Happy Fifth Birthday to Keir

Today is a special day. Today is Keir's birthday. He's five. It's been five years since I first sat at my computer, switched on a compilation of The Rasmus, dug out a rather dark and forlorn short story about a man in a dungeon waiting to die, and started writing again. It was a huge turning point in my life. I hadn't written in years, and had hit a real low point. I wasn't sure who or what I was any more. I was proud to be a mum to three children, a wife to my adorable soulmate. But beyond wife and mother, I had lost sight of myself. It was only by writing again and discovering my passion (or rediscovering it) that I really knew what I wanted. I loved to write. It didn't matter so much to me then if it would ever be published - in fact, it was only after completing the first draft of Keir that it even crossed my mind to try getting it published. At that point it was simply enough to write.
And here am, five years later, with my eighth title about to release in just three days. Still writing. Still reeling. I never expected to be here. To be multi-published, with a handful of shiny awards and some nice reviews. Apparently I don't suck at this writing thing. :P
Where will I be in another five years? I really don't know. Maybe I'll be hitting sixteen titles. As for Keir...well, he's not available right now but I hope to have him back out to you next year, with the rest of the series to follow. If you're waiting for the same epiphany I had five years ago, I can only say this. Get writing. Now. And never give up - never surrender!

Happy Birthday?

Today I turn 43. While I no longer make a big deal about my birthdays and don't expect anyone else to, I still like to mark the occasion with at least a cake and a few cards. But this birthday is different. Not outwardly perhaps, but in my head.
My mum died when she was 43. It's not something I talk about much. I was nineteen at the time, and I'm not going to dwell over the impact it had on me. But since I first approached the landmark of 40, turning my life on its head as it came, the memory has been preying on my mind. I don't expect to mysteriously keel over on the day, but I can't forget.
Mum was ill for several years beforehand, and I've not experienced anything that I foresee as potentially fatal. Well, except for some freaky symptoms back in the autumn of 2012 that turned out to be chronic, long term anaemia. I have no reason to believe that my family is under any kind of curse that would compel me to die. I intend to live forever, bwahahaaa! Lol. But just for once, I will be looking forward to being another year older next year when I turn 44. In fact, I have a thing for the number 4, so 44 will be a very pleasing age to be.
And perhaps it's partly why approaching 40 made me realize it was finally time to do those things I really wanted to do, because none of us know how long we have on this planet. So even though I've been anxious about being 43, I've looked back over the last few years, at what I've done and what I hope still to do, and I'm happy. I've achieved things I never imagined in the last few years. But I'm not prepared to quite give up the whole breathing and moving around thing yet. :P Here's to being another year older!

The Answer to Life, the Universe and EVERYTHING is...

...me! Lol! What, you were expecting a real answer? Whoops, sorry! No. Just plain old me. Today I'm hitting that magical number Douglas Adams proposed as the answer to Life, the Universe and Everything.

I feel I should be drinking a Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster to celebrate. According to The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, the mixing instructions are:

• Take the juice from one bottle of Ol' Janx Spirit.
• Pour into it one measure of water from the seas of Santraginus V — Oh, that Santraginean seawater! Oh, those Santraginean fish!
• Allow three cubes of Arcturan Mega-gin to melt into the mixture (it must be properly iced or the benzine is lost).
• Allow four litres of Fallian marsh gas to bubble through it, in memory of all those happy hikers who have died of pleasure in the Marshes of Fallia.
• Over the back of a silver spoon float a measure of Qualactin Hypermint extract, redolent of all the heady odours of the dark Qualactin Zones, subtle, sweet and mystic.
• Drop in the tooth of an Algolian Suntiger. Watch it dissolve, spreading the fires of the Algolian Suns deep into the heart of the drink.
• Sprinkle Zamphuor.
• Add an olive.
• Drink... but... very carefully... 

Alcohol and the Pan Galactic Gargle Blasters - the HitchHiker's Guide to the Galaxy version



So, to celebrate my birthday I'm going to post a couple of theoretical recipes for Pan Galactic Gargle Blasters. If you find either of these really do feel like "having your brains smashed in by a slice of lemon wrapped round a large gold brick", please ask your next of kin to let me know. Cheers!

There are loads of recipes on the internet, since no 'official' version exists. This one does differ from some of the more mundane cocktails of the same name in the fact that it is actually served in an Ottawa nightclub - Zaphod Beeblebrox - and tastes fantastic despite not being quite as potent as the recipes involving Everclear, Bacardi 151 and all that lark. It also glows under ultra-violet lighting, giving that oh-so-crazy spaceage feel.

One serving

1 oz Jack Daniel's® Tennessee whiskey
1 oz peach schnapps
4 - 6 oz orange juice
1 splash Blue Curacao liqueur

Shake the orange juice, the Jack and the peach schnapps in a shaker 3/4 full with ice cubes. When it's chilled, strain into the highball glass and drizzle some of the blue Curacao liqueur over the top of it. Add a citrus twist (and, bizarrely, an olive if you're a DNA purist), sit back and be prepared to have your brain smashed out by gold bricks, lemons and allsorts.

Read more: Pan-Galactic Gargle Blaster recipe http://www.drinksmixer.com/drink12215.html#ixzz2Ye8MxEGJ

And this one. I went for one as different for the first as I could find.

One serving

1 tbsp vodka
1 tbsp light rum
1 tbsp gin
1 tbsp tequila
1 tbsp creme de menthe
1 tbsp Galliano® herbal liqueur
1 slice lemon

Combine the gin, rum, vodka, tequila, creme de menthe, Galliano and ice in the container of a blender. Cover, and blend until slushy. Pour into a glass and garnish with a slice of lemon.

Read more: Pan-Galactic Garble Blaster #4 recipe http://www.drinksmixer.com/drink12216.html#ixzz2Ye9etrmS

Enjoy!

Inspiration - The London Aquarium.

Sea anemones. Just love the colours on these!

My youngest turned four on Saturday, so the whole family took a trip to the London Aquarium as his treat (although I can't deny we were all excited about it). Frankly I dislike London - it's too loud, too crowded and too expensive. But the children enjoyed the train journey up (apart from a long wait for the right Circle line train) and we arrived just before the aquarium opened to hear Big Ben strike ten o'clock (which impressed them). We've been to a couple of Sealife centres before and I didn't expect a huge amount different at the aquarium, but somehow we spent just over two hours inside.

The Houses of Parliment.

The London Eye

Most of my friends know I'm a fan of the weird and the wonderful, and this was too good an opportunity to miss for finding some odd inspiration among the tanks of rays, crabs and guppies (of all things! I can see those in my local pet shop any time). The first surprise when we went in was a glass floor looking down into a huge tank below. Sadly there isn't space to stop and enjoy the view as it's a narrow corridor and the only way in, which was a bit of a disappointment.

Brittlestars

I wish I'd recorded some video of these - their waving arms seemed rather sinister. However I DID record the pretty anemones doing their dance, and some baby fish wriggling inside their egg sacs - did I mention I'm a bit weird? :)

 

The biggest hit for my children was the shark tank and the big, open pool full of rays, flat fish and a mixture of other fish.

Ray tank.

Easter Island shark tank

We got to touch a starfish - for those interested, it feels rather soft and squidgy but the skin itself is kind of scaly/spiny. The underside with all the feet - well, I couldn't feel anything of the feet but the edges of the arms feel quite rough. Youngest got to hold a crab - which was very well behaved and didn't nip - but after weekends spent crabbing at Mersea he wasn't that impressed!

replica(?)whale bones

I do not have a thing for skeletons. Seriously! Although I'm finding it hard to deny considering the number I'm posting in various places. However, having a scifi story out called The Bones of the Sea, it seemed only fitting that I post this, from the largest tank at the aquarium.

Turtle

Cleaner shrimps

Bat stars. Seriously creepy-looking!

I could post pictures from the trip all day long, but that might turn this into a rather long post. So I'll leave you with one final video from the aquarium of Upside Down Jellyfish - yes, they really are called that and it isn't just a description. Enjoy!

Leaping Lemurs!

So, as promised, here are the photos from my lemur encounter at Linton Zoo. If you happen to be near there any time in the future, it comes highly recommended!

This is one of the Mongoose Lemurs, who was so determined to get to the food bowl that he wasn't shy about using a passing human to reach his goal! Lemurs are named after the lemures (ghosts or spirits) of Roman mythology due to the ghostly vocalizations, reflective eyes, and the nocturnal habits of some species. I was curious about their weight - I've had a chinchilla as a pet and they're very light, more fur than flesh. The Mongoose lemur is smaller than the Red Ruffed and probably weighs in about the same as a fully grown kitten/young cat.

This is Ruby, a Red Ruffed Lemur and my favourite. Ruby and her son Charlie (see the picture below) were the only ones who would consent to be petted. The fur is amazing! I thought it would be like a cat's, but it's much denser, more like sheep's wool and yet very soft.

Charlie

That's carrot he's munching on by the way. Apparently their favourite food is banana and grapes, but too much fruit makes them overweight.

Their 'paws' are hand-like - the palms are bare skin (and a bit chilly from the feel of it!) with nails rather than claws. Ruffed Lemurs actually build nests for their young and can have up to six at a time - the only species of lemur that does this instead of carrying their young around. One parent remains at the nest while the other forages.

One of the Crowned Lemurs didn't care who or what she had to climb over for her stick of carrot. You can't get much closer than that! Did you know that in Madagascar, the poorer people eat lemurs? They make a cheap and easy meal because the tourists tame them. :(
Both the Crowned and the Mongoose Lemurs are classed as Vulnerable. The Red Ruffed is classed as Endangered. The lemurs aren't being killed directly. Human beings destroy the rainforests that lemurs need to survive. I find it sad that pure human greed is pushing this animals toward the risk of extinction.I'd love to see them in Madagascar one day, and I hope that in the future we won't all be reduced to seeing them just at a zoo because there are no longer any left in the wild.

Mongoose Lemurs.Baby Tia with her mum.

Crowned Lemurs. The one on the left is the female. Males have paler faces and less of the red hair.

A handful of lemur!

Ruby isn't too sure about that stick of parsnip.

Family portrait - baby Tia and parents.

Hitting 40

For some people, turning 40 is the beginning of the long, slow slide toward old age, senility, and death. Whoops, sorry, was that a bit strong? :-P


What does it mean for me? Mostly, it's just another number. My younger sister will take the mickey that I've reached another 'landmark' before her. My husband already considers me to have hit my mid-life crisis two years ago when I dyed my hair for the first time, got my first tattoo and started street dance classes at the same time as diving into a writing frenzy. It's only recently that I've taken note myself of the fact that I'm not eighteen any more. But I have even more reason to celebrate my birthday this year.

For one thing, my first book is going to be published. Squeeee! Okay, not until April 2012 (fingers crossed!), but the wheels are moving. Less than two years after writing it I'm pretty stunned to be thinking about being a published author rather than just an aspiring one. As my sister said, that's the kind of birthday present that's hard to beat! :)

And for my bonus gift, I get to fulfil one of my lifetime ambitions (aside from the publishing one). A trip to Linton Zoo to feed lemurs. Lemurs! Another squeee! I LOVE lemurs. Especially the red ruff lemur. At my local zoo in Colchester you have to take a train ride to see the lemurs up close. This time, I'll get REALLY close. Apparently they jump on you. I can't wait! (and I'll post pics. Lots and lots of pics!)

I'm also hoping to save up enough money to buy a Kindle. I have to admit to having a rather sceptical view of ebooks until recently. I much prefer a print book. But since my own will be coming out in electronic form, it seems only right that I should have the medium on which to read it. Right?

And then I bought myself this gorgeous digital print. Isn't it beautiful? This is done by a friend of mine, Trée George, and you can click on the image to see it, and many others, on his website.

I also fulfilled another ambition by getting to wear a sari for the Colchester Carnival. It's been a good year for achievements. :)


All in all, turning forty IS a big landmark for me, but it's not about my age. It's about the things I have to celebrate aside from making it to the big four-o. And having the people I care about here to share it with me. :)

So what did you do for the big four-o? Or is it so far away that you wonder what all the fuss is about? :)