tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-47721247391166606962024-03-18T19:49:18.039-07:00a1nniea1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.comBlogger152125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-87913237158443176482014-04-13T14:44:00.002-07:002014-04-13T14:44:24.780-07:00Little Critters - caching in the sunAlice and Chris decided they fancied a walk in the countryside today. As I was planning on doing some caching I asked if they would like to join me, which they did. It is always nice to have some company on my walks, although I am equally happy to go on my own.<br />
<br />
So after our lie in this morning we headed off on the 20 minute drive to the start. We took Millie with us as she is very easy to walk. Diesel is just hard work especially when you don't know what you are walking into.<br />
We found most of the caches okay; just two that we did not find. A few muggles made the logging a bit tricky at times. The sun was shining and it was a nice 16 degrees. The rape was in full bloom which when close to it can make your eyes sting a bit. Thankfully we didn't have too much of that to walk through.<br />
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The caches were mostly little insect toys with a very small log book. We couldn't find two easy ones but found the difficult hide very quickly. Millie behaved herself, although she did manage to dip into two ditches. I think Chris and Alice enjoyed the stroll. It did take us quite a while to walk the three miles though. I am so slow and the ground was very uneven.<br />
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Chris and Alice decided they fancied a barbecue and offered to buy the meat. Alice phoned Andy. He had already bought a leg of lamb for a roast but was able to change the plans and got the gas BBQ, garden and chairs organised whilst we went shopping. Whilst Andy was cooking Chris Alice and I sat outside and chatted. Sev was still playing a game on his PC which was starting to wind Andy up. Sev eventually came out after his game had finished and after we had already started to eat. It was a lovely BBQ; loads of food. Andy gave the dogs a bone each and they merrily munched on those for a little while. Sev took a video of Diesel chomping on his bone. If I can I'll load the video up on here, but it is on youtube. "Diesel enjoying a bone". Turn the volume on; it is quite funny. We then had a lovely raspberry roulade for dessert.<br />
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After eating we were all a bit stuffed and sat int he living room for a while. All the time Alice wanted to play a board game but Chris and Andy are not too keen on board games. It's difficult to play a game with three people. After about an hour we managed to persuade Chris to play Monopoly. Now Sev ALWAYS wins at Monopoly. So I already knew the outcome before we started. But then I nearly always end up drunk when playing, but didn't this time. After Chris and Alice merged, Sev and I merged. Then of course the inevitable - Sev won. <br />
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After that we all chilled out in the living room again before I went up to have my bath and get ready for bed. Altogether an enjoyable day. Back to work on Monday and Wednesday and then I am off all over Easter and back on the following Wednesday. Hooray. two weeks with two days of work and then at the end of April a whole week off. Yippee.a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-27111720242509544942014-04-13T14:32:00.003-07:002014-04-13T14:32:38.221-07:00Life. What have we got to show for all those years at the end of it?Recently a very old and dear friend of Andy's died. We visited her husband and daughter to offer our condolences and any support we could give. Whilst talking we considered the thirty years that Andy had known her for. Her husband struggled to remember what they did during a period of time in their life. After chatting and putting pieces together we surmised that they did what most couples do before the children come along. Potter about, enjoy lie ins at the weekend and mostly just go to work Monday to Friday. We talked about keeping diaries to remember the little day to day things. One remembers and takes photos of the big events in our lives. You know the ones. Christmas, Easter, summer holidays, birthdays and any other significant event. But we forget to note the little daily things in our lives.<br />
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What did our bathroom look like way back then? What did I do most weekends during a particular decade. Since I've started geocaching I guess most of my weekends have included a caching trip somewhere. But before then? Probably taking the kids somewhere - the beach or the park.<br />
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So after some contemplation since our chat yesterday I thought I might start up a little diary of my daily life. It probably wont be terribly inspiring, but at least it will note the small day to day things that occur. The summer is just starting so at least it might be a little bit more interesting than during the winter as at least I can get outside after a day at work.<br />
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So begin my little diary. Yesterday we drove up to see Andy's friend's husband and daughter. It was a lovely sunny day but we spent most of it in the car or in the house. We went to Costa for lunch and I told them about a cache nearby but we all agreed it was too far (1000feet) to bother with today. Before we drove back home Andy and I stopped near a river so he could collect himself before driving home. I suggested a short walk - to pick up a cache. I know - I'm shameless. But we both enjoyed the walk through the meadow. There were sheep with their lambs. It was a delight to see the lambs basking in the sun. Found the cache quickly. It was a church micro so I was pleased to find it. We went back to the bridge looking over the river and just enjoyed the view and the peace and quiet for a few minutes before the long drive home. Sev and Alice were home and we ordered pizza as no-one felt like cooking. After stuffing our faces with a pizza each I shared out some sweets - revels and starmix.a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-48754763009289586652011-02-27T14:29:00.002-08:002011-02-27T14:31:25.073-08:00Earth HourWhat are YOU doing at 8.30pm on Saturday 26th March? Millions of people from around the globe will be switching off their lights in a silent campaign to reduce global warming.<br /><br />Check out the WWF site for more information - http://earthhour.wwf.org.uka1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-60157536579292121562011-02-27T14:29:00.001-08:002011-02-27T14:29:18.874-08:00Earth Hour<script type="text/javascript">linkURL="http://earthhour.wwf.org.uk/?pc=ECR001029&utm_campaign=earthhour_2011&utm_medium=widget&utm_source=clock"</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://assets.wwf.org.uk/custom/js/clockscript.js"></script>a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-21112133055692793912010-12-03T07:37:00.000-08:002010-12-03T07:51:25.627-08:00SNOW<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiffWJZPCmCLhD8yVFsWTZFtqLm6MEBAFg87E6aF3WKUWIMrBup8sNvbWoNQ7ObUI4O4fA5sRjirwiGzqi3A8Z43dOfwvq_2sYIog9SoUViNZhXbgIZbgJ5QHKpceW-aLNJYSasYar4MWM/s1600/2010_1202SNOW_DAY0038.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546483229891640194" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiffWJZPCmCLhD8yVFsWTZFtqLm6MEBAFg87E6aF3WKUWIMrBup8sNvbWoNQ7ObUI4O4fA5sRjirwiGzqi3A8Z43dOfwvq_2sYIog9SoUViNZhXbgIZbgJ5QHKpceW-aLNJYSasYar4MWM/s320/2010_1202SNOW_DAY0038.JPG" /></a>It's been snowing for three days and the temperatur hasn't risen above zero so we have loads of snow still. I can't believe how deep it is. I don't think it has snowed this much for a very long time. Cars are just about getting around now and Andy and I went shopping yesterday and today. But otherwise we have all stayed in - fortunately no-one has had to travel in to work; although Andy is working in his office in the garden. Andy's route to work-<br /><div><div><div><div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 199px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 195px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546481909277259810" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfEZzrvJ12_O15AmNP3ds4E2OIlpEX_F2rcedDamqAM03ALIx-TCkQgKZxpj04aRy9m-JpUgi3djRcoG6aPg_O_mhmtPz2ltVHxIWqSft1rTmpHJvY1p0zp08YF_xtNBAn_g0pJueQAlw/s320/andy%2527s+route+to+work+a.jpg" />We took the dogs for a quick run over the green. Millie loves the snow and had a fantastic time chasing snowballs. Diesel was just a bit bemused by it all.</div><div> Millie getting completely covered in snow -<img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 201px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 112px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546483227603925410" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuXPcC-1rNxPzHLWJ_h8IJHJugToCX2UVy7NX6acgtBklHJ1mYxQ6itNfMyn9iFHJ8es64lW_nsQEyeolC2xGrhl099FUaTExQVyG4225snfDQ8tB_PqWtVntWwixjj5Yvw3_dA3xOfXA/s320/2010_1202SNOW_DAY0065.JPG" /></div>Both Millie and Diesel waiting for a snowball to catch.<img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 163px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 132px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546483209043753298" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTdtFWt91Mod6tZD0fkj7GAEtGoxYee9F-LExRIKKctQSpSC0zRGt6hxW8ogYv-9RsSrPkqfBKi_DKQVr87YgzEuz-JviT9zqwKeq3IKiFoy_NcRixkMV2AjtCO5FGGNQCJ-OeiWg9fiM/s320/millie+and+diesel+snow.jpg" />Millie having fun in the snow.<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 241px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 173px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546483216978450482" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqQwHe3V-sUFAkwFTxKpTrUjKzn5gInVS-_ki3E56iQac8vEfwetVGOd2SLOwlW61cRHe9spzsMghY8CnwMtXvaRP_ytCYZX_FcTB-lGZWU-LIpRnzZ2MhcYkIk_v4xsaBuP5SPO1m8zI/s320/2010_1202SNOW_DAY0055.JPG" /><br /><br /><br /><p></p></div></div></div>a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-42245409490889433722010-11-28T09:16:00.000-08:002010-11-28T09:37:45.122-08:00Frosty morning<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKBqCtRjotiD2RAeWX0zIDK-sga9GuOybAwXIXLQYUIIoQVI-SUsFzR6wTEAza0pcZ-tMszdd92yhfGc5IfjRJ2NW0ayfRWSpvkkDsK8iHSoRhRdJCZ25ofQG36sEe-8xwcniE7miA2-A/s1600/2010_1128frostyday0005.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544651582599355186" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKBqCtRjotiD2RAeWX0zIDK-sga9GuOybAwXIXLQYUIIoQVI-SUsFzR6wTEAza0pcZ-tMszdd92yhfGc5IfjRJ2NW0ayfRWSpvkkDsK8iHSoRhRdJCZ25ofQG36sEe-8xwcniE7miA2-A/s200/2010_1128frostyday0005.JPG" /></a> When I woke up this morning I noticed the heavy frost and when I was drinking my tea the sun started shining. Remembering that today was my last chance to get some photos done for the Facebook's Photography Trading Card Group, I leapt up and went outside with my camera. I left the dogs behind as I wanted to concentrate on the photo shoot. The car needed defrosting first!<br />There were some really cool frost patterns on the car windows.<br /><br /><div><br /><div></div><div></div><div>Going straight to the woods, I started snapping; here are some of the photos taken today. It was a lovely morning and I was really surprised at how many golfers and dog walkers there were out at 9am on a very cold Sunday morning.<img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 150px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544652565313724434" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYVMXHhm9145y6j860NuoEiPMQOdyMFiTztZb4Lo3rY3XNC_1wM2G9s2_j86bXmWCaqd2yQwh_tDDeU1H_R91NRjgy3Za6Jz9JFb9JGQfzc3rigF1HDVdy2R_ey7f7QWDCwKSu3xNpQXs/s200/2010_1128frostyday0011.JPG" /> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXg2lY9qaoFTFFQsJc-LiMsnk7X9fZM1qhQm__61XNzIH9aTpqgrIA5Uteu8V9-9pYoir_AGkvyKWP-voI8t-Ruvg00-vb9CXcBt8cW-j3mbjOWWg1Ax8K78raxgBTQOSBfKhY97Eqkn0/s1600/2010_1128frostyday0028.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544653453840878210" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXg2lY9qaoFTFFQsJc-LiMsnk7X9fZM1qhQm__61XNzIH9aTpqgrIA5Uteu8V9-9pYoir_AGkvyKWP-voI8t-Ruvg00-vb9CXcBt8cW-j3mbjOWWg1Ax8K78raxgBTQOSBfKhY97Eqkn0/s200/2010_1128frostyday0028.JPG" /></a>I like these two the most. The posts lead the eye along the path to the man walking his dog right at the end. And this one is of a hedge covered in frost.<br /><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><div>Then, I came back and collected the dogs and took them for a long walk. It was hard work trying to get some good photos of them both in the same shot!!<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLVblTjiWjbKUw9PeHAodHE4W9HXfZipbZqdBj7M46MjWj5G4o1DGi0yiyPQK5MUcypCKpK_5MbG60wZHPPDZ2TviLM2d0AdADtIXoA6sQ2i-G6yyfDjhXjQR0fa77XakeHVBUZWLAgcY/s1600/2010_1128frostyday0068.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 284px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 249px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544654482297782914" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLVblTjiWjbKUw9PeHAodHE4W9HXfZipbZqdBj7M46MjWj5G4o1DGi0yiyPQK5MUcypCKpK_5MbG60wZHPPDZ2TviLM2d0AdADtIXoA6sQ2i-G6yyfDjhXjQR0fa77XakeHVBUZWLAgcY/s200/2010_1128frostyday0068.JPG" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDl9mNx1JxJlrcqAXigvIwcYDv1IbmZoPtv7xLca-5fG6_zHeEDlxMUGnnhte70tK4BVoUEST5BjdEz-AZS6JrRJEU1q8Db42K0Vub54o9oQttkFSDKgonaUymj2wzGSMBuPwPFk5xojg/s1600/2010_1128frostyday0075.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 308px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 252px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544654488931226034" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDl9mNx1JxJlrcqAXigvIwcYDv1IbmZoPtv7xLca-5fG6_zHeEDlxMUGnnhte70tK4BVoUEST5BjdEz-AZS6JrRJEU1q8Db42K0Vub54o9oQttkFSDKgonaUymj2wzGSMBuPwPFk5xojg/s200/2010_1128frostyday0075.JPG" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCcEaS_IlQFIfJWrZfn8F0Lfn4d4lr9KQoYnhuhsEJmSb91z0YoUNmBtW7THtQXLV09uUY5hvZ8cncoMbnsyL4tgmunQjI-5V3OwxD7C1c5QH1X2PGMRy9TsagP7w3SulJJ9D9p0fTzDo/s1600/2010_1128frostyday0051.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 350px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 256px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544654475375946098" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCcEaS_IlQFIfJWrZfn8F0Lfn4d4lr9KQoYnhuhsEJmSb91z0YoUNmBtW7THtQXLV09uUY5hvZ8cncoMbnsyL4tgmunQjI-5V3OwxD7C1c5QH1X2PGMRy9TsagP7w3SulJJ9D9p0fTzDo/s200/2010_1128frostyday0051.JPG" /></a><br /></div><div></div></div>a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-45074414678900530262010-11-14T23:03:00.000-08:002010-11-14T23:06:19.081-08:00Early startBleurgh. It is 7am and Andy has already dropped me off at work. However, I can't get into the office until 7.30am so am sitting in the cold 24 hour computer room waiting for the receptionist to arrive so I can get to my desk and start work. When Andy dropped me off early last time I actually started doing some work, but I wont get paid for it, so I'm not doing it this time.<br /><br />So where were we with the films? Argh, no I haven't got my list, it is on my laptop at home. I will just have to continue this tonight.a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-18412544470316899252010-11-14T08:07:00.000-08:002010-11-14T08:53:34.510-08:00Films - cont'd..<div>Carrying on with my list of films watched in the past couple of years.</div><div></div><div><strong></strong></div><br /><div><strong>The Boy in the striped pyjamas</strong></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho5jVB3GrgcSURRBz-4b0fvdbgC20Lmpvc4kikA42DMNCQm6uCTbUXu7qvKVHb-N4bXkaN9eoVgfXAx_Q1yPkCqx3DLDNkNgllB_HF-hRDf5rDK8E6tcDGPqBLOqx95p5K4IrKX10JStI/s1600/MV5BMTMzMTc3MjA5NF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwOTk3MDE5MQ%2540%2540__V1__SX214_CR0%252C0%252C214%252C314_.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 154px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539439662168244226" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho5jVB3GrgcSURRBz-4b0fvdbgC20Lmpvc4kikA42DMNCQm6uCTbUXu7qvKVHb-N4bXkaN9eoVgfXAx_Q1yPkCqx3DLDNkNgllB_HF-hRDf5rDK8E6tcDGPqBLOqx95p5K4IrKX10JStI/s400/MV5BMTMzMTc3MjA5NF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwOTk3MDE5MQ%2540%2540__V1__SX214_CR0%252C0%252C214%252C314_.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br /><div>Set during World War II, a stry seen through the inocent eyes of Bruno, the eight year old son of the commandant at a concentration camp, whose forbidden friendship with a Jewish boy on the other side of the camp fence has startling and unexpected consequences.</div><br /><div><br /> </div><div>We hired this film one evening from Blockbusters. It's a very sad film,</div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><div><strong>Coraline</strong><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggKKCRtFJuV3vnoGiCT3fYBDO8Tf-kpN1_Ywd2wXLIUP8RRRARMCINITilFXo6Gar6pheqPuVZ1lHEbra0sZ9FpyPtw8zUAx_4vjaXI_Wzn8F5VANlHxbfbYthkPSbw0zMmiaGl_bXa6Y/s1600/coraline.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 184px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 273px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539442634285315426" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggKKCRtFJuV3vnoGiCT3fYBDO8Tf-kpN1_Ywd2wXLIUP8RRRARMCINITilFXo6Gar6pheqPuVZ1lHEbra0sZ9FpyPtw8zUAx_4vjaXI_Wzn8F5VANlHxbfbYthkPSbw0zMmiaGl_bXa6Y/s400/coraline.jpg" /></a><br />A very strange film, along the lines of a scary fairy tale. I enjoyed watching it, if only because it was so different from the usual. The voices are from Dakota fanning, Teri Hatching, Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders. </div><br /><div><br />When Coraline moves to an old house, she feels feels bored and neglected by her parents. She finds a hidden door with a bricked up passage. During the night, she crosses the passage and finds a parallel world where everybody has buttons instead of eyes, with caring parents and all ehr dreams coming true. When te Other Mother invites Coraline to stay in her world forever, the girl refuses and finds that the alternate reality where she is trapped s only a trick to lure her.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div><strong></strong> </div><div><strong>The day the earth stood still<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFWvseNGtUD7emK7IGQ5TwA_un6WX3Ms_3QPNzEaefE8_IazTYTbd_r9Z35f-TfLKqTsGiTqKDxHYwvmc0VnIPsMf3p8Fbsf5PL5t7QWvk9TtACXKxZ-1XADXWkYGZaI6GCt5lPcdOLc8/s1600/day+the+earth.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 228px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 153px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539448688209154706" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFWvseNGtUD7emK7IGQ5TwA_un6WX3Ms_3QPNzEaefE8_IazTYTbd_r9Z35f-TfLKqTsGiTqKDxHYwvmc0VnIPsMf3p8Fbsf5PL5t7QWvk9TtACXKxZ-1XADXWkYGZaI6GCt5lPcdOLc8/s400/day+the+earth.jpg" /></a></strong></div><div></div><br /><div>To be honest I don't remember much about this film. I checked a trailer out to remind me. I recall Keanu Reeves being in it, so apart from that I guess it wasn't that good!</div>a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-37347266722223317142010-11-14T08:01:00.000-08:002010-11-14T08:06:56.417-08:00Christmas cakeWell the Christmas cake is in the oven and I have a four hour wait until it is ready! When I popped to the supermarket to get some of the ingredients the shelves had been mobbed of flour and dried fruit. I think everyone is making Christmas cake this weekend.a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-88376723128006360802010-11-13T14:34:00.000-08:002010-11-13T14:42:21.862-08:00countdownIn the countdown to Christmas, 6 weeks, I'm told, I thought I ought to check how much time I have left to complete my 101 things to do in 1001 days. I had a slight panic that I might be fast running out of time.<br /><br />I started this challenge on 9 Jan 2009 and it is due to finish on 8 October 2011, which happens to be my mum's 66th birthday. So that means I have already had 673 days and have only 329 days left. That means 47 weeks or 10 months and 25 days. Or 7396 hours. <br /><br />Now 10 months sounds alright, but consider this. I am likely to spend 4 months of that time sleeping (more if I get a chance!), 2 1/2 months at work and probably 2 1/2 months wasting time on my laptop. So that only leaves me just over a one month to finish off my challenge.<br /><br />As I review this challenge, I notice how much my priorities have changed over the past 673 days. There are some things on the list, that I am quite unlikely to do now, although at the time, I thought would be feasible. I am unlikely to go to Tai Chi or Pilates, much as I would like to - I just can't afford it. I am still working on getting Andy to join me in salsa dancing lessons. I'd love to do this dance, it is so sexy and means you get up close to your partner. Maybe in January? We'll see. <br /><br />Well I think I have cracked number 73 on my list -watching all those films, so I had better take another look at my list of things to do and see what else I can do within the deadline.a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-39470696284743017942010-11-13T14:03:00.000-08:002010-11-13T14:21:56.923-08:00list of filmsRight, Sev and I have just gone through the alphabet and compared notes with regards to listing films we have watched from a to z.<br /><br />He keeps strange hours and watches late night films and watches chick flicks with his girlfriend.<br /><br />So here are both our lists. I will go into mine in a bit more detail over the next day or two.<br /><br /><span style="color:#ffff66;"><strong>Mine---</strong><span style="color:#ccccff;"><strong>Sev's</strong><br /></span>Angels and Demons</span> --- <span style="color:#ccccff;">Adventure Land<br /></span><span style="color:#ffff66;">The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas</span> --- Batman Returns<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">Coraline</span> --- Click<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">The Day the Earth stood still</span> --- Dirty Dancing<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">Evan Almighty</span> --- Epic movie<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">The Final Destination</span> --- The Final Destination<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">Great Escape</span> --- GI Joe<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">The Hangover</span> --- Happyness<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">Iron man 2</span> --- I am Legend<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">Julie and Julia</span> --- Jarhead<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">Kill Bill</span> --- Kick Ass<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">League of gentlemen</span> --- Love Actually<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">Mama mia</span> --- Marley and Me<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">Night at the museum 2</span> --- The Notebook<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">One hour photo</span> --- Oceans 11<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">Panic room</span> --- Pirates of the Caribbean<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">Quantum of Solace </span> --- Quantum of Solace<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">Rock school</span> --- Road Trip<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">Star Trek</span> --- Star Trek<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">Time traveller's wife</span> --- Terminal<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">United 93</span> --- United 93<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">Van Helsing</span> --- Van Helsing<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">Wall-E</span> --- Waterworld<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">X-men origins - Wolverine</span> --- xXx<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">You, Me and Dupree</span> --- Yes Man<br /><span style="color:#ffff66;">Zulu</span> --- Zombieland<br /><br />I've cheated a bit with G and Z, I couldn't think of anything that I have watched in the past 18 months beginning with these 2 letters, so have included a film that I have seen, but not for a while. Everything else I have seen recently.a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-13199012875429167142010-11-13T12:21:00.001-08:002010-11-13T13:04:42.273-08:00filmsNumber 73 of my 101 list of things to do in 1001 days.<br /><div><div></div><div><br /></div><div>I have neglected to keep a log of all the films I have been watching over the past year or so. I must check my deadline too!</div><div></div><div><br /></div><div>Number 73 of my list is to watch 26 films beginning with each letter of the alphabet. Strangely enough I have managed to tick off some of those I thought might be difficult, like x and i. I have even managed to watch a film that was a number! How's that! LOL I usually watch films on SKY or normal channels, rarely going to the cinema - it is just too expensive.</div><div><br /></div><div></div><div>So here is a quick rundown of my list so far. As mentioned above I have neglected to keep a log of films I have watched, so this list is retrospective.</div><div></div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 195px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 152px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539135329612912962" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA1wD-5_f_VB8Kz1f4EVkCnxB1Uh76j6QLdKEv5eqKn9SslV6GvYAmhYWBQM7xF36CKjT06SJV1VnvbfyTYPbFJQ_cDWMSJo5nwGUJF0TjN9Jvgtls6inU0BI_aDAMPSS7i7tqPoKjD0w/s400/2012+poster.jpg" /> <div></div><div><strong>2012</strong></div><div></div><div>Starring <strong>John Cusack</strong> the storyline is that Dr Adrian Helmsley, part of a worldwide geophysical team investigating the effect of radiation from unprecedented solar storms, learns that the earth's core is heating up. He warns the US President that the crust of the earth is becoming unstable and that without proper preparations for saving a fracton of the world's opulation, the entire race is doomed. The world's leaders race to build "arks" to escape the imending catclysm whilst volcanic eruptions and earthquakes wreak havoc around the world.</div><br /><div>In my humble opinion it was okay - your average American apocolyptic film with the usual good effects. Not something I would be in a hurry to watch again, unless there is nothing else!</div><br /><div></div><div><strong></strong></div><div><strong>Angels and Demons</strong></div><div></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiVBcma5_X1cRTpo_gQbpby-PSRHyiZO9YNXjYjSYsXcTzctLEL_GwFOsvN1kUHBE8ddwnRXmatT5CIjuq1sa6pv0HyOcDWF7ej1ffw5U2fyfsoJIK8_AMkH473gM2QeXzduhJa687bQQ/s1600/angels+and+demons.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 268px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 171px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539136665273265650" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiVBcma5_X1cRTpo_gQbpby-PSRHyiZO9YNXjYjSYsXcTzctLEL_GwFOsvN1kUHBE8ddwnRXmatT5CIjuq1sa6pv0HyOcDWF7ej1ffw5U2fyfsoJIK8_AMkH473gM2QeXzduhJa687bQQ/s400/angels+and+demons.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><strong>Tom Hanks</strong> and <strong>Ewan McGregor</strong> are two of my favourite actors and they were great in this film. I have read all the Dan Brown books, so was very excited when this film came out. We did go and see it at the cinema and I have seen it again on the television.</div><br /><div></div></div><div><br /><div>Storyline - When a murder of a physicist, Leonardo Vetro, finds a symbolist, Robert Langdon, and Mr Vetra's daughter, on an adventure for a secret brotherhood, The Illuminati. Clues lead them all around the Vatican, including the four altars of science, Earth, Air, Fire and Water. An assassin, working for the Illuminati, has captured four cardinals and murders each of them painfully. Robert and Vittoria also are searing for a very destructive weapon that could kill millions.</div><br /><div></div><div>It has everything I like in a film - my favourite actors, mystery and suspense and some gory deaths with a twist at the end. Great. Definitely would watch this again.</div><br /><div></div><div></div><div><strong>Aliens in the attic</strong></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDNX8On_nUqWgOw3chQKe20hLxFfb2jykkUTNDS1Bxqr5k_yYWMwP9kqInF1C9jMbQJv7E1VVIu_MK8wftxwNzZ28N8rEkNuNI3bN4K4lKpmsJfBFYCnBlytZrSjlz-NOyQcy8JDgjAsc/s1600/Aliens%252520in%252520the%252520Attic.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 212px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 243px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539139888464653778" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDNX8On_nUqWgOw3chQKe20hLxFfb2jykkUTNDS1Bxqr5k_yYWMwP9kqInF1C9jMbQJv7E1VVIu_MK8wftxwNzZ28N8rEkNuNI3bN4K4lKpmsJfBFYCnBlytZrSjlz-NOyQcy8JDgjAsc/s400/Aliens%252520in%252520the%252520Attic.jpg" /></a>This was hilarious, we watched this about a month ago on Sky, I think.<br /><div>Storyline - An extended family go on summer vacation. When they have problem with the television image the kids go up to the attic/roof to find the antenna dish destroyed. They find out that there are four alien invaders preparing to invade Earth using amind control weapon that only affects adults. The group of children lock the four aliens in the attic and try to force the adults to leave the house so they can deal with the aliens. One of the aliens doesn't want to harm the people on Earth and helps the children to fend off the baddy aliens. Because they are small and their vulnerability is depictedin the film, it is really quite funny. The children have fun with the mind control weapon on an annoying older sister's boyfriend who is quite obnoxious, that was hilarious too.</div><div> </div><div>I will do the rest of the list another day.</div></div>a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-27254865240537817372010-11-07T04:07:00.000-08:002010-11-07T04:30:53.240-08:00Photography ATCsHere is my favourite of the six photography ATCs that I received this week.<br /><br /><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 225px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 264px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536780270270511762" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUxnWOGz2gclf2ENKHGs9R0Pf4ldzYpvgKKPl-jbNns5gjEFXpRppOgBadZv1wqNnFG0wmH75iqn_Jlxh4o4lX-AB_5HQ76sD41Nl6LXC9iJ8AMfDaNL6zwELGdFXMJgDwvXLl5w4XrOY/s400/wire.bmp" /><br /><br /><br />and here are the ones I sent out:<img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 289px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 371px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536783284653771810" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9xkNxdAi1DS1NXkae03W1IySYP1-D-ytaRbFyXgGq0ceo7bYlm94Q97-j4w5a4xm-7RjhwN0qq6zuiYIUWmtpiX52i4Qsn5XQNLMzCxRd_UAkeyHrjuvgUwLtyQmP73SlVaT3KSL7eMs/s400/my+photo+atc.jpg" /><br /><p> </p><p>Am itching to get out and start to take more photos ready for this month's swap.</p>a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-39466557698489026662010-11-05T16:06:00.000-07:002010-11-05T16:40:11.962-07:00What to do this weekend? Too many things to choose from! Geocaching, geneology or photo-taking. Andy and I are going to help Sarah move into her new flat. Lo and behold there is a cache not 500 feet from her front door! heehee. Also if the weather stays dry tomorrow, and I'm in the mood for it, I might take Millie for a walk with me - and perhaps pick up a few caches.<br /><br />I have been researching Andy's family history for a while now and have done all that i can on the internet. So now it is down to the parish records. Luckily his family have all lived in the same county for generations, so that makes it easier to research! YAY. So I might go to the County Records office tomorrow to do some more searching of births, deaths and marriages in the parish records. First of all though i gotta get up early and take Alice to work for 8am. GROAN. Well I can have a lie in on Sunday. Monday morning we are up very early to go to Sarah's. (Hi Sarah!!)<br /><br />The photo-taking comes from my recent recipt of some photography ATCs. There is a newish group on facebook where people can swap their photography on ATC sized cards. I got a nice collection this week. Will upload them over the weekend. Add that to my list! LOL. So I got to looking on the web for photography themes. One person has photos of takeaway containers. On their own, each individual photo would be a bit odd, but a collection of them looks okay. Like a set. Some ideas i got from looking on another site http://www.danielgallant.com/Photo-Theme-Series are windows, door knockers, texture in nature and texture in architecture, water images, clouds and trees. I don't want to do boring or cutsey photos, like of the dogs or scenery. I want to do more artsy type photos. So we'll see what comes out of this wekend.a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-27230439299013006612010-10-23T05:57:00.000-07:002010-10-23T11:45:43.798-07:00DieselAfter getting back from walking Millie last Saturday, my mum called to say that someone had a 2yr old boxer who needed a good home. So that night we drove up to meet Diesel. He is very excitable, about the same size as Millie. They seemed to get on, and both Andy and I liked him. So we brought him home that night. He has been absolutely brilliant and has settled nicely into our routine. I think he likes being with Millie and Andy all day, as previously his owners were out at work all day.<br /></p>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imBjcjI1Nhw<br /><p><br />They love to playfight together, above is a video of the two of them playing in the living room. At first we walked Diesel off lead in a secure park as we were not too sure if he would come back easily. Thankfully he seems to realise we are his "pack" now and follows Millie everywhere. So when we call them, they both come back.Yesterday and today we have walked them both off lead in the woods and open park. He has been very good and has come back, albeit not as well as Millie does when he is distracted, but we have not struggled as yet. </p>a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-21253264888282515132010-10-16T06:51:00.000-07:002010-10-16T07:02:01.945-07:00A walk in the parkJust been for a very lovely walk with Millie. We went about three miles along the sea wall. I managed to find four new caches, all quite easily, but we did have to climb up two very steep hills during the trip. It was a gorgeous sunny day, which certainly makes a walk much more enjoyable. We did have to pass some cows though, which always makes me nervous. Thankfully, with Millie on the lead we got passed them without too much bother. As always she needed a shower when we got back as her feet were quite muddy and she managed to roll in one of the many cow pats. Smelly dog.<br /><br />Mum rang yesterday about a 2yr old boxer who is looking for a home. So after having phoned the owner, we have agreed to go and visit the dog tonight. I am quite excited about Millie having a playpal, but we will see how it goes.a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-30028325899465685982010-10-14T13:51:00.000-07:002010-10-14T14:01:11.460-07:00chattingHad a lovely chat with Sarah over the course of the day. First of all by email at work - which was fun. She was in the Uni library - bored! Then we chatted on the phone. That was nice, because no-one was at home, so I was a bit lonely.<br /><br />I was sitting in the living room quietly playing tetris on facebook, after having popped upstairs to do a pee, when I heard some moving around upstairs. At first i wondered who/what was up there as everyone was out. Then I realised Millie was not in the living room. The daft dog had gotten trapped in Alice's bedroom and could not open the door. LOL. So I wen to rescue her and she was pretty excited to see me again. She was funny.<br /><br />PS<br />Hello sarah :Da1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-23324121477121145002010-10-13T14:31:00.000-07:002010-10-13T14:45:31.827-07:00Pizza cake<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKdfDfjpw0CLnhgx_I6wmx4PfjvV20gMj8T2qwNHKUWSMhK30ZJ6YYpfuXsyLRSbuBvmitOunwA01OqPhzQRMtGOC3BH9W5QNn0UIwKXwpD211JVxvIP9q3lMm-fvA07UenoQ5QdFVdNc/s1600/2010_1012cake0063.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527649987308710306" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKdfDfjpw0CLnhgx_I6wmx4PfjvV20gMj8T2qwNHKUWSMhK30ZJ6YYpfuXsyLRSbuBvmitOunwA01OqPhzQRMtGOC3BH9W5QNn0UIwKXwpD211JVxvIP9q3lMm-fvA07UenoQ5QdFVdNc/s400/2010_1012cake0063.JPG" /></a> <em>I</em>t is Sev's 19th birthday tomorrow and I wanted to make a "pizza" cake. I saw this decoration for a cake in a cookery book at Andy's mum's house. As Sev likes pizza I thought it would be a fun thing to do. So I made a some small cakes yesterday to trial out the decoration. I made these with icing sugar and water mix, but today when I made the bigger pizza cake, I used butter icing which gives a better finish, I think.<br /><div>Hope he likes it.</div>a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-47997270565200245172010-10-13T14:17:00.000-07:002010-10-13T14:31:41.314-07:0010/10/10 CITO Event<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlWnqJ_RaTWsGH0ItNq3CSpKHCZatHWzydgZHVEz2Lb1HDkQe1T9pMWTaIScmpiS9ApZTbEDnabd79K_Fv2vsAKQBNL68OgqWfdz1Z09NwV4WFWyGnxNLPKUKPh4bKwTDm_TboJGJwk5s/s1600/cito+101010.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 244px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 162px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527646151197551314" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlWnqJ_RaTWsGH0ItNq3CSpKHCZatHWzydgZHVEz2Lb1HDkQe1T9pMWTaIScmpiS9ApZTbEDnabd79K_Fv2vsAKQBNL68OgqWfdz1Z09NwV4WFWyGnxNLPKUKPh4bKwTDm_TboJGJwk5s/s400/cito+101010.jpg" /></a> <div><div>It is geocaching's 10th year and so 10th october 2010 was a very special day that needed to be celebrated big time. Over 76 thousand people logged a cache on this auspicious day, smashing the previous record of 50 thousand in April this year.</div><br /><div></div><div>Needless to say, I joined in too. I went to Essex's first ever CITO event. CITO = Cache in Trash out. So this meant clearing out any rubbish, or trash, that was lying around in one of the country parks. As it is a stunning beautiful area that I visit regularly, I felt I ought to do "my bit". So off I went and met up with over 20 other cachers and between us we filled a trailer full of rubbish - it was quite unbelievable just how much rubbish there was. </div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 238px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 191px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527646162701791490" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY2BmUTFBff72YVWlFgZ0t9YuubyMXEeKq0c6M5HmToHpxBcerIopM8ALRGanEJctR8BWj3mQAfbgSK7C0GDFKhT8KNPcOUA4SwNJP9i1Ad5RQ0L4Pc4taUYdIyoVuPMhOQ-3BeePfxcg/s400/rubbish2.jpg" />Thankfully the weather was wonderful and dry. It was a little windy in the country park, but the sunny and dry day more than made up for a bit of wind. In fact it was such a lovely day I persuaded Andy to come for a walk with me and Millie in the late afternoon. After going round in circles in a field full of cow pats getting lost, and being chased by a herd of cows, I only managed to nab one more cache. And Andy was not impressed with the walk at all. But all in all it was a good day.</div>a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-87059862553229128372010-10-09T14:30:00.000-07:002010-10-09T14:47:24.596-07:00just a normal weekendHad a nice day today. Andy and I had a lie in, after getting up at 6am every morning this week, it was a treat to lie in bed until 9. After a bath and a leisurely breakfast we took Millie for a walk. We tried to find a geocache which involved crossing a field with some horses. Now I am not too scared of horses, but when a bigun come running at you, just a week after another horse tried kicking Millie, it is a little scary. So I told Andy to walk quickly with Millie to get off the field, whilst I walked as quick as I could with the horse at my shoulder. So needless to say, i didn't get the cache. I will just have to try again without taking Millie with us.<br /><br />So we went on to a country park just a quarter mile further and had a lovely walk around there. It had a nice cafe, shop and three trails. The three different trails took you around the country park with a focus on three different things, like sculpture, WW2 and explosives. The park used to have a factory on it which produced dynamite, gelignite, and other explosives, so it has quite an interesting history.<br /><br />One strnage thing we did see was some very old style houses, like 15th century old, in a sort of circle with the intention of making a village and village green. One house had been transported from Stansted area when they built Stansted airport. Apparently the house was sold to the current owners for 50p. How bizarre. Even more bizarre the house is currently being protected by chipboard, so it looked very strange with a chipboard house and thatched roof.<br /><br />Needless to say Millie managed to jump into a very smelly ditch, so she needed a shower when we got back.a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-1626076325343343302010-10-03T12:51:00.000-07:002010-10-03T13:05:26.905-07:00Caching in EssexI went caching one night after work. It was a dry day, we've had a lot of rain this week. So I took the opportunity to go for a nice walk in the Essex countryside. The walk was about 2miles, which was just about right for me. It took me 2hours, but I was sauntering along and took loads of photos. My last cache I nabbed just as it was getting dark. Below are some photos from my circular route.<br />These berries were very photogenic!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDufEInMoqrhjP5-nNnkuk7qEb5q20vW6rjsrqdmom-MnmrGuw4gAzln8NDii7FcmwDrNb5GkDdT-pQ-tCg9bRmegtO7s30LcInbuZ_frbp4XqvCqRcu9S-T5TmlP219lDDHxm8SlgVEI/s1600/berries.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 149px; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523910895516693506" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDufEInMoqrhjP5-nNnkuk7qEb5q20vW6rjsrqdmom-MnmrGuw4gAzln8NDii7FcmwDrNb5GkDdT-pQ-tCg9bRmegtO7s30LcInbuZ_frbp4XqvCqRcu9S-T5TmlP219lDDHxm8SlgVEI/s200/berries.jpg" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmmki2j5bpLDZsWbsOnRXMYAJCDqHqP2tsOXRQ81K42XUFJK9fBr3FZxZhytjbjLwoRz_w6bfSMC7Ek94vq36rkpGTDHHEqV-IgXJwx_KGafPun5IZ51LzA4FQmAt3SOrfmy_NEhuRMsU/s1600/llamas+30.09.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 200px; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523910898581372450" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmmki2j5bpLDZsWbsOnRXMYAJCDqHqP2tsOXRQ81K42XUFJK9fBr3FZxZhytjbjLwoRz_w6bfSMC7Ek94vq36rkpGTDHHEqV-IgXJwx_KGafPun5IZ51LzA4FQmAt3SOrfmy_NEhuRMsU/s200/llamas+30.09.jpg" /></a><br />I was amazed to come across these llamas whilst I was out walking.<br /><br /><br />This is a typical cache pot<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDWKA1tSbQVfTVTHon3aVPQM2x18YiOllO_DfcKkiYnIT9hachA0okGMZ5CU1lp_WID9HszFDVahYPVkZom5vBb0LjvZUJvjORIJXG3UO_FsUuGbHZBOVk7EzyOziuxH-UYoZGAOQ78QM/s1600/P9302394.JPG"><img style="WIDTH: 200px; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523910892194390818" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDWKA1tSbQVfTVTHon3aVPQM2x18YiOllO_DfcKkiYnIT9hachA0okGMZ5CU1lp_WID9HszFDVahYPVkZom5vBb0LjvZUJvjORIJXG3UO_FsUuGbHZBOVk7EzyOziuxH-UYoZGAOQ78QM/s200/P9302394.JPG" /></a><br /> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnmn8Ovxaye_Li-sbHsM7tWXs0LPVNFMoCbtE7V8eeABeJ9e7fMdCtIFhu6pgwGRVtYCs6z_CNlVttDS9MaWKcYM7mw8rp-6n0b5bFyKkjgyjoxEwNm1qs8K_qBkcEqEN9X7fMm_cRWms/s1600/toadstool+in+tree+Stock.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 200px; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523910883077573394" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnmn8Ovxaye_Li-sbHsM7tWXs0LPVNFMoCbtE7V8eeABeJ9e7fMdCtIFhu6pgwGRVtYCs6z_CNlVttDS9MaWKcYM7mw8rp-6n0b5bFyKkjgyjoxEwNm1qs8K_qBkcEqEN9X7fMm_cRWms/s200/toadstool+in+tree+Stock.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjd7t23laj053kqXwLIAQMpmLAPVDu0Zecu1vHFiT_DVf1_w5V16SfHAGe_4yZjo9pgX_rJKC2dTLnG3jC3cyPnYb_2Hf87i7PfUs1iZbZwsbDVJDm4BfRdm_UJZUyJO8Sfx3v6vwbqZc/s1600/P9302390.JPG"><img style="WIDTH: 150px; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523910878535111346" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjd7t23laj053kqXwLIAQMpmLAPVDu0Zecu1vHFiT_DVf1_w5V16SfHAGe_4yZjo9pgX_rJKC2dTLnG3jC3cyPnYb_2Hf87i7PfUs1iZbZwsbDVJDm4BfRdm_UJZUyJO8Sfx3v6vwbqZc/s200/P9302390.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><div> </div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div>a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-15013947979262338562010-09-12T09:03:00.000-07:002010-09-12T13:11:36.759-07:00Church MicrosAndy and I took part in a Ride and Stride event yesterday. This is about visiting churches and trying to raise money towards the upkeep of those churches. Andy and I were out all day. Of course it was the perfect excuse to get some church micros to notch up some more caches. We came across some truly amazing places of worship. It is such a shame that not so many people use them anymore, but we were pleasantly surprised with the enthusiasm of some of the people 'manning' the church open days. Of the 11 churches we visited we only went inside four of them.<br /><div><div> </div><div></div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 195px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516059870990061474" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKkaHtT024GY9w9hCxG2pindVHgBmWDASbEpwhqZMv_uW7dj17wDamYAFrsjY58G4jovqZ372k6-c-TjMDb9MJdxz2RjHBXzGDKSJ64FMXvDYR3udAU0LcSrkWU1u1mZ_KWjXByfKOuoo/s320/933900.jpg" /> <div>This is the first one we visited for a quick 'cache and dash' church micro. It was only 9.30am so no-one was around, but it is not used for regular worship anymore so there are no seats inside - we peeked through the windows! Being perched high above a hill it can be seen from the main road and also has magnificent views across the Essex countryside.</div><br /><p>The next church looked quite plain on the outside but inside it had some marvellous decoration from early 20th century artists with some very lovely aluminium panels.</p><p></p><p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516062732297004434" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCi4g7mG_Lx_q6SWeTzKRDO8nmpa8tAnJNvTbRetgYK3tmdbGZfkhc2MCi8CHDSLqiXWHmQVLk6xBt2huHNbs3My9m-CAskJPd7mGbhJQ5sVNiZGlPfgC1Qf_q7fW8I6OjM1XjUTA2FXk/s320/gt+warley+interior.jpg" /></p><div></div><div>Our next stop was at St Andrews Church. Here is the litch gate. The church is over 800 years old, with people worshipping in this spot for generations, including Andy's family. We spent some time here and went to find Andy's nan's grave.</div><div></div><br /><div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516066476730185138" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmbTpokdhbl5RzJ7MdmCZpdGZlihqIJn-hvcm1lAhUjJvZxbVvPqTnrJv3Yux1IveOUMMN2VyaKqUggcxunRsZW87fVHdY9w8Ibw_qjennpadcCdkRnMaS0ggP4fXDSY8bhsTQxd2WamU/s320/litch+gate+at+st+andrews.jpg" />Next on our list was North Ockendon's St Mary Magdalene Church. This is thought to date back t before 1075AD. However it may date as far as 630AD ast St Cedd, Bishop of the East Saxons, is thought to have carried out baptisms at the adjacent St Cedd's Well. I loved these memorials of the Poynts family.</div><div></div><div></div><div><p></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPxfUHaZuf5UJ_l8akOh6z81OpkOyATEhvTi9PigUD26jsWVCEeiElrUl40r3-FNBo2nNx6QmejLPWEV8kU54WFTvlULpIyFChOAU1yBaRMLdEehxR00eeRjFqNyuRSXhpCEJ3m51u_pk/s1600/mary+magdalene.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 224px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 264px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516091081610007106" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPxfUHaZuf5UJ_l8akOh6z81OpkOyATEhvTi9PigUD26jsWVCEeiElrUl40r3-FNBo2nNx6QmejLPWEV8kU54WFTvlULpIyFChOAU1yBaRMLdEehxR00eeRjFqNyuRSXhpCEJ3m51u_pk/s200/mary+magdalene.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC8tiPB4ShFTOo2Wkt16ZezvC6ErZFUNhim0TbRgQX7sNB9nNq0MbMgB0Ds_xcUHCIgbuv28WVcyPzYioZ0SaglUr74Oghb-Rvp8jKMwhMXQVYePKtVe-fYoQ9O14zxtDeqmoERWW3e80/s1600/poynts+memorials.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 238px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 283px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516091071010771762" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC8tiPB4ShFTOo2Wkt16ZezvC6ErZFUNhim0TbRgQX7sNB9nNq0MbMgB0Ds_xcUHCIgbuv28WVcyPzYioZ0SaglUr74Oghb-Rvp8jKMwhMXQVYePKtVe-fYoQ9O14zxtDeqmoERWW3e80/s200/poynts+memorials.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><p><br /></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>We were warmly greeted by some people who were manning the open day at the church. They told us all about the history of the church and we had a good look at everything. There were these lovely alabaster memorials on the wall to the Poynts family who figured highly in the history of the church. The one on the left is one of two, one of them Sir James Poynts. There are about eight of the white ones on the left that were put up between 1603 and 1607 which apparenlty were an attempt to cover previous family history by recording eight more Poynts from 1307 to 1603. The first attempt at family tree!</div><div> </div><div>All in all we had a great day and I got 12 more caches to add to my 800 finds. All good.</div><div> </div><div> </div></div></div>a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-45083649246175772672010-06-15T14:16:00.000-07:002010-06-15T14:32:09.678-07:00Day Ten = Creativity Boot CampDay ten - Creativity Boot Camp.<br />I've missed a few days cos I wanted to take photos but just haven't done that. So today have decided just to do the journalling for now and possibly think about the photos later.<br /><br />Journal prompt today is thinking about the experiences of the day. That's easy, it's like making a list. I can do lists. In fact I love them.<br /><br />At the end of your day, think about the millions of sensations you experienced. Try to answer these questions.....<br /><strong>Which ones stand out in your mind as being the most pleasant?</strong><br /><em>Today I finally collated a load of data from two different people that will answer a question that we have been trying to get hold of for over a month. I felt really pleased that we finally had cracked it, in just one day's hard work. Now all I have to do is analyse it all!</em><br /><em></em><br /><strong>Were there any that were repulsive?</strong><br /><em>I had to go to the GP today with suspected kidney infection. I was asked to pee into a tube - yuk, why cant we have a pot to make it a little easier, instead of trying to aim, without being able to see clearly down there, to pee into a pot which is less than an inch wide. That was yukky especially as I managed to pee all over my hand. But even worse was seeing how awful my urine actually looked. NOT healthy, not healthy at all. So thankfully I have some antibiotics and will start to feel a little bit better.</em><br /><br /><strong>Did any bring back memories from your past?</strong><br /><em>I can't really think of anything specific really, not from very old past. But more recently I had a kidney infection only a few months a go and remembered how bad the pain was then.</em><br /><em></em><br /><strong>Did any motivate you to do anything particular?</strong><br /><em>Oh gosh, I am harping on about this blasted kidney infection, when I really dont want to think about it, I just want to get better... quickly. I have been feeling uncomfortable and suspicious of a urine infection. Then in the morning the pain started to travel to the side of my back. Exactly the same as a couple of months ago when I had an infection before. So this pain motivated me to make the doctor's appointment, rather than wait and hope it goes away. Cos that just makes the pain much much worse. So I am pleased I was motivated enough to do that.</em><br /><em></em><br /><strong>Did any of these sensations inspire you in your creations?</strong><br /><em>Not today.</em><br /><em></em><br /><strong>If you were to try and capture creatively any of these sensations, how would you do it?</strong><br /><em>Hmmm, that's a tricky one. I don't really know to be honest. I had a great journey home, very quick with little traffic, and it didnt take too long to get out of the car park, like it usually does. So I did some journalling about how leaving the car park is the best part of my day.</em>a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-43021314800536309052010-06-15T00:04:00.000-07:002010-06-15T00:05:27.565-07:0030 day colour challengeI am off to buy a journal after work so I can join in on this challenge which starts today. How exciting. I wish I didnt have to go to work, so I could stay at home and CREATE all day!!!a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4772124739116660696.post-31623620273106398472010-06-15T00:02:00.000-07:002010-06-15T00:04:33.583-07:0030 day colour challengehref="http://www.iheartrunwithscissors.com/2010/06/30-day-journal-challenge.html"><img border="0" src="http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc83/courtney_bruesch/JanelsChallengeButton.gif" />a1nniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06723477350351108690noreply@blogger.com1