All Over The World

We ran through All Over The World yesterday, the joint song for Voices Of Our City, the joint concert by the Pink Singers, LGMC and Diversity at Various Voices London 2009.

Sadly I can't embed it here, but the YouTube video is taken from, of all things, Xanadu. Really, how gay is that!

Il Faudra Leur Dire

I have never heard this song before, and the only reason I am posting it is that it is the joint song for our Parisian concert. The actual arrangement is much better than this version, and obviously is not going to be sung by children.

Thursday Objectification

I really cannot think of a better way to spend a boring Thursday afternoon than ogling all the juicy men who have graced the pages of the glossy mags these past few years. Yes, this is reducing men to nothing more than slabs of meat, but what yummy slabs they can be. It is dreadful that they are exploiting men in this way - enjoy!

Settling Into The New Season

This season has been moderately tumultuous, both in terms of the weather and in terms of the new members. It was clear skies when I go up on Sunday, but by the time I got to rehearsal the clouds had rolled in and it was snowing. Crazy London weather!

As for the Pinkies, well, while the altos, tenors and basses have had their numbers sorted, the sopranos have had a few ups and downs. Being in a choir like the Pink Singers is a big commitment. And when people come along for their first session, it can all be rather overwhelming. I imagine they'd be asking themselves, what would I get out of spending four hours a week in this room with these people?

Honestly though, the answer is "a lot". Ask any Pink Singer and they will tell you that the Pinkies are more than just a choir, we are a social group, and mixed in with this is our support of the lesbian and gay community, both within our little group, and London as a whole. It is just a whole lot of fun, it is about sharing experiences, and some of my best mates are in the choir. I'm not going to wax lyrical about the Pinkies as I usually do, but you get the drift!

Anyway, even if potential new members are deterred, the good news is that we have a lot of continued interest, so until last week we were still inviting new sopranos along. The numbers are now well and truly filled, and so now all that remains, for us oldies, is learning the names of all the newbies.

This last week the focus was on getting the pieces for Paris ready. It is now week 5 and we have nearly six songs under our belt and sounding okay. It is just a question of memorizing the lyrics and polishing the dynamics now. I don't think we have ever learned the music this quickly before. A mark of how the choir is improving perhaps?

Sign Of The Times?

Or just another marketing ploy?

Visit any Ikea on a Sunday morning and you are bound to find a number of gay or lesbian couples doing their round of the sofas and kitchen cabinets. I am certainly not averse to spending a couple of hours looking at the marketplace for all sorts of cheap crockery. So it does make sense for Ikea to be progressive in its advertising.

Their most recent catalogue, however, is called Family Life, and one of the 12 families featured under the banner ‘Family life is changing... Welcome to the new era’ is a gay couple called Ian and Steve. Apparently this incensed the Polish catholics so much they wanted it removed.

Here is the gist of their argument as reported in the Ikea Blog:

"The promotion of homosexual unions adversely affects the institutions of the family, motherhood or fatherhood that are so important for the public." The letter tells the company that the erosion of the value of natural marriage, "which in accordance with the law is a union between a man and a woman," is unacceptable, "especially at a time in which the family is in crisis," particularly with the births of fewer and fewer children. The letter warns IKEA that the drop in the birth rate will affect the company’s future business in Poland.

Once again, yes, the 'family' is in crisis, but how will keeping gays in the closet actually help the 'family' exactly? Sigh. And doesn't Poland have more to worry about than something like this?

Ikea's response?

"Homosexuality is one of the essential elements of living in contemporary society."

Thankfully, some sanity!

Why Terminators Transport Naked

One of life's great mysteries answered. My favourite bit?

What about the Austrian accents?
It's hot!

Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?

The title of this post is a rhetorical question, a song by Rod Stewart, and, most importantly, the name of the Pinkies' social organized by the altos. In the last couple of years the Pinkies' socials have become one of the highlights of the season, usually revolving around a lot of singing. As the choir gets bigger, it is also a great chance to get to know people in other sections as well.

The altos social was no different, but whoever came up with last night's theme deserves an award. I mean, who would have thought a village fête, replete with game stalls and home-cooked food the W.I. would be proud of, would meld so well with karaoke at the downstairs bar of the Black Cap? I had a blast!

To be honest, I nearly didn't make it. Stepping out the front door at work at about a quarter past eight I was greeted with a drenching rain, and I very nearly cycled home. Then I reminded myself how much fun the last few events have been and made the trek up to Camden. Yes, I was soaked by the time I got there, but the party was in full swing when I arrived. I got myself a beer from behind the bar, picked up some of Rachel's mum's flapjacks (so good I ended up buying three!), and a bottle of Claire A's jam. She's been slaving over the stove for the last few days, so you just know it is going to be good!

After that I decided to play a few games like pin-the-member - very much like pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey, but with an alternate appendage - and a knock-the-dildo-off-the-perch. Jo C was in her special carnie outfit, and despite having launched about a dozen balls at the dildo it refused to tip over. I was convinced it was stuck down to the stool with blu-tack, until Amy proudly showed me the food hamper she had won. Hmmm. I could say something about her in depth knowledge of such toys, but that would just be rude.

The highlight of the evening, of course, was the karaoke. And it was a chance for members of the choir to strut their stuff. Everyone had a chance. Stand outs for me were Mark and Rachel's Copacabana which, with its five minute instrumental, turned into a conga line around the bar, and Nathalina's rock-chick version of The Winner Takes It All. Even Mladen got on stage! I was really glad to see some of the relative newbies take to the stage as well, with Daniel singing and Lou performing Freedom to a boogieing crowd. This Pink Insider even got on stage with the marvellous Gill P to perform My Baby Just Cares For Me. I think this is actually the first time I have ever gone up to stage to karaoke, so a big thanks to Gill for egging me on!

In the end it was a fabulous evening and I had a really great time. The money raised goes to helping the Pink Singers on their overseas trips, and we have a number coming up including one to Paris in just a few weeks for AIDS awareness, and one to Malta in the summer for their Pride. Thanks altos, and thanks to those of you who came along to support!