And on to Edinburgh. . .

After a night in an actual room with an actual bed (our fantastic family, splurged on a hotel for us all on Saturday night) we continued on our way South and went to Edinburgh Castle. Time for a photo or three:
Ok, so apparently those are the only photos we took of the outside of Edinburgh Castle, so now here's some inside bits. . .

And this is the fireplace that they used to roast people in. . .we couldn't find any literature on that, but they must have otherwise, why is it so big?
And this is the prison, we put Shelley in there because we could.

So, the inside of that outside part we took photos of is a HUGE War Memorial that was built after the First World War (as you can see from the dates above). Since then of course, it also has all the following wars (cause, you know, the "war to end all wars" apparently wasn't). We couldn't take photos inside which was a shame as it was really beautiful in there. We asked if it was an original building that had been converted or if it was added and apparently it's a bit of both. They guy we asked was really knowledgable about it and told us that what happened was that the architect who was hired to build was told he wasn't allowed to put a "modern looking" building in the Castle grounds. So what he did was he tore down an old barracks building (cause it seemed appropriate that a War Memorial should be made out of a building that used to house soldiers anyway) and he kept the materials from it and rebuilt it as the above building. And yes, Amber cried a little bit at some of the, displays, in there.
Oh, speaking of wars, here's a photo I took just for Rob and our Hogs of War marathons; it's an actual mortar:

The other thing that we saw there but that they wouldn't let us take photos of were the Scottish Crown Jewels. Shelley was in a little bit of heaven. Amber kept yelling at people who were taking photos (if we couldn't take photos, no one else should be allowed to either). Shelley wants a crown now. And possibly a sceptre and a really big necklace too. Oh, and Amber wants a Sword, altough the one that's a part of the Scottish Crown Jewels might be a little bit on the large side, it's one of those big two handed jobbies.

Anyway, after the Castle we went for a bit of a wander through Edinburgh itself. Which was really cool because the Edinburgh Fringe Festival was on and there were street performers EVERYWHERE!!



We also got handed leaflets for like EVERY show that is on in Edinburgh and we got really upset that we couldn't stay and go see everything. This probably won't mean much to anyone who isn't a Terry Pratchett fan but, they're doing MORT!!!! Oh, speaking of Terry Pratchett, on to The Hunting of The Haggis.
In Terry Pratchett's books he wrote about these little creatures called the Nac Mac Feegle. They're Pictsies. . .They wear tartans, are tattooed blue and love drinking, fighting and stealing. . .and they say "Crivens" a lot
They also generally try to hide what they're up to from the only human who they kinda trust. So one day, when she asked them what they were up to they said "Hunting the Haggis". Shelley and I started talking about what a Haggis might look like; we decided that it would be furry and kinda Guinea Pig sized. . .So when we went to Scotland, Mel and Mike, who have read the said books, told us to catch them a Haggis. While wandering through a town in Scotland, we saw a sign that said "Wild Hairy Haggis" and there was a whole bunch of them lying in a box! We quickly pounced on one and caught it for Mel and Mike but the rest managed to avoid us. . .However, as we were leaving Scotland, we saw another nest of them. One gorgeous little female bounced out at us (they have no legs, they only bounce everywhere) and begged us to take her with us. So, we caught us some Haggises (Haggi?)
The little lady on the left is our girl, Kelda. They also have tails too which aren't shown in the photos.

So, that was Scotland. . .We then went to Bradford where Amber's sister lives. She took us to Haworth which is where the Bronte sisters grew up and there was a proper old-fashioned Apothecary there which we just loved!! Then it was Amber's nephew's fifth birthday and we went to Blackpool for the day. Blackpool is an. . .interesting. . .place. Picture Las Vegas for children and then add a beach (with Donkeys on). But possibly the best part of the whole week in Bradford was the ZOO!!! Nanimals EVERYWHERE!! And, lots of nanimals that you just don't get in New Zealand like Snakes (which Shelley wasn't that keen on) and Tarantulas (Which Shelley has decided aren't really spiders, they're furry rodents just with more legs) and Jaguars AND, our favourite was the BATCAVE!! It's a free-flight Bat shed that you walk through in the dark and was opened by Douglas Adams!! There's a sign as you enter that says, "Bat's WILL NOT fly into your hair and they WILL NOT bite you. However, baby bats who are learning to fly, may bump into you as they go past, please be patient with them however, everyone has to learn somehow." It's quite an experience to feel the wind whistling past you and to realise it's a bat!! You can't take photos in there however as the flash will scare the poor little batties. We do however have a photo of Shelley in her animal form:
This is pretty much what Shelley looks like before her coffee in the morning. . .

But on to more photos of nanimals:




The last one is for Shelley's mummy who loves her Owls. . .
Anyway, I think that's enough for now. Hugs to you all

. . . . And We're Back

Hello to everybody,
We have arrived back in Horsham after a day spent on the trains and the tube. When we flew to Scotland we had 1 large pack and when we came home we had the pack and a suitcase! it would seem that we may have come home with more than we left with.

We took over 800 photos in the last 2 weeks so now I will post some pretty castles and ruins and things from our travels.
These photos were taken from the very first Loch that we went to. Loch Etive. It was raining and the day was pretty cold but the view was very pretty. We drove down a very narrow winding road to get to this spot. Coming from NZ it felt like we were driving on a footpath it was that narrow. One of the things that I am still getting used to is the size of the roads over here.

The highest mountain in Britain is Ben Nevis and these next photos were taken on the Nevis ranges. We took a gondola up to the only ski fields in Scotland and from there we took a trek to a look out point further up the mountain. The following three photos are taken from that walk.


The day after our trip up the mountain (which, compared to mountains in NZ is a hill - The summit of Ben Nevis is the same height as the visitor centre on Mt Taranaki apparently), we took a ferry across to The Isle of Mull and then from there to the Isle of Iona where there were some pretty ruins of an old Nunnery and an old Abbey which had been restored and was once again being fully used:


That last photo was Amber trying to be arty. . .

When we got back to Mull from Iona there was a Seal playing in the water beside dock. Unfortunately we didn't actually get any photos of that, our brother-in-law did though so hopefully he'll e-mail us a couple of them and we'll be able to add them. The locals said that the seal visits quite often and sometimes brings his mate and pup with him. He seemed quite tame and friendly, our theory is that he sometimes gets food from the locals, they have mussel farms so sometimes they probably drop some fish and stuff that he snatches up.

On the Thursday we visited Loch Ness and although we didn't spot any monsters, we did find a really pretty castle!!

So that is Urquhart Castle on the shores of Loch Ness (and the view from said castle).

So, continuing on from Loch Ness we went to Fort George which is an actual military base now but was built in the time of George the. . .5th? (I can't remember which George exactly right now, but one of them!!) It's HUGE, we wanted a golf cart so we could get round the place and explore properly. (they don't offer that service though!!!) They do have the funniest signs though:

Unfortunately we don't have any photos of the "Danger of Death" signs which are everywhere here! Fort George also has a very pretty view:
But anyway, Fort George was actually built to be defended from attack in times of unrest (it was an English fort in Scotland after all) so the following Sluice Gate was designed to be opened to flood the moat. . .


Unfortunately, this only worked during High Tide which lead to a discussion amongst us all as to how they would react if attacked during Low Tide. Would they have sent a message asking the attackers to please come back in 6 hours when they were more prepared??? Speaking of English stupidity when it came to the Scots, Urquhart Castle was actually destroyed delibrately by the English because they didn't want the Jacobites to hold it during the Uprising. They packed the gatehouse full of Gunpowder, threw a match at it and ran.

After all of that military history we decided to find ourselves some Standing Stones (No time-travelling though, Shelley would have gotten lost. . .) Without going too far out of our way we found Clava Cairns, an old OLD cemetery, burial mounds with Standing Stones placed around them.




Pick the movies the following image is featured in:

So, after that busy day travelling the countryside, we packed up the camp and started on our way back South. On the way we went to Scotland's only Lake (and anyone who can tell us the difference between a Lake and a Loch will win. . .something, Shelley said $5,000; but we don't have that, so, no) and took a little boat ride to a pretty Island with Inchmahome Priory on it. Apparently lots of people like Mary, Queen of Scots and Richard the Third visited it in it's heyday, but now it's kinda. . .ruiny looking. . .

From Inchmahome we contined to Sterling Castle, which, for those movie-buffs out there, is where William Wallace (Braveheart) fought his big stand against those damn English. . .

Shelley says this one is my Labyrinth photo:And now here's me sitting on my scottish throne:

Personally, I think it suits me. . .
Anyway, it's getting kinda late over here and we still have Edinburgh Castle, street performers from the Edinburgh Festival (which we were lucky enough to wander through) AND our week in Bradford with Mai-ana. . .so, we will post more later.
Sweet Dreams,
The Travelling Shambles.
P.S. The Hunting of the Haggis is not bloody in anyway shape or form. We'll explain later and also post photos of our Haggis, Kelda.

Coz Nat said....

Well we have returned from the Highlands of Scotland. Although we have taken approx 600 photos being the num-nuts that I am I forgot to bring the USB cable to upload any of them and so the photos will not be coming until next week when we get back to Horsham.

Scotland was amazing (once you figure out what people are trying to say to you) the locals really are very nice. We went to heaps of places and saw many castles and lakes opps I mean lochs. We may even have been sucessful at hunting and catching our very own haggis!!!

We are now staying in Bradford which is in Yorkshire (apparently) and will be here until Sunday.
Sorry this is a short post but I am about to go and taste my first ever tub of Ben and Jerry's icecream and just wanted to let you all know we haven't forgotted you.

Take care
love and hugs
the Travelling Shambles

Of Cider Tasting, Guinea Pigs and Chipmunks

Ok, so I've decided that I want at least two chipmunks nesting in my hair, two guinea pigs sitting on my shoulders burrowing into the hair at the bottom of my neck (one of which has to be Monkey and the other one should be this gorgeous Grey fluffy Abysinnian that we saw at Tully's Farm - Unfortunately no photos of it though), I also want two bunnies and a cat who was raised with bunnies sitting on my lap, a Black lab leaning against one leg, an Alaskan Malamut against the other leg and a King Charles Spaniel on my feet. . .and a bigger lap to fit all the rest of the animals that I want to cuddle. . .But I especially want the chipmunks and the bunnies and the . . . Ok, I just want all the animals I can get. . .Chipmunks are sooooo cute though. After the cider tasting (which I will get to in a second) we went to a little petting-type zoo with Bunnies and Guineas and birds and Chipmunks. . .they're like, little, and quick and furry and friendly and there were THREE of them (although they looked NOTHING like Alvin, Simon and Theodore). . .and the aforementioned Grey fluffy Guinea was just ADORABLE and Shelley was joking about stealing it and bringing it home (and was also saying that if it was a girl Monkey and her would make the most beautiful babies) but my sensible side (I apparently have one, it came as a shock to me too) said no.
And as for the Cider tasting, that was just AWESOME. . .the little shed smelled so strong that you could've gotten drunk off the fumes alone. There were wasps buzzing around the ceiling that were so drunk they kept bouncing into the casks (drunk wasps are funny) and there were fruit wines and meads and dry ciders and sweet ciders and Perry (Cider made of Pears). And free tastings of whatever you wanted. . .bad bad bad. . .(or more to the point, fun fun fun!!) And we ended up spending like 25 pounds on Elderberry wine and meads. . .mmmmm, alcoholic liquid honey. . .
So Shelley and I want to go back there and taste more and probably spend more. . .but in the mean time we will have to just be content with our meads and our Elderberry Wine. . .

The Big Smoke

First of all, I'd like to say that my wife beat me to this. . .I had this whole plan about telling you all about The Shambles' first castle (it came complete with a moat and four towers and EVERYTHING) but she's already posted about the castle we slept in so it would be a little out of order for me to be talking about our first castle now. . .But, that's not going to stop me from adding a photo of it. . .

See, moat, round turrety-towery things on each corner, a proper little fairy-tale castle. And it was the first castle that Shelley had been to!! And the first one The Shambles visited together. And, it was a whole two days before the castle we slept in!! Oh, AND it had a unicorn and tiny gates (possibly for fairies?)


But ANYWAY, that's not actually why I was writing this post. . .
On Tuesday I took Shelley to London so we could activate our English Bank Account and maybe take in some sights. . .The Bank we had to go to was on Oxford Street, which as you may or may not know, is full of shops. Think multiple shops with three floors of woman's clothing each. . .HUGE stores and apparently, all having sales. For those of you that know Shelley, I think it will be no surprise to you that we didn't see any sights. In fact, we didn't get off Oxford Street.
Shelley has promised me that we can go in another day, so that I can take her to The Globe, possibly next week as Shelley broke me. (My sore throat which had gone away came back and bought friends with it)
We did make it to one "sight", before we got to Oxford Street I managed to get Shelley to Buckingham Palace. Unfortunately however we were there during the changing of the guards and the crowds were HORRENDOUS!! So we didn't actually get to see much of the Palace. Not too disappointed though as both Shelley and I are more interested in the Theatres anyway. So, sometime next week we shall be heading back to "The Big Smoke" and going from The Globe to West End and, hopefully, taking in some shows. Wicked, Chicago, Phantom, Sound of Music. . .we shall take our pick!!

I'm the king of the castle

This is our room from the outside.

We have been driving around England and staying at various old places for the last few days. It's really hard to imagine that most of the castles we have visited are older than New Zealand. One place we stayed at is called Staint Briavels. The castle is about 700 years old.
It was very big and a little creepy.
The room we stayed in was directly above where the Oubliette used to be.
For those of you who are not aware (myself included up until we stayed here) an Oubliette is a place where you put people you want to forget about.... nice!

The room was supposed to be haunted but I cannot say for sure as as soon as my head hit the pillow I was fast asleep. (Not a big surprise).

In our travels we went to a small town called Hay en Wye. There is not much there except for about 40 second hand book shops. It was great, I would like to go back there again some time.

I had forgotten what summer feels like until we came here. It was very hot and humid in Thailand but nothing like N.Z so I couldn't really compare. The last few days here though has left me feeling like I am going to melt. We are off to Scottland soon, hopefully it will be cooler there.

We still haven't quite made it into London but I think we are going to catch a train in tomorrow if all goes well. Amber has promised to take me to the Globe! I can't wait.

Lelephants, Babaphants and Tigubs

For those of you who don't understand Amber speak thats Elephants, baby elephants and tiger cubs. All of which we got to meet and pat on our adventure in Thailand!

This was our elephant for our tour thru part of the Thailand rain forest. (Amber wants to go back there and live in the forest and learn how to become a Mahout).

This "little" baby elephant was Pin Phee She is five years old. And she loves to give kisses!!!!


We don't have any photos on our computer to show you, but we also got to pat and hold and feed a one month old tiger cub. (did you know their fur is very soft, just like a kittens?) We were very closely watched so Amber didn't have a chance to slip it under her top and steal it.

Thailand was an awsome start to our holiday, The hotel we were staying in was amazing there were flowers growing on everyfloor and so it smelled so pretty everywhere. The pool was our favourite place to escape the heat. Amber is very pleased to anounce that she has now sipped a cocktail from a coconut while stitting at a bar in a pool! (this was on the list of things that we had to do while in Thailand)

We are now safely in England and will write more of our adventures soon.

Goodbye Hamiltron. . . .

So, we are now in New Plymouth (NP) after a couple of whirlwind days saying good-bye to our Friends and loved ones in Hamilton. . .
Fairy Janine couldn't bear to say good bye to us just yet but that still left (big breath), Natalie and the fluffy but Shy Samantha and Tabitha; Robbie, Mel and their gorgeously happy Ivirangi; Scott and the bubbly C.J; our darling little Scarlet girl; Paul and Viv; Glenys and her babies Chocolate and Brindle, our beautiful Amanda and Madi Monster; and, last but MOST DEFINITELY not least, the cutest, fluffiest, snuffliest wee guinea pig, Monkey. With his snuffly little nose, his waddly little bottom, his leathery, elephant looking ears, his cute bald spot (which is just so warm and lovely to kiss) and his punk rock star style hairdo. . .

Saying goodbye to our gorgeous son was possibly the hardest of all. (I wanted to smuggle him in the hood of my hoodie to NP and keep him for another week or so, but Shelley put her foot down).
Thankfully Guinea Pigs live an average of 6-8 years and as he is only 3 and a half now and is under STRICT instructions that he has to live to a VERY VERY old age, he will still be around and ready to snuffle us and burrow into our hair when we get back, but it was still hard to leave him behind. . .
However, we kissed his bald spot, helped his new mummy to clean his hutch and left him burrowing away in his fresh hay and bid our last farewell to Hamiltron for the next two years. . .
Good bye Hamilton, we will not miss your foggy, rainy, frosty winters (but we will miss the beauty of looking across at Deanwell park in the mornings and seeing the fog winding through the trees and along the river); we will not miss the five o'clock traffic that is getting more and more like Auckland every day (but we will miss ducking to a friends for a coffee to avoid the traffic); we will not miss the hole and lack of scenery that you are set in (but we will miss the fact that you are an hour or two away from all our family and every coast in NZ); and we will most certainly not miss the Damp that seems to pervade EVERYTHING (but we will Definitely miss the people that we love and care about, the people that have taken us in to their lives and made us family, the people who have been there for us through highs, lows and middles, the people who have made our lives what they are today).
Goodbye Hamiltron, city of the future where it's "happening". . .we will see you again in two years time. During which time we will have adventures and see wonders!

We haven't dropped off the earth. . .

Ok, so we know we haven't blogged in a while, but we promise we haven't fallen off the face of the Earth.
So Shelley's Visa for England FINALLY came through after like FOREVER (ok, nine weeks, but it felt like forever). And after a whirlwind couple of weeks where we quit our jobs, moved out of home and visited as many people as possible, we are now homeless bums!!! Yay for homeless bums!!!!!
We are off to New Plymouth tomorrow where Shelley's parents live and we get to stay with them and THREE puppies for the next week and a bit and then flying from NP to Auckland and from Auckland to Bangkok and finally to Phuket on the 16th of July, we are staying in Phuket for a bit of a break. (and riding on LELEPHANTS!!! (which is Elephants for normal people)) Then on the 20th we head back to Bangkok and off to LONDON!! Where on the 21st we get to see the Dresden Dolls live in concert!! Yay for good music! And from there we will see where the wind blows us. . .No real set plans except for seeing as much of the world as possible!! :)
So we will be starting to update our blog a lot more (for those of you that have actually been keeping track) as a way of keeping people updated on where we are and what we are up to :)
So keep watching (reading?) this space!!!

From when words meant something. . .

There was a time when words were used beautifully. These glorious insults are from an era when cleverness with words was still valued, before a great portion of the English language was boiled down to four-letter words!

The exchange between Churchill and Lady Astor: She said, "If you were my husband, I'd give you poison," and he said, "If you were my wife, I'd take it."

Gladstone, a member of Parliament, to Benjamin Disraeli: "Sir, you will either die on the gallows or of some unspeakable disease." "That depends, sir," said Disraeli, "On whether I embrace your policies or your mistress."

"He had delusions of adequacy." - Walter Kerr

"He has all the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire." - Winston Churchill

"A modest little person, with much to be modest about." - Winston Churchill

"I have never killed a man, but I have read many obituaries with great pleasure." - Clarence Darrow

"He has never been known to use a word that might send a reader to the dictionary." – William Faulkner (about Ernest Hemingway).

"Poor Faulkner. Does he really think big emotions come from big words?" - Ernest Hemingway (about William Faulkner)

"Thank you for sending me a copy of your book; I'll waste no time reading it." - Moses Hadas

"He can compress the most words into the smallest idea of any man I know." - Abraham Lincoln

"I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying I approved of it." - Mark Twain

"He has no enemies, but is intensely disliked by his friends." - Oscar Wilde

"I am enclosing two tickets to the first night of my new play; bring a friend.... if you have one." - George Bernard Shaw to Winston Churchill

"Cannot possibly attend first night, will attend second... if there is one." - Winston Churchill, in response.

"I feel so miserable without you; it's almost like having you here." - Stephen Bishop

He is a self-made man and worships his creator." - John Bright

"I've just learned about his illness. Let's hope it's nothing trivial." - Irvin S. Cobb

"He is not only dull himself, he is the cause of dullness in others." - Samuel Johnson

"He is simply a shiver looking for a spine to run up." - Paul Keating

"There's nothing wrong with you that reincarnation won't cure. - "Jack E. Leonard

"He has the attention span of a lightning bolt." - Robert Redford

"They never open their mouths without subtracting from the sum of human knowledge." - Thomas Brackett Reed

"In order to avoid being called a flirt, she always yielded easily." - Charles, Count Talleyrand

"He loves nature in spite of what it did to him." - Forrest Tucker

"Why do you sit there looking like an envelope without any address on it?" - Mark Twain

"His mother should have thrown him away and kept the stork.” - Mae West

"Some cause happiness wherever they go; others, whenever they go."- Oscar Wilde

"He uses statistics as a drunken man uses lamp-posts - for support rather than illumination. " - Andrew Lang (1844-1912)

"He has Van Gogh's ear for music." - Billy Wilder

"I've had a perfectly wonderful evening. But this wasn't it." – Groucho Marx

WHEN I GET TO ENGLAND

When I get to England I am going to see every god damned concert that is playing!
Possibily even ones I don't know, and might not even like.... I want to see Ani and Hammel and Tori its not fair no good or even kinda good bands come to NZ the last time someone came that I wanted to see was the Dresden Dolls and I couldn't go see them coz it was right before I got married and so we had to save money. And anyway that was over a year ago. The last time Tori came to NZ was back in 95 (i think) and I didn't even know much about her then. Ani came a couple of years ago (4 I think) and that was a good concert but she hasn't been back since and I love concerts and when I go to england I am going to see every thing that plays.... as long as its not sport.

Beauty School Drop Out

So come Firday I plan to be swaning around in a fabulous silver shimery dress with toilet rolls stuck to me head! Sound like fun? Did I mention that this evening comes with all you can drink vino? Amber and I and our fairy friend plan to sip wine look amazing (or at least interesting) and sing at the top of our lungs this Friday night at the Grease sing along. Apparently tickets have been sold out for a while and so it should be a great night for all.

New Look

I decided it was time for a new look.
and for all of the one people who probably read this I must apologise for my slackness of late.... Its that damn Bebo and its seductive-ness.
It is sooo much fun.
But I will keep up with the posts. Mel you are possibily the only person who reads them now but thats okay.
Any way I am watching Nine at the moment... it is actually turning out to be quite good, tho I had low expectations as it is American but I think I might even end up watching it on a weekly basis.
Its really funny to see Scott Wolfe is something other than Party Of Five. (yes I admit it, I watched it)
Anyway time for this old fart to go to sleep.
good night

The Giant Jam Sandwich and Other Classicss

So anyone remember this book?
It has become alarmingly noticeable that certian classic books that my wife and I grew up with have become hard to find in bookstores these days.

Among the our favourites are "My Cat Likes to Hide in Boxes" and "Are You My Mother". Also seems to be missing is "Dear Zoo". These are books that we grew up with. and we want them to be around for us to read to our kids. however at the present time it would seem that the only place they can be found is on-line. Being really rather anal about these things I have now written up lists of books that Amber and I are going to buy before they can no longer be found anywherere... I fear it is just a matter of time before they all disappear completely and I want to be sure that we have them all before they do. I am sorry to report that this seems to have already happened with one such book that I remember from my younger days..... I can not recal the title or the author ( Who knew that when I was eight that I would have the need for these things) but I loved the story and now it is gone. All I can remember is the story line and the problem is that I am so fustrated with myself because it is enough to know that I really want to find this book so I can own it but I can't remember enough about it to track it down.

So in a futile attempt at getting hold of this particular book I am searching through the 32,000 titles of "Children's Picture Books" on Amazon.co.uk in the hope that it will magically appear while I am looking. So far I have gone through over 5,000 titles with no success.

If anyone out there can remember a book about a statue in a park that comes to life in the full moon when she sees a young man in the park she is in by himself and she asks the moon if she can go to him and the moon replies "be back at your pedastel before the sun comes up least he be turned to stone".

So she goes to him, and dances with the young man who falls in love with her and when dawn comes she kisses his eyelids and he falls into a deep sleep. She returns to her pedastel where she becomes a statue again. Every month he returns to the same park hoping to dance with the lady again. Then because he can't stand it when she leaves him at the end of the night he goes to an apothecary and gets a draft so that he won't fall asleep when she kisses his eyelids so he can follow her.

So the following month he returns to the park and she comes to life and dances with the man and as the night comes to an end she kisses his eyelids to make him fall into a enchanted sleep so she may slip away, but he doesn't fall asleep and won't let her go and he keeps asking her questions about where she runs away to why she won't stay with him and in the end she stays with him too long and sun comes up and she turns to stone as does he.

They remain as statues until the light of the full moon where they can dance together again until the sun comes up and they are both once again turned to statues where they are still found to this day......

Anyway thats it that is the book that I am looking for so if anybody out there can remember anything about it like the title for example then please let me know because it is driving me crazy that I can't find it anywhere.....

Please somebody come and put me out of my misery, oh and buy your favourite childrens books before they disappear forever.

Where are the Ghosts????

Ok, so Shelley and I went to see Harry and the Order last night (for those of you that don't understand my short hand there that's Harry Potter and The Order of The Phoenix) and it was better than Goblet (although considering they RUINED the movie version of Goblet, this isn't hard) but I just have one question: Where are the ghosts???

(by the way, if you haven't read and/or seen this one, and you plan to at some stage, I would stop reading now, I will be Spoiling things for you)

There was no Nearly-Headless Nick, no Bloody Baron and, and this one really bugs me, NO PEEVES!! One of my fave parts of this book (and admittedly, there aren't many, this one is kinda a middle book if you know what I mean - vital for some of the info it imparts, but just not really that exciting) is when the Weasley's leave Hogwarts and say "Give her hell for us Peeves" and Peeves, well, makes things "interesting" for Umbridge. . .and all of the teachers turn a blind eye and semi encourage him. . .it's BRILLIANT and really shows that Hogwarts is, and always will be Dumbledore's and that no matter what the Ministry does to interfere and try to change this, its just not going to happen. And yet, it's just not there. . .NO GHOSTS at all, not even just floating around in the distance. Which means no Peeves to give her hell for the Weasley's! This truly did suck and was definitely a downer for the movie. . .and THEN, the statues at the end in the battle at the ministry, they come to life in the book. . .but do they in the movie??? no. (Amber mutters under breath: stupid statues)
And, while I'm ranting: what is it about Stupid Americans (yes, I said it: Stupid American's, I mean really; the first time Bush stole the election but then, THEN, you re-elect him? yes, I've said it once and I'll say it again: Stupid Americans). Anyway, slightly off track there, where was I, oh yes, what is it about Stupid American's changing the titles of things??? I mean honestly, Harry Potter and the PHILOSOPHERS stone (NOT Sorcerors stone as they insisted on calling it) was bad enough, but now, now, another of mine and Shelley's favourite Young Adult's/Kid's book series is being made into a movie. The series is His Dark Materials (and if you haven't read it, you seriously should, it's REALLY good - like Narnia, but actually dealing with sexuality. . .and then, not at all like Narnia at the same time) and the fist book is called NORTHERN LIGHTS. . .at least, everywhere but America where it's called "The Golden Compass" and guess what the movie is being released as? That's right, The Golden Compass. . .Stupid Americans. Anyway, I did promise my wife I wouldn't rant about this too much in between now and when it comes out. . .but I just had to get that off my chest. . .Also, if any of you want to read it (and you should, did I mention yet how cool it is???), we own all three in the series, so just let us know and we'll lend them to you :)
Oh and also, Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson were always kinda cute, but, when did they get HOT??? And is it wrong of me to be drooling over Harry Potter and Hermione?
Ok, enough crazy rambling and ranting from me. . .sorry for the spoilers. . .