Zone Doubt, a.k.a. 'Surreal Я Us'...

Joules, trusted by... dozens... to make a drama out of your crisis...

Other sites:

:: JAT :: WaveWrights :: Publications ::

I live to write. It's not wise to get in my way.

... I'd write my autobiography, but no-one would believe it....


If you come across any words you don't recognise in this blog, take a look at the Taylorspeke Glossary in the left-hand infopane, you'll usually find a definition there.


The Poppy Tales

(Transformers fanfiction!)

Transformers mini-comics here.




Adventures in Orchids

Apparently I am now collecting them...

There's room for one - or maybe two, at a pinch - more on that bedroom windowsill (the only one in the house that's ideal for them). Let's see what I find. Well, that didn't last long...


EO - Everlasting orchid. Phalaenopsis. I've had this orchid since 2007 and it just keeps flowering...







AO - Alien face orchid. Phalaenopsis . Bought 2018 - lovely little flowers, all different patterns!





RO - Rescued orchid photo to come when it flowers. Phalaenopsis. Rescued from a bin up the road in 2019. Classic!






TO - Tiny orchid. Phalaenopsis. Bought at Tesco 21.8.20. It just begged to come home with me. How could I say no?





CO - Crimson orchid. Cambria. Another Tesco find. This one may be going to live in Ken's room once we've redecorated and put up the new shelving; it prefers a cooler, less sunny windowsill. If so, I'll need to find another cambrian to keep it company.






GO - Golden orchid. Phalaenopsis. Saw this one when I bought CO and left it behind - then immediately regretted it as soon as I got home. Never seen one like it before. Ken, bless him, went back over to Tesco in the rain and bought it for me...





DO - Dendrobium Orchid. Smells of wisteria, so beautiful...











RO2 - Rescued orchid no 2. Phalaenopsis. This is the one I rescued from the wall along the road middle of 2021.








PO. Pink orchid. Phalaenopsis. This is the one I bought at Cabury Garden Centre on special, late 2021. It's much happier here!










TWO. Teeny weeny orchid, Phalaenopsis. Rescued from Tesco end 2021 (I think).




















My IMDb ep summaries

(completed)
Arthur of the Britons
Sky
Star Maidens
The Starlost
Space Rangers
The Sentinel (part: seasons 2 and 3)
Swamp Thing (part: season 3)
Gravedale High
Transformers: Armada
Transformers: Energon
Transformers: Cybertron (part)
Misfits of Science (four eps)
Zoo Gang
Zodiac
Jupiter Moon
Transformers: Beast Wars (part: seasons 2 and 3)
Transformers: Beast Machines (part)
Vampire Princess Miyu
Starhyke
Nathan Barley
No Heroics
Undermind (3 eps)
Will Shakespeare (Tim Curry version)
Nightwalker
12 Kingdoms
Trigun (ep 8)
Rayearth
Hyperdrive (season 2 ep 3)
The Café

For later:

Missing Earthian ep
Missing Haibane Renme eps


Silver birch at Eastwood 

Farm

"Autumnal - nothing to do with leaves. It is to do with a certain brownness at the edges of the day... Brown is creeping up on us, take my word for it... Russets and tangerine shades of old gold flushing the very outside edge of the senses... deep shining ochres, burnt umber and parchments of baked earth - reflecting on itself and through itself, filtering the light. At such times, perhaps, coincidentally, the leaves might fall, somewhere..."

(Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead Act 2: Tom Stoppard)

Autumn...

I love this time of year. I love the colours, the sharp slant of sunlight on the trees, mosaics of acid-yellow and harts- blood, velvet and darkness and a haze of mist-grey over the hills. I love its immanence, its mellowness, the tang of frost just around the corner of the year...

Watching the little birds in the goat-willow in my garden, I realised something more.

I love this land with a fierce, possessive love, deep-rooted in two thousand years of history. From the frosted beaches and cloud-brushing peaks of the north to the wind-haunted meanderings of the rivers of the east, from the sensuous rolling patchworked hills of the south to the demanding dark moors of the west, this land seeps into bone and blood and synapse, mother of motley nobility, culture, individual freedoms. It can be known. It can be understood. It can be felt deep inside.

I love its effortless eccentricities, its vigour and vibrancy, its flawed perfections, its silent strength and tenacious resilience, its hard-won tolerances and intense and variable beauty, the profound energy in its sacred mythical landscape.

Home and more-than-home, the forces that shape and protect and bind, in me, as I am in the land. Love returning love in the stillness for those who'll only take the time to listen...

(Joules, Autumn 2004)


All photographs taken by Joules unless otherwise specified. All photographs © Joules A Taylor or other specified individual.


In Memoriam

17.03.09 - Argent

25.07.08 - Raptor

18.12.07 - Quyn

02.12.06 - Ryme


Currently enjoying:
Muse
Transformers - IDW, Prime, Animated, Rescue Bots, Earthspark.

Currently reading:
Cixin Liu - newest favourite author.
Ben Miller. wow. Just, wow...


Currently working on:
Haadri
Dystopic novel starring Devon from Dystopia

Currently chuffed with:
My garden

Currently miffed at:
Effing BND (you know who I mean)
Nestlé, TFG Tinyhands Fart, Toadface Farage

Currently maintaining:
Wavewrights, on and off...
BCHS
BCW


Blog Pics
I've gathered some of my pages of photos together: the page of links is here. I'll be adding more as time goes by!




Evil Squid
A Little Glossary of Taylorspeke
(in no particular order)

plit popints - n. Typo for 'plot points' typed on a keyboard with more than half the characters worn off...

[PING] (alt [ping]) - n. A brainwave. The text equivalent of a lightbulb going on blindingly over someone's head. Usually mine. And usually at the most inconvenient of times. [sigh]

TPTB - The Powers That Be.

wulmet - n. A person of little or no talent who somehow inveigles himself into a position where he is in power over other, far more talented people and uses his position to downplay them in order to try to make himself feel superior.

biteable - referring to an anatomical part vb, tasty.

Flatterfed - vb. 27.02.08: my typo for flattered, but since it's so cutely apt I thought it would fit nicely here. Lutra defined it as "the lovely warm feeling of satisfaction resulting from enthusiastic reviews..." (which I've been getting for my MB fics).

Composted - vb, 'compos mentis', mentally capable of working. Contrast with uncomposted or non- composted, not 'compos mentis', not capable of working, hungover...

Cumbles - n, cucumbers.

Kewp - how Ken says 'thank you'. We rather like Lutra's 'nanx', too...

Musekick - noun, music, without which I cannot work.

'feinne - noun, caffeine, essential for correct mental functioning, especially first thing in the morning. I prefer mine in the form of SodaStream Diet Coke. And on that subject...

Skoosh - verb, noun. To skoosh - to add CO2 to a sodastream bottle filled with water to make it fizzy, prior to adding Diet Coke syrup (or just drinking as sparkling water). A skoosh - a bottle of water that has been skooshed. Skooshy - something that has been skooshed, water, or that whipped cream that comes in tins you have to shake then upend and press the nozzle...

Shoogle - verb. To shake gently, for example, of roast potatoes in a roasting tin to ensure they're covered with oil. I have vague memories of this being a real Scottish colloquialism...

Stegasaurus - n, spider of the genus tegenaria. Why? No idea. I just find it easier, that's all...
Edit 08.09.07: Lutra thinks that Brian is a good name for a mini-stegasaurus. From now on, any 'Brian's in the posts may be assumed to be a tegenaria. Except where otherwise specified.

Viterals - noun, vitamins + minerals. Also a pun on victuals.

Splish - verb. A combination of slosh and splash.

Parrots - noun, paracetemol (from the old joke "Why are there no aspirin tablets in the jungle? Because the parrots eat 'em all...")

Maggles - noun, magpies. As opposed to non-magical people.

Flamewings - noun. Swifts. So called because the first time we became aware of them was an early summer evening when they were flying high, the light from the setting sun seemingly turning their wings to flames. Lovely little birds. We always know summer's arrived when we hear their high-pitched squeeing.

Murfs - noun, moths.

Peasant cut - noun, roughly cut up into big chunks, e.g. vegetables chopped in a hurry for a hearty stew or soup. By extension, anything prepared in a hurry - haircut, material, even a first draft of a story...

Giraffe - noun, a carafe (of wine, coffee or water, for example).

Shrumps - noun, mushrooms.

Splings - noun, Kai's spelling homework: by extension, any spelling.

Tyops - noun, typos. var toyps, typso, psyto, psoyt, etc. Usual result of a dose of the fingerials (see next entry).

Fingerials - (pr. fin GEEE ree yalls) noun, fingers that will not type what you want them to.

Haddock - noun, time, of which I never have enough. (Origin of this term here.)

Sleep - noun? vb? a.k.a. sheeeeeeeeep.... I used to know what this word meant...


The Updates Blog

The place to stay notified of WaveWrights' Fiction updates: Zone, Darkside, DarkRealm, Matrix, Vault, Safehouse 13...




my computer gremlin Butch. click the pic to see the larger image

Butch, my computer gremlin. Click the pic for larger version, and read his adventures here...

Butch by the talented 

Sylverthorne

A gift for me! Butch by the very talented Sylverthorne. Click pic for larger image.

Joules' 

Haddock

This is MY haddock. It was caught exclusively for me by Talon. No, you can't have any. I need all the haddock I can get!!



A'lestrel by Valkyrie.

A'lestrel - a gift for me from Valkyrie...



Albino Alsatian Benten (c) MEBird 

2004

Another gorgeous Valkyrie gift for me - Benten the Albino Alsatian! Click thumbnail for larger image.

Radittsu, an oekaki for my birthday 04 

by 

Onna

Oekai by Bakayaro Onna - Radittsu at his sexiest...



The Zone Plant from
The Zone 

blog 

plant

OrganicHTML (which alas no longer seems to exist...)
[::..My Regular Reads..::]
:: Astronomical Pic of the Day [>]
:: What is Space... [>]
:: Dark Roasted Blend [>]
:: BLDG [>]
:: Watchismo Times [>]
[::..Fun Places..::]
::HubbleSite
Stunning...
::PALEOMAP Project
Absolutely fascinating.
:: Skymap
Check out the night sky where you are!
[::..Useful Sites..::]
:: GreenNet
First stop for environmental matters
:: The Forest of Avon
Our local community forest and places to visit
:: The Guardian
Online Guardian Newspaper.
:: Symbols
Exactly what it says
:: World Timeserver
For checking the current time around this world
:: Universal Currency Converter
Actually it's just a terran-global currency converter, not universal, but it's still useful...

So what is it with the haddock? Am I some kind of fish freak?

I'll leave that to others to decide.

The tale (or tail if you prefer) harks back to October 2000, when my GoodTwin and I, ably assisted by Sue, ran the first UK Professionals convention...
It's common knowledge that I never have enough time, and I was determined not to bewail the fact that weekend: hence I promised not to use the 'T' word...
Of course, that didn't really work (if nothing else I had to let the trainees know what times things were supposed to be happening!) so we decided a substitute word would be employed instead. There were several suggestions. Banana came very close to being chosen. However, I eventually decided that 'haddock' fitted the bill nicely. Ever since, haddock=time. Hence the title of my forthcoming autobiography,
My Half-Life in the Haddock Space Continuum....


Normally I wouldn't, but these were just irresistible...

How could I resist?

Just too adorable...

and to complete the rainbow...

These Too-Kawaii Kitties
were adopted from
Ghost's Anime Page (which appears to have disappeared, alas...)

[::..Anime/Manga..::]
Useful sites:

BBTS -
Fabulous anime figures

Anime Lyrics
A huge selection... evil popups

Anime still needed to complete series' I'm collecting... Many thanks to everyone who has helped me acquire the collection!
Ai no Kusabi

Owned:
   DVD
   Dj: June Special
   CD: Ambivalence

Cyber City Oedo 808

Owned:
   DVD
   All 3 eps on Video, dubbed
   Dj: Cyberage 1-3
   Illustrated Book 2 (Benten's) in Japanese

From Eroica with Love

Owned:
   Manga Vols 1, 9, 11

Mirage of Blaze

Owned:
   DVD Vol 1 (eps 1-4)

R.G. Veda

Owned:
   English Manga: Vol 1
   Japanese Manga: Vol 1-7 complete
   Tarot Pack
   R.G.Veda video

Twelve Kingdoms

Owned:
   Anime Vol 1-12: complete

Under the Glass Moon

Owned:
   Manga Vol 1, 2
Vol 3 needed

Vampire Hunter D - Bloodlust

Owned:
   DVD

   Vampire Hunter D Book 1



New Vampire Miyu

Owned:
   (Studio Ironcat) Manga Vols 1 -5 (complete)


Yami no Matsuei

Owned:
   Viz Manga: English translation, Vols 1 - 11 (complete: I believe vol 12 is only available online)
   Japanese 3-DVD set
   Central Park Media: Descendants of Darkness Vol. 1, English/Japanese subbed.
   Sketchbook


[::..Joules SP fied..::]


... this is Terra? How the hell'd I end up here...?

(Thanks, Lutra, for the quote!)

[::..archive..::]
07/01/2002 - 07/31/2002
08/01/2002 - 08/31/2002
09/01/2002 - 09/30/2002
10/01/2002 - 10/31/2002
11/01/2002 - 11/30/2002
12/01/2002 - 12/31/2002
01/01/2003 - 01/31/2003
02/01/2003 - 02/28/2003
03/01/2003 - 03/31/2003
04/01/2003 - 04/30/2003
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06/01/2003 - 06/30/2003
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12/01/2003 - 12/31/2003
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02/01/2004 - 02/29/2004
03/01/2004 - 03/31/2004
04/01/2004 - 04/30/2004
05/01/2004 - 05/31/2004
06/01/2004 - 06/30/2004
07/01/2004 - 07/31/2004
08/01/2004 - 08/31/2004
09/01/2004 - 09/30/2004
10/01/2004 - 10/31/2004
11/01/2004 - 11/30/2004
12/01/2004 - 12/31/2004
01/01/2005 - 01/31/2005
02/01/2005 - 02/28/2005
03/01/2005 - 03/31/2005
04/01/2005 - 04/30/2005
05/01/2005 - 05/31/2005
06/01/2005 - 06/30/2005
07/01/2005 - 07/31/2005
08/01/2005 - 08/31/2005
09/01/2005 - 09/30/2005
10/01/2005 - 10/31/2005
11/01/2005 - 11/30/2005
12/01/2005 - 12/31/2005
01/01/2006 - 01/31/2006
02/01/2006 - 02/28/2006
03/01/2006 - 03/31/2006
04/01/2006 - 04/30/2006
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06/01/2006 - 06/30/2006
07/01/2006 - 07/31/2006
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09/01/2006 - 09/30/2006
10/01/2006 - 10/31/2006
11/01/2006 - 11/30/2006
12/01/2006 - 12/31/2006
01/01/2007 - 01/31/2007
02/01/2007 - 02/28/2007
03/01/2007 - 03/31/2007
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07/01/2007 - 07/31/2007
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01/01/2008 - 31/01/2008
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01/01/2019 - 31/01/2019
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01/01/2020 - 31/01/2020
01/02/2020 - 29/02/2020
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01/04/2020 - 31/04/2020
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01/12/2020 - 31/12/2020
01/01/2021 - 31/01/2021
01/02/2021 - 28/02/2021
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01/10/2021 - 31/10/2021
01/11/2021 - 30/11/2021
01/12/2021 - 31/12/2021
01/01/2022 - 31/01/2022
01/02/2022 - 28/02/2022
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01/04/2022 - 30/04/2022
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01/06/2022 - 31/06/2022
01/07/2022 - 31/07/2022
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01/10/2022 - 31/10/2022
01/11/2021 - 31/11/2021
01/12/2022 - 31/12/2022
01/01/2023 - 31/01/2023
01/02/2023 - 28/02/2023
01/03/2023 - 31/03/2023
01/04/2023 - 30/04/2023
01/08/2023 - 31/08/2023
01/11/2023 - 31/11/2023

Saturday, April 28, 2018

First, a recommendation. Dive over to The Jonathan Day Fiction Site and try some of the stories. I love this author's writing - it's funny, bitingly witty, dryly incisive and deliciously subversive by turns. And free fiction? What's not to love?

Go check them out, but bear in mind they may be addictive, as I suddenly found at 3 am when I had to get up early the next day and had to make myself stop reading.

Onto the garden...


Sue's little Valentine apple tree! Not sure if it will fruit this year, but it's looking very happy and has settled in nicely.

Tulips...


Watched: Tiny Robots, which is 45 minutes of my life I want back. It's dire. The Opera Australia version of The Mikado, which was a blast (although some of the politicised verses were a bit beyond us...). Pathfinder, which is so-so. And Kai and I are now on season 8 (the last one) of House. It's now a matter of gritting teeth and finishing the course, as I absolutely loathe the character.

May is going to be extra busy: Kai has exams, I have drs appts (hoping to try to persuade her to book me for another steroid injection in my right hip - fingers crossed) and people coming to fit grab rails around the house (and a slatted seat over the bath so I can get in and out safely to shower), and Ken has a week off now and is hoping to get out and about a little. And of course there's the garden every day too. Well, it's all good exercise! (Which reminds me, swam 24 lengths at the pool last week and didn't suffer too much the following day, which is good news!)

Off to make lunch - sossij and Puy lentil soup as it's ridiculously cold today.

Labels: , ,





2 Comments:

Blogger Sue said...

I'm relieved the tree has taken OK and didn't suffer too much damage from being moved. Well done on the lengths!

9:22 pm  
Blogger AmandaHuffleduck said...

House, yeah, didn't watch past S3 cos I just wanted to hit him.

Ahhh, I love your garden!

10:33 am  



Friday, April 20, 2018

Just a quick one.

With the warmer weather the garden and greenhouse have exploded. My seedlings seem to have doubled in size every time I check them (the first climbing beans - only planted in peat pots last week - need planting out today and I haven't finished the framework for them yet!) Radishes, spring onions, and even the first carrots have sprouted in the higher raised bed, and the bamboo seems to be recovering well, although it's a bit early to be completely sure. We have a pair of long tailed tits now regularly visiting the patio feeder: they are so cute. They take a fruit suet nugget in their beak, flit to the physocarpus, hang upside down from one of the thicker branches, then take the nugget into a claw and delicately eat it in little nips.

Sue's amelanchier!

Beautiful little tree. (Your valentine apple tree is coming on well too, but the leaves start out red and don't photograph well against the wall backdrop. Will try later.)

Watched THX 1138. I saw it first at uni Film Club, but rather to my surprise remembered practically none of it. It's pretty good, though will never be a favourite. Kai enjoyed it though. He also really enjoyed Split, which I found extra cheap at Tesco and bought because of McAvoy, who is a very fine actor. And he was excellent in this too - but I hadn't noticed it's a Shyamalan directed film. I don't like his films. They all start off really well, but have horribly anti-climactic and/or stupidly unbelievable ends. This was, alas, no exception.

But that's just my opinion. Hundreds of thousands of people disagree.

Time to get started on the garden!

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2 Comments:

Blogger Sue said...

Had to dig back in my emails to find out about the amelanchier because I couldn't remember it. Well, I've discovered it was 2012 so I don't feel quite so bad now. It's come on really well from the little twig I gave you!

8:20 am  
Blogger Joules *Dances with Haddock* Taylor said...

It's a gorgeous little tree! And the bees love it. I'm hoping for berries later (they're edible, but we'll leave them for the birds) and the leaves go the most beautiful colours in autumn. It's an all-round treasure!

11:30 am  



Monday, April 16, 2018

Ooops I did it again...

[sigh] Catch-up...

Easter weekend with Bank Holiday Mon was relaxed. I actually bought us chocolate eggs this year (well, Tesco had a salted caramel one and I couldn't have that for myself without K&K having their own, could I?!) Watched films, continues with House, got a little gardening done (everything is coming along splendidly in the greenhouse) - that sort of thing.

On Mon evening we had the fun of dragging the old sofa out for collection the next day. I'm keeping the cushions, one armrest and one back in case the other sofa ones get damaged.

Tues - I think this was the day Kim and I went to Almondsbury. I'd planned to pick up the conifer I saw last time we went (to go in the front garden to add to the screen so next door can't peer into my house) but they didn't have any. Damn. Oh well, next time...

Wednesday caught the morning over 50's swim (the first bus gets there a bit early, so shopped at Broadwalk first), but I was aching so only managed ten pool lengths. But that's not too bad really. Walking back wasn't fun though. Have made a dr's appt for beginning of next month.

Spent the rest of the week doing the usual, I believe, as I can't remember anything specific. Kai and I still ploughing on with House (seasons 7 and 8 have now arrived).

Mon was chasing around to find out info about replacing the downpipe, as our patchy repairs are now failing and the whole thing needs replacing. But it's most likely asbestos. The local tip will take smallish amounts of asbestos, and apparently if you play water over it while breaking it up it kills the dust and minimises the danger, but it's a lot of work. However, Wecare believe they can help: am waiting to hear back from them. Also arranged for Andrew of Crystal Clear to come round tomorrow as we're now in a position to get the rest of the windows (and the kitchen door) replaced.

Windows sorted: after dinner watched Star Wars: the Last Jedi... Kai loved it, I was less impressed, although at least in this ep there was no deathstar (although as Kai pointed out, the cannon took its place). Great acting, and it's wonderful to finally have powerful female characters, but the story was disappointing (for me, at any rate. Then again, as I've said before, I've seen so much it's not that easy to impress me any more!)

Had to miss swimming Tues and Wed as my stomach was upset. Took it easy for a couple of days (well, as easy as I ever do...)

Sat - planting, and tidying up for window surveyor's visit. The garden is looking pretty good at the moment, the delayed spring is now in full flower...


My plum tree! Hoping for a good harvest this year...

Yesterday the weather was gorgeous, and K&K decided to go to Wells to check out the charity and antique shops. They arrived back ten minutes later with their arms full of bamboo plants that the house on the corner at the end of the road had dug up and were getting rid of, and were happy for them to be taken away... Not sure if I mentioned, but I've been looking for sensibly priced bamboo to grow in pots outside the patio doors to hide that ugly monstrosity of a fence, but up to now they've been too expensive and too small. Now -

[grin] Rather pleased about that! When they've recovered and thickened up a little they'll completely hide the fence.

We have plans for the patio area: aiming to make a small potted-plant-screened little 'courtyard' (which will hopefully stop Tyjer going bonkers every time anything moves out there). Photos whenif it happens.

Window surveyor will be here at lunchtime to measure up, and we've decided what patterns we want on the glass for the door panel, bathroom and hall. Suppose I'd better clear the bathroom windowsill!

Oh, last thing... Remember my adorable little colletes hederae stingless bees from September 2015? Remember next door attacked the ones on his side, first with a sulphur gun then with a flamethrower? And then covered the bare earth with sheets of black rubber? He took them up a couple of weeks ago, and now he has this...

Foxes. Heh. Should probably have stuck with the bees!





1 Comments:

Blogger Sue said...

What luck with the bamboo! As you say, it should look lovely when it settles in. Garden is looking good!

8:33 pm  





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