Better Late Than Never

That could have been Claire Bloom's character's motto. It should have been "Better Never".


Bobby the Ballerina.


"'Scuse me, what did you call me?"


No, there are far more than TEN things we love about you!


"Is this one of them?" Oh, yes!


"My lips are another?" You'd better believe it.


"How about this thumb?" And the other one.


"Not my tongue, surely?" It's pretty near the top of the list.


"My eyes? My stubble? My nose? My shoulders?"


"What about my back?" All those things and more, sweetheart.


Don't look so puzzled. You must have guessed by now.


Actually, yes, the middle finger counts all by itself.



And let us not forget the little dance.

Bobby gave it up

But did VINCENT ever play?

I wish he'd use those fingers to fiddle with me...


...or poke that long one somewhere nice :)


You don't look too happy with that suggestion, Bobby.


Are you offering me that bit of neck to kiss?


This is a very inviting pose.


Five reasons for loving you, darling? Oh, much more than five.


This is amazing acting - that nasty coach making Bobby relive his hurt.


I'm first in the queue to kiss that red nose.


You're pointing to the wrong place, sweetheart.


"What do I think? I think I'll take you one at a time."


"Cripes, I didn't know there were that many of you!"


Hands, knees and yummy baby.


Laughing Bobby, happy Vixens.


Oooh, be stern with me!

Day 2

It was a glorious day, warm and sunny. We were late starting out, because the coach driver who was scheduled to do the job phoned in sick. The replacement driver was great. He immediately rethought the route, because there had been a big accident which was creating havoc on most of the roads we would have taken to get out of London.

First stop was Bedgebury Pinetum. After a cup of coffee and a cake a bunch of us went up to the archery site. There were too many of us, so some of us went for a walk first.

This is one of several water features on the site.


Jackie and Katie enjoying the view.

I managed to take a couple of tumbles (I swear I was pushed, though no-one admitted being near me), and we released a lot of our pent up tension with much cussing. You never heard "fuck" and "bitch" used so many times in a couple of hours. No offence meant and none taken.

We happened across part of the "Go Ape" course. This is Daniela being very brave.

We got back to the archery activity a bit late, so we didn't have as many goes as we would have liked. But Sheila made the most of tutor Steve's attentions.

We were delayed going for lunch at Finchcocks because Carlos "got lost" (ie. wandered off as usual on the phone). We were really ready for our meal by 2.30! The food was delicious, plentiful and very filling. Then some people spent time in the garden, while others went into the museum.

These are a couple of genuine Georgian outfits dating from the second half of the 18th Century.


Some instruments are so much more than just something to play music on.


This harpsichord sounds gorgeous and looks sumptuous.

Then I found these Virginals.

Given the maker's name, I don't think Virginals would be an appropriate name for long!

Who'da thunk it?

FPS = Fabulous, Perfect, Sexy

"Maybe I could push Bishop off that balcony..."


"Yay, here goes."


We're not the only ones who can't take our eyes off him.


Spoilt for choice. Shall I kiss the nose, the lips or the wrist?


"Can I borrow your Ferrari? The Vixens love it."


"Yes, you may."OK, Vixens, what was the question I asked him?


Fabulous.


Perfect.


Sexy.


Yearning.


Man of action.


Purrrrrrrrrrrfect.

Any selection from this episode would not be complete without the Glorious Goren Groin in the Grey Suit.

Day 1

Today's training had two alternating speakers. The first was a former athlete from The Bronx who has chosen to settle in the UK because he's unlikely to get shot if he's ever stopped by police, as ours are not armed. (Try telling that to Jean Charles de Menezes' parents.) His name was Jim Robison - though as we did not see it written down, that may be a mis-spelling. He talked about how to encourage self-discipline on kids, which was fine, and he was very funny, but his talk was really more designed for people who teach kids with behavioural difficulties.

The other speaker was Dr Andrew Curran. He is a paediatric neurosurgeon. He took us through the development of the brain in general, and with reference to Autism in particular.

I took copious notes so that I can brief Det. Goren.

To begin with, Dr Roger Buckman was wrong about the limbic system of the brain. It's flooding the amygdala with dopamine that causes rage.

It was also interesting to note that professions have a high proportion of people with autistic traits, and that accountants are the first to attempt to tackle this (Wally Stevens please note). Even doctors and teachers have autistic membership in the 60-75% range, which considering that one of the major traits is the failure to communicate well is amazing and alarming.

Two Days of Fun and Games

For the next two days, the school is closed and we have staff training. Thursday will be spent here (it was supposed to be residential, but funds are short). This is Devonport House, on the edge of Greenwich Park.

On Friday we go by coach to Bedgebury Pinetum in Kent, where there are "team-building" activities.

Some people will be "going ape" on the assault course, with things like abseiling from heights I would not even like to go up to in a lift. Others will be mountain biking.

I was supposed to go for a walk, but I now find I can try out archery. Can I do it without catching my prize size boobs in the bow?

Afterwards we are said to be going to Finchcocks for lunch.
This is a museum of musical instruments, but I can find no mention of a restaurant. On the other hand they cater for weddings, so maybe we will have the grand experience we are all hoping for.