OK - first mini-comic posted over here. It will make more sense if you know Transformers: Prime, but I've tried to devise it so that it will be comprehensible - and hopefully funny - even if you don't! (Let me know, please? For the sake of putative future comics...)

Labels: comics, Transformers: Prime

Another read of the AllSpark Almanac - and I found Wreck-Gar's pages...

He was never one of my favourites, but the pages are fun, designed to look like the front and back of a box of breakfast cereal - Garbage O's in this case.

(Yes, it's a photo. I couldn't scan it without breaking the spine and I don't want to do that.)

The ingredients list is a giggle -

Total energon
Rarefied energon
Energon Z
Coolant
Transmission fluid
Hydraulic fluid
Brake fluid
Steering fluid
Other fluids
Lubricant
Vibranium A, C, D, B6, B12,
Kryptonite
Tillium
Dalekanium
Dilithium
Molecular acid
Impervium
Bassnium
Zinc
Material Components:
iron filings, scrith starch, chakan oil, budianskium basil, protocultured yeast, grated gears, chemical X, janick jaAm, m'kraan crystal salt, heinlein honey, melange extract, aluminum mallard.

Hm. Vibranium but not adamantium? Missed opportunity there...

Busy day - mix of housekeeping, shopping and client sites. Oh, and the first attempt at a Tf:P mini comic, which has ended up being not so little, as it has 17 frames. It made Kai chuckle though, and it made sense to Ken even without any dialogue, so I suppose I can consider it a qualified success. Will post it when I've done the dialogue.

Hark, I hear the call of a wild Poppy...

Labels: busyness, client sites, domesticity, fun stuff, Transformers: Prime

Spent a wonderful hour reading half of the AllSpark Almanac this morning, chuckling to myself all the way through. It's a hoot, as well as being very informative and very pretty. Gorgeous designs, large enough to really see the details. Might scan and print some of the miscellaneous bits (like the bands playing at the local dancitron and the films showing at the cinema. Yes, it's full of delightful fannish trivia as well as the serious stuff. A real joy!) And it appears that the character the Angry Archer from the cartoon is named Aaron A Archer - another triple A!

Actually, on that subject, anyone reading The Poppy Tales may remember Aaron A Aaronson, who invited Poppy to call him triple A. Sue asked yesterday if this was a reference to the female triple A in the A-Team, which threw me as I had no idea who that was. So no, it's nothing to do with the A-Team reporter - it simply refers to triple A batteries!

The mild weather jolted my memory - time to start getting the greenhouse and veg bed oganised. So there are now six three (where did I get six from?) different maincrop tomato varieties and one cherry, and eight bell peppers started on the kitchen windowshelves. And I cleaned the birdtable - always a horrible job but necessary for the birds' health.

Now five eps into Tf:A season 2 and loving it...

Labels: gardening, Transformers Animated

I have had a fantastic birthday!

It started with Lutra posting the most adorable little Tf birfday card over on her blog. Then Ken made scrambled eggs and mushrooms on toast (favourite brunch, that one) while I opened and started transforming my new Starscream... (18 stages!)

The design is just amazing - there's a little bit of kibble but not enough to be aggravating, and he does actually balance (eventually! Took a bit of work...) He's beautiful. I am soooo chuffed. I must try to get a photo of his face though, the smirk is perfect.

GoodTwin and Sue arrived... What can I say? GoodTwin gave me two of the Tf:P graphic novels and the AllSpark Almanac, which is simply and awesomely pure love. 220 pages of joy for me to curl up with tomorrow. The designs! The details! The fabulous pictures! The hysterically funny character profiles written by the characters for each other! [happy sigh]

And Sue... well, there was this little beauty of a phone strap, a very funny sign for the door (Ring bell and run, the dragon needs the exercise!) and to my joy and astonishment, the middle book of Freda Warrington's Blood series, A Dance in Blood Velvet, which is rarer than an honest 'Con and practically unobtainable these days unless you win the Lottery. This completes the series for me - I was given an autographed copy of the first book some years back, then Sue found the third one for me... I think it was Sue. I'm sure it was, but correct me if I'm wrong... which I've never read as I don't like reading trilogies out of sequence. And now I can read the whole lot!

[GLOMPS SUE AND GOODTWIN!!]

Thank you so much.

And they also brought over [snerk] The Flashing Blade, which we MST3Ked (the first six eps anyway). Much hilarity ensued. Accidentally hugely funny, had us in stitches. Next six eps next visit?

After dinner I cracked open a bottle of the strawberry wine I made a couple of years ago. Some of the sweetness had gone but the alcohol content appeared to have increased a bit. A fair bit. [g] I shan't embarrass Sue...

And I've now downloaded Tf:P season 2 ep 2 to watch a bit later. [happy bounce] Have had a wonderful day! Thanks everyone!

Labels: birthdays, books, friends, fun stuff, Transformers Animated, Transformers: Prime

Afterwards, the tenth and final part of Consular, is now posted over at The Poppy Tales (link above). The story will continue in Renewal (coming soon!) And GoodTwin was right, this is turning into an epic...

Also - got 'em!

L to r: Starscream, Bulkhead, Megatron.

Though not from Toys Я Us: Sainsbug had them (and still at 25% off!)






<-Megatron:

Starscream->

Happy now.

Later edit: [beg] It's quite difficult to get Starscream to balance out here under my monitor with all the vibration from typing - so he's on his knees...

Labels: The Poppy Tales, Transformers: Prime

Ah, remembered what it was I wanted to add.

Remember last May I tanked over to the the Grant Bradley Gallery in Bedminster to see the first Ryoko Oikawa exhibition, and ended up buying the piece I'd fallen in love with when I saw it on TV? I've been invited to a Gallery preview of her latest collection, sales of which are to go to help orphans of the tsunami, next Friday. Assuming I feel OK after my dental appointment I shall go - it'd be lovely to see her latest work. (Not that I'll be buying anything this time, not with the way basic living expenses have essentially doubled in the last year...)

Finished watching the first season of Tf:A this evening - great stuff! May start season two tomorrow evening.

Oh, and tomorrow morning I'm tanking up to Toys Я Us to see if they have any Tf:P figures. Have made one backdrop (external, Nevada-as-pictured-in-Tf:P) and sketched out the design for the interior of the Autobot base (the ep Scrapheap was great for that!) today. The Nemesis interior could be quite tricky, will probably leave that until next week...

Labels: Art, Transformers Animated, Transformers: Prime

Up early and out to Sainsbug - picked up a Cliffjumper, another Vehicon, and - oh joy! - OP! (Also to my joy he's proportionately larger than the others, and hence more expensive - £8.99 but also on 25% off - which argues that Megatron will be larger too. That's much better than having them all the same size. Bad enough Bee is as tall as Ratchet as it is!)

Then I dived over to Tesco to see if they are also selling the figures, but they didn't have any (only DotM odds). They did have the crayons I need, however, so I'm set to do a couple of simple comics at least (have the first one all planned out in my head, just need to do the backdrops...)

So, I still need Bulkhead, another Vehicon (because two do not an army make but three will just about swing it), and Megatron and Starscream, and one of these latter urgently, because how can the 'Cons exist without a leader? (Not to mention Steve will be distraught.) It's possible that Toys Я Us at Flowers Hill - up the Bath Road - may have them, but Ken has a meeting at eleven and I really don't feel like locking up and setting the alarm and tanking up the hill. Maybe next week.

In other news... um... the lurgy is still hanging on but apparently it's a virus doing the rounds, loads of people have it. So far K&K have escaped - they may have immunity. There's probably more but I've forgotten. Will add later if I remember!

Labels: Transformers: Prime

Later edit: - WAAAAAIIIIII!!!

Hm.

Yes.

... GoodTwin, remember I said I had sorted out my shelves for my Tf figures to make room for Tf:P Starscream, but would probably have to rethink when I managed to get the Tf:P figures I wanted?

I had to do a Sainsbug shop earlier...

[sigh] They were at 25% off, £3.47 instead of £4.99. Itty bitty teeny weeny diddy Tf:P figures, as usual absolutely beautifully done...

      Ratchet... ->

      <- Bumblebee

      Arcee ->

(Let's try using the correct link, shall we? Sorry 'bout that...)

      <- ST-3V3 the Vehicon...

[bg] Steve has his own fan club! With fanart an' fanfic an' everything!

(Regarding the Vehicon/Eradicon thing... canon isn't fixed yet, but it's my understanding that the drones with car alt modes are Vehicons, while the ones with jet alt modes are Eradicons. Steve has a car alt mode, so is a Vehicon. Pity really. If he'd been a flier he might have stood a chance with Air Commander "Never understood why any self-respecting Decepticon would choose an automobile as his alt mode when he could have flight" Starscream...)

<- From that to this ->

in eight stages. Nifty, neh?

I joked to Kai that I should arrange them in fight scenes - and he replied that that would be fun, then I should photograph them and post them here...

...

... y'know, that would be fun! I could make backdrops of the Autobot base, the Nemesis and a Nevada canyon or two with paper and kids' crayons, and photoshop dialogue onto the pics. Only problem is I don't have enough figures to do it properly (yet. The illustration on the back of the packaging suggests that there will also be a Bulkhead, OP, Starscream - how the hell they can do him this small is beyond me, but then, until today I'd have said the same about Arcee - Megatron and Soundwave. On the other hand Sainsbug also had a Cliffjumper, who isn't on the back, so...) I could make a start if I bought another two Vehicons (and possibly a Cliffjumper - could paint his eyes purple and use him as a Decepticon zombie. Hm.) Ken seems to think this would be a fun idea too - especially since I pointed out I could post them as comics on Deviantart (free publicity!) - so I may be off out hunting Decepticons tomorrow. I think Sains had another Vehicon, and I can always divert over to Tesco to see if they have any. Otherwise it's a trip up Flowers Hill or into town which I'd rather not do. Will see.

[beg] They're the same version as my Bayverse itty bitty teeny weeny diddy OP, Ratchet, Bee, Sideswipe and Ironhide. Might be fun to bring the two continuities together...

Labels: fun stuff, Transformers: Prime

So, the rest of yesterday...

Second 90 minute dental hospital appointment at 2.30 (arf arf...) Cleared out the temp filling and cleaned out the last little bit of gunge, and put in another temporary filling (I think that was my fault for going to the appt while still coughing, as he couldn't keep it all as sterile as he wanted). Have another one hour appointment next week for a final check and the permanent filling.

THEN they're going to leave it to see how it does, and in a couple of months I have to go back for another check. Then, assuming all is well, I should have a course of ortho to pull the tooth back into position (apparently after discussion with the consultant it was decided that since the other front teeth are OK they wouldn't be able to get a correct colour match so having a denture or crown wasn't a good idea). I'm told they'll have to shave off part of the tooth though or it won't fit, since the teeth that have been pushing it out of true are now taking up part of the space where it was. Eh well. As long as it stops me mangling the inside of my lower lip when I eat I'll be happy, even though it probably means wearing a retainer at night for the rest of my life.

Last night we watched the first four eps of Tf:A season 1. [happy sigh] Thrill of the Hunt, featuring Ratchet (and a much younger and less crotchety Ratchet too, in flashback). Such fun! K&K quite enjoyed them too, I think, so another three eps tonight.

Done sodall today. Feeling rough with this throat lurgy and barking like a seal. It had better be gone by the weekend!

Labels: dentist, medical matters, Transformers Animated

EEEEEEEEEH!!

My Tf:Animated ebay-bought box set just arrived, well in advance of the earliest delivery date (March 6th, I think it was). Nothing extra to pay in import tax, and it IS both season 1 and season 2! Just done a random check and it plays just fine. Absolutely the best bargain I've ever found. Soooooo chuffed. In fact, if you can imagine a happy rhino on a pogo stick bouncing around a room full of flowers and fluffy kittens, that's me right now...

Labels: ebay, Transformers Animated

[gasp] I took a day off! (don't faint...)

Well, I watched RotF, Tf:P s2e1 (a couple of times), the first 2 eps of Tf:P s1 while I ate lunch, nattered to Lutra on Skype, did an hour's client stuff, and this evening we watched the first two eps of Grimm, which is rather good. (It'll be nice to have something to look forward to on a Monday as there's bugger all else on worth seeing at the moment, except for Being Human...)

Feeling considerably better today and my voice has come back (mostly) but I still have a horribly irritating cough. Hopefully that'll have eased off by tomorrow.

Right. A little more Poppy, perhaps...

Labels: The Poppy Tales, Transformers, Transformers: Prime

I've lost my voice and feel bleurgh, but I finally found a Yt upload of Tf: Prime 2.1 that wasn't highjacked to send the viewer off to a ppv or site demanding you download software before you could watch anything.

I've just watched it. [happy happy grin] It was worth waiting for. And Starscream's back, which is an almighty bonus.

Happy now.

Labels: Transformers: Prime

Concern - Things Poppy Never Knew part 2 - now posted over at The Poppy Tales (link above). Enjoy!

Oh, hey, this is my 4,000th post!

Labels: The Poppy Tales, Transformers

K&K went up to Clifton yesterday, and Ken managed to get these photos of the two peregrine falcons that live along the Gorge...

Lurgy has settled down into a horrible tickly cough and snuffles, but if it doesn't get any worse I can live with it.

Kim and I went to Cadbury Garden Centre today, just for the hell of it. Most enjoyable. Picked up white and red onion sets ready for spring.

And now [pacing restlessly] I have eight hours to wait until Transformers: Prime season 2 ep 1 screens in the States and some kind soul uploads it to Youtube. I watched the 12 minute preview before dinner - it's going to be soooo good...

In the meantime, the second Things Poppy Never Knew is almost finished and will be posted later.

Labels: birds, friends, garden centres, medical matters, The Poppy Tales, Transformers: Prime

Revelations - Consular part 9 - now posted over at The Poppy Tales (link above). Enjoy!

Labels: The Poppy Tales, Transformers

[sigh cough] Fighting off some sort of bug that has gone straight to my throat, dammit.

But Poppy 4.9 is written and I should be able to post it in an hour or so after proofing and coding. Another Things Poppy Never Knew ficlet is also in progress, and I want to write the Poppy Dreams request I had a while back. And another Tf fic, but that one is for someone else. (More if it works.)

[cough splutter...]

Oh, and council sent someone to collect the bin early this morning, although what happened was he emptied it into his little diddy refuse truck then walloped the detached wheel back onto the axle, then hit both of them hard to check it had attached firmly (which it had). So we now have a working wheelie bin. What do you bet they still send a new one middle of next week?

Labels: medical matters, The Poppy Tales, Transformers

The council were surprisingly easy to get hold of (although the automated operator didn't recognise 'refuse collection' as a department...) Upshot is they can collect the old broken bin with attendant rubbish tomorrow or Monday - but can't deliver a new bin 'til the middle of next week. [headdesk] We really need it the other way around but no joy.

Client stuff for a bit, then back to Poppy. Next part, plus a Poppy Dream that was requested a little while ago that's been bubbling...

Labels: household matters, The Poppy Tales, Transformers

Wendy came up for a visit - fantastic day! Great to see you again and catch up with all the news. Sorry for bending your ear!

Kai met the N sprog in town to go and see The Woman in Black, which he enjoyed.

I, however, am fuming. Remember the council have provided us each with a big green box for the recycling of plastics, metals and tetrapacks? At the same time they took away our massive wheelie bins and gave us new much smaller ones. Yesterday was the first collection using these new bins. As usual, we placed ours tidily outside and to one side of the gate on Monday night, and yesterday, after the collection, we found it parked in the way of the gate (much as usual) with one wheel broken. Kai manhandled it around to the back and we thought we'd take a look at it and try to repair the wheel today. Not that it's our responsibility, it was obviously broken by the collection men, but getting any joy from the council takes a while so doing it ourselves would be quicker, assuming we can actually fix it.

Today when I went to check it I found they hadn't emptied the bin.

The bastards broke the wheel then just left the full bin blocking the gate.

The next collection isn't for two weeks and the bin is full. (And here, if you overfill them so the lid won't close, they refuse to empty it.)

And on trying to access the council's website to complain (yet again, this is now the fifth bloody time in a year that we've had problems with refuse collection) I find the entire site is broken and inaccessible (Ken tells me they've been having problems since they installed a brand new site a few weeks back). I'm going to have to ring them tomorrow - and wait, and wait, and wait...

NOT HAPPY.

Labels: friends, household matters, visits

... and my DVD/CD writer has packed up. Bugger. I need that.

Have ordered a little external plug 'n' play writer but we could have done without the expense. I assume my computer is now getting on a bit and I should expect things to start failing. Not quite sure what I'm going to do about it though...

Next Poppy started. And Wendy's up for the day tomorrow!

Oh yes - and Kai and I went to see Journey 2: The Mysterious Island this afternoon. As we left the cinema Kai said what I was thinking - "Well, it was pretty..." Which it was, and the Nautilus was splendidly designed, but the plot was about as thin as a piece of wet tissue.

The trailer for John Carter looks good though. And Ghost Rider 2 looks like fun as well. Could be a pricey year at the cinema...

Labels: films, hardware

Part 8 of Consular - Intrigues 3 - now posted in The Poppy Tales (link above).

Also polished and sent off my latest proposal to our agent - fingers crossed, though given the current situation...

Now to finish the last little bit of client site stuff, and my to do list is cleared. Not bad for a Monday!

Later edit: OK, I wandered into ebay to see if they had a deluxe Tf Animated Prowl action figure (the one on amazon is a bit pricey) - and found the region free, DVD boxed set, brand new, eps 1-26 of Transformers Animated season 1, £18.99 on 'buy now' (it's £52.54, used, at amazon at the moment). So I bought it.

And then it occurred to me that there are only 13 eps in season 1. And also 13 eps in season 2 (£80.00 at amazon, also used).

Have I just bought both of the available seasons for under £20?

That would be utterly awesome (not to mention my best find evar!)

It's coming from Malaysia, delivery time 13 - 25 days. I shall have to possess myself in patience and keep my fingers tightly crossed...

Labels: books, busyness, client sites, The Poppy Tales, Transformers, Transformers Animated

Well, got the client stuff done at least...

Labels: client sites, nowt really

I had the urge to write some Stronghold/Upbeat h/c sticky (well, not so sticky in my version) - it's now posted in The Poppy Tales (new section, Things Poppy Never Knew, story Shower. It's set at the end of Consular part 6, Disquiet, and concerns what happened after Highdive shot 'Beat and Stronghold hauled him off to the shower rooms... I'm really rather pleased with this one.)

Yesterday I went to Wilkinsons to pick up birdfood before I got to the bank. They were selling DVDs for £1, so I picked up two that I've been fancying seeing for a while - Kick-Ass, which we watched last night and which is one of the goriest films I've ever seen, wonderfully funny in places and most enjoyable despite the incredible wrongness of the whole idea, and The Boat That Rocked which we watched tonight and which is FAN-fraggin'-TASTIC! It was like watching a part of my history - Radio Caroline was a bit before my time but as soon as that little boy climbed into bed I said, "Hee, listening to pirate radio under the bedcovers! I used to do that!" (to Radio Luxembourg).

We enjoyed it so much we ordered the soundtrack.

(Kai loves it too. Has excellent musical taste, that lad.)

So, all the client stuff I was supposed to do today kind of got overlooked, so will have to get that done tomorrow. I estimate about two hours work by the time I've html reconstructed a .pdf with corrupt coding that is inaccessible online...

Labels: British drama, films, The Poppy Tales, Transformers

Well that was embarrassing...

Not the actual appointment, that was just uncomfortable: 90 minutes lying on my back at a slight angle with my mouth wide open and a piece of green latex (a 'dam') over it (my mouth) so that the tooth he was working on stayed completely clean and dry while he drilled and filed and scraped away for 45 minutes until there was a bloody grand canyon in it. OK, I exaggerate but that's what it felt like. And for added discomfort, towards the end the anaesthetic started wearing off. Not an enjoyable experience. And I now have a temporary filling plugging the hole until my next appointment, and temp fillings and I don't get on at all well, they normally come out after a couple of days, and I've been told to get straight back there if that happens. So I'm trying not to touch it with my tongue, and obviously not eating anything hard or on that side. Oh joy.

HOWEVER... It doesn't hurt. He told me they'd completely cleaned out the infection (interestingly, they used oil of cloves and eucalyptus oil as part of the procedure, which I think is great - things my grandmother used to use for dental problems!), which must have something to do with the absence of pain, but also warned me that the hole is now so big there's a risk of the tooth just fracturing if bitten on too hard, even after it's filled permanently. And since that's happened to two other teeth... Eh well. We'll see.

The embarrassment came after the appointment. I was a little light-headed when I finally sat up - I do not lie on my back, it's uncomfortable and I really don't like it, so having to do so for an hour and a half with my head lower than my feet... not good - but I made it over to the bank OK, only to come frighteningly close to passing out. Didn't help that the temp outside was around freezing and the temp inside the bank was like an oven. [sigh] Anyway, one of the assistants helped me over to a chair and got me a glass of water, and after fifteen minutes I struggled to the bus stop - where it nearly happened again. (At that point I was seriously considering asking the woman behind me in the queue to get a taxi for me from the stand across the road...)

But I managed to bus home, had a mini Milky Way bar and some soup, and spent what was left of the afternoon under the lion with Tyjer curled up asleep beside me, watching Transformers: Prime - Darkness Rising (EEEEEEH! Will get the DVD of the whole of Season 1 next month!!) Feel OK now, but I'd better take some chocolate or Lucozade tablets with me for the next appointment. At least at that one I can come straight home (the dental hospital is only a minute's walk from the bus station).

So not my idea of a fun day, but it also wasn't as stressful as I was anticipating. And it's amazing to not have any pain, especially after that treatment!

Planning the next part of The Poppy Tales tonight...

Labels: dentist, The Poppy Tales, Transformers, Transformers: Prime

Gah, busy. Environment Group meeting 6.30 to 8 last night, at the Spielman Centre in Arno's Vale Cemetery, then polishing my latest proposal today, and the APAG AGM at 8 this evening (I'm still Secretary, though we have to change the Constitution to allow it. I'd overlooked a rather important part of the Constitution that says: "It will be the duty of any member of the group or Management Committee who is in any way directly interested financially or professionally in the activities of Arno’s Court Action Group or Arno’s Park to declare such interest and not to use the group for any promotional or financial gain." So I really shouldn't be both webmaster and Sec...)

Now trying to get the minutes done, though I can't concentrate - I have my first appointment with the Dental Hospital tomorrow at 10 am. NOT looking forward to it...

Labels: APAG, dentist, meetings

... I watched the rest of Madoka...

It's superb.

Extraordinary. Stunning.

Complex, heartbreaking, powerful, the broadest scope of anything I've ever seen in any genre. The earthly artwork is simply gorgeous, the labyrinth artwork uneasy and disturbing, the music wonderful, the characters so believable... Even Madoka's outfit made sense in the end.

Thank you, Onna. I wouldn't have missed that for the world.

Labels: anime, oustanding

Ohhh kaaaay, slightly odd for a Tuesday...

Up early and watched eps 3 - 6 of Madoka. Hm. Getting darker. Very interesting. Exactly whose side is Kyubey on?!

There followed a little work, then I realised I didn't have everything I needed for dinner (or tomorrow's lunches) so did the Wed shopping today. Got back in time to put away and make the pig pen pie (like shepherd's pie but using pork mince instead of lamb) and get all the veg ready for dinner.

And Monkey arrived, and to my delight it has the first three, not the first two, eps on it plus one they say was never released over here, so we hurried dinner and watched the first ep before Ken had to go to his meeting. So wonderfully irreverent!

Then Kai and I stayed on the subject and watched the first ep of Gensomaden Saiyuki, which I haven't watched in ages. 2006 but the animation looks very crude these days. Fun though.

Labels: busyness, films

Another relatively productive Monday! I could get to enjoy these...

Labels: nowt really

Being Human series 4, episode 1...

... they don't pull any punches, do they...

Labels: Being Human

Snow. And temperature below freezing. Took me ten minutes 'til I could feel my fingers again after feeding the birds.

However, seventh part of Consular - Beginnings - now posted over at The Poppy Tales (link above). I'm particularly pleased with this one.

Enjoy!

Labels: snow, The Poppy Tales, Transformers

Next part of Consular - Disquiet - now posted in The Poppy Tales (link above). Enjoy!

Later edit: Oh joy.

Forgot to say... watched Noel Fielding's Luxury Comedy first episode last week. It's neither luxurious nor funny. It seemed mostly to be an attempt to be as offensive and pseudo-outrageous as possible and it failed even at that. [sigh] Obviously Julian Barratt is the talented one in the Mighty Boosh partnership...

Labels: The Mighty Boosh, The Poppy Tales, Transformers, weather

Glorious sunny day - which didn't stop it being absolutely freezing out there. Literally. Went out to chip ice off birdbath and refill with liquid water, came back in for ten minutes before venturing up the veg plot to dig up the last couple of spring onions for the egg mayonnaise for my nuked spud and on the way back down the garden had to stop to chip away the film of ice that had formed over the water.

Then I found I was out of the berry suet bird food, and had to bus up to Broadwalk to pick some up (annoying as I hadn't planned to go out today). Temperature's supposed to get down to -6° or -8° tonight, and be freezing again tomorrow, so put out lots of food and will keep checking the water during Friday.

play.com were having one of their sales, so I ordered the first DVDs of the Water Margin (first 2 eps) and Monkey (first 3 eps), for fun: the former arrived today so we watched it after dinner. Triffic! Shih Chien (Tattooed Dragon) was my favourite character (of course! He's pretty!) when I first watched it back when dinosaurs ruled the earth, and he's still fun today. Umming and ahhing now about whether Ken would like the whole lot as a birthday present...

Also reorganised my desk and shelves a little, to make more room for Tf figures. (There's now room in front of me for Starscream, though how he'll take to sharing space with OP and Sideswipe I dread to think). Have also spotted a deluxe Tf: Animated Prowl on amazon.us - bit pricey but very nicely made... Maybe with birthday cash!

Poppy4.6 coming on apace.

Labels: birds, cult movies, The Poppy Tales, Transformers, Transformers Animated, weather

Happy Imbolc!

[blink] Blimey. 20 19 more posts and I hit the 4,000 mark...

Labels: festivals