So. Tired.

[lonelybrit]

So you know how yesterday there was flash flooding, pictures of cars ploughing through water, trains cancelled, motorways blocked, etc etc.

Poor bloblet (aka tiddliest spawn) - he set off on a train journey that should have taken three hours and instead took six and a half.

I left work at 4.30 and finally crawled into the front garden of home at midnight. Velma (my car, yes I've named it, shuttup) looked at one point like she might overheat until I discovered the trick of turning on the heaters full whack, in the end she excelled herself, behaving better than shinier and younger cars around her. We got caught in the early queues of the A34 just before Newbury, attempted to cut cross-country only to discover that cross-country was underwater, so eventually rejoined the A34 where at least there were people around you should anything happen. The queue was still there by the time we hit the turn-off to Oxford. Dude.

For the record, if you need to keep yourself awake and perky, make sure you have tea and muffins before driving, have the heaters blasting onto your feet, and continue to sing loudly, badly and animatedly along to every song the MP3 plays. Yes, you look like a twit and the odd driver may stare, but unlike the blue car to the right you will not fall asleep at the wheel and almost crash into the central barrier.

On the plus side, it did mean that unintentionally me and the mate found ourselves able to saunter along to the midnight opening of Waterstones. The queue at 1am was still an hour long, but we chatted with the mass of other geeklets and nerds, fended off the Borders/WHSmith staff attempting to coax us away to their quieter stores with promises of vouchers and owls, and eventually left triumphant with our copy of HP and the Deathly Hallows.

No, I haven't read it yet. Spoil me in any way whatsoever and they will hear your screams in Utopia.

Comments

[intrastellar.livejournal.com]

The Waterstones line in the town where we picked up our copy was hundreds of metres long. We got ours from WHSmith and were heading back to the car by twenty past twelve. Someone in the Waterstones queue actually offered Mum £50 to give them the book (Mum immediately regretted only buying one, as we could apparently have made a mint that way)!

[lonelybrit]

Hehe, yep, there was definitely profits to be made that night if you had the forsight to plan something :)

I think basically the entire queue had preordered from Waterstones as at the time it was the cheapest deal around, so we could only look forlornly at the sales reps as they told us the wondrous tales of empty stores and three-second long queues. Though on the plus side a wiley kabab van driver spotted the queue going around the block and promptly parked right next to us. He did a roaring trade that night!

[eloise-bright.livejournal.com]

Baby, what the hell is the weather doing over there? It's like the apocalypse, only with less fire, and more rain.

To stay awake in a warm car, I recommend rolling down the windows and driving in bare feet. Which is illegal, but only if you get caught. The bare feet bit - not the rolling down the windows bit which is of course perfectly legal.

HP. We queued from 9.45pm with our girls and a friend of oldest girl. Got our books and a certificate for being in the first 100. *headdesk* I shall read it when I get around to reading the Prince once - you know, number 6. I think someone dies in it, probably. So my girlie tells me.

I'm feeling knackered, as we spent the day at the local amusement seaside place. The Waltzer and the Spinner and so on. I think they should just call these things the Vomiter, and the Migraine Inducer.

The girlies loved them, of course.

I send my sympathies re the weather. Specially as we shall be arriving in Kent in less than a fortnight. I do not want to spend my holiday in a flood.

[lonelybrit]

The weather is laughing at us, and particularly me and the Bloblet, as the moment we left West Sussex they ahd nothing but continual sunshine, whilst we followed the deluge up north. Good times. :)

A certificate eh? Do you get to frame it and put it on the wall somewhere, I did feel all of us queuers deserved at least a badge to prove that We Had Been There!

I think you'll like the last book, there's a lovely side focus on family angst that I think will be right up your street =)

Hope the migraine didn't stick around too long! The things one does for love, polish that halo *petpet*

I think it's drying up a bit now, so hopefully when you get here the sun and cream teas will be back on the menu. And let me know if you go near London or Portsmouth on your travels!

*hugs*

[vic-amy-z.livejournal.com]

No, I haven't read it yet. Spoil me in any way whatsoever and they will hear your screams in Utopia.

So you don't want to know about Snape and Harry's committment ceremony, then...? Hee! I've finished mine, having also done the midnight queue thing. Man, I totally underestimated how many other sad fuckers people would be there too! A unique experience though.

Have you seen that those who braved the floods to get to JM's Cardiff gig also got GDL singing Roadhouse Blues? I have no words to describe the jealousy... [seethes]

[lonelybrit]

The reaction of me and the mate as we rounded the corner, the clock tower striking 1am, and we beheld the massive four people wide queue going round the block was 'Oh. My. GOD.' We repeatedly exlaimed, 'I can't believe it' throughout, but yes, it was a unique experience. 1.30am Broad Street, Oxford, and it was as lively as a normal day, people chatting and eating takeaway, some lads playing five-a-side football in the middle of the road, and the occasional chap wandering past in pirate costume with socks stuffed down the front of his rather fitting trousers.

Good times =)

AND WHAT?!! *flails* He sings?! Was it just GDL who went along, or were there sightings of any other members of cast? More to the point, can the lad actually sing or is this a case of I just adore him for trying? ;)

In the meantime, oh, imagine the pretty on just one stage. It's not fair...

[vic-amy-z.livejournal.com]

Apparently Eve was there too, but JB was filming elsewhere.

And can he sing? Holy fuck!! I expected that, if he could sing at all, then he would sound a bit like a choir boy - pleasant tenor, best suited to MOR standards. I did NOT expect a deep, gravelly, powerful and sexy-as-fuck rock voice... There may have been panting!

The full version is now up on YouTube here and here. Go. Drool. Repeatedly.

[lonelybrit]

*watches clips*

Dude...

The voice. So utterly manly and rough and not at all what I was expecting *wibbles* It's even more disconcerting the way he does that innocent wee smile at the end, talk about butter wouldn't melt in his mouth =)

[lillianmorgan.livejournal.com]

Sounds like a nightmare! Glad to hear you made it back all in one piece - and Velma too :)
Hope you enjoyed your weekend of HP reading :)

[lonelybrit]

*loves your icon* Ah, I am ready for these boys to make a return with some new songs - the proviso being of course that the new songs are good :)

Yep, despite the sogginess throughout, the weekend was overall very good if a little sleep-deprived. The nerdlet in me is very happy at the way things have panned out!

[lillianmorgan.livejournal.com]

Heeee! This icon is made by loserpunkchick. I love yours too. Cheekbones to die for ;)
FF seem to have been quite quiet of late haven't they? Mind you, that's not such a bad thing if they produce something good in due course...
Glad to hear your weekend was a good one :)

[lonelybrit]

They have been quiet, though there was a brief, tiny flurry of activity with them doing a cover and the Hallem Dandelion thing. Two gigs and then they were back to silence. To be fair, they were on tour pretty much on tour non-stop for three years; just so long as the next album is like the past two, I'll forgive them the well-earned, very long recovery period =)