Quick update

I am still alive, though the inevitable half term bug did attempt to strike me down... I slept for two days straight and am feeling somewhat better now.

Please pay attention to the new addition to my side bar. Treasure Island is Ottershaw's Christmas production and it's going to be brilliant!! Swashing of buckles, lots of yo ho hoing etc. Come and see it if you're in the area, and if you're not, make the journey - it'll be worth it! Bring you children, your grandchildren, your aunts, uncles and cousins!

I am moving house in 3 days time and haven't started packing yet. There's been lots going on, mainly my beloved godfather Lester becoming very ill in Bristol. We've all been on tenterhooks for the last week, but sadly he passed away last night. Not really thinking about much else at the moment.

Off now to do my ironing, and think about packing. And try to decide which of the MANY pink things I own to use for the Photo Hunt this week...

Photo Hunt - Practical

I have been away...but now I am back, later than ever before, with an entry for "Practical". (I hope I'm still allowed to play after such a long absence?)















This entry is both practical AND pretty... And inside the handle are three useful additions :)




















The hammer is my mother's (she also has a tape measure). The stapler is mine, a birthday present in response to the request for "pretty things" for my birthday!

AWOL

I am alive. Some of you will already know this of course. Anyway. I live, I breathe, I sleep. No updates for a while due to everything fun being blocked at school (grrr) and actually not having much to say. Oh and the internet is dodgy at home and I got bored of Blogger crashing!!

News:

Loving new job, but finding it very tiring. Roll on half term!!!

Phil and I officially move in together in two weeks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Watch this space....

Am in two plays at the moment, "Treasure Island" with Ottershaw Players and "Little Red Riding Hood" with Byfleet Players. Consequently I spend most of my time trying to remember which play I'm doing at the time and which lines I'm supposed to say...

Will be back in half term I promise!!!!!!!!!!!!

Photo Hunt - Paper

Another late entry from me - in fact all I seem to do at the moment is post the Photo Hunt entries...

Last week I talked about my plastic chair which is really uncomfortable when writing a thesis. This week....my thesis! Well, it fits the theme!

Photo Hunt - Plastic

Bit slow this week, and a bit of a random photo!




















This is my desk chair in my bedroom. I bought it primarily because it is pink...however, it is also very uncomfortable if you sit in it for a long time, which I have been doing recently due to my thesis being due! Anyway, a plastic chair for the photo hunt!

Photo Hunt - Music

Here is my "musical" offering for this week's photo hunt.... My brother (yes, despite the long hair) is playing the guitar in this picture, with his band Cowblanket. I don't know why they were called that and sadly they have now disbanded, but when they played they had a small but devoted following!!



















Enjoy!

It's a dog's life.

While I remember... In fact it was reading Welshcakes post about Simi that I remembered to post this - pictures of William and Grace after their haircuts. Normally Lhasas have long hair which reaches the ground. This has proved entirely impractical for our dogs, so we tend to keep them quite short. When we first have them done they look quite silly, but also deliciously neat and cute. It turns out that Gracey has very long legs and a very skinny body, whereas William is very stocky and muscley. They might not be to everyone's tastes, but I think they're gorgeous!

(on a related note, I was talking about the God Delusion by Richard Dawkins this week. I got my tongue twisted and called it the Dog Delusion, which would be an entirely different book!)

Not looking bad for 90

Yesterday me, Patrick, Daniel, Dad and Monika trekked to Ipswich to celebrate Aunty Nancy's 90th birthday. She was, as always, in fine fettle and as you can see, still looking good for 9 decades. She said she had had a wonderful birthday and was quite overwhelmed by how kind everyone had been (she received 46 birthday cards in all!). In the photo AN is enjoying a strawberry ice-cream (a woman after my own heart) and she was very proud to not only eat the world's biggest portion of plaice, but then to eat ALL of her huge portion of ice-cream. She said as she ate it "I will eat all this ice-cream even if I pop". And she did! (Finish it, not pop!)

Photo Hunt - Dirty

I didn't think I would post this week, and am doing so very late, but mainly cos I don't have a very good picture (did anyone else find this theme hard?) but also because I have been in the library all week working on my thesis and then in Ipswich today celebrating my Aunt's 90th birthday (see below)

So here are my not-great-contributions this week:














"Dirty Weather" at Pack Holiday 2007



















"Dirty Boat", Emsworth

Nostalgia

It was my Aunt Nancy's 90th birthday this week (on Tuesday, in fact). 90 years seems impossibly old for this very active and bright woman, but I am assured that she has been rocking and rolling for 9 decades now...

Anyway, Dad has organised one of those digital picture frames for her. I'm not really sure what that means, but he asked me to find some photos she might like. I had already found loads of old photos from when mum and I tidied her room a few weeks ago, so that was quite easy. I particularly like the one below, which was taken on my first birthday:












Back row (L-R): Grandpa Groome (Dad's dad), Aunty Nancy, Uncle Harry
Front row (L-R): Grandma Groome (Dad's mum), Dad (check out the socks), Mum, me and Grandma Vera, mum's stepmum (my Australian Grandma)

Whenever I look at photos like these I am always really grateful that my parents took to recording every moment of my life from birth (pretty much). When I am old and grey (and perhaps 90 years old), I hope I still have these photos to remember things by.

ok ok ok... I said I wouldn't post, but then I found out that I had been linked/mentioned/used (in a good way) on Nourishing Obscurity... A mentioned blogger is a happy blogger.

PS: the photo at the top of my page, and at the top of the post on NO, is by my dad whom I probably should have credited before now...

Please leave a message after the tone....

Clare is not available to blog right now, but will be back, after 14th September (but probably before) when dissertation hell is finished....

Due to lack of time, and rising stress levels, I seem to have neglected this blog. I am very sorry, as I still really enjoy reading everyone else’s. I may not be able to participate in the Photo Hunt this week as I am seriously stressed about work (dissertation due in oh not long enough days) and also can’t think of a suitable picture.

Instead I will leave this picture with you, for all the women who read this (again, sorry for 3 blokes who read this blog), which I received through email a few months ago. It made me chuckle, and I printed it out – it’s now on my wall. (You may have to click on it to read it better...)

Also, here is a picture of little Kieran George Hames, who was born on 29^th August at 10:33, weighing 9lbs. Kieran is the son of my friend Zanna (whose purple nails you can see in the picture!), who I went to school with.

For all you women...

Q: How many women going through the MENOPAUSE (or PMS) does it take to change a light bulb?

A: One! ONLY ONE!!!! And do you know WHY? Because no one else in this house knows HOW to change a light bulb! They don't even know that the bulb is BURNED OUT!! They would sit in the dark for THREE DAYS before they figured it out (as long as the TV and beer fridge still worked). And, once they figured it out, they wouldn't be able to find the stupid light bulbs despite the fact that they've been in the SAME CABINET for the past 17 YEARS!But if they did, by some miracle of God, actually find them, 4 DAYS LATER, the chair they dragged to stand on to change the STUPID light bulb would STILL BE IN THE SAME SPOT!!!!! AND UNDERNEATH IT WOULD BE THE WRAPPER THE "F&*%$£G" LIGHT BULBS CAME IN!!! BECAUSE NO ONE EVER CARRIES OUT THE RUBBISH!!!! IT'S A WONDER WE HAVEN'T ALL SUFFOCATED FROM THE PILES OF CRAP THAT ARE A FOOT DEEP THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE HOUSE!! IT WOULD TAKE AN ARMY TO CLEAN THIS PLACE! AND DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON WHO CHANGES THE TOILET ROLL !! . . .

Photo Hunt - Happy

PhotoHunt

My beautiful friend Emmie has a very characteristic laugh. I am lucky enough to have caught it on camera twice, once in Hungary when we were on a GOLD (Guiding Overseas Linked with Development) Project (one of the happiest times of my life) and once at her wedding, in July 2007 (one of the happiest days of her life). I thought both fitted the theme perfectly.














Emmie in Hungary 2003
















Emmie at her wedding, July 2007

Old photos

I have been feeling bored and nostalgic recently. I was looking through some old photos from uni and from when I went to Hungary and I came across this photo of Phil on his graduation day. I think its a lovely one of him, and I'm quite pleased with it from a photographic point of view as well.

I think the girl to his left (right as you look at it) is thinking evil thoughts though...

Photo Hunt - Two

PhotoHunt

Here is my offering for the Photo Hunt this week:

Two peas in a pod! (Except I'll let you in on a secret...they are both me!)

Furiousness

I sent an email to my dissertation supervisor and my head of department today concerning some problems I have had with the project. The contents of the email was personal and (I considered it to be) confidential.

My supervisor emailed me back with a very supportive email but he has copied two other people in on his reply, leaving my original email at the bottom. If I had wanted them to know, I would have sent it to them...

I am furious that my confidentiality has been breached. I just assumed he wouldn't forward it on to anyone. ARGH>

A pushme-pullyou dog...

Another random phone photo of my dogs doing silly things.


Darcey on the left was quite comfortable on the beanbag, when Grace climbed on top of her and lay down. Before I moved to take the photo, you really couldn't see where one dog started and the other ended!

But now I wish I had put this up as my photo hunt photo - a two headed dog...

Last week I promised photos from my shopping "spree" with the Jigsaw voucher mum gave me. We went into Guildford (your favourite place Chux!) and had a lovely time browsing in the sunshine. I was only allowed to buy new clothes for work, and so....

A new jumper:

A new skirt:












And a new cardigan:












They all look much nicer on than they do spread on my duvet!

In other exciting news, Phil's parents have given me some money for house sitting/watering the garden whilst they were away. I feel dreadful about taking it, as I really didn't do much except water the greenhouse as it was during the floods and all it did was rain. But they insisted. So I paid the cheque in today and will hopefully be shopping again soon - for work clothes again (no denim, what AM I going to do??) but probably from H&M this time - MUCH cheaper than Jigsaw!

Welcome to the Twilight Zone

Having read on Pete's blog about HLYW's dream about David Bowie, it reminded me about my strange dream last night.

I dreamt we were having the first rehearsal for Treasure Island (Ottershaw's next show at the Rhoda), but two things were a little odd. First, it was held in my bedroom - not the normal place to hold a rehearsal with a cast of at least ten people. Second we were in costume. Not too weird, except that my costume was a pair of tights. Just a pair of tights. So I spent the whole rehearsal wrapped in my duvet, wearing a pair of tights. Now, Chris is doing the costumes, so I am hoping that if I am in it, I will be wearing more than just some tights...

Also weird was that I was playing a male pirate who has his leg shot off on the first page. There is no such character...I also had to sing "I'll make a man out of you" from Oh What a Lovely War as part of the rehearsal!

Does anyone have a dream diary?

If at first you don't succeed...

Never mind eh... He didn't pass, but he's going to do it again in a few weeks.

All the best people fail first time...

Say a little prayer...

....If you're of a religious frame of mind: my brother has his driving test today. It would be brilliant if he passed, he needs some good news after the farce of his degree results.

I will even try not to get annoyed when he gloats at passing first time (I passed second time)...

So, fingers crossed, and all that jazz...

Stress....

I now have three documents open. In total I have written 1,342 words. Unfortunately it's about as dysfluent (it's a word, honestly) as some of my stammerers. I'm sort of writing things down as I find them, and then hoping I can make it hang together at some point. It's terrible, I hate it, and I cried a lot earlier. But hey.

I found this poem from Lewis Carroll (a stutterer - did you know the character of the Dodo was based on the man himself?) which amused me:

Learn well your grammar,
And never stammer,
Write well and neatly,
And sing most sweetly,
…Drink tea, not coffee;
Never eat toffy.
Eat bread with butter.
Once more, don't stutter.

-from Rules and Regulations

Now I'm trying to work out where I can slip it into my project...

Writer's Block

I was working on the proof of one of my poems all the morning, and took out a comma. In the afternoon I put it back again.

OSCAR WILDE

I cannot think of anything more to write. I have written about stammering. I have written a little about Conversation Analysis. I have written about why we should look at stammering in the light of Conversation Analysis techniques and theories.

I am bashing my head against a brick wall.

With apologies to Helen Fielding (and Bridget Jones)

Cups of tea: 3 large (not v.good)

Cups of coffee: 1 large (not v.good)

Glasses of water: 0 (very not v.good)

Lines of Chocolate Eaten: 3 (not good, but choc is fair-trade and therefore allowed?)

Cookies eaten: 2 (ok, except that the only other thing I’ve eaten is 2 slices of toast)

Work done: minimal (very not v.good – deadline is fast approaching)

Naps: 45 mins (awful, bad, terrible)

Blogs read: numerous (very very very bad)

Blog articles written: 3

Television watched: none (very good!)

Games of Solitaire: none (very good!)

Please stop writing interesting blog articles. In the last 2 days I have found 4 more people I want to read on a regular basis. I am never going to get my thesis done.

Photo Hunt - Row

PhotoHunt

My First Official Photo Hunt!

When I first saw the theme for this week I initially thought of this:

Collingwood College Boat Club, Women's Eights Head of the River Race 2005

And then I read on tnchick's blog that she meant something more like this:

Looking out over Budapest, August 2003

Or this:
Tunisian Shoes, Sidi Bou Said (June 2007)

International Fun at the Jamboree

The uniform makes for brotherhood, since when universally adopted it covers up all differences of class and country.
Robert Baden-Powell

Unless you've been living under a rock, you probably have noticed there's been a lot of stuff in the press about Scouting recently. The Scout Association is 100 years old this year, and there has been a lot of hoo-hah about it in the papers in the last few weeks because of the Scout Jamboree in Essex.

I was lucky enough to go to visit last Saturday and it was amazing! 40,000 Scouty people in a huge field (Hylands Park, where the V Festival is held), with national dances, food, games and even a huge ferris wheel made of wood and string!

I thoroughly enjoyed myself, and immersed myself in the wonderfully Scoutiness of it all. I've got plans to take a group of girls to Iceland next year for an international camp there - how cool would that be??

PS: I know I'm a big geek, I can't help it, and make very little apology for it!

Lots of little nice things

I found an old purse in my car a few weeks ago. Didn't look in it, as I thought it had been in there too long to be of any interest. Mum found it the other day - it had a £20 note in it!

*********

I lent some books to a friend of Phil's mum as Nina is worried that her 2/3 year old son is beginning to stutter. Sergei was adopted from Russia last year, so has a lot on his plate for any toddler, so I lent these books to put Nina's mind at rest. She gave them back a few weeks ago, and again I didn't look in the envelope cos I thought they were just books. I opened the envelope yesterday and found she'd also given me a bar of fruit and nut chocolate!! Even better, it's Fairtrade, therefore guilt-free, therefore calorie free :)

*********

Mum was given a voucher for Jigsaw for Christmas. She doesn't want it so she's given it to me, as she owes me some money. I am very excited about legitimate shopping opportunities, though looking at the prices on their website, I'm not sure how much I'll get for my money. Anyway, I'll post pictures when I've been shopping!

*********


Last but not least I have been awarded a Power of Schmooze Award from Chris. My first Blogging Award - I'm so proud. I now have to pass it on to 5 more people... So, Pete, Chux, Liz, Becky & Anna, here you go!

*********
What a lot of loveliness for one post. Back to Project Doom and Gloom now....

More distraction, yay!

OK, scrap that. I saw this on Delmonti's blog, and thought I'd post it here:
You just have to answer the questions...

My Name is Clare, and I'm a blogger and I'm female

The Last.....

person you punched.
I once slapped someone at school - unfortunately it was in front of the head of year. I've never punched anyone though...

haircut, how much was it
£20, just before I went to Tunisia

time you thought you were gonna die
Every time I fly anywhere. But particularly when I flew home from Italy in 2000 and the turbulence was so bad we were dropping 50ft and then rising again.

holiday
Tunisia, about a month ago

flowers you sent/received
Sent, some time ago when I stayed at my Godfather's so I could do work for my dissertation.
Recieved: on 3rd July, my anniversary

album/single/song you bought (and how, store, download, bribe?)
My Fair Lady Soundtrack - bought in HMV

paid job you had
Researcher for Sacoor Medical Group, West Byfleet

alcoholic drink you had
Glass of wine at Phil's house on Sunday

bowel movement
Umm...You can tell a boy wrote this!

Kiss
Last night under an umbrella in the rain

Stitch (either cosmetic, accident, or self prescribed (like Rambo))
4 on my 4th toe on my left foot, after I dropped the wheel of a trampoline on it at school when I was 14

time you cheated on a loved one
Never. I've always split up with them before I cheated!

lie you told your boss
Never I don't think...

time you felt that initial "I'm in love!" feeling
Last night....

pair of shoes you bought
A pair of black ballet-type shoes, and the same in bronze. They are the most beautifully comfortable shoes, ever.

Over to you now... you can ignore the bowel movement question!

Tunisia...a month late!

I was uploading photos on to Facebook and I remembered I haven't posted about mine and Phil's holiday in Tunisia. Anyway, it's been almost a month since we went, and there is very little that is more boring than looking at other people's holiday snaps (well looking at all of them anyway), so I thought I would post a few choice ones here and be done with it!

I may be a bit quiet on the posting front for the next few weeks - thesis is due on 13th September, and I start work at More House on 3rd...Though having work to do has never stopped me blogging before...
Phil on the Salt Lake (Chott El Jerid)

Me (L) and Phil (R) on
camels in the Sahara
(my camel was called Alice,
Phil's was called Trevor)

One of the beautiful blue doors in Sidi Bou Said

Some very funky shoes on a
stall in Sidi Bou

Apparently

So there we are. Small children, old people, and others are welcome!

Handsome Man

Yesterday I was a dog. Today I'm a dog. Tomorrow I'll probably still be a dog. Sigh! There's so little hope for advancement.
Charles M Schulz (1922-2000) - Snoopy

Here is a picture I found on my phone of William looking regal. It must have been taken some time ago because he hasn't looked this calm since before the puppies were born...

If I didn't have proof....

I'd never believe my eyes... Phil, ironing his shirts for work. You can tell that his mum is away and I've only just come back from a mammoth journey to Liverpool....

A Poll

For all you arty dramaery people out there:
Would you rather see Twelfth Night, Romeo and Juliet or "something by Oscar Wilde" on stage in June?
Answers on a postcard please - or just comments in the usual place!

Little Green Bag

I can resist anything but temptation

- Oscar Wilde

When I read this post by Welshcakes, it reminded me of the bag I didn't buy today. Why am I telling you about a bag I haven't bought? So you can tell me that I did the right thing by not spending money on another handbag which was entirely the wrong colour for my purposes.

Let's recap. I am going to a wedding on Friday, and am recreating my Henley outfit from a few weeks ago. There were two drawbacks to this outfit - the bag and the shoes. The shoes are gorgeous, but I spent all day digging my feet out of the mud, which became very painful. The bag is equally pretty, and bought for me by Mr & Mrs Phil for my birthday. But it's quite small. It was ok for Henley, because Phil had his camera, and held onto most of my stuff when I needed him to...But I'm going on my own to the wedding, well without Phil, so he can't keep things in his suit jacket for me.

I have bought some new flat white shoes, very practical, but not so pretty. The solution would be to wear the pretty shoes and then change them when my feet started to hurt. But where should I keep the shoes in the mean time? I can't keep them in the bag that's too small!!

Anyway, back to the pretty bag. I decided to try to get a bigger white or blue bag. I failed, but there was a beautiful green bag in M&S. It was £15, and bright green, leather. Oh it was lovely. But green, not blue or white. I didn't buy it, but it is playing on my mind....

(can you tell that I have work to do that I don't want to do?)

Now here's something depressing

Arabians learn Arabian with the speed of summer lightning.

The Hebrews learn it backwards which is absolutely frightening.

Use proper English, you're regarded as a freak.

Why can't the English learn to speak?

Professor Henry Higgins - My Fair Lady

I found this article via a Facebook group called "If you can't differentiate between there, their and they're you deserve to die". A little harsh, perhaps, but as a grammar Nazi and a fan of apostrophe graffiti, this article depressed me rather a lot...

Race for Life (& Harry Potter!)

I resisted temptation and did not go and buy Harry Potter at midnight. I seriously considered it - as this is the last one and all - but common sense prevailed and I slept instead.

Kate, Lisa and I managed the Race for Life this year - Kate's third, Lisa's first and my fifth. I ran about 3.5k of the 5, Lisa ran 3 ish and Kate ran "just less than 5". What really matters is that we raised £470 between us (not including Gift Aid). There are still some people left to sponsor us (ahem, Phil), so hopefully we'll break the £500 mark, which would be amazing. Thank you to EVERYONE who sponsored us!! It did show me that I really have to do some training for the one in September though, so that will give me something to do that isn't my dissertation for the coming months!

I sucumbed (how many c's?) and bought HP at Waterloo Station. So far just as readable as the others and already 2 characters are dead - devastating! I won't say anymore...I'm off to climb into my cupboard under the stairs and read some more!

PS: Liz, I hope you're not too flooded??

Funeral Blues

Always go to other people's funerals, otherwise they won't come to yours.
Yogi Berra

Too true, too true. I will not get maudlin and depressing on you, but the funeral was yesterday. Not as awful as I thought it would be, with the family politics involved (not mine, I hasten to add), but sad none the less. Weirdly I kept looking for Molly, I expected to see her there. But there were two things she would have loved. First of all it took me, mum and Patrick three attempts to find the wake - and we used to live in Teddington. The Groome sense of direction is ever present, and would have made her smile. The second is that the vicar was still wearing his bicycle clips... Which would have made her laugh out loud. It was those things that made it bearable.

This is the poem which was read out by Molly's daughter; I liked it , so I thought I'd post it here:

I am standing on the sea shore,

A ship sails in the morning breeze and starts for the ocean.

She is an object of beauty and I stand watching her

Till at last she fades on the horizon and someone at my side says:

"She is gone."

Gone! Where?

Gone from my sight -m that is all.

She is just as large in the masts, hull and spars as she was when I saw her

And just as able to bear her load of living freight to its destination.

The diminished size and total loss of sight is in me,

not in her.

And just at the moment when someone at my side says,

"She is gone",

There are others who are watching her coming, and other voices take up a glad shout:

"There she comes"

- and that is dying. An horizon and just the limit of our sight.

Lift us up, Oh Lord, that we may see further.

Bishop Brent

Classic

"It's that wet rain, soaks you through" - so says Peter Kay. It might actually be "It's that fine rain" but anyway. The heavens have just opened, so its a good excuse to get on with my project work, and I am. Or I was. But then I watched Neighbours, and there were two classic lines that just had to be shared:

Frazer to Rosie: "I might be writing cheques my body can't cash..."
and then
Frazer to Rosie (again): I didn't think I could have a relationship and concentrate on my recovery at the same time. Trouble is, I wasn't counting on how hard it would be to resist you...

Mills and Boon eat your heart out!

And now, back to the work. I really can't watch Doctors as well!

Tagged Again

Pete has tagged me...So here is the list of facts and habits - some of this you may already know!

1. Fact: I used to be small enough to be passed through the nextdoor neighbour's trellis when crying

2. Habit: I fiddle with my jewellery when nervous - hence always taking it off before doing a presentation or play

3. Fact: I am born on the same day as Judy Garland. Shame I can't sing like her.

4. Habit: I read in the bath, and have rarely ruined a book doing so...

5. Fact: My first pet was a tortoise called Betty. It turned out Betty was a boy and she "ran away" when I was 6. In hindsight, I think the foxes got her.

6. Habit: I tidy up before I go to bed. I will even go as far as making the bed, just before I get into it.

7. Fact: I want to do a PhD about Autism - but can't get any funding.

8. Habit: I always look into the driveways of people I know when driving past, for no real reason, just habit...

Now I tag: Liz, Hannah, Becky...and anyone else who wants to, who hasn't already been tagged by Pete!

And relax....

After the excitement of "Oh What a Lovely War" this weekend (and the After-Show party that finished at 5am - though Phil and I left at 3.30...) I dragged Phil to see the fifth Harry Potter film. Actually, that's unfair. He said he wanted to see it, but he probably wasn't quite as enthusiastic as I was...

Anyway, I really enjoyed it. The films are getting better as they get on, and I have stopped getting annoyed about it when they miss bits. In the 4th one they missed a huge and very important chunk which irritated me intensely, but in this one there are bits missing, but they are not important. I think I've realised that its easier to consider the films as "stand-alones" to the books - they are based on them, but don't tell exactly the same story. The special effects are amazing, the acting from the kids is getting better, though I wish they wouldn't bother doing the saccharine speech at the end - it makes the whole thing seems excessively cheesey.

Something that is puzzling me though - why is the film based on "His Dark Materials" called "The Golden Compass" and not "Northern Lights"?? Do they think that people won't realise its the same book, or is it like calling Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, "Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone" in the US?

Mucker.

I'm eating an orange and lemon muffin at my desk at work. Not only am I eating BAD food, but there's orangey stickiness in the middle of the muffin, and now on my fingers, and my keyboard...

BORED!

What a load of rubbish! But still, I was bored....

Your Brain is Green

Of all the brain types, yours has the most balance. You are able to see all sides to most problems and are a good problem solver. You need time to work out your thoughts, but you don't get stuck in bad thinking patterns. You tend to spend a lot of time thinking about the future, philosophy, and relationships (both personal and intellectual).

What Color Is Your Brain?

Stuff and nonsense

Well that was a bit heavy, wasn't it...Had to be done though! Thanks to Chris for being my first sponsor...

Dress rehearsal last night, and I didn't really lose my temper once - impressive! Now everyone is wearing their costumes it's looking better and better. If we can get all the sound cues in the right place, and all the lighting cues in the right place (and get the actors not to stand in the darkness, numpties!) it will be a great show.

I'm trying to read a lot of Shakespeare to get some inspiration for a play....Does anyone know how you find out what is on the school syllabuses (syllabi?) for English Lit? I like Shakespeare, it's so clever.

Having a bit of a quandry about two lots of dramaery stuff happening on the same night. But I will think on and work something out....

This is a really random post, sorry!

ME and me

with MS, it is better to concentrate on what you are able to achieve with
relative ease and leave to others those things that will only make matters worse

Shirl

I have put the quote from Shirl above because, although its about MS, it is also very applicable to ME.

Probably most of you know that I have ME. Probably most of you don't know what ME actually is. Please forgive me if I seem to be patronising, but nine times out of ten people think that ME is "just being tired".

When you're ill t's like having the worst flu of your life. Every single cell of your body (no joke) feels like its on fire. If you stand up you're dizzy. If you lie down you feel sick. Your body aches with fatigue, your brain is made of cotton wool. If you can get to sleep you're lucky - and if you do you won't feel any better for it. There is only one thing to do, and that's wait for it to pass.

I am one of the lucky ones. I can study full time, I can work full time (ish), I have an active and (possibly too) busy social life. I have friends and relations who look after me, and almost understand what's going on when I say "sorry, I can't come out, I'm too tired". Because being too tired on a normal day means being dizzy and feeling sick. Being too tired on a bad day means retreating to bed and trying not to think. I often have "brain fog" - not being able to string a sentence together, or getting halfway through a sentence and having to leave it because I can't remember what I was saying. This makes me come across as very stupid, which is incredibly frustrating.

You may be wondering why I'm telling you all this. In September I am running 5k for Action for ME, the national ME charity. I would dearly like to raise a lot of money for this wonderful charity who make life worth living for people who are severly affected by ME. This is another cheeky request for sponsorship. You can sponsor me here:



I will be incredibly grateful for the smallest amount to help me reach my target.

Thank you xx

Two wonderful books

Whilst on holiday with Phil I managed to read three novels. He managed one, and a bit of another. Maybe I don't read thoroughly enough!

Anyway, two of them I'll recommend, the other you can take or leave, I didn't really enjoy it.

The Memory Keeper's Daughter is a gorgeous book. It starts with the birth of twins on a snowy night. The son is born healthy, but the daughter is born with Down's Syndrome. The father (also the doctor delivering the babies) makes a snap decision and hands the Down's baby to the nurse. The book is about what happens to both these babies and the consequences of the father's actions.

The second book I read was "The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox". In the 1930s a young girl is sent to an institution for being unpredictable and rebellious in society. In the present day, a woman called Iris gets a call- her Great Aunt Esme is to be released into society as the home is closing, and she is her nearest surviving relative. Who is this woman, who Iris has never heard of, and what must she have done to be locked away for 60 years? Another great read with lots of twists and turns...

The third one was "Double Fault" by Lionel Shriver, and has the most irritating lead character ever written in my opinion!