Had an exceptionally nice evening out last night, and have just been naming the new Flatbread Cafe as definitely a contender amongst my favourite restaurants in Newcastle. Right next door to my number 2 favourite, Pani's , it's a new persian

"And we now take a moment of relative quiet to offer our own prayers for the bride and groom" adlibbed the vicar, as the child who had screamed and kicked the panelling all through the service continued to do so, but even still, it was a lo

In the conclusion of my MA dissertation on digital editions of manuscripts, I wrote that perhaps the neck and eye strain felt by today's screen readers was akin to that felt by the faithful craning up to decipher stained glass windows. In this m

The voices of angels... well maybe not, but not bad, all the same. I'm so NOT listening for THAT bar! Abenlied (Rheinberger) and Beati Quorum Via (Stanford), as massacred by the Sage Gateshead Chamber Choir.

Had a bit of a hectic week last week. Never seemed to stop, but got to enjoy a quick trip to London. I'd bought mum and dad tickets for Sound of Music at the Palladium for Christmas (part of my attempt at ethical/non-carbon-footprinting/non-buying-cr

Oh dear. feeling ever so slightly sick, after eating all the leftovers. But now I do feel quite christmassy, with a huuuge pile of pepparkakor and the pieces ready to build a house and a tree. Not as inventive as these, but this sort of a house, I th

Well it's one way to spend a winter evening... In the company of Sir Jon Lumley (supposedly) at Lumley Castle, a medieval banquet, where your only accoutrements/implements are a bib and a dagger to get you through 5 courses! This particular one was f

Brr. Today is the Chicago marathon, and since I was awake at 5 am again, I got up and watched everyone past at the 2 mile mark. 37 degrees in old money, plus (or minus) the wind chill factor and it's trying to snow. There is a trememdous range o

Well well. I went to have a look at the latest on the Swedish election before I go to bed, after reading Stefan's posts, and am somewhat bemused to see on the front page a link to a story about the Sound of Music, and who won! Is the Sound of Music s

Ha ha. Light relief! click on more and then his face to feed him!

Well normally I'm dead excited to think the footy is back today. This year I'm strangely un-interested. Perhaps because of the injury to Michael Owen and a failure to sign Zlatan as replacement. Perhaps because it feels like no time at all since last

Alex and Kieron finally tied the knot on Thursday, (yes, Thursday, to not clash with the football, only that hadn't been reckoning on the UEFA qualification, dammit....) at Matfen Hall. I know the groom had the whole shenanigans excel-spreadheeted to

Well, ok, not much of a holiday. Or at least, not gone anywhere. But am having fun attending (apart from today, when I'm working, boo) the Saga Conference hosted by the CMRS in Durham. Had even greater fun on Sunday, singing Compline in the Norman Ch

teehee. anyone remember how I decorated my bedroom at home when it stopped being pink? canary gloss played a big part (bookcase in mum & dad's dining room still a reminder). shockingly good. or my kitchen walls before they were re-done last

'bout time I showed you all the monastery I've been hiding in. Rolduc Abbey, at Kerkrade in the Netherlands, in the bit that you didn't realise stuck off the bottom right corner pretending to be Germany. Actually some of it is in Germany. You can be

I've been to Pamplona, so I can say this. I hate bullfighting, and it was the bit of Spanish culture I liked least when I was in Spain. Luckily, at the University of Zaragoza in Jaca, I wasn't subjected to having to go, but I did go to Pamplona to ru

Phew. I'm really glad Paraguay scored so soon, so's I could relax a bit. For all of you that asked, it was England tshirt and gul & blå ribbons round my wrist during the day, add Sweden shirt tucked in my belt for the first half, and Sweden

Hmm, Must have been the sex on the beach that had me wide awake at 8am  In full recollection of the red being a chateau something and a 96 bordeaux, beyond that I'd recognise the label but it's too blurred to remember the other [crucial, beginni

Just home from college, last formal of term. Thought for some too-long time some bugger had nicked my gown. But no, SCR president didn't bother checking the dinner plan before inching a gown. It's a graduate gown, with sweeties in the sleeve. He

Hmmm. Am seeing a pattern in Groups A & B. Fabulous early goal in first game, then an upset in the second. I was screaming like a banshee for Ivory Coast  in the last five minutes, I tell you... Probably with every other English fan. Hope Av

World Cup 2006 is underway!

Haha. My virginity has finally been taken, by a vicar...

Oh boy, wish I'd seen this coming through at the time (though, of course, at the time I was in the Cathedral, and only caught up on video after, but still)

Oh this is so cool. Now you know I hate running, but I'd be tempted to almost to take it up just for these...

It seems a long time since we've had any smilies. That's partly cos I had to rebuild or rather recycle lots of my laptop when it was crashing all the time. Personally I never considered my smilies bugs, but there you go. Anyway, they're back. Though