ELObsessive blog on Absolute Radio

Time for some ART (Au Revoir Tunes) ;)

ELObsessive — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:34:00 +0100

Hello, dear friends – well, as you have probably guessed from the title of this blog, am about to have a little break – will be back on AR next Monday (6th July). So in the meantime, let me take you for a visit to that nice old place, Nostalgiaville, with some favourite tunes, which I hope you’ll enjoy!

First up, one of Neil Diamond’s finest, if you know what I mean ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JavM0jvfdDo

Talking of fine, something very summer-y from ELO – but not the “obvious” choice!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38y59LjrMVM

And how about this forgotten gem from Messrs Hall and Oates – they say nostalgia isn’t what it used to be, but it certainly is, at least for LOM ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNk6ErNl89s

And then on a vaguely similar theme, a delightful song from the delightful Maxine Nightingale - listening to this always puts the smile back on my face :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQhLxJKcHOc

Finally, a classic from the King of Pop, from a much happier era - may you rest in peace, Michael …

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3r2_yFBSek

Have a great week, dear friends – enjoy the weather and please remember to ignore all the idiotic “warnings” from our beloved Nanny State – cos such warnings are seriously bad for one’s mental health J For heavens’ sake, we only have about three-and-a-half days of decent weather in this country each summer, so just make the most of it and don’t worry too much ;)

Rant over and out ;) Bye for now, dear friends, take care and see you again soon J

Is this the worst female vocal performance ever?!

ELObsessive — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 13:15:00 +0100

Here's a song which always makes me chuckle - this lady must surely be at the very least, a very stronger contender for Worst Female Vocalist of all time! I first heard this track over 30 years ago, when the late, great Kenny Everett, then a DJ for Capital Radio, played it as part of his World's Worst Record competition, which was then released as an LP featuring 20 of the worst songs of all time, and which I still possess.

Must admit, I actually quite enjoy this record! Partly because Mrs. Miller's voice is just SO dreadful, it's funny! It's hard to describe, you really have to hear it for yourself to truly "appreciate" (for want of a better word) it.

And also ... the song itself isn't actually a bad one: it was originally a hit for The Toys, an American female group, reaching No. 5 in the UK singles chart in November 1965. And the Supremes did a nice cover version of it, on their I Hear A Symphony album, the following year. Both of these versions are available on YouTube, if you want to hear it sung properly!

But back to Mrs. Miller's version! Another point in her favour is that, appalling though her voice is, at least it's amusing to listen to - unlike so much of the bland, dreary, fake-emotional stuff pumped out in ever-increasing quantities on UK radio stations like Magic. Whatever my mood, listening to Mrs. Miller's rendition of A Lover's Concerto never fails to make me smile. It's just so unbelievably bad! And how this dear lady ever managed to get a recording contract, just baffles me!

Anyway, enough of this waffle! Here it is. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Odf0KpluvgM&feature=PlayList&p=D61CB80E7FA2AEFB&index=9

Hello, I must be going ;)

ELObsessive — Sun, 24 May 2009 15:11:00 +0100

Hello my dear friends - as you may have guessed from the title, I'm going to be away from AR for a few days; will be back here on Saturday (30th May).

And to continue with my little tradition, I've picked a few old songs which for various reasons I'm particularly enjoying at present, and am sharing them with you, in the hope that you'll enjoy at least some of them, too.

So, without any more ado, here they are! First up, Ringo's best song - it still sends a tingle down my spine whenever I hear it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5H-6fOc3HE&feature=related

(And by the way, before anyone asks, I'm not ObsessiveBeatles on YouTube!)

And a very charming and uplifting ditty from the marvellous Mr. Johnny Nash - truly a feel-good song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EPuYfFw-9Oo

Then a treat from that long-forgotten band, The Strawbs - this is what I recommend that one should always do if ever tempted to think about doing the housework or going to the gym ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQ5DhkHYYSY

And a haunting song from Ms. Tanita Tikaram - by the way, has anyone got any idea who "Sergeant Porky" (at exactly 3 mins in) is? ;) (NOTE: it's actually "soft and porky" - one of my longest-running mishearings of a song's lyrics!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLhdbqEg34o&feature=related

And finally, what I really must do in a moment, from that very talented songwriter, Mr. David Paton:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5khV_7V1h4

Have a great week, dear friends - take care, try not to be too good, and see you again soon :) xxxxxxxxxx

It's that time again!

ELObsessive — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 13:49:00 +0000

Hello, dear friends - well I'm heading away from Old Blighty again tomorrow, this time in a westerly direction. So will be away from AR till Thursday week (26th March).

Well, those of you who read these farewell blogs know exactly what to expect by now - first I entreat you all to keep schtum about my whereabouts to the multifarious spies on AR who just seem to get a perverted kick out of, er, spying on me ;-) And then I provide some links to some (mainly) very old songs that I just happen to love, in the hope that you'll enjoy them too!

So - not a word to the spies, please ;-) And here are the nice old songs!

First, the wonderful Gloria Gaynor - I know exactly what she means!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUFqXW-j0QU&feature=related

And on a related note, the Three Degrees - to which I'm pleased to reply: in the near future, hopefully :-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZX1OcrGPWU&feature=related

And then a song dedicated to the check-in staff at Heathrow, from my old friends Chairmen Of The Board:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Kro-uzMgL0

A classic ballad from Lemar - and there is at least some, am pleased to report!:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VvJNWrT2_Vc

And finally, what I'm looking forward to saying later tomorrow, from those classy chaps in Supertramp ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h287f0flCBk

Bye for now, then, my dear friends - have a great time, will miss you all but doubtless the time will fly as it always does! Take care, try not to be too good, and I look forward to seeing you again soon :-) Love and hugs as ever xxxxxxxx

BFN for now ;-)

ELObsessive — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 13:20:00 +0000

Hello, dear friends - please, can someone tell me where on earth the time goes? Am heading off to a far-flung part of the world tomorrow, and despite the entreaties of many of my dear friends, both here and in the so-called real world, haven't even started packing yet! Anyway, just to say I'll be away from AR till Tuesday week (3rd March) which sounds a hell of a long time away, but will be with us before we know it! As will I ;-)

I was going to beg you all not to breathe a word about my alleged whereabouts to a certain Chief Spy Mistress and all her spies on AR, but they all seem to be absent at present, so maybe it's safe to relax, at least for a while!

Here are some rather jolly, if slightly obscure (hope you don't mind me borrowing the term, young Bill!) ditties which I hope you'll enjoy:

First, three nice romantic numbers ...

Ms Joni Mitchell:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFM-ZX5Trro

Mr. Lou Rawls:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4boK3MDkXAA&feature=related

and Ms. Gladys Knight and her Pips:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3j2N41qalrM

.... And then a couple of rather heavier numbers to maybe do a little air guitar to ;-)

Status Quo:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=27BWNKbTFho

UFO:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTWdhN0TQVc&feature=related

So - bye for now, dear friends, have a great couple of weeks, take care, try not to be too good, and I'll look forward to seeing you again soon! Love and hugs as ever xxxxxxx

BFN!

ELObsessive — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 13:34:00 +0000

Hello dear friends - just to say that I'm having a few days' holiday in the real world, and so will be away from AR till next Tuesday (2nd Feb).

Call me paranoid if you will, but I have a nasty feeling that the Chief Spy Mistress on AR (no names, no packdrill, but her name begins with a R and ends with a T!) is, even as I write these words, mobilising her vast and terrifying army of spies for the sole intent of, er, spying on me ;-) So I beg you all not to breathe a word to her about my alleged activities on my alleged break ;-) Your reward will be paid in high-quality choccies, which judging by the current state of the £, may well be a more valuable reward than grubby banknotes ;-)

And to continue a little tradition, am leaving you with some songs that are currently tickling my pleasure-cells, all on a very lovely (geddit) theme :-) Hope that there's something among this selection that you can all enjoy ...

First, some good advice from the Bellamy Brothers -

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwJEY0iZCY0

A lovely ballad from the Bangles -

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Sxf6Xd75yUo

An upbeat toe-tapper from the incomparable Brian Wilson -

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=j6xoJeq-rto

A sparkling song by 10cc; don't be afraid to sing along! -

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=HVzRMlvi81k

A powerful rocker from those great tunesmiths, Cheap Trick -

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=ysBBSEFAxh8

And finally, one of Mr. Mercury's finest:

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=NnAZTItYxUQ

So, bye for now, dear friends, will miss you all but look forward to seeing you again here very soon. Take care of yourselves, beware of spies bearing choccies, and please try not to be too good! Love and hugs as ever xxxxxxx

Classic but not so well-known ELO tracks: 5. "Sweet Is The Night"

ELObsessive — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 14:49:00 +0000

When what is now generally recognised to be ELO’s finest album, the 17-track masterwork “Out Of The Blue”, was released in 1977, the band’s management boasted that every track could be released as a single. Well, maybe that was a rather over-the-top claim; but certainly, there were several tracks apart from the four that were eventually chosen (Turn To Stone, Sweet Talkin’ Woman, Mr. Blue Sky, and Wild West Hero) that would have been great singles.

One of these tracks, which Kenny Everett played a lot on his Capital Radio show at the time (mind you, he played a lot of ELO, period!), is undoubtedly Sweet Is The Night. It’s the opening track on what was Side 4 of OOTB in vinyl days – and even though it directly follows the final track of Side 3, the classic Mr. Blue Sky, it doesn’t seem like a let-down in comparison. Some achievement eh!

The shortest track of the original double album (apart from a very short instrumental number), it's a delicious slab of string-drenched power-pop, with (at times) Dylanesque vocals, great hooks, and an irresistibly catchy chorus that almost defies you not to sing along with it! The vocal harmonies on this song are just exquisite, with the call-and-response vocals between Jeff Lynne and the band’s bassist, Kelly Groucutt, among the finest that they have ever done.

One vocal slip, unless I’m mishearing it – at 2 mins 4 secs – is that Jeff sounds as if he’s singing “rays of morning bite”, which is underlined by Kelly Groucutt’s response vocal with the correct word, namely “light”! But I have never seen anyone else comment on this, so maybe it’s just me! But it’s sounded that way to me for over 30 years now!

All in all, a most satisfying and beautifully-crafted, ELO song which has truly passed the biggest test of all music – time.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=_uN0dgexJ8s&feature=related

Ciao for now!

ELObsessive — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 13:01:00 +0100

Hello my dear friends - well I'm having another galivant-ette to the real world; will be back on AR on Saturday.

Hope you all have a great week - and please remember there are spies about ;-) So not a word about my alleged activities to any of young Reet's spies please ;-) Or indeed, anything about alleged me ;-)

By the way - I'm so sorry about bringing the world's financial system to its knees ;-) That was a result of my attempting to counter-bribe Reet's spies ;-) The cost has been very great I know, but I must tell you that I am not responsible ;-) I am, as many of you know, totally irresponsible ;-)

Anyway, here are a few of my current favourite classic tunes, which I hope you'll enjoy ....

Seal: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=ateQQc-AgEM

Detroit Emeralds: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=xwZFs1o2nPY&feature=related

Limmie And The Family Cooking (whatever happened to them, I wonder?!) http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=t8iXvMbJDkA&feature=related

Mr. Andy Williams: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=kWtLK7XP-Bk&feature=related

And last but by no means least, Mr. Labi Siffre: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=XftXrk32TUE

Have a great week, dear friends - don't be too good, take care of yourselves, look forward to seeing you all again soon, bye for now, mega hugs as ever xxxxxxxxxx

Another farewell!

ELObsessive — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 13:22:00 +0100

Hello my dear friends - well once again, I'm having another brief excursion to the real world ... will be away from VAR till Thursday.

As many of you know by now, young Reet and her vast and rapidly-expanding army of super-sized-bribed informants are constantly trying to discover all kinds of distressingly personal and intimate details about what I shall be up to - so I will be ever so grateful if you can confine any nuggets of information about LOM to the total privacy and confidentiality of VAR's admirably secure shout-box system ;-) Let me assure you that I will always be prepared to out-bribe young Reet, even if I have to remortgage ELO Towers for the umpteenth time in order to do so ;-)

And, as this seems to be becoming a little tradition of mine, here are three timeless classic tunes which I dedicate to you all and hope you'll enjoy:

Mr. Al Green - Let's Stay Together: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAOOFk549fw

Ms. Aretha Franklin - I Say A Little Prayer (silly video, but great fun!): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKBuCaSYz40&feature=related

And Mr. Jeff Beck - Hi Ho Silver Lining: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IsGDNG2Cpbg

So - bye for now, my lovely friends, will look forward to being amongst you all again on Thursday, take good care of yourselves and try not to be too good (am sure that won't be difficult!), mega hugs as ever XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Bye for now

ELObsessive — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 14:17:00 +0100

Hello my dear friends - just to say I'm going to be away from VAR for a few days, will be back on Tuesday ... as ever, I am confining any details of what I'm doing to the total privacy and confidentiality of VAR's admirably secure shout-box system, just in case young Reet and her legions of super-sized-bribed informants are spying on me, which of course they probably are ;-)

Here are a few favourite tunes of mine that have been buzzing round my head recently, for various reasons ... which I shall leave you with, in the hope that you enjoy them:

From Mr. Ray Davies: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzpShIhvrjU

From Ms. Diana Ross: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UaYHRx9-v2M

And last and by no means least, Mr. Jeffrey Lynne: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCFl59jqNuI

BFN, my lovely friends, am looking forward very much to seeing you all again next Tuesday ... and once again my heartfelt thanks for everything .... mega hugs to you all XXXXXXXXXXXX

Thank you all so much :-)

ELObsessive — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 19:12:00 +0100

Hello my dear friends,

Words can't do justice to how I feel about all your lovely messages of support, sympathy and kindness over the last couple of weeks. What wonderful people you are :-) Not that I didn't already realise that, but really, I have been quite overwhelmed by your responses - in shouts, blog comments, PMs, emails, text messages, messages via other VIP friends, and phone calls, you have really helped me immensely through a very difficult and sad time. I thank each and every one of you from the bottom of my heart.

And I'd like to thank TennantBabe once again for producing that lovely blog, in which she kindly put up those beautiful pictures of Gwen for you to enjoy. The comments on that blog (like the ones on my last blog) were also extremely moving, and I greatly appreciate them.

***************************************************

Gwen's funeral, which took place on Tuesday, was a very special occasion indeed. Although, naturally, there was a lot of sadness, it was a very uplifting and beautiful occasion. As part of the church service, we had set aside some time so that friends and family members had the opportunity to get up and speak about Gwen. Six of them (including me) did so, and it was wonderful to hear the spontaneous (these were not speeches that had been written out in advance) and heartfelt comments made, in which some lovely memories and amusing anecdotes were recalled, which put smiles on the faces of all those present, and caused quite a few chuckles, too. (In addition to all her other sterling qualities, Gwen was a very witty lady.)

Seeing how much Gwen meant to all those present - how much she was admired and loved by everyone who had known her - moved me greatly. I guess I'd always realised how much she was revered by my friends and family, but this really brought it home to me in a big way. I truly believe that Gwen was smiling down on us that afternoon ...

****************************************************

I'm planning to come back on VR, even if (initially at any rate) not quite as frequently as in the past, starting on Saturday, when I will begin the lengthy process of thanking each and every one of you who has been kind enough to leave shouts and blog comments (including those on TennantBabe's blog) for me over the last couple of weeks and more. This will take me more than one "session" on VR, but rest assured, you will all receive a reply. You can't escape from me that easily, you know ;-)

There is a lot more I could say here, but I have (as ever) gone on for far too long already. Once again, thank you all so much. You have been wonderful friends to me, and that means more to me than I can ever say. I look forward to talking with you all again in the near future.

Love and mega-hugs to you all - James XXXXXXXXXXXX

This is a very difficult blog for me to write ...

ELObsessive — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 15:01:00 +0100

Hello my dear friends,

I feel I must let you all know about the very bad news I have had recently which is having a huge impact on my life, and which alas means that I will not be able to be on VR much for the next few weeks.

On Sunday (3rd August), my beloved wife Gwen, to whom I had been married for 22 years, died, aged only 52 years.

As some of you already knew, Gwen had suffered from that dreadful disease MS (multiple sclerosis), which over a period of nearly 30 years progressively robbed of her mobility, ability to eat, much of her power of speech, and many other things which the rest of us take for granted. But despite all this, she remained, right until the end, unfailingly bright, cheerful and uncomplaining.

I do so wish that you could have all met Gwen. Everyone who knew her, loved her - it was impossible not to love her. She was such an amazing and wonderful lady. She was full of smiles and laughter, and possessed great intelligence and insight. She also had a wickedly funny sense of humour. She and I spent a lot of our time laughing and giggling together, often about the cruelties and absurdities of life. Oh yes, and she knew quite a lot about many of you guys! I regularly regaled her with tales of the latest goings-on at VR, which, although she was not strong enough to be able to participate in for herself, she was always very interested in.

Although she had been so seriously ill, her death came as a tremendous shock, not just to me but to all who knew her. It was just so sudden, a real bolt from the blue. The only consolation was that it was such a peaceful ending for her. She had been staying in a local care home for a week while I was having a break, and was well looked-after and perfectly happy there, knowing in any case that she was due to come home very soon (yesterday, in fact). She died in her sleep (the immediate cause being pneumonia, a common condition arising from advanced MS), and after she passed away she really just looked as if she was still asleep - she had a lovely expression on her face, with just a hint of a smile. That was a big comfort for me - knowing that she hadn't suffered.

As you can imagine, I am now up to my eyes with making funeral arrangements (the funeral will be held on Tuesday, 19th August - it's being delayed to enable as many friends and family members as possible to attend) and all the many other things that need to be done. Fortunately, I am getting a great deal of help and support from many kind people, which is making things a lot easier than they would otherwise be.

I wish I could have written this blog a little earlier, but am sure you will understand why it was not possible. There was, and is, just so many things to be done.

Please, everyone, don't feel worried about needing to "walk on eggshells" with me. If you ever want to ask me questions about Gwen via PMs/emails etc. (obviously not in shouts), please feel free to do so. I will be pleased to hear from anyone who wants to write to me, although I obviously can't guarantee to be able to answer as quickly as I would be able to in more normal circumstances.

And I apologise to everyone who has kindly left me PMs, shouts and blog comments over the last week or so. I am so sorry that I am not able to reply to them at present, but am sure you understand why; but I am planning to reply to all my PMs shortly, and will definitely keep in touch with you all one way or another over the next few weeks. Hopefully I will be able to get back on to VR on a more regular basis in a few weeks' time. In the meantime, please bear with me.

Thanks to you all for being such great people. I am honoured to be friends with so many of you. Take care of yourselves, and I'll look forward to being back amongst you again in hopefully not too many weeks from now.

Love and big hugs to you all - James XXXXXXXXXXX

Au revoir, cher amis :-)

ELObsessive — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 13:57:00 +0100

Hello, my dear friends - Just to let you know I am having another excursion to that scary old place, the "real world". Yes, I know, one needs to be careful - there are apparently people out there who spend so much time there that they begin to think it's more important than the internet ;-) But not LOM, I assure you ;-) I shall be away from VR until Wednesday week (6th August).

And once again, I implore you all to resist the entreaties and blandishments of young Reet, who will doubtless be attempting to extract all kinds of distressingly personal and intimate details about LOM, and my whereabouts ;-) She will doubtless have a web (geddit) of spy cameras primed, and will be offering super-sized bribes to anyone prepared to divulge information about LOM, no matter how trivial ;-) Just remember this, though - mine are bigger than hers ;-) Bribes, that is ;-) Yep, I am offering the not inconsiderable sum of a million Swiss francs to anyone prepared to keep schtum ;-) Plus, a 10% bonus for anyone who provides her with blatantly misleading information about me, as young Irene so helpfully did on my last break ;-) The funds will appear in your unnumbered Swiss bank accounts after I return ;-)

Please remember, too - to prevent Reet from gleaning any information about my activities, kindly confine any comments you have to the total privacy and confidentiality of VR's shoutboxes ;-) Or if you prefer, use VR's very discreet Personal Massage service, which I personally find very handy ;-)

Have a lovely time while I'm away ... I shall miss you all, but will look forward to catching up with you on my return.

Here are 3 musical ditties which I hope you'll enjoy:

The Raspberries (very underrated band, btw - John Lennon was a big fan of theirs) - dedicated to all my friends at VR cos I "don't want to say goodbye": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJsf1Yp5blw

Ms. Dionne Warwick (with a little help from the Gibb brothers) - how I feel about all my VR friends .... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IOi7jnBoIQ

and finally, Ms. Carole King and Mr. James Taylor - You've Got A Friend - cos you have: LOM, amongst many others :-) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cM3r1aJvKJE&feature=related

BFN, dear friends, take care all of you, don't be too good, mega hugs XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

ELObsessus Interruptus ;-)

ELObsessive — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 14:15:00 +0100

Hello my dear friends - just to say I shall be having a week away from VR to spend some time in that rather sinister-sounding place known colloquially, I believe, as the "real world" ;-) After signing off today, I shall be away till next Thursday (26th June).

No doubt, young Reet's spies will be visiting many of you, hoping to extract HPDID of what I shall be doing during my time away ;-) I just hope that my policy of massive bribes to all her potential informants will do the trick, and that I can rely on the total privacy and confidentiality of VR's shout boxes to prevent her gleaning any potentially embarrassing factoids about LOM ;-) All I am prepared to reveal here about what I shall be doing during my week off, is that quite a bit of breathing will be involved ;-)

I'm going to really miss you guys! But hopefully you'll all be here when I return - please, don't let any more nice people leave ...we've lost quite enough recently :-(

Have a lovely week, everyone, take care, and I look forward to chatting with you all again ere too long. Here are 3 little musical treats for you, in the hope that at least one of them will tickle your eardrums nicely ...

Mr. Steve Winwood - dedicated to those many VIPs whose lives are undergoing big changes at the moment - While You See A Chance: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uVKJ_uQbcNM

Mr. Stevie Wonder - dedicated to my many friends here who Knock Me Off My Feet: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwSuPXMHhaE

And finally Mr. Neil Diamond, for those many VIPs who haven't the faintest idea what I'm going on about ;-) If You Know What I Mean: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3WKpNLvJuA

BFN, take care, mega hugs to all XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

ELObsessive's Dictionary Of Idioms And Acronyms (EDOIAA) ;-)

ELObsessive — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 13:04:00 +0100

The idea for this blog originated from young Reet, who suggested that I published a book of all the various terms I use on VR and elsewhere. Well, here is a very condensed book!

Although it came as quite a shock to hear that so many VIPs are apparently able to read what I had always assumed were totally confidential shouts between my friends and myself, I have now reconciled myself to this lamentable situation, and dedicate this blog to those very cunning VIPs who are able to read my shouts ;-) Hopefully these terms will make them even easier to decipher ;-)

The list below is by no means comprehensive, because quite often I use initials as OOJMUOTSOTMAIW (one-offs, just made up on the spur of the moment, as it were); nonetheless, hopefully it covers most of my FUT (frequently used terms) ;-)

BOBs – Bevy Of Beauties - a term coined by young Lisa (britpopfan) to describe the lovely ladies who are kind enough to grace my page with their presence.

DYP/DMP – Dominate Your Page/Dominate My Page – a term coined by young Lizzie (LittleMiss1) to describe those occasions when a VIP fills up someone’s page with shouts. (See also MMBs.)

HPDID/Q – Highly Personal, Deeply Intimate Details/Questions – e.g. my eye colour, first name, favourite popular singing combo and other HPDID which are too distressing to even mention. Young Reet in particular is forever trying to extract these kinds of details from me on a daily basis ;-)

IJAM – In Just A Minute/Moment.

LITP – Lunch In The Park – what young Angelica (angelofnorth) does on every sunny day, apparently!

LOL – Lots Of Love ;-)

LYALY – Love You And Leave You.

LMAO – Lick Me All Over – a request made with quite alarming frequency on VR ;-)

LMFAO – Lick My Face All Over – a slightly more polite refinement of LMAO ;-) Young Taz (or was it her Lab?) came up with this one.

LOM – Little Old Me - moi ;-)

MB - Multi-Boxer - a shout that fills more than one box.

MMB – Mega-Multi Boxer - a shout that fills several boxes – official definition is more than 4.

- CBOR – Carlsberg Book Of Records – the almost-famous publication that records the World Championship For Multi-Boxing (currently held by LOM, with a 19-boxer on young TennantBabe’s page; she in turn is holder of the Female MMB Champion award, with an 18-boxer on my page).

- SI – Shoutus Interruptus – when an MB or MMB is broken up by another VIP’s shout. Any case of SI disqualifies a MMB for being entered into CBOR.

MTFYPM – Many Thanks for Your PM (EM for emails).

- HR – Have Replied.

- WRS – Will Reply Soon.

- NNTR – No Need To Reply.

OBS – One-Box Shouts.

RSI – Really Sexy Individual – something, or rather, someone, that you can apparently get if you reply to a lot of shouts ;-)

TB – The Boss, aka my lady wife whose name temporarily escapes me ;-) Also refers to that lovely VIP, TennantBabe.

WARN – Wild And Rugged North – where young Angelica and others reside, in contrast to those of us who live in the SS (Soft South).

WAW(W) – Wild And Wacky (Weekend) – the sort of thing that young Reet regularly indulges in, for instance. Not LOM though – I’m a good boy ;-)

Y(M)NOTW – Your (My) Neck Of The Woods.