Coffee Good, Morning Bad

Can Reindeer Fly: The Science of Christmas

Can Reindeer Fly

Clearly someone had got this as a gift last Christmas because I picked it up in mint condition for 50p in a charity shop last March. Seeing as I started feeling quite festive around September 16th (don't know why, it's just noted in my journal) I thought I'd give it a read.
I'm a bit of a sucker for popular science books - but I don't mean the ones by Real Scientists (like Richard Dawkins or wotsummy Stephen Lee Gould) but by the people like Bill Bryson and the author of this book Roger Highfield who go and ask all the difficult questions and give me a nice fluffy Cliffs Notes version.

The facts that will probably stick with me is that a) 'getting pissed' as an expression out dates alcohol by quite some margin and instead refers to eating the yellow snow of the local shamen who would have hallucinogenic mushrooms. b) This may also be where the idea that Reindeers fly come from. c) It's technically possible to cook your Christmas dinner with lasers d) Ian Stewart is in all popular science books these days, but that's probably quite a good thing as he is nice.

I enjoyed the book - I can't say it stuck on topic of Christmas that much, or rather Christmas was crowbarred in - and I shall now be looking out for Santa this Christmas Eve renewed in the knowledge that he obviously exists and I've seen how he does that epic post round.

(Speaking of which maybe Santa is the answer to get the backlog moving >:( )

atchoooo

I have my 2nd cold in as many weeks.I don't want to go to bed because I know it will just be a litany of coughs and wheezes and randomly waking up. Toby has been very unsettled with a horrible cough for the last couple of weeks so it's just fun and games all round here.

I just wish for a week's peace and quiet - unlikely though!

And we still have a flea issue. Boo.

My post for Blog Action Day

So, today being Blog Action Day let me come in at, quite literally, the eleventh hour and say this.

Dear America, China and other generally environmentally damaging bodies and entities.

I recycle my jam jars and milk bottles.
I'm going to try to use less packaging this year.
I've begun crocheting plastic bags into a big reusable bag.
I'm making Christmas gifts instead of buying them.
I donate lots to charity shops to keep stuff out of landfill sites.

But there's still a lot I could be doing and I'm going to keep working at it, reassessing it, getting greener.

Equally I've heard you all make lots of noise about being greener, looking after the environment, doing more. This is very important. I have a little boy, 16 months old, and I'd like very much for there still to be a decent planet for him to live on when he is 60. I'd like animals on it. I'd like food for him to eat. I'd like their not to be wars and starvation and shortages for man and beast just because you allowed your peoples to build enormous power stations and buy 3 big cars per family.

So let's make a pact. You and me. I'll keep recycling my milk bottles. You actually do the big stuff that makes my efforts to recycle milk bottles worthwhile.

Thanks.

Plate Spinning for the over-committed

Today has been okay. Toby has been relatively well-behaved, if you ignore screeching in the photography section of the Library - which, to be fair, was out of boredom rather than a deliberate attempt to upset people (although some individuals do insist on acting like it is). I just completed some rather mundane tasks, returning librbary books, buying milk etc. TOTALLY FORGOT TO PAY A CHEQUE IN. Did you hear that noise? That was my palm meeting my face.

Tomorrow I am taking him to the Sealife centre to say 'fish' a lot, after two failed attempts as events have conspired against me.

Tonight I was meant to learn how to crochet but despite a very good video tutorial I'm not getting very far, very fast and just annoying myself in the process. Really i should go and tackle the crockery mountain in the kitchen but I am just too knackered. Instead I'm going to bed with a book on wildlife and landscape photography.

Paul won't be back from a conference in London until very late so the poor man will probably be knackered too. Honestly we are like two single parents at the moment - there tends to be a few hours on a Saturday where we are both with Toby and we all go and do something together but apart from that all 3 of us are busy trying to keep the plates spinning. Or in Toby's case, keep the contents of the plate spinning. Must go and put the washing on.

I'd like to go to the zoo on Saturday. I wonder if we can. I suppose it depends what time I get back from the filming at TVC I'm going to see. I've been warned to take snacks and a jumper. Might be a long stake-out.

Chillin' with my homeboy

Oh dear, did I just appropriate an African-American pop culture phrase for my own ends? How remiss of me.

Anyway, yesterday Toby was at nursery and produced two stonking nappies and reproduced most of his dinner in Technicolor form. A ha, said I, tooth number 6 is on its way. And lo and behold, tooth no.6 is with us this morning. The rules of childcare though is that if your child produces unexpected bodily fluids from either mouth or arse they can't return until 24 hours after it's stopped. This makes a lot of sense but is very irritating if your child throws up through teething (and let's face it, Toby is pretty trigger happy on the stomach contents front anyway) and they only go to nursery Monday and Tuesday.

So me and my little man are at home today - partly because if I'm proved to be wrong and it is a bug (a very odd one, as no further symptoms have been spotted) I don't want him spreading it to the wider community and also the buggy is in Daddy's car which is at work. I have a spare runaround buggy and the ergo but neither of them are great wet weather solutions.

I can't say I'm a great 'home' mummy. He barely eats at home, likes to watch a bit too much preschooler TV (I say TV, he likes dancing to theme tunes, picking out characters in his books and watching his 'Sing and Sign' DVD) and throws more tantrum fist throwing sessions here than out. Part of the trouble (only part but I'll come to that in a minute) is that this rental house is carpeted with horrible swirly thick carpet - nightmare for dough, etc - the sinks are too high up for water play, and we are suffering from too much stuff not enough adequate storage (as ever - I swear my dying wish will be cupboards)

The other problem is I'm convinced that many of the 'fun activities' suggested in books is great with one or two pre-schoolers leading and a toddler copying. Mummy doing it is just that. Toby will let me play with plasticine or crayons - he'll generally nibble at them and wander off bored to harass a cat. Whereas at nursery or his childminder he loves to join in with the other children.

I'm sure as he gets older this problem will be alleviated by better comprehension and ability but for now I can only  conclude Satre was wrong about Hell being stuck for eternity in a room with your friends. It's being stuck in on a rainy day with a small toddler whoneeds his nappy changing but wants to dance to the Postman Pat theme tune all afternoon while simultaneously trying to explain to you which book he wants off the shelf, as you offer each and every option and he just shouts at you. 

The ZSL picture archives

Being a bit of an animal photography fan and zoo geek, I am delighted by the treasures to be found in the restored archives of the Zoological Society Library
Some of the pics are touching, some magnificent and some plain crazy. If nothing else it shows us how far zoos have come in being homes for endangered animals and how much more we now understand about their needs.
You can buy prints from puny sums and it goes to support the London zoo and zoological society's works.