Hester

Discovery Channel http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=wlWCWoLCmog [PG]

A Xmas video from the Important-Looking Pirates, a punk-pop band from Sheffield, England: I Hate Santa

Leftover pizza Dance friends that I'd missed for a month Walter (what a sweetheart!) Phil - who looks like a clean and relatively sober Sid Vicious

Socialism http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=zo_S13SYeZw

Thanks for the moral support, Jenny! Well, my sister's "Renewal of Vows" cocktail party went quite smoothly. My bangs were professionally trimmed in honour of the event by Hope, in 5 mins. flat, leaving the rest of my chestnut locks cascading past my shoulders. For that party, I dressed my outfit down slightly by substituting pants for the full-length swirly skirt I originally intended to wear. I wore my white linen jacket with the frilly lace cuffs (very piratey in a Chrissie Hynde kinda way) and my punk-rock ankle boots with the pointy toes, lots of straps & buckles, and metallic purple lining. Felt very comfortable and blended in sufficiently with the crowd. Didn't actually go out and look for a gold evening bag, because I found a black velvet one in my closet that had gold beading and actually looked stunning with my outfit for Mr. H.'s company Xmas party the following night. Got 3 compliments from women at that party: one said I looked like a medieval princess; one said my dress was very Bollywood; and another told me I smelled fantastic [Chanel Allure, heated up by my exertions on the dancefloor]. And my fatigue finally seems to be abating. I even felt energetic enough to attend English Country Dancing tonight for the first time in over a month! And then had a Pimm's to celebrate when I got home. In all, a very successful weekend for this hesitant social butterfly. Well, I'd better hit the sack now -- nearly 1 am on a "school night"! Hope all is well with you, and that the worst of the ice storm passed you by. Sweet dreams, Hester P.S. Furnace still humming along! Yay!

Pimm's ahoy!

Looks like some frolicsome fun on Ailouros Island, O Fearless Leader! But ya forgot the first rule of internet pimping: Give 'em a live link! http://pirateprincessproductions.com/ (The pirates here be so fuddled with grog that they're lousy navigators. Ya can't rely on them washing up on your shores just using their own map & compass.)

Anarchy

Well, by following the 10 simple rules above, I did survive the two consecutive nights of open-bar parties with my dignity intact -- huzzah! The "Storm Cloud" cocktails tasted quite nice. Although in retrospect I think I should have named this drink "Fizzy Grog". Okay, well, I did cheat a bit on rule # 3. And I was very tempted to break rule #8, because the bar actually did stock Guinness (and Phil was sitting just behind me at the next table). I stayed to watch the Sambuca ritual at midnight, but did not personally participate. In any case, it was tamer than previous years, because they didn't actually light the liqueur on fire this time. (I thought it was due to fire regulations, but apparently it was simply because they didn't have the right size shot glass.) This morning [oh, wait, it's afternoon now!], I'm drinking strong cups of tea.

Statue [in downtown Toronto.]

Apple, yoghurt, granola bar, & green tea. (Jaysus, that's sounds pretty 'Earth Mother', doesn't it! Maybe I shoulda washed it all down with a slug of rum! ) Conference call taking place from my kitchen table. Mr. H., who's happily working from home today. M.M., the blushing bride. (Hope everything goes well for her!)

Well, gosh, looking at everyone else's requests, now I want a tall ship and a tropical island too! Originally, my wish list was much more modest. I only asked Santa for a pirate-themed bottle opener for my Corona.

It's just after breakfast, so I'm being good and drinking organic green tea with mango flavouring. Tonight and tomorrow night, I'm going to a couple parties that have open bars -- the very simple kind that don't make exotic cocktails. So, I've been trying to decide what I should drink. Usually, I go for a gin & tonic in such situations, but I rather overdid it at one such party earlier this fall, so G&Ts aren't quite as appealing now. [Of course, I really shouldn't have combined the G&Ts with Corona and then margeritas when I realized those were on offer too. Ah well, live & learn!] Rum & Coke would be a good choice, because it tends to be rather easy on my stomach. But if I have several of those in an evening, the caffeine will keep me up all night. (And bars don't tend to stock caffeine-free cola.) Not a big fan of ginger ale or 7-Up as mixers, either. Also, I'm trying to watch my weight, so sugary mixers aren't a great idea in the first place. [And I can't tolerate the aspartame in diet pop.] Wine sours my stomach. Beer makes me belch. And bars never stock Pimm's! So, sticking with rum (which I probably shouldn't chug straight up at family and corporate events), that seems to leave only one possible mixer: club soda. And hey, with a wedge of lime, that sounds rather nice, actually. Pyrate that I am, I prefer dark rum, so I think I'll call this concoction a "Storm Cloud". And since it won't be sweet, I'll likely sip it more slowly. Which should make it less likely that I'll get blotto and embarrass myself. Mr. H.'s company Xmas party lasts 7 whole hours! SEVEN HOURS with an open bar! [Okay, they do close the bar briefly during dinner, but then they bring out wine.] Hopefully, my sister's "Renewal of Vows Cocktail Party" tonight won't last quite as long, since I feel obligated to stay to the end. So, okay, here's my game-plan to survive two consecutive nights of open-bar parties with my dignity intact: 1. Drink only "Storm Clouds" -- dark rum, club soda & lime. 2. Sip slowly. 3. Have a virgin club soda between each actual drink. 4. Check that the bartenders are not pouring doubles (the way they did last year to increase the company's liquor tab). 5. Do not drink wine with dinner. (It always sours my stomach and doesn't mix with rum.) 6. Do not sit with boring people at dinner. (Becase then I will be seriously tempted to drink the wine anyway.) 7. When toasting the happy couple, sip only enough bubbly to be polite. 8. Do not swig Guinness with Phil, even if the bar stocks it! 9. Do not drink Bailey's with my 87-year-old mother. 10. Take a pass on the flaming sambucas at midnight! (Lots of people sans eyebrows the next day.)

Pleased and almost prepared!

Airs on Saturday nights here, and since I actually have a social life, I've never been home when it's on, with the exception of one week when I was sick and accidentally caught the last 15 minutes of an episode. My first thought was -- "I covet that treehouse!" Second thought -- "I wonder when this will be available on DVD?" Bring on those fantasy pirates and castaways, says I!

dance

dance

Wraith Queen (Stargate Atlantis), Hallowe'en 2007

The Pirate Lord by Sabrina Jeffries 1818 - Cape Verde Islands - Eye colour: "a vivid blue-green that mirrored the tropical sea" - medium-hot foreplay so far (up to page 217) The premise of the book, that pirates capture a ship full of female convicts being transported from England to Australia, is inspired by the real-life incident of the Emu, a convict ship captured by the American privateer ship the Holkar during the war of 1812. The privateers of the Holkar set free the women held prisoner aboard the Emu and left them on St. Vincent in the Cape Verde Islands. In Jeffries' novel, the pirate crew of the Satyr (former 1812 privateers) kidnap the convict women aboard the Chastity and take them to an uncharted isle in the Cape Verde chain, where they attempt to woo them to be their wives. Very silly, but mildly amusing. Best line in the book: "He smelled of the sea and tasted of rum, a not unpleasant combination." [Yup, that's our motto over on the Beach Party thread! LOL]

Great fun! Thanks for the pointing out this site, Lady B.

passion

Dublin, Glaswegian, Cockney

4:30 a.m. Alarm clock won't ring for another hour and a half. I'm awake dithering about getting ready for various family events and parties this week. Mr. H. forgot to take his suits to the cleaners in time. Ugh! My bangs need trimming. But going to the hairdresser always stresses me out. I hate having to make small talk while I'm in the chair. Need to think of a wedding present/anniversary gift for my sister for her "Renewal of Vows" cocktail party this Friday night. [she eloped last Xmas.] And I suspect the outfit I plan to wear to the party is probably too fancy, but everything else is either too tight now (damned frozen cocktails!) or my family have seen me wear it to other events. And I don't have the energy to shop for another outfit in time. Need to get a gold evening bag to go with my outfit for Mr. H.'s company Xmas party on Saturday. I know this great little accessories shop in the East End that will probably have one. Just have to drag my bones across town. Missed the deadline to send Xmas cards to Britain in time. Which will disappoint my newly widowed cousin and the elderly friend of my parents. Made a doctor's appointment next week to discuss the fatigue I've been having. (At this busy time of year, there was only a resident available. I feel sorry for the poor thing getting stuck with such a vague complaint, but I've cancelled out on so many social events recently that family & friends were getting worried and insisted I see the doctor. Sigh!) Glad the furnace is fixed.

(Hey, Jacky! Looks like I just missed you on-line by a couple hours.) unreliable [Which is how I feel these days!]

Mr. H. scraping the slush off the front walk before it freezes.