Thank goodness for my fellow bloggers is all I can say. I have yet again been saved from finding inspiration by pilfering a great post idea from sugar007. So here goes.
The reasoning goes that your average adult has only read 6 out of the top 100 books published.. by one publisher, by any publisher... it is unclear but in any case here's the deal.
1) Read through the list and mark the book's you've read in bold
2) Italicise any you started but didn't finish
3) Underline the ones you loved.
4) Publish the list on your blog. Then we can gang together and track down the people who've read 6 or fewer and force classic reads on them.
1. The Time Traveller’s Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
2. The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
3. The Handmaid’s Tale - Margaret Atwood
4. Lord of the Flies - William Golding
5. Life of Pi - Yann Martel
6. The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
7. The Color Purple - Alice Walker
8. Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
9. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
10. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
11. Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
12. Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell
13. His Dark Materials (trilogy) - Philip Pullman
14. Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
15. Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
16. The Hobbit - J.R.R. Tolkien
17. Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger
18. Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh
19. Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
20. Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
21. Chronicles of Narnia - C.S. Lewis
22. The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe – C.S. Lewis
23. Winnie the Pooh - A.A. Milne
24. Animal Farm - George Orwell
25. Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
26. Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
27. On The Road - Jack Kerouac
28. Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
29. Charlotte’s Web - E.B. White
30. Hamlet - William Shakespeare
31. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
32. Complete Works of Shakespeare
33. Ulysses - James Joyce
34. Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
35. Les Miserables - Victor Hugo
36. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
37. The Bible
38. The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald
39. War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy
40. Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
41. Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
42. The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
43. One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44. Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
45. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
46. Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
47. The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery
48. A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole
49. The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien
50. Harry Potter series - JK Rowling
51. Little Women - Louisa M. Alcott
52. Tess of the D’Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
53. Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
54. Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks
55. Middlemarch - George Eliot
56. Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell
57. Bleak House - Charles Dickens
58. The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame
59. David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
60. Emma - Jane Austen
61. Persuasion - Jane Austen
62. Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
63. Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
64. The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
65. A Prayer for Owen Meaney - John Irving
66. The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
67. Anne of Green Gables – L.M. Montgomery
68. Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy
69. Atonement - Ian McEwan
70. Dune - Frank Herbert
71. Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
72. A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
73. The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
74. A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
75. Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
76. The Secret History - Donna Tartt
77. The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
78. Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
79. Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
80. Bridget Jones’ Diary - Helen Fielding
81. Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie
82. Moby Dick - Herman Melville
83. Dracula - Bram Stoker
84. Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
85. The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
86. Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
87. Germinal - Emile Zola
88. Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray
89. Possession - A.S. Byatt
90. A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens
91. Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
92. The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
93. Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
94. A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
95. The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom
96. The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton
97. The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
98. Watership Down – Richard Adams
99. A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
100. The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
So there you have it. I for one have some way to go if I want to complete this particular top 100 list. I marked in green books I have but haven't started yet. Reading the list again, I cringe at a couple of them (well, at #64 actually). That's a few hours of my life I won't get back. And as for #54, that's a few hours of my life I saved from oblivion by not carrying on with it!
Of course, that's what I think. What do you think? Which ones have you read or abandoned part-way through?
Sunday, 27 July 2008
Sunday, 13 July 2008
I can't get no sleep....
Oh, if I could only get some sleep. Actually it's not *that* bad but I really could do with a decent 8-hour stretch.On the up side, not sleeping means I have plenty of time to read my book. Currently on the go is Michael Lewis's Liar's Poker. It is a Wall Street trader's memoir about the early to mid-80s, and in particular about the creation and massive expansion of the mortgage bond market. Even though it covers events from more than twenty years ago, it is eerily resonant in today's unpredictable times, in particular with the latest news from the US property markets. There is quite a lot (the technical bits) that I don't understand, but I'm getting enough to know that people on the money markets make money out of literally nothing. I see it as a bit like a dog chasing its tail. I can't really explain it, but so much of the finance industry is built around entirely intangible commodities. It has inspired to find out a bit more about how the whole crazy world of the markets works.
In other news:
Doggy has a flea. Or maybe even two. Damn and blast. She will have to be subjected to the flea-annihilating spray. Lucky doggy.
Yesterday was Marianne's birthday. Happy Birthday!
Last Wednesday was Bro's birthday. Happy Birthday!
Hubby bought a new suit.
Er, that's about all I have to say about that.
Saturday, 5 July 2008
All my pictures of you
As if I don't already spend enough time faffing about online. I've started a sort of a photoblog. Sort of. Ish. So I'm on the lookout for other people doing photoblogs so I can link to them. So that if people land on my photoblog and think it's boring, at least they can out-click to something more exciting.
Sunday, 22 June 2008
Tonight I did have myself a real good time
Series 11 of Top Gear got off to a fantastically funny start. Hope this is a good omen for the rest of the season. [GRIN].
There's something happening somewhere
Finally we may have a breakthrough in Hubby's quest for a new (and interesting and challenging) job. He has been offered a 3-month secondment in London to work on the roll-out of WiMax projects. More details will be forthcoming. Suffice to say we are all mightily pleased and hope that it will be a fulfilling experience for him, whatever it may lead to.
No more working for a week or two
Actually that's not strictly true, as it's back to the slave-caves tomorrow as it happens. Still rewind a fortnight and it fits just nicely.
So here I am back from two blissful weeks in the Ardèche. Sunshine, kayaking, hiking, local markets, swimming and general lounging around for two weeks sounds like a decent holiday in my book. And that's what we got.
I don't know where to start or what to tell. We hired a car, hoping for a Scenic as we've had in the past, but instead Avis fobbed us off with a cheap and nasty Citroën Picasso. Disclaimer: no offence intended to Citroën owners. Now, Citroën make cheap and nasty cars made by and for people who's brains are in the wrong way round. Still, ripping the piss out of the car did pass the time in Paris traffic jams.
We stopped overnight at Hubby's Dad's. C made an absolutely lovely meal all of local produce (asparagus grown on the neighbouring farm, boar shot by JP this winter, local cheese and salad from the garden, and strawberries again from the neighbouring farm). It doesn't get much better than that! C's cooking is always a delight, even her 'just everyday' meals. Even though we were still quite full from a big lunch, we all took second helpings. I guess holidays are no time for watching your weight anyway!!
The next morning we had a walk round the farm with JP, and he showed us a foxes' den. It must not have been in use as Doggy didn't seem to pick up a scent. As JP said, if any animals had been there recently, even our "townie" dog would have noticed. It was lovely to walk round the farm and chat with JP. We were even lucky enough to spot a couple of red deer near a copse of woods.
Temperature was cold and sky was grey on arrival, but it soon got better and we enjoyed visits to local markets, mini-hikes, kayaking, swimming and lazing around in the sun. We did have one day of rain, but we managed to make that go by fairly painlessly by simply faffing around so expertly it took us all morning to leave the gîte and all afternoon to have lunch. How about that.
I love going to the Ardèche. I love the ace weather, the walks (we went on walks for wimps, as it was too hot for us to attempt the interesting-looking mountains in the distance - maybe one year we'll conquer them in October when it's cool!!), the markets, the fresh local food, the scenery... It's all jolly fab. So if you're looking for a fairly active holiday in France, go to the Ardèche. I have even added the gîtes to my links list so you already have somewhere to stay!!
Anyway I wanted to tell you all about it in great detail but I can't recall it all/be bothered to structure it all. Pics on Flickr.
So here I am back from two blissful weeks in the Ardèche. Sunshine, kayaking, hiking, local markets, swimming and general lounging around for two weeks sounds like a decent holiday in my book. And that's what we got.
I don't know where to start or what to tell. We hired a car, hoping for a Scenic as we've had in the past, but instead Avis fobbed us off with a cheap and nasty Citroën Picasso. Disclaimer: no offence intended to Citroën owners. Now, Citroën make cheap and nasty cars made by and for people who's brains are in the wrong way round. Still, ripping the piss out of the car did pass the time in Paris traffic jams.
We stopped overnight at Hubby's Dad's. C made an absolutely lovely meal all of local produce (asparagus grown on the neighbouring farm, boar shot by JP this winter, local cheese and salad from the garden, and strawberries again from the neighbouring farm). It doesn't get much better than that! C's cooking is always a delight, even her 'just everyday' meals. Even though we were still quite full from a big lunch, we all took second helpings. I guess holidays are no time for watching your weight anyway!!
The next morning we had a walk round the farm with JP, and he showed us a foxes' den. It must not have been in use as Doggy didn't seem to pick up a scent. As JP said, if any animals had been there recently, even our "townie" dog would have noticed. It was lovely to walk round the farm and chat with JP. We were even lucky enough to spot a couple of red deer near a copse of woods.
Temperature was cold and sky was grey on arrival, but it soon got better and we enjoyed visits to local markets, mini-hikes, kayaking, swimming and lazing around in the sun. We did have one day of rain, but we managed to make that go by fairly painlessly by simply faffing around so expertly it took us all morning to leave the gîte and all afternoon to have lunch. How about that.
I love going to the Ardèche. I love the ace weather, the walks (we went on walks for wimps, as it was too hot for us to attempt the interesting-looking mountains in the distance - maybe one year we'll conquer them in October when it's cool!!), the markets, the fresh local food, the scenery... It's all jolly fab. So if you're looking for a fairly active holiday in France, go to the Ardèche. I have even added the gîtes to my links list so you already have somewhere to stay!!
Anyway I wanted to tell you all about it in great detail but I can't recall it all/be bothered to structure it all. Pics on Flickr.
And so they're back
No prizes for guessing where I'll be at 20:00 GMT+1 tonight. Slap bang in front of the telly, goggle-eyed in front of the new series of Top Gear! Perfect timing to keep away any end-of-holiday blues.
Wednesday, 11 June 2008
Relax, take it easy
Following Mika's orders to the letter down here in sunny Ardeche. Hubby and I are so definitively addicted to thei nterweb, we have sought out a McDonald's and have scoffed a muffin and pulled out the laptops. Read laptops, Hubby's using mine and I have swiped Mum's. QWERTY keyboard is requiring some acclimatisation after so many years in France!
Anyway, Hubby at least has an excuse. He has a phone interview Friday am, and needs to get the job spec off his email. I just can't stay away from the interweb!! Thought I'd grab the chance to say a big blog hello. Holidays are very much fun though no kayaking has been done thus far. Will tell all on my return.
Slobbery cyber kisses to you all. xx
Anyway, Hubby at least has an excuse. He has a phone interview Friday am, and needs to get the job spec off his email. I just can't stay away from the interweb!! Thought I'd grab the chance to say a big blog hello. Holidays are very much fun though no kayaking has been done thus far. Will tell all on my return.
Slobbery cyber kisses to you all. xx
Monday, 2 June 2008
Making excuses for idiocy
Oooooh I'm so mad! Today a horrible accident happened in the Alps. A coach full of school kids was struck on a level crossing by a train travelling at about 60 mph. Six (?) children were killed. It's awful.
Witnesses say the coach drove on to the level crossing after the lights started flashing and one of the barriers was already down. So the driver will hopefully be charged with manslaughter (I doubt it though). Because only a fool/suicidal maniac/psychopathic murderer drives onto a level crossing when the lights are flashing and the barrier is coming down.
But apparently the "journalists" on the payroll at France 2 think that the real cause of the accident is because of the adverse camber of the tracks, making it difficult for buses and HGVs to clear the crossing. And the fact that the crossing is there at all. The regional highways department should build a bridge, they say.
So, a tragic afternoon for six families and a harrowing time for many other parents until they knew their children were OK. And not because some complete fucking twat of a coach driver thought he could just nip through before the train arrived. But because there is a camber on the tracks. Great.
Why can't they take the opportunity to do a public service and remind the un-clever masses that when the lights are flashing and the barriers are coming down, the level crossing is the last place you want to be. Don't make excuses for the utterly negligent behaviour of that driver!!
Or are they afraid of being sued if they hint that maybe he might have made an error of judgement.
Ach! This post is just a jumble of incoherent indignation. I guess I'm annoyed that the first fifteen minutes of tonight's main news bulletin was spent sensationalising the apparent danger of level crossings, instead of focussing on the facts: man drove bus onto crossing, ignoring flashing lights and barrier, resulting in six deaths.
It's not helping with my level crossing phobia, either!
And I'm all angry at life because today I heard of the death of a colleague's 12-year old son, following a long battle with brain cancer. I know that he is better now, and he isn't suffering any longer. But it's still shit.
Witnesses say the coach drove on to the level crossing after the lights started flashing and one of the barriers was already down. So the driver will hopefully be charged with manslaughter (I doubt it though). Because only a fool/suicidal maniac/psychopathic murderer drives onto a level crossing when the lights are flashing and the barrier is coming down.
But apparently the "journalists" on the payroll at France 2 think that the real cause of the accident is because of the adverse camber of the tracks, making it difficult for buses and HGVs to clear the crossing. And the fact that the crossing is there at all. The regional highways department should build a bridge, they say.
So, a tragic afternoon for six families and a harrowing time for many other parents until they knew their children were OK. And not because some complete fucking twat of a coach driver thought he could just nip through before the train arrived. But because there is a camber on the tracks. Great.
Why can't they take the opportunity to do a public service and remind the un-clever masses that when the lights are flashing and the barriers are coming down, the level crossing is the last place you want to be. Don't make excuses for the utterly negligent behaviour of that driver!!
Or are they afraid of being sued if they hint that maybe he might have made an error of judgement.
Ach! This post is just a jumble of incoherent indignation. I guess I'm annoyed that the first fifteen minutes of tonight's main news bulletin was spent sensationalising the apparent danger of level crossings, instead of focussing on the facts: man drove bus onto crossing, ignoring flashing lights and barrier, resulting in six deaths.
It's not helping with my level crossing phobia, either!
And I'm all angry at life because today I heard of the death of a colleague's 12-year old son, following a long battle with brain cancer. I know that he is better now, and he isn't suffering any longer. But it's still shit.
Sunday, 25 May 2008
Inspired history
SG and Brennig, I'm loving you guys!
Inspiration (and, if I'm honest, time and inclination) being thin on the ground on these parts, I was delighted when I checked my TB feed this morning and found a highly acceptable idea for a post that I could pilfer from SG and Brennig.
Here goes, in no particular order:
4 things going on in my world 10 years ago (1998)
1. Finished my year abroad, left Bloke (later to become Hubby) and returned to Salford for 3rd year of degree
2. Lived in a student house with 11 other girls, then shared a flat in Bramall Court with Dickie and Tony
3. Had 3 different parties to celebrate my 21st birthday in November
4. Chose to write my final year dissertation on French voting behaviour and the far-right as a protest vote
4 things going on in my world 5 years ago (2003)
1. Had an awful job teaching English. I stuck it out for nearly six months, amazingly
2. Got my current job (back to translating, what I do best)
3. Went to Maui for Jeni & Andreas' wedding. Wow
4. Adopted Doggy!
4 things I did yesterday
1. Went to Ikea on a Saturday afternoon (am I mad?). Surprisingly few people. That's because the French are all feeling very skint
2. Walked the dog
3. Went to Stéph and Anthony's for dinner (celebrating Anthony's 30th)
4. Had a right laugh playing bowling with Anthony's birthday present (a Wii). Girls beat the boys
4 TV programmes I love/like to watch
1. Top Gear
2. The Apprentice
Actually, the above are the only two programmes I really adore
3. EastEnders (yes, I know)
4. There's a thing on at the mo' called Wild China and it's no bad
4 things I love to do
1. Play/cuddle/walk with the dog
2. Laugh with Hubby
3. Be with family and/or friends
4. Read
5 things in my bag
See here
5 favourite things in my room
1. Bed
2. Books
3. Hubby
4. My cropped jeans
5. My Maui hard rock café t-shirt
5 things I've always wanted to do
1. Get my pilot's licence
2. Have time to read all the books in my "to read" pile
3. See the Eiger (not climb it, of course!)
4. Visit the Eurasian steppe in Mongolia/Kazakhstan/etc and ride with the native horsemen
5. Learn more than 6 words of Spanish
5 things I'm currently in to
1. My vegetable plot (can you qualify two rows of carrots and some celery as a vegetable plot?)
2. Photography
3. Reading (I'm always into this)
4. Looking for a job for Hubby
5. Trying to be green
So if you too have been short on inspiration lately, please share your 4/5 lists.
Inspiration (and, if I'm honest, time and inclination) being thin on the ground on these parts, I was delighted when I checked my TB feed this morning and found a highly acceptable idea for a post that I could pilfer from SG and Brennig.
Here goes, in no particular order:
4 things going on in my world 10 years ago (1998)
1. Finished my year abroad, left Bloke (later to become Hubby) and returned to Salford for 3rd year of degree
2. Lived in a student house with 11 other girls, then shared a flat in Bramall Court with Dickie and Tony
3. Had 3 different parties to celebrate my 21st birthday in November
4. Chose to write my final year dissertation on French voting behaviour and the far-right as a protest vote
4 things going on in my world 5 years ago (2003)
1. Had an awful job teaching English. I stuck it out for nearly six months, amazingly
2. Got my current job (back to translating, what I do best)
3. Went to Maui for Jeni & Andreas' wedding. Wow
4. Adopted Doggy!
4 things I did yesterday
1. Went to Ikea on a Saturday afternoon (am I mad?). Surprisingly few people. That's because the French are all feeling very skint
2. Walked the dog
3. Went to Stéph and Anthony's for dinner (celebrating Anthony's 30th)
4. Had a right laugh playing bowling with Anthony's birthday present (a Wii). Girls beat the boys
4 TV programmes I love/like to watch
1. Top Gear
2. The Apprentice
Actually, the above are the only two programmes I really adore
3. EastEnders (yes, I know)
4. There's a thing on at the mo' called Wild China and it's no bad
4 things I love to do
1. Play/cuddle/walk with the dog
2. Laugh with Hubby
3. Be with family and/or friends
4. Read
5 things in my bag
See here
5 favourite things in my room
1. Bed
2. Books
3. Hubby
4. My cropped jeans
5. My Maui hard rock café t-shirt
5 things I've always wanted to do
1. Get my pilot's licence
2. Have time to read all the books in my "to read" pile
3. See the Eiger (not climb it, of course!)
4. Visit the Eurasian steppe in Mongolia/Kazakhstan/etc and ride with the native horsemen
5. Learn more than 6 words of Spanish
5 things I'm currently in to
1. My vegetable plot (can you qualify two rows of carrots and some celery as a vegetable plot?)
2. Photography
3. Reading (I'm always into this)
4. Looking for a job for Hubby
5. Trying to be green
So if you too have been short on inspiration lately, please share your 4/5 lists.
Tuesday, 6 May 2008
Toady of Toad Hall
Spotted this chap in the garden today. He was happily nestling in the weeds (of which there are many
Monday, 5 May 2008
Books of mountains
Been re-reading some books. The Beckoning Silence by Joe Simpson is one of my favourite books. Mountaineer Simpson, after twenty years on the mountains dodging death, decides it's time to pack it all in before fate catches up with him. The book is a memorial to friends lost to the mountains, to last climbs, and to The Eiger and the stunning achievements of those who struggled to put up a route on the formidable North Face in the "Golden Years" of Alpine mountaineering, in the 1930s. Simpson and Ray Delaney made their own attempt at the famous 1938 route up the face but retreated after the weather turned and a party climbing above them fell to their deaths.
This book fascinates me. Is it Simpson's fascination with the Eiger that infects me also? Maybe so. I mean, I've read Harrer's The White Spider, supposedly the last word in mountaineering and Eiger literature. But while it is a gripping tale of epic feats, I never read and re-read its passages in my mind for days after like I do with Simpson's book.
Joe Simpson is possibly best known by the general reading public for Touching the Void, the story of how he survived several days in the high Peruvian Andes, with a shattered knee and left for dead by his climbing companion, struggling out of a crevasse and across a glacier to make it back to their camp and to safety. It's a fabulous book and a truly gripping story. You really do wonder if he's going to make it out alive, somehow forgetting that of course he did otherwise you wouldn't be reading his account. But I like The Beckoning Silence more.
Go on, have a read.
This book fascinates me. Is it Simpson's fascination with the Eiger that infects me also? Maybe so. I mean, I've read Harrer's The White Spider, supposedly the last word in mountaineering and Eiger literature. But while it is a gripping tale of epic feats, I never read and re-read its passages in my mind for days after like I do with Simpson's book.
Joe Simpson is possibly best known by the general reading public for Touching the Void, the story of how he survived several days in the high Peruvian Andes, with a shattered knee and left for dead by his climbing companion, struggling out of a crevasse and across a glacier to make it back to their camp and to safety. It's a fabulous book and a truly gripping story. You really do wonder if he's going to make it out alive, somehow forgetting that of course he did otherwise you wouldn't be reading his account. But I like The Beckoning Silence more.
Go on, have a read.
Sunday, 4 May 2008
Tourist
Yesterday we had a grand day out in London. I managed to get up jolly early and off we sailed (with Cocotte, Doggy and Hubby) for the white cliffs of Dover, zoomed up the M25 and parked for free at Lakeside. Yes, it's not especially central I know, but I ain't paying 30 quid for parking. Plus we got dirt cheap day returns with unlimited zone 1-6 travel so it was a double bargain. Yay.
We went to Tower Bridge:
We saw the huge queues for tickets to the Tower of London:
Lucky we hadn't thought "hmm, let's visit the Tower of London", eh?
We spent rather a lot of time on the Tube:
We stopped off at some little-known monuments:
And I spent ... not very much money at all. I went in Selfridges (Pink shirt) and Next (linen trousers and a top). Who'd have thought. And I didn't even set foot in Waterstone's (always a good way to avoid book-buying, because if I go in, I buy). But I bought two books on the boat. I couldn't help it. I was sort of overcome.
Doggy was absolutely the most best-behaved (and, naturally, beautiful) ever seen on the Tube. She was even allowed to come shopping in Selfridges where all the assistants swooned over her (she has that effect on everyone). She really was such a good dog.
We didn't get home until half past midnight (having risen at 5.30am Sat morning) so we were all pretty knackered but we had a fab day out. I don't know why we don't do it more often. Oh yes I do: requires 1 tank of petrol; requires dog-sitter or trip to vet (to be charged to give her the same worming tablet we give her at home); high-risk of retail spending; requires getting up stupidly early. Still, it was indeed a grand day out!
PS - we didn't go on Eurostar because Cocotte is quite claustrophobic and that much time in a tunnel, under the sea would just have been too much. Plus they don't allow dogs. And we hadn't arranged for a dog-sitter.
We went to Tower Bridge:
We saw the huge queues for tickets to the Tower of London:
Lucky we hadn't thought "hmm, let's visit the Tower of London", eh?
We spent rather a lot of time on the Tube:
We stopped off at some little-known monuments:
And I spent ... not very much money at all. I went in Selfridges (Pink shirt) and Next (linen trousers and a top). Who'd have thought. And I didn't even set foot in Waterstone's (always a good way to avoid book-buying, because if I go in, I buy). But I bought two books on the boat. I couldn't help it. I was sort of overcome.
Doggy was absolutely the most best-behaved (and, naturally, beautiful) ever seen on the Tube. She was even allowed to come shopping in Selfridges where all the assistants swooned over her (she has that effect on everyone). She really was such a good dog.
We didn't get home until half past midnight (having risen at 5.30am Sat morning) so we were all pretty knackered but we had a fab day out. I don't know why we don't do it more often. Oh yes I do: requires 1 tank of petrol; requires dog-sitter or trip to vet (to be charged to give her the same worming tablet we give her at home); high-risk of retail spending; requires getting up stupidly early. Still, it was indeed a grand day out!
PS - we didn't go on Eurostar because Cocotte is quite claustrophobic and that much time in a tunnel, under the sea would just have been too much. Plus they don't allow dogs. And we hadn't arranged for a dog-sitter.
Creativity-free zone
The lovely Princesse, like me, is a Flickr-er recently started a 365 project. I thought the concept sounded fun. For one year, you take one self-portrait a day, and post it to a Flickr group to share with many thousands of people doing the same thing. The full "rules" are here. I can do that, I thought. So I somewhat ambitiously signed up for this self-portrait malarkey. Thus far I have posted pics of my hands, my feet, my hands, my feet ... my ear (?). Dear readers, surely you must be more creative than I. Any fun ideas for self-portraits??
Friday, 25 April 2008
Textin'
Have shamelessly pilfered the idea from this post from Stratford Girl, who I do believe was inspired by a chap by the name of Brennig. Anyway, thought I'd give it a go in a slightly modified version using received texts, because my phone is set up to only store the last 20 sent messages (has to be, otherwise the memory would explode I think!). So I fired up Nokia PC Suite and copy-pasted like a champ.
From: Mum; Date: 22/04/08; Time: 12:23:16
Sorry dont have no any more. Thought i did but not on phone or palm
[I was looking for a phone number I can't lay my hands on]
From: Willie; Date: 17/04/08; Time: 02:19:00
Postcard time - whats your address?
[Self-explanatory]
From: Hubby; Date: 11/04/08; Time: 11:43:28
Thanks nat, phil & you!
[He had caught my cold. That I caught off Dad. That he caught off supernephew]
From: Mum; Date: 07/04/08; Time: 11:27:12
Arrived Dover sunny and cold
[Mum and Dad heading home after a weekend visiting]
From: Dad; Date: 03/04/08; Time: 17:53:41
On board due to sail in 10 mins
[Mum and Dad on the way to visit]
From: Hubby; Date: 01/04/08; Time: 16:51:15
Pick up?
[Somebody had had enough of work for the day!]
From: Dad; Date: 20/03/08; Time: 19:11:10
Carlisle services is [hubby] at home
[This looks like I only ever get texts from my parents but it's the luck of the draw!! Dad enquiring as to Hubby's progress after his wisdom tooth op. They were heading off for a weekend in the Lake District]
From: Stef B; Date: 14/03/08; Time: 10:43:00
Tatie garcon paul
[Colleague from work just became an auntie. Little boy]
From: Cocotte; Date: 11/03/08; Time: 19:49:16
Cocotte! T'es barricadée chez toi avec Toutoune? Y refait plein de vent! Comment ça va? Bisous ma poule!
[Cocotte checking Doggy and I were safely tucked away indoors on a windy night]
From: Cocotte; Date: 08/03/08; Time: 18:08:25
Youhouh! Génial! Bravo!
[Scotland having just won the Calcutta Cup...]
From: Mum; Date: 06/03/08; Time: 11:27:13
Are you on way home yet? How feeling? X
[Mum enquiring if I had been discharged after my tooth op]
From: Mum; Date: 24/02/08; Time: 21:26:25
Parcel arrived am keeping til next sunday to open but ta for nice message am sure will love it lots of love x x x
[Mother's day gift arrived a few days early]
From: Mum; Date: 10/01/08; Time: 10:42:5
Happy birthday to Cléo! How about that, I remembered!
[Dear Mum remembering Doggy's birthday :)]
From: Jane; Date: 01/01/08; Time: 12:31:25
Hey toots! Happy new year! How are you, and your car? Jx
[Blasted car. Lovely Jane]
From: Matt; Date: 25/12/07; Time: 17:25:03
Bon noel! All our love m & m
[Christmas greetings. Obvious really]
From: Andrew; Date: 24/02/08; Time: 21:26:25
Merry christmas. May all your stockings be suspended and all [hubby]'s dreams come true. Andy
[No comment]
How many texts?! I only got this phone at the end of last year, and I've certainly deleted half as many again.
From: Mum; Date: 22/04/08; Time: 12:23:16
Sorry dont have no any more. Thought i did but not on phone or palm
[I was looking for a phone number I can't lay my hands on]
From: Willie; Date: 17/04/08; Time: 02:19:00
Postcard time - whats your address?
[Self-explanatory]
From: Hubby; Date: 11/04/08; Time: 11:43:28
Thanks nat, phil & you!
[He had caught my cold. That I caught off Dad. That he caught off supernephew]
From: Mum; Date: 07/04/08; Time: 11:27:12
Arrived Dover sunny and cold
[Mum and Dad heading home after a weekend visiting]
From: Dad; Date: 03/04/08; Time: 17:53:41
On board due to sail in 10 mins
[Mum and Dad on the way to visit]
From: Hubby; Date: 01/04/08; Time: 16:51:15
Pick up?
[Somebody had had enough of work for the day!]
From: Dad; Date: 20/03/08; Time: 19:11:10
Carlisle services is [hubby] at home
[This looks like I only ever get texts from my parents but it's the luck of the draw!! Dad enquiring as to Hubby's progress after his wisdom tooth op. They were heading off for a weekend in the Lake District]
From: Stef B; Date: 14/03/08; Time: 10:43:00
Tatie garcon paul
[Colleague from work just became an auntie. Little boy]
From: Cocotte; Date: 11/03/08; Time: 19:49:16
Cocotte! T'es barricadée chez toi avec Toutoune? Y refait plein de vent! Comment ça va? Bisous ma poule!
[Cocotte checking Doggy and I were safely tucked away indoors on a windy night]
From: Cocotte; Date: 08/03/08; Time: 18:08:25
Youhouh! Génial! Bravo!
[Scotland having just won the Calcutta Cup...]
From: Mum; Date: 06/03/08; Time: 11:27:13
Are you on way home yet? How feeling? X
[Mum enquiring if I had been discharged after my tooth op]
From: Mum; Date: 24/02/08; Time: 21:26:25
Parcel arrived am keeping til next sunday to open but ta for nice message am sure will love it lots of love x x x
[Mother's day gift arrived a few days early]
From: Mum; Date: 10/01/08; Time: 10:42:5
Happy birthday to Cléo! How about that, I remembered!
[Dear Mum remembering Doggy's birthday :)]
From: Jane; Date: 01/01/08; Time: 12:31:25
Hey toots! Happy new year! How are you, and your car? Jx
[Blasted car. Lovely Jane]
From: Matt; Date: 25/12/07; Time: 17:25:03
Bon noel! All our love m & m
[Christmas greetings. Obvious really]
From: Andrew; Date: 24/02/08; Time: 21:26:25
Merry christmas. May all your stockings be suspended and all [hubby]'s dreams come true. Andy
[No comment]
How many texts?! I only got this phone at the end of last year, and I've certainly deleted half as many again.
Monday, 21 April 2008
Be afraid, be very afraid
There is a secondary school in our street, which was refurbished and renovated the year after we bought the house (so, six years ago then). But I only noticed the boastful sign not that long ago.
It says "The local education board is readying the future of the département here". When I contemplate the rabble that attends the school (something I try to do as little as possible), my spirits sink into my shoes ...
It says "The local education board is readying the future of the département here". When I contemplate the rabble that attends the school (something I try to do as little as possible), my spirits sink into my shoes ...
Friday, 18 April 2008
Farewell, neon felt tip pen!
The laptop has undergone a transplant operation. Following the reappearance of the fluorescent felt tip pen screen, Hubby finally got fed up of being accused of breaking it (symptoms always appeared after he'd been using it, what can I say) and took action. He bought a new ribbon cable for the screen and poked around in the insides of my silver lap-warmer. And now the screen is fixed forever (I hope). Hurrah!
Marks out of ten?
I'm having a day off (cashing in my overtime, as it were). Because the weather is not, I feel, conducive to outdoor activities (ie it is Baltic out there), I have been piddling away my time on the interweb. Found one of those school teacher rating sites and looked up my illustrious (ahem) former place of learning. Was quite pleased to see a fair few names I recognised in the teacher list, which means I can't possibly be even a little bit old doesn't it?
I have to say I was incredibly lucky at both primary and secondary school. The luck of the draw dealt me mostly decent teachers who had enough enthusiasm for their subjects to catch my interest. If only everyone could be so lucky.
I have to say I was incredibly lucky at both primary and secondary school. The luck of the draw dealt me mostly decent teachers who had enough enthusiasm for their subjects to catch my interest. If only everyone could be so lucky.
Monday, 14 April 2008
Some advertising
Three weeks ago we spent a weekend in the Champagne region with Hubby's family. It was most pleasant. We visited the museum of wine and vines which was most interesting, we went to a champagne capsule collectors' fair (more about that in another post), and Hubby and I supported the local economy by purchasing some of the produce of the land ;)
Anyway, the point is not that, the point is my stepmother-in-law runs gîtes (cottages, basically) at the farm. They have converted old farm workers' dwellings and stable buildings into some very charming little cottages for holiday lets. And C was telling us about the course she's been on to improve her website and how to reference it. And I said that I would add a link from the blog. Which I have duly done. And I'm sticking another one in this post for good measure.
So if you are ever looking for a quiet place to stay just south of the Loire valley, where you can enjoy walks and bicycle rides in the country, try your hand at some fishing or pick up the tourist trail to the châteaux, try the Gîtes de Courmain!
Anyway, the point is not that, the point is my stepmother-in-law runs gîtes (cottages, basically) at the farm. They have converted old farm workers' dwellings and stable buildings into some very charming little cottages for holiday lets. And C was telling us about the course she's been on to improve her website and how to reference it. And I said that I would add a link from the blog. Which I have duly done. And I'm sticking another one in this post for good measure.
So if you are ever looking for a quiet place to stay just south of the Loire valley, where you can enjoy walks and bicycle rides in the country, try your hand at some fishing or pick up the tourist trail to the châteaux, try the Gîtes de Courmain!
Saturday, 12 April 2008
A soldier of the great war
Walter Pixton joined the Royal Fusiliers on 3 February 1916, aged 19. In due course he was posted to the Somme, and during the course of the battle was severely wounded on his left leg.Struggling to make his way towards the medical facility, he was given assistance by a soldier from a Scots regiment. This man supported him until they almost reached their goal when a barrage started up.
The Scots soldier was seriously wounded by the flak, so the two men helped each other to reach medical help.
Eventually they were put into adjacent beds. The Scots soldier was aware that he had been fatally wounded and he gave Walter his kilt because he had no family to send it back to.
Walter was returned to his family in Ulverston, Lancashire (now Cumbria) to recover in a local convalescence home. He was discharged from active service in December 1917 due to being no longer fit for War Service.
He gave the kilt to his mother Elizabeth Pixton, who carefully unpicked it and made it into a carriage rug. It was also used as a table covering in the family parlour for many years.
Eventually it came into the possession of Walter's daughter and youngest son. We would like to give it to the Somme 1916 museum, as we consider it to be part of the history of the battle, shabby though it may be.
We never knew the name of the Scots soldier.
The above is a letter written by my dad's cousin Maureen and her brother, accompanying the donation of the Scotsman's kilt to the museum of the Somme, in Albert (Picardy). Walter Pixton was my dad's uncle on his mother's side. It was only a year ago we found out he had served in the Great War.
Mum and Dad were here last weekend. We went to the town of Albert and visited the museum. Dad was pleased to see the kilt on display, and took several photos. He's planning to visit the Scottish National War Memorial in Edinburgh Castle in the hope that staff there may be able to help him identify the unknown soldier's regiment.
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