civilservant

the count of monte cristo or the man in the iron mask?

my god it's the Ragged Trousered Philanthrophists, but can't remember who you mean didn't think anyone read it anymore

so a cryptically liberal early-morning gardener William Blake? but he was real, not in a book

Mr Collins (in Pride and Prejudice)?

erm, venus williams?

staggering home from the Great Exhibition tonight, what do I spot on the pavement but a toad! a big one too That's no place for a toad I thought, so I took it home and sneakily introduced it into next door's garden in the hope that it'll find a cool and shady home near their pond. But I hope it leaves the bumblebees alone!

El Pibe Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Is there some criteria to this, oh no El P, your slip is showing...

We can't blame the evil wind anymore. I agree that there's a lot more dogshit on the pavement these days - a rather disgusting obstacle course down Crystal Palace Road of a morning, especially the bit near Gumboots - and there also seems to be quite a bit of broken glass.

Brick sounds good - will check it out Point Blank is on extended release at the BFI - a reminder of when Brits did really beat Hollywood at its own game Source Code was ok if you didn't think too hard about the plot. But Moon:-( - sooo tinny and derivative, Lego sets built in a sandbox with a plot pinched from Solaris, Silent Running, 2001, Alien, etc etc. Interesting to speculate about whether Duncan Jones would have been noticed in a parallel universe where he had a different dad.

OP said "American woman writing about the American south" Adichie fits the bill only on account of being a woman - it looks as if the American bit of her book is based in New England. So still not right

and ©people need to remember to check woodpiles before lighting them on Bonfire night! ETA hogs will eat catfood - bread and milk doesn't agree with them

sorry, Laur, that's definitely not right - whole wrong continent

catisthenics

Wind activity That bitter east wind was busy re-distributing litter all over streets, pavements and front gardens these last couple of weeks I gave up tidying outside the front of my house until the wind died down, or I'd have been out there litter-picking all day everyday

thanks for the encouraging news, jonco - that's my commuting route and I will keep a hopeful eye out for Greendale hogs! attagirl, workingmummy, thanks!

what are you suggesting, louisa - that someone doing their eyes on a bus is a public health danger? Someone please enlighten me, I don't want to wade through 8 pages of posts. At that rate, walking into John Lewis would be the equivalent of wandering into a leprosarium - you know the bit at the front where the scary women in immaculate foundation tempt you with their lotions and potions, all no doubt well saturated with phthalates and other goodies. (Note re animal testing - there is now a complete ban on the sale of animal-tested cosmetics across the EU since last month)

buffy Father Ted

sully

Voyageur Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Offensive on public transport? > - Loud, tinny music from headphones > - Mobiles with shockingly loud ring tones (turn the frigging volume down you a**holes) > - people bellowing on phones, especially when discussing excruciatingly boring business matters > - women clearing gunk from underneath their hideous acrylic nails and dropping it on the floor > - farting/sneezing without covering nose/eating smelly food/filthy feet on seats. yes, yes, and yes makeup - certainly not btw, am I the only one to wonder about the personal hygiene of people with long nails, especially when the nails are long enough to begin to curl a bit?

testy

mmm, actually not a lot to go on those Southern women are always writing family sagas that always seem to win prizes could you narrow it down, perhaps? e.g. vague plot outline/author ethnicity/name of prize, that sort of thing?

don't mind the cold as much as that evil wind, so glad it's died down I thought that the North wind wooshing down Crystal palace Road all winter was bad enough, but a freezing east wind - that's even more brutal

there used to be a house off the Wimbledon end of Worple Road where the resident had done something very similar - he was trying to publicise his diffrences with Merton Council I used to walk past it on my way to the station 10 years ago. He died, it was all swept away, house was gentrified etc. Does anyone remember it? I can't find any trace of it on t'internet

John Grant UK tour - Shepherd's Bush on 15 May

agree, it's very nice, a worthy successor to the old Atlantic Bar and grill that used to occupy the same spot