This definitely was a crazy idea. But still, sponsor me, won’t you? Lots of very kind and lovely people have sponsored me already, and I am very grateful.
Although that does mean the pressure is on. The numbers are moving in the right direction, but it is still quite rubbish.
T minus 30 days Total distance - 5.02km Total moving time - 45:49 Average moving speed - 6.57km/h Really terrible run. Didn’t feel energised and legs hurt almost straight away. Also appear to have injured something in my right ankle. Still, it’s my third official 5k distance.
The last few attempts at running have been a little difficult, and I must admit to have been getting a bit dispirited by this whole 5k thing. That race that seemed so very far away is now looming closer and closer, and I am still being overtaken by people taking their dogs for a walk.
Last night, I had a dream about the race and it was a bit of a revelation. I thought these kind of dreams only happened to religious types, but there you have it.
I was browsing around the interwebs, as you do, and came across the company Cavallini & Co, who make some good-looking stationery, with a vintage twist. I found two particular favourites:
These rather good Sticky Notes come in a fancy tin and cover every eventuality. From a simple to-do list, to a reminder, and even a day by day note. They look quite small, but I love the variety. Sadly, they are out of stock, or I would have been quite tempted.
All I can say is this is my favourite header that I’ve ever done, I think.
Made with: Pixelmator Font: Rockwell Filters: Just a bit of motion blur on the text
The minute this episode started, we got to see more fearless attitude from Rose. As the Doctor was busy trying to impress her, and take her futher and further forward into time, she was happy to say: “Fine by me, let’s go further,” without actually seeing any of the things they were passing. She trusted that he was doing what he said, and she was happy to wait for the better deal.
Last month, I blogged about a new show starting on Revision3 - Dan 3.0. It seemed like a great idea, Dan was already an established video blogger with a good fanbase, and he was intending to turn his life over to the viewers. You’d get to suggest and vote on things for Dan to do with his life - and the project was set to last a whole year.
It seems to have fizzled out already.
So, this is how the BBC brought back Doctor Who - to a skeptical viewing public. At the time, it was ever-so-slightly ruined by a certain Graham Norton, but now, watching it back having purchased the series on iTunes, it’s as it should be. It’s fun watching things with the benefit of hindsight, but I tried to go into this with an open mind.
I have a question. I’ve been thinking I should really graduate from running about in tatty t-shirts, as it worked wonders on my feet when I treated them to some proper equipment. So… when did sports wear become quite so complicated?
I haven’t been in an actual shop yet (that’s a whole other bridge to try and cross), but browsing about online, I found this very pretty vest. I don’t intend to wear a vest, I’m all about the long sleeves, but this looks like standard running wear to me.
LibriVox is an organisation with a simple goal - to make all public domain works accessible in audiobook form. I’ve been involved for a long while now, part of an enormous group of volunteers who record chapters, poems and entire books to attempt to reach this goal.
To take a break from the Grace Harlowe world, I picked a travel book called - British Highways and Byways from a Motor Car. The book journals the travels of an American visiting our small island with the luxury of a car - having previously been frustrated by visiting via train. He covers a lot of the country, up to Scotland and through Wales, London and the South and plenty more.
I’ve been going through a bit of an obsession with the stripe effect, and this is another one that began with that. A couple of brushes, and for the first time I played around with the edges to make it not quite as rectangular and full of straight lines.
Made with: Pixelmator Brushes: Floral Decor Art Brushes Font: Party LET Filter: Stylize / Edge Work
Ignore everything I said in the previous post about Superleague in Italy. Franck is not racing there this weekend. Supposedly the team withdrew because of financial difficulties. Probably a mixture of that and a rather annoyed FKM after the last race they did manage to attend.
What a mess.
They have recommissioned Sherlock! Fabulous news, although I don’t think anyone expected any different. The intriguing part of the announcement is that it is to be another batch of three episodes, and they will each continue the format of a 90 minute sitting. After the second episode of series 1, I felt that 90 minutes was drawing things out a little, but if it helps them to tell the story, then we will have to trust them. Whilst I would like more than three episodes, I can understand why it is necessary to limit the stories. They must be quite tricky to write, and Moffat will be fitting it in between two bits of Doctor Who (more on that in a moment). Good things come in small packages, apparently. Talking of the man who has taken over the BBC, Moffat says:
This post is specifically for Amy, because she asked for more stationery. Reluctantly, eh-hem, I am obliging. It is such a wrench to scour the web for this stuff, you know?
Monopoly Game Board Planner I hate the idea of someone throwing away Monopoly, because… why would you? But if you’re going to get rid of your board games, it makes sense for them to be turned into something useful, doesn’t it? Also available: Scrabble and Trivial Pursuit!
What a great way to start the month - a surprise wedding! (Actually, it wasn’t that much of a surprise to me as I read this fabulous post first - oops!)
Not such a great surprise for Jennifer, though. I have honestly never heard anyone quite so snobby. Of course, she inhabits a world where a barbecue takes two very stressful weeks to organise and involves marquees and hiding the expensive liquor. Did she really think Uncle Jailbird was going to be let out for a party? Funerals, yes. Maybe even a wedding at a push, but a party? Unlikely.
It was a warm, sunny afternoon in August, and Mr C and I found ourselves sitting in a large back garden with a cup of tea. This is unusually civilised of us. We surveyed the extra-long grass, and discussed what size plot you would need to fit an underground bunker.
Quite big, is the answer.
We discussed the pros and cons of more than one storey, and the concept of bungalows being more expensive because they take up more land, and how this translates to the underground.
Franck has seemingly disappeared off the face of the planet, and so it is left to other drivers to preview the upcoming Superleague Race. I’m assuming FKM is still driving in the series, although last we heard he was a little bit peeved at the entire thing - his team included.
This weekend the gang head to Italy, the Adria International Raceway for Round 8 of the 2010 Superleague Formula Championship. The official preview suggests:
A while back, I pondered the state of things in Dorset, where they drink beer from the Piddle Brewery.
Fast forward a few months, and my Dad presents me with three bottles as a house-warming present.
Here we have:
Piddle in a bottle Jimmy Riddle in a bottle Little Willie Naturally, the next step was a taste test.
Piddle in a Bottle - At first I thought it just tasted like lager, but then I got the aftertaste and realised the bitterness of the ale. It’s nice, but I don’t think I could drink a whole one. Maybe if I was sitting in a traditional pub with a roaring fire, and was preparing to nurse the beer for an entire evening. I think I just drink too fast for this kind of alcohol.
Ahh, that makes a nice and classy change from that last header, doesn’t it? I was mostly inspired by the image used to promote the brushes for this one. Something nice, bold simple and blue. It pretty much fits the bill.
Although it has just occurred to me that the bit in the middle looks like a moustache.
Made with: Pixelmator Brushes: Baroque Ornaments Font: Copperplate Gothic Bold
I figured I had gone on about running a bit too much for a little while, so I saved two weeks of the programme to go up at once. Here goes nothing:
Week 7 Day 1
I don’t want to say anything that is going to jinx the next few weeks of running, but this was relatively easy. I wonder if having a goal - a race to actually train for - has made a difference? We shall see.
Credit: Shinya ICHINOHE/Flickr
I know, I know, it’s not called ‘Baby Panda and Man Thursday’ but I love how the panda is just oblivious, happily chewing on what I assume is bamboo but looks suspiciously like a cigar.
The Ironbridge Gorge Museums are actually a collection of ten separate attractions spread out over a small area in Telford. There are all kinds of things there, including tile and china museums, pipeworks and a tar tunnel. I didn’t really fancy visiting all ten of these. In fact, there were only two bits that I was really interested in - the Ironbridge itself, and Blists Hill Victorian Town.
The bridge is really just a bridge. The site says:
I completed the next letter of the A-Z Adventure yesterday, and it was great fun! I will blog it soon. Before I left in the morning, though, I had a bit of a panic. I have lots of plans and not enough time and why did I ever think this was a good idea in the first place? After a bit of thought and contemplation, I came to some conclusions.
Let’s get straight to the point. When I said I was going to do the entire alphabet over the course of a year, I might have wildly over-estimated my abilities to go outside. Therefore, I’m adjusting the rules and regulations slightly, so that I hope to complete it as soon as possible, but it might take more like two years.
I started with the brushes and was working purple on white. It was an interesting start, but it wasn’t quite what I was after. Then I put the spirals in place and applied one of the blending options (I forget which) and this amazing thing happened. I’m pretty sure it’s channelling E4, although entirely unintentional.
Made with: Pixelmator Brushes: Circle and Brush Font: Arial Rounded MT Bold
After a long week at work, this is the kind of thing I like to come home to.
I have the best husband in the world. Even if he does wrinkle his nose and say: “It’s just a box of breakfast.” Oh, it is so much more than that, my friend. Just ask the leprechaun.
My mum said: “Try it. It looks like it will be sour but that’s just because it is green. It’s basically just like a plum.”
That is exactly what it was. Just a small green plum. Even if it does have a name like… greenhouse? rain gauge? Greengrass?
Maybe you have already heard of Mighty Girl, maybe you haven’t. I’ve been following her blog for a long time, and occasionally glanced at the Mighty Goods shopping site (which she’s now sold, but it’s still pretty cool). I never bought anything, but it’s like the ultimate window shopping for the internet.
Anyway, this is not about shopping.
A while back, Mighty Girl, otherwise known as Maggie, created a Life List. I mentioned this about the same time last year, as Maggie had managed to find herself a sponsor to achieve some of the things on her list. That, I imagine, is not going to happen to everyone. What is amazing, though, is how the Mighty Life List has been so inspiring to everyone else, and how the concept of the Life List has taken off.
Mr C and I have often discussed our desire to have less stuff. We move house on a frequent basis and the more stuff you have, the more tired your arms get by the end of each moving day.
The Amazon Kindle apps were a big turning point, I think. A big marker in the sky saying that it really is possible to own less junk. You also have to throw in our fledgling desire to live underground, and you can see we’re not exactly “normal” in the “how people live” sense.
Hey, look what I made!
You’ve all been incredibly generous so far - so much so I’ve had to up my target total. I was not expecting that. I notice everyone has donated the same amount, so I hope no one is put off if that isn’t the amount they want to give. I’m happy with 20p, too.
I realised that I wasn’t that sure how far I was actually running in the allotted time, so I scouted around and had a look for GPS type apps for my phone.
This one may not be as spick and span as some of the others I’ve come up with, but the point about this header is that I made it up and created it all from scratch. The wavy background was done by hand, which is why it’s slightly bumpy, although I secretly think that adds to the charm.
Plus I was trying to use some nice bright colours to make a change to the more subtle tones I am always tempted by.
Yesterday, I was just possibly thinking about signing up for a 5K race. I couldn’t have made that tweet more unsure if I tried - and I really did try!
Somehow, today, I’ve taken it that next step. I signed up for the race and I set up a Just Giving page.
Oops.
I have written more information over on Sidepodcast (as the charity is a Grand Prix related one), or you can get all the information on the sponsorship page.
A slightly better week this week, although I had to work through a bit of “why am I so rubbish” emotional stuff, as you may notice halfway through.
Week 6 Day 1
I must have been a bit smug about the twenty minute thing because today was quite tricky. It’s been quite a few days since my last run, so perhaps I left it too long this time. Even so, I must have broken a mental barrier somewhere because there were plenty of times I wanted to stop but I didn’t give up. Well, only with about 30 seconds to go and that’s because the bin men kept getting in the way.
It must be time for another Etsy-flavoured Baby Panda Thursday, in which I bring you some of the cute handmade stuff I have spotted over there.
Painted Rock Panda with Bamboo I know, I know, it’s a painted rock. But look at how much detail there is! It’s definitely weird, the panda is a bit squished but I like it.
Ohm Ohm Panda We’ve already established that I like pandas when they are given amusing characters (ahem, Nerdy Panda). I like to think this one has quite a stressful job running a bamboo factory, and is taking a breather from high-flying meetings.
Channel 4’s fantabulous program Grand Designs featured an Underground House in the third series, so this evening I watched the show via 4OD and took copious notes! Here’s what I found out as I watched.
They built their house in a conveniently house-sized gap in a quarry that was already dug. The guy said he wanted a house like that to both “hide away and not impose.” Sounds about right. She was more into the eco effort, which we are less worried about. They only have one bit that sees daylight, so all of that was glass. The back of the house was lit by sunpipes. More on that later. She was expecting a baby! Big surprise. They dug down and found a big hole. That’s a problem. And another hole! The architect is called Mr Bodger. What could possibly go wrong? Base layer of concrete, then insulation. No heating required. Six times the insulation used in a normal house. Next layer is waterproof layer. Leaks would be catastrophic as there’s no way of repairing it once you’ve buried a house. They are just filling the holes in with earth that they dug up from somewhere else. 76 tonnes of concrete. 300mm base layer. House weighs 500 tonnes - two and a half times a normal house. Big ol’ brick things for the walls that Kevin McCloud couldn’t even pick up they were so heavy. Lots of steel and concrete in the walls to withstand horizontal pressure from the earth. Kevin finally uses the word “bunker.” Woohoo! Sheep! Internal walls also made from concrete. She’s not doing very well on the eco side of things, but concrete is the only way. It’s raining. Quite a lot. Kevin says building an underground house is a bit like building a swimming pool, except you’re trying to keep the water out. The sides are being waterproofed the same as the base was. Something about bitumen and sticky back plastic.
Lukeh wrote an excellent post yesterday to celebrate the 101st blog post on his site, and as you can imagine, he went for a Room 101 feel. Lukeh’s three choices to go into Room 101 were Facebook, buses and clubbing. I pretty much agree with all of that, but given the option to choose some hateful items of my own, I couldn’t resist.
First, let Lukeh explain:
Then of course, there’s the evolution of this idea of a torture room [from the novel 1984] thanks to the famous and very good BBC show named, of course, Room 101. The idea behind the show was to try and send your absolute worst pet peeves and things you greatly dislike into Room 101 and to be banished forever.
Thus the series comes to an end - three episodes is clearly not enough, but at the same time, I’m not sure I’d want thirteen or so of them either.
Suddenly, all that talk about Watson’s blog and Sherlock’s website is actually impacting on the story. It starts to make sense why they actually exist. I was worried that it might be a bit too inclusive, though. I like the additional information but you shouldn’t have to read them to get it. They were careful, and I think they erred on the side of caution in this case, but it’s a fine line.
My dad sent me a link to this video, in which a man saw some birds sitting on an electric line and wondered what they would sound like as musical notes.
Sounds weird, but it’s kinda intriguing.
And of course, it’s very fitting with this week’s header.
Ah, the difficult second album. I’ve seen plenty of people slating this episode, and I’ll be honest, I’m almost right there with them. I lost track of the story mid-way through but I wondered whether this was my fault more than anything else. I’ve watched it twice now, and I do think the underlying story was pretty simple but it is very dressed up and quite confusing.
The BBC played a risky game with this short series. Aimed very directly at the people that love Doctor Who, they built it up to be something enormous. Steven Moffatt spent a lot of time raving about it on Twitter, and between him and Mark Gatiss, interviews, blog posts and adverts, it was hard to escape from the glare of the descending Sherlock.
When it finally arrived, it turns out, the risk was absolutely worth it. Written to perfection, with a fine story and strong (as ever) dialogue, plus two extremely well-chosen actors in place, it’s hard to see where this episode could have been improved upon.
Recently, we found ourselves meeting up with some F1 fans - families of weary parents and gadget-hungry children - and we managed to sell several iPads to them. The kids just loved the iPad, whereas the parents were keen on the F1 Timing App - and it is pretty revolutionary.
Selling the iPad is actually really easy to do. My mother is a notorious technophobe, but I left her alone with an iPad for five minutes, and she loved it.
There are lots of things the internet is good for, but handing over control of your life to internet users for a year would never have struck me as one of them.
The newest show on Revision 3 is called Dan 3.0 and it features Dan as he takes a year out of his normal schedule to do what the people on the internet tell him. It’s a strange idea, but from what I can see, it’s full of promise. It’s kind of like a video version of something Dave Gorman or Danny Wallace would do. (Must be something to do with the letter D!)
The fabulous Alex pointed me in the direction of a site called Pencil Talk, and I love it. It does exactly what you would expect, looks at pencils from all over the world and reviews how they look and how they write.
I don’t have much else to say, the pencils speak for themselves! It’s nice to have some stationery thoughts to blog about since the end of Stationery Corner. I really should do another Card Week.
Hadrian’s Wall is quite confusing. It’s a big long wall, obviously, but I wasn’t sure if just seeing it counted as part of the alphabet, as most of the visitor spots are Roman forts that come under another name. To combat this, I chose the Housesteads Roman Fort. Win-win!
To get there, I had to travel along the amazing Roman roads. You know, you drive along a straight road and you joke about it being one of them Roman roads. They’re nothing like the roads running parallel with Hadrian’s wall. They are as straight as an arrow, and so incredibly bumpy, up and down, just like Postman Pat in the opening sequence. Anyway, suffice to say, it was so much fun that I almost missed the Housesteads Fort. From the road, it is just a carpark with a little hut selling ice creams.
I stumbled upon these brushes of electric poles, wires and birds. It seemed like such an odd combination that I instantly downloaded them to play around with. Turns out it was a lot of fun, particularly when you had tiny wires and enormous birds. Of course, I had to get a bit more sensible with proportions for the finished product, and I hope I got it right.
The text was a real nightmare. I started out with a wibbly wobbly thing but I didn’t feel like it worked properly. It looked something like this.
In the ongoing saga of Montagny versus Superleague, it looks as though our favourite Frenchman is still not happy, particularly after events at Brands Hatch this weekend.
In this week’s Autosport magazine (available digitally here), they suggest that the team behind the football name Barazi-Epsilon gave priority to Tristan Gommendy when it came to pitstops. Franck said:
We had good pace here, we were fast, but I think we gave away a podium finish at least. I like the series, I like the cars but I’m quite upset again with the team. I was screaming at them to let me pit, but it was a big mess and lack of communication.
Yes! Jude is out of the way. The only real problem this story had, aside from the ongoing annoyances at David putting his size fifteen wellies in it every step of the way, is that it was so obvious from the start. Jude was older, not that bothered, pretty darn lazy, whilst Pip - although head over heels in love - was none of these things. Her friend Izzy put it best, suggesting that when Pip was with Jude, she was not a particularly nice person. Thank goodness that she has gone back to counting grass and sizing up cows. I find it slightly odd that she would return so quickly to the bosom of the farmyard, but perhaps she wanted comfort in something familiar.
A while ago, Mr C compiled a list of things you cannot podcast near to, and they are (including but not limited to):
near train stations in windy locations anywhere close to police or fire stations next door to noisy neighbours in an owl sanctuary Owls are a surprisingly common problem.
A week or so ago, I offered a throwaway comment on Sidepodcast, suggesting if we had the funding, we would build a bunker and never come out. I think that was actually a reaction to some traffic based issues, but the more I think about it, the more this seems like a good idea for noise issues as well.
It’s time for our next set of headers to appear (although technically this should have gone up yesterday - shhh). This first one was never intended to be a header, I was just messing around with the original photo, taken in Gretna Green.
It’s silly, and it won’t win any design prizes, but I like it.
Made with: Pixelmator Original photo: Welcome to Gretna Green Filters: Sepia colour, small amount of noise Font: Helvetica
As we established, Franck was back in the car for Girondins de Bordeaux for the Brands Hatch weekend, although we still don’t know where or why he went away for round 6. Maybe he just needed a rest.
I didn’t get to see any of the action, apart from a few videos of the terrible crash for Chris van der Drift that overshadowed the entire day. It was an awful accident but he appears to have escaped with relatively minor injuries - a broken ankle and the like. Hope he recovers quickly.
