The Case of the Rhinestone Thingies

One of the hazards/joys of Ross' work is that he sometimes ends up with mystery items.

At a recent auction he bought a pallet that contained a couple of items:

1. Rhinestone buckle/sliders.

2.  These rhinestone things.

So here's where I need your help.  Item number 2.  These rhinestone strips with circles on the end.  What the heck are they???!!!

They are packaged with 2 together, so whatever they are- it appears they should be used in a pair.

I've spent an obscene amount of time searching ebay under a variety of terms and not found anything that looks the same.  I've floated a few guesses, which Ross isn't sold on.  (I'm keeping them to myself for now, so I don't plant ideas in your head).

So.  What do you think the use for 2 8.5 inch rhinestone strip/circle thingies is intended to be?

A Birthday by the Sea

To celebrate Ross' birthday, we went on a little overnight trip to Lytham-St. Anne's and Blackpool.
It was a really lovely getaway and being just about an hour away made it the perfect destination for our short stay.

We drove up on Friday evening after Ross was done working and, after a little creative satellite navigating, we found our B&B- The Gaydon Hotel.  Ross picked it based on it's outstanding Trip Advisor reviews, and it was perfectly fine.  I was slightly confused as to why the reviews we SOOO glowing over this establishment which, while perfectly nice, wasn't anything that amazing.  I'll never quite understand the decor in B&Bs.  It seems like it would be perfectly easy to furnish and decorate a room in an elegant or simple or stylish way for not a lot of money.  The pictures were all hung at strangely high levels- mostly above my head... so weird.  (Even Ross wouldn't have hung them that high!)  Sadly, I didn't take any pictures of the B&B.

After getting checked into our room, we wandered around St. Anne's to find some where for dinner.  It was a little breezy and chilly, but a pleasant walk to the main part of town.  I love the feel of seaside towns!  It's like nothing I've experienced in America.  So quaint!  Charming!  Vintage!   Deserted.... Ruh-oh.  It still surprises me how dead shopping areas are on Friday night in England.  There were a few couples out walking, but not a shop was open.  It was 7:30PM and totally closed up.

We peeked in a few different restaurants and settled on a new-looking pizzeria.  It had a nice vibe and our food was pretty good, even though it took longer than it should have.  (A big takeaway order went out just before our food, so it must have slowed them down.)  We then had a lovely walk back to the B&B.  We walked past the lovely old houses and along the seafront.

In the morning, we check out of the B&B and headed back to town to see the sights in day light.  It was very serene and lovely.  It was a cool and sunny day.  Perfect weather.

We checked out the inside boardwalk.  Ross got all excited about this 2p machine, so I dug all my 2p coins out of my pursewallet and let him go to town.

We got to the end of the indoor portion, only to find that we weren't allowed to keep going.

Sad face.

Then we went for a walk along the beach.  I love walking barefoot in the sand and the temperature was just warm enough with a breeze that it was heavenly.

I don't know why Ross cropped himself out of this picture.

The pier we couldn't go out on in the background.  

You can almost see the water.  Sort of.

 Nearby was a "sensory garden" with a statue of Les Dawson.  I'm not sure what made is a sensory garden- other than the several plaques that described it as such.

Ross with Les.  He's gurning.

This continued the tradition of visiting statues of Ross' comedy heroes for his birthday.  (Can it be a tradition after only 2 years?)

Ross with Laurel and Hardy in Ulverston.

We went to the Lake District for last year's birthday.

Then we walked on to a pretty fountain.

You can see more of the park along the sea front (which was on the other side of the tall bushes) in this one.

Obligatory double self-portrait in front of the fountain.

Next we drove on to Blackpool which was a totally different vibe.  Sadly, I forgot to pull the camera out.  I'm so bad about that!

We saw the Winter Garden and had a wander.  We had lunch outdoors at a nice little cafe.  Then we drove home.  It was a wonderful outing to celebrate the birth of a wonderful man!

What's the best day trip you've ever gone on?

Cheerful Sunday

A nice day away by the sea to celebrate my sweetheart's birthday!

(Also, an impromptu week off.  I'm back now...

Plump it up

The poster girl for plump (lips, that is)!

I love my lip plumper lip gloss, especially Buxom Lip Polish by Bare Escentuals.  Ross isn't so much a fan.  He doesn't like the way it tingles on his lips after we kiss.  At least the colour looks good on him! :)

But we're not here to talk about the state of my lips.

A phrase that is very common here is England, is (yet again!) one I'd never heard prior to moving here.  I hear it most frequently when watching one of the many quiz shows we enjoy.  On a quiz show, it's used in the context of when a contestant isn't sure of the answer and prefaces their response with 3 words "I'll plump for _______ ". 

I actually misunderstood what it meant until just now when I asked Ross to explain it to me and tell me it's origin.  I thought that it mean the equivalent of "I'll give a guess of _______".  That's how it comes across as it's always when the answer isn't a sure thing.  Ross has just told me that it actually means more like "I'll back/ give my support to/endorse".   It's actually in American dictionaries, but is used in a more political context- like someone backing a certain political candidate or party.  

So there you go... there's a little something you might not have known....

What phrases have you found confusing, or thought you understood only to find out you were wrong?

Cheerful Sunday

The BBC Show Who Do You Think You Are? is super-awesome.

In each episode, a celebrity follows their family tree into the depths of history.  They follow the tree back and usually find something of interest like a polygamist great-grandfather or something else.

I always enjoy watching it and often find myself emotionally involved in the stories.

History is cool!