Friday, 12 September 2008

12th September 2008: Chocolate Milkshake Day


The revival of Project 2008 began today with some chocolatey milk alongside morning coffee! Despite a few comments that "strawberry is better" most people seemed to enjoy the calcium rich beverage - apart from Brian who opted to mix it with his coffee!

Monday, 23 June 2008

A weekend of chips and eclairs!

Sat the 21st June: Vinegar Day

I enjoyed some salt and vinegar flavoured crisps on "Vinegar Day" which were served to me by a naked butler (OK so he was wearing a skimpy apron). But still, it was an interesting experience and one I thoroughly recommend! I followed this up with some chips drowned in vinegar from a dodgy north London chip shop in the early hours of the following day!

Sun the 22nd: Eclair Day!


I found myself at the forefront of the 22nd June London train nightmare (in summary - power line on main line north from London went down at 1pm. At 4pm first trains started to leave London via an alternative route. At 4:10 and some 3 miles from the centre, power lines on alternative route failed. 4:30pm trains arrived back at Kings cross. 6pm two diesel trains arrived at kings cross. 6:30pm all 500,000 travellers attempt to get onto trains. 11pm after cramped conditions and stopping at ever station between London and Durham - I arrived home). Hence, the Chocolate Eclairs (the sweeties not the cakes) that I had bought earlier formed part of my dinner during this traumatic time. And enjoyable they are, unlike gummy sweets (e.g. haribo star mix) the chocolate eclair is difficult to eat. The result is prolonged enjoyment and a sore jaw!

Thursday, 19 June 2008

18th June 2008: World Sauntering Day

Saunter - a verb, meaning to walk in a slow, relaxed manner or a noun, to describe a leisurely stroll (Oxford English Dictionary).

This day was created in the 1970's by W. T. Rabe at Mackinac Island, Michigan while he was the Public Relations Director for a hotel on the island. Rabe was well known for his publicity stunts. It is a day when jogging, running, sashaying, fast walking, trotting and so forth are highly discouraged.

After watching Mark saunter around the department is a most relaxed fashion, I am now off to saunter into town to absorb the atmosphere of Durham! I have no idea where I am going, or how long I will be!

Although I have to confess that I did start the day badly, having jogged around Bearpark at 7am for 20 mins. And I will end the day badly by completing a speed session at the athletics track - I feel guilty but in a week of celebratory days, sometimes you have to make compromises!

Wednesday, 18 June 2008

International Picnic Day


The Durham weather didn't quite play into our hands as much as we could have hoped for to celebrate this glorious day, however this did not stop us enjoying the grass outside the Early Learning Centre lecture building. People brought a variety of items to lunch on which reflected the multi-national diversity of the assembled throng; there were folk from as far afield as Switzerland and Italy!

After enjoying our lunch we all got stuck into an improvised game of "volleyball" with a giant tennis ball. All was going well until Emma Waterhouse decided some rules needed to be made so people were "out" if they failed to keep the ball airborne. This unncecessary addition to the game came back to bite her however as she was the first player to be sent packing from the game arena.

Thanks to all those who braved the chilly breeze for an enjoyable lunch break.

17th June: Eat your veggies day


This required a trip to Tescos! I managed to get my 5 portions of veg - covering the full spectrum of colours and made a salad to accompany my cheese baguette! I thought it would be inappropriate to plough into some meat on eat your vegetables day !

I ate: Green salad leaves, yellow mini corn on the cob, red tomato (yes technically a fruit but up for debate), white garlic, gold vegetable oil disguised as olive oil and brown potatoes in the form of the hula hoops (which are disappointingly now cooked in sunflower oil and not veggie oil)! I also conclude that blue vegetables are hard to find! This delicious vegetable feast was followed with a fruit medley for pudding - a perfect ending!

Veg & Fudge

Well I nearly got this right. I bought the fudge cake on Fudge Day, but I ate it on Eat Your Vegetables Day. I even tried saving some for International Picnic Day but Kate had other plans for it (also, rumour has it that she went around the block three times when the Bike to Work campaign were dishing out cake). Both other Mark & myself had a vegetable curry which contained a splendid variety of vegetables. It was delicious. Kate seemed to have a jacket potato with beans on, but actually I think it was just more cake hidden in the skin of the jacket.

I have a feling that I might not hear the last of this message.

Mark

Monday, 16 June 2008

16th June 2008: Fudge Day

Fudge is made by mixing sugar, chocolate and milk and heating it to the soft-ball stage at 240 deg F, and then beating the mixture while it cools so that it aquires a smooth, creamy consistency!



There was a distinct lack of homemade fudge in the Usahw Moor co-op at 8am this morning. I was faced with a bag of cheap horrible looking co-op fudge that failed to tempt me. So I opted for the individually-wrapped, cadburys, chocolate coated 15p fudge fingers instead - always a winner, especially at morning coffee time!!

Monday, 12 May 2008

Limerick Day 2008

A selection of today's emails:

There was a man from Accrington Stanley,
To which all the girls took a fancy,
His appearance was striking,
While cross-country cycling,
The perfect embodiment of manly.

------------------------------------------

Though Dave Milledge amended it

There was a lad from ‘crington Stanley
Whose hero was the Gordon Manley,
His research in the sun
He considered quite fun
And his Spanish progressed just grandley

------------------------------------------

And because that was so rubbish:

There was a work-obsessed student called Milledge,
The only gay in the village,
He loved all geography
Except for his Ph.D.
He’s still working on the ti-tle page

-------------------------------------------

Gareth voiced his disapproval at our rhymes

There were two boys quite lyrical
And they liked their geography physical
They exchanged the odd ditty
But the poems were sh!tty
And their twisting of words was abysmical

------------------------------------------

And then there was James Bridges:

There was a man from Accrington Stanley,
Who did not understand plagiarism, quite sadly,
But whilst this all seems rather forlorn,
his cycling meant his thigh muscle was torn;
it was all to no avail as climate change was taking place,
and there were floods on the track of the cycle race.

followed by

Ah, we need to get this back to five sentences quick,
Otherwise the format is not quite as slick,
So whilst this innovation may be progressive,
It can also be detrimental to the rhythm suggested,
Moreover, it might also get on ones wick.

-----------------------------------------------

We need to speak to James about Limericks. And maybe Tasha could do with some help

There were a collection of rhymes so shocking
That they really required some mocking
However, to avoid doing some work
As after cycling my muscles so hurt
I came up with a line that also needed a little scoffing

Thursday, 8 May 2008

Apologies

I haven't written anything for a month. I just wrote a long and very clever apology and sodding blogger buggered up and deleted it.

To summarise, I have been at least partially observing the days, despite not writing about it. Today, I am not wearing any socks.

Mark

Monday, 7 April 2008

No Housework Day 2008

A tough one: but I managed to follow it to the letter. There was a small disagreement in my house as to whether washing-up counted as housework (it does).

Friday, 4 April 2008

Tell a Lie Day 2008

I've convinced one of the Lab Technicians at work that a friend of mine is an ex semi-professional indoor unicyclist. I wasn't even disguising the fact that it was clearly a complete lie. It's amazing what people believe. Should be interesting when we all cycle the coast 2 coast next month. Brian mate: looks like you'd better get practicing.

Wednesday, 2 April 2008

Fat Wednesday

The radio has just informed me that today is Fat Wednesday. Something to do with everyone having given up new years diets and not yet starting summer hols diets. So...it appears it is a day to eat lots and lots and not care!

Monday, 31 March 2008

A brief history of the pencil, by Chris Buckley

Interestingly it is not only the good people of "Project 2008" who noticed the day of celebration of the humble pencil. As I sat down to peruse the Sunday papers yesterday I noticed a column by the literary tour de force that is Sandy Toksvig, in which she discussed the history, cultural impact and dark side of the graphite and lead based writing instrument. Anyway, I digress:

Hymen L. Lipman is credited with registering the first patent for a pencil with an attached eraser on March 30th, 1858. (US Patent 19783)

In 1862 Lipman sold his patent to a Jospeph Reckendorfer for $100,000, who went to sue the pencil manufacturer Faber for infringement [1]. In 1875 the Supreme Court of the United States ruled against Reckendorfer declaring the patent invalid because his invention was actually a combination of two already known things with no new use[2].

1. Petroski, Henry (1990). The Pencil: A History of Design and Circumstance. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 0-394-57422-2; ISBN 0-679-73415-5, page 171

2. ^ http://supreme.justia.com/us/92/347/case.html Reckendorfer v. Faber 92 U.S. 347 (1875)

Sunday, 30 March 2008

Pencil Day 2008

These Carbon 3-leaf marking essay feedback sheets don't like pencils at all.

Thursday, 27 March 2008

Odd Socks Day 2008

I've been a bit rubbish lately. I completely forgot to wear odd socks today. Fortunately, I had packed a spare pair and taken them to work. Unfortunately, they were running socks and smelt a bit. Adds to the office environment.

Not my feet, but in case you wanted to know what odd socks look like:

Today is also Kite Flying Day. I'm afraid, despite the windy weather of late, it simply isn't windy enough for kites today. Top excuse.

Wednesday, 26 March 2008

STATA Day

Happy STATA Day everybody!

Sunday, 23 March 2008

World Meterological Day

What funny weather we're having.
Actually, I thought Weather Day was yesterday. Told everybody about it during the heavy snow interspersed with gorgeous sunshine. Then I was amazed to see The Day After Tomorrow on telly - not many weather-based action thrillers about. But even that was a day out (both ways). I'm confused.

Still, the weather was proper daft today. I celebrated it by staying indoors. Though I did go for a walk over the snow covered hills.

Also: it's EASTER SUNDAY which means LENT ENDS. Congratulations all ZERO people who managed it properly. You all disgust me.

World Water Day

To celebrate World Water Day I loaded up my car with kayaks and headed up Weardale in search of hidden becks and waterfalls in the hope that the recent chossy weather would have filled them up suitably to enjoy some kayaking on them.

This was not the case, there was a distinct emptiness in the various tribs we scouted out and so there was to be no paddling. And then it started to snow. To round the day off in style we had a snickers from a shop in Wolsingham and then came home.


Hamsterly forest car park, wrong kind of water for kayaking




Happy Easter everyone

Saturday, 15 March 2008

True Confessions Day

It had been playing on my mind for a while so I took the opportunity to come clean and share my secret. I admitted to James that whilst at home (in our food devoid house) a couple of weeks ago, I gave in to temptation and consumed a small handful of wheetos - those chocolaty little morsels that James eats for breakfast every morning!! It is debatable whether they even contain chocolate but I feel like I have cheated lent and broken my chocolate abstinence. But unlike many others who have fallen by the wayside, I have come back from this breakdown in will-power stronger and still survive without chocolate and crisps in my diet - replaced by cereal bars and bread sticks! Please forgive my confession!

Friday, 14 March 2008

Pi Day

Two events dominated Pi Day. James seems to have challenged his class to memorise Pi to as many decimal places as possible (winner gets a pie). Here, we aimed to draw the perfect circle. Mine were universally appalling. I don't make crop circles, but if I did, they would pobably be the worst crop circles in the world. Emma's attempts were pretty rubbish; but she numbered them and circled her numbers - one of these cirvles was as perfect as any I saw all day.

Sad.

Monday, 10 March 2008

Commonwealth Day

Basically, I drank tea. And lots of it.

Friday, 7 March 2008

National Doodle Day/ Middle Name Pride day

Some very strange doodles appeared on paper today. A giant flamingo climbing a mountain? A lion reflected in a matrix? Some very abstract shapes, and I think Dave was channeling god. I still intend to scan them.

Anyway, just as amusing was Emma's middle name - Pearl. Like it. After today, I now think middle names are great.

Will

Frozen Food Day

This day was perfectly timed for a day when our house contained no fresh food at all! As such, I set about cooking a delicious meal made almost entirely out of frozen food. This included - frozen sausages left over from last summers bbq season, veggie bean burgers (which kind of acted as our carbs), frozen peas, sweetcorn and soya beans which I turned into a delicious salsa with some tinned toms, garlic and a variety of herbs and spices!

And the fun didn't end here. For pudding, James opted for the frozen Maltesar bake (thanks mummy) which we heated to a gooey loveliness with ice cream, whilst I went for the frozen raspberries which I turned into a sumptuous coulis with some maple syrup. I served this over the ice cream!

What a wonderful and fairly healthy/nutritious meal to come from our freezer!

Wednesday, 5 March 2008

Learn What Your Name Means Day 2008

Mark - Familiar form of Marcus: Roman, probably derived from the name of the Roman god MARS. Mars is possibly related to Latin mas "male" (genitive maris).

Smith is the most common family name in the United Kingdom and the United States representing more than 1 out of every 100 persons in each of these countries. The name originally derives from smitan, the Anglo-Saxon term meaning to smite or strike.


Well that explains "Rhino" at least.

Apparently a dedicated schoolgirl collected the meanings of all the names in the class. Ah. Although the teacher did try to tell one kid that his name means "Homosexual".