So yes, there has been a very long hiatus. This is because a spanking-new paper diary has been purchased for writing down my misantropic thoughts, and the virtual diary has been neglected.
Alas, I do not often feel like writing about Anne Hathaway as I lie in bed at night, and a sudden urge to blog overtook me...
I really do think she is one of the least endearing actresses out there.
She is all tooth and smile, big doe eyes and swooshy hair. I am aware this makes me sound like a bitter old hagbag, but bear with me.
Lurking beneath this glossy veneer is an incredibly annoying, lame, naff (and any other related pejorative you care to name) woman who reeks of desperation.
I'm sure she will not be crying herself to sleep at night with worry, but clearly I'm not the only one with this opinion (thank you, google answers).
I could have managed to avoid her if she hadn't had to host the bloomin' Oscars this year, and did an absolutely horrendous, car-crash job of it (dead-eyed James Franco didn't exactly help).
Then she goes on national television rapping, je gods, is there no end to her talents?
Ok, I have wasted approx 6 minutes now having a rant about someone I don't particularly like.
Now I'm going to be productive, and kick some chickens in Fable 3. "Born to be wiiiiiilllddd!"
Wednesday, 17 August 2011
Friday, 17 December 2010
'Tis the season
Have lost my way somewhat with this blog, which matters not much, as it is written for myself - not a wider audience.
I suppose t'week before Christmas is as good a time for a resurgence as any!
I love watching how people dress when the weather gets colder. Men in dapper business suits wearing their football scarves, the bright stripes incongruous with the greyness of the rest of their attire. It's even better when teamed with a matching beanie - rather than look proud of sporting their team's colours, most look a little embarrassed that they didn't have anything in plain black.
Ladies either get super sensible in sturdy boots & a multitude of cosy layers, or they cast aside attempts at practicality & dress as if they were in Costa Del Sol, not heading out to Cost Cutters.
Manchester is disappointing greatly in the weather front, with the snow being heavy enough to cause annoyance & delays, but not heavy enough for employers to give their frostbitten staff a 'snow day'.
After 12 hours stuck in the airport last year trying to get home for Christmas, I just hope it holds out until my flight on Tuesday... after which, I would quite like a bit of the white stuff, it has been much too long since these hands made a snowman!
I suppose t'week before Christmas is as good a time for a resurgence as any!
I love watching how people dress when the weather gets colder. Men in dapper business suits wearing their football scarves, the bright stripes incongruous with the greyness of the rest of their attire. It's even better when teamed with a matching beanie - rather than look proud of sporting their team's colours, most look a little embarrassed that they didn't have anything in plain black.
Ladies either get super sensible in sturdy boots & a multitude of cosy layers, or they cast aside attempts at practicality & dress as if they were in Costa Del Sol, not heading out to Cost Cutters.
Manchester is disappointing greatly in the weather front, with the snow being heavy enough to cause annoyance & delays, but not heavy enough for employers to give their frostbitten staff a 'snow day'.
After 12 hours stuck in the airport last year trying to get home for Christmas, I just hope it holds out until my flight on Tuesday... after which, I would quite like a bit of the white stuff, it has been much too long since these hands made a snowman!
Wednesday, 20 October 2010
Bonfire of the Benefits
So, the much anticipated spending review is now in. Working within the third sector, any cuts in welfare benefits is of particular importance to me, and my clients.
Once again it appears the current generation of pensioners continue to reap the rewards, whilst the young are penalised. Those who are 60 (or approaching this age), will be those who benefited from free University education, from generous public sector pension schemes, and from the now-controversial 'right to buy' scheme.
Anyone unfortunate enough to be of school age now has to contend with :
- ever-rising debts if they choose to go to University, and possibly a sub-standard service due to the job in government support for higher education
- joblessness & a cut in support if they do enter Uni - as many 'Connexxions' (advice/training providers for the youth) are being axed
- a fiercely competitive job market filled with qualified & newly unemployed public sector workers
- a never-ending battle to save up enough money to buy a house, with prices inflated & greedy buy-to-let investors snapping up all the 'starter' homes
- endless bureaucratic hoops to jump should they, woe betide, find themselves ill or without a job & at the mercy of the Jobcentre Plus.
- low rates of housing benefit compared to those over 35 (a bar that has been raised from 25)
An under-25, who finds themselves unemployed is expected to live from £51.85 a week. The maximum they will now get towards any rent is £51.85 a week. Exactly what property can be rented for this meagre amount? A shed in the outer Hebrides?
The poverty threshold in the UK is said to be £100 a week - this is what needs to be left over after paying rent, council tax, water charges. This figure of £51.85 is meant to provide heat, food, clothing, (and no doubt also have to be chipped into for extra rent payments) & other essentials for a young person everyweek.
Compare this to what a single Pensioner receives from the State as a bare minimum. State Retirement Pension, usually at the very least £58 a week. This is then topped up with Pension Credit to £132.60 a week. They are given another £132.60 a week towards rent, maximum.
Based on this scenario, they can actually have £27,000 in savings before their full housing benefit is stopped.
Pensioners moan & cripe about having to sell their homes/use their savings to fund a move into a care home, and conjure up various loopholes to avoid having to do so - this older generation seem to take no responsibility for the current financial climate we are facing, and believe they should be exempt from the pain.
Keeping the winter fuel allowance of a minimum of £250 a year for every pensioner (regardless of how many thousands of pounds are sitting in their bank accounts) is a pathetic and unaffordable attempt to sweeten the generation most likely to vote. There should be more lobbying at the major gas/electric company's for social tariffs (NOT just for the old, but the less well off as well), rather than the government taking responsibility for high prices. If the government insist on such handouts, they should be in the form of vouchers - not free money.
I think for now, I am done, but this is a subject I have a lot more to say about in the future - when we can see how these cuts really unfold.
Once again it appears the current generation of pensioners continue to reap the rewards, whilst the young are penalised. Those who are 60 (or approaching this age), will be those who benefited from free University education, from generous public sector pension schemes, and from the now-controversial 'right to buy' scheme.
Anyone unfortunate enough to be of school age now has to contend with :
- ever-rising debts if they choose to go to University, and possibly a sub-standard service due to the job in government support for higher education
- joblessness & a cut in support if they do enter Uni - as many 'Connexxions' (advice/training providers for the youth) are being axed
- a fiercely competitive job market filled with qualified & newly unemployed public sector workers
- a never-ending battle to save up enough money to buy a house, with prices inflated & greedy buy-to-let investors snapping up all the 'starter' homes
- endless bureaucratic hoops to jump should they, woe betide, find themselves ill or without a job & at the mercy of the Jobcentre Plus.
- low rates of housing benefit compared to those over 35 (a bar that has been raised from 25)
An under-25, who finds themselves unemployed is expected to live from £51.85 a week. The maximum they will now get towards any rent is £51.85 a week. Exactly what property can be rented for this meagre amount? A shed in the outer Hebrides?
The poverty threshold in the UK is said to be £100 a week - this is what needs to be left over after paying rent, council tax, water charges. This figure of £51.85 is meant to provide heat, food, clothing, (and no doubt also have to be chipped into for extra rent payments) & other essentials for a young person everyweek.
Compare this to what a single Pensioner receives from the State as a bare minimum. State Retirement Pension, usually at the very least £58 a week. This is then topped up with Pension Credit to £132.60 a week. They are given another £132.60 a week towards rent, maximum.
Based on this scenario, they can actually have £27,000 in savings before their full housing benefit is stopped.
Pensioners moan & cripe about having to sell their homes/use their savings to fund a move into a care home, and conjure up various loopholes to avoid having to do so - this older generation seem to take no responsibility for the current financial climate we are facing, and believe they should be exempt from the pain.
Keeping the winter fuel allowance of a minimum of £250 a year for every pensioner (regardless of how many thousands of pounds are sitting in their bank accounts) is a pathetic and unaffordable attempt to sweeten the generation most likely to vote. There should be more lobbying at the major gas/electric company's for social tariffs (NOT just for the old, but the less well off as well), rather than the government taking responsibility for high prices. If the government insist on such handouts, they should be in the form of vouchers - not free money.
I think for now, I am done, but this is a subject I have a lot more to say about in the future - when we can see how these cuts really unfold.
Wednesday, 13 October 2010
Living la vida loca (well, not really)
Have definitely been neglecting thee old blog lately. My blogger posts are the modern day equivalent of talking to myself, the oft quoted first sign of madness. Perhaps this is a sign that my inner malaise is retreating!
I was reading an article about how LSD/cocaine et al used to be prescribed routinely by doctors for depression & other ailments in the 60's. It goes without saying that had I been young back then, these chemicals would probably have made even the following mundane events seem a little bit more rock 'n' roll. In the last month of pleasant banal-ity I have :
- discovered there is a squirrel living in my car park, it steals conkers.
- somehow given my left elbow an inexplicable corker of a bruise (my partner does not seem to have a matching bruise anywhere, so at least I know I'm not subjecting him to sleep-abuse!)
- ate & drank myself to oblivion, Italian-style (watching too much of The Sopranos is a bad influence)
- finished that doorstopper of a Stephen King book 'Under the Dome', (can finally get my literary life back)
- sat in a couple of airports, got a couple of planes, obtained cold virus from recycled air within.
Ah, there have been other moments of excitement, happiness & general joy at the world - but this is not the place for those!
I was reading an article about how LSD/cocaine et al used to be prescribed routinely by doctors for depression & other ailments in the 60's. It goes without saying that had I been young back then, these chemicals would probably have made even the following mundane events seem a little bit more rock 'n' roll. In the last month of pleasant banal-ity I have :
- discovered there is a squirrel living in my car park, it steals conkers.
- somehow given my left elbow an inexplicable corker of a bruise (my partner does not seem to have a matching bruise anywhere, so at least I know I'm not subjecting him to sleep-abuse!)
- ate & drank myself to oblivion, Italian-style (watching too much of The Sopranos is a bad influence)
- finished that doorstopper of a Stephen King book 'Under the Dome', (can finally get my literary life back)
- sat in a couple of airports, got a couple of planes, obtained cold virus from recycled air within.
Ah, there have been other moments of excitement, happiness & general joy at the world - but this is not the place for those!
Thursday, 9 September 2010
"Next blog..."
I'm not quite sure how Blogger delegates which blogs would be of interest to me when pressing the "next blog" function, but I was quite amused/baffled when I was sent to 6 blogs in a row written by women who are obsessed (their own words) by knitting.
This is not a hobby I have ever partaken in. Being an impatient, sloppy & short-attention spanned harpy, I don't think it is something I ever will partake in.
It could be funny to try it as a cheap alternative to buying friends/family things they actually want for their birthdays, I can see their strained little faces now: "thanks - I've always wanted a pair of knitted knobbly, half-finished, coffee stained, holey egg-coseys."
I am somewhat unconvinced of the value of many 'crafty' gifts, even if they are well made. Does anyone really need egg coseys, even if they are lovingly stitched in the shape of some cute little owls? [By the way, I didn't actually come across anyone who made these in my random blog trawl. I thought it was something silly to use as an example, but lo and behold, google provided me with proof that such things have indeed been created...]
The main craft that I adhere to, if you could call it such, is baking. But not of the pretty-little-cupcake variety - I have no skill with frippery. I like making big manly batches of banana bread, or childish concoctions of melted chocolate, fudge & biscuits. A big whack of gooey brownie is also hard to beat, although mine usually do look like they have taken a bit of a beating.
Anyway... "Next blog" please!
Thursday, 2 September 2010
This week I've most been watching movies
I have watched 3 films at the cinema in the last fortnight. This is in addition to various flicks I've watched [sometimes slightly illicitly] on my computer monitor, such is the rich & fulfilling life that I lead. All had vastly different plots/genres/styles, and were viewed in 3 different cinemas. Here follows my own short synopsis :
1. The Human Centipede, watched at the Cornerhouse.
I made the mistake of telling a couple of work colleagues I was going to see this film - trying to explain the plotline without people assuming I was a sick f&*k was not easy, "It's erm, about this mad doctor, who you know, abducts people..."
The atmosphere in the cinema really made the film shine for me - mass audience laughter, appropriate groans, and cheering at the end - it was akin to watching a vaudeville act rather than a German horror movie.
Not as gory as the reviews perhaps made it out to be, however there were definitely moments when I involuntarily shuddered with disgust. I shall certainly be in the line to watch Part 2...
2. The Exependables, watched at AMC Deansgate.
This film promised an amazing cast, impressive explosions, and a style reminiscent of the big 80's action movies. Whilst it did on paper fulfil this brief, it was an extremely disappointing & at times embarrassing picture.
The close-up on Mickey Rourke's surgery ravaged face as he broke down about his action during the Bosnian war was awkward & bizarre, coming out of nowhere, completely out of sync with the brainless dialogue preceding it. He was not the only one who 'benefited' from extreme close-ups, Stallone's directing ability ensured we had ample time to study his weirdly-ravaged eyebrows & 'roid arms.
During Arnie's approx 30 seconds screen time, the joke about him gaining weight was not only unfunny, but completely inappropriate given the fact he is a measly shadow of his former beefed-up self.
A complete waste of time, which would have been better spent at home reliving some genuinely funny 80's action classics - Predator, Lethal Weapon, Robocop to name a few.
3. Dog Pound, watched at the Odeon Printworks.
Basically a remake of Ray Winstone's breakout movie, 'Scum', although not advertised as such. Shows 3 teenage boys who have been committed of drug offences/assault, and placed in a young offenders institute. They didn't have a fun time once there.
It's sad that such a dark film elicits such a hum-drum response, but it failed to add any new insights from 'Scum'. It did however make me glad that a) I was not born a boy b) I was never bad enough to warrant being sent to borstal.
& on a related note... me & the other half were 2 of 5 people that went to see this film. Out of an entirely empty cinema, another couple chose to sit in the 2 seats directly in front of ours. This is quite odd, akin to sitting next to a stranger on a desolate bus. We could have moved, but it's the principle of the damn thing. Weirdos.
1. The Human Centipede, watched at the Cornerhouse.
I made the mistake of telling a couple of work colleagues I was going to see this film - trying to explain the plotline without people assuming I was a sick f&*k was not easy, "It's erm, about this mad doctor, who you know, abducts people..."
The atmosphere in the cinema really made the film shine for me - mass audience laughter, appropriate groans, and cheering at the end - it was akin to watching a vaudeville act rather than a German horror movie.
Not as gory as the reviews perhaps made it out to be, however there were definitely moments when I involuntarily shuddered with disgust. I shall certainly be in the line to watch Part 2...
2. The Exependables, watched at AMC Deansgate.
This film promised an amazing cast, impressive explosions, and a style reminiscent of the big 80's action movies. Whilst it did on paper fulfil this brief, it was an extremely disappointing & at times embarrassing picture.
The close-up on Mickey Rourke's surgery ravaged face as he broke down about his action during the Bosnian war was awkward & bizarre, coming out of nowhere, completely out of sync with the brainless dialogue preceding it. He was not the only one who 'benefited' from extreme close-ups, Stallone's directing ability ensured we had ample time to study his weirdly-ravaged eyebrows & 'roid arms.
During Arnie's approx 30 seconds screen time, the joke about him gaining weight was not only unfunny, but completely inappropriate given the fact he is a measly shadow of his former beefed-up self.
A complete waste of time, which would have been better spent at home reliving some genuinely funny 80's action classics - Predator, Lethal Weapon, Robocop to name a few.
3. Dog Pound, watched at the Odeon Printworks.
Basically a remake of Ray Winstone's breakout movie, 'Scum', although not advertised as such. Shows 3 teenage boys who have been committed of drug offences/assault, and placed in a young offenders institute. They didn't have a fun time once there.
It's sad that such a dark film elicits such a hum-drum response, but it failed to add any new insights from 'Scum'. It did however make me glad that a) I was not born a boy b) I was never bad enough to warrant being sent to borstal.
& on a related note... me & the other half were 2 of 5 people that went to see this film. Out of an entirely empty cinema, another couple chose to sit in the 2 seats directly in front of ours. This is quite odd, akin to sitting next to a stranger on a desolate bus. We could have moved, but it's the principle of the damn thing. Weirdos.
Thursday, 26 August 2010
Yellow-y goodness.
To counteract the last couple of pieces of customer-service induced bile, I think it is time for a positive post. In praise of bananas!Have been eating a lot of banana's lately, as a colleague in work keeps bringing them in (I think most of the office would prefer doughnuts). Having gotten sick of eating them as plain old fruit, I have started a culinary quest to turn them into delicious treats. This week I have had :
Banana bread, frozen banana's (transforms them into a different being altogether), banana & chocolate brownies, banana & peanut butter sandwiches, banana ice-cream.
I also plan to make : Banoffee (best. desert. ever!) and banana pancakes.
Hopefully I shall not suffer the same fate as Elvis (banana devotee), and die on the toilet sometime next week.
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