This is why I don't buy my veg at the supermarket...

...I can get this little lot from the market in Hull city centre on my lunchbreak for £4 and support a local greengrocer.

Bargainous!

Turning back the clock

The boyfriend, me and the mother spent the weekend down in Ashby visiting my sister and her family. We had a date on the Friday evening with Calke Abbey where my sister had got us all tickets to the Back to the 80s concert that's been doing the rounds over the past few months. It was actually in Hull in East Park for its first date but I never heard about it.

I was a little apprhensive, although technically I'm a child of the 80s, having only been born in 1983 means that I wasn't quite into my pop music until we were in to the 90s. My knowledge of 80s music extends to what got played at the numerous 80s nights in clubs I spent my university life in.

However this was no ordinary concert. It's a little bit of an event in Derbyshire apparently. Everyone goes in big groups, little ones, old ones, and everyone in between, they bring picnic tables and folding chairs and fancy picnics and make a lovely night of it. There were chequered tablecloths a-go-go. We figured we could play them at that game and though we didn't have a fancy table cloth we did have fizzy stuff...

We stayed mostly up the hill but I ventured down to the front to see Peter Cox from Go West strutting his stuff and singing along to the only song I knew - King of Wishful Thinking from Pretty Woman.

I also boogied on down to Martin Fry from ABC.

Also there were Carole Decker from T'Pau, Belinda Carlisle (who was very tiny and hence could hardly be seen) and the headliners the Human League who were absolutely brilliant, my definite favourites.

The whole night finished with a spectacular firework display and I discovered that my camera has a firework function button which I put to good use...

The rest of the weekend was spent lazing about, going to the local Farmer's Market, playing on the Wii and eating good food before coming home on Monday with 2 nephews in tow who have come to stay with Granny for the week.

The Competition (Part 2)

Competing for my boyfriend's affection with electronic devices is something I'm becoming used to (see here), however I have recently discovered another rival for his attention.

She's a slinky little beast this one.

She appeared from thin air. One day she wasn't there and then when we were packing to go to France she suddenly arrived.

"And just who the hell is this?" I thought to myself. Apparently she's been here all along but I'd just never noticed her before.

However it was too late to protest and I could nothing to prevent her tagging along with us.

But I had the last laugh. She was kidnapped by a younger member of the tribe on holiday and she never got close to the boyfriend.

However since our return she has wormed her way back into his hands. She's a minxy one. The X-box I've got a handle on. She can't be on when I'm there because I demand the TV be on but the PSP is sneakier than that. She can be played while the TV is on.

"Haha! Look at that funny thing that just happened on the TV!" I'll say

"Erm......oh......yeah.....I did...n't see that" is the reply I get about 15 years later.

I might as well be sitting in the other room while he shoots Nazis on the X-box. I think that might actually be less annoying than thinking that we're both watching something when we're not.

And she's noisy. Even though there are earphones the boyfriend doesn't put both of them in - that way he can keep half an eye on the TV he's ignoring and all I can hear are faraway, tinny little sound of gunshots that is just loud enough to not be totally disturbing but just on the edge of completely irritating.

And the worst of it? I suspect he wants us to become friends! "You can watch films on it" he said, trying to win me round to her sudden arrival in our lives. Aah yes how marvellous, because I often say to myself "Gosh I wish I had a screen the size of my palm to watch films on. That would be completely satisfying". I did try to make the effort, I thought that maybe I could come round. I asked what films he has that I could watch on this interloper.

There are 3. And they're all crap.

I shall bide my time while I figure out how to deal with this lythe being. Maybe I could accidentally sit on her...

I spy with my little Fisheye

For some time now, whenever I'm out during the day I'm accompanied by a very strange device. It's bright orange and plastic and looks as if it has a very big lens...

It's my Fisheye camera.

When people first see it they immediately say "Cool, is that an underwater camera?" I have to inform them that no he is not suitable for underwater use and no it is also not a child's camera.

I then have to try and explain what it does. It would be much simpler if I just carried around a picture and said "Here look". Because this is what the fisheye produces...

The trick is to get as close to your subject as possible - the closer you get the more distorted the picture. However I've also learned you can get some pretty good scenic distance shots with him.

And when I say you have to get close you have to get right up to the person's nose and "Click!" - no need to have your arm out-stretched desperately trying to make sure you get your head in shot - with fisheye's crazily wide angled lens he'll get everything in for you.

Don't bother trying to line your shot up either - there's a view finder but it's mostly obscured by the lens - just point and click baby!

Through buying my Fisheye I became re-introduced to the delights of analogue photography. Remember that feeling when you went to pick up your photos from Boots and you didn't know what was going to be in the set? You couldn't remember what exactly you'd taken pictures of and couldn't wait to see how they'd turn out? You don't get that feeling anymore now that digital reigns supreme.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not dissing the digital. I love my camera, it goes everywhere with me and I am usually the official documenter of all nights out/trips away. I like that I can take a photo, upload it and share it within a couple of minutes. And let's not forget that any unflattering photos can be deleted within a second without anybody ever seeing your multiple chins.

But I love a bit of nostalgia and through my Fisheye I've become initiated into the world of Lomography.

Through Lomography I've learned that it's not about the perfect shot. It doesn't matter if things are a little blurred and out of focus or you didn't load your film properly or you exposed the film to sunlight. In fact they positively encourage these things - with the Rat Lab giving you tips on burning your film or soaking it in water before developing it - and selling expired film for you to try.

The point is to just enjoy taking photos, much as you should enjoy life. Who cares if the composition of your photo isn't perfect? Life isn't is it? And Lomography welcomes both good and bad photographers alike.

I would take millions more Fisheye photos but time and my bank balance won't allow it. I would also love to buy more of the cameras sold in the Lomography shop - the Supersampler is on my wish list. What the shop is great for is the amount of films they sell - who knew there was more than just your bog standard Kodak? My favourite at the moment is Agfa Vista 400, it really seems to make the colours 'pop'.

Right I'm off to sit and twiddle my thumbs and wait for the Fisheye photos from France to be developed.

PS. In case Santa is reading, I really want the Submarine so that I can take pictures underwater - how cool would that be?!

While I was away...

...I left my chilli plant in the washing-up bowl with some water to keep him hydrated. And look at what happened!!

My chillis turned red!

No idea what it's about. None of the others did it. I wondered if it's because they'd been left on longer but I left the other ones that I've already harvested on there for ages and they showed no signs of turning green.

I did stick one of the green ones in a bit of pasta magic the other night and they. are. spicy. I accidentally licked my fingers after I'd chopped it and my head nearly came off. Not for the faint hearted.

I will have to harvest these little red babies and see what they do to my taste buds....

What to do when it's a beautiful sunny weekend....

...go to a surprise birthday party for a special birthday...

...eat cupcakes (thanks once again to Sweet & Simple bakes!)...

...then retire to bed for a very big sleep before rising and going to sit in another garden...

...talk to the ladybird....

....and to furry ginger people (about how it's not a good thing to catch and eat butterflies)....

...then come home and eat cupcakes, drink cups of tea and watch Sunday tv

The Holiday: The Scenery's Side of the Story

Because apparently a picture paints a thousand words...