Jun
30
2011
1

June 2011 books

Trust Me, I’m a Vet by Cathy Woodman is a lovely book. Maz is a vet and she agrees to locum for her friend who runs a country veterinary practice. She is neither used to running a practice or living in the country and things take a turn for the worse when she has problems with the locals. Hilarious and I loved it.

The Rise and Fall of the Queen of Suburbia: A Black-Hearted Comedy by Sarah May is a dire book. It was all about neighbours and the things they get up to behind closed doors. I got about half way through before deciding that a) I didn’t have a clue about what was happening and b) I didn’t actually care. So, I decided not to bother finishing it and it is going back to the charity shop.

Fox Evil by Minette Walters is one of her more mediocre books. The story is about an old woman who freezes to death on her terrace and her husband is slowly going nuts after locals accuse him of killing her. Next arrives a bunch of travellers to taunt him and create trouble and his solicitor sticks around to support him. Add to the mix an illegitimate heir to his fortune and there is the (very confusing) story. Not one of her better ones.

The Forgotten by Faye Kellerman is a pretty good read. Featuring Detective Pete Decker and his Jewish family this book features Nazis, the desecration of a synagogue and a bit of S&M. A good book.

Bon Appetit by Peter Mayle is a poor relation to his book A Year in Provence. As the title would suggest it is mainly about French food and the importance this plays in the culture, but it wasn’t as interesting as his other books.

The Taking by Dean Koontz is genuinely one of the most frightening books I have ever read. It is a sci-fi book about aliens taking over the world, a genre I tend to avoid, but I have to admit this book was great but it did scare me shitless!

Pedalling to Hawaii by Stevie Smith is an impressive book written buy a bloke who is a complete and utter lunatic. He decided to attempt to circumnavigate the globe by human power only, that would be either by bicycle, pedal boat or roller skates. The man is a complete eccentric and completely mental but it was an entertaining, if rather rambling read.

Written by Anna Williams in: Uncategorized | Tags: ,
Jun
29
2011
2

Life

At the moment life is very busy and tiring and there is almost too much going on. Mainly we are starting to pack up the house and get things ready to move. Packing is even more complicated by the fact that we are having to pack for three different things; stuff to go into storage, stuff to go to Mum and Dad’s and stuff for camping. It seems to make things even more complicated.

We haven’t even really thought about jobs yet. However, I did have a very interesting conversation though with a guy who might be able to help somewhat with the job thing. It’s quite a strange story as my aunt and uncle who live in Argentina met this guys elderly parents out there and they told my aunt and uncle that their son lived on The Rock… so when they were there they met up with him, talked to him about me and gave me his phone number. So, I texted him and he phoned me and it turns out he is a consultant psych working in mental health and his good mate is the drug and alcohol consultant. How weird is that (if you follwed the story!)… maybe there is something in this planning that isn’t just of us and maybe God is involved just a little bit too.

Written by Anna Williams in: Uncategorized | Tags: , ,
Jun
21
2011
4

Spam

Do any of you clever peeps out there know how to deal with it?

I am getting between 40-50 spam comments every day and it is starting to get on my nerves!

Written by Anna Williams in: Uncategorized |
Jun
17
2011
1

A Jonathan Coulton and Paul and Storm gig from the perspective of a non-geek

Last Friday The Mister and I went over to Manchester to a Jonathan Coulton gig, and he was supported by Paul and Storm. As ever, an amazing gig, but I felt that it would be appropriate to make a few observations.

1. I have never seen so many geeks in the same place at the same time. Now I know that this is mainly because Jonathan Coulton has rather obsessive fans who seem to know the lyrics to every single one of his songs and as he is so internet based the geek thing makes sense. Mind you, it is unusual (outside of sci-fi conventions or some other sadness) to see so many of them in one place.

2. Previously mentioned geeks are mainly blokes who struggle with personal hygiene. The gig smelt rather like a teenage boys bedroom. It is obvious that most of them only have a vague grasp of washing. Not nice.

3. Quite a lot of them seem to have problems with impulse control – especially the bloke a couple of rows in front of us who seemed to have some sort of heckler tourettes and kept lifting up his arms and displaying his sweaty smelly pits. Grim.

4. In general there seemed to be some problem with social interaction from the audience. Maybe it is because of the amount of time they all spent perving at computer screens all day.

5. As ever I was ashamed to realise that I am a little bit more geeky that I would like to be. I just got too many of the damn jokes.

Having said all that it was a fantastic gig, but not quite as good as the one we went to last year. I have decided that that was partly as I had never seen them before so I had no idea what to expect, but also because it was in the most stunning venue, the Union Chapel in London. It is absolutely amazing and has the most divine acoustics. Therefore any venue that did not match up to that was going to be a disappointment. This gig was in what looked more like a school auditorium – no contest with last years venue!

So, here is my favourite song from the gig at Union Chapel last year. Just gorgeous. By the way, if you like people like Tim Minchin then you are pretty much guaranteed to like Paul and Storm… Look them up on YouTube!

Video…

(Any ideas on how to embed a YouTube video on here?.. then I can link the song!)

Written by Anna Williams in: Uncategorized |
Jun
06
2011
0

Gratuitous nephew and niece photos!

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Jun
06
2011
0

Wells – Day 7 – The Main Event

So… onto Saturday… the reason we were all actually in beautiful Wells.

My cousin Nic was getting married to his lovely Debbie, and most of the family had managed to travel to see it happen. It was a gorgeous day, sunny but a bit breezy and the wedding was perfect. Nic looked as smart as his laid back self could possibly look and Debbie was absolutely stunning.

Their whole day was relaxed, drinks in the gorgeous garden at Stoberry Park followed straight away by speeches and cutting the cake. Then onto the marquee for a hog roast and plenty of local cider and a barn dance in the evening. It was a beautiful do, perfect for the happy couple and we had a brilliant, brilliant time.

So… onto the pics, keep an eye out for my gorgeous nephew Barnabas and my equally beuatiful niece Eden.

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Jun
06
2011
0

Wells – Day 7

Had a brilliant day at the Bath & West Show. It was hot, but fortunately there was a bit of a wind although we all managed to get a little bit sunburnt.

I love agricultural shows – little piggies and sheep, cows and of course there are the locals who are more than happy to tell you about the fine art of washing a bull’s bollocks. There was loads to see and it was such a fab day out… even Uncle Howard had a smile on his face for a change! Oh, and the food hall!!! Amazing food from local pasties to strawberries and cream and fantastic burgers. Yum!!!

Anyway, here are a few pictures… more on flickr as always… just click through!

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Written by Anna Williams in: Uncategorized | Tags: ,
Jun
06
2011
0

Wells – Day 6

Mum and Dad arrived in Wells in the morning and we went to Fleet Air Arm Museum – this was definitely one for Dad and Paul. I don’t mind planes but I have to admit that I had had enough by a couple of hours in. However, there was one brilliant bit in the museum when there was a mocked up aircraft carrier with projected footage on the massive end walls simulating planes taking off. Then you went on a tour of the ship with a commentary. It was clever.

There are so many boring photos of planes… so here is one of Dad…

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Written by Anna Williams in: Uncategorized |
Jun
01
2011
2

Wells – Day 5

Today The Mister and I went on a day out to Wookey Hole. This time we went out with my cousins and their families, including a couple of children. We had a fab day out even though Wookey Hole is rather over-commercialised and just a little bit tacky in some places. The caves were actually more impressive than those at Cheddar Gorge, they are bigger and just a bit more spectacular.

It was a fun day out and it was so nice to spend some time with more of the family. We got back to Wells in the afternoon and it seemed like a good idea to go to the nearest pub and have a few glasses of wine. After that I needed a little sleep – in the bath as usual!

Tonight the Mister and I went out for a fantastic meal at a restaurant called Beah. great food, I had a delicious lamb tagine, and equally good wine.

Tomorrow my parents arrive and on Friday my sister and her family arrive. Our nice quiet holiday for two has ended – the masses descend from tomorrow!

These top two photos amused me most out of all the ones we took today. The final one iis of the gorgeous evening light on the Cathedral on the way home from our meal.
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Written by Anna Williams in: Uncategorized | Tags: ,
Jun
01
2011
0

May books 2011

Cathedral by Nelson Demille was a really tough book to get into. By about page 100 I decided I just couldn’t be bothered to put it in the charity shop pile!

The Mill House by Susan Lewis was a nice read. Julia Thayne has a loving husband and she has some fab children. However, she lives with a dark history, her father disappeared when she was young and she had no contact with him. When he dies she starts her quest to find out what happened to him, and in the process her relationship with her husband starts to deteriorate and she finds out he has been having an affair with her friend. A good read with a nice story. Perfect bus reading material!

Can You Keep a Secret by Sophie Kinsella is a perfect vacuous read! Emma is in a boring job, aspiring to greater things when she takes a business trip to Scotland. On the flight back the plane hits turbulence and she ends up spilling all her deepest, darkest secrets to a complete stranger. Well, he was a complete stranger until she realised he was the founder of the company she works for. A funny and sweet book. I like Kinsella’s books, especially the Shopaholic series which are well worth a read.

Some Kind of Hero by Donna Hay is a “heart-warming” book about a single mother with a teenage son. It’s a good read with a nice story and she tackles some challenging issues such as love, families and dealing with the hand life has dealt you.

A Perfect Match by Jodi Picoult is a much tougher read, not because of the writing style but because of the subject matter. Nina is a high-flying prosecution lawyer. Used to holding herself together her world falls apart when her 5-year-old son starts exhibiting signs of having been sexually abused. She knows he is unlikely to be able to go through a court hearing so she shoots the suspected perpetrator. A tough read, but a good story.

Driving Over Lemons: An Optimist in Andalucia by Chris Stewart is a cracking and a funny read. Chris Stewart is the ex-drummer from of Genesis but retired from music and started a career as a sheep shearer. He and his wife drive a ramshacke farmhouse in a remote part of Spain. The book is about them developing their relationships with theur very Spanish neighbours and learning to tame the property they bought. Lovely read.

Blue Dahlia by Nora Roberts is a really typical novel by this author. A young widower ends up moving back to her hometown to live near her father and step-mother. There she finds a new job and inevitably a new bloke. A nice read and I still like the way this author writes.

High Fidelity by Nick Hornby is a really shit novel and I don’t know why it has such good reviews on Amazon! It is about a bloke who gets dumped by his girlfriend and then spends the majority of this book with regaling us with all the reasons she made the right decision in the first place. A really unlikeable central character which made the book dull, boring and unimaginative. Not worth buying.

Roadside Crosses by Jeffrey Deaver features the new, kinesics expert detective Kathryn Dance. A young man is accused of committing some horrific murders, however there is a large cross-ver between the fantasy synthetic world of role-playing games and real life. This is a great book with a fast-paced storyline and a good example of the genre.

Written by Anna Williams in: Uncategorized |

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