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Wednesday, 30 July 2014

As the mother of four sons how could I resist a film called Boyhood? Richard Linklater's intimate portrayal of 12 years in the life of an average Texas family is compelling viewing for anyone who is in the process of rearing a family. It explores the formative years of a boy called Mason, whilst taking in the lives of those around him including his divorced parents and sister Sam, played by Linklater's own daughter.

As it was filmed over 12 years in real life there are none of the unconvincing prosthetics or awkward jumps between different child and teen actors. Instead the real growing pains of the children involved are captured in all their celluloid glory. It shows the main character's growth from a cute six year old into a disaffected and pretentious teen without pulling any punches. In fact, Ellar Coltraine, who plays Mason, says he cringed as he watched himself literally grow up onscreen.

It is probably this realism that makes the film so compelling. At almost three hours long I was convinced I would be twitching in my seat long before the end, bored by a self indulgent director's inability to edit his own work. Instead I was riveted. Mason's family isn't that similar to mine, there were just two children instead of four, mum and dad were divorced and the family lives a peripatetic life of moves, new partners, siblings and schools, but some things are universal.

I got a not entirely pleasant insight into what young boys get up to when unsupervised. It appears that this revolves around sex and drink, with a few soft drugs thrown in for good measure. This is not particularly comfortable viewing for a mother of pre-teens, but I guess it lets me know what I am in for.

But scene after scene tugged at my heartstrings as I saw my future, or at least a version of it, played out in front of me. I watched as Mason pushed his mother away when she went to give him a goodbye kiss at his new school, as he was embarrassed by her pride in his graduation and most heart wrenching of all the scene where he leaves home for college. His sobbing mother declares it the worst day of her life, and I was crying along with her at just the thought of my boys leaving home.

It is a fascinating film that kept me captivated from beginning to end. But more than that it made me go home and stroke the baby soft skin of my five-year-old twins with a new found appreciation. It highlighted just how fast time goes with children. The parents compare notes at Mason's graduation party, incredulous that their kids had both left high school. I know that sensation well, where you feel as if just a moment ago you were cradling a baby and now you are making applications to secondary school for that same boy.

It is so easy to rush the business of being a parent. When you are under the daily cosh of school runs, washing, cooking, taxiing and nagging to do homework, tests and music practise, it doesn't feel like a magical time to be treasured. Instead you want to get through the day and into bed with a good book. At least I know that's how I feel, but this film did give me reason to pause.

It made me think about how I am missing the best bits, or at least failing to savour them as I spend so much time grumbling about how hard it is to rear small children. It's not that Boyhood sugar coats the early years. They are shown as the familiar chaotically harassed mess of pick ups, drop offs, arguments about school work and a juggling act of earning a living alongside bringing up children. But when viewed in sharp contrast to the adult years that leap upon us so fast, they take on an altogether more precious feel.

So Mr Linklater thank you for making me smile, cry and pass two and a bit hours in the company of your celluloid family, but more importantly for showing me that I should stop from time to time and relish my boys' boyhood, for it is a just a fleeting moment in a lifetime that passes all too quickly.

Tuesday, 29 July 2014

Swearing in front of children is, by and large, frowned upon. Which is why I am so ashamed of my inability to keep my language from turning blue on an embarrassingly regular basis when there are small people in my vicinity.

One early warning sign that perhaps I should project a more clean living image was when my eldest son announced that he couldn't wait to be an adult because then he could "Drink, swear and gamble". How to make a maternal heart swell with pride. I should point out that this was declared after a trip to Las Vegas where he had been endlessly shooed off the gaming floor by zealous security guards keen to retain the casino's gambling and liquor licences.

But even so it is shaming that at his tender age he saw swearing as sign of maturity (let's not get into the drinking and gambling here). I had taught my little boy that swearing was both big and clever. This is surely not the job of a good mother? Then only problem is that I find it hard to work up much of a head of steam about the use of bad language.

Of course I don't like to hear it from the lips of little children, and have made this crystal clear to my boys. They know that swearing is for adults only. I accept this is a deeply hypocritical line to take, but I find it nigh on impossible to keep the odd naughty word from slipping out under duress, so what alternative to do I have? I do try self regulate, and make sure the really strong words are kept under lock and key, but I suspect that my children learned the word shit at about the same time as they picked up mummy and daddy.

Sadly the oldest's nosy eavesdropping means that now even the strong words are popping out of Pandora's box. During a recent stressful house move I felt moved to insult our potential buyers by declaring them them to be "a pair of C**TS" over the phone to my husband. Only to discover my eldest lurking outside the door, grinning gleefully that he had added another profanity to his growing lexicon of curses. Ooops indeed.

He did get the lecture that this is the nuclear weapon of expletives only to be unleashed in the most severe of circumstances by adults well over the age of 18. I think he understood, but such words are sprinkled with the glittering the allure of the illicit. I think using a hardcore swear word is the 2014 equivalent of taking a puff of a cigarette behind the bike sheds for my generation. Possibly naively  I don't think many modern kids would give this a try, but using a naughty word seems to hold the same fascination - or perhaps it's just my eldest who is drawn to the dark side.

In fact my middle boy is the polar opposite and is one step away from introducing a swear box to at least profit from his mum's bad language. Every time I employ the mildest oath he snaps "Mummy" at me in the disapproving tone of a prim maiden aunt. He takes a very dim view of rude words and is forever trying to wrench my language out of the gutter.

I fear that he is fighting a losing battle though. I am part of a hard swearing bloodline where the air in the family home was often turned blue with casual obscenities. My mum's favourite was the inventive phrase "Fxxxing Shaggers", which was employed at the drop of a hat, glass of milk, chest of drawers on her foot and so on. I then worked in magazine offices where every other word began with the letter F and as a freelance I am at liberty to swear at my screen as much as damn well like. I am a lost cause when it comes to dainty language.

I will just have to hope that my boys' teenage rebellion is to become as different from mummy as possible. A bit like Saffron in Ab Fab, they will decide that to be as square as possible is the best way to show their old mum the error of her ways.

Friday, 25 July 2014

Golden rules for a family day out

Happy Families!

It's the summer holiday, so naturally your thoughts will be turning to ways of entertaining the children. For all that is written about how boredom is good for children, the reality is often utterly intolerable forcing the average parent to resort to highly expensive and inconvenient amusements. Hence the decision to do a family day out - be it to a theme park, to a stately home or just to anywhere other than under your feet - there are some simple rules I have discovered through painful trial and error, which should go some way towards making the experience more bearable.

So here are my golden rules for a successful family day out:

I realise this appears to be a rather contradictory rule, but while bored children within the confines of your home are hard to take, imagine that distilled to the inside of car for several hours on a hot day. It doesn't really bear contemplation and at least at home you are in close proximity to drinks, snacks and a toilet.

If you insist on pressing ahead with this harebrained scheme then you do not, whatever you do, leave the house without a proper supply of food. It amazes me how leaving the house appears to create an insatiable hunger in my boys. It's as if as soon as they are out of range of the fridge their stomachs start to panic. Even a short walk is accompanied by whines that they are hungry, no matter how recently they were fed, and who can forget the soporific effect of a breadstick on a testy toddler? I know that  boxes of raisins were the only way to survive a shopping trip when mine were still buggy bound. For a long car journey the rule is pack as many snacks as you can physically fit around you in the footwell of your car, and you will still run out before you get there.

I know the reason that you got them out of the house in the first was to get them away from screens, but if your trip is likely to take more than an hour, then sink your principles and plug them right back in again. We have travelled across Europe in blissful silence all courtesy of the combined forces of an iPad and an in-car DVD system. It really is the only way to travel without dumping at least one child beside the motorway when their bickering becomes too much to take.

When I was a grown up, as opposed to a parent, the idea of a child-friendly destination filled me with dread. What constituted a good day out was perhaps a brief flit around an historical site, a long walk in the gardens and a slap up lunch in a top notch restaurant. Or maybe there would be live music and a bottle of fizz on a stretch of manicured green lawn, or perhaps an indulgent picnic and some open air theatre.  Essentially the key to it was that these activities actively discouraged the participation of small children, what with their requirement to pay attention to something for more than a few seconds without shouting, screaming or getting bored.

Now, when selecting a destination there are only two things that are essential: 1. a cafe serving child friendly food, for which read chips and anything in breadcrumbs and 2. a play area, or preferably two, one indoors and one outdoors, so you are covered for all weather eventualities. Other than that I'm easy.

If I am going out for the day I need a phone, keys, money and a pair of sunglasses. If I am going out for the day with my sons I need the aforementioned trailer load of food, wipes, suncream, bottles of water all round, a change of clothes or two, towels if we are likely to go anywhere near water, toys, aforementioned entertainment devices and yes, more food. It is better than when they were tiny and you had to add a buggy, nappies, milk and several more changes of clothes to that list, but still getting the boys out of the house is like a military exercise and I still always find I have forgot the one crucial thing I really need.

By this I am not referring to the previous point, instead I mean you need to prepare for your return. This is very simple. Make sure that you have a chilled bottle of white resting in the fridge, ready to be cracked open the second your children have been herded into bed. After the first glass or two the post traumatic stress following a family outing starts to fade and blur into a false memory of a lovely day out. This can be the only explanation as to why we are sure to put ourselves through it again next school holiday.

Wednesday, 23 July 2014

School's out for summer

It's the end of term and all my sons are in party mood and ready to celebrate six weeks of freedom. No surprise as the last few days at school seem to have involved nothing but watching DVDs and eating cake in the classroom.

Strangely, despite the fact that I will be in sole command of my little troupe of terrors for the next few weeks, I am feeling equally demob happy. While I am sure that I will be a frazzled wreck come the end of summer I am gasping for a few weeks off school.

School can be very wearing, what with the early starts, endless pickups, interminable concerts, picnics, performances, cake sales, fetes and so on that require parental helpers (or at least those mums such as myself who appear to have 'MUG' tattooed on our foreheads). That's not to mention the politics and infighting that is the inevitable result of interacting with other people over something as fraught as the education and welfare of our precious children.

The moaning never ceases and even though I hold my hands up to being one of the worst culprits, I long for a break from it all. I don't want to worry about who will man the popcorn maker, who failed to put the things away properly in the PTA cupboard, who hasn't given their fiver for the teacher's collection, who has resigned from a key position on this or that committee leaving us in our perennial position of 'in the lurch'.

As I walk out of school today I want to shut the door on all of that and have five weeks with my boys. I want them to get up when they like and spend all day playing computer games if that's what they want. I want to explore sunlit fields searching for dragons in the undergrowth, I want to see just how wet and muddy they can get while playing in the local stream. I want them sticky with ice cream and lazy with days spent in the garden in the sunshine. I want to watch movies and not worry if they get to bed too late.

I don't want to nag about homework, or search for PE kits and book bags, I don't want to sign any permissions slips, or remember packed lunches, or make sure music practise is done. I don't want to do load after load of washing to ensure there is clean uniform available every day. I don't want to wake up at 7am to drag myself out of bed to extract my grumpy children from beneath their duvets. I don't want to start the day by screaming at them to remember to brush their teeth and to hurry their way through their breakfast or we will be late.

In short I am sick of the drudgery, the never-ending school runs and the unceasing flow of admin that has to be dealt with to manage the school lives of four children. The forms, the invitations, the applications for clubs, the music lessons, the tutors, the school applications…the list goes on and on.

This is why I think it is so important that we keep our long summer holiday. It's not for the children's sake, it's for all the parents. Of course the children love a break, but it's us mums and dads who need a few weeks away from the school gates. So I say hurrah for the summer holiday (but check back with me in a couple of weeks and see if the boys have managed to dampen my enthusiasm by then).

Thursday, 17 July 2014

Decisions, decisions

There are lots of challenges facing parents. We all have to endure the sleep deprivation, the mess, the noise, the brutal curtailment of our social life, the demotion to a combination of cash machine, short order cook and mini cab driver, but I think that perhaps one of the hardest things about bringing up children is the number of choices you have to make.

When they are babies we agonise everything: from the birth plan - should we go natural or drugged up to the eyeballs? - to feeding. Breast or bottle, organic puree or the shameful convenience of jars? From nappies - Pampers or reusable? - to sleeping - tend to their every whimper or leave them to scream themselves into slumber?

It doesn't get any easier as they grow up either. I still remember agonising over whether or not to go back to work and if I did which nursery would be entrusted with the care of my precious little toddler. My ultimate choice for number one (who, as the test case, has been the cause of the greatest degree of soul searching) was a chi, chi Montessori pre-school that set us back as much as a decade's worth of five star holidays and about which he remembers not a thing.

Don't even get me started on primary school. I will never get back the hours I devoted to poring over Ofsted reports and league tables, the days wasted traipsing around schools being soft soaped by head teachers. I remember we were so desperate to see the school our son ultimately went to, we braved a snow storm to attend the open day only to be greeted by a sign telling us it was closed due to bad weather. Shows our naivety, we subsequently learned that the head closed the school at the faintest whiff of a snowflake.

I don't recall ever taking so much care with decisions I made about my own life and you would think that as a slightly more seasoned parent I  would have realised how little difference most of the choices I make as a mother ultimately make.

If only. Though, in mitigation, I do think that my painful vacillation is partially fuelled by group hysteria. It is not possible to get together with a group of mums with children the same age as yours and not be dragged into a conversation about the pros and cons of the choice of the moment. NCT friends would furiously debate those baby choices over coffee in the park, while now my fellow Year 5 mums cannot meet even for a swift coffee without the topic turning towards secondary school places.

These conversations turn on hearsay and nuggets of information from those who have trodden that path before us. Misinformation spreads like wildfire. Tales from friends of friends who have apparently either discovered the secret formula to get into the school of your choice, or whose poor choices left their child with no option but to attend the local comp, which draws it's feral pupils from the surrounding sink estate.

Such tales imbue every tiny choice you make with a terrifying importance. It's no wonder that it is so hard to make a simple, straightforward decision when every conclusion you think you have reached is sub-consciously second guessed by something we overheard, or read in the paper or has been fed to us via the school gates web of Chinese whispers.

The only glimmer of hope on the horizon is that where once my sons believed I was the fount of all wisdom and my word was law, the eldest has developed a healthy scepticism (or some might say scorn) when it comes to the infallibility of the opinions of adults. So I think the days of me making choices for him are numbered, and I say amen to that.

Tuesday, 15 July 2014

Report Day

Today is report day for my four sons. Although a B- to the school though as they were meant to come out yesterday, but a mysterious delay held them back for 24 hours. Clearly some of the teachers must try harder to get their homework in on time.

I still recall the sheer terror of report day when I was at school. I would try to cook up any number of reasons why that dreaded sheet of A4 paper wouldn't make it home. Could I claim to be the only pupil the teachers deemed so outstanding as to not need a report? On past form I felt this claim probably wouldn't fly.

I could lose it, destroy it, shred it or find some other way to blast it out of existence, but even before the days of computerisation there was probably a carbon copy of it it somewhere. Either that or my disgruntled teachers would remember word for word each criticism they had to level against me and would relish the chance to relay the report verbatim to my parents.

When I started at school I was mystified by the rules and regulations that surrounded education. My home life was a ramshackle affair that ran on mess and chaos, so I really didn't understand why it was wrong to simply get up and go to the toilet when you needed a wee, why you needed to put your hand up and wait to be asked to speak or why you shouldn't rest your feet on the desk in front if that made you more comfortable? Of course when asked 'Would you be behave like this at home?', my innocent reply of 'Yes', was interpreted as insubordination leading to a trip to the headmaster's office.

The strongest memory I have of my primary school is picking away at the khaki hessian board that was hung outside his office. Endlessly pinning and unpinning the spare drawing pins used to stick up school notices. I can feel it's hairy roughness under my fingers and make out the uniform pattern of the fabric, bumpy and scratchy to the touch.

It is perhaps no wonder that my school career was blighted by poor reports that complained of my insufficient regard for authority, my failure to fulfil potential, my disruptive nature in class, my stubborn refusal to ever apologise to anyone.... As one form teacher from my secondary school sighed 'Ursula has an answer for everything'. You would think this would be a positive trait in an educational establishment, but I am pretty sure it was not meant as a compliment.

I just thank my lucky stars that so far my boys have not trodden in my footsteps when it comes to reports. I suspect this is in part due to their altogether more pleasant natures, but also because schools are much kinder, more friendly places than they were in the late 70s. In this brave new multicultural world differences are to be celebrated rather than quashed, which means an odd bod like me would probably have been singled out for extra care and attention rather than relegated to endless hessian gazing.

So far report day has been an occasion of celebration, last year the eldest managed to net a full brace of A grades and a report so flattering that it brought a tear to my eye. So different from the school reports of his dear old mum.

I do have an inkling that the plain sailing might not last forever as I see far too much of myself in my youngest boy. He shares my utter rejection of the concept of compromise and insatiable desire to get my own way, a combination that is, I fear, destined to challenge future teachers. As yet he is still at the Playdough and Phonics end of his education, so for now I imagine his educators think these are things he will grow out of. I can hear my husband's hollow laugher in my head as I type these words and he knows better.

Despite my own mortifying experiences, I can't help feeling a fizz of anticipation on report day for my boys. I can't wait to rip open those envelopes and read all about how much they are liked and appreciated by their teachers. How well they are doing and how much they have achieved. Perhaps if I had ever managed to deliver such a welcome package to my parents report day would not have such a bittersweet flavour.

Monday, 14 July 2014

All by myself

It is not until you share your home with four young boys that you realise how precious being alone is. Solitude is something I crave in the same way an alcoholic surely yearns for the crystal clear hit of vodka or a smoker aches to draw that first puff of nicotine into their lungs. To be by myself with no demands made on my time is the stuff of dreams. An hour or two without the word 'Mummy' being drilled into my skull with all the persistence and volume as a pneumatic drill, without anyone wanting a drink, a snack or to tell me some interminable fact about Minecraft. This is the drug I crave.

I know working mothers whose main reason for returning to work was to enjoy the peace and adult time afforded by a commute. To sit huddled on a hot, overcrowded train, crammed into close proximity with all manner of human kind, with wildly varying interpretations of the concept of cleanliness was preferable to the unceasing chatter and needs of their young brood.

Oh how I empathise. Forget the smells, the heat, the delays, the fact is onboard London Underground no one will bother you. There is an unwritten rule that no matter how closely you are squeezed into someone's armpit, no matter if their groin continually nudges the pages of your newspaper, you do not speak to one another. What utter bliss.  I wish I could institute such a rule at home.

I would insist on a vow of silence from the moment I pick them up from school to the moment I have finished depositing all their crap back into the hall at home. No voices could vie for my attention to tell me how disappointing my choice of after school snack was, or to demand why had I forgotten to bring a drink, or to insist that I was more than capable of juggling a cello, four school bags and my youngest son's latest cardboard creation, whilst also holding the hands of both my twins. No one could cry, or get upset because I failed to stop the world so I could give them my undivided attention the instant they required it.

I suspect that if I were able to create this regime I would not feel anxiety rising like a hot tide within me the moment I reached their classroom door. It's not that I don't want to hear about their day, it's just I don't want to hear about all four of their days simultaneously, whilst listening to them each ramp up the volume to ensure that I am listening to their story most closely. I don't want to endure another argument about who gets to sit in the front of the car, or debate about how old you should be before you start carrying your own school bag. I don't want to unravel the mysteries of how my eldest son managed to lose his shoes, or to hear about how so and so was mean to the middle boy.

I want silence. I want to switch them all off and transport them in a monastically quiet car until we reach home, at which point they all peel off to amuse themselves leaving me to perhaps have a proper chat with just one son, or to cook their supper in peace once again.

The only way I keep a slippery grip on sanity is to regularly escape family life and revel in relative isolation of a walk or run by myself. In fact a year or so ago I joined a running group in the hope that it would improve my performance. But, while I met some truly lovely people, I discovered that I hated running in company and rather than boosting my running I all but gave up.

It dawned on me that it was not the fitness that running gave me that I loved, but the chance to get away. To cover miles of city streets and green fields all by myself. To slip through mud, sweat through sunshine and discover my little corner of London alone. Friends would ask to run with me, but I will admit that for me that defeated the object. Chatting and company shattered that precious isolation running gave to me.

Since then I have had my ups and downs with running, but despite having lost my marathon fitness, I am still addicted to the seclusion of a good run, even if now it might be more of a waddle and a walk than a swift jog. The main upside of this is that now all my friends are far better runners than me and no longer want to accompany me as I wobble and puff around the streets three times a week. Instead I sometimes invite Messrs Kermode and Mayo to chat to me about films, but other than that it's just me, myself and I and that's the way I like it.

So while a bunch of flowers is always welcome, I never say no to a box of chocolates or a jorum of fizz, the most deliciously decadent gift anyone could bestow upon me is an hour of uninterrupted peace. Not to do the washing, or cook dinner or tidy the house, but to just be me. Not a mother or wife, a worker bee or housekeeper, just to be alone with my thoughts and take the pressure off.

I wonder how many other mothers are shouting snap as they read what comes top of my wish list?

Somewhere over the rainbow

No longer do I seek a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, instead I long for a house free from infinite quantities of multicoloured mini elastic bands. Everywhere I look from inside the washing machine to the hob, from the sofa to in between the sheets and the mattresses of my boys beds there are loom bands.

Not since the Rubix Cube that gripped the country in an obsessional fever back in the 80s has a toy craze appeared so all pervasive. You cannot go out without encountering an industrious child beavering away on their tiny loom to create garish bracelets, rings and even more inventively, hard-to-identify elastic band animals to hang from their clothing.

Mothers at school have discard tennis bracelets, watches or any other type of bangle in favour of hand-crafted loom band jewellery that their children would be mortally offended if they failed to show off on their wrist. Even dads have their hairy arms embellished with pink and white knitted bracelets kindly made by their offspring.

Invented by Cheong Choon Ng who, like many parents before him, identified that most children would far rather play with rubbish than with actual toys, and capitalised on his daughters' fondness for making things out of elastic bands by creating Rainbow Looms. A smart move that has netted him millions, and discovered the secret formula to get children away from screens.

While I am filled with admiration for his ingenuity, I cannot forgive him the plastic detritus that he has spread across the house. I will not forgive him until I stop waking up spitting out elastic bands carelessly discarded in bed, until I stop having to wear woven elastic bands biting into my wrists and until I stop having daughter envy when I see the creations made by my friends' girls compared with the sorry attempts made by my sons!

However to address this final problem I have found a secret weapon as publishers have been relatively quick to cotton on to this trend and I have come across (via a helpful PR) a book called Loom Band It! by Kate Roberts and Tessa Sillars-Powell. This colourful title promises to up my boys skills from simple bracelets to the dizzy heights of elastic band cupcakes, sandals and mobile phone cases.

It's arrival in our house certainly proved popular as it always does when one item arrives in a house with four children, but as usual the most obstreperous twin won out and spirited it off to school where they have recently invested in 3,000 bands plus looms for his reception class. I am expecting big things, not least that the cereal boxes covered in lolly sticks and tissue paper I am handed at school pick up be replaced by a new kitchen knitted entirely from elastic bands. Now for that I really would thank Mr Ng!

Tuesday, 8 July 2014

Age before cuteness

Mummy blogs rather tend to focus on the early years. Indeed FDMTG was born alongside my twins charting their early years from their first smiles to their first words, examining the contents of nappies in minute detail and sharing the perils of bedtime for four boys. I suspect this trend is due to the comedic potential of small children, twinned with the acres of boredom that stretch between moments of note when your child can neither speak nor walk.

I know that I am as guilty as any mummy blogger of seeking to preserve those precious moments of baby- and toddler-hood. To use my blog to stroke their golden curls, to suck in the fragrance of a warm and milking babe in arms, to capture those ephemeral bubbles as they burst at bath time. I used to believe that there were just a few fleeting golden years of childhood, that were provided to ensure that you could cope with older children once their cuteness was buried under sulky moods and ill judged pre-teen fashion fads.

The image of your dungaree clad toddler smudged with yoghurt would somehow blur the edges of an acned teenager throwing a strop over pocket money, allowing you to retain some degree of maternal love long after the cuteness that first won your heart had worn off.

As usual I was wrong. I find that as my children grow older I grow ever fonder of them. Of course I have not actually hit the teenage years yet, but there are certainly plenty of hormones stewing within my volatile 10-year-old to give me an inkling of what lies in store, but I'm not scared anymore.

Yes his chubby cheeks have slimmed down and he wouldn't appreciate me covering his bottom in kisses any more, but it turns out that the fulfilment derived from having a sarcastic exchange with him, or discussing The Fault in Our Stars with him is far greater than basking in a toothless baby smile.

Yes we fight, he was horrified at my heartlessness when I failed to cry while reading the aforementioned Fault in Our Stars. But then we make up as he almost had to carry me out of the cinema as I sobbed uncontrollably at the celluloid version of the book. We hurt each other occasionally as we share the same mildly cruel sense of humour, but he is the only man to whom I will willingly apologise and he melted my heart by bringing me a bunch of flowers after a particularly contentious exchange.

I have discovered that while a deliciously cute toddler offers a hit of sweetness like a swiftly gobbled chocolate, an articulate and sceptical pre-teen is to be savoured like a fine and complex wine. Sure I can't make him giggle by blowing raspberries on his tummy (though I could still try, he's not that grown up), but I can discuss the relative merits of religion or whether or not it's worth wading through the arcane language to get to the heart of Shakespeare.

So while now I might feel a twinge of nostalgia in the making as I watch my twins run the obstacle race at reception sports day, their little legs pumping under their shorts as they pound to the finish line, their little arms reaching for me when I tell them it's time for mummy to go. Now I am comforted by the thought that this isn't the end of the line when it comes it feeling your heart contract with love for your children, in fact the best is yet to come.

Sunday, 6 July 2014

Taming the tiger mum

I have always been far too lazy to be a tiger mother. Forcing my children to devote their spare time to improving their sentence structure, decoding mind-frazzling puzzles and endlessly practising scales, rather than their preferred activities of shooting things on the Xbox and devising ever more ingenious ways to irritate other family members just seemed way too much like hard work. But now the dread spectre of secondary school looms large I begin to wonder if I have perhaps missed a trick.

Even as the most mathematically challenged mother I have worked out that if x= four sons to educate and y= approximately £20,000 school fees per son, per year then parents= too poor. This leaves me with two options. Option one is the true sloth mother choice, simply let my boys brave the local comp and hope for the best, or at least that they survive the experience intact and free from an addiction to any class of drugs.

Now call me a helicopter mother but I have seen the boys that go to our local comp and they scare me. Given that my eldest has strong nerdy tendencies and a marked preference for reading over football, I fear that taking the path of least resistance would see him having his head forced down the toilet by nasty rough boys within his first week. You might think I exaggerate, but this is exactly what happened to the last sweet little boy who was fed to this pride of schoolboy lions by his laissez faire mother.

Moving swiftly on to option two. Selective schools. Well this is where I feel that in failing to roundly punish children every time their thoughts turned from those of academic improvement I have let them down. While I am a firm believer that childhood is a time to do as little as possible, after all adulthood is deeply marred by the requirement to work hard to make ends meet, this philosophy looks a little shaky as I put my children into the ring against the cubs of tiger mothers.

Yesterday my boy auditioned for a music place at a local selective school. The odds are not stacked in his favour as thousands (I exaggerate not) of children vie for 20 places, but he valiantly carried his cello into battle. I even made him wear a shirt in an attempt to curry favour with those music teachers who would decide his fate.

I soon discovered that I am an amateur in these matters as we sat down next to a girl in the full regalia of a gold embroidered sari strumming away on a sitar that was at least twice her size. Clearly a shirt and about the fifth cello in the room were not going to cut the mustard against competition like this.

Perhaps I should have had some inkling of what we were up against during the soloists concert at his primary school. While my boy gave a perfectly creditable performance, with only a few screeching wrong notes to let him down, a fellow pupil gave a virtuoso performance I would pay money to see. The rumour mill at school assures me that this level of excellence is achieved courtesy of some particularly red in tooth and claw tiger mothering.

These are early days in the rounds of tests and exams that will seal his fate. But it's too late to get fierce now and I have to pray that being such a pussycat mother won't end up being tacked onto the roster of parenting errors I have made.


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MarketWatch with James Igo

This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

The February unemployment report came out last week and despite the bad weather this winter, there as actually some positive news for the economy.  Joining us to speak about this and other topics is financial expert, James Igo.

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NFL won’t fine Packers for critical tweets following loss

This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

NEW YORK — The NFL will not fine players for critical remarks made on Twitter toward the replacement officials and the NFL following the Green Bay Packers’ loss to the Seattle Seahwaks Monday night, September 24th, NFL. com reports.

Monday night’s controversial ending to the Packers-Seahawks game outraged players and fans alike. Following the controversial call, multiple players took to Twitter to vocalize their criticism of the replacement officials and the NFL.

The NFL says it has not fined a player for remarks made on social media outside of it’s time restrictions before and after games.

CLICK HERE for additional Green Bay Packers coverage via


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Before & After Success with Dr. Mendoza!

Fountain Of Youth Medical Spa Weightloss Management, using Juvederm.

(With our treatment program and Juvederm), Mike shed 31 pounds and has kept it off for 7 months now with a comprehensive medical weight management plan from Dr. Mendoza and Fountain of Youth Medical Spa. Treatment options may include an appetite suppressant prescription, nutritional supplementation, dietary counseling and an exercise program.

Dr. Mendoza is Dual board certified and specializes in safe, comprehensive, and effective medical weight loss. He will perform a physical exam and interview to disscuss patient goals and present treatment options.


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Saturday, 9 March 2013

Friday & The Weekend

Lots And Lots

Where I to parrot off the list of things happening on Friday, it would be quite a list. I will boil it down to the fact I did a little bit of everything, and pretty much got my inbox under control that day.

AGK Project Bits

We had some problems on the old 3GS phone, and managed to get hold of one today so was able to reproduce and fix the remaining issues on that phone. A coders life is 1000% improved when the bug is readily reproducible!

FPSC & Reloaded Bits

As a way to keep the ball moving, I did some FPSC related compiles and checks to keep my hand in, but the main work will commence Monday when I have almost the whole day to get the current object placement system extracted and into my light mapper prototype. We'll then see some fireworks.

Ultimate Coder Bits

I anticipated the demand will be high to top my last video from Week Three, and it's a fools errand to attempt such a thing. I spend a few hours of the early hours looking at and compiling various audio conferencing open source projects but they are few and far between and they don't make it easy to get something up and running. All I wanted was a downloadable VS project I could compile and run, trace through the code then extract what I needed. What I got was projects requiring fifteen dependencies to link with, command line compilers and strange new tools that assemble project files for you.  The closest I got was an old project on Google code of Linphone which looked the part but on compiling threw up enough errors to make me realise this was going to be a LOT of work to untangle, with no guarantee if would be of use.

I am sure there are a number of solutions I am not aware of, but they all seem to be part of some click that I am not apart of. With time I can break in and sort my head around it, but I don't have a lot of that.  The weekend will reveal what direction I take based on this new obstacle, but there is plenty to do and I should not stop on this one issue for weeks and weeks. I can always come back to it when my brain is more cooperative.

Signing Off

Plenty to do this weekend so better get cracking. This blog goes out late due to Friday night ending about 5AM and it's writer needed sleep :)

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Boeing 777-300

Air New Zealand has revealed the world's largest commercially operated aircraft to be painted completely black. World Champion All Blacks rugby players Kieran Read and Andy Ellis ceremonially led the one-of-a-kind Boeing 777-300ER aircraft out of Boeing's paint hangar facility in Seattle on Friday night 16th December (US West Coast Time), highlighting Air New Zealand's long-time sponsorship of the recently crowned World Champion All Blacks rugby team.

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Mike Rsx
Wow ! Superb Quality Image of a beautiful aircraft Daniel. Congrats !


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Fran Cannon Slayton - The Wild Ride To Publication (Children's Book Version!): August 2008

Sunday, August 31, 2008

Of Titles and Covers and Things

Well, I have some news! The title of my book is changing to WHEN THE WHISTLE BLOWS (changed from How To Stop a Moving Train). The cover is being re-designed, too (I'll post it as soon as I get my little paws on it!). While I loved the old title and cover, I am VERY excited about the new one because it is the result of much discussion by the wonderful folks at Philomel Books/Penguin and it feels great to have a title and cover that people care so much about!

Apparently, title changes prior to publication aren't all that uncommon. And I guess that's not surprising when you figure how many people can be involved in the process of choosing a title - the author, editor, editorial assistants, sales and marketing folks, all sometimes in consultation with reviewers, librarians, teachers and others in the publishing industry. Lots of room for variation of opinion. But it makes it all the sweeter when a great decision is made!

More exciting news . . . some preliminary feedback is starting to come back on my book - and it's great!

Which leads me to mention another really cool thing about being a debut author: new and interesting and often very cool things can happen on any given day. For me, that translates into living in a constant state of hope. Sometimes, I know what I am hoping for -- good reviews, for example. But sometimes I don't even know some things are even possible. And so when these previously unknown things happen, it just increases the wonderful feeling of hope. And it starts feeling like anything can happen. At least, that's what I'm choosing to believe!

One more thing before I close - a children's lit blogger is trying to raise awareness of the situation in Darfur. Please check out her website and leave a comment -- she's donating money for every comment she receives on her site during the month of September. Check it out here:


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When the Black-Headed Grosbeaks started showing up, I read that they really like to eat berries and Cheerios cereal. So I put some out and it turns out the Sparrows also love them.

I brought the saucer up close to the house to watch them and get some better photos.

I really enjoyed seeing five or six at a time, but every time that happened, I didn’t have my camera ready.

The yard lizard also likes the Rice Krispies. It’s so fun to watch them.

And Frankly, My Dear… that’s all she wrote!

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On Monday, the Boys Scouts of America voted to allow gay adults to lead troops and work in the organization, while still letting church-chartered troops make their own decisions on this issue. While this is disappointing considering the BSA had already won a long legal battle culminating in a Supreme Court win against those who wanted to disrupt the group’s First Amendment freedom of association and force it to admit those living lives inconsistent with its values, it was not unexpected considering the BSA’s other recent actions. Despite clearly having constitutional protection, the group gave it up anyway in order to be accepted and make the cultural tension go away. This latest decision is Exhibit A for the claim that law follows culture.

But perhaps even more troubling than giving up hard-won constitutional protections was the response of those who benefit from this change. Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin wasn’t totally satisfied with the change, but added: “Including an exemption for troops sponsored by religious organizations undermines and diminishes the historic nature of today’s decision. Discrimination should have no place in the Boy Scouts, period.”

Everyone should take note of such statements, as further claims by the HRC and their allies of wanting to protect religious liberty simply can’t be trusted. Maybe the HRC never cared about religious liberty in any form, but now just thinks it can get away with making such statements and doesn’t have to hide its disregard for the concept anymore. Who knows.

Regardless, as David French points out at National Review, the fact that the new BSA policy didn’t impose on religious liberty enough “displeased the lords of political correctness” like HRC, who “would rather destroy scouting than see it maintain its culturally and religiously conservative heritage.”

Roughly 70 percent of Boy Scout troops are chartered to religious institutions, most of them Catholic, Evangelical Protestant, and Mormon. If they are forced to choose between the moral teachings of their faiths and allegiance to a BSA that mandates acceptance of gay Scout leaders, they will opt for the latter. This will lead to the collapse of the Boy Scouts of America as a viable organization. However, this evidently is inconsequential to Chad Griffin and his allies in the LGBT movement.

The Mormon church has already expressed concern about this new policy. And many churches behind troops would rather just give up their troops than compromise their beliefs. According to another report on this decision, the “BSA has vowed to provide legal support to any church-backed chartered organizations that are challenged in court over the continued ban.” Far from being heartwarming, however, this statements seems to be a tacit acknowledgement that such suits will be forthcoming. Intolerance always takes its toll on democracy.

Contrast Griffin’s position with that of Michael Harrison, a businessman who led Boy Scouts in Orange County, California, who (though still supporting the resolution) said:

“There are differences of opinion, and we need to be respectful of them . . . . It doesn’t mean the Mormons have to pick a gay scoutmaster, but please don’t tell the Unitarians they can’t.”

While still troublesome in light of the fact that the BSA didn’t need to voluntarily give up its protections, at least such a statement shows some respect for democratic pluralism, unlike Chad Griffin’s.

If the HRC and others are going to take the official position of not tolerating private free association in a democratic society, then we must start describing these groups as they have described themselves by their own free adoption of such a position: authoritarian, conformist, and Orwellian.


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Saturday, 11 September 2010

Sat 11th: Oxjam - Craig Lawrence tackles climate change with "cool to be kind"

Yes, that's right "Oxjam" not "Oxfam". When Craig kept emailing me with that as the subject title, I thought it was his dyslexia playing havoc. But, no, he was correct. Its the name of Oxfam’s month long, nationwide, annual music festival for the duration of October. The festival is made up of hundreds of events around the UK. It is through the support raised by events and initiatives such as this that made it possible for Oxfam to be one of the first to provide emergency relief during the Haiti earthquake this year. Over recent years Oxjam has been supported by the biggest artists and celebrities such as such as The Scissor Sisters, The Pet Shop Boys, Duran Duran, Kylie, Jamie Oliver, 30 London Fashion Week Designers.
This season, Aldene Johnson (chief fashion editor of Vice) will host a pop up shop at the concert in London and has selected both Craig and Dominic Jones to create a one-off T-Shirt design for the project. Both designers were asked to draw up artwork based on an ecological theme within climate change that motivates them personally. Craig collaged photos from his childhood caravan holidays to convey a message of taking vacations on hometurf in favour of flying abroad and incurring unnecessary carbon emissions. I think it will be hilarious when his long lost friends from these trips find the t-shirt and see themselves emblazoned in Oxfam!
Here are campaign photos of Craig's tee shot by Kristin Vicari with a mix of his current London family modelling (top to bottom Madeleine, Kristin herself!, Stevie, me and Veronica So from Teeth) .

Oxjam will be held at the Coronet Theatre with performance from Faithless on Friday 1st October 2010, click here for more details and for all event and ticket info

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Tuesday, May 01, 2012

No free rides

After several weekends of winds topping 30 knots, the desire to sail overcame my worry regarding the small craft advisories on the bay. Saturday afternoon we climbed aboard the Seahorse and headed out on a three hour tour.

It was the first time we'd had the boat out since the bottom job, and the very first thing I noticed is that if I throttle the engine up to 3000 rpm, which had previously been the sweet spot, the boat squats backward and buries half the transom underwater. This initially had me worried, but the Kubota seems to run fine with the exhaust underwater, and as soon as I throttle down to about 2200 rpm the stern raises back up. The smooth bottom, the extra horsepower from the Kubota, and the new propeller have the Starwind attempting to break hull speed, which sends her nose up onto a bow wave and makes the rear squat. I imagine about six months of barnacle and oyster growth will settle her down a bit. Either that or I just need to put a 200 pound anchor on the bow.

It was windy in the marina, but once we hit the bay, it was REALLY windy. We watched numerous boats motor past the boardwalk, hit the chop, then turn around and head back for the lake. However, we slowly made our way out past the second marker and turned into the wind.

It was decided that we'd run up the storm jib and then see whether or not we needed the main. We did not. We weren't heeled too far over, and we were bouncing along at a steady 5.5 knots and surging up to 6 knots and above during the gusts. It was a fun run. Unfortunately, tacking didn't go so well. With just the head sail up, the wind would pull the nose too far around. I don't think we ever ended up on the course I had intended. Then again, we had no actual destination, so it didn't matter too much.

I'd say the afternoon of sailing was a success. Nothing broke. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.

BUT, there are no free rides.

I opened the engine compartment and did an inspection Sunday afternoon just to make sure everything was ok. The first thing I noticed was that the alternator was missing a bolt.

Belt rubbing issues

This is the second time the engine vibrations have caused the bottom alternator bolt to shear in half. I think the problem lies in the fact that the bolt hole in the alternator is larger than the bolt hole in the engine. I guess I'm either going to have to find a bushing for the alternator or drill out the engine. Either way, I've got to do something to stop the worry that I might suddenly lose my belt along with my cooling system, etc.

Then I went to take a look at the stuffing box and found two of the four bolts that hold my propshaft to the transmission had vibrated loose and fallen out into the bilge. The bolts and lock washer were right there, but the nuts had disappeared into the abyss.

The stuffing box itself was dripping at a constant rate of once per second. That's not enough to sink a boat with a working bilge pump, but I had no idea when it was last serviced, so I figured it was better to be safe than sorry.

Stuffing box

I made a run to West Marine for new nuts and teflon packing. Only upon my return did I realize I didn't own any wrenches large enough to fit around the stuffing box. After that it was off to Home Depot for some very large pipe wrenches.

Approximately an hour later and with the assistance of a marina neighbor who actually knew which way the stuffing box was supposed to turn, I had the old stuffing out, and the new stuffing in. The drip had been eradicated.

All in all, it wasn't THAT expensive of a weekend. The stuffing, nuts and wrenches were only about $40. However, I am guilty of ignoring the broken Y-valve in the waste system.

Mylar Y-valve

When you flush the toilet, this Y-valve either directs the waste overboard or into the holding tank. Well, it was stuck in the overboard position. After some fierce coercion in an attempt to open the holding tank, it now has no handle. And the price for this simple valve? $70.

Since we're leaving on vacation, and I really wanted to make it a weekend without spending $100 at West Marine, the Y-valve got put on the future to-do list.
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Monday, October 4, 2010

Fred & Peter's Fright Fest

Thanks to all of the well-wishers who gave me a shout out on my birthday. That was very nice of everyone and I appreciated all of it. I will have a cool slide show of my trip in the next couple of days, but right now I wanted to get the upcoming beer dinner menu out to you. Our new chef, Peter, made a great looking menu (click there) and I picked some pretty awesome beers if I do say so myself. I think that you will agree, so take a look. The actual food and beers are on the second page.

The "theme" is Halloween, based on the Wednesday, October 27th date. This dinner will be at our Duluth store. Peter's menu has a fall/harvest theme, and everything sounds delicious. We chose seasonal beers in most cases, highlighting fall selections and some new releases. We have not entirely done away with dinners that feature one brewery, but we really like picking beers that are just plain good, and not always having to work within one brewery's portfolio.

I hope that you take a minute to look this over and consider attending. You need to treat yourself once in a while. C'mon,'re worth it. You need to get out there and live a little. Life is too cheap to be short. Or something like that.

Thanks to some computer literate co-workers, I even put a link to the payment service below. How about that?

From My September Trip-Sierra Brewhouse

From My September Trip-Sierra Brewhouse
This is the top floor of the brewhouse, with buckets of fresh hops about to go into the kettles.


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Home About Us Company Comment Charity Scholarship Recipients Events Photo Gallery Become a Member
The Guild Hall
The Unique City

Known affectionately as the "Square Mile" the City of London in the United Kingdom is unique in many ways. Steeped in tradition it is also one of the most important business centres in the world. To this day, the Lord Mayor of London, of whom Dick Whittington was one, has the role of officially permitting the Queen to enter the city.

Most of you will be well aware of the scale of the economic activities of the City of London. However, you may not be fully up to date on the key statistics. Here are a few to bring up in conversation with business colleagues, friends and associates, which illustrate the financial impact of the City.

Foreign Exchange transacted per day - $637B US
Foreign Exchange Futures (on LFFE) - $330B US
Funds under management in 1999 - $2,555B US
Gross insurance premiums received - $14B US
Percentage of all Eurobonds placed - 75%
Foreign Banks with London Branches - 481
Foreign Companies listed on LSE in 2000 - 499
Fortune 500 Companies with London offices - 75%

The Corporation of London
The Corporation of London is responsible for providing the infrastructure on which all of this economic activity is based. In addition, it is the 3rd largest agency to fund the Arts in the UK, and it runs the Port Health Authority.

The Livery Companies
The 103 London Livery Companies have the following attributes:

Total Number of Liverymen in 2001 - 23,900
Companies with halls - 38 (plus one under construction)
Companies with active trade links - 85
Armed forces units supported -150
Churches Supported - 63
Charity giving/expenditures - £38.1M
Almshouse supported/run - 41
Schools and educational establishments supported - 124
Financial support to education - £5.5M

More Information
You can find lots of information about the City, the Corporation and the Livery Companies from their respective web-sites, many of which are available from our Links section.

The Unique City
The City Livery Companies
Freedom of the City
The Constitution of the Company
The Masters of the Company
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AGM and Master's Report
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Tuesday, December 29, 2009

New Year's 2010

We are all familiar with that snippet from Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities that "it was the best of times, it was the worst of times." But we may forget the entire sentence which so beautifully captures the duality that many of us probably feel as we ring out this year and usher in the new decade:

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to heaven, we were all going direct the other way - in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only."

Certainly, there are reasons to be worried about America's future. They range from the ongoing serious threats posed by radical Islamic terrorism, which can't be wished away by politically correct changes in the use of the English language, to a rapidly escalating debt burden piled on future generations by politicians bent on expanding the size and scope of government programs. Of course, the growing measurable deficits are only the tangible manifestation of fiscal irresponsibility. The intangible manifestation is the immeasurable, but nevertheless real, sense of diminished individual responsibility and freedom that inevitably accompanies indiscriminate, overly profligate government handouts or entitlements. This is not to say the government has no role in helping those truly in need who cannot help themselves. But lines must be drawn that are consistent with proper ends the government legitimately ought to pursue as well as proper means of such pursuit.

Yet there are reasons to be hopeful too. Foremost, there is a certain indomitable spirit ingrained in the American people, writ large, that is enterprise-minded and law-respecting. This "can-do-minded" spirit impels an understanding and appreciation, intuited if not always articulated, that there are lines not to be crossed regarding the extent to which government seeks greater control over our lives, even when it does so in the name of sustaining us. These are the lines that have everything to do with proper ends and means.

Another reason to be hopeful is that America is fortunate –- blessed, really -– to have had a Founding generation, with all its manifest human foibles, possessed of sufficient wisdom and practical experience regarding human nature to bequeath a form of constitutional republican government that has endured for more than two hundred years. Our Constitution, which establishes a government of enumerated and limited powers, along with our Bill of Rights, is the foundation upon which our individual liberty ultimately rests.

As we enter 2010, I know that the Free State Foundation's mission to promote free market, limited government, and rule of law principles is as important, if not more important, than ever before. As I do each year at this time as I contemplate the road ahead for FSF, I have reflected again on the wisdom of our Founders -- they who lived, in Dickens' words, through the "winter of despair" and "spring of hope."

With a sense of renewal, I have in mind now what Alexander Hamilton wrote in Federalist No. 31: "In disquisitions of every kind there are certain primary truths, or first principles, upon which all subsequent reasoning must depend." In all of our work during the year ahead, I pledge the Free State Foundation will strive to keep the "primary truths" and the "first principles" uppermost in mind. For if they are not uppermost in mind, then all the "subsequent reasoning" is likely to be for naught in terms of formulating and advocating good policy for the American people.

On behalf of all of us at the Free State Foundation, I am grateful for your friendship and for your past support. I welcome your support going forward, and I wish you the very best for 2010.


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Better new picarto

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I have changed various stuff on the new site so it's more usable.

Stuff will be added over the weeks so check for updates!
  • fixed width of chat messages
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Craigslist Redesign

Added by Adam B@userstyles, Created: Oct 02, 2007, Updated: Aug 22, 2008
With the style applied

This style provides a much sleeker and cleaner look for I'm a regular user of the site, and I really dislike its default look. When I found the FreeStyler extension, I decided to do something about it. You can modify the code however you see fit, and I welcome suggestions and reviews. Have any questions? Visit my site at and send me an email.

More info

July 14, 2008

-Improved the /about/sites.html page and (choose country/city/state pages)

April 1, 2008

-Added a style for the listing pages

March 3, 2008

-Modified the style of the country/state/city selection pages

Feb 25, 2008

-Changed the style of the toc pages to closer match the style of the home page

Feb 15, 2008

-Fixed problem with search bar (thank you riotlikeits1999 for your comment)

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Home Forums Uganda Media The Uganda Paparazzi meets Uganda famous

This topic contains 105 replies, has 1 voice, and was last updated by Uganda Uganda 6 months, 1 week ago.

Viewing 10 posts - 11 through 20 (of 106 total)
  • Author
  • #33380

    Where there is a will there will always be a way.

    Men do you know that It is so disrespectful to take off a lady’s pant without even knowing how much it costed her..

    1-Have trust,once you trust each other your love will move on smoothly.

    2-Be faithful to each other. once your faithful to one another your love will be admirable.

    3-Have time for your loved ones to show them how you really love them.

    4-Try to fulfil your promises.

    5-You should respect each other,once you have respect for one another your love will be special.

    6-Don’t expose your family matters to public. there’s no reason to why you expose them to public when you can solve them your self.

    7-Take your responsibilities as important thing.

    8-You should be well behaved and desciplined.

    9-Avoid rumours. not all rumours are true,try hard and find out the truth.

    10-Take GOD as the most important in your relationship everything will move on well as the way you want them.

    Banange crane bank etusuziza enjala atenga tulina ssentezafe,oba kati tukolekyi?

    Nomatter how sweet or enjoyable sex is,you can never ejaculate whilst smiling!!!

    A woman is like a swimming pool.Don’t bother finding out who swam before you, who is swimming with you,who will swim after you. Just enjoy swimming.

    If your girlfriend is always looking good but you know perfectly well that you haven’t contributed anything towards that,my brother you are no different from a security man guarding a bank.

    Witchcraft Is When You Always Put Her On Your WhatsApp Profile Pic…While Other Boys Are Putting Her On Their Beds.

    YOU saw him in a facebook group:

    •U check his Profile picture.
    •He Drives A Range Rover Sport 2016.
    .He is handsome.
    •He in boxed you.
    •You reply, all excited.
    •You’ll want 2 hook up.
    •You set a date.
    •You dress up that Legging With No underwear.
    •Smelling good.
    •You put on a make up – fresh breath and new weave.
    •He takes you 4 lunch @ Eka Hotel.
    •He Takes you for – Drinks At Java.
    •You two have a good time.
    •He rubs your hand,
    •Makes you laugh,
    •Gives you looks and smiles.
    •You stupidly fall in love.
    •It’s like you’ve known him Forever.
    •He takes you to his apartment.
    •He makes you feel comfortable and lays u on his bed.
    •Kiss you passionately.
    •You love his aggression, strength, power and you give in.
    •It feels good.
    •You know it’s wrong, but it feels good.
    •You ask for protection, he says it’s too late.
    •You obey and don’t disturb.
    •He says he loves you and you don’t hesitate to say you love him too. He hits it nice and slow
    •After, he goes to the kitchen to get a glass of water.
    •He helps you drink it, ooohh man.
    •You feel special.
    •”He must be the one” you think to yourself.
    •You get dressed.
    •He takes you to the taxi park.
    •He kisses you on the cheeks and says
    •”I had a great time,”
    •Gives You cash.
    •U smile and say.
    •”See you tomorrow babe.”
    • He stays silent.
    •Your taxi drives away,
    •In the taxi u can’t stop smiling.
    •You get home and inbox him that you got home safe.
    •He is online, but doesn’t reply.
    •It’s unlike him, so you inbox him again.
    •He doesn’t respond.
    •Minutes later you can’t find him on ur friend list.
    •Days, weeks, months passes by.
    •You start feeling sick, weak, loose weight, act strange with sores in your mouth.
    •You go to the clinic.
    •Get tested.
    •Minutes later,
    •Nurse walks in.”I’m sorry. You’re HIV Positive and Pregnant!”
    •”.HOW ?”
    •You don’t understand.
    •Reality hits you.
    •You walk home.
    •You go to the bus stop.
    •You lay, hopeless, emotionless.
    •You see death coming nearer.
    •You look into the sky & mumble a prayer.
    That’s the end of you.
    Don’t be that girl !Live well. Stop Chasing Material Things. Stop chasing SPONSORS!!
    Be A Girl You Want Your Daughter To Be!

    A Nigerian man calls his mother *Mom I’m HIV infected.
    Mom: chinekeeeeeeeee weeee, stay thereooooo,don’t come backooooo eiyiuiu.
    Son: why mom? I don’t have a place anywhere to go I’m coming back home.
    Mom: Nooooo my son oooooh, if you come here you will infect your wifeoooooooh ,then your wife will infect your brotherooooooh,then your brother will infect the maid ooooooh,then maid will infect your fatheroooooooh ,then your father will infect meooooooh, then l will infect the garden boyoooooooh, then the garden boy will infect your sisteroooooooh… If your sister is infected eiyiiii the whole village is finishooooooooooh… Stay there my sonoooooiooooh don’t come back until you dieoooooooooooh…..

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Nokia Lumia 930 PSD Vector Mock Up

Today we are glad to share with you a PSD vector mock up template of Nokia Lumia 930. The Nokia Lumia 930 is a popular smartphone that runs Microsoft’s WP 8.1 operating system. Ideal for showcase your next WP app in an original style. The PSD mockup is fully layered and well described.

If you want to use this resource without attribution to us, simply help us by tweeting or sharing the resource on facebook.
Size: 0,3 Mb
Format: .PSD
Fully layered: Yes

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Showing posts with label coffee rub. Show all posts
Showing posts with label coffee rub. Show all posts

15 July 2012

Grilled Pork Chops with a Rich Coffee Rub and Potato Salad With Goat Cheese, Olives and Red Peppers

It is, as I recall, an unwritten rule that bloggers are not to pour out their hearts online.

But allow me to say this: Watching a parent succumb to Alzheimer's Disease is heart-breaking. The tears, the anxiety, the little scraps of paper in her pockets as I empty them to do her laundry takes a piece of my heart every day.

I speak of course of my mother who was just beginning to show hints of frailty when I began this blog six years ago. The last three years have been a challenge as my sister and I tried to balance her needs with the demands of children, spouses and jobs.  Just over a year ago, we moved my mother to an assisted living facility. Her neighbors there are the parents of my friends and former coworkers. The staff is kind and caring, but my mother is lonely and confused. She is no longer able to make friends. She can barely marshall the resources to sit and try to remember the past, which is becoming dimmer now, dimmer than it was even six months ago. Sometimes she knows me, sometimes she forgets my father, but always, she wants her mother.

We children do what we must do, because that is what is needed, and no one complains. She dried our tears and tied our shoes and much much more, and we do that we must. It's part of the circle of life.

Once I leave my job at the end of September, I will also begin the sad and arduous task of preparing her house for sale, and while I share this with three siblings, it will be an emotional undertaking, for this was the house my father lived in as a young man in those heady days after World War II. My parents bought this house with my father's GI loan and let my father's parents live in the house while they rented other houses in other parts of town. It is in the old cattle trader's neighborhood near the original town center, a historical detail that is lost to all but my generation.

Life is, well, life and therefore not always easy.

My husband, as good husbands are, is a source of comfort.

The times we spend at home after a demanding day have become extremely precious this past year, and cooking together is now a pressure valve. Mr. FKIA handles the meat, mostly, while I organize the salads and side dishes.

Saturday night I used a coffee rub on two very thick and juicy pork chops which Mr FKIA placed on the grill. The ingredients include coffee, brown sugar, sea salt, paprika, black pepper, garlic, onion, sugar and coriander.

The lone accompaniment was a red-skin potato salad with Greek olives, goat cheese and roasted red peppers. For this you need:

  • 10 small new potatoes
  • 10-12 Greek olives, chopped or sliced
  • 1 small red pepper, roasted and chopped
  • at least 1 tablespoon unseasoned chèvre, crumbled
  • 2-3 green onions, white and green parts chopped
  • dash sea salt
  • generous dash herbes de Provence or Mediterranean herbs (a generous dash)
  • about 2/3 cup of dressing, mayonnaise or mayonnaise blended with yogurt or sour cream
Wash the potatoes and place in a good-sized pot or saucepan. Bring to a boil and remove from heat after about 10 minutes. Drain and set aside in cool water while you are preparing the other ingredients. (Feel free to use red peppers from a jar on a hot day; I did not, and I paid for it!) Once the potatoes are cool, toss in the other ingredients in a large bowl, cover and refrigerate for at least two hours.

The salad was a gamble. (I had already tested the rub on a barbecued chicken we had on the Fourth of July.) The salad's tanginess and sweetness were a perfect foil for the rich dark flavor of the chops.

I've sad it before, potato salad is like chicken: It's a blank canvas and you can dress it up or down many ways. Some people prefer the classic, but I like to think of potato salad as an entire category of food.

Here are several other versions I like:

No matter how you prepare it, potato salad is a summer taste to be savored.


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Saturday, June 6, 2009

What's he laughing at?

There I was, minding my own business and sunbathing, when daddycat walks in and starts laughing!

I'm sure he was laughing at me??

I have no idea what the was laughing about, as there was nothing funny going on at all.

I was just sunbathing, enjoying the hotness, although the tip of my tail felt quite hot earlier....

Can you see anything funny?

Faith Ann said...

We don't see anything funny at all! Just a beautiful cat enjoying the sunshine....with a tail that is just a little bit wet. :o)

Trevor & Loki

P.S. Can you send the sunshine here? It is supposed to rain all week. The robins don't come to visit when it rains...and we like to watch them through the window.

Daisy said...

Freya, I think you are quite sensible to dip your tail in the water for some relief from the heat!

Leia said...

Oh Dear!! I went through this list of cat bloggers and gave my blog address and now I have had to CHANGE my blog location! If you have been kind enough to link me, please change the link for me, and if you have not linked me yet, I would love it if you would!! Sorry for the inconvenience, I look forward to getting to know all of you purrrfectly lovely friends!

Leia of the House of 7 Cats

*let me know if you do link me so that I can link you back!!

Reese =^..^= said...

I don't get what he is laffing at effer.

Noir in Texas said...

Um...well, I know why he's laughing...and you just look so cute and innocent!

Noir in Texas

aninhas said...

Hi Freia!!!
We are back!
We miss you so mutch!
Your photo is so cute!!

auf auf

Hugs and kisses from kikos word :D

ps. we have a award for you :D

Poppy Q said...

I love how it is just the wee tip of your tail floating in the water.

Kitties @ Our family cat-a-blog... said...

Why, doesn't ebby kittie do da tail dip when day is near da sink?☺


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Topic: My panel at Comic Con will be....

Saturday, July 11th at 4:10pm in the Manchester Grand Hyatt, Ballroom D.

To quote from the sexy mofo who wrote the panel description:

"You will learn how to understand the specific nuances of nonfiction film and how to produce and direct your own with a minimal budget and existing, commercially available equipment. Topics include documentary narrative structure, how to conduct interviews, "writing," documentaries, the importance of access, when and how to use voiceover and/or re-creations, necessary gear, ethics, and releases and other legal necessities. Panelists include director/host Edward Doty (Fighting in Plain Sight, Documentality podcast), editor Jessica Hernandez (The Punk Singer, Bhutto), director Jeff Unay (Greaywater, Free to Play), and director Andie Bolt (WoWMoM)."

I know MOST of y'all won't be able to attend, but if you're down for a day, please feel free to come, introduce yourself, and say hi.

Last edited by Eddie (2015-06-19 18:27:35)

Eddie Doty

Thumbs up +5 Thumbs down


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Friday, August 21, 2009

Midwest Booker Prize: 827 Che

It was a little bit difficult to track down the Booker-longlisted Me Cheeta, since the suburban library had catalogued it as non-fiction. Yup! I'm not being facetious. 827 Che. (See above.) But I was not up to being the whistleblower today, so I checked it out at the automatic self-check-out and DID NOT SAY A WORD. I’m going to write a little note about the mistake, including an article about the Booker long-list, and hand it in when I return it. The error is embarrassing and KIND OF LETS THE AMERICAN SIDE DOWN: if some careless librarian screwed up and didn't catalogue it as fiction, who's going to read it? In the librarians' bare defense, the American HarperCollins edition does not list an author, and the jacket copy cheekily describes it as “a celebrity autobiography,” without indicating it's fiction. On the other hand, only a moron could read the blurbs on the back and think it's non-fiction: “Praise from Cheeta’s Cohorts and Co-Stars: Lassie, Mr. Ed, Johnny Weismuller," etc. Oh, let's face it: somebody was really alseep at the wheel.

Let's hope the Library of Congress didn't make the initial error.

But...Whoa! What’s going on out there?

This is crazy, but I just looked it up at the New York Public Library and discovered that it’s classified as  Performing Arts Circulating Drama Non-Fiction  -  599.885 M

What? I know it's a novel. Am I the smartest person in the U.S.? (No, because Harriet Klausner and other Amazon reviewers also know it's fiction!)

Okay - how could this mistake happen?

Me Cheeta is a spoof-Hollywood autobiography of Cheeta, the chimp from the Tarzan films, and was inspired by an ACTUAL article about Cheeta's 76th birthday in Hollywood. The publisher assigned the book to James Lever, a 37-year-old editor, who wrote the novel in a couple of months. And everybody in the UK loved it. It actually got reviewed. AND it's Booker long-listed.

I plan to "deconstruct," i.e., "read," this meta-autobiography soon. And wait for my husband's review next week. ONLY ONE OF US HAS TO LIKE IT FOR IT TO MAKE THE MIDWEST BOOKER PRIZE SHORTLIST!

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Sunday, March 29, 2009

At the Start of the WPS Season, Some Thoughts on Eudy Simelane's Murder

My football brain has not been preoccupied with the start of the US women's professional league, but with the story of the rape and murder of a former South African national women's team player, Eudy Simelane.

I first learned of Simelane's death while reading a Guardian story about the wave of violent sexual assaults on black lesbians in South Africa. The particular combination of the gruesome violence of the attack on Simelane, her visibility as an international player, and her visibility as a lesbian feminist activist has drawn some attention to state and media indifference to this particular version of hate crime. That said, the media attention to her murder has been slight, compared to that which we would see were a national team player from nearly any men's team subjected to a hate crime of similar violence. (Let us remember, too - that this is in South Africa - home of the next World Cup. For some information about the case see, this interesting blog article on about left media and reporting of this crime, and this article from Out in Africa. I would appreciate any information about Simelane that readers might be willing to share.)

Reading the Guardian's story about what has been called "corrective rape" (I can't get behind that term), I was not entirely shocked to discover that one of the women interviewed in the story was also a football player - attacked on her way home from training.

This story is a gruesome reminder of the complex place of women's football in the world, and is perhaps worth bearing in mind as the WPS season gets underway.

Women's football is hugely controversial in many - most? - parts of the world. People's reaction to the idea of women playing this sport can be surprisingly violent and hateful. Football is also, in many - most? - places, a means by which women rebel against restrictive ideas about gender. This is very serious business, and the activists who create leagues, who attempt to change the system place themselves on the front lines of a war.

Simelane's murder is heartbreaking on so many levels. Personally, knowing next to nothing about who she was and what she was like, I have found myself confronted by the wild idealism of my fantasies about butch women athletes - I tend image them as sisters who have escaped from the misery of femininity. I get positively starry-eyed when I watch tomboys play - throwing their bodies in the air with not a care about how hard the ground is. I could hardly watch the interviews in the Guardian's video. I know butch lesbians are subjected to aggressive policing of gender, and that butchness is no protector against sexism - but I guess some part of me wants to believe in the pitch as a space apart from all that.

But of course it's not. The pitch sits on a field, in a neighborhood, in a town, in a county.... It is surrounded.

Lest we shrug these attacks off as an "African" problem (the Guardian story pretty much does this), let us remember that violence against gay, lesbian, and transgendered people is all too common in a wide range of settings. We need only remember Matthew Shepherd or Brandon Teena to put Eudy Simelane's death in perspective for US readers.

To bring this serious note to a close - something about this story got me thinking about the tremendous importance of play - of the places where we play, and feel safe enough to cross the borders and boundaries that have been drawn around our bodies. The singling out of a woman for "corrective rape" as she is on her way home from training - this is violence against the idea embodied by the person. I suppose that's part of what a hate crime is.

  1. Hey, a very well written and argued post.

    All the best - Kameraad Mhambi.

  2. So glad to know you read this - reading your article on this was very helpful.

    Do you know anything about Simelane? Like what organizations she might have worked for?

    And, are you wearing a HACKNEY shirt in your photo? That's great!

  3. No, not really. But if you want more info about her Out is a good place to start

    Yes, that is a Hackney t-shirt. :)

Feedback? Let me know what you think. Just an FYI: all comments posted to this blog are recorded, whether I publish them or not. I do not publish generally hateful comments - whether they be directed at me or at players and teams or other readers. I appreciate reader feedback, especially from those whose contributions add nuance and complexity to the story.

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Wednesday, December 9, 2009

"White House Crashers" Must Go To Jail!

President Obama and the First Lady could've met the same fate as President Ronald Reagan in 1981.

Breaching National Security Cannot Be Tolerated

The G-Man is absolutely furious, America! I’ve refrained from addressing this issue since the story broke, but I can't contain myself any longer. Michaele and Tareq Salahi were somehow able to penetrate Secret Service security details, crash the annual White House State Dinner and get face-to-face with the First Couple, as well as Vice-President Joe Biden. Oh, but they didn’t stop there! The couple actually posted photos of their dastardly deed on Facebook for the entire world to see. Moreover, it is alleged that the whole incident was set up to secure the couple a spot on a reality-based TV show entitled, “The Real Housewives of Washington”.

Why isn’t the country still in an uproar over this? Why isn’t the White House going after this couple with reckless abandon? Yes, I know the economy and the fact that 30,000 more soldiers are being sent to war in Afghanistan are issues of vital importance right now, but I would argue that this incident is equally important for two key reasons. First of all, the very fact that someone was able to get this close President Obama and the First Lady is frightening and shameful. Correct me if I’m wrong, but this is a major first.

For one moment, let’s just forget the fact that this is a wholesome, sweet couple. Now, I admit that’s a stretch, with all the dirt that has come out about them, but dance with The G-Man on this one for just a bit. If they were trained assassins, President Obama and the First Lady would be dead and black Americans, particularly in the decimated inner cities, would've retaliated all across the country.

The emotional reaction would've far exceed the aftermath of the Rodney King verdict in Los Angeles, and white people would've been forced to cower in fear because this time inner city residents would seek to burn and destroy white communities. America would've fallen under martial law, and race relations would've reach critical mass. I guess I’m the only one in the media with enough balls to raise this issue, huh? People need to thank God for “Kool-Aid free” journalists and commentators. They really do.

The pundits and analysts making all that noise about the Salahis not being armed or ever posing a threat need to slapped! Anyone with half a brain knows that an assassin can simply break one of the crystal glasses on the dinner table, place a sharp edge in their pocket and ram it into the leader of the free world’s throat when they shake hands. The female assassin could finish off the First Lady in the same manner. Given the fact that this couple so easily bypassed security, they proved, unequivocally, that anything is possible.

Some of you may be laughing at my scenario - saying it’s far-fetched or that I’ve watched too many James Bond movies. Well, I would simply say this. No one in the world ever imagined the towers of the World Trade Center would fall, either. Simply put, shit can and does happen! With that said, I dare you to dismiss my scenario.

The second reason this matter is of vital importance is because it involves national security. If you think would-be assassins and terrorists didn’t take notice of how easy it was to breach White House security, you’d better think again. I would be willing to bet that extremists, here in America and abroad, are not only laughing at the U.S. about this extremely dangerous and embarrassing incident, they’re probably conjuring up some very creative and brilliant ideas on how to infiltrate the president’s Secret Service detail. The Salahis have no idea how much internal and external damage they have caused by their stupid, selfish and self-promoting act.

I may be out of place to do so, but I’m going to publicly make two requests of President Obama and his administration, and I’m going to make them without reservation. Number one, have prosecutors get busy and find a way to throw the Salahi’s White House-crashing, First Couple-hugging, Joe-Biden picture-taking, reality TV show-wanting asses in federal prison! They have to be taught a serious lesson and made an example of. The office of the presidency, vice-presidency and national security are at stake.

There is absolutely no excuse for willfully breaching or compromising national security, and you know this, Mr. President! With all due respect, I believe President George W. Bush, Vice-President Dick Cheney and ranking members of the Republican Party would've wanted the couple's heads on a platter! I certainly hope your administration will handle this in a stern and immediate fashion, Mr. President.

Secondly, if this stunt really was done to secure a reality TV show deal, the White House needs to implicate and prosecute the stupid network that may have aided and abetted the Salahis in successfully gaining entry. I’ll go out on a limb and say I believe they did have assistance in pulling this off, which would explain why they hired an attorney and have recently decided to hide behind the Fifth Amendment, like the little punks that they are, if called before the courts.

The Salahis have laughed and smiled there way through this ordeal, but you can bet they won't be laughing or smiling in their jail cells.....where they belong. Don't let them pass go or collect $200. Send them straight to jail! Period! This isn’t “Punk’d” with Ashton Kutcher, Mr. President. This is a matter of grave importance. The G-Man is urging your administration to lay the smack down on this couple, uphold the office of the presidency and let it be known that matters involving the national security of this country are not to be taken lightly.

Photo source for attempted Reagan assassination:

Author: United States Federal Government

Licensing: Public Domain


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The above are common scenarios where we would like to be able to tinker with reporting in FrontAccounting and this is what this pages strives to fulfil.

The RegGen extension was hacked in to work in a rudimentary manner and was originally made for a much earlier version of FA. It is not very secure and can at best be used for development purposes in a trusted secure environment.

Reports and Layouts in FA

The following notes are to act as a general guide for code and layout information:

  1. The reporting/includes/ file contains elements of the top portion of any standard report.
  2. The reporting/includes/ obtains all the variables needed for the reports
  3. The actual reporting/repXXX.php file contains the body of the report where line items are listed.
  4. The reporting/includes/ has the FA reporting classes and common includes
  5. The reporting/reports_main.php file has the form elements that tailor the report (filter choices)
  6. The reporting/includes/ file has the code for Non Field DB Data where many key#value pairs delimited by # and space separated are placed in some large text field and parsed out on demand. This needs to be backported for v2.3 or taken from the unofficial GitHub's FAMods folder.

The first 3 above can also act as company overrides by placing them in the appropriate company/#/ folder.

Data Source dependencies for FA Reporting

Mods for FA Core Reports

Forum Discussions on FA Reporting


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Twitter Updates

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    Thursday, November 23, 2006

    Thursday Practice Report: Final Prep for Florida

    Florida State practiced 15 periods Thursday in sweats as the team continued its preparations for Florida.

    After working on special teams, both units got in some work versus the scout teams.
    The offense and defense worked on red zone.

    Defensively Lawrence Timmons and Jr. R. Bryant had pass break-ups. Jamie Robinson and Roosevelt Lawson each had picks along with Patrick Robinson who had two.

    In passing drills Drew Weatherford had a deep connection with Chris Davis and also connected with Robert Hallback.

    The only injury updates are as follows: Antone Smith (OUT - Elbow) and Joe Surratt (IN - Expected to play versus UF)

    Coach Bowden Quotes

    "We have done all we can do now it is just a matter of going out there and executing. Florida is an outstanding football team and I just hope we can play our best."

    On whether the team hit less in practice this week due to injuries

    "We practiced normally like we always practice. We didn't try to pull anything off at all."

    On how much a win over Florida would mean to this team

    "Any win will be great but we have to go make it happen."

    On whether Jeff Bowden will coach through the bowl

    "Well I have to get that cleared out. I want him to. At first (Jeff) felt like it would be best to just end it but I really need him so we can stay with what we are doing."

    On if he is cooking Thanksgiving dinner today

    "I'm eating. I am eating cooking. I am not sure who all is going to be (at his house for Thanksgiving)."

    Defensive Tackle Andre Fluellen

    On the progression of Letroy Guion

    "Letroy has come on tremendously. He is taken heed of the coaching more. He has been looking at his technique and it has just been helping him. The main thing with him is he is using his hands. He is so much more athletic than a lot of other people on the field. Once he gets everything down, his technique. He is going to be a future star. He is going to be the next first rounder I believe."

    On stopping Florida's seniors from winning two games in their careers at Doak Campbell Stadium

    "The biggest thing for us is we don't want to lose to anybody at Doak especially Florida, a big rival. It is not really about trying to disappoint the seniors for Florida. We don't want them to have some kind of streak or record. We just want to win the game. Especially at home, especially against our biggest rival. That is the main thing. We pride ourselves, you know we lost three games at home this year we pride ourselves on doing everything possible not to lose at home."

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Friday, December 13, 2013

DarkStar Preparations Continue, Dealing with a New Codex. A quick update from BeeCee.

BeeCee here continuing my journey towards my first Warhammer 40k tournament. As you probably know if you are an active 40k player, the Tyranids are coming in January. They have quite a few new shiny kits and the rumors are running wild as to which units are getting a buff, which ones are getting nerfed to the ground etc...

This presents a huge problem for me preparing for the tourney as most of my bugs aren't painted. The codex is rumored to be released on January 11, 2014. The Darkstar GT is March 8-9, 2014. That gives me exactly eight weeks from codex release until the tournament. I've been wracking my brain trying to come up with the best system to set me up to succeed in getting this army completed in time.

My army must be painted to a three color minimum but other things like basing, conversions etc., are used to get you a painting score. With that in mind things like bases and display boards are unfortunately going to be done if I get everything else done in time. I know I don't have the skill level to compete for "Best Painted" at this point anyways. It's all about getting an army painted, on the table, and getting that first tourney experience under my belt.

It can be overwhelming when you have a multitude of models to paint.
I decided to take a little bit different approach. I am going to try to assembly line almost EVERYTHING I have that is assembled. My thinking is that if I have all the models half done then I won't have guessed wrong. It would be a shame to completely paint up a unit only to not use it at all in the my new army list. I am going to start with my base coat on the carapaces and claws with Abbadon Black. once that is done for all the models I will move on to the next color.

On my painting table right now are roughly 25 hormagaunts, 30 termagants, and 20 gargoyles. I have a month until the codex comes out, I am going to see if I can hero them all done by then! I will provide some updates in the coming weeks to show everyone my progress.

As always, feel free to post comments below, add suggestions or generally cheer me on as I try to do this. With two little kids here at home it's sometimes a struggle to get any time to paint, much less time to paint an entire army. Thanks for tuning in, much more to come!