glacier

There will be more of these to follow but i can't wait to show you this one. It just got more and more stunning the longer we stayed.

midnight sun

Here's a picture from a trip I have just come back from in Finland. This was taken at two thirty in the morning, many miles above the arctic circle on the island of Spitsbergen, Svalbard. We went on a split site visit of Norway, starting with several days in Oslo. Svalbard was by far the most exciting part of the trip as I hope my entries will show.


This may also a 2:30 am snap (there's really no telling between them!) showing where we stayed during our four days. Svalbard lies approximately 700 miles south of the north pole and is fabulously rich in wildlife. We had some incredible trips out that really made this one of the best trips of my life.



The scenery was stunning and we were really fortunate with weather. It was pretty nippy at times as you'd expect but we had a lot of clear skies and of course the sun never went down!

Edinburrow

Taking a week's holiday with my travel bud Margaret from The States. We've had a blast so far; the zoo, portrait gallery, st andrews, fishing villages of fife, oban, castles and lochs, cinema, stand up comedy lunch time and a pile of other stuff i can't remember.

All good stuff though....now just checking the temperatures in Svalbard for my holiday later in the month!

Two working days left .... new job starting September 1 .... house nearly complete .... mini-me finished exams ....

Abington Pigots

Spent a fab afternoon with Borrower and Kid A in their new home and pub. Loving the 'banqueting hall' loft and hospitable kitchen table. Shall I bring the sellotape next time?!!

back online!!!

Back online again after the house fire. Now working off a swish laptop loaned to me by mole. team points heading his way.

Have had a fab weekend in London.

Friday night we went to the Royal Albert Hall to see the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra play. Tres cool. It was called Filmharmonica and they played loads of scores from films. Wore posh frock and crippling heels bought last week for the annual conference. Lots of fun.

Saturday night we went to the National to see Fram - the new play by my hero Tony Harrison. It was pure brain food. Wonderful stuff. Amazing set, very clever script all in rhyming couplets, witty, thought-provoking and complex. It had so much packed in there - debate on Darwinianism, poetry as consolation, art v pragmatism, political and historical commentary. It was a stage drama but also included film, ballet and music. One particular speech blew me away where a woman (playing an actress) is defending art as a means of making the world better informed about a famine that is going on, her critics say art cannot produce results in the way action can. She then starts to play out a starving woman who speaks to the audience about her pain and self-loathing about having turned cannibal from hunger. It was played with pathos and brutality. She used her body in an amazing way to look weak and starved. It was electrifying. We talked for a long while afterwards about what the play was saying.

This afternoon we had a picnic in Crystal Palace park and sun bathing.

Another few bits added...

nothing spectacular but i quite enjoyed the couple of bugs!

swoosh, scoff, snooze

Another birthday.

Had an hour's recreational skiing at Xscape, MK. Dinner with friends this evening and an early night will sandwich together the day after a lie in this morning.

Was woken at 7 with candles, E and mini-me singing happy birthday and then showering me with dozens of balloons and glitter from party poppers! I got a creme brulee torch that i've been wanting for ages and lots of cards and other gifts. Did some more painting, watched an episode of one of my heroes, David Attenborough, on that thingy on the bbc website and generally had a busy-lazy time of it.

If it wasn't for that whole aging thing I could almost wish I didn't have to wait another year!

some detail work begins

Loving my day off :)

Just a few lines

A second coat for the circles and a few lines which begin a new pattern.

progress

Making progress on the monstrosity! The colours in the picture aren't altogether true. The red is not so crimson and the yellow is actually a really attractive gold.

PILFERING...

SANDING...

REGRETTING..?

Weeks ago I noticed a shop with very similar POS to this and went in to ask them if I could have it after their promo was over. I was told I couldn't but on the way back to my car this evening I found that another shop had chucked out one of these amazing Klimt-esque trees by the wheelie bins. It took a bit of negotiating into the bug but I brought it home and have been working on it all this evening. Of course I've noticed a big bit I've missed with the paint now that I've put the photo up! It's pretty tall. I'm on a step in that first picture and it's still towering over my head. I'm going to use gold, red and white on the black to create some wacky designs then mount it on the wall in my hallway. The black paint is like tar (!) and I have it all over my hands now. It's going to take hours to dry but it'll give me something to do in all that copious spare time I never have!

anagram

Thanks to the unspeakably fabulous Emdrum, I can now use my computer and furnish kq's blog with pictures again. Huzzah!!

Today's picture is a bit of doodlin' artwork on a folder that will tell you what I am investigating this year as a new project if you can decode the two word anagram. Last year, as you may well remember, my new year's resolution was to drink more wine. In fact, I learnt a great deal about wine and command an admirable yet wholly fatuous thrawl over my drinking friends who regularly defer to me when choosing wine. Wisest is she who knows she knows nothing and all that but it's true that as soon as you start to learn about something you realise how little you know about anything.

So here's to 2008 & a new project.

the comeback post

Having been approached in public on Saturday night with the words; 'I've got something to say to you. ..... Kumquat', I have decided to put fingers to keys again and drag myself away from the delights of facebook.

Went to a kid's literary quiz this afternoon for work - manning a bookstall - but worked my way onto the authors table and joined in the quiz with them. We beat the kids. Oh yes, get us. We can beat children at quizzes about books. Actually there were kids there getting answers to really tough questions way before us - and in fact, getting the answers that we were never going to get! An amazing calibre of kids there working their way to the national finals. Lots of fun and always a pleasure to meet them thar proper people wot get published; Celia Rees, Gillian Cross, Mark Robson, Val Tyler & Linda Newberry.

Monty has run away from home 3 times this week. Me nerves are ajangle. Last time he ate (one presumes) through a leash to then scale the 7 foot walls of my back garden. First I knew of that particular escapade was the police ringing me while I was out with a bunch of fabsters at the weekend.

The noble rotters gathered on Saturday night for Alimal's birthday. It was ace :) In the afternoon, five of us played our usual 3 par 9 hole golf course which was a blast. Then in the evening, lots more of us got together chez Charlie. I particularly enjoyed getting to chat to people I 'know' but don't get to have proper conversations with that often.

Friday night I went to FNM (Friday Night Meeting) for the first time. It's a free meal for the homeless of Bedford and I went to help out where I could. Such an interesting evening. Very moving but lots of fun too. I suspect it won't be my last visit. Mini-me is doing a sponsored sleep out with a stack of other people in December to raise money for the Kings Arms Project who run FNM, a night shelter, a half way house and a stack of other services for the homeless. I will no doubt be getting back to you about that in the future. Watch this space!

Black Jack with Serge and Christophe...

French croupiers, lots of free red wine and

hitting the sack at half three in the morning.

Not a bad Christmas conference!

me real woman

me create compost!

...

blog probs.

heh

Giggled inappropriately like a girl last night as an *unnamed for legal reasons friend impersonated *unnamed for legal reasons person in a shockingly inaccurate and cruel portrayal of said person as a lascivious old man/woman.

hey, big brother read my blog 'cover to cover' once you know so i have to be cautious!

Just had to share...

A friend of mine, whilst at college, was asked by an American tourist where
she might find the baythroom. My friend replied, helpfully, that in England,
people called this the lavatory unless they were actually looking to have a full
body wash. The tourist came back with: do you hayve to be so paytronizing. My
friend replied: I think you'll find it's pronounced patronizing.

A great comment I found on the mighty palimp and it made me roar!!!

dearly beloved...

well this certainly adds a different dimension to the question about whether you want to be buried or cremated..!

http://www.atlantismemorialreef.com/home.htm

I'd like to be squished down into a brick please and used to build an underwater recreation of Atlantis. Now why on earth did it take that long to think up such an idea?

4

Today is Monty's birthday :)