You're a beautiful woman probably...

I'm just back from Spain, with that extra self confidence I only get on holiday. It's hard to describe - a feeling that your life can be more than the humdrum existence at home, and that you're a brighter and more attractive person than you normally feel. It didn't work for me in last year's UK holiday, but I think Spain has a special magic. We spent ten days in Andalucia - flying to Málaga and then going to Granada (as advised, by bus) the next day, spending three nights there and then getting the train to exotic Sevilla, finally taking the train back to Málaga to fly home the next day. (Quick quiz: how many nights did we spend in Seville? ;-)) In part, of course, that feeling of well-being and optimism is down to the heat and the sun and, as this week so far has been nice and warm (if not always sunny) on Tyneside, I think that's prolonged the holiday effect. If anyone is interested, I took more than 1,400 photos (!) while I was there, and will be posting a sm...

The sun came out at last for more than five minutes today, as I was on my way back from a (rare) trip out with work. I was heading back from York to Newcastle on the train, sheltered from the chilly wind. Passing sights like Durham Cathedral, it looked , at least, a beautiful evening. I was listening to music on my little Sony MP3 walkman, a nice gadget that looks like a cigarette lighter and recently survived being washed (!) in one of my shirts. This is no doubt because it's "solid state" and has no hard disc. 2GB of music is enough for me while I'm on the move, and I don't need a fragile HD device that would no doubt break if dropped, or rattled around in a washing machine! I know Sony are a nasty multinational but I've always found Apple's claims for its equipment overblown, so I wouldn't consider buying an iPod. It's just a pity that Sony now seem to have dropped this design and only make bulkier, less elegant-looking MP3 players. Anyway, to...