Going, Going, Gone

There seems to be a major exodus going on. I've been invited to three leaving parties in the last week. London is losing its appeal as friends follow jobs, men and the promise adventure to far-flung places such as the Bahamas, Scotland and Washington. We've already lost another friend to Canada and will soon bid another bon voyage as he sets off for South America.

Many of the medics left ages ago to start work in regional hospitals. But even they are getting itchy feet now and hoping to move to such exotic destinations as the Antarctic, Australia and Yorkshire.

Is it a sign of age? A mix of final flings and settling down?

Or is it a sign of the times? The millennium and subsequent world events have encouraged people to question our urban way of life. Bridget Jones and her mini-breaks made holidaying close to home acceptable and even the English Seaside is coming into vogue. How long will it be before we're left behind?

Nautical but Nice

Chris has decided to emigrate to the Bahamas to join his brother and enjoy the sun, sand and sea. So what better theme for his party than pirates?

I was thrilled: a chance to take advantage of one of the key fashion themes of autumn winter 05/06. (ie. shopping!)

Strangely though, most of the boys saw this as an opportunity to camp it up. Fake tan, mascara, eyeliner, lacy shirts and transfer tattoos. Not sure that they would have lasted long on the high seas!

Fortunately, we only boarded the rather more forgiving Queen Mary and the only swashbuckling to be done was of the sociable kind.

Click here to see the photos.

Busy Buzzy Bee

Our bedroom is a hive of insect activity at the moment. After last week's spider incident, I was alarmed when gathering up the laundry to find a beast behind the basket. I took precautions immediately, trapping it under a pint glass so that I could inspect it in relative safety.

Fortunately it wasn't a giant centipede or a tarantula but rather a bumble bee. And such a fine and furry specimen that she must be a queen. I have a sneaking suspicion that she was looking for somewhere cosy to spend her hibernation and so it was with a heavy heart that I decided to remove her.

The removal wasn't a challenge at all, coming as I do from a long line of apiarists. Well, my father and grandfather kept bees for honey and I once sat through a swarm without coming to any harm. The only seven year old who could sit perfectly still for an hour.

I modified the spider-removal technique somewhat. A piece of paper under the pint glass just wasn't going to do the trick if Mrs Bumble decided to take objection to her eviction. Last week's Saturday Supplement came in handy instead and the job was done in no time.

Her Royal Honeyness is now happily ensconced in the window box, ready to bed down for winter. I shall be keeping a close eye to see her emerge next spring.

Longevity

I'm going to live until I'm 89 years old! Or maybe I'll live until Saturday 5th May 2057 - giving me over a billion and a half seconds of life to go...

Unfortunately, Skene, being a man, could die up to a decade before me. Which makes me rather miserable. Harumph.

Arachnoid Emergency

We had the largest spider yet in our bedroom today! Even bigger than the huntsman that we saw in Australia. Fortunately, Skene was at home still and able to come to my rescue once more.

Skene tried to flick it outside through the open door, having decided that it wouldn't be a good idea to squash it on our new curtains. But the beast would not co-operate and I became near hysterical, putting my hand through my tights whilst I was trying to get dressed!

Eventually, it was captured in a beaker and imprisoned by a piece of paper before being ejected onto the driveway two floors below. It landed and ran off - plainly visible until it scurried off into a dark corner. I imagine that he is now waiting for us to open the front door long enough for him to sneak in again.

Argh!

(The day didn't get any easier after that. A security alert meant that I had to get off the tube a stop too early and walk the rest of the way to court. Then my trolley bag got a flat tyre so I had to drag the dead weight to and fro. Then I got caught in and soaked by a tropical storm.

Boo hiss!)

Snoozing at the Zoo

It wasn't quite all happening at the zoo this afternoon when we visited with Katherine. The late summer sunshine made the animals feel right at home and so they were suitably lethargic. The porcupines were curled up in their den in the old penguin pool (the penguins had to be moved when a fox got in!), the lion was keeping an eye on his pride from a shady corner and both tigers were snoring in their bamboo shelters. The only gorilla out and about kept herself busy with a globe artichoke.

The camels were wide-awake though, enjoying a grooming session, and the sloth bears were the most active I'd ever seen them! They must have been happy to return to Bear Mountain.

We checked out the new komodo dragon and spent a lot of time in the reptile house as Brendon was missing the wilder side of home. The snakes were fairly scary.

Skene was keen to see the pigs - red river hogs - and I was pleased to catch up with the tapir which was busy snuffling around.

As the day went on, the animals seemed to wake up. In their shady enclosure, the squirrel monkeys were going wild as we wandered through; the otters were playing on their water slide and the meerkats were keeping a good watch.

When the gates closed, we wandered through Regents Park to Camden for some really wild life...

Click for photos.

La Rentree

Old habits die hard. September 1st signifies nothing for me now but it still brings with it a sense of excitement, of new beginnings. And so I set off for work this morning with an autumnal spring in my step, though I had little to hope for beyond a new look.

But by the time the fire alarm had gone off at court and the new computer system had crashed causing more delays, it felt just like the first day of term! Shame that there's no half term to look forward to now...