Extra Day at Home

With the national strike of public sector workers Emily and Catherine both had a extra day at home. The school they go to was closed for the day as part of the strike to protect pensions by public sector workers which involved a whole range of professions.

To be honest I didn't see much of Emily and Catherine until after sunset. Catherine went off to Ashwell in the morning to see one of her friends and Emily went into town in the afternoon to be with her friends. Thankfully they had nice weather for their extra day at home. It sound like they both had a smashing day and thankfully given they only effectively do a half day on a Wednesday they haven't missed much schooling, and knowing the school the teachers will make it up anyway.

Personally I can see the point of the public sector workers. Some of whom do the same jobs as those in the private sector for less pay. What makes those jobs in the public sector comparable with those in the private sector is the pension scheme. Take that away and only the less able will apply to work in the these positions within the public sector because of the low and falling wages. Then there are other do such good work in Health Service, the Police and the Fire service who keep us well and keep us safe. Their work needs rewarding especially since the Government announced both pay freezes followed by capped pay rises which will mean over the coming years their standards of living will decline.

Emily turns Thirteen

Today see Emily turn officially into a teenager, although she has been practising for ages. Today is her thirteenth birthday. I did think of posting some embarrassing picture of Emily when she was little, like the one where she looks like Ian Hislop when she was a baby, but in the end I decided to be kind and include a picture of her party food. 

It doesn't seem that long ago since she was Lucy age, a lot has happened since then, but all the same it seems like yesterday I was taking off to nursery before I went to work. She is growing up now, and although she has the rare off day, she is turning into a lovely young woman. I can't believe that in five years time she will be turning eighteen. It is amazing how they grow. She is so clever and beautiful too, if only she would believe it.

Film of the Week - The Mummy

This week the story of our film starts out in the days where the Pharaohs ruled Egypt and the rest of the world was living in the bronze age in small wooden dwellings make the most of the land the best way they could. This weeks film is the "The Mummy" made in 1999. It  is a mix of the adventure film and the horror film and it works really well. 

It is the story of Rick O'Connell an American serving in the French Foreign Legion who is rescued from death by Evelyn Carnahan, an English libraria, who interested in starting an archaeological dig at the ancient city of Hamunaptra. While there they accidentally waken the Mummy, Imhotep, who was put to mummified alive to endure the agony of his wounds for all time for his affair with the mistress of the Pharaoh. Imhotep, once released from his slumbers is set on revenge and in bring his former lover back to life and the story follows the leader characters as that try to stop his plan. 

The acting like many of the films I have featured is really good and this case it is combined with a humorous story in a film with a traditionally horror/adventure subject line. This is coupled with excellent photography and special effects that really makes the film come alive. The whole package is surprising good and good enough that it led to two squeals being made, still watchable but in my opinion not as good as the first film.

I haven't seen it for a a few years now and I am really looking forward to it again. If my memory of it is right I'm going to have an enjoyable couple of hours. If you haven't seen then film do, if you have why not see it again.

Windy Start

It had been a very windy night and it was a very windy morning too. Thankfully as the day went on the wind died down and and it didn't turn out to be too bad outside. It was just a shame that the ground never dried out again, but that is the time of the year it is. I like going out with the girls and although it is fun wherever we are it just nice to get out of the house.

Lucy decided it was my turn to get up this morning and the first thing I heard was her little voice calling my name and I went into her room to see her. Soon she had gathered her things and we both carried them down and she settled down to watch television in my chair while I made her a drink, followed by her breakfast. It was while Lucy was having her breakfast that I popped into the garden and spotted a pheasant near the tree. It the second time I have seen him, It amazing what we get in the garden in terms of wildlife. 

After breakfast I turned off the television and we played together. I was very aware that we had to be reasonably quiet, as there were two tired girls upstairs having a sleep over. This was reflected in our play and we tried to stay in the family room were we played with the train set and the other toys. We even had some story time, which she enjoyed and we played with the art set that Father Christmas had given her the day before.

Eventually Lucy couldn't wait any longer to see the Catherine and her friend and looking at the clock I said she could go and wake them up gently. I didn't want her doing what she does to Emily to a house guest. I'm sure the shock of having a four year old bouncing on you wouldn't encourage Catherine's friend to come back again. Thankfully, Lucy listened to me, I heard no jumping about, and when she came downstairs. all she said was that they were getting up.

When both girls came downstairs, they both settled in the family room for a while, both Catherine went off to get both of them some breakfast. Lucy joined them and entertained them in her own way. I'm not sure they appreciated it, having just got up but both them didn't show it if they did. As always Catherine's friend, like Emily's friends became her friend instantly, and she wanted to play with her too.

Eventually Catherine and her friend decided to play on the Xbox, but there is only two controllers and Lucy didn't want to be left out, so they gave her one of the Xbox 360 controllers and she pretended to be playing with them. She was so proud of herself and kept coming in to give me a cuddle and tell me how well she was doing and how fast she was driving her car with Catherine's friend. It such a magical age that is full of wonder.

As time moved on we had to swap Sunday's lunch with Wednesdays dinner in the menu. There wasn't time to do a full blown roast and in the end we had Roast Chicken Potions with stuffing, spring greens, peas, sweetcorn and potato wedgies. It was just quicker and meant I had more time to enjoy Lucy and Catherine's time together, and given the time it would be less of a rush getting Lucy ready to return to her mummies later in the day.

Given I had changed the menu, we needed to do a quick shop to get the chicken. This didn't take long, but during that time Catherine's friend had to go home to do her bedroom, it turned out. She was staying for dinner and Catherine and her friend were a little upset, but it couldn't be helped. Lucy was a little put out about not saying goodbye to Catherine's friend but soon got on with playing with Catherine while I got on with lunch.

After lunch the Catherine and Lucy got on with enjoying the time they had left together before it was time to get ready to get Lucy ready to leave. When that time came we got Lucy into the bath, thankfully without the panic attack, and soon we were blow drying her hair and getting in her clean clothes ready to go back. After I had packed her bag with all the things she had brought with her plus a few extra's when headed out to the car.

The drive back seemed deathly quiet even compared to those of the past. Even before she left Lucy said she wanted more sleeps, but what can I do. It isn't a drive I like on the way back and I don't think I ever will. I will never get use to it. As usual we tried to liven the atmosphere but for some reason today it didn't work. Soon we arrived in the city and we dropped her off and after a hug and a kiss and a promise to be good for her mummy she was gone.

From Leicester we headed up the A46 towards Newark and the A1. We were off to pick up Emily and bring her back to Rutland. It seemed a long drive when combined with dropping Lucy off, especially with all the road works along the way, but listening to the chat show helped make it all easier and we managed to arrive on time. Unfortunately, there were roadworks north of the pick up point and I had to wait until Lucy's two older sisters were reunited.

Eventually when Emily turned up she was full of stories of what she had been up to and the musical she had seen. It sounded like she really enjoyed it and it was a lovely way to spend the drive back to Rutland listening to her tales. I was so glad she got to see her mum and better still enjoyed the time she had alone with her.

By the time we got back home the girls just had enough time to relax for an hour before they went of bed. They had be fresh for school. It was a shame that they couldn't be together longer before bedtime but it couldn't be helped. Catherine and myself had left the house at four and we didn't get back eight, but they didn't seem to mind to much as they were both tired from the day.

I have had a lovely weekend with Lucy. I love her and her sisters to bits. I would still love to have Lucy longer on the weekends I see her, although I understand why it is like this now, it doesn't make any logical sense, it isn't really how things should be. Maybe we should have talked more in the past and now we don't speak at all. It is horrid how things are and that is exactly how it makes me feel most of the time. It hurts the way things are. I'm sorry for Lucy it is this way, but I'm sure it will get better one day.

Special Trip

Today started out cold, breezy and grey. Quite a contrast to the day before so going out to the park or attempting to go out in the cold to play was out of the question. Today was going to be an indoors sort of day that is more common this time of year, but with one special trip for Lucy.

The morning for me started with voices of children playing, it had started slightly earlier for Catherine, when Lucy had decided she should get up. Clearly Lucy has worked out over the months that Catherine is the best bet for getting up in the morning, as she is the early riser in the family. It was lovely to find them both having a good time in the family room when I got downstairs. Soon I was making coffee for myself, a drink for Lucy and breakfast for two hungry girls.

After breakfast the girls both went back to the family room to play some more, while I got on with the cleaning. The living room needed doing as did the kitchen. The wind of late had blown in lots of leaves from the garden on the floor in the kitchen and there was sides and cooker to clean. Catherine seeing the cleaning going on did the bathroom and Lucy came to help in her own way to do the living room.

After we finished cleaning we headed out to Gate's for for our special trip for Lucy to see Father Christmas. We had been spelling the name out all weekend while we were talking about it so we didn't spoil the surprise. When we arrived the first thing Lucy wanted to do was play in the playground and specifically on the tractor. So off we went to find it. The garden centre looked magical with all the decorations. It really is a lovely time of year to go there.

She had a grand time in the little playground, especially on the tractor before we continued on for the main event. The lead up to see Father Christmas was stunning as always. They really make it special for the children. Thankfully we didn't have long to wait and Lucy was next in. When she was inside she went all shy and forgot her age. She couldn't even think what she want for Christmas. In the end she said she wanted a baby book, that might have been because the night before we had been watching laughing baby videos the day before, but who knows. In the end she came around and happily accepted a present from Farther Christmas.

Before we left the Garden Centre we has a look at the Christmas decorations they had for sale. The displays they have are always lovely. I can't describe how beautiful they make the decorations look. Lucy loved the soft toys and anything that had buttons that either sang or talked. I always love the model villages, especially those that move in some way and light up. There is really something for everyone there and the colours are just outstandingly beautiful and vibrant. 

Lucy had managed to carry her present all around the garden centre, but as soon as she got to the car she asked if she could open. When I didn't answer straight away she said "Just say yes daddy", and so I did. I'm not sure if I finished the s, and she was ripping the paper apart to get inside to see what she got. It turned out to be an art and craft set and she loved it. I managed to get her not get everything out and just look at until we got home, not an easy task as we still had the supermarket to go to. 

In the supermarket we had to pick up quite a few things for Catherine's sleepover, lunch and for dinner. Catherine needed food to munch, and drink to gulp while her and her friend watched films to make her sleepover go to plan. Lucy was soon sitting in the trolley and we were filing it food and goodies before heading off to the checkout to pay. We even remembered to pick up some sweets for her take back to her mummies and something to munch on the way back to home.

As soon as we got home the art and craft set came out and Lucy was busy at table making things as I made everyone some lunch. Nothing special just some sandwiches but as we both ate them we had to share the table with furry balls, coloured pipe cleaners, sticky eyes, and glue. She had clearly been having fun making L shapes for Lucy out of coloured lollipop sticks , which she showed off as she ate.

It was after lunch that Catherine turned up with her friend, Evie, for the sleepover. Thankfully Lucy wasn't shy, but it did make her a bit hyperactive for a while as she ran around the house like a headless chicken on speed. Thankfully she calmed down after a while and Evie became her instant best friend after she said she was cute, which she sure is, most of the time. Soon she was playing around the two older girls in the family room showing off her favourite toys. They all played beautifully together for the afternoon.

The afternoon passed quickly and soon I found myself in the kitchen again. This time cooking meat balls, which Catherine said that Evie liked. I did these with an onion gravy, fresh vegetables and with creamed mash potatoes. I never really done an onion gravy before with fresh onions, somehow I have never got round to it, but was funny it reminded me of the French onion soup I had while I was at Durham University. It wasn't until I looked up the recipe for the soup I realised why, I had made it in the same way. Thankfully, the gravy and the meal went down like a dream, with one exception, Evie didn't like onion gravy so she had a beef gravy instead. 

After dinner the girls went back to their games. At one point Catherine and Evie were playing on the X-Box and Lucy was sitting with them with another controller thinking she was driving the cars around too. She kept shouting how fast her car was going, not knowing it was someone else's car she was watching, but I guess that didn't matter much. They all were having fun and that is the main thing. She really liked Evie, which was lovely.

Eventually Lucy's bedtime came and she headed up to bed. Of course she had to have stories from everyone, but after these I read the last one and she snuggled down. I gave her kisses and cuddles for all the people close to her in her life and after a special hug, I always give her, she drifted off into the land of nod to dream.

With Lucy in bed Catherine sorted out the drink and the food and with her friend they settled down to an evening of films, chat and fun. All you could here was laughter and giggles from the family room. After the first DVD had finished they changed for bed and brings some blankets down from upstairs snuggled down for another DVD before they eventually went off to bed to chat and finally to sleep.

It has been a relatively quiet but lovely day. Seeing Lucy's face when she met Father Christmas was a picture. It might be rather early in the year but with the way her visits work out it was the best time to take her. It is just a shame she will miss putting up the decorations with us this year, they go up after Emily Birthday which is Monday. All the same I hope it gave her a bit of Christmas spirit.

At Last

At last I have caught up on all the family posts form a couple of weeks ago and hopefully it won't take me as long to write this weekends posts from when Lucy was with us. I know there is Fridays to do and by the end of the day Saturdays as well. Here is a link so you can find them quickly.

As for the other missing posts I will finish them those as soon as this weekends posts are done and out of the way. Hopefully once I have caught up and I can get on and finish the missing posts from the summer that I have been meaning to do for so long. I love writing the blog and it not something I going to give up doing.

Mainly Bright and Cold

It was lovely to get up knowing that I was going to see Lucy today and then finding the sun was shining as I opened the bedroom curtains. It really made for a good start to the day and one I had been looking forward to for what seemed ages, even if it had been a couple of weeks.

The girls got up early this morning and with the weather being set fine they walked to school together in there normal clothes. It was a special day at school and the school was collecting money for Children in Need as well as commemorating one of the students that tragically took their own life. This gave me a little more time to wake up before I headed out of the door after shave and a coffee to pick up Lucy from her mummy.

It was rather pleasant driving in the sunshine along the country roads to the city. You could tell that winter is around the corner and the countryside is changing to reflect that now. Soon I arrived just after ten and to Lucy looking at me through the window in her coat ready to go. I did my best to be pleasant but got no where as usual and I was soon walking back to the car and then heading towards home with Lucy. Who chatted all the way.

On the way back we decided that we were hungry and so we took a detour to Melton, for some brunch, rather than driving down the country lanes. There we had a quick look around the shops and the Christmas market before heading to the Gregs the bakers to get some nice warming food to eat. We ended up sitting in the car as we ate and drank our drinks, warm in the sun, before carrying with our journey.

Lucy wanted to go to the park before going home but the park in the countryside she likes going to looked too wet so we headed into Oakham. There we head for Pirate park which I thought being in the open might have seen more of the morning sunshine. Thankfully some the things were dry enough to play on and Lucy made the most of them, but being more exposed in the end she started to get cold so we headed home.

Once home Lucy let out George from his cage to a lovely wagging tail welcome. I still can't get over how excited George gets when he hasn't seen one of the children for a while. He must really love them. I know that he loves to spend time with them in the family room.  Soon we had her stuff upstairs in her room and made her bed with Lucy's blanket and we sat down for a drink, after getting the train set out so Lucy could play.

As the afternoon wore on we headed out again to see if we could make use of the sunshine. This time we headed for the main park in Oakham. We got to play there with Lucy's scooter for about half an hour before the weather began to change. The sun disappeared and the temperature started to drop in the shape. Then we felt the rain drops in the air and it was starting to look like the a shower was on it's way, so we headed back to the car.

Thankfully it didn't really start to rain, as we feared so we decided to head off to the farm to see the piglets to see how much they had grown and visit the small animals. It was still dull when we arrived but at least the buildings would keep the wind off us. It was quite surprising how fast the pigs grow. They are quiet big now and they have been taken away from their mummy. Lucy love the chicken that seemed very tame and of course, the small animals.

Finally before going home to for a drink before getting Emily and Catherine for a warming drink, we headed for the church in the village. I'm not sure when we were there last, but it was as peaceful as ever. Lucy first went and found the toys to play with at the end of the church and we played there for a while before she started to explore. Before we left we both played with the piano together making the Church come alive with our own version of music.

When we got home again we had our drinks and then we headed out to pick up Emily and Catherine from school. When we got there the students were just coming out. We didn't have long to wait until Catherine appeared to be followed some time later by Emily. Both of them got a great big hug from Lucy and when they were all safely strapped in the car we head for the supermarket to pick up some food for dinner and some extra milk that Lucy will ended up drinking, if she is true to form.

When we got home the girls all disappeared to play and I got on with preparing dinner. We had to have a  an early dinner tonight as we had to head out again later, so I got on with cooking the sausages and the roast vegetables. I really didn't see much of the girls, but I could hear them playing and laughing. Occasionally I got a visit from Lucy to see where I was and to get some milk but on the whole I just got on with the cooking. 

After dinner, which everyone seemed to enjoy, we headed out to drop Emily off to see her Mum. She is off to see Les Misérables with her mum on Saturday night as part of her birthday treat. I was more than happy that she was going, as  it was nice to know that she would get at least to see her mum the day before her birthday on Monday. It is just a shame we couldn't arrange it for her actual birthday, but I was happy to give up my weekend with her. I just hope she enjoys the musical as much as I did the first time I ever saw it. 

As we came back down from dropping Emily off predictably Lucy fell asleep in the car. We had already ready thought of this and we had taken some of her baby blankets with us and Catherine tucked them around her to keep her warm as she snoozed. When we arrived home I picked her, carefully, out of her car seat and with her tucked in her blankets and carried into the house and up to her room. She hardly stirred on my shoulder, although I had to wake her to get her changed, but when she hit the pillow she went straight off again after her kisses and cuddles.

Catherine got on with talking to her friends on Facebook when we got home, she had the details of her sleep over to finalise. It was noticeable how much quieter the house is without Emily, but we miss her when she isn't here with all her crazy ways. It can't be easy for Emily. She going though that hormone fuelled teenage phase when they work out who they are. Eventually a tired Catherine went off to bed leaving the rest of the night peaceful and quiet. 

It been lovely to see Lucy, as always, and I was so glad that Emily's mum and myself arranged for her to see a musical for her birthday. I can't wait until tomorrow as there is a special treat for Lucy, but more of that in tomorrows post. She seemed to have a great day today and I enjoyed the time we had together.

What a Waste

The Harriers that have been stored in hangers for the last eleven months have finally been sold to the United States of American. One of the many counties that still see this aircraft as a capable warbird ready to defend it lands and interests. While we are left without a carrier force for the nearly twenty years if the rumours are right about the construction of the new carriers to replace those sold by the Government.

Of course the Harriers have been sold at a fraction of there real value. The Americans have brought seventy two aircraft complete with spare parts and support equipment for one hundred and ten million pounds. According to reports the spare parts alone are worth an estimated thirty million pound meaning that if take account of the support equipment that each aircraft was sold for under a million pounds each. Rear Admiral Mark Heinrich, chief of the US Navy's supply corps, said "We're taking advantage of all the money the Brits have spent on them. It's like we're buying a car with maybe 15,000 miles on it. These are very good platforms.". It certainly makes you think about the wisdom scrapping a Harrier fleet which the Americans intend to use until 2025, especially when you think that the Harriers were all recently upgraded and have  excellent serviceability.

Of course none of it makes sense when you look at the figures and the facts. For starters, the Harrier has performed better in Afghanistan than the Tornado and it is a newer airframe and has far fewer serviceability problems. They are cheaper to run and maintain than the Tornado fleet and they are more versatile and being carrier capable and they can be deployed rapidly to maintain our overseas interests. They would have been better aircraft to use in the recent Libyan crisis as they would have been able to fly more sorties than the Tornado aircraft that were deployed. The Harrier when combined with a carrier is better placed than the Tornado to maintain British political and military power and influence on the global stage.

Of course the British Governments of recent years haven't been known for there wisdom. When it costs three hundred and forty million pounds to buy just one Typhoon, just reducing the number of these aircraft ordered by four would have saved over two hundred million pounds more than the one billion pounds saved by scraping the Harriers and the Aircraft Carriers, but that didn't occur to them, nor did the fact that a lot of support jobs and trained flight crew are now unemployed. It is just such a waste.

Another Menu

Well the next weeks idea's in food. Last week was a success, so let us hope the same can be said of this week offerings. I must say publishing menu is a great way to keep sticking our idea's is working well at the moment.

So the only question is, "What have we planned for the coming week?". Well here is the purposed menu we all came up with:

• Friday - Baked sausages, with roasted butternut squash, onions and sweet potato, savoury baked beans and mash potatoes.

• Saturday - Meat balls in onion gravy, carrots, cabbage medley and potatoes dauphinoise.

• Sunday - Roast Chicken Potions with stuffing, spring greens, peas, sweetcorn and potato wedgies.

• Monday - Beef and vegetable pie with puffy pastry, runner beans carrots, and mashed potatoes.

• Tuesday - Butter Chicken Curry, pillar rice, coriander and garlic nan bread.

• Wednesday - Roast Pork with stuffing, yorkshire puddings, apple sauce, cauliflower, broccoli, carrots and roast potatoes.

• Thursday - Beef stew, with dumplings, carrots, french beans, and baked potatoes.

What I am looking forward to is cooking a pie. It seems ages since I have cooked the meat and made a pie from them. I just generally go for a stew, the easy option, but with hungry tummies to feed a pie will be more filling.

Hay Ronald

Hay Ronald McDonald your a buffoon just like some of the customers that eat at you fast food outlets. Some of them are no better than irresponsible litter bugs that soil the countryside with the waste packaging you provide them with.

It is alright your company saying we have litter patrols around your shops, but we live ten miles from your nearest outlet and we see your rubbish littering the country lanes. So get your litter patrols out and about and clean up our county lanes. We don't want you paper bags and packaging so come and get it!

Countryside under Threat

The first moves to destroy vast area's of countryside moved another step closer yesterday with the Government plans to underwrite mortgages in order to get the housing market going. Soon we will see building work start on increasing the population of the market town of Oakham by some forty percent in the coming years and vast area of green being turned into the slums of the future.

The Government say that the plan will kick start the private sector building market and an industry that has great political lobbying power in the form of the Home Builders Federation. It is there report that states we need all these new houses, but they are hardly independent, in that they represent house builders. The four hundred million pounds the Government is putting into the scheme, when we told times are so hard, is designed to produce six thousand new homes. However, reports in the press, suggest that only twenty percent of the houses built will be affordable homes making nonsense of the governments line on the reasons behind the scheme.

For years it has been Conservative Party doctrine that we should be a nation of home owners and that we all dream of owning our own home. It is the Conservative party that sold all the council houses that means that there is a shortage of rented accommodation and rented market where landlords can set unrealistic rents. The Government see this scheme as a way of getting first time buyers into the market and for all the talk from the Home Builders Federation of helping "hard pressed first time buyers" they are just interested in a "huge boost to house building". They don't care what houses they build, where they build them as long as they can sell them and make a big profit on everyone and it is clear you make more profit bigger houses than affordable ones. 

The Government has little regard for where these houses will be built. The have changed planning guidelines to open up vast area's of green belt land for development and although they claim that local people will be allowed to have a say in planning, the truth is the only opinions that will be taken into account are those that agree to the building of new homes. You can see this working in practice in Oakham, where there is a lot more opposition to the Hawksmead development of a thousand homes than there is support which is over played by local Government and the developers. According to the developers less than fifty people turning up out of a town with a population of ten thousand to see their plans at a recent exhibition was a positive response, I'd like to see a more negative one when a lot of those would have been people some kind of interest in the building of the homes, like the councilors. 

The fact is plans for the first phase, which has recently been approved, contains only nine affordable homes from the one hundred and  forty three being built. That represents just over six percent of the homes being built, suggesting that the critics of the Governments plans are being over optimistic about the number of affordable homes the that will be built as a result of this policy. Also these houses appear to be being built on what looks like wasteland. The fact is this land wasn't wasteland until it was brought by Hawksmead, the developers, and left to become wasteland. It was in fact once land that was once used for agricultural use. It is, in fact, green belt land that hasn't been developed on before. The developers are pulling the wool over our eyes.

What Rutland County Council and the developers are doing is disgraceful and shouldn't be allowed. It fair enough to develop former brown field sites but this is wrong.  We need green belt land to grow and farm on, to feed the population of the country now and into the future. Once built on this land is lost forever for our children and their children children. What we are doing is short sighted and not even for a good reason. Companies like Hawksmead are doing for money and profit and not as some kind of public service we should be grateful for.

Film of the Week - The Wizard of Oz

This weeks film of the week is a childhood classic that has stuck with me since the first time I ever saw it. Even now I can still remember singing "We are off to see the Wizard" as I walked with my grandmother back to her house which was on the Essex mashes. The is of course The Wizard of Oz.

I'm sure everyone knows the story, but quickly it the story of Dorothy who gets who lives in Kansas who gets caught in tornado and she is carried away to the land of Oz, There the house she was in lands killing the wicked witch of the West. In a attempts to get back home she sets out down the yellow brick road to get the Emerald city with the wicked witch of the East, the other wicked witch sister, set on revenge. Along the way she picks up a Scarecrow, a Tin Man and a Cowardly Loin. Each with there own reason of going to the Emerald City were they want to see the Wizard.It is a wonderful story and wonderfully told by the film.

The acting, the direction, the cinematography and the writing are just beautiful to watch. You just sink into the story and get lost in it's magic. It is a true masterpiece and a firm favorite will many critics as well as normal film goers and it's no wonder it is shown every Christmas to the delight of many. I know I could write about forever it is such an amazing picture.

I'm looking forward to watching it again and I will do that during the day so I don't get disturbed with children. That way I just relax and enjoy something that is really special. 

Inspiring Quote

There are some quotes that inspire you in some ways. One of them is "Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined" by Henry David Thoreau.

I just love quotes like that, they are the sort of the thing you can use in your mind to give you direction in life. It the sort of quote I look for to keep me going when times seem hard and I need inspiration. It is quotes like these I try and live my life by.

Blog Updates

Just to let you all know that the blog updates that are missing from November will be posted of the course of the week to come. I'm sorry about the delay

To be honest I haven't been very motivated to post of late although I do know what is going to be posted and on which day. It is a sort of writers block. I have just had a lot going on in my mind that is important to me to. It has just stopped me posting. I guess sometimes you just have to have time think what you really want from life.Finally I just want to thank the people that commented on the Lucy's Birthday post for your kind words. You gave me a lot to think about.

The Week to come in Food

One of the things that has worked well in coming up with a menu with the girls for the week. It gives them an idea of what they are going to eat and have a say in the food and it saves me having to dream up meals every day and budget.

By posting the menu here it gives me a chance to look back and see what we have had before and keep some variety in the food we eat. I know at one point it was becoming boring. So here is the menu for the week:

• Friday - Chicken Rogan Josh curry, basmati Ruce and garlic and coriander naan bread.

• Saturday - Haddock fillet in cheese sauce with steamed carrots and peas, and creamed mashed potatoes.

• Sunday - Roast chicken, roast potatoes, carrots, peas, cabbage medley, brussel sprouts and sage and onion stuffing.

• Monday - Mild chilli con carne with boiled long grain rice.

• Tuesday - Cheese burgers in bread buns, potato wedges with a side salad.

• Wednesday - Slow cooked Lamb casserole with sessional vegetables with baked potatoes.

• Thursday - Pork chops with mild pepper sauce, french beans, carrots and boiled potatoes.

So with another week planned the shopping and budgeting becomes easier and it gives everyone something to look forward to.

So What Happened to...

So what happens to the old X Factor hopefuls when there dreams are crushed? Do they give up or do they carry on with the dream? The answer is here. If they belive in what they are doing is right then they carry on battling to achieve that dream.

The proof is in Jammie Archer's video for a recent single release. He was the man with the big hair who rocked the second audition of the X-Factor two years ago with "Sex on Fire" by the Kings of Leon and he is still out there trying to make his dream come true. Still touring smaller venues and woking in the studio and he still hopes one day he can make it, despite being knocked out of the X-Factor.

Cold War History

Sometimes when you travel around the county you come across a bit history. It was while I was driving just outside Rutland, just as the sun was setting, that I came a bit of cold war history sitting on top of a hill. It was near Cold Overton that I found a Royal Observer Corps monitoring post.

The posts were built as part of the Cold War and they were in use until 1991 when the  Royal Observer Corps was stood down. Three men would have manned the station in the event of a war. They had enough food and water for three weeks. There job to monitor and report the detonation and blast from nuclear bombs, measuring radiation levels and reporting fall out. The posts were clustered in groups of three or four with one acting as the master post which reported back to group headquarters. In order for it to do this it was the master post was equipped with a VHF radio as well as communication system known as Tele-Talk. At the regional headquarters the reports of from the observation posts would have been plotted on large maps and with the addition of met reports used to make fall out predictions that could then signalled to the population. The signals would have been in the form of siren's, similar to those used used in the second world war, based at local police stations.

The positioning the post at Cold Overton post on a hill near to RAF Cottesmore was probably deliberate given that airforce base was once a V-Bomber base and would have been a first strike target. From the top of the hillside you get a clear view of Rutland and any strike over the airfield would be clearly visible making it an ideal location. There was  however one draw back for the three man crew, the close proximity to the airbase and the high level of fall out would have meant that they would have been unlikely to finish their three weeks of food. The radiation would have killed them first. 

Until recently the post was in very good condition, as shown in the picture above, but someone has now gone down there and removed a lot of the paperwork from the walls and other equipment. It seems a shame they couldn't have just had a good look around and left the place the way they found it like many before them with out looting the site. Thankfully a few of the sites have been preserved and there is one in Kettering which has been restored and has open days, the video is of one of the Scottish sites. If you want to what a good film on the effects of a nuclear war then watch Threads.

Film of the Week - Moulin Rouge

This weeks film of the week is film that I have featured before in the blog when I did a series of posts on films some months ago. It is film set to become a classic, Moulin Rouge, a musical spectacular with the emphasis on the spectacular. 

The film is set in closing years of the nineteenth century and is the story of Christian, a young English writer who has come to Paris to follow the Bohemian revolution. There he enters a world of the world of the prostitution and drugs of the underworld at the time and there was nowhere better to live that life than the Moulin Rouge. It is while he is there that he falls in love with the courtisan Satine, the star of the club whose affections have been promised to the clubs patron, the Duke. And so starts a dangerous love triangle and the newly formed couple fight all odds to try and stay together with a tragic ending.

The film showcases the genius of the director Baz Luhrmann who combines the skill of film making and theatrical direction with such skill. He takes the vision, style and artistry of the theatre and combines that with freedom of film to create the most spectacular and memorable works.This is combined with excellent writing, music, special effects and of course acting that makes it a film that will stick in your mind.

I can't do more than highly recommend this film to you even if it isn't the sort of film you would watch normally. Forget the story line and just immerse yourself in the visual and audio splendour that is Moulin Rouge and take yourself back in history to the hight of Fin de siècle Paris.

I'm a Celebrity Get me out of Here!

Tonight sees the return of one of the other shows I have come to love over recent years and I have enjoyed every moment of the Celebrities antics in the Australian Jungle. Well I say jungle but it is not that far from a road that takes you back to civilization if you look on Google Earth, but I guess they don't know that, but they might welcome it if anything goes wrong with the bug munching tasks.

The program in question is "I'm a Celebrity Get me out of Here" which I have been watching for a while now.  This year it is just in time to replace Big Brother as staple evening viewing for many of the reality television fans. This year the start of the show will feature following has beens:

• Antony Cotton -Coronation Street actor
• Crissy Rock - Benidorm actress and comedian
• Dougie Poynter - McFly bassist
• Fatima Whitbread - Athlete
• Freddie Starr - Comedian and impressionist
• Jessica-Jane Clement - TV presenter and model
• Lorraine Chase - Former Emmerdale actress
• Mark Wright - The Only Way Is Essex star
• Stefanie Powers - Hart to Hart actress
• Willie Carson - Former jockey

For those that don't know the show it is basically about bunch of celebrity who have been thrown into the Australian Jungle to do humiliating tasks and generally be laughed at and ridiculed by the viewing public. All good fun when you consider they do all this to be loved by the public. It reminds me of the "The Hopefuls" on Channel 4 programme the "The Word" many moons ago.

Anyway that is my next few weeks evening viewing sorted out. If you watch it I hope you enjoy the new series too and if you never watched it give it ago, you juts might be surprised.