Saturday Jan 21st- day 15

Saturday morning I go for a run along a trail near the house. As I stagger along through the drizzle, with the Stone Roses playing on me pod, I am overtaken by sppeding phalanxes of lady cyclists, all wearing team shirts. I am also overtaken by zimmer-wielding grannies and asthmatic dog-walking gents, but not to worry. I am too busy thinking about the Stone Roses, and that period where they were totally untouchable as a band. Most great bands seem to have that period, usually early on when their take on the world is unique and they seem unstoppable. The Roses had it- the looks, the tunes, the attitude, everything. Maybe it's different now, and a band like the Arctic Monkeys can become huge almost overnight, with internet downloads and all the rest. Word of The Roses seemed to seep out of Manchester, and Marc England would listen to radio shows to catch their records. We hopped on just in time, as their album hit in the summer of 1989 and quickly changed the face of music. And I still remember the way that even hearing a B-side was a magical experience- with the first listen, the tune was totally understandable and immediately unforgettable. After just one play, it was as if it had always existed.

In the afternoon, I girded me loins and went off to buy a laptop. Spending large amounts of money tends to bring me out in a rash, but back at the Mall, I find a friendly assistant who helps me plump for a smart Toshiba. It's not as sexy as the Sony Vaio, but is a better spec. I have to buy some extras, like a cordless mouse (sweet!) and then there's warranty and virus software and all that gubbins. But it should be a great bit of gear- light enough to carry round and able to pick up wireless connections at the tap of a button.

I have to wait a couple of hours for the "Geek Squad" to install the virus software and spyware, so I go off to the Mall again for fish and chips. The Americans seem to be coming round to our way of thinking- at least where there is fish involved, a chip is a chip, not a crisp. If you get me. On the way back, I am tempted by the suit of armour which is on sale in the gun/knife shop. I imagine clanking back to 29th Avenue- "Yeah, I got my laptop... oh, and I bought a new outfit!"

I get back pretty late to 6041, and I need to get my stuff together for tomorrow- a proposed trip up a mountain for some snowboarding action! So I spend a happy half hour tinkering with my new bindings- I got new gear at the end of last season as my previous ironing board and shackles had pretty much given up the ghost.