Review - Electric Man Movie

This is a fast-paced comedy about the race for possession of a valuable first-edition comic. For officianados of Scottish Film, it reminded me a little of Restless Natives with some Local Hero moments. Some of the twists in the plot, stunts and camera work were superb, with some real laugh-out-loud guffaws, and the fact it wasn't over-produced made it refreshingly real. It isn't trying to be Hollywood, just some good fun escapism.
Go, see and enjoy.

Book Review - Are We Nearly There Yet?

Ben Hatch had me in kinks giggling at the escapades of his endearing children, feeling sorry for his wife, Dinah, roaring 'Wha?' at his experiments with a toothbrush, and the tears were genuinely tripping me with his accounts of his Dad's bravery and humour in the last few weeks of his life.
The memoirs were of his five month journey around the UK in the pursuit of a Frommers travel guide.
My favorite bit? Ben scaring Dinah in Craster Tower. I can chuckle because I've been there and I felt I was in the car with them experiencing every laugh, 'smell', and bump.
I haven't read a travel memoir in years - the last one being 'McCarthy's Bar' - and this is up there as one of the funniest and most reflective memoirs I have ever read.
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Excuses?

I've got good news and bad news. The bad news is I've been floored with some type of dastardly virus for the past week and a half, and the good news is my lack of appetite has helped me lose half a stone! I let out a little 'yeah' when I stepped on the scales and saw my weight was below the 'benchmark' where it has been hovering for the past year. I don't know if I should try jogging tonight - it will either sweat the last of this lethargy out of my system or kill me altogether, though I don't much fancy the prospect of the latter.
And as if I didn't need any more salt rubbed, I've also had two short story rejections. Mind you, I only wrote them for the money, so perhaps my opinion of them being sentimental 'shite' has been reflected in the fiction editor's decision too.
As for the novel, I have written a tiny bit more, until the pain in my back got too much. I think I need my daily dose of guffawing with a good old-fashioned humorous novel!

Dom Dom Dom

Ok. So here's one of my pieces (someone told me I was really evil writing this) . You know in the likes of Eastenders they have the cliff hanger before the 'Dom Dom Dom's, well, here is a little bitesize of something I'd like to watch, har, har, har (stroking cat);

Tom: This has been the happiest day of my life, my beautiful bride.

Samantha: I know we haven’t known each other long, but we are so right for each other.

Tom: And tonight is going to be so special, especially as we have been saving ourselves

Samantha: Tom, I’ve got something to tell you. I’ve a lump in my throat.

Tom: I’ve a lump in my throat too, Dear. It’s all so emotional.

Samantha: What I mean is, I’ve a real, proper lump in my throat.

Tom: Really? You poor thing! Don’t worry, we’ll get through this together. I’ll always be there for you… Is it malignant?

Samantha: (Removing silk scarf) No. It’s an Adams Apple.

DOM DOM DOM…



I know I shouldn't stretch ahead of myself (overly ambitious!), but I thought this picture might be an idea for the cover of the novel. The only thing is, I'm hoping people will laugh at the contents, and there's nothing in this picture that says 'funny'. Maybe I'm being too pernickerty?

What do you think?

Introduction

Five years ago I embarrassingly rolled up my trouser leg to reveal my very hairy leg for a photo. Little did I know at the time, this was going to be the end of my jogging for a while. I had put my ever shortening jogging breath down to my ever increasing pregnant belly, and wasn't expecting the prognosis I received two weeks later. The nuisance 'blood blister' diagnosed by my GP just a few weeks earlier had turned into a malignant melanoma.

They say inside every fat woman there's a thin woman wanting to get out, well, acquiring an additional eight stone since, I've calculated I've got Posh Spice plus two toddlers inside me.

And it's not like I haven't tried to lose the weight. I attempted jogging again but didn't lose weight - chocolate consumption ratio saw to that - I've been to weight watchers, got those 'oops' tablets from the doctor, got additional 'swell-inside-your-belly' tablets, and also even at eighteen stone the doctor told me I wasn't heavy enough for gastric band surgery!

More recently I went for hypnotherapy (virtual gastric band) but tried hard not to giggle at the 'you are feeling sleepy' part.

So here I am five years on desperately needing to lose the weight.

It doesn't help that I'm currently trying out the sedentary role of writing, or re-writing for that matter while attempting to be a full-time mum. I wrote a novel a couple of years ago, and sent it out to three agents. Two rejected it outright, and the third wrote back with a lovely rejection letter and excellent advice. And I'm determined to get this book finished as soon as possible.

So now I have an optimistic plan. I'm going to try the jogging again (my friend misheard me and thought I said 'dogging') the doctor has told me I'm not about to keel over with a heart attack, and we have a local Jog Scotland group starting up, and I want to have a photo of myself to be proud of on the inside cover of my book when (fingers crossed) it gets published.

So, does anyone want to join me for the ride?