Needless to say, my blog-toilet hybrid has utterly failed to do its job so far because only nice, reasonable, non-shrill people have commented.

Howsobeit, I have been tagged for the Crazy Eight meme by Peter Black (although I don’t understand what is so crazy about it) and here in the People’s Republic no-one ever need ask us to navel-gaze twice…

8 things I’m passionate about:
History and archaeology

Living a Good Life

The environment

Story-telling

London, Italy and Devon – my favourite places

Secularism

The future of property ownership and society’s perception of the tenant

An end to excessive punctuation

8 things I want to do before I die
Travel across the stans on the back of a donkey, probably with a parasol, a valise and a butterfly net

Have a family of some sort

See Patagonia

Have a book published

Be on Start the Week

Learn to surf

Live in Italy

Release my inner chorus girl

8 things I say often
Oh for fuck’s sake

Another triumph/failure* in the annals of Mortimer

Maybe I should just get both

Pint of Star, please

Fair play to him/her…

Misremember

Glorious

This will last out a night in Russia, when nights are longest there**
 
8 books I’ve read recently or am still reading
Britain BC – Francis Pryor

Heresies – John Gray

Arturo’s Island – Else Morante

HP & Deathly Hallows – J K Rowling

Secret History - Donna Tartt (comfort re-read)

The Unauthorised Version: Truth and Fiction in the Bible – Robin Lane Fox

This Thing of Darkness – Harry Thompson

The Mauritius Command – Patrick O’Brian (comfort re-read)

8 songs I could listen to over and over and do:
Arcade Fire – Neighbourhood 1 (Tunnels)

Kings of Leon – Fans

Spiritualized – Take your time

Libertines – Can’t stand me now

Fleetwood Mac – Never going back again

The Undertones – Get over you

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah – Let the cool goddess rust away

Velvet Underground – Heroin

8 things that attract me to my best friends
Irreverance and sarcasm

Straight talk

Readiness to laugh

Passion and compassion

Intelligence

Open-mindedness

Good egginess

Enthusiasm

8 people I think should do Crazy 8s

Bloggers:

Mat Bowles

Charlotte Gore

James Graham

Millennium Elephant (four of each for him and Daddy Richard)

Civilians: 

Anthony Fairclough 

Cassy Sachar 

Leadership contenders (hey, they need procrastination tools too):

Nick Clegg

Chris Huhne 

* As appropriate. Triumph can of course be used ironically. Failure never is.

** Well, not often. There isn’t often a call to say it. But when there is, that is what I say.