Fegrig: April 2011

Friday, 29 April 2011

Forbrydelsen

29/04/2011

Hello

Did you watch it? Did you have it programmed into your TV recording device memory?

Forbrydelsen

(the crime I think is the straight translation)

I'm talking about the Danish TV import to BBC4 "The Killing". It was a Danish police drama about driven (as in never giving up) police, murdered women (isn't it always), corrupt politicians, removal men and lots of red herrings.

It wasn't bad, I personally found it a bit slow in parts. That however may have more to do with watching the episodes in chunks of 2 and 3 as we tried to catch up on recorded episodes.

The over riding impression was though, that the director had a thing about the dark or maybe he didn't have enough money for the electric bill. Everything looked so dim, very little of it seemed to take part in the day light. At the end of each episode the old eyes were suffering as they had been straining in the dark for the previous hour.

Now we have two and a half episodes do go, so please don't say anything about how it ended.

Oh and in case you dont know its coming back, hope they paid the electric bill!

Alchemy

Duplication

29/04/2011 Hello Excuse the duplication of images. Its part of my what photo app to use experiment. The top image is from instagram and the bottom from picplz, as yet I can't post directly from burstn. So it's stove food 2013 twice. Any thoughts on your favourite? For those not in tune with me it's cut beech logs for the wood burning stove but they need a while to dry 2013? Bye

Stove food 2013

Thursday, 28 April 2011

(say) Cheeeze! with @burstn @picplz @instagram

28/04/2010

Hello

Under the hobbies section in the "get to know Fegrig questionnaire" , one of the interests I would put down would be photography.

I like taking photographs, I like to share them and I'm considering my options of what best suits these two things. I've been reading that social networking through photographs is the next "thing". However reading around the subject and following links and threads as you do there are many "next things".

Some of these seem frankly ridiculous to me like a social networking service where you can share what you are reading/watching/listening. Then companies send you vouchers to read/watch/listen to more things. Recommendations are also sent to you to read/watch/listen to more of the same and whoop! you make friends who read/watch/listen to the same things as you.

I also like to look at other peeps pics and appreciate how they got a certain image, perhaps trying to learn and emulate for my next capture. In the past I've looked at individuals phot blogs. I was in a flickr group for a while once but they were a bit overbearing and rule bound and there seemed to be a controlling "committee".

So on looking around I have come across these three applications

http://burstn.com/

then we have

http://picplz.com/

and finally

http://instagr.am/

the last one has heaps of followers but no web site at the mo' as its all done via the mobile app but this website gives a great showcase

http://snapfinch.com/site/explore

Any thoughts?, any views?, any recommendations?

Hairwaii? a different #birther slant

27/04/2011

Evening,

So the truth is out, the rumour and innuendo have hopefully! finally? been silenced but unfortunately there will still be a (t)rump who feel like the evidence itself is an elaborate ruse to hide the real truth.

There has been inuendo and numerous speculations from his opponents on the veracity of what he has said. In recent times he has remained aloof from the over riding questioning of his opponents. Never answering the question far from their lips. Refusal to speculate wether underneath it all is he American or as many suspect Brazilian.

Supporters suspect that the real reason for questioning the evidence presented is nothing more than prejudice, a form of unacceptable 'ism.

However despite all the money spent, the engineering expertise brought to bear on the obvious problem, as plain as the hair on your head, the truth is out once and for all....

Donald Trump is bald!

Sunlight Express

Down the line

Tuesday, 26 April 2011

The shed door

Taken with picplz.

Monday, 25 April 2011

Action!

25/04/2011
Hello

A picture of Boris, what do you think he's thinking?

A I've just woken up!

B Too many Easter Eggs

C Bleeding Paparazzi

D Too hot

E Did you say action? It's not just Lassie who can act, darling!

Saturday, 23 April 2011

Fancy a cup?

23/04/2011 Afternoon, It's a wet but not windy weekend. Chickens plodding around splashing in the forming puddles. Dogs and human happy to be dry. A dampish driven drop in the temperature has dictated a warming comfort drink required. In colder climes it might have been Ovaltine, Horlicks or Hot Chocolate but for spring at this time if the day all too heavy and filling. Coffee today. So we take one kettle stick it on the stove, the jar of gecko friendly coffee, some sugar - brain food and the finishing some evaporated milk. Some will go yeugh! Some may be intrigued but those of clan Fegrig will say " yes please!" It's a better end product that cream more healthy, less damage to the arterial walls, less heavy. It's got a bit more body than milk, especially the semi-skimmed stuff that lives in our fridge. It's been the milk of choice for me and mine in coffee and the other powders above since goodness knows when. Try it for yourself!

Friday, 22 April 2011

Images of Easter

[gallery]

22/04/2011
Evening,

Easter has so many different images, each of these particular images has a memory attached. When I saw one of the "girls" weaving in and out of the "daffys", memories fell out of the internal folder marked Easter.

Daffodils are usually associated with Easter and although the event is later this year. In 2010 when Easter was 3 weeks earlier daffodils were fully in bloom.

Chickens, yes not directly Easterish but in my mind they equal eggs. So often now hugely overpriced and packaged chocolate varieties. I am just old enough to remember painted and dyed chicken eggs.

These eggs were rolled in a vague recognition of the religious aspects of Easter. Local hills or anything that had a gradient would do to get the roll going.

When we lived in a tenement I remember a young me and a younger @issynoho rolling our eggs along the long "lobby" or hall floor. In the pictures the daffodils sit atop one of the declines in the garden.

This chicken spent a while rooting around the daffodils so perhaps tomorrow we really will need to have an Easter egg hunt?

Thursday, 21 April 2011

Holiday!

21/04/2011
Hello
A holiday week end is upon us.

I have plans of things to do, see, read, fix, cut, trim, make, watch, arrange, collect and today got off to a good start. An extended period of duvet studying but isn't that what a holiday is all about?

You got any plans?

The sweat box!

20/04/2011
Evening,

I've survived the day of meetings. The majority being held in a room with frosted glass walls on once side and plasterboard partition on the others. The glass doors heavy and occlusive to air and ventilation.

No ventilation, no external walls to contain opening windows. Imagine a tank to study human behaviour. Placed along with other specimen containment areas in the middle of the floor space, where once upon a time desks sat.

Against one of the walls of the tank an old , dilapidated ventilation system sits. Once switched on it makes the sorts of noises that inspired George Lucas, when he was looking for an audible signature for the Millennium Falcon, in "Star Wars".

Despite being within touching distance with colleagues in the tank, once the ventilator is switched on, sign language becomes the meetings lingua Franca.

In quiet times when the room is avoided jockeys, boxers and week to go brides have been seen leaving the tank, having gone in with a confident smile, assured that meeting their weight target was but a short visit away.

For non weight centric beings meetings in the tank are a challenge. Thankfully the PVC backed and seated chairs have recently been removed. As a consequence of a legal move to have the room condemned under human rights legislation, remains a strong possibility.

The feeling that one endured as your bare skin was ripped from you as you rise to leave, only added to the dilemma. When it's hot do you risk desquamation, punishment for wearing shorts or a short summery skirt. Or do you protect you bare skin by covering up. As yet no one has worn a burkini but it can't be long. Thick tights and trousers are the alternative punishment. Melt or moult skin.

In a more liberal working environment discarding usual office attire for towels would be the ideal solution. Business meetings in a sauna?

Until then colleagues of a certain age of both genders will continue to swoon and perspire, with their younger colleagues not far behind.

So that's the tank, it's only April, the full extent of the London summer assault has yet to be unleashed. Be afraid!

Wednesday, 20 April 2011

5 a day?

19/04/2011 Evening, 5 reflections on the day 1- swimming is tiring, 2- the "bee beard" Magners advert is disconcerting, 3 - even in London peace and quiet can be found, 4 - Hugh Laurie is looking old, 5 - when you stub your toe it bleeds Goodnight

Monday, 18 April 2011

Dinner tonight

[gallery]

18/04/2011
hello
I was going to have as a title "fancy a Persian?" but the thought of inappropriate twitter followers made the more mundane title above a safer choice.

Dinner tonight had me visiting an Iranian or Persian restaurant as they describe themselves, back to that safer option thing, perhaps?

So my choices this evening set against Spanish guitar music or maybe it was the Iranian John Williams or Julian Bream? Were a chicken soup, a vegetarian? choice according to the menu. Followed by a lamb, aubergines, pepper and tomato stew that had rice as it's bed fellow.

The chicken soup was not unlike a minestrone less rich tomato, more subtle and peppery. It was tasty and piping hot. I was offered olive oil and or lemon sauce to add if required. The soup was fine nothing outstanding but defiantly not a mistake.

My stew arrived equally piping hot and was very liquid in it's presentation. I personally don't mind this but I know some would appreciate these things thicker. Again tasty enough without winning any awards in the must have that again race. Had a photo malfunction for this dish but it couldn't have been bad as the empty plate shows.

So a reasonably priced meal, food good but not outstanding but it did come off second best to the only previous meal from this country to have passed my lips.

However maybe I'm being too picky as other tables were occupied by people with more intimate knowledge of the food than I, Iranians. To my mind always a good sign.

The whole experience was positive partly due to the host holding true to the regions culture of hospitality. His attention along with his offer of complimentary mint tea adding to the experience. I will be back to try more of the menu the next tables mains looked better than mine as did the soup from the table in front of me.

Shab be khyer

Sunday, 17 April 2011

AV or not AV that is the question?

17/04/2011

Hello,

It's a sunny day not one for sitting typing on a computer, although I have an excuse as I'm watching the London Marathon on the telly, thinking that it must be getting hot down there, some pink skin at the end I think, ouch! I know that my streamlined dome is at risk from the rays, sunscreen is never far from my race bag and I have a new hat as well to serve as my running parasol.

So a day for some outdoors activity, with perhaps a question to mull over? If you haven't decided yet on where you are putting your cross in the referendum being held on May 5th for supporting the AV system (alternative vote system) or not AV (keeping with first past the post), then here is a little assistance.

Its a quiz that neither tells you for or against, just answer the questions and see if it helps your decision. It did focus my thoughts on the question and indeed my answer.

http://www.whoshouldyouvotefor.com/

You got to vote though,

Bye

Saturday, 16 April 2011

26.2 phew! #vlm @davidamunday

16/04/2011

Evening, tonight there will be a phew thousands ready and waiting, a phew thousands wondering why?, a phew thousands worrying but without cause and a phew thousands will be thinking nothing, having entered the London Marathon bouyed on by common bravado and some with the sponsorship of that evening's ale. Ignorance can be a great cloak for one's deficiencies.

Like many others I will be sitting in front of the telly tomorrow admiring those very thousands who have got themselves on the start line for the Virgin London Marathon. The BBC will ensure your cornflakes become soggy without the assistance of milk when they run their VT playing the back stories of those runners who are there, despite their own personal battles and woes. Some will be running for themselves, some for family members and a sizeable number for their chosen charities.

Hopefully none will come to harm and despite the pain that will be there, when they hit their own personal walls, they will look back perhaps with a medal or photograph and hopefully with a creeping smile, remembering when they said never again. Once the event is over and the TV is off some will be breaking out the running shoes, searching through google and finding their next marathon challenge.

I'll be watching with two events under my ageing belt. It was sore, especially when the knee ligaments popped halfway through the Berlin event in 2005, but of course I stupidly ran through. Copenhagen was just tiring, that's adrenalin for you - once it runs out!

In Castle Fegrig we will look out for @davidamunday

Run! Dave! Run!

Friday, 15 April 2011

Stop stop stop stop

15/04/2011
Still here

Podcast.m4a Listen on Posterous

I'm out and about

Slow, slow, stop.....

15/04/2011
I'm stuck in a long slow and now stopped

Daisy , Daisy.......

14/04/2011

Sent from my iPad

Thursday, 14 April 2011

star gazing? on @flybmi

13/04/2011

Evening

Plane travel is such a rich seam for stories yesterday we had death masks and lost teeth tonight I had a brush with a star. No I didn't take a left instead of a right going to the toilet, I was sitting in the same row as an actor. Whenever I write that word the internal soundtrack is loud and booming, hovering over the vowel sounds. Sometimes with a darling at the end.

Anyway I get on the plane and a capped, sun glasses wearing person was sitting in the same row. The gent was reading a document on his lap top. The document being a script and in case your interested it was in American type writer font. How very apt if you still imagine a person tapping away on their typewriter key as opposed to bashing away on their appleydell pc thing.
Now I'm not star struck and he is not so big a star that he should have been on his own jet or even at the front away from the cheap seats in cattle class. I recognised him though. After a while he fell asleep and let's say that if the part of the dead guy comes up he would do it very well, even down to the gaping rigour mortis beset mouth and face.
However being a nice bloke I didn't take the opportunity to take a picture for inclusion in some "meet the star" type web site of our guy snoring away. That would be wicked and anyway I fell asleep as well.
G'night

ps The actor? Now that would be telling but he was slighter and shorter than he looks on screen. No it wasn't Tom Cruise!

Tuesday, 12 April 2011

Where are my false teeth? @flybmi

12/04/2011
Hello,

I've just come off the plane from Edinburgh to London Heathrow. This as you may remember is a regular occurrence, at times too regular, at times too tiring.

One that usually involves me getting to my allocated seat and staying there till it's time to disembark.

Today though I had to get up to use the facilities. The one used was at the front of the cabin. Going there meant that my fellow passengers were behind me as I walked forward. On the way back however I could see into the faces of my accompanying aeronauts. Sobering!

People who just an hour before were animated, articulate, smart phone wielding, movers and shakers of frequent flyer cards now look, different!

Different in that some, a substantial minority, look like they would not be amiss in a scene from one of the CSI franchises. Playing third corpse from the back. The pictures of their faces being those
that only night creatures are used to observing. A smart, coiffured woman with matching droll.

A man who's facial shape had become sunken and deconstructed, where did his false teeth land? The occasional passenger only "resting their eyes" but betrayed by the audible warning that starts with zzzzzzzzzzzzz and ends with unconscious. The few who look like the car dog ornaments whose
head bobs as they travel, we will call them the whiplashers. Necks relaxed head falls forward then snaps! back into starting position. There was a more controlled bobber whose head bobbed back and forth great head control.

The secrets of the sleep deprived would make a great video art piece perhaps on the return trip?
You have been warned.

You'll recognise me I'll be the one whose been on the caffeine, bright eyed and bushy tailed. You can never tell what people might blog about?

I'm out and about

Olives, Marmite & Victory V's

11/04/2011
Hello,

There are foods that unite taste buds throughout the world. A mere whiff or sight being enough to activate the salivary glands. Unless they are the low, low cost varieties that look and taste like cardboard and wallpaper paste then I think these foods don't stay on the plate long.

Regardless of where I have been if these are around they generally are gobbled.

Now I'm not saying that local less well travelled foods are not yummy but they haven't travelled in the same way. They don't have the same impact.

So to start the list of food loves I will add the following

Pizza,
Ice Cream,
Toast......

What would you add?

However for every light there is dark, for every Luke there is a Darth. Therefore we must also start a list of those foods that fare less well. Invoking as they do as many grimaces as grins.

For this list I will start with the following

Olives,
Marmite,
Victory V's

What do you think?

Sunday, 10 April 2011

Mental Note - Blue's and Two's

See attached.

Blue's and Two's.pdf Download this file

I'm out and about

A sunny tweeting Saturday

09/04/2011

Hello
Have you had a good day?

In twitter style here's mine....

Sunny, smiley, movies-limitless, 80% brain unused?, food-Turkish- lamb,cous cous, veg stew, borek :), Tesco, dog walking woods, The Killing

Friday, 8 April 2011

It's #unknown to me

08/04/2011

Evening,

Here I am in the granite city, the home according to the song of the northern lights, in all it's grey, glittery splendour and seagulls (there always seems to be a lot flying around).
Aberdeen!

Tomorrow the business head comes on but tonight to save my normal head from seizing up it needs stimulation so taking advantage of my Cineworld movie card I trooped of to the picture house to see

"Unknown" the latest Liam Neeson vehicle that has him lumbering around Berlin like some captive Irish Polar Bear.

Now let's cut straight to the chase with a side shimmy to say that I like Liam Neeson but the truth is, to use the Scottish vernacular it was mince!

You watch and instinctively you know what missing the continuity person. Where also was the person in pre-production that should NO! thats bit of story is mince.

So let get this out of my head, let's have a brain splurge, all my Unknown thoughts down on the electronic paper. Here goes.

January Jones (3rd on the credits, lead? lady) can't act. In the TV series "Mad Men" she smokes and pouts that is her range, she's mince.

The story is a pretty predictable after a point and has more holes in it than my dear Grandad's string vest.

According to the movie the Berlin police and fire service are ineffectual, they're mince.

Liam Neeson although fairly well preserved is according to the passport in the movie younger than me. Now I'm not Dorien Grey but I thought that kind of casting died out with John Wayne?

According to the movie Berlin nurses are also mince and whilst we are at it don't get on a tram there as the driver cannot recognise a dangerous situation. So we can surmise that Berlin public servants are mince.

Berlin car park barriers are also mince, surprised at this when one considers the engineering might that Germany is.

Oh and their vans explode!

Killers who kill without thought save the heroine from death and just hold her.

The same character needs 4000 Euro for "papers" but with a back story like she has asylum would be a better option.

Oh and Berlin seems to be a society that supports free art and public transport?

You can seemingly be hit by a huge slab of concrete and just have a cut.

As I said I like Liam Neeson he's done some good stuff but he now seems to be Hollywoods favourite Celt having taken over from Sean Connery. Can you do accents Liam? Yes I can do Irish, American Irish, Irish Irish - that's north and south and American Irish Irish.

I can just imagine the guy pitching the idea for Unknown to the money men at the studio.

"I got an idea for the big Irish guy"

"Who, Terry Wogan?"

"No Neeson"

"Right"

"We get him crashing and stomping around a European city, exploding and destroying, not paying train fares"

"Oh! He's bad then, what about the cops?"

It's Europe, Berlin all the cops, nurses, public servants are mince! We can do anything because Europe's poor and they need our money"

"Damn Socialists, let's kick some Socialist butt"

"Yeah and if this goes to plan we get the next movie in the Liam Neeson rampages through Europe movie tour into production"

"Paris"

"No done that"

"What about Dublin, they're really poor, we can do anything!"

"Damn Socialists"

"Can Neeson do Oirish?"

So there you go, after seeing it it's unknown to me why it's still on the movie play list after such a long time?

"Unknown"

Sorry Liam it's a 4/10