Thank God and Walmart!

After my sister got home from work today, she and I drove out to Old Navy. On our way home, I asked her to stop at Walmart so I could see if they had any Mr. Fantastic TV Guides. As I searched through TV Guides in various checkouts, I could, once again, only find the other four covers.

I was reaching the end of the row of checkouts when I thought I spotted a bit of blue on a cover behind a few others. I pulled it out and, to my great delight, found Mr. Fantastic! Then, I found another. At the next checkout I found another. In all, I found about 5-6! So that was where they were all hiding! I was quite relieved and happy to have found my Mr. Fantastic TV Guide! I had to buy 2. "I couldn't resist, mate!"

I will scan one in and post a picture very soon! Hooray!

I just want one!!!!!

Alright, today the new TV Guides came out, featuring the Fantastic Four. There are five issues, each one with a single character from the film: Mr. Fantastic, The Human Torch, The Thing, The Invisible Woman, and Dr. Doom.

I went to 6, yes 6! places today to find one with Mr. Fantastic on the cover, and found not a single one. There were plenty of the Human Torch, the Thing, the Invisible Woman, and Dr. Doom. Of course, there were none of Mr. Fantastic! Three of the places still had the last issue with Nascar on the front. Luckily, the nice girl at the 7-Eleven told me they get their TV Guides on Friday. So, I shall have to go tomorrow and get one. Pray God that there is one with Mr. Fantastic on the cover! I just want one!!!

How Dare the British Have Won?

On 21 October 1805, off Cape Trafalgar, Spain, Horatio, Admiral Lord Nelson, had the signal "England expects that every man will do his duty" hoisted above his ship, HMS Victory.
The Battle of Trafalgar decisively ended the effectiveness of the Napoleon's French fleet. The British had been fighting the French for 12 years, by that point, but Napoleon continued conquering Europe for the next 10 or so years.

Nelson is one of the great English heroes and deserves to be honored as such. Despite already losing an eye and an arm in the years before Trafalgar, Admiral Nelson continued to do his duty until the very end. On 21 October 1805, he was mortally wounded while commanding the British Navy against the French. His last words were, "I have done my duty. I thank God for it!"

Horatio, Admiral Lord Nelson

21 October 2005 will mark the 200th Anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar. The British, French, and Spanish, on Tuesday, held a naval re-enactment celebration in honor of one of the most important naval battles in history.

Unfortunately, instead of the British and French fleets "fighting," the red and blue fleets fought. Apparently, no one wanted to hurt the French feelings because they were (are) the losers. Boo hoo! One would think they would be used to it by now. Is there a battle the French have won in the last century?

According to the article:

Organizers of the bicentenary celebrations were anxious to avoid accusations of triumphalism, especially at a time when Anglo-French relations are frosty as London and Paris clash over the future direction of the European Union.

Winning equals the right to be triumphant. Trafalgar was a very important battle. The British have always been proud of the victory. As for Anglo-French relations being "frosty," the English and the French have always been staunch enemies, even when they were allies. Will calling the fleets "red" and "blue" actually make them friends?

Nelson's great great great granddaughter, 75-year-old Anna Tribe, said, "I am anti-political correctness. Very much against it. It makes fools of us. I think the idea of the blue team fighting the red team is pretty stupid. I am sure the French and Spanish are adult enough to appreciate we did win that battle."

Alex Naylor, the historian who played Nelson in the mock battle, added, "If you obliterate history for the sake of political correctness, you can't learn from the past. Nelson thought politicians were cowards. I tend to agree."

I agree wholeheartedly. Rather than allow the British navy to rule the waves, as it had always done, the British have allowed political correctness to rule the day. Without the English victory at Trafalgar, we might all be speaking French today.

Heaven forfend. The British have given up doing their duty.

Cross-posted at A Lady's Ruminations.

Ioan on the Today Show!

This morning, Ioan was on the Today Show (which I hate), along with his fellow Fantastic Four Castmates, Jessica Alba, Michael Chiklis, and Chris Evans. He looked gorgeous, as usual, and used his natural Welsh accent when speaking. I do wish he could have spoken more, but the segment was not very long and there were four of them. Ioan was wearing black boots, jeans, a white shirt (I think), a black striped tie, and an unusual black jacket. Mr. Gorgeous! I do wish I could have been there!

Ioan on Late Night!!!

Last night (or, rather, very early this morning) Ioan was to have been on the Late Late Show on CBS. Unfortunately, he had to cancel his appearance. Quite sad, as I was very happy to wait up and watch.

Today I have found out that he will be on the Conan O'Brien Show on NBC on 6 July. Hooray!!!

I will post more information on his appearances when I learn of them.

I couldn't resist!

Congratulations! You could give the Phantom a run
for his money in the obsession department! You
are over the top obsessed knowing all there is
to know!! Be proud of your obsession. After
all, obsession is just flattery to the extreme!
So show off your phantom loving status, cause
your impressive obsession makes you a true
phantom Phan!!!


How Phantom of the Opera obsessed are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

No words necessary!

Photo from Ioan Online

The Queen's Party!

Queen Elizabeth II's birthday is actually 21 April, same as mine, but she is having a huge birthday celebration today.

According to the article:

In a spectacular display of precision marching and horsemanship choreographed to the music of a military band, about 1,220 soldiers in ceremonial red dress and huge black bearskin caps saluted the monarch in the ceremony near Buckingham Palace.

How I wish I could be there! Well, how I wish I could be in England! Maybe see some ruffled shirts! Right, Lady Crystin? :)

I almost missed Ioan!

Tonight was the MTV Movie Awards. Now, I don't usually watch MTV, but tonight was an exception. Ioan was going to be presenting an award along with his Fantastic 4 cast-mates. At the beginning of the show, they did the usual "scheduled to appear" thing. They said, "Ee-on Gruffudd." EE-ON??? That's Yo-awn! Pretty easy, if you practice!!

So, I waited to see darling Ioan, and even Alice, his girlfriend. No luck! Then, before a commercial break, the announcer said, "Next up, blah, blah, blah, and the cast of the Fantastic 4, blah, blah." I was very excited! It was coming!

Now, the whole time I was watching all of this, I was making scones. I was quite afraid I would be busy doing something and miss it! Didn't happen!

By that time, I was finished. I sat down at the table to watch. Someone was presenting some stupid award, so I flipped to my favorite station, Fox News for a minute. Howard Dean, the DNC Chairman, was saying something stupid, so I had to listen.

I flipped back, and they were on!!!! Of course! I am busy and they aren't on! I am just relaxing and stupidly flip to a different channel, and they are on! Ioan was, of course, gorgeous! He spoke briefly; much too briefly in my estimation! I wanted everyone else off stage!

That was all I saw of Ioan, unfortunately. Luckily, I believe they will re-run the show. I'll have to see the whole Ioan part this time!

Lesson to be learned: When you are waiting for something, be patient and keep your eyes open!!!

Now, for some pictures of the man I like to call Mr. Gorgeous (a play on his part in Fantastic 4, Mr. Fantastic---he's that too!) from the show. One question: Where are his gorgeous curls!?!?!?!?

My Trip to the Used Bookstore!

Today I went to the used bookstore to exchange a bunch of paperbacks my grandparents gave us. I found sooooo many wonderful books to get! Too many, of course! I just cannot resist books, especially books by my favorite authors. Luckily, I now have a wonderful stack for summer reading at the lake.

My greatest find was a paperback copy of one of my favorite novels, These Old Shades by Georgette Heyer. I got this copy. Click here for a wonderful exerpt from this wonderful novel!

The Regency Romance Quiz: What Kind of Romance Heroine Are You?

My dear girl, you are clearly On the Shelf. You
are unmarried and in your mid-twenties. You
are intelligent and sensible, but quiet, and
consider yourself plain. You have had several
Seasons, but never received an offer, or
perhaps you refused the offers you received.
The reason for this is that you have always
loved the man you danced with shortly after you
came out at 18. He, of course, never returned
your affections, or even knew about them, and
is probably courting your sister.
Nevertheless, he always seems to like you, and
treats you much as he treats his sisters. Your
love for him is immediately evident to everyone
else, especially his sister, aunt or mother,
who think you are the best possible wife for
him. This attitude may prove either helpful or
difficult, depending on how much the author
likes you. When an accident befalls, your calm
practicality and ability to stitch up wounds
impresses him, and all of a sudden he finds
himself noticing the way your smile transforms
your face, lighting your eyes and making you
quietly beautiful. His interest and
appreciation will quickly turn to love, but he
will have to spend the rest of the novel trying
to convince you that his affection is genuine
and not a result of pity.


The Regency Romance Quiz: What kind of Romance Heroine are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Which Classic Novel Do You Belong In?

I believe you belong in Pride and Prejudice; a
world of satire and true love. A world where
everything is crystal clear to the reader, and
yet where new things seem to be happening all
the time. You belong in a world where your
free-thought puts you above the silly masses,
and where bright eyes and intelligence are
enough to attract the arrogant
millionaire/prejudiced young woman of your
choice.


Which Classic Novel do You Belong In?
brought to you by Quizilla


Hooray!!!!! One of my favorite books by my favorite author! Bring on the arrogant millionaires! Bring on the Mr. Darcys!!!

It has arrived!!!!

My "When Love Speaks" CD arrived today! I'm off to listen to dearest Ioan recite Sonnet 14 over and over and over. *sigh*

A New Commercial!

I just saw a commercial for the Fantastic Four movie, starring Ioan Gruffudd, on the television!!! Very exciting! He wasn't in it as much as I would have liked, of course. I cannot wait to see another one! The movie comes out on 8 July!

Say Adieu, Napoleon!

It has long been believed that Napoleon Bonaparte, the nasty little Frenchman, died of stomach cancer. A few years ago a study found high levels of arsenic in portions of his hair. A new study shows that the arsenic wasn't from anything innocuous, but had to have been deliberate. Someone deliberately poisoned him! The article is here. Is it wrong to say "Thank God!"?

A Horatio Hornblower Quiz

Which Indy Boy Are You?

You're Horatio Hornblower!

When Love Speaks

And I begin my posting with a wonderful cd I have just found, entitled When Love Speaks. It features, of course, Ioan Gruffudd reciting William Shakespeare's Sonnet 14.

Sonnet 14
Not from the stars do I my judgment pluck;

And yet methinks I have astronomy,

But not to tell of good or evil luck,

Of plagues, of dearths, or seasons' quality;

Nor can I fortune to brief minutes tell,

Pointing to each his thunder, rain and wind,

Or say with princes if it shall go well,

By oft predict that I in heaven find:

But from thine eyes my knowledge I derive,

And, constant stars, in them I read such art

As truth and beauty shall together thrive,

If from thyself to store thou wouldst convert;

Or else of thee this I prognosticate:

Thy end is truth's and beauty's doom and date.

William Shakespeare

Of course, listening to Ioan recite the sonnet, trilling his r's, is completely enchanting. So enchanting that if I listen to it a few more times, I might swoon!

The cd can be found here. For Horatio Hornblower and Ioan Gruffudd fans, Robert Lindsay and Ioan's friend Matthew Rhys also recite sonnets. Others include Ralph Fiennes, Joseph Fiennes, Alan Rickman, Kenneth Branagh, and many more. One can hear a good portion of each poem at the site.

Enchanting!!!