I read this article about a cat that survived two months in a shed by licking the condensation off the windows. The cat had become trapped in the shed after she followed her owner inside. The shed was then locked up for the winter with the cat inside. Whilst it is fairly amazing that the cat survived I find it a little strange that the cats owners didn’t think to check the shed for her. When one of my cats goes missing the first thing I do is retrace my steps to see whether they have followed me and become trapped when I have shut a door.

Cats seem to love blankets. My cat Willow particularly likes newly washed fluffy blankets. As soon as she finds them she starts pummelling the blanket with her paws whilst purring loudly before settling down to sleep. This picture was taken when I wrapped the blanket around her. As you can see Willow is quite happy.

According to this article energy saving light bulbs could trigger migraines and even seizures in some people. The Migraine Action Association has said that the flickering and the low intensity of the light do trigger migraines in many of their members. There have also been warnings from epilepsy charities about the increased risk of seizures from energy saving bulbs. With the government pledging to prevent the sale of the conventional light bulbs within the next four years this could be worrying for sufferers of both conditions. As a migraine sufferer myself I have replaced most of the bulbs in my house with energy saving bulbs and so far have suffered no migraines. However, it might be prudent for the government to research this issue further before going ahead with an outright ban.

I was reading this article the other day about a man called Arthur Boyt who has a novel idea for what to do with road kill. He thinks the best thing to with it is to make a casserole. One of his favourite recipes is badger casserole made using a roadkill badger, broccoli, parsnips, potatoes, tomatoes and wild mushrooms. He has also tried fox, sparrow, horseshoe bat and even porcupine. Needless to say his wife is a vegetarian.

I watched a documentary last night about a new type of doll called a Reborn. The dolls are highly customised to make them look as close to a real baby as possible even down to features such as veins and scratches. They weigh about the same as a real baby and have rooted hair and even manicured nails. The result is a doll like the one below.


The documentary which was shown on Channel 4 last night followed a lady who customises these dolls in order to make them look as real as she can. Personally I find the dolls more than a little disturbing but what I found more disturbing was some of the people that purchase them.

The programme centred on a few individuals, one lady who has converted a room in her house into a nursery. She owned several dolls and spent her time buying them expensive clothes, changing their nappies and styling their hair. She even went as far as to take them out shopping with her in a pram. The programme went onto to show her excitement at going to the US specifically to pick up her new “baby”, only to find it was not perfect and she would need to leave it behind, despite the fact she had already bonded with it.

Another lady featured in the documentary wanted a baby as a substitute grandson. Her grandson Harry had lived with her for the first few years of his life, when his mother had met a new partner and emigrated leaving the grandmother, missing the baby. Her solution was to visit the doll maker who made her a “Harry baby” which she appeared to adore. Her husband, however, was not so enthusiastic bout the new addition to the family. Personally I felt this lady would have benefitted from either spending some time with her real grandson or seeking some help to get over her feeling of loss.

You can view some of the clips from the documentary here but I think most people will agree there is something slightly odd about a grown woman pushing a doll around a shopping centre in a pram. As for the dolls themselves I’m not sure why but they remind me a little bit of Childs Play, maybe I’m missing the point? Either way the programme made interesting viewing.

2007 seemed to go past so fast for me, mainly because I have had a very busy year with work. As I work from home I tend to find I not only work during the day but also spend most of the evening and even weekends working. The result is that I feel constantly tired and stressed. With the New Year I aim to do two things. The first is to try and switch off my laptop in the evening to make more time for me and the second is to go the gym at least twice a week. If I manage to do both hopefully in 2008 I will not only be healthier but should have more time and energy to enjoy life a bit more.

I played Resident Evil on the Wii for the first time today and unfortunately for me it is likely to be the last time I play it. The reason has nothing to do the game itself, it is as promised full of cool features and has lots of zombies to kill. However after an hour of game play I started to feel very ill and soon had all the symptoms of motion sickness. Whilst I have played some games before that bring on a migraine the next day this is the first game that has ever made me physically sick. Cool as the game is I won’t be risking another go and will have to be content with watching my husband play instead. I would be interested to know if anyone else has experienced similar problems.

I came across this article about a multibird roast that costs £665 and feeds up to 125 people. It is made up of 12 birds making it one of the biggest multibird meals in the country. It consists of a turkey on the outside, goose, chicken, pheasant, three ducks, poussin, guinea fowl, partridge, pigeon squab and quail and is so heavy it takes two people to lift it. The roast would take around 10 hours to cook. It looks very nice but it might be a little too big to fit into my oven.