Out and about

So much for the forecast, which had predicted dry weather. Having set off for Beale Park in the expectation of a sunny day, it promptly started raining the moment we arrived. (Fortunately, it did soon stop and there wasn't much more than the occasional drizzle until after we'd left.)

We thought we'd give Beale Park a go on the basis that (a) it's barely 20 minutes from our front door and (b) we were hoping Zac might be interested in some of the animals there.

In the event, although he did briefly show some interest in the alpacas and some of the owls (sadly, his favourite was a large, carved wooden owl which he insisted on hugging repeatedly), he was far more interested in the steam train, the sandpit and the long ramp leading up to the raccoon enclosure. And generally running around everywhere with a new-found burst of speed, usually in the opposite direction to the one we wanted him to go in. Like this ...

Walking is for wimps

Anyway, at least Heather and I enjoyed the animals. Even though a lot of them were hiding from the chilly, damp weater, it was good to see a smattering of varied and reasonably exotic animals there. And you can't really go wrong with meerkats, of course. (The highlight of my day was passing a small child, maybe four years old, peering over the wall of the meerkat enclosure singing the music from the comparethemarket.com TV advert: 'Compare the meeer-kat, dot com'. You can't buy comedy like that.)

They're singing that bloody ad jingle again!

So, we saw some animals. Zac got to run around lots and burn off some of his seemingly limitless reserves of energy. A good day was had by all.

One grouse, though. Beale Park allows you to buy an annual pass to encourage regular visits, which is obviously a good thing. But your season ticket doesn't entitle you to entry on bank holidays, as one disgruntled mother in front of us discovered. Discriminating against your loyal customers doesn't really strike me as very clever marketing policy!

Tickled Pink

We had a rare evening out last night - with Zac being looked after by his grandparents - going to see Pink at the O2. (No thanks to London Underground for closing the Jubilee Line, forcing us to get there by boat.)

I've always liked Pink without ever being a huge follower - Heather's the fan - but I have to say she was awesome. Whether it's belting out the big anthems like 'So What' or the more introspective moments of something like 'Family Portrait', her voice is always pitch perfect, switching effortlessly between growling snarl to intimate vulnerability.

Pink in 'not scowling' shocker

And the setlist she performed showed off every facet of her repertoire. The opening half of the set was pumped out one after the other at breakneck speed before a gentler, acoustic third quarter gave everyone a chance to catch their breath. To be honest, I wasn't entirely convinced by a closing run which included covers of 'Bohemian Rhapsody' and Gnarl Barkley's 'Crazy' - no major artist with five albums under her belt should need so many covers (four in all), and no one, no matter how good, should ever need to resort to Bo Rap, period. However, no one else in the crowd seemed overly bothered, so who am I to argue?

The highlight of the show, though, had to be the acrobatics - a trademark of Pink's live shows, I'm told - incorporated into three of the closing songs: 'Sober' (see photo below) had her performing somersaults from a trapeze while belting out the chorus, and the two-part encore of 'Get The Party Started' and 'Glitter In The Air' featured some nifty aerial work while suspended from a bungee rope. How anyone can even think - let alone sing in tune - while performing somersaults, spins and all manner of other moves, is beyond me. Mighty impressive, though.

Just hanging around ...

All in all, a great show, both as a singer and as a performer. Acrobatics aside, a Pink gig is great theatre, and she really seems to connect with the audience. (I was pleased to notice that I was neither the only male nor the only over-30 in the crowd.) I'd definitely go and see her again.