Friday, 28 February 2014

Ask Away Friday with Tamara & Friday Favourites #19!

Meet Tamara!
I am incredibly excited to be swapping questions for "Ask Away Friday" with the lovely Tamara from Tamara (like) Camera.  The first thing you need to know about Tamara is that she is incredibly sweet and thoughtful.  The second, she takes amazing photographs that just burst with emotion.  And the third?  She writes beautiful and intimate posts about her feelings and whatever happens to be going on in her life at the time.  I try not to delve too deeply into my innermost thoughts, there's a mental "Here Be Dragons" sign hung on a few patches of my life, so I am always awed (in the truest sense) by her ability to talk so frankly about her emotions and thoughts.  She's what my Granny would have called a "deep thinker".


If you aren't familiar with "Ask Away Friday", well, it's pretty much as it sounds.  You pair up with another blogger and ask them ten questions about themselves, getting as nosey as you'd like!  To see who else is participating or to learn how to join the fun, head over to visit the hosts: Penny from The Real Housewife of Caroline County, Amber from The Bold Fab Mom, Tiffany from Mrs Tee Love Life Laughter and Stacey from This Momma’s Ramblings.

And now, to the questions!!  Afterwards, hop over to Tamara's post and see her answers to my questions.

1. The two of us seem to have a lot of TV/movies/books in common. What is an episode of Doctor Who that has made you cry (or come close) and a scene in Harry Potter (books or movies) that has done the same?

Oooh, tough question.  Doctor Who, first!  I cried for Donna and all that she had lost, and would never know that she had lost, in Journey's End.  As much as I initially railed against the casting of Catherine Tate, she portrayed Donna's growth from a selfish, shallow woman to a compassionate, assured woman over the two years (our time) she spent with The Doctor.  Her mind being wiped of all that growth and maturity felt like the cruellest possible fate, a long, slow death if you will.  I was very surprised to find myself crying over that one!

In terms of Harry Potter, I cried at Sirius's death.  But!  Only when I read the book.  We re-watched Order of the Phoenix at the weekend and it just doesn't have the same impact on-screen.



2. I know you love to read. What's a book that changed your life/perspective and stayed with you long after you read it?

This is such a hard question!  I don't think any books I've read have left a massive mark on me, but I do remember thinking a lot about religion after reading Terry Pratchett's Small Gods.  PTerry is very incisive and has a great deal of wisdom and insight hidden amidst the wit and humour.

“What have I always believed?
That on the whole, and by and large, if a man lived properly, not according to what any priests said, but according to what seemed decent and honest inside, then it would, at the end, more or less, turn out all right.”
― Terry Pratchett, Small Gods

3. Do you have any large collections of something (other than books) in your house? 

Do drifts of toys or piles of laundry count?  No?  Damn.  Shame you discounted books--Dave has over a thousand graphic novels (aka comics) in the computer room!

We have quite the collection of DVDs and I've almost finished my collection of Doctor Who DVDs.  Dave has a collection of superhero figurines which really need to expand onto a second shelf...

005
There's quite a bit more on the shelf these days, but 'tis hard for a shortie to photograph!
We do have a collection of sketched from comic cons and pages of original comic book art that we've bought, but I wouldn't describe them as large...

4. If you could meet one person you haven't met yet, who would it be and why?


I pondered this question for a couple of days.  I feel like I should say someone tremendously important and worthy like Leonardo Da Vinci, but really I think I'd like to meet Nigella Lawson.  We'd have coffee, cake and later on...cocktails.  I'd like to meet the woman behind the image and have a really good gossip about food, fame and crazy relationships.

5. What is your favorite blog post that you have written?


I think my favourite blog post is the one I wrote just after our summer holiday last year.  We stayed at Chark Farm, a working dairy farm in Cornwall--our second time visiting--and I think that my post perfectly captured the amazing time that we all had there, despite some rather wet weather.

Lucas loves going out and feeding the animals first thing in the morning and checking the nesting boxes for still-warm eggs; I love turning them into scrambled eggs and omelettes.  You can roam through the little vegetable garden and gather runner beans, rhubarb and occasionally some berries if Fluffy the pig hasn't marauded through the garden recently!  I'm hoping for non-stop sunshine and lashing of fun when we're there again this summer...this time with almost all of Dave's family in tow!

6. What has been your favourite place (or places) to travel or visit (if it's local)?

I loved visiting Rome.  I went there a few years ago, actually it's more like ten years now I think about it, with my friend Pauline.  We had great fun flirting with the Italian men, and criss-crossing the city in search of the best pizza and gelato.  I loved the Capuchin Crypt ossuary, full of beautiful and macabre decorations made from skeletons by the Capuchin Monks.  You haven't lived until you've seen a chandelier made from pelvises, I always say!  (Well, it's not strictly necessary, but the human body is all kinds of cool.)  I was also stunned by the beauty of many of the statues and fountains.

IMG_0922
(from flickr)

7. If I came to visit you, where would you take me? (I'm going to love and dream about your answer, I just know it!)

I love this question--it's going to be so much fun to answer!!  Okay, so we're going to make a day of it...and unsurprisingly it revolves around food a little bit.

First up, breakfast at Yurt Lush.  Everyone should have breakfast in a yurt at least once in their life!  Excellent local food and I adore their chai lattes--I could drink them all day.

Afterwards we'd hop into the car and zoom over to Wales to go to The Doctor Who Experience!  We took Lucas at New Year (another post I have yet to write up, whoops!) and were very surprised to see that they had The Moment and Handles on display already.  The experience part of "The Experience" is rather fantastic and I won't spoil it for you just in case!  You can roam around the museum for as long as you like afterwards and even clamber inside a Dalek!

We should have afternoon tea at Thornbury Castle, a Tudor castle only a few miles from our house.  You can't go wrong with a proper afternoon tea on silver salvers, with tiny finger sandwiches and exquisite little cakes as well as scones and clotted cream.  Afternoon tea is definitely my favourite meal of the day!

And assuming we still have room...dinner at Riverstation, out on the balcony--in dreamland it's always sunny and dry, yet not too hot--overlooking the river as yellow river ferry boats zip through the water occasionally disturbing swans who honk indignantly at them.


8. What's the funniest thing Lucas has ever said to you?

My mind went blank as soon as I read the question.  Then I asked Dave, and his mind went blank, too!  Luckily Facebook is a useful aide memoir...

At bedtime one night...

"Mummy, do you like One Direction?" said Lucas.

I, shuddering internally, said, "No, they're not my sort of music.  I like Metallica, not boy bands."

Lucas thought for a moment, then came back with this gem: "But they're a boy band, too!"

You can't fault his logic.  He was most peeved that I cried with laughter, though!  (And Metallica is totally not a boy band!)

9. Share a favourite photo you took and tell me a story about it. What was going through your head when you took it, what's it about, what happened that day, etc.?


I took this photo of Dave and Lucas almost two years ago when we were walking home from school through the woods.  I can't believe Lucas was wearing shorts in March!!

Dave had broken his collarbone playing football (soccer) with Lucas a few days beforehand, hence the snazzy sling, and since it was a lovely day we walked to school together to collect Lucas.  On the way home, we adventured through the woods, as I wanted to look for bluebells,  I got distracted by the flowers and when I looked up, they were forging their way forward confidently. just like they do through life.  I love my boys.

10. Five favourite songs always on your playlist throughout your life?

I seem to add a favourite song every few years, so this reflects my musical evolution, if you will.  That sounds a bit smug, doesn't it?  It's not meant to, honest!  I've linked to videos/recordings so you can wallow in nostalgia with me, too!

Free - Wishing Well.  My Dad never listened to current music (and I can't blame him since I don't listen to the dross that's in the charts these days).  I have fond memories of going out for a drive in the car with him on weekends and listening to Free at top volume in the car, scaring the sheep as we zoomed past!
Guns N' Roses - Welcome To The Jungle. This track, and Appetite For Destruction as a whole define my teenage years.  I always feel young (and slightly belligerent) when I listen to the album!
Metallica - No Leaf Clover. This is chronically underplayed but we were lucky enough to hear it live at Wembley a few years ago.  I sang myself hoarse.  This song is always on our playlist when we go on holiday--the three of us always sing along.
Metallica - Turn The Page.  I love this cover of the Bob Seger classic.  There's something about it that always tugs at my heart strings.  Maybe the video has something to do with it?
Santana (feat. Everlast) - Put Your Lights On - It was a toss-up between this and Smooth for the last spot on my mini-playlist.  The lyrics can be taken in so many different ways and the guitar is just beautiful.  Santana is probably the greatest guitarist of all time...when he plays it speaks to your soul.

Thanks so much, Tamara!  You should all hop over to her blog to see her answers to my questions, too!

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It's been a while since I've remembered to write my Friday Favourites--whoops!  Here are a few things I'm loving just now...

Favourite TV series: Person of Interest


I am busily catching up on season one of Person of Interest via Netflix, and I can hardly believe that I managed to miss such a bloody fantastic bit of TV for a whole year (or more)!!  Jim Caviezel, who I have belatedly recognised as Jesus Christ from The Passion of the Christ, is so amazingly fluid as John Reese, a fugitive ex-CIA operative.  I could cheerfully watch him fight all day long.  It's probably mostly fight choreography, but he pulls off all his fight scenes with ruthless and brutal efficiency. J'approve.

Michael Emerson is brilliant as Harold Finch, paranoid genius and master of dry put-downs.  It's nice to see him in a role which, while still creepy, doesn't terrify me as much as Ben Linus (LOST) or his guest appearance on L&O: SVU.

The plot, in case you don't know it, is that Finch recruits Reese to help prevent crimes before they happen, via information from a Machine that he invented.  It's a glorious mash-up of tropes from Minority Report, spy thrillers (John Reese shares Jason Bourne's efficient and improvisational fighting style), with elements of The Terminator and LOST chucked in.  Not to mention a bit of social commentary on the now omnipresent and rarely questioned amount of surveillance we're all under these days.  And best of all...it works.

Also, last week The Independent has told us all that "binge watching" TV is actually good for us.  So, I need feel no guilt about romping through PoI or House of Cards when Lucas goes to bed!

Favourite Internet Discovery: Ice Music


I was ten when I realised that ice could be more than just a slippery winter annoyance.  We read an article on the Quebec Winter Carnival at school and saw pictures of the amazing ice sculptures that artists create every winter.  Over the years I've heard of ice hotels--loved seeing one (albeit a mock-up) in Die Another Day--and ice bars but making music from ice?  That's a new one on me.

You absolutely need to click through then scroll down to the bottom of the article to hear a clip of the music.  It's stunning!

Friday Funny:


Every. Single. Time. I have to turn the hose on them to drive them away!  True story.

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Thursday, 27 February 2014

When crafting and geekery combine! (Knitting a Doctor Who scarf)

"It is the DOC-TOR! EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!"
I've wanted to knit a Doctor Who scarf for years, but for the longest time all the patterns online recommended yarns which were great matches for the colours in the TV scarf but were either impossible to find in the UK or ridiculously expensive.  Boo!  There was always the option of buying a ready-made scarf, but it just rankled to pay £45 for a scarf I could so easily make myself!!

While idly surfing the net last week I found myself looking at the scarf pattern again and noticed that someone had knitted it in Stylecraft Special DK and noted down the shade numbers!  Not only could I get the yarn at my local yarn shop, but it's super-cheap!  An hour later I was at Get Knitted hunting out the seven colours I needed!

There are a couple of sites that give the stripe patterns for knitting your very own Doctor Who scarf.  I opted for Witty Little Knitter's pattern, as the name makes me smile, and is of course a Doctor Who reference.

"Pity about the scarf-- Madame Nostradamus made it for me-- a witty little knitter. Never get another one like it--"
The Doctor, Ark in Space
It was a bit of a surprise to learn that there were several different versions of the Fourth Doctor's scarf.  I'd noticed that the scarf changed from the iconic broad striped one to a dark red/purple version in the Fourth Doctor's last couple of series, but I'd failed to spot that there were several different lengths of scarf over the years.

Tom Baker rocking the iconic scarf
After reading through the options, I went with the season 14 scarf, for mostly practical reasons...it's the shortest scarf.  As much as I hate to admit it, I'm a bit on the short side, so having a scarf that won't constantly try and trip me up seemed like a good idea!  It's probably going to come in at approximately 9 foot long, which is plenty...


It's been really quick to knit up so far; I'm coming up on halfway through the scarf and I've been knitting on and off for just a week.  I wish that I'd knitted it in time to wear for the 50th anniversary celebrations last year, but better late than never!  I'll wear it proudly for the London Super Comic Convention in March!

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Tuesday, 25 February 2014

A stroll around Bradford on Avon

Bradford on Avon
Bradford on Avon
It's a rare thing to have a sunny day at the moment.  It's an even rarer thing for that sunny day to be child-free.  Nanny and Granddad whisked Lucas away last Sunday for fun at the beach--they are made of sterner stuff than us as it's still pretty cold out there--so Dave and I decided to take our cameras out for a stroll around somewhere new.  After some fairly aimless driving around the sodden countryside, we ended up at Bradford on Avon, somewhere that neither Dave nor I had been before.

Bradford on Avon
The twiggy branches of this willow were almost pink. Very striking!
The Shambles is one of the oldest parts of Bradford on Avon according to a tourist information sign I spotted.  It was full of higgledy-piggledy buildings, and for once, in a country full of faux-Tudor houses, the Tudor wooden-beamed buildings were truly from Tudor times.

The Shambles, Bradford on Avon

We also spotted the gold post box in The Shambles, in honour of local boy Ed McKeever's kayaking win in the 2012 Summer Olympic Games.

Gold postbox, Bradford on Avon

I love that they've kept the postbox gold; the Royal Mail said during the games that the postboxes would only be gold for a year, but here we are almost two years later and it's still gleaming proudly!

Bradford on Avon seems to be full of lots of independent shops and I couldn't resist snapping a few pictures of their wares while Dave was busy taking more arty shots... It's probably a good thing that we visited on a Sunday or my debit card would have taken a hammering!

Independent shops, Bradford on Avon
I've never taken a picture of shoes in my life, but these were too gorgeous to ignore!
It was such a lovely day...it really felt like Spring was just around the corner.  These flowers seemed to agree!

Spring flowers

We spent a lot of time wandering along the banks of the River Avon.  Since we'd never been to Bradford on Avon before it was hard to gauge what was a normal level for the water, but it certainly looked very swollen with a strong current and the occasional small whirlpool forming as the water poured under the bridge.

The Avon burst its banks in Bradford on Avon on Christmas Eve last year, flooding the centre of the town, so with all the heavy rain we've had since then there were heavy-duty flood defences along the lower parts of the banks.  I noticed that everyone crossing the bridge stopped to take a quick look at the water levels.

Flood defences, Bradford on Avon
Flood defences, Bradford on Avon

The lock-up on the bridge, Bradford on Avon

As we crossed the bridge to go back to the carpark, I wondered what this funny little building on the bridge was, so I looked it up when we got home.  It's a 17th century lock-up where prisoners were held before bring brought before the local Magistrate.  If you squint at the photo, and perhaps use a bit of imagination, the weather vane on top is a golden fish!

It was a lovely little place for an impromptu stroll; I'd love to go back to Bradford on Avon again, on a busier day and nose around all the lovely shops and maybe have lunch in one of the riverside restaurants...

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Sunday, 23 February 2014

8/52

His first Butterbeer...
Today we went to The Harry Potter Studio Tour which was pretty damn amazing.  I loved every minute of it, especially as I neatly sidestepped the area where they were showing off the spiders who worked on the films!

Lucas loved the Butterbeer; I was way keener on the thick, butterscotch head than the thinner, slightly fizzy drink below.  (Does it remind anyone else of Irn-Bru?)  He had an epic foam moustache by the time he was half-way through the cup (£3, worth it for the iconic/novelty value) which left us all giggling uncontrollably!

More on the tour later this week...

Joining in with Jodi's 52 Project.

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Sunday, 16 February 2014

7/52

52: A portrait a week of Lucas
Today the sun shone.  (I almost need a lie-down to recover from the shock.)  And as we all know, sunny days are just made for messing around outdoors!

So...Lucas and Dave had a pitched battle on the driveway.  Soldier!Daddy armed with a Nerf gun, and Captain America!Lucas with his vibranium shield deftly deflecting the Nerf darts.  As you can see, Lucas emerged the victor after neatly disarming Dave!

Joining in with Jodi's 52 Project.

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Saturday, 15 February 2014

Square Eyes, or films I've watched lately

We've watched quite a few films this week--I blame the crappy weather--so I thought it might be fun to do some quick reviews.  I doubt that I'll be challenging the brilliant Kermode & Mayo as film critics and reviewers any time soon, but I enjoyed watching these films so I thought I'd tell you a little about them!

At the cinema: The LEGO Movie


I went along to The LEGO Movie thinking that it would be mainly a film for Lucas, but I ended up having a really, really good time.  The highlight of the film, for me, was LEGO Batman who was awesome.

BATMAN: I only work in black.  And sometimes, very, very dark gray.
I thought the LEGO DC characters came off really well in the film--loved the Superman/Green Lantern interactions--and we've been wandering around all week singing "Everything is awesome"!

There's a surprise twist about 2/3 of the way through which I swear I've seen before which serves to make the entire movie more awesome.  Go and see it, especially if you have kids!  (You should probably take them, too.)

Rented: Despicable Me 2


I'm not sure why I didn't go and see this at the cinema with the boys, but this was another hilarious outing with Gru and the Minions.  Not quite as poignant as the first film, but still thoroughly enjoyable with loads of great laughs.  I'm quite excited about the forthcoming Minions movie which promises to be utterly hilarious.  (It will no doubt spawn even more amazing minion cakes!  That's a good thing, by the way!)

A long, long time ago: The Last Boy Scout


You can tell this one is from ages ago...aside from the atrocious dress-sense on display, Bruce Willis has hair.  It also briefly features a very young Halle Berry as a stripper, sorry, exotic dancer.

The plot revolves around a conspiracy, which Bruce Willis--as a disgraced (but for doing the honourable thing) former Secret Service Agent--is trying to untangle with the help of dead!Halle's boyfriend whose name I never bothered to learn.  It's an 18, which gives it serious novelty value these days, so expect lots of explosions, swearing, and violence.  Oh yes, guns.  Many, many guns.  There's even smoking...indoors!

It's not my favourite Bruce Willis film by any stretch of the imagination, but it was amusing for a couple of hours!

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On the subject of films, have you seen the amazing Disney Dream Portrait Series by Annie Leibovitz?

Scarlett Johanssen as Cinderella
Annie Leibovitz has cleverly photographed celebrities as Disney princesses and characters.  Scarlett Johanssen is perfect as Cinderella and I adore Rachel Weisz as Snow White.  Check the series out here!

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Thursday, 13 February 2014

The Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition

Snow moment. Jasper Doest, The Netherlands.
On Sunday I dragged Dave and Lucas along to the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhbition at the M Shed in town.  Every year I admire the photographs which appear in all the newspapers but I had no idea that you could actually visit an exhibition. 

I've been known to take a decent photograph on occasion, but seeing the quality of the photographs in the exhibition was quite humbling.  Every picture was stunning, as you'd expect in a competition of this calibre, but some stood out for their technical wizardry, others for the sheer amount of emotion on display--a mother gorilla holding her twin babies and looking stressed, almost desperate--and some were just amazingly creative shots that I would never, ever have thought of.

After much deliberation, and almost two laps of the exhibition space, I decided that my favourite photograph was Snow Moment (above).  It is astonishingly beautiful; the snowflakes look three dimensional, as though they're going to swirl out of the screen and flutter against your face.  The image is reminiscent of an oil painting and I love the personality captured on the face of the Japanese macaque. You can read more about how Jasper captured this image here.

Possibly the most humbling section was the Young Photographers...


This shot, Wolf Moment, is by Lasse Kurkela from Finland.  He is ten.  Take a moment to let that sink in and have another look at his photograph.  It is so beautiful, and the low-res version I've unearthed just doesn't do it justice.  I can't conceive of a ten year old being capable of taking such an amazing photograph--when I was ten I could barely cope with a point and shoot camera, let alone a DSLR!  You can read more about Lasse, and see his other photographs here.  Lucas loved his shot of a wolverine stalking a magpie on a branch.

I really liked that each photograph had details of all the settings used on its information card.  Dave and I wandered around muttering about trying a higher ISO and faster shutter speed, and would a tripod or monopod be better...  I don't think we'll be trying wildlife photography any time soon--unless we spot the crocodile in the Avon--but I feel totally inspired to go to a park and try to create something beautiful.

The Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition will be at the M Shed until the 21st of February, but there are other exhibitions dotted around the country--the joy of photographs!--so there may well be one near you--see the tour schedule here.

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Monday, 10 February 2014

The Year In Books: February


Last month I read Eleven Doctors, Eleven Stories, an anthology celebrating the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who.  Aside from one dud story--really disliked the Fourth Doctor's adventure--I thoroughly enjoyed the book.  I'd recommend it to any Whovian.

This month, after a lot of deliberation, I've chosen Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers.  I've had this on my wishlist for ages and February seemed as good a time as any to delve into it.  Mary Roach covers everything from the life after death of cadavers in the anatomy lab, and the interesting yet respectful relationship medical students form with them, through to cadavers in Body Farms furthering our understanding of human forensics and helping to catch killers.

I realise this isn't everyone's cup of tea, but if you've got an interest in squishy science--on my first day at Uni, I gloved up in front of a full lecture theatre and was given a human brain to hold--medicine, or just love CSI/Bones/Dexter, then this may be a fun read for you!

Joining in with Laura's Year in Books meme.

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Sunday, 9 February 2014

6/52

Lucas won an award at school

For the last couple of weeks Lucas has been a little bit sad on and off because he hadn't had a letter home in his book bag to say that he'd won an award for the end of term achievement assembly.

What he didn't know was that the school now sends text messages rather than letters which are easily guessable, once you reach the grand old age of seven.  I've had to keep up a nonchalant pretence when he's peeked in his book bag and been sad all over again.  "We all know you're brilliant, you don't need a certificate to tell you that!"

Even with Dave and I sitting behind him, camera at the ready, he didn't twig until just before his head teacher read out his name.  I don't think he stopped looking shocked until we'd settled in at Costa for a celebratory babyccino.

Our lovely wee man won a Mountain Mover award, the school's current highest accolade (yeah, proud Mum here), for moving mountains with his enthusiasm in learning.  (No actual mountains were harmed in his educational endeavours.)  He'll be off to school on Monday with his shiny new enamel badge proudly pinned next to the Trust Badge he won last year.

Super-proud!!

Joining in with Jodi's 52 Project.

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Friday, 7 February 2014

Life lately...

Rain Drops
Source
Well hello, there!

I seem to have been away with the fairies of late.  With all the horrid weather we've been having, I've opted to curl up on the sofa with a blanket and indulge in lots and lots of reading rather than do anything else, like, you know...blogging.  My poor little blog--consider this a big bloggy hug for it.

So, lately I've been reading...


I romped through half of The Husband's Secret last night and polished off the rest this morning.  It's a very easy read, but I can't really recommend it.  Yes, I found myself enjoying it, but what should have been a very complicated and emotional subject just wasn't.  There was some snappy dialogue but ultimately the characters felt like caricatures.  I wanted more and was, well, left wanting.

Prisoners of Time was the 50th Anniversary Doctor Who story.  It's taken a while for the collected versions to be available digitally, so each volume feels like a real treat.  I'm thoroughly enjoying the Fifth Doctor's encounter with the Rutans and Sontarans!  (And really looking forward to the Seventh Doctor story!  Might be a bit biased.)

I mentioned recently that I've been reading Cavewomen Don't Get Fat, and following its paleo detox protocol.  I managed almost a whole week of super-low carb eating before I succumbing to the charms of a Danish pastry and promptly felt dreadful.  I did lose 6 pounds which has stayed off and I feel much perkier after eating loads of green veggies.  I'm going to add in the occasional sweet potato and a little bit of cheese and keep on keeping on.  There's steak in the fridge, so I'm a happy girl.  (I should also note that my performance at the gym improved loads when I was eating uber-strictly which is a decent incentive.)

Mind The Gap is an ongoing comic series, which centres around the mysterious conspiracy surrounding the attack on Elle Peterssen on a subway platform by Jim McCann.  Elle's body winds up in a coma, but her mind ends up in a strange world elsewhere.  There are so many twists and turns, and few people are who they seem to be.  I've read all three collected volumes and I'm anxiously awaiting vol.4!  If you liked LOST then I'd totally recommend this to you!

* * *

I've taken to buying a bunch of flowers every week or so.  Here's the latest bunch that are brightening up our hallway!  I think it'll be a traditional jam jar of daffodils next time.


* * *

Lately I have also been window shopping for fabric!  I've signed up for a W.I. lampshade making workshop with an eye to making a shade for the upstairs landing light.  We've never managed to get around to buying a shade--it's not like we've lived here for six years...oh, wait... When I spotted the workshop it felt like it was Meant To Be!

I quite like this Heather Bailey fabric... I'll need to pop along to the fabric shop and see it in person this weekend and make sure the pattern isn't too overwhelming in volume.  If all goes well, I'll find some suitably geeky fabric to make a shade for Dave's Man Cave.  I'd forgotten that we don't have a shade in there either...whoops!


* * *

Talking of the W.I., I have signed up to join our choir!  I've wanted to join one for ages, but the local choirs have either been horrendously expensive or too far away for me to want to drive on a cold and wet evening, even for the sheer awesomeness of a Rock Choir.  This one is just right.  And yes, I'm well aware that I sound like Goldilocks!  I'm rather excited as I do love a good sing-song and I haven't done much singing since the Gospel Choir that I was part of at Uni.  Time to see if I can still hold a tune!
* * *

I have also been chortling with glee over this rather fun thing I found on Facebook... Possibly only funny to other mums?  I couldn't possibly comment on my style... *cough*Godfather*cough*


* * *

Lastly, I am really, really looking forward to going on the Harry Potter Studio Tour in half-term!  I've wanted to go for ages.  They're having the animal actors visit during half-term which almost makes up for not getting to see a snowy Hogwarts!  I want some Butterbeer, pumpkin juice and pretty much every themed food on offer!!!

What have y'all been up to lately?

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Sunday, 2 February 2014

5/52


Lucas strikes a heroic pose, while sporting an Indigo Lantern ring and wearing his favourite "Hal Jordan" jacket.  A thoroughly geeky ensemble for a trip to the comic shop with his best friend!  (They had a great time; Dave is worn out.)

Joining in with Jodi's 52 Project

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