Posted in March 2010

Marks & Spencer New Adverts

Source: hazel eyes
Wednesday 31st March 2010, 3:51pm

M&S have rolled out their next generation of adverts.

Marks & Spencer have forgone their "It's not just any food, its M&S food" strapline in favour of a "just because....." by Caroline Quentin.

The one I saw was about Easter and involved a lot of chocolate, which was quite mouth watering - just one wouldn't hurt would it? Around 20 themed adverts will be rolled out over the year.

The other new change was a new lineup for their dresses and lingerie models. Twiggy is still there, looking fabulous, but she is now joined by Danni Minogue, VV Brown and Ana Beatriz Barros. Myleene Klass and Noemie Lenoir are no longer featured.

Jamie Redknapp is going to be the new face of Marks & Spencer menswear.

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Things That Make You Go LOL

Source: hazel eyes
Friday 26th March 2010, 4:01pm

If we didn't laugh, we'd be crying

Marathon LolCats

LolCats are great. Type it into Google and there is an almost unlimited supply of funnyphotos to put a smile on one's face. I Can Haz Cheeseburger is awesome.

This tickled my fancy today:-

JACK (age 3)
was watching his Mum breast-feeding his new baby sister.... after a while he asked: 'Mom why have you got two? Is one for hot and one for cold milk?'

MELANIE (age 5)
asked her Granny how old she was… Granny replied she was so old she didn't remember any more. Melanie said, 'If you don't remember you must look in the back of your panties. Mine say five to six.'

STEVEN (age 3)
hugged and kissed his Mum good night. 'I love you so much that when you die,
I'm going to bury you outside my bedroom window.'

BRITTANY (age 4)
had an ear ache and wanted a pain killer. She tried in vain to take the lid off the bottle… Seeing her frustration, her Mum explained it was a child-proof
cap and she'd have to open it for her. Eyes wide with wonder, the little girl asked:
'How does it know it's me?'

SUSAN (age 4)
was drinking juice when she got the hiccups. 'Please don't give me this juice again,' she said, 'It makes my teeth cough..'

DJ (age 4)
stepped onto the bathroom scale and asked: 'How much do I cost?'

CLINTON (age 5)

was in his bedroom looking worried, when his Mum asked what was troubling him, he replied, 'I don't know what'll happen with this bed when I get married. How will my wife fit in it?'

MARC (age 4)

was engrossed in a young couple that were hugging and kissing in a restaurant.
Without taking his eyes off them, he asked his Dad: 'Why is he whispering in her mouth?'

TAMMY(age 4)

was with her mother when they met an elderly, rather wrinkled woman her Mum knew. Tammy looked at her for a while and then asked - 'Why doesn't your skin fit your face?'

JAMES (age 4)

was listening to a Bible story. His Dad read: 'The man named Lot was warned to take his wife and flee out of the city, but his wife looked back and was turned to salt.'
Concerned, James asked: 'What happened to the flea?'

AND .. The Sermon this Mum will never forget:

This particular Sunday sermon.....
'Dear Lord,' the minister began, with arms extended toward heaven and a rapturous look on his upturned face. 'Without you, we are but dust...' He would have continued, but at that moment my very obedient daughter, who was listening,
leaned over to me and asked quite audibly, in her shrill little four year old girl voice ...

'Mum, what is butt dust?'

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London Summer Vacations

Source: hazel eyes
Friday 19th March 2010, 11:44am

With winter now behind us, its time to think about summer holidays.

Flights To London

We live in troubles times at the moment. British Airways cabin crew are probably going on strike. Volunteers are supposed to be replacing them for the duration, but Unions are worried about training issues. If I was needing flights to the UK this summer, I think I'd be booking up about now.

What's On in London?

London has a diverse array of entertainment for all the family including theatre, music, dance, comedy, cinema and art exhibitions. There's almost too much to choose from, its worth doing a bit of research to narrow down events to attend.

Some of the Top London Events this year include Hard Rock Calling, The Wireless Festival, JLS in concert, LoveBox Weekender and Summer Swing at Kew Gardens.

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Marathon Running Tips

Source: hazel eyes
Monday 15th March 2010, 3:57pm

Long distance running is pretty hard on the legs. There are a few easy steps to keep the training as injury free as possible.

Training for a long distance running event, such as the London Marathon, can be prett gruelling, especially if you haven't done any long distance running before.

Below are some tips taken from http://blogs.mirror.co.uk/fitness-lifestyle-guru/2010/03/marathon-2010---5-ways-to-beat.html to help with 2010 marathons.

• It is probably too late in the day to get new trainers and I would assume you are all wearing the shoes that will get you around the 26.2 mile course. Something as simple as ensuring the laces are pulled tight will help keep your feet supported and reduce the chance of blisters.

• Make time to stretch after your runs, it is as important as any other part of the process. Find a space where you can sit and lie down after your run and take your time in each posture. Breath deeply through the nose and exhale through the mouth. Seven breaths per stretch will allow you to improve your flexibility. Upper back and chest should also be stretched as well as your legs and glutes. If you feel pressured with time, attend a yoga class at least once per week, this will help you.

• Invest in a couple bags of frozen peas and always have them in the freezer. Putting ice on an injury is a well worn process, this helps reduce inflammation by constricting the blood vessels and helping reduce pain. As a ritual, you could lie on your back with your legs raised on the sofa and pop a bag of peas both on top and underneath your achilles and calf muscles.

• Get yourself a sports massage to help with your recovery. The jury is out as to whether massage actually helps with performance. As a way to reduce tightness and as a feel good process it really helps. You could massage your own feet and calf muscles after every run, it may sound daft but it really is time to worship your feet.
  

• Taking a few days off from training to look at the bigger picture of actually finishing the race may not be such a bad idea. Missing one or two runs at this stage and replacing them with a swim or a bike could be benefical. A combination of exercises that are non weight baring will help your body recover. Obviously do not miss your long runs but maybe supplement a couple of the shorter runs.

The rest of the Mirror article has some more useful tips.

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Etihad BusinessConnect

Source: hazel eyes
Wednesday 10th March 2010, 12:32pm

BusinessConnect is Etihad's new initiative to enable SME's to get more value from their travel budget.

Companies enrolled in the scheme earn miles on Etihad's flights, including those operated by their codeshare partners, meaning whether it is a flight to Mumbai or an internal flight to Manchester with Flybe, both will earn rewards. The account can be managed online 24hrs a day by the company's BusinessConnect members or a designated travel agent.There is a 5,000 miles bonus for activating an account which ends on 30 April 2010.

Features of the scheme include:-

• the business will earn 60% of all Diamond First and Pearl Business class miles earned by employees, in addition to individual employees receiving their normal mileage accrual;

• the business earns 30% of total miles flown in Coral Economy class, in addition to individual employees receiving their normal mileage accrual;

• BusinessConnect members can redeem their miles for free flights, upgrades and a choice of over 1600 rewards; and

• All miles are added together to start earning rewards faster.

SME's in the UAE will be entitled to further benefits of the Etihad Guest Programme, including:-

• lounge access;
• excess baggage allowance;
• limousine transfers;
• fast-track immigration; and
• priority boarding and baggage reclaim.

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Virtual Dressing Up

Source: hazel eyes
Friday 5th March 2010, 3:54pm

Wouldn't it be great if we could see what clothes looked like without trying them on?. The reality might not be far away.

Researchers in Berlin have developed a 'magic mirror' that enables shoppers to see themselves wearing different items of clothing without getting undressed.

Sounds fantastic, no more wasting half an hour trying on 3 different dresses with 6 different lingerie sets - this computerised mirror takes a life size 3D image of the body and allows us to virtually try on any outfit.

"Our goal is to be able to dress people virtually," said Anna Hilsmann, one of the mirror’s developers at the Heinrich-Hertz Institute in Berlin. The new technology is one of a range of body-scanning techniques that could one day lead to an electronic version of bespoke tailoring.

In the future, all we'd have to do would be to visit a shop and get measured, then just order clothes online or at the store. Clothes would be made to the correct specifications, with no more sending stuff back because it didn't fit. Bloomin marvelous.

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Spain Easter Car Hire Hotspot

Source: hazel eyes
Tuesday 2nd March 2010, 4:57pm

Spain is shaping up to be the most popular place to go this Easter.

Car rental bookings for Easter are showing once again that Spain is the most popular destination. Spain car hire could become more difficult to book late as a result.

Seville is particularly popular over the Semana Santa - or Holy Week - period as its celebrations are so impressive.

The advice is to book car rental as far ahead as possible in advance to avoid disappointment. The Andalucia region is beautiful to visit, many tourists hire a car just to enable them to see as much of it as possible.

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