Everyone, I present to you probably one of my best songs yet, Uplift. It came as a surprise to me not only in the way of mixing quality, but also the time taken. It was started in 25 August and finished on 1 September -- something I didn't imagine would happen with this piece.

This piece was heavily, heavily inspired by Enya. You might be able to hear it.

Now, some of you may be curious as to what percussion I recorded. While I had a lot at my disposal, I ultimately settled with two percussion instruments (well, one of them is an "instrument," note the quotation marks) -- an 8" bodhrán and a CD spindle and paintbrush. Yes, the lower of the two higher sounds is the bodhrán -- the higher clicking sounds are the CD spindle and paintbrush!

So. Here it is, it's here for everyone to listen. Hope you all enjoy it.

In other news, I did tell some of you about Ride the Lights in Blackpool this year.

Unfortunately, we didn't make Ride the Lights. Things cropped up (read: massive panic attacks which prevented me from participating), and Seán wouldn't leave my side.

However, I thought I'd share the costume Seán and I cobbled together that he would dress up in for the purposes of Ride the Lights.

Yes, Seán was going to dress up as a priest.

He had nearly all the articles he needed to dress up as one, except the biretta (that hat he's wearing) and the clerical collar. The cassock -- that robe-looking thing -- and the cincture -- which looks like this belt thing -- and the book of the Liturgy of the Hours, are actual belongings of Seán's. (He hasn't done it recently, but he's an altar server, which explains why he has a cassock and cincture of his own. Also, he was en route to the priesthood... until he met me.)

So, he fashioned a collar out of cardboard, and then we spent all day making that biretta. We fashioned it out of cardboard, and black fabric. Instead of sewing it, we glued it on. There was a template on how birettas were made, and we followed it, cut out some A4 card, glued the fabric on until it was fully covered, and put a black pom up top. And he was going to be riding a 1930s Raleigh Roadster. Basically, the intent was to dress up like G.K. Chesterton's Father Brown, and while it's not an accurate representation of Father Brown, we hope it's a decent homage.

And even if we don't make Ride the Lights, we can always ride en masse at Halloween... he's biding his time and readying the costume for that time. As for what I'm wearing? We'll see... *cheeky grin*