouth Wednesdays at Bar So (Enrique Perez) So Halloween 2018 Fiesta!
WEEK 1 NOVEMBER
1st Thu 01: Salsa Bailando Thursdays at Drift in Southsea (Dale Afro Entertainment) Day of the dead!
1st Fri 02: Salsa in Brighton every 1st Friday at The Venue (Jimmy Lobe) 27th Anniversary!
1st Sat 03: Salsa Fusion Party at The Venue in Great Read more [...]

SALSA PLAN FOR OCTOBER 2018

On: By: Philip Wake

<Last month!><Next month!>
WEEK 1 Completed – click the day to see my blog report on that event!

Wed 03: Salsa in Bournemouth Wednesdays at Bar So (Enrique Perez)
Thu 04: Salsa Bailando Thursdays at Drift in Southsea (Dale Afro Entertainment)
Fri 05: Salsa in Brighton every 1st Friday at The Venue (Carlton Thomas) Jimmy Lobe's Birthday Bash
Sat 06: Salsa Fusion Live at The Venue in Great Portland Street (Salsa Fusion) 27th Anniversary
Sun 07: Fulham Read more [...]

MULTI-VITAMINS ARE CHEAPER THAN GREEN VEG!

On: By: Philip Wake

For lunch today I had chicken thighs with chickpeas in a tasty Nandos-Jamaican sauce which I thickened more than usual with potato powder for a more solid satisfying meal. I forgot to take a picture before I started eating so you see it here partly eaten!

You may have noticed that none of my meals contain green vegetables. That's because I don't eat them and haven't done so for at 4 years now, not since I became single. The reason is in two parts. It's a lot cheaper to take a multi-vitamin Read more [...]

WATERFRONT & CHIPS ON WEDNESDAY!

On: By: Philip Wake

I had to attend a tasting session of 4 different kinds of veggie burgers in Gosport. Having been paid £15 for eating the whole of the one I quite liked and bits of the three I didn't I thought I might as well spend £1.90 on some really tasty chips at Frydays Fish & Chips. This was particular necessary as the chips I ate on Monday night from Queens Parade Fisheries were so dry and wrinkly I'll never go there again!
This panorama of Gosport Waterfront is taken from the southern most point of Read more [...]

SALSA PLAN FOR SEPTEMBER 2018

On: By: Philip Wake

<Last month!><Next month!>
WEEK 5 AUGUST Completed – click the day to see my blog report on that event!

Wed 29: Salsa Katanga Wednesdays at Portsmouth Irish Club (Salsa Katanga)
Thu 30: Salsa Bailando Thursdays at Drift in Southsea (Dale Afro Entertainment)
Fri 31: Will decide which one nearer the time but I went to Latin Paradise last month! Decided on Salsa Mish to dance with Lorena!

Salsa Mish Fridays at St Albans (Salsa Mish) Only the 5th Friday for Read more [...]

GREEN BIN WARNING!

On: By: Philip Wake

I found a red notice on my green bin yesterday - apparently the refuse collectors couldn't take it because there was glass in it. There wasn't when I looked but there was a basket full of bottles near the bins so I presumed my next door neighbour must have removed them from the bin when he saw the notice. As the bin was totally full I realised that I would either have to get in it to jump up & down to compress the rubbish and hope there would be enough room for the next two weeks worth of recyclable Read more [...]

MY LEFT ARM IS GETTING BIGGER!

On: By: Philip Wake

On 20th July while salsa dancing at El Grande I needed to get on the stage to dance with a young lady. A fellow on the stage held out his hand and pulled me up energetically. I landed on my feet but the stage must have been slippery, probably with a spilled drink, and I fell very badly. I got up and had my dance and didn't think anything of it. A week later I happened to feel under my left forearm with my right hand and felt several scabs and only then realised that I had fallen on my left Read more [...]

SALSA PLAN FOR AUGUST 2018

On: By: Philip Wake

<Last month!> <Next month!>
WEEK 1 Completed – click the day to see my blog report on that event!

Wed 01: Salsa Katanga Wednesdays at Portsmouth Irish Club (Salsa Katanga)
Thu 02: Salsa Bailando Thursdays at Drift in Southsea (Dale Afro Entertainment)
Fri 03: Salsa in Brighton every 1st Friday at The Venue (Carlton Thomas)
Sat 04: Salsa Fusion Party at The Venue in Great Portland Street (Salsa Fusion) See Note 1!
Sun 05: Didn't feel like driving to Read more [...]

SALSA PLAN FOR JULY 2018

On: By: Philip Wake

<Last month!> <Next Month!>
WEEK 1 Completed – click the day to see my blog report on that event!

Wed 04: Salsa Katanga Wednesdays at Portsmouth Irish Club (Salsa Katanga)
Thu 05: Salsa Bailando Thursdays at Drift in Southsea (Dale Afro Entertainment)
Fri 06: Salsa at The Venue in Brighton every 1st Friday (Carlton Thomas)
Sat 07: Salsa Fusion at The Venue in Great Portland Street, London (Salsa Fusion)
Sun 08: Sunday Party Night at Lost Paradise Bournemouth 9pm-2am (Enrique Read more [...]

SALSA PLAN FOR JUNE 2018

On: By: Philip Wake

<Last month!> <Next month!>
WEEK 5 MAY Completed - click the day to see my blog report on that event!

Wed 30: Salsa at Bar So Bournemouth on Wednesdays (Enrique Perez)
Thu 31: Salsa Bailando at Drift in Southsea (Dale Afro Entertainment)
WEEK 1 JUNE
Fri 01: Salsa at The Venue in Brighton every 1st Friday (Carlton Thomas)
Sat 02: Salsa Fusion at The Venue in Great Portland Street, London (Salsa Fusion)
Sun 03: Tropical Sunday at Drift in Southsea after Read more [...]

SALSA PLAN FOR MAY 2018

On: By: PHILIP WAKE

WEEK 1 Completed - click the day to see my blog report on that event!

Wed 02: Salsa at Bar So Bournemouth on Wednesdays  (Enrique Perez)
Thu 03: Salsa Bailando at Drift in Southsea (Dale Afro Entertainment)
Fri 04: Salsa at The Venue in Brighton every 1st Friday (Carlton Thomas)
Sat 05: Salsa Fusion at the Venue in Great Portland Street (Salsa Fusion)
Sun 06: MamboCity 5* Congress Sunday Party Night! (Mambo City)

WEEK 2  Completed - click the day to see my blog report Read more [...]

SALSA PLAN FOR APRIL 2018

On: By: Philip Wake

WEEK 1 Completed - click the date of an event to see my blog report

Wed 4: Salsa at Bar So in Bournemouth (I Love Salsa Bournemouth)
Thu 5: Bailando at Drift in Southsea (Dale Afro Entertainment)
Fri 6: Salsa at The Venue every 1st Friday in Brighton with my daughter Katie (Carlton Thomas)
Sat 7: Salsatricity at De Havilland in St Albans with my daughter Katie (See Note 1)
Sat 7: Salsa Fusion at the Venue in Great Portland Street with my daughter Katie! (Salsa Fusion)
Read more [...]

SALSA PLAN FOR MARCH 2018

On: By: Philip Wake

WEEK 1 (Completed - click on day to see web page report)

Wed 28: Salsa at Portsmouth Irish Club (See Salsa Katanga)

Thu 1: Bailando at Drift Southsea (S,B,M&K - see Dale Afro Entertainment) [Storm Emma]

Fri 2: Salsa at The Venue every First Friday of the Month in Brighton (Carlton Thomas) [Storm Emma]

Sat 3: Salsatricity at De Havilland, Hatfield in London with my daughter Katie! [See Note 1]

 

WEEK 2 (Completed - click on day to see web page report)

Wed Read more [...]

SALSA PLAN FOR FEBRUARY 2018

On: By: Philip Wake

WEEK 1 (Completed - click on date to see web page report)

Wed 31: Salsa at Portsmouth Irish Club (Salsa Katanga)

Thu 1: Bailando at Drift Southsea (Dale Afro Entertainment - S,B,M&K)
Fri 2: Salsa at The Venue every First Friday of the Month in Brighton (Carlton Thomas)

Sat 3: ABCD XIII ★Burn The Floor (FADI K) hopefully with my daughter Katie if she completes her assignment on time - fingers crossed - unfortunately she didn't but I went to see her at Herts Uni before going Read more [...]

SALSA PLAN FOR JANUARY 2018

On: By: Philip Wake

WEEK 1 (Completed!)

Wed 3: First party in 2018! Joanna Wosk - S,B&K at Bar So in Bournemouth
Thu 4: Bailando at Drift Southsea (S,B,M&K - see Dale Afro Entertainment)
Fri 5: Salsa at The Venue January 2018 in Brighton
Sat 6: Salsa Fusion Welcome Party 2018 at Great Portland Street in London
WEEK 2 (Completed!)
Wed 10: Salsa at Bar So in Bournemouth (See I Love Salsa Bournemouth)
Thu 11: Bailando at Drift Southsea (S,B,M&K - see Dale Afro Entertainment)
Fri 12: Que Read more [...]

SUMMER TIME IN WINTER! 

On: By: Philip Wake

I turned the storage heater on full for my studio flat a couple of days ago and I woke up this morning to 25°C in the shade. I'm now working out how much extra it will cost me but even if it uses the maximum storage capacity of 17KW a night that's only 6KW more than I estimated. So if I keep it on full for December & January that will only cost me an extra 40p a day. That comes to £12 a month which will add only £24 for the year. My DD is currently £26 a month so I will only have to increase Read more [...]

TUMBLE DRYER STUFFED!

On: By: Philip Wake
I recently noticed that my tumble dryer is taking more than an hour to dry clothes it used to dry in 40 minutes so I decided to check for fluff in the condenser as I haven't done it for a year. It's a messy job so I was putting it off. It was stuffed with fluff AND with a label from one of my pillow slips! LolGetting the condenser back in can be a problem (another reason why I put it off for so long) but I've discovered that you just have to give it angular lift up so the part where it engages Read more [...]

TOTAL COST OF RUNNING A CAR!

On: By: Philip Wake

THE COST OF RUNNING A CAR!
Just taken the car in for an MOT. If it gets through and it lasts for another year the yearly cost will be:
£333 for purchase (£999 divided by 3 years)
£600 for insurance (3rd party fire & theft plus recovery)
£300 for MOT, service & tyres
£140 for tax
--------
£1373 total yearly cost
£115 per month or £27 a week or 6p a mile (at 400 miles per week)

With an average fuel consumption of 60mpg the diesel cost per mile is 10p making the total cost Read more [...]

A WISH THAT CAME TRUE!

On: By: Philip Wake

When I was 12 my brother was always being asked to play the piano when friends and relatives came round. He was very shy however and never obliged them even though is was really talented. I remember thinking: "I wish I was good at something - I'd do it for them!"

60 years later ladies often say to me after a salsa dance with me:

"You're amazing!"

"You're such a good lead!"

"You make following so easy for me!"

"You make me feel like I'm really dancing!"

"Thank you - I've never danced Read more [...]

FLAT TYRE – FLAT NIGHT! 

On: By: Philip Wake

The right front tyre of my car was totally flat when I got back home last night (Wednesday) - a pin prick puncture it turns out today (Thursday). I need two new front tyres & tracking because the other one is nearly on the limit and unevenly worn too. However, the tyres won't available until tomorrow morning at the local service station I trust. Ah well - looks like it's a TV night for me! At least the car will be ready for EL GRANDE - Friday 20 October, 4 rooms, 10 DJs, 10 teachers, Classes, Read more [...]

GIVING UP SMOKING IS AS EASY AS PRETENDING YOU NEVER DID!

On: By: Philip Wake

I gave up smoking cold turkey in November 2012 after I realised that 99% of the time when that feeling comes into your mouth that you want a cigarette you are really thirsty.  Exactly the same feeling happens to a non-smoker every day of their lives but as they don't smoke they don't even think of having a cigarette. But smokers do because that's what they've learned to do and they like it that way. All you have to do is pretend you're a non-smoker and do what they do . . . every day of their Read more [...]

WHAT A WEEK OF SALSA!

On: By: Philip Wake

That was a good week of salsa - 19 hours altogether - a bit more than the usual which is around 12 hours.

Wednesday: Salsa at Irish Club then Drift Bar on Wednesdays! (3.5hrs)
Thursday: Salsa & Bachata at TLC in Southampton on Thursdays and Drift afterwards for Dilshad’s Birthday! (3.5hrs)
Friday: Neon Latin Party at The Grapes in Portsmouth and at Drift afterward until 4am! (6hrs)
Saturday: Salsa Fiesta at La Tasca in Bournemouth! (3.5hrs)
Sunday: Salsa at Medbar in Read more [...]

MOBILE PHONE HOLDER – FIXED OUTSIDE THE BOX!

On: By: PHILIP WAKE

I bought this Universal Mobile Phone Holder from the Fareham Market a couple of months ago for what I thought was a good price - £5 - but clearly not as good as available on eBay! Lol. It seemed very clever because of the numerous ways that it could be used and the way it folded down to look like a mouse. I chose to mount it on my windscreen next to my rear view mirror as the place least likely to disturb my driving and discovered that the suction cap was so good that using the so called quick Read more [...]

VEGETARIAN OR VEGAN – IRRELEVANT – BE NATURIAN!

On: By: Philip Wake

The important thing is to eat unprocessed food without added sugar or fat. This means not eating cakes, biscuits, pies, sausages, pizza, sweets or any other processed food which looks good on the outside but you can't see what it's made of! That includes cheese and all spreads including butter which are processed foods very high in fat. It also includes alcoholic beverages which are highly processed liquid foods containing alcohol which the body cannot deal with properly. Naturally it means not Read more [...]

LEASEHOLD GROUND RENT BALONEY!

On: By: Philip Wake

There's a lot of talk about ground rent of £250 in 2010 becoming £10,000 in 1960. Really? If ground rent doubles every 10 years it becomes £8000 in 2060 but worth only £2159 in todays money at an average inflation rate of 3%.

That's still outrageous of course - about 8 times the original ground rent but it's a long way from the £10,000 with which the news media are frightening people!

There was a time when inflation did effectively halve the value of money every 10 years. For example, Read more [...]

MONDAY IS FAREHAM MARKET & CHIPS DAY!

On: By: Philip Wake

12:00 After 5 nights of salsa dancing, rest day number 1 is welcome:

Event 2017-07-23: Salsa at the Medbar in Southampton on Sundays! 23rd July 2017
Event 2017-07-22: Latin Party in Watford with Rumba Latina! 22nd July 2017
Event 2017-07-21: Salsa at El Grande at Scala on the 3rd Friday of the month! 21st July 2017
Event 2017-07-20: Salsa & Bachata at TLC in Southampton then Salsa at Drift in Southsea! 21st July 2017
Event 2017-07-19: Salsa at Irish Club then Read more [...]

AT THE ALTAR OF SALSA DANCING!

On: By: Philip Wake

Providing something for the plebs to believe in while they suffered poverty for the benefit of their lords and masters was the original reason for religion. This was quite successful until the downside of believing a religion to the extent that it can be the only one lead to the belief that other religions must be wrong and the people who believe in them must be "corrected"!

This has lead to their having been more violent deaths of innocent people in the name of religion than for any other reason. Read more [...]

HOLES IN MY POCKET!

On: By: Philip Wake

It's only a matter of time before the coins and keys you put in your pocket create a hole through which you lose a fortune. It happened to me 2 days ago and no matter how much I tried I couldn't remember to use the left pocket instead of the right one! So this morning I cut from a piece of leather from an old wallet into a rectangle 10cm by 5cm. I glued it to the bottom of the pocket by holding it in place while I applied the glue to the other side of the material until there was enough to do the Read more [...]

ROBOT TAX – MY ASS!

On: By: Philip Wake

Just watched a program which suggested that with more and more robots taking peoples jobs there will be less tax revenue to run countries so governments will have to consider creating a new robot tax. Apart from the fact that automation has always created more jobs than it destroyed - for example somebody has to invent, develop, make, program and maintain robots - it is surely clear that if companies uses robots instead of people they will make more profit so governments will get more tax through Read more [...]

CHIPS & BAKED BEANS FOR LUNCH TODAY!

On: By: Philip Wake

The Natural Low Density Eating version of chips with baked beans is only 16% compared with 43% for the usual fried chips with baked bean in tomato sauce version which means it's nearly 3 times as satisfying calorie for calorie. In other words you would only be able to consume 37% of the high density version to keep to the same number of calories as the low density version! I didn't have any onions today so had 500g of potatoes and I used Piri Piri Seasoning for a taste of Nandos!

Read more [...]

RICE, OSMOSIS & ARSENIC!

On: By: Philip Wake

Do you add salt to water before boiling your rice to increase the boiling point of the water and make the rice cook quicker?

WRONG!

This is because the salt reduces the osmotic pressure between the boiling water and the rice which means less water passes through to the rice. Simply stated when there is a semipermeable membrane between two solutions (the skin of the rice) water passes from the weaker solution to the stronger one in an attempt to make the strengths equal. Adding salt increases the Read more [...]

ACCIDENTAL INTELLIGENCE – THE PERFECT KETTLE!

On: By: Philip Wake

 

Amazing how sometimes you buy something because it's cheap and then discover it's just what you wanted. As you can see there's a smooth metal plate over the heating element of my new kettle which means that you can boil a single cup of water to make one cup of coffee using only 25 watts costing approximately .3 of a penny - very green don't you think!
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ORIGINAL FACEBOOK POST

Read more [...]

SALSA SALSA EVERY DAY KEEPS YOU FIT IN EVERY WAY!

On: By: Philip Wake

04:30 Just got back from Salsatricity at Barnet - later than expected because I stopped off for a sleep around 30 miles out from Gosport as I had danced non stop from 10pm to midnight and blew my legs away! I'll sleep until at least midday - possibly 2pm before getting up and looking forward to my 5th night of salsa dancing while a feed my spirit with memories of dancing with so many lovely salseras and feed my body with Natural Low Density Eating:
1. Wed 5: Salsa at The Irish Club
2. Thu 6: Read more [...]

ASTROLOGY IS AN APOLOGY!

On: By: Philip Wake

Just remember there are 500 million people with the same star sign as you so when they read about their sign for today 50 million of them our bound to think it's true and propagate this nonsense as a science. There is also no physical force which could explain the connection between the 12 constellations - and by the way there are actually 13 - and mind kind! Notice how astrological prediction for the day are carefully worded to ensure they are likely to be thought by most people to be applicable Read more [...]

FORGOT MY CHIPS ON MONDAY!

On: By: Philip Wake

Thin Chips (McDonalds)
Surface Area = 0.5 x 0.5 x 2 + 0.5 x 11 x 4 = 0.5 + 22 = 22.5
Volume = 0.5 x 0.5 x 11 = 2.75
Ratio = 22.5 / 2.75 = 8.18
Thick Chips (Chip Shop)
Surface Area = 0.75 x 1.5 x 2 + 0.75 x 6 x 2 + 1.5 x 6 x 2 = 2.25 + 9 + 18 = 29.25
Volume = 0.75 x 1.5 x 6 = 6.75
Ratio = 29.25 / 6.75 = 4.3
Comparison
These figures indicate that the thin chips have 1.9 (8.18 / 4.3) times as much surface area for any given amount of chips which means that’s how much more fat sticks to the Read more [...]

FATHERS DAY – NAY – FATHERS WEEK FOR ME

On: By: Philip Wake

Today is Father Day but I've had a Father's Week.  Time for a quiet day of rest & contemplation! 🙂

Four nights this week brought me even more of the magic of salsa dancing with amazing partners - particularly at Southampton University Student Union on Saturday where I had an interesting chat with a lady who asked me about my life since salsa began. It reminded me how I got where I am today and how much I love my life and the people in it!

Although she had never danced salsa before I Read more [...]

THERE’S NO SUCH THING AS HARD BREXIT – ONLY HARD NEGOTIATIONS FOR THE BEST DEAL WE CAN GET!

On: By: Philip Wake

But if that deal involved paying £100 billion to the EU for the divorce we would have to walk away because that's the equivalent of paying them £250 million a week for 8 years which would mean that we might as well stay in the EU and have a say in it's management.

"If Britain left the EU how would it gain access to the single market?
In the past week, Leave campaigners have confirmed that they would not want to remain part of the single market by signing deals similar to Norway or Switzerland.
They Read more [...]

SALSA IS ABOUT DANCING IN THE MUSIC – NOT ABOUT MOVES!

On: By: Philip Wake

I've heard a lot of talk about Cuban, Cross Body, LA, New York & Cali but to me all salsa is the same - it's about how the salsa music makes you want to move and lead your partner so that you both dance on the spur of the musical moment! When I say salsa music I mean music with the underlying 3-2 clavé because without that it does not inspire the quick-quick-slow way of moving that makes a dance become a dream!

Also, as my basic salsa steps do not include a break which can be felt by my Read more [...]

MACRON’S PARTY OF CHAOS IN TOTAL CONTROL

On: By: Philip Wake

I was wrong about the French having a pointless voting system because the party that Emmanuel Macron invented only a year ago is set for a landslide victory. Can you imagine 450 new MPs (out of the 557 in the French parliament) - people who have never been MPs before and some not even ever politically active before - a Party of Chaos but in total control! Lol

Map of Visitors 12Jun2017
7647 Unique Visitors in the last year
104 in last 1 day
172 in last 2 days
261 in last 3 days
303 in Read more [...]

TIME FOR A QUIET NIGHT IN!

On: By: Philip Wake

Four nights this week brought me the magic of salsa dancing with amazing partners and reminded me how much I love my life and the people in it! Tonight is time for a quiet night in watching movies and thinking about what I'm doing next week! 🙂

Event 2017-06-07: Salsa at Irish Club then Drift Bar on Wednesdays! 7th June 2017
Event 2017-06-08: Party after Salsa Lessons at Drift on Thursdays! 8th June 2017
Event 2017-06-09: Que-Rico 2-room monthly party at the Bedford in Balham! 9th June Read more [...]