Monday, May 30, 2005

Unconscious Mutterings

  1. Crowd:: busy
  2. Hamburger:: Fries
  3. Choker:: necklace
  4. Lights:: colours
  5. Tinsel:: Christmas
  6. Testament:: bible
  7. Best part of the day:: early morning
  8. Election:: OH NO!
  9. Clarinet:: summer
  10. Cake or death:: cake!
Mother’s day
Was very quiet, had some pressies from Rob, Dom wasn’t there so she sent me a message and Olivier apologized several times for not having got me a present.
Can we please think about something else.After the lovely hot week, the weekend was cooler and wet. Yesterday we voted in the referendum. I was so fed up with hearing about it, even when I put on the good old BBC they’d planted a journalist in front of a polling station. People were going for coffee, buying baguettes and jogging, but no one was voting at that time. Can we hear about something else now. Please!
HELP!!
I’ve been trying to post some pictures of the garden. Hello says “The UI failed to initialize. If there are no other running copies you should reinstall”. I’ve uninstalled and reinstalled and I just keep getting the same message. Has anyone else had this problem?

Thursday, May 26, 2005

I did have something to say
I think I’m going crazy here. Yesterday evening I remember hearing on the news that today is lost children day. Do you think I can find any information about it? We saw some home video of a ten year old playing in the surf, he disappeared shortly after he was filmed, fourteen years ago!

I thought that US visitors would like to know that when we see episodes of American series, and there are a lot, if they deal with lost children we see the lists and photos at the end. It might be a comfort to someone that their lost child’s picture is being broadcast in Europe too.

Another lost child is the man of around 40 years of age who is now free after wrongly being sent to prison when he was 15 (yes fifteen) for abusing a smaller child. He ‘confessed’ to the crime after interrogation by the police. He did not have legal aid, parents or social workers present. The police declared that the statement they produced in evidence was in his own words, which it obviously wasn’t. When asked if he was angry he said of course he was, but while he was in prison he realized that anger made life worse. I wish I’d written down his name and again, I can’t find anything about him. Whoever you are, I hope you live the rest of your life to the full!!

Tuesday, May 24, 2005

Transatlantic tunnel
Olivier called me over to the computer yesterday evening to show me a site he'd found on a tunnel under the Atlantic. Their site was in French but when I Googled later I found lots and lots of information. Meeting up with each other might not be such a wild dream after all!

Monday, May 23, 2005

Tips from rapists
I found this on Narcisstic MissyOng's blog while surfing at Blogexplosion. You never know when it might come in useful.

Sunday, May 22, 2005

Columbo
Four more episodes arrived this week. PLUS the pilot which was made in 1968 with Gene Barry (swoon)

Friday, May 20, 2005

Amandine
You can tell when Amandine gets on the bus by the stream of swear words she leaves in her wake. She’s only 15. She came to my after school classes during six years and was always a live wire. When she was about eleven she walloped one of the boys straight across the face. She hit him so hard he had to leave the room so that no one would see him crying. Then I made a really big mistake. I attempted to explain to Amandine that grown ups never hit each other and that she shouldn’t hit people either. “Of course they hit each other, my mum and step father hit each other, he once stuck a knife into her thigh”.

Not surprising she swears like a trouper, is it?
Financial exams
The lovely smell in the background is Rob mowing the lawn

Yesterday was a finance exam, the last for 4th year students in their final year. There were four mistakes in the paper. Things were pretty tense when the professor came round to explain. Non of it was his fault at all, of course, his computer overdid the copy and paste. He also gave them an extra quarter hour. This meant that I was later all round and, as I’d decided to do a small shop before going home, I was very hungry. Regular readers will know that I’m trying very hard to eat correctly to avoid full blown diabetes. Being really hungry meant that I couldn’t resist buying our supermarkets ‘special’ (white) bread for lunch. I was eating two hours late and the wrong things so I felt uncomfortable all afternoon. It just goes to show me what a difference eating habits can make.

This morning was a first year finance exam. No problems and a very pleasant group of students. Unless something crops up it’s the end of the exams for me until next autumn.

Tuesday, May 17, 2005

Gardening time.
Got out early into the garden today and did some pruning.. The shrub that I pruned is known as a ‘boule de neige’ (snowball) here, but when I looked it up, it wasn’t the same plant, so I can’t tell you what it’s called in English. The Grandma of one of our neighbours knocked at the door on Saturday afternoon, she had been admiring my Deutzia and wanted to know what it was so she could buy one. If she doesn’t have any luck she’s coming back in the autumn for a cutting.
Happy 17th May!
To any passing Norwegians

Sunday, May 15, 2005

Unconscious Mutterings
  1. Grandma:: Mother in Law
  2. Pet:: dog
  3. Desolate:: sad
  4. Backspace:: keyboard
  5. Common ground:: fields
  6. Storm:: dark
  7. Dark:: night
  8. Water bottle:: thirst
  9. Training:: muscles
  10. Dot coms:: .

Saturday, May 14, 2005

Snap-O-Mania
I found this on Blogexplosion. Well it made me laugh!
Very strange
Yesterday evening Rob and I were out for a walk to the seashore. On our way home we spotted a photograph on a rock at the side of the road. The photo was in black and white in a simple wooden frame. It was of a woman in her early thirties stood on the shore, you could see the sea and the island beyond. I liked the photo, it was peaceful, on the back was marked ‘99’, 1999? Why would any one leave a framed photo there?

I have a romantic imagination, so I decided that perhaps she had died and someone left her photo there because it was one of her favourite places.

Why do you think the photo had been left?

Friday, May 13, 2005

T.G.I.F.
Second time around. I was typing away and forgot to save, as usual. Now I can’t remember what I said. Oh yes, I am tired, I took Olivier to have his bottom brace put in and nearly fell asleep there. The weather is cold and wet. Just about sums up Friday 13th.
How was your day?

Thursday, May 12, 2005

Thursday already?
The week started with two full days of exam supervision. The poor souls are in the same room all day, every day, for the week. Wednesday was lessons and the two weekly shop plus anything round the house that needed doing. I managed a very quick blogwalk but didn’t ‘t have time to post.

This morning I supervised a German exam, I read the paper and could understand a little I understood the instructions. Not bad for somebody who gave up German 33 years ago. Home for a quick lunch and then to finish off the rest of the shopping. I treated myself to a new lipstick (decadence!). Not finished yet, there’s a parents meeting at college early this evening to prepare for Olivier’s final year before lycée. Hope it doesn’t last too long or I shall fall asleep
Happy Blogbirthday to me
Today is the SECOND birthday of the creation of my blog. It got off to a messy start but I’ve managed to handle most problems. It’s two years since Christian had his wisdom teeth out. This summer will be Dom’s turn. The main excitement a year ago was that we caught someone cheating in a maths exam. I’ve met a lot of lovely people over the past two years. Thanks for visiting!

Sunday, May 08, 2005

Happy Mother's Day!
In France we have to wait three more weeks for our breakfast in bed. Have a happy day.
Unconscious Mutterings
  1. Android:: robot
  2. Revenge:: hate
  3. Knight:: white horse
  4. Stranded:: lost
  5. Weakness:: poor health
  6. Greed:: too much
  7. Walter:: Grandad
  8. Dense:: thick
  9. Sheep:: chldhood
  10. Propane:: gas
Yesterday's Children
I also watched a very moving film about reincarnation. It was based on a true story and I haven’t got the title because Dom has taken the DVD to Bonnie’s for the weekend. Aha! I found it on good old Gooogle Yesterday’s Children’. I was crying for the last half hour of the film. Jenny Cockell is the lady whose story the film is based on.
Vincent
I didn’t realize time had passed so quickly. I’ve spent every spare minute reading ‘Lust for Life’ by Irving Stone. It’s a novel based on the life of Vincent Van Gogh. I could not put it down, Vincent was so misunderstood most of his life. Irving Stone wrote the book in 1934 and so was able to speak to people who knew Vincent. The oldest woman in the world, Jeanne Calmant 1875-1997 (sorry it's in French), remembered Vincent as the ugliest man she had ever seen. He used to go into her Father's shop. When we have more time I shall be dragging Rob to see the parts of France where he painted. If you’d like to look at his paintings go here or even here.

Thursday, May 05, 2005

Thursday
I went off to the Doctor’s yesterday with my latest results which confirm my pre-diabetic state. Having said that, I had a very positive consultation as I’ve started to eat more fruits and vegetables and I’ve lost a kilo. Although I’ve only lost one kilo, my stomach is a little flatter. I was wearing my favourite linen shirt buttoned up with space to spare. Last summer I had to wear it unbuttoned over a t-shirt! The Doctor suggested I consider buying a glucose meter in the near future. I’ve spent this morning looking up advice about them, you can even get them free, the strips are very expensive. I have to go to the chemists tomorrow anyway and I shall see how the French system works.

Today is a holiday in France. Rob is working, Olivier is asleep and Dom is staying with Bonnie, so I have the computer all to myself. As it’s a holiday I don’t feel obliged to do housework today, I don’t feel guilty.

Wednesday, May 04, 2005

May 4th 1980
I collected Mum from hospital so I’d been playing house for a few days looking after the men folk, things don’t seem to have changed much in that direction.

May 4th 1985
Norway won the Eurovision song contest. I see that it’s my sister’s wedding anniversary today. I must drop them an e-mail