Not dead

Lots of pretty heavy stuff going down round here right now (amazingly, not particularly money-related - the money situation is still rough, but I know we'll make it one way or another), and I'm too emotional to write about it here in words. But I'm rudderless, adrift, scared, alone.

Feeling very fragile, in fact.

*****

BUT.

I've been channelling my inner domestic goddess and HAVE MADE A ZORRO COSTUME FOR L. to wear at the school carnival on 11 March. Now, I've made costumes before, so this "exploit" maybe doesn't sound like much. But this time, thanks to a free gift with some office supplies, I USED A SEWING MACHINE. And it didn't kill me! God, I'm so proud of myself!

OK, I also bought (on the cheap) a sword and hat, and I also bought a white mask that I painted black this evening, but I made the cape and belt! All by myself! All I have to do now is make a "buckle" for the belt with a big, gold Z on it (no worries, this is going to be a non-sewing task, and I can deal with those no probs). Oh, she's going to look so cute!

*****

Spare a thought for me, though. These are tough times, people.

Miscellany

My word, Zorro was exciting stuff this evening! The suspense is fever-pitch, but there won't be another episode till next Saturday... Sergeant Garcia even killed a man, saving the life of Don Alfredo... Don Diego and his family (and all their friends) are in trouble, serious trouble, and the "Aigle" is obviously willing to fight to the death... The girls were on the edge of their seats!

Pretty frustrating day, apart from that. Tried to get all sorts of things done, but didn't actually finish anything. And I still haven't started my Christmas cards. And it's 12.30 am and I have to be up in 6 hours. And I only found time to write 630 words of my "novel" today (but it's OK, I'm well ahead of schedule, I'm over 42,000 words already). But still. Gah.

But - I did see a pretty cool Lego set (the soldiers' fort in the pirate theme) which I think would be great for L for Christmas... I'll have to get D to have a look and then I'll go ahead and order it. Amazingly, it's about 10 € cheaper (plus there's free delivery) to order it from Amazon UK and get it sent to my father's house than to buy it on Amazon FR and get it sent here. I'll maybe try and see how much it is in a toyshop, but I suspect it'll be more...

I love Christmas shopping!

Z

It has been said (by D and many others) that I have "dodgy tastes" in music, films, books, etc.

When it comes to music, I would prefer "eclectic" - I like classical, some jazz (not fusion though, drives me batshit), rock, pop, new wave, others 80s stuff, disco, indie... plus loads of others. Some of my favourites (and I'm proud to admit to all of these, nah!) incluse Lloyd Cole and the Commotions, Neil Diamond, the Smashing Pumpkins, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Cesaria Evora, Patty Smith, Adam and the Ants, and oh, I could go on forever - this is just CDs I've been listening to recently.

For films, I happily admit to loving musicals, from Gene Kelly and Bing Crosby (not so much Fred Astaire, but yeah, I'll watch them all the same) type stuff, to Howard Keel type things, right up to modern ones like (of course) Hairspray and Mamma Mia! The only "modern" musical I've hated, really hated, was "Dancer in the Dark", but that had a lot to do with my loathing of Björk and the ridiculous casting of Catherine Deneuve and the horribleness of the story.

For books, I like novels. Modern novels - funny ones, like Carl Hiaasen and Jasper Fforde, serious ones like Jodi Piccoult, detective ones like Harlan Coben, Michael Connelly, Kathy Reichs, Patricia Cornwell, and "chick lit" stuff like the Shopaholic series.

But now, a new addition to my (very, very short) TV show list is one that is unanimously appreciated in this house: the 1950s Disney version of Zorro with the delectable Guy Williams. D loves it, and C and L are obsessed with Zorro - they're totally absorbed in the storylines, biting the nails at the "suspense" moments, fearful that Zorro will get caught (they're little girls, they haven't clicked yet that Zorro never gets caught!). They sing the theme song, they dream of Zorro and everything has to stop every Saturday and Sunday at 8.10 pm - missing an episode is unthinkable! I was pretty indifferent at the beginning, but now, I'm as hooked as they are! Guy Williams is perfect as both Zorro and Don Diego de la Vega, Sergeant Garcia is hilarious and Bernardo is both hilarious and very sharp... Yeah, it's a fantastic series! It's just a shame that so few episodes were made (we're up to episode 35 out of 39... I fear that weekends will soon no longer be quite the same!).

I stand by my "dodgy" tastes!

And oh, if you've never seen any other Zorro than Antonio Banderas, I heartily recommend you get your hands on the Guy Williams version!

Z