Friday night Live!
Mood:  party time!
Now Playing: Neko Case-Blacklisted
Topic: Elisabeth's Entries
I'm scrapping brownie from a knife with my teeth, and then washing it down with white wine. I just felt my teeth tingle with approval (or was it the opposite...I know it's been over six months but...)

And like I promised, I bought some Chardonnay...5.99 pounds, marked down from 7.99...and just so that no body thinks I wasted my money, I thought I ought to prove what kind of value for money I got:



So it's the end of the week...what are you doing this weekend? Hopefully someone has plans to a) Go out drinking with friends b) Going on a trip somewhere (anything that's not in your post-code counts) or c) Going out to see, hear, or do anything. Please unveil your social calender to the Allins, so we might live vicariously through you.

The reason is that Stephen is working all of Saturday, and Sunday we like to just relax at home. Nothing wrong with that, but boy sometimes do we wish you all were here.

There is a gorgeous cat outside on the wall:

And I'm going to go read more of Phillip Pullmans' The Amber Spyglass, which made me cry on the train today (I'm in the middle of the third book for anyone out there who's read-em.) I am enchanted with this trilogy. It really strikes a chord inside.

And now for some political commentary:

Terry Schiavo: Look, I havnt' been able to bring myself to keep up to date on this story, hoping that sometime soon it could rest in peace... I believe it is not natural to use science to defy the call of death for years on end. I also believe its blatantly hypocritical of pro-lifers and fundamentalists to suddenly back technology as a stand in for God. Again, I havn't been keeping up with the news stories really, but it strikes me that the issue here is not over this woman, or the debate whether or not it is correct to keep people on life-support indefinitely, but rather, it seems to be about who has more of a right over a person's life: the parents, or the spouse.

Is that over-simplifying things?

But think about it, the real horror of this newstory, is this family ripped apart--the parents loosing a daughter, the husband loosing a wife. Then the media pours acid in the wounds.

But when it comes down to knowing best what somebody else wants, I honestly don't think parents are ever the best candidate for the job. As hurtful as that feels for parents, it is true. A partner/lover/spouse on the other hand is in a relationship of equality (hopefully) and intimacy (hopefully). Over an issue like life & death, how many times do you think a partner is going to make the wrong decision for the person they are in love with? Maybe I'm way off the mark here...

ANOTHER ISSUE: the world's natural resources

I am getting scared my friends. I do not like all these reports coming out once again to try and convince all the greedy assholes out their that their lifestyles are unsustainable for a future.

I find have children a matter of moral responsibility to HAVE them, then to NOT have them.

I find this idea is difficult for anyone over 45 years of age to understand, but probably because they are not affected, and neither will their children.

In the end, we must all be prepared for the worst. For in how many articles do they offer information as to what can be done, and how you can help now. Very few. I can only hope that nature will take its own recourse, and if that means natural disasters to wipe out millions, but the end result is a balance eco-system again, than I say so be it. I would rather die knowing that the world will correct itself, than to go on child-less, or living with the knowledge that my children and grandchildren will face hardships that they were never responsible for.

ok--I am going to finish the rest of the wine. Maybe Stephen will be home soon....

ciao

Honey I'm Home
Mood:  hungry
Now Playing: Stephen's Star Wars Trivia
Topic: Elisabeth's Entries
I am surprised to be home right now, and in fact I was home by seven with Chinese takeaway b/c the meeting finished early, gasp! So don't cry for me...but I will still be home early with a bottle of chardonnay tomorrow.

Oh yeah...and more book-token fiascos today at the bookstore...

Hi folks, Stephen here. Look'it! I drew a pitcher. We went and got us some art supplies and I can draw again. Welcome to my subconscious:

I came up with a really good name for it but then I forgot it so I'll try to remember it, though I think it'll stay forgotten.

Mid-Week Update
Mood:  lyrical
Now Playing: They Might be Giants -Lincoln
Topic: Elisabeth's Entries
Hey y'all,

So far this week:

Stephen has been disappointing customers who are trying to use out-dated book-tokens...a surprising number have come into the bookstore this week. He discovered today the reason why his new job has not started yet: they only today posted the references. Luckily Stephen was in charge of the post today...

For me, there's a big product meeting tomorrow where the company reviews which products are definitely discontinued, as well as select new products to be introduced in the fall. This has involved a lot of sourcing, and it will probably take 10 hours to go through all the selections tomorrow. While I only got home at 8pm tonight, tomorrow may be more like 10pm.! Crazy... I am going to buy a big ol' bottle of Chardonnay and a fruit pie on Friday, and soak in the tub while Stephan mingles with his co-workers at the pub...in hounour of their departing manager.

I finally received the fruit of my labour today, which means that I can now ride the train without dipping into my over-draft...my bicycle blew a flat tyre! Luckily it was only on a leisure ride to Woking park, and not somewhere along the 7 miles between here and Innova.

And really, They Might be Giants just sum everything: "He wants a shoe horn (the kind with teeth), because he knows there's no such thing."

Psyche!
Mood:  bright
Now Playing: Bjork: Vespertine
Topic: Elisabeth's Entries
Once again Stephen and Elisabeth have failed to live up to their own predictions, and never made it to the Canal Festival. We apologize to all those funny photo lovers, who were waiting on edge to see British Canal Folk.

Our excuse is that when we went to the canal, there weren't any boats, and then the weather was overcast, and we were quite happy just to stay indoors.

So what have we been doing over this Easter weekend?

Friday: Elisabeth got new glasses. Nobody has posted any comments, so I'm not sure if anyone else is as excited as I am...these are the glasses of my DREAMS! They are black plastic with sparkles all over! Then we saw an insane Easter show at the mall food court, rented some movies: The Mystery Men, Some Like it Hot (surprisingly disappointing), and Elephant.

Saturday: Stephen had to work, so Elisabeth cleaned the apartment, did laundry, brought Stephen's packed lunch to eat with him on his lunch break, and grocery shopped. Then she made a zucchinni goasts cheese quiche, and banana loaf, all washed down with a yummy Spanish wine.

Sunday: We again didn't follow our original plan to go to church, so we had pancakes, easter eggs (yes Stephen hid them for me-but our apt. is so small it really wasn't difficult) and read in bed most of the day. I then made one of our favorite meals: Leek, goats cheese and roasted red pepper lasagne...washed down with some more red wine.

Monday: Stephen is at work again, and Elisabeth is going to have a creative day (so she thinks). I've bought an assortment of tissue paper which I am cutting into shapes, and trying to make neat patterns with. Then there's the Vogue 2004 project which involves cutting out each months trends, and fashion quirks, and then comparing them all together in a kind of collage-y thing.

I need to clean my bicycle today, but it's the kind of thing that easily gets put aside.

To make up for things, Stephen has taken the camera to work, to try to capture the Mad Hatter who is roaming the mall today. So stay tuned!

Don't be Afraid of a Chick in Shades
Mood:  cool
Now Playing: Virgin Radio Best Party Songs
Topic: Elisabeth's Entries
NEW GLASSES!!!!

Get Your War On!
Mood:  caffeinated
Topic: Stephen Says
I've got to get to the bookstore soon, but here's a link to keep y'all entertained as we gear up for the long weekend (That I'm mostly working through) and the super-dee-duper canal festival. And if you like that page, there are 44 more just like it for you to look at!

Everything new is old again
Topic: Stephen Says
I meant to post this yesterday & forgot. All apologies.

You only get one guess where I?d have to be to hear this. And, I swear on my balls, they?re all real:

?Hello, I?m calling from Scotland. Do you have any copies of the highway code in Urdu??

?If anyone tells you that there?s no such thing as dragons, you tell them they?re a liar because dragons are in the Bible. And everything in the Bible is true.?

?It?s my art. It?s magic but not like David Blaine. I use my camera phone to take pictures of the sun and look, you can see faces in the sky. This one?s looking at this one who is looking at this one, which is looking at you. This will change the world and prove that Allah didn?t create the world in seven days. I need a book that has the addresses and e-mails of female artists so I can show this to them. Men wouldn?t understand it.?

Big hittin' pickled onion flava
Mood:  cheeky
Now Playing: A football match in the background and the rustle of empty packets of Discos
Topic: Stephen Says
*Phew!* Not wanting to rub it in, but we went to our first Barbequeue (Damnit! I forgot how to spell that word. BBQ forever more!) yesterday and took in a rugby match on the tele.

The really big news, though is that we went for a walk along a part of the canal that we never go along and have finally found a proper pub. A friendly pub that conforms to our narrow minded view of what a British pub is supposed to be like. One with a nice, big beer garden and children and a mix of people. not filled uniformly with pikeys, students or telemarketers/real estate agents who are trying to act like they're in Straw Dogs. This pub is much more Wicker Man.

We'll be there next Sunday - it's the canal boat festival where everyone dresses up their canal boats & sails them to the pub. Pictures will be taken, etc.

We must get out now & enjoy the weather.

The perverse sexual lives of British men and other issues for a Saturday morning
Mood:  caffeinated
Now Playing: The flip, flip of Elisabeth filing things.
Topic: Stephen Says
Hmm, whats new? I got my 1st good haircut in the UK by Uncle Junior yesterday. Now that the weather's nice, Yobbo's out in full force screaming obscenities at minorities and acting like the scrawny bald psychopath that he is.

So onto this topic's subject: British men & their sexual fantasies. According to Elisabeth (via Red Magazine- she got a free bag with it), the 7th most important thing British women should know about their men is that "He shall have an unhealthy obsession with nurses. It is here that ye code of ye genders be truely cracked. For my husband hath told me that men think that all nurses have a secret method of making them ejaculate by sticking a finger up their bottoms. This, apparently, is the Holy Grail of our menfolk [...] the sex act at it's most sacred."

Ok, Elisabeth's said that I've opened (not for the first time at least) myself up to ridicule because I just don't get it. Is it because nurses are clean? Someone please explain. Or is it just than British men are filthy, weird and perverse?

And another thing, whenever I get my hair cut, at the end of the session, after they've used the floppy white bush on my face & back of my neck, they always give me a square of tissue paper. All of a sudden I feel like I'm in that scene in Scarface where he's given the orange water and, instead of cleaning his fingers in it, he eats the orange. What do I do with the tissue paper? Normally I make a polite wipe of my forehead, back of my neck, maybe wipe my nose and then pocket it. What am I supposed to do with it?? Help!

And another thing, why do so many grown men over here wear sweat pants? The only time you wear grey or navy blue sweat pants is when you're exercising or under the age of 13. Not when you're with your wife shopping at the Peacocks Center. Look, I don't mind that I come across as slightly yobby/chavvey or dodgy by the way I dress, but 40 year old men in sweat pants is alright? Are they intimidated by the fact that I've mastered the button fly? Beause men in sweats aren't intimidating because of the ease with which you can pull down their pants? To me, a man in sweats says 'not taking his medication.' Pointe finale.

Blogging? What blogging?
Mood:  mischievious
Now Playing: A selection of Irish short stories
Topic: Stephen Says
Damn, there's a lack of interesting things going on that I can blog about. Heaven forbid that E or I have lost interest in blogging! Can it be that we have, at long last, acclimatized to living in Britain? It's St. Patricks day and it's 20 degrees celsius outside. What's in like in Canada, suckers? If this is acclimitization, then it ain't so bad!

The dance piece that we saw the other day was okay. It made me pine for the cooless that is Usine C where the performance pieces are much more challenging and contain far greater amounts of nudity. Anyway, here's a link to the show that we saw: Link. It was alright but too tame and easy to get.

Must... blog... more. Maybe.