Waiting ....

Ruby's been poorly this week. Two visits to the vet - high temperature - 2 antiobiotic injections - 1 anti-emetic injection. But now she's better! :)

Let me introduce you to ...

Ruby!



We've had her since August. She's 3/4 blue Persian - but we like the 1/4 bits that don't conform to standard. She's now 4 months old and is a minx. We adore her.

Peeping out from the duvet

It's hibernation time again! It doesn't creep up on you as much as leaps up! One minute I'm alert and functioning as well as can be expected from somebody of great age - and then WHOOMPH the blasted SAD hits.

Anyway, a little bit of catch-up.

I got a distinction for A215, which was hilarious really, given my lack of dedication. But, of course, I was more than happy with that. Now I've started A363 and am as lost as can be. I'm in the middle of getting together a story for TMA01. Once that's marked, I might feel a little better as at least I'll know a bit more about what my tutor looks for. It might be fun, actually - I look forward to the scriptwriting!

Such a prolific blogger!

I have dumped EA300 in favour of A363 - Advanced Creative Writing. There was nothing wrong with the Childrens' Literature course - it was just that I was feeling sentimental and didn't want to leave my A215 pals! I still haven't filled in all the forms yet though.

The A215 ECA went in at the beginning of June. I didn't submit the puberty story in the end; it was too, I dunno, dull. Instead I submitted a more recent auto-biographical thingie - probably I should've stuck to the puberty one... The results will be out the week after next. Eek.

We went to Hawaii for two weeks, in June - and now it feels as though we never went at all! But it was lovely - saw the lava hitting the ocean - went down in a sub - enjoyed some beautiful beaches - saw different birds and plants and ate different fish - and we visited South Fork in Dallas! The write-up is on here. A selection of pictures on here.

We said goodbye to summer when we landed back home. A dreadful July. And I am spinning. BPPV, I think.

Children's Literature

Interesting though the creative writing is, I'm not very happy with spending so much time inside my own head, so I really don't fancy the advanced creative writing course. Instead, I've registered to do the new 60-point course, Children's Literature from October. There's a long list of set books to buy, with the recommendation to read as many of them as possible before the course starts!

Alcott, L. M., Little Women - read many years ago, but will have to read again.
Browne, A., Voices in the Park
Burgess, M., Junk - I bought this one and read it - amazing for a children's book!!
Gavin, J., Coram Boy
McGough, R., 100 Best Poems for Children
Naidoo, B., The Other Side of Truth - I bought and read this one - excellent.
Pearce, P., Tom’s Midnight Garden
Potter, B., The Tale of Peter Rabbit !!
Pullman, P., Northern Lights - own and have read this one.
Ransome, A., Swallows and Amazons
Reeve, P., Mortal Engines - reading at the moment.
Rowling, J. K., Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone - hub owns all of these. Is this the first one? If so, I did read that one.
Stevenson, R. L., Treasure Island - I've never read this one!
Taylor, M., Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry

Looking forward to the course, but I haven't studied literature since I was at school, and this is a level 3 course, so it doesn't bode well!

Still writing creatively

I got the Mills & Boone back some weeks ago. I got 88% for it, which is quite extraordinary! It was suggested I get it published. No chance. I've had TMA03 back too, the poetry. 78% - again, quite extraordinary! I wrote 3 poems, 2 of which weren't liked - but the third was given that 'get it published' suggestion again. I might try! At the moment, I'm working on TMA04 (a bio of a part of my Dad's childhood), TMA05 (a wierd story!) and the ECA (autobiography of me at puberty!) It would be fair to say that I'm muddled. But I want to get it all done and out of the way.

New camera!

I love my little Nikon, but it's getting a bit old now and people keep looking at me like I'm poor, so I decided to splash out on a new one. A Canon Ixus. It's very pretty (pink), but I'm pretty certain the Nikon takes better photos - I'm not dumping it yet!


Dartmoor ponies


Daffodils outside 42 Commando barracks.

It's been beautiful weather over the last week or so, and this was the Hoe on Sunday.


Unfortunately, the whole city was there.


Art!

What a Feeling!!

Brilliant!

21C Slavery

I wrote a (sort of!) poem. Poetry is still a complete mystery to me - but, I'm with Annie. (I gave up on the JanNoWriMo - I'd prefer to spend my time reading others' writing, than struggling to write my own drivel!)

‘Stop looking at me!’
cries the boy in the cage
who, despite being eight
has a face full of rage
and eyes rimmed with
the sadness of one
eight times his age.

He threw a rock, once
or maybe it was two.
Everyone cheered
as over the wall it flew.
It hit a man on the head;
felled down on golden ground;
‘Who did that? Was it you?’

His cage is filled with blood;
his mother’s arms; his father’s eyes;
his sister’s heart; his brother’s brains.
In the corner, his grandmother lies,
and all had thrown not one stone,
though they must be ever dead
as hatred rushes in ‘cross the skies.

‘Give me a cave to live in
and a pond from which I can fish.
Freedom from this slavery
Is all that I wish.
One hundred million missiles
or one hundred thousand stones
cannot break these bars,
don’t you see?
You have your Zion,
but you took it from me.’

Another New Year ..

.. there've been so many of them! This one has dawned grey and cold, but at least the 'festive' season is over with and I'm grateful for that.

I think I've gone stark raving bonkers, as I've signed up to the JanNoWriMo 2009 and have pledged a 30,000 word novel by the end of the month - LOL!