Batlady

The local paper reported on our little volunteers picnic....

http://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/olympics-volunteers-defy-parks-bosses-to-hold-reunion-gig-8143795.html

Which is nice

I did have to explain to The Cat's Mother that the reason I was standing so close to this woman was that the battery for the light-bulb on her bowler hat was tucked into the small of her back, and as the lead wasn't very long if I wanted to have my photo taken with it on, getting close was the only option.  She believed me.  I think.

Some little while ago, the folks at Warners sent me a copy of a the new Logo Batman X-Box game.  Foolishly I assumed that Muffin Dad had an X-Box and the game could be despatched there for them to play and review.  Well despite him having every gadget under the sun, an X-Box was not one of them.  So it sat gathering dust in the corner - The Boy was too busy with his AS Levels to spare a moment during the summer, although he was eventually persuaded to pick it up just before the start of term.  He did quite enjoy it as a puzzle game...but as he tends to play death and destruction games that involve gallons of blood and loads of gore he wasn't really target market.  I am target market...especially as I had Lego Star Wars on my phone once and thoroughly enjoyed it, but I don't have the co-ordination to play anything on an X-Box.  So we were stuck again until The Muffins came to stay this weekend.  I pretty much hijacked them as they walked through the door, took them up to the games room and let them get on with it.  I lingered in the background with The Cat's Mother, but they seemed to know what to do and only as they progressed did they need help from The Boy.  They loved it...they are great Lego fans, but had never been introduced to Batman before, so we got introduced to some new names for the characters - Cat Lady and Bat Girl were just two.  They were totally absorbed as they went through various levels...and interestingly there was no fighting over the one control, as they helped each other rather than fought for control.  Elder Muffin declared it "Awesome", Younger Muffin simply asked Daddy Muffin to buy a copy the moment she saw him...and I may well be sneaking upstairs to have a go when everyone else's backs are turned.

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Clouds in a pond near our house

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Dockland Cranes

Well he's a jolly good Fellowes

Was I the only person in whole world to hear Hugh Bonneville as The Rt. Hon. Robert, Earl of Grantham in the first episode of series three of Downton Abbey (hoorah...Sundays haven't been the same for a long time!) say he didn't want to be remembered as "the one that dropped the torch and let the flame go out".

I hooted with laughter as this was such an obvious reference to his role in Twenty-Twelve, the fantastic mockumentary which ran on the Beeb in fits and starts in the run up to the Olympics this summer.  Hugh was Ian Fletcher, Head of Deliverance, and he and his team were sometimes just a bit too close to the reality...which makes you wonder whether they had someone on the inside.

Now it's all over we know that sustainability is about making difficult decisions, whilst legacy is about making the right decisions...so that's all right then



As for Downton...we're all glued to the sofa whilst it's on, and delighted the first episode promises so much as the evenings begin to draw in

Jobsworth

Would you like a job?

In the first six weeks you'll get to meet Pierce Brosnan, and you'll be invited to the performer and staff preview of the new James Bond  film Skyfall

You'll be paid a good salary

Your hours will be 9.30 to about 5.15...and totally flexible

It won't be too challenging...just enough to keep you on your toes...and will bring interesting new challenges every day. It will never be boring. Never

The people you will work with are lovely, friendly and embracing

It'll be in a growing business, so there are lots of positive vibes

You can stay at our house, with your own room and your own bathroom

We'll feed you, share our wine and beer with you.  It won't cost you a penny

We'll even pay for you to go to the theatre occasionally

We'll give you a lift down to the tube station every day, and pick you up in the evening

I mentioned a little while ago that Joe 90 had come to stay with us after I'd arranged for him to have an interview with the people who share my office.  Yesterday he resigned, causing mammoth upset amongst friends and family, and immense embarrassment to me.  For someone interested in films, it was a dream job; a golden opportunity and one that is never likely to be repeated.  Bafflement abounds.

Every one thinks it is folly of the first order.  It is.

I suspect he will look back in ten, twenty, thirty years time and realise how foolish this selfish act has been.

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Reflecting on St Paul's Cathedral

David, you still won't get my vote

...but it was a lovely touch and will be kept with my treasure trove of Olympics Memorabilia

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On reflection
...now the summer is over, although we're still enjoying warmth and sunshine, I though I would post some pictures on the theme of reflection

Sunset reflected

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I couldn't resist this...it's all Lego!

The Teddy Bear's picnic

We were fortunate it was sunny and warm, because whilst The Cat's Mother took The Muffins off to see Ice Age 4, I headed to Hyde Park for a grand reunion of Olympic Ceremonies volunteers.  What had started out as a small gathering, had more than 1200 acceptances by the beginning of the week; no wonder the Park authorities had got all sniffy and threatened dire legal action if it went ahead; no wonder we went ahead nonetheless...gathering near the Serpentine to catch up with dear friends, much missed after the end of the summer of sport.

We renamed it the Teddy Bear's Picnic.

We all had stories to swap and enjoy..it was so lovely to see everyone again...and to practice again our 'moves'.  Champagne, beer, wine and Pimms was drunk, but not to excess and we left the place as clean and tidy as when we arrived.

"If you went down to the Park today,
You were sure of a big surprise.
If you went down to the park today,
You'd better go in costume.
For every volunteer that ever there was
Did gather there for certain because
Today's the day the volunteers had their picnic.

Picnic time for Olympic volunteers;
The little volunteers were having a lovely time today.
Watch them dance to the drums
And see them picnic on the grass.
See them gaily gad about.
They love to play and shout,
They never have any cares.
At six o'clock they ran out of beer and wine
And took themselves off to a pub
Because they're merry little volunteers."

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A view of the cauldron you may not have seen before...all those gas pipes!

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Sometimes you really could get this close to the action...

Dream on baby...

Did any one else notice a couple of news paper reports in the last week:

One of the corgis that 'starred' in the James Bond section of the Olympics Opening Ceremony died, just as the Paralympics closed.  I wondered if fame had gone to his head and he had spent the days since he was watched by 4 billion people snorting cocaine and injecting heroin?  It does seem such a coincidence.

Another coincidence was that on the same day, 9th September, Jake Eberts died.  The name may mean nothing to you - but he was the executive producer of Chariots of Fire, the mesmerising film about the 1924 Olympics.  He was 71 and had been suffering from cancer.  Perhaps he had 'hung on' just to see one last Olympics...I would certainly like to think so.

Yesterday I saw a Facebook status from the daughter of one of my friends.  He has just be declared cancer free...I had no idea he had cancer, so am doubly delighted that he has won this battle....and I hope the war too.

Last weekend we were meeting some of my old friends for lunch, and because they're unfamiliar with London and had two kids in tow we booked a Pizza Express.  Simple, easy and nearly cheap.  Afterwards they were catching a train back to home in Devon, so Pizza Express had the added attraction of being quite quick.  The Cat's Mother and I arrived in good time, and ordered a bottle of white wine and got lost in our conversation, so didn't notice that time was ticking by until I received a text.  It was half an hour beyond the rendezvous time.  They too had arrived in good time at Pizza Express and were having a drink, where were we?  I won't say which of us had gone to the wrong one, although it wasn't us!  Fortunately they arrived shortly afterwards, and we had a very relaxing couple of hours catching up on old times - it was me that had played cupid and introduced them many, many years ago.

I've always had vivid dreams...when I was younger nightmares were an almost nightly occurrence...and even now my mind rarely seems to settle through the night.  I have some recurring dreams which would fill a large book.  Last night  I had a couple that were new and a bit of a puzzle to me as they both featured holes.

In the first I was having to put fish (large herring or mackerel or trout I think) down the waste disposal unit, the ones that didn't go down, got caught on the teeth and I had to use a metal rule to free them.  Someone was with me, but I've no idea who, and if you looked down the waste disposal unit, you could see that it simply emptied on to the concrete floor of a basement which had wooden crates or barrels dotted around the edge.  I remember being mildly concerned that the smell would become bad, but knew I had to do this; new fish occasionally appeared for me to feed into the unit.

In the second, I was in a wooden floored room with some undefined school friends.  We had already cut a hole in the floor and were going to  climb down through the hole to the room below on a rope.  We had to re-tie it to make it the right length, and then just to make sure I left the room we were in, went down some stairs to the room below to check it was the right length.  It was short, but for some reason that wasn't a problem.  And just as I realised that, a teacher came in and we were in trouble.  But not serious trouble...it was a mild and friendly rebuke and everyone was happy.

So in neither case were the dreams stress-related. In fact they were quite happy, quite fun...and rack my brain as I have all this morning I can't think of anything that would have put any of the dream elements in my head.

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At the top, brilliant views over London