Bellenden Belle

Becoming a > parent is not a choice as such but an unfolding > life phase rather like being a teenager or > becoming old. I find that sentence hugely problematic CitizenEd... it implies that parenthood for the majority is inevitable - and for those of us without children there is an implication that we are missing a fundamental stage in our lives. Particularly since your last sentence differentiates between those of us who don't have children - for whatever reason - and those that do not because they "do something nobly in service of humankind".

SeanMacGabhann Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > > > Have there been many BB? Actually I recall hearing about the tears and tribulations of Green and Blue, if not here then most definitely on their blog - news of which spilled onto here, rather like a cheap cloying sweet sherry.

Personally I feel a little tired when I hear of the owners of pubs and restaurants being "reduced to tears" by people making comments about their establishments. Time for a thicker skin methinks.

Must say that I have been twice and both times have been entirely underwhelmed by Sema Thai... really not impressed. Went a couple of weeks to Thai Corner and thought the food was lovely...will definitely go again.

Night in for me too, I'm afraid...I'm yearning for a home-cooked meal. Have fun!

A very big thank you to everyone for such kind messages - you have made me a proud ambassador for the Older Person! See you all Friday!

That's right and theres nothing I like better than laying golden eggs!

Bjork....it is the most tired chat-up line - been getting it for almost twenty years now. I think it's because I am small and sometimes appear to be bonkers.

I am bewildered. I have heard such good reports about The Duke - rave reviews - and this idea doesn't fit with any of my expectations. It is as if the pub is having an identity crisis .... but after such a short period of time? I can only imagine how hard it is to be a landlord slightly off the beaten track starting out - but I don't think this is the way forward. Do you really want customers who believe endurance tests with food stuffs constitutes as entertainment. Does this not do your kitchen a disservice? It doesn't say good quality food lovingly prepared, does it? Which is the reputation you currently are cultivating. Just think about the consequences...all you can eat and drink in a pub with prizes...that's not going to be pretty, is it? And you can't go back the next day to being a civilised local - pubs don't work like that. Get idiots visiting on Monday and chances are they'll be back on Tuesday. Is that really your intention?

I am stamping my foot! Days for this, days for that.... grandparents day; sausage day; days for Pandas, Lions and Bears.... you name it and there's a day for it. And I have tolerated them all until now.... Today, standing in the post office (an annoyance in itself) watching that darn screen that feeds you information you don't want, it announces that October 1st is the International day of Older Persons. My birthday. It's as if the entire world intends to remind me that I am getting older. That's just rude.

mockney piers Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Nowt wrong with humanism per se, but make it into > a society (adre I say dogma?) and it suddenly > becomes a bit unsettling doesn't it. I'm jumping into this debate a little late but personally I don't see what is so unsettling about people gathering together to focus on the wider questions of what it is to be human. I'm not a fan of religion but there is something to be said about actually giving oneself the space and time to focus on something other than the rat race we all live in. It's very easy to say "I live a good life, that's enough for me" but actually the opportunity to share thoughts, dilemmas, questions - to make sense of the world we live in -is something many of us don't do. How do we focus? How are we inspired? How do we become better people? I wouldn't want to bring my kids up in a faith, but I do think a structure in which to discuss these questions is valuable. It sometimes feels that by abandoning the dogma of organised religion we may also have thrown the baby out with the bath water (Clearly I am not talking about the baby Jesus here.... that would be cruel).

Oh poor poor Sebastian - the forerunner indeed,,,, I never liked Julia. Edited in case I give away any plot for those that haven't had the pleasure yet!

**Waves at Moos** Hello! Mmmm, I don't know about Keira - sometime when I see her interviewed there is a playfulness that could serve Eliza rather well...I haven't seen many of her films to comment on her acting. Equus is a great play. I saw the recent production and it was pretty solid - but maybe a little too polished - I saw a production at university which in its scruffy, low-budget way, somehow touched me far more.

Also just wondering if anybody out there is feeling anxious about the new film version of Brideshead Revisited? One of my favourite books of all time .... I'm feeling terribly protective of it! (the lead actor playing Charles does look rather dishy though!)

Ah shoshntosh.... I don't often see mentions of Abandonment - did you see it on stage? I saw it up in Edinburgh (gosh that'll be about eight years ago now) and it was pretty awful..... maybe it was the production. But I agree reading plays can sometimes be great - Owen McCafferty's monologues (published alongside his play Mojo Mickybo if I remember righty) are beautiful. And I remember debbie tucker green's Born Bad being an incredibe read.

I'm reading Karoo by Steve Tesich. I like it a lot. It trips you up - one minute you can't believe how vile the characters are and you're enjoying a rather biting satire on LA life; the next a single sentence will beautifully demonstrate how f**king hard it is to be human. Even sadder that its author (who wrote the screenplay The World According to Garp) died of a heart attack shortly after completing it.

Michael Palaeologus Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > OK, you are not getting this one. > > Christmas IS named after the well known Canadien > photographer, Chris Thomas. > > See Its Chrimbo No - surely you mean Chris Thomas, the man who brought us Roxy Music and Pulp and (heavens forbid) The Lion King Soundtrack.

Ahhh, good choice citizened. That was the song my father dedicated to my mother....released the year they met I believe. I still have it on LP somewhere.

Oooooh no no no! I agree that it is much easier to sneak a peak at work without avatars.However my main reason is that I rather like forming my own mental image of what people are like - and enjoy the surprise/ confirmation when I get to meet them at a gathering. I don't think I have ever met Snorky, Dulwich Mum, or Louisa - but I have wonderful images for each.

And for physical theatre (I seem to remember pointing this out during a discussion on KneeHigh Theatre) Complicite are currently at the Barbican until October .... Edited as I managed to write Octobeer - a telling typo if ever there was one!

I agree Quids .... I think Stoppard himself is a petty annoyance.

People who belly-laugh at subtle jokes in the theatre - usually to demonstrate their "knowledge" - political, cultural, or otherwise - when a wry smile is all that is called for. Particularly noticeable at Tom Stoppard plays.

People who read over your shoulder on public transport.... you can feel their eyes boring into the page, and somehow, even though it's entirely illogical, it feels as if they are invading your personal space. Grrrrrr.

Halfway through David Sedaris's latest offering - When you are Engulfed in Flames. I love this man.... has me in absolute stitches, rocking like a crazy person as I travel. Read Sloane Crosby's I Was Told they'd be Cake last week - because funnily enough I was Told she'd be the New Sedaris. Darn blurb lied - she didn't even come close....

Which apparently translates as Servant to the serpents / reptiles who have sanctified us Apparently two hours after deciphering the code (which results from the Queen's chidren's names) - the genius who wrote the leaflet found their phone line and internet cut off. Anyone else received this cryptic message through their door today? .... I'm terribly excited that David Icke might be my new neighbour!