Gie’s a dram or I’ll dae ye

To the best of my knowlege, I am not of Scottish heritage. However, I did spent several years playing side drum in a pipe band during my high school years, which had a predictably disastrous effect on my psyche. So, you can imagine my delight when I visited Misty's site today and saw a link to ... HAGGIS HUNT 2005/06! It warmed the cockles of my non-Scottish but thoroughly plaid-imprinted little, black heart.

The site is a cornucopia of haggis wonders, from myths and facts, zoology and hunting tips, to drink recipes, including the world famous and ever popular Sloe comfortable haggis against the wall.

The hunt is on from 30 November until 25 January. So fire up your meuran and run in circles on down to the Haggis Hunt website and bag you some marag fabulosus. There are real prizes to be won beginning with the grand prize: two nights of luxury at the world famous Gleneagles Hotel, Perthshire on down to lovely HaggisHunt merchandise, with lots of *hic!* whiskey in between.

Let the hunt begin!

How do you say Quidi Vidi?

Here is the lovely Quidi Vidi Lake where a regatta is held every August, (Hmmm. I seem to have an August fixation here.) although this picture was not taken in August, I swear.

It also has an excellent 3.8 km (2.4 mile) walking trail around the permimeter and lots of ducks of various types to feed. As well as two geese, one white and one Canada.

So here's a test for everyone. How does one prounounce "Quidi Vidi?"

What's your sex appeal?

And now for something completely silly. Blame Misty. She "made" me post this. 'Cause I always have to do whatever the other kids are doing. Would someone kindly point me in the direction of the nearest bridge? Ta.

"Appear" being the operative word...

So, what's your style? Take the test. Ya know ya wanna.

What's your sex appeal?

Harry Potter & the Goblet of Fire

I'm not the biggest Harry Potter fan on the planet, but have read the first two books and enjoyed them well enough. I've only seen the first movie and that on TV, so it was chopped to pieces by commercial breaks but again, it was okay.

I saw Goblet of Fire in the cinema last night and really enjoyed it, though. It's a BIG movie - lots of SFX and action and noise and laughs and creepy bad guys and jump-out-of-your-seat moments - that deserves to be seen on the big screen. Not nearly enough Hagrid, but you can't have everything.

Pin me!

Courtesy of the fine folks at Bravenet, I now have a guest map, so c'mon! Pin me!

More August Clouds

Post-blizzard

And this was taken the next afternoon, after everyone had spent the morning digging out. Most winters are not like this as we're on the coast and it's fairly temperate. Every 10 years or so, though, we get hit with a whopper of a season.

Blizzard

Weather was the topic of discussion on Sunday November 20 on My Boyfriend is a Twat. The above photo was taken in January 2002 mid-blizzard from my living room window. We were averaging 40 cms of snow per storm that year. During January and February, we had a blizzard SIX SATURDAYS IN A ROW. What a drag. Trapped in the house all day and night Saturday and digging out most of Sunday.

August clouds

Clouds. We have the most amazing cloud formations here. This photo is not retouched or PhotoShopped. And I posted it in mid-November just because. Shut up.

We now return you to our regularly scheduled program

We have been experiencing technical difficulties. Do not adjust your set. This is only a test.

And speaking of tests, that was an 'interesting' month or so, in the vein of that old curse, "May you live in interesting times." Note to self: never stage manage two stage plays back-to-back. These are the choices that lead to nervous breakdowns.

And there were technical difficulties with the first show. Oh yes, there were. 70 cues into a 110-cue show, the headsets went dead. Luckily, it was only a loose connection backstage that was immediately identified by a quick-thinking assistant stage manager (ASM) and on we went. Another night, the same ASM's microphone connection dissolved into total static and she was reduced to communicating by flashing the call light once for 'no' and twice for 'yes.' And the light tech lost his mic connection for the last three shows.

The second show didn't suffer any technical difficulties and really only had a couple of glitches, the most notable being an errand costume piece that rolled away from an actor and out of the light and caused a few moments of concern. We quickly plotted a rescue mission over the headsets, but the piece was found before we needed to launch it.

But that's all in the past now. We had good houses for both shows and the audiences seemed to enjoy themselves. Only a month until auditions for the next show... arrrrgh!!!!!

Floats like a butterfly...

Here he is - Riley, the Feather-Weight Beagle-Boxing Champ of the World, in full attack mode. Abby, the long-suffering Beagle, (AKA Abigail von Beagle, Comtesse de Chien d'Odeur de Cherchez le Lapin) makes token counter-strikes but never really tries to hurt him. Which is a good thing, because she could tear his head off with one bite if she wanted. And I might not object if she did this at 3:00 a.m. during one of Riley's nocturnal battles with the invisible aliens. Mrrrrwroooowwww!

Riley the Wonder Cat

Riley the Wonder Cat. The most affectionate cat I've ever owned. Or been owned by, to be correct. He demands affection. And talks incessantly. He also seems to have a very varied vocabulary, from a cute high-pitched little "meow!" to a bizarrely deep growl that he utters when he's being chased out of the basement by invisible aliens. At least that's what it sounds like. He comes barreling up the basement stairs, emitting this growl that sounds too nasty to come from the throat of a pretty little kitty cat. He also talks in multi-syllable meows that sound something like, "Me ow row wow ow mow wow wow." I'd love to know what he thinks he's saying. Probably just, "Shut up and fire up the can opener opposable thumbed one."