Strange dreams and naked men

Yet more strange dreams last night. This time, Lord H and I were in some kind of bar which had a room at the top filled with bees. There was something ghostly going on, and we kept having to try to find the bees and contain them in some way as this would help solve the hauntings. It was all very mysterious and quite surreal really. We never did quite get to the bottom of it.

And talking of bottoms, Lord H has very kindly emailed me a set of pictures from the naked Italian rugby team calendar. Hmm, lovely, that man does know me so well. Perhaps too well! Here's my favourite:




Sooooo cute. And hey, never say I'm not good to you!

I have to say though that last night's production of "Born in the Gardens" was sadly lacking. We felt very disappointed. Nothing wrong with the actors, but the material they had to work with was rather poor. And hugely dated. I don't think it quite knew if it was supposed to be comedy or drama and was therefore a ragbag mixture of neither. Dull too. Still, at least the chocolate ice cream in the interval was top-notch. Thank the Lord. Still, it does astonish me that the Surrey Advertiser gave it such a glowing review. Why???? Honestly, sometimes, I think I'm living in a world very different to everyone else's and the world and I are most definitely having different experiences. It happens with books too, but more of that below ...

Anyway, this morning, I have spent a pleasant couple of hours having tea at Ang's with Jane H (hello, both!). I am astonished at Ang's ability to maintain control and calm in the face of one active toddler and one set of baby twins, but yes we did manage to have conversation of sorts. As you know, I am sadly lacking when it comes to children however, but I did my best. I hope!

I have also managed to add another 500 words to Hallsfoot's Battle and I think I know what Ralph is supposed to be doing now. He just has to work out how best to use the magic emeralds. Hmm, don't wait up then - as if I don't know yet, then he certainly won't ... I've also managed to squeeze in an hour or so's essential nap, as I desperately need to catch up on my sleep. Especially with the traumas of tomorrow to face (working on a Saturday! Long car journeys - my favourites!!...), groan.

And, cleverly, I've managed to finish two books on the same day. My, how sad I am that such a coincidence makes me so happy, but what the hell, eh. I've finished the gloriously sharp "Nightwork" by Joseph Hansen. The best of the Brandstetter (gay PI) series so far, to my mind. Hansen is so punchy and precise in his prose that it's a joy to read, and of course Brandstetter is great as a character. It's a mystery why they don't produce it as a TV series or something. Hell I'd watch.

However, from the sublime to the ridiculous: I have finally (thank God!) finished the over-hyped, hugely dull and totally self-obsessed "Eat, Pray, Love" by Elisabeth Gilbert. Deeeep deeeeep sigh. I mean bloody hell but if anyone's going to be self-obsessed round here, it's me. Though God save me from being dull. Honestly, I have no idea why everyone rates it so much: um, irritating woman eats a lot, tries to find herself and then finally gets laid. That's it really. In a nutshell. It does have two pages I really found moving, but in a book of 348 pages, that's not great returns. My advice is: don't bother. Serious yawn.

Tonight, we've really got to clean the flat and there's a ton of TV comedy to catch up on. Which is great, as I could do with a laugh. And as a special treat, here's a nice hot Italian rugby trio to end with (as it were):





Today's nice things:

1. Tea with friends
2. Writing more of Hallsfoot
3. Reading one good book
4. Hot Italian rugby players.

Anne Brooke
Anne's website