Tenderness update and a bikini crisis

I'm liking the new blog style by the way, I got an email from Blogger the other day telling me that I could make my blog pretty if I wanted, so I gave it a shot and this is what I cam up with.

Latest update of Tenderness for Ben, he's just seen it for the first time in a while and said (albeit while sounding slightly surprised) 'that's starting to look really good', which is lucky really, seeing as I'm doing it for him.

Last Friday I got dragged into a photo session for the new brochures for the clinic, and one of the pictures that was done was something very like this (thankfully not by me, although that was threatened at one point), so I'm now trying to get this finished by the time that the new brochure comes out, not convinced that I'm going to manage it, but it's as good an ambition as any! And I did do loads of work on it on Monday night, I stubbornly got it into my head that I wanted to get the current page done so I wa stiching away frantically. Managed it, and I'm weird, I like how it looks when you've got the straight lines next to the block of solid stitching, but that'll get broken up soon, possibly even today.

In other news I'm very much looking forward to Easter next weekend, four day weekend, and even better, Ben's got a four day weekend as well, and that practically never happens. We've not got much planned, just looking forward to having some time off at the same time.

Talking of time off, we recently booked our summer holiday, a week in Bulgaria, which should be something a bit different, so of course, in a vague sort of way, the holiday preperations have begun, you know start layering on the moisturiser (and then the tinted moisturiser) so that I'm not the palest person there and no reflecting sun light with my pasty white legs. Also trying to find a new bikini, tried one on yesterday and can't remember the last time I felt so depressed about myself. I'm already pretty picky about what I wear, it's got to be shorts rather than briefs because the more of my bum and the top of thighs that is covered the better, and it's got to be a more solid halter neck top rather than a piece of string with two tiny triangles of material attached to it. I'm not saying I've got much bust to cover, but I'm fairly sure that two tiny scraps of material aren't going to do the job. Anyway, tried one on yesterday and it was wrong in pretty much every sense of the word. It was shorts, but they were wrong in so many ways, mainly in the way that they made me look as though I was trying on a size six instead of my size. The logical part of my brain says that I'm a size ten and so I can't be that big, my eyes say I looked like I'd just tried on a size six for giggles and I was hanging over the top of it, and it was quite hideous, I looked truly awful and it really has despressed me. So I'm now trying to find a way of looking less terrifying and depressing in a bikini, but the trouble is that gym memberships are very expensive and I don't earn enough to be doing things that are very expensive, so if anyone has any suggestions of cheap ways of looking less nasty in a bikini (please not jogging, far too public and just generally very unpleasant),l but all suggestions gratefully accepted.

Winter's Majesty, it's the latest update

It's that time of the week again, time for another update. Another days work on Winter's Majesty, I had some leave to use up by the end of March so I spent some of Thursday working on this. This is probably the first time since I've been posting on this blog that you can actually seen a difference from the last picture, although I suspect that that's only because I was fed up of it not looking any different so I deliberately chose a brighter colour taht would stand out next to what I've done. So progress continues, but, despite the fact that I've used a nice bright colour so you can see that I've actually done something, you still can't tell what it is. Ah well!

I'm not going to get much time for stitching this week, because I'm out Wednesday, which is my usual stitching night, and Thursday, which would have been my additional stitching night because Ben had a match, so I may not have much time for stitching, but I'll see what I can do. Determined that I have to stitch each week otherwise I'll never get anything finished.

And to continue from last week, I have acually managed to do some writing, be it it was only about 250 words last night, but I've started putting down ideas for the competition that I mentioned. Wish me luck!

Tim Burton's Alice In Wonderland

Forgot to say, Ben and I went to see Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland in 3D last Friday and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I'll start with the 3D then go onto the film, this is the first time I've seen a film in 3D so I can't compare it to other films but, I thought that it was a bit hit and miss. Sometimes it worked perfectly, generally if something was in the middle of the screen and coming towards you, then it came out clearly and was amazing. At one point there were some kids on the front row trying to grab hold of something as it 'came out of' the screen. Other times, generally when something went across the screen, or when it was half on screen it didn't work, because it spoiled the image where it suddenly stopped. Overall though, quite impressed and think that when it's been perfected it'll probably be quite amazing.

So, onto the film itself, if you've read the books (Both in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass) then you could, quite happily, pull the plot to pieces, however, if you sit and watch it as an entertaining film that's loosely based on the works of Lewis Carroll, then that's not a problem. No, the Red Queen should not be the same as the Queen of Hearts, yes, in Jabberwocky the slayer is most definitely male, but if you can let that slide then it doesn't matter.

The film starts with a flash back to Alice as a child having bad dreams about Wonderland then moves forward to (her) present day at about 18 where she's going to a garden party only to find that the son of the family holding it is going to propose to her in a very public manner, Alice panics and runs away before falling down the rabbit hole into Wonderland. This turns into the beginning of the book, 'eat me', 'drink me', but with voices talking about her as she does, then goes into Wonderland.

Wonderland is pretty typical Burton fair, weird, wonderful and really quite dark. Really impressive cast, all doing a very good job (although I did wince a little at Barbara Windsor as the dormouse, why would you do that?). Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter are old hands at Burton films and it shows, they look incredibly comfortable in their surroundings. Helena Bonham Carter is wonderful psychotic as the Queen of Hearts/Red Queen, with occasional flashes of Queenie out of Blackadder, but she's wonderful in the role and has been made to look quite freaky through it. Depp of course has been one of the main publicity calls of the film, and he was very good as the Mad Hatter ranging between comic craziness, terrifying madness and the occasional moment of heart breaking terror when he comes out of the madness long enough to realise that he is mad, he slides between this different emotions with consummate ease, and it's easy to see why he has been pushed to the fore for the publicity, this is a starring role. Matt Lucas does a wonderful turn as Tweedledum and Tweedledee, arguing with himself all along and I personally have to give kudos to Anne Hathaway. I haven't seen much publicity around her role as the White Queen but I have to say that I thought she was brilliant, she has these wonderful 'airy fairy' affectations that she puts on as the public face of the white queen, but as soon as there's no one looking she pick up her skirts and runs. As for Mia Wasikowska as Alice, I feel a bit guilty, as I don't really know what to say about her. She does hold the piece together as the one that the action revolves around, and she gives a  good performance in this role, but she pales into significance when placed next to the larger than life characters around her. That said, she has some wonderful scenes with Depp as the Mad Hatter who has the decency to not upstage her in some of his more 'emotional' scenes where she comforts him in the realisation of his madness.

All in all I did really enjoy it, and have gone around telling people that they should go and see it, and I will be getting it on dvd when it comes out, as I would like to own it, even without the magic 3D effects. It's a cast list that just roles on and on, and I can't mention all, although everyone does give a sterling effort (again, I'm possibly questioning Barbara Windsor a little bit, but apart from that). But I can only finish this review as I've been saying to the girls I share an office with, it's really good, you should go and see it!

Chalet Schools

I'm a very happy Kim. Proper stitching update to follow, probably tomorrow, but in the mean time I just need to share that I am happy.

Just been to a book fair in town and came back with three of the ones that I was missing for my collection, I now only have 18 more to get for a complete set, then I can go back and start replacing the massacred Armarda editions, but first things first, a complete set.

Oooh!

Did I mention by the way (I know I didn't, so I don't know why I'm writing that), I've just recently seen a couple of interesting writing competitions and so am currently mulling ideas over in my head. It's been a long time since I did any proper writing and even longer since I've plucked up the courage to enter a competition (where I've never had so much on an acknowledgement, never mind a success), so it's all a little nerve wracking, but I've decided you can only work in admin for so long before you brain starts to melt, especially when you've suddenly found yourself looking after recruitment (I have absolutely no idea by the way), so it's time to start doing what I want to do, even if it's only in a very little way.

Time for an update

The continued stitching of In Love by Vervaco.

Yeah, it is still a whole lot of beige, but it's now a whole lot of beige with a little dark spot that is, let me assure you, a head, so as well as beige sky and beige sea, the picture now contains an itty bit of a person.

I do enjoy stitching this, and it's going to look wonderful once it's finished, but it's just not very photogenic during these early stages, although I have at least managed to take a reasonable picture of it for once.

This is going into hibernation for a couple of weeks now, as I've mentioned before, it's going to be a wedding gift for my dad and his fiance when they finally get round to setting a date and actually doing the wedding thing, and they're coming to stay next weekend, so I've got to make sure that this is securely hidden away while they're here, preferably in a much more effective way then when I tried to hide the one I was doing for Ben.

Haven't had much time to stitch this week, only a couple of hours, but I achieved all of the right hand side of the picture, so I've not done to badly.

This week is going to be a mixed week stitching wise, I lose my two evenings that I normally have (Monday we're going to the theatre, Wednesday I'm stuck in a meeting in Leeds until 8, so I'll be lucky if I'm home by 9 ) but I've got Thursday and Friday off work, so hopefully I'll be able to get some stitching then, more likely Thursday of the two. Friday's looking a little busier cos I've got my dad and his fiance arriving, also, in a moment of stupidity I told Ben that of course I'd be willing to be photographed for the new literature for the clinic, so Friday afternoon I have to put my money where my mouth is and actually go and be photographed. Ah well, look out for my face, in a chiropractors near you (but only if you live in Harrogate).

Just a quick catch up

I haven't written anything in about three weeks, and I'm feeling very guilty about that. I haven't stitched much recently cos I've been busy, in fact up until Thursday I hadn't done any stitching in about two and a half week (and incidently discovered that where my partner needs football to de-stress, I need my stitching). Haven't even read or watched much recently, so can't write about that either.

Watched the Duchess with Keira Knightley and Ranulph Fiennes the other night, which I did enjoy, but somehow don't really feel like I can review it. Saw the first half of Absent Friends by Alan Aykbourne at the theratre the other night when I was ushering, but didn't really enjoy it, so much so that when I wasn't needed after the interval I decided that I couldn't be bothered to stay till the end.

Did some stitching on Thursday night when Ben was playing a badminton match, but was working on Winter's Majesty so I've just added to the confetti and it's not worth posting an update.

Got a couple of 'stitching days' coming up though, Ive got a couple of days off in a couple off weeks and I'm planning on using one of those for stitching, and Ben's going to a stag weekend a couple of weeks after that so I'm going to have an entire stitching weekend I think.

Currently having a very lazy Sunday, debating trying to convince Ben he wants to go and see Alice in Wonderland this evening, but not convinced that I can see it happening.