Wordy Wednesday

TELEVISION - Roald Dahl.

The most important thing we've learned,
So far as children are concerned,
Is never, NEVER, NEVER let
Them near your television set --
Or better still, just don't install
The idiotic thing at all.
In almost every house we've been,
We've watched them gaping at the screen.
They loll and slop and lounge about,
And stare until their eyes pop out.
(Last week in someone's place we saw
A dozen eyeballs on the floor.)
They sit and stare and stare and sit
Until they're hypnotised by it,
Until they're absolutely drunk
With all that shocking ghastly junk.
Oh yes, we know it keeps them still,
They don't climb out the window sill,
They never fight or kick or punch,
They leave you free to cook the lunch
And wash the dishes in the sink --
But did you ever stop to think,
To wonder just exactly what
This does to your beloved tot?
IT ROTS THE SENSE IN THE HEAD!
IT KILLS IMAGINATION DEAD!
IT CLOGS AND CLUTTERS UP THE MIND!
IT MAKES A CHILD SO DULL AND BLIND
HE CAN NO LONGER UNDERSTAND
A FANTASY, A FAIRYLAND!
HIS BRAIN BECOMES AS SOFT AS CHEESE!
HIS POWERS OF THINKING RUST AND FREEZE!
HE CANNOT THINK -- HE ONLY SEES!
'All right!' you'll cry. 'All right!' you'll say,
'But if we take the set away,
What shall we do to entertain
Our darling children? Please explain!'
We'll answer this by asking you,
'What used the darling ones to do?
'How used they keep themselves contented
Before this monster was invented?'
Have you forgotten? Don't you know?
We'll say it very loud and slow:
THEY ... USED ... TO ... READ! They'd READ and READ,
AND READ and READ, and then proceed
To READ some more. Great Scott! Gadzooks!
One half their lives was reading books!
The nursery shelves held books galore!
Books cluttered up the nursery floor!
And in the bedroom, by the bed,
More books were waiting to be read!
Such wondrous, fine, fantastic tales
Of dragons, gypsies, queens, and whales
And treasure isles, and distant shores
Where smugglers rowed with muffled oars,
And pirates wearing purple pants,
And sailing ships and elephants,
And cannibals crouching 'round the pot,
Stirring away at something hot.
(It smells so good, what can it be?
Good gracious, it's Penelope.)
The younger ones had Beatrix Potter
With Mr. Tod, the dirty rotter,
And Squirrel Nutkin, Pigling Bland,
And Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle and-
Just How The Camel Got His Hump,
And How the Monkey Lost His Rump,
And Mr. Toad, and bless my soul,
There's Mr. Rate and Mr. Mole-
Oh, books, what books they used to know,
Those children living long ago!
So please, oh please, we beg, we pray,
Go throw your TV set away,
And in its place you can install
A lovely bookshelf on the wall.
Then fill the shelves with lots of books,
Ignoring all the dirty looks,
The screams and yells, the bites and kicks,
And children hitting you with sticks-
Fear not, because we promise you
That, in about a week or two
Of having nothing else to do,
They'll now begin to feel the need
Of having something to read.
And once they start -- oh boy, oh boy!
You watch the slowly growing joy
That fills their hearts. They'll grow so keen
They'll wonder what they'd ever seen
In that ridiculous machine,
That nauseating, foul, unclean,
Repulsive television screen!
And later, each and every kid
Will love you more for what you did.

28 Days Later

Don't Panic!! This is not a post about some horrible virus that turns us all into zombies but rather I have completed my post a day challenge for the month of February. Woohoo!!

I'm late posting but that's because I've been sat agog watching The Biggest Loser.


How fab did they all look? That's obviously only a revelant question if you've actually been watching it LOL

I bought this Wii game a while back and ashamed to say it's still in it's wrapping.


After seeing the differences those guys have achieved - tomorrow I'm going to flex some muscle and try and get that really annoying cellophane that they wrap it in that you break several nails trying to rip off. ;)

Thanks for joining on the 28 days ride, I hope it's been enjoyable :)

Am I human?

Being Human stars again tonight for a third series.

To be honest I was hooked from the pilot and was hoping it was one of the few pilots that got made into a proper series.

If you've never seen it before... where have you been!!!!

A brief synopis of the leading characters for you....

Mitchell - is the gorgeous, brooding, handsome, Irish Vampire with a heart. He tries his best to live without harming. I don't think that's all that makes him sexy but it doesn't hurt eh?

George - is the I don't want to be a Werewolf, I just want to be normal bloke. He is beyond sweet and I am in serious WANT of his gnome bedroom wallpaper.

Annie - is the resident ghost. Killed by a violent boyfriend, still trying to come to terms to who she was never mind who she is now.

Nina - is the Nurse with a whole background of her own but then she met George and after an accidental scratch she is now the female werewolf to George's male version.

So that's where I'll be come 9pm this evening. I received series 1 and 2 for my birthday so finally catching up with the next installment in my birthday month is fab.

What are your favourite surreal programmes?

Dog tired

Last night I just could not get to sleep.
I tried every trick.
1. I wrote down all the things that were running through my head that I needed to do today.

No luck!

Then I tried...

2. Starting with your toes imagine every part of you relaxing and sinking into the bed.


Nope!

So then I tried a new one I read about where you're supposed to re-run through you entire day and at some point you will drift off to sleep.

Once I got to the point where I was re-running getting ready for bed and lying there it was obvious it wasn't working, I was running out of day!.


I watched the clock pass every hour until it got to 5am and I was about to literally call it a night and give up and get up.
It was then that my brain finally decided to give in and I zonked out until my alarm very rudely went off at 7am. 2 hours sleep! I was so NOT feeling the love for my alarm clock this morning.


This is now me trying to stay awake because of course tonight would be the one and only night when there is actually something worth watching on the goggle box!!!

My Big Night Out with The Hairy Bikers

These are a couple of pictures I sneaked before the show started.
There was announcements once I'd taken mine saying no photos, no video blah blah blah. Anyway rebel that I am thought I'd do no harm just taking a picture of the stage before the main men stepped out.


We were close enough to see the guys properly and certainly close enough to smell the amazing aromas that were coming from their two menus of the evening.
Two couples were chosen, one for each part of the show. The first couple were treated to South Indian King Prawn Curry that had my taste buds screaming. That was served with a bread that I have totally forgotten the name of but looked yummy.

Oh and I have recipes from the show programme, I assume I'm allowed to share that with my friends if they ask ;)

The second half saw them cooking a steak and a corgette linguine. Thanks to my lovely Si I now know how to cook a steak, take the oil to the steak, place in hot pan then leave it. Don't prod it, don't poke it, don't touch it. Leave it! Obviously then you flip it so the other side cooks :)

It didn't surprise me to learn that Bob Mortimer had a hand in the production, the song and dance routines and baking tray being hit off the head were definately his touches. I learnt a whole lot more about the lads too. Dave suffered from alopecia totalis as a teenager and my lovely Si was a drummer who got his girlfriend up the duff so sold his kit, got married and became a daddy.



I could go on and on but suffice to say it was a brilliant show and I would definately book to see them on their tour.

I may not sleep tonight

with excitment.....for a change.

Tomorrow I go to see the handsome Si, oh and his mate. The Hairy Bikers!

A friend told me tonight that she met them at a bike show and they're actually miserable buggers when the cameras not rolling! :o

I hope she was just winding me up but I'll volunteer to put a smile on Si's face ;)

Doesn't it just say it all

The Western world gets a clown

and in Japan....


Still don't want to eat there though :)

It's offical

I am a Gleek

I love the fact that it's not the 'cool' kids that are cool.

And I love the music.

It certainly brightens up a cold winters evening.

If you haven't seen it yet, give it a go. If the High School Football team dancing to Beyonce's All The Single Ladies doesn't have you chuckling then I don't know what will.