I'm currently off work with a chest infection, so on my way home from the Doctors yesterday I decided to call into my local branch of Blockbuster to pick up a DVD to watch. I'm not a big fan of daytime TV (a government ploy to keep unemployment levels down, I'm sure of it) or Wimbledon (which is all the BBC seem to be showing) so thought a film might be an alternative to reading (which I'm also doing a huge amount of at the moment). Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner is a book that has been on my reading list for a fair while. I had heard that a film version had been made, but was pleasantly ... read more
Three men in a boat: to say nothing of the dog
Ever since watching the BBC version of Three Men in a Boat, featuring Griff Rhys Jones, Dara Ó Briain, and Rory McGrath, I have been meaning to pick up a copy to read. I was therefore delighted to find a copy in the local charity shop last week for just 80p. In this book Jerome K. Jermone tells the story of a boat trip along the river Thames with his two friends George and Harris and Montmorency, the dog. It's a delightful old fashioned tale of the time, which in numerous parts diverts off into some other event that JKJ has been reminded of. The style of writing pulls you very much into the ... read more
The Penultimate Chance Saloon – a TOG story!
A couple of weeks ago I read an article in the Guardian which told of a book group chaired by Edwina Curry and held at Nightingale House, a care home in South London. As someone that has never attended a book group the article intrigued me, especially when reading about the views of some elderly women (all the ones in the article seem to be 90+!) on contemporary fiction. In the featured book group meeting the author Simon Brett was present to hear the group discussing his novel The Penultimate Chance Saloon. The article finished with a list of books that the group had recently discussed and ... read more
Somewhere to keep my knitting needles
Since learning to knit about a year ago I have been after something to keep my growing collection of needles in. I had a look in a few shops, but didn't quite find anything that fitted the bill either through style or the material used to make it. One of the books that I used when I was learning to knit was Debbie Stoller's Stitch 'n Bitch and in the patterns section in the back of the book I found a fantastic sounding pattern for a "roll-your-own needle case" by Echo Devore. I used some material that I'd had in my stash for a while (originally from the John Lewis bargain bin) and I'm really ... read more
An Australian Tale
This book was passed to me by my Mum, and I have to admit to not really knowing what to expect from it. Andrew McGahan's The White Earth is a complex story, told by two of the book's main characters, John McIvor and his nephew William. Following the death of William's father, he and his mother go and live with his Uncle at Kuran Station, a once grand typical Australian station in the plains. Here the history of Kuran Station and of the areas previous Aboriginal residents comes to light. The book certainly taught me a fair amount about what happened in Australia to the Aborigines, something ... read more
A summer afternoon…
After a haircut and some book scavenging in the local charity shops (more news of the outcomes later) I decided to make the most of the good weather before the surrounding dark clouds took effect. Mr C and I arranged to meet in the local pub beer garden for a nice drink in the sunshine. A perfect way to spend a summer afternoon. ... read more
Lemon, lime and bitters
When traveling round New Zealand earlier this year Mr C and I discovered a fantastic soft drink there that provided a level of refreshment that couldn't be matched by anything else and became very much the drink of our trip (despite all the fantastic local wine). Bundaberg's Lemon, Lime and Bitters provided a fantastically refreshing drink that was much needed after a day of driving around in our campervan. An Australian drink, we knew that we'd have to find some way of recreating it for the British summer. Upon returning to the UK we did find that our local Waitrose did stock bottles, but ... read more
Wombles
A second BBC News magazine atricle has also caught my attention today, but this is one that I'm not totally sure what my views are... Lucy Kellaway's article is entitled Making good use of the things that you find, and starts by talking about taking some her late mother's possessions down to the tip to dispose of them. When she talks about getting rid of things though she refers to it as "an enjoyable leisure activity - a bit like a sport" and then says "the other beauty of getting rid of stuff is that it leaves one free to go out and buy some more". Now I'm afraid that this started to get me ... read more
The joy of pottering
This BBC News magazine article caught my attention this afternoon. There is nothing I like more than pottering. At present I don't have a garden or outdoor space to potter about in, but even just spending a day pottering inside our flat can be a delight. I work in central London and find all the rushing about there quite stressful at times and dream of being able to potter through the days. I think this article is right in that "pottering" has been given bad press. A day of pottering at home can completely de-stress me and prepare me mentally for the work week ahead. Yet, when work ... read more
Socks…
Just over a year ago, with some help from work friend L, I learnt how to knit. It's been quite a long process which has tested my patience many times. After a year I was starting to get a bit bored with scarfs and woolly hats (or which I now have a drawer full in time for next winter) so was looking for a new project. After reading yarnstorm over the last year I think I have caught Jane's contagious passion for socks and hence a pair seemed the most obvious thing to start on. I managed to find a "Regia Sock Knit Kit" in my local John Lewis and thought that with the enclosed "simple ... read more