The Peculiar Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender

This was a Christmas present (thanks R!) but it's taken a while to sit down and read it. Overall, I would say it was worth waiting for. A fairly easy read, it follows a family in California from the perspective of the younger child, who is just turning 9 when the book starts.

The book opens with the narrator's and her mum has made a lemon cake. When the narrator bites into the cake she tastes sorrow [what else] to the extent that she can not eat the cake her mother has prepared.

It soon transpires that the narrator can taste the emotions of whoever it is who has prepared the food.

Ultimately this is an account of an all-American family and how it tenuously hangs together through the Son's brilliance and benign madness, the mother's affair with a co-worker at the carpentry co-operative where she takes up work and the constant un-changing father. There is also a slightly senile grandmother living some distance away and who repeatedly sends furniture/ the contents of her house to them.

The narrator's peculiar gift wavers between being at the forefront of the story and sometimes more of sub-point. At one point, the story is more about the son but I don't recall that we ever see the narrator taste anything he has prepared.


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Fever of the Bone, Val McDermid

This is the first of Val McDermid's books which I have read. A few years ago we watched the Wire in the Blood series and grew to like it it. I prefer my crime dramas to be gripping/ edge of the seat thrillers rather than something which serves as wallpaper viewing - i.e. it's there but it doesn't really engage brain.

Having seen several episodes and therefore having an appreciation of the characters, it didn't matter that I was not starting with the first book. I won't give too much away but the book follows a series of murders, some in Bradfield and a couple in neighbouring constabularies. The victims meet their killer in Internet chatrooms and lured to their end.

The book hints at various characters' past and refers back to previous stories. Enough information is given that you don't need to have read the books in sequence but enough is kept back that you want to go and read the previous books.

My only criticism is that the killer's ability to track down the targeted individuals is not explained. The killer is able to identify the victims' parents and this is accounted for in the narrative but there seems to be a missing connection in how the killer then pin points the specific victims while in the chatrooms. There is a geographic explanation but no more.

Other than that, and if anyone can point to the time within the story when that particular conundrum is breached, please let me know!


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Skagboys

So I have just finished Skagboys by Irvine Welsh. It's a precursor, I'm not sure I'd call it a prequel, to Trainspotting. I haven't read Trainspotting for years, probably not since before the film came out but it follows a similar narrative style and uses a Scottish dialect,although there was some language which reminded me of a Clockwork Orange. The characters all tend to tell their story which means that the jump from different characters between chapters can take a bit of working out to determine who is narrating the chapter.

One review I read commented on Welsh's tendency to to rework the same characters and the same story.

It charts Renton's descent into heroin addiction, from promising student at Aberdeen accompanying his father on Miner's Strike rallies, to it taking over his entire life, to the extent that he ditches his girlfriend to spend more time with it.

Familiar characters such as Sick Boy, Spud and Begbie are also introduced. Other characters are also brought into the picture and their lives all connect, all seemingly to ultimately connect to the two individuals who work in the pharmaceutical factory which is the source of all their woe.

Although the book is set within Thatcher's 80s, the story never quite goes so far to fully pin the blame for Scotland's heroin epidemic on Thatcherite Britain and the closing of the docks, mines and other sources of employment for the working class man. It's there as a theme and touched upon but it doesn't go so far as to say it outright.

Similarly, the story never quite deals with the question of individual responsibility. No-one forced Renton to have his first hit and his spiral into addiction takes time, there's a significant period during which he is not an addict.

Towards the end of the book a few of the characters are in Rehab and one of the people running the rehab programme observes that so long as he doesn't catch aids or overdose, Renton will grow out of his addiction. This basically indicates that Renton is an angry young man full of angst and hormones and he'll get over it all.

Sex, but not love, feature strongly in the book. It's a fine line Welsh treads and perhaps strays over, between gratuitous and simply reflecting that it is regarded as both commodity and means of escapism as much as it becomes a trap. I don't know that I would call the book misogynous but the female characters are really bit players, becoming victims of their own circumstances rather than taking control of their own destiny. Perhaps that is true of the male characters too.

So overall, worth a read. I plan to re-read it, once I've finished Trainspotting.

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Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday

Tuesday was a rainy day so an ideal day for hiding indoors, reading and playing on the Wii. I recently downloaded Irvine Welsh's "Skagboys" - precursor to Trainspotting so I've started that.

After lunch we headed onto the beach for a stroll, rewarded by views of a rainbow. The picture below shows the Harbour later in the day.




The evening saw a trip to the local curry house, girls enjoyed an egg curry, accompanied by the school bears :)

Wednesday was much more sunny so we decided to take the steam train to Dunster. On Wednesday there is a coach connection from the station to he castle so we took advantage of this. We arrived in Dunster just in time for lunch. There is no shortage of tea rooms and we headed for the Chocolatieria for sandwiches, milkshakes and hot chocolate. My hot chocolate comprised warm milk and a chunk of chocolate to mix in - delicious!




We spent the afternoon exploring the castle accompanied by Boo reading the guide, and enjoying the outdoor climbing and play area.

Thursday was another rainy day so we headed to Quince Honey Farm. The girls enjoyed the indoor play area there. Once we dragged them away, we could look around the beekeeping area: very impressive collection of hives which you could look at without any risk of agitating the bees of getting stung! Definitely worth a visit.


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Fossil Hunting

I mentioned in my earlier post that the tide goes out a long way to reveal rocks to clamber, pools to splash in and seaweed to soften your fall when you slip!

The Watchett area is known for its fossils, and we have been keeping eyes peeled looking out for ammonites. Boo and I went clambering over the rocks on our first day here and found a couple. On our next day all four of us went clambering, this time with shoes on: my toe shoes (aka Vibram fivefingers) have been v handy for climbing!

Our previous day's exploring meant we knew which types of rock to look on for the ammonites. We found lots of great examples:





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Our Jubilee Holiday

So here we are in Watchett on the North Somerset coast. After a very busy Friday helping out at the school Jubilee celebrations and packing, we drove down to the South West with much of the rest of the country.

Despite all the traffic, we still arrived on schedule, just in time for high tide and lots of clambering on the rocks.

Our cottage is upside down with the bedrooms on the ground floor and living area on the first floor so we can enjoy the views from the decking.




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Finished!

Since October, I have studying with the Open university, the Arts Past and Present (aka AA100). Yesterday saw the submission of my final assignment: a 2000 word essay on sacred space, tourism and pilgrimage. I'm now feeling a little Demob happy to say the least!

I've looked at OU courses now and again over the past few years and they came up again when I was looking at creative writing courses and distance learning. Anyway, on return from our holiday to the US, I decided to have another look and then book! The recommendation from the OU is to study a level 1 course first. Although I have studied at university level before, I decided to follow their recommendation and signed up for AA100.

I'm glad I did as its got me used to the OU way of doing things and the use of online and electronic resources. My previous degree was in the early 90s when the most technologically advanced students has electronic typewriters, most of which are probably now museum pieces! Referencing for those essays involved underlining all the cases and I don't think we ever had a word count to stick to.

AA100 has such a broad range of topics covered as well and you study subjects you might not otherwise consider reading about. We have covered the following:

Cleopatra
Cezanne
Faraday
The Dalai Llama
Stalin

Poetry
Shostakovich
The Reformation
Pugin's Architecture
Benin Bronzes
Cultural resources and exemptions

General overview of philosophy including philosophical conceptions of leisure
The Experience Machine
Sacred space and pilgrimage
Roman concepts of leisure
The seaside

There's been more of a social element than I was expecting. It didn't
really cross my mind when I signed up that 100s of other people would also be studying this course, from all walks of life and all stages of life. The online world has made this very accessible, augmented by tutorials, a day school and a trip to the British Museum organised by my tutor.

So with four months until my next course, A215 (creative writing), I can read all those books which have been piling up, finish Lego Batman and start Lego Harry Potter, oh and I expect there will be a holiday or two...

What's interesting looking back over this blog is that I've not blogged about the course that much. I suspect that the fear of plagiarism has reined me in. That and the fact that the blog would probably have ended up being a page of popplets...




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Benin Bronzes

So, this weekend saw us take a trip to the British Museum. This was to tie in with a trip which my OU tutor had organised to see the Benin Bronzes: the topic of the current assignment.

I've saved the 2012-02-11">photos in an online album which can be found here.

As is clear from the first few shots, I had mixed success to start with - trying to fiddle about with camera settings to get shots in focus, I'd have been better off using iPhone! Got there in the end...

We saw two styles of bronze: the plaques which went in the Oba's palace and the figures. The plaques were a form of decoration and when the British invaded, he was having his palace renovated/ decorated which is why the plaques were all found heaped in a room by the invaders. There are various designs on the plaques: some which record battles and successes in battle of the Oba and some which depict the interaction between Benin and the Portugese in the 15th/16th Century. It is quite clear from the style of dress and facial hair which figures are the Portugese.

Other points of note from the plaques: there were over 50, how many would have been in the palace? Probably more. Important people are larger in the plaques. There were one or two plaques which seem to depict priests providing offerings. Many plaques had a round pattern in the four corners, depicting what: the sun? Since posting this, I have re-read chapter 2 and the readings from O.J. Eboreime at the Horniman museum. These describe them as: "‘the sun never misses a day’ and water leaf motifs".

One of the most striking figure-heads was of the Oba's mother. She, apparently, went into battle with the Oba and with her own army. The head looked much more like it was a portrait of a real person than a stylized head, which is how many of the other figureheads looked. Heads and hands were important to the Bini. It was thought that all of a person's power (soul?) was in their head which is why bronzes of heads were made. As well as the scarification marks above the eyebrows, the central rectangular marks were made to indicate wisdom. These were originally outlined in iron.

There was also a "hand altar," a round, ornate cylinders. It was not clear whether a cast of a hand was intended to be placed in the top of this.
One of the other figures showed the Oba holding leopards and a type of river fish. This was to demonstrate his power, the Bini were apparently fearful/ in awe of water: they saw it as another kingdom.

There were figures of leopards: these were also quite stylized - rather like cats but simply with big canine teeth. One of the cats was also designed to be used as a water carrier. There was also a big cockerel - I wasn't sure whether these would have been indigenous animals or whether these would have been brought from Portugal.

As well as the bronzes, we saw examples of the ivory work, particularly the spice-cellars. The designs demonstrate that they were made for export, perhaps carrying the pepper which was a key export from that region.

A trip to the Horniman museum would also be beneficial, it depends whether I can fit it in between now and the first Friday in March...

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The four horsemen of the Apipplypse

This evening while getting read for bed, Pip asked "when will it end?"

I replied: "Tuesday."

Pip: "Tuesday."

Me: "yes, you've five more days of nursery school and then it's the end of term"

Pip: "No, when will the world end?"

Me: "err, I'm not sure, I think it's infinite."

Pip: "what's infinite?"

Me: "never ending."

Pip seemed slightly dismayed by this, I went on to say "well let's hope it's not before Christmas otherwise where will Father Christmas deliver his presents?"

And then, in the words of Zebedee, it was time for bed.

An anthology of poems

According to Paul Muldoon in the Faber Book of Beasts, anthologists tend towards the despotic. As part of the section on poetry in the AA100 textbook on tradition and dissent, we are asked to compile our own anthology from the poems set out in the Faber book of beasts. Here's mine.

1. The Butterfly by Joseph Brodsky

A poem about the ephemeral existence of a butterfly. 14 verses about the day in the life of a butterfly - the very hungry caterpillar for grown ups?

2. Jabberwocky - Lewis Carroll

The Gruffalo's great-grandfather. Pure nonsense verse at its best.

3. Ode on the death of a favourite cat, drowned in a tub of gold fishes - Thomas Gray

A cautionary tale - "Not all that tempts your wandering eyes and heedless hearts, is lawful prize; nor all that glisters, gold". The cat in this poem uses all her nine lives in an attempt to catch the goldfish. Thankfully my cats were more successful in their goldfish hunting adventure.

4. Of the Pythagorean Philosophy - John Dryden/ Ovid's Metamorphoses

I remember reading about the mythical Phoenix and its rise from the ashes. Probably over twenty years ago. Long before it was reborn as Dumbledore's bird.

5. An Otter - Ted Hughes

This caught my eye as I was skimming through the anthology. The description of the Otter as neither "fish nor beast" evokes a wonderful image of the Otter as it swims and wallops in an attempt to escape from the hunt. I'll let you read it and find out whether he does.

6. Our little kinsmen - Emily Dickinson

A poem about worms after the rain, at least it is until the third verse.

7. The Owl and the Pussycat - Edward Lear

More nonsense, never failing to charm

8. The Song of the Jellicles - TS Eliot

Somehow this appeals more when reading the printed word than when watching Lloyd-Webber's cats.

9. The Tyger - William Blake

William Blake addressing the Tyger, pondering on who made the Tyger. Was it the same hand as made the Lamb?

So that's nine, happy to receive suggestions for a tenth.

Why do stars have points?

This was Pip's question to me at bedtime this evening. Twinkle Twinkle is a regular feature of the bedtime routine and clearly set of a train of thought in the MOP (Mind of a Pip). Actually her question was:

"why can't we see the points"

"the points of the stars in the sky?"

"yes"

I thought for a moment as it was such a fabulous question. I explained that stars when we Draw them have points as the stars that we draw are representations of real stars. "Real stars are actually mini suns" I said. I said that the reason why we draw them with points is so that people recognise them as stars, the stars that we actually draw are not real stars but symbols.

She seemed happy with this explanation. Although as Mr S pointed out, the reason we draw them with points is to represent the twinkling. Whoops missed that bit.

Race times

A Duathlon wouldn't be complete without some post race stats - hopefully blogger won't mangle the layout...

2011. 2010. 2009

Run 10K. 56min 56s. 57min58s. 49min 7s (9K)
Pace/K 5.7. 5.8. 5.45

Cycle 20K. 1hr 12min. 1hr. 1hr 20min
Pace/K 3.6. 3. 4

Run 5K. 30min 53s. 32min 49s. 31min 37s
Pace/K 6.2. 6.6. 6.3

So my run times are faster than last year (marginally) but my cycle time was slower. Perhaps unsurprisingly as I hadn't done any focussed cycle training. Additionally conditions were different today - v windy and it rained during the second lap which probably resulted in me slowing up a bit.




Interestingly, I ran in a brand new pair of trainers - you see them in all their turquoise glory in the picture above. In the rush to get the girls over to a friend's (Mr S was away at a conference) and getting the bike on the back, I managed to leave my trainers at home. I had a pair of other shoes to drive in, you see. I realised as soon as I got to Richmond Park, when it was too late to go home and collect them. Initially I was just going to run round in the shoes I'd driven in but as I walked up to the racking area for the bikes, I noticed a stall selling trainers. One pair of trainers later and I was ready to go. It's not ideal but I've been meaning to buy a new pair of trainers since the half marathon in March.

So, a slower cycle ride this year, marginally faster runs and proper transitions - I rant between the sections rather than ambling. Slower ride was partly a reflection of the conditions but also that old chestnut, my lack of dedicated cycle training. For next year, and yes there will be a next year, I need to make my Sunday morning runs a Sunday morning run-cycle.

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Beat the Heat: playing catch up

Afraid to say that I have neglected the blog over the past couple of weeks so playing catch up on the last two weeks and then I will write a round up on Sunday evening.

1. What have you achieved towards your goals this week?

Past couple of weeks have seen usual mixture of circuit training, running (did a hill session with a few friends from work with Sweatshop running club) which was good. Went out on the bike as well - with Pip on back to sing along as I cycle.

2. What have you done to make yourself feel fabulous?

Had a cultural evening at the weekend and went to see Faustus at the Globe, very enjoyable. As I'm playing catch up, the previous weekend saw us in Amsterdam with the girls - lovely weekend had by all!

3. This is week 9 and the final week of the challenge! Is there anything you want to really push to achieve now?

Duathlon day on Sunday, will report back after the event!

4. How have you felt through the challenge? Has anything been more difficult than you thought? Anything easier?

I haven't done as much cycling as I would have liked, I will be relying on knowing the course and general fitness to get me round. I think I'm probably fitter than when I did the Duathlon last year. 10k doesn't feel like a long way to run for a start.

5. Would you rather be attacked by 20 duck sized horses or 20 horse sized ducks?

20 duck sized horses every time. The idea of even one horse sized duck terrifies me.


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Beat the Heat: Week 6

1. What have you done to help you achieve your goals?

Last week was an adjustment back to the working routine and timezone. I completed a session of circuits courtesy of Jillian Michaels, a session at the gym using my new shoes (Vibram five fingers) and a 10k run on Saturday morning.

2. What have you done to make you feel fabulous?

Going out for the run. I'd run out of contact lenses and was thinking about ditching run on the grounds of not wanting to run in my glasses. I decided that was a feeble excuse for not going running and went out. I was pleased a did.

3. If your house was on fire, and you could grab ONE thing (outside of people and your computer/laptop, they are all out) what would it be?

I think I'd be too busy worrying about getting out safely to grab anything. We had a fire alarm go off in our hotel when we were on holiday and all we took were keys to the car and hotel room, our passports and cardigans.

4. Tell us about your blog. Treat it like a book, what’s happened so far?

We were given a domain name as a wedding present. I never quite got to grips with the uploading etc although had great fun designing and planning it. Around the same time we discovered Blogger and this discovery coincided with our six month sojourn in Philadelphia.

There's not huge amounts from our Philly adventures looking back, it saw something of a revival when I was on maternity leave a second time and DH was in Mexico for five weeks. It's great fun looking back, I have used it as a record of various running events I've taken part in, and I've tried to revive it periodically. This is why doing this challenge has been great as it's provided an opportunity for revival!

I use Blogpress on the iPad which makes it easier to blog on the move, another means of keeping this up regularly.

5. Fun Question: Tell an embarrassing story about yourself. No dodging.

Dodging is an apt phrase. About five or six years ago, the Garfield Movie came out. I can't remember what we were going to see but there was a giant inflatable Garfield in our cinema foyer. I've always been a big Garfield fan so clearly had to run over to the Garfield and give him a big hug. He was quite bouncy and the force of my hug saw him rocking like a giant weeble and me laughing feebly!


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Beat the Heat: August

This was the last week of my holiday, so a bit late in posting this.

1. What have you done this week to help you achieve your goals?

A little lax in last week of holiday but made it out for an evening run along the beach while we were still in Cape Cod and had a fab 90min yoga session with Tara Stiles at La Strala Yoga while we were in New York.

2. What have you done this week to make you feel fabulous?

The yoga session was great. It was the first time I'd been to a formal class for about six years, most of my sessions tend to be short sessions in the morning or evening, this was 90mins. There was a great mix of formal poses with a couple of freestyle sessions where you basically did your own thing. That could be a handstand or something more challenging or just a medley of your favourite poses! I spoke to Tara afterwards, hope I wasn't too starstruck as I've been following her podcasts and the video she did with Deepak Chopra since getting the iPad last year.




3. Do you feel you get everything out of your life? Would you like to change things or are you happy where you are (I know a bit deep but I’m thinking about major life achievements this week achieved and not!)

Happy where I am. I think my problem might be trying to do too much and not having enough time to just do nothing.

4. What’s your ultimate favourite food? Is it healthy? Can you make it healthy?

I don't know that I have an absolute favourite. I try and aim for the healthy side of the spectrum but a little of what you like now and again is no bad thing.

5. Fun Question: What do you want to be when you grow up J ?

Curious.

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Long weekend in Cape Cod: Saturday 30th July - Monday 1st August

We spent three days in Cape Cod, we could have easily spent longer there but three days gave us a taste of the area and provided a welcome contrast to the two city parts of our holiday. Our visited included: a trip to Provincetown, Whale watching, an evening at the Drive-In, Chatham and the Marconi Museum as well as lots of time on the beach.

Provincetown is a very pleasant town right at the end of the Cape. Based on the number of drag-artists handing out flyers it looks as if it has a lively nightlife... We didn't get there in time for the 2:00 sailing so we had ice-creams and then went for a wander, including a visit to the shell shop which was a treasure trove for the girls. It was time to board the boat for our three hour trip to see the whales.

It was great to be on the water and enjoy the view of Cape Cod from the sea but the Whale watching was amazing. We were there at tea-time so we saw huge numbers of whales all very close to the boat. The girls were also v excited, definitely an experience of a lifetime. I was a bit trigger happy with the camera, some of the whales to follow.




We went straight from whale watching to smurf watching, at the drive-in, complete with Hot Dogs and bad popcorn. The Girls' car certainly enjoyed the experience: me in the back with the girls and their new friends in the front.

Sunday saw us drive to Chatham, firstly to the Marconi museum where Mr S was in his element and then into Chatham itself - lunch and then a browse around various stores.

Monday was a beach day. We met up with Mrs L and the girls and she smuggled us into a private beach! Some of the local beaches are for local people only, which seems fair enough really. After the beach, we headed into Hyannis for a browse followed by more beach action back at the hotel. The girls enjoyed digging sandcastles, especially the moat, while I flew our little 99p kite. Well it flew itself really.

I had a final run along the beach, much cooler in the evening and that was the end of our Cape Cod section. Very enjoyable, we could have happily spent longer there, we didn't really explore route 6A or the national park area.


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Philly-Cape Cod via Princeton: Friday 29th July

We had a very early start, partly so we could see Annie, Parker and the boys in Princeton and partly because we had such a long journey ahead (350miles).

The pause in Princeton for breakfast and a catch up with old friends was great. Last time we visited A and co, they had just moved into their house in Princeton and A and I were talking weaning and bouncers. Six years later and we're now talking extra-curricular activities for the kids and playrooms! It was lovely to see them and the boys before they headed off to camp for the day (although not the littlest, he looked as if he had a busy schedule of cuddles ahead).

Lunchtime saw us stop in Stamford for a break, including a run around for the girls and a trip to Barnes and Noble to buy maps and make use of their wifi.

I took charge of the wheel once we'd refuelled and hit the road. My first proper drive on the US. Speed limits are slower so it's good we had a car with the acceleration of a small elephant - foot down and eventually it speeds up, but not by much. The drive was fine, the girls slept, Mr S was forced to keep me company and therefore was not allowed to sleep!

We had something of a race against time to get to our dinner date but we had a brief stop in Starbucks - refresh the girls and change drivers. After a brief conflab by phone with our hosts for the evening, we decided to head straight for the hotel, unload and quick change before heading into Hyannis where we were meeting our friends.

Girls did very well considering the lateness of the hour so we stayed to listen to Rick and his band while I enjoyed a Mai Tai! Boo discovered a newfound love of Jerk Chicken - well, more like chicken with barbecue sauce.

Back to the hotel and then it was time for bed, punctuated with a couple of fire alarms. Hotel is basic but has everything we need and is a shell's thrown from the beach.




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Beat the Heat: Holiday time!

I'm on holiday this week so this week's BTH comes to you from Cape Cod.

1. What have you done this week to work towards your goals?

I'm on holiday in the US at the moment (Philadelphia, Cape Cod and then onto New York). While I therefore have the perfect excuse to eat over-processed rubbish choc full of high-fructose corn syrup and not do any training, I've actually done OK: visit to the hotel gym in Philly, a run along the beach yesterday and circuit training thanks to Jillian Michaels on my iPad.

The run was hot, I just spent about 18-20 mins running from the beach outside our hotel, where the girls and Mr S were playing. I got them to time how long it would take me to run along the beach and back - around 6-7 minutes.

2. What have you done to make yourself feel fabulous?

I'm on holiday, that's all I need! It's great just switching off from work and spending quality time together as a family.

3. How are you finding your goals? Do you think you can still achieve them?

Once I get back from holiday I really need to get focused on the cycle training and aim for either two spin classes or a spin class and a cycle ride each week. I've got the added challenge of sorting out logistics for the actual day as Mr S will be abroad at a work conference. Finding a willing grandparent shouldn't be too difficult but it's just an extra complication.

4. Freebie! If you want to change one goal, change it.

I'll stick with the Duathlon but if the logistics don't work out then my new goal will be completing a half marathon in 2hrs or less.

5. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?

Listening to the sounds of the waves from our hotel then it would have to be here in Cape Cod. Really beautiful part of the world. The next stage of our holiday takes us to New York. It's going to be an assault on the senses are this.


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Philadelphia: Thursday 28th July

Thursday morning and another buffet breakfast - a good selection, I've been in US hotels in the past where their idea of breakfast was doughnuts and coffee.

The drawback of only spending a few days in one place where there is so much to see is trying to decide what to go for. We took advantage of our location and went to the Academy of Natural Sciences: the lure of the Dinosaurs was what clinched it for us. A particular highlight was watching people working on the Dinosaur bones from Argentina: an entirely new Dinosaur, not yet named and apparently very large. He will be going back to Argentina but it will be interesting to read more about him.




Another highlight were the summer interns, all school kids desperate to impart their knowledge of the dinosaurs. It only seemed fair to stop and listen.

Next stop was the Butterflies, a particular favourite of mine and I spent quite a bit of time trying to get photos of a spectactular blue one in flight. The pictures weren't quite so spectacular, so I thought I'd share a shot of this giant.




There is a great area upstairs for children: lots to touch and explore. My favourite was looking at the slides under a microscope, especially the ant head. Mr S' favourite was the moose antlers.




After a final visit to the dinosaur area, this time to the big dig, it was lunchtime. We had a voucher (due to the hotel's mess up with our room on the first night) to TGIs. It was ok but not the best TGI I've ever been to. The wedge salad really was just a big wedge of lettuce and I'd forgotten how much dressing they drown it in (note to self: ask for it on the side).

After lunch, we decided to go for a bus tour. The highly detailed tour was probably going to be lost on the girls so we opted for the Philly Phlash and our own commentary, including an account of the store (Wholefoods) where we bought Boo's first foods!

We headed up past the Rodin Museum, the Museum of Art, the Zoo and the Please Touch Museum. It was a shame we didn't make it here as it had moved to a much bigger location and looked quite fab.

We couldn't keep away from Reading Terminal Market so we headed back to the candy store for more Lego sweeties. Once we'd stocked up on gifts, we picked up the remains of our picnic and headed back to Rittenhouse Square for one last visit. Again the girls had a fantastic time, they seemed to spend much of it picked up dried leaves and pretending they were going to the Antartic.

After that it was time to say our farewells and pack up the hotel room in readiness for our long trip to Cape Cod.


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Philadelphia: Wednesday 27July

So here we are, summer holiday time. The first leg of our holiday has seen us revisit Philadelphia, six years after I spent a good 5-6 months of my maternity leave living in Rittenhouse Square while Mr S worked on a project over here.

We arrived late on the Tuesday evening, after a comfortable flight and a less comfortable drive (JFK to Philadelphia during NYC rush hour) to our hotel. We'd booked into a place just on Ben Franklin Parkway so easy to get around.





After breakfast at the hotel we headed out into the City heat - first stop Reading Terminal Market. Visiting it with Boo and Pip meant that the stalls selling sweets were more a prominent feature of our visit than I remembered. We got there during its busiest time, a lot of people must visit there during their lunch hour. I'm trying to think where is comparable in the UK, maybe Borough Market, although Borough Market is not a permanent fixture and is much smaller. We settled on Cajun for lunch. Pip was not that impressed so I tracked down a ham and cheese sandwich, they certainly didn't skimp on the ham!

After this we wandered up to Rittenhouse Square in an attempt to find the Ben and Jerrys we used to visit. Unfortunately it was no longer there but we did find a frozen yoghurt place so stopped there to cool down.

Later in the day, we'd arranged to meet a friend and her daughter who is the same age as Boo and who we used to hang-out with. First stop was Di Brunos, our favourite Deli. It took quite a while trying to decide what to have but we got there in the end. Picnic procured, we headed back to Rittenhouse Square.





It didn't take long for the girls to all warm up and spend the evening running around and chatting with the lady who was hoola hooping in the park. We finally dragged the girls away and tentatively arranged to meet again the next evening.

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