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Mutterings, musings and general brain flatulence. |
Here be mushrooms 
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Challenge: What are your favorite movie genres? Share some recommendations with your readers! As a child, some of my absolute favourite movies were Labyrinth (with David Bowie and Jennifer Connelly), Fern Gully: the Last Rainforest (with Robin Williams), and The Emerald Forest (with Charlie Booth). I guess the big crossover between these three point to my interests - Labyrinth and Fern Gully are both fantasy/adventure, and Fern Gully (for all it has Robin Williams as a rapping lab-escapee bat) and The Emerald Forest are both commentaries on human nature and carry very important messages about nature and the environment. I guess in terms of genre, my tastes are still broadly similar now as they were when I was a child (Avon from Blakes 7 was and still is my weird celebrity crush). I still love the comedy and athletic skill of Jackie Chan (albeit more his Hong Kong action days and less his Hollywood slapstick). James Bond still makes me roll my eyes - but that won't stop me from seeing each new release in the cinema. It was more Disney than Pixar/Dreamworks growing up (I'm a Beauty & the Beast, Aladdin, Lion King, & Jungle Book era kid), but I'll never turn down a film night with Shrek or the Ice Age crew, and Moana spends more time on my music playlist than a 30-something should ever admit to. |
Challenge: Pretend that you have found a four-leaf clover that will bring you extraordinary good luck for exactly one day. Write about your lucky day. Work has been rather intense recently, so I'll settle for an unexpected day off. But if I were to describe a remarkable day, where everything goes with supernatural perfection, I guess it would look something like this; I'd wake up nice and early - quite naturally and full of energy for a change - but Best Beloved would still be deeply asleep and not stir as I get up (did I mention I get up because I want to....). The sun is just creeping over the horizon and I'm torn between an early morning walk around the village and doing some yoga/pilates/stretches in the living room with some music (I'm fantasising, this would never normally happen). I'd then settle down on the garden sofa with a fresh coffee and my book, it's warm enough to do that today. After a few chapters I'm starting to feel hungry, and wouldn't you believe it - there's bacon in the fridge and I had the foresight buy croissants too.I start to cook breakfast and the aroma awakens Best Beloved who only takes half an aeon in the shower this morning, because wouldn't y'know, he doesn't need yelling down the stairs (we have an upside-down house and our garden is the garage roof). I don't even need to roll my eyes. We breakfast outside and Best Beloved points out the birds at the feeders because today he's interested in nature. He's in one of his infectious, energetic moods and he's thought of a new place for us to go hiking today. It's a longer route than we normally do, but my ankle has been much better recently, so we're going to risk it. BB hands me my book and tells me to read other chapter whilst he clears away breakfast. I suggest making a picnic, but the route he has in mind takes us past a really good gastro-pub (there is no covid, lock-down, or quarantine rules today) and he wants to treat me.* The hike is fabulous. It's a beautiful day; sunny, but cool. My ankle is absolutely fine and although we go over some rough terrain and end up clambering across some boulders and a river (we got a little lost, don't ask), it holds up just fine. We stop at the pub for lunch and the food is great, but by the time we get back to the car we're both thinking about dinner. Best Beloved surprises me with dinner out - apparently he was going to cook, but he's changed his mind and we end up at another pub (full of hikers and people with dogs, so it doesn't matter that we're both a bit hot and sticky after our walk). I've lucked out as the pub has a well stocked gin bar and since it's BB's idea to eat out, he's driving. Oh, and I nearly forgot, the local band that we both love - the one that doesn't play in pubs any more - is just setting up. And since they recognise us (and they should, they played our wedding) they don't just take the usual cover-requests, they play a couple of their own songs. BB and I play their CD at full blast all the way home. * I should probably point out that this isn't actually that unusual; we both like hiking and food. But it's my perfect day, so he's paying  Challenge: If you were hired to show tourists what life is really like where you live, what would you show them or have them do? Best Beloved and I get this a lot anyway - we live in west Cornwall, UK, and it's a very touristy area. You are tripping over beautiful beaches, fishing villages, picturesque coves, and wild moorland. Britain doesn't do seafood very well on the whole, but Cornwall has Newlyn, Falmouth, St Ives, and Padstow - we have celebrity chiefs and award-winning microbreweries and gin distilleries in every direction. My favourite recommendations are a number of the local beaches (along with the ones to avoid) - there's Kynance Cove with its breathtaking rock formations; Godrevy has an island lighthouse and several inaccessible covelets that seals just love; Gwithian looks across the bay to St Ives, and has a fantastic little cafe-surf shop. Cornwall is famous for its pasties (a heavy, but freakin' awesome, pastry meal filled with meat, potato and veg that miners used to eat) and three to the biggest names happen to be our town. The Eden Project is only a few miles up the road for those that want to wander around the biomes; they have a Mediterranean biome where they do weddings and a tropical biome were you can get baobab ice-cream. They do concerts during the summer - we had tickets to see Bryan Adams this summer, but well covid...... and it's one of the best venues I've ever been to because it's so small and laid back. If you drive in the opposite direction, you get to Lands End and you can meander back via the Minack Theatre* which is built into the side of the cliff over. Again, a perfect location of entertainment - I've known artists stop half way through a set because the audience is watching dolphins out to sea and even the singer wanted to watch for a bit! I saw a performance of based on the Titanic and it was truly surreal; it was late at night in October, crystal-clear skies littered with stars, waves crashing against the cliff-face, enough of a chill in the air that you could see your breath. A more fitting setting for the centenary remembrance you could not imagine. *Google it. Words cannot and will not do it justice. |
Challenge: What lesson do you remember most vividly from your childhood? If the electric fence crackles, don't touch it..... |
Challenge: What’s your favorite board game or card game to play with friends? Scrabble - but Best Beloved hates word games (Boggle is a swearword in his opinion), so I don't get to play it all that often except online. My sister and I used to play mahjong with our parents loads as kids, but I don't know anyone who plays now and most of my friends find it too intimidating to sit down and teach. Which is a real pity, because it was a huge part of my childhood (I'm white British, but somehow my parents were given a set back in the 80s) and I've still on the beautifully carved set we used to play with. |
Challenge: In your entry, make a list of your favorite words to say. Then describe why they are your favorites and include a pronunciation guide for your readers. Brownie points if you can use your words in a sentence. I have a number of favourite words and funnily enough I was thinking about this very question a few days ago (as in before the prompt was posted, because I'm late in responding).  Surreptitious; adjective, meaning something being kept secret, in particular something that might not be approved of. Pronounced ser-rup-tish-us. I love that surreptitious sounds secretive. You've got that shhhh sound in the middle and I find (for me) it conjures up both dark alleys and mysterious strangers and dead-drops, and yet also children whispering in pillow forts and sharing sweeties. Danger and innocence. Fear and excitement. Terror and giggles. With a surreptitious motion, the mage twitched his fingers and the box disappeared. Library; if I need to describe that here, the you're on the wrong website. And hopefully I don't need to give a pronunciation guide or explain myself. But hey, it's a damn good word; whether it's a book-nook in your own home, an e-reader in your backpack, a vaulted cavern lined with dusty scrolls, or the more pedestrian and still wonderful public library full of dogeared large print novels, a library is one of the most wondrous places on Earth.That scene, that scene in Beauty & The Beast. You know the one, when he just gives her the most glorious library ever envisioned.  |
Challenge: What traditional ethnic food dishes from your culture does your family still enjoy? Tell us about how the recipe was passed down and what modifications were made over the years. Last night I made Shepherd's Pie for the first time in ages - lamb mince topped with mash potato. Normally it's made with peas and diced carrots and onions; but I didn't have any peas and carrots, so I tried with bell pepper, mushrooms, and onions, with a little bit of chili pepper mixed in for good measure. I always, always pour in a good slug of red wine into the gravy and grate some cheese on top before putting it in the oven. We had the leftovers for dinner tonight, and as is often the case with any mince dish, it tasted much better twenty-four hours later. I think the slight chili twist has cracked it though, I'll definitely do that again. Another mince recipe I love adding chili peppers to, is lasagna - my cousin and I lived together for a year at uni and chili lasagna became our signature dish.I love veggie lasagna, but I'm not too bother by meat lasagna; however, it's one of Katie's fav dishes, so we ended up eating it a lot. One evening we had leftover chili con carne and in true student fashion threw it in the pan. Turns out kidney beans and chili peppers, and paprika and chili spice take lasagna to a whole new level. |
Challenge: Imagine you had to create an art piece for a gallery or museum. What would you create? What is art? I'm not a painter or musician, much as I'd truly love to be. But that doesn't stop me from doodling and scribbling in my journal. I do the occasional #KindnessRocks painted pebble, but that's pretty much it. If I were doing a piece for a gallery or museum though, it would probably be something ceramic based - a pot or mosaic perhaps. Mostly likely either geometric or tribal style, simply because I find them easier to make, although I love botanical art and would love to be able replicate the old-style botanical journals; think Victorian watercolours.  |
Challenge: What qualities do you look for in a friend? Are there any qualities you avoid? What qualities about yourself do you think make a good friend? It's an oldie, but a goldie... One of my favourite knickers friends sent me this recently; Friends are like knickers; Some crawl up your arse, Some snap under pressure, Some don't have the strength to hold you up, Some get a little twisted, Some are your favourite, Some you can see right through, Some are cheap, and just plain nasty, And some actually cover your arse when you need them to.  |
Challenge: What artist or band do you always recommend when someone asks for a music recommendation? That is such a loaded question - I really try hard to suggest artists or bands that I think might appeal to the questioner. And my absolute favourite artists are, well, something of an acquired taste. There are a couple of local bands I try and promote (y'know, back in the day when live music was still a thing...), but obviously that only works within my immediate area. There's one local band I particularly like and got to see loads last summer (Best Beloved arranged them and a pop-up bar at his family's holiday park and the weather was good enough for festival vibes, even with social distancing). |
Challenge: Write about the mythical or science fiction creatures/beings that could actually exist. Imagine a world where there was definitive proof of their existence - how would life be different? If there is one subject that has always fascinated me, it's the origin of myths. I think most people - certainly in the film or writing arenas - are aware of the 'zombie-drugs' used in voodoo; massively exaggerated of course, but there are chemicals that can people comatose and in highly suggestible states when they awaken. Clinical lycanthropy is a rare, but genuine, medical condition where the patient believes they can or have transformed into an animal (not necessarily a wolf, but werewolf myths give rise to the psychiatric name), and as such behave in an animalistic fashion. Porphyria frequently causes photosensitivity and, in some of its extreme forms, even cause phototoxicity; rapid blistering and burning from sunlight - sound familiar? Mania, delusions, hallucinations, catatonia, and extreme pain are also commonly associated with porphyria; one particularly nasty variant, Gunther's Disease, not only has the severe photosensitivity, but patients can also develop excessive bodily hair - bringing us back to werewolves. It doesn't take much imagination to see how some myths arise and grow with exaggerated telling - have you ever read heraldic descriptions of exotic animals? I remain convinced that rhinos are unicorns with really good PR. For all they are gangly and ugly - and apparently completely deaf - Komodo dragons remain a favourite animal of mine. There is something utterly alien about the way they simultaneously scuttle and waddle. And their size... Blue-tongued skinks are another favourite; little tiny lizards with bight blue tongues that dart out like blowtorch flames. I can easily imagine some sort of hybrid between the two being mistaken for a fire-breathing dragon. STOP PRESS - in my quick Google hunt to see if red-tongued skinks were a thing (there's a pink-tongued apparently) I just discovered that dragons are in fact real. If you haven't already, Google CROCODILE SKINK. There is nothing more I need to write tonight - crocodile skinks exist and therefore so do dragons.  |
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