Hello everyone, welcome to the I <3 Franck blog. The mean old man over at Sidepodcast won’t let me talk about Champ Car (even though they have sidepods too!), so I’ve created this blog to worship at the feet of my new favourite CC driver: Franck Montagny. I say my new favourite CC driver as if I had one before, but quite honestly, I know absolutely nothing about Champ Car. …

Ever since I saw Live Writer, I knew that Microsoft had it in them to be good. They know what they’re doing when it comes to marketing to the masses but for us geeky individuals, they leave a lot to be desired. Live Writer has the essence of greatness, in that everything you need to blog to many different platforms is all in one place and it is unbelievably easy …

I posted recently about the brilliance of the iPlayer and how it had revolutionised my television viewing experience. Well. I take it back. After booting up my laptop today, I opened the iPlayer Download Manager only to find a message suggesting I did not have anything to watch. Except that is a blatant lie, because I have been quite happily downloading things for the past few weeks. I've been storing …

The thing is, I didn't set up my Facebook account, it started out as a promotional tool for Sidepodcast. It still is that, but now I have started to take more of an interest in the whole social networking thing. I logged in and today, of all days, it wished me a Happy Birthday. Because as it wasn't specifically about me when it was set up, the account's birthday was …

Sidepodcast has a brand new Wordpress theme, introduced for the New Year, and I wrote it. I can't claim 100% of the credit, but a lot of the fundamental CSS work was mine. There were just a few twiddly, fiddly bits that I needed a hand with. I couldn't find a theme that suited me so I decided to write my own. You have to start by picking a layout …

Picture the scene: You enter a bustling Apple store, full of giggling teenage girls snapping pictures of themselves and uploading them to Bebo. Everyone is there buying gadgets with their Christmas money and planning what they'll get in the January sales. You are buying some software, which you have had to ask an assistant to fetch from the back of the store. You are waiting by the Genius Bar. A …

In the good old days, I used to enjoy television at Christmas. Actually, let's rephrase that, I used to enjoy television full stop. My dad has always been one for guessing plot lines before they happen, working out the twists, the jokes, even the next words out of an actor's mouth. It was quite annoying, but I guess if you can see these things, you want to share them. Since …

My inaugural post as a somewhat techie blogger must be about the BBC iPlayer. I have been using it for about a week now and I've formed some initial impressions. Firstly, confusion reigned supreme. Back when the iPlayer was announced, I quite obviously checked it out. Having TV accessible via the Internet is something I am keeping a close eye on, and I have strong views about the BBC as …

I am back. But things will not be like they were before. Forget about all that personal stuff. It works for some people but it no longer works for me. I loved it while it lasted, but times change, and some things are more important than blogging your entire life history on the web. Here, I would imagine, there will be comments on life as a whole, society as I …

With the new look design, I wanted to give the About Me section a bit of a new flavour to it as well. I've spotted a lot of people writing 100 Things About Me sections. Doesn't seem all that difficult, does it? My first job was to write down the list of numbers 1 to 100, which actually took ages. Then, I started at the beginning, with the basics. Born …

Woke Up This Morning is no more. Sorry for the abrupt disappearance and for anyone who is going to miss my ramblings. This is the consequence of a choice I had to make and whilst it's hard for me to see it go, ultimately it was an easy decision. Some things are more important than blogging. I'm still around over at Sidepodcast and look for me commenting on a website …

The thing I hate about being an adult is having to be responsible about money. At the moment, I’m busy trying to save for something rather important, and it’s really, really not working. My outgoings are equalling my income and there’s nothing left over. It’s rubbish. If I didn’t have the thing to save for, I would be treading water quite nicely, but it’s just a weight on my shoulders. …

Since I went crazy and started downloading every podcast that I can find, the space on my hard drive has diminished somewhat scarily. It hadn’t occurred to me, until Mr C said to make sure that I hadn’t filled the drive up completely. When I checked, I was quite shocked by the small number I was faced with. The problem is, I’m a bit obsessive about the podcasting thing. If …

I looked in the mirror yesterday and I suddenly realised that I look older. Not old, hopefully. I'm not worrying about wrinkles just yet. Definitely older than the last time I checked, though. How old I feel usually depends on whether I am asked for ID in the supermarket when I'm trying to buy beer. Or if that polite young salesman in the shop calls me “Madam”. It's little things …

The weather has taken a turn for the worse. Even though we occasionally get a sunny day and it's lovely, you can tell that it is no longer summer. At some point this week, I was woken up by my alarm and it was still dull and pretty dark outside. How depressing. When it does get lighter, it’s not that bright and glorious summer sunshine, it’s a grey morning turning …

Hello. My name's Christine and I'm a chocoholic. Well, a recovering chocoholic, anyway. I've been on the wagon for a whole week now, and it seems like forever. I didn't know I was a chocoholic, I didn't know I had a problem until I tried to quit. It happened because I was hungry and ate a Twix for lunch. Then I looked at the nutritional information (or un-nutritional information for …

A few years ago, my friend and I would spend a lot of time watching University Challenge. We would shout out all kinds of crazy answers, the first things that came into our heads, and very occasionally, we’d get the answer right. We would count up our scores and be chuffed if we got five between us out of a half hour programme of questions. You see, the thing with …

I've always wanted to go to Brownsea Island. Islands fascinate me. The idea of being totally cut off from the rest of the world, surrounded by water and completely peaceful. Brownsea Island is owned by the National Trust and is basically a nature walk that spans the length of the island - about one and a half miles. It's famous for being home to red squirrels, a species that is …

As I was driving to work this morning, I drove over an object in the road. As it slipped under the car and out of view, I noticed that it was a saw. You know, like a carpenter would use. Thankfully, it was in the middle of the road, between the wheels and couldn't do any damage. But how did it get there? Has someone got to their destination, unpacked …

We've managed to come into possession of a Nintendo DS Lite, and we cannot stop playing it. Or maybe that should read "I" cannot stop playing it. We fight over it like people fight custody battles. "I want to take it to work today." "You won't have time to play it." "Lunchtime." "I want it. Give it to me." "It's half mine." "It's half mine." There's no easy answer and …

I don't know if I mentioned it, but I sent a script off to the BBC. BBC Writersroom encourages unsolicited scripts, and they'll get read and examined for scriptwriting talent. I got my script back yesterday, just over two months since I sent it in, and obviously, they didn't like it. Big shock. It's only the second story I've ever finished, and the first script I've ever written, so I'm …

I got home last night and an enormous silver ball came flying out of the main room into the hallway. Thankfully, I had moved out of the way from my usual "removing shoes" position, and the ball missed me. For a second, I thought I was unknowingly in a remake of The Prisoner. Turns out it was just a gym ball. Has anyone tried to use one of these? I …

My list of unheard podcasts gets smaller and smaller until I find some brand new exciting ones that I want to listen to in their entirety. The time I spend at my laptop means I am being more productive and crossing things off my To-Do list as well. But it means other things are stacking up. I have still barely made a dent on my stack of books from the …

Hello. Are you all still there? I'm back. But only just. Last night, I was pulling a plug out of a 4-way socket and the whole thing exploded, sending me cowering to the other side of the room. On closer investigation, it turns out the 4-way had actually broken inside, in such a way that the experienced electrical type guy that I live with had never seen before. Could have …

Well, that's it. It's over and I did it. It was certainly an experience although not at all what I was expecting. It was fun looking at what other people were doing and finding a couple of blogs that I'll be reading in the future. I managed to stay awake until about 6am, which is very impressive for me, and then I napped in between blogging which didn't make me …

I wanted to be a teacher because I had a really good primary school teacher and I wanted to be just like her. I wanted to be a firefighter, because it seemed like a very exciting and noble thing to do. I wanted to be a housewife because I like to cook and keep house. I wanted to be happy because doesn't everyone? Although I still don't know what I …

I've already mentioned my desire to buy a house and make it solar powered and very eco-friendly. It'll be tough to do that in this country, given the lack of adequate space, and the cost of the space once you find it. The best bet is to move somewhere else, like France. But I want to get a nice big plot of land with plenty of space to sort out …

Recently, I realised that my podcast collection was a bit... lacking. I liked what I had but there wasn't all that much diversity. I was looking forward to finding out some new shows. Thankfully, with 24 hours to fill, I managed to find out some new podcasts, download them all and pretty much get up to date. Actually, that's not true, there are still a lot that I haven't got …

It's almost 12 o'clock and we've just had lunch. A little bit early, but given the complete mess-up of timings, it doesn't really matter, does it? I couldn't really eat too much during the actual marathon event and the staying up throughout the night, because when I eat, I fall asleep. I'm sure there's a biological explanation behind it, but actually, it's quite annoying. When I get home from work …

I think there was a programme on the BBC called It's Not Easy Being Green. I didn't watch it but I am currently reading the book, and it's brilliant. It's all about a family who gave up their home and moved to Cornwall, to set up a much more eco-friendly life. They didn't give themselves up to the land or anything, and are still normal people with jobs and lives, …

We went to a firework display recently. As is our way, we arrived late to the display, but nothing had started yet. We found an empty spot, climbed a fence, got a good view, set up the camera, and were ready to go. The countdown began. 3, 2, 1... Whoosh. The first fireworks went up. We tried to get some pictures, but nothing really worked. The lenses weren't really capable …

A long time ago, I walked past an art shop and saw the best painting I've ever spotted. It was a deserted beach, somehow done in purple, with two lonely figures walking along together. So, actually, they probably weren't so lonely. And I suppose the beach wasn't so deserted. Bad description. The price tag was out of reach at the time, and although still a stretch, a couple of years …

A while ago I was reading a blog that said they were going to 'announce' that they had decided to hold off on the having a kid thing. It struck me as weird when I first read it, that there was some kind of an announcement ceremony that went with this, in the same way there would be if there was an actual pregnancy. But the more I think about …

I am always correcting people. When they talk to me and pronounce a word wrong, I can't help but correct them. When I am reading something they have written, and something is spelt wrong, I have to mention it. I suppose it is not a bad thing to like correct spelling and punctuation, but it often gets on people's nerves. Nobody likes to be picked up on something they've spelled …

I think I see the world differently to how normal people see it. When Mr C and I talk about something complex, like politics, I don't always understand all of the things he is telling me. The answer always seems so simple. Why don't they just give the prisoners back? That kind of thing. But even when the complications are explained to me, I am still adamant that there is …

I often go along with what the people around me are saying. It's not necessarily that I agree with them or that I don't, I just prefer to go along with them. It's not that I am being influenced by them or even being 'under the thumb' about a particular subject. It's just the way I am. My biggest problem is probably also my greatest asset. I can see arguments …

Mr C always says it takes a lot to impress me. Quite often I come home to find he has discovered some new gadget or some piece of news or something that is just so important and he is really excited about it. All too often, I am less bothered about it. Yeah, whatever. The truth is, I don't mind reading about something, or hearing about it, but it's not …

I mentioned somewhen at the beginning of this Blogathon, eons and eons ago, that I jumped out of my skin when I saw a snake. That's one of the few things that scares me. I didn't jump when a scary moment happened in LOST. I don't tend to be bothered by horror films, and ghost trains just don't do it for me. However, when I come home from work and …

One of my New Year's resolutions, as documented on this site, was to try and write some transcripts. I'd had some moderate success doing a couple and wanted to see if there was any future in it for me. Volunteering for a television site, and producing a couple of transcripts a week was a really great thing for me to do. It kept me active, gave me something productive to …

Is everyone still having fun? A lot of people are talking about a second wind or a renaissance in their writing. I am feeling the exact opposite. I was absolutely fine to start with, had a bit of a dip after seven or so hours, because that was my usual bedtime. Then I've been good all through the night. It's now 6am and I'm really starting to feel it. I've …

Something I realised just on Friday of last week - I am beginning to feel comfortable at work. You know how it can take a while to really feel like you're doing a good job, well at this particular place of employment, it's taken a long while. I don't know whether it was one good day, or if it was the start of a new upwards trend, we'll have to …

I dream very vividly. Sometimes it's very scary, and not at all a pleasant experience. But sometimes, just sometimes, I manage to get something out of the so-real-I-could-be-awake experience. Just recently I was having such a convincing dream that I woke up and immediately wrote it down. A couple of hours later and I had the plans for another story. It was quite amazing. I don't know where my subconscious …

My first ever job was actually as a waitress. It lasted four hours before I ran out of there screaming and never went back. So, my first real job was as a "kitchen assistant" in an old people's home. I put the quotes in there, because where it says kitchen assistant, you should read: girl who washes up. It was a part time thing, and I only got the job …

People often ask me why I'm keeping our wedding a secret. Do our families not approve? Is it that we are embarrassed? Do we have something to hide? The answer is none of the above. I want to have a private wedding because that is what I want. I don't want to have everyone we know and lots of people we don't there. I don't want to stand up in …

Just recently it has started to come to my attention that I may not be as good a driver as I first thought. I mean, touch wood, I have not yet crashed. It is bound to happen, but I would rather put it off for as long as possible! I passed my theory test first time, and my practical driving test first time after only six months of driving lessons. …

There are certain jobs I would love to do. For instance, I sent my script to the BBC to have a read through. There's a process that unsolicited scripts go through, which involves being read by certain people and either discarded or moved along the chain. How do you get the job to be the person that reads the scripts? How do you get the job to be the person …

When the window is open, all I can hear is the crickets. They chirp so loudly. Every time we pass some long grass, there are crickets making ridiculously loud noises. The building site nearby has just recently put up two flagpoles. The flags flap away in the breeze and look very swish, but the rope slaps against the pole with a really annoying clinking noise. Mr C says he likes …

I think everyone is OD'ing on the coffee to try and stay awake and focused on this Blogathon. Are you? Unfortunately I don't like coffee, so this option doesn't really work for me. I love the smell of it, and could sniff it all day, but to actually drink it gives me a headache. At work, I don't drink tea or coffee. There's a really nice canteen that serves good …

Having been staring at my very special Blogathon header picture for 12 hours, it is now seared into my brain. I wish that I could make things like that. When it comes to art, I can see exactly what I want to happen in my head, but I can never get it to come out on the paper, or whatever medium I happen to be working with. I remember one …

There's a programme on the BBC at the moment, and it basically involves three "celebrities" going to France and trying to learn the language. It is a reality show, but it's not like Big Brother or anything like that. The celebs are staying in a posh villa in a really nice, rural part of France. They are not allowed to speak English between 9am and 5pm, or something like that. …