Bitus et Bobus

Good old Fiona on GMTV pushing her life and views into a discussion about role-models for children, and once more complaining about this project she has to do on the Tudors prompting the almost unheard comment from Andrew Castle to "Just get on with it"; right-on Andrew I think we've heard enough from her about the subject.

A couple of nice meals out in a row with the Bratii attending the latter. Very good behaviour with them only managing to knock over two glasses. Admittedly the table was a bit overcrowded - glass for white, glass for red, glass for water; knives, forks, spoons; side-plates for bread; serving plates with butter, apple sauce, and cranberry sauce; and a big Christmas decoration in the middle. For a small oval table seating eight it was a little cramped.

The crackers produced two two-part spinning tops (a cone and a circular top with petal-like semi-circles around it) for each of the Brats who soon found that the small silver painted seeds that fell off the table decoration would neatly be contained there-in.

So Minor had an unadulterated top whereas Major loaded his and set them a-spinning. At which point I grabbed them off the table, made a show of shaking them before returning them to their rightful owners. More spinning, more grabbing though this time I kept them tightly closed in my unmoving fists, staring deeply at them before declaring which was which. "How do you know?" they asked, "I have powers" I reminded them.

Repeat performances with a 100% success rate, they would spin I'd grab them, or I'd wait until they stopped before simply pointing out their owners. Major started studying the two with great care, while I held my breath, nope no difference he declared

Another repeat performances with anotehr 100% success rate, Major declares that I'm cheating. I point out you can't say that unless you know how I'm cheating; not quite correct, but I'm proud that neither even considered the 'I have powers' as true. Their father who's been following this reaches for both tops and studies them.

"Ah see the label on this one is slightly off compared to this one, it's got a tiny wrinkle in it" he proclaimed
"Has it?" I asked "I hadn't noticed that"
"Oh" he said "Then I suppose it's the pencil mark there"
Big smile from me.
"What!" exclaimed Major, "Lemme see"
"When they came out of the cracker you took your pencil and scored a line on that one there [between the main circle and one of the petals]" I said.
"You cheat!"
"Hey I didn't mark it"
"But you had your hands closed?"
Yup I did, but one of the petals was visible sticking out from my beneath the knuckle of my first finger. I then covered this with my thumb and gently rotated the top in each hand around until I saw the mark. One demonstration later left Minor with an open amazed mouth and Major still calling me a cheat.

Ah good fun.


In a kind-off related note (as the Bratii were going to inherit my PS2) I note that "Jak and Daxter" doesn't play at all on my PS3 and that my old copy of Half-Life that my PS2 wouldn't play now does on my PS3. This suggests my PS2 is failing, which doesn't come as too great a shock what with it being a first-generation version. Anyway the new version on Amazon is about £80 so they're looking at that and I'll throw them a couple of old games I don't play, a second controller and a memory card to get them started. All-in-all though I'm glad I picked up a b/c version of the PS3 while they were still around. Still righteously miffed at the shafting Europe got though.