Ghosts

The crew of Horrible Histories takes over primetime TV in this new and slightly entertaining comedy. Unfortunately, although the idea is novel enough, it’s not saucy enough for its late-night audience. The plot also needs some work and wasn’t realistic enough. I found the romantic poet too annoying, the caveman clearly too out of context, and the captain too much in his character. The headless Tudor man could have also been used a bit more and was even absent midway through the series. I thought that the death of Pat was very comical, but it would have been great at some point to have seen how each of the other characters died and how they ended up in the house. It would have also been great to have had the plague victims out of the basement at some point and discover why they confined themselves to that spot for so long. A great start, but with a few more episodes and ideas this could have been a more stable series.

Holes by Louis Sachar

Holes by Louis Sachar
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

If you’re looking for a tale that teaches kids good morals and to stay in school, this is not for you. If you’re looking for a tale of endurance, then read on. Yelnats has the most incredible bad luck, yet he keeps on battling his demons to get himself through the day. Eventually, he wins the friendship of his fellow inmates and their loyalty, though they constantly live in fear of the counsellors and of the power that they have over them. It takes time for Stanley to warm to Zero’s uprising as a stand-alone rebel, and I chuckled when he tried to commandeer the truck. It’s a shame that the rest of the camp didn’t organise a manhunt or follow suit. to I love how Sachar creates his own Wild West legends and brings a sense of history into modern times to do justice to these outlaws. It certainly teaches perseverance.

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Mike the Tyke

How much can you trust your employees when it comes to tardiness? You want to trust them and let them do their job, yet at the same time you can’t help but wonder if there’s a hidden agenda behind it all. Are they really up all night boozing away? Or are the tall excuses that they give actually true? When it comes to family illnesses, you have to give them a bit of the benefit of the doubt. You don’t want to appear too inhumane, but at the same time you’ve got plans too. Of course, the easiest way is to try and help them. That way, everyone gets to keep their position and you don’t have to waste time hunting for a replacement. But at the same time, if you’ve got the ability to replace them then it could be a worrying time for them when you’re ready to make the switch.

Amusement in the Museums

We didn’t have the energy to do all the museums of the Smithsonian; so we just picked out one each. First up was the Natural History Museum. We’d been recommended to visit the butterfly exhibit, and as Americans do everything bigger we thought this would be a real treat. Unfortunately, we were to be disappointed. There was a surcharge to visit this section of the museum, and its exhibit was no larger than two classrooms back to back. After exiting past stuffed giraffes and dinosaur skeletons, our next museum was the National Museum of American History which was much more entertaining. After reuniting a member of our coach party with his wallet that was left at the security checkpoint, we saw the giant star-spangled banner in its entirety in a low-level light room.  I also enjoyed the transport section where I spotted George Clooney’s Batmobile and a steam train that was featured on Parks & Recreation, while Mum enjoyed the First Lady exhibition which finally managed to get a hold of Melania Trump’s inauguration dress.

A Bursting Breakfast #nuclearmermaid5

Jenny was now starting to grow on a regular basis. Each night she seemed to wake up a bit bigger than before. She was quickly beginning to run out of hiding places and it wouldn’t be long until the humans noticed her. As she grew, so did her appetite. It wasn’t long before she was starting to consume all the fish. Meanwhile, on the other side of the glass, more bipods began to appear, this time covered in some kind of soft, white substance. She hoped that they would figure out that it was her who was eating the fish, and that they would be able to source some more for her, although she was also worried that she would need to find a new environment to live in. Each night that she got bigger, she also got stronger, and she wondered how much effort it would take to remove the roof from her tank.

Monument Shopping

Our next stop was a walk across the National Mall, where we stopped off by the World War II memorial. I always liked looking at the date of this piece; since the Americans only entered the war two years after it started. Unfortunately the Washington Monument was closed to have a new elevator fitted so there was no chance of going up for the view. There were however; plenty of school parties as it was that time of year; it was also World Prayer Day and various religions were also organising their own campaigning activities. Luckily, we did manage to get to the Lincoln Memorial just before they were all getting set up for their photographs. Then it was off to Vietnam where I thought the statues of the troops in the fields resembled ghosts in the field. Unfortunately I only had a dollar in change to tip our tour guide as we disembarked outside the Smithsonian; which of course was scoffed at.

How to Stop with Cut Brakes

If your brakes have been cut, why are you driving? Any decent driver should be checking their brakes prior to setting off, even if you live on a hill. In any case, you’d still be able to pull the parking brake to stop you from moving. Sure, it might cause some damage to the car but at least it’ll stop it and save you. You can also try shifting down a gear or even into reverse. Failing that, use what’s around you. If you’ve got steering, try to turn the car so that you’re parallel to the hill. If you’re moving at a slow speed, aim for trees, raised kerbs or even other vehicles to bring you to a stop. If you’re in a rural area, aim for bushes or verges; though be aware that any slope that’s too steep could overturn you. If it really is a life-threatening situation, the property owner would rather deal with the person liable for the accident than wait for a coroner’s report to come through. Failing all that, if you can’t stop, don’t stop! Get out of there! Causing collateral damage is always preferable to a fatality.