Courses and Gwydion

Almost all my courses are finished, and it takes a couple of days for new courses to start, so I decided to go ahead and get myself signed up for the next batch. If you're interested, the courses in this batch are as follows:

Analysing Horror Stories
Biography Writing
Comic Book Script Writing
Creating Super Villains
Creating Superheros
Creative Thinking Techniques
Dungeons And Dragons
E-Book Writing And Publishing
Enhance Your Writing Mind

As I think I said before, a lot of the writing ones I might not use; I have no idea when - or if - I would want to be writing a comic book, for example. I figured since they were free and available I might as well grab them though. I mean, why not?

And the Dungeons And Dragons one? Well, I already know how to play it, but I figured... Well, you know... It's free! Besides, they give you certificates, and I thought it would be really cool to have a certificate that says I know how to play it! LOL!

***

Gwydion's started something really cute. When I bring him his food, he's started doing a little running around game where he does two laps around his cage, then goes in his bed part - with only his head sticking out - to wait for me to put the food in his cage. He used to just skip to the part where he goes in his bed. Guess he's finally decided it's OK to exercise a little? LOL!

***

We've had some lovely weather lately, and last night we had a storm. Nothing like the big storms some people have had, but still cool (to me).

***

And that's all I really have to say today. I've got a couple of posts I'll be doing in the next few days, but right now I'm really tired and sleepy, so I'm going to check my e-mails, have some supper, and go to bed. I think my relaxing bubble bath (complete with soothing music and insense) did a really good job of getting me relaxed. So, e-mails, supper, and bed, I think... I'll get to everyone's blogs tomorrow, I'm too tired to worry about them tonight.

Daybreakers

"In the year 2019, a plague has transformed most every human into vampires. Faced with a dwindling blood supply, the fractured dominant race plots their survival; meanwhile, a researcher works with a covert band of vamps on a way to save humankind."

"In a world 10 years into the future, vampires make up the vast majority of the population with only 5% of the human race remaining. This presents particular challenges as the vampires' food supply - human blood - is dwindling and rationing is now the norm. There is growing evidence that vampires deprived of an adequate blood supply are themselves evolving into wild, vile creatures that attack anyone and anything in order to survive. Dr. Edward Dalton, a vampire and hematologist who works for a pharmaceutical firm, has been working on finding an artificial blood supply that will meet the vampire society's needs. He is sympathetic to humans and sees his work as a way of alleviating their suffering but his views on finding a solution change considerably when he meets someone who found a way to transform himself from being a vampire to again take human form."

(Above taken from this page).

This is definately not one to watch when children are about, due to some not so nice scenes, but if you're the kind of person who doesn't mind those kind of scenes - and if there are no children about - then you will quite likely find this to be a good movie. Personally, I thought it was quite a good movie, and worth watching... An unusual twist on the typical vampire movies.

Happy birthday Becky

If I'm not mistaken, today is Becky/Wifey's birthday. At least, I think it's today... I could be out by a day or two. Anyway, if it's not today then it's around this time, so I'll just say it today, and if I'm wrong... Sorry! Anyway... Happy birthday Becky!

Ummm... I don't know... Monday, I guess!

Well, I couldn't think of a title... LOL!

Anyway, I just wanted to say a few things, so...

Hope you had a good weekend, and that you're having a good Monday! My weekend wasn't enjoyable, but I don't want to discuss it. Basically a lot of worry that turned out to not be necessary (and that's all you're getting as an explanation).

Oh, and I did get that cold that's going around! *Sigh*

Anyway, enough of that... I don't want this turning in to a whiny sort of post...

It's a nice day here... Dry and warm, but not hot; my favourite kind of day!

Took Kero for a walk earlier and will be taking him again soon. He loves his "walkies" and I enjoy taking him (especially on days like today).

Last week I put on 1lb, this week I took it back off, so I guess I'm at one of those yo-yo weight patches, if you know what I mean. Would be much easier if I could get a proper routine sorted, but every time I come close something happens to mess it up (like my sleep pattern deciding to flip or something).

OK, that'll do for today... Need to take Kero for that walk!

The Matted Cat

By Jess Smith

"Old Scottish songs, stories, poems and haunting music."

(Above from here).

I loved listening to this disk! Don't just take my word for how wonderful it is though... Go to the site linked to above, and download the samples mentioned below the bit of writing about this book.

Miracle Run

"The social stigma and discrimination of autistic children is present in the movie Miracle Run. The life of Corrine Morgan-Thomas, the mother of autistic twins Steven and Philip, changes drastically when she finally finds out that her sons are autistic. The first few doctors she takes her sons to are unable to diagnose them with any problem, saying that they are just fine; fortunately, Corrine takes her sons to a specialist who diagnoses the boys with Autism. Corrine's initial reaction is that of shock. She does not like the idea that her sons are autistic, and leaves the hospital angrily. She does, however, end up realizing that the specialist was correct. When she tells her husband about their autism, he says he doesn't want to deal with the autism, so she decides to leave him. She is determined to fight the social stigma of autism and to have her sons be treated like any other child, so she does not tell Steven and Philip's new school about their problem. The school accuses her of abusing her children, but then tells her that she ought to find another school for the boys when Corrine tells them about her twins' autism. In the end her boys set their hearts to succeed and do succeed, proving that autistic children can do anything that any other child could do!"

(Above taken from this page).

This is a wonderful and very emotional movie!

9 (2009 film)

"An unnamed Scientist was ordered by his nation's dictator to create an artificially intelligent machine called the Fabrication Machine, which was used to build other machines to wage war. However, the Fabrication Machine turned on mankind and wiped out all life. To atone for his part in mankind's destruction and restore life on Earth, the Scientist created nine homunculus-like rag dolls referred to as Stitchpunks, using an alchemic talisman to do so. He dies upon creating the last doll 9.

Some time later, the mute 9 awakens to find the world outside barren and lifeless. Taking the talisman with him, 9 wanders outside and..."

(Above taken from this page... WARNING: Link contains spoilers!)

This was an unusual movie. It wasn't too bad of a movie; but it's definately not among my favourites of the ones I've seen recently. Still, I do think it's worth watching once - even if you never watch it again after that.

A scarf, a doll, and upcoming crafts

OK, well, I finished the craft item I said I wanted to finish before I did the post to catch you up, and to let you know about upcoming projects, so... I'm a firm believer in the best presents being handmade items, so with that combined with how expensive things are getting these days - not to mention how the family is growing - I decided that any children who will be getting things from me for the holidays this year will be getting handmade items. This gives me about half a dozen items that need to be knitted for children (not to mention a couple I want to make for adults). And all of them have to be finished before the end of November so as to allow them time to get to where they need to get to in time (especially since there's a chance of the kind of weather we had last December happening again this year). Well, I've managed to finish two of the items. The first is this scarf: It's for Emilee (Pia's little girl). Now, I know a scarf isn't the most exciting of presents, but Emilee turned 6 at the end of May, and... Seriously... What do you make for a 6 year old these days? I mean, most children are wanting expensive items like computer games and ipods by the time they're 4 these days, aren't they? So I figured at least she'd have a nice new scarf to wear when she goes back to school after the holidays. And at least she wouldn't be left out with having something handmade just for her. Plus, she likes my knitting work (both her and Pia love the blanket I made Max) so I hope she'll be as pleased with her scarf as she was with Max's blanket! I'm making a similar one for Ryan (Pia's middle child and oldest boy), because he'll be almost 4 by then, and I think he'd like having a new scarf like his big sister for going to school (children start school at age 4 over here... Sometimes a bit before, depending on when they have their birthday, and Ryan's birthday is January, so he'll either start in September or January, depending on the preferences of the school). Max will get a toy though. I'm thinking possibly a plane similar to the one I made Michael. A toy will be better for him, because he only turns 1 in October, so playing with a toy will mean much more to him than wearing a scarf like his older siblings. Anyway, the other thing I made was a doll for Emma-Jane. Here's the back of it: And the front of it: I don't know if you can tell from the photos, but the red shape on the doll's tummy is a star. Emma absolutely loves star shapes, so I thought she'd like that. I did the doll's clothes as part of the doll itself, because since she'll be not quite 2 when she gets it, we think it would be best if the doll's clothes aren't removable (otherwise it wont be long before we have a naked doll, and a missing set of doll clothes). Anyway, I'll tell you about other projects as I do them, but the childrens' presents are what I'm working on right now. I'm currently a little way through Ryan's scarf, then I'll be making Max's little knitted toy, and after that... Well, after that I'll tell you about the next items on my "projects waiting to be created" list.

Movie: Did You Hear About the Morgans?

"Meryl and Paul Morgan have separated since his infidelity. He's a Manhattan lawyer, seeking forgiveness. She's moved on, focusing on real estate sales. As he walks her to an appointment one evening, pleading his case, they witness a murder; the murderer sees them. The FBI wants them in witness protection until the killer is caught. He's already hunting them. The FBI sends them to Ray, Wyoming, a tiny ranch town, where they stay with the aging sheriff and his gun-toting wife (who's his deputy). Meryl and Paul must sort out their relationship while their New York ways bump up against those of the West. Meantime, Meryl knows two things that Paul doesn't."

(Above taken from this page).

Another good movie, with a really nice ending. That's my opinion, anyway!

Artificial eyes, and stuff (kinda FD, but PTMI)

Most people have colds or full blown flu around here right now.

I don't (yet).

But Mam is just getting over the flu, and Dad, Wayne and Kelly all have colds. So does Dave (one of the guys Kelly and Dad game with) and - I think - some of the other guys they game with. It's one of those lingering make-you-feel-like-crap type of cold and flu bugs, so I really, really hope it skips me! I don't need that again, and I'm actually enjoying having some time where I'm actually reasonably healthy... For a change!

I'm thinking it was caused by the fact that the weather is all over the place; one minute it's hot and sunny, the next it's cold and wet, then it's cold but sunny, then it's wet and hot... You get the idea!

We had an awesome storm yesterday; it started late afternoon/early evening, and went on until early hours of the morning. It was bad enough to turn our electric off a good couple of times. Only briefly, but still... I expect we'll get another soon; that is, if the weather continues the way it has been lately.

***

I had an appointment with Eirona (my artificial eye doctor... Don't ask me to spell the actual title they give her, because I can't even say it, let alone spell it, lol).

It was officially just a check-up and polish. I get them every 6 months or so. Apparently it makes my eyes look all shiny, and when it's been a while they look all dull.

Anyway... I've had a bit of a weepy left eye for a good week or more now though, and I was a bit worried there might be an infection coming in it. She checked it, and there's no sign of one - though she does agree it's much more weepy than it should be. The theory we're going with is that it "might" be on the verge of one, possibly caused by something as stupid as wind blowing in to my eye one of the times when I took Kero out during some of the not so nice weather we've had some days. And there I was thinking my eye issues would be over now I don't have real eyes!

She didn't want to give me any antibiotics to stop the infection coming, because otherwise if I do get one the antibiotics wont do anything, which is fair enough (I didn't really want any if I could avoid it anyway). But she said to keep an eye on it (haha... Keep an eye on it... Get it? LOL!)

***

Kelly gave Kero the tub from the meal he had the other day, and you'd swear he'd given him the best prize in the world! Kero grabbed it and ran off to hide with it like he does when we give him some kind of great treat. I found him in the spare room, happily licking out the tub. Guess he felt the best way to get privacy to enjoy it was to be in with Gwydion (who wasn't even interested in Kero's existance, because I'd not long given him some salad stuff). Silly dog... LOL!

***

That'll do for today; I need a nap!

*Sending out hugs and positive thoughts to those in need of them!*

Scooby-Doo! and the Samurai Sword

"Scooby-Doo! and the Samurai Sword is the thirteenth of a series of direct-to-video animated films based upon the Scooby-Doo Saturday morning cartoons. It, along with The Goblin King, was produced and completed in 2008, but Goblin King was released first for the Halloween season. It was released on April 7, 2009, and it was produced by Warner Bros. Animation, though it featured a logo for and copyright to Hanna-Barbera at the end (This was the last time the logo was shown). It features the Mystery, Inc. gang traveling to Japan and is the final Scooby-Doo film to have Casey Kasem as the voice of Shaggy, as he retired a few months after the film was released."

Plot:
At a Tokyo museum of ancient history, Mr. Takagawa, the curator, and Kenji, a janitor, witness the resurrection of The Black Samurai, an ancient Japanese warrior whose armor was to be the newest exhibit at the museum. The next day, the Mystery Inc. gang arrives at Tokyo, where Daphne is to participate in a martial arts tournament at a prestigious school. The gang meet Daphne’s friend Miyumi, who explains the difficulty of winning the tournament and entering the school as a student. The gang and Miyumi take a fully functioning robotic plane to the school, which is run by Miss Mirimoto. After Daphne defeats Miss Mirimoto’s bodyguard, Sojo, and almost defeats Miyumi, Mirimoto tells her she shows promise as a fighter. Also at the tournament is Mr. Takagawa, who explains to Mirimoto that the Black Samurai has risen and will be after the Destiny Scroll, which is at the school. That night, during a feast, the Black Samurai and his Ninja warriors attack the school and steal the scroll. But Mirimoto explains the scroll was only a copy, and shows the gang the real one. Mr. Takagawa explains to the gang the legend of the Black Samurai.

The Black Samurai was an ancient warrior who asked the great swordsmith Masamune to craft a powerful sword. The sword maker agreed, but told the Samurai it would take a year to make. Masamune’s evil apprentice Muramasa offered to make another sword for the Samurai in only half the time, which the Samurai accepted. But when the Samurai took the sword, the evil of Muramasa was transferred to him, and he became the Black Samurai, wielding the Sword of Doom. When Masamune finished crafting his sword, the Sword of Fate, he presented it to The Green Dragon, who used it to defeat the Black Samurai and imprisoned him in the Sword of Doom. The Dragon then hid the sword, and put its whereabouts in a riddle on the Destiny Scroll."

(Above taken from here... WARNING: Link contains spoilers!)

What can I say? It's Scooby Doo! Who doesn't love Scooby Doo?

Project Gemini (LBE)

In May 1961, soon after the first Project Mercury flight, President John F. Kennedy declared that the United States would put an astronaut on the Moon before the end of the decade. The Space Race with the Soviets had just become a race to the Moon, and the United States was determined to win it.

At the conclusion of Project Mercury, however, the United States had amassed only two days and six hours in space. It soon became evident that an intermediate step was needed before an attempt to go to the Moon could be made. Thus, Project Gemini was conceived. On December 7, 1961, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced a plan to extend the piloted spaceflight program by developing a two-person spacecraft. On January 3, 1962, NASA officially named the program Gemini, for the third constellation of the Zodiac and its twin stars, Castor and Pollux.

Gemini was planned to perfect the techniques needed for a lunar mission. Its primary purpose was to demonstrate space rendezvous and docking techniques that would be used during the later Apollo flights to the Moon, when the lunar lander would separate from the command module in orbit around the Moon, then meet up with it again after the astronauts left the lunar surface. Gemini also sought to extend astronauts' stays in space to two weeks, longer than even the Apollo missions would require.

During Gemini, ten piloted missions lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, in less than 20 months. The Manned Spacecraft Center (renamed the Johnson Space Center in 1973) near Houston, Texas, took over the role of Mission Control, and ground operations became smooth and efficient, due in part to the extremely short launch windows. For instance, Gemini XI had only a two-second “window” when it could launch, due to the need to rendezvous with a target already in orbit. Meanwhile, the program introduced 16 new astronauts to the space environment.

The Gemini spacecraft (originally called Mercury Mark II) was an improvement on the Mercury capsule. It was 19 feet long (5.8 meters), 10 feet (three meters) in diameter, and weighed about 8,400 pounds (3,810 kilograms)—twice the weight of Mercury. But it had only 50 percent more cabin space for twice as many people, and was extremely cramped. Ejection seats replaced Mercury's escape rocket, and more storage space was added for the longer Gemini flights. The long-duration missions also used fuel cells instead of batteries for generating electrical power. An adapter module fitted to the rear of the capsule (and jettisoned before reentry) carried on-board oxygen, fuel, and other consumable supplies. Engineering changes, such as systems that could be removed and replaced easily, simplified maintenance. Since spacewalks were an essential part of these missions, the spacesuit became a crucial piece of equipment, providing the only protection for the astronaut from the deadly environment of space.

The Titan II rocket, more powerful than the rockets used for the Mercury missions, placed the larger spacecraft into orbit. The targets for rendezvous operations were uncrewed Agena upper stages, which were launched ahead of the Gemini.

Unlike Mercury, which had been able to change only its orientation while in flight, Gemini needed to the capability to move forward, backward and sideways in its orbital path, and even change orbits to rendezvous with other spacecraft. The complexity of rendezvous demanded two people on board, and more piloting than had been possible with Mercury. It also required the first onboard computers to calculate complicated rendezvous maneuvers.

The first two Gemini flights were unpiloted. Gemini 1 made 64 orbits and confirmed that the Titan II launch vehicle and the spacecraft were compatible. Gemini 2 tested all the spacecraft systems in a suborbital flight.

The first piloted flight was Gemini III—nicknamed Molly Brown. Only the Gemini III was nicknamed; pilot Virgil Grissom named it after the Broadway musical The Unsinkable Molly Brown. His spacecraft during Project Mercury had sunk at the end of his flight. The Molly Brown, piloted by Grissom and John Young, made three orbits in its almost five-hour flight on March 23, 1965, in which the astronauts were able to alter their oval orbit to a more circular one and to execute other orbital changes using the thrusters. Their attempt at a precision landing, however, was unsuccessful, as were several future flights, and the spacecraft splashed down more than 50 miles (80 kilometers) from its target.

Gemini IV, a four-day flight piloted by James McDivvitt and Edward White, was launched on June 3, 1965. The highlight of this flight was the first extravehicular activity (EVA) by an American; White's 22-minute "spacewalk." Using a handheld maneuvering unit, he “swam through space” while attached to his lifeline tether, moving at nearly 18,000 miles per hour (29,000 kilometers per hour). The mission also attempted to rendezvous with the second stage of the Titan launch vehicle but was unsuccessful. They later learned that a spacecraft trying to catch up with another needed to drop to a lower, faster orbit first before rising again.

The Gemini V mission, piloted by L. Gordon Cooper, Jr. and Charles Conrad, Jr., lasted almost eight days and completed 120 orbits in August 1965. It demonstrated the first use of fuel cells for electrical power, although they did not supply enough power and some experiments and a planned rendezvous had to be canceled.

The Gemini VI flight, scheduled for launch on October 25, 1965, was scrubbed when the Agena target spacecraft with which the crew had planned to rendezvous and dock exploded during its launch. Consequently, Gemini VII, piloted by Frank Borman and James Lovell, Jr., was launched first, on December 4, 1965, to become the rendezvous target for Gemini VI. When Gemini VI was launched on December 15, piloted by Walter Schirra, Jr. and Thomas Stafford, the two spacecraft rendezvoused and flew in formation for five hours. Gemini VII remained aloft for 14 days to study the effects of long-duration flight. The 330 hours in space had no long-term harmful effects on the crew, but the flight turned into somewhat of an endurance test for the two pilots, confined in their hot, cramped quarters.

Gemini VIII, launched on March 16, 1966, was piloted by Neil A. Armstrong and David R. Scott, who carried out the first docking and undocking with another spacecraft. The flight lasted only 10 hours, 41 minutes because of a malfunctioning thruster that caused the spacecraft to spin uncontrollably at a rate of about one revolution per second. This caused the crew to execute the first emergency landing of a piloted U.S. spaceflight mission.

Thomas P. Stafford and Eugene A. Cernan became the first backup crew to fly a spaceflight mission after the original crew of Elliott See and Charles Bassett died in a plane crash four months before the flight. Gemini IX was launched on June 3, 1966, and flew almost four days. A docking had been scheduled, but the crew discovered when they rendezvoused with the target that its protective shroud was still attached, making docking impossible. Plans to test an Astronaut Maneuvering Unit as part of a spacewalk was also canceled when Cernan's faceplate became fogged, limiting his visibility.

Gemini X, a three-day flight launched on July 18, 1966 with John Young and Michael Collins as pilots, demonstrated the first double docking, first docking with an Agena target vehicle, and later with another Agena still floating from an earlier mission. Collins “walked” in space for 39 minutes at the end of a tether. This mission accomplished all of Gemini's objectives: rendezvous, docking, maneuvering, and a spacewalk during which work was performed.

On Gemini XI, launched on September 12, 1966, the crew matched orbits with an Agena test vehicle only 85 minutes after launch and docked several times. This three-day flight, piloted by Charles Conrad, Jr. and Richard Gordon, Jr., reached the highest Earth orbit to date—739.2 miles (1,189.3 kilometers). This flight ended with the first totally automatic, computer-controlled reentry, which brought the spacecraft down only about 2.8 miles (4.5 kilometers) from its recovery ship.

Launched on November 1, 1966, Gemini XII, crewed by Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin and James Lovell, Jr., was the final flight in the series. By the time of this four-day flight, the program still had not demonstrated that an astronaut could work easily and efficiently outside the spacecraft. This flight used new, improved restraints for the astronauts to hook to outside the spacecraft, and underwater training, which became a staple of all future spacewalk simulations, was added as a training technique for working in space. Aldrin totaled a record five-and-a-half hours in space.

By Gemini's end, orbital rendezvous and docking had become routine, and it seemed clear that humans could live, work, and stay healthy in space for days or even weeks at a time. Above all, the program had added nearly 1,000 hours of valuable spaceflight experience in the years between Mercury and Apollo, which by 1966 was nearing flight readiness.

-Judy Rumerman

(Above taken from here).

And, if you're wondering... I was watching a TV show about this not too long ago, so that's why I decided to post about it. It's taken me a bit to get this posted though, because I've got so many other things I want(ed) to get posted.

Movie: Fireflies in the Garden

"The semi-autobiographical story centers on the complexities of love and commitment in a family torn apart when faced by an unexpected tragedy."

(Above taken from this page).

All I can say about this one is... I couldn't get in to it, and after about five or ten minutes got bored and changed the channel.

Wise Sayings

Got these in an e-mail, and thought I'd share them.

***

Wise Sayings
~~Author Unknown~~

"The best way to get even is to forget..."
"Standing in the middle of the road is dangerous. You will get knocked down by the traffic from both ways."
"Words are windows to the heart."
"It isn't difficult to make a mountain out of a molehill, just add a little dirt."
"A successful marriage isn't finding the right person-it's being the right person."
"The mighty oak tree was once a little nut that held its ground."
"The tongue must be heavy indeed, because so few people can hold it."
"To forgive is to set the prisoner free, and then discover the prisoner was you."
"You'll notice that a turtle only makes progress when it sticks out its neck..."

Johnny and the Bomb (TV Series/Movie)

"Based on the book by Terry Pratchett, the adventure begins for thirteen-year-old Johnny Maxwell and his four friends when they come to the aid of eccentric homeless woman, Mrs Tachyon, and are left minding her trolley full of black bags while she is hospitalised. When the children later visit her in hospital, Mrs Tachyon lets them into the secret that her black bags-- or 'Bags of Time-- are special and can be used to create a gateway to the past. The five youngsters end up during the Blitz where fun and games turn serious when they quickly realise the prejudices of the era. But when they return to their own time, the gang discover they have somehow changed history as a result Johnny's grandmother died in a bombing as a teenage girl meaning Johnny's mother and, in turn, himself were never born. The children are now in a race to fix the path in order to save the future but can they succeed before the bombs start falling...?"

(Above taken from this page).

My Dad has this on DVD and brought it down for us to watch. I'm glad he did, since it was absolutely fantastic! I've read the book it's based on - and I'm sure I've reviewed it on here at some point - and that was fantastic too!

Happy 4th of July birthday Wendy

OK, you all - especially those of you in the USA - know what 4th of July is all about, but did you also know that it's Wendy's birthday today? Well, it is! So... Happy birthday Wendy!

Courses and a clarification

I still haven't done the work for the courses I signed up for a couple of months ago, but - as I said back then - there's no submissions required, so I can do them whenever I want to. I do read through each lesson before transfering it to a word document and filing it away in my "coursework" folder though. Anyway, there are loads I still want to do on there, so I figured I should get myself signed up for another batch. At least then I can gather up all the stuff to do when I'm ready. My plan is to collect up all the courses I want to do, then set a "coursework time" for myself when I work on them for a certain amount of time each day. But, first I want to get all the ones I want to do; while they're all definately still available and free! So, this time I signed up for:

Character Archetypes
Childrens (2 - 8) Picture Book Writing
Childrens Verse
Childrens' Story Writing
Creating Great Fictional Characters
Creating Great Plots
Defamation: Writer Beware
Developing Characters
Dialogue For Writers

I signed up for them early this morning, so I should start getting the lessons through in the next couple of days. Then, as before, when I have all of the lessons for these ones I can sign up for another batch. I could sign up for all the courses I want at once, but it's easier to keep track of them in smaller batches than it is when you have a huge stack of them to sort through at any given time. Yes, it takes longer to get them all this way, but it also takes less time to sort through my e-mails each day this way. Besides, I have to have help with signing up because of word verification, and people tend to get a bit fed up of, "OK, ready for another word verification," after a bit, and I don't want to be annoying if I can avoid it.

***

In case you're wondering - since I have been asked about this by a couple of people - no, I haven't been watching all these movies and reading all these books back to back. The stacks of reviews I've been posting recently (and most of the movie and book reviews still waiting to get published) are the ones I kept mentioning that were stacking up in "draft" on my dashboard. I have added a few new ones to them (both books and movies), but most of them are ones I watched late last year or right at the start of this year. They aren't in any spacific order though, you're just getting them in the order I grabbed them when I decided I needed to get them posted so started scheduling them to go up any day there wasn't a holiday or a birthday happening.

***

Hope you're having a fantastic weekend...

*Sending hugs and positive thoughts to those in need of them; be it because you're not feeling well at the moment, because of something upsetting or difficult to deal with happening in your life, or simply because you just feel like you could use a hug!*

Happy birthday Faye

Today is Faye's birthday. I doubt she'll read this, but... Happy birthday Faye!

The Cat Mummy

By Jacqueline Wilson

""I SOMETIMES TALK ABOUT MY MUM TO MABEL, BECAUSE MABEL DOESN'T EVER GET UPSET."

Verity adores her cat, Mabel, and is desperately sad when she dies. Remembering her recent school lessons about the Ancient Egyptians, Verity decides to mummify Mabel and keep her hidden. Verity's dad and grandparents can't bear to talk about death, having lost Verity's mum in childbirth, but when they eventually discover what Verity has done with Mabel, the whole family learns that it's time to talk. A superb handling of bereavement in Wilson's uniquely accessible and enjoyable style."

(Above taken from this page).

I'm a fan of Jacqueline Wilson's books - well, OK, I enjoyed the Tracy Beaker books, which are the only ones I've read until now - but this book didn't disappoint. It was a little more detailed than I expected it to be, but not too much so, and not so that it spoiled the book.

Craft kits and supplies

Where possible I like to plan ahead, so within a few days of Litha being over with I started thinking about the next holiday we will be doing something for; Lughnasadh/Lammas (August 1st). It was agreed that we would spend some time doing some kind of craft kit or something together, so I needed to find one that we would both enjoy. If it was just me I'd probably have just spent at least a large part of the day working on my knitting projects and such, but Kelly doesn't knit, so I needed to find something we could do together (or, failing that, something he could do while I work on my knitting projects). I'd heard about a website called "Craft Kits UK" so I went there to look first. It looks like a pretty good website, but it seems to be focusing more on card making than anything, and I didn't really want to do card making. There's nothing wrong with card making; in fact, I'm thinking I might give it another go again in the future, but card making wasn't what I was looking for. So, I decided to do a Google search for "craft kits" to see what I could come up with. I found a website called "Make It Now" where they have a nice selection of craft kits, including sewing kits, candlemaking kits, and some "Timberkits mechanical models" which captured my attention... The following is from the page linked to above: "Timberkits are a range of mechanical models supplied in component form. Each kit comprises a selection of precision made wooden parts which are assembled using the supplied glue and sandpaper, to produce a finished model with moving parts. Timberkits are the perfect introduction to mechanical principles and Automata- one can see the effect of each part on the next and it's simple to understand how gears, cams and drive shafts work! All the components in Timberkits are made from natural wood which is sustainably sourced and FSC certified. Every Timberkit comes with clear, easy to follow instructions, often including illustrations, and all kits are suitable from 8 or 9 years and above. Once assembled, Timberkits can be painted or left to show the natural beauty of wood." They sound like they'll be fun to make, and since both Kelly and I have an interest in how things work, and most of Kelly's craft-like hobbies involve putting together models... Well, it seemed like a great idea. And when I saw the "Flatbits: Lion"" I knew we just had to get it; especially with my love of lions! We ordered it Monday morning, and it arrived on Tuesday morning. I can't wait for Lughnasadh now, because I'm looking forward to building a lion!

Canada Day 2011

Happy Canada Day everyone!

From Tori, Kero and Gwydion


P.S. Today is Kelly's Grama Sarah's birthday, so happy birthday to her. I doubt she'll read this - in fact, I'd be extremely shocked if she did - but I figured I'd say it anyway. I mean, when has the lack of chances of the person reading it stopped me posting birthday messages before? LOL!