Now, look: it’s the middle of May and it’s the middle of the afternoon. You take the dog for a walk. What do you expect? Well, a la Brighton, what you get is you and the dog repeatedly being almost blown off your feet. Literally.
If this was an isolated incident, fine. Hm, okay, today is particularly bad, and you normally get this of a night. But still. I didn’t get anything like this in the depths of Winter in London (or Brum, very often).
Read More »Lotsa Weather
Terrible, rainy weather today. I’m not really stuck in the house, but I had a couple of non-urgent errands that this wretched downpour has dissuaded me from doing today. (Okay, I’m a wuss. Sue me.)
I had plans for last Wednesday. Saruman himself, Christopher Lee, was signing his autobiography, Lord of Misrule, in London at Forbidden Planet on Saturday and Borders on Wednesday. I thought I’d go for Wednesday. Alas, irrevocable transport problems put the kibosh on my plans… I did finally make it into Brum, but too late to get an affordable train that would’ve been on time. My only choice was a Virgin train for £30. I was forced to admit defeat.
So the heatwave’s back this week. We’ve been flirting with temperatures around 98 degrees, which is just lovely. Not. Today is the worst yet, and call me a wuss, but I’m having immense difficulty functioning in it.
Read More »Damned Weather
Video purchase this week: the ABC Murders episode of Poirot, with David Suchet. This one was made in 1992 and, as far as I can remember, was particularly good. (They’re all good, though. Suchet is wonderful.) Anyway, we’ll be watching it later tonight.
This gives me a reason for mentioning the recent news story about the forthcoming Poirot episodes… four to be filmed this year, the first commencing later this month (Five Little Pigs). Rumour has it that Gwyneth Paltrow will appear in Death on the Nile. Suchet still hopes to film all of the original stories! (total so far: 49.)
Read More »Eh Bien, Mon Ami
Got my ‘official’ letter giving the starting day of my ‘Work Experience Provision’ course today. Next Monday it is.
It says: ‘We would be grateful if you could arrive ten minutes early, due to the popularity of this training opportunity, we cannot guarantee your place if you arrive late.’ Notwithstanding the lousy punctuation (there should be a period after ‘early’), the idea of a course which is mandatory—if you’ve been unemployed for 18 months, you get shoved on this or lose your benefit—being ‘popular’ is absolutely hysterical.
Read More »Popularity Contest
Today apparently was the hottest day of the year so far. They’re saying it’s the hottest period we’ve had in the UK since the 1976 drought. (Of which I have only the vaguest of memories.) And… it’s set to be even hotter tomorrow! Wow. Wonderful. I’m so thrilled, I think I might wet my pants. Really.
Read More »If You Can’t Stand the Heat…
I’ve just finished reading Doug Warren’s official James Cagney biography. After the Orson one, I was in a biog mood (actually, a mood to read more on Orson, but that’ll have to wait), and mom recommended this, which she’d read and enjoyed some time ago.
I’m not a big Cagney fan, really. I think he was a great personality and a fine actor, but many of the films he appeared in were not to my taste. (Reading this book, ironically, I find they often weren’t to Cagney’s taste either.) With Cagney being a rather private person, and this book being authorised, it’s a pretty slim volume, and eschews a lot of in-depth probing… but there’s still some interesting insight.
Read More »Just a Job, Honest
Yesterday was Shopping Day™, and I went into Birmingham. The weather continues to displease me. First thing in the morning, it’s chilly; by noon, it’s blisteringly hot; by late afternoon, a cold wind has been added to the mix. I don’t know, maybe this inconsistency is what Global Warming is about. All I know for sure is, it’s incredibly annoying. Particularly the blisteringly hot bit… but then, I’m no Summer Fan.
Anyhow, I bought a video: Touch of Evil. Oh no! Another Orson Welles film! (I bought The Third Man last month.) Yeah, well, I’m a fan, and since I’m not buying books at the moment—I’m still slogging through The Stand at present, with about 260 pages to go—I’m spending what little spare cash I have elsewhere. As with The Third Man, it’s been at least a decade since I saw this one. We’ll probably watch it tonight, so maybe I’ll comment further tonight or tomorrow.
Read More »I Don’t Need No Steenkin’ Hot Weather
Banal weather report: Rainy weather. Dull sky. Atmosphere slightly humid but chilly around the edges. A bit crap, really. How can you please someone like… Read More »A Lot of Weather We’ve Been Having
Today, I’ve felt incredibly bored and listless. Maybe that’s what Bank Holidays are for—it’s time for the TV channels to replace their usual, stellar line-ups with a constant stream of ancient films that have already been shown a zillion times before.
Read More »Bank Holiday Blues
