It's over there.

Still learning

http://mrsdanvers63.wordpress.com/2012/02/02/big-garden-birdwatch-2012/

I haven't posted seriously here, or anywhere else, since early 2009.

Things happened: car crash, whiplash, Sleep apnoea, CPAP, long-term sickness, mother with Alzheimer's, work issues, possible job loss, sudden death, more work issues, depression, more work issues...

 There you go 2009 - to 2012 in two lines.

LJ seems to have been hacked, blocked, and is slowly sinking. I'm now contributing to its decline.

In an effort to bring some focus to my life (ha) I'm trying to blog again, but I'm moving. I've been able to export my LJ, so it also acts as an archive.

 The new blog is over on wordpress. Have a look, if you like; sign-up to an email or RSS feed, if you are interested.

http://mrsdanvers63.wordpress.com/

I've kept the old title, but it isn't easy to find me via Google. I'll try to note here when I post.

I was tagged by  scatz1 

The Rules:

1. People who have been tagged must write the answers on their blog and replace any question they dislike with a new, original question.
2. Tag six people. Don't refuse to do that. Don't tag who tagged you.

I tag some people who may post on here from time to time.

heaven_ali 
nice_cup_of_tea 
miketroll 
dododumpling 
alinoakes 
lutrus 


01. Make a list of 5 things you can see without getting up.
Exercise bike, fruit bowl, magazine, Christmas presents, seascape

02. How do you style your hair?
Taking more time and products than appearance would suggest.

03. What are you wearing now?
Sweatpants, long sleeved top, socks, glasses

04. What's your occupation?
Battlefield clearance: after the battle I bayonet the wounded.

05. What do you hear right now?
Birdsong, John Martyn

06. What's your favorite guilty pleasure treat?
Dr Who boxsets, manzanilla sherry and roasted salted almonds

07. Are you hungry?
No - I've had dinner

08. Write the first word that comes to mind.
Bungalow

09. Dog person or cat person?
Both - but it's a long time since I had a dog.

10. What song is currently stuck in your head?
"Your Baby has gone down the plughole" - a music hall song that came up in conversation today.

11. What was the last thing you bought?
Fruit and vegetables

12. If you could afford to go anywhere in the world, where would you go?
Big Sur, San Francisco and Northern California

13. Where do you see yourself in 5 minutes?
In the kitchen making a cup of tea.

14. Last book you read?
Ask Alice - DJ Taylor was last night's read, but I have 4 books on the go at the moment.

15. What are you doing this weekend?
Visiting my family in County Durham.

16. If you could play any musical instrument, which one would you play?
Piano

17. How are you?
Tired and jaded.

18. What are you doing tomorrow?
Finishing fieldwork and starting to construct a report and having highlights in my hair at the end of the day.

19. What are you looking forward to the most?
My next holiday.

I hope you have a relaxing day

A poetry meme started by skyring which I saw on moem 's journal.

 Carol Anne Duffy, the Poet Laureate asked fellow poets to bear witness to the matters of war last summer as the Iraq enquiry approached and the war in Afghanistan escalated.  This touched me.

In Times of Peace

by John Agard

That finger - index to be exact -
so used to a trigger's warmth
how will it begin to deal with skin
that threatens only to embrace?

Those feet, so at home in heavy boots
and stepping over bodies -
how will they cope with a bubble bath
when foam is all there is for ambush?

And what of hearts in times of peace?
Will war-worn hearts grow sluggish
like Valentine roses wilting
without the adrenalin of a bullet's blood-rush?

When the dust of peace has settled on a nation,
how will human arms handle the death of weapons?
And what of ears, are ears so tuned to sirens
that the closing of wings causes a tremor?

As for eyes, are eyes ready for the soft dance
of a butterfly's bootless invasion?

 I'm keeping to an average of more than one book a week ; 1.5 this year.
My book of the year came very early "A Thousand Spendid Suns" by Khalid Hosseini, read in January for my bookgroup. Nothing exceeded the strong emotions and tears this book generated.

Books Read in 2009
January
1. One Good Turn - Kate Atkinson (9)
2. The Night Watch - Sara Waters (8)
3. A Grave Man - David Roberts
4. Grumpy Old Women - Judith Holder
4. A Thousand Splendid Suns - Khalid Hosseini(Ethelreaders)(10)
5. Mary Reilly - Valerie Martin
6. At Your Own Risk - Derek Jarman
7. Affinity - Sara Waters (9)
8. The Child in Time - Ian McEwan
9. Last of the Late Developers - Peter Wyton
10. Edward Trencom's Nose - Giles Milton
February
11. The Reader - Bernhard Schlink (9)
12. The Other Side of the Bridge - Mary Lawson(8)
13. David Golder - Irene Nemirovsky (9)
14. Wonder Boys - Michael Chabon (8)
15. The Coffin Dancer - Jeffery Deaver
16. Not the End of the World - Christopher Brookmyre (8)
17. Stories from your family tree - Ruth Symes
18. Boiling a Frog - Christopher Brookmyre (9)
March
19. 31 Songs - Nick Hornby
20. How to Talk to a Widower - Jonathan Tropper (Ethelreaders)
21. C - John Diamond (9)
22. In a Dry Season - Peter Robinson
23. The Stone Monkey - Jeffrey Deaver
24. The Front - Patricia Cornwell
25. State of Happiness - Stella Duffy
26. Extreme Motherhood - Jackie Clune
27. At the Stroke of Madness - Alex Kava
28. Bloodlines - Fiona Mountain
April
29. Without Consent - Georgie Hale
30. Emma - Jane Austen
31. Be My Enemy - Christopher Brookmyre (7)
32. Like - Ali Smith (8)
33. Something to Fall Back On - Maureen Lipman (didn't finish)
34.Why Don't Penguins Feet Freeze - New Scientist
35. Last Chance to See - Douglas Adams & Mark Carwardine
36. Charlotte Gray -Sebastian Faulks (re-read for Ethelreaders)
37. The Water Clock - Jim Kelly
May
38. The Fire Baby - Jim Kelly
39. Dare to be a Daniel - Tony Benn (library)
40. Firmin - Sam Savage
41. Feel - Chris Heath
42. Fatland - Greg Critser
43. Why do people hate America- Ziauddin Sardar and Merryl Wyn Davies
44. Ghostwalk - Rebecca Stott(Ethelreaders)(10)
June
45. A Snowball in Hell - Christopher Brookmyre (8)(library)
46. The Road Home - Rose Tremain (library)
47. One of Us -Melissa Benn
48. The Dead Heart -Douglas Kennedy (library)
July
48. Scapegallows - Carol Birch (library)
49. The Righteous Men - Sam Bourne
50. A Line in the Sand - Gerald Seymour
51. The Empty Chair - Jeffery Deaver
52. The Mortal Sickness - Andrew Taylor
53. The Twelfth Card - Jeffery Deaver
54. The Last Sorcerer - Michael White(library)
55. Blinded - Stephen White
August
56. The Colour - Rose Tremain (Ethelreaders)
57. The Cold Moon - Jeffery Deaver
58. Dan Leno and the Limehouse Golem - Peter Ackroyd (10)
September
59. The Suspicions of Mr Whicher - Kate Summerscale (8)
60. The Casebook of Victor Frankenstein - Peter Ackroyd (library)(9)
61. The Stranger House - Reginald Hill(10)
62. The Innocent - Harlen Coben
63. Losing You - Nicci French(9)
64. Murder Most Fab - Julian Clary (library)
October
65. The Truth - Terry Pratchett
66. R is for Richochet - Sue Grafton(library)
67. Past Imperfect - Julian Fellowes( Ethelreaders)
68. The Blackpool Highflyer - Andrew Martin
69. The Other Hand - Chris Cleave(Ethelreaders)(8)
November
70. Linger Awhile - Russell Hoban (library) (8)
71. Expecting Someone Taller - Tom Holt
December
72, The Outcast - Sadie Jones( Ethelreaders) (8)
73. Silk - Allessandro Barrico (8)
74. Ye Gods - Tom Holt
75. Crack Down - Val McDermid
76. A Touch of Frost - RD Wingfield (7)
77. To War in Spain(Penguin 60) - Laurie Lee (10)
78. Little Black Book of Stories - A.S. Byatt (8)

I'm going friends only.



I've recently been friended by a couple of people weirdos. As LJ doesn't allow me to reject their friendship or block their access to me this is the  only way to do it .






     FRIENDS ONLY


If you wish to read my journal drop me a PM letting me know something about you. Friends can read each others' journals. If I can't read yours we aren't going to be friends.

Today started badly as I got up late, got stuck in a traffic jam and travelled 12 miles in 50 minutes when I needed to be at a site on time or the whole day would be thrown out, not just for me , but the people on the site too. Luckily I made it there on time. The day ended with an unexpected Christmas gift from one colleague ; mmm pudding wine :) and a very silly Christmas card through the post from another..

1. Post about something that made you happy today even if it's just a small thing and even if it's just a one-line post.
2. Do this everyday for a week without fail. ( if you'd like to join in)


Christmas present buying and nearly everything has been bought from the comfort of this PC.

Today was the last gift - a Wii game for Niece no4 and I got it at the cheapest site with an extra 10% discount, and no postage. 

£2.47 may be small , but as the slogan goes( from a supermarket that wanted considerably  more) -  "every little helps"!


PS The music; I'd sort of forgotten how clever Billy Bragg's writing is until this quiet little epic came up on shuffle.

1. Post about something that made you happy today even if it's just a small thing and even if it's just a one-line post.
2. Do this everyday for a week without fail. ( if you'd like to join in)


Monday 8th I attended a workshop on home-working in London. My team has been working from home for over 6 years now , so we are often asked to "share our experiences " with others who may be considering it.

There were three IT chaps there I'd worked with over the last 10 years on one project or another and we had a giggle about web cam testing. My manager has put the  team up for a pilot study.  Do I put on the "slap" and a suit or just fix a photo of me looking presentable in front of the camera.

Then I was tapped on the shoulder and another colleague I haven't seen in months said hello. It's surprising how happy you feel when someone else seems pleased to see you.