Blogenge Round 2: Which fictional characters I most resemble and why
Posted by: Lynsey Hunter on: August 20, 2009
Friends.
And by this I mean both the television series and those who belong to me. This one word should sum up this Blogenge entry for me, because anyone who knows me, who knows me really well (ie my friends) will immediately cry ‘Monica’ (from ‘Friends’) on my behalf in response to this week’s theme and title. I always wanted to be Phoebe – quirky, funny, own sense of style, but no. Not me. I’m apparently Monica. True, the mother hen element is strong in both of us, and yes, I suppose I can be bossy. If pushed, I will admit that there are times when I am competitive and strive to be the best (I said ’strive’, not ‘am’ before you start) and I suppose I can be obsessive about things with my lists and cross-referenced notebooks and folders (who doesn’t colour code these days eh?) So yes, I do resemble Monica. There, I have said it. Hello, my name is Lynsey, and I am like Monica.
However, to leave it at that would be the soft option, and I have never been one to settle for the easy life or quickest fix. And so I would like to share a few other thoughts with you; ideas so far untested on anyone else, to see if I can establish myself as something a little more than just Monica. Someone with a few more quirks, a little more rounded and made up of the traits of a few more people. So here goes.
We are big fans of ‘In the Night Garden’ in our house. We love all the characters, and though I am the size of one of the Pontipines, and used to have a blanket like Igglepiggle, I am closest in personality to Makka Pakka. Just like my desire to be Phoebe, I really fancy being like Upsy Daisy. She’s fun, bubbly and a great dancer, not to mention her awesome bed and gorgeous pink attire. But no. Not Upsy Daisy, not me: I’m much more of a Makka-alike. However, this is great in my opinion, as the big MP is Sam’s favourite, and is a hero of all the Hunters. I don’t have rocks or stones, and the last time I looked in the mirror, I didn’t have Princess Leia-like buns for ears, but I do like to clean, and I am a little obsessive just like Makka Pakka. I’m also totally methodical and governed by routine and…oh. Monica likes to clean. Monica is obsessive. And methodical. And governed by routine…
OK, let’s try another one.
Mokey. From The Fraggles. Yes, there you go. Mokey. Now, you may need a bit of a reminder about Mokey. She was Red’s best friend. Yet again, although I wanted to be like Red, I was much more like Mokey. She was one of the five main Fraggles, and had purple skin and turquoisey-grey hair. I like to think that it is my creative, dreamy side that makes me very Mokey-ish. (Monica? Dreamy? No way – hurray!) I write (though not as well or often as I’d like, hence the Blogenge) and Mokey used to write poems and stories and things. She likes dreaming, hoping and is a really positive spirit, and I hope that people would agree that I’m usually a ‘glass half full’ person, even when this is not necessarily realistic! Most of all, Mokey is a good friend to others, even to those who are supposedly her enemies, like the Gorgs, and I would like to think that my friends would count me as someone they could turn to and rely on… (don’t feel obliged to agree, obviously, but remember that I will cast my wrath on you forever should you decided not to!) And most of all, Mokey liked to organise and mother the other Fraggles, a bit like me, and also like…oh no…Monica!
I’ve tried my best. I’ve looked at many more fictional characters, and just can’t find any that I resemble. I’m nothing like She-Ra, and my likeness to Dangermouse is non-existent. Peggy Mitchell is too ballsy and good at confrontation, which I am most definitely not, and Jack Bauer mumbles too much. Jed Bartlett is too clever (I’m a grafter but my memory is rubbish) and Lisa Simpson is better on her saxophone than I am on mine (sorry Sophie). I’ve looked at ‘Grey’s Anatomy’, and don’t want to start finding similarities between me and Meredith or Christina (though there are definitely hints of both) and there are two good reasons why I don’t come close to Jessica Rabbit…
So there you have it. What can I say? It appears that ‘fictional characters’ in the plural may not be necessary. Singular all the way. Monica Geller it is. And though I wanted to be Phoebe, or Upsy Daisy, or Red to start with, I’ll take my bits of Makka Pakka and Mokey, and my large piece of Monica (how alike do all these names sound!!!), and I’ll be happy with who I am. Cos I’m me. And I’m alright. For now anyway!
Now, does anyone know if ‘Friends’ has one of those disclaimers about ‘These characters are not based on any real people’ cos I think I might have a legal case against them…
The News
Posted by: Lynsey Hunter on: August 20, 2009
As it’s the summer holidays (woo hoo!) I have actually had five minutes to read the paper. It has come to my attention that the same news seems to be occurring day after day, and that actually, there is no real need to purchase any form of newspaper or even watch GMTV (especially as Ben seems to be on his holidays).
Instead, I can tell you what will be in the news every day, and this has been extensively tested over the past ten days.
1. Jordan has been nasty to someone, somewhere, usually just before or after some form of mini break with a cage fighter.
2. Kerry Katona is in some form of trouble.
3. The war in Afghanistan is mostly bad.
4. School standards are slipping in some subject, at some stage, and all exams, at whatever level, have been dumbed down.
5. There is a new superfood.
6. The superfood we found last week has now been declared bad for your health.
7. Swine Flu is not as bad as was thought but will be worse in Autumn.
8. MPs are still in trouble over something.
So there you have it. I’ve just saved you at least ten minutes a day, which you can now put towards something far more useful. No thanks necessary.
Blogenge Round 2 Announced
Posted by: Lynsey Hunter on: August 20, 2009
The Geeky One has declared Round 2 of The Blogenge ‘open’, with the topic this time being ‘Fictional characters I most resemble and why’. Deadline is 26th August. Let me know if you want to take part! It would be great to get even more of you involved (just for fun, remember!) Remember though, if you join in, you need to think of 5 + 1 random topics for us all to blog about which we’ll then add to our list – the more bizarre the better really! Good luck!
Five Films That Everyone Should See
Posted by: Lynsey Hunter on: August 19, 2009
When I first read this title that My Geeky Friend came up with for the first part of the Blogging Challenge (Andy – should that be the ‘Challog’ or ‘Blogenge’ as the follow up to our previous ’Bloggertition’?) I thought that this would be an easy one to rattle off without really thinking. I love films in a similar way to music and books, and so decided that my only difficulty would be narrowing my choice down to five from my many favourites.
Then I thought about it a bit more.
And I realised that it wasn’t to be about my favourite films necessarily, but films I think people should see. And that means having valid reasons why they should; reasons that have a bit more substance than ‘Cos he’s gorgeous’ or ‘Cos I like it’. And that required further thought. And this is why I started this on the 14th, and am only just finishing it today, with only hours until the deadline.
Before I give you my five, I want to mention five that so nearly made it, just because I can. I’ll call this list ‘Five Films That Everyone Should Now See Providing They’ve Already Seen The Five Films That Everyone Should See’. ’The Green Mile’ needs a mention as it is an awesome film, but like so many adaptations, even ones as good as this, I actually preferred the book. That tells you how good the book is, and that’s without special effects. So that would come in my list of ‘Books Everyone Should Read’ which I am sure will appear in the Blogenge at some stage! Also high on my ’Nearly Made Its’ come ‘Annie’ for pure musical joy and rapture (no comments from you, Mush – I know West Side Story is far superior,blah blah blah…), and for sheer indulgence, humour and Disney genius, ’Toy Story’. The other two that feature on the ‘almost made it’ sheet are ’Beaches’ which I rate higher than ‘Dirty Dancing’ in terms of chick flick (although Dirty Dancing would probably be number 11 on my ever increasing list of films – come on, I am female, and nobody puts me in a corner) and ’The Shawshank Redemption’, which needs no explanation. Exceptional film.
Finally then, my list of five: The Five Films That Everyone Should See. Here goes.
1. ‘Leon’ Everyone should see this because of the characters and the way they bring this unconventional love story to life. All of them. Totally absorbing. Gary Oldman is the most believable and scary psychopath in film history, and the whole thing goes way beyond being an action film to become something much deeper and more compelling. I didn’t think I was going to like it and thought it was going to be very uncomfortable to watch. I loved it.
2. ‘Moulin Rouge’ A superbly colourful story of love and passion, with a brilliant, and very clever, soundtrack. It’s glamorous, witty and is an orginial twist on ’musicals’. This is one of my favourite films, but this is not the reason why I think you should see it. You should see it just so you have an opinion on it. It’s a film that you will either love or hate, but either way, it has to be experienced. Everyone should see a Baz Lurhman film; the man is a genius. For me, this is the one that everyone should see. (And obviously, Ewan McGregor pleases the ladies cos he’s gorgeous, and Nicole Kidman pleases the gents – what’s not to like!?)
3. ‘Dead Poets’ Society’ You probably guessed that this would be in my list! Inspirational for me, and incredibly thought provoking. Sometimes you just need a film to be deeper than two hours of superficial box office trash and actually challenge what you think or what you do. I think this does.
4. ‘The Sting’ This is one of the most surprising films I’ve seen. I loved it even though I thought I would hate it. Paul Newman and Robert Redford are great in it, and again, as with ‘Moulin Rouge’, the soundtrack is brilliant: Joplin works a treat in anything, but particularly this. It’s the style of this that I love. The mix of comedy, heist and drama works really well, and this led to the film getting lots of Oscars. This is a film that, for once, lives up to the hype it has had, and this is the reason everyone should see it.
5. ’The Shawshank Redemption’ I’m sorry. I just couldn’t leave it out of the top 5. I tried really hard, but in the end, I couldn’t do it. It’s just too good.
So there you have it. Five Films That Everyone Should See (with just a hint of Five Films That Lynsey Loves, and a smidge of ‘cos he’s gorgeous’ courtesy of Mr McGregor!) Mission accomplished.
Your Mission (should you choose to accept it…)
Posted by: Lynsey Hunter on: August 12, 2009
So me and The Geeky Friend have decided that we have both been totally rubbish at blogging recently. His problem has been the feeling of needing to delete anything that he has written, whereas I, once again, have been struck down by a dumbfounding lack of inspiration about what to write (obviously not including my increasingly obsessive need to shout and rant about various news stories). You may remember me struggling with this earlier in the blog, and I was advised by a very wise woman to try and do some daily writing exercises to just get in the habit of writing whatever my state of mind. As I am such a good girl, I have obviously done this religiously, and although incredibly painful at times, and not always resulting in anything near my best quality work, it has certainly got me putting pen to paper which was the original battle. This success, however, has not transferred to my blog, and when I have pondered on the differences between my blog and my lovely pile of notebooks, I can only conclude that the public element of this blog is what makes me a little more reluctant to commit to actually putting things down on paper, as it were, for fear of what people might think. My Geeky Friend hits delete, I am afraid to write (because all my lovely friends are super intelligent and therefore I worry that the standard will not be good enough!!!)
So we have decided to do a Blogging Challenge. We have created a list of topics to write about (some are way more random than others…) so that we can’t have the ‘I don’t know what to write about’ moment, or at least, can’t have that as the over-riding reason not to blog. Over the next few weeks, we will both be blogging about these topics to see what effect that has on both the habit and ease of writing, and on the quality of the writing.
The first topic on the list is ‘Five Films Everyone Should See’ and we’re going to work to a deadline of a week to start with, so that takes us to 19th August. So, feel free to join us and blog on this too or comment on what we have written (when we HAVE written – see, positive thinking already!)
Let’s see what happens. I’m sure it will be fun. I’m sure it won’t turn competitive. I’m sure I won’t be suggesting you use the link to get to The Geeky One’s website and comment on whose work is best. Not at all. I’m sure we will both stick to this writing resolution. I’m sure we won’t forget the topics or lose the list. I’m not sure this will stop my urge to rant about the news. ..
A Wonderful Evening
Posted by: Lynsey Hunter on: July 22, 2009
I just had my first proper night out since Sam was born. I had wine. And three courses. It was a school night. Mum and Auntie Jingle babysat. I went out with four of my most fabulous friends. There was lots of excitement. And food. And wine. And conversation (mostly inappropriate, DM!) The only thing that would have made it any better would have been the hubby being there. But it was a wonderful evening. Simple food, drink and chat. Nothing fancy or complicated or hardcore. And I loved it.
Give them a break
Posted by: Lynsey Hunter on: July 16, 2009
I went to a conference today, and if the truth be known, because it’s so late in the academic year and there’s so much to do at school before we break up, I confess that I did not pay attention to the extent I could have (don’t tell anyone). One thing I did hear, however, amidst all my frantic writing (not notes on what was being said, but items being added to my ‘to do’ list) was something I just wanted to reiterate on here. I’m not sure why I feel I should, but I do, so there! What he said was in relation to the way in which the youth of the country are being damned and cast aside as nothing more than a generation of gun toting, knife wielding, hoodie wearing hoodlums, when in fact the majority are nothing of the sort. This was nothing new to me, and as a belief, is indeed something I am a huge subscriber to. What made me smile in an ironic, ‘You’re totally right’ kind of way, was when he asked why the adult population believe that it is the children and youth of today who are responsible for the breakdown of society, when the three major disasters faced by us today (economic in the form of recession, religious in the form of modern day warfare and environmental in the guise of global warming) have all actually been caused by our generation and that of our parents. It is in fact our children and teenagers who will have to try and sort out the messes we have made, and solve the crises that the world is currently facing. Best we give them a break then.
I can see the garden!!!
Posted by: Lynsey Hunter on: June 30, 2009
Now those of you who have been to ‘Chez Hunter’ in recent months will have noticed that our garden was beginning to resemble the deepest and darkest of all the jungles. Seriously, the grass was chest height and the tiers which split the grass area and the patio directly outside our french doors were totally overgrown. We are so lucky to have the space that we have in the garden, and its potential is vast, but it has become such a headache, danger and nightmare over the past year. Having decided that enough was enough, and prompted by the warm weather, we decided to take the plunge, and admit that we just weren’t going to get anything done, and consequently, I contacted two guys who had recently done some work for some friends of ours. They came today. And oh my goodness! I got home from work and was so overjoyed with what they had accomplished in just one day! Everything has been cut, cleared and cleaned, and we are now left with a usable (if a little bare!) space that is ready to be a blank canvas for us to transform. They have become my two new heroes! It was such a brilliant end to the day, and has really put a smile on my face as it has made me feel like a huge weight has been lifted, which may sound dramatic, but you all know what it’s like when something is hanging over you. So now all we need is a plan of what to do next! It’s definitely the minimal look at the moment, and ready for a real splurge of planting activity. Still, it’s a great starting point, and is yet another project – woo hoo!!! I feel another list coming on… I will keep you updated as to how Project Planting develops.
I’ve got the blog on!
Posted by: Lynsey Hunter on: June 6, 2009
I have been absolutely rubbish at blogging. Totally and utterly rubbish. No entries for ages, and no discipline in my writing. So I’ve decided to be focussed tonight, and write something. And we had an INSET day on writing this week at school, so I’m expecting great new depth and quality to my work. So here I am. Just one problem. I haven’t got a clue what to blog about. No news, no amusing anecdotes, not a thing will come. I have Blogger’s Block! Agh! It’s the same with all my writing at the moment (or lack of writing, I should say). Nothing. Zero. Zilch. Anyone got any tips?
Am I heartless?
Posted by: Lynsey Hunter on: April 23, 2009
OK so here’s my quandry. I think I may be heartless, and I’d like to know what you think. So I’m sitting here on my sofa having finally got Sam in his cot (still waking up lots in the nights for feeding…long story which most of you will be living daily with me anyway!). Anyway, it’s 8pm, after a long day at work, and also following the arrival of the gas men to knock half a house wall away to move the gas meter (not at our request, I hasten to ask), and I’m daring to sit down and breathe, get ready to eat and have a few minutes down time before going to bed. Suddenly, there’s a knock at the door, and I open it (in a slight frenzy in case Babylicious decides to wake up at the noise) to find a man in a bright t shirt advertising a charity (a well known animal charity) standing there smiling. It transpires that he is knocking door to door to try and get people to commit to giving monthly amounts by direct debit. Now, as you may know, I’m a big supporter (obviously not in height) of several charities, and I’d like to think I’m a fairly decent, kind and compassionate person, who is not selfish and contributes to the greater good. At least, that’s what I’ve always thought about myself. However, I cannot lie. I was cross. Quite cross indeed. And I’m now left wondering what it was that made me so cross about this. Was it the disturbance? Was it the feeling that my privacy had been invaded? Was it the feeling of not being able to say no (although that can’t have been it, because I did say no) or was it something else? Supporting charities is essential in my mind, but surely it is personal choice about how, when and who to do this for? Or am I just becoming grumpy? And heartless? What do you think?
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