Three more good things:
- I am on a bit of a Discworld kick, and I am greatly enjoying my re-reads (Wyrd Sisters, Going Postal, Fifth Elephant, and now The Truth)
- Chris Woakes took 4-45 yesterday
- I am reminded that the Lay of Aotrou and Itroun will soon be published. This means that I can add a fourth copy to my collection :-)

What a marvellous morning for England :-)

Block, block, block
At the foot of thy wicket, O Scotton!
And I would that my tongue would utter
My boredom. You won't put the pot on!

Oh, nice for the bowler, my boy,
That each ball like a barndoor you play!
Oh, nice for yourself, I suppose,
That you stick at the wicket all day!

And the clock's slow hands go on,
And you still keep up your sticks;
But oh! for the lift of a smiting hand,
And the sound of a swipe for six!

Block, block, block,
At the foot of thy wicket, ah do!
But one hour of Grace or Walter Read
Were worth a week of you!

46 - 5 ???

Shelducklings ...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khDkr3BB73Q&feature=player_embedded

ETA: Less cute, but (in a way) v funny:
http://www.itv.com/news/cameron-ordered-out33095/

ETA2: Best retraction ever:
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/hygiene/home/article190130.ece

ETA3: Fake Cricketer released by Worcestershire!
http://www.slcricket.com/general-cricket-chat/27562-fake-cricketer-released-worcestershire.html

Two of these via http://www.badscience.net/

Happy New Year to you all! May 2011 bring you what you are wishing for.

We have been taking photos ... ( Read more... )

And looking at Alex, which continues the Ashes theme ( Read more... )

And now I will lay down the laptop and concentrate on The Key of Time.

Australia 98 all out.

England 157 for no wicket.

Happy Boxing Day, everyone!

ETA: I'm not sure what the cover has to do with the contents ...
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/IL-SILMARILLION-J-R-R-Tolkien-1a-Ediz-Euroclub-1987-/300506687592?pt=Libri&hash=item45f7982868

I can't sleep. Again.

And I've got a sore throat.

OTOH, Australia are 130-5 (although what are we doing, letting them put on fifty-plus for the sixth wicket?)

And we're going to get snow today.

Gah. LJ won't let me post a numerical poll with a scale of less than one (tho' admittedly this is only a very minor frustration!)

ETA: Swann is the third fastest bowler to 100 Test wickets (in terms of time). Who is ahead of him in the list?

ETA2: In terms of time:
1 Kapil Dev
2 Mitchell Johnson
3 Swann
(or, depending on your source, Johnson and Swann may be equal second)

In terms of numbers of tests:
1 GA Lohmann, 16 tests
2= CTB Turner, SF Barnes, CV Grimmett, each on 17 tests

AL Valentine, AME Roberts and IT Botham, each on 19 tests, were the fastest post-war bowlers.

We have snow in north Bristol. Not very much yet, but it is snow. We should mostly be able to get home today, but getting in tomorrow - in the busiest week in the year for many of the department - may be tricky.

Cheltenham, I hear, has three inches, and near-total gridlock. This leads me to doubt my "getting home" prediction.

South Africa are 265-2. We're stuffed.

ETA: Lord Mandelson announces extra bank holiday to mark Queen's diamond jubilee in 2012.