The Observers 50 Most Powerful Bloggers.

After having a look at this blog Simon gave me a pull out from The Observer listing the 50 most powerful bloggers in the world.
Some of these I already read, Girl with a one track mind for example.
I spent some time on Friday evening trawling through this list looking at any that I liked the look of. Sadly the one that look the most interesting was in German so I left that but I’ve now added these two to my blog bookmarks.
The first one calls out to the foodie in me and is entertainingly written. The second is just pretty. I don’t think i have a personal sense of style but some of these people really, really do!
I would recommend, mainly to the girlies I think, looking at the second one in detail.
Suffice it to sayt hey entertained me for most of the rest of the day!

Slightly delayed

No photos for this one, too busy having fun to take any.

We did have exciting and different sex. Oh yes. However, I don’t think any of you actually want details and as David was playing too it seems wrong to kiss and tell.

Once my rock chick arrives I’ll do a proper review of that- I can share setails of just MY sordid sex secrets with impunity!

Imaginary Lion Taming

(Written on, mostly, webless Wednesday!)

I built myself (and David I suppose) a table and two chairs today. Woo!

Here are the bits prior to assembly:

Neat and tidy little pile. 2 and half hous later here’s the finished product:

Two and a half bloody hours! Some of the holes weren’t in the right places so I couldn’t actually put all the screws in. In order to make sure things were stable I sat on both chairs and the table after completion and then waved the chairs around the room a bit to make sure they wouldn’t fall apart. They didn’t, though I probably looked like an idiot to anyone who happened to look through the window at me waving chairs around a room!

It was harder than I’d thought it would be but I feel happy sitting here at my table on my computer so it was definitely worth it!

Due to the work thing- a list update!

Yesterday I was pants. I worked the 9.00-8.30 shift and so didn’t feel like doing anything when I got home. David made Fajitas, we watched some Buffy and then I went to bed. No new things there! This means I’ve used two of my off days within the first two weeks! Good job I planned in slightly more than one a week really isn’t it?

So list update (previously mentioned things without explanations):

Writing
Languages
Dancing
Tea - Try new types of teas, blend them together to make my own personal tea, do more tea tasting and share
the notes with the world, visit different tea houses, give away ones I don’t drink and organise the ones I
have so that it’s easier to drink a wider variety rather than the same six teas over and over. I’ve already started giving away tea as well. Until it’s all gone (and I think there’ll be more to give away after the next batch of tea tasting) I’m not going to strike that bit out.
Music
Sex
Books - I refuse to venture into the realm of pointless romantic pot boilers again though!
Blogs
Walking
Playing on swings
Baking
Swimming
Learn to proofread
Cooking
Grammar
Travelling
Photographs
Playing computer games that aren’t Civ 2/Civ 4 (I’ve decided that it was a little TOO much like cheating!)
Go and see a Musical
See a Gilbert and Sullivan Operetta performed live.
Learn to touch type.
Go to a football match - Bob has said that I also have to buy memorabilia, learn chants and properly get behind a local team (though he suggested London Irish and Rugby). We’ll see how I enjoy going to one match first, k?
Build a table - I’ve never actually built any of my own furniture- someone else has always done the flatpacked stuff for me. I have a table that needs putting together. I shall do this.
Make a big tea database using Delphi - Bob reckons he can show me how to use Delphi so I’m going to give it a try. Suggested by Bob, obviously.
Car Boot Sale - I’ll need the help of someone with a car, obviously, but this would be an excellent way of getting rid of the clutter (no doubt accquiring more) AND doing something new. Suggested by Duchess Emily of Fun.
Go to a ball - I know I’ve done this twice before but I’ve never actually worn a ball gown and made myself pretty for one. My ballgown has now, finally and about five months late, arrived so I’m going to do it properly damn it!
Treasure Hunting - Borrow Emily’s dad’s metal detector and go hunt for treasure! Woo! Also, unsurprisingly, suggested by Duchess Emily of Fun.
Tour of the Loddon Brewery - Mmm beer. Suggested by DEoF.
Wine tasting - Mmm wine (in very small amounts that might not make me sick!). Suggested by Bob.
Hat Making - I have no idea how one would go about making a hat. I shall find out! Again by DEoF.

The, one, strikeout is already done. Bold is for new ideas.

Still very very grateful for ideas as I’m actually getting things done! The more I have to do the more likely I am to keep going. Though *looks sternly in Ashley’s direction* SLIGHTLY more encouraging comments would be appreciated.

I’d better go and get on with making that table so I have more things to strikeout!

Pom Pom puppetry

Inspired by how stupidly easy yesterdays puppet making was today I made a bee pom pom puppet.

I’ll pop the pictures i took of making the first (non puppet) pom pom on as well as of the bee.

Again it has no name, I shall need these by Wednesday as that’s when I plan to write my puppet show to go with my puppets so i can spend the end of the week making a little puppet theatre.

With a bit of luck (and no more sick staff at work!) it’ll be done so that I can wow people with a puppet show on Sunday. Bet that makes the Reading Girlies quake in fear and everyone else sigh with relief!?

Without further ado- the making of Mr Gay Bee:

And here’s one of Mr Gay Bee with the nameless tiger:

Puppetry!

Having purchased a puppet kit from Wilkinsons for 50p I duly made myself a little tiger on Day 7 (9th March for those who work by actual dates!) The actual kit was for very small children so even I could make it! There were cut out holes to put the plastic needle (it had a nobble rather than a point to make very sure there were no accidents!) through and all the stripes etc were stickers but it was very fun to make and I added bits to the design as the picture on the pack had no mouth.

He’s very cute but as yet has no name! Any suggestions?

Discovering old Treasures

I have no pictures of this but I went to Exeter with a van and some able assistants (Mummy and Tom) and collected all the boxes of thinsg we could find from before I left Exeter. I’d been meanign to this for years and I feel mcuh better now that it’s done!

I was a bit disappointed that some of the things I wanted weren’t where I had thought they were but msotly it was quite exciting- i found books, stories, costumes, paintings, furniture, a sewing machine and letters amongst many other things.

I’ve got these all home, organised and put away (well almost all) and I’ve decided I need to have another make your own costume party- though some of the bits of costumes that were left over were rather the worse for wear!

Venturing into the unknown genres

Day five I tried reading a book from a genre I wouldn’t usually read. Thus I came to be reading a Danielle Steel novel. Title was Speical Delivery and, no word fo a lie, the ENTIRE story was told on the blurb on the back of the book. I read the whole thing in just over an hour and was left feeling vaguely dissatisfied, the “twists” were predictable and REALLY badly written and the whole idea of a sixty year old LA playboy getting together with the recently bereaved mother of his daughter in law, the “shock” preganancy (because the title didn’t give that one away!) and the idea of giving the baby to their children as they couldn’t conceive was just a little too weird for me to get my head around. 2 Dimensional characters, particularly the bitchy sibling, and an excess of adjectives just made it all the worse.

Seems like sometimes this trying new things business leads to very very bad places!

However in case that hasn’t put you off you can go and get this riveting read to own you can do that here.

The great Tea Sort…

I spent TWO HOURS going through my teas. I sorted them into type, made a big bowl of ones I don’t want as they were duplicates, updated my tea spreadsheet and then added a few new subcategories for ease of searching. I know how very sad I am!

Below are some pictures of the sorting and the beautifully organised cupboards after this happened.

I felt so much happier after I’d finished it- and then I bounced around for a while occasioally sorting my spreadsheet by a different category just for fun! Made me a Very!Smiley!Christy!

For those of you who couldn’t tell- tea makes me happy!

And then I was crap

I did absolutely nothing new on Day three- not an excellent start.

I did however come up with two more things to add to the list:

Learn to touch type.

Go to a football match.

The last one I’ve never particularly wanted to do but as I’ve never done it and have come to an arrangement with Adam which means I AM going to one I thought I might as well add it on here.