A Media Macedoine

What's A "Macedoine"*?
     So glad you asked - a bit of a medley, either vegetable, fruit or a lot of things thrown together.  That's BOOJUM! today.

That Christmas Pudding
     The one that must have been bought in 2011?  Well I ate nearly all of it last night, all bar a couple of forkfuls, by which time it had gone cold.  Not bad for a pudding intended for four people.  And I am still here today**.  "Best by" dates - seen as a dare by Conrad!

How could I!  How dare I!  Yes, yes, I know, eating Christmas pudding in February - not the done thing.  Sorry.

 Fifty Feet Of Terror
     No, not a story of giant man-eating centipedes!  Although - can't remember the title - there is a Biggles novel where he does encounter same and is only saved from certain death by -
     - sorry, where was I?  Oh yes.  Fifty feet in terms of height, Valentina.  Fifty-one years ago the immortal and beloved*** "Jason and the Argonauts" was released.  I've seen it countless times on television and Ray Harryhausen the special effects whiz never did better.
     The scene that chilled me to my marrow - the stuff inside your bones not that giant courgette sitting in vegetable drawer in the kitchen - wasn't the hydra, nor the skeleton warriors.  No, it was when Hercules and pal break into one of the storerooms of the gods.  In this case, Talos.  Congratulating themselves, they get outside and then -

From this -

To this.  Yikes!

The inanimate becomes animate, with a creaking sound.  Holy crap was that scarey.  I hope you lot appreciate my work here because I'll be having nightmares about this tonight.  Not quite as bad as the construction site plant that comes to life in "The Goodies" - a nightmare for another day.

 Serendipity
     This is an art exhibition taking place over the next week at Federation House in Manchester's city centre - Federation Street, to be precise.  The theme is that of accidental discovery.
     Here's some bathos**** for you.  From high-art concept to Conrad's serendipity for the day; whilst looking for a mixing bowl I found this in a casserole dish at the back of the cupboard:

Blurred because Conrad shook so with excitement

Flash Gordon
    The 1980 - good lord aloft is it that old?! - film, not the B & W film series from before time began.  

It's unclear what a Viking is doing here, nor why Flash it taking Ming's blood-pressure

I watched this again recently and it is a piece of camp nonsense, yet entertaining for all that.  You have Max Von Sydow being thoroughly eeeevil as Emperor Ming, Ornella Muti as his treacherous yet sexy daughter, Brian Blessed hamming it up as a Hawkman, Timothy Dalton being dashing, Sam Jones as the rather dim but noble hero.
     One of the film's lines explains away one of the writers at "Cracked", who titled their websection as "Flying Blind On A Rocketcycle".  This is a line spoken by Flash when Voltan asks where he is.
     I do take exception to Queen's lyrics during the film.  Let me explain.  Here's Flash, guiding War Rocket Ajax^ into Ming's palace during the wedding ceremony, and we get the lyric:

"Flash!  Aaa-aaah!  Saviour of the universe!"

     There is simply no excuse for this!  No!  Flash is saving planet Earth - a big hand for him for that, by the way - but NOT the universe.  The universe, as the Hitch-Hiker's Guide points out, is a staggeringly big place.  A whole lot bigger than one planet.  And what discipline did Queen's guitarist Brian May graduate in?
     Astrophysics!

"Conrad!  You are so correct!  Allow me to offer you a kingdom, then we'll sort out this MayQueen."

Dog Buns!
     As you surely know by now, gentle reader, the above is BOOJUM!'s official swear, allowing young readers to peruse without parental fear.
     Dog buns is also a concept apparently close to the heart of inventors, hence

Dog pancakes.  Yes, really.

I dunno.  Next there'll be hotels^^ for them, then they'll get the vote ...

Conrad, Kitchen Commando
     Let's see what got made earlier today -

Undressed coleslaw.  Healthy.

This - not so healthy.  But immensely tastier.

By coincidence I had Dulce de Leche and maple syrup to hand, both ingredients in Banoffee Cheesecake.  There may not be any of this left tomorrow as Darling Daughter is quite capable of eating the whole lot in one go, two goes if she's had a lot to eat already.

Now hidden in a secret location

Obligatory Cute Puppy Photo
     Edna in a quieter moment, after her mad dashing around earlier.  She's still utterly desperate to make friends with the cats, who, although not hostile, have still not processed the fact that they aren't Number One and Two in the house.

Edna, dreaming of her best friends the cats

* I picked up this word from P G Wodehouse; entertaining and educational
** A tad flatulent, perhaps, but still hale and hearty
*** Film reference.  Not telling which one!
****  Yes this is a proper word. Go look it up, I'm busy
^  More like a steerable ICBM, actually, General Cral.
^^ Another film reference.  Not telling - today, anyway.