Try Fry

The Compleat Gamester is a book about games and gaming that was written by Charles Cotton in 1674 which is right in the middle of the European Renaissance. It is also a book that has had quite a long life having been re-printed many times. It is still very readily available today and the last printing of it was in 1970. Many libraries carry copies of it and plenty of copies can be found at any online book store. The book gives us a wonderful insight into the leisure activities of the period and these games are divided into several general categories including card games, table games, board games, and outdoor games. The card games include Whisk and Cribbage. The board games include Chess and Backgammon. (Read the full post about ‘The Compleat Gamester: A Medieval Book Review’…)

Oh how I wish I would have experienced “summertime on the farm!” My grandmother grew up on a 42-acre orchard farm in Bucks County, Pennsylvania complete with chickens, cows and pigs. As young children my mother and aunt would spend a few weeks there during the summer in the care of my great grandmother. This took place in the early 1940s. With the antics of six uncles the little girls were kept squealing! The boys were great at teasing and game playing. Of course the two little girls loved every minute of it! The stories I have heard over the years makes me long to go back in time. (Read the full post about ‘Summertime Memories of My Grandmother’s Kitchen’…)

Tapestries are an old form of art, which is said to have been used ever since the Hellenistic period. As a textile art, the tapestry is created by weaving beautiful yarns, chenilles and various threads on a loom. Originally they were woven by hand but now may be reproduced using machines, which dramatically cuts down on the production time.

The art of making Tapestries reached a new level in Europe, with kings and noblemen commissioning artisans to make this textile art for them. Famous Tapestry weavings commissioned by noblemen and royalty include “The Hunt of the Unicorn”, “Lady and the Unicorn” and the Bayeux Tapestry. Today, these world-renowned classics are available through well-made replicas. (Read the full post about ‘Tapestries Make For Classic Wall Decor’…)

San Francisco, the food city, is known for its expensive food and wine. But it is not so as you can find several budget eateries that offer good food.

Canto do Brasil, as the name suggests, is a Brazilian restaurant that doles out the greatest hits of Brazilian cuisine. The waiters are friendly and will help you with their suggestions. On Saturday nights there are dancers to entertain you while you enjoy your food. Caiphirina, a Brazilian cocktail made with sugarcane liquor, or the soda spiked with guarana, an Amazonian stimulant similar to caffeine is a local favorite.

My Tofu House serves Korean cuisine and the specialty is Soon-Dubu Chigae- a spicy stew of soft tofu, vegetables, and a choice of meat or seafood. (Read the full post about ‘Top 10 Budget Eats in San Francisco’…)

When you are looking for something slightly antiquated but still fashionable, you’ll find that there is plenty of lawn furniture out there that has been inspired by the Victorians. This heavily wrought iron furniture is well known for its weight and its ornate quality, and you’ll find that a garden that has a real love of classic, well-groomed flower beds is the prefect setting for these pieces. To make the iron a bit more comfortable, you can always look around for some discreet cushions to throw around!

You may feel that you are more interested in taking a look at furniture that is closer to what you would see at a beach. This furniture, usually made out of plastic of vinyl has several advantages. (Read the full post about ‘Great Lawn Furniture’…)

Are you a DSLR Camera enthusiast? Do you possess a Lensbaby for your digital single lens reflex camera? No….read on McBeth!

Do you know what a Lensbaby is specially designed for? If not…read on. A Lensbaby is an innovative designed gadget used to facillitate a sweet spot of focus, which leaves the remainder of the scene, away from the centre of the image forming a mystical blurred effect.

Do you know what a Lensbaby looks like? No?…then read on. Crucially, a Lensbaby is a fifty millimetre lens, mounted to the end of what looks like a section of pool cleaner rubber hose pipe. The other end of the tube section has a mount used to firmly fix the Lensbaby to the camera lens mount. (Read the full post about ‘Lensbaby -For Digital Single Lens Reflex Camera Owners’…)

Your not under-cover ! Your just you, and you again each and every-day, and you don’t care at all ! The expense is great, and far below the hand-shake of just the old one-two, said to be, oh so true !

You reach out but not unto the skin. Frustration begins again and again, with each step entered in, “each new dance”, they’ve set-up for you. The table looks, oh so fine, and they await your words to get out of hand, and then the so called table of beauty will disappear with the new dance steps.

Yes, so on and on it goes, and where she will come to stop, no-one knows, it was spoken in so-so many a-ways ! The craze of the new dance is almost done, and then you step out and back a-way, only for her to have to begin again. (Read the full post about ‘Like A New Dance Craze !’…)

It used to be that autism was diagnosed as a general condition but over time there has been a lot of research and autism has been found to have a large spectrum, that it is not just one disorder, but a category that includes many disorders, among them is high functioning autism.

So, what is high functioning autism? This type of autism means a child only experiences mild forms of the condition. For instance, he may only have small social impairments. People who suffer from high functioning autism are able to communicate, and do other normal functions. Sometimes high function autism can even be diagnosed as Aspergers Syndrome or even at times as Pervasive Developmental Disorder. (Read the full post about ‘High Functioning Autism Is Workable’…)

Tom Georgiev shot me. Not literally, of course, yet, with a weapon as formidable as any gun: his camera. He was asked by The Sunday Times to take my portrait for an article about narcissism, one of my fields of interest.

The photographer’s worst enemy is his ego. A good photographer needs to learn to step aside, fade, as it were, and let the confluences of imagery and circumstance do the talking through his lens. It, therefore, impressed me that Tom was willing - eager, even - to suspend his preconceptions and consider some of my ideas for locations and staging.

Tom was wide open to me, as his subject, and to the world. (Read the full post about ‘The Eye and the Storm - The Photography of Tom Georgiev’…)

Enlarge Image Trashing the dress? Heard of this new concept? There is this new “tradition” some like to call it where Brides quite literally trash their dresses!! There are the flowers, the people, the places. However, recently one more piece has crept onto this list of Weddings “To Do’s”: What is the bride going to do with her dress after the ceremony? Preserve it, or give it away? Nope… neither! She is going to destroy it! The past year Wedding Professionals have seen an increase of a cheerfully damaging post-wedding ritual: the trashing of the Wedding dress. (Read the full post about ‘Trashing of the Wedding Dress…’…)