Snap-happy Rock Chef

I can't believe...

2012-02-12T07:26:00.000-08:00

that I have been such a slacker!

This must be the longest non-holiday gap between posts ever!

I am so sorry!

But I guess you want to know what I am doing?

OK, today is Sunday, and I am finally nailing that damn essay. The best part of a bottle of red has been a great help in breaking what CiCi rightly recognised as some sort of writer's block. Essay more or less done!

While writing the essay, there is a beef stew bubbling away in the crockpot. This is totally appropriate, as we had another small snow fall today and it is damn cold out there! There is also a loaf of bread, fresh out of the oven sitting on the side. I am trying to leave it alone until we eat the stew...

The kids are upstairs in their rooms - my daughter probably dozing and watching Friends (her week working at the vet's really wore her out, but she had a great time), Number One Son is working on programming the game that he is working on and my youngest is probably killing things on the xBox.

Mrs RC? She is on her cross-trainer. Given that there is little on TV and that the news is devoted to Whitney Houston (who we were never a great fan of) she has worked out a way of attaching her Kindle to her cross-trainer so she can work out and read at the same time. Isn't she amazing? Is it any wonder that I love her so much?

OK, back to the essay, enough of this mush!

More next week, I promise!

UPDATE - Fnished the essay! Will print off tomorrow, polish and submit! YAY!!!!

Hello, it's me!

2012-02-08T14:46:00.000-08:00

Well my plans for the evening went out of the window. I had hoped to get a few hours on the essay that I failed to finish at the weekend, but no.

Ah well, there is always tomorrow.

One thing that I did manage to do was start a game of Bingo at work. Inspired by Terri's email bingo game, I have started one for all of the staff and students in our department. To make it easy to run and play, each player uses their name. Each day I randomly select a letter (using a thing I put together in Excel) and email it to everyone. I am keeping track of the results but will not inform someone if they win - they need to claim it! OK, some people who have long names will be at a disadvantage, but it is just a bit of fun and seems to be going down well so far.

My daughter is spending this week working at a vets, watching some stuff and doing general chores, looking after the animals (dogs, cats, a swan...) etc. She is really enjoying it and it is great experience for her college course in animal care. Her first day was the hardest, when they had to put down 3 dogs for different reasons...

There isn't much snow left now, but the weather is very cold for here, lingering around freezing and dropping as low as -11 in some places at night. Another few inches of snow is forecast for later this week...

Better sign off now - time for bed!

Still alive

2012-02-08T01:19:00.001-08:00

Hi

Still alive over here, just run off my feet.

More soon.

Snowy Sunday!

2012-02-05T04:37:00.000-08:00

The snow arrived while we slept...

This is our bird table with around 6 inches of snow on it This was rapidly cleared and loaded with food for our little friends.

On the way to feed Humphrey the pony. It was cold, but I had plenty of layers on and was, if anything, in danger of over-heating!

This is normally a very unremarkable place. I love what snow does to a scene.

A bt more holly. Place orders for Christmas cards in the comments section

:-)

Frou Frou loved the snow, except for the build up of snow in her front legs which had to be taken off a few times.

Custard does not feel the cold and just loves it.

My best photo of N.U.B. so far. I have decided that Nub actually stands for New Unexpected Baby -N.U.B. He is really cute, I am sure you will agree, and looks more like a toy than a real rabbit, IMO. He has been playing in a patch of snow that got into his run - and eating loads, tending to sit in the food bowl while eating. He also has a habit of standing on carrots while he eats them, presumably to stop them getting away!

Hope you enjoyed the photos! More soon...

********************

PS - when the girls got home from shopping yesterday, they were loaded down with stuff.

Me: How much did you spend?

Mrs RC: Don't ask.

Me OK.

Saturday

2012-02-04T05:48:00.000-08:00

Hi all!

Woke up to a dusting of snow this morning, just enough to get the dogs excited.

I have done a bit more reading for my essay (read while going to the shops to get pizza stuff) but then got side-tracked by some toy soldiers. Hey, I thought it good to clear my mind, OK?

We are now promised ~~snot~~ SNOW (curse this laptop's keyboard!) tonight, anything from 2 to 6 inches. Could be fun. Will post photos if we get anything dramatic!

Oh, and don't worry about the rabbits. They have snug houses with lots of hay in them and their runs are covered in so the snow won't reach them. Also the lights throw out some extra heat which seems to make a difference for them. They seem to spend a lot of time outside, anyway, and I would expect them to hide in their bedrooms if they were cold.

OK, off to knead the pizza dough. Have a great day!

Friday!!!!!!

2012-02-03T08:56:00.000-08:00

Wow, what a week!

This one really mugged me, but I seem to have made some progress.

Study stuff feels like it is piling up - hoping to write up an essay tomorrow so I can get back to the dissertation. Mrs RC and our daughter are going shopping so the house will be fairly quiet. Of course, the best laid plans and all that...

We are expecting snow any time now. There was a bit this morning, apparently, but I didn't see it at work. Hopefully there won't be too much tomorrow - don't want people walking home like they had to last time when the bus just dumped them in the middle of nowhere!

Right, that is it for now - will probably post something more over the weekend, but only if I nail that essay...

Have a good one!

Spring and Blood

2012-02-01T05:19:00.000-08:00

Spring is on the way!

I know, I can see it!

A couple of weeks ago I was taking photos like this

on my way to work. But this morning the sun was well above the horizon. It snuck up on me because we have had a lot of cloud cover recently so the sun has not really been visible in the murk. So I am wrapping up warm and thinking warm thoughts.

****************************

Yesterday evening I went to give blood. It was all a bit of a rush - leaving work, cycling home, eating dinner, walking the dogs, deciding that I would rather walk the the hall but then realising that I was running a bit late and jogging the rest of the way...

They were pleased to see me, though, as I am O Negative - anyone can have my blood, regardless of type which makes it valuable stuff to have around either for emergencies where the don't know what type the victim is or for babies who have not been tested yet.

Mrs RC says I am obsessed with my new camera. I don't know why she thinks that...

After they had finished they sit you down and give you drinks, biscuits and crisps.

There was a guy there who seems to have been put on a diet by his wife. He was gleefully stuffing down the biscuits, saying "I don't want them, but they ORDERED me to eat them! COOOOKIIEEEEEEEESSSSSS"

Then it was back home to slob on the sofa for a while. The new sofa seems to act as a magnet for the kids - they never used the sittingroom while we had the camping chairs there...

It's Cold Outside...

2012-01-31T04:29:00.000-08:00

The weather is desperately trying to remind us that it really IS winter.

We have steadily falling ice crystals outside - I could get all dramatic and call it an ICE STORM, but people who have suffered the real thing might get upset with me and I don't want that. It is settling on the odd roof, but not on the ground and certainly not causing power pylons to collapse...

But I am fine - I have got my thermals on and am munching my way through a nice warm Cornish Pastie - perfect.

Nub was out when I left for work this morning - he is becoming much more active each day and increasingly aware of his surroundings. It is reassuring that he hides when anyone gets too close - I think he is safe from the cats now, both because of this and also because they seem to have lost interest in our garden at least for the time being. Frou Frou is also doing a great job, wanting to "check the perimeter" every 10 minutes or so in the evening. Custard is less enthusiastic and is happy to let Frou do the routine unless a noise sparks his interest.

Studying continues. I have started reading for my next essay and it is looking like being good fun - all about landslides and how climate change may affect their frequency and severity. Think it might get a bit grim sooner or later, though...

OK, time to head off and get a breath of very fresh air!

Have a great day.

Nub

2012-01-30T09:12:00.000-08:00

The new baby rabbit is called Nub.

Mrs RC thinks it suits him.

My youngest son thinks that he looks slightly evil, being all white except for black ears and eyes. The black eyes look odd on an almost totally white rabbit. We are used to seeing albino rabbits with pink eyes, but Nub is different.

He is something of a night owl at the moment, and was frolicking around in the run late last night - running, leaping, digging in the dirt, climbing into the food bowl to eat, chewing on bits of cabbage an carrot, etc. No wonder he is so quiet in the day time, he must be exhausted!

Houdini and Panda have now been separated. Panda was suddenly intent on expanding the family. We will know in around a month or so if he succeeded before we moved him...

Stop laughing, Shadowthorne! There will be NO bunny barbeques, OK?

Mind you, if I can find a recipe for Maltese Rabbit.... :-)

As requested!

2012-01-28T03:37:00.000-08:00

The new sofa. Very comfortable, even with 4 of us and Frou Frou on it last night as we watched the final of Celebrity Big Brother - which went pretty much as we had hoped! I am sitting on the sofa as I type....

Houdini with her baby. I took these without the flash, for the baby's beneit, but I think they are clear enough.

Have a great weekend!

Rabbits....

2012-01-27T08:21:00.000-08:00

Had a bit of a shock last night.

You might remember that we have got 2 boy rabbits called Houdini and Panda?

Well.

They have a baby.

The vet assured us that they were boys, but no. Houdini is a girl.

We have our sofa - it was rushed to us yesterday and was there when I got home. We love it Just the chair to come now.

Celebrity Big Brother finishes tonight! What will we do then? Any ideas?

Have a great weekend. Things are turning cold here - snow further north (maybe Shrinky will get some?) but probably not here. We will see.....

Eventful Day...

2012-01-26T08:57:00.000-08:00

OK, what to talk about first?

I did my presentation about my dissertation this afternoon. Time is a funny thing. I did a few practice runs and came in well under the time limit, which sort of worried me, but when I was talking I seemed to expand on the topic a bit more and before I knew it I was getting the "1 minute warning"! But I was happy with how it went and a couple of students said that I did a good performance so that is OK.

Time to step up to the next assignment now!

*********

Before Christmas, we ordered and paid for a new sofa and armchair for the sitting room. It was supposed to arrive this week, but no news.

Mrs RC rang up to see where it had got to.

Hm, a slight problem. They are in stock but don't match. The chair is the wrong colour. They are 90% sure that the sofa is the right colour.

We can have the sofa tomorrow if that is OK, but will have to wait for the chair. They might even only charge us once for delivery as a good will gesture! Mrs RC told them that this was not a "good will gesture", it was something that SHE considered a no-brainer, something that should not even be under question - if they expect us to pay delivery twice because they messed up, she was cancelling the order and getting a refund.

I hope for their sakes that the sofa is the right colour and arrives tomorrow - we have been sitting on camping chairs for a couple of weeks now (had to make sure the old stuff was gone before the new stuff arrived*) and it is wearing thin...

*********

Have a great day! I think I have a bottle of wine that needs drinking tonight!

* If you scroll down you will see that in a photo of Custard you can see that what looks like an armchair is actually a camping chair with a fur throw over it.

Soggy Woodland Photos

2012-01-25T01:23:00.000-08:00

"I hear you are looking for the White Wizard!" We both took photos at the same moment!

The struggle for survival on the woodland floor.

Gorse bushes - pretty but don't get too close!

"One day I will be...

"just like YOU!"

They kept leaving my behind...

The White Wizard and a student who have just killed a tree (Ent?) with a ranging pole.

Spooky-looking fallen trees.

If you go down to the woods today...

2012-01-24T05:31:00.000-08:00

you're going to get soaking wet!

Yes, this morning was one of our walks in the local woods.

As I lay in bed this morning, listening to the radio, there was no mention of rain. It was going to be cold, but getting warmer. So I got up, got dressed, pulled on my walking boots and headed off to meet everyone. I had not gone far when the drizzle started...

On the way I picked up some cookies to share among the students - always goes now well, but especially well on a cold, damp day like today.

As we toured the woods the drizzle continued, making us all cold and damp. Spirits were high, though, helped by the cookies.

Then it was time to head to the Uni. Cold and wet I climbed onto my bike and headed for the warm and dry...

As I went I slowly became aware that as I left the woods, by bike had sprayed me with mud. I was now cold, wet and muddy, and, to add insult to injury, because of my confidence in the weather forecast I did not have spare trousers with me.

Yes, I was faced with an afternoon if damp, cold, muddy legs, etc.

Nah, sod that for a game of soldiers!

I headed to the shops and grabbed a new pair of jeans and a nice and cheap fleece top. I was not sure how good the top would be as it seemed quite thin, but sitting hear in it now I am toasting. Mmmmm, so good after the cold of the morning.

I got to the Uni and got changed. Now only one more thing to sort out - I was hungry. Off to the refectory to find that they are doing a special Chinese meal for the New Year! Wonderful! I ate slowly, savouring the flavours while reading a book (about the Korean War if you are interested).

There was a Fortune Cookie with the meal. It said:

A chance happening this week will reveal your destiny.

Sounds pretty dramatic, doesn't it? Stay tuned, you never know...

OK lunch hour is over, time to get to it again.

Hope you are having a great day! More soon, maybe even some of the photos I took in the woods!

Bad things

2012-01-21T13:19:00.000-08:00

My old friend Shadowthorne seemed to be disappointed at the lack of non-food "bad things" that were talked about in the comments to my last post, so I thought I would put that right now.

By the way, Shadowthorne, I must get your recipe for Oxtail Soup. It sounds totally different to what I get over here - just right for a Britsh winter!

Anyway. back to the post.

For the last 2 weeks Mrs RC and I have been indulging ourselves in a really bad thing. Each evening, we can't stop ourselves. When all of the day's work is over our minds turn to it. We try to resist it and find other things to distract us.

Reading.

Listening to music.

Watching a movie.

Nothing works.

We are hooked, and can't help ourselves.

We need therapy.

We are addicted to

Celebrity Big Brother.

Don't judge us. Somethings are just too enjoyable, regardless of how bad and just plain WRONG they are!

UPDATE One of the people on the show just asked "Where is Japan?"

Just for a change...

2012-01-18T01:11:00.000-08:00

No photo today! I bet you are all totally shocked, dismayed and confused!

Have I come to the wrong blog?

Has RC stopped taking photos?

Broken his camera?

What is going on?

Well I did have a photo planned, but as tends to happen, my plan did not quite work out. I will start at the beginning.

[Imagine that the screen has gone all wiggly to show that this is a flash-back.]

6am - I was rudely dragged from my slumber by the radio coming on and Mrs RC prodding me while reminding me that I had to get up early today. Sigh. I usually have another hour to go at this point, drifting in and out of sleep, catching the important issues on the local radio station (such as the town that has 11 unemployed people for each vacant job), but not today.

My daughter has got an interview at a vets today. She wants to do a week of work experience there, which is great as it would tie in nicely with her college course next year. After school she is jumping on the bus and I will be at the other end to meet her, take her to the interview and then travel back home with her. This means that I had to take the bus to work this morning, something that I do not enjoy as I tend to feel sick and end up walking the last mile or so. Today's trip wasn't so bad, though, as I got to take the bus with Number One Son. Early morning random chit chat helped the journey pass without my stomach complaining AT ALL! Except to grumble that it was empty because I skipped breakfast.

Arriving in Canterbury I looked around hoping to catch the planned photo. I wanted to get the Cathedral in the light of the sunrise. It was going to be beautiful. Maybe even something to be printed off on large paper for display on a wall.

But no.

There was no sunrise.

Thick, low clouds meant that there was only a gradual lessening of the murk. At 9am it is still twilight outside. So that is why there is no photo today.

On the bright side, getting to work really early meant that I could raid the refectory and grab a fried breakfast. So bad, but so good....

Why are bad things often so good?

Dare I ask what your favourite bad thing is?

Confused?

2012-01-16T12:19:00.000-08:00

Never mind the recent frosts - this winter has been really warm. Add to that the fact that our garden is really sheltered so the frost doesn't really get to the plants and you get some strange things.

Like this:

This is a Wild Primrose that is in a pot next to the rabbit run. It hasn't got much in the way of leaves (party because Bubbles loves the taste of them and begs to be fed them through the wire) but it has produced this cute little flower.

OK, better go - have a presentation to prepare for and want to have a quick play with PowerPoint. See you soon!

Sunday

2012-01-15T12:17:00.000-08:00

The weather has given us a cold snap - cold, but sunny, dry and still. Nice winter weather, IMO.

We have had some good frost:

After a walk in the cold, Frou Frou is happy to snuggle up for a rest.

She has become a bit of a poser recently,don't you think?

Custard also likes to get in front of the camera:

But he is not such a good model.

Hope you are having a great weekend!

Photography

2012-01-12T06:21:00.000-08:00

When I was at school, we used to have special classes on Wednesday afternoons. They were not assessed, they were just something to let everyone do something different. I chose the photography class which was run by a lovely guy who lived 2 doors away from me. He was also my maths teacher.

We played with cameras. We took photos. We developed the film and printed our pictures in the dark room. It was great fun.

Getting a finished picture involved extracting the film from its case and winding the film into a developing tank- in complete darkness. Then the tank was filled with chemicals to develop the film. What teenager does not enjoy messing with chemicals?

Then, because we were doing black and white photos, we could work with a red light - feeding the negatives into the enlarger (a big contraption with a light in it that projected the image onto the paper), timing the exposure (get it wrong and you photo is too light or too dark), and then putting the photo into the developing fluid where your photo would slowly appear. It was like magic. We all looked forward to Wednesday afternoons...

Today I went to a local photo store and did the same thing, 21st century style. I put my memory card into the machine, chose the images and sizes and hit a button. Out came my beautiful photos. The results are great, but somewhere along the line I think it lost some of the magic. But I do get to spend a lot more time taking photos instead of floundering around in the dark!

GOOOOOOOOOD MOR-NING VI-ETN- England!

2012-01-11T01:50:00.000-08:00

The moon was still up this morning!

The view to the west.

The view to the east.

Had a great evening last night - crushing stats for my dissertation! Morans I Spatial Autocorrelation. OK it was really dull but the results are wonderful. Within the 9 years that my data covers there is an steady increase in the concentration of many American industrial sectors, i.e. companies are continuing to locate and relocate close to other similar companies. I love that this can be seen over such a short timespan.

OK, forget the last paragraph. Hope you liked the photos.

Why isn't all public information this well done?

2012-01-10T08:28:00.001-08:00

California Dreaming

2012-01-09T07:38:00.000-08:00

Well maybe not California, but hey.

I had a dream last night. I think it was inspired by the fact that my Big Trip is getting close enough to feel real. Anyway, on to the dream!

I had just entered a new town, past a big sign that said:

YOU ARE ENTERING GOD'S COUNTRY.

BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU DO OR SAY.

NO SIN GOES UNPUNISHED!

Seemed a little extreme, but hey, who am I to judge?

I continued down the road. There was a guy ahead of me and coming towards us were a couple of young women.

Suddenly a lightning bolt came out of the sky, hitting the guy on the head!

He staggered, smoking slightly, and shouted "Oh God!"

BOOM!!!

He was hit again.

"Jeeeezzz-"

KABOOM!!!!

Wow, they weren't lying were they! But I guess they knew not to?

PS As it was a dream, I didn't have my camera with me.

Sunday Morning

2012-01-08T03:26:00.000-08:00

Time for a quick post. Hoping for a slob day today, so starting with this. Next week is likely to be hectic so posts might be few and far between :-(

A few more pics:

My Mom's pony, Humphrey eating an apple. For those who don't know the story, she got him when she lived in Scotland. He was owned by a pony trecking place but refused to be ridden. My Mom bought him to stop them sending him to the "glue factory".

Frou Frou in the bed we bought for Custard when he was a puppy.

A plant that I was while walking around the Uni the other evening.

Sunrise a couple of days ago, taken while on the way to work.

Not much ore to share right now - time to get on with more slobbing! Have a great Sunday!

It rained and it rained....

2012-01-05T01:50:00.000-08:00

I took these pics on the way into work this morning. The first 3 show all that remains of a water mill. The races are usually dry, but the level of the river has risen to the extent that they are acting as over-flows!

I don't know who the guy on the bridge is...

This is the view down river along The Great Stour. I love that this little stream has such a grand name - so British, don't you think?

First day back

2012-01-03T07:58:00.000-08:00

I woke quite a few times last night, which is very unusual for me. I usually just go out like a light when my head hits the pillow, but not last night.

I was kept awake by the howling wind and the sound of things being blown around in the garden. The rabbits were snug in their houses, but you can't help worrying about the little guys can you?

As morning approached there was little let up outside and I began to dread the ride to work. Finally the time came and I had to dump my slothful ass into the saddle and get peddling. It was not nice. The first trip after 2 weeks of doing as little as possible is always a shock to the system but having to battle against wind and rain that was hard to walk into, never mind CYCLE into was something else!

But I made it, of course, happy to get into some clean, dry clothes for the day's work.

The weather got even worse as the morning went on - here is a video of some of it:

Glad I wasn't out in THAT lot!

Things have improved this afternoon, though, and we now have clearish skies and the trees have stopped thrashing around too, so hopefully the return journey won't be as bad.

Hope your first day back was OK! Assuming that today WAS your first day back, of course...

Back to normal

2012-01-02T05:32:00.000-08:00

Yes, today is the last day of my Christmas holiday - back to normal tomorrow. Not that this is a totally bad thing as I have been a bit of a slob for the last 2 weeks and need to get back in the saddle - literally! I had to feed Hunphrey the pony this morning and riding up the hill to his field almost killed me!

I have continued to have fun with my new camera and it is also good to have my own laptop to post them with. Here are a few new pics.

This is about half a mile from where I live. Not quite as idyllic as it looks. To the right is one of the main roads out of town and the pic was taken from a bridge over a 4 lane motorway!

Custard with his birthday teddy.

Frou Frou with a cuddly duck that we bought for her after she had her annual injections.

Sunrise a couple of days ago. As we had to get Frou Frou to the vets early I took the other dogs out for an early walk. OK, I haven't been a total slob...

Looking forward to 2012, despite the Olympics!

Happy New Year!

2011-12-31T12:33:00.000-08:00

May 2012 be a wonderful year for you and those you love.

The evening sky

2011-12-29T07:58:00.000-08:00

Milk Cake

2011-12-29T07:36:00.000-08:00

This is my version of a recipe for 3 Milk (Tres Leches) Cake that TZ gave me. There are several versions online, so have a look at those too.

Start by making a plain sponge cake. I use Mrs RC's recipe:

8oz sugar
8oz cooking margerine

Blend this together into a smooth cream.

4 eggs

Add these one at a time, whisking them in.

8oz self raising flour

Add this a bit at a time, folding it in slowly.

This is baked at 180C for around 25 minutes - make sure it is cooked!

Keep the cake in the baking tin allow it to cool and liberaly pierce the cake using a skewer.

8oz whipping cream
1 can condensed milk
1 can evaporated milk

Mix these together and then pour some over the cake. It will soak in quite quickly. Add more cream in stages until it is all in the tin with the cake. Cover with cling film and then leave it in the fridge over night. Logic says that the result will be a sloppy mess, but it is not - it is a wonderfully moist and sweet cake. You will need a plate and spoon, though. The calories will be horrific, of course...

Enjoy!

Playing with the camera

2011-12-27T12:24:00.000-08:00

Took a few (dozen) pics and thought I would share a couple.

Sweet potatoes with marshmallow. I was surprised at howgod this was - visitors gave mixed reviews, but I will certainly be doing it again.

3 Milk Cake. A big hit again, and this one was even better than the first time I made it. I love this cake!

Home made bread.

One of the flowers in the table display.

Yes, I have been very snap happy with the camera, but just love the results. Hope I don't become a photography bore...

Testing the new camera...

2011-12-25T04:00:00.000-08:00

Custard and Frou Frou waiting for presents.

Happy Christmas!

2011-12-24T09:40:00.000-08:00

My Christmas starts here - we have food on the table, beer in the fridge, bottles of wine waiting for the cork screw

The shopping is over, whether we have everything or not. I like that feeling. No chance of being crushed in a shop for ooh, 36 hours? Sounds good to me!

Did you hear about the chat between God and Satan? God said that he had just given men a great gift - a time to celebrate, to get together with loved ones, to share good times, gifts and food.

Satan thought for a moment.

"That gives me a wonderful idea - I have just given men CHRISTMAS SHOPPING! MWAHAHAHAHAHAAH!"

Have a great Christmas! My next post will be sent from my new laptop! OK it is a hand me down from my daughter who IS getting a new one but hey, it will be new to ME!

UPDATE. the ham/gammon just came out of the oven....

Sweet potatoes with marshmallows

2011-12-22T15:16:00.000-08:00

Having a bit of a family invasion on Boxing Day.

Thinking about doing sweet potatoes with marshmallows as part of the food. I have never had it and to be honest I am not sure anyone will like it, but ever since I read about it on someone's blog (Terri? Was it you? I really can't remember!) I have wanted to give it a try.

Hah, if it is really bad I can always just claim it is the "vegetarian alternative". Hehehe. Sorry, my boss dropped by earlier and gave me a bottle of wine for Christmas. I told Mrs RC that he had ordered me to drink it tonight, and she believed me. If you knew my boss you would believe that too! Good wine! Thanks boss!

Any comments on this dish are more than welcome!

Custard is 6 today!

2011-12-21T03:15:00.000-08:00

Please join us in wishing Custard a very Happy Birthday!

This photo was taken in the summer while camping. Today is not as hot... This day was amazingly hot, possibly the hottest of the year. At one point Custard laid down in the shade of some trees and refused to walk until he had cooled down. He might not be the brightest dog in the world but he does have a little bit of good sense.

I will post some new photos of the dogs soon, as I test my new camera! Can't wait to start playing with that.

More shopping today - hopefully the last, he says with little hope that it will be.

Have a great day!

Ha Ha, just had to share this. My daughter is giving him his presents - all carefully wrapped. One was a dried sausage, which he just swallowed, wrapping paper and all.

Feeling better...

2011-12-19T08:24:00.000-08:00

After spending most of yesterday following my nurse's (TZ) orders and a good night's sleep I feel much better today. My chest does not hurt now and I only cough from time to time to bring up something that is better out than in, if you get my meaning. Frou Frou was great yesterday, snuggling up with me on the sofa like a little hot water bottle

I got up at a reasonable time and went on the morning dog walk on the crisp, frosty grass (and slippery roads and paths!) . There was even a bit of snow trying to fall, but the weather has warmed up now and it is just raining outside.

Then we went out to buy the rest of our Christmas food, and a few last extra presents. Just a few odds and ends to get now, like some of the vegetables and things that need to be bought fresh. Probably going to do some more tomorrow.

More soon.

Cough, cough, wheeze

2011-12-18T03:44:00.000-08:00

OK, the kids have now passed their nasty cough on to me. It is the sort of cough that really hurts your chest, so I am eager to shake it as soon as possible so we can get in the last of the Christmas stuff without people thinking that a zombie plague has struck me down.

I have taken suitable drugs had a lay in and am still in my warm and fluffy dressing gown, sitting on the sofa trying to find something worth watching on TV.

Ah, poor me...

Stealing WIGSF's Christmas Meme

2011-12-16T07:26:00.000-08:00

Just time for something short and sweet. I don't think that Wigsf matches that description but this meme does!

Here goes:

1. What do you really want for Christmas but you know nobody will get it for you? A horrible Christmas sweater.

2. What do you not want for Christmas but you know that somebody will get it for you? I don't tend to get presents that I don't want - call me Mr Lucky!

3. When do you open your gifts (Christmas eve or Christmas morning)? Christmas morning. When the kids were younger we used to split them and have some in the afternoon too.

4. Do you prefer gifts wrapped or in gift bags? Wrapped. I love ripping paper, struggling with sticky tape, etc.

5. Did you re-gift anything this year? No. As I said, I don't tend to get things I don't want.

6. What’s your favourite Christmas movie? A Christmas Story, as most of you will already know. It is on right now.

7. What’s your favourite Christmas TV special? Looking forward to the Warehouse 13 one this year...

8. Do you like eggnog? Haven't tried it in years, but Mrs RC is doing some this year...

9. Real tree or fake tree, which do you prefer? I love the look of a real tree, and the challenge of finding a nice one and getting it home. We have had a fake one for years now (since we started having crawling babies), but that might change in the next year or so.

10. Would you actually use one of those fireplace DVDs if you don’t have a fireplace? We don't have a real fireplace, but Mrs RC built one which she puts up at Christmas. It includes a grate with logs lit up by red and orange Christmas lights.

11. Are you sick of Christmas music yet? Of course not! Except for the later versions of Band Aid...

12. Are you getting up early to wait in line to do some Boxing Day shopping? No f-ing way. Some times are sacred and this is one of them!

13. When was the last time you sat on Santa’s lap? I can't remember EVER sitting on Santa's lap, to be honest. I went from finding him terrifying to finding him creepy with little in between.

So there you have it!

Today is my last day of work! Yes, I know. Don't hate be because I am clever! Blogging will continue through the holiday, though, so don't despair! :-)

Have a great weekend.

Hair

2011-12-14T07:23:00.000-08:00

Abby Normal wrote a post about the history of her hair so I decided to write about mine.

I don't really remember paying much attention to my hair until I was about 8 years old. I was given a hair cut that I just hated, it just seemed to stick out sideways. From then on I fought every attempt to cut it again, and being in the '70s (and my mom was/is a huge fan of people like Marc Bolan) that was OK!

My hair grew.

By the time I was in secondary school my hair was growing down my back. By my late teens it was half way down my back, and went great with the guitars and bands I played in.

I was frequently called "Hippy" and "Jesus". This was probably meant as an insult but I had no problem with either to be honest!

When our first daughter was on her way I had to make a show of trying to be responsible, so I got my hair chopped short and found sensible work.

When I had been working at the Uni for a while I started to let my hair grow out again. The first time I realised that it was getting long again was one time I was in Malta - a kid pointed at me and said "Christos!" I guess the beard helped the return if this look!

Over the last few years I have kept my hair fairly wild, Mrs RC taking the scissors to it when I start to look like Albert Einstein. I like it like this, it is how I am meant to be.

Hippy?

Sure thing! First impressions are important, I don't want to mis-sell myself!

Back!

2011-12-13T09:17:00.000-08:00

It started on Saturday, as I rode the bus back from a shopping trip.

I felt sick.

I felt SO sick that I had to get off the bus early and walk the rest of the way home.

I sucked it up for the rest of the evening, but on Sunday I felt like crap - no energy, no motivation to do anything other than flop in front of the TV.

Monday morning came.

I rang in sick and went back to sleep, finally emerging at 1.30 to stop my bladder bursting.

As the day went on I gradually recovered, the sick feeling subsiding and my energy returning. In the evening started by setting up the Nativity and then progressed to decorating the front porch (the Pooh Bear Grotto returns!) and starting the hall - my old blue decorations have had to be changed because the hall is now mainly red. I think the tree is finally going up today, but Mrs RC has to finish repainting the sittingroom first...

I finally got my new camera - well I bought it, but it won't be mine until Christmas morning. It is a Panasonic (I think) 14megapixel, HD video camera. It is really small but seems to do everything that I need and it was half price! Woo hoo! In addition, the memory cards were buy one get one free, and they practically gave me 3 year instant replacement cover, even if I drop it down the toilet and ruin it! Can't wait to get snapping with this new toy. Yes I will post some photos for you to see.

OK, time to finish - have a great day - what's left of it anyway!

The main feature

2011-12-09T12:31:00.000-08:00

We had hot dogs tonight, so last night I made some chili dog sauce, loosely based on a recipe that wReggie sent me.

I started by digging into the freezer for some meat, only finding about half the amount I needed. Oh well, carry on.

Sorry about the interruption - Frou Frou wants to play.

OK, that was defrosting in the pan while I chopped 2 large onions. These were great onions and I was crying like a girl in a couple of minutes.

A tin of tomatoes and the onions joined the meat.

ra ra ra ra ra. hah, got the bear! go and get it Frou!

There started to simmer over a really low heat while I added the seasoning.

A bit of salt

A generous tablespoon of paprika.

A less generous tablespoon of chili powder.

ra rararaaaaaaaaaaaa! give me the bear, frou!

A teaspoon of cayenne pepper.

Simmered for around half an hour until everything is cooked and sticking together.

Left to cool and then put in the fridge for the next day, the flavours infusing over night.

It was only later that I realised that I had forgotten to add sugar, but this seemed more to everyone's liking. The pan hardly needed washing by the time dinner was over, and we started to ponder other uses for it - one idea that got a lot of favour was putting it in cheese pastry with more cheese and some chorizo sausage. Chorizo seems to feature in a lot of our meals lately. Can you get addicted to pork and paprika?

Back again. Frou Frou just had to check the garden for cats.

The evenings here are wonderful at the moment. A bit of a cold breeze, but the sky is clear with a huge, bright moon which makes everything look like those old horror movies where the night scenes were filmed at night with a tinted lens so the shadows look exaggerated. Great for walking dogs - no one else walks at that time of night, so we have the fields to ourselves. OK, we share with the foxes, but they stay almost out of sight and don't bother us unless Frou thinks they are following us. Custard ignores them entirely - they just don't seem to register with him for some reason. He ignores a lot of things, seeming to enjoy a carefree life.

OK, Frou has now fallen asleep on the sofa next to me and it is time for me to sign off.

Have a great weekend!

End of Term!

2011-12-09T06:46:00.000-08:00

Yes, today is the last day of term! That was really quick, but as usual for this term, my feet hardly touched the ground.

Today was really busy with more than it's fair share of problems - ever have those days when you wish you had followed your instincts and stayed in bed?

Well my frazzled brain can't think of much more to say, so have a great weekend - I might make a proper post later tonight - we will see.

Bunny Vegas

2011-12-07T13:50:00.000-08:00

You might be thinking that we have now totally flipped and put up Christmas lights for the rabbits.

You are wrong.

These are not just for Christmas - the rabbits have these lights all year round, on a timer switch. They seem to like it, and the lights even seem to give off a bit of heat, helping the little darlings through the ~~freezing~~, um, somewhat chilly British winter.

Hm...

2011-12-06T13:25:00.000-08:00

We were sitting at the kitchen table, playing with a wind-up penguin that does back-flips. Well it did at first...

Daughter: Mom, you paid £1 for that?

Mrs RC: Yes.

Daughter: That is something that Dad would do! Dad buys silly useless things like this!

Seems that my niche in the house is under threat!

It starts! Christmas is really on the way!

2011-12-06T01:49:00.000-08:00

After peddling to work through the remains of a heavy frost, on a wonderfully warm and sunny morning, I am now at work.

I have hot soup in my Life is Good mug.

I have also got A Christmas Story playing on an old Mac that sits on another desk.

Ho ho ho!

Feeling like a wimp

2011-12-05T14:43:00.000-08:00

OK, I surrender.

I said it was cold here - around freezing point this morning.

I should have known that my friends in Canada and on the prairies were going to totally blow me away...

I won't complain about the cold for the rest of the winter - promise!

Yesterday

2011-12-05T02:09:00.000-08:00

Was Frou Frou Day! We have had our little bundle of fun for a whole year now!

This morning is COLD! I was walking the dogs at 6.30 and, as the cold seeped into every gab in my clothing,, biting my fingers through my gloves, I began to wonder where Global Warming had got to. Apparently there is snow "Ooop North" and slowly heading south. If this cold hangs around it will probably stay if we get it. It would be nice if it could hang on for another week or so...

Just finished drinking a hot chocolate with whipped cream - seemed to be the only way to truly warm up again this morning!

Have a great Monday! Yeah, I know, like that is ever going to happen...

Hitting the High Notes

2011-12-02T01:49:00.000-08:00

Just about all of the big stuff for Christmas has now been bought - just a new TV for the sittingroom to go now, and the cash for that has been set aside. Yes, I am finally moving on past the old glass tube TV set and getting an HD flat screen. Not 3D, of course. As some of you may know by now, I like to trail behind the technology until it reaches a sensible price.

A TV presenter (well known for his brash sense of humour) has caused a stir by suggesting that people who went on strike this week should be shot. People are calling for him to be sacked and he has had to apologise. Seems that a lot of people have forgotten what comedy is! I thought it was hilarious, even though I don't actually like him for a lot of other reasons. Some of these people should listen to what is said on some of the radio comedy shows...

A couple of days ago my younger daughter visited the doctor. Nothing serious. She came back and was ranting about the fact that this highly qualified, highly paid man could not prounounce her name properly. It is not a difficult name, just slightly unusual. I joined in. Our combined rant developed into:

     He is a DOCTOR. Surely a DOCTOR should be able to read a person's name!

     Unless he got his PhD off the internet.   You know, the ones where you send $100 and get a degree?

     True. But to do that he would still have to be able to READ!

Have a great weekend!

Hump Day already...

2011-11-30T01:37:00.000-08:00

Yes, Wednesday has hit me in the face again - what happened to Monday and Tuesday? Can't really remember to be honest!

Today I am being a "Scab". The Unions are out on strike, protesting over the government's attempts to sort out our economy. I am not a union member - I grew up in the '70s and '80s and saw just how stupid things can get. I don't want to be part of it. The strikers may have a point - maybe the government is not doing things in the best possible way, but all striking is going to do is give them ammunition to shoot back with. This government wants to totally finish the unions off and massed strikes that will cost the country money it can't afford to lose only makes their case stronger. The unions are, IMO, playing their hand too soon and will be spent by the time the real fights need to be fought.

Enough of that!

Today is a beautiful day, in contrast to yesterday which was pelting with rain by the time I had to go home. I was like a drowned rat by the time I sploshed into the house, with everyone staying well clear of me! Dinner was wonderful - cheesey pasta with bacon and chorizo sausage. I hate until I felt ill, but still wanted more...

I have started planning my next set of toy soldiers. It will be a long project but the resulting army will be wonderful, involving some of the most spectacular troops that ever fought side by side. I am talking elephants, scythed chariots, cavalry with man and horse in full armour and naked barbarians! Can't wait to get my first order off.

Have a great day!

Shopping

2011-11-28T04:50:00.000-08:00

That one word sums up my weekend.

Satruday we went food shopping - the dull, normal stuff, nothing exciting to report...

Sunday we got carried away.

A couple of weeks ago we checked out a furniture store for a new sofa set and found one we loved. Returning yesterday, we were pleased to find that we still loved it as much as last time. The sales guy came over as I sat in the arm chair.

"Can I help you?"

"Yes, I think we want these."

A couple of minutes talking about delivery and stuff, and the deal was done. Must have been the easiest sale the guy had made in a long time.

Then it was off to PC World which is busy trying to get some stock moving at the moment. We had a good look at the laptops and found one that looked like a cracking deal. The sales woman came over and asked if we were OK. After asking her to check the online price for us (they have a daft set up where there is often one price in the store and another one online which you pay even if you only reserve it online and collect it in the store!) we bought 2 of these as Christmas presents for the younger kids. We try to be nice, easy customers...

And the best news? We did all this without racking up the credit card! Oooooh Yeah!

Thanksgiving...

2011-11-25T04:05:00.000-08:00

Had a departmental party last night - staff and students.

It was a great evening, with lots of prizes being given out as the evening progressed.

At one point in the evening the landlord handed out a load of free apple pie and cream - his way of acknowledging Thanksgiving. Wonder if this is the start of something?

The ride home was fun, with a warm tail wind helping me get home.

Had trouble waking up this morning, though - think that last pint should have stayed in the barrel....

Have a great weekend! I am now off hunting down students at the Graduation Ceremony, camera in hand. Each year I make a poster of the photos I take - makes a nice addition to the wall displays.

Dumb logic

2011-11-23T07:06:00.000-08:00

A British judge recently ruled that because the Police are used to hearing bad language it should no longer be against the law to swear at them.

Really?

That is some dumb logic in my view. We are supposed to have a bit of respect for these guys, aren't we? I hope he needs a cop in the near future...

But I got to wondering about extending his logic.

How about:

The people are used to paying taxes, so just tax them even more?

Some kids are used to getting picked on and beaten up, so encourage your kids to join in.

People who cause trouble on the streets are used to being involved in fights, so allow the Police to use whatever force they fancy using at the time to control them - maybe shooting them in the legs until they stop swearing would be a good start?

Shops have stuff stolen all the time, so shoplifting is now legal.

Sex scenes on TV shows are getting more and more graphic, so let's just show porn movies on all channels all day long.

Most people break the speed limit, so let's increase the limit by 10mph to make most of them legal again. No wait, the UK government actually plans to do that!

Go on, I am sure you can think of more!

London Video

2011-11-22T01:37:00.000-08:00

It seems to be loading now! Yay!

And for James, a couple of guitar shots (sorry the lighting is rubbish!):

Triple-neck guitar (12 string, 6 string, 5 string bass):

and an 8 string bass:

There were lots of really nice guitars, ranging up to £5000 each, but a lot that I could actually afford. This is where I will be going to get me next guitar...

Hitting the High Notes

2011-11-21T04:24:00.000-08:00

Well as you might have seen already, Saturday was one bit high note, but it didn't stop when I got home.

All week I had been wanting to eat Bacon and Onion Pudding. This is an old recipe that Mrs RC's grandmother introduced me to. She was a great woman and is Mrs RC's role model. The first time I met her she brought out 3 types of cake, urging me to eat as many as I wanted - "You've travelled a long way, you must be starving!" So I chomped away on these wonderful cakes, eating so many that I wasn't particularly hungry when she declared it was dinner time, and served up bacon and onion pudding, mashed potatoes, etc. But it was so wonderful I ate that too.

Anyway, guess what? Mrs RC had made me Bacon and Onion Pudding for dinner when I got home on Saturday! Slices of bacon and onion, rolled into a sausage shape of suet dough and then steamed for around 3 hours. I just had the last slice for dinner at work. Fantastic.

Sunday was another good day. A few weeks ago my dad decided that he did not want to watch TV any more. Of course, he couldn't just leave it in the corner until he wants to switch it on again, he got rid of everything except the satellite dish that is luckly bolted to the outside of his house. But we (OK, Mrs RC) had the foresite to rescue the vital stuff, knowing that sooner or later he would want a TV again.

Yesterday he declared that he had bought a second hand TV and was having trouble making it work. So I grabbed the bag of "vital stuff", popped down and within no time he was up and running again. Queue Bill and Ted style air-guitar celebration.

Monday has been good so far too - a cold, foggy day, but still very enjoyable in its way.

Have a great day!

A day in London

2011-11-19T12:40:00.000-08:00

I recorded a bit of a video diary of the day...

But wasn't able to upload it - will have a fiddle and try again later.

Really enjoyed meeting up with Agg79 - he is a really great guy. We eventually found each other outside Buckingham Palace, despite the thousands of tourists who had turned out to witness the meeting of 2 old time bloggers...

We took a stroll across Green Park to Piccadilly Circus, found a nice looking pub and settled down to drink beer, eat and talk about everything from Star Trek to sports cars.

Then it was time to head off in different directions, AGG going off in the direction of the Tower of London and me going to find guitar shops.

You will learn more when I get the video posted, but needless to say I had a great day.

Hope your day was as good as mine!

Weekend...

2011-11-18T05:27:00.000-08:00

Another busy week under my belt, and a busy weekend coming up too!

Tomorrow I am off to London for a lunchtime beer or two with Agg79! We have been blog friends for some time now, so I am really looking forward to it. We are planning to meet outside Buckingham Palace - seemed like a good place to me!

After AGG79 heads off to see the rest of the sites, I am going to go guitar shop hunting. There is a nice cluster of them that I visited many years ago and each time I am in London I fail to find them again. This time I am prepared with a map and everything! Wish me luck!

Will try to remember to take my camera and post pics when I get back.

Do you see the light?

2011-11-17T04:53:00.000-08:00

The other evening I was about to set off home into the dark evening when I realised that I had done a very silly thing - left my front light at home!

Not wanting to miss out on the rest of my life, I decided to buy a new light before making my journey, so I headed to a place that I know does lights at reasonable prices.

When I got there I found nice set of LED lights, front and back and also another LED light that is on a wrist strap! Hah! I have secretly wanted one of those for some time!

So I headed outside and rigged up the new lights. From behind I now have 3 flashing LED lights - 1 on the bike and 2 on my rucksack - plus another one on my right arm which makes it clear when I am turning right, across the traffic. If you are in one of those silly places where you drive on the wrong side of the road, think of when you are turning LEFT. No excuses for not seeing me now! I probably look like a small Christmas tree rattling along the road...

Mondays..

2011-11-14T13:11:00.000-08:00

Mondays are always extra busy these days, a real case of "jumping in at the deep end" each week. I guess it isn't a totally bad thing, though. Assuming I actually float back to the surface again the rest of the week is a comparatively easy doggy paddle.

Just spent an hour or so on my dissertation. I am trying to settle into a "little and often" routine with this. Not a bad approach to most things, to be honest. Can't think of many things where "little and often" is a bad thing!

Now watching "Persons Unknown". I rather like this - it is like a nasty version of those reality TV shows where people are kept in isolation in a building or on an island and try to stay in as long as possible. In the last episode they were gassed a couple of times and then given some gas masks, but not enough for everyone.... Fun in a sadistic sort of way, but they make the people unlikable enough for you not to feel bad about it.

OK, time to go. Need to refill my glass. Yes, I am blogging from home, and I rather like it!

11/11/11

2011-11-11T02:47:00.000-08:00

Today is the day we remember and honour those who have fallen in wars around the world. It marks the anniversary of the end of the First World War, which officially ended at 11am 11 Nov, 1918.

Honouring those who have died in wars, past and present, is a vital part of our civilization. Whether you agree with the reasons for fighting a particular war or not is irrelevant - this is a day for respect not politics.

Hitting the High Notes

2011-11-10T02:25:00.000-08:00

It seems that my little girl is sneakily growing up on me.

I had to take her to an open day at a college yesterday! How did that happen?

We had good chat with the people there about the course that she wants to take, which is animal care. She loves animals and this is certainly the best direction for her to go. She is not sure if she wants to go into the veterinary side or not - she also likes the idea of working in a zoo or rescue centre, or even becoming a "dog whisperer". Whatever she does it certainly sounds like a good life, and who could want more for their children?

Today is one of those wonderful foggy autumn days. I love the fog - they way it softens the sounds around you and takes off the rough edges like a Gaussian blur on a portrait photo. It also seems to make car drivers a little more cautious which makes cycling that much more pleasurable.

I bumped into an old boss of mine last night! He is a great guy who I owe a lot too. He even went out of his way to gate-crash my wedding - and a most welcome gate-crasher he was, too. Hoping to get together for lunch soon to catch up on things.

This Christmas I will be returning to an old hobby of mine - wine making! I used to have tons of equipment for this, but that all went, so Mrs RC is going to set me up with new stuff. I made some really good wine when I was younger and had a lot of fun in the process. Watch out next year for inevitable tales of triumph and disaster! Place your orders now!

Tea break time!

2011-11-08T07:27:00.000-08:00

OK, I know I am English and therefore supposed to drink sweet, milky tea by the gallon, but I can't stand the stuff, so I will do a quick blog post instead. Can't have people calling me a Slacker!

So, you want an update on the War on Cats? Well, it has all gone very quiet all of a sudden. Perhaps they read my thoughts or perhaps Frou Frou got a bit too close on one of her late night charges into the garden. Whatever the reason, the cats seem to be staying away again. Good thing too!

I had one of those rash moments the other day - remember that I won a wargames competition in the early summer? Well I volunteered to run it next year. It will be fun but I am sure that it will cause me a fair bit of work. My first step was to register it as part of the national league! Yes, we are playing with the Big Boys now! I want to make it a really good day - starting with some really wonderful scenery to fight over. I have all sorts of ideas, and will be sure to post photos here as things take shape.

Well, better get back to it - today is one of those "clearing a ton of fiddly jobs" days. My next job is to finish making tickets for a staff/student social evening. I don't like tea, but I am pretty good at drinking beer!

Hm, I think we know a song about that, don't we children?

"I wasn't born ..."

OK, if you don't know what I am whittering on about:

Slacking...

2011-11-08T01:11:00.000-08:00

Told you!

Hope to find some time and inspiration later today...

Thursday? Already?

2011-11-03T10:05:00.000-07:00

Busy, busy week...

Tonight is Dissertation night again - going to do a first draft of the introduction. This will be a breeze if the brain juice is flowing properly...

Looks like the truce with the cats is over - had one trying to break into the rabbit run again last night. We are going to rework the netting around the garden at the weekend. Mrs RC thinks she has a way of doing it that will keep the little b@$£@&ds out... Hope it works because I don't think we will be giving any quarter this time....

Went to buy pizza at lunchtime but the place was shut, so I went to a nearby place that does cheap and cheerful sandwiches and stuff. I asked for bacon with a sprinkle (yes I did say "sprinkle") of cheese.

What would you call a "sprinkle"?

I was thinking she would grab some with her thumb and fingers and "sprinkle" said cheese over the bacon.

Nope.

I got 2 not especially dainty FISTFULS! There was far more cheese than there was bacon by the time she had finished!

Did I complain?

Nah!

"That is a SERIOUS sprinkle!" was my comment.

And it was very good, I must say.

Off to grab dinner now - wonder what I will find?

Movember and Gender Equality

2011-11-01T09:32:00.000-07:00

I am just picking upon the idea of Movember - guys don't shave during the month.

Sounds fine to me - I don't tend to shave much when the weather turns cold anyway, but it does seem a bit sexist so I thought I would add a thought to even things out.

I HAVE run this idea past one female friend and she didn't go for it, but hey this is the internet! If there is a place for anything it is HERE, right?

So, my idea is that women don't shave or wax their arm pits or legs for the month.

Any takers?

My kind of politician

2011-11-01T04:59:00.001-07:00

Hitting the High Notes

2011-10-31T08:26:00.000-07:00

Today's High Notes are only high compared to how rubbish I felt for most of last week - I guess they are more like the high notes in a good karaoke song than something an opera singer would be proud of, but they are my high notes, so there! Anyone who wants to complain can (to quote from Futurama) kiss my shiny metal ass!

My cold/flu thingy has more or less gone! Yay!!!!! No more feeling that my brain has turned to ooze and is trying to escape down my nose!

To make sure I got better, Mrs RC made me the best banoffee pie ever. It was so good, in fact, that the kids decided that it was not just for me and managed to eat most of it for me.

I had a check at the dentists this morning and got the all clear. This always gives a good feeling, does it not?

Starting the new week with a clear head - plenty to do but I can handle it - BRING IT ON!

Perseverance rewarded at last!

2011-10-28T08:58:00.000-07:00

I like bookshops.

I like to browse, flicking through books, checking the offers, the new releases.

I like the SMELL of bookshops. They are second only to libraries.

I don't like buying books online. In fact I only buy ANYTHING online if desperate.

I like to support my local bookshop against the onslaught of online book shops.

And they do need support. A nearby one shutdown recently - the owner had got to the stage where he felt that the shop was nothing more than a showroom were people would look at the stock and then stand there and order the thing online using their iPhone!

Anyway, to the point of this post.

Back in June I ordered a book at my local bookshop. The publishers had intended that anyone who wanted it would buy it online, but my reasoning was that if it had an ISBN number then my local shop SHOULD be able to get it.

And I was right.

Eventually.

It arrived today!

I make that just over 4 months.

OK, so I did almost give up a couple of times, but after a while I just wanted to see it through to the end.

The guy in the shop was SOOOooo pleased to give it to me - and he almost believed me when I said that I didn't want it any more...

Have a great weekend!

Me and cooking...

2011-10-27T04:22:00.000-07:00

TechnoBabe wanted to know if I have ever worked as a Chef.

I guess the answer to this is "almost".

In the summer when I turned 15, I worked in a restaurant that was owned by a friend of the family. Due to the nature of our town, it only opened in the summer when there were tourists around. I was the kitchen dogs-body, washing up, using the potato peeling machine, mopping the floors each morning, that sort of thing. It was hard work but I threw myself into it. The owner said that he wanted to take me on as an apprentice in the following summer and train me up. Unfortunately, things didn't work out that way and the restaurant did not re-open the next summer and I ended up going to college instead.

But I was ALMOST a chef. I guess that would be another Alternative Me!

But I love cooking and eating - we always try to make mealtimes a family affair, getting the kids together and talking about "stuff" - what has happened to us during the day, what is happening in the world at large, the latest thing we have seen on a blog or YouTube. I just love it.

My mom never really excelled as a cook - she did good, basic stuff but we never really had the money to go beyond that. It was only after I started to get some money of my own that I started experimenting with cooking - Ken Hom's first book became my bible and at one point we were eating so much Chinese food that Mrs RC and I forgot how to use a knife and fork! We went to dinner at a friend's house and spent several minutes fumbling with them until we got the hang of it again.

I only became Rock Chef when I had my mid-life crisis. Some get a sports car, some get a young girl friend, but I got a new electric guitar. Until then I had only owned bass guitars. I was so eager to get as much playing time in as possible that I played while cooking, having a small battery powered amp clipped to my belt. It was great fun.

OK, that is enough for now! I think I am emerging from the depths of my cold. Time to get lunch.

Feeling rubbish

2011-10-26T06:40:00.000-07:00

Got a bit of cold/flu going on, so I will leave you with this for today:

This is Frou Frou trying to convince us that she does not need to go outside into the cold and rain.

Hitting the High Notes

2011-10-24T09:14:00.000-07:00

Last Friday, Terri revived her "Life is Good" posts, and encouraged others to join her in posting about the good things in life. This is intended to be the first of a regular feature here where I share some of those small things that make life good.

One constant High Note is my younger son's sense of humour. We were watching a TV show last night where a guy was in Soweto at a Bungee Jump site.

They have a platform between 2 disused cooling towers and jump from it. As they bounce around the jumpers go incredibly close to the towers. My son watched this and suggested that the paintings on the towers were to cover up the splat marks...

Another High Note is food. I love food - both cooking and eating. On Sunday evening I had the urge to make a nice dessert, so I set about the bowl of apples that had come from a friend's garden/orchard. Peeled and chopped I got them cooking slowly, adding a good dose of cinnamon as it went. Once these had cooked to a wonderful combination of firm pieces and sauce, I left it to cool and smashed up some biscuits to make a base, which I dolloped the apple onto.

Next I set to on the cream - I love whipping cream by hand with a wire whisk. None of that electric mixer stuff - I like to feel the cream thicken, choosing the perfect moment to stop. The cream was now spread onto the now cold apple and finished off with grated chocolate. Oh yeah, that was a great treat on a Sunday evening!

My final High Note is that it is home time for me! Sorry if you are only starting your working day...

Friday Roundup

2011-10-21T02:22:00.000-07:00

Another busy week has flown past!

We are down to 3 rabbits. Earlier in the week we realised that Buttercup (the big brown and white one in the title photo) was not right, having lost control of her bladder. We took her to the vets who said they could run some tests but that it was probably just old age, so we had her put down. So we now have Houdini, Panda and Bubbles, their mother. Resisting the urge to get another friend for Bubbles as she is alone in her run now but can still talk to the babies who are right next door. We will see how it works out.

Warning - going Political for a moment!

So, Gaddafi is dead now! Can't be a bad thing, really. I see that Amnesty International want an investigation into how he died. Really? Please, concentrate on the real issues, don't waste time and money arguing about the fate of a man who had so much blood on his hands.

One thing that I WOULD like to see debated more, though, is the way that the NATO air strikes (mainly by the British and French) seem to have totally exceeded the UN mandate to protect civilians. With the current leaders of the British government having been so critical of the legality of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, their conduct in Libya smacks of more than a little bit of double-standards.

Political moment over.

The weekend is looking good - cold but dry. Plenty to do - shopping, stacking hay for Humphrey (my mom's pony), reading for my dissertation, cooking, etc. Meanwhile I think Mrs RC will continue redecorating our hall, which is taking on an increasingly red theme...

Right, better get back to things - have a great weekend!

Custard and Frou Frou

2011-10-19T05:56:00.000-07:00

The part of the blogosphere that I read has taken a decidedly doggy turn recently, so...

Meet Custard:

Custard is nearly 6 years old and is a bit of a softy. We got him at the age of 10 weeks, buying him from a local pig farmer.

Meet Frou Frou:

Frou is now 1 year old, is super cute but is also a bit of a tough nut. We bought her from a nearby stables after an exhausting hunt for a puppy - let down by rescue centres and a succession of supposed breeders that we found on the Internet, we eventually tracked her down at a nearby stable. Mostly but by no means all Yorkie, she is a great little character.

Custard and Frou Frou "play" together quite a lot, and this generally falls into 2 categories:

Play fighting. Custard laying on the floor like a beached whale with Frou attacking him - nipping his feet, jumping on his head, using him as a bouncy castle. When she was younger, Frou would put her entire head into Custard's mouth and lick his teeth clean. This sounds like a bad deal for Custard, but he does seem to have fun - he certainly tells her if she goes too far.

Steal the toy/chew - often started by Custard waving something around in front of Frou to get her attention. One of them has something that the other one desperately wants - never mind that there are a dozen or so other things littering the floor. If you have children you will recognise this behaviour. If Frou gets it she will run rings around Custard with it until he somehow corners her and takes it away, using his far superior strength. Frou now turns to a couple of strategies. If Custard remains standing, she alternately grabs at the toy and nips at his toes until either she gets it or he lays down with it and holds it between his paws. Now she gets subtle and starts turning her back on him, distracting him with her feminine charms. Once he has taken the bait she backs towards him until she is between his head and the toy, grabs it and is off. From time to time he stands his ground, refusing to give in, so she goes and finds something else to play with, which usually results her letting him have the new toy while she grabs the original one.

When it comes to chewies, Frou Frou finds them a bit hard at first, so she likes it when Custard has had a go at them first, making them nice and soft for her. Sometimes Custard will eat a whole chew while Frou waits for him to make it soft - this really annoys her, unless in his haste Custard has swallowed it too soon. This tends to result in him vomiting the chew back up, ready to be grabbed by the waiting Frou Frou. Yes, I know that is totally disgusting, but what can you do? Not so cute now, eh!

At meal times, they have their own bowls but Frou prefers to share Custard's dinner, sneaking mouthfuls of food when his head isn't blocking her way. She might eat her own food when Custard has finished, but often doesn't.

But they do love each other and are hard to seperate, often sleeping snuggled up together. Frou also seems to see herself as Custard's bodyguard, standing up to dogs that like to threaten Custard.

So there you have it - our Dynamic Duo!

Happy Birthday to Frou...

2011-10-17T07:10:00.000-07:00

Our darling Frou Frou is 1 today!

Here she is on the day we got her.

And here she is camping in the summer, having stolen Custard's chew.

She has got plenty of presents which she unwrapped this morning and a birthday cake (made of meat and dog biscuits) which she will share with Custard tonight.

In around 6 weeks I am sure we will be celebrating Frou Frou Day - the anniversary of when we got her.

Nose to the grindstone...

2011-10-13T13:41:00.000-07:00

Had a really productive evening - got the bones of my dissertation down, started getting the references going and putting the relevant documents into a folder so I can find them easily when I need them.

I think I have done enough for one evening!

Off home now - bye!

Knuckling down

2011-10-13T09:16:00.000-07:00

It starts tonight!

I have spent time since the early summer fiddling with data and creating maps.

Now is the time to start writing!

Thursday evenings have been set aside as writing time - I will stay at work to avoid the usual distractions and chip away each week until it is finished. If I find other time in between, even better, but I won't rely on it.

Wish me luck!

Lost in translation

2011-10-12T03:55:00.000-07:00

I love the way that we can be chatting away with each other, apparently talking the same language, only to suddenly come across something that does not transmit properly.

My all time favourite was seeing Carrie Fisher on a British talk show talking about weight loss, holding her arms out and declaring that "my fanny used to be THIS BIG!", causing the presenter and audience to almost die laughing. That word means something totally different over here...

Anyway, my last post gave some of you the impression that I drink these in the morning:

This would be quite a feat, and even if made into some sort of smoothy I doubt it would taste very good even if it would probably be very good for you.

The squash that I drink is much more normal:

Fruit flavoured stuff that you mix with water.

Have a great Wednesday!

100 Random Things

2011-10-11T06:01:00.000-07:00

I was just trawling through the "My Documents" folder and found a Meme that I did soon after I started blogging. Given the first question, I thought it might be fun to see how my answers have changed in nearly 5 years. The original answer will be first, followed by the new one in bold.

Here goes:

1. How old will you be in five years? 48. 53.

2. Who did you spend at least two hours with today? My wife. My wife.

3. How tall are you? 6’2”. Same - haven't started shrinking yet...

4. What do you look forward to most in the next six weeks? Playing wargames all day at the Society of Ancients Battle Day. My daughter’s birthday. Summer! Halloween, Guy Fawkes Night, my baby brother's birthday.

5. What's the last movie you saw? Terminator III. Land of the Dead, which is a surprisingly good zombie movie.

6. Who was the last person you called? My friend Steve. My wife.

7. Who was the last person to call you? My wife. My dad.

8. What was the last text message you received? My friend Steve moaning about the NHS. My friend Steve talking about alien invasions.

9. Who was the last person to leave you a voicemail? Don’t know, I never get them. I still never get them!

10. Do you prefer to call or text? Call. Call. Unless I am in the middle of watching a movie - my dad rang during Land of the Dead...

11. What were you doing at 12am last night? Laying in bed reading about Alexander the Great. I guess that is rather sad. Sleeping...

12. Are your parents married/divorced? Divorced. Still divorced - in fact even more so right now!

13. When did you last see your mom? This morning. This morning.

14. What color are your eyes? Blue-grey but if I wear green they look green. Still the same...

15. What time did you wake up today? 6.30am. 7am. Getting old...

16. What are you wearing right now? Short sleeved shirt, trousers, slippers – and undies of course! Jeans, Star Wars t-shirt, trainers.

17. What is your favourite Christmas song? Away in a Manger. My mom used to sing this to me when I was a child – even in the middle of the summer! Can't change this one either!

18. Where is your favourite place to be? Anywhere with the wife and kids. Ditto. I am starting to think that I haven't changed that much!

19. Where is your least favorite place to be? The local hospital. Any hospital!

20. Where would you go if you could go anywhere? I would do the coast to coast tour of Canada. Hey, I will be doing something like this in 2013!

21. Where do you think you'll be in 10 years? Not far from where I am now! Who can tell? Guess it depends on what happens to the British education system!

22. Do you tan or burn? Tan very slightly. My skin is still the same...

23. What did you fear was going to get you at night as a child? Things in the shadows. No I was NOT scared of Hank Marvin! Hah, I like that answer!

24. What was the last thing that really made you laugh? A really dumb sketch on Radio 4. A TV show about alien visitors to earth where they kept putting in clips from 1950s scifi movies. It was hilarious even though it wasn't supposed to be.

25. How many TVs do you have in your house? 5. 5 different ones.

26. How big is your bed? Double. A different double.

27. Do you have a laptop or desktop computer? Both. Still both, but I never see the laptop which is more or less my daughter's now. So I guess I have a desktop.

28. Do you sleep with or without clothes on? Without unless it is really cold. Another thing that doesn't change!

29. What color are your sheets? Burgundy. Cream.

30. How many pillows do you sleep with? Four. Four new ones.

31. What is your favorite season? Autumn. Still Autumn, especially when it is a beautiful one like this!

32. What do you like about fall? Blackberry picking, crunching through fallen leaves. This year it is the feeling that we are finally having a summer!

33. What do you like about winter? Getting through it without getting too cold and wet on my bike! Same still! Plus Christmas, of course, and having a barbeque on Christmas Eve...

34. What do you like about the summer? Picnics, long family walks, sitting in the garden playing guitar. Ooooh Yeah!

35. What do you like about spring? Warm sun, blossom on the trees, longer days. Ditto.

36. How many states/provinces/counties have you lived in? 1. Still 1!

37. What cities/towns have you lived in? Herne Bay, Whitstable. Same again!

38. Do you prefer shoes, socks, or bare feet? Slippers. Crocks...

39. Are you a social person? Sort of. I like company but can easily get along on my own. I am probably a bit less social at the moment...

40. What was the last thing you ate? A jelly baby. A roll with cheese, ham, tomatoes and chili sauce in it.

41. What is your favorite restaurant? Burrito Amigo. Not sure at the moment, we are experimenting.

42. What is your favorite ice cream? The white Italian stuff. Then I chuck all sorts of stuff on top. The Honeycomb stuff we had when we were camping - amazing...

43. What is your favorite dessert? Trifle. Probably angling towards something like banoffee pie these days.

44. What is your favorite kind of soup? Hot and Sour. Still Hot and Sour, but it has been a long time since I had soup.

45. What kind of jelly do you like on your PB & J sandwich? Bramble. Raspberry.

46. Do you like Chinese food? Oh yes! Chinese is the best, I love it!

47. Do you like coffee? NO! I hate anything that has coffee in it...

48. How many glasses of water, a day, do you drink on average? Plain water? None. I do drink about 3-4 pints of fruit squash each day, though. Still on squash - and Pepsi.

49. What do you drink in the morning? Squash. Squash.

51. Do you sleep on a certain side of the bed? I sleep away from the door, because my wife wants to be close to the door. Same. We tried switching but it just didn't work.

52. Do you know how to play poker? Vaguely. Better now than I was - had some practice while camping a couple of years ago when we played for biscuits.

53. Do you like to cuddle? Oh yes. Now that is another one that ain't gonna change!

54. Have you ever been to Canada? No. Soon...

55. Do you have an addictive personality? Yes. Yes, but it is more under control now, isn't it My Precious?

56. Do you eat out or at home more often? Home. But we are eating out more these days!

58. Do you know anyone with the same birthday as you? Not the say day, but 1 day either side. No change here!

59. Do you want kids? Did not want them until I found I was going to be a father. Now they are the centre of my life. It is funny how things change as they get older - it is gettimg more like sharing a house with a bunch of adults!

60. Do you speak any other languages? No, like a true Englishman. I started to learn German a long time ago...

61. Have you ever gotten stitches? Yes. Trying to remember when this was - ah, it was when a loft hatch hit me on the head! I laughed so much, but others insisted that I got looked at.

62. Have you ever ridden in an ambulance? Yes. Usually with Mrs RC in labour...

63. Do you prefer an ocean or a pool? Pool for swimming in, ocean to look at and listen to. Ocean all round now - I haven't been swimming for a long time.

64. Do you prefer a window seat or an aisle seats? Window. Window - I like to check that the wings are still there!

65. Do you know how to drive stick? How to what? ???

66. What is your favorite thing to spend money on? My kids. Same, but they are good kids and don't expect what I can't afford.

67. Do you wear any jewelry 24/7? No. I used to wear a ring that my wife gave me but it got caught on something at work (when I worked in a factory) and my hand nearly got dragged into a chopping machine so I stopped wearing it. Yes, I wear a wedding ring these days - Mrs RC finally dragged me to a shop and bought it.

68. What is your favorite TV show? Heroes. The Middle. Just love this show.

69. Can you roll your tongue? Yes. Why would someone ask this question????

70. Who is the funniest person you know? Steve. Still Steve!

71. Do you sleep with stuffed animals? No in the bed – I have a couple of stuffed toys that are mine in the bedroom. Same.

72. What is the main ring tone on your phone? Incoming. My phone is old. Got rid of Incoming, just have a plain ring now. My phone is still the same old one...

73. Do you still have clothes from when you were little? No. Guess!

74. What red object is closest to you right now? My desk tidy. My can of Pepsi!

75. Do you turn off the water while you brush your teeth? Yes. Definitely!

76. Do you sleep with your closet doors open or closed? Who cares? They tend to be closed - our bedroom is small so we can't leave doors open without risking injury.

77. Would you rather be attacked by a big bear or a swarm of bees? A bear. Bears are cuddly and cute. OK, they are not but I think I would die much faster. I like that answer!

78. Do you flirt a lot? No. Nah, it's not right is it?

79. What do you dip a chicken nugget in? Hoisin. Sweet chili.

80. What is your favorite food? Mexican. Chinese.

81. Can you change the oil on a car? No but I don’t have a car! Same.

82. Have you ever gotten a speeding ticket? No, they don’t tend to give tickets to cyclists. Same.

83. Have you ever run out of gas? Yes but a good Mexican soon fixes that! Oh, what a wit I have!

84. What is your usual bedtime? 11pm. More or less - sometimes it is 10pm, sometimes later.

85. What was the last book you read? The Campaigns of Alexander the Great. Bone in the Throat by Anthony Bordain. Not my usual stuff at all, but I enjoyed it.

86. Do you read the newspaper? No, I hate them all. Hate them even more these days!

87. Do you have any magazine subscriptions? Yes, ones about wargaming. No.

89. Do you watch soap operas? No. Definitely not!

90. Do you dance in the car? No car and you can’t dance on a bike. Same.

91. What radio station did you last listen to? InvictaFM. Radio 4 and Absolute Rock Radio.

92. Who is in the picture frame closest to you? My kids. The same photo!

93. What was the last note you scribbled on a piece of paper? A phone message for someone who was out of the office. Notes about some maps I was making.

94. What is your favorite candle scent? Not really my thing. Same.

95. What is your favorite board game? Backgammon. Chinese Checkers with loads of players.

96. Have you ever screamed at someone (not words - just a scream) in a public place, just for the sake of it? No. No, but I might do in the near future.

97. When was the last time you attended church? A wedding when I was about 18. A funeral last summer.

98.Who was your favorite teacher in high school? Mr Nicholson, my maths teacher who lived 2 doors away. Same.

99. What is the longest you have ever camped out in a tent? 1 night. 4 nights, but we usually do 3 at a time.

100. Who was the last person to do something extra special for you? My wife. My wife, again.

Phew, made it! Some changes but a fair amount hasn't changed, which is only natural I guess. Please feel free to ask extra questions while I am in the mood!

Monday...

2011-10-10T08:10:00.000-07:00

Well the presentation is over and done with - went OK, although I managed to talk for 10 minutes instead of the recommended 5! Guess I was trying too hard not to be a 2 minute wonder :-) It went OK anyway - the bar has been set at just above knee-height!

The weekend passed in the blink of an eye - birthday dinner out for the youngest (pizza), laying semi-comatose in front of the TV in the evening, cooking more pizza for dinner on Sunday (can't have too much pizza it would seem), watching Land of the Dead (a rather good zombie movie) while munching popcorn and an early night! Oh, I slipped in a bit of work on my presentation somewhere - not sure where but it did happen...

Well that is about it for now. More soon - I have found one of the first memes I ever did and thought it would be fun to revisit it to see how my answers have changed...

Friday - taking a 5 minute break...

2011-10-07T08:04:00.000-07:00

Why did I do it?

In class on Monday - we all have to do a short presentation to explain an academic paper that we have read.

Guess who volunteered to go first?

Yep, that's right.

And I get to do it on this Monday!

I could have hung on until November, given myself plenty of time to prepare, but no.

Ah well it will all be over for me and give me a clear run at other stuff, so I am sure it is better this way really.

OK notes taken - reduced a 20 page article to 2 pages.

Now I just need to reduce those 2 pages to a single slide...

Wish me luck!

Back on Monday, unless I get some online time over the weekend...

A BIG DAY!!!!

2011-10-06T07:15:00.000-07:00

My "little boy", who is almost as tall as I am, is 13 today! He is a great little guy with a razor sharp sense of humour. He will spend most of the evening shooting zombies on his XBox while munching through the assortment of goodies that he requested for his birthday "dinner". We will be going out to dinner to celebrate properly on Saturday.

Meanwhile, it is becoming clear that people are having increasing problems commenting on my blog. I will start to look into moving to a different service - any pointers would be more than welcome - assuming you can comment, of course!

Alternative futures

2011-10-05T03:03:00.000-07:00

Shrinky recently wrote a great post where she met up with various versions of herself, each one having made a different choice at some stage in their life. Please pop over to her blog and read it, if you haven't already.

Done?

Good.

Well after reading this I got to wondering what the alternative RCs would look like. Having not been sucked into a garbage disposal to actually meet them, I have had to use my imagination.

"Went to school properly" RC.
This guy didn't skip school like I did, went to Uni at the normal age and is now Professor of History at the University of Somewhereshire.

"Really believed he could be a Rock Star" RC.
Works for free in a guitar shop, tending to bore customers with stories about the time his band supported Ozzy Osborne. Still trying to put together the killer band that will finally make the big time.

"Hooked up with XXX" RC.
She was exciting but was into some serious drugs. This RC has not been seen for several years, presumed dead from an overdose.

"Never met Mrs RC" RC.
Still plays Dungeons and Dragons and lives with his mom.

"Took one of those highly paid jobs he was offered" RC.
Divorced. Never sees his kids. Has lots of expensive guitars and toy soldiers that someone else painted. Never has time to play with them as the career just sucks up his time and energy.

"Learned to drive" RC.
Due to lack of exercise, this guy weighs in at 300pounds.

"Took the job at the nursery school" RC.
Now runs the nursery school in one of the most deprived areas in the county, doing his best to set the local kids on the right path. The occasional success keeps him going as he sees so many of "his" kids go bad.

That will do for now. Why don't you try it?

Of Chili Dogs and Cold Beer

2011-10-03T01:40:00.000-07:00

Woke up a little late on Sunday morning, missing the morning dog walk, but feeling refreshed and ready for the day ahead.

After breakfast and a quick blast on one of my bass guitars (put new strings on them on Saturday - love a guitar with new strings...) I started making dough for the rolls we would have with our barbeque. Once this was set aside to rise I got to work on the chili dog sauce, using a recipe that was sent to me by one of my wonderful blog buddies...

The recipe was written for a semi-industrial scale, I reduced the amounts to a more managable level. The only risk I took was to interpret "Red Pepper" as "Cayenne Pepper"....

After the sause was cooked, I put a lid on it and set it aside for reheating later on. In my experience, things like this often benefit from a good standing time to allow the flavours to develop fully.

The rolls rose and baked to perfection....

The sausages that were to make up the chili dogs were put onto the barbeque last, catching the lower heat that was good for warming them through...

Then it was time.

I cut open a roll, and placed one of the sausages in it. Slight misjudgement meant that an inch or so of sausage hung out of each end of the roll, but hey, that is not serious.

Then a couple of generous spoonfuls of the chili mix.

I swear there was a Chorus of Angels at this point.

The chili dog also glowed briefly, I kid you not!

OK, so maybe the Police were chasing someone on the bypass.

And MAYBE someone picked up their glass which reflected the bright sunshine.

Maybe.

But there is no denying that this was the Holy Grail of chili dogs. It was absolutely wonderful. As was the 2nd and 3rd. Many thanks for the recipe, wReggie - I am forever in your debt.

And now we come to the beer part. I had bought some nice German beer to go with the chili dogs, but as I was cooking and baking in the heat from the sun (hotter than most of the summer had been!) I added some appleade to it. It was a wonderfully refreshing combination. Mrs RC pulled a face when I told her what I was drinking, but she then drifted back for a sip. After that she returned for several more, admitting that it was rather good!

Later that evening I had another beer and watched a dodgy disaster movie - a "just how bad can the continuity get" movie. A great way to round off a wonderful weekend.

Hope you had a great weekend and have a great week to come!

Surfin' USA...

2011-09-30T05:50:00.000-07:00

Well we are finally having a summer here in England! Better weather this week that most of the summer was, so this weekend will see barbeques and beer! Oooooh Yeah! Real Beach Boys weather!

A feature of the barbeque will be chili dogs, thanks to wReggie's inspiration. I am going to look for some good German sausages for this and will probably make my own rolls. Looking forward to it!

Had an extreme guitar dream last night - must get into a band once the dissertation is done. I had a bass guitar that had built in synthesiser stuff, including a joy-stick that did all sorts of stuff to the sound and pitch of the notes I was playing. I want that guitar! Not that it exists. Unless I just invented it. In which case, maybe I should look into building the damn thing!

Meanwhile, I still have more figures to paint for the Robin Hood game as well as the next part of my Persian army - next in line are Indian chariots. These are real monstrosities with 4 horses and 6 crew each! Will post photos of these when they are done as they are really something.

So, have a great weekend - hope you get to relax with some beer and a chili dog or something - more next week!

Getting to know me...

2011-09-28T08:01:00.000-07:00

I have stolen this Meme from Nanette at Life Candy, who stole it from someone else so I guess it is blog-business as usual?

Here are my answers to some random questions:

1. Name someone with the same birthday as you. No one seems to share exactly the same birthday as me, so I will go for John the Blind, King of Bohemia/Count of Luxembourg, born in 1296 and killed at the Battle of Crecy, charging into battle with someone else holding his horse's reins...

2. What has been your favorite age so far? 40. That was the year when everything in the world seemed to go right.

3. Where did you meet your wife? In a friend's bedsit. She was going out with another friend of mine at that point, who she then married and divorced in sort order before hooking up with me.

4. How many children do you have? 4, although our eldest is no longer with us.

5. Have you ever sung in front of a large number of people? No, but I did play bass guitar in a band when I was young. Never had the courage to stand in front of the microphone.

6. What’s the first thing you notice about your preferred sex? Usually it is their hair, unless I am close enough to see their eyes.

7. What really turns you off? Smoking.

8. What do you order at Starbucks? I have never been there! I would probably go for some sort of hot chocolate...

9. What is your biggest mistake? Trusting a certain doctor until it was too late.

10. As a child, what did you want to grow up to be? Happy.

11. Say something totally random about yourself. I have got 3 nipples.

12. Do you still watch kiddie movies or TV shows? I love Sponge Bob Squarepants.

13. Did you have braces? No.

14. Favorite Social Network? Blogging - far better than FB...

15. What is the most romantic thing someone of the preferred sex has done for you? This won't be the usual sort of answer to this one. One night we were walking home and I was pushing our daughter in a pram and a drunk guy decided he wanted to kick my head in. No reason. My wife took him on, told him what an idiot he was and told his girlfriend to get him under control before she got really angry. They went of quietly.

16. When do you know it’s love? When you automatically think "we" instead of "I"?

17. Do you speak any other languages? No. Unless you count profanity as a seperate language.

18. Have you ever been to a tanning salon? Nah.

19. What magazines do you read? None at the moment! Used to read ones about toy soldiers but gave up.

20. What is playing on your iPod right now? I don't own one! If I put some music on my PC right now it would probably be Foo Fighters or Thin Lizzy.

21. Have you ever ridden in a limo? Nope. Never felt the need to be honest.

22. Has anyone you were really close to passed away? Our daughter. It was the worst thing imaginable - thank God for good friends, great children and a strong loving wife.

23. Do you watch MTV? No. I occasionally watch Kerrang or Scuzz.

24. What’s something that really annoys you? People who complain that they are poor and can't afford things for their kids when they smoke, drink and have an expensive phone.

25. Which television show were you sad to say goodbye to? Dead Like Me. It was strangely theraputic.

26. Can you dance? I am great after a few beers.

27. What’s your favorite place in the world? Anywhere that I am with my wife and kids.

28. Have you ever been rushed by an ambulance into the emergency room? No, I am very careful.

29. If you could meet anyone (dead or alive) who would it be? I would like to have a beer with George W Bush.

30. If you could change one thing in the world for your child, what would it be? I just hope that they find love and happiness, whatever they end up doing.

Anyone else want to try this? Feel free to steal it from me...

Stealing from the rich...

2011-09-28T02:37:00.000-07:00

So, my video camera overheard me plotting to replace it and promptly started working again!

Here are some quick snaps I took of some of the figures I am painting for the Robin Hood game that a friend and I are working on:

King Richard, back from the Cruades.

A beggar and the woodcutter.

A pair of monks.

Another monk, or perhaps King Richard in disguise?

This game is going to be great fun - will post photos of the full game when we play it...

Might have to try this...

2011-09-27T03:01:00.000-07:00

Rock Chef Cola?

I await my royalty cheques...

Time passes, as it tends to do

2011-09-26T04:33:00.000-07:00

I post by TechnoBabe, celebrating her 5 years as a blogger, made me realise that I am approaching my 5th anniversary too!

Although it wasn't until January 2007 that I actually started blogging regularly, during the previous autumn a friend of mine (James) started to drag me into Blogdom. I created my first blog ("Don't talk to me about life") which I never posted to. As the name indicates, I was at a bad place in those days, but reading around different blogs made me see that there were some great people out there and I was hooked.

Over the years bloggers have come and gone - a few of the old gang that I hooked up with are still around, but many have either vanished entirely or have moved to Facebook, which is a shame. Blogging and Facebook are totally different things - you can't make new friends on Facebook as it does not allow for deeper discussions and connections. For example, on blogs I have discussed just about every topic imaginable:

Religion and faith;

The loss of loved ones;

Children asking questions such as "So do you and mommy still do IT?";

Childhood;

Parenting;

Pets pooping everywhere;

Aging parents;

Food - lots about food!;

Music;

History;

How cool it is to have Polish ancestry!

and a load more that my old brain can't quite recall on a Monday morning!

In the course of those discussions I have made some great friends - what I consider REAL friends, not just a bunch of people that I happen to know.

And I am now it a much better place than I was 5 years ago - thanks in no small part to you guys out there who have helped me through tough times. I cannot thank you enough for your love and support, it really does mean a lot to me.

5 years - doesn't seem like that long, but then again I have trouble remembering NOT blogging! Isn't the mind a funny thing!

So, thanks for reading, I hope you enjoy my random little posts because there are a lot more on the way!

Start of term

2011-09-23T07:56:00.000-07:00

This week has been the usual start of term mayhem - new students arriving, established students returning, class lists constantly updated, last minute things needing to be done, etc, not to mention the piles of photocopying!

So the weekend is more than welcome! I need to put my feet up, sip a beer and relax with the old guitar...

Might get some more toy soldiers painted too. I have started painting up some to go with a friend's Robin Hood set up. Yes, he has Robin Hood, the Sheriff, the Merry Menne, etc. I am adding a bishop, some monks, a few peasants and good old Richard the Lionheart, freshly returned from the Crusades. These are looking very nice and I will post photos when I can take some nice shots.

Well that is about it! Just about to finish of updating a PC lab for next week and then it is more or less time to run for home!

Have a great weekend - hope to be more with it next week!

I'm Worth it!

2011-09-22T09:25:00.000-07:00

It started back in the summer. While walking through London a group of women were giving out free samples of shower gel and antiperspirant.

It was a make that my wife uses, so I took some, only to realise that this was a version FOR MEN.

Now I am not one for spending money on fancy stuff like this - cheap bubble bath, antiperspirant that is on offer, whatever shampoo comes to hand - I am happy with just about anything that works.

I used to scoff at ads for "products" for men - the ones where George Clooney attributes his looks to what he washes with...

But I tried these samples - and they were great! Mrs RC really liked the smell of the antiperspirant, it worked great and it made my armpits feel nice too.

The shower gel was just as good - making a wonderful foam that left my skin feeling great.

I am hooked.

No more 35p bubble bath for me!

Because I'm worth it!

Good Morning!

2011-09-21T00:35:00.000-07:00

Not if you woke up to what I woke up to.

Custard the labrador had "toilet problems" in the night.

He usually warns us, but either he didn't have time or we didn't hear.

It was in the hall...

and the kitchen...

and the living room...

and the back porch...

Nice...

Have a great day!

Freshers Week!

2011-09-19T06:03:00.000-07:00

Yes, Freshers Week is upon us, so I might be MIA for most of this week (again.)

I made Chicken Fried Bacon on Friday! I served it with spicey potato wedges and creamy pepper sauce.

Verdict?

Everyone loved it! Will have to do that again soon....

We went out for dinner on Saturday - as usual we spent a fair amount of time swapping bits of food - a piece of chicken here, a couple of ribs there. I guess some people don't approve but we like eating that way... I think the waitress liked Number One Son, as she gave him a huge slice of fudgecake for his desert. He did not complain...

Sunday we tried to get some rest, which sort of worked - I painted some more soldiers (the Indian contingent of my Ancient Persian army) while Mrs RC read on her Kindle which she loves more and more. Almost tempted to get one for my self! She is getting some real bargains on books for it, having just bought a trilogy for 95p!

Ah well, better get back to it!

More as soon as I can manage it! Have a great week!

Boom?

2011-09-15T01:17:00.000-07:00

Well the bomb seems to have been a false alarm, but the Bomb Squad blew it up anyway - you can see the story here:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-kent-14917853

Travel wasn't badly affected by this because it was at the quiet end of this street - if it had been further along it would have cut the main route through the town which is what everyone was assuming at first.

Wonder if we are in for more of these?

****************************************

I need some advice about cameras.

My video camera has died, so I need to replace it.

I like the look of the new ones that are coming out with a built in HD projector - some see this as a gimmick, but I can see it being rather useful.

Alternatively I could get a good camera that also does video. Video cameras don't temd to take good stills, so this also has its appeal. I like taking photos.

Any thoughts on this would be very welcome!

Bomb-scare

2011-09-14T09:16:00.000-07:00

Another bomb scare in Canterbury.

There was one last month that caused havoc and now one today, just about the right time to shut down the town for rush-hour. I can get clear OK on my bike, but the buses will be shot to hell, which means that Number One Son will probably have fun getting home. Going to talk to him before I leave - might have to sort out alternative transport for him, poor thing.

Ah, just heard, the buses are OK somehow! Amazing! Things usually fall to pieces with the slightest excuse!

OK, time to run!

More tomorrow!

Multi-tasking

2011-09-13T05:38:00.000-07:00

Yes I know I am a guy and guys can't multi-task.

Women seem to be made for it - cooking dinner, watching TV, having seperate conversations with 3 children at once while also talking on the phone and reading a book. No sweat.

Meanwhile it is a smart guy who can read and take a dump at the same time.

But I have found 2 things I can do at once.

I can work and, thanks to the amazing temperature in my office, take a sauna. The last couple of days have been strangely warm and windy, so the place has heated up a lot, but if I open the windows everything will get blasted.

Might have to pop down and use the showers soon to complete the effect...

Next stop Christmas!

2011-09-12T02:51:00.000-07:00

Scarey thought, huh?

Almost s scarey as that photo!

Last week was not the best of weeks, so I won't dwell on that, but on Friday Mrs RC and I felt in need of a little retail-therapy, so we headed off to a new Range store that has just opened nearby. It is a great place that sells everything from sofas to pet food, and all at reasonable prices. We wandered around for a couple of hours picking up odds and ends that we clearly "needed" and played on the sofas and chairs trying to choose what we wanted. Yes, our sofas do need replacing and we will be buying new very soon, so don't think we were bouncing on the furniture for nothing!

Saturday passed in a bit of a haze - a long lay-in, a trip out to get dinner (home made Chinese with noodles, hoi sin pork and stir fried chicken) and then, um, not sure to be honest!

Sunday was quiet, mainly focused on watching various TV stuff about 9/11. The History Channel showed an amazing real-time programme of amateur video footage. If you haven't seen it, try to. It is incredible. Adding Ground Zero to the trip itinerary...

**************************

Didn't feel like cooking dinner, so I cycled to the local KFC.

Walking in alone I ordered 18 pieces of chicken, 16 hot wings and 6 large fries.

"Is that to eat-in or take-away?"

Do I look like someone who could eat all that without help?

Autumn is here...

2011-09-05T06:58:00.000-07:00

Despite the clear blue sky and bright sunshine, there was a definite bite to the wind this morning.

As I cycled to work, the southwesterly wind brought alternating bands of blue sky and rain-laden cloud - luckily the clouds seemed happy to save their rain for another target, so I arrived dry if wind-swept...

And it was not just me that noticed the change in the weather - many of the trees are turning various shades of red, gold and brown, and our rabbits seem to be fattening themselves up for the winter too, eating incredible amounts of food! By the way, we got a second opinion on the sex of our baby rabbits and they are both boys! So, the latest plan is to avoid risky operations and just divide the run into two - a boys section and a girls section. This will work so long as the boys don't start fighting. If they do we will have to rethink our plans...

The change in the weather has now got my stomach thinking in terms of the slow-cooker - of stew and dumplings that have been bubbling away for hours - the sort of food where you can feel the goodness seeping into you as you eat it, the sort that warms you deep down, the sort of food that doesn't need fancy ingredients from half way around the world...

You know, I am looking forward to the cold weather?

Rabbit update

2011-09-02T05:44:00.000-07:00

So, we are down to 4 rabbits - 2 adult females, 1 baby male and 1 baby female.

The male is due to be "done" in a couple of weeks time. Meanwhile, Mrs RC has decided that it would be cruel to seperate Panda (the boy) from the rest of the family and is happy to risk any consequences.

This morning Panda was trying his luck with Houdini, his sister. This is OK for rabbits, BTW.

So we might be in for some "consequences" in a few weeks time. If there are we will be better prepared to keep the cats away, that is for certain!

And the weekend starts with a rabbit theme too - taking them to the vets for jabs. I have been given the job of catching them as last time Mrs RC found it very difficult and stressful - I think she was worried about frightening them too much, scared they would have heart attacks which can happen apparently! Hm, wish me luck!

Have a great weekend - back on Tuesday!

The Joy of Pizza

2011-08-31T04:11:00.000-07:00

Pizza is the food of gods.

I love making pizza - everything about it is wonderful, from the feel of the fresh dough to the pleasure at seeing it being enjoyed by those I love.

It is food for sharing - a large platter with sliced pizza and dough balls goes down really well when the kids have friends around.

Pizza is what you want it to be - it can be a healthy meal if topped with fresh vegetables, or ham and pineapple.

It can be a hearty meal after a days work if you pile on the meat.

It can be a test of true manhood it you add jalapenos and hot sauce.

A shared pizza has lead to many nights of hot passion. I assume.

I love pizza.

What is there not to love about it?

Odds and Ends

2011-08-30T08:19:00.000-07:00

Hi! Good to be back and returning to regular blogging!

Well the summer has been non-stop - really busy all round. Can't believe it is now the end of August!

We had to have one of our rabbits, Blossom, put down the other day. He was the brown one who we thought was a female but turned out to be a male and fathered the babies we have now got. He had shown no sign of being unwell but seems to have had a stroke, losing all muscle power in his back half. Poor thing. I like to think that he enjoyed his time with us and is now bounding around bunny-heaven.

Talking of death, I am dead again! You may remember that a year or so ago my bank thought I had died? Well now another organisation has decided I am pushing up the daisies! What is it about me? Do people just wish me dead or something? Don't answer that! I am almost expecting to be arrested for faking my own death...

So, back to the routine again - next stop Christmas! Going to be a busy few months I can tell you! I got a fair bit of ground work done on be dissertation, and have just found some more things I can do with my data - then it is time to hit the writing - I want to get most of that done by Christmas so I only have to do a bit if polishing after that. Wish me luck!

More soon...

Friday again!

2011-08-26T06:35:00.000-07:00

Had a really busy week - the Uni (Lancaster) looks great as does the town. Really impressed with it all and Number One Son is hoping to get in next year. His chosen subject is Maths and Theoretical Physics...

I can't do a long post as I am half way through making pizzas, but just want to say that if you are in the path of Irene, please stay safe!

More soon!

Friday!

2011-08-19T10:15:00.000-07:00

Yes, the week is over, jsut the big dinner tonight to finish things off properly.

Next week I am on holiday, spending part of the week checking out a University with Number One Son. From what we know so far it looks like being a really good place, but we need to see it first hand to settle things. I am sure there will be a couple more visits to other places in the coming year too, but this one is the firm favourite.

That is about all I have time for right now - have a great weekend - I need to get sorted for dinner - shorts and a sweaty t-shirt will not do...