Welcome Home Little Bailey

Brought Bailey home today. Less prepared than I should be.

Bringing a new puppy home is a bit like going to war. I don't mean this in an aggressive way (OK, maybe I do, a little) but in a nutshell, one can never be too prepared, it's all about the terrain (your home turf), and strategic planning is the essence of success.

I don't think I've ever seen any free doggy advice site say this, actually not even the paid ones, but having now come out, battle-weary and a survivor of not one but two puppies, I can honestly say this is true. I envy the domestic goddess puppy keepers that look like Nigella, have perfect puppies and are stay home mums. I'm not a stay home mum, I risk getting criticized for leaving my dogs at home alone with no one (what's each other then?) for company while I work full-time, and I still love dogs and love what they bring to my life when I'm home with them.

But yes, before you bring your puppy home, preparation is the mother of success. And no, you can never be too prepared.

I'm already living the next decade of my life...

On May 4th a year ago, I wrote about the soundtrack of my life. It's odd how a year or so down the road and it feels that the next decade of my life has begun, but not as a slow transition as you would expect numbers to... moving from one to nine, but as a harsh cutover from 20 to 30.

It's not too bad the next decade, filled with mellow sounds of 70's music and progressing back slightly to angst ridden Robbie Williams with a touch of frost. Not so much beauty in depression than been-there-done-that-sweetheart wisdom.

30's - 40's soundtrack of life would be:-

1. Carpenters - We've Only Just Begun
2. Robbie Williams - Strong
3. James Morrison - Wonderful World
4. Carpenters - Goodbye to Love
5. Tori Amos - Take Me With You

This place has given me very much. But most of all a dream of mellow country flowers, a flavour of food... and a settling of the restlessness of youth that I haven't fully come to terms with.

I've been dreaming of a program like this...

So, the problem with last.fm and Spotify is that all the music is at your fingertips (legally yes) but that cloud internet hasn't quite reached your iPod in the Tube yet and your videos and music isn't mobile, right?

Enter MediaRaptor, a legal and free way to record MP3s and Videos from online radio stations, last.fm, YouTube... It also trawls a preset list of radio stations and video stations and gives you the option to search for artists and videos by title or keywords and downloads pre-recorded tracks. It's no more illegal than hitting the cassette tape record button at a favourite song on the radio, only automated, digital and something we didn't use to be able to do in the 80's.

After my very first last.fm recording (Heart - These Dreams) converted to MP3 beautifully, resplendent and complete with last.fm lyrics - I am in love!