Why does my knee hurt? Someone must know

Five years ago, when I was at the 2010 SVPCA meeting in Cambridge, my knees were very painful. Walking was a trial, and going up and down the steps to the accommodation was pretty awful. I had no idea why my knees had started hurting, and neither did the doctor who I consulted. I also have no idea why they stopped hurting a little later. This whole episode makes no sense, given my generally good health.

Crossfire, More Like a Teacake Vicar and Mike & Andy (1988)

Like a phoenix from the flames …

Did Anne Heap of Frogs really break up, as I said last time? Or did they merely sack me? You’d think I’d be able to tell the difference between these two scenarios, but ten months after the second AHOF gig, this happened:

Anne Heap of Frogs (1987-1988)

A flagrant festival of nostalgia today — my apologies to the 6,999,996 of you were were not members of the short-lived heavy metal band Anne Heap of Frogs in Bishop’s Stortford in the late 1980s. This post is for me, Andy, Richard and Eddie (and maybe our mums).

The ticket you see above is from the first Anne Heap of Frogs concert, played on the evening of Saturday 26 September 1987, at the URC Church Hall in Water Lane, Bishop’s Stortford. Astonishing to think that was 28 years ago.

What the 2015 budget means for me, and why it’s vile

George Osborn’s budget raises the threshold for the higher (40%) tax rate from the current £42,385 to £43,000. Since I am fortunate enough to earn that much, the £615 difference will now be taxed at 20% rather than 40%, saving me 20% of that £615 — that is, £123 a year, or about £2.37 a week. Whoopy doo. I don’t want to be ungrateful, but £2.37 a week is not going to change my life.

Which Joni Mitchell album do JoniMitchell.com members think is best?

The excellent JoniMitchell.com website allows members to score Mitchell’s albums and songs. There is a page listing all songs by rating, but no analogous page that I can find with the album ranks. Being curious to see what the members’ wisdom-of-crowds had to say, I scraped the current scores off the 19 pages for her 19 studio albums, with the following results:

score	year	album
9.67	1971	Blue
9.67	1976	Hejira
9.61	1972	For the Roses
9.56	1974	Court and Spark
9.50	1975	The Hissing of Summer Lawns
9.29	1970	Ladies of the Canyon
9.12	1968	Song to a Seagull
8.99	1991	Night Ride Home
8.92	1994	Turbulent Indigo
8.83	1977	Don Juan’s Reckless Daughter
8.78	1969	Clouds
8.56	2002	Travelogue
8.29	2000	Both Sides Now
8.04	2007	Shine
8.01	1979	Mingus
7.70	1988	Chalk Mark in a Rain Storm
7.60	1982	Wild Things Run Fast
7.49	1998	Taming the Tiger
7.39	1985	Dog Eat Dog