Posts by Tamsin6
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Southerly: A Tsunami False Alarm at 2.00…, in reply to linger,
Well, that's good news at least. As usual, (my) words are inadequate, but it looked really distressing from over here, and good to know that not quite as dreadful as it could have been.
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Southerly: A Tsunami False Alarm at 2.00…, in reply to Tamsin6,
Now saying it was 7.1, pictures they are showing on Sky show a pretty big shake anyway.
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Oh shit - another big earthquake just hit off coast of NorthEast Japan. 7.4, predicted 1 metre wave.
All joking aside, it would be nice to be equipped with a decent tsunami warning system and evacuation route for just these sorts of eventualities. I'm with Islander - this stuff happens - IS happening - why can't we be prepared for it?
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Busytown: A new (old) sensation, in reply to Jolisa,
Whoops - thanks Jolisa - me and the linky thing are not working well together today.
As for visiting, it's been a while now since I visited - I knew they had lottery money, but hadn't quite arrived at the realisation that it was actually going to close for such a long time! So brilliant that it is going to be done up a bit, especially considering it was only recently that both the Gallery and nearby Vestry House museum (which houses local history archive as well) were possibly to be closed.
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Busytown: A new (old) sensation, in reply to Christopher Dempsey,
Wait. There's a William Morris museum?? Fantastic! Where?
I guess technically not a museum - they call it the William Morris Gallery, it hosts exhibitions as well as being a repository of things related to Morris himself, and it also has a research library. I'm guessing there is a considerable load of stuff in the V&A also. But the Gallery is in Waltham Forest, E17
The Friends website is pretty good: http://www.friendsofthewmg.org.uk/
but the Gallery itself is closed for a major refurb until from today until sometime in 2012. There is quite a bit about the project here:
http://www.walthamforest.gov.uk/index/leisure/museums-galleries/william-morris/development-project.htmThis thread has got away on me - sorry for the late reply!
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Jackie - I hate feeling like I should read something - it makes me want to not read it. Ever. I tend to read in quantity but not quality lately, and Jolisa's post has me thinking that it might not be entirely my own fault. Thank goodness. I have also noticed lately that I can't construct a proper sentence to save my life. Makes me hang my head in shame when I think my degree was in English Literature. Sigh.
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I LOVE this thread. Only just seen it. Too far from home! So much of it is familiar – New Zealanders do seem to move around so much, it can be hard to say where you are from opposed to where you feel most at home.
When people here ask me where I’m from, it’s New Zealand (never London – they’ve heard my accent, that’s the reason they’re asking). But so many from here have visited, or have family or friends here, etc. etc – so they ask ‘Where in New Zealand?’ and that’s where it gets trickier.
Born in Invercargill, brought up in Ashburton (now there’s a place it’s hard to feel at home in if your family don’t stay there for generations), Uni at Christchurch (and yes Islander, it was Varsity when I started there in ’89) – loved Christchurch as a student, but don’t think I could have lived there as an adult. Then glorious Wellington (first in Thorndon, then Lower Hutt – I loved it there though I realise it can be an acquired taste – and then in the lovely Aro Valley). All my Christchurch friends seemed to wait until I was leaving before they moved there too.)
Moved to Tauranga for a year or so, then by choice, back to Invercargill. Where I stayed until I moved to London. I’ve been here longer than I lived in any of those places, but I’m still from Invercargill when anyone asks. I love the place, the people, the whole region. Some of my earliest memories are eating pipi’s on the beach at Papatowai, while staying at my grandparent’s crib. The bush, the sea, the paua shells washed up everywhere, the smell of the seaweed and the sight of a lone surfer trying out the superb beach break.
Islander, one of my best memories of just before I left was sitting with friends in the shallows at Colac Bay, enjoying the warm currents that seem to sweep in there. And I wish I could remember better and describe the sounds of my grandparent’s speech – especially grandad – the southland burr that really takes me home.
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I think the last NZ novel I read was Master Pip, partly because of all the fanfare. I sort of enjoyed bits of it, but it left me underwhelmed. But then so much literary fiction does these days. The last fantastic absorbing book I read that I couldn't put down was Wolf Hall, and that is going back a bit now. I've got into the habit of reading fiction I don't have to think about, as a comfort thing, a bit like a nice comfy pair of jammies, a hot chocolate and a few biscuits. That's not to say I haven't read things that are supposed to be good: I so, so, so wanted to LOVE The Children's Book (Byatt) but didn't ever really feel that bothered - I live in the borough of Waltham Forest, for goodness sake, the William Morris museum is just up the road, the whole thing should have been sparking off recognition, I don't know, something. But I just couldn't be faffed with it. I visited the library today and brought home some appalling US mumsy novel thing full of fluff, another English complete chicklit thing, some new SF novel (actually probably not new, just new to me) and another one which I can't remember just now. This is all to interrupt my attempt to read the 2nd dragon tattoo book, which I want to read to find out what happens, but just gets me so irritated by the quality of the translation, or something - you see? I just can't be bothered being constructively critical. I don't want to read worthy books, I just want a nice wee story to keep me entertained - I just wish that some of the fantastically written and critically acclaimed books could deliver that as well.
I honestly don't think it is an attention span thing. And it's not pure nostalgia - although I make recommendations of my old favourites to friends with children of the appropriate ages, I'm not driven to re-read them all. I may make an exception for the Chrestomanci series by Diana Wynne Jones though.
I'm tired of things being clever clever - I just want to be blown away by pure talent. I'll have to keep reading to find that I suppose?
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Hard News: It Began ... in Chicago, in reply to Mike Hollywood,
with the quirky band Six Volts enjoying a long residency.
The very excellent Six Volts!
http://www.youtube.com/user/plan9music#p/a/u/1/eIskFITv8Os
I seem to remember they did a lovely cover of the Aquamarina song from Stingray
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Hard News: The digital switch-off, in reply to Jacqui Craig,
I couldn't believe it when I saw that Suzie Cato was still on telly - surely in the 12 years or so since my nephew watched 'The Lady' and everything stopped for the 15 minutes or so of absolute concentration on every nuance of her presentation he could manage at that age, there has been some other similar program made? But no. It appears not.
I would also be gutted if I couldn't see Captain Mack. But sometimes he has to go - his monkey needs him.