Sunday Reviews

We watched Australia on Friday night and really enjoyed it. It's a long movie, far better suited to the comfort of your sofa than the cinema, but it kept us both engaged throughout.

It stars the wonderful Nicole Kidman and the deeply delicious Hugh Jackman, who were both perfectly cast for these roles. It tells the story of Lady Sarah Ashley's takeover of her deceased husbands Australian Cattle Ranch and her relationship with the Drover (Jackman), and Nulla a half-caste Aboriginal boy. The story follows their fight to keep Nulla from the authorities, and the driving of her 1500 head of cattle to Darwin to be sold to the military. But there's a hitch, in the form of a Cattle Baron who has the cattle market monopoly apart from her ranch and is determined to get it.

It's all set against the backdrop of the impending attack by the Japanese in WWII, which by the end of the movie is well underway. This is a Baz Luhman movie, he also made Moulin Rouge, and so it has a different feel to it that we personally loved. He makes use of old maps as screenshots, a slightly mystical element in the filming and the whole thing is lush to look at.

We'd highly recommend this movie, it's a sweeping epic, with a great cast and a good story. I spoke to a friend yesterday who also saw it on Friday and they felt the exact same way as us.

Now just a quick book review...I am right in the midst of the Stephanie Plum books by Janet Evanovich. It took me 2 books to really get into them, but now I'm hooked and loving the adventures of this 'off the wall' female bounty hunter.

The characters are developed more with each book, the plots are believeable and at times I laugh out loud at the humour. I am a relative late comer to these books, as detective type stories are not usually my thing, but these are great and I highly recommend them.

Brit' Word of the Day

Today’s BWOTD even makes me laugh when I use it or hear it:

“Oh it’s all just a load of old codswallop”

‘Codswallop’ = Nonsense

This word reputedly dates back to 1872 when an Englishman, Hiram Codd, thought up the idea of putting a marble and a rubber ring in the neck of bottles in order to keep beer ("wallop" in Olde English) fizzy. He thought the pressure from the fizz would keep the marble pushed against the ring and thereby seal the bottle. Unfortunately, the thing didn’t work and "codd's wallop" became popular first as a comment about flat beer and eventually as a general term of abuse.

This story however, may itself be a load of old codswallop?

Let's all do something good this weekend.....

This is Lil' Bit, who has been living in a New York Animal Shelter for 2 years, in a small cage. She needs a loving home, watch these video's to see how lovable she is: Lil' Bit, Lil' Bit in snow.

I read all about her at Daryl's and being a big animal lover it broke my heart. I'm too far away to do anything directly, but I have a large readership and then you all have your own readers. So if we all pull together and blog about Lil' Bit, maybe we can find her a good home. Almost all my pets have been rescued and they make wonderful pets, in part I'm certain due to being in a shelter.

Here is what Daryl had to say about her

"Like many animal lovers, Rosanna volunteers at her local shelter. She has become bonded with one particular dog that has been at the shelter for two years now. Lil’ Bit owns up to her name, she’s a little chunk of love on four legs.

After two years in a shelter in Wantagh, New York, she’s wondering when she will get her chance at a loving home. Lil’ Bit has never met a person she did not like and has so much affection to give.

Lil’ Bit is approximately seven years old and although she has very few teeth, she manages to get her food down just fine. She’s hopeful that her new family will help her shed those extra pounds so she can find her waistline again.

Please help Lil’ Bit find the loving home she deserves by posting her flyer in your community. Please also pass the flyer onto others who can do the same.

If you would like more information on this adorable sweetie, please contact Rosanna directly at: luvyourdog11@optonline.net"

Please freely copy this post, I don't need any acknowledgement, I just want us all to use the power of our blogs, or email and the internet to find this little dog a loving home.

Skywatch Friday

'Rainbow Silhouetted Sunset'

Double-click picture for full effect!

If you'd like to join in, go to the Skywatch site.

Botox Bandit!

Well I guess this can be considered a sign of the times! One of the stories on our Okieland News last night, was the police hunt for the so called 'Botox Bandit'.

This woman has been going into clinics that offer Botox treatment, getting it done and then doing a runner before paying! She has asked to use the restroom and then skipped out the back door, whilst remaining wrinkle free! And there are some people out there worrying about keeping their homes, talk about about getting your priorites skewed!

But this made me wonder, how many of my readers have had Botox or would be tempted to do so?

Ordinarily I don't consider it a bad thing to do, it's just not for me personally. Partly because I am blessed with good genes and youthful skin, but mainly because my pain threshold is zilch! I was however looking sideways in the mirror last night and seriously considering never removing my bra again, as the girls have definitely headed south for eternity!

So own up if you have, or would be tempted to get a bit of nip/tuck, injectable or insertable!

Brit' Gal 'needs'.....

I'm jumping on the bandwagon and joining in this funny meme. So I googled 'Brit' Gal needs' and after wading through a scary amount of referrals back to myself...these are apparently what I am needing!

1. Power generation in Pulp Mills - uuh ok, not something I ever yearned for, but maybe I should be joining Greenpeace or looking into this!?!

2. Top Ten commercial RnB albums of the 1990's - now this I can go for, as until I found myself in the land of cowboy boots and country music, I was an RnB gal to the core.

3. Rarity - LOL maybe I need to make myself a bit scarce for awhile!

4. Go off to Syria - LMAO in the words of John McEnroe "you cannot be serious", then again wasn't George Clooney there once?

5. Orlando Free Senior Dating - now I'm up for most 'freebies' but not sure what the Hubster would have to say about this! Although I do believe my fellow expat' Ian is the 'oracle' on this (who's now wishing you could give an IM slap through PC's!)

6. Dogs - I have three very finickity felines who would definitely object to any pooches!

7. Spanish Bull Wind Power - LOL! Farting Spanish Bulls is not the way I want to power anything thank you kindly!

8. 2005 MV Agusta F4-1000S Motocycle - a biker chick I am most definitely not and never will be!

9. Stuart Peel - Stuart be VERY afraid and run like hell mate!

10. A good wax! - now I admit in the winter months the leg shaving maybe a little hit and miss, but I don't think it's THAT bad!

11. Air Traffic - now admittedly you don't see many planes where I live, but that's less chance one might drop on me. Paranoid I know, but years spent under the Heathrow Airport stacking path will do that to a person!

12. Hosing down - yeh well the Hubster can be 'hot stuff' when the mood takes him, so maybe occasionally ;-)

So go on, I dare ya, Google your name and 'needs'!

The Lips have it!

So I have a tendency to hoard things, including make-up! Granted it's all organised into little plastic units, by what it is and colour, but I am REALLY BAD at throwing make-up away. However a couple of months ago I did clear out some lipsticks, but these are the ones I kept!!

I had fun trying them all on, some of them were years old, but these ones are still viable. Now I'm certain to a guy alot of these look almost the same, but you see they're just not. The shade may be similar, but the texture can be totally different. I also happen to like shiny or sparkly lippies and so I need 'variations' on the same shade. I would liken this to a man having 10 wrenches/spanners that are all in different sizes!

They can be deceptive; see the one 2nd row, 2nd along that looks peachy/gold. Well actually it's a sheer 'Very Sexy' from Victoria's Secret, the glitter in it does all the work and there's minimal colour.

Oh and the ones that are pictured, well they're just the ones I could find quickly. You see I have at least 4 in my desk at work, any number spread across various handbags and at least 15 lipglosses that just weren't as photogenic! You will however note the absence of a true red, the Hubster thinks red makes me look tarty, so like a good wife I ditched the reds!

As you can probably tell, I am more of a 'pretty in pink' girl, with a leaning towards mauves. This is my current favourite, not too brash, pretty with a little bit of sparkle going on.

So who else out there hates to throw out make-up and could stock their local Walgreens, c'mon own up ladies?!

Brit' Word of the Day

Today's BWOTD upon hearing, could make an American man panic!

"Can you knock me up at 7am tomorrow please"

'Knock me up' = Bang on my door / Get me up

This does NOT mean please can you 'impregnate' me at 7am tomorrow! So no need to panic and scarper if a British woman ever says this to you ;-)

However just to confuse matters we do also use the phrase 'knocked up' just like you, to mean someone is pregnant!

And our votes went to...

They saved the best to last on American Idol (except Danny)!

Lil, without doubt the best girl, Fantasia all over again!

Jorge, great voice, passionate, adorable, made me shed a tear!

Scott, an inspiration, beautiful voice and deserves to go far!

And the one we hope the judges give a wildcard to - Anoop Dog!

My World

Fort Supply Lake in NW Okieland is a man-made 1800 acre lake offering many recreational facilities. The lake is situated a couple of miles from Fort Supply town, most famous for being the winter campsite of Colonel George Custer and his soldiers.

It provides excellent fishing opportunities for a variety of species including, crappie, walleye, white bass, hybrid bass, channel catfish and flathead catfish. There are approximately 6000 acres of public hunting land managed by the Corps of Engineers and the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation. The major attraction to hunters are bobwhite quail and deer but other hunting opportunities include wild turkey, pheasant, dove and waterfowl. Having said that, we are neither fishers or hunters!

It's a major attraction for campers, due to the numerous campsites located on the waters edge providing easy access to the lake. Several boat ramps are available to serve the recreational boater. There are also quite a few Geocaches around the lake, that we are yet to hunt. It's a beautiful place to visit at anytime of the year.

Double-click pictures to enlarge

To join in the fun go to My World Tuesday

Brit' Word of the Day

Today's BWOTD is an everyday word used by most people:

"I am totally skint this month"

'Skint' = Poor/Broke

With the current state of the economy worldwide, I suspect lots of us could make good use of this particular Brit' word!

Missing in Action - Radiators?!

In my previous life I was an HR Manager for a large European radiator manufacturer, a radiator being a water filled heating device affixed to a wall, which is controlled by thermostats and a gas boiler. I add this as I suspect many of you are wondering what the heck I am on about. As you see, I have yet to spot a single wall radiator in over 3 years and that is just downright bizarre for a Brit'! 99% of buildings in the UK have these spread throughout them to supply heat.

I used to study the import/export tables for radiators in my job and after trawling through the hundreds of thousands going around the world, I would hit the figures for the United States and rarely saw a figure over 100! I didn't give it much thought as to why there were literally none going into, or coming out of the USA at the time.

They come in all shapes and sizes, the one above is a cast iron Victorian radiator and a highly desirable item to many Brit's with older homes. These even come with intricate scrollwork and can be painted any colour you wish, to match your decor. Below is a towel warming radiator, again very popular and fashionable across Europe.

But I have to give you credit, home heating is one thing you do so much better than us. Over here you don't need to consider the position of your wall radiators, when arranging your furniture. This can be a right royal pain in the butt, as they are rarely somewhere that you don't want to put something. You can place things in front of them, but they get hot which you need to consider with plastics and babies, and the fact you're blocking the heat flow!

But over here you have the heat delivered by airflow through floor, wall or ceiling vents. As a Brit' I have to say I think it's genius and so much more efficient. You have the ability to turn your heat down or off instantly with immediate results, not waiting for something to cool down.

But then there is the really brilliant part. You can switch from heat to air-conditioning in a matter of seconds - wow!!

Very few homes in the UK have air-con installed, it was never considered a necessity in years past. You would also be amazed at how few stores and businesses have it too, although the new builds have the past few years. But the British climate is changing and the summers are now hotter and of course we always have humidity. So the demand for air-con is growing all the time and there we are stuck with our wall radiators!

Even after being here a few years, I still love the fact I can switch between heat and air-con in seconds. I also love not having to give consideration to radiators in my rooms!

Hot to trot - unfortunately!

Been having a few thyroid issues again the past few days, once again I am hyperthyroid; which means I'm like Superwoman, can out multi-task Martha and could probably outlast the Duracell Bunny too!

My nails grow almost as fast as I can nibble them away, my hair sprouts like it's on Miracle Grow, I can eat anything and lose weight, my heart thinks I'm permanently jogging, my BP responds in kind and my bowels overprocess everything on warp-speed! And that last one is my particular problem the past 72 hours!!

Yep hyper is no fun, because you can't enjoy the superhuman benefits when you need to stick close to a loo!

My Endo has increased my meds to control the heart/BP and we both think in about 10 days things will be heading the other way - inshallah (god willing).

Now the Brit' way to deal with 'the trots' is to starve yourself for 24 hours and just sip water or re-hydration drinks. Basically let your internal system have a complete rest and reset itself. And there is a question mark over whether I could have a bit of a stomach bug/flu causing the trots, as a few kids did at school last week.

So as everything else has been slowed down since Friday night, and yesterday I ate normally and it just got worse, I am going to go with this theory and eat nothing today just in case it's the bug. I know over here you advocate things like Chicken Noodle Soup, but I just feel more comfortable with the Brit' way of nothing but water. Having said that once I get past the 24 hour mark at 7pm tonight, CNS will be the first thing I consume!

I am actually hoping this will cure it, as I would rather have the bug going around and not really be that hyper! So any other good tips to help me out (and note, I already have moist wipes!)?

Sunday Movie Reviews

We watched Changeling starring Angelina Jolie last weekend. It is inspired by the true story of a woman who's son went missing in 1920's Los Angeles and her battle with a very corrupt LAPD. Desperate for a successful outcome to this widely publicised case, they claim they have found her missing son Walter, only for it to be the wrong child.

Due to the times (of female repression) and pressure from the LAPD, she takes him home despite knowing it's not her son. Over the following months and years she fights the LAPD to prove he's not her son and continue their search, whilst the LAPD resort to truly desperate measure to cover-up her story and discredit her. Eventually an LAPD detective stumbles on the truth and an even bigger case emerges.

This movie was well directed by Clint Eastwood and is very true to the period and times. Angelina portrays the mother with great sympathy and emotion, she is a character you cannot help but care about. I very much enjoyed this movie, the Hubster did too, although he felt it could have been told in less time.

On Friday night we watched Body of Lies starring Leonardo Di Caprio and Russell Crowe and directed by Ridley Scott.

The movie is about Roger Ferris (Di Caprio) a CIA operative in the Middle East; Ed Hoffman (Crowe) is his control at Langley. After a stint in Iraq, Roger works with Hani Salaam in Amman, Jordan's head of security, whose only dictum is "Don't lie to me." The Americans are after a fanatical cleric who's group places bombs all over Europe. When Hani rebukes Ed's demand that Jordan allow the Americans to use one of Jordan's double agents, Roger and Ed hatch a plan to bring the cleric to them. The plan is complicated by its being a secret from Hani and by Roger's attraction to a local nurse.

This is very much about modern warfare and makes you realise what's actually going on over there. The use of satellites for spying, cell phones, computers and setting others up is all covered in depth.

I loved this movie, but then I am a big fan of spy/espionage plots and Leonardo Di Caprio, a seriously under-rated actor in my book. The Hubster was tired and so thought it was okay, but he dozed off a couple of times and this is a movie you need to watch closely due to all the twists. Just a note to the squeamish, there are a few gory shots, but I got through them fine.

In summary, both these films are recommended, but Body of Lies gets the highly recommended.