The new LDV members' survey is now live. So if you are one of the c.1,300 registered members of the Liberal Democrat Voice forum — and any paid-up party member is welcome to join — then you now have the opportunity to make your views known. This month's survey focuses on the Health and Social Care Bill currently being debated in Parliament, in addition to our regular set of 'Coalition tracker' questions. We'll publish the results ahead of the party's Spring conference in NewcastleGateshead this coming weekend. It should take no longer than 5-10 minutes minutes to fill in. All ...
You may remember last year I did a bunch of scientificesque posts about which candidates I'd vote for in the LUU executive election last year. In retrospect, that's not really the best way to decide to vote for: it's better to inspect the candidates beyond a twenty-or-so questions. The candidates are on LUU's website, so without further ado... Activities:As someone on a society executive, this would be the most important election for me. This is also the widest field, but also the easiest for me to vote for, because I personally know Tom Mead, and he's a decent person. I'd ...
Nick Clegg in his speech to the Scottish Liberal Democrat conference this weekend mentioned the Northern Irish. The people of the United Kingdom have a rich shared heritage. We share a culture, a history and an identity. We live side by side in towns and cities across the British Isles. Scottish, English, Welsh and Northern ...
This mug, or some very much like it may well be swamping the local market in Northern Ireland tomorrow morning. Though I suspect that many will actually have a picture of a certain young man from Holywood. Not even a final day surge from Tiger Woods who shot -8 for the day, including two eagles, could take the lead off Rory on his day, even temporarily. Woods the youngest ever World Number One though was the leader in the club house as Rory completed his round alongside Tom Gillis of the USA. All Rory had to do this week, as ...
I'm back from a weekend in Inverness at the Scottish Lib Dem conference. The troops were in good fettle and we were treated to platform speeches from all of our UK cabinet Ministers, plus our Scottish Party Leader Willie Rennie. Scottish Secretary Mike Moore told of how when he was very small he found himself living in Inverness and attending a Gaelic Nursery school. He was taught Little Miss Muffet in Gaelic and promptly went home and passed it off to his dad, a Padre based at Fort George, as a Gaelic Grace. Rev Moore was not a speaker of ...
I am fortunate enough to have a very good memory, and absorb facts like a sponge. And whilst this may not an entirely useful talent in my professional life, and doesn't make me a great intellectual, it does make me a modestly useful member of a pub quiz team. I'm also just a bit competitive. And so, in the absence of a convenient pub, I rely on the occasional Pub Quiz night here in Creeting St Peter to keep in 'intellectual shape', so to speak. And the competition is pretty sharp too, making a good showing all the more satisfying. ...
The Bethnal Green tube station disaster of 3 March 1943, in which 173 people were crushed to death as they rushed down the stairs into the air-raid shelter that was housed below, was largely hushed up at the time, so as not to give propaganda material to the Germans. And even when I moved to ...
... and I thought I'd do a poetry round for my "back to school" section. And I found this:The British, by Benjamin Zephaniah Take some Picts, Celts and Silures And let them settle, Then overrun them with Roman conquerors. Remove the Romans after approximately 400 years Add lots of Norman French to some Angles, Saxons, Jutes and Vikings, then stir vigorously. Mix some hot Chileans, cool Jamaicans, Dominicans, Trinidadians and Bajans with some Ethiopians, Chinese, Vietnamese and Sudanese. Then take a blend of Somalians, Sri Lankans, Nigerians And Pakistanis, Combine with some Guyanese And turn up the heat. Sprinkle some ...
I may not know much about Art, but I know what I like. I found it actually quite easy to rank the four nominees for this year's BSFA award for Best Art. 4) Cover of Lavie Tidhar's Osama by Pedro Marques - Not that I dislike it; I understand and like the concept, and it almost works. But the trail of smoke, while no doubt meant to suggest both the cigarette of the noir detective and the collapse of the Twin Towers, doesn't quite manage the second; and the absence of any element suggesting the real Bin Laden's trademark beard ...
[IMG: Paul Nurse] Sir Paul Nurse, President of the Royal Society, delivered the 36th Richard Dimbleby lecture on BBC One this week, entitled 'The New Enlightenment'. In the 45 minute address, Sir Paul discussed how science has contributed to culture and society in the past and how the UK can set policy to ensure that it continues to do so in the future. He began the lecture on a personal note, revealing how modern medical science had saved his life recently after a routine checkup had flagged up a serious heart problem for which he needed bypass surgery. He also ...
In my links roundup for Friday I included this article describing the alleged finding of a first-century fragment of manuscript with text from the Gospel of St Mark. I don't remember how I came across it; my memory is that I followed a link to it from a summary found somewhere else (I originally thought Huffington Post but don't see it now). In any case, I wish I had been a bit more thorough; the link I chose is the Indian syndication of an American evangelical news service, and in general I prefer to link to primary material (which this ...
Richard Kemp shares my doubts about the idea of elected mayors, but here he explains why he has put himself forward as the Liberal Democrat candidate for the role in Liverpool. "Emlyn Hooson who died last week was my first parliamentary boss." Sandy Walkington remembers his days as a chocolate soldier. "Occupy will have to find another way forward. It isn't the kind of protest in which an achievable goal is linked to a symbolic nuisance, so that when the authorities see reason everyone can go home. Its demands have been much bigger, and they've been backed by the continuing ...
I realised to my delight that I had not yet opened, let alone watched, a DVD of The Ark bought some time ago, and spent some time over the weekend remedying the situation. As the First Doctor space opera stories go, this is one of the few successful ones without Daleks; and I've always appreciated it as Dodo's first proper appearance. The DVD is solid rather than brilliant, though the story behind the insanely complex camera work is told very well, and I had not appreciated just how short the time between filming and broadcast was; though the claim that ...
The Formula One season starts in a fortnight – well just under a fortnight and I have a big problem. No the problem won't be whether I watch on the BBC or Sky Sports (I'll be watching on Sky Sports as Martin Brundle and Ted Kravitz are huge deciding factors for me) but my problem is who will I be rooting for this season? I have followed the sport for what the best part on 20+ years now and I have followed and rooted for just two drivers. Ayrton Senna and Rubens Barrichello. Now though neither of them are competing ...
I kid you not. Our party simply loves commissions. The Steel Commission, the Calman Commission and the Home Rule Commission have ended up taking us nowhere in particular - I can safely say that the latter is unlikely to have much significance given that we've now committed ourselves only to doing anything positive in the event of a negative result in the independence referendum of 2014. But we love commissions; they make us feel like we're doing something. And so, the Lib Dems' chief whip - MP for Orkney Alistair Carmichael - has announced a plan to launch a new ...
Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 263rd weekly round-up from the Lib Dem blogosphere ... Featuring the seven most popular stories beyond Lib Dem Voice according to click-throughs from the Aggregator (26 February – 3 March, 2012), together with a hand-picked quintet, normally courtesy of LibDig, you might otherwise have missed. Don't forget: you can sign up to receive the Golden Dozen direct to your email inbox — just click here — ensuring you never miss out on the best of Lib Dem blogging. As ever, let's start with the most popular post, and work our way down: 1. ...
Liverpool councillor Richard Kemp has just the right attitude towards a post the party doesn't believe in: if it exists, best to fight hard for it as a Liberal Democrat would be better in the post than someone with other political views. He has just launched his Mayor campaign website Kemp4Mayor, from which I've taken this video:
After a recent report in the Evening Telegraph described how local resident, Ellie Moore, and her dog Alfie, were attacked by a stray dog near their Werrington home, local Lib Dem ward councillor Darren Fower asks, "Should the City Council be doing more?" Did you know that the Clean Neighbourhoods Act 2005 gives local authorities the powers to control where dogs are allowed to access and roam? Commenting, Darren said: "The vast majority of dog owners are responsible people who not only clean up after their pets, but take care as to where they allow their dogs to play and ...
This weekend was a busy one with both a community clean up with Warley Community Association and the planting of a community orchard on Ashville Gardens today. The Warley clean up involved tackling a long ditch filled with rubbish that runs down the side of Stock Lane. It's amazing what thrown away bits and pieces you come across, a discarded umbrella, a scooter and a road cone! There was a great team of people comprised of volunteers from the Community Association and Community Wardens from Calderdale Council. So despite the rain and a break for hot cross buns it didn't ...
Good news from Edinburgh: The keys to the first council home to be built in Edinburgh in more than 30 years are set to be officially handed over to a new tenant. [They have now been.] Council housing leader Councillor Paul Edie [Liberal Democrat] will present the keys to Lynsey Carmichael, who has moved to one of 99 houses and flats built at Gracemount. The development is part of City of Edinburgh Council's 21st Century Homes programme, which will see 1300 mixed tenure homes constructed for sale and rent around the capital... Cllr Edie said: "I'm delighted that this administration ...
A few of us are in the process of helping to put the following amendment forward to a motion on civil liberties at this years' spring conference of the Liberal Democrats. We need a few more Liberal Democrat Conference reps to support it so we can get the amendement submitted. So if you are a conference rep who cares about liberty, privacy and freedom then contact me. You can find the motion this amendment applies in the conference agenda and directory here Amendment to Motion FP21: *Insert after* "But conference notes and regrets that:" I. Civil liberties have taken a ...
There's an article in the Grauniad in which Cardinal Keith O'Brien describes the plans to equalise marriage rights as madness, and lays into them in various other ways. I'm just going to post my reactions here. It is possible that if your belief system differs from mine, you might find this offensive. I figure that given how offensive I find the Cardinal's bigotry, this is acceptable collateral damage. Anyway here's my reactions to what he says:Gay marriage is a grotesque subversion of a universally accepted human right - if it was a universally accepted human right, gay people would already ...
Get your will made for just a donation to Willowburn. Bargain! March is "Make a Will Month" for Willowburn Hospice, one of the area's best loved charities. Local solicitors Bennett Richmond on Front Street, Consett and Swinburne Snowball & Jacksonof Edith Street, Consett are two of those taking part in the scheme in which they waive their fee for making a simple will in return for a donation to the hospice. Suggested donations are £70 for a single will and £95 for a joint will, though in the end it is up to you. Wills are really useful in getting ...
Sun 4th
15:51
Unequal marriage: When a tradition becomes a reason, becomes an excuse, becomes a straitjacket
Later this month, the Government will launch a consultation into equal marriage and civil partnership in the UK. It is something that the Liberal Democrats are very keen to promote, being the only main UK political party to give equal marriage their official policy backing. The Conservative MP Peter Bone is less enthusiastic and writes today at ConservativeHome that redefining marriage threatens the liberties of Christians, teachers and parents. His key argument seems to be that if young children are taught about equal marriage, then the conservative, "traditional" view of marriage will not be pre-eminent. As Bone puts it: ...schools ...
Sun 4th
15:45
In other news... Richard Kemp for Liverpool, Kennedy on the UK, defection in Cambridge, Hughes at Le...
Here's a round-up of stories we haven't had time to cover on the site this past week... Richard Kemp to represent Liberal Democrats in Liverpool mayor election in May (Liverpool Echo) 'He said: "I am standing because I believe that only the Liberal Democrats have the long term strategies which will place this city in a leading position able to create the jobs and investment which this city so badly needs. Liverpool needs an encompassing vision and direction that everyone in the city, residents, business and friends can buy into and support." You can read Richard's own account of his ...
I've been thinking a lot about APIs and their design recently. I stumbled on this fantastic quote from Greg Parker: A programming language is a user interface for developers. Language authors should learn from HCI principles. (paper or ebook). [IMG: flattr this!]
A new ball game - with tasers. Hat-tip : The Volokh Conspiracy According to The Daily Caller, Eric Prum, one of the founders of Ultimate Tak Ball, said, "It's not technically a police grade Taser. That being said, the first thing the (players) will tell you is that they hate getting tased. Those things really do hurt." Apparently, players aren't concerned about the danger associated with
So the SNP don't want the words United Kingdom to be used in the referendum question. They argue that: "We have been preparing for independence fo 75 years and we have our backs covered on all issues. It is about breaking up the political union, not the Union of the Crowns."There is however a small issue to be considered; that of language. The United Kingdom as a term came into being and usage in 1801, with the Acts of Union The United Kingdom first became the name of the Country in 1800, when the Kingdom of Ireland joined the Kingdom ...
Analysis later - here's Willie Rennie's Conference speech in full. I actually meant to press the button to publish this when he'd finished speaking but you know me, attention span of a goldfish! Here we go. Donald Trump. He's has been getting rather excited in recent weeks. You may have heard that he has committed £10million of his fortune to thwarting Scotland's renewable energy ambitions. Donald hasn't met my happy-go-lucky seven year old son, Stephen, but perhaps he should. Puzzled by a recent call from a journalist about Mr Trump's latest tirade against wind turbines, and the environmental damage he ...
It has been a fair while since I was last paid to put my thoughts on football into prose but heck its my blog so my rules. The sacking of Andres Villas-Boas today by Chelsea was coming but it still doesn't mean that it was the right thing to do. For the third manager in a row the players basically got the manager the sack. The nucleus of the side was built by Jose Mourinho in his three year tenure as manager of the club. The squad has never really evolved yet alone gone under any sense of surgery in ...
So a man who dresses up in a dress and wears a silly hat, believing in fictitious deity, that supposedly said thousands of years ago that those falling in love with the same sex should not be equal to others, says that 'Gay Marriage' is wrong. Surprise, Surprise. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-17249099 Several issues: 1) Why does a noted celibate try to dictate to others how they should lead their 'sexual' lives?2) As an atheist, I care not one jot about a religious marriage. I do however think it right and correct that whatever sex, traditional or whatever should have the opportunity to ...
I had tried twice over the Christmas holidays to get to the Charles Burns exhibition at the M Museum in Leuven, stymied both times by finding it closed. Yesterday I realised that it only runs until next weekend, so I rushed into town to catch it before it was too late. The only work of Burns' that I had actually read was the acclaimed Black Hole, but that was enough to make me want more. Well, I was very satisfied. There are only in fact three rooms featuring Burns' work, and only one of those is a normal museum exhibition ...
Boris Island... the cause of the battles As the battle to stop the advances of Boris Island are taken up a notch local Labour have thrown their lot in with those that oppose it (everyone else) and have been doing a lot of campaigning out in the Peninsula and rural areas of Strood to get support for the "No campaign". This is very welcome, they are the second biggest party in Medway Council and their numbers when joined with the Conservatives (who represent the wards concerned) are numerous enough to make a real difference. For our part, the Libdems are ...
By a comfortable margin MEPs supported a Budget amendment that suggested (self-evidently!) that big savings – more than €200m a year – could be made by the Parliament having only one seat instead of moving between Brussels and Strasbourg. Its ... Continue reading →
The link is to Labour's web page about not having a debate about the NHS Bill. It says:Over 160,000 people have now called on the Government to drop the Health BillThe Government's own website says that a petition which gets "at least 100,000 signatures will be eligible for debate in the House of Commons."We cannot let them ignore the calls of tens of thousands of people who care about our
Talk to many Conservatives these days and they will tell that they have lost faith in Andrew Lansley for the nightmare that he has led them into with the NHS legislation in government. Many are either revolting that he hasn't gone far enough (like Nadine Dorries for example), while others are desperately concerned that he ...
Kevin versus three Tories; the contest in Westborough exclaims the latest headlines on Julian Ware-Lane's blog. The blog is largely considered to be one of the very best in Southend – certainly when you are talking about local politics. So it disappoints me when you see such a biased and misleading (at best) headline. Some would even go as far to say that it is a flat out lie. I have no comment to make on any of my opponents. I don't know any of them. Therefore I feel like it is unwise and uncalled for to make any comment ...
Same-sex marriage would eliminate entirely in law the basic idea of a mother and a father for every child. It would create a society which deliberately chooses to deprive a child of either a mother or a father.—His Eminence Keith Cardinal O'Brien in The Sunday Telegraph As a gay man, and a Christian, it really ...
Sun 4th
11:37LibLink: Ed Davey: 'The night I pulled a woman from the tracks as a train hurtled towards us'
Ed Davey MP, the new Energy and Climate Change Secretary features today in a cracking interview by the Independent's Matt chorley. Far from being caught in the headlights, Ed is revealed as a man of bravery and resilience, with green and Liberal principles from his youth. Here's an excerpt: Covered in blood and carrying a stranger in his arms, Ed Davey turned to see the lights of a high-speed train hurtling towards him. A split-second decision to help a woman in trouble late one December night was about to cost him his life. "I decided that I had to go ...
[IMG: 20120304-110855.jpg] All, I've copied a press release from a friend of mine, Liberal Democrat County Councillor Kate Rolf, into this post. The Conservative-run County Council is discussing a potential increase from £4.00 to £4.25 for our most vulnerable older people. If it goes through that would mean a price rise of 70% in the past four years. What is even more disgraceful is that a few years ago Warwickshire County Council took the contract away from the WRVS – and gave it too Nottinghamshire County Council. Nottinghamshire have said that they intend to make a profit of £100,000 a ...
Sun 4th
11:16
HIV community is untapped protection market - Unusual Risks - COVER Magazine - Protection and health...
The most unnecessarily underinsured group in the UK is the HIV community, according to specialist advisers Unusual Risks. Research by the advisers through the Terence Higgins Trust, estimates that 82% of HIV positive people in the UK have no Life Assurance at all. This compares to Swiss Re figures for the wider community of 52% ...
Cambridgeshire Guided Busway Busway smartcards are being upgraded and given a longer life as part of updates to the ticketing system. Following discussions with bus operators and in response to feedback from the public the system has been updated allowing the 10 journey carnet to expire after two months, giving passengers double the time to use their journeys. Previously smartcards with a 10 journey carnet expired after one month. Smartcards can be topped up with an additional 10 trips on the bus. All existing cardholders will receive new Smartcards to replace the existing ones. The County Council will send a ...
Sun 4th
11:06Ballymena Borough could show Bedford Borough and @davethemayor how to invest in the arts
Once more I am in Bedford. This is becoming quite a habit. As I was walking up Silver Street, I noticed a banner for the Bedfordshire Festival of Music Speech and Dance, mentioned it to Peter, and was told that he didn't know where or even if the Festival's Disabled classes were going to be ...
As I am still in Welsh Liberal Democrat Conference blogging is going to be fairly light today. However, I was struck by one of the items in the Spin Doctor column of this morning's Wales on Sunday which detailed an exchange in the Assembly chamber on Wednesday. Huw Lewis, who is the Welsh Housing Regeneration and Heritage Minister was taking questions when the Presiding Officer felt the need to call the meeting to order: "It would be helpful if Lynne Neagle would not speak when Huw Lewis is speaking"' Mrs. Butler ruled. "Thank you, Presiding Officer"' said Mr. Lewis "I ...
Freedom is difficult. One persons freedom is another's nightmare. Think noisy neighbours, freedom of the press, smoking and even capitalism itself. Cue John Stuart Mill. I was strolling through the City of London a week or so ago just before the eviction of the Occupy site. In the early evening I passed by St. Paul's and ...
Via PoliticsHome: Lynne Featherstone has criticised the idea of giving married couples a tax break, saying such a move would be "extremely unfair". In an interview with The Times, the Equalities Minister said a reduction in tax for couples who tie the knot was a "bizarre concept... and wrongly aimed".
What with the death of Davy Jones from the Monkees and the announcement that Engelbert Humperdinck is to sing the British Eurovision in May, this has been a Back to the Sixties week. I did think of choosing a Monkees song as a tribute, but when I looked into I found that all the ones I liked seemed to have been sung by Mickey Dolenz rather than Jones. So let me just send you to the tribute to him that Andrew Hickey has written on Mindless Ones. So Engelbert it is. Les Bicyclettes de Belsize is the title song from ...
So, Nick Clegg thinks I have "a messed-up set of priorities" that he "cannot for the life of [him] understand". Between this and the Welfare Reform Act, I am really not sure I can stay in this party. I'm still glad we got Labour out in 2010; I still think I was right to vote for the Coalition Agreement; and I think the Coalition Government is doing better than the last Labour Government did on all the issues I listed in this post. But workfare, the withdrawal of ESA from people whose partners earn £7,500, and the benefits cap were ...
The anti-marriage equality rants are becoming more and more unhinged. There's debating the merits of such a change to an institution that has so much meaning to so many, and then there is being nasty. Cardinal O'Brien has crossed that line this morning in the Telegraph. With the use of phrases designed to insult (such as "Their proposal represents a grotesque subversion of a universally accepted human right.") he seems to have forgotten his Church's roots in the teachings of Jesus Christ. Peace, kindness, forgiveness. These are not values this representative of Catholicism seems to understand. Sadly he rolls out ...
A number of news outlets this morning (here and here for example) are reporting on the deepening financial crisis facing the UK's charities as they look to deal with cuts of up to £5.5 billion in the coming financial year. Times of austerity and local and national government cuts, mean that charities and the services that ...
See how many clues it takes you to work out what policy this person is talking about. It is a policy promoted "at the behest of a small minority of activists". It is not a minor policy for "it will redefine society". What's more "it will have huge implications for what is taught in our schools". It even involves an "attempt to redefine reality". Not in a good way, for it "represents a grotesque subversion of a universally accepted human right". And not merely that, for it will "demolish a universally recognised human right" too. Demolish and grotesquely subvert. Now ...
10 reasons to celebrate a decade of BBC4 - Den of Geek (tags: bbc ) Raspberry Pi network plan for online free-speech role (tags: raspberrypi ) The revolution will be... privatised (tags: politics ) Stop the beer duty escalator - e-petitions (tags: beer work ) The Health and Social Security Bill is an unholy mess. Drop it now. (tags: ) The Story of the Scully Box Gillian Andersons is taller than me.... (tags: ) Raspberry Pi « The Artesea Ryan details trying to get hold of a Pi. Me, I'm waiting for the rush to die down. (tags: technology ) ...
It's rather early on a Sunday morning, and I am already on the train to Cardiff, determined to get there in time to vote on a few constitutional amendments. Yes, it's that time of year again - it's a Liberal Democrat conference, of course, where debates on such issues might be thought of as part of an identity-forming ritual. But it's also much more than that, because the party famously and often rather inconveniently (as any Tory MP would probably be all too glad to tell you) practices direct democracy - and democracy needs thought, practice, constant maintenance and the ...
... is what Practical Electronics said about the launch of the Compukit UK101 back in August 1979. While you're reading their article, remember that it isn't about the Raspberry Pi – instead, it's about an 8MHz 6502, 4Kbyte computer with a UHF output to a black and white TV monitor and a 300 baud (very, very slow) cassette tape interface for backing up your programs and data. Two highlights: Imagine being able to run a program to help your child (or yourself) revise for exams. Animated diagrams are possible, such as an internal combustion engine shown reciprocating, with mathematical equations ...
On Friday at conference, there was a motion on youth unemployment in which I had submitted an amendment. That meant I had to move it. I'd asked Allan MacBain of my local party to summate the motion as he was the man who inspired me to write the amendment on the drive back from our ...
The Cambridge half-marathon will be taking place on Sunday 11th March (one week today), and a number of roads in the area will be closed or have restricted access until the afternoon. You can also get more details from the organisers' web site, the map below shows details of the route. Cambridge Half-Marathon Map
The Cambridge half-marathon will be taking place on Sunday 11th March (one week today), and a number of roads in the area will be closed or have restricted access until the afternoon. Residents who are directly affected should have already received a letter with details; but for people outside the immediate vicinity, we have posted a copy of the map that has been provided below. You can also get more details from the organisers' web site, the map below shows details of the route. Cambridge Half-Marathon Map
Whilst putting together one of my NOW! That's What I call a Tune! posts, I considered using today's Sunday Sound but it lost out in the end. I love k d lang and this song is one of my all time favourites. I couldn't remember having seen the video before, though. Even if I had seen back when the song was released (in 1992) it wouldn't have struck me in the way it did recently: the video features scenes set in a theatre where the players are (rather aptly) performing a production of Waiting for Godot. And, yes, I do ...
Last June, I welcomed the City Council's introduction of a food recycling trial project. At the moment, this covers only a limited number of addresses (in the West End - Clayhills Drive, Glamis Drive (34, 40, 43 & 45), Invergowrie Drive, Menzieshill Road, Perth Road (391 - South Lodge only), Whitefauld Road - 234 properties in total). I recently asked the City Council's Recycling Projects Officer for an update and she has provided this useful response: "The food waste trial is progressing extremely well with around 40% participation each week and an overall weight of approximately 3 tonnes - this ...
Further to my recent update aboutFairtrade Fortnight in Dundee, there's still a number of events taking place at the University of Dundee up to 11th March - see below - and you can download this poster at http://tinyurl.com/uodfairtrade:
Here's my review for another kindling: Killer Instinct by Zoe SharpI am a female motorcyclist and occasional karateka who lives in the north of England: I therefore couldn't resist downloading this book. Charlie Fox is a very well-realised character. She has an authentic voice, and the immediacy and quirks of her dialogue were all very familiar to me. The precision of the author's descriptions of motorcycling are matched by the delightfully eccentric descriptions she uses for characters - the one springing to mind is the minor character whose cleft chin hangs off his face "like a small pair of buttocks". ...
[IMG: [twitter.com profile] ] smescrater went to Seattle and Portland for two weeks, and brought me home as gifts:four bottles of the peppermint chewable 0.5g melatonin tablets I discovered in San Francisco last yeara mug with the definition of "geek" on it from the Microsoft store (we'll pretend I don't know where it came from)picture postcardsa bag of Starbucks Pike Place Special Reserve beans, which you can only buy at the very first Starbucks store This is a man who knows the way to my heart ♥ (He also bought me Microsoft branded lipbalm, but I think that was a ...
