MAGNETIC ATTRACTIONS

I seem to have gathered rather a lot of fridge magnets over the years and looking at them the other day, I realised that they represented a kind of saga of my life (and the lives of my friends) over the last decade or two.

Click on images to enlarge

So I thought I'd make a small, but representative, selection of the dozens of magnets currently on display, relieve them of the notes and out-of-date vouchers they normally keep in place and share with you their origins which turn out to be quite international...


Top Row (left to right): A pair mini-clogs featuring Miffy, the rabbit created by the Dutch artist and writer, Dick Bruna.

Cartoon of David by a caricaturist with whom he worked at some corporate dinner. She caught something of his character really rather well: the impish twinkle, perhaps, just before he produces your chosen card!

One of Oscar Wilde's cleverisms purchased in the shop at London's National Portrait Gallery on a trip there with our friends Val and Michael..

I'm not sure where I got the ceramic dodo, but I've always had a kind of empathy with these absurd, hapless birds so cruelly condemned to extinction by unthinking Man.

Second Row: Ena Sharples (a memorable early character in Coronation Street, played by Violet Carson) from the shop at Granada Studios in Manchester, during a visit there with my best mate, radio producer, Malcolm Prince, when we were making a series about soap operas. Alas, the Studio Tour is now sadly closed to visitors.

Las Vegas bottle opener brought back from the Strip by my old pal, Irascian. Decorative and functional - the gift, I mean, although the same could also be said of the giver!

Souvenir of The Living Seas pavilion in EPCOT Center, Walt Disney World, Florida, the opening of which I attended with my good friend and fellow Disney historian, Richard Holliss. You won't find Mickey Mouse there these days as it's been re-vamped as The Seas with Nemo & Friends. Hmmm...

Keepsake from Hearst Castle, San Simeon, California, the fabulous, fanciful home of William Randolph Hearst who was the original inspiration for Charles Foster Kane in Citizen Kane. It was bought on a unforgettable visit with the aforementioned Malcolm Prince when we were driving from San Francisco to LA during the making of a radio series about Walt Disney.

Kangaroo decorated by an aboriginal artist bought in The Rocks Market, Sydney Harbour, en route to New Zealand on Rings business.

The Wicked Witch from The Wizard of Oz, although I'm not sure where she came from -- other than the West, obviously!

Third Row: Rocket from the Tintin adventures Destination Moon and Explorers on the Moon bought at a Hergé exhibition which David and I visited at the Centre George Pompidou, Paris.

John Tenniel's Humpty Dumpty (from Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking Glass) bought from that Carrollian cornucopia in Oxford known as Alice's Shop.

A stylised representation of the classic Doric architecture of Paestum, brought back from Italy for us by Richard and Chris Holliss. A reminder that whilst we know Venice like the back of our hand, most of Italy is, well, a foreign country to us...

"Aah, Bisto!" The classic 'twenties advertisement featuring the Bisto Kids by cartoonist Wilf Owen. This came from the nostalgia section of the shop in the Imperial War Museum. Not being a great lover of planes, tanks and guns, I'm afraid I spent most of my time in the shop!

100% Toro from Spain, courtesy of our own dear Polkadotsoph. Like all great logos, it's 100% simple and effective.

Bottom Row: Edinburgh Festival poster from our last visit in 1997 - goodness, is really that long ago?

One of a set of magnets given away with Findus frozen products in 1992 when Disneyland Paris had just opened and was still known as EuroDisneyland. Of course I have the complete set (God knows how many packets of fish fingers I had to get through!) but this magnet is of my favourite section of the park, Fantasyland, and features Peter Pan.

E H Shepard's Pooh and Piglet (though manufactured under license from Disney, naturally!) with a caption that I used to try and heed when approaching the fridge in the days of my diet! I must start looking at it again!

Athena's Owl from a tat-shop in the Plaka, Athens. True, the head is too big - but then maybe that's due to all the wisdom crammed within!

Memento of the Jurassic Park attraction at Universal Studios in Los Angeles, visited during yet another American jaunt with Mr Prince. "Was this work?" you ask. Well, let's just say it was research!

This is, believe me, only a fraction of the stuff on our refrigerator. I'll give you a further tour another day.

In the meanwhile, why not tell me - or show me - what's on your fridge?

*

Oh, yes, and happy birthday greetings today to Sibley-blog regular, Boll Weavil...

Many Happy Returns, Boll!

A SEAT IN THE SUN

Since today is, believe it or not, World Toilet Day, the Sibley blog continues its customer service of bringing you the latest loo-lowdown from around the globe, DAVID came across the following photo snapped on the streets of Athens...


Too public to be entirely convenient? I'd say so... But useful for motorcyclists...

And now check out this story from the most recent edition of The Sunday's Times discussing the perennial question Why are there so few public toilets for women? and, brace yourself for these Top 10 Toilet Horrors.

Among these Letters to The Times is one sent in 1930 that has an opening that is beyond parody: "Sir, - On September 22 I looked in about 2.30 p.m. at the Natural History Museum for a short time. While examining the locust exhibit close to the entrance on the ground floor I was conscious of a well-dressed young fellow hovering around apparently with no direct interest in the exhibits..." The locust exhibit?? Do check it out, along with some other marvelous missives on the subject of lavatories across the centuries...

TIDDELY-POM-POMS

On our way back from Greece we picked up some new Greek pom-pom slippers in Athens...


Our last pairs (given us by our friends at Atristico some years ago) have worn well but are showing early signs of dilapidation partly due to the affectionate attentions of our friend Sophie's kittens who, not unnaturally, find the pom-poms irresistible!

Humans, on the other hand, seem to think them faintly ludicrous. For example, when I was hospitalised earlier in the year, I was wandering around in mine and the man in the bed opposite said: "Nice slippers! They must have been a present!"

They are, of course, a somewhat gayer relative of the red 'tsarouhi' leather clogs with a black pompon worn by the Evzoni (Ευζώνοι), the elite ceremonial Proedriki Froura (Presidential Guard), that can be seen guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier (Άγνωστος Στρατιώτης), the Hellenic Parliament and the Presidential Mansion in Athens.

The hourly Changing of the Guard ceremony is a spectacle rivaling the sedate proceedings at our own Buck House, not least because the Evzoni can accomplish a high-kick (right) that would put the most accomplished Can-Can girl to shame!

It is, however, difficult for even the mildly-crass tourist to suppress a fit of the giggles and memories of John Cleese when watching a ritual that is obviously absolutely not intended to raise a smile...


Still pictures simply do not do justice to the event, so here's a short video, after watching which you can imagine David and I performing similar gymnastics in our new footwear!

Images: Brian Sibley © 2008

DUAL PURPOSE

There are many noble sights in Athens...


And some odd and eccentric ones, too, such as this item from the Greek street market version of Ann Summers...


But, is it possible to open a bottle while using it, one wonders...?

Images: Brian Sibley © 2008

CATTINESS

Now... I have to explain how it with me and cats: I am - and have always been - allergic to felines. I only had my childhood pet, Tiddles (yes, I know!), for a week before the recurrent asthma attacks dictated that T------ had to go away to live with Auntie Margaret and Uncle Harry...

Since then, cats and I tend to keep a healthy distance from each other - except, of course, for those malicious ones who sense the opportunity of causing an allergic reaction and make a determined bee-line for me as soon as I enter a room!

Even our friend Sophie's new cats, Dylan and (below) Zebedee, who I only ever encounter after taking reasonable dosages of antihistamine, largely ignore me - other than posing for photographs, that is...



It's rather sad really, because I do like cats - it's just that I can't exactly ENJOY THEM...

When we were in Greece we saw a great many cats, but it was only since coming home that I ran across the following...

It is a little known fact that the untimely demise of the Ancient Greek civilisation is attributable to the lack of esteem in which they held their cats.

Compare them with the ancient Romans, who, whilst they still had a way to go before they were properly tamed, achieved the level of civilisation where they were able to have mutually beneficial feline relationships.

Modern Greeks however, are very different to their forbears - everyone likes cats in Greece...

Indeed they do, which accounts for the proliferation of Greek Cat Calendars, books, postcards and even graffiti...


So, today, I've chosen a few Greek feline encounters of my own.

There are guardians...


Sentinels...


Beggars...


Waifs...


And decidedly sinister-looking characters...


As well as those who insist on taking the chair and making their point...


And insignificant little characters who look as though they wouldn't say "Boo!" to a goose...


...but who will still go a couple of rounds with the local cock-of-the-walk!


As for this photo: it's (obviously) entitled Puss 'n' Boots!


Photographer Hans Sylvester astutely wrote in his book Les Chats du Soleil...

These cats, that are domestic cats, are not abandoned, neither wild, they live for centuries with the humans.

The Greek people of these islands like them without really liking them, they take care of them without really taking care of them; but they accept them totally.

These cats are part of daily life, they've always been here, like the wind, the sun, the sea, the day and the night.

Images: © Brian Sibley, 2007

IT'S ALL NOT GREEK TO ME

As this sign on an Athens bar shows, even the Greeks are not above using (really bad!) puns on their signage...


In Greek, apparently, this would read...

έτσι τρόφιμα φραγμών έτσι

...which, according to my on-line translation service, means (in English)...

thus foods of barriers thus

...which also means that - one way or another - it rather lost something in translation!

SPRAY OF THE DAY

In a city filled with with all kinds of graffiti...



Can it be that BANKSY has sprayed his way to Athens?


Images: © Brian Sibley & David Weeks, 2007

ON SALE IN ATHENS

I always enjoy finding out what's on sale in any city - especially anything that's unique to that place.

In Athens there are plenty of very well-made (but expensive) replicas of Greek artifacts...


And even more cheaply-made tacky dittos...


There are street vendors selling a dozen different type of nutty snacks...


...and pyramids of fruit...


You can buy the obligatory sponge for your bathroom...


And Pom-pom slipper-versions of those funny shoes worn by Greek guards...


There's lots of blue glass...


Lots of throws, shawls and fabrics...


Plenty of bling...


Curious silver egg-shaped things...


And uniquely Greek goodies include such objects as gods-clocks...


Barbie goddesses...


And illuminated Parthenons...


And while in the city of legends, we also came across some leg ends...


And, finally, if you happen to find yourself shopping in Athens, make sure you keep an eye open for special offers!!


Images: © Brian Sibley & David Weeks, 2007

[Read part 2 of Buttons' what i did on my hols]

ON THE STREETS OF ATHENS

The first thing that needs to be understood about the streets of Athens is that many of them - particularly those in the Plaka - scarcely merit the term 'street' at all, having pavements that are little more than eighteen inches wide and comprising a succession of hazards including pot-holes and dead pigeons...


There are also dodgy arrangements of steps down and up to concealed doors and even the odd, small but hardy tree...

Incidentally, coming down this particular road is an Athenian taxi. These angry yellow beasts rush and roar through the city, impatiently and excitedly honking their horns whenever they don't have clear and open access for their busy-busy rushing and roaring.

Curiously, they are also almost always EMPTY and will never, ever stop for anyone who might conceivably be a tourist since, as one driver explained to David - before NOT taking us where we wanted to be: "Tourists never want to go far enough!"

All Greek taxi drivers are, presumably, retired shipping magnets who don't need to worry about earning any money and just enjoy treating the streets of Athens as a stock-car race track!

Common features of the streets of Athens include: ancient ruins...


And buildings not so ancient, but equally ruinous...


A lot of ugly and unsightly graffiti...


And quite a bit of wild and fantastical graffiti...


There is also plenty of evidence of the handiwork of Master Bill Stickers...


A lot of street slogans, one of the most popular being: Free your mind and your ass will follow...


Controversial exhibition posters - sometimes (daringly) in close proximity to the national flag...


And, of course, useful messages that have a universal familiarity...


Images: © Brian Sibley, 2007
[Buttons' fans can read part 1 of his what i did on my hols report.]