Hester

"And whose hand is.....?"

"Not again, you scurvy...

Prime Meridian

I love graveyards! I particularly enjoyed the Unitarian one in Chelmsford, Mass., (while on a business trip to "Boston") which is where I first saw the winged skull motif on 17th C. tombstones. And hey, look, the town has a job opening for a "Temporary Cemetery Laborer": http://www.townofchelmsford.us/Employment.cfm Saw the winged skull motif again on some 19th C. headstones in Northants, [Old] England, too. My best tip for traipsing around old graveyards -- wear wellies! Otherwise, the dew on the often uncut grass will soak you to the knees! [Which makes you somewhat less than welcome for Sunday dinner at the local pub.] Never can find tombstones of any of my ancestors. I suspect all they could afford was a little wooden cross (if that). Cheers, Hester

Holy Vessel

Has anyone seen this? I bought the DVD via Amazon, and sat down to watch it with a rum cocktail. I only got through the first few scenes and then needed lots more rum to wash it down ... so then I got drunk, lost the plot, and just switched it off. The acting was so bad, I thought it must be a porn movie ... but I never did see any sex. Anyhow, now that I'm forewarned, I guess I should try again to get through this thing. I'll have to pace my rum intake this time, though. And maybe popcorn will help. Cheers, Hester

the frilly skirts of...

{Hester glides up to the Kate's docks in her Cambridge punt, ...propelled by her favourite imaginary bit of Irish rough. She sashays into the hull of the old shipwreck in an anachronistic froth of Edwardian lace... -- with Stuart escorting her on his arm as a gentleman should, whilst holding his straw boater strategically over the interesting bits with his other hand. They slip into a booth and peruse today's menu choices.} Hi, William: If you've got a lot of that sushi leftover from yesterday, you can fry it up with some hard-boiled Easter Eggs and onions and serve it to us as kedgeree. Ta! Cheers, Hester

^ People in my dreams are often anonymous cyphers -- and vaguely sinister -- but I rarely remember details in the morning. < Super dream, Chloe! I think it deserves illustration: V Passing the Q on...

Hey, Matusalem: I believe William Red Wake's serving sushi over at the Tsunami Kate. I'm sure his prices are reasonable, especially for a fellow pirate. And fresh? -- why he catches the fish himself! With a net made of his own hair -- from his back! Cheers, Hester

^ I was swathed in Edwardian lace and punting on the Cam with Stuart Townsend, who was wearing just a straw boater and a smile. [Oh, sorry... that was actually a daydream. I don't remember any real dreams from last night.] < Scratchy throat today. Tree pollen, I think. And I have to sing a solo in singing class tomorrow -- screech, croak, hack, cough, sigh! V Passing on the dream question (since I cheated in my answer).

Breakfast! Homemade "Anti-Mc"Muffin: -vegetarian "sausage" patty; -omega-3 egg substitute, lightly scrambled; -on a whole wheat toasted English muffin; -with ketchup (lycopene, baby!). Washed down with Mango-Pineapple blend fruit & veggie juice. Typhoo tea. Handful of unsalted cashews Clementine orange.

Garbage collection: idling diesel truck engine making my windows vibrate; squealing hydraulics; blaring radio from the truck cab; men shouting to each other over the blare of the radio; the crash of empty garbage bins being hurled to the pavement in complete disdain.

^Haven't done any geo-caching, but I have used a GPS, together with OS maps in Britain. The GPS actually proved to be overkill. In the end, my little key-chain magnetic compass proved more useful for navigating. < I love maps, me! V What's the most obscure little place on earth to which you've deliberately navigated, and why?

Yesterday: Wontons Prince William TV movie Russian Orthodox priest [and an elderly lady in England] My dance teacher (who had apparently cancelled class, unbeknownst to me)

I get giddy and laugh even more than usual. Mr. H. (who is a teetotaller) says I'm a very "happy drunk". However, if I have that enigmatic "one drink too many", I'm also a very up-chucky drunk -- which is far less "happy". Strangest thing I've ever bought on-line while drunk -- a stick of green sealing wax. Cheers, Hester

^During a bus strike one summer when I was about 20, one of my girlfriends and I went to a dance. At the end of the night, we realized we'd spent our cab fare on beer, and we had to walk home at 1 a.m. through a deserted industrial part of town. As we were walking, a police car pulled up beside us and the driver asked "Are you girls alright?" But I thought he'd said, "Do you girls want a ride?" and I said "Thanks!" and hopped in the backseat. Since we were already in the car before the cop could finish explaining what he'd actually said, he and his partner just shrugged and said, "Okay, where do you live?". My parents were away on vacation, but my friend's mom was waiting up for her and so she had a lot explaining to do when her mom saw her come home in a cop car instead of a cab. < Craving doughnuts V Ever get stranded somewhere? How did you get home?

^ Stilton, grilled open-faced on an English muffin, topped with a runny poached egg -- I call these little breakfast islands "Eggs Defoe". (Got the Pierce Brosnan DVD of Robinson Crusoe recently, and enjoyed it more than I expected.) < Listening to "Ship of Fools" by Erasure (Happy April 1st, all!) V Did anyone fool you today? Did you perpetrate any pranks yourself? If not, what was the most memorable April Fool's Day joke you've ever been involved in (either on the inflicting or receiving end)?

^If the voice is intriguing enough, I don't absolutely have to understand the lyrics. But a golden-throated poet is my preference. < Loving Andrew Cadie! Thanks for the tip, Chloe. I Googled him and now I'm listening to his myspace page: http://profile.myspace.com/andrewcadie V If you could shanghai any musician, living or dead, as your cabin companion on your fantasy pirate ship, who would it be?

Amy Winehouse, "You Know I'm No Good" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oj1AzA5qCoI

^I took a drawing class at the main art gallery's community school a few years ago. We had some models in for "life drawing" towards the end of the course, but I did better with the still lifes. Still lifes of skulls tend to be my forte. Haven't picked up the charcoal lately ... but, I'm willing to try life drawing again if Stuart Townsend drops by as a guest model. < Should be at the mall shopping for luggage. Blech! V Current favourite song & why?

You can download Scottish singer/songwriter James Yorkston's gorgeous song of life as a sailor, "Comfort in Rum", free from the following page: http://planetconcert5.free.fr/Yorkston/Yorkston.htm "Here's to the captains with whom I Sought comfort in rum, for I'll toast them no more The cat's got my tongue With them I've sailed through storms And rowed through still waters with oars To return to your shores" ... along with 5 other MP3s of his live acoustic performance, including the brilliant "Shipwreckers". Cheers, Hester

^Um, no, not really ... which is odd since I'm pagan. I guess I believe in "mythic metaphor" <Time to hop in the bath V Bath or shower?

^ When I was a little girl it was Chocolate Pie -- a dense mousse-like filling made with Baker's chocolate, butter, sugar, and eggs, poured into a graham-cracker crust and kept in the freezer. I haven't had it in decades, but I can still remember the taste. < Stomach bug relapse. Had to skip dance class tonight. Drat! V If you had to choose only one or the other, which would it be: rum or chocolate?

^Loves shiny trinkets