Category Archives: books

books, medical, memes, people, personal, science, topographical

My Birth Meme

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Jamie over at Duward Discussion has laid down a new meme, so I just have to give it a go!

This is what you do:
Go to The Birthday Calculator, This Day in History and/or Google and enter your date of birth to find all sorts of interesting things about what was happening when you were born.
Now tell us about some of these interesting things.
Then, if you wish, tag a few of your friends to do the same.
And post a comment to this post so we know who’s followed the meme.

OK so here goes for me!

Birthday: Thursday 11 January 1951, 1250 PM GMT in University College Hospital, London. My mother has told me that I was 2 weeks early. This means I was conceived in the early days of May 1950.

Astrological Sign: Capricorn

Birthstone: Garnet; said to be a power stone
Alternative Birthstones: Emerald, Rose Quartz.
(Interestingly I’m not so keen on Emeralds, but I love Rose Quartz)

Fortune Cookie: There is no limit to love’s forbearance, to its trust, its hope, its power to endure.

Chinese Year: Tiger

Native American Zodiac Sign: Goose
Plant: Bramble

I share my birthday with: Golfer Ben Crenshaw (b. 1952) and Anthony Powell’s younger son John (b. 1946)

Lucky Day: Saturday
Lucky Number: 8
Ruling Planets: Saturn & Uranus

Birth Tree: Fir Tree, the Mysterious. Extraordinary taste, dignity, cultivated airs, loves anything beautiful, moody, stubborn, tends to egoism but cares for those close to it, rather modest, very ambitious, talented, industrious uncontent lover, many friends, many foes, very reliable.

Lunar Phase: waxing crescent

The day I was born:
There appear to have been no major world events, births or deaths.
Arsenal beat Carlisle United 4-1 away in an FA Cup replay.
London Algebra Colloquium met to discuss “Non-Archimedian Normed Spaces”

On this day in other years:
1973. Britain’s Open University awards its first degrees
1946. Enver Hoxha proclaims the People’s Republic of Albania
1922. First use of insulin to treat diabetes in a human patient
1864. London’s Charing Cross station opened
1787. William Herschel discovers Titania and Oberon, two moons of Uranus
1569. The first national lottery is held in England; 40,000 lots, at 10 shillings each, go on sale at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London

Top Song of 1951: Mockin’ Bird Hill by Les Paul & Mary Ford

All in all it seems to have been a fairy dull day, so I guess I fit in well.

books, memes, personal, photography, pleasures, topographical

Twice the Meme!


Twice the Meme!, originally uploaded by kcm76.

1. Cat Help Needed! Ajuda Felina Urgente!, 2. New Banksy Rat Mural in New York, 3. Bat, 4. Air raid Beano, 5. December 1931 Country Life Magazine Christmas edition, 6. Punch 1957, 7. Icy Waterfall in the Harz Mountains – Germany, 8. Dartmouth Christmas, 9. Calm water at Buttermere, 10. Adnams “The Bitter” (Cask), 11. beaujolais nouveau, 12. All true tea lovers like their tea strong……, 13. Gandalf the Grey, 14. “The Satanic Verses”, 15. Evelyn Vaugh, “Decline and Fall”, 16. We ♥ Norway, 17. Not of this Earth – The Bubbling Sulfur Pools of Iceland, 18. japan, 19. 69/365- Words are worthless when you’re laying in my bed, 20. 49 pigeonholes, 21. day 76: pebble-dashed sky, 22. Holy Water at St. John the Russian’s Church, 23. James Turrell, 24. Jabez Rounds House

Questions and Answers, with something about why I chose each sequence:

This week we’re going to do 8 rows of 3!

1. Three animals
Cat, Rat, Bat; because they rhyme

2. Three magazines
Beano, Country Life, Punch; I remember them all from my childhood

3. Three holiday destinations
Harz Mountains, Dartmouth, Buttermere; I’ve been to all three and would like to go there again

4. Three drinks
Adnams beer, Beaujolais Nouveau, Tea; three of my favourites

5, Three novels
Lord of the Rings (JRR Tolkein), Satanic Verses (Salman Rushdie), Decline and Fall (Evelyn Waugh); three of many that I can’t read

6. Three countries
Norway, Iceland, Japan; I’d love to visit them all but I won’t because I object to their stance on whaling

7. Three numbers
69, 49, 76; number of houses I’ve lived in

8. Three names
John, James, Jabez; three of my great-grandfathers
[Later] Actually four of my great-grandfathers; two were called James!

Created with fd’s Flickr Toys.

books, memes, natural history, personal, photography, pleasures, science

Animal Meme


Anmimal Meme, originally uploaded by kcm76.

1. Cat’s eye, 2. Jaguar im Manu Nationalpark in Peru, 3. Steve-O, Which Channel is CNN ?, 4. Eeyore, 5. Not Afraid, 6. Alice Liddell and the Cheshire Cat, 7. Aquarium, 8. Sporting Lucas Terrier – Wandle Peter, 9. Morgana a fada!, 10. Animal skeleton, 11. Little Black Cat, 12. Small Fish from the Amazon

Questions and Answers:
1. What is your favorite animal? Domestic cats
2. Laws have changed, you now can own an exotic or wild animal as a pet. What animal would you own? Jaguar, they’re just slightly more manageable than tigers
3. Some people are cat fanciers and some are canine cuddlers. Which is is for you cats or dogs? Cats, every time; no question; cats are magic
4. What one word best describes your personality? What animal do you associate with that word? Depressive, so it has to be Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh tho’ I’d much rather be Tigger
5. Confess! What animal/insect/reptile/amphibian are you secretly (or not so secretly) afraid of? I don’t do “afraid”; I’m certainly in awe of the big cats; and I hate maggots; but I’m not afraid of anything
6. What was your favorite animal character from a children’s book when you were younger? Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland; I never did work out how to do that gradual disappearing trick. 🙁
7. You’re spending the day at the Zoo, it’s getting close to closing and you’re tired, but you’re definitely not leaving until you see the . . . Aquarium. Hah! Caught you! You thought I was going to say the big cats, but I’ve already seen them. 🙂
8. What kind of pet did you have when you were a kid or do you remember a particularly unusual pet you had? When I was 7 we got a small dog, a Lucas Terrier; but there were always cats at home too.
9. If you were to be reincarnated as an animal, what would you want to be? Why? Domestic cat with me to look after me
10. Animals in films always seem to tug at our heartstrings. What cinematic animal was your hero or a favorite? No animal hero or favourite ‘cos I don’t do films; I never did; it isn’t in my culture
11. If you had a stuffed animal as a child, what was it (extra points if you remember its name)? Little Black Cat and yes here he is, the original, snapshotted (can I say that?) specially for this occasion!
12. National Geographic has hired you to go on a photo shoot anywhere in the world you choose. What animal would you want to showcase in your full-color magazine spread (and where are you traveling to)? Fishes of the River Amazon and while we’re there we’ll have a few jaguars and parrots for good measure

Created with fd’s Flickr Toys.

books, food+drink, memes, nudism, personal, photography, pleasures, sexuality, thoughts

Happiness Meme


Happiness Meme, originally uploaded by kcm76.

1. Meet the cat: VIC, 2. Sand Sea Sun – Snorkel!, 3. The meaning of Photography, 4. Happy Nude Recreation Week!!!, 5. my wine and Brad’s beer, 6. My wife’s hairy cunt, 7. 8×6 frosty morning railroad, 8. day one hundred five, 9. Longing for Spring, 10. ordinary pic, but really tasty salad, 11. Reading A Buyer’s Market, 12. Katsuo-ji Temple bells

This week’s question: Just tell us 12 things which make you happy, and a picture for each.

Answers:
1. Cats – because they’re magic
2. Sun, sea and sand
3. Photography – it’s about the only creativity I have
4. Warm sunshine on my skin
5. Beer and wine – two of the essentials of a contented life
6. Noreen, my wife (perhaps I should not say explicitly what I was going to!) and that after almost 30 years of marriage we still have great sex
7. Bright frosty mornings
8. Nudity – it’s normal and it’s comfortable
9. Spring green and blossom on trees
10. Good, tasty, fresh salad
11. Books, especially Anthony Powell’s A Dance to the Music of Time
12. Bells

Created with fd’s Flickr Toys.

books, memes, personal, photography, pleasures, thoughts, topographical

Vacation Meme


Vacation Meme, originally uploaded by kcm76.

This week’s Flickr photo meme.

1. Small DSLR, 2. Popular Photography Magazine’s Featured Sunset *, 3. Eel in the smoke, 4. steam train through avondale july 07, 5. 1600×1280 – Morocco-beach – sun-sea-sand-pebbles, 6. Flowers for Mothers Day- UK 2nd March., 7. A locomotive To Brocken, 8. Winterwald, 9. Wellcome…into Alice’s Wonderland, 10. Bratwurst, 11. Mannequin Pis, 12. The most sacred place of Japan

Questions and Answers:
1. What is a must-pack in your travel bag or suitcase? (you just wouldn’t leave home without it) Olympus DSLR
2. What is your favourite thing to do while on vacation? Photography as an alternative to nothing with a bottle of wine
3. What is your great food/cuisine you have had or tried while traveling? Smoked Eel; heavenly
4. What is your favourite mode of travel – most enjoyable way to get there? Steam Train; first class, of course
5. What is your favourite way of “relaxing/unwinding” while traveling? Sun, Sea, Sand probably just edges out mountains and forest
6. Visiting friends and family sometimes involves travel – what relatives or friends do you visit most often when you go? (i.e. grandma, Uncle Bob, or Kate) My Mother
7. What was the best man-made wonder you ever saw/experienced while traveling? Steam Trains in Harz Mountains
8. What was the best wonder of Mother Nature that you ever saw/experienced while traveling? Winter Mountians and Forest
9. You could only take one book to read while travelling or on vacation – what would be in your bag? If I really can have only one volume then Alice in Wonderland; or more likely I wouldn’t take a book but buy something interesting along the way
10. Okay, you need a snack in that carry-on or backpack – what would it be? Bratwurst in a Bun
11. What is the “most touristy” thing you have done or place you have visited? Mannequin Pis; it’s such a horrible tourist attraction you have to see it once and be disappointed
12. You just won an all-expenses one-week trip anywhere in the world, where would you choose? Japan although it’s really too far for just a week

Created with fd’s Flickr Toys.

beliefs, books, memes, photography, topographical

Midweek Meme 26/09/2008


Midweek Meme 26/09/2008, originally uploaded by kcm76.

1. Austin 7 Box Saloon, 2. January moon, 3. Wicken Manor & Time Team, 4. 0930 Blue Eye, 5. A dance to the music of time, 6. Cat Conspiracy, 7. Christmas Day 2007, 8. Shopping for Saturday, 9. June Lake Fire In The Sky 2, 10. Sea lace, 11. Anyone for Fennel Tea?, 12. “WHY MEN LOVE US”

Questions and Answers:
1. What’s your lucky/favorite number? 7
2. In what month were you born? January
3. Favorite tv show/movie? Time Team
4. What time did you wake up today? 0930
5. Favorite book? A Dance to the Music of Time by Anthony Powell
6. Favorite animal? Cats
7. An important date to you? Christmas Day
8. Favorite day of the week? Saturday
9. Favorite month? June
10. Favorite sound? The Sea
11. One thing in your refrigerator right now. Fennel
12. You write your own question here! Why?

Created with fd’s Flickr Toys.

beliefs, books, current affairs, thoughts

Deep Thought from Osho

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I’ve recently picked up a couple of books by the mystic teacher Osho* and have been flicking through them. This is from his volume Intimacy; it seems strangely relevant:

This society is a power-oriented society. This society is still utterly primitive, utterly barbarian. A few people – politicians, priests, professors – are dominating millions. And this society is run in such a way that no child is allowed to have intelligence. It is a sheer accident that once in a while a Buddha arrives on the earth […] Somehow, once in a while a person escapes from the clutches of society. Once in a while a person remains unpoisoned by society. That must be because of some error, some mistake of society. Otherwise society succeeds […] in destroying your trust in yourself. And once that is done, you will never be able to trust anybody.

* Better known to those of us brought up on a diet of 60s/70s culture as Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh.

books, current affairs, quotes

Zen Mischievous Moments #145

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Misty over at Momentary lapses of insanity has come up with some absolute gems of proofreading errors, all of which are perfectly OK according to Microdaft’s spellchecker. Her list includes these classics:

Mrs X lived in a charming country cottage, almost completely covered in hysteria.

Paul was overjoyed at the opportunity to be reunited with his long lost brothel.

Her train of thought was cuddled to say the least.

A large croup had gathered by the monument.

They managed to get themselves the lead prat in the play.

Alice somehow managed to get her knickers in a twit.

The farmer won the prize with his fine new bollocks.

Poof reader required, contact …

arts, books, history, personal

Noreen Marshall, Her Book

After something like 2 years in gestation Noreen’s book, Dictionary of Children’s Clothes, finally appears in early-October. Here’s what the V&A’s blurb for the book says:

Over the last 300 years, children’s clothing has witnessed a gradual shift from dressing children to adult requirements, in multiple layers and formal styles, to the booming designer childrenswear market of today. This accessible and well-illustrated dictionary features over 300 garments, from air-raid suits to zouave jackets, with specially commissioned photographs from the world’s largest and most diverse collection at the V&A Museum of Childhood. A fully illustrated timeline and introduction offer an at-a-glance understanding of the changes in children’s fashions and a rich selection of line drawings and illustrations from sewing and knitting patterns, to catalogues, dolls, fashion plates, photographs, paintings and children’s fiction put the garments in context. Noreen Marshall is Curator of the Dress, Doll and Childcare Collections at the V&A Museum of Childhood. She has worked on a number of V&A exhibitions, including Stile Liberty, Jolly Hockey Sticks, The Pack Age, and a series of Christmas exhibitions.

Despite having been married to Noreen for most of the 30-odd years she’s worked at the Museum of Childhood, I have seen relatively little of this book during its birth traumas; it’s been a closely guarded secret. Until now, that is! I have now seen an early-released copy and, as can be seen from the dust-jacket (above), it’s a sumptuous volume illustrated with specially commissioned colour photographs on every page of the dictionary section. As well as the dictionary there is an extended essay by way of introduction, a 300-year timeline and several appendixes which enhance the main content. The book isn’t cheaply produced, something which is reflected in the cover price of £30, but this is excellent value considering the quality and the work which has gone into the production.

This book is a real treasure for anyone interested in costume or childhood. It may be pre-ordered from Amazon UK or from the V&A Online Shop.

Dictionary of Children’s Clothes, 1700 to the Present, by Noreen Marshall, is published on 06 October by the Victoria & Albert Museum at £30; ISBN 9781851775477.

books, history, memes, personal, photography, pleasures, science, thoughts, topographical

09/09/2008 This & That Meme!


This & That Meme!, originally uploaded by kcm76.

1. Anyone for Cricket?, 2. Sooty Oystercatcher, 3. Blue Hyacinth, 4. I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue, 5. Oz on bookcase 04212006 003, 6. Hoover Factory Greenford London, 7. DSC_2240, 8. Cunt Examination, 9. giving Katie the best there is and hoping she’ll be gaining back some weight …, 10. Jack and Jill Windmills in Sussex, 11. egg custard (gross), 12. Latin

The concept:
a. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.
b. Using only the first page, pick an image.
c. Copy and paste the html into your blog or Flickr stream (the easiest way is to copy the URLs and then head over to the fd’s flickr toys link above and use the mosaic maker).

The Questions & Answers:
1. What was your favorite summertime activity as a kid? Cricket
2. What was your first pet’s name? Sooty
3. What model car did you learn to drive on? I didn’t; yes that’s right, I never have learnt to drive and I don’t want to.
4. What’s your proudest moment as an adult? I’m sorry I haven’t a clue
5. What are your top 3 hobbies (other than photography)? cats, science, books
6. Where do you call home? Greenford
7. Where did you call home at age 11 (or any age)? Waltham Cross
8. What word do you love to say? C**t
9. Where do you go to relax? Lying in the sun
10. Who was your first kiss? Jill
11. Least favorite food? Egg custard
12. Least favorite subject in school? Latin although it’s a close finish with woodwork.

Created with fd’s Flickr Toys.