You can tell it's still Christmas at least in my head because I have a large tub of Twiglets on my desk. It was bought at discount from the local newsagent as he tries to shift stock. The tub has the short Twiglets in and I just never understand why the short ones taste so much better than the longer ones.
At home we're three-quarters of the way through Killing II, having watched Killing III before. The Boy bought it for The Cat's Mother as a Christmas present, and she is enthralled. I am too, although once we'd finished III I'd looked up II online as I had assumed we wouldn't be seeing any more. So I sort of know the outcome, although I can't remember the details. The Cat's Mother isn't pleased with me for that.
I bought a new electric toothbrush recently to replace the one that had kept my teeth shiny and polished for the last five years...it was looking ropey and had begun to give off a strange odour...and nobody wants to put something smelly in their mouth. The new one is keeping me amused for hours at a time. It comes with a little display to let me know when I've cleaned properly....it uses a smiley face to tell me. And what I've discovered is that if I do more than the regulation two minutes, the face randomly does different things...I might get a crooked smile, a wink, raised eyebrows or any combination. Yep the child in me can't resist.
And this is part of my ride to work...it's the bit where I cycle along the canal. It still amazes me that you can be in such a wonderful place even in central London. I love this journey...it makes ths start of the day fantastic. Libby a GoPro is a video camera that sits on my helmet...
Saturday, 12 January 2013
Thursday, 10 January 2013
That's what sons are for
Did I mention that just before Christmas The Cat's Mother was stopped, fined and endorsed for talking on her mobile phone whilst driving. She was quite (very) indignant about this, feeling that the boys in blue would be better off spending their time catching criminals. That'll be the people who are breaking the law. And therein lay a difficult dilemma. On the one hand I wanted to sympathise, on the other I've told her until I'm horse that it's people like her that cause the death of people like me (cyclists). In the end I took the sensible option and bought her a hands free bluetooth thingy that clips onto the sun visor in the car. Obviously this worked well for me, because it solved all my Christmas present dilemmas ...should I buy her a new washing machine (extravagant), a new food blender (she rarely bakes) or a new set of dusters (someone comes in to do most of that). Someone had suggested I bought her a computer, but when I Googled it I came up with this and to be honest we have one of those already. I should mention she loves her present and has not been stopped by the police since, though that may all change when she forgets to re-charge the battery.
Three punctures in two (cycle) days. I must be riding my bike in winter.
On the way back home on Tuesday I got a puncture. Not a problem as I carry a spare, although changing an inner tube on the edge of Stratford was a little worrying. I'd forgotten though that I'm riding winter tyres made of a kevlar weave. Tough as old boots. So what should take five minutes was heading towards half an hour of blood sweat and tears. And all in vain. In forcing the tyre back on I'd pinched the new tube, creating a second puncture...an unrepairable one. So I threw the bike over my shoulder and headed to Stratford station, soon to be accompanied by another rider who had suffered the same fate. For 'safety reasons' we weren't allowed on the tube, so had to hail a cab willing and able to take a bike and a rider to the next station. Arriving in Loughton some little while later, I then hitched the bike over my shoulder for the twenty minute hike up hill to home. The Boy kindly offered to help put, yet another, inner tube on...the whole exercise took less than ten minutes in the warmth of the house.
But this morning just as I arrived at the office I could feel the tell tale signs of a flat tyre again as every ripple and bump in the road was transmitted to my nether regions. £46 quid later, the bike shop had fitted new tyre, new tube and offered gallons of sympathy. They probably wondered why I was cycling when there was still frost on the ground.
Despite the punctures, I'm delighted to have braved the roads three times this week after such a lean year last year...and to celebrate I wore a Go-Pro all the way. So tomorrow I'll upload that...but no I don't expect anyone to sit through an hour and a quarter of me bouncing along the canal tow-paths.
Three punctures in two (cycle) days. I must be riding my bike in winter.
On the way back home on Tuesday I got a puncture. Not a problem as I carry a spare, although changing an inner tube on the edge of Stratford was a little worrying. I'd forgotten though that I'm riding winter tyres made of a kevlar weave. Tough as old boots. So what should take five minutes was heading towards half an hour of blood sweat and tears. And all in vain. In forcing the tyre back on I'd pinched the new tube, creating a second puncture...an unrepairable one. So I threw the bike over my shoulder and headed to Stratford station, soon to be accompanied by another rider who had suffered the same fate. For 'safety reasons' we weren't allowed on the tube, so had to hail a cab willing and able to take a bike and a rider to the next station. Arriving in Loughton some little while later, I then hitched the bike over my shoulder for the twenty minute hike up hill to home. The Boy kindly offered to help put, yet another, inner tube on...the whole exercise took less than ten minutes in the warmth of the house.
But this morning just as I arrived at the office I could feel the tell tale signs of a flat tyre again as every ripple and bump in the road was transmitted to my nether regions. £46 quid later, the bike shop had fitted new tyre, new tube and offered gallons of sympathy. They probably wondered why I was cycling when there was still frost on the ground.
Despite the punctures, I'm delighted to have braved the roads three times this week after such a lean year last year...and to celebrate I wore a Go-Pro all the way. So tomorrow I'll upload that...but no I don't expect anyone to sit through an hour and a quarter of me bouncing along the canal tow-paths.
Monday, 7 January 2013
12 days of Christmas...or there abouts
It's got to be a good start to the year when on the first day back at the office, the weather is calm enough that I can cycle the 18 miles in, after a year when the rain prevented me most days and will power the others. Hopefully my enthusiasm will remain for the 18 miles home this evening.
As we lay in bed last night The Cat's Mother listed the things we did over Christmas. No wonder I've been looking forward to coming back to work for a rest:
22nd December - Christmas Party at a friend's. Notable mainly because we made The Cat drive us there and back as she had passed her test the week before. I can tell you making a teenager come and pick you up at half past one in the morning is sheer joy.
23rd - Matthew Bourne's Sleeping Beauty. Yep wonderful. There's somethig about dance that really fascinates me. This was a truly sumptuous production that we both loved. Go and see it if you can.
24th - Panto! No Christmas is complete without a Dame. This year we forewent the local amateur production, and travelled to Hackney to see Dick Whittington. The hoards of kids we took with us loved it. We enjoyed indulging them
25th - Round to The Muffins for a change. Normally it's at ours. Not for us is the traditional lunch stuffing your face full of turkey and then falling asleep whilst the Queen warbles on. No organised games and performances from noon through to midnight. It's as Christmas Day should be. Brilliant.
26th - Sixteen round to ours for lunch and a repeat performance of the day before. Beginning to flag a bit.
27th - Off to see my bruvver. We met at Jamie Oliver's parents' restaurant/pub. Lovely to see him and his girlfriend...we chatted for ages. Having sampled their food, we wondered where Jamie got his talent from.
28th - Off to Brighton. Not much to report, other than the DVD decided against working over Christmas. That'll mean I'll be able to maintain my record of buying anew DVD player every year. Who said anything about built-in obsolescence?
29th - Lost and Found Orchestra at The Dome. If you liked Stomp, you'll love this...an orchestra made out of junk, and sounding spectacular. Remarkable how moving a funnel attached to a long hose can sound.
30th - Enough of all this lying around doing nothing...it was time to do some learning. At Jamie Oliver's Recipease we learnt how to cook a Thai prawn curry. Twelve of us gathered round whilst the chef demonstrated and we then followed. The Queen (ours, not everyone's) was there to help us along, and we all turned out something that was quite passable. In fact delicious...we gobbled it down as quickly as we could.
31st - Up had recovered from a bug to join us in Brighton, and The Muffins had arrived the night before. We watched Puss in Boots whilst we waited for the storm to blow over...it didn't but the film was fabulous We should have gone ice skating in the grounds of The Dome, but the wind and rain put paid to that. The evening would have been a washout, had the weather not suddenly improved allowing us to head to the beach to let off fireworks. Legal? I've no idea.
1st - back to Essex. Relax.
2nd - off to London to meet some friends, who've recently moved back from Berlin, for lunch. We wanted to go to The Rain Room at The Barbican, but the two hour wait put us off. It's on until 3rd March
3rd - The Boy and I got a day of rest, whilst The Cats Mother and Cat headed off to a show with some friends. Evidently it was dreadful. And The Cat's Mother ate something she shouldn't.
4th - Relax. Except The Cat's Mother's Father got taken into hospital as a bug was hitting him harder than it should. So don't relax, don't panic. Just worry. He's on the mend now. Relief.
5th - 21st Birthday party - a friend's daughter. Realise just how old you're getting when you stand in some god forsaken bar with loud thumping music which you've never heard before stops you chatting to anyone. When you get home in the early hours of the morning begin to appreciate that once upon a time you would have thoroughly enjoyed it. And a small celebration as Brighton & Hove Albion knock Newcastle out of the Cup.
6th - Take the Christmas decs down. Did I ever mention how many The Cat's Mother puts up? We have more decorations than Selfridge's Christmas Department. Fortunately mostly done by the evening, so settle down to a lovely piece of beef and Series 2 of The Killing - a present from The Boy to The Cat's Mother. Nothing like blood, gore, murder and mayhem to end the season.
As we lay in bed last night The Cat's Mother listed the things we did over Christmas. No wonder I've been looking forward to coming back to work for a rest:
22nd December - Christmas Party at a friend's. Notable mainly because we made The Cat drive us there and back as she had passed her test the week before. I can tell you making a teenager come and pick you up at half past one in the morning is sheer joy.
23rd - Matthew Bourne's Sleeping Beauty. Yep wonderful. There's somethig about dance that really fascinates me. This was a truly sumptuous production that we both loved. Go and see it if you can.
24th - Panto! No Christmas is complete without a Dame. This year we forewent the local amateur production, and travelled to Hackney to see Dick Whittington. The hoards of kids we took with us loved it. We enjoyed indulging them
25th - Round to The Muffins for a change. Normally it's at ours. Not for us is the traditional lunch stuffing your face full of turkey and then falling asleep whilst the Queen warbles on. No organised games and performances from noon through to midnight. It's as Christmas Day should be. Brilliant.
26th - Sixteen round to ours for lunch and a repeat performance of the day before. Beginning to flag a bit.
27th - Off to see my bruvver. We met at Jamie Oliver's parents' restaurant/pub. Lovely to see him and his girlfriend...we chatted for ages. Having sampled their food, we wondered where Jamie got his talent from.
28th - Off to Brighton. Not much to report, other than the DVD decided against working over Christmas. That'll mean I'll be able to maintain my record of buying anew DVD player every year. Who said anything about built-in obsolescence?
29th - Lost and Found Orchestra at The Dome. If you liked Stomp, you'll love this...an orchestra made out of junk, and sounding spectacular. Remarkable how moving a funnel attached to a long hose can sound.
30th - Enough of all this lying around doing nothing...it was time to do some learning. At Jamie Oliver's Recipease we learnt how to cook a Thai prawn curry. Twelve of us gathered round whilst the chef demonstrated and we then followed. The Queen (ours, not everyone's) was there to help us along, and we all turned out something that was quite passable. In fact delicious...we gobbled it down as quickly as we could.
31st - Up had recovered from a bug to join us in Brighton, and The Muffins had arrived the night before. We watched Puss in Boots whilst we waited for the storm to blow over...it didn't but the film was fabulous We should have gone ice skating in the grounds of The Dome, but the wind and rain put paid to that. The evening would have been a washout, had the weather not suddenly improved allowing us to head to the beach to let off fireworks. Legal? I've no idea.
1st - back to Essex. Relax.
2nd - off to London to meet some friends, who've recently moved back from Berlin, for lunch. We wanted to go to The Rain Room at The Barbican, but the two hour wait put us off. It's on until 3rd March
3rd - The Boy and I got a day of rest, whilst The Cats Mother and Cat headed off to a show with some friends. Evidently it was dreadful. And The Cat's Mother ate something she shouldn't.
4th - Relax. Except The Cat's Mother's Father got taken into hospital as a bug was hitting him harder than it should. So don't relax, don't panic. Just worry. He's on the mend now. Relief.
5th - 21st Birthday party - a friend's daughter. Realise just how old you're getting when you stand in some god forsaken bar with loud thumping music which you've never heard before stops you chatting to anyone. When you get home in the early hours of the morning begin to appreciate that once upon a time you would have thoroughly enjoyed it. And a small celebration as Brighton & Hove Albion knock Newcastle out of the Cup.
6th - Take the Christmas decs down. Did I ever mention how many The Cat's Mother puts up? We have more decorations than Selfridge's Christmas Department. Fortunately mostly done by the evening, so settle down to a lovely piece of beef and Series 2 of The Killing - a present from The Boy to The Cat's Mother. Nothing like blood, gore, murder and mayhem to end the season.
Wednesday, 2 January 2013
A burnt thumb on the beach
I was beginning to think that I might never post a post again. It seems easy to stop, and not so easy to start again. I've not even been on the worldwide interweb to look at my favourite blog reads...so I have a lot of catching up to do. The trouble with not paying attention is that it's easy to miss the important things.
So it was just luck that I switched on the puter and the first thing I read was this, followed by this...I'm so pleased for them both.
It's a New Year...so a hearty Happy New Year to you all.
Inspite of not doing the day job for the last couple of weeks, my days have been full to over-bursting. I'm not sure what with...Christmas is that sort of time isn't it? We went to Panto...oh yes we did. We did big Christmas dinner at The Muffins, we did big Boxing Day lunch here..so we were well fed, watered and wined. Our celebrations naturally included a performance from every member of the family and friends. We did a harmony...a version of this:
Can you guess which was my part?
My singing talents are renowned here...my first year with The cat's Mother I gave an interesting rendition of 'A Partridge in a Pear tree'...no not the whole twelve days, just that line, which has become legendary. So it came as a surprise to find myself singing with the choir at Christmas Day Mass. I regard it as an achievement. My mother is probably in a state of shock having read that.
A few days in Brighton should have included skating on New Year's Eve in the shadows of the dome of Brighton Pavilion, but storm force winds and more rain than I can ever remember put paid to that. It didn't put paid to fireworks on the beach though as there was a sudden lull in the weather. A marginal panic as two very determined ladies walked towards us with our assumption we would be asked to stop, only in fact to be asked f we could set theirs off too. And that was where my thumb came a cropper...a slightly explosive fuse caught my thumb off guard, so that childhood rule of never playing with fireworks is very much front of mind as I walk around with a rather large, yellow blister on my left thumb...
So it was just luck that I switched on the puter and the first thing I read was this, followed by this...I'm so pleased for them both.
It's a New Year...so a hearty Happy New Year to you all.
Inspite of not doing the day job for the last couple of weeks, my days have been full to over-bursting. I'm not sure what with...Christmas is that sort of time isn't it? We went to Panto...oh yes we did. We did big Christmas dinner at The Muffins, we did big Boxing Day lunch here..so we were well fed, watered and wined. Our celebrations naturally included a performance from every member of the family and friends. We did a harmony...a version of this:
Can you guess which was my part?
My singing talents are renowned here...my first year with The cat's Mother I gave an interesting rendition of 'A Partridge in a Pear tree'...no not the whole twelve days, just that line, which has become legendary. So it came as a surprise to find myself singing with the choir at Christmas Day Mass. I regard it as an achievement. My mother is probably in a state of shock having read that.
A few days in Brighton should have included skating on New Year's Eve in the shadows of the dome of Brighton Pavilion, but storm force winds and more rain than I can ever remember put paid to that. It didn't put paid to fireworks on the beach though as there was a sudden lull in the weather. A marginal panic as two very determined ladies walked towards us with our assumption we would be asked to stop, only in fact to be asked f we could set theirs off too. And that was where my thumb came a cropper...a slightly explosive fuse caught my thumb off guard, so that childhood rule of never playing with fireworks is very much front of mind as I walk around with a rather large, yellow blister on my left thumb...
Sunday, 23 December 2012
Friday, 21 December 2012
Drumming on a bit
I had a grin wider than my face when we donned our 'Working Men and Women' outfits again yesterday. A big song and dance at St Pancras with us, the Pandemonium Drummers and even some Gamesmakers to raise funds for Mo Farrah's Foundation.
Thursday, 20 December 2012
Oh no...the office party...
But for me they're quite important. Because they mark the bank out as liars. When I've questioned why they have not been able to get hold of me, they've not been able to explain. In fact it's fair to say, they're just about the only organisation that can't get hold of me. And I know exactly who I've had missed calls from...mobile phones are wonderful data recorders.
So there are only two possible answers. Either the bank are ringing the wrong number which makes them stupid, because they have been given the right number plenty of times before, or they're lying and they have not tried to contact me and they're just trying to make me pay for their tele-marketing activity. What do you think?
So yesterday we were all sat around in the office with most of our clothes removed.
It was the day of the office party.
Actually the two events are unrelated. As these things do, the heating thermostat had chosen to break just before Christmas, with the result that we felt the heat. It wasn't until the temperature reached 26 degrees and sweat was dripping off our foreheads that we realised something was wrong. The only solution was to switch the whole thing off.
Fortunately, Christmas lunch started shortly afterwards, so we were able to make merry elsewhere....and problems like that can wait until the New Year before they get sorted
Wednesday, 19 December 2012
It's OK to hit a woman (I'm joking)
There is triumph in the house, which is better than a Triumph in the house (that's a car joke).
The Boy was awarded 'colours' for his part in The Edinburgh Fringe...an award well deserved. The Cat has passed her driving test...first time -she will be driving The Cat's Mother's Yaris, we don't own a Triumph.
Last night The Opening Ceremony was voted "Most inspiring TV moment ever"...which is a relief because it could have been Anna Friel's lesbian kiss in Brookside. Here's the article.
I'm reprising my performance in my costume at the OOC with some others including The Pandemonium Drummers tomorrow evening at St Pancras between 7 and 9 pm. If you're passing, do give us a wave...and chuck some money at us as we're raising money for the Mo Farah foundation and NUPAC for kids who have been abused.
Last night I met up with a group of fellow OOC performers - I hadn't been able to go to the event organised by our small group, so this one was full of people I hardly knew or recognised. That didn't stop us all having lots to say to each other...a common bond has been formed..I feel we will be able to do this far into the future...what a wonderful thing that is. I also discovered that one of the performers was the Falkland Islands Harbour Master, so I guess the Argentinians missed an invasion opportunity this summer.
The other night we were watching the BBC's Top 50 Olympic moments. It was full of wonderful moments, and some rather sorry commentary from celebs including Jimmy Carr. At the point the Beeb showed Nicola Adams who won Boxing Gold - the first woman to do so, Jimmy popped up and said it reminded him that "Sometimes it's OK to hit a woman". It's a sign of the times that he then paused and added..."I'm joking". Well obviously he was joking...it wouldn't have been funny if he was being serious. Should he have joked about it...well in my mind absolutely yes, because the joke itself reinforces that it's wrong to hit a woman (or anyone come to that). I laughed, as did The Cat's Mother. By unfortunate coincidence as I rolled over in my sleep last night, arms flailing around I managed to clobber The Cat's Mother in the face.
Complete accident. Honest. Not funny.
The Boy was awarded 'colours' for his part in The Edinburgh Fringe...an award well deserved. The Cat has passed her driving test...first time -she will be driving The Cat's Mother's Yaris, we don't own a Triumph.
Last night The Opening Ceremony was voted "Most inspiring TV moment ever"...which is a relief because it could have been Anna Friel's lesbian kiss in Brookside. Here's the article.
I'm reprising my performance in my costume at the OOC with some others including The Pandemonium Drummers tomorrow evening at St Pancras between 7 and 9 pm. If you're passing, do give us a wave...and chuck some money at us as we're raising money for the Mo Farah foundation and NUPAC for kids who have been abused.
Last night I met up with a group of fellow OOC performers - I hadn't been able to go to the event organised by our small group, so this one was full of people I hardly knew or recognised. That didn't stop us all having lots to say to each other...a common bond has been formed..I feel we will be able to do this far into the future...what a wonderful thing that is. I also discovered that one of the performers was the Falkland Islands Harbour Master, so I guess the Argentinians missed an invasion opportunity this summer.
The other night we were watching the BBC's Top 50 Olympic moments. It was full of wonderful moments, and some rather sorry commentary from celebs including Jimmy Carr. At the point the Beeb showed Nicola Adams who won Boxing Gold - the first woman to do so, Jimmy popped up and said it reminded him that "Sometimes it's OK to hit a woman". It's a sign of the times that he then paused and added..."I'm joking". Well obviously he was joking...it wouldn't have been funny if he was being serious. Should he have joked about it...well in my mind absolutely yes, because the joke itself reinforces that it's wrong to hit a woman (or anyone come to that). I laughed, as did The Cat's Mother. By unfortunate coincidence as I rolled over in my sleep last night, arms flailing around I managed to clobber The Cat's Mother in the face.
Complete accident. Honest. Not funny.
Tuesday, 18 December 2012
We should be told
Did anyone else see The Killing? Those Nordics are an odd bunch, but they do make great TV. I was so completely engrossed that the only time I noticed there were sub-titles was when I looked away from the screen and thought I'd gone deaf.
Apart from a few absurdities (it never does to think too much about these things) it was a great programme, and it's just a shame we've only discovered it in the third and final series.
I've been so all over the place that I've forgotten what I've written up, and what I haven't. If you like Steven Sondheim, go and see Merrily we roll along, which is both quite sad and poignant, and fun at the same time.
If you're employed, you may like to know that the notice that your employer has to give you for redundancy has been reduced from 90 to 45 days. According to the Government this is something that workers will be pleased about. Yep we all want to rush into being made unemployed when there are no jobs around.
I had to miss one of the Olympic get togethers because it clashed with the last ever School Carol Concert that we would attend. I love a good Carol Concert, and love to join in. Once before at a different one, my girlfriend got slapped round the head by a government minister for joining in...these days, that would be front page headlines, and the man would be in court, resigned and shamed. This time, UP told me off for joining in, but that may have been because I was doing 'yeehas' as the choir did what seemed to be a country and western version of the holly and the ivy...
...The Boy was in disgrace. It had been the rugby team dinner the night before, and true to tradition, 40 or so of them streaked up the high road. The Deputy Head Master was not amused, the rugby trip to Wales was cancelled, and all were threatened with losing their School Colours (award). And there we have it...a clash between tradition and the modern world. I think the school vastly over-reacted, I think the boys should have adapted their tradition so they streaked inside the school rather than outside. And I giggled behind my hands.
I woke up to a Facebook message this morning to find that one of my oldest friends had died...cancer got her. When I say she was one of my oldest friends, I had known her for thirty years, but hadn't spoken for a long time after a misunderstanding. Much as I had tried to reconnect with her, it hadn't happened, but she had remained one of the people that I had retained deep feelings for. So two lessons learned...be careful with your friendships for they are precious, and secondly we all grow up expecting that we and our friends will live to a ripe old age...and many won't. If only I'd been told both those things when I was young and full of fire.
Apart from a few absurdities (it never does to think too much about these things) it was a great programme, and it's just a shame we've only discovered it in the third and final series.
I've been so all over the place that I've forgotten what I've written up, and what I haven't. If you like Steven Sondheim, go and see Merrily we roll along, which is both quite sad and poignant, and fun at the same time.
If you're employed, you may like to know that the notice that your employer has to give you for redundancy has been reduced from 90 to 45 days. According to the Government this is something that workers will be pleased about. Yep we all want to rush into being made unemployed when there are no jobs around.
I had to miss one of the Olympic get togethers because it clashed with the last ever School Carol Concert that we would attend. I love a good Carol Concert, and love to join in. Once before at a different one, my girlfriend got slapped round the head by a government minister for joining in...these days, that would be front page headlines, and the man would be in court, resigned and shamed. This time, UP told me off for joining in, but that may have been because I was doing 'yeehas' as the choir did what seemed to be a country and western version of the holly and the ivy...
...The Boy was in disgrace. It had been the rugby team dinner the night before, and true to tradition, 40 or so of them streaked up the high road. The Deputy Head Master was not amused, the rugby trip to Wales was cancelled, and all were threatened with losing their School Colours (award). And there we have it...a clash between tradition and the modern world. I think the school vastly over-reacted, I think the boys should have adapted their tradition so they streaked inside the school rather than outside. And I giggled behind my hands.
I woke up to a Facebook message this morning to find that one of my oldest friends had died...cancer got her. When I say she was one of my oldest friends, I had known her for thirty years, but hadn't spoken for a long time after a misunderstanding. Much as I had tried to reconnect with her, it hadn't happened, but she had remained one of the people that I had retained deep feelings for. So two lessons learned...be careful with your friendships for they are precious, and secondly we all grow up expecting that we and our friends will live to a ripe old age...and many won't. If only I'd been told both those things when I was young and full of fire.
Time passing
A bit stretched for time at the moment...but there's always time for a good YouTube video...an oldie, but a goldie
Friday, 14 December 2012
It may be fake...but it will make you laugh...
After the usual marathon, the last of the Christmas cards will be posted this weekend...rumour has it that even Grandma in Cyprus will get hers on time.
In the meantime, this video of the Brighton Christmas lights made me laugh out loud...hope it brings cheer on you Friday afternoon
In the meantime, this video of the Brighton Christmas lights made me laugh out loud...hope it brings cheer on you Friday afternoon
Wednesday, 12 December 2012
It's war
I guess that like most people, my heart missed a beat when the news of Jacintha Saldanha came through last week. It was a stupid, mindless prank, but it is a sign of the times that these things goes on without a care or a worry for the 'victims'.
This last Sunday The Times' magazine carried its annual review of the year...which is odd given that there was still 8% of the year to go. One of my pleasures in years gone by was to sit and read these things in those timeless days between Christmas and the New Year. It seems so odd that now, newspapers just cannot wait....it would be wonderful is something amazing happened in the next three weeks which completely re-shapes our view of the year...perhaps that would teach the media to just wait a little.
One of the many highlights of the summer for me were the Wenlock and Mandeville sculptures which were displayed around London. They were decorated by artists, and it was fun following the trails around the city to find them...we managed a few, but were a long way from seeing them all. Since the Games finished , the sculptures have been sold off along with much other Olympics memorabilia here. The money is going to charity. We've hummed and haahed as I've really wanted to get one, but the prices some have gone for is unbelievable...some of that Olympic tickets madness still prevails. But on Friday there were still a few up for grabs, and the prices had remained low. There was one I really fancied....a red cycling Mandeville. Finger at the ready, I clicked away as the auction was coming to a close. The price rose rapidly, and in the heat of the moment, encouraged by The Cat's Mother, I kept bidding. Auction madness had set in. Then just as I thought I'd made a winning bid, the site told me the auction had closed and I'd been outbid. For a moment I was distraught. Then the adrenaline went and I realised what a lucky escape I'd had....but don't be surprised if I weaken should more become available...
Enough is enough. For months now I have battled with the squirrels stealing the birds food....in the warmer days, they gave up when we switched over to dried mealworms, presumably because they didn't like them, whilst the birds adore them. But now it's turned cold, there's no holding them back, they're like locusts. Putting vaseline on the pole doesn't seem to make a difference as they have found a way round that. Worse still, they have taken to chucking the big glass dome that covers the food off the pole...sooner or later it will smash. I've had enough and have started chucking heavy objects at them. Next thing I'll be buying a gun...and that from someone who can come over all Budhist about killing creatures.
And I've come to the very firm conclusion that Rog was right by suggesting it was a waxwing in this post
This last Sunday The Times' magazine carried its annual review of the year...which is odd given that there was still 8% of the year to go. One of my pleasures in years gone by was to sit and read these things in those timeless days between Christmas and the New Year. It seems so odd that now, newspapers just cannot wait....it would be wonderful is something amazing happened in the next three weeks which completely re-shapes our view of the year...perhaps that would teach the media to just wait a little.
One of the many highlights of the summer for me were the Wenlock and Mandeville sculptures which were displayed around London. They were decorated by artists, and it was fun following the trails around the city to find them...we managed a few, but were a long way from seeing them all. Since the Games finished , the sculptures have been sold off along with much other Olympics memorabilia here. The money is going to charity. We've hummed and haahed as I've really wanted to get one, but the prices some have gone for is unbelievable...some of that Olympic tickets madness still prevails. But on Friday there were still a few up for grabs, and the prices had remained low. There was one I really fancied....a red cycling Mandeville. Finger at the ready, I clicked away as the auction was coming to a close. The price rose rapidly, and in the heat of the moment, encouraged by The Cat's Mother, I kept bidding. Auction madness had set in. Then just as I thought I'd made a winning bid, the site told me the auction had closed and I'd been outbid. For a moment I was distraught. Then the adrenaline went and I realised what a lucky escape I'd had....but don't be surprised if I weaken should more become available...
Enough is enough. For months now I have battled with the squirrels stealing the birds food....in the warmer days, they gave up when we switched over to dried mealworms, presumably because they didn't like them, whilst the birds adore them. But now it's turned cold, there's no holding them back, they're like locusts. Putting vaseline on the pole doesn't seem to make a difference as they have found a way round that. Worse still, they have taken to chucking the big glass dome that covers the food off the pole...sooner or later it will smash. I've had enough and have started chucking heavy objects at them. Next thing I'll be buying a gun...and that from someone who can come over all Budhist about killing creatures.
And I've come to the very firm conclusion that Rog was right by suggesting it was a waxwing in this post
Tuesday, 11 December 2012
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