Sugar And Spice And All Things Nice

I saw on Kim's blog a link to some idiot's report on female bloggers. Apparently we are nice and hot and friendly and everything. And the female bloggers at BlogHer already know about blogging so he didn't have to explain what blogging was to the little ladies.

Ian Betteridge has already picked out a few choice sentences for us to marvel at, but here is one of mine.

BlogHer this weekend created a lifetime of memories. Women are different from men, here I am at age 51, and I've still got more to learn. They come in all ages, shapes and sizes and they came from all over the world.

No shit Sherlock!

Man Of Steel

For my sixteenth birthday I went to Niagara falls. I had asked to go there are my birthday treat on the off chance that Superman would turn up, ( I had watched that segment of Superman II with narrowed eyes) Of course he didn't and I didn't risk throwing myself into the Niagara river just to prompt his arrival.

I loved the first two films of the 1970s series so I was nervous that the new Superman Returns film would not live up to my expectations. However I had no need to be worried. As soon as the opening bars of John Williams original theme tune came out of the cinema's speakers a broad smile crept across my face and I was again the eight year old who fell in love with Christopher Reeves' Superman

Bryan Singer's Superman is a triumph although constantly referencing and riffing off the first Christopher Reeve film, his never feels like a pastiche, he has moved the story along and firmly positioned Superman as the only essential superhero we need bother about for the next few years.

He got a fine performance out of Kevin Spacey who stayed on this side of scenery chewing and the film is better for it. Brandon Routh was superb as both Clark Kent and Superman for me he filled the boots with ease but he also gave continuity through incorporating some of the quirks and mannerisms that Reeves gave Superman. Posey Parker brought her comedic skills to the part of Kitty and the supporting cast was uniformly very very good.

I could quibble - the McGuffin that explained away Superman's missing years was a bit weak, if you are a fan of Insultingly Stupid Movie Physics as I am, there was enough to get your teeth into but if you can believe a man can fly then you an forgive the odd cape flapping in space. Margot Kidder's Lois Lane was more feisty and believable as a go getting girl reporter than Kate Bosworth's she was too fragile and just a bit wet to really carry it off but I have a feeling that is partly how the part was written. But those are just quibbles in order to be picky even the little dodger who played Lois' son wasn't nauseating.

We didn't leave the cinema with our coats over our shoulders one arm in the arm pretending to Superman but it was a close run thing.

Overall 9 and 3/19th sloth points out of 10.

Woosh

This time last year I went to an airshow at a families day at the local RAF base. I blogged about it and lamented that I was not able to get any photos because my camera had died.

I was able to go again this year and managed to get Bex a ticket as well. This time the camera didn't fail, I didn't get sunburnt but it was perhaps a tad too warm.

The Red Arrows were the highlight of the afternoon as they were going to give a full display and they got about a third of the way through it until suddenly they stopped. According to the RAF guy who was providing commentary two "intruders" had strayed into their exclusion zone one seems to have quickly bimbled out again but the other, a glider, wasn't contactable by radio and was ignoring the visual signals that the Arrows were giving him. They flew over to where he was and left trails of white smoke I'm guessing this is an agreed "bugger off signal" he didn't bugger off and they ran out of time/fuel so it was curtailed.

Grrrr

But I managed to get some photos which are here.

Portsmouth

I had to go to Portsmouth with work yesterday, a factory visit, I've only just got back within the last hour, work wise it was a useful visit, it always nice to meet some the people I've only ever have spoken to over the phone and being a bit of an engineering groupie I love going round the factory floor.

However the major plus points to the visit from a purely selfish point of view

1. The hire car we got had air conditioning.

2. The hotel we stayed in had air conditioning in the rooms

3. Most of the factory was air conditioned.

Last night we went down to Gunwhale Wharf for dinner, It was almost sunset as we walked towards the restaurant and I was able to get a couple of nice pictures of the Spinnaker Tower and the sunset.



There was quite a spectacular electric storm last night, we watched from the restaurant last night, we thought we would be in for a very damp walk back to the hotel but the storm missed us.

It's just stopped raining here now, the sun is trying to come out so the humidity is rising again, my hair is in ringlets and my eyebrows are trying to curl.

TMMSASTMQ'CIWA

Save it, Smiley, originally uploaded by nytejade.

Becky and I were chatting on IM this evening about useful shorthands for showing that something is amusing. Bex had just published the second in her Tranny and TV series and it's rather good I think, I thought the first one was very good as well and commented "snigger" as that's what I did when I read it, but that didn't go down too well as Bex thought that I hadn't really found it very funny.

The problem is that with over use of various shorthands on the internet to show amusement it takes a ROFL!!!! to know that you've raised a slight smile. What is needed to reverse this inflation is a campaign to insert a few TLAs and phrases to cover from stoney silence to injury threatening laughter. Thing is I'm not having much luck coming up with any ideas. "That Made Me Smile And Snort To Myself Quietly 'Cos It Was Amusing", doesn't really roll of the tongue and as a TLA it's shocking.

Wrongness

Wrongness
Originally uploaded by Jane Goth.

This computer game "Hooligans - Storm Over Europe" is just wrong, I've not bought it or played it but there was enough about it, the blurb on the back, 8 "missions" across Europe, the premise organise your own hooligan gang, the red and black packaging to make me feel very ick.

It could be a delightful humourous send up of yob culture but somehow I doubt it.

Recovery

A rather wan Simon is now back in bed, still recovering from the Summer Ball we went to yesterday/til stupid o'clock this morning. We spent the evening drinking (although no pimms this time), dancing, eating, socialising and bashing the stuffing out of people on the dodgems. I have a doozy of a bruise on my inner right knee from a crash, it was great.

Thing is such fun takes its toll on the body and when we woke up this morning Simon looked as shabby as I felt not so much the hangover, although that was there it was the general tiredness and out of syncness with the day.

It was a smashing do which is really thanks to the staff there, they worked like stink to make sure we had a good time whilst managing to keep their sense of humour and seemingly enjoying themselves.

Performing highlight of the night was the Kylie tribute act, she was very good vocally, had legs that reached all the way to the ground exceptionally pretty with a lithe body. She also had a mesmeric effect on a lot of the men, the dancing was not pretty as so many of the audience were not concentrating on what they were doing.

But today we have been mostly doing nothing except sleep bimble about the shops and eat replenishing food like sausages and baked beans the alternative to the bacon buttie.