Goodbye 2011... And Good Riddance!

Dear 2011,

You tried your hardest to make 2011 the worst year ever for my family didn't you?

You made my brother unemployed and then had his fiancee ditch him (although going by her behaviour afterwards I think he's better off without her so I'll let you off with that one).

You took my Grandad, two of my Great Aunts and tried your hardest to finish off one of my Great Uncles.

Every week you have thrown endless crap our way from the minor (items lost in the post) to the major (cancer), constantly trying to make us crack.

But we are made of sterner stuff than you thought aren't we? We didn't fall apart like you wanted us to?
We picked ourselves up and dusted ourselves down.

Goodbye 2011, don't let the door hit you on the way out.

Now then 2012, give us your best shot!

Random Thought #34 - Don't Call It That!

So I'm surfing the net (very retro I know) and I come across a book. A book I've never heard of by an author I'm not aware of.

I'm intrigued by it. The blurb sounds interesting. The cover looks great (Try and tell me that you've never judged a book by it's cover).

I start to look up reviews of it, just to see if the blurb is all it's cracked up to be. And then it happens. Something that ruins the whole thing for me.

Someone describes it as "young adult".

I don't know what it is but that phrase "young adult" immediately puts me off a book. I'm sure some of these books that I end up not reading would be very good. I'm sure that some of the books I own are YA; they just weren't advertised that way. The YA label makes me think... I don't know what it makes me think.

It just puts me off reading the book that's all.

Weird, huh?

Random Quote #63

*In a letter written to the London Daily Chronicle*

There is a busybody on your staff who spends far too much of his time searching for split infinitives. Every good literary craftsman uses a split infinitive if he thinks the sense demands it. I call for this man's instant dismissal; it matters not whether he decides to quickly go or to go quickly or quickly to go. Go he must, and at once.

George Bernard Shaw

Merry Christmas!

0:54 to skip intro

Random Quote #62

Butterflies are not insects, they are self-propelled flowers.

Robert A. Heinlein

Have I Read this Somewhere Before?

The day of the do-over is here! Hosted by Nicole and her blog One Significant Moment At A Time all you have to do is:

"...on December 16^th all of those taking part will re-post their favorite blog offering, or one that never received the exposure it should have..."

It took me a while to trawl through my blog posts from the nearly two years to find one that I thought should have a second airing. I thought about presenting you with the first part of A Tale Of Five Fish but that is the first of a five part series so I decided to go for a stand alone post.

So I settled on this post from 4th December 2010 (you can see it in it's original glory state here).

I give you Snowpocalypse!



I got up on the 1st December 2010 to discover everywhere had turned in to a winter wonderland. Well more winter than wonder really.


I quickly found out that I would have to walk to work as all the buses in the area had been suspended. So on the 1st of December I set off just before eight in the morning and walked to work. The snow was so deep in places it almost came to the top of my wellies. And I measured them and my boots are 14 inches high.

It took me 45 minutes to walk to work in which time my feet had gone numb. Which was good in a way as it meant I couldn't really feel the two large blisters on my heels developing. However once I arrived at work and I began to heat up I soon knew that they were there.
And then I had to limp all the way home again a few hours later. My place of work closed at midday as there were few of us who had actually managed to get to work.


I awoke on 2nd December to find out that once again I would have to walk to work again. But my wellies didn't come with me this time. Oh no, not again. So this time I wore my shorter but more comfortable walking boots to work.
The previous night a snow plough had gone down our road and so there was now a thin strip of road that was more or less free of snow. As the pavement was still a foot deep with snow I decided to walk down the middle of the road.
And so there I was before eight in the morning. Walking down the middle of the road, with not a single person in sight. I felt like I was in a disaster movie of some sort. It was ten minutes later when I hit the main road before I saw another person.
And then as I got closer to the town centre the more 'survivors' appeared as we all seemed to drift towards where the last of the population was gathering.


Now I have told you about my encounter with near apocalypse I have two things I wish to mention.


1) Compeed blister plasters are fantastic - the regular plasters I was using did nothing to help, I might as well not have bothered. But the Compeed ones are great - they do exactly as they say on the tin...and I haven't been paid or given anything to say that it is just my opinion.


2) Now this is just a minor rant at how stupid some people can be. The snow may have been dispersed a little so it isn't quite as deep on the pavement however it is still almost impossible to walk on the pavement so you have to risk your life walking down the road now that there is more traffic about again.
Why?
Some of my neighbours have decided to clear their driveways to get their cars out. What is wrong with that I hear you say?
Well they have cleared the snow by shovelling the snow to the sides. So you walk along the pavement and then suddenly you are faced with a wall of snow that is almost two feet high!
So you manage to navigate your way around that one...and then you come across another one, and another.
Some people have no common sense whatsoever. Just as long as they are OK everyone else can go to hell. Now I saw some people who cleared their drives who were putting the snow behind the driveway gates - that is a good idea as you have cleared the drive but not built an obstacle course in the process.


End of rant!


Hope you enjoyed reading about my past adventures in the blogosphere - and for those who've read this before how was it second time round?

Things I Hate About Christmas

 Today is the day of The Bah Humbug Blahgfest over at Grumpy Bulldog's blog. You just have to answer one question:


What are the 12 things I hate most about the holiday season?

Now there are things that I do actually like about Christmas - watching someones reaction when they open a present, fairy lights to name a couple. But there are some things that drive me up the wall.


So in no particular order here is my list:

• The population seems to triple overnight. There are people everywhere. Where are these people for the rest of the year? Do they not shop or go out any other time than December? And they have no sense. They will suddenly stop dead in your path. They will stop to talk to people they happen to meet seemingly oblivious to the fact that they are blocking the way for other people.

• I like Christmas decorations and I understand why local councils put their external decorations up in the town centre in November. But that does not explain why people have to decorate their homes in November. You can go crazy with your Christmas decorations once December rolls around but not before. 

• Because of the aforementioned population increase around this time of year all public transport seems to either run ridiculously late or just grind to a halt because of the weather. It was because of having to wait forty minutes for a bus that was supposed to run every ten minutes, and then being crammed on like sardines last year that I now walk home from work. 

•  In the UK snow is not always guaranteed at this time of year. We moan if we don't get snow. But if we do get snow the country grinds to a halt. There are other countries that have snow constantly and they manage to carry on as usual but two flakes in the UK and we can't cope. (I do like snow though just not how we cope with it)

•  When you can actually fight your way in to a shop through the crowds the shelves are fairly empty. Not quite January-sales-been-hit-by-a-plague-of-locusts empty but still fairly empty. It's ridiculous really - any other time of year the latest DVD release or game or whatever would sell but not like at Christmas when it seems to become life or death.

• Now this might be just my family but when we all gather together there seems to be a certain tension threatening to break through. It isn't helped by what we refer to as The Christmas Day Massacre when my mum and my Uncle clashed and we spent the most painfully tense thirty minutes I have ever experienced before we made our excuses and went home.

• If you decide against fighting your way in to shops and go for the 'easy' option of online shopping you then have to shop weeks in advance or risk your shopping getting delayed or lost in the post. (OK so I haven't had the best luck with the postal service throughout this year but it always seems to be worse at Christmas)

• It doesn't seem to matter how much rubbish you eat or awful it makes you feel you still eat more. There must be a switch in our heads that is flicked at this time of year that makes us unable to stop eating. "I couldn't eat another thing. I feel sick." "Do you want a mince pie?" "OK then." *ten minutes later* "OK now I am going to be sick." We'll never learn...

• Every surface in your house is covered in Christmas cards. You go to get something off the mantel piece and knock half a dozen cards off (although the same can be said of birthday cards).

• Carol singers - now I'm not talking about the sort of carol singers who can actually sing, who like to sing. The ones that stand in public places, in groups, collecting money for good causes. No not those ones. I'm talking about the ones who bother you at your home, who can't sing to save their lives, and are only doing it in the hope that you'll give them some money to go away.

• Secret Santa - I can't stand it. Christmas is stressful enough trying to think up gifts for your friends and family without some bright spark at work thinking it will be 'fun' to do Secret Santa. Trying to wrack your brains to think of something to buy for someone you don't know all that well. And it's only when you take part in something like this that you realise how little you know about some people.

• And last but far from least we come to The Pogues and the Christmas song Fairytale of New York. AARGH!!! I know I'm going to get people disagreeing with me on here, saying that it's the greatest thing since sliced bread but I can't stand the song. And to be honest I probably wouldn't care about it if it didn't get voted the greatest Christmas song ever every single year. Yes the reason I hate this song is because of all of you out there who insist on it being brilliant. You've given it too much exposure. Personally I find it depressing. Some people say it shows that there are two sides to Christmas. That it isn't always a happy occasion. That is true but does it mean we all have to be miserable? (I do realise that it is a bit ironic me saying that when this is an anti Christmas blogfest). I'm sure New York is a great place but you wouldn't have thought so hearing this song.

Right now I've got all that off my chest (can you tell which thing about Christmas I hate the most?) I will go and listen to my favourite Christmas song (Merry Christmas Everyone by Shakin Stevens) and continue counting down to Christmas with my advent calendar (yes I am 26 and still get an advent calendar)

Random Quote #61

*Wednesday and Pugsley are running a lemonade stand*

Girl Scout: Is this made from real lemons?

Wednesday: Yes

Girl Scout: I only like all-natural foods and beverages, organically grown, with no preservatives. Are you sure they're real lemons?

Pugsley: Yes

Girl Scout: Well, I'll tell you what. I'll buy a cup if you buy a box of my delicious Girl Scout cookies. Do we have a deal?

Wednesday: Are they made from real Girl Scouts?

The Addams Family (1991)

Random Quote #60

Some people get their kicks
Stompin' on your dreams
But I don't let it, let it get me down
'Cause this fine ol' world keeps spinning 'round

That's Life  
(D. Kay/K Gordon)

You Wait For A Blogfest To Come Along...

...and then two appear at once!

I recently mentioned that there was the Deja Vu Blogfest happening on 16th December and I have since discovered another blogfest that is occurring on the 15th December.

Grumpy Bulldog (cool name!) is hosting The Bah Humbug Blahg Fest.

All you have to do is answer one question - What are the 12 things I hate most about the holiday season?

It didn't take me long to scribble down my list!

I'm Not Going To Make It!

We only have about four weeks left of this year and I am only on book number thirty eight in my 52 Books In A Year challenge.

Unless I read all very thin books or something I don't think I'm going to hit fifty two by the end of the year.

In my original post way back in December last year I said that I didn't know whether I would find it difficult or not - turns out it is a bit of a challenge after all.

I partially blame NaNoWriMo (which I did manage to finish I might add) - I reckon I would have got through a few more books had I not just spent the last month typing furiously.

But I shall continue up until the end of the year and see what number I end on - hopefully I'll have at least got in to the forties by then.

And I quite like this idea of having a picture of my current book on my blog and a list of what I've read during the year so far - so I think I will be repeating this next year.

How has your reading gone this year?

Random Quote #59

Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night.

Edgar Allen Poe

Random Thought #33 - Brightened Up My Day

Something happened yesterday that made me laugh. It brightened up my morning no end.

I was checking the junk folder on my email inbox to check that there wasn't anything non junk like in there and I saw I had an email. The subject caught my eye and even though I knew it was a con I decided to read it and it did make me laugh.

I got an email from the legal advisor of Colonel Gaddafi's son. He has fled Libya with about $35 million in a secret account and he would like me to become an investment partner.

So Mr Con Man, you will not be getting my money or my bank details but thanks for making me laugh :)

Random Quote #58

*Catwoman flips her way over to where Batman and Penguin are standing*

Catwoman: Meow.

*Building she has just come out of explodes*

Batman Returns (1992)

The Day of the Do-Over is Coming

It seems like ages and ages since I took part in a blogfest. And then I came across this one that I thought I'd join. Nicole and her blog One Significant Moment At A Time are one of the hosts of the Deja Vu blogfest taking place on 16th December.

So here is what you have to do for this blogfest:

"...on December 16^th all of those taking part will re-post their favorite blog offering, or one that never received the exposure it should have.  Then as the day unfolds and everyone hops from one blog to another, what they will be reading is the best of the best (as determined by you).  That day the blogosphere will be chock full of past writing brilliance!  Encouragement, enlightenment, knowledge, bared souls, stimulation, hilarity, insecurities, success stories!  All on display…the very same day…like no other time before.  Some of them will no doubt be familiar, well-deserving a second read, but a good many will be the first time you’ve seen them.  And it couldn't be any easier to take part...no writing necessary!"

Simple really - so head over to Nicole's blog and sign up. And then you just have decide which blog post to repost.

Whitby In November...

...is cold.

The other week I went to the Whitby Goth Weekend. I seemed to mention it constantly on my writing blog, even though it was in no way writing related (I was using it as an excuse for no NaNo-ing - yes NaNoWriMo is upon us).

I went during the Whitby Goth Weekend. I felt a little under dressed in my purple jeans and purple Dr Martens. I'd decided to not go completely in black because that's not me... I did put on eye makeup which I don't usually do when I'm not at work or going out at night. But I only did that to avoid being mistaken for a child... like the other day when a shop assistant who was probably younger than me asked the man ahead of me if it was alright for her to serve 'this little girl first'. I came very closer to shouting 'I'm 26' at her but thought better of it.

It rained for the first two hours that we were in Whitby so we got a little bit wet to say the least but it was better than being at work.

There were some pretty cool vehicles there too. I didn't get a picture of the Rolls Royce hearse but there is one on Dolly Cool Clare's blog - if you scroll down about two thirds of the way down the page you can see the hearse there. And some other pictures of Whitby.

I actually bought some jewellery from Dolly Cool a couple of months ago, that I really want to blog about because they are indeed cool... so I will try and do that before the end of the year... which is also fast approaching.

Anyway back to Whitby. I took some photos, not of any of the Goth things that were going off. I feel odd about approaching strangers and asking to take their photos so I didn't bother.

I went all the way to Whitby, across the misty North York Moors, which was a little scary, and what did I take a picture of?

A robin! A slightly demonic looking robin but a robin all the same... they are so cute.

So anyway before I sign off on this random post about Whitby I thought I'd mention a charity that was at the Goth Weekend - The Sophie Lancaster Foundation

Sophie Lancaster was a girl who was kicked to death in 2007 purely because she looked different. The people - and I use the term loosely - who did it are a waste of space and resources.I know I'm incredibly naive when I wonder why we can't just all get along.

You can get some pretty cool merchandise to help show your support - well I think it's cool anyway. Good designs to help get the message across.

Til my next post... toodles!

Random Quote #57

Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.

Oscar Wilde

I Have Too Many! Part 5 1/2: More Converse

I recently posted about my collection of Converse and the fact that I had ten pairs that would soon become nine as I was given a pair to my sister... but then I came across a pair of Converse on eBay... so now it's back up to ten!

Random Quote #56

Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans.

John Lennon

Happy Halloween!

The Graphics Fairy

Random Quote #55

Never put off until tomorrow what you can do the day after tomorrow.

Mark Twain

Random Quote #54

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

Maya Angelou

Halloween Nails!

OK so I haven't personally done Halloween nails. What I did recently was a sort of warped/backwards French manicure.

I used a grey polish for the base and silver for the tips. This was after almost a week and the photograph actually makes my nails look much better than they were. In reality they were very badly chipped by this stage - I picked the less chipped hand to photograph.

Anyway during my trawling of YouTube I came across these videos which show various Halloween nails. The first is from one of my favourite YouTubers... as mentioned in a couple of previous posts - Torrin Paige!

And then the second video is one that I discovered by chance - it was recommended to me based on me liking Torrin's video... anyway - I Have A Cupcake

Aren't they the cutest nails you've ever seen? Kind of Chibi-ish... and completely beyond my talent... I can barely paint a straight French tip! (Trust me the photo hides it but they were very wonky) In fact come to that I'd struggle with Torrin's designs. Especially when painting the nails on my right hand... because I'm right handed - my left hand can't cope... or my brain just can't cope!

Random Quote #53

I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.

Douglas Adams

I Have Too Many! Part 5: Converse

Personally I don't think it is possible to have too many pairs of Converse but I do have 10 pairs. Go ahead count them!

I took this photo in landscape but for some reason it refuses to stay in landscape... weird!

Anyway I have 10 pairs of Converse however the light blue pair (light blue? The only blue Converse there in other words) well I don't wear them very often so I'm giving them to my sister... who wears her Converse so often one pair disintegrated... and she doesn't have 10 pairs...

So I will soon have 9 pairs of Converse.

I'll now show you some of my recently acquired Converse.

I know they look a little shabby... but they are unusual in that they are leather and they have like a fleecy sort of lining.

I just thought these ones were cool :)

And these are cool and brand spankingly new.

I narrowly missed out on a pair of leopard print Converse on eBay... but I didn't think that they were worth the price they went for... not used anyway. So I'm glad I wasn't tempted to go over my maximum bid.

So I have too many a sensible amount of Converse!

Random Quote #52

Romy: What the hell is your problem, Christie? Why are you always such a nasty b*tch? You get some kind of sick pleasure from torturing other people? I mean yeah, okay, so Michele and I did make up some lame story! We only did it because we wanted you to treat us like human beings. But you know what I finally realised? I don't care if you like us, 'cause we don't like you. You're a bad person with an ugly heart, and we don't give a flying f**k what you think!


Romy And Michele's High School Reunion (1997)

Random Thought #32 - I'll Just Have To Walk A Little Further

After about a month of torture I have decided to start using a different bus stop. So I'll  have to walk slightly further... and quicker to catch the bus in a morning.

Why? Well it's very simple why... if I don't start using a different bus stop the school children stood at my usual bus stop will drive me completely insane!

I know they are only kids but there are only so many stupid questions, Donald Duck impersonations, shouting and general messing about that I can stand.

You want further proof that I need to change bus stops? Well here it is:

1. Occasionally school children approaching the bus stop will ask their friends who are already standing at the bus stop 'Are you getting the bus?' (The word duh springs to mind).
2. One child asked another 'Have you ever been to Greggs?' Which to some of you may mean nothing but in the UK Greggs is a chain of bakers, and I would have been astonished if the answer had been 'no'. Which is wasn't.
3. Ten minutes of constant requests for one boy to say different things like Donald Duck is enough to drive anyone mad!
4. The bus stops in my area have a bit in the middle with timetables and other information on either side. This part of the bus stop is movable. One child, clearly entertained by simple things, likes to play with this by spinning it round... and round... and round... you get the picture.
5. The other day when I arrived at the bus stop I was informed by a girl that the bus had already been. I ignored her and a couple of minuted later the bus arrived... more or less on time (the buses never run on time so 'more or less' will have to do).
6. This one is the one that really got the irritation cycle going for me. I honestly could not believe that someone said this. I was absolutely speechless otherwise I might have said something to the boy in question. On the 14th September 2011 the aforementioned Donald Duck impersonator asked his friend, 'When does 9/11 start?' (OMG!!!!)

You see what sort of creatures I'm up against. I'm sure I wasn't as bad as that when I was at school (someone please tell me I wasn't!).

So to avoid me having a nervous breakdown (I've already got one of those lined up at work!) I'm going to start going to a different bus stop.

Random Quote #51

Witch King: You fool. No man can kill me. Die now. *Merry stabs the Witch King from behind; the Witch King falls to his knees. Eowyn rises and pulls off her helmet*

Eowyn: I am no man. *thrusts her sword into the Witch King's helmet; he shrieks and implodes*

Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)

I Finally Cracked It!

For a few years now I have been unable to French braid my hair. It always went catastrophically wrong. And then I got frustrated and gave up.

But I have finally been able to French braid my hair with the help of Torrin Paige on Youtube. You may remember me giving her a special mention in my Y is For... Youtube post back in April.

So anyway I love her videos... whatever they are about. I love her hair tutorials, her nail tutorials, her vlogs. She always makes me smile.

So I watched her video on how to French braid and now... I can French braid as well!

However I did lose concentration the first time I tried it after watching this video and ended up with half a French braid and half a Dutch braid!

Which is no mean feat I must say. I had no idea where I'd gone wrong until I watched the Dutch braid video and watched the French braid video again!

For those who don't know a Dutch braid is also know as an inside out French braid - so you can probably understand my confusion when I ended up with a hairstyle that was half of one and half of another.

I really like her. But if you don't like hair, nails, enchiladas, books and various other things she probably will be of no interest to you. But don't go over to Youtube and leave nasty comments like the haters out there or you will be branded a category 3 moron!

Random Quote #50

We are all of us stars, and we deserve to twinkle.

Marilyn Monroe

Do You think This Is Bad Manners?

I have a relative... who I won't name, even though they are unlikely to read this but you never know. So anyway I have a relative, whose wife had a birthday a couple of weeks ago. Now we haven't seen them since before the birthday and so we haven't been able to give her her present yet.
However the relative went up to another relative of mine, who we had recently visited, and asked if we had left the present with them.

Now we had never mentioned a present, we hadn't told them there was a present to be collected at some point. They just assumed there was a present to be had. Which my immediate family and I think is really really rude.

This relative does this a lot. If you dare to forget their anniversary or something, or you post your card and it is late, they become almost unbearable. I would never go up to someone and say 'where's my present?' But they do. My Dad said a few years ago he told the relative that you don't ask things like that. To which the relative replied 'I do'.

Just to show how different two sides of a family can be. A couple of years ago when my sister turned 17 the aforementioned relative said that they would give her some money as a present the following week. And then they forgot. And we have never mentioned it. Well we moaned about it amongst ourselves. And it came up again as a conversation topic due to this recent incident. But we never actually went up to them and told them that they owed my sister a present.

You could understand if they were children. Children say what they think. They could be forgiven for that. But given that the wife is 9 years older than me and the relative is 18 years older then me... and I am 26... well what do you think about it?

Is it rude of them or should we be hammering on their door demanding my sister's 17th birthday present?

I Wish I Hadn't Watched That! - Worst Movies Ever Blogfest

Today is the day that Alex J Cavanaugh is hosting the Worst Movies Ever Blogfest.

All you have to do is:

"...post a list of up to ten of the worst movies you’ve ever had the misfortune to watch. Films that just oozed awfulness and featured plot holes so big you could drive a bus through them. Any genre or year, but only theater and straight to video/DVD titles. (Otherwise we’d all list every movie ever made by the SyFy Channel!)"

I really had to think about this I tend to forget films that I didn't like. I remember the ones I love but the ones that are rubbish get erased from my memory fairly quickly.


So I compiled a list. Now some of these are films where I haven't seen all of the film. I try to give films a chance but some I just had to give up on before the end. So you never know the film might have picked up right after I stopped watching. But as I don't intend to ever watch them again I guess I'll never know.


No doubt some of you will disagree with some of my choices... but I'll probably disagree with some of your too.


In no particular order of hideousness:

Fun With Dick & Jane - Four words Jim Carrey - what were you thinking? Seriously we know he can make good movies - Bruce Almighty before this and Yes Man after are proof - so where did this come from? I can barely remember what it was about it was so dull.

Click - as I was watching this film, at first I thought it was average. But there is a particular scene in it that took it from an average film to a film worthy of the 'worst' film title. For those who were unfortunate enough to watch this film and were wondering the scene involves David Hasselhoff.

The Libertine - I'll admit I didn't watch all of this but the twenty or thirty minutes that I did watch were not exactly exciting... you would have thought given the subject matter and the fact that Johnny Depp was starring that it was would have been a 'thrilling romp'... but it was boring. His character was no Jack Sparrow, Edward Scissorhands, Willy Wonka or Sweeny Todd.

Even if you tell me that it was brilliant after the first thirty minutes I will not be revisiting.

Le Divorce - in my opinion this film was too close to real life to make it entertaining. I know we want movies to be believable but this was tedious. I work at a solicitors office so I see divorce files everyday... and that is more interesting than this film was.







There are other films out there that are no doubt just as boring, dull or tedious that escape me at the moment. There are also films out there that I thought about putting in this list but they are not necessarily the 'worst' films I've ever seen. What I didn't like about them was that they fall in to the modern version of horror - throw enough blood and gore around and no one will notice the lack of plot... they just grossed me out. *shudders* In fact there is one film that just the trailer creeped me out to the point that I refuse to watch the actual film... *shudders again*

Now I'm off to watch some films that I love and to put all these bad films behind me :)

Random Quote #49

*stabs Theron and holds sword into his body* This will not be over quickly. You will not enjoy this. I am not your Queen!

Queen Gorgo

300 (2006)



(You really have to have seen this film to understand this quote)

Random Thought #31 - School Supplies

You've Got Mail is one of my favourite films. It's just a really lovely film - there are no other words to describe it other than lovely.

And recently as Autumn has started to descend on us and school has started back up a quote from this film has sprung to mind.

[NY152 writing to shopgirl]: Don't you love New York in the fall? It makes me wanna buy school supplies. I would send you a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils if I knew your name and address.

Now I don't live in New York but I do always feel the need to buy school supplies at this time of year.

I used to love getting new pens and a new pencil case, notebooks etc. I was a little bit of a nerd at school.

So now when the need to buy such items arises I tend to try and stick to art supplies, sketch pads, pencils and the like.

And I love the image of a bouquet of pencils! :)

How Is That Possible?

The other day I saw this trailer for The Rum Diary starring Johnny Depp.

At first I thought it looked like quite a serious film but after watching the trailer it looks as though it might be quite funny in places.

I'm not 100% sure what the story is meant to be about but there is something that puzzles me even more...

How the hell can Johnny Depp, him being the main man in the trailer as if you didn't already know, be forty-eight years old?

And is it just me that thinks it is a little funny that Johnny Depp is in a film called The Rum Diary?

Random Quote #48

Jonah: I am going to kill you, and then I'm going to defile your corpse.

Piper: Between now and then... I'ma f**k you up.

Drive Angry (2011)

Cruella Est Fantastique

Although not my favourite Disney baddie I must admit Cruella De Vil is pretty bad. Whilst checking out my recommendations on Youtube I came across Disney film clips that were in languages other than English.

And I clicked on Cruella De Vil in French. Now she is great as an English woman but she's fantastic as a French woman. I don't know what it is...

If you want to skip forward to when Cruella actually comes in it is at about 0:50

Isn't she fabulous?

Random Quote #47

It is a mistake to look too far ahead. Only one link of the chain of destiny can be handled at a time.

Sir Winston Churchill

Random Thought #30 - Too Little Money & Space

You may remember back in April and the A to Z Blogging Challenge that for the letter 'E' I posted about the website Etsy.

Well I would now like to declare something - I hate Etsy! Erm... that's actually a lie. I don't hate Etsy at all.

I LOVE Etsy!
I ADORE Etsy!

What I hate is that there are soooooooo many absolutely gorgeous things on there that I want...

I currently have 47 items in my favourites on Etsy... and 27 are still available. I could go on there right now and buy them.

Some of them I can actually afford to buy, others I can't. So the problem is not the items I can't afford. I can just drool over the photographs.

The problem is the items I can afford, that I really want, and can see me having. In particular there are several vintage dresses I need to complete my life want.

They are stunning, I can afford them, I'm sure I can find occasions to wear the fancier ones to.

So what is the problem I hear you say?

Well just because I have this sign above my wardrobe door...

...does not make it true! (Well actually my wardrobe is too small but that's not the point)

At the moment if I took the hanging rail out of my wardrobe everything would stay where it is floating in mid air.

That does have a little to do with the amount of non clothes related crap that is at the back of my wardrobe but mainly it is the sheer amount of clothes that are in there. And I know that I need to clear some of the crap out of there - both clothes and non clothes.

I keep thinking 'I'll wait until pay day.' The only thing is that last time I 'waited until pay day' I was too late and the item had gone. :*(

Decisions, decisions...

Does your wardrobe echo or is it bursting at the seams like mine?

Random Thought #29 - Yum

The Meatball Marinara

Quick, to Subway!

Possibly the messiest sandwich ever concocted... but delicious with it! :)

Random Quote #46

Do, or do not. There is no try.

Yoda

Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

Random Thought #28 - Weather

I don't mind all sorts of weather. In fact I quite like walking in some of the more inclement types of weather as long as I'm prepared.

I don't mind sun. I don't mind rain (although drizzle annoys me sometimes). I don't mind snow. Even hail doesn't really bother me.

But what I hate weather wise is wind. I'm not talking about a slight breeze on a warm day. I'm talking about when there is a strong wind that is incessant. It batters you, tries to snatch things off you and blows your hair into your eyes and mouth.

I hate it when it is windy!

Random Quote #45

Nothing is impossible, the word itself says 'I'm possible'!

Audrey Hepburn

Coming Soon To A Blog Near You...

It's the Worst Movies Ever Blogfest! As hosted by Alex J Cavanaugh.

It is taking place on 19th September 2011... bet you can't guess what you have to do?

Yes you've guessed it, post a list of 10 of the worst movies you have ever seen. Now I have to decide - do I include the films that I stopped watching 20 minutes in? For all I know it might have been brilliant after that (I don't stop watching films after 20 minutes very often - I like to give them a chance - but with some films it is just too painful).

Random Quote #44

Go ahead, make my day.

Harry Callahan - Sudden Impact (1983)

Random Quote #43

OK, last one to kill a bad guy buys the beer.

Major West - Lost In Space (1998)

The Novel Film Blogfest

The Novel Film Blogfest is here!!!! As hosted by Madeleine over at Scribble And Edit.

Here's what it's all about:

"There's a lot of novels, comics and plays that have been made into films and TV dramas,
BUT how many of them have you BOTH seen the film/TV drama and read the original book, play or comic story?"

When I first discovered this blogfest I could only think of about three off the top of my head. But now... well you'll find out. Due to the length of my list I have forgone descriptions and pictures... I'd be here forever.

So here is my list, in no specific order - the bits in brackets are when the title was changed for the film. And yes a couple of these are novelisations of films... slightly cheating but... who cares?

  

1. The Fellowship of the Ring - J R R Tolkien
2. The Two Towers - J R R Tolkien
3. The Return of the King - J R R Tolkien
4. The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
5. Dracula - Bram Stoker
6. Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
7. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen - Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill
8. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
9. Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
10. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
11. Emma - Jane Austen
12. Interview With the Vampire - Anne Rice
13. Queen of the Damned - Anne Rice
14. Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
15. The Devil Wears Prada - Lauren Weisberger
16. The Jane Austen Book Club - Karen Joy Fowler
17. The War of the Worlds - H G Wells
18. The Time Machine - H G Wells
19. The Phantom of the Opera - Gaston Leroux
20. The Shining - Stephen King
21. Salem's Lot - Stephen King
22. Matilda - Roald Dahl
23. The Witches - Roald Dahl
24. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - Ken Kesey
25. I Am Legend - Richard Matheson
26. Shutter Island - Dennis Lehane
27. Harry Potter & the Philosopher's Stone - J K Rowling
28. Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets - J K Rowling
29. Harry Potter & the Prisoner of Azkaban - J K Rowling
30. Harry Potter & the Goblet of Fire - J K Rowling
31. Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix - J K Rowling
32. Charlie & the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
33. Breakfast at Tiffany's - Truman Capote
34. The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic - Sophie Kinsella [Confessions of a Shopaholic]
35. The Godfather - Mario Puzo
36. Atonement - Ian McEwan
37. Dr Dolittle - Hugh Lofting
38. Kiss the Girls - James Patterson
39. Along Came A Spider - James Patterson
40. PS I Love You - Cecelia Ahern
41. Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
42. The Wizard of Oz - L Frank Baum
43. The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
44. Murder On the Orient Express - Agatha Christie
45. Death On the Nile - Agatha Christie
46. The ABC Murders - Agatha Christie
47. James & the Giant Peach - Roald Dahl
48. The Client - John Grisham
49. Misery - Stephen King
50. Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
51. Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace - Terry Brooks
52. Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones - R A Salvatore
53. Romeo & Juliet - William Shakespeare
54. The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde
55. Angels & Demons - Dan Brown
56. Various Sherlock Holmes Stories - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
57. Various Buffy The Vampire Slayer/Angel Stories - Various

So just the odd one or two then!

Random Quote #42

The old wheel turns and the same spoke comes up. It's all been done before, and it will again.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

A Little Update...

I just thought I'd let you know... in case you were wondering where I'd vanished to. Or thought that I was still doing Camp NaNoWriMo. Or if you don't read my other blog - The Life Of Writing.

I haven't vanished... but I'm also no longer taking part in Camp NaNoWriMo. I was running out of story and then last week my Grandad died.

So I haven't really felt like writing anything recently. Hopefully once the funeral and the clearing of the house is over things will start to return to normal.

But you'll still get your Random Quote come Monday. And my post for the Novel Films Blogfest next week as hosted by Madeleine on her blog Scribble and Edit.

Random Quote #41

We all die. The goal isn't to live forever, the goal is to create something that will.

Chuck Palahniuk

Random Quote #40

Don't say you don't have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michaelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo Da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson and Albert Einstein.

H Jackson Brown Jr.

The Novel Films Blogfest - Coming Soon

I finally got around to posting about this blogfest - eleven more people have signed up since I did!

Anyway this blogfest is being hosted by Madeleine on her blog Scribble and Edit

It's fairly simple this one:

"There's a lot of novels, comics and plays that have been made into films and TV dramas,
BUT how many of them have you BOTH seen the film/TV drama and read the original book, play or comic story?"


When I first signed up for this I could think of three off the top of my head. But since then I've been jotting them down as the come to me - so I now have fifty-five!


So sign up and get listing!

A Drop Of Courage...

I actually have a print out of this picture on my office wall.

Random Quote #39

Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned, nor hell a fury like a woman scorned.

The Mourning Bride by William Congreve (1697)

Random Thought #27 - Alcohol & Gender Stereotypes

I went to a retirement party yesterday. It was a buffet, so it was a mad dash to go get your food and actually reclaim the seat you had.

A guy came to sit at our table, next to the only other guy at our table. The guy already sitting there saw a pint of lager at that particular place that hadn't been there before.

Sitting Guy (who was already close to drunk): Who is sitting here? A man has been sitting here?

That comment made me wonder what he would have said had I gone and got a pint of cider to drink (which I have done in the past I'll have you know - I like drinking cider) instead of the Archers and lemonade I had. That would have thrown his world view in to disarray. A woman drinking a pint... and not of water!?!? Whoever heard of such a thing?

But I didn't do it as I had already been called Miss Quiet and Miss Prim by the guy whose party it was for drinking alchopops (they were a £1 a bottle OK?) straight from the bottle - no straw. So sorry if I'm quiet and polite when I'm at work.

If they only knew what I'm like at home!

Oh they would be surprised what they'd find out about me if they really got to know me

A Quick Note...

I just thought I'd mention that I might not be posting as often as I usually do, until the end of July rolls around.

I have stupidly decided to take part in Camp NaNoWriMo so I'm very busy at the moment. Add to that the fact that my social life is slightly more active at the moment (instead of flat lining as it usually does).

But don't worry, I'm all prepared for the random quotes - you will not have to go with out a weekly random quote!

There are weekly updates on my progress on my other blog The Life Of Writing.

Day 6... and I'm already behind! Aargh!

P.S. Something just made me LOL (seriously I Laughed Out Loud) - I updated my word count on the Camp NaNo site and it calculated that at this rate I should finish on 27th August. Well that would be fine... if I was taking part in the August one wouldn't it?

Random Quote #38

Julie: You're not a writer unless someone publishes you.

Eric: See, that's what's so great about blogs. You don't have to be published. You can just go online, press enter and there it is, out there.


Julie & Julia (2009)

Random Thought #26 - It's Not Just Me Then

You find out some random things about people when life goes a little bit pear shaped.

*WARNING! The following sentence may cause you to become confused and you may have to read it several times to understand it.*

Last Friday morning was a particularly uneventful morning because of an event that occurred which stopped other events occurring. Do you understand?

No? Try reading it again... still nothing?

Well last Friday the aforementioned event was a power cut. You realise just how much you depend on computers when there is a power cut.

So I spent two and a half hours on Friday morning trying to find non technology based things that you can do in the dark whilst at work.

So a very dull and boring two and a half hours followed.

Anyway back to the whole 'it's not just me' part of this random thought. Sometime before the power cut I read on Jen Daiker's blog Unedited that she hates speaking to people on the phone - the same applies to me.

Then, during the power cut, one of colleagues confessed that if an 'unknown' number calls his mobile phone he won't answer it. I do that too. If I don't recognise the number and I'm not expecting a call I will not answer it. I hate being called anyway. I like to prepare when making phone calls, what I'm going to say etc. so someone calling me throws that out the window and I have to wing it.

Lovin' The Language Blogfest

Today we have the Lovin' The Language Blogfest hosted by Jolene.




And all you have to do is:

"Pick any five lines or any five SHORT excerpts from one of your WIPs. If you're feeling shy, and don't want to share from your own work, share from something you LOVE."


Now I am one of those shy people... and my WIP is currently a complete mess. So even if I wasn't one of those shy people I probably couldn't have come up with anything decent.

But as soon as I knew I'd be using something else I knew exactly which book to go for... and which scene. It is a book that I only read recently but it immediately became one of my favourite books (although I can't for the life of me tell you why). And it is a scene that stuck with me, even after I'd finished the book and moved on to something entirely different. Five lines was actually perfect for this particular scene.

For those of you who haven't read One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey let me set the scene a little.

McMurphy is a criminal who gets himself transferred to a mental institute for what he thinks will be an easy stay. He soon clashes with the tyrannical Nurse Ratched who rules the ward, sitting behind her spotless glass window only leaving for meetings or to dish out discipline. McMurphy attempts to break her psychologically.


The glass came apart like water splashing, and the nurse threw her hands to her ears. He got one of the cartons of cigarettes with his name on it and took out a pack, then put it back and turned to where the Big Nurse was sitting like a chalk statue and very tenderly went to brushing the slivers of glass off her hat and shoulders.
"I'm sure sorry, ma'am," he said. "Gawd but I am. That window glass was so spick and span I com-pletely forgot it was there."


If you haven't read it you really should... if you like that sort of book of course. If you don't well... don't read it - simple as!

Random Quote #37

Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much.

Oscar Wilde

I Missed One!

How could I forget!

Last week I took part in The Favourite Book Challenge Blogfest - to see that post click here.

Anyhoo I could only think of four books (as you'll have discovered if you clicked the above link) that stood out from the many many books that I have read over the years.

And then last night I remembered another one. I actually remember thinking that I must include this book when I first read about the blogfest.

So as a late entry... Book Number 5:

George's Marvellous Medicine by Roald Dahl.

A young boy tries to cure his Grandma of her viciousness by creating a new medicine for her.


Roald Dahl was one of my favourite authors of a child, this book being my favourite. to the point that I still have the hardback book that includes this story, The BFG and Matilda.


So book number 5 was four days late... but better late than never!

I Have Too Many! Part 4: T-Shirts

I've been preparing this for a while. And to be honest I don't think I've taken photos of all my t-shirts.

I've lost track. Every time I wore a different one I took a picture. But I'm not sure if this is the lot. I already know that I'm missing at least one t-shirt - a white one with Betty Boop on it. Never mind.

But I think that this will demonstrate that I have too many t-shirts regardless. Although I'm pretty sure I don't have more t-shirts than my brother. That is nearly all he wears. And 99% of them are black with skulls, skeletons or wolves on.

So without further ado... I have too many t-shirts:

The Favourite Book Challenge Blogfest

So here we are... I'm all sorted out now... here is my post for The Favourite Book Challenge Blogfest as hosted by Teralyn on her blog A Writer's Journey.

You are supposed to (in an ideal world) have five books... but I've only got four so... four it will have to be.

Trying to cut the whole plot of a book down in to one sentence is hard... especially if you haven't read said book for a while. But I'll do my best...

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

An orphan, forced to live with her wealthy but cruel relatives, becomes a governess in a house where strange goings on occur, and both love and tragedy lie in wait.

I like this book because it's dark, mysterious and gothic, yet romantic and touching all at the same time.

Lucia Lucia by Adriana Trigiani

A young woman listens as her elderly neighbour tells her the story of her life; her determination to have a career, falling in love and risking everything to have it all.

This was the first of Trigiani's books that I had read; it was amongst my Grandma's books when she died and I wasn't sure if I would enjoy reading it... I loved it.

The Reckoning by Sue Walker

Over thirty years after a series of murders split a family up, the killer dies in prison; his son returns to the scene of the crime and discovers that he may have been innocent all along.

Coming up to the end of this book was the first time I had ever needed to know what happened so much that I stayed up until 2am reading - I just had to know!

One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey

A jailbird, hoping for an easy stay in a mental institute, clashes with the tyrannical head nurse who runs the ward with almost military precision.

I don't know why this is one of my favourite books; it just is.

This Is Not My Entry...

...for The Favourite Book Challenge Blogfest that is being hosted by Teralyn on her blog A Writer's Journey.

Let's put it this way it is a good job that this blogfest is taking place over three days.

I didn't forget about it (honestly). I knew it was coming but it seemed ages away. And then BAM!!! The 20th arrived and I wasn't quite prepared... oops...

But I didn't want you all to think that I'd just not bothered. I have a list of books I've just got to write something for each one now. So hopefully I'll post my entry tomorrow... or the day after... which would be the last day of the blogfest so it will have to be by then or never really.

So I best be off to get on with this hadn't I?

Random Quote #36

*answers telephone after Del has told him to tell the caller that he is out*

Oh, hello Mr Chin. No Del's gone out. I'm not sure... Where've you gone to Del?

Grandad 


Only Fools and Horses - The Yellow Peril (1982)

Random Thought #25 - Sunbeds

This is a true random thought.

I've never been on a sunbed, I have not intention of using one, but I was just wondering...

Do you have to use sun lotion when you use a sun bed?

Blogfest Alert!

I come bearing news of another blogfest!

This one is hosted by Jolene on her blog. It is the 'Loving The Language Blogfest' which you can sign up for by clicking here.

Before I sign up what's it about? I hear you cry.

Well all you have to do is, on 27th June:

"Pick any five lines (yes, it can be a few short lines that roll together. That's okay, and is probably what I'll do) from one of your WIPs. If you're feeling shy, and don't want to share from your own work, share from something you LOVE.

All you have to do is sign up below (so we can share in your language love) and on June 27th (a dreaded Monday post) you can toss up some of your favorite lines - you know - the ones that make you want to jump up from your computer and raise your hands in the air when you get them down, or the ones that make you laugh, smile, or cry each time you read them."

I have to admit I am one of the shy people... I will be posting from something else. Not only am I shy but my WIP is in a state not fit for anyones eyes other than my own. And even then I sometimes don't want to look at it (I can't believe some of the crap I wrote - but it was NaNoWriMo and it was about quantity not quality).

Anyway that is why it is posted on this blog as opposed to my writing blog as my entry is unlikely to include any of my own writing.

But I have just the book/lines in mind...