Frogs' Legs!

My good friend Anthea cooked me frogs' legs as a surprise.  As I haven't managed to tick off much recently this was very welcome - and they tasted really nice as well.  She cooked them in a Provencal sauce and I had them with a lovely bottle of Prosecco.

In case you were wondering, they were like little chicken wings and were delicious!

Another One Bites the Dust!

The ingredients were all there; rain, wellies, port-a-loos in fields, dodgy beer in plastic glasses and rock music - we were at a festival!   I have also never seen so many middle aged people prancing around, playing air guitar and punching the air. I've done it now but not sure I'd want to try it again!

Before you think that Redhill  Rocks was rubbish, let me tell you it actually wasn't.  The two headlining acts, Livewire (ACDC tribute) and Mercury (Queen tribute) were both excellent. 

I also enjoyed camping in a field and want to do more wild camping as a result. The weather, however, got the better of me.  Standing outside at midnight when it is absolutely freezing and having been there for several hours was a bit beyond me.

Letter to Someone Famous - two replies received

Waiting for me when we got back from our hols were two hand written envelopes; one each from the offices of Kirstie Allsopp and Paul O'Grady.  The envelope from Kirstie's office held a signed photo.  The envelope from Paul's, a signed photo and  a letter from his assistant which indicated that he had read my letter and was interested in my 50before50 challenge. 

I'm happy with this - receive a reply - DONE!

Two Isles and Three Bridges

I write having just returned from a three-week road trip around North Wales, Scotland and finishing off in the North East of England.  The trip started with a visit to Anglesey - (Visit Anglesey - Done!).

 

This is me on the Anglesey side of the Menai Suspension Bridge.  Built in 1826 by Thomas Telford and so much more impressive than the Britannia Bridge built less than 30 years later by Robert Stephenson.  That is this one:

It was damaged by fire in the 1970s and it looks a bit different now to how it looked originally but still it has never been as beautiful as the Thomas Telford bridge.

Anglesey was pretty but a bit dull (sorry to those of you that love it).  The highlight of the trip there (aside from the beautiful camp site right on a beach) was a visit to a model village.  I've done it now and don't expect I'll return.

Later in the trip we arrived on Syke (Visit Skye - Done!).  Skye also has a bridge.  It was opened in 1995 (previously access to the isle was by ferry) and therein lies an interesting story. 

The tolls charged were particularly unpopular. By 2004 a round trip cost £11.40. Protesters claimed the toll made it the most expensive road in Europe. While the Skye bridge was being built, several other smaller bridges in the Hebrides were also being built or planned. These bridges were to connect smaller islands either to larger ones or to the mainland and were without tolls. Skye believed that the Skye bridge should also be a public road and free of tolls.

The campaign included mass protests and a prolonged non-payment campaign. Numerous toll opponents were cited for refusing to pay the toll, with around 500 being arrested and 130 subsequently convicted of non-payment. Toll collection ceased in December 2004 as the cost of building the bridge had, by that time, been covered.

Skye was very beautiful; the bridge not so:

 

Like Anglesey, Skye was quiet with little to do but relax and look at the scenery - and sample the local water of course!





Finished Reading "The Rosie Project"

I know its not on my list but it is relevant for a really good reason.  I have three books on my list:

Middlemarch
War and Peace
Lolita

All excellent pieces of literature and all have been sitting on my book shelf, staring at me, for some time.  I have started to read both War and Peace (really struggling it is so boring - sorry to any fans!) and Lolita (a bit less boring, well written, but again I am struggling to become hooked enough to keep picking it up).

I am not usually a fan of what I would call "beach fiction".  My daughter bought "The Rosie Project", possibly because her name is Rosie, but for whatever reason she read it and quite enjoyed it so I borrowed it for my own holiday. 

What you need to know is that I have what I would describe as a mild(ish) form of ADD, that is Attention Deficit Disorder.  Note the omission of the often included "H" for hyperactivity.  I wouldn't describe myself as hyperactive.

This unfortunately means that I struggle to stick to things like hobbies or books, or anything else that calls for any kind of long term commitment.  Happily this does not apply to my marriage which is the exception to prove the rule!

Because of all this is it quite remarkable that I have just finished reading this book, and what's more I actually enjoyed it.  I started it this week expecting it to be just another example of "chic lit" but I was pleasantly surprised.  I had put off beginning it but, on the plane back from Turkey, I saw a man (with his female partner) reading it.  I was intrigued; obviously it had to be a bit more than I was expecting - OK accuse me of being sexist I don't care!

The main character in the book reminded me of Sheldon from "The Big Bang Theory" and I think, for mainly this reason, it will be a book both men and women will enjoy.  It certainly made me laugh out loud on several occasions.  So, if you get a chance, read it - you might just enjoy it yourself!

Break a World Record

For those of you that don't know, Rainbows, in Loughborough,  is the East Midlands’ only hospice for children and young people, Rainbows is a place where life-limited children and their families can find care and support.

It is a local charity for us here and is one that we often raise money for both personally and professionally.

This year is its 20th anniversary and to celebrate the amazing folks at Rainbows are trying to create the world's biggest rainbow made from selfies.   They want us all to take part.  I have taken my photo and submitted it - see below - and you can see that I chose the colour green. 

This is something we  can all do and I have posted the link here to take you straight through to more information.  You can post your own photo on the Rainbows page on Facebook or on their Twitter feed using #RainbowsSelfie.   The more people that take part, the easier it will be to break that world record and you will be part of it too!

http://www.rainbows.co.uk/wp-content/cache/page_enhanced/www.rainbows.co.uk/birthdayrainbow/_index.html_gzip

Message in a Bottle

So this was the plan - go somewhere a long way from here,  write a message,  put it in a bottle, chuck it overboard, done; but it didn't quite work out that way.  I thought the Marmaris to Rhodes ferry would be perfect - open sea between Turkey and a Greek island - what could go wrong?  Let me tell you that what could go wrong is very rough seas and lots of sea sickness.

Unfortunately, because it was rough, we were confined to our seats and my seat was inside and downstairs (I'm sure there is a technical term for downstairs in a boat but I have no idea what it is!).  All I could see was the porthole, and the horizon appearing and disappearing.  It wasn't long until my hand was going up in the air requesting a sick bag.  All you could see and hear was people throwing up which, when you have a problem with travel sickness yourself, is not ideal.

The crew, of course, thought it was hilarious, even when one of them ended up with vomit all down the front of his lovely polo shirt. 

Thankfully I managed to retain the contents of my stomach and went on to enjoy a wonderful day wandering the winding narrow streets of Rhodes old town.  The story on the way back to our resort was pretty much the same, however, and the message, snuggly ensconced in the plastic water bottle, remained in my beach bag.

So it didn't quite work out as planned, but the following day plan B took shape and the bottle was safely dispatched into the Aegean Sea via a Kayak loaned from the hotel.

Lets hope it travels far and that I can report to you in due course with regard to its destination.  Bon Voyage little bottle!