Belly dancing news: had fabby time at the party last night. Most people were dressed up and looked fantastic, and a room full of women dancing and enjoying themselves makes for a wonderful atmosphere. My sis loved it, it was different to her expectations (she'd been expecting something more Carry on Cleo ... all together now "infamy, infamy ... "). If she lived near by, she'd be signing up for classes.

Undertones news: got the house to myself this afternoon. Sis went back home this morning, R's at a conference and O's gone to a party. Have been nursing very slight hangover (curse those alcopops - when you've shimmied up a thirst, orange WKD with a straw slips down all too quickly) by lying on the sofa reading the paper and listening to the Undertones (watch out for that link - great band, crap site - it plays music at you without asking first and is all frames grrr) at high volume.

I do love the Undertones. They were the first 'proper' band I was really into, and their second album was the first proper (ie not Top of The Pops) album I bought. Teenage Kicks has been played so much recently, I suppose it will always be the John Peel Song. I love that they did not re-release it as some kind of 'tribute'/cash-in. Pop stars with ethics, how old fashioned is that? I do like some of their new stuff, too. Shame that Feargal Sharkey went off and turned into an arse after he left the band (those deck-shoes-without-sandals photos in Smash Hits make me shudder just thinking about them. I know it as the 80s but there are limits), but the rest of them have kept on rocking and their new singer's not at all bad. We saw them live in Derry last year.

You know how some bands get all precious about their back catalogue and insist on doing their latest work in its entirety before grudgingly doing one of the old hits? The Undertones are not like that at all. They played all of everyone's faves and threw in a few of their new ones, too. It was a bit of shock seeing those (whisper it) old blokes up on stage, tho. If they've gone and aged in the past mumble mumble years, maybe that means I have too. Eeep.