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So Thursdays on Gamboling are generally archive days, but today we have a very special one. I have been writing Gamboling since 2003 and in that time I am sure the same themes have come up time and time again. But the other day, when casting about for an article to write, I settled on the idea of writing an article about the strange time I got recognised at the Waterstone’s after having bought a book 18 months earlier. It was published yesterday: A beautiful mind

All the time that I was writing the article, I had a very strange sense of deja-vu and so after I was finished, I searched for it on my site and, sure enough, I had already written the story back in 2004. I decided that the best, most interesting, option would be for me to not read the old article until after I had published this new one. So I have only just this morning read the old article from 2004. Both were written some time after the event which I guess was around 1997 and then “some time later” as my two articles argue about how much later it was. This time 18 months, last time 3 years!!! There are quite a few differences in the two stories, so which one is right? Well, we’ll have to get local historian Nick Ollivere to tell us the answer to that one.

So am I a liar? I don’t think so. But you can easily see in this instance how much the fiction writer in me influences even the articles. Both times, I am completely assured of the facts and the dialogue is very precise reported speech. I don’t assume that people really think it’s word for word accurate, but how will you feel to find that it could be this inaccurate?

Check out the original article: Mathematical Biography and let me know what you think.

It’s Thursday so it’s archive time. This week we talk a post of mine that was branded “silly” by no greater an authority than Wikipedia.

What’s the idea? Well you’ll have to read the archive posts I guess.

Here’s the idea being introduced

Here’s where wikipedia and the idea became friends

And here’s where wikipedia labelled the idea silly

Thursdays are archive day on Gamboling at the moment. Time to unearth something…

In the time I have been writing Gamboling, I have managed to write a few gig reviews. I have tended to review the smaller gigs I’ve been to, and sometimes I’ve even remembered to review the music too. So I have been trawling the archives to see what I can find.

From 2004, we have Bugfly. Bugfly didn’t last (my friend from the band is now in Lonely Weekend – http://www.myspace.com/lonelyweekend ), but don’t let that put you off: http://www.gamboling.co.uk/14-05-04.html

From 2005, we have Goldfrapp. I think Goldfrapp might be the biggest gig I have reviewed so far – http://www.gamboling.co.uk/2005/10/goldfrapp.html

Also from 2005, we have The Spinto Band. The Spinto Band are still going. They got signed on the night I wrote my review. And they have two albums out now. And they feature Kazoos. What’s not to like? http://www.gamboling.co.uk/2005/10/their-name-starts-with-s.html

It would appear that I didn’t review any gigs in 2006. But in 2007, I reviewed two bands (Rick Witter and The Dukes, and Mother Black Cap [No longer going]) in one gig and in two parts: http://www.gamboling.co.uk/2007/05/coincidental-gig-part-1.html and http://www.gamboling.co.uk/2007/05/coincidental-gig-part-2.html

And they’re all the gigs I’ve reviewed. I really meant to write a review about Idlewild when I saw them, I took lots of notes and everything. But… erm… I forgot!

Last week in the new Archive section, I hinted that while Dave “wrong about my temperature scale” Gorman wasn’t a fan of my temperature scale, he was a bit more keen on another of my ideas. In fact this was because he had come up with the exact same idea about 5 years after me. He wrote a post on his blog about “his” idea for a new calendar and it was almost exactly the same as mine. So why not read about the original and best new idea for a Calendar?

In fact this post sums it up pretty nicely: http://www.gamboling.co.uk/2007/01/so-pope-hasnt-called-me-back.html

Let me know what you think.

And if you want to know what Dave “I love him really” Gorman really thought: click here

Thursdays are archive day on Gamboling at the moment. Time to unearth something…

So this week I’ve been remembering that at one point I thought that, once in your life, you really want to get a thing named after you. Dancers get desserts. People who save people who are drowning get a crescent named after them.* But what could I do? I just needed to invent something. And so here is the idea that Genius creator Dave Gorman called, “I’m less convinced by the temperature scale though”.**

The idea is simple, water should freeze at zero, naturally, but it’s far more important to know if it’s going to be warm. So Zero is freezing, 100 is a really hot day, and 50 is comfortable.

If you want to read this, remember you need to read the posts from the bottom up:

Andronov Scale

* Is that right – Ed Harris? [what? ed]

** I’ll tell you about the other idea next week