MAKING A WISH.

There really are some weird and wonderful things out there - some of which are to be added to my wish list, others not.

To be added:-

• Membership to the HUMAN LIBRARY MOVEMENT which offers you the chance to borrow people instead of books. You simply walk in to a participating venue, select someone you would normally do everything to avoid and then sit down with them for a face-to-face talk for 30 minutes.


• CHOCOLATE. Nothing new there you might think but, aha, think again - it turns out that chocolate's not just heavenly to eat, it's also good for the skin. Looking for a glowing complexion? Then reach for those cocoa beans. They have a fibrous coating that breaks down harmful 'free radicals' and bestows antioxidant benefits. And as for the smell! The smell of chocolate can trick your brain into releasing feel-good endorphins similar to a stint in the gym. - Zoe Burn, the Sunday Sun. (READ MORE).


• A FAIRY TALE BUBBLE-BLOWING FROG PRINCE for the garden. Simply fill it with bubble-making solution (that's washing up liquid to most of us) and, because of its built-in motion sensors, it'll blow bubbles when anything passes by. Available from http://www.giftideas.co.uk/ for the princely sum of £14.99 plus postage and packaging.


• A KNORK - a cross between a knife and a fork, ideal for pizza.

Definitely not to be added:-

• Anything made from RECYCLED CHEWING GUM. Costing UK councils in the region of £150m a year to high-pressure hose the stuff off pavements, communal seats and walls etc, designer Anna Ballus "suddenly realised that chewing gum is already a rubber, and rubber can be recycled and made into stuff, so why not gum?" - The Observer magazine. (Read FULL ARTICLE).


• CHOCOLATE FLAVOURED HAGGIS. You have had to have tasted haggis to even begin to imagine how awful this would be (sorry all you haggis eaters out there) - Scotland's national dish, the HAGGIS "has been deep fried, smothered in whisky cream and rolled in oats but now the great chieftain o' the puddin' race has undergone the final indignity: it has been made into chocolate". Well sort of, not actually blended with the traditional sheep's liver, heart, lung and suet that go into haggis but rather recreated using nutmeg, mace, black pepper and oatmeal, I'm still not convinced. - Amelia Hill, the Guardian. (READ ALL).


• The latest fashion trend -SKEGGINGS# - an all-in-one skirt and leggings designed to hide all your lumps and bumps (of which I have plenty) while still having the sexy feel of wearing a mini skirt. (#Article courtesy of The Budget Babe website).


• This rather SCARY GIFT. Hardly the ideal birthday present - for £400, Swiss actor, Dominic Deville will dress as a creepy clown and stalk someone for a week and then turn up at their party and splatter cake in their face.

NOT QUITE SURE!

• CRISPS. More Husband dearest's thing than mine but Walkers Crisps have just announced their 12 new varieties to be released just in time for the football World Cup. *Japanese chicken teryiyaki * Scottish haggis * Argentinian flame-grilled steak * English roast beef and yorkshire pudding * Dutch edam * South African sweet chutney * Italian spaghetti bolognese * Spanish chicken paella * Irish Stew * French garlic baguette * American cheeseburger. (READ ARTICLE)

AND FINALLY, MY IDEAL JOB?

• A recruitment agency in the West Midlands, England, has a vacancy for a SLEEPING BAG TESTER. Those willing to snooze on the job (am I ever) can earn £600 a week seeing which sleeping bags give the best night's sleep.