MEET ME ON THE WASTELANDS

So Much Has Happened

2012-01-05T09:26:00.000-08:00

And I never posted about it...

My beautiful nephew Xander was born and he is now 14 months old! Can't wait to see him again in August.

And little Finn was born a month after Xander!

Ash & Chris got married in Hawaii this summer and then had a lovely reception in Utah. Both were awesome!

Jeremiah is now nearly 16 and he will be getting his driving permit soon (scary). He is off on a school trip to China in March! In the summer, we visited the hot springs resort in Pagosa Springs and went to Mesa Verde and The Great Sand Dunes.

John and I went to Lake Powell and stayed on a houseboat with friends for a few days in September. John taught me to waterski.

Mum and Dad moved to a lovely new house after about 16 years in the same place!

Christmakkuh was wonderful (but I missed my bro' and his beautiful family). We had a big houseful: Mum & Dad, Ash & Chris (plus their 3 dogs), Jeremiah, and my beautiful friend Julie were here over the holidays. There were twelve for dinner when Aaron and his three lovely daughters joined us on Christmas day! We took a great quad ride in the snow on Christmas Eve - some of us, anyway ;)

The house is quiet again - just me and the dogs- while John is in Korea for the first work trip of the year, but I have plenty to keep me occupied, getting organized for a new year.

I will be commencing my final semester as an undergraduate at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs on January 18th. I'll be graduating with a double in Anthropology and English Literature in May. Then, after a summer off, I will be starting Masters in History. I'm so excitedSo much going on. Very hopeful for a fabulous 2012.

Happy New Year Everyone! x

Never Let Me Go

2011-03-04T14:03:00.000-08:00

If you are a fan of dark and tragic British drama then this is a film for you! The film is adapted from the dystopian novel, of the same name by Kazuo Ishiguro (you can hear him talk about the book and read a passage from it at NPR here, and read a great review of the book by Margaret Atwood here).

The movie is sad and disturbing in a very Orwell/Huxley kind of way, but it manages to stop short of distressing, perhaps because of a reserved stoic britishness that pervades the movie,

and the mute acceptance of a morally abhorrent status quo by the protagonists.

The performances are solid, the cinematography is fabulous, and the music by Rachel Portman is beautiful. It was a tear-jerker for me but it could so easily have been so much worse!

About the Below

2011-01-14T08:42:00.000-08:00

I was not able to schedule any Anthropology classes with the English classes I need this semester so I'm Literature all the way for the next few months and excited about it!

Below I have posted the covers of the books for my classes this semester. It is quite a load and it will be accompanied by many other renaissance documents from a database online (see the bottom of this post). I thought I would just catalog my undertaking for this semester and hopefully post occasionally on some of my reading. it will be quite an adventure.

The Quiet American is for a class on Literary Theory and Criticism and I am grateful that I only have one novel for that class because, as you can see my other classes are unbelievably busy!

This is how the rest of the classes break out:

American Modernism/Contemporary Literature:

Native Son by Richard Wright (1946), Wise Blood by Flannery O'Connor (1952), Howl and Other Poems by Allen Ginsberg (1955), The Armies of the Night by Norman Mailer (1968), The Dream of a Common Language: Poems 1974-1977 by Adrienne Rich, Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy (1985), Paradise by Toni Morrison (1997), The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion (2005), American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang (2006), McSweeney's Issue (2011).

So I have three of these read so far. The McSweeney's issue is strange- you can see from the pictures in the post below that it is a box painted like a head that you open to reveal a bunch of pocket books and pamphlets (and I thank "Read it for the Words" at Amazon for the description of the contents that follows so that I didn't have to type it all out). It contains:

1. "MENU" CARD
An L-shaped card comes wrapped around the left and back sides of the "head." Side one, visible through the shrinkwrap, is an illustrated table of contents. Side two is a brief introduction to the issue. Once removed, this card tucks neatly into the box. And it serves the admirable function of keeping words off the box itself. (The box is wall-to-wall art; not a line of text anywhere.)

2. FOUNTAIN CITY, A NOVEL WRECKED BY MICHARL CHABON
Four chapters of Chabon's abandoned-in-1992 second novel, published here for the first time. Half of this 112-page mini-book consists of the novel excerpt, and it's good fun to read. The other half -- the truly inspired half -- consists of Chabon's blow-by-blow notes on the excruciating six-year process of writing the book before giving it up to write "Wonder Boys" in a matter of months. Reading this, I felt like I was taking a tour through the author's mind. I couldn't have enjoyed it more. As a bonus, the booklet is wrapped in a handsome jacket that folds out into a mini-poster of the drawing that inspired Chabon to try writing the book in the first place.

3. A FOUR-POSTCARD PAINTING OF A CATFISH-SHAPED SUBMARINE
A sweet little painting by Ian Huebert, broken into four postcards. It's nice to see some straight-up art in McSweeney's from time to time. I was a big fan of McSweeney's recent box of 100 art postcards, and I like these four cards a lot, too. I wish they'd included two sets: one to mail and one to keep.

4. A BOOK OF LETTERS AND STORIES
Because this booklet is contained within a human head, I found myself noticing head- and mind-related themes in many of the pieces. For example: Jesse Eisenberg, star of the recent Facebook movie, has a funny letter in this Facebox about psychotropic drugs. I hope it's fiction. Ismet Prcic's disorienting story about a play was disorienting and open-ended. Is it a hallucination? Ricardo Nuila's story features a character who insists that "the brain is a box." Colm Toibin's story is sexually, sensually head-involved. Davy Rothbart's letter is a kind of mental sketch for a last will and testament. I really liked the selection here and read it all in one sitting with the exception of the Toibin, which took me a couple of tries to get through.

5. EARLY MORNING AT THE STATION, BY ANDREW KENNEDY HUTCHISON BOYD
"A nineteenth-century Scot's meditation on irreality," according to the table of contents. In other words: a neat six-page essay about how it's sometimes hard to believe in the things that are right in front of our faces. At one point, the author expresses frustration with "blockheads," and I took a fresh look at the sweaty block-headed box in my lap.

6. DON'T GET DISTRACTED, BY SOPHIA CARA FRYDMAN
This mysterious illustrated story booklet feels, in the hand, like a religious tract. A young female artist meets a probably-crazy guy on the street. He claims to be a retired cop and offers unsolicited tips on sidewalk-walking etiquette. It takes about a minute to read, but the artwork (drawn by the author) is painstakingly detailed, and I keep coming back to it.

7. THE DOMESTIC CRUSADERS, BY WAJAHAT ALI
A stage play about a day in the life of a Muslim-American family, written by a young Muslim-American writer, that feels like an episode of the Cosby Show, but with the kind of more-serious twists you might expect to find in a play (and not, say, in an '80s sitcom). I enjoyed this booklet in itself, but it feels especially good in context, as one of many objects floating around inside a head, behind a balding white guy's stressed-out facial expression.

8. A FORTY-INCH SCROLL OF FORTUNE-COOKIE FORTUNES
A bunch of very, very funny fake fortune-cookie fortunes "to clip and use." As with the postcards, I wish they'd have included two: one to keep and one to use. Extra points for the paper and printing style. The scroll, if you were to cut it up, would look exactly like a bunch of little fortunes.

9. THE INSTRUCTIONS, BY ADAM LEVIN
The first chapter from Levin's new 1,000-page novel of the same name. I've been calling my loogies "gooze" all week thanks to this text. Haven't picked up the actual whole book yet.

10. JUNGLE GERONIMO IN GAY PAREE, BY JACK "L. P. EAVES" PENDARVIS
A ridiculous Tarzan-esque tale, written by the hilarious Jack Pendarvis (of "The Mysterious Secret of the Valuable Treasure" and "Awesome" fame) as though it is a 1960s abridgment of a book written in the 1910s. This is a headache-inducing conceit in the best possible way, with illustrations by frequent McSweeney's collaborator Michael Kupperman. This booklet was unabashedly Jack Pendarvisy for nearly 100 pages, and I laughed out loud and loved it.

11. MA SU MON
A brief first-person narrative from Ma Su Mon, a student protester in Burma who was detained and physically abused by the government because she supports democracy. This is an excerpt from a longer narrative in a forthcoming book on Burmese human-rights crises from McSweeney's "Voice of Witness" series of oral history books.

12. BICYCLE BUILT FOR TWO, BY TIM HEIDECKER AND GREGG TURKINGTON
This is a fake screenplay (full-length!), "written for Dana Carvey and Mike Myers" (not really -- it's soooo corny) by Tim from "Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!" and Gregg Turkington, a.k.a. Neil Hamburger. If you are, like me, a sincere fan of (1) Neil Hamburger's signature flat-tire humor, and (2) the movies "Wayne's World" and "Major League," then I bet you'll like this booklet, too.

I have also never taken a literature course that includes a graphic novel which is what American Born Chinese turns out to be. We will be studying these in chronological order (the order I listed them) so this will be towards the end of the class but i am interested to see how this will be tackled.

I am taking two seminars this semester. The first one is Postmodern Victorian Novels

Course description: "This is a course focusing upon contemporary novels in English. The Spring 2011 version will give a particular spin to the topic, as it will investigate “Postmodern Victorian Novels,” novels written between 1970 and 2003 that are set in the Victorian period, but adopt singularly postmodern methods by which to convey Victorian stories. To establish a context of “authentic” Victorian fiction."

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by R.L. Stevenson (1886), The French Lieutenant's Woman by John Fowles (1969) and Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood (1996) are up first in this seminar. The rest of the considerable reading list for this class is: Fingersmith by Sarah Waters (2002), Possession by A.S. Byatt (1990), Middlemarch by George Eliot (1871-74), Great Expectations by Charles Dickens (1860-1861), and Jack Maggs by Peter Carey (1997). We will also be choosing a novel to read and compare with the selection later in the course. Thankfully I have read all these books and re-read all but two of them so far in preparation for the class so I don't feel so pressured! Victorian and Neo-victorian are my favourite genres of literature so I have been looking forward to this seminar very much.

The second seminar I'm taking is Beyond Home Remedy: Women, Medicine, and Science in the Renaissance

course description: "Following the opening of an exhibition on the subject at the Folger Shakespeare Library guest-curated by Prof. Laroche, this course explores the practice of medicine by women of sixteenth and seventeenth-century England as a context for understanding the literary culture of that place and time. Through this focus, students will gain a wider perspective on both Renaissance literature and women’s history as well as an understanding of the continuum between women’s practices and early scientific developments in the period. They will also be introduced to various research issues and methods in the advanced study of literature and learn to develop their own research focus.

The works will be studying are intriguing. It will include women’s recipe books, Isabella Whitney’s A Sweet Nosegay, William Shakespeare’s All’s Well That Ends Well and/or Macbeth, Margaret Hoby’s Diary, Margaret Cavendish’s World’s Olio, Robert Boyle’s Experiments and Considerations Touching Colours, Brilliana Harley’s letters, Jane Sharp’s Midwife’s Book, and Hannah Woolley’s The Queen-like Closet. Most of the works to be read will be accessed in online databases in our Uni library!

I am excited for this seminar -- I only chose to take this because I studied Shakespeare's Tragedies and Romances with Dr. Laroche last semester and she is a fabulous professor who is passionate about her subject and enthusiastic in class. It was a fantastic Shakespeare class and I am looking forward to learning so much from her in the next four to five months!

Well I had better get back to my reading I am determined to have all the novels read by the end of next week so I can concentrate during the courses on studying them and not keeping up with the reading load!

Happy New School Year!

A New Semester: What I will be studying in SPring 2011

2011-01-13T16:22:00.001-08:00

A reminder for me: Some things I did this last week

2010-08-17T18:28:00.000-07:00

Friday 13th: Went off without a hitch! Went to dinner with Andrea at The Saigon Cafe in Colorado Springs (fabulous summer rolls and noodle bowl). Off to Jack Quinn next for a pint of Strongbow (glorious) and then finished the evening at Kimball's Peak Three Theater where we saw The Kid's are Alright -- which, by the way, is a really good movie, very real, beautifully written, and flawlessly acted!

Saturday 14th: Farmers' Market in the morning and an evening in CS with Lorrie and Andrea at SouthSide Johnny's. I'd never been in before but it's great! The food was excellent and the atmosphere was fab. We saw Monument Hill -- good local band-- and a fun night was had by all!

Monday 16th: This evening we had Andrea S' birthday dinner at Paravicini's. There wer

e 14 of us and the service was impeccable. The food (even though I was just eating salad) was fantastic. I had a look around the table -

-lots of great shellfish and pasta. My salad had a warm black cherry vinaigrette that was delicious. To top it off the server took the trouble to do separate checks and divided the birthdays gils items between a

ll the other checks -- I've never seen it done before ( I think I paid for 0.63 of a glass of wine, for example, and a couple other things too! Thank you Stevie you are a great server is all I can say to that! We will be going back there for sure.

After dinner we stopped off at Pine Gables in GMF for a couple of drinks (well those who weren't driving anyway! before heading home! It was fun. I can't wait to see Andrea's Photos - she was enjoying herself!

Tuesday 17th: Just watched Cemetery Junction. I loved it!

New Photos

2010-08-14T12:47:00.000-07:00

ARE YOU WATCHING BACK IN ENGLAND: GO HERE!!

2010-08-06T17:25:00.000-07:00

WISH I COULD GO!!!

Photos Taken on My Recent Bike Rides

2010-08-06T15:13:00.001-07:00

src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nnBw2SapA2M/TFyOUt7IxVI/AAAAAAAABmA/BW9lTfGs0Pk/s320/mountain+storm2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5502429331316065618" />

Poetry Reading

2010-04-11T16:52:00.001-07:00

I went to a wonderful poetry reading at the University on Thursday night. Two poets read from their new books. I was very taken with both of them. They have differing styles and tones to their poems but they contrasted very nicely.

Cecilia Woloch

Carpathia is Cecilia Woloch's fifth book of poetry and she is also widely published in magazines, journals and anthologies. Woloch has taught at several US institutions as well as teaching workshops abroad in England, Poland and Germany and she currently lectures at the University of Southern California in for the BA in Creative Writing. Woloch's poetry is very moving and honest. She reads her poems tenderly and they have a beautiful lyric quality them. Woloch's poems are about many subjects: her family, her childhood, her travels and herself; they include love poems, poems of loss and poems about the beauty and ugliness of life. I recommend finding yourself one of wonderful books. To read some of her poetry you can visit her website by clicking her name at the top of this post or visit the archive here for Garrison Keillor's The Writer's Almanac.

Kim Noriega

Name Me is Kim Noriega's first book of published poetry. It is a wonderful start to what I hope will be a prolific career. I can't improve upon Jeffrey Greene's review of her work from the back cover of the book so I won't try -- here it is

“As the title, Name Me, suggests, Kim Noriega’s superb collection of poems is a journey of self-discovery, capturing high-voltage moments of anguish, abuse, and tenderness, beginning with family then lovers. This is hard-core poetry for hard-core life, but with nothing crude about it—just stunning clarity.”—Jeffrey Greene

Noriega reads her own poetry very well and it was a privilege to see her do so. Many of her poems are dark and disturbing but she voices her own experience's bravely and tenderly giving a much needed voice to other women who may not be able to speak out themselves. You can read one of her poems from her new book, 'The Light of Day,' on the home page of her website by clicking her name at the top of this post.

I was honored to meet these two ladies following the reading and have very much enjoyed re-reading from their new books over the weekend. I hope that the University continues to have great poets visit. It was a very pleasant evening.

Met Live in HD: Hamlet

2010-03-28T07:35:00.000-07:00

I went to Tinseltown yesterday to see the Met live in HD again. This time it was Hamlet by Ambroise Thomas and starred English baritone Simon Keenlysid e as Hamlet and German soprano Marlis Petersen as Ophelie.

This French opera was written in 1867-68 and premiered in 1868 at the Paris Opera. It is based on a French adaptation of Shakespeare's play which was written by Alexandre Dumas and Paul Meurice. This was the first production of Hamlet by the met in over 100 years.

What a fabulous production this was! Keenlyside was mesmerizing. It was so hard to take your eyes off him when he was on stage. Not only was his singing fabulous but his acting portrayal of Hamlet was very compelling. He was a haunting mix of suave elegance and agitated hysteria; handsome, princely and convincing.

Petersen was also fantastic. She was literally rushed in, to take the part originally cast for Natalie Dessay, at the last minute (due to Ms. Dessay's illness). Petersen missed the dress rehearsal due to finishing her run of performances in the role of Medea at the Vienna State Opera, and in fact the Met flew the French pianist Pierre Vallet (currently guest assistant conductor at the Met and a French diction specialist) to Vienna to coach her for the part of Ophelie just six days before opening night. It is astounding that Petersen--on the heels of a pretty grueling and very vocally demanding run as Medea--learned a five-act, three-hour French opera in just 6 days! She has a beautiful tone to her voice and the role of Ophelie is very challenging, requiring the soprano to reach right into the extremes of the upper register. Opehlie also has a long mad scene that requires convincing acting ability and Petersen pulled it off very well; she had great stage presence and a wonderful charisma.

I was also very impressed with the rest of the cast, particularly with Jennifer Larmore, the American mezzo-soprano who played Gertrude.

Anyone familiar with Thomas' original Hamlet may know that the ending was significantly different to Shakespeare's play, in that Hamlet survives to be crowned King of Denmark. However, due to the literary sensibilities of a British public, Thomas was persuaded to rewrite the ending to match Shakespeare's for the 1869 premiere at Covent Garden in London, and this is the version that the Met has produced.

The whole production was amazing. The sets were minimal but the players filled the stage and the result was emotional and intense. I am so glad to have seen this production!!

The Metropolitan Opera Live inHD

2010-03-10T13:02:00.000-08:00

Someone recently told me about the The Met Live in HD and after my disappointment with the Opera in Denver it has really impressed me. Essentially the Met broadcasts several of its annual productions to movie theaters around the country in HD live. I went to see the encore of Verdi's Simon Boccanegra last month and at the end of the month I am going to see Hamlet. It was a really good experience. Renee Fleming introduces the opera on screen and she interviews the singers between Acts. Also as an audience in the movie theater you get to see behind the scenes between Acts and watch them changing scenery in the intermissions. It was fantastic.

This particular production has Placido Domingo singing the title role of Simon Boccanegra. He was brilliant. Usually Domingo is a Tenor but this was his first performance in a baritone lead. I thought he did a marvelous job. The best thing about the Met Live in HD is that I can go on my own and not have to subject the hubby to something he doesn't enjoy. I can't wait to see Hamlet.

Revolutionary Road

2010-02-27T13:24:00.000-08:00

I watched Revolutionary Road today starring Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio

It is a movie based on the novel by Richard Yates--which I haven't read--and by the account of Manohla Dargis who reviewed the movie for the New York Times in 2008 is a "corrosive, furiously unsentimental novel." I believe her.

I can't say I enjoyed the movie because there isn't much to 'enjoy' about it! The performances as I tend to expect from Winslet and DiCaprio were outstanding, but the characters did nothing to encourage sympathy for the duration of the film. I felt more for the male character, Frank. I found her (April's) self-indulgent craving of a real and "true" life repugnant somehow. She always longed for more than the suburban housewife "trap" she finds herself in but never really manages to express just what it is she wants. I couldn't get my head around why she couldn't have that life right where she was --there didn't seem to be that much stopping her.

He isn't a shining moral example by the way but less toxic than April in my opinion. Anyway, the movie is not really anything more than a snapshot of the young couple's life, but it is a brutal and ultimately tragic one. I found it quite depressing to see two people, who really don't have that much to complain about, tear at each other with astonishing viciousness. It was hard to see how anyone would be able to forgive their partner for the kind of savage barbs they threw at each other, and, as it turns out, they would never really have to deal with it.

The end of the movie is without doubt a tragedy, but it really showed me how little empathy I had for the characters because such a sad turn of events would usually have this sensitive ninny in floods of tears. Not a drop did I shed.

I hope I haven't put anyone off seeing it. I thought it was well made and the acting was fantastic, but the 'story' was so melancholy and bitter it was hard to find satisfying.

The Barber of Seville: Opera Colorado

2010-02-25T13:03:00.000-08:00

I haven't been able to indulge my love of Opera for quite some time but as a birthday treat my hubby took me to the Ellie Caulkins Opera House in Denver to see Rossini's Barber of Seville produced by Opera Colorado in February. I have to say I was disappointed. This is probably because I am used to Covent Garden and the Royal Albert Hall. It sounded to me as though the orchestra was in the back room and it didn't seem like the singers were miked very well either. The performers had fine voices but it just wasn't powerful at all. The only time I have managed to get John to the opera and I don't know if it will happen again. Such a shame it is a beautiful opera!

Lili Amber Jewellery

2009-12-17T14:10:00.000-08:00

An old friend of mine is a partner in a jewellery making venture. Their jewellery is all beautifully handmade and they make bespoke jewellery to order too. Take a look at the stunning pieces at their elegant website here http://www.liliamber.co.uk/ and make the next gift to your loved one a handmade and stylish item from Lili Amber's jewellery shop, or even order something unique from these two skilled and passionate designers by ordering under the commissions heading!!

Law Abiding Citizen & Couples Retreat

2009-12-06T10:57:00.000-08:00

Law Abiding Citizen

Starring Jamie Foxx and Gerard Butler, both of whom turn in respectable performances. This movie is alegal thriller that attempts to raise questions about the inefficacy and perversion of the American justice system but does so only superficially. The plot line is implausible but entertaining. Who wants their movies to mirror true life anyway? I don't. I think it got worse reviews than it deserved and I left the theater satisfied and adequately distracted though not jumping with enthusiasm or intellectually challenged.

Couples Retreat

Starring Vince Vaughan and Jason Bateman with Jon Favreau, Malin
Akerman, Kristin Davis, Kristen Bell and Faizon. A talented cast and some comic moments but nothing in this comedy is side-splitting or laugh-out-loud. I think I would call this movie "cute" although there are also a couple of uncomfortable moments when you think "oh no don't go there..." The performances were solid but the script and plot were just so, so. Mildly entertaining.

Goodbye PPCC and THANK YOU!

2009-12-06T10:31:00.000-08:00

I finished the last classes for my Associate of Arts degree this last week. I will graduate this semester but won't be able to walk until May. I start at UCCS in January, embarking on the last 2 years of my double major in English and Anthropology. I'm so excited. UCCS is a beautiful campus with a brand new Rec' Center and an excellent library. That's everything I need right there! I hope that the instruction will be good too, of course. Onward and upward. Two years down.

I have to say that the instruction at PPCC was excellent all the way. I have had some fantastic professors who have greatly influenced me over the last two years and I wouldn't exchange this education that has brought me through with a 4.0 GPA so far. If you are wondering about Community College for the first two years of a degree I can recommend Pikes Peak wholeheartedly. I will miss some of the people there as I move across town.

Shame on Me! Badly Neglected Blog

2009-12-05T09:34:00.000-08:00

Some things I didn't post!!

Had a Big Party here in the Summer. The Second Annual Mountain Bayou. About 150 people came during the course of the day and we had a houseful of visitors and at least 3 or four families camping in the yard too. Both Ashley and Jeremiah were here so it was even better than we had expected.

A great time was had by all!

It was our 10th Anniversary in October. It was a Sunday and we went to the Broadmoor Hotel for a lavish brunch. It snowed lightly and it was beautiful. We had a great meal and it was a very happy day. Can't believe 10 years flew by so quickly.

My anniversary present was a Kindle DX which is fabulous --I love it. It was such a surprize as I had only mentioned that I would like one once!! I can carry upto 3500 books with me and so it is ideal for me taking English Literature -- I can hold the complete works of all the authors I need in one.

There is so much more that I missed but I'll try to keep up and add things much more regularly now.

ENOUGH!

2009-08-01T15:39:00.000-07:00

Enough is a project of the Center for American Progress to end genocide and crimes against humanity. Founded in 2007, Enough focuses on the crises in Sudan, Chad, eastern Congo, northern Uganda, Somalia, and Zimbabwe. Enough's strategy papers and briefings provide sharp field analysis and targeted policy recommendations based on a “3P” crisis response strategy: promoting durable peace, providing civilian protection, and punishing perpetrators of atrocities. Enough works with concerned citizens, advocates, and policy makers to prevent, mitigate, and resolve these crises. To learn more about Enough and what you can do to help, go to www.enoughproject.org.

PUSH

2009-07-26T15:51:00.000-07:00

I watched Push today. I noted that it managed to

receive very poor reviews almost everywhere I looked -- except on scifiheaven.net , but I'm never one to be put off by reviews, for the main reason that it seems that many of them just repeat what they hear reported in other trendy reviews. I can almost imagine them sitting there at the keyboard wondering what they can criticize about a movie to single them out as thoughtful without actually singling them out as liking something that has been deemed a lemon by someone "respected" in the movie critic business. Maybe I'm wrong, but after seeing raving reviews for utter crap and trash reviews for movies that shine I'm very cynical. Either that or I genuinely do have a very contrary taste in movies. Whatever...

Anyway, I'm glad that I didn't pay attention to them this time -- I really enjoyed the movie. It isn't a classic and I'm not raving about it but I thought it was well-acted, kept an exciting pace and was not overwhelmingly complicated as many reviews implied. I liked the concept and enjoyed the way the ends all tied together in the climax. The ending is satisfying too.

The movie was directed by Paul McGuigan, who also directed Lucky Number Slevin, another film I loved.

CAST: Chris Evans, Dakota Fanning, Camilla Belle, Djimon Hounsou, and Maggie Siff

SYNOPSIS: American expatriates with various psychic and telekinetic abilities are hiding from a United States based international agency called the Division, in Hong Kong. The Division is attempting to genetically enhance citizens of the world with these abilities with the intent top form an army of psychic warriors. Those unwilling to participate are disposed of. Nick Gant (Chris Evans) is a second-generation “mover,” the name for those with telekinetic ability. Nick has been in hiding for 10 years since he saw Division Agent Carver (Djimon Hounsou) murder his father. The last thing Nick’s father tells him is that in the future he should do all he can to hell a young girl who comes to him with a flower. Nick has been hiding in the densely populated Hong Kong—as it seems are several other fugitive psychics. Nick is forced out of hiding when Cassie Holmes (Dakota Fanning), a 13-year-old “watcher,” comes to ask for his help. Cassie has clairvoyant abilities just like her mother the most powerful watcher, who has been held captive by the Division for a long time. Cassie is the girl with the flower. The two of them look for Kira, (Camilla Belle), a “pusher” who has escaped from the Division with a sample of the drug they have been testing. Kira is the only one to have survived the drug. Pushers have the most dangerous psychic power: the ability to place thoughts into the heads of others and influencing their actions. Cassie and Nick find Kira and they enlist other rogue psychics in an attempt to retrieve the now hidden, stolen drug and take down The Division.

Reams of Reading

2009-07-26T08:52:00.000-07:00

I was reading Andi's blog over at Tripping toward Lucidity and she was talking about her habit of starting new books instead of getting up from a comfy spot to get the one she is reading. I have this habit too and I realised today that I have 7 books that I have started and not finished right now! It isn't anything about the books! They are not boring, although if they were un-put-downable I wouldn't be in this situation would I?

Well I have made up my mind as my summer class finished on Wednesday and I have until the 17th August off to get the books finished and move on!

So, this is what I am reading at the moment:

Not on Our Watch: The Mission to end Genocide in Darfur and Beyond

by Don Cheadle and John Prendergast

The one listed at the side and actually I just started this and it is fascinating and disturbing and passionate so I would recommend it. I had been meaning to read this for quite some time and I came across it in the college library a couple days a go. I'll be finishing this one first.

Facing Mount Kenya

by Jomo Kenyatta

For those who don't know Jomo Kenyatta led an extraordinary life. He was one of the foremost leaders of African nationalism. He was the grandson of a Kikuyu medicine man and studied Anthropology under Bronislav Malinowski at the London School of Economics in the 1930's. On June 1, 1963, Kenyatta became the first Prime Minister of a self-governing Kenya and he presided over the unfurling of the new Kenya flag at midnight on December 12, 1963, at Uhuru Stadium, amid world leaders and multitudes of people. A new nation had been born and one year later on December 12, 1964, Kenya became a Republic within the Commonwealth, with Kenyatta, as the President.

Facing Mount Kenya is an anthropological work about the Kikuyu and tribal life in Africa described as "an invaluable key to the structure of African society and the nature of the African mind." The book is quite dense but it is accessible, even though it was written in 1938, and it shows an intimacy and passion with the Kikuyu people. I picked this up in the library and I have been taking anthropology this semester so it is an excellent example of the concepts I have been studying.

Saving Fish from Drowning

by Amy Tan

I started this a loooong time ago and I just got sidetracked almost immediately to something else so I may as well start again from the beginning. I read the Joy Luck Club and decided to read another by her. She is a great storyteller. This one is about a ghost who watches her friends take a journey she had planned for them all (when she was alive) one that was supposed to take them along the Burma Road. I'm looking forward to thjis again now -- I think it must be a mood thing.

Sleeping in Flame

by Jonathan Carroll

A few years ago I read a few of Carroll's querky and imaginative books but this was one I bought and just didn't get round to. I recently picked it up and I am as taken with this as I was with White Apples and The Wooden Sea. Carroll writes strange but beautiful characters and his stories are fantastical but profound. If you have never read one of his books I recommend him wholeheartedly.

Black Dogs

By Ian McEwan

There really is no excuse for having this one on the go with other books! It is not long.

None of his books, that I have read, are particularly long but they are always compelling. I think it may be that he has a penchant for the darker side of human nature so really it is a question of mood again. This one is apparently about "the intoxications of violence and the redemptive power of love," The New Yorker. Maybe I'll remember to review these when I'm finished.

The Gurkhas

By John Parker

Had this going a while now but it is suddenly more topical, I suppose, because the UK government finally got something right and allowed them to stay in Britain. If you know nothing about this story please look it up --it was the most astoundingly ridiculous fight that the government ever put up --to prevent the Gurkhas from remaining in Britain after they have served. The people won this one thankfully!

Anyway this book is a non-fiction published in 1999 about this legendary group of fearsome soldiers from Nepal who have loyally served the British monarchy since 1815.

and finally...

I Can Make You Thin by Paul McKenna: This one is full of things you should already know --it is not a diet-- but it does attempt to re-program your thinking about food. Interesting and simple.

I suppose I'd better get off the computer and pick up a book! Get some of these finished.

Handies Peak and Mount Democrat 14er Climbs

2009-07-14T08:12:00.000-07:00

Handies Peak

Handies Peak is in the San Juan mountain range 15 miles southwest of Lake City. It is the 41st highest peak in Colorado at 14,034'. It is near the towns of Ouray, Silverton, and Telluride and located in some of the most gorgeous scenery possible.

There are two popular trailheads for climbing Handies: the American Basin trailhead, and the Grizzly Gulch trailhead. We arrived on Saturday late afternoon and set up camp near the stream in the area of the Grizzly Gulch/Silver Creek Trailhead. There are some lovely spots for camping in that area with pre-existing fire circles (you are allowed to have a fire in a ring that is already there!) so we pitched our tents and easy ups and cooked up a spaghetti dinner. We had a pretty dry evening just one quick storm after we were all set up, thankfully. We had a small celebration for Eva whose Birthday it was the next day and we sat around the fire telling stories as you do. It was a fun evening.

At 5.15 we got up and tried to get eveyone motivated and fed but it was still 7 a.m. when we finally hit the trail. It was a beautiful morning.

Grizzly Gulch is the longer climb and we chose to do that one. You can use the same trailhead to also climb Redcloud and Sunshine Peak but we didn't have a long enough trip to accomplish all of them. We'll have to go back for the other two. Grizzly gulch is, by all accounts, the most scenic route up Handies and is marked as a classic route -- It certainly lived up to its rep' it was stunning throughout the whole climb.

The Gang

The trail from Grizzly Gulch starts out crossing the Lake Fork of the Gunnison River and it follows a stream for about 2 miles. The initial trail is forested and there is a small waterfall in the stream that adds to the beauty. Once you leave the tree line you cross the stream in about 3 places but the crossings are easy there is no need to get your feet wet! It has been so wet in Colorado this year that everything is so verdant. It was a glorious morning and the sun was shining which made a for a lovely view but a hot climb. The climb to Handies is not technical in any way and there is no exposure on this route but it is a consistent climb with very few level stretches for relief. The last forty to forty five minutes of the climb is UP. If you carry a reasonably heavy pack, as I do, it is certainly a good work out (must upgrade to lighter gear ;).

The view from the peak is breathtaking -- 360 degree mountains and you can't see any signs of civilization from the peak at all. It is like going back in time.

We waited at the peak for about 30 minutes for all members of our group and then had to skip off very quickly. We always get off the mountain peak by about 11 - 11.30 because the summer weather conditions in Colorado will guarantee an afternoon thunderstorm. For Shavano and Democrat we got down before the really bad weather hit but from the Handies peak we could see a storm was already rolling in --earlier than we usually see!

The climb down was awful! We each went as quickly as possible and we ended up splitting up. I managed to get quite a way down the mountain before the storm hit over us but I was way out in the open with about 20 mins to tree line and nothing taller than me (except other hikers) for a long way. It was just a case of hoping at that point that the lightning did not strike me -- NOT A HAPPY TIME -- and to top it all it came with hailstones. So I did the recommended counting between flash and thunder and divided by 5 to calculate the miles away for the lightning but it was soon simultaneous. I think it looked like it was mostly cloud to cloud and at that point there wasn't anything to take cover in; "When caught, seek a safe zone in the 45-degree cone around an object 5 to 10 times your height" says Gerry Roach in his book Colorado's Fourteeners From Hikes to Climbs. Um..Ok..Crap!

Anyway, I kept on until there was some cover and luckily I made it. I was down in 1 hour 45 mins from the top when it took the group about 4 to get up there. Everyone was OK but we may have to get up there even earlier next time!

There are no photos of the way down for obvious reasons!

Mount Democrat:

Last month we climbed Democrat. This is supposed to be one of the easiest 14 ers, however, there was a considerable amount of snow left that made the last hour to the peak quite hairy. Coupled with near zero visibility and new weather coming in it was tough going without a view for a payoff! It began to snow heavily as soon as we got off the mountain! It was a trying time as we also spent a couple of hours worrying about a friend who had ski'd from the summit and unbeknown to us had taken a wrong turn --he ended up getting a ride from the Frisco side to Alma while we were searching, fretting and just about to call SAR! He got a signal on his phone and let us know he was OK just in time. Democrat ended up being a harder climb in the snow (though not too long thankfully) with a short stretch that included some exposure that was worrying more for the possibility of sliding such a long way in the snow if you slipped than anything else. It was tough day but still rewarding! The scenery from Handies this month made up for it!!

A short cut on the way down!

2009-04-19T08:56:00.001-07:00

For the poetry class we have recently being doing exercises to consider the use of imagery, form and character. I don't think that this has produced any great poetry by me but the exercises have been well worth the time and effort. I think my poetry will be improved considerably b y flexing muscles that are ususally neglected.

The Character Poem was first : The exercise was to choose a character (any character) and make it/her/him the speaker of the poem. This was not as easy as it may sound. Anyway here is my character poem:

Leader Says

My beautiful home, a jewel sparkling in the Indian Ocean,
Is under attack.
I will do my best to defend her and fly with the
Freedom Birds.
I will make my mamma proud and follow her
Eminent example.
Maybe one day I will also be a
Victorious Tiger.
I will avenge the deaths of my glorious comrades
Reverent rage.

Leader says,
Always we will maintain our
Magnificent Iranapali.
Never shall we submit to the oppressors
Wicked demands.
Always will we train tenaciously
Perfect performance.
Leader says.

Leader says,
Today we speed in stealth and skill to the
Traitors’ hole!
Informers hover and hide, squirming in their
Snake’s sanctuary!
We will wrest them righteously from their
Liars lair!
Leader says.

It is one full year since she took from me my
Timber toy,
And safe by my side sits my sure and steady
Warrior’s weapon,
Bouncing on my bruises and scraping my
Salmon scars;
My constant companion and keeper of my
Crying conscience.

Leader says,
Today is my name day; I am twelve years old:
Majestic muliebrity.
Today I will get a promotion for my valor:
Fearless fortitude.
Today my mission will be a towering triumph:
Bona fide bloodshed.
Today I will receive ice cream to celebrate:
Brilliant birthday.
Leader says.

Now I pray to the gods for freedom from
Foreboding Fear.
Now I hope to the heavens for blindness to
Cowering children.
Now I cry to the night to spare me from
Death filled Dreams.
Now I look to my lionhearted leader
Commanding courage.

Leader says,
Soon I take up my privileged place:
Steadfast soldier.
Now I dream hopelessly of simple gifts
Aromatic Acacia.

Leader says,
Now I listen attentively to ensure my
Comrades’ conquest.
Now I hear the words and obey what my
Leader says.

Next was imagery-- we were to pick an object and write short imagery based exercises using it with the example of Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird by Wallace Stevens

I chose to use an elementary school form of didactic cinquain for my exercises to keep them short because I tend to ramble....

Reflections on a Mirror

I
Mirror
Mysterious, judicious,
Telling, persuading, warning
The fairest still another?
Soothsayer.

II
Mirror
Merry, burlesque.
Warping, stretching, squashing,
Fairground joker sporting mockery.
Distorter.

III
Mirror
Candid, Courteous,
Gleaming, dreaming, praising.
Sweetest youthful fresh-faced maiden.
Flatterer

IV
Mirror
Loyal, bright
Winking, flashing, beckoning
Save soldier hiding: message.
Communicator.

V
Mirror
Steamed, clammy
Blurring, misting, dripping.
Shaving foam erupts volcano.
Imitator.

VI
Mirror
Capricious, hurtful,
scheming, gathering, puckering.
Furrowed forties fading fast.
Traitor.

We were told we could expand upon the exercises or completely change our subject for an imagery based poem; the idea was to use the five senses in the poem:

Basic Training

What made me do this? It’s bloody freezing!

Ugh! The smell of that damp musty earth
Is chilling me even closer to the bone.
My nose is so sore and this infernal dripping
Is hardening the muffler, scratching my chafed chin.

I can see the road from my ditch!
The flashing headlamps intermittent.
It’s wrecking my night vision. Bugger!
Now all I can see are blazing orbs of yellow.

This camo is so thin! It’s wet! I can feel
The Burning prickle of hives welting
On my thighs and on my belly. Feel That!
Slab cold, tingling, itching, screaming!

Here’s the next car coming now.
I bet its some lucky bugger going home!
He’ll snuggle with his lover by a roaring fire
and snort a huge plate of lovely chips and drink some wine.

That’s right torture yourself some more…

Oh! We’re moving. Hang on!
It’s so bloody dark! What was I thinking?
This is no place for a girl. I should be
Getting ready to go out,

Not stumbling across the Downs,
Blisters fretting, raw against the
Leather of these bloody clumsy boots --
Not clutching this damned rifle against my breast!

I know I’ll lose that spare magazine!!

Oh we’re stopping here! Another wood?
Take a knee private. By this ‘ere tree private.
“Yes Sgt!” -- Jumped up cocky bastard.
Where the hell is everyone? I can’t see a thing!

God! It’s been hours. Are the others still there?
I should call out. I know that git will jump
All over me if I do, and he hears me!
No I’ll just wait a little bit longer…

That whipping wind is lashing me!
It’s s-so d-damned c-cold. N-numb.
Wh-Who’s there? Great! I’m seeing things!
I hope I didn’t fall asleep. I didn’t did I?

I should ch-check they’re all s-still there.
What’s that? Something moved.
I know it did. There’s nothing now though…
Just yawning, gaping darkness and the waving trees.

I w-ish I w-was back in that d-ditch
At least it was out of the w-wind.
H-how much longer? Private. Moving out.
Pick up the rear! Look lively lass! Gotta long way to go!

Then last week we were studying form and I had no idea that there are so many! I chose to do short forms and practice reigning myself in because I have trouble with brevity. Here are the forms I chose and the poems -- not that impressed with them to be honest:

1) Haiku

The Gun

Point to hopeless thought.
Echoes ringing dispatch swift.
Fast held. Future ends.

2) Rhyme Royal

Christmas Eve

Snow falling simply, softly veils the day,
But crisply calls the step toward the door.
The jingle ring announces Santa’s sleigh,
And echoes o’er the valley and the moor;
The children hanging thrilled to the lore.
Youth will hang her sweet berries overhead
And drape her hopeful stocking from the bed.

3) Tanaga

Impossible Task

Time floats away without cares.
Burden my spirit ensnares.
Deadline unreachable glares.
Heavenward sending my prayers!

4) Ghazal

Eternity

Coming from end to beginning and back; eternity
Rolling out years beyond mortal track; eternity.

Time forced to wait in crude, sullen hallways calls
Instance and greed and we all patience lack; eternity

And when I lounge and passing time ignore, at last
Peace I gain and tranquility unpack; eternity.

So end my stabs at the short and sweet rhyme forms
I (name) to my former go back; eternity.

Some things I did this semester other than classes

2009-04-16T12:18:00.000-07:00

I haven't really had as much opportunity to blog as I would have liked to and as a result I haven't commented on some of the most enjoyable things that I have done this year so far. This post is all about rectifying that.

The first thing I didn't mention, that I really should have, is our Valentine's Day this year. We decided to get together with two other couples and we celebrated by eating out at a local, pleasant and very reasonably priced restaurant, The Dale Street Cafe, before going to the theatre and seeing the musical The Full Monty. It was a lovely 3 course meal and the performance, for which we had second row seats, was fantastic.

In 2000, an Americanized adaptation of the British version of The Full Monty earned the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music, along with 10 other Drama Desk and nine Tony nominations. The adaptation was set in Buffalo New York, during tough times in the steelworking industry, and the transposition worked extremely well. It was fabulously performed by the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center Theatre Company and we had a wonderful evening. I'm definitely going to go back to thte Fine Arts Center for future performances, it's not the West End, but it was an exceptional standard anyway!

Also high on my list of favorite things I've done is the Elton John concert at the World Arena two weeks ago! Elton is still magnificent, what a pianist! He played a huge set with all the faves. The best performance was Rocket Man which was fabulous, but I couldn't fault him at all. There are a few very high notes that maybe he struggles with now he is older but the arrangements were adjusted so that it wasn't necessary to climb so high and the performances weren't affected. What a great night. I was so surprized to get tickets and went online as soon as they opened, I think they were sold out within minutes. It is really nice to see such a big star come to Colorado Springs as they usually favor the bigger venues in Denver. I got four tickets and our neighbours took two off our hands. It was a bit worrying at first because we had a huge snow storm and had barely stopped snowing when it was time to leave but thankfully the roads were clear. Elton John drove from Laramie, Wyoming to make the performance because flights were down! That evening was also preceded by an excellent meal, this time at Phantom Canyon, downtown Colorado Springs; the food there is outstanding.

a shot of my program

I have been to the movies a few times too:

We, unusually, went to see a horror type thriller which we would normally only watch on video (if at all) but a wild hair took us and we saw The Last House on the Left. OMG! It was a good movie but suffice it to say that it was gruesome and I, knowing what was about to happen right at the end, couldn't watch! I'm a woos but I knew it was an image I wouldn't be able to erase.

John and I also saw Taken, which we thoroughly enjoyed. Very fast paced and a great performance by Liam Neeson. We saw it the same week that Natasha Richardson died -- such a devastating tragedy and a sore loss. I'm sure sucess at the box office is no comfort at all at a time like this.

I went, last month with Eva, to the Kimballs Twin Peak Movie Theatre in the center of town and saw Let the Right One In that won the Tribeca Film Festival Best Narrative Feature Award in 2008. It is a Swedish vampire movie, for those of you who have never heard of it, and yes it's a subtitled movie. It was a new take on a subject that is very en vogue (although you rarely see anything new in the genre). It is not a romantic glorification by any means -- quite the opposite-- but it is a more realistic, down to earth presentation (I did say it was strange. How can a Vampire movie be realistic?!). Anyway, I thought it was very good. Disturbing but poignant, and with two outstanding performances from the very young main actors Kare Hedebrant and Lina Leandersson. It is a perfect location to see an obscure foreign offering too. Kimballs is an old fashioned movie theatre, not a state of the art multi-plex of the 21st Century. It's my favorite venue for seeing a movie, that, for those who are interested, also has a bar (you can take your wine or beer into the theatre). Before we went, Eva and I had a nice bowl of irish stew and a strongbow (I know that's not Irish but it's not available many places!), followed by a chocolate chip bread pudding that was to die for, at a great Irish Pub in town, Jack Quinns Pub. It was a very enjoyable evening out! We are making a trip down this Sunday too to see Duplicity. John's away again so it will be nice to get out if the weather allows it (we are told to expect a couple of feet of snow over thhe next two days).

Well that is all I can think of right now, I watched a few great movies on DVD, the best among them were: Slumdog Millionaire (what can I say that hasn't already been said or warded here?), The Visitor, Traitor, Righteous Kill, War Child (this is an amazing documentary about the former child soldier and successful rap artist, Emmanuel Jal . Excellent film. His story really deserves more than this mention but I can't give it the justice it deserves so please visit the links on the film title and his name) and Max Payne. Netflix should be delivering Ghost Town tomorrow so I'm looking forward to some humor and light-heartedness.

Well I have a bit of homework still to do before I head to trivia night at the Ute, so I'll be off now. Have a great weekend everyone!

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T05:06:00.000-07:00

The Easter Flower by Claude McKay

Far from this foreign Easter damp and chilly

My soul steals to a pear-shaped plot of ground,

Where gleamed the lilac-tinted Easter lily

Soft-scented in the air for yards around;

Alone, without a hint of guardian leaf!

Just like a fragile bell of silver rime,

It burst the tomb for freedom sweet and brief

In the young pregnant year at Eastertime;

And many thought it was a sacred sign,

And some called it the resurrection flower;

And I, a pagan, worshiped at its shrine,

Yielding my heart unto its perfumed power.

Easter Week by Charles Kingsley

See the land, her Easter keeping,

Rises as her Maker rose.

Seeds, so long in darkness sleeping,

Burst at last from winter snows.

Earth with heaven above rejoices;

Fields and gardens hail the spring;

Shaughs and woodlands ring with voices,

While the wild birds build and sing.

You, to whom your Maker granted

Powers to those sweet birds unknown,

Use the craft by God implanted;

Use the reason not your own.

Here, while heaven and earth rejoices,

Each his Easter tribute bring-

Work of fingers, chant of voices,

Like the birds who build and sing.

Hey Col!

2009-04-03T07:27:00.000-07:00

Hope you have a wonderful day! Eat cake and be merry! Love You, Ange xxxxxx

A Fool for April?

2009-04-01T05:46:00.000-07:00

Easter Lambs by Kreon at Stock.xchng.com

"Pinch, Punch Everyone" and a quick "White Rabbits!"

April is here! I love April. In a more humid climate I would enjoy the April showers, the bluebells and daffodils, the calves and the lambs and I have happy memories of English Easter eggs and easter bonnets in the school playground parades.

Yes I'm in a great mood. Spring has sprung and with it flies the angel of new beginnings -- it just makes me smile. Here's an April poem to celebrate!

In April by James Hearst

This I saw on an April day:
Warm rain spilt from a sun-lined cloud,
A sky-flung wave of gold at evening,
And a cock pheasant treading a dusty path
Shy and proud.
And this I found in an April field:
A new white calf in the sun at noon,
A flash of blue in a cool moss bank,
And tips of tulips promising flowers
To a blue-winged loon.
And this I tried to understand
As I scrubbed the rust from my brightening plow:
The movement of seed in furrowed earth,
And a blackbird whistling sweet and clear
From a green-sprayed bough.

During a long and distinguished life, James Hearst was a farmer, teacher, and poet who came to be known and respected throughout the country. His thirteen volumes of poetry and two autobiographical works have won him praise and honors on both the state and national level.

Towely and Ash

2009-03-29T05:00:00.000-07:00

I am ferret-sitting for some friends. This is, I think, the third time I've had these lovely little creatures to stay. They are very cute and sweet and no trouble at all. I thought I'd post some pix of them in their cage -- they are next to impossible to capture with the camera when they are out because they are fast and squirly and get into and onto everything!

Towely

Ash

Re: the St. George's Day Post

2009-03-28T07:48:00.000-07:00

As many of you know who use Blogger it is possible to line up posts for later viewing. I had entered several for April and later discovered that I had set them all for March! I managed to catch four of them and missed the St. George's day one and it popped up, much to my annoyance, a month earlier than intended. I have taken it down. Sorry for the confusion!

On a lighter note today is National "Something on a Stick Day" in the United States, a day to celebrate anything edible that is cooked and/or served on a stick. Apparently food has been served on sticks for centuries now and while I think its a strange thing to celebrate it does put me in mind of fairgrounds, busy street markets, and parties which is a happy thing!

picture by gozdeo at stock.xchng

Today it is also Archaeology day being hosted at Grand Canyon National Park, and National Passport Day in the USA

Also:

Yesterday was World Theatre Day started in 1961 by the International Theatre Institute. I'm sure it was celebrated heartily by thespians all around the world. I celebrated quietly by doing my literature homework finishing off Oedipus Rex and reading Othello!

Here is the link to the World Theatre Day website where there is an open letter to the President of the USA which I found quite interesting:

"We have been adversely affected by the cultural embargo imposed by the U.S. government against both Cuban and American artists and cultural institutions. We are writing to request that you make concrete changes in U.S. policy towards Cuba that will allow for the uninhibited flow of art, culture, information, ideas and debates, as well as travel by artists, cultural workers and professionals, and arts and cultural aficionados between the two countries."

Whatever you are celebrating today I hope you have a wonderful Saturday!

Used but New!

2009-03-26T16:55:00.000-07:00

We have a big Spring snow storm, finally! It has been very mild this year compared to last year, but a big one hit today and JUST in TIME I got a new car! My little '97 Mitsubishi Mirage has been very good to me; no mechanical issues (and great gas mileage that saw us through the horrible prices last year) but she has 167,000 miles on the clock and is not an all wheel drive. We have been waiting for an opportunity to get me a new, safer car before this one conked out and we reached that point yesterday. Hurray!

Here she is a bronze Nissan Murano. They got really good write ups and we got a lovely deal on this used 2009. I went out this morning to get some floor mats and things for it and the blizzard hit just as I was driving home. What a great car! It drives so smoothly and quietly and it is roomy and comfortable and I felt much safer. I love it! I won't be going out again until the roads clear though. I don't like getting her dirty!

Been So Long!

2009-03-21T08:30:00.000-07:00

I've been so busy I let my poor blog sit by the wayside. I hope to get some blogging done over Spring Break.

Here is my last poem. The assignment was to do a "love of language" poem. It's a bit long but I loved finding the right words for this!

Mod Revival

Every evening we piled into the same old café.
More a gaggle; not a gang.
A tumble of tangled MA-1s, Harringtons and Fish-tales,
Happy camaraderie and shuffling change to make the bill.

I remember that first miraculous day you joined us.
Rangy and brooding, sliding coolly into the booth opposite me,
You kicked your foot up on the bench, and picked up the teapot
Without a thought or a word.

Easy and smoldering you sat and watched.
Cautious eyes glinting in the half-light,
Reticent and immutable next to our clamorous clan.

When you spoke, your deep doleful tones
Threw mysterious Midlothian morpheme
Into the midst of our Kentish clap-trap.

You ran your hand through neat inky waves of hair
And smiled gently, mocking the petty yabbering
Of my girls in cloistered calumny behind you.

You scanned the room, and my heart
Stammered and stayed as your eyes passed me by
But I wasn’t really there, surely?

Three weeks the same routine.
We sat in companionable silence and
Always I wondered at my existence in this crowd.
And when you asked me to the dance
Then I blushed full proud and warm at that
Resounding confirmation – I was there.

I was lost forever that evening you arrived.
The lambent lambretta purring in the yard,
Polished and glossy; the myriad mirrors and chrome
Flashing dangerously in the streetlight blaze.

You were pristine in your snowy Fred Perry,
And your sharp tonic suit danced brightly
As you moved to clasp that sparkling pin
At the throat of my eager, untouched and
Imploring dog-tooth check.

You held my hand softly and told me of your suffering and loss,
And my untroubled cushion of sanguine security,
A salving balm to your bruised soul
Drew you to me tightly like lacing chords.

You called my eyes a “soothing shade of honest blue,”
And in the oily, onyx pool of my pernot and black,
A braver girl smiled back at me.

In that fervid hall the ruckus echoed faintly.
The Mad Monks in the mosh pit slamming,
South Scooter Boys holding Ace court flicking
Cards, artfully in the ardent air, mod girls mooning
Dreamily at foreign fancies;
All veiled in my opiate heaven.

Two years in revival sanctuary spent.
Summers stretched warmly out
In Memorial park, or drifting smoothly
Along ambrosial Avon. Blissful, balmy
Nights in eiderdown encumbered.
Soul nites, rallies, racing days,
And peaceful couching evenings played
The soundtrack to our mod-el life.

You had a gentle wit and made me laugh;
“That polar bear looks just like Ginny K”
You said, and I nudged you
Hushing your puckish play.

And now I wonder if you told her
That night on Brighton Pier,
Your furtive dissembling unraveling
In double time?

I watched you squinting back the smoke
From your No. 6, casually flipping your trick
To the tabletop.
You looked up to smile, but regarded me warily.
Did you see the honest blue deepen to an anguished green?

You came to me and brushed my cheek;
Placing burning lips, a Judas kiss on my pale face;
That tender voice now cloying in an artful whisper,
“Lets get out of here.”
Scooping the cards up underhand,
Sliding them deftly into the deck,
You led me away, trailing in insignificance.

I arrived late that next soul nite,
But I saw you by the backdoor in
The pitchy shadows. Your sullied
Shirt untucked and tangled, reflecting slyly
In the pale illumination of that EXIT light.

And Ginny, buckled to your silky banter,
Wormy in the murky recess,
Scheming with inscrutable slight
Of hand to tug those teasing chords apart.

I, blighted and benumbed, stumbled
From that Delphian darkness,
Desolate through the spinning crowds.
Secret Affair, then Poison Ivy succumbed to
Bitterest Pill and Love Reign o’er Me,
Mixing my emotions.
Consuming me.

Garry gathered my broken pieces
And hushed me away; and you
Oblivious, subsumed in sub-rosa snuggling,
Sank into that stygian polar den.

The end came swiftly for us all.
Tallie and Tim ran away.
Dan set off to seek his fortune.
Rhianne said Don forced her.
She lied.
He was never the same.

Garry said, “You’ll always have me,”
And left with the Navy 3 weeks later,
Sinking then, in searing, screaming, spasm
On the Ardent in the Falkland Sound.

And you, too slick and smart to face the
Stain of your Snake deceit,
Sailed away astride your shimmering scooter,
Silvery fumes scattering behind you.

Ginny glowering from the pavement met my gaze,
And I smiled.
Baleful, blistered, and bleak I
Turned to the west and
My last Waterloo Sunset.

Chameleon

2009-02-23T05:00:00.000-08:00

Acrostic Exercise

picture by Narosga at stock.xchng

Charming today and happily

Honest. A reliable man who is

Amiable and mild; but a whiskey or two and

Metamorphosis is complete.

Eventually through all this she sees his

Lies. The change slides in

Evil and cold across the surface and the once

Open face closes. Everything left on their aspect is

Numb.

picture by bluebetty at stock.xchng

Metaphor Poem

2009-02-22T05:00:00.000-08:00

This week's assignment was to do a metaphor poem. Here it is!

The Key?

Though I am blind, I clearly see the path ahead.
I am as old as time, yet born again
Every minute,
Every day.

I am the road and I am the vehicle upon it, but even so
I am the journey’s end
And the reason to travel both.

I am the compass and the map.

I am a question but I already have the answer.
I am lost and I am found.

I cross borders and I feed history.
Though I have many leaders,
My followers make me.

I am the tie that binds, the anchor and the mooring,
And I am the one who cuts the chains.
Though I am your struggle, you will accept me freely.

Some walk far upon me
For I am as solid as the sun-baked ground,
But I can be a mythical dragon never to be slayed.

I lie as deep and unfathomable as the wildest ocean,
But I am as still and calm as the tiniest pond on a summers day.

Though men fall down before me I will lift them up.

I can be your reason but in my darkest hours, I’m just your excuse.
I am a healer, the balm upon your wounds, but
I am the Danneborg, The Oriflamme and the Banner of Saas,
For I have led out many battles on the field.

I am unswerving, but not easily caught,
A joyful merry-go-round or a rollercoaster.
I am a heartbeat.

I am a lion and an elephant upon a mouse,
A moon and a star.
I am a simple lotus flower,
A wheel, a hand, a fish and a flaming chalice.

I am a Goodman’s pink ribbon fluttering in the wind, but
I am Lucy and
I am the only ship on the sea to Aslan’s Country.

For some I am the Key to every door,
Yet so many others
Will never understand the answer to my riddle,
Even though they find it.

A Single-sentence Poem

2009-02-18T05:00:00.000-08:00

Our second poem assignment was to do a single-sentence poem of at least 12 lines.

Remembering Banja Luka

When I remember Banja Luka
I think of that struggle for a new beginning,
Which was also wrestling within me,
While I dreamed of an earlier day
Whose simpler pastimes seemed now to be
Irretrievable,

Just like the mountain
Dreaming of the time when
Upon her slopes,

Instead of granite mines,
Those emblems of resentment,
Shibboleths
Beneath the surface so close, that
Upon just one misguided step
Would explode in a desolating instant
Sending reason and being both
Into an irredeemable void, their
Intangible remains
Fluttering peppery and searing
In the acrid, forsaken wasteland,

A child would play
Not thinking
That it all
Could
End.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-14T05:31:00.000-08:00

stock illustration

This is an oldie but a goodie -- I still don't think I've read a poem that beats this for Valentine's day so I dedicate it to my wonderful husband, I love you Babe!

By Elizabeth Barrett Browning from Sonnets from the Portuguese

XLIII

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.

I love thee to the depth and breadth and height

My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight

For the ends of Being and ideal Grace.

I love thee to the level of everyday's

Most quiet need, by sun and candlelight.

I love thee freely, as men might strive for Right;

I love thee purely, as they turn from Praise.

I love thee with the passion put to use

In my old griefs, and with my childhood's faith.

I love thee with a love I seemed to lose

With my lost saints,–I love thee with the breath,

Smiles, tears, of all my life!–and, if God choose,

I shall but love thee better after death.

Sounds Poem

2009-02-13T05:00:00.000-08:00

Our first poem assigment was a Sounds poem. The task was to attempt to write a poem that strongly uses rhyme, alliteration, metre or rhythm.

This is what I came up with:

Locking Up and Going Home

Hearing the cautious silence broken
By the street life’s first words spoken,
She steps out into evening falling,
“Big Issue!” and “Late Copy!” calling.

Shrieking tomcats startled, scattering,
Send the empty trashcans clattering.
She’s looking for the next cab crawling,
And bright-eyed schoolboys bounce by brawling.

As heaving traffic trudges by her,
She dreams of limo comfort grandeur,
But battling through the bothersome crowd,
She nears the mouth of the underground.

Loudmouth hooligans lawless, loutish,
Push past passengers to the surface.
Thunder of boots, ripping ticket stubs,
Backslaps, laughter, off to the corner pub.

Giving up on topside travelling,
Descending with the hoards now gathering,
In the station turnstile rattling,
Gossip from the ladies prattling.

Tunes from some old West End show
Are bubbling up from down below
The street musicians earning sparely
Singing strains of phantom fairly

She rides the churning escalator
Impatient heels in alligator
Slap the stairs in swift staccato
Interrupt the sweet legato

Through rubbished wrappers from golden arches
The herd along the hallway marches.
But lured by drifting dancing notes
Towards her track she calmly floats.

Busker’s strings and soft foot tapping,
Captive crowds of patrons clapping,
Turning north beyond the stair
She finds the silent platform bare.

Echoed bump of train departed
Ratty steps that by her darted
And as more rodents scamper by
She hears the teenage lovers sigh

Now the legion swells, encroaches
As the next train soon approaches
Giggling girls and babbling babies,
Business men, and lunching ladies.

“Mind the gap!” “Clear the doors now!”
Coughs from suits with knitted brow,
Scratchy whispers from the headphones
Nodding sleepers as the rails drone.

Then sitting peacefully encumbered
As her neighbours gently slumber
She listens to the lamplight hum
And thinks of pleasures still to come

Poetry Class Exercise

2009-02-12T11:35:00.000-08:00

photo by Plusverde at stock.xchng

I'm really enjoying my poetry class! Stephen Fry's book is full of exercises and we are trying some of his different ideas to learn about constructing poetry. The first element we started with is Metre. We had to do a few quatrains to practice it and Fry selected the subject "Television". It is not supposed to be profound, and nor was it likely to be for me with this subject, but it was a an interesting exercise and not as easy as it seems! A bit of fun! This was my attempt!

Two quatrains of standard eight syllable iambic tetrameter:

Bones

With Booth her partner by her side
She’s taking risks on homicides.
With bones and teeth, x-rays and slides,
Investigating those who died.

When time has passed to end the show
Whose bones she has we all will know,
But what we want the most is this
To see if Booth and Brennan kiss.

Two quatrains of alternating iambic tetrameter and trimeter:

Battlestar Galactica

The Battlestar is on the move
And jumping off again.
When will the final five pop up?
And will the Cylons win?

When Boomer she was found to be
A sleeper in their midst,
She shot the Boss, her friend for years,
And sure, she never missed

Two quatrains of trochaic tetrameter:

A Bit of Fry and Laurie (pure trochee)

Doctor House is Fry’s friend Laurie,
Since the day they met at college.
English Humor is their story.
Wit they share and both acknowledge.

24 Hours News (docked weak endings second and fourth lines)

Fox has got the angles covered,
All the day unstoppable.
Can there be so much to tell us?
News all day? Improbable

Hope you Have a Wonderful Day Dad!

2009-02-10T05:30:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to say a Happy Birthday to you Dad! We love and miss you! Ange & John xxxx

Short Story Appreciation

2009-01-30T08:32:00.001-08:00

Although I read constantly, I have never really been drawn to reading short stories before. Getting back into literary appreciation and creative writing classes however, I have discovered that, not only is a good short story a work of art in its own right (rather than a lazy man's novel), it is also a fantastic way to sample a vast array of writing syles and skills in a shorter period of time. It is also a chance to discover new authors that may appeal, because there are a huge number of authors who have written short stories and novels.

Last week I read two short stories by William Faulkner, A Rose for Emily and Barn Burning. I have never read any of Faulkner's novels and something tells me, following these two stories that they will not be uplifting reads, but I enjoyed his southern style and the conflict in the stories. His characters, in both stories, are rather unsympathetic; not much to endear the reader, even to the child protagonist of Barn Burning, in my opinion, but still I found myself wanting to know more about them all! Faulkner employs considerable pschological drama and his stories are emotionally fraught with conflict and struggle. The rising action is where the story is at in these two Faulkner tales and the climax happens quickly with little falling action, if any. It seems that Faulkner uses the main families in his make believe Yoknapatawpha County throughout his novels and stories, that are all set in Mississippi, where Faulkner was born and lived out most of his life. Faulkner was born into a fairly old and influential southern family --his great-grandfather was a Colonel in the Confederate Army -- and his writing is heavily influenced by social struggles between poverty and wealth, intelligence and stupidity and the postions of whites and blacks. A southern ambiance permeates his writing that despite its gravity does not lack in humor.

I was surprized at how many students in my class disliked Faulkner though, I thought his writing was energetic and exciting, but some said they found it hard to follow...

I still recommend checking out some of his stories though here is a good link to read some online for free: William Faulkner On The Web

While I'm on the subject of short stories I thought I'd take the time to recommend two other very good but very different authors of stories, Dorothy Parker and Angela Carter. Parker's ascerbic wit and Carter's beautiful magical realism are the draw for me here. I hope that you will check them both out. I have a Parker collected works that is well worth having on the shelf and a couple of Carter books that are really great are American Ghost's and Old World Wonders and The Bloody Chamber.

Click on this link to check out a nice review of Parker in the archives of Becky's Book Reviews

Also, while I'm at it, I found this fair mine of stories browsing the web at East of the Web that also has an interactive and word games section if you are so inclined. There are stories for all genres. It's a great site.

Good Poem

2009-01-27T07:19:00.000-08:00

In the Intro to Lit class yesterday we took a look at a poem I hadn't read since I was in high school hmm hm years ago. I had forgotten how well written it really is and I think it was a great choice for introducing people to poetry. It seems that this is the most dreaded genre formany of my classmates, who, sadly, have had little exposure to it before now.

It is a poem by A.E. Housman "a man who turned out to be not only the great English classical scholar of his time but also one of the few real and great scholars anywhere at any time" (Brink). Housman was educated at Oxford but failed his final examination due to emotional stress and despair at an unrequieted love. Despite this, Housman continued to study latin texts in the British Museum reading room after his work as a patent clerk. Housman developed "a consummate gift for correcting errors in them, owing to his mastery of the language and his feeling for the way poets choose their words" (Famous Poets). Housman wrote many journal articles and they eventually led to his appointment in 1892 as professor of Latin at University College, London. In 1911 he became Kennedy Professor of Latin at Cambridge University and a fellow of Trinity College. He taught there almost to his death in 1936.

To an Athlete Dying Young talks about a young runner dying at the height of his success, undefeated in the town and how he will forever retain his glory because he will always be remembered as a winner and no-one will ever challenge him.

I just love these two lines most particularly:

"To set, before its echoes fade,

The fleet foot on the sill of shade"

Here is the poem. I hope you enjoy it!

To an Athlete Dying Young

The time you won your town the race
We chaired you through the market-place;
Man and boy stood cheering by,
And home we brought you shoulder-high.

To-day, the road all runners come,
Shoulder-high we bring you home,
And set you at your threshold down,
Townsman of a stiller town.

Smart lad, to slip betimes away
From fields where glory does not stay,
And early though the laurel grows
It withers quicker than the rose.

Eyes the shady night has shut
Cannot see the record cut,
And silence sounds no worse than cheers
After earth has stopped the ears:

Now you will not swell the rout
Of lads that wore their honours out,
Runners whom renown outran
And the name died before the man.

So set, before its echoes fade,
The fleet foot on the sill of shade,
And hold to the low lintel up
The still-defended challenge-cup.

And round that early-laurelled head
Will flock to gaze the strengthless dead,
And find unwithered on its curls

The garland briefer than a girl's.

Refs:

Charles Oscar Brink, English Classical Scholarship: Historical reflections on Bentley, Porson and Housman, James Clarke & Co, Oxford, Oxford University Press, New York, 1986 p.149

http://famouspoetsandpoems.com/poets/a__e__housman/biography

School's Back

2009-01-23T10:31:00.000-08:00

I started back to college this Wednesday and everything is looking good so far! I am taking Intro to Lit (required) and I will be re-reading quite a bit but looking forward to it just the same. The plays for the class are very familiar so that's a bonus: Shakespeare's Othello, Oedipus Rex by Sophocles and Ibsen's A Doll's House. I'm also taking Brit Lit II which will also have me re-reading -- this time, Wuthering Heights and Frankenstein, along with some poetry, short stories and drama.

I am taking World History of the 20th Century which seems very well planned out and comprehensive although it necessarily starts earlier thatn the 20th century with the Industrial Revolution and Imperialism (how could we hope to understand our progression since without them?). I will be writing a book review for this class and a film review, among other things. I plan to do Five Days In London for the book and The Lives of Others for the film if they are approved.

I was supposed to take International Relations in class but the one at my campus got cancelled, so I'll be taking it as an independent study. This was very graciously arranged by the professor so that the few of us who had signed up would not miss out. I am very grateful becasue it keeps me on track to start at UCCS in the fall.

Finally, and most happily I am taking Poetry Writing. We are using a book by one of my favorite authors,the very talented wordsmith, Stephen Fry (I have mentioned him before I know). He wrote The Ode Less Travelled which is an excellent book for a poetry writing class. I'm just glad that the professor thinks so too! The first Poetry Writing class is on Monday and I hope I will soon have something interesting to share with you all from this class.

All in all I'm heading into this semester relaxed and with a smile. I hope that I will be much better at keeping up the blog this time!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Praise Song for the Day By Dr. Elizabeth Alexander

2009-01-22T15:17:00.000-08:00

I have transcribed the poem that Elizabeth Alexander composed and recited at the inauguration, because I thought the words were just beautiful. Like I said, I thought her delivery was strange, and I am not sure, therefore, if I have her verses and lines the way she wrote them; I hope I am not doing it a disservice. I'll definitley be buying a copy from Graywolf press and I think I may invest in some of her other books of poetry too.

Dr. Alexander is a very intelligent and accomplished woman and I recommend you visit her site where you can see some more of her poems and essays. She has been a pulitzer prize finalist and won, among many other awards, the first Jackson Prize for Poetry, awarded by Poets and Writers in 2007. She currently teaches at Yale University.

This is how the poem sounded to me...

Praise Song for the Day

Each day we go about our business,

walking past each other, catching each other’s eyes

or not, about to speak or speaking.

All about us is noise. All about us is

noise and bramble, thorn and din, each

one of our ancestors on our tongues.

Someone is stitching up a hem,

darning a hole in a uniform, patching a tire,

repairing the things in need of repair.
Someone is trying to make music somewhere,

with a pair of wooden spoons on an oil drum,

with cello, boom box, harmonica, voice.

A woman and her son wait for the bus.

A farmer considers the changing sky.

A teacher says, "Take out your pencils. Begin".
We encounter each other in words,

words spiny or smooth, whispered or declaimed,

words to consider, reconsider.

We cross dirt roads and highways that mark
the will of some one and then others, who said
"I need to see what’s on the other side.
I know there’s something better down the road".
We need to find a place where we are safe.
We walk into that which we cannot yet see.

Say it plain: that many have died for this day.
Sing the names of the dead who brought us here,
who laid the train tracks, raised the bridges,
picked the cotton and the lettuce,
built brick by brick the glittering edifices
they would then keep clean and work inside of.

Praise song for struggle, praise song for the day.

Praise song for every hand-lettered sign,

the figuring-it-out at kitchen tables.
Some live by "love thy neighbor as thyself",

others by "first do no harm" or "take no morethan you need".

What if the mightiest word is LOVE?

Love beyond marital, filial, national,

love that casts a widening pool of light,

love with no need to pre-empt grievance.

In today’s sharp sparkle, this winter air,

anything can be made, any sentence begun.

On the brink, on the brim, on the cusp,

praise song for walking forward in that light.

The people will remember you for what you build not what you destroy!

2009-01-20T09:55:00.001-08:00

It is my hope that, whatever your politics, you are able to grasp and appreciate the historical significance of today's inauguration of the 44th President of the United States of America, Barack Obama; and celebrate in that accomplishment and this milestone, that hails the culmination of a long fought battle for equality for so many American citizens, and the overdue fulfilment of a dream.

Obama's address was no less impressive than we have come to expect of this wonderful orator and the celebrations surrounding the inauguration were impressive and inspiring. It was touching to see Tuskeegee Airmen invited to the inauguration and some present on the stage for the momentous occasion. Aretha Franklin's rendition of Let Freedom Ring was both appropriate and moving and Dr. Elizabeth Alexander presented a beautiful poem she composed for the occasion, although her disjointed delivery was rather strange!

It was gratifying to see the cooperation between the Bush and Obama families and administrations for the handover, and I look forward to seeing how Obama will manifest his optimistic promises in the coming months and years of his presidency. I hope that he will be able to keep the homeland as safe as George Bush has over the last 8 years and wish him the best of luck in initiating a change that will stabilize the economic climate of this beautiful country in which I have the honor to live and the pleasure to call home.

N-Ice Fishing

2009-01-19T16:33:00.000-08:00

As the sun was rising

Today I went on my first ever ice fishing trip; but unfortunately it was all fishing and no catching! The fish were not biting at Eleven Mile reservoir this morning...

I had only ever fished once before in my life and that was sea fishing for mackerel out of Lymington, in the Solent near the Isle of Wight as a tween. That time I was spoiled and caught plenty of fish on my many baited line.

In four hours I saw a grand total of 2 fish, granted they were big fish, but they didn't think much of my lure at all. AND THEN to add their insult to my injury just 20 minutes before we were due to leave I came out to take some final photos and returned to my line not more than a couple of minutes later to find that my worm was gone!! Sneaky little fisheses!

At least the scenery was beautiful and once the sun came up it was a glorious day. I think I'll probably give ice fishing one more go at Antero Reservoir and maybe try some summer fishing later in the year, when it is more comfortable to sit back and read my book, but I don't think I have the patience to make this a hobby. I was just grateful to experience the gorgeous Colorado outdoors.

Here are some pictures from the trip.

John and Aaron when we arrived at the reservoir

Spinney Mountain

The light breaking over the mountains

John hauling the gear

John and Aaron in the hut fishing

The sun gets up

In the hut "jigging the line" and drinking hot tea

The hole (see how thick the ice was?)

John outside the hut

Me outside the hut

Mountains later in the morning

Another Happy Day

2009-01-17T06:39:00.000-08:00

Yesterday John and I had a very relaxing day together. He got home from Guam on Thursday and he was pretty tired so he slept from very early in the day. We made up for it yesterday.

In the morning we had breakfast in bed and watched a movie I snagged from the Red Box:

Untraceable starring Diane Lane.

This is a movie that my Dad had recommended a while back, but I never got around to it before. It was a good thriller, well acted, with huge measures of nervous tension, but an horrific reminder of the failings of our voyeuristic society, and it can can make you despise people emmensely. I can't say much about it without ruining the plot and drama but I would recommend it if you want to be a bit scared. The film script was originally entitled Streaming Evil which I think is a much better title for it, but I suppose the makers didn't want it to sound like it belongs in the horror genre for the sake of marketing to the target audience. Whether a Horror or Action Thriller, It isn't for the faint of heart and deserves its R rating.

After the movie we went out on the quad to take the dogs for a big run. The snow was undisturbed back in the forest, apart from the deer, elk and coyote tracks, but it wasn't too deep so the quad went through quite happily. It was warm and sunny and the colorado sky was a cloudless deep blue, so it was a beautiful ride.

When we returned I was sorry to see that one of my classes, due to start next week has already been cancelled and my only alternative is to take it as an independent study which is not my favorite. I am worried about another 2 of my classes too -- the ones I am most looking forward to -- because I'm not sure enough people are registered for them either. I may end up doing some last minuite wrangling to fill my schedule. My alternative classes for them are already full too...

I distracted myself by finishing up another book! The Pagan Stone. This is the final book in the Sign of Seven trilogy by Nora Roberts that I mentioned in an earlier post. I had read the other two back in July and was not happy that the third had not yet been released! On my way home from England though I saw it on the shelves in the airport in Chicago and it filled some of the seemingly endless layover, only to be left on the plane at the end of a journey that had me exhausted (unusually). I had to buy it again! Anyway, I finished it yesterday and found that it was equal to the other two in the series and wound up the story perfectly. Still plenty of horror, but a bit more romance than the other two, which I actually didn't mind at all because it was necessary to find this satisfactory conclusion for the six adorable protagonists.

In the evening we decided to go out to the movie theatre -- I know 2 films in one day-- but it made us happy and the party will soon be over.

We went to see The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Neither of us had any idea at all what kind of movie it was or what it would be about, but we didn't want to drive all the way to Colorado Springs and settled for the movie theatre's showings in Woodland Park. We were happy we did. It is a beautiful film. Originally, the premise came from a very short fantasy in the works of F. Scott Fitzgerald but this is one example (that doesn't happen very often) when the film is an improvement on the writing.

The story of Benjamin Button is that of a man who ages in reverse, as A.O. Scott writes for the New York Times, "it is a slender piece of whimsy, a charming fantasy about a man who ages in reverse, descending through the years from newborn senescence to terminal infancy." (This review is so well written, I can't resist quoting it!). The film is semi-narrated by Brad Pitt, who plays the lead, as read from the diary of Benjamin Button that his one true love has with her on her own death bed. The film is an extraordinary journey through the twentieth century, with a wonderful array of characters, both in the fully developed and the vignette appearances such as that of the old man whose line "did I ever tell you that I was struck by lightning seven times" (you have to see it!).

While Brad Pitt is always a pleasure to see in a movie, this isn't really an acting stretch for him, but I wonder if this particular character as it is written would necessarily stretch anyone else any further. The best of the film is undoubtedly found in the brilliant performance of Cate Blanchett as Daisy, the ballet dancing beauty who is the love of Benjamin's strange life. Cate is exquisite and had John sighing and cooing (I am amazed that he sat through over 2 and half hours of what is essentially a romance but he did and enjoyed it!).

The other great star of the movie was the digital filmmaking. It was a very subtle blend and was phenomemal, particulalry in the characters of Benjamin and Daisy when they are old and wizened.

Well, that was the end to another happy day, but as I said the party is over. Today I have to dig into the main guest room and remove all the overflow "stuff" from the overhaul of my office so that Aaron has a bed tomorrrow night. We are going ice-fishing on Monday morning -- early, a first for me. I'll post about that later and also about the office when it is finished and I have photos.

FYI for moviesd and books alike I give a A FOUR STAR RATING all around but I don't have access to my rating images at the moment so I'll have to edit later.

Have a happy weekend everyone!

Reading Marathon

2009-01-15T19:14:00.000-08:00

Last Thursday evening I left the Ute, after playing Trivia, and headed home at about 10.30 pm. Having dropped John off at the airport that day, I knew that I had time to start a new book and enjoy getting lost in it without any other happy diversions. Eva had read the Twilight series over the Christmas holidays and had lent me the first two books, so it was the first one that I picked up that night. I was unexpectedly engrossed from the outset. I read until about 2 a.m. and then, waking at 7, I picked the book back up. I read ALL DAY and blew through both the books finishing New Moon at about 7 p.m. As I was scheduled to hike the next morning with Eva and Mary, I called Eva and asked her to bring the other two books along and I swapped out.

We had a nice but tiring hike (very snowy), and when I settled back in at home in the afternoon I picked up Eclipse. I read through until about 2 a.m. again finishing the 3rd book, and then read all day Sunday on Breaking Dawn. I was due to go into town with Eva to see the movie of Twilight on Monday and I didn't want the casting to intrude on my own pictures of the characters in my head, so I made sure that I had finished before we went to see the movie.

I thoroughly enjoyed the whole series and I found the characters captivating. I was starting to wonder, having seen all the fans of Edward Cullen on facebook etc., if I was the only one in the world who would have taken the Werewolf instead; I just love the character of Jacob Black! I was mid schemes for Team Jacob T-shirts and then the events in Breaking Dawn made it a moot point, so I'll concede, grudgingly.

If there is a woman or girl (or man if you're man enough) out there that hasn't read this fantastically written series I would recommend it. It is most certainly a love story, and I don't ususally go in for romantic literature, but there is more than enough magic, intrigue and action to satisfy my other appetites, so I was hooked. I can't remember the last time I read four books in 3 days, particularly big 700+ pagers!

As for the movie, many of the characters were not as I had imagined, but I think they did a pretty good job. Nowhere near as good as the books, but are they ever? It is extremely difficult to flesh out characters on the screen the way they are in books, and Stephenie Meyer is incredibly talented at characterization. I completely forgot, while reading, that I am not a teenager; these books draw you in and the fact that you'll be forty by the end of the month doesn't even come into question, until you see the youngsters on the screen and realise that Jacob really is a schoolboy and not the dashing hunk of your imaginations. Whatever, I don't care, I'll stick with my pictures in my head. Go Wolves!!!

I give the movie a high 3 star rating though and will definitely go to see the others, assuming they release others.

I took a look at Stephenie's website today and noticed that there was supposed to be another book in the series, Midnight Sun, but someone had leaked an early draft manuscript on the net and quite understandably she wasn't able to continue with it. I think this is a terrible shame for her and for all her fans (our loss indeed). What is wrong with people?

Stephenie has graciously posted the leaked manuscript on her site but it is quite obvious how much pain this has caused her and I can't bring myself to read something she didn't want to release. Thankfully, the Twilight series has so much potential for follow on storylines in the future, maybe she will decide to continue it one day. In the meantime I will pick up her other novel The Host and content myself with her beautiful telling of another story.

What a Woman Wants?

2009-01-15T05:51:00.000-08:00

Illustration by Duchessa at stock.xchng.com

My friend Rebecca found this commentary while surfing the net and posted it to her Facebook Notes. I thought it was a very interesting piece so decided to blog it. I was fairly determined, initially, to be defiant about such collective assumptions and the Rabbi trying to assert an answer that covers all women, but I quickly decided that there isn't much to argue with about this. Who would get married if this wasn't a significant desire.

What do you think????

Here is the piece:

June 22, 2006 By Rabbi Shmuley Boteach @ WorldNetDaily.com

"Sigmund Freud was one of the most insightful men of the 20th century. Yet before he died he admitted that, try as he might, he could not answer the question that had confounded him throughout his life: "What is it that a woman wants?" He famously ascribed to women a psychological mechanism difficult to repeat in polite company, but the gist of which is that women envy male phallic qualities. To Freud, to be a woman was to be a non-man, and still today feminists are angry at Freud, dismissing him as an ignorant and chauvinistic male who denied women an intrinsic identity.

But Freud was not the only man who failed to understand women. There seems to be a unique male blindness wherein even husbands who have lived with their wives all their lives still cannot answer the question of what it is that their wives most want.

I have witnessed how this male mystification is the cause of many an unhappy marriage. Husbands today seem incapable of truly making their wives happy, and many women now look to their children to fill the void left in their lives by an unfulfilling marriage, which accounts for why, strangely, parenthood and marriage often seem to be not in harmony but in conflict. There is likewise little question in my mind that, while it takes two to tango, the high rate of divorce today is primarily the fault of men, flummoxed as they are by a woman's deepest needs.

But surrounded as I am by a wife and five daughters, and having been raised by a single mother, and having spent thousands of hours counseling women in difficult marriages (not to mention being a male who humors himself that he is deeply in touch with his feminine side), I feel competent to answer this, the mother of all questions.

What a woman wants is to be chosen.

A woman wishes to be the center of her husband's universe, primary in his life and competing with none for his attention.

Let's take a step back. Why do women want to get married? Looked at logically, marriage is a terrible proposition for a woman. She has to risk her life to have a man's children (up until the 20th century one in three women died in childbirth). She literally loses her name, as she takes her husband's name, as do the kids. She makes a man a home and assumes, even in our egalitarian age, most of the domestic workload. And today she has to hold a job to provide that all-important second income. Why would a woman leave the parents who love her unconditionally for a man whose love is so inconsistent? As Helen Rowland famously said, "Marriage is where a woman exchanges the attention of many men for the inattention of one." Why would any sane person agree to so rotten a deal?

Because a man can give a woman the one thing her parents cannot. Her parents can love her. But only he can choose her. He can make her feel special and unique. He can place her at the center of his universe, basking in her light like the earth brightened by the luminescence of the sun. A man is a dark planet, and a woman brightens and warms his cold world.

The Jewish nation has suffered throughout history for being God's chosen people. But even when there is a price to be paid and suffering to be had, there is still no substitute for being chosen. It's a gift that every husband must learn to give his wife.

This chosenness that a woman craves is established whenever a man puts a woman first in his life, making her the apex of his existence. At Mt. Sinai, when God chose the Jewish nation as his "bride," the first two commandments He set forth were, "I am the Lord your God," and, "You shall have no other gods before me." These commandments establish God's demands for primacy and exclusivity in His relationship with the Jewish people. I am God. I must always come first. And second, you may never divert your attention to other gods. There can be no one else.

That is what every woman searches for in life, a relationship that will establish her uniqueness as the one and only. To be sure, men too desire to be special. But they make the mistake of establishing their uniqueness through vocation rather than relationships, through career rather than kin. They take greater pride in being corporate vice presidents than being husbands and fathers. And this is why so many men are so deeply insecure – because the locus of their self-esteem is the fluctuations of the marketplace rather than the constancy of the family. Women, however, with a deeper and wiser approach to life, have always understood that to be loved for what you are is always superior than to be loved for what you do.

Sadly, few women today find the chosenness they seek because in most modern marriages, the legitimate female need for attention is rarely matched by the male attention span. I increasingly see the despair and loneliness of married women as their husbands continue to put career, sports, friends, cell phones, cars, laptops, parents, job, boss, pornography and other women before them. That core desire of being chosen by a man, being placed at the center of his universe, is simply eluding them and leading to misery and depression.

When the remarkable Dwayne Wade became the Most Valuable Player of the NBA Finals Tuesday night, he was asked by the announcer what it felt like to win a basketball championship. He responded, "After my wife and children, it's the greatest feeling in the world." Wow. It happened. A champion sportsman put the love he gets from his wife before the rush he gets from winning. So it is possible. So now the secret is out. Your wife, whom you think is insatiable and impossible, may want many small things. But they are all subordinate to her desire for one big thing. She may want to be professionally successful, just like you. And she may want money and fame, just like you. But more than anything else, she simply wants you.

So put aside the diamonds and give the gift of yourself."

Icons: The King

2009-01-08T05:01:00.000-08:00

ICON

1: a usually pictorial representation

2: a conventional religious image

3: an object of uncritical devotion

— icon·ic \ī-ˈkä-nik\ adjective
— icon·i·cal·ly \-ni-k(ə-)lē\ adverb

I've been thinking a lot about icons lately. In the Art History class I took last semester we looked at the subject and most particulary at Marilyn Monroe. How do people become Icons; the darlings of the people? It isn't just the media attention they get and it isn't just talent or good looks -- there are thousands of people who have all three but never make it to iconic levels -- they have to have something special about them. Often it isn't easy to label that something because it comes as a package deal. It is a phenomenon that effects people of all ages and all intellects and crosses all socioeconomic barriers. Elvis Aaron Presely has to be one of the all time most popular icons. Even people who claim no appreciation for his music have a fondness for the man himself, and he is known all across the world. He is even used as a test subject for how isolated people and regions might be; "They've never even heard of Elvis!".

Today would have been his 74th Birthday. I'm not a raging fanatic of the man, but I do have fond memories of his songs and as a little girl and loved to watch the films with my mum. I used to have an old table top under my bed that I slid out and used as a little stage and I would play his songs (and many others) and sing along like a little pop star. It was the pipe-dreaming of a primary-schooler because, sadly, I don't have a voice at all!

I was only 8 years old when he died, but I remember it vividly and I cried -- with the rest of the world -- as hard as I always would listening to Old Shep and In the Ghetto.

Anyway, I was thinking of Memphis for some reason. I have never been there but was thinking that I'd really like to visit and I ended up googling "Graceland" and came across the official Elvis website (you should visit; it's pretty cool). I noticed that it was almost his birthday and decided to do a quick tribute post to the "King of Rock and Roll". I hope I get to Memphis and have a chance to see some of his great legacy one day.

Happy Birthday Elvis!

Really -- I wouldn't bother

2009-01-07T05:08:00.000-08:00

I'm sorry to say that my adventures with Netflix lately have been uninspiring. The last two films I ordered were not great and the only reason I'm posting about them at all is to warn you off wasting 4 hours of your precious life bothering to watch them.

Margot at the Wedding

"Starring" Nicole Kidman, Jack Black and Jennifer Jason Leigh.

How did this movie receive such a well written and frankly glowing review from the New York Times? The review was more interesting than the movie, by far. This film tried to be arty, tried to be a black comedy and tried to be moving and sensitive. It failed on all counts and was quite simply boring beyond belief. There was not a sympathetic character among them and no amount of good acting (and I can at least praise the actors for their obvious skill) could rescue the film from a pointless and dreary storyline or shallow, unlikeable characterization.

The best thing about the film was a "not too bad" soundtrack.

Rotten Tomtoes reviewers have scored it a 51% which is generous in my opinion. Sorry!

Y tu Mamá También

I was so disappointed in this movie. It had the potential to be wonderful. Set against the backdrop of the political and economic realities of present-day Mexico, the home life of , and road trip through the country taken by Julio and Tenoch (our teenage protagonists) showed tiny vignettes of life in Mexico along with the class disparities and political situation beautifully. The characters are at least loveable, but the dialogue and storyline lost much of its poignancy because it was quite literally ALL about sex. While I'm sure that we can imagine that to be a true to life portrayal of two teenage boys on the verge of leaving highschool, it was unimaginative and burdened by too many arbitrary scenes of the boys galavanting naked, masturbating and urinating, and I hate to say it but there are too many sex scenes (bad, clumsy, teenage sex). I'm not a prude by a long way, but I feel this aspect of the film took it into the realms of a porno rather than the profound, artistic and moving depiction it could so easily have been. The ending of the movie is moving and with a few edits and more diverse dialogue, I could have enjoyed the film. Gael García Bernal was a cute teen, but he has done much better work since.

The cinematography was great and the footnote narration flecked throughout the film was inspired but we really saw too much of Tenoch's chubby bum for my liking!

Rotten Tomatoes reviewers score it a much higher than necessary 91%. If you decide to see it don't put it on when your parents come to tea or your kids are hanging out -- you'll be mortified from the opening scene on.

Places in the Film

2009-01-06T12:35:00.000-08:00

Chatsworth House

I wanted to post links to some of the places where The Duchess was filmed that I mentioned in the earlier blog for you to visit and admire --they are so beautiful -- but blogger wouldn't let me so here they are now:

Chatsworth House, Derbyshire

The Royal Crescent Hotel, Bath
Holkham Hall, Norfolk

Kedleston Hall, Derbyshire

Clandon Park, Guildford, Surrey

Somerset House, The Strand, London

Somerset House

The Duchess

2009-01-06T07:30:00.000-08:00

I watched The Duchess on the plane ride back to the States and can't describe how embarrassing it was to be crying like a baby everytime the crew members came by! Keira Knightley was as fabulous in this as she was in Pride and Prejudice (one of my favourite movies for so many reasons).

Click the picture to go to the official website for the trailer

This is another British period drama in which Knightley plays Georgiana (Spencer), who was the Duchess of Devonshire in the late 1700s. This is a true story and the Duchess of Devonshire was, publicly, a powerful and influential young woman living at a time when women had no power and little influence. The film shows how very little power she really had over her own personal and private life, as the wife of the callous and uncaring peer, the 4th Duke of Devonshire, William Cavendish. It centers around her life at home and in society and is a beautiful but distressing portrayal of a young woman desperately searching for love and a modicum of equality in a world that offers her neither.

The parts of William Cavendish and his lover Lady Bess Foster (with whom the Duchess is forced to share her husband and home) are played wonderfully by Ralph Fiennes and Hayley Atwell, and the part of Georgiana's lover, Charles, Earl Grey (later Prime Minister of The United Kingdom) was also well performed by Dominic Cooper.

The film is a fairytale of splendour, with the costumes and wigs, and the grand settings of Chatsworth (the actual ancestral home of the Cavendish family), Bath, Holkham Hall, Clandon Park, Kedleston Hall, and Somerset House . The film has already been nominated for several awards and won, deservedly, for best costume design at the 13th Annual Satellite awards in 2008.

TimeOut London's review stated that Knightley produced a "mature, restrained" performance, and that it was "a masterclass in passive aggression from Fiennes and a performance of tender seduction from Atwell." I think that hits the nail on the head! It is a long film but I enjoyed the performances and the storyline so much that I didn't really notice.

Intriguingly, Georgiana Cavendish was an ancestor of Diana, Princess of Wales. While I would never accuse Prince Charles of being in the same league as the Duke of Devonshire for brutality or spite, there are some interesting parallels in the lives of the two women.

Blood Brothers

2009-01-05T11:56:00.000-08:00

While in London before Christmas we went to the theatre to see the long running musical Blood Brothers. The evening performance began at 7.45 pm so we had time beforehand to eat (Smollenky's on the Strand: Quite posh but they have a smell problem on the way in that is awfully like sewers which is dreadful and it wasn't worth it's price either) and we strolled around the theatre district and had some good coffee and cake in Leicester Square at a nice Italian place the name of which escapes me.

It was a wonderful show that had me laughing and crying at intervals and the house was pretty packed too so it was a fabulous atmosphere! The best performance of the night, although all the singers and actors were great, was from Nikki Evans whose voice was superb and her acting very convincing. Nikki played Mrs Johnstone who along with the narrator is one of the lead characters; she follows in the footsteps of some of England's best musical actresses who have played the role sincethe show opened in 1988 such as Barbara Dickson, Kiki Dee and Marti Webb. Nikki Evans was apparently a finalist of the 4th series of X-Factor (which I haven't seen because I live in America now, but is a talent show featuring Simon Cowell of American Idol notoriety here in the States). She didn't win the show so I assume that the winners were fabulous that season because she has a beautiful, rich, powerful voice and had amazing control in a very emotional performance.

We are very fortunate to go to a show, play or something of that nature every time we go home and I am yet to be disappointed. I would definitely recommend this one to anyone!

Day Trip to Bodiam Castle

2009-01-03T09:59:00.001-08:00

While we were in England for the Christmas holidays we took a step back in time on a steam train ride to Bodiam Castle with the family. It was bitterly cold with a chilling wind, but the sun was shining and we had a fun day followed by tea at Claire and Sean's. This has become a family tradition. Mum and Dad, Sean, Claire and Erin have been for the last 3 years. Erin loves the trip out with her Mum and Dad and Nanny and Grandad and she has fun on the train and feeding the ducks. The ride starts at Tenterden and then following a nice chug through the countryside it's a short walk to the Castle Inn for lunch and a stroll around the castle feeding the ducks and back on the train for home. Last year Colin and Amanda were home and they went. Maybe one year we'll all be there together! Here are some photos of the trip. I had forgotten how much I love the English countryside -- I do miss it even though I love my home in Colorado!

The Village of Bodiam

The Castle and Moat

The Family: John, Sean and Erin, Claire, Dad and Mum

squabble of ducks being fed

swimming on the moat

Erin and a strange duck

John, Me, Mum, dad, Sean and Erin

The train from the castle

Happy New Year Everyone!

2009-01-01T19:19:00.000-08:00

A New Year’s Toast (Borrowed from Joanna Fuchs)

Here’s to the new year...

May it bring more joy and success

And less grief and regret.

To our dreams...

May we never stop believing in them

And taking the actions that will make them a reality.

To our friends, loved ones, associates and colleagues...

May we take the time to let them know

How much it means to us

To have them in our lives.

Let us encourage more and criticize less,

Give more and need less.

And whenever we can,

Let us create harmony and peace.

To new beginnings...

Let us start fresh, right now,

To make this the very best year ever.

A very Happy New Year to all of us!

This Man...

2008-10-26T11:37:00.000-07:00

changed my life!! This is my wonderful husband. We met in February 1997 in Bosnia and became the best of friends during the six months that followed. It wasn't until March 1998 that I first came to America and I moved here permanently in November 1998. We lived in Cascade in a small rented log cabin and we got our dogs (Sascha and Luka) the day after I arrived in November. That was the day our family was born. On October 25th 1999 we were married very simply at the court house in Colorado Springs, just the two of us in our jeans and H.D. shirts. We exchanged rings and slept off mild hangovers on our couch infront of an open fire. We had a party the day before to celebrate with our friends and about 100 people came and went over the day. It was wonderful. We have had a fantastic 9 years of marriage and as I commented yesterday it was our anniversary, so I thought I would post some pictures to celebrate.

John, Sascha and Luka 1998

He has done lots of things over the years that scared me half to death but I am proud to be his wife and proud of the things he has achieved. Happy Anniversary! I love you John! Here's to the next 50 years.

Deployed:

College Grad:

Summiting Ranier:

HALO:

Together:

1998 (Cape Cod)

2004 (Christmas Hawaii)

2005 (Vegas)

Hawaii 2005

2007 (Retirement)

Home in Colorado

Good Things! (No. I haven't been watching Martha Stewart

2008-10-25T17:43:00.000-07:00

I've had some time to myself! It's our anniversary today but John doesn't get back from his gig guiding for an elk hunt until tomorrow night so I spent some time today doing things that aren't connected to stuydying and I had a great day. I didn't think it was going to be because I had planned a long lie in and Luka woke me up at 3 AM for no good reason at all (I think he couldn't see how to get onto the bed. Poor old thing's getting dumber with age...). John called from camp early (5.30) to wish me a happy anniversary and on any normal day that would be the end of the lie in but today I persisted and got some fabulous rest. I spent a long time on the phone today; spoke to Mum and Dad and also to my brother for a couple of hours so it was great to catch up.

I read a book today -- nothing to do with college-- and it was excellent! REVENGE by Stephen Fry (also sold as The Stars' Tennis Balls) I highly recommend it. Actually I have read a couple of other books by Fry in the past and they were also brilliant, so I recommend them too (The Liar and Hippopotamus). Stephen Fry is a rare genius when it comes to the English Language, talented with vocabulary, witty and a master of the pun. I hope he has written some more. I couldn't put tyhis one down and I am ready for another.

I also watched a film today (from Netflix) and I thoroughly enjoyed it too. Kiss K iss Bang Bang starring Robert Downey Jnr (so glad that he pulled himself together, he is one of my favorite actors), Michelle Monaghan (who was also in Eagle Eye that I saw at the theatre a couple of weeks back -- fantastic action movie) and Val Kilmer (plays a gay PI type character). They were all fabulous. I give the film four stars (as I do for Eagle Eye).

So, all in all, it's been a wonderful and peaceful day. Just waiting for Primeval to come on TV and I might eat icecream too and then have a bubble bath and listen to some Joshua Bell.

This wallpaper was made by a blogger for his girlfriend guy click on it to visit

Back to the books tomorrow.

A whole season slipped by while I was gone!

2008-10-22T12:24:00.000-07:00

As you can tell it has been impossible to find time to blog. It makes me sad but school comes first (and second apparently). Anyway, in the month since I last blogged, aswell as losing any readers I might have, I also lost a whole season. Autumn came and went in a flash and I think I experienced about a weekend's worth of it.

Here are some photos of the very shortFall and some I took this morning on waking up: First snow of the winter! I am definitely going to ski this year.

This is about 2 weeks ago!

On October 11th I went riding at the fossil beds:

Me and Scout

Early this morning and it's been snowing all day!

Friendship

2008-09-15T08:55:00.000-07:00

friends by mrrinkk on stock.xchng

"Friendship, is a distinctively personal relationship that is grounded in a concern on the part of each friend for the welfare of the other, for the other's sake, and that involves some degree of intimacy. As such, friendship is undoubtedly central to our lives, in part because the special concern we have for our friends must have a place within a broader set of concerns, including moral concerns, and in part because our friends can help shape who we are as persons." (Friendship: Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, pub: May 17, 2005).

I have been thinking a lot about friendship lately; the nature of friendship; its capacity to endure over distance and time, and the role of friendship in my life. I have been considering the popularity of friendship sites on the web; helping to reconnect people and keep them in touch. It is comforting to know what your your friends are up to. I find it helps you feel and stay connected to them even when you don't directly communicate. Everyone is so busy these days. I'm sure that it can be easy to feel isolated running around in your own little world, but the ease of communication through FriendsReunited.com, Facebook and MySpace puts you back in the mix. Sure there are many cons that can be discussed, and dangers to be aware of, in an age of technology, but this is not a dissertation on pros and cons of the internet. I am talking about how these things have impacted my own life.

I have travelled all over. I've moved and moved and moved, first with the British Army and then with the USAF. By the time John and I bought this house and moved back to Colorado to settle, I had moved house 21 times since I was 18 years old. Sixteen of those prior years I spent in the same place in the same home. These sites have brought people back to me from all over the world and from all times in my life, right back to my first real friends at that first real home.

The importance of connecting to my roots and past, particulary now that I have settled so far from home, is significant for me. I don't think I am alone in this, considering the popularity of those sites!

I always think it is funny when you see things on television and in films where astonished re-aquaintances utter, "wow you've changed so much." Really? I don't think so. Whenever I have reconnected with someone it is how much they haven't changed that strikes me; both in appearance and personality. The appearance is accounted for by the fact that we are all aging at the same rate. If you look back at photographs you see an obvious difference but looking at someone for the first time in 15 or 20 years, who you were close with, is like staring at them again right back there in the past. When it comes to personality, I think that I still have the same fundamental beliefs I had as a child (the same instincts for sure), only they are developed now and ,most importantly, I understand them now. I'm also capable of hiding them, ignoring them, or exaggerating them at my own convenience. My observation is that we all become great manipulators without even trying. In my experience so far, the people I am fortunate enough to call friends are still the same.

There are hurts along the way, of course, and it's never easy to ignore them as they happen; but it does become possible to recognize, over time, when the damage was intentional, and done with blatant disregard for the other or with complete malicious intent. Because of this, I have come to believe that genuine feeling never dies unless you make a concerted effort to kill it; it seems it just nestles in the empty spaces of your heart waiting to be relevant to your life, and surprize you by its endurance.

So, in thinking about my life; thinking about relationships; thinking about the friendships that I formed along the way and the rocky, emotional path, that brought me to the peaceful and, quite seriously, blissful existance I have today; and thinking how each important encounter is an integral part of how I developed, I have realised that there are a few people who will always be relevant to my life. They will always endure.

I want to talk about some of them in this blog; some I've remained in contact with; some recently re-established contact with; and some I haven't heard from for very many years. I'll be changing some of the names to protect the guilty [namely me ;)], unless I have their permission to use their name, as I progress through this story. It won't be day-by-day, but I'll write in spurts, picking up where I left off, and even if no-one else reads it, I'm looking forward to looking back and putting into words what has led me to where I am today.

I hope that you have a life full of friendship and love. Have a great day.

forever friends also on stock.xchng

Identity by Julio Noboa Polanco.

2008-09-11T05:00:00.000-07:00

This is a poem that seems to be used regularly in poetry classes to teach about literary devices such as the use of opposites, and extended metaphor but it also appears frequently in the syllabus of English Language Arts classes about minority voices and diversity and Sociology programs about the subject of Identity itself.

I have not yet managed to find any biographical information about the poet, unfortunately! I think that he is Mexican but I have nothing to back this up! If you know anything about him please feel free to comment. I'm sharingthis one just because I came across it on the internet and I liked it. I hope you do too. Have a nice day!

IDENTITY

Let them be as flowers,

always watered, fed, guarded, admired,

but harnessed to a pot of dirt.

I'd rather be a tall, ugly weed,

clinging on cliffs, like an eagle

wind-wavering above high, jagged rocks.

To have broken through the surface of stone,

to live, to feel exposed to the madness

of the vast, eternal sky.

To be swayed by the breezes of an ancient sea,

carrying my soul, my seed,

beyond the mountains of time or into the abyss of the bizarre.

I'd rather be unseen, and if

then shunned by everyone,

than to be a pleasant-smelling flower,

growing in clusters in the fertile valley,

where they're praised, handled, and plucked

by greedy, human hands.

I'd rather smell of musty, green stench

than of sweet, fragrant lilac.

If I could stand alone, strong and free,

I'd rather be a tall, ugly weed.

Nostalgic Break Number 2: Roj Blake against the Totalitarian Terran Federation

2008-09-10T05:00:00.000-07:00

Ah! Blake's 7, the escapades of a futuristic Robin Hood and his band of reprobates. Yes, it's time for another nostalgic break. Blake's 7 was created by Terry Nation (who invented the Daleks) and it ran for 4 seasons from 1978 to 1981. British television at its BBC late 70's best!

I think this programme might have the most memorable opening music ever but one of the best things about the show was the constant barrage of cynicism and insults from Avon and I still find them funny. " Ah, I'm sorry I missed that, it is the kind of natural stupidity no amount of training can ever hope to produce!"

Take a look at this complilation of Avon barbs that someone kindly collected and posted on YouTube!

Wolfwatching by Ted hughes

2008-09-09T07:23:00.000-07:00

It has been a long time since I posted anything from great poets so here is one I love from a fabulous poet of the 20th century. It comes from Hughes' collection of the same name published in 1992.

Ted Hughes was born in Yorkshire in 1930. He attended Pembroke college, Cambridge where he met his future wife. Hughes was known as a nature poet and wolves were often a subject and symbol in his work. He was famous for his seven year marriage to the American poet Sylvia Plath and he was the subject of much criticism and scrutiny when she committed suicide in 1963, following their separation the previous year. They had two children together and Hughes was publicly silent on the subject of Sylvia for more than 30 years out of his sense of responsibility to protect them. Only months before his death in 1998 did he break this silenece with the publication of his collection called Birthday Letters. It is made up of 86 poems, many of them quite brief, and they are said to narrate his relationship with Plath, from their first meeting to her tragic end.

Throughout his career, Hughes won many prestigious awards for his poetry and children's literature and in 1984, he succeeded the late Sir John Betjeman as England’s poet laureate. He was prolific in his publications following this appointment and produced both poetr and prose right up until his death.

After suffering from cancer for nearly 18 months, Hughes died in England, on October 28, 1998. Just prior to his death, Hughes was awarded the Forward Poetry Prize for Birthday Letters. He also received the prestigious Order of Merit in Britain, becoming one of only 24 holders of the award.

Wolfwatching

Woolly-bear white, the old wolf
Is listening to London. His eyes, withered in
Under the white wool, black peepers,
While he makes nudging, sniffing offers
At the horizon of noise, the blue-cold April
Invitation of airs. The lump of meat
Is his confinement. He has probably had all his life
Behind wires, fraying his eye-efforts
On the criss-cross embargo. He yawns
Peevishly like an old man and the yawn goes
Right back into Kensington and there stops
Floored with glaze. Eyes
Have worn him away. Children's gazings
Have tattered him to a lumpish
Comfort of woolly play-wolf. He's weary.
He curls on the cooling stone
That gets heavier. Then again the burden
Of a new curiosity, a new testing
Of new noises, new people with new colours
Are coming in at the gate. He lifts
The useless weight and lets it sink back,
Stirring and settling in a ball of unease.
All his power is a tangle of old ends,
A jumble of leftover scraps and bits of energy
And bitten-off impulses and dismantled intuitions.
He can't settle. He's ruffling
And re-organizing his position all day
Like a sleepless half-sleep of growing agonies
In a freezing car. The day won't pass.
The night will be worse. He's waiting
For the anaesthetic to work
That has already taken his strength, his beauty
And his life.

He levers his stiffness erect
And angles a few tottering steps
Into his habits. He goes down to water
And drinks. Age is thirsty. Water
Just might help and ease. what else
Is there to do? He tries to find again
That warm position he had. He cowers
His hind legs to curl under him. Subsides
In a trembling of wolf-pelt he no longer
Knows how to live up to.
And here
Is a young wolf, still intact.
He knows how to lie, with his head,
The Asiatic eyes, the gunsights
Aligned effortless in the beam of his power.
He closes his pale eyes and is easy,
Bored easy. His big limbs
Are full of easy time. He's waiting
For the chance to live, then he'll be off.
Meanwhile the fence, and the shadow-flutter
Of moving people, and the roller coaster
Roar of London surrounding, are temporary,
And cost him nothing, and he can afford
To prick his ears to all that and find nothing
As to forest. He still has the starlings
To amuse him. The scorched ancestries,
Grizzled into his back, are his royalty.
The rufous ears and neck are always ready.
He flops his heavy running paws, resplays them
On pebbles, and rests the huge engine
Of his purring head. A wolf
Dropping perfect on pebbles. For eyes
To put on a pedestal. A product
without a market.
But all the time
The awful thing is happening: the iron inheritance,
The incredible rich will, torn up
In neurotic boredom and eaten,
Now indigestible. All that restlessness
And lifting of ears, and aiming, and re-aiming
Of nose, is like a trembling
Of nervous breakdown, afflicted by voices.
Is he hearing the deer? Is he listening
To gossip of non-existent forest? Pestered
By the hour-glass panic of lemmings
Dwindling out of reach? He's run a long way
Now to find nothing and be patient.
Patience is suffocating in all those folds
Of deep fur. The fairy tales
Grow stale all around him
And go back into pebbles. His eyes
Keep telling him all this is real
And that he's a wolf--of all things
To be in the middle of London, of all
Futile, hopeless things. Do Arctics
Whisper on their wave-lengths--fantasy-draughts
Of escape and freedom? His feet,
The power-tools, lie in front of him--
He doesn't know how to use them. Sudden
Dramatic lift and re-alignment
Of his purposeful body--
the Keeper
Has come to freshen the water.

And the prodigious journeys
Are thrown down again in his
Loose heaps of rope.
The future's snapped and coiled back
Into a tangled lump, a whacking blow
That's damaged his brain. Quiet,
Amiable in his dogginess,
Disillusioned--all that preparation
Souring in his skin. His every yawn
Is another dose of poison. His every frolic
Releases a whole flood
Of new hopelessness which he then
Has to burn up in sleep. A million miles
Knotted in his paws. Ten million years
Broken between his teeth. A world
Stinking on the bone, pecked by sparrows.
He's hanging
Upside down on the wire
Of non-participation.
He's a tarot-card, and he knows it.
He can howl all night
And dawn will pick up the same card
And see him painted on it, with eyes
Like doorframes in a desert
Between nothing and nothing.

Here is a short movie of a report about and readings by Ted Hughes himself:

In Reponse

2008-09-08T11:57:00.000-07:00

Hey Hey! I knew my bro would come through and comment on the McCain post. Thanks for your comment Col. I was going to respond in the comments section but I thought maybe a quick post here was in order. It seems that you are a little upset by the rift in the Democratic Party! I have been trying to find, online, what the main drive is, as ,unfortunately, I didn't interview any of them. I was tired and hot and hungry and pissed off at trying to get through one door with 12,000 other people. Oh, and of course there's the small problem of me not being a reporter too. I find it hard to believe that it is only because Hilary didn't get nominated but maybe some people are just interested in a woman on the ticket regardless of the issues...

So far I've found this Democrats For McCain site (it looks well put together -- your answers may be there) and this information on PUMA [Party Unity My Ass]. Witty name but the commentry has been little more than mud slinging without much substance on either side of the argument, in my opinion. Oh, and one more to take a gander at -- written in January by the managing editor of the Moderate Voice. You can't really discount the influence that Joe Liebermann would have had either.

Anyway, feel free to praise Obama all you want here. I'm all for an open forum and actually, I find little to recommend either party at the moment. There is no doubt that a change is needed from the Bush regime and I have a lot of respect for McCain so I am swayed in that direction. I do believe that he has the character and experience to lead the country and I do think that it would be a very distinct change from Bush. I haven't yet formed an opinion of Sarah Palin, as last week was the first I had heard of her. I even gave Obama longer than that before I formed an opinion (also a relative nobody to me before the campaigns began). I have to say, I had a much higher opinion of Obama through the first rounds of campaigning and as a centrist it is easy for me to go either way as far as the partys are concerned, because I tend towards the liberal in certain aspects but the conservative in others. I began to be disturbed when coverage of Jeremiah Wright was broadcast. I find him very alarming (as I do all the preachers out there who claim that God's wrath has been brought to bear upon the USA, Democrat or Republican). What worried me was not that Obama was associated with a clear loon, but his reaction to the broadcasts, or more the lack of one for too long. I don't expect for one second that he agrees with his one-time pastor but I can't help but question the judgment of a man who would continue to attend services preached by this crackpot for 20 years! I would have liked to hear more of an explanation. I just remember thinking --"say something!"

I also think that Obama's stance on defense and foreign policy is too weak. This does not mean that I am defending all the decisions that Bush made. It is clear that terrible errors abounded but I also think that feeling pissed off about the Iraq War (a result of policy from Bush's first term) is not a good excuse to abandon national security. The progress that has been made in Iraq more recently, after a quiet acknowledgement that what is needed is a regional approach to stabilizing Iraq, is good! We have been working to free the Shiite neighbourhoods from dependence on militias, improving relationships with the Sunni and putting effort into Iraq's state-owned enterprises in order to create jobs. The Surge while so vehemently opposed in the liberal media, has been successful in the fight against insurgency. This is all something that we need to build on rather than abandon, not only for the sake of future security for our country but also because we owe it to the Iraqi people; after all we were instrumental in causing the mass departure of the intellectual classes from the country during and after the war.

What about Afghanistan by the way? While we are all concentrating on whether the troops should be withdrawn and brought home from Iraq -- is anyone asking Obama if he still thinks that more troops are needed there? He certainly seemed to think so before. It is so obvious that we should never have drawn down there in the first place. What a mess Afhanistan is in -- USA assisted mess of over several decades not just 2 terms.

Oh, also, take a look at some of the more successful strategies and foreign policies that are in progress -- the current China policy is a great example. Anyway -- I'll pick up more in later posts about foreign policy, the things that have changed in the last couple of years that are good things, things that we can't ignore, and why I think that McCain would make more headway in this respect than Obama.

With regards to my comments on defense -- Obama wants to go too far. In his speech that I have embedded at the end of the post he states a laundry list of things he will be ending, changing and not instituting and declares that his "sole priority for defense spending" would be "protecting the American people". How exactly?

On the subject of Iraq: It is clear that the loss of life in Iraq has been too great. I have lost friends and have many friends who have been wounded, dismembered and disfigured and it is not something that anyone associated with the military takes lightly either. It is, though, the loss of life that has prompted such empassioned reactions to remaining in the country, I believe. We never hear anyone bitching or protesting about the money spent on Kosovo or Bosnia and the amount of time we've spent there. We never hear about the bad policy decisions we made in regards to their war and our part in subsequent IFOR, SFOR and KFOR deployments. We don't hear about all the work that was done and money that was spent to bring pro-western government to power in Bosnia or the American/British support of Biljiana Plavsic, now serving 11 years handed down by the Hague for war crimes in her country. I believe that it is because insurgencies and backlash there did not deal us such a harsh blow.

The reality is that people still join the Military and they do so because they believe in the country and in its people and in its security. I also know that there are people who serve in this military because they believe in defending the defenseless (something I think we should do more democratically for sure -- just stick a pin in Africa right now).

I recently heard someone say that it all comes down to whether you choose to believe that all people are basically good or all people are basically bad. She stated that our foreign and defense policies are based on the latter. This is such a narrow and uninformed opinion that I was stunned to hear it come from someone so well educated. However much she considers herself a middle-aged hippie, this statement belies a cynicism way deeper than the one she purports to be revealing. Good national security has nothing to do with whether you believe people are intinsically good or not. It is a reflection of the very sad truth that the minority of bad people in the world have disproportionate strength and through a misguided philosophy and general disregard for the lives of the many good they wreak a havoc that is real and treacherous.

As for Mrs. Palin's opinions on abortion and evolution -- one can hardly condemn a person who claims Christianity for having a hardline Christian opinion. It is hardly a surprise is it? If you came to me and told me that she claims Christianity without following any Christian principles, or in fact was living completely contrary to the values she claims publicly, maybe I would worry about her character or principles then. I can see how you would question a Democrat for siding with her, of course. I'm sure that one of the reasons that McCain brought her in was to conservative-up the ticket. Strategically it was necessary. However, having pro-life Republicans in the government is nothing new. I truly don't believe that there is a concrete threat to the laws that govern us today in respect of choice in this country, whoever gets in. Maybe your fellow Democrats feel the same?

I am continuing to read everything I can about the candidates and, despite not having a vote yet, I will be comfortable come election time with a decision about who I would want to lead the country. It will not be based on great oration skills or masterful rhetorical devices, though I recognize that it is hard to get beyond them when they provoke such emotional responses (as they are intended to). One thing I am sure about is that ignoring any and all policies that we currently have with a view to unilateral change, without truly examining where we are at in 2008 is dangerous. People making decisions in a vacuum, based on previous follies or because of a dislike for an individual is pure idiocy. We have already seen the result when Bush did this coming into office after Clinton. It is a disaster.

I want to hear more discussion about our current policies and how they are different now from 2004. I want everyone to hear that! I want to hear more about the directions we are taking now that can be followed and improved upon and less about what a catastrophe the war was. What I am really interested in, personally, is globalization and what we propose to do as the wealthiest western power ,and supposedly civilized culture, to make things more equitable and improve the economics of the developing world, as well as promoting safety, security and liberty for all.

I do want to point out that I think Obama is an intelligent man, he is a great orator and I do think that he has some ideas for the country that are beneficial. I am not enamoured with his voting record (there seem to be a substantial number of NV -- that worries me even more than voting contrary to my own beliefs). I will continue to listen to both candidates to see if I HEAR anything usefl amid the rhetoric.

A final note: In studying Thomas Jefferson (the man) and The Declaration of Independence (his voice) recently, I have grown even more cautious and more skeptical about politics. Jefferson was, undoubtedly, a brilliant man. He penned the most significant document in USA history. The Declaration is masterful and it changed the course of the USA forever. The man, however, was an enigma. How is it that a man who was educated, intelligent and devoted to equality and to the liberty of Americans; a man who started to protest against slavery; a man who was appalled by aristocracy and the excesses of the wealthy; a man who was a supporter of revolutions in America and Europe could then continue to live in the lap of luxury, be seduced by the aristoratic life in France and continue to hold hundreds of slaves when so many of his contemporaries were setting them free? Jefferson even wrote of his slaves in his journals that he believed that black people were less intelligent than white people! It just goes to show that all is not always as it seems on the surface. Politicians are great persuaders; it is their job. Those who are great with words, whether they are written or spoken don't necessarily have all the answers; and intelligence isn't a guarantee of common sense. When it boils right down to it -- strip a politician and you will find a human being.

Monday Roundup: Here's Autumn

2008-09-08T08:40:00.000-07:00

There are still blue skies and some flowers blooming but the temperature in the morning and during the night says it all; Autumn is upon us.

Thankfully it has been a week of good news. First off, we don't have to get the roof replaced. John called the company, and the new agent talked to the underwriter who reviewed our file, and they changed their minds! That's a relief. Then, on Friday night, my Chemistry book finally arrived! Hallelujah! The postmark said it was only mailed on the 2nd of September, so I think the seller was fibbing to me when she said she'd mailed it priority on August 25th, to make up for the fact that I paid for it at the beginning of August, and it wasn't mailed out due to a "miscommunication" from the website...hmm. Oh well, it's here now, and just in time for my first Chem' test on Thursday. I also have my first Trig' exam tomorrow so I can't spend too much time on the blog today. Got to get to working!

On Friday I took Eva to the doctor to get her stitches out and the results of her biopsy --thankfully there is no sign of cancer spreading! Poor Eva has had a terrrific run of bad luck lately. She is the kindest, friendliest lady and she looks after herself! She hikes regularly, does yoga, is a nice, slim, healthy weight and then all hell breaks loose. There does appear to be no justice in this world sometimes. Anyway, she is back up on her feet and looking much better, and she took me to lunch at Jake and Telly's after the appointment, which was great. I love Greek food! Friday evening, after my American Government class, I went back to Eva's and had a girly night with her and Brenda re-watching Emma and eating a little vanilla bean ice. John was away for a hunting, shooting weekend with the boys (it is that time of year again).

Book club finally happened before the labor day weekend and we chose the next book, The Glass Castle, by Jeanette Walls. It was Eva's choice. I've heard good reviews so far. I need to get reading, as the next meeting is on the 19th.

Saturday, as you know, I went to see John McCain. Brenda came with me and afterwards we had the best salad I've ever eaten at Mimi's Cafe (warning: if you go ther the half sald is big enough for two), before heading back up to Woodland and going to see the 4.30 showing of Mamma Mia. Sunday was the breast cancer run and homework!

Mamma Mia:

Costarring Meryl Streep (fabulous), Pierce Brosnan (singing a bit iffy), Julie Walters (fantastic), Colin Firth (great as always), Stellan Skarsgard and Christine Baranski. Also starring the beautiful, young, and pretty-voiced couple, Amanda Syfried and Dominic Cooper. I had already seen the musical Mamma Mia is London a few years ago so I knew what to expect with the movie but I loved it anyway. I thought the performances were wonderful, the casting was pretty good --although I do think that they maybe cast it a little older than necessary (the youngsters are only 20 years old after all). with the exception of Colin Firth the other "adults" are all in their mid to late fifties and I think that it copuld have stood to be cast with actors in their forties. There are plenty of eligible stars --maybe the singing put them off?! Having said that -- if I can have Meryl streeps energy when I'm almost 60 I'll be a happy woman. She was vibrant.

A word of warning though ladies -- don't take your hubby if he will cringe everytime someone bursts into song! It is a musical in the true sense and there is much singing! It is a funny, happy feelgood movie though. If you want your spirits lifted and love a romantic comedy, this is for you!

Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure 2008 Garden of the Gods

2008-09-07T13:54:00.000-07:00

The Garden of the Gods is a beautiful setting for this run/walk/race event! Today was clear and bright and warm and the organization of the event was superb. There were 3 radio stations and 3 or 4 bands on the route to provide musical entertainment -- if the scenery was not sufficient impetus! The sponsors provided, apples, bagels & cream cheese, yogurt, water, soda and cookies (there were lots of kids after all!). There were items to buy and freebie sponsor items as usual and more music and prize giving after the race. I believe in the region of 8,000 people turned out for it today. I went with my friend Brenda and it was a great morning. It is truly a fabulous charity; Seventy-five percent of the net proceeds from the Komen Colorado Springs Race for the Cure® remains in the El Paso, Teller, and Pueblo counties to support breast cancer programs and activities here. The other twenty-five percent goes to research programs at the national level. Here are a couple of pix of the event.

There are Susan G. Komen events all over the country if you'd like to particpate. When I lived in Hawaii I went to the local events there too. If you get a chance please visit the Susan G. Komen website to find out more about this fantastic cause, events in your area, and about how the program operates in your town. To see information about the National Race for the Cure you can visit here. The next one will be held Saturday, June 06, 2009 at the National Mall, Washington, DC.

You can also get pink ribbon merchandise here that will benefit the BreastCancerSite.com and despite all the pink please realise that MEN get breast cancer too! In the United States, approximately 2030 new cases of MBC are diagnosed annually, and 450 deaths occur. The median age of onset of MBC is 65 to 67, approximately 5 to 10 years older than in women. Like female breast cancer, the incidence of MBC has been increasing; one report suggests that incidence has increased 26 percent over the past 25 years. Please click on this special ribbon, a symbol of the John W. Nick Foundation, Inc. for more information!

McCain in CS

2008-09-07T13:06:00.000-07:00

I went to hear what McCain and Palin had to say in Colorado Springs yesterday. As many of you know, I am not a citizen so I can't vote yet, but, as I am studing American Government this semester I really thought I ought to attend when candidates are in my neighborhood! It was a massive turnout. I didn't hear anything new in the speeches, which were quite short, but I wasn't expecting to following so close on the heels of the conventions. It was good to experience it all though. There was a surprizing number of NObama voting Democrats for McCain there! I really didn't expect to see that. It will be interesting to see how the vote in Colroado turns out this year. El Paso County has had such sway to deliver the State to the republicans in the past and they may do so again with some Dems from Boulder switching camps (I know just crazy isn't it?!) but I think that the buffer the county gives them will need a record turnout of registered voters to be big enough this year. Very exciting stuff!

Labor Day Ride -- I forgot to publish this last week!

2008-09-02T17:20:00.000-07:00

It was beautiful on Labor Day so we decided to go for a ride on the Harley with our neighbours Al and Lorrie. We took in a nice 150 mile scenic loop with a couple of refreshment stops and lunch along the way. Here is a map showing our loop. The scenery on the route is gorgeous. There are a number of large horse properties on 77 the Tarryall/Jefferson stretch and they stand next to picturesque, meandering river and stream bubbling over the rocks with wading fishermen enjoying the labor day peace and quiet. We stopped at an inn on the first stretch for refreshment which was very interesting. Mrs. innkeeper was very friendly but we were unsure if she was drunk, high or just off her rocker. She was entertaining for a brief interlude anyway, and she had a marvelous Great Pyrenees. We also visited a place called the Buck Snort Saloon off the beaten path in Sphinx Park, near Pine. You get to it along a dirt paved road that runs along Elk Creek. There are some of the most enormous boulders on that stretch of raod that I have ever seen and all the dwelling along the creek and up in the rocks are old rough hewn log cabins just like the Buck Snort itself. It will be a great ride out to take visitors (those who can ride that is). It was great riding weather but my butt was happy to get off the bike at the end and have a nice virgin mary with olives as a treat!

Elk Creek Road

Buck Snort Saloon

Nostalgic Break: Hector's House

2008-08-31T07:43:00.000-07:00

"Oh really ZaZa, don't talk nonsense you know very well we turned the car into a fire engine!"

A little known fact about me -- I had Hector's House wallpaper when I was a little girl! I still love Hector. The Children's programmes all sound so polite and quaint from way back when. This is my nostalgic break number 1. I'll be taking other excursions into my past as I blog along. For now have a look at Hector Never Forgets

How Crap Are Insurance Companies?

2008-08-30T05:31:00.000-07:00

Not Mine! Roof photograph by Taluda at stock.xchng

Purely rhetorical question as I am fully aware of how crap insurance companies are after this week. I received a letter at the beginning of the week from the holder of our house insurance policy that they are not going to renew because "roof repairs or replacement needed". Why am I so mad? I have until the 19th of September to get a roof fixed that's not broken yet. That is less than a month. To make it worse, the company inspected the roof almost a year ago. Nothing was communicated prior to this. The guy I had come out to do an estimate told me that what is likely to have happened is that it was inspected and it could be see that the beginnings of hail damage were showing in parts, the company decided that the condition of the roof made it unlikely that a claim would be made within the year so they accepted the policy -- and our premiums for the year -- being sure to cancel instead of renew unless it was repaired or replaced at that time. Sneaky huh? The roof doesn't really need to be replaced but the shingle up there is not made anymore so we have no choice if we want insurance -- which of course we do! Apparently this is pretty typical procedure, particularly as they know that there are lot of hail storms in the Colorado Rocky Mountains.

This is going to cost $7500 --can you believe it?! At times like this I wish we had a 2-up-2-down with a short roof! Oh well! The perils of house ownership, what can you do? At least I have a roof over my head right?! Yes! Back to being grateful.

Here endeth the rant. Have a great weekend!

Squirrel Tease

2008-08-29T11:13:00.000-07:00

Poor Bean! It has been a rotten week for her. The replacement collar arrived to use with the electric fence, but still it didn't work. The company is sending out a replacement wall unit that might not be here until Wednesday. Consequently, when I leave, I have to shut Betty in the garage. It's a very big garage with couches, and dog toys and she has water and food, but I still feel bad for her because she is such a lively, energetic, chase-em-about kind of a dog. Still, I comfort myself knowing that she will be alive when I get home! On Wednesday I was home all day as my class doesn't start until 7 PM, so she got to be outside for quite a while. I was working on the computer with the door to the bedroom deck open and the noise that was assaulting me from outside was horrific. I got up to see what it was about and found that it was a very, VERY, loud and cheeky squirrel sitting up in a tree bating my poor, tormented hound to distraction. The squirrel wasn't stuck or trapped and it had every opportunity to scamper off among the tree tops but instead, it chose, for some ungodly length of time, to taunt and tease Betty, all the while shaking its fist in defiance. I wish I had managed a shot of it doing this! It was comical animation but by the time I got my camera it was too late. Above is a shot of the same squirrel after all the blustering!

This is my baby wishing she was a bear and could get up that bloody tree!

Migrations and Other Departures

2008-08-27T05:00:00.000-07:00

I have picked Sebastiao Salgado as the artist for my main report and presentation in Art History. The class covers 1900 onwards (I'm aiming to do History and Literature all from the same period for the degree) and we can pick any type of artist. I chose a photographer because photography is the medium that makes me feel the most. It was hard to choose one photographer, as I have quite a few favorites, but I settled on Salgado, not only for his skill but also for his altruism and the compassion he has for humanity that shows through in his work. He is a photo-journalist of enormous talent, with an equally enormous heart, whose portrayal of the human condition is profound and provocative.

Salgado was originally an economist who worked for the Brazilian government. He was exiled from Brazil around 1970 for challenging the dictatorship, and moved to Paris where he continued his PHD and worked for the International Coffee Organization. In 1971 during a trip to Rwanda he began to take many photographs and discovered upon his return that it gave him more satisfaction thatn his work on economic reporting. Salgado decided to take up the photography seriously and his aim with his photography was always to provoke discussion and debate over issues relating to globalization and to draw attention to poverty and health problems in developing nations.

Salgado spent 15 years putting together his series of photos for Workers and Migrations two of his most famous shows. UC Berkely still has a webcast available of Salgado's Avenali lecture and question time with him, that took place in April 2002 when the Migrations show was at the Art Museum there. The lecture is about an hour and 20 mins long but it is fascinating to hear him speak about the intentions behind his photography and I recommend anyone to watch it. Salgado has also assembled several other series, such as The End of Polio , and The Children and, and he has produced many books of these shows too. The most recent of his publications is Africa a retrospective of Salgado's African work and a personal narrative of the artist. It is reviewed here by Hans Durrer for soundscapes.

According to articles I have read from reputable newspapers in England, Salgado has been working on the "last of his great photographic projects" over the last few years. Genesis, that was shown at Hacklebury Fine Art in London this past January was described by Sebastiao Slagado himself as a project "designed to reconnect us to how the world was before humanity altered it almost beyond recognition". The photographs are a record of the untouched corners of the world that Salgado visited and the photographs are stunning in their composition and sheer beauty.

World's Smallest Political Quiz

2008-08-26T05:00:00.000-07:00

In American Government and Politics on Friday night I took the quiz and apparently I am a centrist. This comes as no great shock to me but I was astonished that there were so many of us! Did you always think you were conservative or liberal and maybe want to see how you score. This is The site it came from why not check it out and see what you think.?

This is what the grid looks like when you're scored. That's my red dot. I've only been in this class since Friday and I've learned so much already. I am not a citizen yet, so I can't vote, but it's a really interesting time to take this class, with the elections looming, and such a diverse group will make it very interesting in debate. I'm sure I'll be posting often about this subject.

What do you all think of Obama's choice of running mate then?

I'm Back! Monday Roundup

2008-08-25T13:39:00.000-07:00

I knew that starting back at school was going to be hectic. John is still away so the everyday stuff on top of settling into a college schedule has been kicking my butt. Sorry for the blogging gap! This last week and a half have seen many annoyances for me. First of all, the house, decks and barn were being treated and stained but the weather (crazy almost English weather where it rained for 3 days straight --munheard of in these parts) stopped play half way through and I was penned into the house with one exit for 3 or 4 days. Plastic sheeting covered all the doors and the windows AND the hot tub (not cool!). Anyway, they got it done and it looks great so that's all over now.

Then there is the electric fence saga! I don't know if I posted about Betty's unique escapologist skills before but she caused us no end of drama during the winter, getting out all the time and staying out past my tolerance. We came to discover that whatever we did she could defeat it. She can jump so high that it 's not possible for us to reinforce the whole fence effectively We settled on one of those containment devices where she would get a shock if she approached the fence. I really didn't want to do it, but nothing else was working and when she got injured while she was AWOL one day the decision made itself. Well, it worked just fine and she has been a wonderful, loving, homebound pet ever since -- that is until I had to go back to college!

I came home first day to find she was out and that is when I realised that the fence wasn't working (duh!). I checked it all out and there seemed to be no power so I bought a new converter. Yay! Power restored!! But wait, oh lovely, red flashing lights, that meant that the containment wire was broken. A trek around the four acre fence looking for breaks pulled up a winner (wish I had gone counter- (anti)- clockwize though). I fixed it in time to leave for school but I got home at 5 and Betty was out again! I ccouldn't believe it. This time, in chatting to John, I found that the collar needed to be re-charged. OK! I took care of that and tested it and guess what? Still not working. There are a stream of obscenities that I won't be posting her. Please use your most vivid of imaginations.

I have had to order a new collar online. Betty is going to be the bane of my life until Wednesday when the new one arrives. She hates me because I won't let her go out and charge about like a loon. She will hat me even more when the collar arrives and she gets a zapping. It only takes the one. She'll hole up near the house for a couple of days and then start to venture outwards back to her boundary. I feel bad, but she has four acres to play in, and chase rodents in, and dig in. She needs to keep her arse in the yard!!

OK so I don't want this to be and enitre post of grumbling but a couple more are in order -- my chemistry textbook didn't arrive. I bought my books online from marketplace sellers because they are so monumentally expensive at the college bookstore. I have not been lucky with the Chem' book though. The first one I ordered the seller contacted me to say he couldn't find it! The secoind one said it would arrive between the 12th and 22nd and when I still hadn't got it on the 22nd I emailed. The seller apparently had not been informed by the site that the book had sold! *%$@#&* She said she was sending priority today, so, hopefully, I'll have it by the end of the week. I have to go and do my homework using the college library copy though (for this week). Pain in the... Talking of which, UK passport photos are not the same size as US ones! I just had to drive an hour to the nearest place to get the photos and then an hour back.

Alright. I'm done.

School is wonderful so far. I have TRIG, CHEM, ENG COMP II, ART HISTORY and US Politics and every instructor seems great. I'm really enjoying being back to the studying. I hope that I will be able to blog frequently again now that I have settled back into a rhythym. John will be home on Saturday and so Labor day weekend won't be dull.

Hope everyone is well and happy! Have a good Monday.

Le Scaphandre et Le Papillon

2008-08-14T07:06:00.001-07:00

Jean-Dominique Bauby, Jean-Do to his friends, was the editor-in-chief of French Elle magazine, when he suffered a catastrophic stroke in December 1995 at the age of just 43. Bauby, described by the mother of his children as "intelligent, witty and stylish, and a consummate bon viveur", was out driving when he was suddenly struck down. He slipped into a coma at the hospital and was under for three weeks before coming round. When he did regain consciousness, Bauby was not able to move a muscle, save for his left eye and left eyelid. The neurologists diagnosed 'Locked-in-Syndrome', a rare condition in which the brain functions normally while the body becomes a paralysed prison. Bauby was unable to talk, breathe, or even swallow on his own. Despite this overwhelming disability, Bauby's spirit seems to have won through. A speech therapist, at the hospital in Berck, developed a system of communication with him by reciting a special alphabet, ordered by frequency of use, and watching for him to blink his acknowledgment of the correct letter. In this way he communicated by blinking letter by letter. Incredibly, it was by'speaking' in this fashion that Bauby was able to to dictate his personal memoir to Claude Mendibil, a secretary sent to him by a publisher. Mendibil spent three hours six days a week taking dictation and it took some 200,000 blinks of his eye to complete.

The evocative title of the book, that translates as "The Diving Bell And The Butterfly", springs from Bauby's feeling that his body was a submerged, weighted down prison, impossible to move, but his imagination and memory were still free and as light as a butterfly's wings: "My cocoon becomes less oppressive, and my mind takes flight like a butterfly. There is so much to do. You can wander off in space or in time, set out for Tierra del Fuego or for King Midas's court." he wrote.

Tragically, Bauby died only a couple of days after the publication of his memoir in France in 1997, but, it was from this bestselling autobiography that the french movie The Diving Bell And The Butterfly was adapted by the acclaimed British playwright Ronald Harwood. The movie opens as Bauby regains consciousness and it is unconventionally shot from the haunting and, quite frankly, disturbing viewpoint of the man himself. The most uncomfortable moment is when the doctors sew Bauby's useless right eye shut. This scene is filmed from the inside and we are able to see the stitches going in and the darkness folding in as though it is our own eye. We, the audience, hear Jean-Do's thoughts throughout the film and this adds eerily to the dramatic effect. It is wonderfully done and works effectively to build the viewer's empathy for this bright and eloquent journalist, now held hostage by his own body. I cannot claim to have enjoyed the film because I found it quite terrifying to experience this, even at a distance. The film was, however, moving, elegant, dark and moody and I highly recommend it. The only issue I have is that there is so much controversy surrounding the truth behind the movie. There is a difference of opinion between Sylvie de la Rochefoucauld, mother of Bauby's two children and Florence Ben Sadoun, Bauby's girlfriend at the time of his illness, about exactly who was by his side daily in the hospital. I have read many articles ( see the links on the ladies names) that take both sides of the story and have decided that I will need to read the autobiography itself to have a better idea of Bauby's thoughts at the end of his life.

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay

2008-08-12T14:33:00.000-07:00

This Pulitzer Prize winning novel by Michael Chabon was a happy surprize for me. I picked it up because it was something different and I was concerned that it wouldn't hold my attention very long but I was fully engrossed from beginning to end. This is an excellent read, particularly for those who want to improve their command of the English language and extend their vocabularies. Michael Chabon is an artist with words. His sketching of the characters is intricate and sophisticated and the tone of the novel is at once both tragic and comedic. Chabon uses his ability with words to entice the reader into the story like tempting a playful kitty with a furry nip-filled mouse on a string. Before you know it you are completely involved and mesmorized by each twist and turn of the story. Hours will pass you by and you'll still be hungrily pouncing on each beautifully constructed line.

The story is about two young Jewish men, Joe Kavalier, from Prague and Sammy Klayman from New York who are related as cousins. The story opens with Joe growing up in Czechoslovakia and training as an escape artist and illusionist. We are introduced to the young Joe' his brother Thomas and their somewhat priviliged life as the sons of two wealthy Doctors. The shadow of the Nazi regime slowly creeps across his homeland and Joe's parents spend all their money in efforts to have him emigrate to the USA to live with his aunt in New York. It is 1939 when Joe Kavalier, a young artist, finally arives at his cousin's apartment having just managed his greatest escape to date by smuggling himself out of his Nazi-occupied homeland with the help of his old "Magic teacher" Kornblum.

Joe meets Sammy, his cousin, an industrious dreamer who soon realises that the two of them are a potential collaborative goldmine if they can focus their combined talents (Sam's for fantastical but exciting storytelling and Joe's accomplished drawing and inking skills) on the blooming comic book industry. Joe is driven by a desire to make big money, and fast, so that he can fulfil his deepest wish, to rescue his family from an increasingly desperate situation in Europe and bring them to freedom in the USA. Joe and Sammy forge an unforgettable path into the industry with their champion and non-flying, superhero, the Escapist.

Sammy is a self-deprecating, flawed, but loyal and lovable sidekick who adores his cousin, the handsome hero of the book. He manages the baffling feat of leading while taking a back seat. Chabon describes him as wanting to "inhabit the body of his cousin", because he wants "to be more than the result of two hundred regimens and scenarios and self-improvement campaigns that always ran afoul of his perennial inability to locate an actual self to be improved". Just one example of Chabon's tragicomedy that runs through the book.

Chabon's descriptive talent is astonishing and he brings the whole book to life with an infusion of colour, just like the inking of a comic strip, through simple but stunning vignettes.

"There was on the slender bole of the youthful maple tree...an enormous moth. It rested, papillating its wings with a certain languor like a lady fanning herself."

" Steam purled from the orifices of the street."

"There are thick flocks of bombers, spiky flotillas of batleships, gardens of blooming shell bursts."

"He walked along Eigth street, over to Christopher, then to the river, threading his way like a pickpocket through the crowds just of the feryboats from New Jersey: taut-jawed men in stiff hats and suits and obsidian shoes, newspapers pinned under their arms; brusque, brick-lipped, hard-heeled women in floral dresses. They stampeded down the ramps and onto Christopher and then scattered like raindrops blown across a window."

Isn't that fantastic? I will not continue with spoilers on the hows, whys and wherefores, of the plot progression. Read the book! The storytelling is magical with bursts of fantasy and escapism. The characterization is superb and there is a little something for everyone with love stories, magic, war tales, terrorism, espionage, fairytales, tragedy, psychology and philosophy all perfectly weaved together in a triumph of a great American novel.

Later Chabon went on, in collaboration with Dark Horse Comics (who put out the Star Wars, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Hellboy comics), to create an actual comic book series of The Escapist. It was called The Amazing Adventures of The Escapist and it won a Will Eisner Comic Industry Award for creative achievement in American comic books in the "Best Anthology" category in 2005. The picture is of the cover of the Escapist #1 published by Dark Horse on February 25, 2004.

Love them Boys

2008-08-11T22:45:00.000-07:00

I don't know what the USA men's gymnastic team had for breakfast, but they went without the Hamm and still pulled it off! The boys were so excited all the way through, chatting into the camera and drawing you in with their highly charged competitive spirit. Apart from a couple of errors on the pommel that let the Japanese back through the door for silver they were solid. After all that talk about them not being good enough, with two of the alternates called in and no previous Olympic experience between them, they went ahead and proved them all wrong. They were a joy to watch. Jonathan Horton stuck every landing he made on all the apparatus and he looked especially fabulous on the floor. Raj Bhavsar shone on the parallel bars and Justin Spring was scary and awesome on the high bar. Sasha Artemev’s performance on the pommel horse sealed the bronze for USA and it was a wonderful display too. They were all so happy. It was really satisying to watch.

Hope that the ladies can do great things tomorrow!

In the Swim!

2008-08-11T20:58:00.000-07:00

photo from bbc photo of the day galleries: news.bbc.co.uk/.../photos_of_the_day/5112544.stm

Another fantastic night for USA swimming! Another sore throat!

I hope that Michael Phelps goes all the way with the GOLDS. He is such a champion. Another amazing swim from him tonight -- he is in a class on his own. Always nice to see a team mate on the podium though and Vanderkaay had a very nice swim to take that bronze alongside Michael.

The USA swimmers were overall outstanding today garnering 3 golds 2 silvers and 3 bronze medals at the Water Cube in Beijing. I was so excited for Natalie Coughlin hanging on to defend her gold in the 100m back, her finish stroke was excellent and then having Margaret Hoelzer take the bronze was a wonderful bonus. Piersol defended in champion style too, despite scaring the commentators with slower swims in the prelims than they seemed comfortable with, and Grevers backed him up with the silver in the men's 100 m back! Then to round it out Soni took the silver in the 100m breast stroke, although by listening to the commentators you would think that no one was in the race besides Liesel Jones before, during and after. Thney didn't get up any excitement for her at all, which was a shame.

Unfortunately there were no British triumphs to top it off for me tonight but cheering the USA this evening really made another night with John away go by a little faster.

SO worth it!

2008-08-10T21:23:00.000-07:00

Rebecca Adlington and Joanne Jackson celebrate their gold and bronze in the 400m freestyle. Photograph: Timothy Clary/AFP

I stayed up later than usual to see the swim finals! The only problem with watching NBC coverage of the Olympics is that they obviously don't care as much as me about Great Britain's performance. Why would they, after all? Anyway, I was so excited watching the womens' 400 m freestyle tonight and, as much as I wanted Hoff to do really well, there were two Brits in the final too. It's pretty amazing having double the teams to cheer for.

I was keeping my eye on Rebecca Adlington and Joanne Jackson and, although Adlington was mentioned once by the commentators, Jackson didn't even have her name said at all. I was thrilled to see Adlington take that gold and then Jackson medalled as well for the bronze. How fabulous is that? I had to get online right away and register my overflowing excitement! The dogs were quite taken aback by the hollering and whooping and jumping about on the sofa. There was so much talk on TV about Pellegrini and Manadou and that little soap opera that no one seemed to be paying attention to the sneaky Brits. They had pretty much written Hoff out of the running too because they thought her best chance was the race she already got a bronze in earlier! Hoff was literally beaten out by one of those 8/1ooths of a second deals so her disappointment was written huge across her face and I really felt for her.

Still, YAY for Great Britain!!! It was still a really fantastic swim for Miss Katie Hoff for her second medal for the USA! Silver this time, woo hoo! Not really something to be disappointed about! That's my favourite kind of podium right there.

AND THEN to see the USA men's relay team beat the French team out at the last touch was just amazing, especially after Bernard was bragging that they were going to "smash" the Americans. I think non! I have a sore throat from screaming so hard. What an amazing last leg that Jason Lezak put out! The fastest relay split ever (46 seconds). Even the American commentators were doubting him;

"hmm I don't think he can do it",
"I just don't think Lezak can do it!"
"America should get the silver...But Lezak is closing a little bit on Bernard!"
"Can the veteran chase him down and pull off a shocker here?"
"Well there's no doubt that he's tightening up!"
"Bernard is losing some ground"
"Here comes Lezak. Unbelieveable at the end!"
"He's done it! The US has done it!"
"He did it, they done, he done it!"

Ha Ha Ha. It was so cool. Don't you just love the thrill of it all? Just the reaction of Michael Phelps standing at the block cheering Lezak on and looking up for the result was enough to make me tear up. What a brilliant team. They went an unbelievable 4 seconds under the world record time. I really am astonished at how fantastic that race was. Even the fifth placed team (Sweden?) came in ahead of the old world record time isn't that incredible?

Also, just a little aside, I was a little nervous that Phelps might lose his swimsuit in all his excitement -- was anyone else worried that it was hanging really very low? That coverage was probably banned in some countries ;)

Oh, by the way, I also found that I had the women's cycling road race recorded so I was able to watch Nicole Cooke take her gold. It was thrilling after all.

Follow That!

2008-08-10T17:12:00.000-07:00

I hate to say it but I don't tink that will be possible! I'm talking about the oening cremony of the Olympics. I mean where would London get 15000 people willing to do something for nothing? Yeah exactly!

I don't know if you saw the extravaganza that was the creative portion of the opening for the 29th Olympiad of the Modern Era or not but if you missed it you missed a DOOZIE! It was truly spectacular. All those lucky enough to attend the ceremony itself, at the Bird's Nest, should count themselves blessed to have see one of the greatest shows ever I would say! I really would love to visit China one day.

If you missed it go here and take a look at the gorgeous pictures or to the video on NBC's Beijing 2008 Website here. It was a major masterpiece of art, dance, movement and light. It was choreographed to perfection and the concepts and costumes were phenomenal. It was a fabulous portrayal of Chinese history and philosophy (without the Tiananmen Square incident of course). Don't get me wrong, we all have our pasts, don't we? Some of us our presents and futures to worry about... If GB tries to do a similar event depicting British history there will certainly need to be more than one significant edit or ommission particularly in the spotlight of global unity and peace that is the Olympics!

Beautiful though it may have been, I suspect that it cost more than anyone would ever want their country to spend on a sporting event. I do hope that the eventual gains for the country will make it worth the cost.

I'm recording all the Olympic coverage that we are getting from NBC over here so that I can forward though to the stuff I like. Of course I'm supporting Great Britain as well as the USA. Unfortunately looks like I'll have less to cheer about there :(

I did see an early glimmer of hope with Hannah Miley in the 440 IM but it was not to be! Even Katie Hoff only got the bronze but Stephanie Rice (Australia) and Zimbabwean Kirsty Conventry just hammered the record to take Gold and Silver. Wonderful race.

Isn't The Cube an extraordinary facility though? Beautiful pool! Of course, I'm very happy for Michael Phelps breaking the world record and taking gold in the 400 IM. Much shouting and jumping up and down there. Swimming is one of my faves to watch (short attention span). I love the gymnastics and track events too and of course the rowing! Should have something to cheer about there, I hope! Come on GB!!

Nicole Cooke claimed Britain's first gold medal in an apparently thrilling women's cycling road race (sorry, but not one I watch) congrats to her though!

Anyway my blogging has been a bit patchy, sorry, just had a little writing block and lots of reading and sports watching to do too!

Back to the TV now. It's raining again so I don't have to feel bad. Have a good evening!

How Much? Tuesday Tirade Number Two!

2008-08-05T17:17:00.000-07:00

I have been very excited about the fact that we are going home to England for Christmas and I was checking my passport to make sure all is in order. Well, it expires in September so I have to get it renewed. I went online to check the requirements because all I could remember was that I would have to send off to the embassy in Washington D.C.

Can I be reading it right? Have I missed something obvious? They want $265 for a renewal! Bloody hell, that's a bit steep don't you think? So you might be sitting there calculating and realise that a British passport is a 10 year issue so really I'm only looking at $26.50 a year or $2.21 ish a month and how can one complain about that measly sum? Yes of course it's worth it to go home and see my family but that's not really the point is it? I think its a bit of a liberty and I'm feeling decidedly mumpy. I don't get mumpy about little things very often, you know, not mumpy enough to bellow about it.

BUT, I only get to go once a year, IF I'm lucky, and then it's for 2 weeks max! With the exchange rate being what it has been I'm really looking at about 13 pounds sterling per visit. So £13 to enter my own country of birth for a holiday! Breaking it down further you could say it's like paying a quid a day to "the man" to wake up in my own Mum and Dad's house! WTF! To top it all John is good to go -- he doesn't need to pay to sleep next to me [cough, er well, of course not, but you know what I'm getting at ;)]

Oh and in other news "a severe thunder storm warning remains in effect in Teller an El Paso counties until 8 PM. Thunder storms so far have produced nickel-sized hail over parts west of Colorado Springs. Now over to Bozo for the traffic news, Bozo?"

Fabulous! Another hike ruined.

OK enough. There are real tragedies and traumas happening in the world, I know. I'm done. It's time for pie.

G'night all x