Hear how @HeartHCounties spoke to Miriam and helped to make her and Daniel's Christmas extra special

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Hear how Heart Home Counties make Christmas special for Miriam and Daniel

listen to ‘Hear how Heart Home Counties make Christmas special for Miriam and Daniel ’ on Audioboo

How do music journo's remember it all?

It's inevitable at this time of year there's the 'Best of' lists from the year from 'Remember when moments'  to best buys. I am weirdly fascinated with them, in some ways as a little test to how much I know about the year, also how much I've missed! 

I love the music lists though - Top 100 albums of 2013, Best singles - just the other day I was listening to the most blogged about artist on the radio. Although I did find myself feeling somewhat uncool all of a sudden.

Then I reminded myself when you work crazy hours like I do, the number of gigs you get to go to significantly decreases. Trying to build a business, whilst doing a breakfast radio show also has an impact on the time spent on listening new music - despite access to awesome sites like Spotify. 

Don't get me wrong, I make the lists I just don't get through them but I've decided that 2014 is the catch up year... I can't think about how much more music will come out just yet, but I will do it. I am always in awe of the music journalist. How they plough through the amount of tunes they do. How they remember the reference points and influences one artist has used in their latest album. How they keep up to date. The friends I have like this talk a different language, the ''muso' language. It's a deeper level, one of obsession, dedication and constant attention to detail. 

This weekend I went to Munich to see my sister and her family and my 13 year old niece Phoebe who is an avid Justin Bieber fan was filling me in on the latest figures of Beliebers there are in the world. 

I feel a bit bad as today I've sent her the news that apparently JB says he's retiring! But she did tell me how she'd been listening to Slipnot so I was safe in the knowledge her taste is broad - she did after all go to see Green Day, as her first gig when she was eight.

Phoebe told me that all her friends know she's mad about music as she's either listening to something on her ipod or singing something. We had a little chat about how she wasn't doing great at school apparently (having been grounded due to poor grades) and I was suggesting maybe she could set some of her 'boring' school stuff to music. I used to be frustrated that I couldn't remember a Geography case study at school but could remember all the words to EMF's Unbelievable and Suede's Animal Nitrate! 

I'm thinking of telling my niece to start a blog and see if I can relive my desires to be a 'muso' through her.. 

I think I have Facebook fatigue..

I've been feeling it for a while now, that I've fallen out of love with facebook. To be honest, the bond was never that strong, but recently I've been spending less and less time with it..

Randy Zuckerberg, whilst in the UK last week promoting her fascinating sounding book 'Dot Complicated' revealed her research had proved women would prefer to go without running water or spend a night in prison than have access to social media. 

I am not one of these women. Last night, in a what's app conversation with my older sister who lives in Germany,  I asked if she was looking forward to her forthcoming birthday on Monday 16th. To which she replied telling me 'Yes I am, and my party'.. to which I replied 'Oh when's your party'. She replied 'I invited you, Mum, Dad and Damian ( my brother ) on facebook weeks ago and none of you replied'. 

Now is it just me, or is it a bit crap to invite your FAMILY to something on facebook. Isn't that a bit too in personal? 

Don't get me wrong, facebook has its perks, remembering birthday's, anniversaries, catching up with people, having a nose at other people's lives. 

But I wonder whether all this stuff we hear about people lying about their weekends to make themselves look better on social media and how we're no longer making solid memories of things we're doing as we're too busy taking photos to upload rather than actually registering what we're doing - speaks volumes.  And today we hear facebook will is going to have a 'sympathise button'. Oh no - what are we letting ourselves in for!No longer will we even ask each other if we're OK, we'll just moan about it online.
         
I'm quite looking forward to a facebook detox over the festive period. But there is a part of me that wonders if I can honestly manage it!