Storybook Wolf Scandal

The Storybook Wolf

Well well, there’s been some drama down at the Natural History Museum over the last few days!  The winner of the Wildlife Photographer of the Year is a fraud!  Jose, you cheeky little devil, you can’t go off and hire Ossie the tame wolf from a local park and set up your own staged photograph.  It’s not WILDlife now is it?  Hardly playing fair with all of the other contestants mmmm?

Whatever next, train your goldfish to jump through hoops and pretend it’s a dolphin?  Poor show José, you should be ashamed of yourself, taking the title from some other deserving photographer who busted their hump to get their shots.  José gets a life ban from the competition and a generous heaping of shame from everyone else.

Synchronicity

Apparently in life there isn’t any such thing as a coincidence, it’s all about synchronicity.  Everything happens for a reason.  It doesn’t make it any less weird when you see synchronicity in action though. 

I went to the Oak for our Come Dine With Me prizegiving dinner and I was the last to arrive (what a surprise), walking in slightly flustered and laden down with presents.  I saw someone standing right in front of me who looked familiar, but it couldn’t be him because he lives in NZ.  But it was him!  Aaron!  What on earth are you doing here?!  We had a lovely (albeit brief) catch up and marvelled over the randomness of it all.

What makes it even more random is that four years ago I was back in NZ and I bumped into him by chance about three times, until we said we just had to go to lunch as we were obviously meant to meet up.  The lunch was a great catch up session but the pearl came at the very end of the lunch, almost as an aside – when he put me into contact with someone who ended up helping me make a hugely positive change in my life. 

I’m not sure what the message was from our chance encounter last night, maybe just that the world is a lot smaller than you think!

Wool and the Gang

What’s this all about then?  It’s a brand new ‘let’s get on the knitting bandwagon’ craze from those cheeky folk at Wool and the Gang.  I have to say I haven’t knitted for years, but I did master the scarf when I was in my teens.  I didn’t progress further than that, but was quite happy to knit scarves so I didn’t mind.  Mindless and relaxing, no worries about casting on, casting off or actually following a pattern. 

I got an email the other day from Sheer Luxe and I clicked through, interest slightly piqued.  It wasn’t very long until my ire was piqued though.  What a bloody rip off! 

Let’s look at one product in particular, we’ll stick with the scarf as we’ve already established my expertise in this area.  So for a Roxy scarf, which don’t forget you actually make yourself, all you need to do is fork out the princely sum of €129.  But hey, they do throw in the wool AND the knitting needles.  They’ve even included a pattern, although god knows why – anyone who’s an expert in scarves (like me) knows you just keep knitting until it’s long enough, or until you run out of wool!  Wool and the Gang, you’re taking the piss. 

My nana would have a fit if I told her, so I won’t because she’s quite old.  I’m ashamed to admit now that I hated the jumpers she knitted me when I was younger.  One of them was like Joseph’s technicolour dream coat.  Now I can see that she was actually quite fashion forward and I miss my knitted treats (once you’re over 18 you’re out in the knitting cold).  Thank god Nana never had to pay €129 every time she churned out another masterpiece, or I’d never have had my (hated but in retrospect loved) technicolour dream jumper.

Knitting Nana Style

Benefit Betrayal

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have just written an email to Benefit to tell them how unhappy I am.  Worse than unhappy, I feel let down, disappointed and betrayed.  Why?  Well they’ve stopped making my favourite perfume EVER, Maybe Baby.  How dare you Benefit!  Really, what were you thinking!  So yesterday I stocked up and bought five bottles.  That will last me for a little over a year.  Tomorrow I’m going to a department store and am going to stock up on more bottles, as well as have a little smell of the Gwen Stefani perfume L.A.M.B.  I’ve been on forums with other devastated Maybe Baby fans and they said that L.A.M.B smells similar.  I don’t know how I feel about wearing a scent called L.A.M.B.  Being from NZ that is just like an open invitation to get the p*ss taken out of you!

Apparently Benefit have some new perfumes that are going to be better – or so the lady behind the counter said.  I don’t believe her.  Anyway, even if they are (which they won’t be) how do I know they won’t whip them off the shelves once I’m attached to them.  I can’t trust you anymore Benefit, if I didn’t like your make up so much we’d be all over.  But in the perfume stakes you better believe we’re through, unless you bring back Maybe Baby!