Cyberstrology Year o the Hippopotamus 2015

Personality of The Hippopotamus.

Hippopotami are very territorial Animals and will happily chase you out of the house if they don't like you.  As such, not much is known about them but you don't want to get trodden by one.  No, really, you don't!  They like wallowing in mud and sometimes get sunburnt if they stay out too long.

Hippopotami are interested in mud, water, eating, pooing and sometimes scaring people.

Famous Hippopotami.
The Moomintroll.
(although not technically a hippo, they are famous hippo-type creatures)

The Patron Saint of the Hippopotamus, being related to whales, is St Brendan the Navigator.  
His information is here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brendan

I have also created a special Hippopotamus Treasury on etsy here
https://www.etsy.com/treasury/OTk1OTM2MHwyNzI3MjIzMDI0/moomins-and-hippos

Indian woodblock print

Remember those woodblocks I bought a while ago?  Well this is one of them!!!

Theatre trip and Chocolate!!

 Today we had an early lunch and then Andrea took me out!!  She said we were doing Something Fun And Special!!

 We got on a bus into town and got off here....... where to next Jeeves??

Theatre Royal????  What's that then?

 Andrea got us tickets to see The Return to the Forbidden Planet!!!!!  It's a cross between an old movie of that name and a bunch of different Shakespeare plays performed on a spaceship by spacemen and a robot who all play guitars, drums, trombones, trumpets, keyboards as well as sing a cappella in tune (that means they don't need instruments to start first so they know what key to sing in, they just know the right key already) AND they can act AND they do Shakespeare!!!!

This was bloody brilliant!!!

Cookie the ships cook is really a Jimi Hendrix Rock God and the Robot hams it up better than a kosher Roy Scheider in drag.  They're on tour after today and you GOT to go see this if you're in the UK!

 It was dark when we came out but we went down to the Royal Pavillion to see it with lights on it.

 It's very pretty you know.

 When we got home there was A Big Box waiting by our front door!!!

What have you done now, Andrea??

 Oooh - it's a wicker basket!  What's in it?

Andrea said I could open it, if I wanted.

 So I did.....

 WE GOT A DOGGY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 I shouted that so loudly, that Tango, George and Comealong Stanley came over to say hello too!!!  That's Comealong Stanley with his tongue hanging out.  He's a Boxer dog.

 The new dog told us he'd brought chocolate with him!!  We like the new dog.

 We like the chocolate better.....

We're all REAAALLLLY happy!!!!

Mail from Hammie!!

 We got a postcard from Hammie and G. today!!!  Uncle Harry hasn't been very well lately - we hope he gets better soon!

It's a lovely picture on the card though!

It's a Bob Box!!!!!

 When we got home today, there was a whopping big HUGE box waiting outside our front door!!!

 When I took the brown paper off, I noticed it was for me and Tango so I went and got him to help me open it!!!!!

 The wrapping paper had bears on it!!!!!  The tag looks just like Tango in his bloo jumper!!!!!  (that's how we know it's a Bob Box!!!  He obviously wrapped it!)

 BUBBLE WRAP!!!!!  Bounce bounce bounce bounce HAHAHAHHhahahaaa!!

 OH WOW!!!  It's a huge box of tea!!!

 96 teabags!!!  WOW!

12 different flavours of tea!!!  Oh boy, we're going to love this!!!  Thanks Bob and Dilly!!!  (And Arnty Helena and Unkle Kevin too!)  What a fab prezzie!

Je Suis Charlie

Well, it's official!!

As of 7 o'clock this morning I have officially entered the above painting into the Royal Academy Summer Expedition 2015!!  Now, bearing in mind that there's a 12,000 entry cut off point, out of which 4,000 are selected for the second round (and out of THAT lot, only 600 will be picked for the actual show) my chances are minimal.  Either way, I shall receive notice by the middle of March whether I get through to the next round or not.
But I'm kinda thinking that even if I don't get through, I can always have a mini pop-up exhibition for a day as part of the Brighton Festival in May so it doesn't actually matter either way!!

Movie Review - "The Wolfman"

Movie review number 35

PLOT
Lon Chaney plays the title role in this black and white movie, the younger son of the Talbot family.  The plot starts with Talbot Jr (Chaney) returning to the Talbot castle in Wales after an 18 year absence, and just after his elder brothers' death.  He is met by Dad Talbot (played by Claude Rains) and helps install a fancy telescope in the attic.  While testing it, he spies an attractive woman in an antique shop window in the village...... and later he goes into the shop to chat her up but under the pretext of making a purchase.  He ends up buying a walking came with a silver handle in the shape of a wolf's head with a pentacle on it.  The attractive woman recites a four line poem about werewolves, that is repeated several times through the movie.
Later, a gypsy caravan comes through town, driven by Bela (played by Bela Lugosi!) who is the gypsy fortune teller.  Lon, attractive woman and her friend decide to walk though the woods that evening to get their fortune read.  The friend goes in first, while Lon and attractive woman wander off for a chat.  As Bela does the palm reading, he gets very agitated and tells the lady to leave straight away.  What he doesn't tell her is that he's seen the pentacle in her palm........ (a bad sign!  That's how a werewolf sees his next victim!!!)  The lady runs into the woods....... and shortly after, Lon and the woman hear screams!!!  Uh oh!!!  Lon runs into the woods, and sees a wolf attacking the lady, which he kills with the silver wolf-head of his walking cane.  Lon and the woman run back home, with Lon being injured from a wolf bite.
The next day, the wolf bite injury has disappeared, but is replaced by a pentacle where he was bitten!!!  However, not only has the dead body of the lady been found in the woods, but also the dead body of Bela, the gypsy fortune teller, who it seems was not wearing any shoes...... Lon Chaney insists that he killed a wolf but is now suspected of murder.....
The next night, the moon comes out, and Lon Chaney can't sleep but feels unwell.  He takes his shoes & socks off...... and then changes into a werewolf!!  He goes into the woods and kills a games-man ........ and wakes up at home the next day to discover that wolf paw marks lead up to the Talbot castle and another dead body has been found!!!  Later, traps are set in the woods to try and trap the rogue wolf, whilst murmurs of the werewolf legend start going round the village!
Later, a large group of gypsies set up camp in the woods and hold a fair with lots of food and games.  People from the village visit the fair including Lon Chaney..... but then stories of the werewolf start up and scare the gypsies away!
Traps are set in the woods to try and catch what is thought to be a rogue wolf.... which eventually work but it's not a wolf that is caught - as the wolf upon death changes back into Lon Chaney!

RECOMMENDED
It passes the time.......!!

RATING
6 squeaks out of 10

SCOOBY SNACKS
Mini-burgers with lots of ketchup!!