FROM BAUBELS TO GARAGE DOORS ....... WHAT NEXT FOR CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS.

I know that many of you decorate your home for the festive season, but would you go as far as this .......

WOMAN DECORATES CEILING WITH 1,700 CHRISTMAS BAUBELS. A woman has decked out the ceiling of her living room with a whopping 1,700 Christmas baubles.

Sylvia Pope, 68, started decorating her home in Swansea at the end of September and doesn't expect to finish until Christmas Day.

She already has a bauble collection that numbers 1,700 - which has been brought from all around the world - and each year she spends a further £100 buying new decorations. - The Mirror (December 2011)

OR

How about this?

Browsing the internet I recently came across this article in the motoring section of the Telegraph. Featuring the site Style-Your-Garage.Com, it takes a look at a German based company that produces garage door covers amongst which is a festive range, an example of which can be seen above.

Click HERE to see the Telegraph article in full - I think you'll be amazed at these Christmassy garage doors which can be viewed in their entirety by clicking on the arrows at the side of the image or you could always click HERE to visit the Style-Your-Garage site, their promotional video is kind of fun and, wow, their range of designs (Christmas, Halloween and Animals included) are really something special.

BUT

What happens when it all goes wrong?

FATHER CHRISTMAS RIPS TILES OFF PUB ROOF. Landlord Andrew Marler has had his pub partially demolished by a 'violently shaking' 30ft tall Santa Claus.

The sky-high Santa, costing £3,000, lights up at night and is so colossal it can be seen by passing planes. Six men were needed to lift it onto the chimney where it still has pride of place but has proven to be a one-man demolition derby with strong winds causing the decoration to pull down tiles from the roof of the Old Manor pub in Potters Bar. - The Metro (December 2011)
 

PS. Have you or are you intending to post any photos of your festive decorations? If so, please be sure to let me know.

SILENT BOY.

SILENT BOY: HE WAS A FRIGHTENED BOY WHO REFUSED TO SPEAK UNTIL A TEACHER'S LOVE BROKE THROUGH THE SILENCE by TOREY HAYDEN.

When Torey Hayden first met fifteen-year-old Kevin, he was barricaded under a table. Desperately afraid of the world around him, he hadn't spoken a word in eight years. He was considered hopeless and incurable, but Hayden refused to believe it, though she realized it might well take a miracle to break through the walls he had built around himself.

With unanswering devotion and gentle, patient love, she set out to free him - and slowly uncovered a shocking violent history and a terrible secret that an unfeeling bureaucracy had simply filed away and forgotten.

But she never gave up on this tragic 'lost case'. For a trapped and frightened boy desperately needed her help - and she knew in her heart she could not rest easy until she had rescued him from the darkness.
....... Inner front cover.

FIRST SENTENCE (Chapter 1): Zoo-boy.

MEMORABLE MOMENT (Page 58): ......"Yes, I do this for fun. And I'm having it. Why aren't you?"
Charity looked startled. "Well, I guess maybe I am," she said. "I just didn't know it."

KEEP IT OR NOT?: Not, though I shall be passing it onto my (naughty) little sister who I'm quite sure has not read it.

Now I don't know about you but when reviewing books I more often than not find myself if not exactly justifying why then explaining why I did/didn't enjoy certain things about the plot, about the characters etc, what I don't usually find myself justifying is why I chose that particular book .......  why then do I find myself doing it with this type of memoir?

I guess you could say this genre of book was a guilty pleasure of mine, though pleasure is the wrong word to use as I nearly always finding these books difficult reading and always feel as uncomfortable as if I'd been caught eavesdropping on someone else's conversation. That said, I do think some of these stories need to be told and, certainly with regard to this author's books (Torey is an educational psychologist and teacher who has worked with many disturbed and vulnerable children over the years) feel there is something to be learnt as as a qualified teaching assistant myself I find some of her techniques interesting. Enough said of this though and onto my thoughts of Silent Boy.

Having read several of Torey's books before, (my (naughty) little sister introduced me to her work a while ago), I have to say that though this book was based on an adolescent as opposed to the children who had featured in the other books I had read, and was a lot more sinister in content, Silent Boy very much followed the formula laid down in her other books ....... so much so that the extended title of 'He was a frightened boy who refused to speak - until a teacher's love broke through the silence' could have been added to any of them for that it seems is what Torey does, takes a damaged child and with the power of her love breaks through the 'barriers'. Yes, I guess what I'm saying is that, in my opinion, once you have read one of Torey's books you have pretty much read them all (give or take the particulars of the child concerned and their particular circumstances). That said, I know this will be enjoyed by many hardcore fans and newcomers alike.

So, what exactly is the book about? Well, I think the blurb on the inner front cover just about sums it up. Kevin is a young man, also known as Zoo Boy, who, when Torey first meets him, does not communicate with anyone and chooses to barricade himself under tables between chair legs - hence his nick-name. Deemed as a hopeless case Silent Boy chronicles Torey's difficulties in breaking through Kevin's fears to reach the person she knows lay hidden there. Not exactly pleasant reading as a whole series of childhood abuse is uncovered.

My final thought on the book.....

 Whilst I obviously found Kevin's story disturbing, I was also disturbed by some of the comments made by Torey and her fellow professionals. Now I know time has passed since this book was written (it was first published in 1983 but there is no indication as to when the events actually took place) as have the titles we label people with and the borders in which we work but I was shocked to read some of the residents actually officially labelled with the titles of loopy and retard. Not as shocked though as reading of some of the conditions in which Torey was allowed to work not only with Kevin but also Charity who is another child who features in the book though very much in a secondary role. Not wishing to include any major spoilers I won't go into great details here but suffice to say I don't think that in this day and age of 'child protection' policies any professional would find themselves allowed to work in this way without certain restrictions.

Ex-library stock, Silent Boy was the 103rd book read in my 100+ Reading Challenge.

FOLLOW THE, ERR, PINK ROAD???????

It obviously doesn't take much .......

COWS SPOOKED BY PINK ROAD. A herd of cows were spooked by a new pink-coloured road and suddenly turned tail, rushed into a garden leaving one trapped in a ditch.

The cow belonged to farmer Robert Wells who was herding the cows down when it became spooked and rushed into the front garden of a house next to the post office. He said he believed it was because the road had been resurfaced pink and this confused the cows. - The Telegraph (05/12/2011)

Sticking with animals .......

Last week we had the woman who had spent thousands of pounds on her pet dog but it still isn't Britain's happiest dog, that honour goes to .......

ALFIE THE COCKAPOO. Alfie the cockapoo is one dog that never looks ruff – and he’s certainly got something to smile about after he was named Britain's happiest dog.

The nine-month-old pup beat dozens of others to be named top dog in the competition, organised by Penguin Books.

It was a close call but Alfie, who lives in Bristol, won the judges over with his big grin and furiously wagging tale.

His owner Dan Salt said: ‘Alfie is a cross between a cocker spaniel and a poodle and he is a very happy dog. - Tariq Tahir, The Metro (07/12/2011)

And now, thanks to husband dearest, its ........

RABBITS WITH £10,000 HI-TECH HUTCH. Norfolk pet owner and hutch builder Jason Batterbee has created a luxury hi-tech home for his two pet rabbits Hunnie and Runnie.More down hill skiing than an ice rink.

Decked out in in pinewood and stainless steel, the well-appointed rabbit residence has its own security cameras, mood lighting and even artwork on the walls. - Mike Liggins, BBC News (08/12/2011) You simply have to see the video to appreciate just how spoilt these bunnies are. - BBC News. You simply have to watch the video (link above) to appreciate just how spoilt these critters are.

More like down-hill skiing than an ice rink.

ICE RINK BUILT ON A SLOPE. Dozens of excitable children were left distraught when their winter ice rink was shut down – because contractors had built it on a slope.

The youngsters had been waiting with baited breath for the temporary attraction to open but council inspectors were forced to pull the plug, without a single skate cutting the ice. - Ann Lee, The Metro (06/12/2011)

Mine and Madge's (Madge being my electric wheelchair) favourite two articles .......

SUPERCHARGED MOBILITY SCOOTER SEIZED. A supercharged mobility scooter has been seized by Doncaster council officers after being driven at speeds of up to 60mph, scaring wild deer and annoying residents in the area.

Converted to be driven by a supercharged 140cc petrol engine, the mobility scooter was described as a 'feat of engineering' by Cynthia Ransome, Doncaster council's communities officer.

As well as the engine, it had been 'pimped' with go-kart wheels and a large exhaust. - Joanne McCabe, The Metro (07/12/2011)

Going way back to June this year, how did I miss this one?

GREAT-GRANDFATHER CONVERTS MOBILITY SCOOTER INTO BATMOBILE. Brian Vann spent weeks transforming his electric scooter into the superhero’s car.

He can be spotted riding the Batmobile, which has a top speed of 8mph, around the ‘Batcave’ – the sheltered housing complex where he lives in Evesham, Worcestershire. - The Metro (26/06/2011)


PLEASE NOTE : Wherever possible I will endeavour to bring you the links to articles I have used in my Media Monday posts but this is not always possible.