Photohunt - Funky - Aug 4

This was taken at a school production last year, a musical based on the movies. Thomas was the Father from Fiddler on the Roof. Now if that beard isn't funky, I don't know what is!

I like the 'finish' of this photo; a bit like an Old Master. Do you think that if I enlarged it and put it in a frame the National Portrait Gallery would hang it?

Jolly green giant

Before you judge a man, walk a mile in his shoes. After that who cares?... He's a mile away and you've got his shoes - Billy Connolly
















My friend Clare included a mention of these in a comment on a recent post of mine. Her very words were 'those clog things', but I knew exactly what she meant. She was suggesting that we bought some for my grandson to wear on the beach.

Well, Clare, that's exactly what Jo's done. Although Thomas vows he's never going to wear them! Not cool to wear the same sort of shoes that your Grandma wears.

These shown are mine. I bought them a couple of weeks ago at a local garden centre but, I have to say, they're not the 'must have', everybody's got them, 'Crocs'. They're a fake look-alike called 'Slogs', which I keep thinking of as 'Slugs'. They are extremely comfortable and I seem to wear them constantly. However, they're not flattering. I feel that if I got caught out in the floods I could float away on my shoes, with a couple of other people sharing.

Real ones are expensive. Mine weren't. But I only wish I'd bought some when we were in Florida last year 'cos there they were as cheap as chips!!

Prickly subject

I would like a question answered today," said Tiffany. "Provided it's not the one about how you get baby hedgehogs," said the man. "No, "said Tiffany patiently. "It's about zoology." "Zoology eh? That's a big word, isn't it." "No, actually it isn't," said Tiffany. "Patronizing is a big word. Zoology is really quite short - Terry Pratchett

According to a news report German police were called to a house in Bremen on Monday evening to investigate strange noises. They were surprised to find that the offenders were two amorous hedgehogs.

"The pair were loudly engaged in ensuring the continuity of their species,"said a police spokesman. "All those spectators did not worry them in the least, indeed they even intensified their activities, so the officers turned off the lights."

Apparently hedgehog lovemaking is accompanied by loud snorting & puffing, usually from the female trying to make a headache look convincing.

Saturday Photo Hunt - Creative

He created a feast for the birds

Shop 'til you drop

George Costanza: She went shopping for some shoes for the wedding, and yada yada yada, I'll see her in six to eight months - Seinfeld (1990)



Today Thomas and I went to Staines to buy shoes for his holiday in Wales next week (although perhaps I should have set out to buy flippers!).

This what I came back with:






For me















For Thomas
















For me




















For Thomas


















For me



















For Thomas


















For Thomas

















For Thomas










Then.........







Shoes????






PS. Once upon a time, in Staines, there were more shoe shops per shopper than you could shake a stick at. Now there is one. Clarkes. Very expensive.

Blue Wednesday

No. The blues are because you're getting fat and maybe it's been raining too long, you're just sad that's all - Holly Golightly, Breakfast at Tiffany's


I've got a touch of the blues this week. Nothing serious, like proper depression, but just this general feeling of lethargy and not wanting to do all the things I generally enjoy doing. Something triggered it on Monday evening and now I can't shake it off. A spot of sunshine would help!

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Anyway, no time for all of that rubbish - onwards and upwards!!!

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Start of the school holidays so I've got Thomas for company for the next few weeks. However, he's 11 now and has passed his cycling proficiency test, so is allowed some limited freedom to explore. Funnily enough, the grand-maternal instinct for letting him have his independence feels very different to what I remember the maternal instinct being and I watch him go off on his own with my heart in my mouth. I don't recall being that paranoid with my own two at that age. Scroblene mentions that listening to music that his daughter used to play is a bit emotive. I think there's a coupl'a years yet before Thomas is seriously into music and I don't think passing the Warhammer shop without stopping will bring a tear to my eye but I will miss his childhood.*************************************************************************************

The Moore family seem to have a bit of a jinx on them at the moment. Poor Jo has had nearly everything go wrong lately (and seems to affect our TV when she's sitting near it) and PT has been having problems with his car. And don't get me started on debit cards that don't work and call centres in India!! Moan, moan, moan, moan, moan............

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Now on to nicer things. Sorry for the whining.

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I acquired a new addition to my family the other day:

Zantedeschia (Calla Lily)

I was so pleased with this baby that I decided (like Madonna) to adopt a little black baby, returned to the nursery and came home with this beauty:

Zantedeschia 'Schwarzwalder'

Here's my crop of tomatoes:

Don't think I'm going to need Welshcakes' tomato crushing machine for these!

Another favourite is this:

Eucomis 'Octopus'

Garden recovery:
















Up to here:












Still to do (some of it):













Pigeons' stomping ground:
[Was a nice display of busy lizzies!]









This is a bit of a latecomer; the others were out in May/June:

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I started this post 3 hours ago; Blogger is being exceptionally bloody minded today.

Update to Fashionista

Forgot to say:

The meetings are held in a church hall and that evening there was a choir practice in the room next door. Whilst we were eating our fish and chips we were serenaded with Christmas Carols!

Today's Poem

Hmm, something flooding or dinosaur taking piss - Shadow Warrior (1997)

Build one of these - you may need it!


P ersistent
I ncessant
S plashy
S tormy
I mpedes
N ot Wanted
G ordon (his fault now that Tony's gone)

D renching
O rrible
W et, wet, wet
N asty

Fashionista

My philosophy, like colour television, is all there in black and white - Monty Python

Was going out on the town yesterday evening, the annual fish and chip supper with the Weybridge Fuchsia & Perlagonium Society (I live on the edge, I do).

I dressed in a very fetching black and white outfit and thought I looked rather becoming. My husband said I looked like a panda.
Boo hoo

Makeover

Ah, I just thought it could use a makeover. Actually, it's an amazing likeness of, ah, moi. You wanna see? - Lilo & Stitch (2003)



I wanted to change the picture in my Profile to this but Blogger seems to like me as I am. Or perhaps that is Blogger in the new picture and he's a bit embarrassed.

I love Beryl Cook images.

Culture Vulture

Today (oops, I see it's now yesterday!) I went, a bit reluctantly I must admit, to see the Byfleet Players production of Oh! What a Lovely War. Reluctantly because it's a play that I've never had any urge to see, their last production had pretty negative reports from people of my acquaintance who had seen it and I heard that there had been fairly major problems pulling together a cast and crew. However we at Ottershaw Players always get good support from other groups and so it is good to return the compliment.

On the whole it was a fairly competent amateur production which, in my opinion, would have been better suited to a smaller venue. I feel very strongly that if you are putting on a show in a 'proper' theatre and people who are not known to you, i.e. the general public, are coming to see it then you should make your best endeavour to make your show as professional as possible and I fear that what I saw and heard did not meet this requirement.

I liked having the characters dressed in their Pierrot costumes carrying out Front of House duties but unfortunately the attempted interaction between the audience and the MC fell rather flat.

With one or two notable exceptions the cast was adequate but some of the diction was poor and the end of lines was lost and, at times, I had a problem understanding what was being said. Helen Imison was outstanding, very talented with an excellent singing voice and dancing skills.
Tony Richardson and Nick Daborn I have seen often but in my opinion they both had a personal best with this play.

Everyone did really well with the musical numbers and the choreography was good.

The Pierrot costumes were very poor but the period dress for one or two scenes was excellent. Unfortunately it seems that Wilf Hashimi (the Director) had not taken to heart a comment made by the adjudicator of his festival play last October who pointed out that 'if male characters had to wear white tights please, fellas, don't wear boxer shorts underneath'. Although the Pierrots in this weren't wearing tights their trousers were clingy and transparent enough to make that rule a 'must'. Also, as this was supposed to have been 1914, I do think the couple of younger men should have been made to suffer for their art and had their hair cut.

The set was very simple and I liked it a lot - until after the interval when a door appeared at the back of stage right. This was used by just one character to make some of his entrances and exits and was totally pointless. It irritated me for the whole of the second half.

The lighting was OK but a bit erratic and could have been much better designed. There was one scene with a small group of soldiers supposedly in a trench on stage left interacting with the German troops who were not on stage but in the wings. This scene appeared not to have been lit at all, just a crescent moon projected at the back. Therefore we were looking at a dark stage. A bit of subtle lighting would have made all the difference.

The prompt was not prompt with her prompts and at times there were 'noises off' from the wings and backstage when there shouldn't have been.

There, I'm nit-picking now. And that's because the major problem was that the whole thing lacked pace. It didn't hold my attention and when that happens I spot all sorts of things that I think could have been done better. It should have moved me to tears but it didn't.

Having said all of that, it's introduced me to a play that I'd like to see again and will do so at the first opportunity.

In a puff of smoke

Now, I wanna remind everyone of the House of Mouse rules-no smoking, no villainous schemes and no guests eating other guests. - House of Mouse (2001)

Do you think the new smoking ban applies to prisons? Will the prisoners all have to stand outside the front door with their 'snout'?

Buenas noches

Just home after an evening out at a local Italian restaurant we've discovered recently. As we turned off of the main road near our house we were confronted with the most colourful rainbow I've seen in a long time, and a whole one at that. By the time we got home it had faded so no picture, I'm afraid.

However Here's one of the sunset over the rooftops opposite our house:


The forecast promises rain tomorrow; but you never know...........................

Warming goes global

Yes, it keeps me up at night. That and the Loch Ness Monster, global warming, evolution, other fictional concepts. - House M.D. (2004)

I pinched this from here: Thanks Colin!

I've been tagged and I haven't even had an ASBO yet!

Yeah, it does sound like I got me some bad habits. - Have Gun , Will Travel (1957)

That young whippersnapper Pete has tagged me. How could he? Especially as most of the people I could tag he's already hi-jacked.

So, I'll do the list. But I'm going to rely on you, dear Reader, (that's if I've got any readers), to consider yourselves tagged and continue the game.

Here goes:

1. Fact - I look and sound completely different to the person that I think I am. If I see/hear myself unexpectedly I'm always curious as to where that fat, old bag with the funny voice came from.
2. Habit - I'm afraid I'm very rude to people on the phone. Not everyone, you understand, just cold calling sales people (although they insist that they're not selling anything), people in call centres WHO DON'T LISTEN (possibly because English is their second language and they understand me as little as I understand them) and people of that ilk.
   
3. Fact - once, long ago, I missed the last bus after an evening out and had to walk several miles in the dark, on my own, tight skirt, stiletto heels (you get the picture?). I got home only to discover the house dark, silent and locked up tight. Good ol' Mum. I spent the remainder of the night in the back of the family car in the garage, which fortunately had not been locked.
4. Habit - to compensate for no.2, I'm unfailingly polite to the general public in that I hold doors for people, give way to others when driving, give people my unexpired parking ticket and say 'sorry' when anyone barges into me.
5. Fact - I once made a grand gesture by storming out of work in the middle of the day after a particularly trying morning. When I arrived next day, expecting apologies and a bit of sympathy, I found out that nobody had realised I'd gone.
6. Habit - every time Thomas goes out of the door to ride his bike I tell him to be careful. He's fed up with it but I'm not going to stop.
7. Fact - February 1958 and I was working in my first job as a telephonist at the Continental Telephone Exchange. One of the calls I connected, from Munich to London, just before the shift was coming to an end, was to report the tragic air crash in which 7 of the Manchester United football team were killed, probably making me one of the first people in the country to hear the news.
8. Habit - I tend to think of my offspring as if they were still children instead of the sensible, grown-up, mature adults that they are. I don't think they know this, though. Or do they???
   

Moving House

Dont beg, it's undignified... Michael, parakeets dont mate with armadillos, thats the end of it! - Inside I'm Dancing (2004) (never heard of it but I like the quote!)


King Kong.. oops, sorry, M who lives opposite, has a large colony of parakeets living in a large willow tree right up against the new extension he's building. They've obviously sussed out that he's going to redevelop their home because they've been looking around the neighbourhood and have found just what they want at the end of my garden. They've spent the last few days looking it over, talking about it in very loud voices and now I think they've moved in. The cat obviously doesn't scare them (and I'm not surprised, seeing as they go round in gangs and I wouldn't care to make them cross) so they're busy moving their stuff from Willow Wonderland to Sycamore Shack.

I can see that peace and quiet on a sunny afternoon is now not an option.

Hello, I'm Chris and I'm a blogaholic

71%How Addicted to Blogging Are You?

Mingle² - Online Dating

Sleepless in Surrey

Shh! Don't wake him up. He's got insomnia, he's trying to sleep it off. - A Night at the Opera (1935)

I'm really going to need my siesta this afternoon 'cos it's almost 3am and here I am wide awake. The TV is quietly playing in the background, the wonderful Sunshine Boys which is nearing the end.

Whilst flicking through the channels trying to find something to make me sleepy (which, given the content of most of them, isn't usually difficult), it crossed my mind that, apart from the obvious reasons, it must be very inconvenient to be deaf if you are fan of BBC TV, as the only time you see someone 'signing' is in the early hours of the morning. Does that mean that deaf people have to stay up all night and can watch only crap programmes?

Pardon?

NEWSFLASH

Kaa: Coils? Someone? Oh no, I was just curling up for my siesta - Jungle Book

Don't want anyone to miss it. Just in case you hadn't heard. Don't plan anything for the afternoon.

Tomorrow is National Siesta Day!!

And now........... the weather

Everybody talks about the weather, but nobody does anything about it. - Mark Twain

I'm getting really bored with the weather now so I've decided that I shall ignore it - unless something really interesting happens in connection with it.

Like yesterday evening - David went off to play his weekly game of squash around about the time I was watering the pots. When he came back a couple of hours later (I was still watering the pots because it had rained and I had taken the opportunity to have a cup of tea and a read of the newspaper) he looked vaguely puzzled and asked if everything had been alright whilst he was gone. It was my turn to look puzzled and I wondered if I'd missed some excitement in the neighbourhood which had been important enough to report, perhaps a murder or three.

'No, no,' he said 'haven't you had any flooding?'
'Only when I disconnected the hose and it spurted out over my foot.' I replied.

Apparently, on his outward journey he had had to take major diversions because the roads, only about a mile away, were flooded and impassable and the rain and hailstones had made it almost impossible to drive. Obviously he couldn't miss his game of squash so the pioneer in him took over and he found his way through the storm but he expected to come home to mopping up operations and a distraught wife (not that I ever get distraught over things like that!)

That's it! No more weather talk....... perhaps.

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One of the reasons it takes me so long to post things to this blog is because it takes me forever to dredge up from my head words that I know very well.

It took me a good three minutes sitting here just staring into space before the word 'pioneer' popped into my brain.

How sad.

Stormy weather

No, no. When a clumsy cloud from here meets a fluffy little cloud from there, he billows towards her. She scurries away and he scuds right up to her. She cries a little and there you have you showers. He comforts her. They spark. That's the lightning. They kiss. Thunder. - Top Hat (1935)

Have been in the garden today, carrying on with the restoration. It's beginning to feel a bit like The Lost Gardens of Heligan, that wonderful place in Cornwall which was hidden from the end of the 19th century until 1990. If ever you've got the opportunity to go, please don't miss it.

(pictures don't do it justice)

Anyway, I was eventually driven in by a storm which had been hanging around for a good part of the afternoon, unfortunately before I was able to take some pictures of what I'd bought this morning when I popped out for a bunch of bananas. So you'll just have to wait.

I've now got to water the pots (and next door's, 'cos they're on holiday). Seems a bit silly after all the rain we've had but once the sun comes out those plants turn into thirsty creatures.

Tomorrow I'm going to The RHS Gardens in Wisley with Pete's Lovely Young Wife (and my Lovely Young Daughter-in-Law) to see the new glasshouse. I actually saw it a couple of weeks ago on the day after the Queen officially opened it (I thought I'd let her have first go) but it's well worth another look and I think it will get better and better as time goes on.

Thomas is in his school production of The Sound of Music this week. Unfortunately the tickets are limited to two per family so Jo's going with the Lovely Young Daughter-in-Law. Perhaps he'll sing a selection of songs just for us when it's over. Or perhaps he won't.

And the winner is...

It is an honor just to be nominated. Of course, winning adds in the joy of rubbing everybody's nose in it. - 101 Dalmations (1997)

Yesterday was a very enjoyable day. Alan Wakefield, President of Ottershaw Players, and I set off for Tonbridge in Kent to pick up this lovey award.

This is our nomination from the NODA rep. which won us the award

The award was for Artistic Presentation for last winter's production of The Wind in the Willows, which was a huge success in all respects. The only failure was a lack of decent photos so I can't show you the amazing set that Alan, Jim Gallimore, Peter Pratt, Dave Dunlop, Paul Bungard designed and built, together with some input from the Director, Matthew Horton.

Matthew was unable to attend the ceremony with Alan, due to a work committment (lunch at the House of Commons, I believe!), so I had the priviledge of going, in my role as costume provider/designer/maker.

It wasn't until the awards part of the afternoon wore on and all the boring cups and shields slowly disappeared from the stage that we realised that what was left was the rather gorgeous lady above and it was the major award of the day, given for the whole of the South East region and not just one of the 14 areas which make up that region. Blimey!!!!!!

Felt a bit like the Oscars but it was so unexpected that we could only drum up one member of the team (good 'ol Jim) to help celebrate in our 'Green Room' (aka The Castle).

So, thanks fellas. Not forgetting, of course, Toad,Mole, Badger and Ratty. Then, of course, there was Otter, Albert, Portly, Chief Weasel, Norman and all the other weasels, hedgehogs, squirrels, Motorists, Magistrate, Gaoler's Daughter, Washerwoman, Bargewoman, Gypsy, Train Driver. And yes.... they all needed costumes.

Great stuff. Coming soon:

Treasure Island, 28th November to 1st December 2007

Make a note in your diary.

Please, miss, it wasn't my fault

Just want to say that, no matter how many times I check them out, my posts always seem to contain errors - spelling, grammar, just plain stupid - as soon as they're posted. But it's not my fault 'cos in my head they're all perfect.

Extra spaces, lines, etc. in the post are definitely not my fault. They're just Blogger going mental.

Round and round the garden

The Blackbird: I love gardening. You know, they say that in the garden, it's the closest place to God, you know. And I wait for a nice warm day when I can go and pull a few things up, you know what I mean. - Creature Comforts 2003

Welcome to my garden. Please come in.....

Friends can use the back door

The cat will keep you company






Looking from the house

Look left

Look right


Take a break for a cup of tea


Let's hope it's this
and not
this


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