I have just heard the terrible news that legendary Scottish political folk singer Alistair Hulett has died.

My last blog called on friends and supporters to send him messages of support which I know were a great comfort and support.

Here he is singing The Internationale. My thoughts are with Fatima and with Alistair’s many, many friends.

Many of you will know of Alistair Hulett, the renowned political singer and founding member of folk punk band Roaring Jack, and current member of The Malkies.

He has worked with people such as Billy Bragg, The Pogues, The Men They Couldn’t Hang, Roy Bailey, June Tabor and Dave Swarbrick.

I’ve just received this message from mutual friend Fatima that Alistair is severely unwell and would welcome your messages of support. Here is the message below:

You may not have heard the news, so I’d like to share with you that Alistair has been critically ill in hospital here in Glasgow for the last three weeks. He’s suffering from liver failure and is in urgent need of an organ transplant.

Until now he hasn’t wanted people to know but as the news has started to spread, already the messages of hope and encouragement are pouring in from friends and fans alike.

This is proving to be really beneficial for Alistair’s spirits and we know that if he is to beat this dreadful illness he needs to be in as positive a frame of mind as possible.

If you feel like sending him an email message, please write to alistair.hulett@gmail.com, as I have access to his account and can print out the emails for him.

If you prefer to send a card or letter, his address is:

Alistair Hulett
Ward 26a
Southern General Hospital
1345 Govan Road
Glasgow G51 4TF
Scotland

Thank you for your support, prayers, love and warm wishes.

Fatima

Below is Alistair singing The Red Clydesiders.

I want to share this story with you from Derek Sivers blog, the guy who created the company CD Baby.

He describes two friends at a party in a billionaire’s mansion. One says: “Wow! This guy has everything”.

The other replies: “Yeah, but I have something he’ll never have. Enough.”

We’re rarely trained to aim for enough. It’s always more, more, more.

But I’ve learned that the answer to most of life’s problems is to set limits.

I’m too stressed? Limit the amount of projects I work on at any one time.

I’m too distracted? Limit the amount of times I check my email per day.

The same goes for stuff. I hate stuff. I never used to. The idea of getting the latest this or the latest that would give me a giddy thrill.

But now I see it for the clutter it is.

My house used to be a bit of a tip. Why? Too much stuff. It was bloody everywhere. And 80% of it I never even used. The bulk of it is gone now. I’d recommend a similar de-cluttering exercise.

If you own stuff, it brings stresses. You worry someone will nick it for instance. Or you pay out to insure it in case it breaks. Or you have to find places to store it. Or it’s in your way so you can’t properly relax because there’s stuff everywhere. Or you have to clean it and maintain it.

Plus you have to work longer and stress harder in your job to get the money to buy the stuff in the first place.

So the more possessions, the more stresses. They make you miserable even though they promise that they’ll make you happy. It’s all a big fat lie.

Same for how we spend money. It’s often spent on crap. But think on this.

If you only spent money on something that genuinely made you happier or that you genuinely needed rather than spending it impulsively on any old thing, you’d spend less, so you’d need to earn less, so you’d be freer because you wouldn’t need to work so much, and you’d fear your boss less, and so you’d be stronger politically too because you’d take less shit.

And you’d have more time for yourself and your friends and the things that truly inspire you.

Living more simply and setting limits is the way forward. It’s not about sacrifice. It’s about knowing which point represents “enough.”

Remember the story of Goldilocks. She never wanted the big bowl or the big chair or the big bed. She was aiming for the one that was just right. The one that was enough.

It’s empowering. Give it a go.

Virgin Media’s most basic TV package is free. All channels on their TV M package are Free.

Or so the website advertising says. If you don’t believe me, see for yourself.

These are the channels you’d get on Freeview. That’s how free they are.

Except it’s not true. It’s a big fat heaving stinking sweaty Branson lie!

When I phoned to get it, I was told I had to pay over £4 a month for what everyone else gets for free.

I checked back today to make sure it wasn’t a mistake.

And lo and behold it was! The last Virgin rep had indeed been mistaken.

But don’t get too celebratory. Now it seems that to get the free channels I have to pay over £7 a month.

Why?!!! It’s FREE!!

Well, they gave me a loyalty discount last month because I’ve been with them for ages on their broadband service and I was going to switch to a cheaper option elsewhere.

So they slashed £15 off my bill. Just like that. (Phone them and tell them you’re an 02 customer planning to switch and they’ll do the same for you).

But now I want to add free TV channels to my line rental and broadband package. And they say it’ll cost me £7.05.

It’d be free for anyone else to be upgraded to free TV. But because I’m so loyal that I deserve a loyalty discount, it costs me £7 to get free TV.

The bizarre set of reasons used to try vainly to justify this ridiculous state of affairs was almost comical.

Switch to me, purple faced and exasperated, saying “BUT ITS FREE!!”

Them: “Yes Sir, we CLASS it as free, but in actual fact due to your loyalty discount it will cost £7.05 extra.”

So they class it as free. Yet it costs £7.05. Hands up if you can identify what brain-mashed logical paradigm they are in.

And then, just to add to what is already on the edge of satire, their website proudly boasts: “Once you become a customer we like to think of you as an individual.”

Fetch the spare trousers while I piss myself laughing.

Dreams. No, not the sleep kind.

I mean the kind of dream that result in my mate Mark going on a skydive on his 40th birthday.

I’m sat here with a book. It’s one of those how to change your life for the better malarkeys.

And it tells me that I need to write down my dreams, to imagine I can’t fail, and then write down what I’d have, or what I’d be doing in twelve months time.

Exciting huh!!!!

Well, actually no. It’s scary. Because I’m looking at the damn thing and I’m drawing a blank.

Okay I want to keep gigging and I want to record more music, but I don’t need to dream to make that happen. That’ll happen anyhow just by me being me.

But if I have time on my hands to do whatever I want, to fulfill all of my dreams, or to have whatever I want, what would that be?

Answer? Dunno. Picture me with my hands in my pockets and my shoulders mid shrug.

Is this common I wonder? Does everyone else reading this book start scribbling enthusiastically with a list so long that it needs a toilet roll to fit it all on? Or has everyone else lost the power to dream personal dreams too?

Well I think I need some help, and who better to help me than you.

I want some dream suggestions. You can nick em from the internet if you like. I don’t mind.

I’ll start the ball rolling with these that I nicked from a search on Google. But then it’s your turn, right?

# Attend at least one major sporting event. (Already done. Istanbul among many).

# Throw a huge party and invite every one of your friends. (hmmm both of them??)

# Swim with a dolphin.

# Skydive. (no chance!)

# Have your portrait painted.

# Learn to speak a foreign language and make sure you use it. (Moi?)

# Go skinny-dipping at midnight in the South of France. (Last time I partially disrobed in the South of France a policeman – yes a bloody policeman – ordered me to put my shirt back on).

# Watch the launch of the space shuttle. (Meh).

# Spend a whole day eating junk food without feeling guilty. (That’s called a weekday).

# Be an extra in a film.

# Tell someone the story of your life, sparing no details. (Surely not. That’s bordering on abuse!)

# Make love on a forest floor. (Eeek what about the crawlies!!)

# Make love on a train.

# Learn to rollerblade. (Ha! Maybe!! That might be hilarious).

# Own a room with a view. (A womb with a what?)

# Brew your own beer.

# Learn how to take a compliment. (Then teach the Woolly how to as well hehe).

# Buy a round-the-world air ticket and a rucksack, and run away. (Tempting!!!!!)

# Grow a beard and leave it for at least a month. (It’d take me six months to grow the beard).

# Give your mother a dozen red roses and tell her you love her. (Aww I do too).

# Be a member of the audience in a TV show.

# Put your name down to be a passenger on the first tourist shuttle to the moon.

# Send a message in a bottle.

# Ride a camel into the desert.

# Get to know your neighbors.