Bally's Journal
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Friday, July 25, 2008
8:54AM - Living In A Box
Honestly, sandwich packaging these days. I've got into the daftly expensive habit of buying sandwiches from Marks & Spencer.
DIGRESSION ALERT: I want to know why the type of sandwich I like costs £2.65 in Edinburgh, but £2.30 in Derby and Stoke, though.
Getting into the thing is like a game from The Crystal Maze: "Congratulations, you've won 555 calories! Where next? The Industrial Zone? Right you are!" I pulled the tab, and it went nowhere. I spotted the perforations the tab was supposed to tear through, but they weren't much good. I had to resort to just tearing it apart. Silly thing.
In other news, the first cinema I ever went to is now a pile of rubble in the centre of town. I saw Fantasia with my brothers and uncle Andrew... I was thinking of getting onto the site and taking a brick, but I decided against. A bit too much.
Have good weekends, readers.
Current mood: 
weird
Current music: none
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
9:13AM - Here Comes The Sun
I started this earlier, but a power cut wiped it all away. Pants.
( Long, about the weekend, click to enter )
I'd like to thank Alison, who was very kind to me considering that was the second time we've met; Lisa, who invited me to Helene's party in the first place; and Caz and Matt, who both put me up and put up with me. I had a great time, y'all!
Current mood: 
happy
Current music: none
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
10:09PM - Barry Normal Eyes
Awww man.
Lynx are at it again. I'm usually mildly appalled at the sexism of their ads -
DIGRESSION ALERT: To the point where I have an idea for a parody ad, whose slogan would be "Stynx - it won't get you laid, you know".
- but this time they've gone straight for my stomach with their recent ad. For those of you who've not seen it, the central character (if an advert can have one) moves his eyes independently to check if he's sweated through his clothes. The strong of stomach can click here (that's a YouTube link, and it's not the full thing, but you can get the gist). I'm quite squeamish about me eyes - which is why I've not got contact lenses - so I'm having to change the channel whenever I get a whiff that it might be on.
God, I hope I don't see it at the cinema. Brrrr.
Film Reviews
Wall-E: Yes.
Current mood: squicked out
Current music: Delays - Pieces
Thursday, July 17, 2008
9:12AM - The Wheels On The Bus
It's a song, so I can have it!
On Tuesday I had cause to get on a bus. The prices for bus travel in the city have gone up, again. It's now £1.60 for a journey of about four miles. I'd just like to know - how much is it for a bus journey of a similar distance where you live?
Thanks.
Current mood: happy
Current music: none
Monday, July 14, 2008
10:45PM - La Valse Des Vieux Os
Cos it's still Bastille Day for another hour and a quarter!
I am aching. I don't know the name of the body part, but it's the one on the far side of my right armpit. I'm hoping it's OK for tomorrow - I'm going out to play cards with the gang. I'm also booked up for the next three weekends in a row. Those times are going to be good, I'm sure!
Work is over for the summer, although I'll be going in for the two results days, as usual. I hope to make cakes for my second years... I just hope they'll all turn up!
Au revoir à tout le monde.
Current mood: 
bouncy
Current music: Delays - Touch Down
Saturday, July 12, 2008
3:54PM - Glory Box
In which I detail sporting injuries.
Yesterday we had the last 5-a-side football session of the academic year. There were only nine people, though. Grrr. I went in goal for my team and we kicked off. One of the lads on the other team is notorious for shooting on sight, and not being particularly accurate. The first chance he got, though, he was very accurate. I stood up to him and he had one of his trademark wild shots. Straight into my groin. I fell over... and I couldn't get up.
I stayed down for a bit and then ran it off. I got a goal later, which was a bit of compensation.
Today Donna and I went to the gym. One of our goals from the gym guys is to go to one non-spinning class every week; the abs one we did last week was cancelled, so we went into Boxercise instead. I feared a repeat of the performance we put on for the Step Aerobics class, but there was enough breaks to keep us going. As we were both beginners, we were split up and assigned to work with other people.
The woman I was paired with was tremendous. She was wiry and the first time I put the pads on for her to hit, she punched the right one off my hand. I was in awe. She was very helpful to me when it came to my turn to punch, advising on technique and stuff.
Unfortunately I didn't like the instructor's style - she shouted at people she felt weren't working hard enough. Shouting is never a solution. Now I'm off to the Kino to watch Prince Caspian. I'll see thee.
Current mood: bouncy
Current music: Delays - Keep It Simple
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Friday, July 4, 2008
6:37AM - Voodoo Child
You may have seen this news story around. A couple of nights ago, I dreamed that I was pregnant.
DIGRESSION ALERT: I would have written about it yesterday, but I was busy. Sorry.
I was, for some purpose that was never made clear, in a ski resort. I was quite heavily with child, and I was being helped around the place by one of my students (I don't think she was the mother, though - I got the impression I was going to become a single parent). It was, in short, ever so odd.
In other news, my goddaughter turned ten yesterday. How was that allowed to happen?!
Current mood: 
confused
Current music: none
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
8:39PM - Absurd
Ouch.
Earlier today Donna and I signed ourselves in to a class called "Abs Blast". The name indicated that it was going to target the stomach muscles above all else. This proved to be the case.
The instructor set up a circuit of ten different exercises to test our mettle. We were to do each one for a minute before moving to the next one. Suffice to say that five minutes in I was crawling from one exercise to the next. My stomach felt like it was on fire, and I may have strained my neck. Yes, my neck. Now, some three hours later, I can only feel it when I get up too fast.
I hope all this is worth it. Caz rang earlier, and I told her I'd been to the gym... her reply was "Why?" I am beginning to wonder, when it hurts so much!
Current mood: 
sore
Current music: Moby - 257.Zero
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
8:52AM - Wondering
Oh dear (contains written expletives, but is a link to the BBC website). I can see the point, that what the pupil wrote down is more than nothing and so deserves more than nothing, but all the same. Sheesh.
Current mood: curious
Current music: none
Sunday, June 29, 2008
10:13PM - Day Tripper
Now it's all calmed down at Bally Towers, I think it's about time we had a blog challenge around these parts (the last one I took part in was in 2006!). So, I would like to challenge all of you guyses to write a blog entry of some sort for every day in September 2008.
Thank you!
Current mood: 
calm
Current music: Weird Al Yankovic - Couch Potato
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Friday, June 27, 2008
10:53PM - Happiness
Over the past couple of weeks I've been buying The Guardian while at work, mainly for the puzzles (they have a new Sudoku, Kakuro and quick crossword every day!). In a moment of extreme boredom, I flipped through the G2 section. I'm glad I did, because I found a great article on happiness.
Firstly, the UK government has a happiness tsar.
DIGRESSION ALERT: I'm not sure, if I were to put a person in charge of happiness, that I would call them a "tsar". Maybe a happiness guru? Or a happiness secretary, to be in line with other government officials? No, wait, I've got it: a happiness puppy!
It turns out that money only brings happiness up to a certain point... in a way. If the average yearly income in a country is over $20,000, the populace apparently become miserable. You can read it here, if you like. It's pretty long, mind.
In other news, a colleague has been singing this line over the past week: "It's like a badger with an afro throwing sparklers at the Pope". I hope you can't catch madness.
Current mood: 
tired
Current music: Amy Macdonald - Barrowland Ballroom
Thursday, June 26, 2008
9:32PM - Superheroes
Earlier today I did the Likeness quiz on The Face Of Book about what superpowers you'd like. There were ten on the list, and you had to rank them in order of preference. All that I can remember at the moment is that I put X-ray vision and invisibility last. Brrr.
Anyway, it later transpired that I already have superpowers! I left work with the gang to go to the pub, and it was drizzling. "Hah!" I said. "You call this real rain?! Come on!" A moment later, it started to rain reasonably heavily. I can control the weather!
So there we have it! I'm off to get a spandex outfit made, and see if I can't set up a business where I guarantee good weather for barbecues.
Current mood: content
Current music: Coldplay - Lost!
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
3:44PM - Orinoco Flow
Today I discovered that a flowchart should only contain questions which can be answered with "yes" or "no".
Sometimes I worry slightly about how teacher-y I'm getting, with my mad urge to spread knowledge. Brrr.
Film Reviews:
The Incredible Hulk: Yes.
Current mood: 
creative
Current music: none
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
10:58PM - Higher
Previously in Bally's Health (not to be confused with popular men's magazine Men's Health), this (I don't know what possessed me to write it like that... however, as I think I've already mentioned, I do a lot of stuff purely to amuse myself).
Yesterday I had another health check from the new gym, and got handed an eleven page report. There follows a wee summary of the results.
First and foremost, I'm weirdly glad to be able to report that I have gone back to being five foot six. The report that I referred to in the linked entry there said I was five foot five; it never felt right saying that. Hmmm.
Next, although I am in the "healthy" section of the Body Mass Index (167cm and 67 kilos, fact fans/stalkers!), I have a slightly high body fat percentage compared to the target range (19%, when I should be between 12% and 18%) (when I told Donna, she called me a "lardo"). All four readings on my lung function are rated as "Possible concern", which I blame on being an asthmatic. I have average flexibility, and poor grip strength (they take a grip strength reading to use as an indicator of your overall strength, apparently).
Now, bearing in mind that this is an official BUPA health check, they've used one of my favourite phrases! The following sentence features in the explanation for Body Mass Index: "Some very muscular people, for example weightlifters and some sportspeople, may also have a high BMI. This is because muscle weighs more than fat and the BMI calculation does not account for the balance between the two."
Heh.
Current mood: tired
Current music: Delays - Keep It Simple
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Thursday, June 19, 2008
2:02PM - Over And Over
Here's a little nugget of information that I've just picked up: did you know that 2008 is the International Year of the Potato, as designated by the UN?
...
Boredom at work has a lot to answer for, dear good-looking reader.
Film Reviews
Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull: Yes.
The Happening: No.
The Devil's Backbone: Yes.
Current mood: 
bored
Current music: none
Monday, June 16, 2008
9:37PM - Brave New World
Today has been a touch weird. No, scratch that - a tad weird.
I'd spent the weekend with my parents, celebrating that there Father's Day there was recently. It wouldn't be me if something didn't get left behind and, lo and behold, I'd left my toothbrush behind. D'ohs to me. This morning I resolved to get a new toothbrush on my way to work.
As I was walking to work a couple of things hit me. The first was that I wasn't wearing a belt (I usually buy trousers about a size too big and wear a belt to compensate, and I wasn't). The second was that I could brush my teeth en route to work. I added a belt to the shopping list.
There's a little supermarket on the way to work, and it was there that I bought a toothbrush and toothpaste. Then I brushed my teeth, out in the open. Fortunately, just after the little supermarket there's a dirt track that runs parallel to the road, so I did the business without anyone seeing. A little later I got to the larger supermarket in town and bought myself a belt. It's a brown belt, which is a departure because I usually buy black belts (I think you know where you are with black - brown, not so much).
Fast forward to post-work. My spinning buddy (Donna) and I had booked an appointment to check out a local gymnasium. That we did, and the feller taking us round said we could book in to one of the classes that day at no extra cost. The spinning class was a bit too late, so we put ourselves forward for step aerobics. I'm reminded of the Xander quote "No power on this Earth will get me to tell the rest of that story". Suffice to say I was rather unco-ordinated and red-faced when we left, twenty-five minutes into the hour class.
We've signed up, though. Greater fitness, here we come! Hope you've done something new and/or weird today.
Current mood: giddy
Current music: Sígur Rós - Milanó
Sunday, June 15, 2008
6:01PM - Twenty Five To Midnight
... and fifteen miles of track.
Hi Amanda!
Christine's thoughts here (I think that takes you straight under the cut again, so the spoilers will be right out there).
( Doctor Who episode 4.10/30.10 Midnight review )
Current mood: 
dorky
Current music: Coldplay - Strawberry Swing
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