h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hello

It has been a lovely day here, even the breeze is warm. There was a beautiful butterfly in the garden , I din't get to admire much though as I was to busy squealing at a naughty kitten who had also spotted it. The made its escape though.

Our gardening plans are coming along.

I'm chuffed that I have been able to make a contribution to , one of my life time goals done

Hd has suggested an collabrative entry for the guide, ok, that is terrifying but I would like to do one and liquors are right up my alley. So I am going to look into that

I think I can probably claim to be the biggest floozy in PR, that is an achievement given that 2legs was in the same thread. Hopefully Dmitri is now fully recovered for my, er, outurst of affection yesterday

All in all I'm feeling good right now and it is great

How is everyone else?

Glad you're well, Peanut.

It was a pleasant day here yesterday - at last. We walked from Cuckmere Haven, where we saw a Little Egret and a Redshank as well as Canada Geese and swans. (Do you get Little Egrets where you are? My book says they don't occur in Britain, but nobody told the egrets.) We climbed the cliff and walked three of the Seven Sisters before turning inland and crossing Friston Forest. I saw small tortoiseshell and brimstone butterflies.

I ached all over afterwards but, when we got back home, my magnolia was in full flower. I can swear the buds were still closed in the morning.

That sounds lovely, you two.

What is a magnolia in the UK, MVP? Is it a large tree with a peony-like flower? That's what our magnolias are like.

Thanks mvp

I expect those magnolia flowers were just have a Sunday lie in. They are beautiful trees.

Sounds like a lovely walk, even though you ached at the end of it. I don't think I have seen Little Egrets in my neck of the woods, but have seen them in Cornwall, no-one told them they weren't supposed to be there either

Perhaps it is one of those benefits of Climate Change, I'm sure there are some

I think there are lots of different magnolias, Dmitri.

Mine is a small one with white flowers - magnolia stellata http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnolia_stellata

Meanwhile I've posted a poem in response to Cactuscafe's experience of seeing herself as a girl - A8779132

Oh, what a pretty flower.

Oh, yes, and I'm stealing that poem, MVP. Already half stolen, just need a picture.

Good evening, my little magnolia blossoms. .

Your writings make me feel warm and springlike. I wore my shorts on the bike today! Yay!! People round here say that once they see me in my shorts, that's a sign of Spring. . I wear my shorts from April till October. They never comment on my purple knees. , but the air is now warm, so happy.

The biggest floozy in PR? . I think you are noble, Peanut, to take on this challenge, it is a challenge to put writing out there, and you are noble. I called you noble twice. You are noble noble.

I am hopeless at putting writing out there, even though I want to contribute. It helps me to collaborate. I need help, even more help than I once did. . I had a breakthrough just now with my borderlines. I was on about county borders, over on the Ed's thread. .



Ah yes, the magnolia, I saw them today in the gardens near us. Magnolia fills me with so much wonder, sometimes I almost faint.

I can't believe how fast the springtime buds open. There's this horse chestnut tree near where we go to the swimming pool. When we went past yesterday there were just buds, when we came back a while later there were leaves popping out.

OK now to check poetlady's latest work! How do I make that A number go blue in Brunel? Wait I'll go to Pliny. Oh no! The mice! the mice!

I want to start a story, first line is 'it all began with nothing', but that's for later.

Mommeee

I can't open mvp's A number in Brunel or Pliny, what do I do?

Is this the mouse's revenge? .

Try this one: A87791232

Spring. Pah! Don't talk to me about spring.

Nobody believes us. The pollen is so thick, I have to run the windscreen wipers, front and back, for a couple of minutes before going anywhere. Becase I cannot SEE through the ing pollen.

No wonder we're choking. The world is full of yellow automobiles.

Hah! Thankyouverymuch my friend.

It must be awful, the pollen allergy. I really feel for you. A terrible affliction, in fact, and at such a lovely time of year.

I have to say though, that's the start to a story, 'No wonder we're choking. The world is full of yellow automobiles'.


Could you stop being such a writer, please? haha. Now I have to catch up. . No! Not really, don't ever stop being such a writer.

OK off to check poetlady.

Cor honestly, you guys.

Oh holy poets of the sainted world, she's done it again....

..I want to say don’t be a tree
difficult to transplant – open
your leaves to a different sun.
But the girl stands in the familiar room
looking at the tree.....



You've done it again, mvp, brought the word, the expression, to that place in me where language is still emerging from dust and fragile trust, thankyou poetlady you are amazing.

Lovely poem mvp, I love it when you take a conversation away and make it into poetry. You are all very gifted. I treasure this thread and all that comes of it.

Me, I'm a noble noble floozy I like that too.

Well the noble noble bit is really not true, it is going to be a basic practical entry and I have HD to hold hands with, that makes me braver.

Crossing county borders, we always give a cheer, either closer to home or where we are visiting. I think it was on Exmoor we stopped and there is a sign saying welcome to Devon and a gap then the one saying Welcome to Somerset and we said were in No Man's Land. Hiccup wasn't sure of that and prefered No Where Land, so we pretended we were in No Where Land

We were looking out of for fires as they had recently burnt, horrible smell, charred ground. We found a burnt but preserved lizard, its skin irridescent, burnt but beautiful and sad.

We took it home and put it on the window sill, where it stayed for ages, until a friend decided to do my washing up and clean down the window sill, I think the little dead lizard freaked her out and she threw it away

I was sad it had such undignified ending and a bit narked because I would have moved it if only she said.

Wow. What a story. County borders must be interesting there. Not like here, where it just says 'Entering Orange County'.

When we were kids, we'd be driving through Kentucky, and we knew we were getting close to Tennessee because of all the fireworks signs.

'Injun Joe's - best fireworks, see the bear'

'Crazy Larry's - cherry bombs, live alligators!' etc.

County border must be interesting here, he says and then mentions 'Crazy Larry's - cherry bombs, live alligators!

We sort of felt they were ruining our native state, though. It was what we called 'tacky'.

Come to think of it, I used to do a job where we reviewed parish boundaries -parishes, in this case being the smallest unit of local government and nothing to do with the church.

You'd be surprised how hot under the collar people got about parish boundaries.

The English parish is a strange thing. Some of them go back into the mists of time while others are quite recent. They have good names too - there was a place called Great Snoring, which had a parish council.

Great name.

Near where I live there is a 'Bridgwater without' I always wonder without what?

Given their tendancy to vote Tory and in absense of an alternative explaination, I have added a number of my own suggestions

No Where Land, Orange County, Great Snoring. .

Morning all, travellers of the borderlines. . These accounts are very inspiring. .

I crossed some strange borderlines in my dreams last night, not sure what parish I was in. .

I think DG's tales of the Southern States affected me. One part of the dream I was in a dark green canvas marquee watching a black and white flickering TV screen with this documentary about the history of the Southern States, except it was a very strange documentary. At one point there was a newborn mythological creature staring at me.

I think the English parish boundary is the source of many a dispute, especially if it runs through someone's garden, so that the orchard is in the Next Parish. One must therefore venture into the Next Parish to pick apples , foreign apples. . Not sure if that happens really. .

I do love to cross a county border. There's a game I do which is quite personal really, because it's like I'm about eight, but the hubby loves it, and always says if he lost me he could never cross a county border again, be would be so sad.

So we are leaving Devon, and the sign that says Dorset is about fifty yards ahead. As we approach it I go 'car still in Devon, car still in Devon'. Then, as we pass the sign, I go 'front of the car in Dorset back of the car still in Devon'. Then when we are past it, I go 'front of the car in Dorset, back of the car in Dorset.

I do it all over again crossing into Hampshire, West Sussex, East Sussex.

And when we cross from Devon into Somerest I am unbearable because I go 'front of the car in the same county as Glastonbury that is so amaaaazing, back of the car isn't there yet except it is now because it took me so long to say that now all the car is in Somerset, and we're going to Glastonbury yessssss I can feel the vibes already. .

I am a very intelligent being.



(these aren't my official borderline writings).

I am fascinated by the way the landscape changes though, after crossing a county border. Devon landscape blends into the Somerset levels, Dorset hills very different to Devon hills, and then there's Sussex when you first see the South Downs, oh yes, one day I will write this poetically ...

Speaking of games, you have to report on your experiences playing the h2g2 travel board game: A87790710