"Today the way I play the game is not the same, no way, think I'm gonna make myself happy"

Germany was a right proper hoot!
I'll fill you in soon on all that malarkey as I'd like to share some pictures & that is beyond me today.

Also I have something to talk about today which is date specific to this date.
1st of July.

On this day way back in 1988 I left my native Wakefield & moved to the little crappy town we all know as Crapsville. I still remember gazing out from the passenger seat of MarriedAProperBitch's mini. On the stretch of the M1 between junctions 40 & 39 you can see the city's cathedral standing proud above all else & with Depeche Mode's "Agent Orange" playing in the car I shed a few tears as I watched my home slowly disappearing. I seldom hear "Agent orange" these days but those rare occasions always provoke a lump in my throat & a vision of Wakefield viewed from the motorway.

18 years on & somehow, against all logic & rational thought, I'm still in Crapsville.
It all feels such a long time ago now. I don't regret leaving home at all, it was simply the path that my life had to take at the time. I was desperately in love with Monochrome Baby, as I had been since I was 15, & my chance had finally come to be with her all the time. To say I was underprepared for the move would be like saying the universe is fairly big or that Muse are ok; a gross understatement.
However, as I always seem to do when it's sink or swim time, I muddled through & got myself sorted out. I have always been quite an independent spirit & being self-sufficient didn't prove to be too difficult.
At the time though, as I was being swept away with all the excitement & emotion of this big change in my life, I never really considered what I'd left behind.
My family must have been really sad to see me go. I remember my Mum crying as she waved me off & I remember my Dad telling me to behave myself. I don't know how my sister reacted, in fact I'm not even sure if she was there.
Then there was my friends who never, ever came to visit me. Obviously we lost touch. Wonderfully The Duke Of Jokes & I have rekindled our bond but the others are just people from old memories now. I always got the impression that Ridgely really resented the fact I moved away.
So it's a big day today but not just because of that...

Exactly 4 years ago today I finally found the strength to break away from the oppressive jail that I had let my life become. 4 years ago today I left Temper Tantrum.
I could go on for ages about the effects that decision has had on my life but time is against me.
Sometimes one doesn't have to bang on for ages to make a point.
I really feel that I have lived so much life in the last 4 years. More than I did in the 10 years before that.
I've done things & gone places that I never thought I would be able to do.
I've felt things that I thought were beyond me.
I've achieved things that would not have been possible whilst wearing the shackles of my marriage.
I've done all of this without having any detrimental effect on the relationship between my son & I.

So I always celebrate the first of July, it's the day that I discovered that happiness & freedom come hand in hand.

And one other thing...

COME ON ENGLAND!!!