all quat on the western front

not much happened today.

not quat what we expected

Tonight I attended a lecture on Van Gogh. It was really well done. Masses of pictures and photos of the landscapes he painted. A very vibrant (Slade School trained) guy enthusing about his hero. He even reenacted a moment from Van Gogh's life by letting off a gunshot and falling to the floor in the darkness of a slide show. Unexpected!

diddly sQUAT

Today I bought 5 books for 3 quid. Then I left them at work so I can't pore over them this evening and introduce them to their nice, new, alphabetic homes.

From memory:

* Three plays by Strindberg. An nice old 1950's copy.
* Plays of the 1930's. Bought because there it has an adaptation of 'Love on the Dole'.
* Moll Flanders. Should have read this a long time ago.
* Something Russian I'd never heard of before but couldn't be left at 50p.
* Shirley by Charlotte Bronte. You can keep Austen and all her clubs for my money.

Best-smellers all of them. Magic.

quatastrophe

Cooked a fantastic pork roast tonight. Scranchied up the rind and had a host of little side dishes to go with it. Cheesy leek, thyme butter roasted red onions, roast parsnips etc. Rich gravy. It was magnificent.

Half way through the dinner I remembered something. My guest is a vegetarian.

Stolen idea

1. Grab the nearest book.
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the text of the sentence in your journal along with these instructions.
5. Don’t search around and look for the “coolest” book you can find. Do what’s actually next to you.

---------------------------------

I'm not sure about point 5 but it's still an interesting diversion. Here's what I came up with: "If all physical systems are computers, and if computers can perfectly mimic all physical systems, the what distinguishes the real world from a simulation?"

020305 black ramps

Please have a look at my friends band site. They have 4 songs up there you can listen to.

280205 damning with faint praise

Tonight I drove over to Milton Keynes and saw 'Rebecca' starring Nigel Havers.

I enjoy the whole theatre experience so it wasn't a wasted evening.

270205

Last night I went to see 'A Dream Play' by Strindberg at the National. It was really very good. I say Strindberg, it was actually an adaptation by Caryl Churchill. Afterwards I met up with my brilliant Strindberg expert friend who spouted forth righteous indignation at her shoddy treatment of his hero. I felt like I ought to be taking notes. We somehow managed to drown our sorrows later at The Ivy and then on through a stroll/stagger round Soho. Finally collapsed home in bed at 3.

Cybarites are us.

240205

Strindberg wrote more than 70 plays as well as novels, short-stories and studies of Swedish history.


how lazy am i?

230205

i'm going to write a book. it's going to be called "25 in a 40". it's going to be all about the mindset of the people who think that 40 mph means 40 mph is punishable by death and therefore stick at a safe 25. it will have one character. i will punish them. they will crash and burn over and over again until they are a charred little matchstick person in a car resembling a crushed milk bottle top.

yup. i'm onto a winner.

230205

i stay up til half past midnight doing brain quizzes and personality tests and are you male or female tests on the bbc science web page and what do i learn?

well firstly that i'm a lot like who i thought i was (newsflash) and seconly that i am incredibly cold yet have an indefatigable interest in wasting my time.

210205

Why buy diet books when you could better spend the money on cake?

>>sigh<<

the diet started today. i did brilliantly. muesli for breakfast. a tin of very skinny soup, fun-free crisps and a similarly cheerless mousse for lunch. then i got home and was close to shaking with hunger. mmm, three big slabs of cheese on homemade bread and a packet of crisps.

200205

nice blog. nog.

190205

Right at the bottom of my blog I have put in a chat room. As far as I can tell you just click on it, make up a name and start talking. Who knows, it might even work.

160205

hurrah for competitions, especially the ones i win and get immodest
amounts of book vouchers. mmm.

2 x jamie oliver
2 x douglas coupland
1 x strindberg
1 x levy
1 x dickens

so far.

150205

unbelieveably true:

yesterday a girl came in and bought a valentine's card. the design
on the front was a lipstick kiss. she grinned all the way through
the transaction and i thought she was hitting on my colleague...
until she said; 'it's for next door's parrot.' i thought i was going to
wet myself. she added; 'i'm going to cross out the lips and draw
a beak.'

not a word of a lie. fact stranger than fiction etc etc

100205

8 books in 2 weeks? why did i agree? why did i say, and mind you give me the teenage novels and not those piddly little kiddy ones that i could devour in an afternoon?

because i am a fool.

i am a fool.
i am a fool.

060205

what a time in history to have a welsh colleague.

010205

i give you all fair warning. it's my birthday next monday. should
you wish to shower me with gifts, i'm giving you fair warning so you can
start making your purchases.

diamonds are always a good fall back.

310105

Boots meal deal? Brilliant!