Friday 31 December 2010

New Year's Eve

I'll let you into a secret. I'm a bit iffy about New Year celebrations and the coming of a New Year.


2010, for instance, has been a bit of a goer. Plenty happening on the life-death front. The Old Man attempting to shake things up again.


But... there's been a bit of a rebirth too.... Hey! I cannot forget the creation of this very Blog. The renewing of old friendships brought about by The Old Man's dramatic turn..... And then ...... there is my revitalised film career, courtesy of Mrs Doonuthin.

Speaking of which - you will soon be thrilled by another work. In which - The Old Man and me fail to keep a straight face when presented by Mrs Doonuthin's clay critters. It's entitled "Audition" and will be coming to your screen soon.


In the meantime I would like to say:

"Happy New Year - and a very successful rebirth to all you good people."

Thursday 30 December 2010

Time for a Walk

Long Rock Beach. The tide is in. The wind is strong and from the east. Seaweed piled high in hillocks along the sands. Dogs dashing about everywhere. One is left to run up and down, up and down, along the tide edge - keeping a small flock of waders flying and on the move all the time. The dog's owner stands above on the footpath watching it's obsessive runs. Naturally, I feel for the birds. I know the dog won't get them. But it's winter. Hard times for birds to eat enough to keep their energy up. And here's this obsessive dog and it's vacant owner - running this little flock backwards and forwards.....

The Old Man and me turn back and watch a cormorant diving in the calm patches of the fairly rough sea. Quite close in to shore, it dives and surfaces - keeping pace with our slow walk back along the beach path.

Wednesday 29 December 2010

Mrs Doonuthin's Doings

Aargh! What is that?

The Old Man takes pity on Mrs Doonuthin and gives her a huge box of modelling clay for Christmas, don't he.

So I gets up this morning to find this thing stomping about the dining table.

Can I take this development I ask myself?
Still, I notice with satisfaction that the box of plasticine is labelled "suitable for 3 year olds". Ha! I should say so.
That would just about be Mrs Doonuthin's mental age, say I.

Saturday 25 December 2010

Merry Christmas


GreyDoll and The Old Man wishes everyone a very Merry Christmas
...... and, please, can we have some Peace.

Thursday 23 December 2010

Beard Up

Christmas is coming.


Birthday Present

OK. So you may know that The Doll is a Sagittarian.
So yes, recently I did indeed have a birthday.
And I have to say that a kind admirer (he knows who he is) has sent me a DVD of La Traviata as wished for in the Diva Post (click here for reminder of that). And I would like to take this opportunity to say:

"Thank you indeed, kind Sir, it will be duly watched - and I shall be munching violet creams whilst I do so."

Tuesday 21 December 2010

Loony Solstice

I'm roused from a dozing sleep this morning by The Old Man shouting:

"Do you want to see the lunar eclipse?"

And how can a girl refuse?

Staggering to a window, fuddled up in me dressing gown, I stare where The Old Man is pointing into the dawny dark blue sky. There - a small orangey dot is pulsating.

"Hang on. I need me glasses." I stagger off and hobble back wearing the specs.

"Ooh yes." say I, as all is revealed and I see a full white moon being eaten into by the orangish shadow of the Earth.

We stand side by side in the west-facing window, me secretly hugging the warm radiator, and watch the slow and absorbing sight of the full lunar eclipse.

Neighbours' security lights flash on and off; the rubbish cart comes rumbling up the hill, a man leaps out, takes a neighbour's bin bag and hurling it into the back of the cart jumps into the cab, reverses the cart, and rumbles off; a neighbour comes out, tells off someone inside their house before returning, their security lights flash on and off; someone else comes out - looks around- goes back inside their house.

Above these events, two moonstruck faces stare out of a window into the early morning winter sky above the West Penwith hills. And the silver moon is slowly eaten up by a red shadow .... until a cloud bank and increasingly daylit sky finishes the show.

Sunday 19 December 2010

R.I.P. Captain Beefheart

Following the news of Captain Beefheart's death on Friday, I fully expected to be blasted out of the room by The Old Man's vinyl version of the man himself's "Trout Mask Replica". But so far it hasn't quite happened. Although the record itself is sitting... waiting ... on the dining table next to The Old Man's hi-fi kit.

Myself, I was a Frank Zappa girl and did not pursue Beefheart separately. But, as I have said before, The Old Man often shows great discernment in these matters. So I await the inevitable "Trout Mask" session with interest.

If you are wondering what I am talking about... try the Captain Beefheart Radar Station for more info.

The Juggernaut Approaches

I know that you all is very busy. Howzit going on preparing for Juggernaut Christmas? Howzit going preparing for Juggernaut Christmas in the snow and ice?

This is to show that I can be a sympathetic person. And therefore I can understand if..... No-one wants to read my blog!

The Holy terror of the approaching Juggernaut .... and the added fact that I am capable only of talking about the querulous states of health of Me and The Old Man. (Who now sports a fetching gloss of Vaseline over the little hole made when they took a skin sample from a suspicious patch next to his nose. Is there no end to the medical accoutrements he sports, swallows or lathers himself with?)

I tell you - this blog has become very lugubrious and boring. If I was You reading Me - I would not bother checking in that often either.

Except for the odd possibility of a cartoon or something.

And on that subject, Mrs Doonuthin is getting more and more anxious to be doin more work with Moi in this creative area.... but she too appears to be knee-deep in Christmas cards, broken pens and ink blots, sellotape and screwed up paper. Though she did pause this morning to listen to Radio 4's "Desert Island Discs" again - this time with Nick Park (of Wallace & Grommit).

What's that dreadful sound?
Oh-Oh! It's the rattling wheels of Juggernaut Christmas being hauled towards us on icy roads.

Monday 13 December 2010

Mrs Doonuthin's L-Plate Films: Christmas Morning

Christmas Morning from Mrs D on Vimeo.

By way of apology for my pathetic ramblings about The Old Man's bad back and earwax. Sheesh!
Here comes another one of my Star Acting roles.
And that mangy cat.

Mrs Doonuthin hopes that this will work on whatever you try using to watch it.

Thursday 9 December 2010

Donkey Work

So I'm very sorry that I don't seem to be keepin up to date very well here.

When The Old Man has a bad back... Oooh ... Aargh... Ouch.... He still has to shop on a regular basis. But....
He can't necessarily lift that much, can he? Or carry, like? So he has to have a donkey, don't he? And who is that donkey?
Well .... me, innit.
And what this means is that I do my jobs - and a good portion of his as well, don't I? Least that's what it most certainly feels like. And people meet and greet him, and sympathise .... and swap back pain notes. And I stand there, patiently.... with my arms slowly stre-e-e-tch-ing.

But I broke away yesterday and got him to let me out the car in Penzance.
"I'll catch the bus back." says I. And I did some Christmas shopping. And it was quite successful.

Truro? Schmuro!
Penzance has it all.
But I am very relieved to have managed some of that.

Have you managed any Christmas shopping yet?

Monday 6 December 2010

Green Grass at Last

Ha! The snow has melted here. Careful of the slippy ice though.

Back to driving into town and stocking up the larder. The Old Man is oohing and aarghing around with a cane to help ease him and his bad back from one place to another. But what the heck. It's reason for yet another medical appointment. This time with a student in tow. How The Old Man loves an audience.

Oh yeah. And you'll find Frances Wood's Desert Island Discs here.

Friday 3 December 2010

Moods and Weather

It is cold. As it is with most of you.

I am going stir-crazy with an icy lane and an increasingly immobile Old Man - whose back now hurts. I keep assuring him that it IS just back ache;(he can't see the crossed fingers behind my own back); issue him with a hot water bottle to strap to the spot; and tell him to move about a bit more.
I am all sweetness and light (well .... kind of...) and full of reasonable, sensible thoughts. And it is driving me crazy. But we have heat and food.

Our kind neighbour has offered to bring us back stuff from town - and he is going there by bus. It makes me feel very guilty. So - I have just snapped a temper and puzzled The Old Man a great deal. He is twitching for his newspaper, bird food, and milk.

I just scurry to my laptop and write this kinda stuff.

On another note - I am enjoying creeping around after Mrs Doonuthin at Vimeo and watching animation videos. Am also enjoying catching up with some of the blogs that I am following. You can find my Blog List over there, on the right hand side bar. Give them a go.

Wednesday 1 December 2010

Stop Press: Desert Island Discs, 5 Dec 2010

Would you believe it. One of Greydoll's friends and helpers from the summer medical crisis is gonna be on Desert Island Discs!

I'm so excited. I'm such a fame-chaser.

Listen to the lady on Sunday 5th Dec 11.15 Radio 4.
It's an order.