Sitting in judgment
I’m so excited! Tomorrow I get to go over Leamington way to do something nerdy: Fence judging at the 2008 British Riding Club Horse Trials
Published again…
I’ve neglected writing news lately. Bit odd, for a blog on a writer’s website. But fingers in pies etc. So the news… Words Magazine have
Comedy gold
Big Brother 8. The half-way housemates game. In their boxes. Shanessa pops up and says ‘I’m free!’ Dressed in a cow’s suit. With a cow’s
A little horsey humour
The best horse in Europe… 🙂 B.
Misunderstanding statistics the BBC way
We’re screwed. The battle between the continual advance of technology and mankind’s equally continual ability to misunderstand data continues. But the latter edges ahead in
Combined Training
Brilliant. The Lovely S and I got out of bed more or less on time. We did the usual stuff then left the house more
Sixteen hands between your legs
It is a tradition (in my world anyway) to give one’s horse a gentle hack around the immediate countryside on the day before a competition.
How to cut your motoring bills
Driver? Car owner? Want to reduce your motoring overheads? Let me help you. I guarantee that by following my four easy steps you can cut the
Horsebox fixed…
Gary The Mechanic (bless) has fitted a new exhaust on the lorry. So we’re fully mobile again. Yay! Brennig.
Let’s get high…
US astronauts were allowed to fly while drunk at least twice, a review panel set up by space agency Nasa has found. Wow! I mean…
Combined training, Sunday
Hmm… Dressage at 12.22 and show jumping as soon as we’ve changed tack and worked in. Need to be at Allenshill at 11.00. Which means
Film news…
Got to see… Transformers (hey, I’ve seen four trailers for it; it looks brilliant!), and… The Simpsons and… The Bourne Ultimatum. On Sunday The Lovely
Writing? Of course!
My friend is running a writing course. A course for those wishing to improve their writing. Style, technique, voice – the lot. And she’s holding
This is the age of the train?
Try this commute, any websites you can think of. Your journey is Bromsgrove to Swindon. A. by Train: = 3 hours (Bromsgrove to Birmingham New
Book review: the book, the film, the t-shirt by Matt Beaumont
Front cover description: ‘a very funny book about very stupid people’ Actually… No. I laughed once during this book (top of page 139 if you’re
Facebook, Faceparty, Bebo – social networking websites
With the news that Facebook might seek a horrendously large buyout in the future… And that Facebook is facing a lawsuit from another social networker… I’m
This morning’s show jumping…
Didn’t happen. Yeah, I know. Waste of space. It didn’t happen because I was too tired last night. I could explain but… But I schooled
For the busy motorist
Afraid of getting caught out? Need to ‘go’ but you’re already going somewhere? Caught in a nose-to-tail jam with the tortoise poking its nose out?
Passive smoking can kill you
the words Hell and Handbasket figure largely in my head today… In west London a 47-year-old former British Heavyweight Champion is in hospital fighting for
Student daze…
It’s official. My first pile of course-work has been delivered. And today I received the official ‘welcome’ letter. I am once again a university student.
A Very Jumpy Pone
Which sounds scarily like a Sooty episode but isn’t On Saturday evening I decided that Vin needed to have some jump schooling. Possible show jumping
Flood news
It took me three hours to drive to the place where The Lovely S works yesterday evening. Here’s a photo of the High Street in
How to drive through deep water
Due, I guess, to the adverse conditions, this post – and this post are both getting hit by a large number of people Googling ‘how to drive
Forthcoming plans
On Tuesday Vin and I are probably going show jumping at Allenshill. And on Sunday we’re probably going Combined Training, again at Allenshill. On 19th
I don’t want to watch DanceX
Please don’t make me. I’ll be good. Really. I will. Honest! Please, please don’t make me watch DanceX. Please? Brennig.
Oh Lord, don’t you buy me a Mercedes Benz…
Now then. I don’t believe in stereotyping. Especially in the world of ‘you are what you drive’. Because that would be stupid, right? Right! (except
More flooding in Worcestershire
It had to happen. The last lot of rain has barely drained away from the land in to the local river network that is already swollen
Today’s big learning experience
Feeder. The band. Brilliant. Track called ‘High‘. It rivals cold baked-bean and Worcestershire Sauce sandwiches* as a Truly Great Thing. Oh yes. * Look, I had
Etty-cut (up)
OK, I give in. Can you tell me? When did it become acceptable to cut across a lane of oncoming traffic and sit there –
Hill Street Blues
I used to watch the eponymous TV prog. Mold-breaking, in its day. But I remember a scene from one particular episode where hardened police Sergeant
Pussy cat, Pussy cat where have you been?
London, mate. Via Oxford. To spend the night in Brixton with Pete and Shane; take them out for a meal to say ‘thank you for being
Sunday’s show jumping…
Didn’t happen. Whilst it would be untrue to say that ‘rain stopped play’ (other nutcases braved the downpours)… I decided to let discretion be the
Film review: Perfume
Don’t watch it while you’re eating. In fact, don’t watch it soon after you’ve eaten. It’s a rough, tough, unpleasantly gory start. But it gets
Film review: Shrek The Third
Many people are apparently labouring under the misapprehension – because of a generous certification – that Shrek The Third is a children’s film. It isn’t.
Dressage for fun
Prelim 7 and Prelim 14 at Bromsgrove Riding Club. From start to finish Vin was a star; ‘Mr Chilled Out’. He’s come such a long
Day 44 in the Big Brother House
One forty-one PM. Charley is in the garden with Nicky. They’re dissecting Heidegger’s principle of Phenomenology as discussed in his groundbreaking work Sein und Zeit. They
The vet’s photo session
Today I went to the veterinary practice that’s been treating Beech’s fracture. I met the veterinary surgeon who took me in to a small office
Mushy peas are excellent
You’ll probably never find mushy peas on a Michelin menu but last night they saved my bacon (euphemistically speaking). I concentrated so hard on cooking
An evening between the covers…
I need to write about last night’s book group… Have you ever been in a room with a group of people who had a common purpose?
Random thoughts…
The first round of Tapas you’re offered in Andalucia is usually pork. The Spanish have a wonderfully flexible view of what constitutes meat. Many visitors
Weekend plans…
Saturday (weather permitting) Vin and I are off to terrorise the good people of Bromsgrove Riding Club with our usual out of control exciting performance
Kill all the cows!
Kill the cows; kill them now! They’re destroying our planet. A survey has just concluded that a Landrover Discovery emits 3,500g of carbon over a
Books and Language
I’m so excited. The first batch of set texts for my OU course have just arrived. Of course, getting excited about the arrival of (plucks
Best Served Cold
a short… Slowly, slowly catchee monkey. When I was a boy my father used to say it to me. He meant ‘don’t be impulsive, play
Meanwhile, back at the ranch
Yesterday was a very equine day. Beech is bearing up fairly well to his enforced ‘imprisonment’. But he looks mighty fed up. And bored. His
Developments…
Hmm… To report them, or not report them? That really is the question. My publisher says one thing… But I think another – my professionalism
Decisions, indecisions
flash fiction Sometimes it’s a problem. Maintaining a focussed train of thought while you’re in a long, tedious… Yawn. Sorry. Where was I? Oh yeah.
Aaaarrghhhhh!
An email flutters in. Arthur Roberts, a US publisher who has a track record of being kind to me. Based on synopsis only… Would like to