Cabin fever setting in

It's limited what I can write, as there's been very little happening... While I'm certainly on the mend, it'll be Wednesday before I'm back in work.

In the mean time, you might be impressed to know that I've made it yet another week without coffee! No, there was no bet involved this time, I just don't fancy coffee when sick, but still. A week is a long time!

I'm also half way through the film coated Augmentin. I can scared even looking at them. Gosh, they are much too big to be pills.

Oh, and I won two tickets to an art fair this upcoming weekend. I'll tell you more about that some other time. The tickets arrived in the post today :)

Sick sucks!

It's Friday evening and the rest of the gang at work are out having the craic. The Harbour Master is having a two-for-the-price-of-one night on all beer, but then who'd really want that much beer, right?

While I felt I was on the mend yesterday, I developed an ear ache overnight. At 11am today the doctor declared I have a bad ear infection. Ouch!

The antibiotics are of the strong variety and require me eating. Not really high on my priority list right now, but I've given in...

• Red wine has been replaced with rooibos and herbal tea.
• Telly has been replaced with reading. The noise of the telly is too much for my ear.
• My usual gallivanting has been replaced with lots of night in on the couch. If lucky, I'll be let out again on Wednesday. Oh how Wednesday seems far away right now!

Theme Thursday - Castle

In 1986 Rosenholm Slot set the scene for yet another Danish julekalender (Christmas calendar). From the 1st of December and right until Christmas eve, an episode would capture the entire population in front of the telly at 6pm, and before long, Rosenholm Slot was a very popular place to visit.

And so...

Once upon a time, so long ago nobody remembers anymore, a King and his daughter Princess Miamaja lived in the Castle. Even though he was a real fairytale King, they were not fairytale rich, and because they are unable to pay the King's weight in gold, a neighboring country Montania had declared war and demanded that Princess Miamaja would marry the Prince of Montania.

The elves try to help as much as possible. They want the King to be able to pay the gold so Miamaja won't leave - she brings them risengrød every day in December!

Potions with honey

I was off to the health shop this morning to get ingredients for a potion to nurse me back to good health. I've the case of a sore throat and a fever and feel terribly sorry for myself, so it was good to get some entertainment in the shop.

I wasn't entirely sure what I needed, so once inside the shop I patiently (OK, I know you won't believe that!) joined the queue at the counter. There was a woman with a three year-old in a buggy right in front of me. The kid was standing up in the buggy, head-butting the shoulder of the woman. The mother, a thirty-something year-old with the most obscure bright red hair colour, was applying pink lipstick while trying to ignore the kid. She looked more and more like a scary Halloween creature, so it was no surprise when the kid suddenly threw a hard plastic toy at her face.

Silence lasted a second or two, then it was fecking this and fecking that, and she rambled on with more swear words than a drunk bloke in a North side pub after 11pm.

A second shop assistant appeared, and before long I was on my was home with some herbal tea and honey. There is hope I might be able to attend a conference call for half an hour at 2pm!

Flying Away

I'm on the couch tonight, feeling rather poorly and very sorry for myself. Anyone who wants to stop by with some soup and make me a cuppa would be most welcome. Chunky vegetable soup preferred!

Anyway, I've been out and about for a few days with my folks visiting, so there's been little time to blog.

Back to Saturday night and Halloween for a minute. I'm sure you all guessed that I would be the witch and not Marylin Monroe. Somehow more my style, methinks. Town was a happening place, and by 11pm it was impossible to get in most places, so we settled for Sinnotts in the end simply because we were able to find chairs. While I was flying, Marilyn was unhappy having to stand or walk. Ahhhh the trouble of new heels!

Theme Thursday - Halloween

I bring sad tidings. My pumpkin has died prematurely. I came home to find him collapsed on the table today. There was hair growing on the inside. Yuck! I should have known it was too early when I made him last weekend, but that's too late now.

The actual Halloween update will obviously have to wait a few days. Everything is carefully planned, and yet there is no plan what-so-ever. Well, other than a start time of 9pm on Saturday night. Marilyn Monroe and a black witch will be heading into town, and if you're really lucky pictures might follow after the weekend.

Trick & Treat!

Growing up and being invisible

I've adopted six turtles on my Facebook FarmVille. They have this tendency to become invisible from time to time, which reminded me of Sørøver Sally's giraffe Valdemar who used to become invisible any time a lady with a handbag came too close.

So why am I rambling on about an invisible giraffe named Valdemar? Because it's one of my earliest childhood memories. One that taught me and many other kids to imagine and have fun without the need for material goods and organised entertainment.

For several years in my student days I found that unspoiled fun the minute I arrived at Camp Little Notch in Upstate New York.

By means of magic I was back in a place where kids were able to spend hours looking at the clouds, counting the stars, building fires and hosting extravagant dinner parties of foil dinners and homemade chocolate cake. Make-up and iPhones were irrelevant - not least when the backpack was getting heavy. Nobody was an outsider, and there was always someone around to read stories - whether you were 8 and away from home for the first time... or 24 and upset beyond belief.

With a place like Little Notch, there is hope that young girls can still learn the real values of life, but this past summer Little Notch didn't open, and now there's talk of selling the place. 2300 acres of forest, lake, mountains and magic. A place where friendships are made strong.

The Friends of Camp Little Notch are working hard to preserve the magic. Hopefully the Summer of 2010 will make room for invisible giraffes once again.

I know a place...