Friday Five catch up

The hlog girls went with a Sunday Seven this week instead of a Friday Five, so here it is, along with last week's Five that I seem to have missed:

1. Do you have a day off from work or school for MLK day?

I’m guessing this is Martin Luther King day? That one’s not recognised over here…

2. Are you sick of the unusually hot or cold weather?

Who has unusually hot weather? And can I move there?! Freeeeezing here today, we are all sat in the office with our coats still on, shivering

3. Do you care about the football playoffs?

Nope, I’m not hugely interested in any kind of football, either the English or the American kind. I do very occasionally watch a bit of CFL, especially when the BC Lions are on, but to be honest I don’t really know what’s going on half the time (Kat needs to give me some pointers :) )

4. What new TV show do you like this season?

Ummm, I can’t think of anything, the IT Crowd was good but the series was short and is already over. Ditto Ace of Cakes, which seems to have been bumped a couple of shows in (sob). Heroes series 4 is due to start soon I think, so I’m looking forward to that. I’m not really watching anything else….except ‘ockey.

5. What's the next DVD on your Netflix queue or on your list to rent?

I don’t really rent movies, I don’t have time to watch them. I did make an exception last week to watch the Love Guru – which I instantly regretted as it sucked HARD. But generally, the only films I get to see are kiddy ones with my 6 year old, so the last one was Alvin and the Chipmunks :)

6. What book or magazine are you currently reading?

I usually have a couple of books and mags on the go at any given time – I’m currently making my way through this month’s Somerset Studios and Cloth Paper Scissors, and I’m also part way through reading two books – Bad Science by Ben Goldacre and Open Ice by Jack Falla

7. Is anyone else sad that we have to wait 11 months for Xmas?

No! I need that long to recover from the last one!


1. Do you make New Year's Resolutions?
Not really, sometimes half heartedly, this year not at all. I do have goals, but they aren’t new year specific.

2. How much TV do you watch?

Not that much – although it’s almost always on (kids watching Spongebob etc)

3. What kind of pet would you like to own?

A dog, definitely, but it would have to wait until I’m retired or something daft, as I don’t think it’s fair to have a dog alone in the house while everyone’s out at work and school. As far as lower maintenance pets go, we already have a pair of lovely friendly rats and the cutest pygmy hedgehog on the planet.

4. Do you recycle?

Yes. I’d want to anyway, but the tiny waste bins the council give us mean that I haven’t got much choice.

5. Have you just wandered around the town that you live in?

Just aimlessly? Not really. I don’t tend to do much without a purpose. And it isn’t the most exciting or pretty town, to be fair.

Friday Five - 2nd January 2009

ooops! I'm a little late!

1.) Did you watch the Outdoor Game?

Oh yes :) Wouldn't miss the Winter Classic for one meeellion dollarssss. It wasn't QUITE as magical as last year's because there was no snow, or Dany Sabs looking adorable, but it was a cracking good game. And I'm still giggling about the anthems :D

2.) Do you have any New Year's traditions?

Not really, unless staying in sulking because I can't get a babysitter counts as a tradition.

3.) What sport have you always wanted to try but never gotten around to?

I'm much more of a watcher of sport than a participant, although I love swimming. I would LOVE to learn to skate, have only tried it once and I was awful, couldn't even let go of the sides.

4.) Which sports website do you visit the most?

THF by a country mile, but I also pay daily visits to the Wildcats forum and CDC, and I read a ton of hockey blogs

5.) If you could get any tech gadget, what would you get?

Good question. Something small and portable that would let me painlessly (and preferably for free) surf, and contribute to, the internet whilst out and about, I think. Like an iphone or something.

Friday Five - 19th December 2008

1.) What hockey related item would you like?
Is "Ryan Kesler" an accceptable answer to this question? No? Pity. OK, it would have to be either tickets, flights and accommodation for the Winter Classic; or this gameworn Manitoba Moose jersey that I was mere inches away from owning when the seller infuriatingly backed out of the deal.

2.) Do you turn off the lights when you leave a room?
Not unless it's bed time, usually. Unless it's a loo. But only because there is constant traffic around my house, so if I did turn the lights off, someone else would only put them straight back on 3 minutes later. And I'm sure I read somewhere that that uses more electricity than just leaving them on. If I'm wrong - sorry planet!

3.) Tea or coffee?
Neither. I don't really do hot drinks. I might drink a hot Ribena or a hot orange squash if I'm feeling poorly or am very cold, but usually cold drinks are all I have.

4.) Do you like peppermint?
In toothpaste or After Eights, yes, but that's about it. It's not a flavour I seek out.

5.) What do you do obsessively?
Check my emails every 30 seconds?

Friday Five from the 12th december - I'm a little late

1.) Do you take cold medicine, or do you just tough it out?
A very appropriate question given I have been ODing on it for the past week :)
Actually, that's not quite true, I took it for about 4 days I think - the stuff makes me a little loopy so I go without if I can. This particular cold was (is - still not gone) a pretty nasty one though.

2.) Do you keep all the books you buy, or do you give them away when you are finished reading them?
I have passed a few on, where friends were after a specific book and I was sure I was done with it. But most I keep - they are piled up all over the place - I really need to get rid of them! My bookcase literally fell apart under the weight of them. (and no, the photo isn't of my books, but the scene at my house isn't far off!)

3.) Are you a good speller?
Yes, fairly good. Most of my mistakes are typos from typing too quickly or tiredness, rather than not knowing how to spell.

4.) Does your room/house have a particular theme?
Ummm.... mess?

5.) Do you ever faceplant down the stairs for no apparent reason?
No, thankfully. That would hurt! I did trip over a kiddies' toy in the kitchen the other day and fell flat on my face in front of two of my eldest son's teenage friends - that was embarassing - does that count?

Friday Five - 5th December 08

1.) Would you rather have someone cook for you or clean for you?

Clean, without a doubt. I'm quite happy to feed myself, but cleaning and housework generally really gets on top of me. I never seem to have enough time to get everything done, always on the back foot.

2.) What color do you rarely wear?

There are lots, including but not limited to orange, turquoise, yellow, pink, beige

3.) Do you put up Christmas lights?

I didn't last year. This year I will. Possibly this weekend. More likely next.

4.) What is your favorite color of car?

A nice dark (but not navy) blue, I think. Metallic. Or gold/purple two tone like the funky sports car I sometimes see around town. My current car is silver, though. Wouldn't have been my first choice as it shows up the winter dirt too much, but hey ho.

5.) What do you do when you're stressed?

one, some or all of the following:

• wobble my right knee furiously


• lose ALL tolerance for mess / piles of dirty dishes etc and yell at teenage sons in relation to same (which is where that cleaner from question 1 would come in useful)


• get very paranoid


• cry


• eat and drink unhealthy things in unhealthy amounts


• have a bath


• talk to my imaginary friends


• paint or sew

Friday Five - 28th November 2008 - on time, yay me!!!

1.) What's a good name for a frog?
Kyle, tooootally

2.) Will you be doing any shopping on Black Friday (for the Americans)?
I bought a few bits and bobs from the NHL shop in last year's BF sale - but not this year - skint as a skint thing - boo hoo

3.) When do you put up your Christmas tree (for those of you that do)?
I'm feeling very bah humbug this year but will have to do the tree at some point - a couple of weeks before the big day I expect.

4.) Who is the hardest person on your list to shop for?
Ummm - I haven't even thought about pressies yet - but I have NO idea what I'm going to get for my other half. No idea at all. I hope he isn't expecting anything expensive lol

5.) Is there any new gadget coming out this holiday season that you want?
Nope, not really. There's only one thing I really, really want for Christmas (other than world peace, the Cup and a cure for my best mate), and that's the new Canucks DVD. I'm easily pleased.

Friday Five - 21st November 2008 - and a couple of tags

1.) What food did you hate as a kid that your parental figure still insisted that you had to eat?
I really can’t remember ever being forced to eat anything. It was in my interest to eat what was put in front of me, though, because I certainly wouldn’t have been offered an alternative.

2.) Is it wintery yet where you live?
No it’s more autumnal than wintery – although I heard rumours we may be seeing some snow this weekend

3.) Have you made a Christmas list?
No - I don’t even want to think about Christmas. I will decorate the house though (unlike last year when I completely pretended it just wasn’t happening) and send a handful of cards. And kiddies, best mates, dad, sister and boyfriend will get presents. Ah – so yes, I guess that IS my Christmas list :)

4.) Do you call other people's parents by their first names?
No way. I don’t like using people’s names at all, I always try and avoid directly addressing people. Instead of calling “Sandra, could I….” across the room, I’d walk over to them and say “hi – could I…..” or “excuse me, could I…..”. I don’t know why that is, but as far back as I can remember, I have always gone out of my way to avoid using names.

5.) In an ideal world, what time would you go to bed?
Never! I could watch all the west coast hockey live, and I could get SO much more DONE if I didn’t have to sleep. It would be fantastic!

Now some tags.

I've been tagged this week by both the lovely Rhomany and the equally lovely Paula - they'd get on well, actually, those two, thinking about it - both gothy art journallers - I ought to introduce them....

The "rules" of Rho's tag:

Link the person that tagged you and post the rules on your blog.
Share 7 random and/or weird facts about yourself.
Tag 7 random people at the end of your post and include links.
Let each person know that they've been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

and of the PLO-lady's:

1. Link to the person or persons who tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Write six random things about yourself.
4. Tag six people at the end of your post and link to them.
5. Let each person know they've been tagged and leave a comment on their blog.
6. Let the tagger know when your entry is up.

They look pretty similar to me - basically I just have to think of 7 or 13 things to say about me (depending on whether I can count the 6 as a subset of the 7, or add them together)

Let's see how many I can think of....

1. I’m a vegetarian – not that that’s weird or particularly random, but I guess it’s not something everyone knows. I gave up meat at around the age of 15, was vegan through university and a bit beyond (but missed cheese waaaay too much), had a bit of a relapse in my 30s when I ate a bit of chicken and fish, but went back to being a full time veggie a few years back and I expect it to be permanent this time

2. I occasionally consider rainbows to be direct messages to me from John Frusciante (Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist, and all round legend), but I don’t consider myself to be loopy, just open minded :D

3. I put off going to see my local ice hockey team play for ages because I was led to believe they would be a huge disappointment compared to the NHL. Now they are a HUGELY important part of my life and I’m kicking myself for all those missed games.

4. I got a detention at school for “hypnotising” Debbie Smith and making her go onto the boys’ playground, pull down her knickers and lift her skirt right up. Now – at the time – I thought this was conclusive proof that I was a master hypnotist. With hindsight, I think maybe Debbie Smith was just a bit of an exhibitionist :D

5. I am very faddy – I always need new challenges – I love doing art and craft stuff but once I get to the point where I’ve finished learning about a technique/medium and am finally equipped to start applying all that learning, I get bored and move onto the next craft. Hence my current fascination with embroidery, of all things. Heaven help me, I’ll be knitting next!

6. Long, preferably curly, hair sticking out from under a hockey helmet makes my heart go pitter patter - I can’t help it. Now before the puck bunny accusations start flying (and to be fair, I think I’m too old to be a puck bunny anyway) – I’m a proper hockey fan, really I am, I’m not just there for the boys, I’d still go to see the Wildcats week in week out and love them JUST as much if they were all total mingers :D But if there just happen to be a couple of lookers on the rosters of my respective teams, that, as far as I’m concerned, is a bonus! In fact, I think that women get that little bit more from the game than the boys do - we can enjoy/appreciate it on the same level - hell I can discuss plus/minus, goals against averages, and the Wild's trap system till the sun comes up, try me! - but we also get that leeetle tingle on top. We lucky bitches! :D

7. My most precious (non living) possession is my Canucks stick, signed by the entire 2003-4 roster – although my game worn Kesler jersey runs a close second

8. It has taken me 40 years to work out the difference between a good man and a rubbish one, and why the former make much better boyfriends :) better learnt late than never, I suppose

9. I have been in two short films both of which won awards – one when I was little that was exhibited at Cannes and, I think, won its category (I don’t remember what it was called, just that it involved me wandering around in the woods in a white dress) – and this one that won a BBC short film prize (I’m the one with the blonde coronets, on the left, attempting to look mean and moody @ 04:45)

10. Following on from number 9, I used to teach line dancing (Wolf from Gladiators, for that film, was definitely my most difficult pupil!), and even won a couple of competitions. Haven’t done it in years though, I’d love to get back into it one day.

11. When I was younger I really, really, really wanted to be a marine biologist. I had visions of swimming alongside blue whales and learning to communicate in dolphinese. Then I found out that, in reality, the job mainly consists of examining plankton under a microscope. So I kind of went off the idea.

12. I've kept rats on and off for 20 odd years. They are the best pets evah evah evah! And we also have an African Pygmy Hedgehog in the house, called Tau, who is utterly adorabubble

13. Yay! I made it to 13! Ummmm..... I once screeched to a halt on the way to a wedding that I was already a little late for because I saw the coolest ceramic phrenology bust in an antique shop window and had......to.......own....it!!!!!

I'm not going to pass the tags on, as I hate to feel that I am passing on an obligation..... but if you're reading this and you want to play, play!

And finally (this has been a mammoth post) - one thing that bugs me about blogger is the lack of emoticons - as sometimes I think you need them to clarify tone..... so I use :) and :D a lot on here ..... just want to test if this will work: - any luck?
Hopefully you can see the little smiley, wavey man and he doesn't distort the text around him too much....

Friday Five - 14th November 2008

Oh goody - an all hockey five :) This one won't mean much to many people out there, but it's fun for me.

1.) Toews or Kane?
Hard to separate these two, I kind of think of them as a bit of an item. I haven't seen that many Chicago games recently - none at all yet this season - but in one memorable game about this time last year I remember a big hit on Kane at GM Place where he flew over the boards onto his bench - bless, poor young 'un (snigger). And they are way too young for me to choose based on attractiveness, that would be almost illegal. So I'll go for Toews based on a very pretty goal I vaguely remember seeing on HNIC last season.

2.) Mikko or Saku Koivu?
Well, I'm still a bit miffed with Mikko for elbowing Kesler in the chin the other night (and kind of proud of Kes for winding him up that much that he wanted to lol) - so I'll choose Saku. They are both a lock for the All Star game, by the look of things, nothing dodgy going on there ;)

3.) Sidney Crosby or Alexander Ovechkin?
This one is the easiest, Ovie WITHOUT HESITATION - I love the way he plays, and his humour, and his loyalty to his team, and the whole sweet internet bride thang, and he's just so cute in a cabbage patch doll kinda way :)

4.) Henrik Zetterberg or Pavel Datsyuk?
My best mate fancies Zetts, I don't see it myself. He is amazing to watch on the ice, though. I do like my Selke candidates, and both of these boys have the defensive forward thing down. Ummmm - I'll go Pavel, but it's close.

5.) Joe Sakic or Steve Yzerman?
For the most pointless reason - Stevie Y - because I have his autograph :) Only by accident, mind - I have a stick signed by the 2003/4 Canucks roster and it was originally issued by his company, and so his scrawl is on the CoA

They caught me out this week....

I went looking for the Friday Five and it wasn't there.... because instead this week there was a Saturday Six (I guess those hlog girlies want to keep us on our toes)

So here goes:

1.) Do you like rain?
I tolerate it, and appreciate that we need it for the plants to grow, but have seen rather too much of it for comfort this year, I think this summer was the wettest since records began or something equally dramatic

2.) What day of the week is laundry day?
Every day! I have three kids, and a tumble dryer that is on its last legs so takes forever to dry anything, and as already mentioned, it's not like I can hang anything outside to dry because IT IS ALWAYS RAINING - so the dryer is on constantly and the washing machine isn't far behind

3.) Are you addicted to Youtube?
Nah, the novelty has worn off a bit now. I still find it a really useful resource, though.

4.) How efficiently can you type one handed?
Not that well, as it's hard to do the capital letters if they are a long way from the shift button

5.) Did you indulge in any leftover Halloween candy?
Yes but not much, as most of it looked naaaasty

6.) What are your plans for Thanksgiving? If you are Canadian, what did you do for your Thanksgiving?
We don't have Thanksgiving here. But I think we should, it's a good concept.

Friday Five 2nd November

1.) Have you ever played an intramural/rec league sport?
I think this means a team sport outside of school. In which case, no, I haven't. My only sporting activity since school has been solitary stuff like swimming, aerobics classes, and going to the gym.


2.) Do you have any Halloween plans?
I am answering this a little late so Halloween is over. But I had a fab Halloween on Manchester's Canal Street in the company of FABULOUSLY costumed drag queens :)

3.) Do you carry a planner around with you?
Nope. I don't do much planning.

4.) Do you watch a lot of movies?
Nope again. I don't have time. Can't remember the last time I watched a film all through. Oh - yes I can - I took Connor to see Wall-E on his birthday in July.

5.) Are you aware who won the World Series?
I'm not even sure which sport it is! Baseball? No, no idea who won.

Apologies for lack of blog activity recently by the way. No motivation. No mojo. Feeling a bit sorry for myself. I'll snap out of it soon I expect.

Friday Five - bit late again

1.) Are you sick of election time yet?
Luckily being in the UK we're not quite as engulfed in the US election as I expect you guys are over there. We still get plenty of coverage - and I find it quite interesting - but not so much as to be tedious.

2.) What color Post-It notes do you prefer?
Classic yellow for me - the bigger the better, as I use them mainly for cutting out masks for stamping and stencilling

3.) Do you use coasters?
Nah :) My table is already covered in paint and glue - the odd mug ring isn't going to matter

4.) Are you a better presenter or paper writer?
Paper writer definitely. When I present out loud I am all umms and errrs, it's painful to watch

5.) Do you buy CDs any more?
Very rarely. I'll be buying the new John Frusciante CD though fo sho

Friday Five 18th October 2008

a bit late

1.) What is your favorite pasta dish?

Spinach and ricotta cannelloni, I think, or maybe a nice veggie lasagne.

2.) Where was the last postcard you got from?

From Crete, where my chappie had most inconsiderately gone on holiday without me, pah :)

3.) Can you name all the state/provincial capitals? How about just all the states/provinces?

No fair - I'm a foreigner. Can I do the English counties instead? (not that I could do that either, there are way too many of them)

4.) Which new iPod color is the coolest? http://www.apple.com/itunes/

I quite like the green one, but to be honest I prefer stuff like that in plain black.


5.) How many pairs of jeans do you own?

about 8 that fit :O

I just have 5 mins before hometime to knock out the Friday Five....

1.) What is the number one thing that you just can't help but whine about?

Ummm. I'm not a huge whiner. Well, I don't think I am. I'm more of a bottle it up for a month then blow spectacularly person, than the kind that releases the pressure little and often through whining. I do moan at the kids for the state of the house every now and then, though, not that it gets me anywhere.

2.) Have you stopped wearing flip flops for the season yet?

You can tell this question wasn't written in England :) Honey, our summer has been more wellingtons than flip flops :)

3.) If you HAD to chose one, would you get either the baby blue or the pink NHL sweater?

Oh please - don't make me! It would have to be the blue, because you would have to kill me before I'd don the pink.

4.) What movie will you always stop and watch if you flip by it on TV?

West Side Story, or pretty much any other musical I know all the words to. If I was a boy I would be SO gay :)

5.) What's the best Halloween costume you've ever had?

Sadly I don't think I've ever dressed up all out - we kind of don't so much over here. I do have a Morticia wig though that I put on when I open the door to the trick or treaters, and a cool top with dancing mummies on it that I got in Florida one year....

Friday Five 3rd October 2008

I'm sure that somebody somewhere asked me recently if the Friday Five is a hockey thing?

The answer is that the one I do nowadays does indeed come from the fab hlog blog (Hockey's Ladies of Greatness) - a really cool site by and for female fans of the most-beautiful-game-on-earth. It's based over the water, hence the dodgy American spellings :)

But I did used to do a non denominational one too, which unfortunately disappeared off the internet a few months ago, like things do, without so much as a bye bye

Even the hockey one though, isn't usually all about hockey. In fact this week it isn't about hockey at all :)

1.) What is your favorite gemstone/jewelery type?

Gemstone, lapis lazuli maybe, because it is such a beautiful intense blue. Jewellery type, probably chain maille, in copper. But I like all sorts of jewellery really - anything that's interesting and not too blingy.

2.) Do you like camping?

Despite Bestival, yes, I do :) In fact, at Besti the only time I was happy was inside the tent. It was all the mud OUTSIDE the tent I wasn't too happy with! But yes, in reasonable conditions, I enjoy camping.

3.) Can you see the surface of your desk?

Not when I'm in the thick of working, usually, no. But I do make a token effort to pile things up and clear a bit of space at the end of the day.

4.) Do you have a plant?

I'm the opposite of green fingered - death to all house plants - so in the interests of cruelty prevention, no, I don't keep any plants in the house. The weeds in my drive are absolutely thriving, though.

5.) What is your favorite fall treat?

The hockey season starting, of course :) the biggest treat of the year!

Friday Five part 2

and here is today's :

1.) Roughly how many all nighters have you pulled in your life?

Gosh. Lots :) For different reasons through the ages. Plenty of through the night partying when I was younger. And the ocasional student all nighter for the last minute finishing of assignments. Nowadays it's much more likely to be hockey related (when you are stupid enough to support a team on the Canadian west coast whose games start at 3am UK time, sometimes sleep takes the back seat) - or I've got on a roll with an art project and before I know it the sun's up. It certainly catches up with me more nowadays than it used to though - I have to have two insanely early nights to recover from every insanely late one.

Incidentally - this pillow thing (in the pic) is called an All Nighter. HOW comfy does that look???? I want one!!! It's supposed to be for pregnant people but I'm sure that bit's not compulsory...

2.) Do you ever write letters or cards to people?

Not as often as I should. I keep meaning to get back into mail art, as I enjoyed dabbling in it a couple of years ago when I belonged to a mail art group on Yahoo. But as with most things, it's finding the time... I do usually send birthday cards though, if I remember.

3.) What is your all time favorite computer game?

Hmmm - I enjoy Guitar Hero, Mario Kart and Mortal Kombat, despite being fairly rubbish at all of them. I think probably it'd be one of the games we used to have on the PS1 that used a dance mat - I got so addicted to them... in fact I ought to treat myself to a dance mat for the Wii, it's a great way to get in shape without realising you are doing anything other than having shedloads of fun.

4.) Do you ever investigate the random things on Google's home page? (You can click on whatever is changed, and a Wikipedia link is there)

Um, nope. Should I?

5.) Would you rather have 4, 10 hour work days, or 5, 8 hour work days?

4 10 hour days without a shadow of a doubt. I would kill for a 3 day weekend.

the Friday Five is back!

well - it is Friday, just :)

I used to do the original Friday Fiver every week.... but it just stopped without explanation back in June. I miss it!

I have a godawful memory - always have had - and I figure it will only deteriorate as I age - so I like doing stuff like this, because I figure it will help the future me understand what made the current me tick.

So, in my upsetness at the disappearance of the "proper" Friday Fiver site, I forgot that the hlog girls still post Friday Five questions! yay!

So I'm going to do the last few weeks-worth now, until I run out of steam or fall asleep :)

Friday, September 19, 2008
Friday Five

1.) Do you like fruit snacks?

Yup - who doesn't like fruit? (except my 6 year old) Bananas are a particular favourite for a snack - but I also have a real thing for summer fruits like strawberries and raspberries - and peaches and nectarines, yum :)

2.) Has your favorite TV show come back yet?

My current favourite is probably Dr Who - and that won't be back until 2010!!!!! sob!!!! but Heores starts again next week, and that will do.

3.) What song is stuck in your head right now?

*embarrassed smiley* The Pussycat Dolls "When I Grow Up"

4.) How important is it for your team to have entertaining commercials?

Not as important as the winning. But - two words - Swedish Twins :)

5.) Do you fold your clothes or just hang them up?

ummmm - neither??? :D

Friday, September 12, 2008
Friday Five

1.) How many pillows do you have on your bed?

Four. It's a double bed, 2 each side.

2.) Do you like to swim?

I <3 love <3 swimming. It was always my favourite exercise. And now I go with my little boy as often as possible.


3.) Have you ever donated blood?
Kind of :) well I tried to! but I have really bad veins. Whenever I have to have a blood test it takes them about 20 attempts to get a drop. So my donation attempt basically just involved lots of frustration all round. They still gave me a glass of OJ and a biscuit though :)

4.) Do texts or phone calls in the middle of the night wake you up?

Nope. Once I'm asleep I'm dead to the world.

5.) Hot or cold showers?

Fairly warm

Friday, September 05, 2008
Friday Five

1.) Do you color code things when organizing?

Organising???? what's that????
(the answer would be no :))

2.) Do you like to be warm or cold when you sleep?

Definitely cozy tucked up warm

3.) What summer/fall fashion trend can you do without?

Ummmmm - I'm fairly blissfully ignorant of fashion trends, to be honest. I doubt I've even noticed any summer ones, mainly because we haven't really had a summer this year. The last fashiony thing I noticed was girls wearing smart shorts to work. I won't be joining in with that particular trend :)

4.) Do you have your ears pierced?

Yup - three holes in one ear and one in the other. I actually wore earrings in them last month, as I went to a wedding and wanted to dress up a little. I think that's the first time I have worn earrings for at least 10 years.

5.) Where have you not been in forever that you want to go back to?

Depends on your definition of "forever". I am dying to go back to Canada.

Friday, August 29, 2008
Friday Five

1.) What is your favorite kind of fruit juice?
Pear, I think, if we can only pick a single fruit - or Apricot. If we are allowed a combo, it would be a mango and pineapple smoothie - or maybe pressed apple and raspberry. I love fruit juice.

2.) Any labo(u)r day weekend plans?
Well, we don't do labour day here. But I think it's around the same time as our August Bank Holiday weekend. I didn't do much, to be honest, just enjoyed the extra day off work.

3.) How dark do you like your toast?

Not dark. Definitely golden. Barely sunkissed at all.

4.) What's the best part about summer being almost over?

HOCKEY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

5.) How many email accounts do you have?

A few - one at work, one at home, a Hotmail account I never use, one for my Kesler site, one for the Art Raffle, one for the Little Boxes swap and one for Alison's charm bracelet

Friday, August 15, 2008
Friday Five

1.) Do you make countdowns to upcoming events?

Absolutely. You have to have something to look forward to. I have a little countdown ticker on my siggy of the forum I use most - it counts down to all my major events. At the moment it's just showing till puck drop this Saturday as that's my most exciting imminent occasion right now.

2.) What is your favorite comfort food?

Umm - something warm and stodgy - maybe cheese on toast all melted under the grill with BBQ or Worcester sauce

3.) Which TV commercial is funny every time you see it?

Hmmmm, good question. Can I go for the Swedish Twins again?

4.) How often do you wear a watch?

Never.

5.) Do you make to-do lists?

Sometimes, purely out of necessity. It's that dodgy memory I told you about up there ^

Friday Five - 27th June 2008

The hlog five is up bright and early this morning - I'll come back later and add the other Fiver if it appears:

1.) What objects do you lose easily?
You know what? I think I'm getting better at not losing stuff. I used to lose my keys ALL the time. The classic time being when I looked all over for them for ages, gave up, was just about to resign myself to a long walk home in the rain, popped up the hood of the hoodie I was wearing and they shot across the room - they had been in my hood the whole time lol. How they got in there I have no idea.
And I used to always lose vital craft stuff, but since George helped me get organised a while back I've known where everything is.
I still lose my way a lot - does that count? And my crafting mojo has gone missing this week.

2.) What are your plans for Canada Day/the 4th of July?
Neither are desperately relevant, seeing as I'm English. But on Canada Day I'll be at Disneyland Paris which is kind of cool - and I will use that as an excuse to toast my favourite French Canadians :)

3.) Name your favorite tourist attraction where you are from?
I guess the closest tourist attraction to where I live would be Stonehenge. It's still a magical place even if they don't let you right up close to the stones any more.

4.) During what time of the day (or night) do you function best?
It doesn't work every night, because sometimes I get tired and just slump or go to bed early. But every now on then I get on a real roll quite late at night and everything seems to fall into place creatively and I make some of my favourite pieces at 2 or 3am.

5.) If you could have anyone for your brother or sister, who would you pick?
Todd Bertuzzi of course :) He's a great big brother (despite being younger than me, but since when do little details like that matter??)

some more late Friday Fivers....

the Friday Fiver:

1. Last party you went to?
Probably my other half's leaving do from work a month or two ago. Unless you count our regular Friday night Heroes & Doctor Who partay :) (Geeks R Us!)

2. Do you pee in the shower?
Ewwwww - no! do you????!!!!

3. Have you ever fired a gun?
Yup - on a range in Florida. It was fun :) Those real ones have a teensy bit more of a kick than my little BB pistol!

4. Where do you call home?
Good question, and I'm not sure I have a definitive answer. Swindon doesn't feel like home to me, although I'm happy to live here for the time being - but neither does anywhere else any more.

5. What's your favorite board game?
I pretty much hate them all :) Trivial Pursuit is probably the least tedious game that I can think of off the top of my head.

the hlog Five:

1.) Do you like little kids? How about 40 hours a week?
Love them in small doses - or even big doses if they are my own little kids :) I wouldn't really fancy working with a bunch of the little terrors, though, no.

2.) Do you plan on watching the NHL draft beyond the first round?
I didn't *watch* any of it, but I've followed it with interest. Welcome to the team Cody :) (and I'm glad I paid attention past the first round, because our 2nd round pick has the coolest name ever - Jann Suave - sounds like a smooth operator, eh? :D)

3.) How do you feel about tattoos?
LOL. I'm quite keen :)

4.) What team do you loathe the most in any sport?
I don't think I loathe anyone. I'm not overly keen on Manchester United, only because there was a time in the 90s you just couldn't get away from them. Over-hype is never good.

5.) Does golf really count as a sport?
I personally find it dull as dishwater, but yes, it's a legitimate sport IMO.

Very late Friday Five

the main Friday Fiver didn't show up this week, but here is the hlog one:

1.) Who do you think most deserved an NHL award?

Much as I'd love to say that Kes deserved to win the Selke, realistically that wasn't going to happen, not this year. He placed 11th, which is not bad, and I honestly believe he could be top 5 next year, if not top 3. It depends how Gillis and AV choose to use him, I guess.

I would have liked to see Bobby in line for the Vezina - but his fade out at the end of the season put paid to that.

So if I had to choose a winner, for the most exciting / valuable player in the NHL in 2007/8 - it would have to be Alex Ovechkin. So I'm glad that the hockey writers agreed and gave him the Hart - well deserved.

Do you not think he's looking more like Richard Kiel every day???

2.) Do you believe that Brett Lebda really dropped the Cup off of Cheli's bar?

It wouldn't be the most outrageous thing that's ever happened to the Cup, by a long chalk! So yeah, why not?

3.) Do you have a dishwasher?

Sore point :) Yes, I have one, but it's dead. I can't afford a new one at the moment so I have been washing up by hand for a few months. It's a pain but not the end of the world....

4.) How many pairs of shoes do you own?

Proper shoe shoes? Not many. Two, I think. But I have about 20 pairs of trainers and 8 or 9 pairs of boots too.

5.) What is your favorite art form?

Mixed media stuff - plus photography, and tattoos.

the hlog Five, following on

1.) Which house chore do you dislike the most?

it would have to be anything to do with cleaning toilets - there's nothing worse than cleaning away the residue of someone else's excretions - ewwwwwwwwwwwwwww

2.) Are you afraid of any kinds of animals?

I can't think of any irrational fears - I'm fine with spiders and snakes and all that stuff - but I'd be suitably scared if I came face to face with something that could eat me :)

3.) What is your favorite stadium food?

Veggies are a little limited when it comes to stadium food - especially if, like me, you're not keen on popcorn either. I did see some pizza on sale at GM Place but to be honest it looked not that great, especially for the price, so I went without and grabbed a Subway on the way home after the game...

4.) Who would you most like to go out to supper with? (anyone for any reason, doesn't matter if you know them or not.)

Ian. Haven't seen him all week and I miss the man.

5.) What song always makes you smile?

Two Princes by the Spin Doctors: