Reading Roars!

There’s a plethora of online social networking sites out there, all catering for different audiences, such as teens (Piczo, Bebo) and professionals (LinkedIn). I was invited by a contact to join Facebook, a site originally developed for American college kids. So, do I dig it?

During the registration process, I was asked if I wanted to join a regional network. So I tried Reading. No UK Reading. Berkshire? There was “West Berkshire” which offered the following networks: Portsmouth, West Midlands and Leicester. Like hello?!

There was also “East Berkshire”, but all I got was “East Berkshire, New York” and “East Berkshire, Vermont”. Central or Mid Berkshire weren’t available, so I gave “South Oxfordshire” a go, resulting in London, Leicester and West Midlands options.

Verifying my account was even worse, as I was asked to confirm my mobile phone number:

After you enter your mobile phone, we will send you a text message with a verification code.

No thanks. I will be sticking to Live Spaces and MySpace instead.

Following the success of Kronika Reading, a Serbo Croat version of the Reading Chronicle is to be launched in 2007, according to editor Simon Jones:

The team here have achieved a lot with the re-launch and broken new ground with the launch of our Polish edition (look out for our next one in Serbo Croat early in the new year). And we plan to hit the ground running in 2007. If its half as busy then I’m sure it will be a good one…

I’m guessing that this newspaper will be called Hronika Reading. Am I right? My Serbo Croat is a bit iffy…

PR whiz, local resident and fellow “coffee freak” Drew Benvie recommended that I check out new coffeeshop Workhouse Coffee on Oxford Road.  In his words: 

it serves what has to be the best coffee I have ever tasted. The owner, Greg, is a massive coffee connoisseur and really knows his stuff (I also love coffee but don’t know my stuff unfortunately).

Early this afternoon I made the short trek from the town centre to see what it was like.  My first impression was positive.  Simple, airy and clutter-free, it seemed a far cry from the in-your-face chains within the IDR.

The Reading Evening Post and several press clippings rested on a table on the left-hand side.  The counter was on the right, manned by a confident barista who looked older than your average Starbucks server.  A menu on the wall displayed basic, rather than sophisticated, options such as Espresso, Cortado (a Spanish concept, this is an espresso with a dash of milk) and even Coffee if you want, well, a bog standard cup of coffee.  

Already Workhouse Coffee reminded me strongly of a coffeeshop I once visited in Rome’s historical centre, a coffeeshop that was so incredibly simple in style yet offered damn good coffee (even if I did ask for the wrong one, as my Italian was rather shambolic). 

But what was the coffee like?  I ordered an espresso, an inexpensive £0.60, and what looked like a home-made mincepie, which was £2.40.  The espresso was nice and nutty.  The mincepie, with a dark brown texture, was fruity, wholesome and went superbly with the caffeine shot. 

The barista/owner, after I thanked him, told me that Workhouse Coffee opened about three months previously and that he was aiming for incremental growth.  In terms of marketing activities, there were none.  Instead, people are discovering their coffee through word of mouth. 

So there you have it: if you like coffee in a relaxing environment with few distractions, I suggest you give Workhouse Coffee a try! 

A report released earlier in the month by market research company EuroDirect revealed that Reading is the worst town in the UK for single men to find a female partner:

When it comes to the greatest proportion of single men, Reading tops the stakes with the largest disparity between single males living alone to women, with over 10,000 more single males than females.

So what do these single males say about the situation? One told The Independent:

We have to take some of the blame, but the girls in Reading are hard to approach. Every weekend you’re searching for somewhere else to go. Girls up North, or even in London, are much friendlier. There’s nothing more the men of Reading can do.

The Evening Post reported one 23 year old single man as saying (and this is hilarious):

Let’s be honest, most of the girls in Reading are stinking. All my friends go to London for a night out because they are much nicer there.

Girls in Reading seem to think they are it but they really aren’t. I was out in Birmingham the other night and they were so much more polite and friendly.

Girls in Reading are not like that – they all just go out and get too wasted.

To be fair though, a lot of guys in Reading are knobs too.

It has turned into a real chav town. It didn’t use to be like that but now we’re always looking for somewhere else to go out.

Now, I have been a young, single male in Reading and I have dated in the town. I have both succeeded and failed. I’m not going to reveal any more than that, but I am willing to share my top five learnings (writing from personal experience):

1. Don’t get wasted. Stay coherent
2. Talk! Whatever happened to the art of conversation?
3. Focus on what the other person is saying (i.e. listen)
4. Don’t be too earnest. Take it easy
5. Don’t be put off by failure. Failure happens!

I’d also recommend avoiding those places where it is difficult to hold a conversation (noisy clubs, for example). They encourage dancing and drunkenness, and leave little room for talking. Lastly, you could always try internet dating - try my friend’s site, for example, DateReading. Good luck!

We’re fast approaching the end of 2006 (the year just zipped by, didn’t it) and Reading FC have had a magnificent 12 months.  Just for fun, BBC Radio Berkshire’s Joel Hufford has compiled a quiz so that you can test your knowledge of the Royals’ year.  There are 10 questions in total (I scored a dismal 6 out of 10).  Get 10 out of 10 and you can yourself a true fan!

“Mourinho at a loss as Reading expose Chelsea’s fragility” (The Guardian)

“Chelsea squandered two priceless Premiership points against Reading” (BBC)

“Regal Reading show Chelsea value of class” (The Scotsman)

Reading have achieved something stupendous, drawing away to Mourinho’s giants, Chelsea, at the Bridge, a feat that not even mighty Barcelona could accomplish this season.

It was never going to be an easy game. The difference in wealth between both clubs was poignantly demonstrated by the record signings made last summer. Shevchenko moved from Italian superclub Milan to the Blues in a £30 million move. Seol Ki-Hyeon joined Reading from un-giants Wolves in a transfer costing a whopping…£1.5 million.

Furthermore, the Petr Cech collision in Reading’s home game against Chelsea resulted in anger among some Chelsea supporters. Stephen Hunt, disgustingly, received death threats. Mourinho stupidly attacked the town’s ambulance service.

Despite the gulf in spending (and therefore talent), and the air of bitterness, the Royals contended well. Blues marksman Didier Drogba, who unlike his Ukranian counterpart has had a cracking season, was first to score, from a header after 38 minutes. Reading, however, equalised through Leroy Lita on 67 minutes before Drogba headed in another a few minutes later. The Royals’ fighting spirit persisted and the team was rewarded with an own goal courtesy of videolar hizli kuryeMichael Essien, bringing the game level.

With a point apiece, it is Reading rather than Chelsea, who are the more content side. They have complicated Chelsea’s bid for the title (thank you!) and won themselves even more credit with a strong, battling display. Having a team of Seols rather than Shevas is clearly no bad thing.

Reading Roars! (that would be me) would like to wish you all a nice Christmas and a happy, and healthy, New Year (e-cards, by the way, to this address: mbrady@readingroars.com - thank you!).

Meet Rob, 25 years of age and living on Reading’s streets.  When I left him, he had one pound in his pocket and needed another seven to get himself a bed for Christmas.

Trouble is, Rob, whose parents died seven years ago, leaving him in this dire situation, needs to collect this amount before 11pm tonight, and be present with the cash in Caversham, on the other side of town.

Shoppers walk by carrying their Christmas purchases, both hands full.  They see Rob, they hear him, but they don’t stop to help.  And so Rob is stuck.  Seemingly stuck without a bed this Christmas.  Stuck without his sleeping bag too, for that was stolen.

Rob isn’t even in the town centre, where he would undoubtedly have more luck.  He explained to me that, if caught by the police, he’d face up to two years imprisonment for begging. This wasn’t fair, he said, explaining that, unlike the Big Issue sellers within the IDR boundary, he was clean and off drugs.

“I’m not getting anywhere”, Rob muttered despondently, adding that he was considering theft as a last resort.  I urged him to try simple tactics - putting out a card, moving to the bus stop, changing his appeal to say “It’s cold.  It’s Christmas.  I need a bed”, even to beg in the town centre instead.  After all, no one would arrest him now, the night before Christmas Eve?  He shook his head.

Four hours to go.  Will videolar hizli kuryeRob achieve his Christmas miracle?

Christmas wouldn’t be complete without a whiff somewhere of frankincense. The mystical substance was burning outside the Global Cafe on London Street early this afternoon to draw in customers. However, rather than mince pies or mulled wine, there was something rather surprising in store - an Ethiopian coffee ceremony.

Coffee is one of the things I look forward to most in life (sad, but true). A book I once read about the history of the drink revealed that it all started in east Africa many, many years ago when a goat, after eating some coffee beans, became a little, well, animated. The bean was then incorporated into religious ceremonies in Ethiopia.

So when I saw that there was coffee burning done in the ancient Ethiopian way at the Global Cafe, I was intrigued.

It all looked rather simple. There were the beans roasting over a flame, a tall pot, a tray with white cups and a bowl of popcorn. Presiding over all this was a rather cheerful African lady.

“You look shocked” the woman smiled as I stared at the set-up. “I’m making some coffee”.

I took a seat. I was offered some popcorn and told that it traditionally formed part of the ceremony. Frankincense, coffee and popcorn - what a mix, I thought.

The lady passed the roasted beans around each table, so that customers could appreciate the intoxicating aroma of the fresh coffee, before pouring the black liquid into the cups. No milk or sugar were added. It was pure and simple. The real deal. Coffee as it was prepared millenia ago, before it evolved into Banana Caramel Frappuccino.

I was warned of its strength. No matter, I said, I like my coffee strong and bitter.

I took a sip. It tasted unusual. It was less dense or rich than what I expected. After two or three sips, however, and my eyes widened a little, with my heart upping a gear. This was good stuff.

Amazingly, the coffee was free, but I didn’t stick about for another cup. Fired up, I bounded out of the Global Cafe like a delirious goat, ready to brave the Christmas crowds.

I’m not a cricket follower. I don’t know the rules and know little about the teams. The psychology of the sport, like any other, does interest me, however, and its personalities, such as Shane Warne and Freddie Flintoff, are exciting (even if the game sometimes isn’t).

Cricket featured heavily in the news recently, of course, because of The Ashes and England’s defeat by Australia. Which is presumably why the Reading Evening Post is giving away two copies of Match of My Life - The Ashes by Rob Wightman and Sam Pilger.

For a chance of winning, all you have to do answer a cricket-related question that won’t leave you stumped (if you do get it wrong, then Shane on you). Full details can be found in the videolar hizli kuryeReading Evening Post Ashes 2006-07 section.