R.I.P. Irvin Kershner

Irvin Kershner has died at the grand old age of 87. He is best known for directing what is arguably the finest Star Wars movie in the series, Episode V, The Empire Strikes Back.


I'm sorry to say, I know very little about this man. But he left us with a movie that has become unique, in that, the 'good guys' never won. There is so much more to this film and this man but as I said, I know very little about Irvin Kershner and the movie can speak for itself. Do yourself a favour and get your hands on a copy.
R.I.P. Irvin Kershner. May the force be with you.

Tweet & twidy

Having an alter ego on Twitter is really time consuming. Being myself was a doddle, tweeting as and when I felt like it. But having to do it as someone else as well, tweeting new followers and following new tweeters, well, it's a bit like being on stand-by. Never actually off.

Clue two:
I'm a cute cuddly bear.

My alter ego

I've been making mischief on Twitter by creating a fake account. Don't worry, it's nothing dodgy, I just felt like having an alter ego, rather like Stephen Fry has done with @MrsStephenFry, or Edna, as she prefers, and was curious to see how I would get on.
So far, so good. I'm following about a dozen related/similar tweeters and have posted a couple of tweets, dipping my toes, so to speak. I even plucked up the courage to have a conversation with another tweeter. Golly. I just might try it again.
I'm not going to publish my alter ego's @name just yet because I'd like to see how I get on with a clean slate. I'll let you know my @name all in good time. Give me a couple of months to find my feet and establish my roots, in a manner of speaking, and all will be revealed!
I'll be using this blog to keep you updated on any developments and dropping hints and clues about my @name from time to time.

First clue:
I'm not pretending to be real_person or even a FakeRealPerson.

My Boys

So, I'm on my way to collect my boy in London, which means an hours journey there and an hours journey back again. And I'll have to do the same again, tomorrow, when I return him to his mother.
It's a pain but I'd rather that, than never seeing him at all. I've already missed so much of his life. It's true that I've seen him every weekend for the last seven(!?) years but I still miss out on the everyday moments. The tapestry of his life, I suppose.
I'm never going to let that happen with my youngest son. I wish I could have both of them all the time because they are so good together. You should see those two making each other laugh. My Boys. Xx

Misfits

Misfits is on E4, tonight. I've only seen one episode of the new series and I'm loving it already. But considering how good the first series was, it was to be expected.
They've gone one better this time as characters from the programme can be followed on Twitter. It's a great twist and really funny. They're also on facebook but I just haven't got around to having a look yet.
If you have a few moments to fill, you can find them all by following this link:
http://www.e4.com/misfits/characters/profiles.html
What super power would I most like to have, I wonder? There are so many to choose from. What would you choose?

Before bed

I like to have a read before bed. Tonight, I'm reading I Shall Wear Midnight, by Terry Pratchet.


I'm not far enough into it yet to tell you the plot but it stars (if you can use that word about a fictional character) a young witch called Tiffany Aching and will soon guest star (see above) a well respected and highly feared senior witch, Granny Weatherwax. And don't mention the Nac Mac Feegles.

"Jings! Is some big job talkin' aboot us?"

I told you not to mention them.

F1 title showdown

The 2010 Formula 1 drivers championship went down to the last race in Abu Dhabi. Going into the race, four drivers were in with a chance of walking away with motorsports greatest prize:
Fernando Alonso, Ferrari, was ahead on points, followed by Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull, and Lewis Hamilton, McLaren.
It looked like it was Alonso's title to lose and that's exactly what he did. Both he with Webber pitted early, shortly after a safety car period that was brought out to deal with a first lap accident between Michael Schumacher and Tonio Liuzzi, and that strategy effectively ruined their race as they got stuck behind a few cars that had already pitted under the safety car. This led to some very exciting racing and many bold passing attempts, succesful and otherwise. Meanwhile, Vettel and Hamilton, who would need a miracle to be world champion a second time, kept their heads, in first and second position, and got on with the serious business of trying to win the race. Jenson Button crept into third to take the final place on the podium and as the four contenders crossed the finishing line, scoring their respective points, Formula 1 gained a new world champion, Sebastian Vettel.

Just so you know

Just so you know, I won't be posting an F1 tweetblog, this weekend because it's the last race of the season and the championship decider. So, as you can imagine, I won't be able to do anything other than stare at the telly for two hours and make the occasional excited noise, let alone keep a record of the action.

What Friday feeling?

"Thank God/fuck (and I hope I never write those two words so closely together, ever again. That wasn't meant to shock you or cause controversy. I had intended to post a simple blog about "That Friday feeling" and how those phrases, over time, have changed their meaning for me.
When I was younger (!) it meant hooking up with as many friends as possible, drinking until I shouldn't and having the wildest time of my life. Now it means that I don't have to worry about what time I get out of bed on Saturday morning. And although the Mrs usually gives me a lie-in, our Wee Man doesn't.
But I'm not sure I should after that initial... Well, I don't know what you call a God/fuck combo but I want no part of it.) it's Friday".

Thunderstorm Thursday

I'm not looking forward to riding into work on Thursday. I saw the weather forecast on TV and it was like that scene in The Day After Tomorrow with the satellite predictions showing the end of the world. Except with rain and only south-east England. But all the same, my heart sank when I saw what I'd be riding through in the morning.
Don't forget an umberella, ella, ella.

From Tolkein to Pratchett

Another late night on the sofa. I started a new book, this evening, now that I've finished reading The Hobbit (Yes!). I didn't really enjoy it all that much, really. It was ok but I think I prefer Terry Pratchet and it's his latest Discworld novel, I Shall Wear Midnight, that has me up so late.
"A good man knows his limits" said Dirty Harry, or something similar, and mine are bounded by gags, pratfalls and pranks. I enjoy reading, especially if I get a good laugh out of it and Pratchett always puts a smile on my face.

F1 tweetblog, Brazilian Grand Prix

I'd like to point out that this blog was written under considerable stress as it was lost after 8 laps and then rewritten from memory. Then around halfway-ish it happened again, only this time I'd been saving it periodically and only lost a few laps. And throughout the entire race, my little boy was up to his usual antics, which included being taught how to drink from a cup (very messy).
I've decided to leave all mistakes in the blog as I think it'll add flavour. Possibly.

Much excitement, vettel passes hulk, then web gets past, hulk holds alon for several lap, bar hustles kub, vet web alo hulk ham, but 11th, lap 11, ham up julks bum, red bull and alonso running away, jenson pit for hard tyres, massa pits a lap later, but passes mas out of pits, everybody starts pitting for tyres, only lap 14, massa back in, loose wheel nut, hulk cones in, ham passes him, ham radio says go go go, ham says tyres going, but passes pet for 10th, lap 18, vet web alo ham msc ros bye job sut but etc mas 16th, no retirements, lew pit lap 21, ham but 6th&7th, plenty of action at interlagos, sut holds up sch, ham fastest lap 1:16.2, alonso pits lap 25 in 3rd ahead of rosberg, followed by Vettel for fresh tyres, Webber leads, lewis passes kob, web pits one lap after vet into 2nd place, all champ leaders have pit, vet web alo ham kob but ris sut sch etc, alonso radio says "we can't touch them (red bull)", halfway point, bar has puncture, pit crew ready with new nose, only tyres changed, sutil leads msc and 5 others in battle for 8th, 1:15.4 fastest lap for web, ros battling bob for6th, ros gets throgh, rub down to 18th, web may have understeer, lap 42, no change in position up to p10, Liutsi crashes at senna eases, safetty car depoloyed, ros pit crew didn't know if tyres need changing or what in the pits, ros back in again a lap later, lap 56 race restarts, vet web alo ham but ros sch hul kub alg kob bue etc, alo and ham fighting past lapped cars mix, buemi takes massa off for a moment, lap 61, huuuge battle behind sutil, fastest lap ham 1:14.082 lap 65, alonso gaining on web, top 5 champs in top 5 places, 5 laps remain, pet and mas come together at esses both continue, final lap, vet crosses the line followed by web, alo ham but ros sch hul kub kob,


red bull wins constructors world championship, the drivers title will go down to the wire next week in Abu Dhabi.

F1 tweetblog, Brazilian qualifying

Q1
We have standing water on the track, drivers nearly taking each other out, rivers forming, Hamilton's radio says rain on the way, Red Bulls leading time sheets until Alonso knocks them off, looks like Sutil's dropping out at half way point, Alonso radio just doesn't know what happening with rain, new intermediates, don't think any new team driver will make it to Q2, Red Bulls back on top, Kubica up to third, Bruno spins it at the Senna esses, still no rain, Sutil's last chance, doesn't make it, Alonso leads ahead of Webber, Vettel, Kubica, all new teams out.

Q2
Cars heading out on track, no rain, drivers trying to find space for a good run, Kubica leads, whoops, now it's Barrichello, usual suspects looking to drop out of Q2, Webber makes a 1:18.841, fastest lap so far, track must be drying, Hamilton radio asks for dry tyres, Lewis says maybe not, he gets fresh intermediates, Button tenth, too close for comfort, oops again, now he's eleventh, Massa only eighth, Button makes seventh with one hot lap left, Button squeezed out of Q2 along with Kobayashi, Rosberg, Alguessari, Buemi, Heudfeld and Luizzi.

Q3
Ten minutes count down, no rain falls, who will be the first to switch to dry tyres, Alonso on 1:17.794, Hamilton leads now ahead of Schumacher and Vettel, lots of cars coming in for slick tyres, Bartichello down in tenth, Kubica falls off at the bottom of the hill, followed by Webber, Hulkenberg on provisional pole, taken back by Hamilton, Vettel third, lap times falling, Alonso first, mugged by Hulkenburg, exciting stuff, Nico rocks Brazil ahead of Vettel, Webber, Hamilton, Alonso, Barrichello, Kubica, Shumacher, Massa and Petrov, wow, just imagine that a rookie will be on pole for the race tomorrow.

F1 here we come

I might do another tweetblog this Sunday as it's the Brazilian Grand Prix. I enjoyed doing it last time because it gave me another perspective on the race in Korea. Of course, I watched it live and enjoyed every moment but memories fade regarding small details and this is just another way for me to remember my personal highlights.
It's also my way of sharing the race with you lucky readers that didn't watch it. And just think, instead of spending two hours in front of the telly, you can spend two minutes reading the tweetblog and be as knowledgeable as any casual fan.
Neeeeeeeeoooooowwww

The lost heroes flashforward event

I'm losing interest in The Event, really fast. Not as fast as Flashforward, though. That only took one episode. It looked interesting at first but by the second episode I just couldn't be bothered to care. I caught a season or two of Lost on Channel 4 and was utterly hooked before it ran off with Sky TV. And then along came the series I'd been waiting for, Heroes. I managed to enjoy the first two seasons before Desperate Housewives clashed with it on the TV schedule. Bugger. The things you'll do to keep your wife happy. I never did manage to catch up after that.
And here we are again. Another series that keeps you guessing week after week after mind numbing/boggling week. Maybe I'll give it a little longer and see if it's any good. Or maybe not. Maybe I'll just keep you guessing.
;-)

Big bubbles, no troubles

I love being in the bath, surrounded by millions of tiny bubbles. I haven't counted them all but there's definately more than twelve because that's as far as I got before I closed my eyes and let myself drift away.
I didn't fall asleep. Not this time but i've done it before. Just closed my eyes and... Dot dot dot, indeed.
Well, anyway and other such things, I have another bath awaiting my attention. Yes, I will close my eyes and yes, I will drift but there absolutely will not be any...