hipporaphs & kangerillas!

'In with the lemurs' at Whipsnade Zoo wasn't exactly what we expected but this level of meditation can't be interupted with a cuddle!
However....end of the day and the zookeeper out of sight...!

Baby elephant - 10 weeks old!

See that pile of leaves? The one with the eyes...

brum

A very pleasant stay in Birmingham.

Particularly pleased with the four poster bed and three course meal.

Town Mouse in the Grotte de Glace.

The organ at Notre Dame des Neiges. A symbol that started an interesting discussion.

oh yeah, that.

Suppose I should blog about the new job...whilst interspersing my account with pictures of what is really on my mind.

(vin chaud)

So I'm now a manager and as such, probably a proper grown up but I'm still not convinced. I have my own branch which is tres cool and 3 days into the job I'm still enjoying it!

It's a cute little shop with about 2.3 members of staff there at any one time and occassionally less but it has a fun atmosphere and lots of things for me to get my teeth into.

First day at the new branch was stock take day. Deep joy!

The results came in today with a surprising **company sensitive information ** of stock and an encouraging **company sensitive information** in stock level. So I'm sure that puts you in the picture.

try not to hate me

but this holiday rocked out!

At the bottom of Chemin du patre.
La Sarenne.

At the bottom of Signal de l'Homme.

Another of my favourite snaps. Me having a quick rest on the Sarenne run - longest black in europe. Watch this space for more!

nous sommes de retour

One of the best for starters.

4 days...

...until this

" The domain covers an area of 10,000 hectares which includes 248 km of linked pistes extending over an altitude range of 2,230m. The top station, Pic Blanc ( 3330m ) offers breathtaking views of the Alps including Mont Blanc, Mont Cervin and the Meije and on a clear day a fifth of France can be seen from this point.
The Alpe d'Huez slogan is L'ile au Soleil or Island of the Sun and this reputation is well deserved with almost all slopes south facing. The national meteorological office further confirms this with average figures of 300 sunshine days a year consisting of up to 7 1/2 per day in December and 11 per day in April. "

My Hero

TONY HARRISON is going to be reading in Cambridge to coincide with a newly released collection of his poems. I am beside myself with excitement. AND what's more, a rep promised me a finished copy today. You can keep your celebs and sports stars, TH rocks my world.

ecriture

Today I bought some splendid 'Fold and Mail Stationery'.

I am already the proud owner of Emily Fold and Mail

Something I have only ever seen at 311.

Pick your design and I will write you a hippy trippy peaceful message or a downright grouchy letter with attitude.

Kasper

The Enigma of Kasper Hauser.

Werner Herzog.

http://film.guardian.co.uk/Century_Of_Films/Story/0,,96504,00.html

A most extraordinary film I watched last night. Real brain food about socialisation and a host of moral questions.

3 cherries!

got it. 6 month secondment. pretty chuffed.

in other news i got to share the surprising delights of Isla Negra with the borrower and her computer generated boyfriend and Alimal this evening. Uncanny resemblance on the golf course.

to answer your "?", big dog, i'm liking ghostwritten. some parts are really gripping, others are very readable but not earth shattering. it will be interesting to see how the threads join up. i can see why you mixed it up with murakami. lots of similarities. well one or two maybe. if you need a prompt think of the cultural revolution, a ghost girl in a flat and a freaky terrorist religious group trying to purge the world!

who says?

Who said having teenagers was relentless hassle? I'm sat on my computer while mini-me is downstairs dipping peppered chicken breasts into beaten egg and coating with an interesting mix of crushed crackers and parmesan ready for dinner. Yeah, it's really tough being me this evening. Ahh, back to my reader.

freaky monday

What a weird day...had an interview this afternoon for a job I only applied for on Friday, after I had found out I had the interview. I was mediocre. No question. Official result Wednesday.

Actually spent this evening doing something I really wanted to do rather than prep for interview at short notice or speed read kids books for review. So I sat down with take out pizza, Chianti, my hound and 'Jimmy Corrigan. The world's smartest kid.' Finished 2/4 of them.

gourmet-a-go-go

...and last night he made Paprika Pork which I have to say was amazing. Really sizzling and yummy. He decided to sprinkle sage into the rice. Damnit if it wasn't delicious!

the uncommon cold

damned if i can't taste my red wine properly with this awful cold.

Got home tonight and mini-me was planning dinner. he made me bacon pasta with spinach and pine nuts. he seems to have this uncanny knack of throwing something else in that just works. it was meant to have lemon but we didn't have any so he chucked in a couple of cap fulls of red wine vinegar - it went great with the bacon and gave the dish a bit of extra kick that the lemon would have. hmm.....if the animation doesn't work out for him ...!

i provided pudding and the evening's entertainment. a small chocolate easter egg each and an hour in front of planet earth!

i've already bought ingredients for the dinner he's making tomorrow! he laid the table with wine for me tonight so i'm looking forward to getting back from my late shift already :)

snow patrol

MIDWINTER IN MIDSUMMER >

< NO BATHING

< STARLING

ICE CAP >

35

Friends, wine, chocolate, lights, jokes.....

...not a bad way to see in middle age.

Coming in May

Moths by Karl Manders.

Well worth picking up. I finished it in the small hours. I need to write a review for it so will post here later.

Am in the depths of another 10 or so books to review for work. Kids fiction. Currently on 'Skulduggery Pleasant' which is fun for a 10 or 11 year old.

what do you say?

"Excuse me, do you sell those things that you stick on other things?"

12

Every night at midnight nothing happens and yet i still seem to wait up for it...?

hospital visit

visited the world's best sister in hospital today. i am so fed up of her having to struggle with ill health. it's not fair. she deserves so much better than this.

wine b(l)uff

Running out of adjectives to describe the reds in my wine journal without sounding pompous. One day I'm going to write out a description of something as having rich plum flavours and a lingering taste of lemon then turn the bottle over and 'sweet mother of pearl, i've got it word for word!'

Casino Royale

There's probably not a lot i can say about this film that hasn't already been said.
Enjoyed the twist of male/female roles and the psychological background to 007.

Was surprised at how much I enjoyed this film considering how much I've hated
James Bond in the past. Was it his vulnerability and possibility of failure or was
it the big blue eyes. I don't know!

red-crested pochard

Saw one of these as I ran.

half marathon? ha ha ha. oh my aching sides.

Ran 3.1 miles with stops. Rubbish.

tuesday's with me

writer's group yesterday, which i think ought to be given a literary name like lawrence or arnold or something, was really good but i so hadn't put in the effort beforehand. all that has changed. sat for my whole lunch time making plot notes. would having lots of stuff going on be the same as having a plot? not convinced!

K left MK today :( will miss her good humour and bad language.

writers group

nicely nicely how are you yes i'm fine oh let me tell you about oh is that right how interesting no it's awful not me you your work do it again lots of red ink good good good BAD no no do that again call yourself a writer ha more drinks oh yes thank you and you oh yes please ha ha ha rocket on a monorail genius so anyway it's great i'm only jealous oh yes you've finished well we didn't like you anyway glug glug nice more oh ok so where did they find the head in the end the arm was where slurp where are the pictures on the wall no in my head oh i see more geeky than linux don't get me started on my unix joke so she was picking up her own teeth how about chips don'[t tempt me yes a portion please walk taxi key lock dog computer bed.

puzzle riddle

When is a complete puzzle only half done?

When it's reversible and you have to break it up to start on the other side.

A really cool Christmas present from 2006.

Saturday with impeccable hosts

i've been terrorising a ball pool all morning and you want me to stay awake as well??








you don't go to monkey puzzle and come back feeling sociable, ok??

Mmm, cup of tea, box of chocolates and a film.

Just me and Mrs Nesbit then!

who brought him up?

Having a conversation down in Shoeburyness today with a friend who has started teaching. Deep into the conversation on how film adaptations can be used to make Shakesperian texts more accessible, mini-me turns to me and says " Is that what dumbing down is?"

Shall we pretend you didn't just say that?

"I want to see Miss Potter"
"What's that about"
"Beatrix Potter"
"Oh yes, of course"
"Apparantly the animals come to life and talk to her"
"But that didn't actually happen did it?"

he dunnit

Went to a murder mystery party this evening with 'small group'. Dazzler stole the show with his Yorkshire accent and double entendres all evening! But an honourable mention to Marcus with his petulant hand flapping at the possibility of getting blood on his hands. Few could beat the dance moves of Reeda or the moving spectacle of resident mad woman spiralling back down into psychosis. Emmanuel's chest hair, waxed moustache and penchant for red dresses won't be forgotten in a hurry. Good to see a hair spray revival from the costume department and find out that the host was guilty of more than just smoking a snowman's pipe!

New Year, Old Me

Back to my pre-Christmas running today. Ran 3.2 miles / 5K round Willen Lakes with Jem. It felt like twice that after a season of record breaking choccie stuffing and I still have heart burn but we did it!!!

The bad news is that; http://www.justgiving.com/marathonjoy but it's still a substantial goal to go for.

And now for an evening in with mini-me watching my Christmas Present; http://www.jvw.nl/images/Planet%20Earth%20DVD.jpg !

Happy New Year Y'All.

R1

Guess who my first customer of the day was today?

Jo Wiley.

Pretty cool huh?

I kept looking at her thinking, blimey you look like Jo Wiley but what are the chances of her coming into my shop to buy a couple of books for her kids. Afterwards I made the ridiculous suggestion to my colleague who replied 'oh yeah, it probably was, she comes in all the time, she only lives up the road.' I was pleased I'd just smiled pleasantly and had her respond with a smile I can now interpret as 'uh huh, you clocked me but you're not going hysterical which is nice.' I was even more pleased I hadn't taken the 'oh wow, you really look like Jo Wiley, do you get that much? do you? do you? it's uncanny. of course you're not Jo Wiley that would be ridiculous but wow, you look like her' line.

Let's ask Santa if this train goes to Luton.

The internet is an amazing place - now you can pretty much find out anything you want to. The problem is...what do I want to know?

You tube. What a great toy. But what do I want to see?

Tonight I typed in the name of my home town and clicked on a film called 'Santa Express'. It had me laughing out loud. You might want to give it a go.

Christmas dinner as made by me;

whole roast leg of lamb - never done that before. Stuck it on as low as possible overnight and it just fell apart beautifully at lunch time. Roasted potatoes, parsnips, squash and sweet potatoes. Steamed baby carrots and mangetout. I've got to say, it was superb. And I made a pecan pie for the first time ever. (Jamie Oliver) Wasn't bad!

I now have the first entry in my new wine journal. ('New' referring to the journal!) Tupungato. Cab Sauv Malbec. I can strongly recommend. I rate it high 2. Now I'm drinking Tesco Finest Californian Cab Sauv. I rate it medium 1.

(ratings in ascending order; low 1, 2, 3, medium 1, 2, 3, high 1, 2, 3)


I know nothing about wine apart from that if it's red, I'll drink it. I'm going to try and be a little bit more informed by next Christmas.

Even as he's holding up the toilet roll he's wondering why!

"You probably don't want to say that when you see her!"

If no-one sees the camera, is it really there?

They were NOT called Golden Nuggets.

I think you'll find they were.

(repeat)

Only sugary lolly pops could turn these cherubs into......

c R a Z i E s

you shall go to the ball!

all change?

Today I spent a good quarter of an hour looking through all the hair dyes in Tesco deciding what to go for. Eventually I chose something that looked considerably different from my hair colour but natural enough not to make roots look like my head is cracking open when they grow through. I followed the instructions to the last letter.

The result?

Absolutely nothing. I can't see any difference, nor can mini-me.

What mighty conquests rise from trivial things

Have been thinking big thoughts recently. It starts with me having a huge blank canvas and a paint brush in my hand......I add me and mini me in the middle......

All suggestions for a future picture welcome.

lost

"I can't find W"

"Sorry?"

"The W's. I can't find them."

Whose line?

Forgot just how much I loved 'Whose line is it anyway?' when it was on. Have only just dipped my foot into you tube.

Love Ryan.

Have just started reading this and I think it should be very good. More teen fiction - as I'm too busy at work to keep going with anything that needs a great deal of concentration at the moment - the blurb goes;

It was just supposed to be a routine exam. But when the doctors snake the fiber-optic tube down Robert Smith's throat, what they discover doesn't make medical sense. Plastic casings. Silver filaments. Moving metal parts. In his naked, anesthetized state on the operating table, Robert hears the surgeons' shocked comments: "What the hell is that?" "It's me," Robert thinks, "and I've got to get out of here." Armed with a stolen automatic and the videotape of his strange organs, he manages to escape, and to embark on an orphan's violent odyssey to find out exactly who--exactly what--he is.

Quite the weekend

2 days off in a row deserves blogging!

made an apple, blackcurrant and redcurrant crumble, 3 dozen mince pies & 20-25 parmesan cheese rounds for savoury snacking.

Had the work Christmas do which was fun. Lots of fabulous chinese food to eat, hugs from people I least expected but most welcome and lots of agreeable red wine. Plenty to laugh about and a most successful secret santa.

I gave a picture type of thing I had drawn that went down really well. I received a pack of 4 Reebok running socks that I am well chuffed about. I reckon the poor quality socks I've been using before might be partly to blame for the sore legs I've had all week that has prevented me from running. We shall see.

KA had its Carol Service this evening which was packed out and went really well. Always very creative and ambient.

And now we head into the mythical and legendary WEEK 34, the place where dreams come true and nightmares flourish!