Hmmm... OK

I don't know what I did but I'm on my own PC today. I don't know how long the PC is going to be working for, but it's working for now and that's the main thing. So, I grabbed my MP3s across to Kelly's PC. I'd have backed them up on a CD too if it wasn't for the fact I'm all out of blank CDs... oops!

Tori

Oh, the irony!!!

Talk about irony! There I was saying about how at least I have sound on my PC (unlike some people, lol) and what happens? My PC dies! I actually had to go on Kelly's PC to find out if my other post had been posted - which it had, thankfully. I don't know what happened! I mean, I was just typing away and went to hit 'publish' when the PC just goes nuts! I don't know what happened! All I know is there was a lot of beeping and clicky sounds and error messages flying at me and then... nothing! Just a black screen. So, I did what anyone would do and started the PC back up. And... BEEEEEEEEEEEEPPPPPP!!!

That's all I get now, just a long, drawn out beep. The PC will load as far as the bit where it would normally tell me the PC's specs (with the beep going on the whole time) but that's as far as it goes. After that it just stays on a black screen with that annoying beep going on.

I tried to get it to at least load windows so I could grab my files that aren't backed up. Luckily I only backed up my files a few days ago and the only ones not backed up are actually on this blog in various places. Well, except for the - I believe it's 24? - MP3s that a certain person took the time to send me the other day. *Sigh*

So, right now I'm on Kelly's PC to post this and it looks like we're sharing a PC for a while until I can get a new PC. That means I wont be on here much.

Tori

Playful Puppy & MusicMatch

It's so far taken me nearly ten minutes just from clicking 'create new post' to starting to type this. Not because of adding the photo, but because my little Kero man has, for some reason, been as playful today as he was as a tiny puppy and every time I went to type he'd come racing to me with a squeaky toy in his mouth to get me to play with him. I think he's tired himself out now though, 'cause he's sprawled on the floor asleep. Bless him!

It's been another cold, wet day. Not as cold as it could have been, but with the wind it seemed colder. For the first time in ages we needed coats and couldn't cut across the field because it was so muddy.

I tried putting MusicMatch on my PC last night because I'm hoping to get an MP3 player sometime in the near future. I've asked for one for my birthday in November and am hoping to get it, but if not then hopefully Christmas? And failing that I'll buy my own after Christmas is over, LOL! Anyway, I figured I would try installing MusicMatch and get used to the program a bit before I've got the MP3 player, but I couldn't. I've only got Windows ME on my PC and MusicMatch kept insisting it needed Windows XP. I've got RealPlayer though, and that's meant to be able to do the same kinds of things as MusicMatch can (just not necessarily as well as MusicMatch does them). So, I guess I'll have to just use that one since there's no way this PC can cope with XP and still run other programs. I'm hoping to upgrade my PC once Christmas is over with anyway, so, I figure if RealPlayer wont work right I'll just borrow other people's PCs - my Mam, for example, has got XP on her PC and also has MusicMatch on it for her MP3 player - wont hurt to do that for a while.

Still, at least I have sound on my PC... lol!

Tori

Poem: Ode To A Special Pal

Ode To A Special Pal

Written for Keroberous

My friend, my protector
And so much more besides
The kind of friend to whom
Someone willingly confides

When I’m feeling lonely
Your never far away
And try to let me know that
You’re here for me today

And if I’m kind of scared
You melt away my fears
And if I’m feeling sad and blue
You kiss away my tears

From the very first day we met
I gave my heart to you
For you are the one who I
Know will love me too

We kind of picked each other
When you were three weeks old
And you nuzzled me so gently
With your cold and wet little nose

And now it’s almost been a year
Since we met one another
But I promise you my pet
For me there is no other

There’s no doubt in my mind
That we’re a perfect pair
‘Cause I know when I need love
You will always be there

So, as we lay here on the bed
I have just one thing to say
I’m thankful that you chose
To be mine that day

And, before I end this poem
I just want to promise you
That I love you and I’ll be here
‘Cause I know that you need me too

I’ll do my best not to let you down
Or hurt you in any way
And I’ll fulfil this promise
All day and every day

© 2005 ~ Tori Zigler

I've just posted this poem - as well as sevoral others I've written in the past - on my poetry page, but thought I would post this one on here too since it's such a special poem. I'd have posted it sooner but I was unable to find it until recently.

Tori

Kero's Vet Trip

OK, well, Kero's been to the vet.

The vet cleaned out his anal gland because it was apparently quite full (yuck) and thinks that could be the problem because dogs do tend to bite themselves down that end when the gland gets full. Anyway, the vet told me to give him his flea stuff - since he's due for it anyway - then give him a couple of weeks and if he doesn't at least calm down with the biting and scratching and show signs of healing then I'm to take him back to the vet and she'll give him a steroid or something because that would mean it's probably a skin problem. She'd have given him the steroid today but he can't have his shot and the steroid on the same day and he had to have his shot because I've cut it a bit close and the shot from last year runs out tomorrow.

Kero and Willow never did get their play date today, because it's been really wet, cold and windy and that would have meant they'd be stuck indoors the whole time instead of being able to play in the yard and we decided if we were going to have them stuck indoors where their playing space is limited they just as well be stuck indoors at their own homes with their own toys.

Tori

Chance Begs - Video

As promised, I managed to get a short - and I really mean it when I say short, lol - video clip of Chance begging. It's not great, but it's a video clip of him begging and that's all that counts, right?



Sorry about the dirty floor! *blushes*

Tori

"Beg... Good Kitty!"

Yay for Chance! He finally learned to beg!

I've been trying to teach him since we got him in May and tonight he finally got it!

Good kitty!

I was doing some tea for me and Kelly and Chance came over asking for some milk and just to see if he'd do it I said "you can have some if you say please" and he begged! So, to see if it was a fluke I took him in to the front room where Kelly was and put him on the floor and told him (Chance, not Kelly... lol) to "say please" - which is the command I use for 'beg' with the cats - and he did it again! So, we went back to the kitchen and I got out the milk and got him to beg a third time.

Yay for Chance!

Now all three cats can beg! Although, Sakura only does it when it suits her, but that's the way everything works with Sakura. LOL!

I'll have to try and get a photo or video clip of Chance begging now that he can do it. I've got some photos of Megan begging (in her album in the 'Tori's Photo Albums' section) if you want to see them, but I haven't got any of Sakura begging and since he's only just learned to do it I don't have any of Chance begging either. Like I said, I'll see if I can get some.

Tori

CD, Gym & Kero

I got another new CD the other day. It's a Willie Nelson one and it's called 'The Storm Has Just Begun'. And, yes, it's a good CD.

As you can see from my posts I've spent most of the last couple of days researching stuff. And, why am I looking up stuff on those particular topics? Well, because I decided that when I got one of my weird ideas/questions - whatever you want to call them - in my head I would research the topic to try and answer my own question. Thereby giving myself something to keep me busy and stop myself from snacking when I'm not really hungry just bored, bored, bored. And, so far it's proved successful. In fact, when I weighed this week I had finally moved off the 16 & 1/2 stone mark. So, yay me!

Speaking of my weight loosing and activites and such... I'm no longer going to the gym. OK, so now you're thinking something along the lines of 'hang on a sec, you're saying your bored and then stopping some of the stuff you're doing' and 'why'd you stop going to the gym if you want to loose weight?' Well, the thing is, I was spending £30 a month on my membership but for various reasons bearly ending up going to the gym, so, I decided it wasn't worth the money.

Taking Kero to the vet in the morning because for one thing he's due for his booster shot, for another he's constantly scratching and biting at his butt end and has made himself so sore so I want the vet to have a look at him. I'll let you know tomorrow night what the vet says. I'm meant to be taking Kero up to my parents' place to spend some time with Willow tomorrow afternoon too.

Tori

Each Uisge

More 'Nessie' themed stuff

"The Each Uisge, is a name for the Highland supernatural water horse, supposedly the most dangerous of the Scottish water dwelling creatures. The monster inhabited the sea, sea lochs and fresh water lochs and is sometimes mistaken in writing as the Kelpie, which is supposed to inhabit rivers and streams.

The Each Uisge had the ability to shape shift, and could disguise itself as a fine horse or pony. To lure people into the water it would stand by the waters edge in one of these forms, and wait for somebody to approach. If a man was to mount the horse, it would immediately set off into the deepest part of the loch, the rider being unable to free himself because of the adhesive qualities of the creature's skin. Once in its element, the unfortunate victim would drown, and be devoured completely apart from the liver, which would float ashore, a sure sign that the water horse had claimed another victim.

Another disguise the Each Uisge could take was that of a handsome man, and because of the danger of these creatures, people were wary of lone animals and strangers standing by the waters edge, in places reputed to be haunted by the Each Uisge.

As well as human victims the Each Uisge also ate cattle and sheep, and could be lured from the water and killed with the smell of roasted meat. One such tale is recorded in 'More West Highland Tales' by McKay: A blacksmith from Raasay lost his daughter to the Each Uisge. In revenge the blacksmith and his son made a set of large hooks, in a forge they set up by the loch side. They then roasted a sheep and heated the hooks until they were red hot. At last a great mist appeared from the water and the Each Uisge rose from the depths and seized the sheep. The blacksmith and his son rammed the red-hot hooks into its flesh and after a short struggle dispatched it. In the morning there was nothing left of the creature apart from a jelly like substance.

It has been theorised that the folklore of the water horse stems in part from real encounters with water dwelling creatures in the deep lochs. These are paralleled today with sightings in places such as Loch Ness and Loch Morar. Of course it could be the other way round and what people are seeing is archetypal images somehow portrayed onto the water. In truth nobody knows and the similarity with folklore and modern sightings may be pure coincidence."

Guardian Angel

I will not falter

I will not fail

I am your guardian angel

How old is Nessie?

My new question was about how old the Loch Ness monster is, and so, I went searching the web once again and came back with this little bit of info.

Nessie was first spotted by the Vikings - Celtic and Norse folklore has stories of water horses seen in the lochs. The first written account of a meeting with Nessie seems to be that of Adamnan in 565 A.D. He describes St. Columba's sighting of a very large monster in Loch Ness.

Legend tells of how St. Columba heard about the monster's murder of a man and how he rowed out to the centre of the loch to order the beast to desist from such attacks in the future. Ever since that time, Nessie has never been known to have repeated its misdemeanour.

So - going from the first written account of Nessie - if my calculations are correct, the Loch Ness monster must be at least 1441 years old.

Tori

Titanic Of The Sky

Lakehurst/New Jersey, May 6th 1937, 7 pm:

The 'Hindenburg' has come all the way from Europe - a luxurious flying hotel, faster than any ship. The pride of the Third Reich prepares to land, and hundreds of onlookers have gathered to watch.

Then, all of a sudden, a burst of flame just forward of the upper fin. In a matter of seconds, the largest airship ever built goes down in a fiery blaze.

35 people died in the flames - and nobody knew why. Sabotage? A bolt of lightning? The mystery surrounding the disaster has never been resolved - until now.

In many years of research, a NASA scientist at Cape Canaveral has found proof that neither the hydrogen in the hull nor a bomb was to blame, but the fabric of the Hindenburg's outer skin and a new protective coating. A single spark of static electricity was enough to make it burn like dry leaves. The 'infallible' German engineers had designed a flying bomb just waiting to explode.

Rosehips

OK, here's a photo of some rosehips that I took while I was out on that walk yesterday.

Anyway...

Since today is Saturday I'm going to try again to make it to the 'Name That Tune' thingy tonight. If it's on. Maybe this time I wont fall asleep in front of the TV. LOL!

Tori

Airships and sky busses

Well, would you look at that. There are sky boats. LOL! They're actually called 'airships' but it's close enough. Anyway, my Grandma told me they exist so I did a search online and came up with this..
.
"Early balloons were not truly navigable. Attempts to improve maneuverability included elongating the balloon's shape and using a powered screw to push it through the air.

Thus the airship (also called a dirigible) a lighter-than-air craft (or LTA craft) with propulsion and steering systems was born. Credit for the construction of the first navigable full-sized airship goes to French engineer, Henri Giffard, who, in 1852, attached a small, steam-powered engine to a huge propeller and chugged through the air for seventeen miles at a top speed of five miles per hour.

However, it was not until the invention of the gasoline-powered engine in 1896 that practical airships could be built. In 1898, the Brazilian Alberto Santos-Dumont was the first to construct and fly a gasoline-powered airship. Arriving in Paris in 1897, Alberto Santos-Dumont first made a number of flights with free balloons and also purchased a motorized tricycle. He thought of combining the De Dion engine that powered his tricycle with a balloon, which resulted in 14 small airships that were all gasoline-powered. His No. 1 airship first flew on September 18, 1898."

I'm told there are also things called sky busses - I think that's a plane? - and I think they are a cool idea too. Now all we need is for the hover car to be invented. It's only a matter of time now! I bet people still wont want me to drive even then though. lol!

Tori

Woodland walk

Went out with my Dad today to take some photos with out cameras. We got a few nice shots. The photo in today's post is one of them. My Dad's seen these flowers before and has a photo of one in a darker shade, but other than his photo I've never seen them before and neither of us know what they are. If you know though then please put us out of our misery and tell us. lol!

We had a good time. We ended up walking around in this wooded area for like three hours - not sure where it was exactly but it's not far from where we live - and it was so peaceful and pretty.

And we had blackberries - fresh from the bush - I haven't done that since I was like nine years old! But, Dad spotted them and picked us some. We'd have picked some to take home for Mam to make a blackberry crumble (or maybe a blackberry and apple one if we got some cooking apples on the way home) but we didn't have anything to put them in. So, we just ate some and everyone else had to go without. Hehe!

Kero and Willow would have had a great time. Willow would have enjoyed all the easy access to the water, which alternated between being fast flowing but very shallow and deep but almost perfectly still, and Kero - who's not a big fan of water - would have been in his element with all the trees to 'mark' and bushes to sniff under and patches of dirt to dig in. And there was this one spot that would have been not only perfect for both the dogs' interests but which had a nice flat open space in the middle of the trees with a perfect view of the water where we could have had one of our picnics that we - we being me, Mam, Willow and Kero - have most Saturdays.

Speaking of the picnic, I know my Dad would want me to share this, so, I will.

OK, we were at the spot I just described and discussing the potential for everyone's enjoyment of it and all that. Anyway, I was telling my Dad about a mat thing I had to go under the picnic blankets and how I'd come to have it. So, I said, "... I got it at the Party in the park for Mam, begause she didn't want to - oops - sit on the grass." Now, I know what you're thinking: "where did that 'oops' part come from?" right? Well, at the part where the 'oops' came in, I landed on my butt. Why? Because I was so busy taking photos and talking to my Dad I failed to notice that even though there was easy access to the water, I was a good few inches to the right of it and ended up sliding part way down the bank to the river only to land on my butt. Didn't stop me finishing what I had to say though. LOL!

Before you ask, I am perfectly fine. Although, I laughed so hard it was a good ten minutes before I could hold the camera still long enough to take photos again. My Dad, to my knowledge, is still laghing about it now. More the fact that even falling and landing on my butt didn't stop me saying what I had to say than anything, but you probably got that. LOL!

If you'd like to see the other photos I took then look in my albums.

Tori

Graph Paper Hunt

It's been a beautiful warm and sunny day here - I think I heard someone say it was something like 24 degrees C - but now it's freezing cold and pouring with rain. Ah, Welsh weather... isn't it grand? lol!

I got a new CD the other day. I think it's called 'Celtc Chill Out' or something like that - I can't be bothered to go get it to be sure of the exact title but that's close enough - anyway, I got it because I thought it would be something nice and soothing in an attempt to actually get me sleeping when I'm meant to be. Well, I'm guessing my plan worked, since I don't even think I got half way through it before I fell asleep... lol!

Do you know how hard it is to get graph paper nowadays? Kelly wants some for a role playing game campaigne he's running and it took all day and both me and my Mam running around all over the place before we could get ahold of any. Sheesh! If I'd know it was going to be that hard to get ahold of the stuff I'd have just made some on the PC. But, at least we have some for him now.

Well, that'll have to be it for now, because Kero's pawing at me like mad trying to get me to come play with him... now he's gone and fetched a toy from his toy box... that would be a not so subtle hint that he wants to play, you think? lol!

Tori

Hmm...

If wishes had wings and you wished for wings too
Would you have one set of wings? Or two?

If people can fly themselves to the moon
Why is there no sign of disease cures coming soon?

If you can get sea planes that float on water
Can you get sky boats? 'Cause I think you oughta!

OK, I just 'had to' do these ones as rhymes... it's a good way to combine interests, don't you agree?

Tori

Interesting

It's quite interesting reading back over my old notebooks at the things I've jotted down throughout the years. I have one notebook for example where I literally wrote down the first thing to pop in to my head for about half an hour. Very strange. Not the fact I did it, that's not what's strange, what's strange is some of the stuff that went through my head. Everything from quotes from various cartoons and TV shows to pieces of songs and things people have said to me. I wonder what made me think of all that spacific stuff? I'm sure there was a reason for that particular stuff to jump in to my head, but I wonder what it was? Who knows?

Tori

Gotta get a project

I'm thinking I need to sort myself out with a project to keep my mind busy. Why? Well, because lately it's been allowed to wonder freely and the result has been my questioning everything and wanting to know all the 'who?' 'what?' 'where?' 'why?' and 'how?' stuff about practically everything that is mentioned or that I encounter throughout the day. This includes everything from the little questions I asked yesterday to 'did man really walk on the moon? and if he did, how can we be sure Neil Armstrong was the first man on the moon when there was somehow a camera there before him? I mean, wouldn't the camera being there to see the rocket land suggest that someone had been there before?'... Discussions like this could go on and on - even without anyone joining in, lol - but I wont go any further than that with these questions for now. Was that cheering I heard? LOL!

Why do they say 'good' bye when most people hate to leave???

Tori

Ever wonder......

* What do sheep count when they can't get to sleep?

* Why do you have to call a spade a spade? Why can't you call it something else?

* Who's bright idea was it to squeeze a cow's udders and drink what come out of it? And why did they call the stuff milk?

* If everything that happened before is 'history', why is there such a thing as pre-historic times?

* Why is it called a personal computer when most people have to share it?

* Who decided what time to set the first clock to? And why?

* Who was the first person to decide to put somthing around their finger? Through their ear? Around their neck? Through their nose? Or around their wrists? And why?

* If the apple hadn't fallen on Sir Isaac Neuton's head, would we know about the law of gravity today?

* What gave Thomas Edison the idea to fly a kite with a key attatched to it in a thunderstorm?

I've wondered about all these things and many, many more! How about you???

A Quick Blog

OK, so, I guess I have MSN messenger again... lol!

For some reason the association we rent from has decided to paint the doors. Don't ask why. We got asked what colour (from a list they'd picked out) and the best was burgandi (probably spelt that wrong but who cares) so I now have a different coloured door. Kero loved the door being painted because where they did the frame too I not only had to keep it open for a while but had to keep the gate off it which meant he was free to play and bark in the garden all afternoon and into the evening. I bet he thought he'd died and gone to heaven... lol!

This'll be a short blog tonight because where I spent the evening playing World Of Warcraft I'm a bit behind on my usual online activities. Plus, Kero wants out.

Tori

The Weird World Of Blogs

How strange this blog world is!

I was watching my movie - which was good by the way - and while I was watching it was looking at other blogs. You know, to see what's out there and all that. Anyway, there are some really weird blogs out there. You wont believe some of the blogs I saw!!!

There was this one for example where the first thing I saw when I went to the blog was a photo of a guy sprawled on a bed - I think it was a bed - with a dog - a poodle I think - laying on his back and the bit of writing said something about 'Amber' approves of their relationship. I'm assuming Amber is the dog. lol!

And even weirder was this one where the most recent blog was about a conversation the blogger had been having with a friend about how she - the friend - had moved to hell because there was no donghnut shops nearby. lol!

Oh, and there was one where there was a person with a t-shirt over it's head and it's arms raised so you could see the armpit. I'm assuming it was a women because the description underneath the picture said 'Sure for women'. At first I figured it was a site with adverts or something but then the next post on the blog moved on to something totally different that was weird but I can't remember what it was. I just remember thinking "how strange" when I was looking at it.

And there were even weirder ones than those too! lol!

What a weird world this blog world is!

Tori

Music & Movies

Well, I never made it to the 'Name That Tune' stream thingy last night because I fell asleep, but I did make it to the country music stream today and that's the main thing. Kerry played some great songs. I'm going to have to get the names of some of the artists off her though, because some of them I'd never heard of before and quite liked.

I've just been watching 'Madeline'. I love that movie! I got it a little while ago as a set with 'Matilda' and 'A Simple Wish' but I've not had a chance to watch them. I've never actually seen all of 'A Simple Wish' before, but what I saw of it was good. Hmm... I think I'll watch 'A Simple Wish' now. Yes, that's what I'll do.

Tori

Photos, Video Clips & Kids

Here's another photo that I took with my new Fuji Finepix s5600 camera. Our kitty Sakura came for a walk with me and Kero again today and I got some lovely photos of her while we were out. There are more photos in my photo albums - some of Sakura, some not - and there are also a couple of new video clips in our video clips section.

Anyway, Kero's been having lots of playmates lately. Not dog playmates because most of the people around here seem to have old dogs, but human playmates. Three of them are my friend Jan's grandchildren - 3 year old Justin, 4 year old Courtney and 5 year old Camryn - the other two are Christy and Natalie. Christy is 8 years old and is the daughter of another friend, and Natalie is 9 years old and is Christy's best friend. Anyway, they've been playing with Kero after school almost every day this week and I don't know who's enjoyed it more, them or Kero. And i've quite enjoyed it too. Missed them today.

That's about it I think. I want to have a nice relaxing evening in hopes of staying up for Kerry and ChicagoLady's 'Name That Tune' stream thingy tonight.

Tori

Friday night with Kerry & Co

Well, it's pretty close to midnight and am I seeing about bed? Nope, not a bit of it! I'm in the chat room with Kerry, AliceKay and ChicacoLady while listening to Kerry's stream. And she just made my night! I told her - I'm talking about Kerry now - that my main favourite artists are Ronan Keating and Jim Reeves, and what does she do? She promptly plays them for me! Then she got Scotty to bark for me.... man does he sound like Kero!!!

Anyway, this will have to do for today's blog, because where I'm blogging I'm having trouble keeping up with the chatroom... lol!

Tori

Tela's 2 year anniversary

Today - September 13th 2006 - is the two year anniversary of the day that Tela Dawn-Shadow, my Mam's beloved Cocker Spaniel, crossed over the rainbow bridge. And I just wanted to giver her a little mention. Just to show she's not been forgotten.

My New Camera Is Here!

Guess what? My new camera arrived! YAY! It's meant to be an early birthday and Christmas present from Kelly, but he said I could have it early if I wanted and I did want, so, there! lol!

Anyway, the photo of Kero to the left is one taken with the new camera. I've not done any editing on it. In fact, I think - appart from the fact I posted it in 'small' size on here - I haven't even resized it. So, in theory if you click on it it you should get a nice, big, full sized version. This is just in the standart mode though as I haven't done much fiddling with the other modes as yet. I'm quite impressed with the picture though, because Kero was runnin around when I took this and it's a nice clear photo despite him moving.

I'll be fiddling more tomorrow because time's getting on now and more importantly, Kero's asleep. lol!

Tori

Sunny September... yeah right!

Apparently all of September was meant to be Sunny... hah! Well, they got that wrong. The weather people aren't doing too great with their predictions, are they? lol!

Anyway.... hmmm... OK, I've been sat here for like fifteen minutes not sure what to type. Earlier I had all these thoughts that I was going to share and now.... nothing! My mind's gone blank! So, I guess I'll just say goonight and try again tomorrow.

Tori

A Monday Night Post

Apparently it's been about 24 degrees C all day. Doesn't feel like it. It was still cold enough to need a coat this morning and - even though in the afternoon I didn't need a coat - I didn't see that it got all that much warmer. Guess it was one of those days when it was hot but the 'breeze' stopped us feeling it? You know, I'm still having trouble getting away from this 16 & 1/2 stone mark. It seems no matter what I do I'm destined to stay at this weight. I guess I'll have to try harder, eh? I got a new camera case today. I just need the camera now and I'll be all set... lol! It has been ordered - the camera, I mean - just waiting for it to arrive. Anyway, the case was free. There was an offer with one of the photography mags that my Dad gets that said if you subscribe you get a nice little camera case and a really neat bigger one. So, I subscribed and got the cases. Don't know what I'm going to do with the smaller one. Might keep it to use to put filters in, but then again, I might not. Who knows? OK, well, I'm tired and want to go to bed - yes, I do know that it's only just after 9:00 pm. Good night! Tori

Anyone seen Saturday evening?

I'd planned on getting dinner cooked and having the coffee pot on for when hubby got home from his gaming club and then watching some movies with a nice cup of tea. As it turned out I never achieved any of this. You see, after heading to the park for a picnic with my Mam and the dogs - since it was a nice day and possibly the last one for a while - I put some dishes to soak, put some laundry on and thought I'd have a 'little hour'. Problem is my 'little hour' was a big one and I ended up missing all but one of the movies I'd wanted to watch and didn't even have dinner started when hubby got home. Oh, well, can't be helped. At least Herbie I can borrow from my Mam, Star Wars I have on video anyway and The Ring 2 I got to watch. So, the evening wasn't a total loss.

So, today I'm working on finishing the laundry and dishes I started yesterday, attempting to clean out the cupboards and get rid of junk that we don't need - even if it means taking the stuff to the charity shop - oh, and keeping track of time. lol!

Some friends from an MSN group I was on caught up with me yesterday - or was it today? - I dunno. Anyway, I've been neglecting my MSN groups for a while now because I don't seem to have the time for them so I've been voncentrating more on making my little blog site which everyone can vies. I ended up in so many MSN groups and Yahoo groups that I could bearly keep track of their names let alone where I was with reading posts. Anyway, if anyone from my groups comes here and reads this I just want to point out that it's nothing personal, I just don't have enough hours in my day to keep everyone happy and every time I tried to cut down on the groups a friend would find another one they wanted me to join and it was just getting too much to handle. I mean, I'm loosing times and days as it is. First I lost half past seven and now Saturday evening.... pretty soon it's going to be a whole day that goes missing! Or worse!!!

OK, I'll stop now before people start trying to get me put away. But, I really did loose half past seven and now I lost Saturday evening too! I swear! I'm not crazy! Honest I'm not.... hey, what're you doing??? White's not my colour!!!

LOL!

Tori

A post for Friday September 8th

I'd hoped to get the 'cameras' post and this one in before we changed to Saturday, but it took me so long to find the details for the Olympus camera that I didn't make it. Ah, well.

By the way, the picture to the right is the Fuji Finepix s5600 - the camera I'm having - I wont bother showing you the other two. I snagged the picture from ebuyer's web site because.

Anyway...

It's after midnight and I should be in bed but I'm not sleepy. Mam and I - ok mostly Mam - made apple crumble at my place today and it was lovely. I was meant to have custard with it, but I forgot to make it and by the time I realised I'd nearly eaten what was in the bowl and didn't see the point in doing it then. We made some jam tarts too, and they're lovely too. Only had one of them so far, but that's enough to know how good they taste, lol.

Appart from the gym that's all I've done today, so, I'll call it a night.

Tori

Cameras

Yesterday (Thursday) I went to town with my parents and Dad took me to look at some digital cameras since Kelly is buying me one as a joint birthday and Christmas present. We'd narrowed it down to a choice of three cameras but needed to see the cameras 'in the metal and plastic' as my Dad put it. Anyway, we were deciding between the Kodak z650, the Fuji Finepix s5600 and the Olympus sp-500. And the camera is to replace my Kodak cx6200, which has a loose battery cover and needs tape to keep the batteries in and which isn't very good quality anyway. The Kodak z650 is a 5 mp camera with 10 x optical zoom and a 2 inch screen and this camera was an option because Kodak is what my camera that I have now is so I'd know how to work it. Plus, it's silver which looks really cool. But, the dial for the different settings is difficult to see - red writing on silver doesn't work too well - and difficult to use because instead of buttons or a twisty dial thingy it's got a sort of stick thing (like a mini gearstick sort of thing) which is easily knocked. So, we quickly ruled that one out. The Olympus sp-500 is a 6 mp camera with 10 x optical zoom and a 2.5 inch screen and it was the screen size and extra mp that drew us to this camera. Also, Olympus is a good make and this camera - which is black - has an easy to see and easy to use twisty dial thingy (silver writing on black works well). But, despite it's large screen it's a very small camera and while some may find that a good thing I prefer one that's a bit chunky and which you can feel in your hands if you know what I mean. So, after careful consideration I decided against this one. Although, it was very close and took me a while. The Fuji Finepix s5600 - the one I decided on - is a 5 mp camera with 10 x optical zoom and I think only a 1.5 inch screen. But, that's what my current one has anyway so that's not an issue. Anyway, like the Olympus sp-500 the Fuji Finepix s5600 has an easy to use and easy to read dial for the settings. But, it has a few points that make it better. For one thing, it's a chunky camera and you can feel that you have it in your hands. For another thing the lens is fixed, which is rare in a camera with a good zoom but which is something I had hoped for. For another thing the macro setting is easier to access in a hurry, which could prove useful. And for another thing, both the Kodak and the Olympus need an adaptor for the lens if you want to use a filter - which would cost about £15 - but the Fuji doesn't need one. And all three cameras to video clips with audio. Which is something else I was hoping to get with the new camera. My chosen camera is only just a lower model from my Dad's new camera, but Dad's camera is about £300 worth of camera and we were kinda hoping not to spend quite that much on the camera since we need a memory card and some more powerful rechargable batteries for it before it can be used and it's going to cost about £50 all told to get those bits as it is. Tori

Kero photos

I took some photos of Kero after I got him home from the groomer and thought I'd share them with you. We almost always do a photo shoot when he gets home from the groomer. It's sort of a ritual and since he loves to pose it works for the two of us... lol!



Anyway, as you can see, despite the fact that Kero only came from the groomer something like half an hour before our little photo shoot, he already has a bit of a dirty face. He's a little mucky pup, isn't he?

And here he is begging for his dinner. He doesn't get fed before he goes to the groomer, so, by the time he got home he was probably starving. Poor little guy.

There's a new video clip of him in the 'video clips' section too.

Tori

Exam Result... Finally!

Finally got my result... got a C.

I must admit that I'm not all that surprised really since I don't do well with time limits. It's a pass though, so, I'm happy with it.

OK, I am a little disappointed. I mean, I had an 'A' average for my coursework. But, like I said, I don't to well with time limits so it wasn't really a big shock to find that I'd only gotten a C.

Tori

Grooming

Well, it's not even 6:00 am yet and I'm wide awake and ready to face the day. I wonder if I'm going to be this enthusiastic after the gym when I realise that tired from it or not I've got to go to Swansea? lol!

Anyway, Kero went to the groomer yesterday and got a nice bath and haircut. Only thing is you can now very clearly see the as yet not fully healed cut near his tail. I did tell her - his groomer I mean - about it before I left him there. When I first told her about him having a cut she was thinking skin problems or fleas or something, but when I told her what caused it she gave him a hug and called him a 'poor baby'.

Kero HATES the groomer though. He's happy to let me groom him at home and she says she never has any trouble with him, but he gets very upset when I leave and it's really tough getting him in the damn groomer in the first place. LOL! Up until yesterday he was fine until I went to hand his lead over, but yesterday we got near the door and he sat down and refused to move. He was NOT going to go on there. I ended up picking him up to get him in there. Good thing he's just a little dog, eh? lol! Anyway, he goes again in December... 7th I think.... I have it written down, thankfully!

Oh, and still no exam result!

Tori

Kero & Weight

Firstly, Kero will go outside again now. Poor little guy was so scared, but he seems to have gotten over it now. I'm glad, because he has a grooming appointment tomorrow morning and I don't really like to cancel if I can help it, because you have to book like a month or more in advance to get an appointment at this place.

Couldn't weigh today because the scales in Boots weren't working for some reason. So, I guess I I wont know what I've lost - if anything - this week. Oh, well, that means next week there should be a nice big loss... she says hopefully!

I was doing the weight watchers point scheme, but I'm not going to any more. I mean, some of the point values don't make sense. Like, how can there be less points in a lemon cheesecake yoghurt than in a vanilla yoghurt of the same brand? And, shouldn't there be more points in a cocoa pops cereal bar than in a rice krispies one? Since the difference between them is that there is chocolate in the cocoa pops one. And, how can there be less points in a scone than in a Welsh cake when they are basically the same thing? Also, if you look on the web site, use the point calculating slider and use the electronic point calculator, you get three different point totals. And, you get another one again if you go to the meetings (Rachel goes, that's how I know). So, I've said "to heck with it" and am just going to watch what I eat and how much of it. And I'm going to the gym and stuff too, of course.

Tori

Steve Irwin

I meant to post this yesterday but completely forgot!

Anyway.... Steve Irwin is dead! No more crocodile man! :(

From what I heared, he was making a new documentory or something and dived out of Croc 1 (his boat) and a sting ray came out of nowhere and...... well, you get the idea. And he was D O A (Dead On Arrival).

Tori

Photo snagged from http://animal.discovery.com

Tracking exam result

Well, I spoke to the college where I did my exams today and asked them what's happened to my exam results. Apparently they no longer send them out and can't give the results over the phone so you have to go to the college for them. So, I told them I couldn't go to the college just to do that. I mean, for one thing to do so would mean arranging for someone to take me, for another thing, do they realise how far away from me it is??? Anyway, I managed to voncince them I couldn't get there so they agreed to "make an exception in this case" and took my details and said they'd get it in the post to me "right away". So, fingers crossed I should have it by the end of the week.

Tori

Sensative Kero

Kero's still a bit nervous after last night and for once in his life he's not interested in going outside. It took me longer to get him out of the door than it did to walk him earlier and as soon as he'd done what he wanted to do he headed for home and put himself to bed. Poor little guy.

Been catching up on my laundry today since I couldn't get it done yesterday because of Mam using the machine. Got most of it done, but there's still more to do.

Anyway, that's my day.

Tori

Happy 1st Birthday Jayde

Today - September 3rd 2006 - is my Grandma's Yorkshire Terrier Jayde Bramblerose's 1st birthday. I know that my Grandma and Jayde can't get online to read this at the moment, but we still want to say happy 1st birthday to you, Jayde Bramblerose. And, Jayde, I hope your Mummy spoiled you rotten like you deserve.

Love,
Tori, Kelly, Kian, Keroberous, Hamlet, Sakura Avalon, Butterscotch, Sirius Black, Megan Zara Rose & Myskanco Chance Silva Flame.

Stressful Saturday

Only just made it for getting this posted before Saturday is out. LOL!

Anyway, I've had a busy day.

Got up and hadn't been up five minutes when my Mam called to ask if she could come down and do some laundry since her washing machine is broken. She was here by 11:30 am, but it took until about 10:30 pm to get the laundry done so she was here all day.

We planned to play World Of Warcraft while we waited for the laundry each time, but, I turned on my PC and.... *poof*.... my monitor died. So, we spent the next few hours trying to find one at a decent price that was close enough for Dad to go pick it up. Anyway, £130 and a trip to Swansea later, I now have a brand new 19 inch flat screen monitor. Which is really cool by the way.

And then about 8:30 pm that little brat who threw a stone at Kero and cut him was back throwing stones at the window. This time though, we called the police and had them here by about 9:00 pm. Anyway, to cut a long story short, they can't do much until he turns 10, but they said for us to keep a record of every time he's caused us trouble and from now on call them every time and if it continues then when he turns 10 he will be arrested and taken to juvanile court.

Poor Kero got so scared when the police woman came. He barked like mad when she knocked on the door, but as soon as she went to step inside, he hid behind the armchairs trembling. Bless him! I had to make him come out of hiding for a bit though to show the police woman the mark that is still there as evidence that he was cut.

What really surprised me about the whole thing though, was that the kid actually confessed to throwing the stones. I mean, you'd think he'd tand there and deny it, wouldn't you? But nope, he turned around and said he'd done it. Didn't get an appology though. Not surprised about that bit.

Well, I'm gonna call it a night.

Tori

Old Poems

I've added most of my old poems on my poetry page. Will add others when I find the books they are in. Just thought I'd let you know in case you wanted to take a look. And, by the way, if you do go take a look, please bear in mind that I sometimes write on behalf of another, or, putting myself in an imaginary situation. So, don't assume that just because I said 'I' in the poem I've been in the situation and the poem is about me, or about my life. Because it might not be.

Tori

A Good Friday

Firstly, I'd like to welcome Laine to our little site. Great to have you and AliceKay contributing. And before I get on with my daily update I'd like to point out to anyone who comes on here that AliceKay's Blog and Laine's Blog are both among the links. And before certain people get all confused, Laine's blog is saved under 'What Does This Do?' since it's the name she gave the blog.

Anyway....

I actually got to bed at a decent-ish time last night. I got to bed about 1:30 - 2:00 am and was asleep by 3:00 am. So, when I got up to get ready to go to the gym at 7:15 am I was a lot more alert than I have been every other day this week. LOL!

On the bus on the way home from the gym this morning, I was reminded of some of the cute things I've heard little kids say or seen them do. And why was I reminded of this? Well, I'll tell you. A few stops before mine, an old man got on the bus with a little girl - she couldn't have been more than three-years-old - and was paying for his fare when the little one said. "Wait, I gots Moneys!" And she began frantically rummaging in her pocket, pulled out her 'moneys' and held it up proudly for the bus driver. And when she was told that it was "Ok, sweetheart" she repeated that she had 'moneys' and insisted that she paid for her bus fare (bearing in mind children under five go free). Anyway, after some persuading she gave in and putting the money back in to her pocket she announced that she would "keep the moneys and buy some toys an' stuffs." I thought that was so sweet!

Someone I don't see much any more made me feel great about myself today. It was a little disheartening for me on Tuesday since my weighing revealed that after my trip to the Cadbury store I put on two pounds - I expected it, but still - anyway, this person, I believe her name is Yvonne, owns a little dog called Simi who Kero loves to play with. Well, Yvonne and I were on the same bus coming home and I haven't seen her and Simi much in the past few weeks because my routine is all over the place at the moment and we aren't walking our dogs at the same time at the moment. OK, so, Yvonne and I got off the bus at the same stop since I decided I'd walk the extra little bit since she was talking to me and we could finish the conversation that way. And, to cut a long story short, Yvonne told me I look like I've lost some weight and I'm looking great for it. Wasn't that nice?

The cut by Kero's tail is healing nicely. He still has a bit of a scratch there, but it doesn't bleed when he bites it any more. And he's not biting at it nearly as much any more.

The kids were about last night again but I got a laugh out of it, because they went to throw a stone just as my Mam got out of my Dad's car to come to my place. The kid nearly had a heart attack when she put her hand on his shoulder. And, you know what? I've not seen him near our yard since! LMAO!!!

Man can you tell it's Friday night! The people above me are having their usual Friday evening with their mates and alcohol and loud music. I wouldn't mind so much if it wasn't that it's every week without fail. And, besides, would it hurt for them to invite me??? LOL!

Tori