OK, so for those of you who watch Oprah (I'm mainly talking to the girls here) this blog is for you! This is, My Favourite Things!
For those of you who don't watch Oprah (including me actually. I just happen to sometimes walk in when the wife is), she does these special episodes around Christmas and one of the shows is of her favourite things. Basically, she gives everyone on the show a selection of her favourite things. If you want a flavour of this, take a peek at this. The women go literally mental!
So, with Christmas just around the corner, here is, Jon's Favourite Things! (cue to go wild and act like a demented fool).
1. Square Pie, London -
Last year Kristin and I went back home to England for a few weeks and during our stay in London, we visited Square Pie in London. It's located in the food court of Selfridge's, tucked away like the best little places always are. Anyway, it was bloody delicious. I had a beautiful pie with mash, gravy and mushy peas - and you know how much I love my pies. Simply heaven in a small cardboard box. Kristin and Charlotte enjoyed it too!
visit them here: http://www.squarepie.co.uk/index
2. John's Pizzeria, New York -
Forget Famous Ray's, this is quite simply the best pizza I've ever had. Located on Bleecker Street in New York's Greenwich Village, this place is pizza heaven. No words can describe how good this is. Just bloody go there and see for yourself.
3. Peep Show -
For those of you who haven't seen Peep Show watch this. It's the funniest show on telly by a baker's mile (a baker's mile is actually a mile and a third!).
4. Grooveshark -
I used to own things called tapes. Then, one lovely day, I switched to something called a CD -what a breakthrough that was. The compact disk and how compact it was. That was fine, but still expensive.
Then, another lovely day, someone thought up the Internet and a few years later, we all started downloading music illegally. It was much cheaper, but the quality was a bit hit and miss and we were all worried that one day, the FBI would come knocking on our door and we'd end up being buggered by a big black man named Ron in a jail in Texas.
Then, last year I found this website called, Grooveshark, which solved all of my problems. Now, I can listen (for free) to all the music I like and make 'mix-tapes' of my favourite songs. I'm richer, not afraid of being arrested and buggered, and I have access to all of the music I like and more. Bloody brilliant.
Check it out here: http://listen.grooveshark.com/
5. The In-Betweeners -
This show has been on in England for a while, but I've only just started watching it over here Stateside. Again, just another bloody funny show. It's also one of those shows that you watch and then realise, that was me at that age. Bloody brilliant. Here's a sample of the hilarity.
6. Charlotte (my baby) -
This one is a bit of a cheat because you can't actually have it. But, she's definitely one of my favourite things.
7. Ricky Gervais -
A genius. There's so many things I could say about Ricky Gervais, but instead I'll just show you this.
And this.
8. How I Met Your Mother -
The best American sit-com since Friends.Funny, intelligent and it has Barney, surely one of the greatest comedy characters of all-time. Check out this clip to see what you're missing (if indeed you are missing it).
9. Kristin (my wife) -
Kristin is incredible. For a start, she married me. She puts up with my frequent memory lapses, my constant writing, making awful jokes, terrible dancing and writing about her in my blog/novel. She has the patience of a saint. I love her more than I can write about in a blog. Definitely one of my favourite things and you can't have her.
10. Google maps -
My sad, train spotter obsession. I love Google Maps. I love that you can go anywhere in the world and see what it looks like at street level. It's unbelievable to me. I spend hours just looking at places I've been and places I wouldn't mind going one day. One moment and you're in Grimsby and then the next you're in Gothenburg.You can zoom in, zoom out and see the world from every possible angle. It blows my mind every single time. Here's to you, inventor of Google Maps!
OK, so that's it, my favourite things, 2010. I realise that there is a real lack of books on that list, but it's too difficult with books. I would need to do a completely different blog just about books if I wanted to include novels. Maybe I will in the New Year. I hope you enjoyed my list of favourite things.
Have a very Merry Christmas and a brand spanking lovely New Year!!
Love you all. 2011 is going to be an exciting one. My novel, This Thirtysomething Life: A Diary will be released, which is going to be super exciting and my second child is on the way!! Plus, I will be updating the blog with even more wonderful articles and stories. As they say in France, Tout Le Monde!
Blog soon x
