Just back from seeing Called to Account at the Tricycle, a dramatisation of a hypothetical hearing against “Anthony Charles Lynton Blair for the crime of aggression against Iraq”.
Yet despite being very good and everything, it has now completely gone from my mind because… I just met the Demon Headmaster!
Wow!
Message for Katie
I recognised Terrence Hardiman during the play, and Tasha and I ambushed him a bit afterwards. And yes, it’s all very embarrassing and childish – but there was absolutely no way we could resist. Mum was also quick-thinking enough to get a little note for Katie to prevent any sibling squabbling 
which was cool.
So all in all, a rather brilliant tactic on behalf of the New Labour spin machine: wheel out the Demon Headmaster and suddenly we don’t give a damn about the war anymore 
Well, I’m back now 
and apologies in advance for yet-another-Blackpool-post which you’re going to have to read. It’s inevitable when so many bloggers go away on holiday together
Keith’s welcoming nest
I arrived at Blackpool station at about 8 o’clock in the evening, fully refreshed from my fancy train sandwich meal. Unfortunately, the rest of the group were slightly less refreshed on the National Express coach, which managed to be rather late, so I settled down on a bench to read Female Chauvinist Pigs (blame Saoirse) and get slightly worried that I’d already got shouted at by some children. But then, they were shouting at everyone. Once the others (Nic, Chad, Lucy, Loretta and Max) arrived we set off in a cab to the hotel. Which Nic had already costed into what we’d paid him, because Nic is an event organiser by birth! Joined shortly after by Josie and Andy, we settled into the wonderful Applethwaite Hotel. My room may have been the size of a matchbox, but I didn’t care at all, especially with uber-friendly Keith there – the hotel manager \ future husband of most of the group.
Nic. He’s passionate.
The next morning, after breakfast (“Toast! Have some more toast!”), the thrill-seekers of the group set off for Blackpool Pleasure Beach, which was brilliant. Seriously, we thought there’d be a few rides and some stalls, but it was actually a proper theme park in there, with loads of great rollercoasters, log-flumes and an amusingly bizarre Dancing on Ice show with pretty-in-pink camp dancers. We’re tracking down the ride photo which we bought of all of us, which I’ll share when I can 
Later we drank. Some of us more than others
Gambling addicts
OK OK, well, it was only me and Lucy who were up at a 9 for breakfast on Sunday. As everyone slept in, we went off to buy Tash’s birthday present (happy 15th for today Tasha! 
and later played air hockey, ventured onto the beach, visited the waxworks and got accosted by a man trying to rope us into a stall game, which didn’t work because we’re very well aware that hand eye-coordination skills are hard to come by in us.
And another one
Sadly our Blackpool holiday was almost at an end, but we spent Monday morning being hypnotised by the sound of 2p coins at the arcade before everyone else left on the coach. I returned to the train station, only to catch an earlier train than expected and find myself in Birmingham. Well, you know that, because I told you but after blogging I was generously invited back to Lucy’s house in a surprise extension to my holiday hurrah!
Entranced by the bright lights
So yesterday we saw Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End which I agree with Andy about: good fun, incredibly complex, still not as good as the first film but happily sorting out the unsatisfying second. I finally arrived home (on the same train ticket from Blackpool – really squeezed value out of that one ) late last night, just in time for Natasha’s birthday today.
Phew, that’s it now I have to put everything away, catch up on beloved television programmes, do some revision (hah!) and get ready to go out to the theatre tonight. It’s the Tricycle again so it should be good
More photos, and in better quality than my silly phone photos, can be found at Josie’s Space and probably a thousand MySpaces by now. Enjoy!
Yo peeps!
I’m in the middle of coming back from Blackpool (more about that later, of course ) but the trains have gone slightly haywire today and I now find myself changing at Birmingham. Though not to Euston directly, because that route is down, so you have to change at Reading. Well, that is suggested, but after jumping onto a train and finding it resembling at refugee ship I promptly jumped off again and am now taking a well deserved break from train travel before finding an alternate (though slower) route.
Much love to all 
xx
Via Digg onward to the online petition to stop the ‘Church’ of Scientology becoming an officially recognised religion in the UK. For the following reasons:
– There is nothing to stop you believing in Scientology, Lord Xenu and anything else you want. We’re talking about stopping Scientology from achieving tax-exempt status merely by claiming it is a ‘religion’.
– Ultimately, I don’t agree with any state-approved ‘special treatment’ to religious bodies, who should pay tax just like anyone else. Ultimately, there is much that is both silly and disturbing in mainstream religions, and I’m hardly shy of saying it. However, this is real life here. Scientology does not have a mass following, and can be stopped. Furthermore, I think most people would want to stop it from wriggling out of paying tax.
– Scientology is different to other beliefs, as expressed well by prisoner24601 on Digg:
“Even the most hardcore atheist shouldn’t lump all religions into one “they are all equally worthless” category and just move on. The major religions of the world will “put their cards on the table” and provide an end-to-end explanation of their view of reality FOR FREE and WITHOUT any expectation of your ability to give anything back to them. Whether you believe Christianity or Islam or Buddhism to be true or not, you cannot fail to recognize that they are open about their agenda. Scientology, on the other hand, will (quite literally) sue you if you reveal the so-called “sacred texts” of their belief! How anyone cannot recognize there is a fundamental difference between sincere religions and the scam that is Scientology is truly inexplicable.”
– Scientology deserves it. The Church of England does not go around bullying Christians into cutting off all ties with their unconverted families and friends, or label enemies as “fair game”. Scientology has an nasty history which is very well documented online. You can also make a TV programme (such as Panorama) criticising Christianity without getting stalked by creepy men in dark glasses, unlike Scientology. As far as I know. Perhaps Rowan Williams has a series of cunning disguises.
– There’s always a chance I could draw a little bit of wrath.
– Tom Cruise supports it. Nuff said?
The soundtrack for this post is provided by Electric Six
I am beginning to form a suspicion.
No more than a suspicion at the moment, but I admit the feeling is growing that I was perhaps incorrect to state – in my Physics Practical exam – that we had been provided with an output voltage of 4000V.
Why, you may ask innocently? Well, when I stop and ponder my result, it does start to sound like an awfully large number of volts. Those signs, for example: “Warning! High Voltage! Danger of Death!”. They refer to figures like 4000V, don’t they? It seems a little… excessive… for Edexcel to insist we work with such a number. How about another number? Such as, oh I dunno, 4V?
There’s another piece of evidence with suggests to my mind that perhaps that is closer to the truth: the large 4 on the setting of the power supply.
Hmm… 4, and 4000. There’s a link there, isn’t there? Why yes, of course! The second is merely one thousand times larger than the first. Almost as if, if I may dare to be so bold, a unit may have gone awry. For the non-Physicists amongst you, consider than a metre is made out of one thousand millimetres. Aha!
Hopefully, some nice examiner will merely dock a point for a unit somewhere, rather than chuckle and then burn the paper
Don’t worry, I don’t actually think it went too badly, folks just the usual twists and turns which accompany the now-slain beast of the Physics Practical. Fire in the disco!
(P.S. Physics teachers are not allowed to read this post without commenting. Sorry.)
Rob Bell on Baby’s first blog: “Congratulations! Sounds like you are really enjoying the first few weeks which is great. Time flies!” Oct 13, 12:59
