Fireworks!

Firework show..

OK I know this is for kids but its fun anyway, putting the fireworks close together you get a good show for a few seconds...

Almost 2007..

Well here I am sitting online like the boring old cow I am...

Why am I not out partying and having a good time?? - well I suppose because I am here having a good time, keeping dry warm and not spending a silly fortune giving myself a headache and feeling sick for the next day or so.. I am not a good drinker, very little gives me a headache and makes me feel generally unwell so I decided it's nicer not to bother at all, says she, sipping on her Magners Cider... Well it's only the tiniest drop...

Nothing on the telly either so that leaves only being here (or reading a book..) but here I am chatting to a couple of people I have know for a long time and its nice...

So if you're off out tonight, have a great time... Take it easy because tomorrow is the the first day of the rest of your life.. and I'm sure you don't want to start it feeling too ill do you????

Princess Diana Inquest To Resume

Lady Butler-Sloss must decide if a jury is needed

The inquest into the deaths of Diana, Princess of Wales, and Dodi Al Fayed is set to resume in 2007 - nearly 10 years after their Paris car crash.

A preliminary hearing into the deaths of the pair on 31 August 1997 will begin at the Royal Courts of Justice in London on 8 January.

Source BBC

Can't believe it...I thought it was all over now... Well at least it should be.. Time to let them both RIP I think..

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NHS to launch ‘Intensive Care in the Community’

This story from NEWS BISCUIT nearly made me wet myself laughing when I first read it a week or so ago... Thought I'd share it here...

The Government is extending the controversial ‘Care in the Community’ programme to include ‘Intensive Care in the Community’. With NHS bills spiralling and a growing shortage of beds, the Department of Health announced that the new scheme would enable desperately ill patients to begin to re-integrate with society while they were still lying unconscious attached to a life support machine.

Intensive CareThe first ‘Intensive Care in the Community ’ patients were wheeled out of St Thomas’s Hospital and relocated in a nearby neighborhood re-intergration project in the heart of the capital. However critics of the new scheme say that it is purely a cost-cutting exercise and that the quality of intensive care suffers when patients end up being parked underneath railway arches or abandoned on park benches. During the night a number of charities such as the Salvation Army found themselves not only providing accommodation but also performing emergency life-saving operations on people they had found left outside the hospital on trolleys.

Speaking from his new operating theatre in a disused subway behind Waterloo Station, volunteer doctor Nadim Chowdray said having critically ill patients out on the streets was making it impossible to perform surgery while ensuring patients remained free from infection. ‘Look around this place. There are pigeons crapping from up above, used needles lying around and alcoholics continually coming up and asking if I can spare any change. It’s the second least hygenic place I have ever had to perform surgery. After the hospitals.’

Junior Health Minister Jennifer Craster agreed that getting patients away from known MRSA hotspots (or ‘hospitals’) had been a factor in devising ‘Intensive Care in the Community’. But the government are also keen to develop a less interventionist approach to modern medicine. ‘Increasingly we are learning how important morale is to the fight against illness. With patients stuck inside, wired up to all sorts of intrusive machines, they are inevitably going to get depressed. How much better that they are out in the fresh air and the sunshine where we can let the wonderful human body recover the wholly natural way.’ Doctor Chowdray however, remained sceptical; ‘The human body does have a ‘wholly natural’ means of responding to serious illness,’ he said. ‘It’s called ‘death.’

Another Bitty..

A Cute Bitty Browser!

Searched Images in Slideshow

http://slideshow.zmpgroup.com/

Well this is rather nice - this page can search with either Google, Yahoo or Live.com - just type in whatever you fancy seeing in a slideshow.. Sit back and enjoy!

Today.. A Womans Thing?

Today I feel a bit down. Not sure why just an overall feeling of something not being quite right, a sadness, a feeling of not quite fitting in in the world somehow.

Maybe it's because we're getting to the end of yet another year, a year in which I now look back and think about what exactly have I achieved - nothing, apart from running back and forth from work, just about keeping the home liveable and stocked with food.. just the basics really. I had a weeks holiday in Greece which was wonderful but apart from that I cannot recall many other highlights..

So that then brings me to think about how I will improve things in 2007. Hmmmmm, not sure what to do, I know I want to do something as I do not want to be feeling like this again in a year's time, but what that something is....no idea yet... I could think up all sorts of ideas, but I know I'll be setting myself up for disappointment before too long, so maybe best not to bother.. just like the last 40+ years...

Cheery aren't I?

Well, I and all around me hope I snap outa this ASAP, as it's not a good way to begin the new year..

Anyway my partner thinks it's just a womans thing, maybe he's right, or maybe it's just a convenient explanation..

Now lets see if there's anything online to cheer me up this evening!

Google Notebook

Google go on and on making useful "things"... I have just discovered the Google Notebook

It allows me (or of course anyone) to be able to keep private notes or share them if you so wish. You can highlight any text from any webpage and add it to your notebook for reveiwing or anything you wish to do with it at a later date. Or you can just free text in any info you wish.

Firstly you need to download an extension for Firefox or IE 6, (see FAQ) which adds a button to open your notebook at the bottom of your browser.. its easy and I think quite cute - so far! Not sure how useful it will really be, only time will tell, but its free and I like to try anything thats free and sounds remotely useful!

Guess The Logo

Everyday we see these logo's...So guessing which is the right one will be easy right?

Well have a go and I think you will be be surprised...

Play GUESS THE LOGO

It's just a bit of fun!

Leona Lewis' Audition on X-Factor

She was a winner right from the start!

To hear her number 1 single click here!

Amazing Floating Baby!

Came across this video on A Welsh View.. Just had to have it here.. it's quite shocking and I'm not sure I could have done it with my kids when they were babies! And as A Welsh View says.. is it cool or cruel?

Phew! It's Over For Another Year!

Well here we are - with the post Christmas belly..hehehe No, really I don't think I overate too much, probably because I still have 2 huge tins of wonderfully chocolately bicces and 1 huge box of wonderful belgian choccies! Ohh it's going to be difficult not to eat too many of each per day, goin to have to limit myself or by the summer holidays I will seriously regret it!

Anyway the BIG Day went OK...Was up nice and early to get the turkey in the oven and everyone turned up in time and enjoyed the dinner... Mostly they were happy with the prezzies and this is amazing, but there were no tears - All day long!

TV was not up to much but we were all rather dozy for most of the afternoon including me, I'm not a very regular drinker but the little wine I did have with dinner knocked me out pretty much - found it hard to stay awake!

Watched Eastenders, which was such a letdown.. we were expecting something a lot more meaty for the demise of the old Pauline Fowler.. but no, she just flopped down into the snow! Yes! Snow! Seems the Eastend of London had snow.. thats not fair.. living in NW London we didn't see a flake of it.. The shows producers have a fantastical imagination, bringing snow just about every Christmas, just wish that bit were true!!

Eventually I could hold open my eyes no longer and went to bed about 10:30, watched Little Britain in bed with matchsticks to hold open the peepers, then fell asleep right after it..

Boxing Day was spent with my "almost inlaws"... was a pleasant day with the 2 babies.. and a lovely buffet lunch and no washing up...

Right now I am enjoying the next few days off work with no hassles or pressures and lots of time to spend online and playing Sims 2 Pets - (which was one of my Chrissy gifts)

Merry Christmas Everyone!

An Unusual Game..

Any good at spotting people in a crowd? Try this game!

Something To Look Forward To!?!

Now Have 3 Columns!

After many days of trying this n that I have at last managed to add another sidebar to my blog! Quite pleased with myself I am, but couldn't have done it without a lot of help from Hackosphere
Its a brilliant site with very easily understandable instructions!

The only thing I'm not too pleased with is now when I go to the Add and Arrange Page Elements bit its not possible to see the titles of all the widgets in my sidebar (the right one) and I can't see the "edit" on them at all.. Can still manage but it was nice and easier before.. but I guess we can't have everything - unless you know differently!

Leona Lewis - UK XFactor Winner 2006

This girl has a wonderful voice.. take a few minutes and have a listen:

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Wannabe on The A List!

But only on the D List.. :(



Need a lot more readers, and linkers to work my way up the lists!

Groupings Explained:

The Low Authority Group [D-List Bloggers]
(3-9 blogs linking in the last 6 months)
The average blog age (the number of days that the blog has been in existence) is about 228 days, which shows a real commitment to blogging. However, bloggers of this type average only 12 posts per month, meaning that their posting habits are generally dedicated but infrequent.

The Middle Authority Group [C-List Bloggers]
(10-99 blogs linking in the last 6 months)
This contrasts somewhat with the second group, which enjoys an average age not much older than the first at 260 days and which posts 50% more frequently than the first. There is a clear correlation between posting volume and Technorati authority ranking.

The High Authority Group [B-List Bloggers]
(100-499 blogs linking in the last 6 months)
The third group represents a decided shift in blog age while not blogging much more frequently than the last. In keeping with the theme of the maturation of the blogosphere, it seems evident that many of these bloggers were previously in category two and have grown in authority organically over time. In other words, sheer dedication pays off over time.

The Very High Authority Group [A-List Bloggers]
(500 or more blogs linking in the last 6 months)
In the final group we see what might be considered the blogging elite. This group, which represents more than 4,000 blogs, exhibits a radical shift in post frequency as well as blog age. Bloggers of this type have been at it longer – a year and a half on average – and post nearly twice a day, an increase in posting volume of over 100% from the previous group. Many of the blogs in this category, in fact, are about as old as Technorati and we’ve grown up together. Some of these are full-fledge professional enterprises that post many, many times per day and behave increasingly like our friends in the mainstream media. As has been widely reported, the impact of these bloggers on our cultures and democracies is increasingly dramatic.

Info from Kineda.com

A Bad Back so NO "Mummy Dancing"!

Yesterday was the day of the Christmas "Do" at work... For some reason I felt more than a little reluctant to go, I think it's because I'm just not feeling in the Christmas spirit this year and it seems to have come round so fast again, I knew the night out will be a round of the same old things, same old conversations etc.

Then when I actually arrived at work bright and early at 8:30 am yesterday I was fine.. for about 10 minutes.. then I somehow did a silly twisting movement and hurt my back.. not good..
So the rest of the day I spent hobbling around like an old woman, thinking that had finalised my decision, I wasn't going to the "do".

However after a good strong painkiller and a couple of hours rest after work I felt it was better enough to go.. So off I went... It was a lovely evening, a very nice meal and even some new conversation! But I didn't risk my back with any funky dance moves, in fact I didn't dance at all, which is rather dissappointing for such a dancing queen - (well OK.. that was a few years ago!) and now my kids describe my dancing as "The Mummy Dance" hehehe... so everyone was spared a demonstration of this type of dance!

I didn't even stay late in an effort to get plenty of rest and be back on form for today.(get the joke? I have a bad back!)

However I have woken up feeling like I was "Mummy Dancing" all night! I am so stiff and find it difficult to walk, get up from the chair and when I am up its even more difficult to get back down into it... So I had to take the day off. Although I'm not exactly in love with my job I still feel bad taking time off, feel bad as it always lets a lot of people down, but sadly walking is required to do my daily tasks, so here I am having a nice restful day online and keeping my back warm!

I Wanna Wii

Good News From Flickr!

It's now easier than ever to spread joy this holiday season by giving the Gift of Flickr. You can purchase a special activation code that you can give to anyone, whether or not they have an existing Flickr account. We've even created a special Gift Certificate card that you can print out yourself, fold up and stuff in a stocking, under a tree or hidden away for after the candles are lit (of course, you can also send the gift code in an email).

And it's even better to give the gift of Flickr since now your recipients will get unlimited uploads — the two gigabyte monthly limit is no more (yep, pro users have no limits on how many photos they can upload)! At the same time, we've upped the limit for free account members as well, from 20MB per month up to 100MB (yep, five times more)!

Cat "playing"!!

I have only experience of female cats so this video was quite a surprise to me - is it fairly common behaviour of male cats? Anyone know?

Baby Kicking Inside Mother

I came accross this Baby kicking video on another blog I read "A Welsh View" and felt I just had to add it here so my daughter will see it.. she gets so freaked out by imaginaing a baby growing and moving inside her one day!

At Last..

At last it's Saturday, having been up almost every morning for the past 3 weeks at 6.30am I had a much needed and deserved lay in this morning! Now just taking it easy spending some time online here.

I have been so exhausted not only by long days but also by I think, not having particularly restful sleep... I have been having the most weird and wonderful dreams for the last month or so!. Each night I go to sleep wondering what sort of adventure or horror I am going to experience.

Last night I was at a very odd party with the son ( who does not actually exist in real life) of a work colleague.

The night before I moved house to an awful place with small damp puddly rooms.. made me appreciate my current (real) humble abode!

I have had fights with people I don't even know!

No wonder I've been tired!

Anyway back to today, this beautiful sunny Saturday, with no major demands on me I feel such a sense of relief, gonna potter around the net, do a few household tasks and maybe go out later..

Test Slideshow

Now testing out the slideshow maker on MyFabrik.. It's so nice and easy to use, simple but effective I'd say! Oh and by the way, all the photos were taken by myself..

Sadly noticed the player is a little too wide for my page...You can still see almost all of each photo but it still spoils the look - pity that..

EDIT: I edited the size of the player so it fitted perfectly with the nice rounded edges but then it lost the top controls, so now it's as small as it can go while maintaining them. The only thing it's lost now are the smooth rounded edges on the right.. seems we can't have everything.. and as it's all free, can't complain!


EDIT: Decided to take it off the page as I dont really need it at the moment..

Last Day Of A Quiet Home

Today I should try to savour the relative quiet of the house as tomorrow my youngest daughter comes home from uni for almost 3 weeks.

I do miss her and look forward to her return but she has an addiction to constant noise! I guess she's not that much different to most teenagers and maybe I'm just getting mature - OK, OLD!!

Whatever she does it has to be accompanied by loud booming beats which actually hurt my head, when asked to turn it down she will... for about 30 seconds!

I myself enjoy music (you probably guessed that from previous posts) but there have to be limits and choices and comfortable levels of listening.

Then there is the problem of her staying out late at night. I'm not one of those terribly fussy Mum's who set too many rules and times but I do find I wake up very easily when she comes home at 1, 2 or even 3 am... No fun when I have to be up at 6.30 am for work.

Oh well... TEENAGERS! can't live with them, can't live without them!

Amy Winehouse.. Another Great Album

As you can tell I'm having fun with this new site I came across today MyFabrik

You can store files such as videos, music and photos there, then they give you the code to embed them - hence this music player! Brilliant eh!

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Really Love This Album...

Hard Time For The Dreamer by Shelley Poole.. Have a listen :) Let me know if you like it too!

I Feel Like a Hamster..

I knew this week was going to be busy and I am not wrong. Probably next week will be as well, but lets hope not!

I got into work this morning at 8.30 and did not stop apart from a quick sandwich break around midday, so you can imagine I am tired..

This morning as I walked to work I was thinking and promising myself that I would get round to some of the household tasks as soon as I got home tonight. They have been taking a back seat for the last few days and it's beginning to show.. But I have no energy wotsoever now, so I have just switched on the computer in the hope it will give my poor old brain something else to think about other than work! So another day this poor house is going to suffer from neglect!

It really is a case of having no time, and when I do have the time I am sooo knackered.. How do people manage to keep a nice house, work and still have time for a little relaxation and fun?

I really do feel like a hamster in one of those wheels, running around as fast as my little legs will go but not getting anywhere!

Another Weekend Almost Over..

Why oh why do these weekends have to go so fast? Seems these 2 days go faster than any work day, no sooner than I get out of work at 6pm on a Friday, start to relax, try to forget about the weeks stresses then its Sunday evening... Almost time to begin thinking and making preparations for the start of yet another hectic week.

I'm a tad anxious about this coming week as well as I'm starting something completely new and for the first time doing it on my own. I have had to learn this new task rather quickly and hope I can remember it and do it well...

Anyway this weekend has been well spent, got a fair amount of the dreaded Christmas shopping done. Having gone out nice and early on Saturday I managed to avoid the worst of the crowds in Oxford Street. Then today got a few bits locally which wasn't too bad at all.

In fact it's not just the weekends going fast.. it's my whole life - flying past, it really doesn't seem like a year since I did all this shopping etc before. Have to find some time to get the tree up and decorated as well, another thing thing that only feels such a short time since it was last up - maybe leave it up all year to save time and effort.. hehehe (only joking - I think!)

Spot the Logo!

This pic is from EBoy!

No Longer Available...

I really like the old advertisement images and this one makes you realise how times change!

Tornado Hits NW London!

Not too far from where I live and work!

Superdog!

I came across these photos of this fantastic little superdog on Flickr!

Now I am Reading...

I'm Usually the Pessimist

“A pessimist is one who makes difficulties of his opportunities; an optimist is one who makes opportunities of his difficulties.”

- President Harry S. Truman

VIP Day in Oxford Street

These guys were posted at every door of John Lewis today, to encourage and open doors for customers. The whole of Oxford Street and Regent Street were closed to all traffic in an effort to get more people in to buy buy buy for Christmas. It was busyish but I wonder was it as busy as they were hoping for?