#mark mckenny

[butyoutoldmeiwasfunny]

[thelfcway]

Premier League Predictions:

I made these predictions just before the league started, and 2 gameweeks in, maybe things are starting to look a little different.

You'd have to say so far, that Chelsea and City are looking the stronger teams, but in football, anything can happen. With Giroud looking like he'll be out for some time, Arsenal already have a big problem to deal with. Wenger has been playing Alexis out of position, Wilshere hasn't looked great, and Ramsey has had to save them twice. If he gets injured again, they're screwed. In saying that, I still think they're in with a chance at the title. We'll just have to see how it all goes. United have started worse than I thought, Spurs have looked good, Everton have played well but slipped up at the back. Whatever happens, it's great to have the Premier League back. Top goalscorer? Definitely Diego Costa.

[thelfcway]

The Signing of Balotelli

All in all, I'm happy with the signing of Mario Balotelli. We needed a goalscorer, a big name, someone with experience. And we got all that for as little as £16m. If Borini goes, even cheaper. My one concern with the signing, is with Mario's loyalty. This is a player that has been very outspoken about wanting to come and play again in the Premier League, and I wonder if he was bothered what team it was for. Arsenal were reportedly interested, I just hope he actually picked us over them. I also mention loyalty, due to the fact that he once played for Inter, then switched to AC. That's obviously the Serie A equivalent to joining Everton from Liverpool, Chelsea from Arsenal etc. It's not the nicest thing for a player to do, but then I guess you can't hold grudges forever. There's been a lot of talk about us replacing one nutter with another. I honestly don't think Mario is that bad... The newspapers love a good story. I've watched plenty of interviews, and in each one he seems rather quiet. I think we created this personality for him, and he couldn't give a damn whether we think it's true or not. He once said that he doesn't celebrate his goals, because that's what he's paid to do. That's the kind of guy Mario is. If we also look at his previous managers, we've had 2 big hotheads. Mourinho is all about Jose, nothing else will do. And Mancini was just as bad. Rodgers has an ego, but it's a private one, and I believe he'll work on Mario in the same way he did Raheem. I can see this signing being a success. Mario will score goals. He knows this is his last major chance, and unlike Carroll, he won't waste it. I think we have ourselves a player. If Balotelli was ever misunderstood, he's now at a place that will understand him and give him the support he needs. He has a family, and we'll show him exactly what that means. And if it doesn't work out? Well, we'll move on, like we've done time and time again. Liverpool isn't about one player, it's a team. Welcome Mario.

[markmckenny]

Lester Nygaard. #tpitr #fargo

[markmckenny]

Detective Rust Cohle. Switched back to photoshop (nightmare) to try out some different brushes.

[markmckenny]

20% off all prints at: http://etsy.com/shop/markmckenny until the end of the World Cup! Enjoy! #tpitr

[markmckenny]

The final 6 drawings of the A-Z of Liverpool F.C.

I'd been uploading them onto my twitter and Instagram accounts each day (@mgmckenny) and thought I'd share them here as well. Feel free to use them as your twitter icons etc :)

All 26 are now also available as a print, visit my Etsy store for more information: http://etsy.com/shop/markmckenny

[mgmckenny]

Day Out: Victoria Baths

On Sunday, me and Nat went to Victoria Baths, an old public baths that has been renovated and opened again to the public. Of course it's no longer a baths (although that is the long term ambition) the pools are now drained, the offices emptied, the changing rooms abandoned. It's been emptied, and was unused since 1993. But now with some funding, and the help of volunteers, it's been kept alive.

The building reminded me a lot of another baths that I grew up near to. Lister Drive. Again, this is no longer a public baths. That stopped a LONG time ago. Maybe my parents once swam there, but all the time I was growing up it was a fisheries. A place selling fish, hamsters, mice, rabbits, snakes, birds, and all the things needed to keep them alive. It was actually a great place, and still functions today. But I couldn't help but look at Victoria Baths, and think of what could have been.

I'm forgetting the main reason we went to Victoria. They were holding a Vintage fair, and inside the middle pool (there were three originally, 1 for 1st class males, another 2nd class, and a third for girls) there were a number of stalls set up selling a variety of vintage items. Furniture, hats, that sort of thing. It was a good turn out. To the left of this was a cafe ran by elderly folks and volunteers (I presumed), selling home made pies, cakes and coffee.

The overall vibe of the place was a success. I loved it (bit of an old man). Everybody was just having a good time, and enjoying being indoors doing something nice. But there was one thing towards the back of the first pool that brought my mood down slightly, and made me write this thing today.

Amongst a number of medals and wooden trophies (like we had in my old school, now burned down and demolished) was a small piece of paper explaining that in the winter, because people generally didn't swim then, they would board up the pools, and cover them with dance halls. Here they would invite big acts to perform and people would turn up to dance and have a good time. This struck me as something beautiful, something that is missing from Modern Britain.

We don't do anything like this now. Nothing for 'the people', the ones who make this country what it is. And why is that? I don't know. What are we missing? A sense of pride? Identity? Belonging? It's a real shame.

Here's are some pictures of then and now:

And one of my old baths, the fisheries on Lister Drive Liverpool: