Tim Atkinson's Blog, page 68
May 5, 2013
The Spalding Flower Parade
'We love a parade...' (as Auntie Mabel of CBeebies 'Come Outside' fame sang when she took part with her dog Pippin in the 1990s).
Unfortunately, yesterday, we saw the last outing of this particular one: the world-famous Spalding Flower Parade with an unbroken history stretching back to 1959 and origins - in such events as the Spalding Tulip Festival - dating back even earlier to the 1920s. So, almost a century.
But time and tide wait for no man, and not even for a Carnival Queen. The weather - kind on the afternoon of the parade itself - has not helped the people desperate to decorate their floats with tulip petals for one last time this year and the various funding bodies have decided that the cost can no longer be justified. So a small piece of Lincolnshire history came to a colourful end yesterday as the last of the floats paraded through the town and off into the sunset. If you weren't one of the ten or so thousand people there to see it, here's what you missed. And what we will all miss from now on.
Unfortunately, yesterday, we saw the last outing of this particular one: the world-famous Spalding Flower Parade with an unbroken history stretching back to 1959 and origins - in such events as the Spalding Tulip Festival - dating back even earlier to the 1920s. So, almost a century.
But time and tide wait for no man, and not even for a Carnival Queen. The weather - kind on the afternoon of the parade itself - has not helped the people desperate to decorate their floats with tulip petals for one last time this year and the various funding bodies have decided that the cost can no longer be justified. So a small piece of Lincolnshire history came to a colourful end yesterday as the last of the floats paraded through the town and off into the sunset. If you weren't one of the ten or so thousand people there to see it, here's what you missed. And what we will all miss from now on.
May 2, 2013
Review: Kodak Kiosk Connect App
Want to know how to get from this...
To this?
The answer lies in a wonderful new app from Kodak called Kodak Kiosk Connect. If you've ever dreamt about being able to walk into a photo shop, turn on your smartphone and wirelessly create all manner of groovy things from greetings cards to posters, collages and photo albums then your dreams have just come true.
I was lucky enough to be asked to try out the service last Saturday and - willing to have a go at anything once (save incest and Morris Dancing) - I was only too happy to agree. And if I tell you that in this case it won't be 'just the once' you'll probably guess that the experience was pretty favourable.
Not only were the staff (at Czimmerl Studio in Lincoln) very helpful, but the technology is so straightforward that anyone can not only use it but do great things with it. The results are certainly impressive.
Basically the app creates a (secure) wireless connection between your phone (or iPad) and the kiosk. This then allows you to upload either a selection of photos or your entire library should you so wish!
You then simply choose what you want to create (greetings card, calendar, collage etc.) and the image(s) you wish to use and, well, that's basically all there is to it. You're given the option of editing, enhancing, trimming the pic and adding text as appropriate and for some options (a large poster, say) there might be a turnaround time of an hour but in many cases your chosen items are ready in little more than a mouse click.
Having tried the app in store (without really any prior knowledge) I was given a free CD with the software (PC only at the moment, unfortunately) which gives you the chance to make and create in the comfort of your own home (and take a little more time, perhaps) and I'll be reporting on this in a further post.
In the meantime, if you like the idea don't forget that at the moment there's a chance to try out the new app and at the same time enter a competition to win one of four brand new iPads. You can find further details here.
To this?
The answer lies in a wonderful new app from Kodak called Kodak Kiosk Connect. If you've ever dreamt about being able to walk into a photo shop, turn on your smartphone and wirelessly create all manner of groovy things from greetings cards to posters, collages and photo albums then your dreams have just come true.
I was lucky enough to be asked to try out the service last Saturday and - willing to have a go at anything once (save incest and Morris Dancing) - I was only too happy to agree. And if I tell you that in this case it won't be 'just the once' you'll probably guess that the experience was pretty favourable.
Not only were the staff (at Czimmerl Studio in Lincoln) very helpful, but the technology is so straightforward that anyone can not only use it but do great things with it. The results are certainly impressive.
Basically the app creates a (secure) wireless connection between your phone (or iPad) and the kiosk. This then allows you to upload either a selection of photos or your entire library should you so wish!
You then simply choose what you want to create (greetings card, calendar, collage etc.) and the image(s) you wish to use and, well, that's basically all there is to it. You're given the option of editing, enhancing, trimming the pic and adding text as appropriate and for some options (a large poster, say) there might be a turnaround time of an hour but in many cases your chosen items are ready in little more than a mouse click.
Having tried the app in store (without really any prior knowledge) I was given a free CD with the software (PC only at the moment, unfortunately) which gives you the chance to make and create in the comfort of your own home (and take a little more time, perhaps) and I'll be reporting on this in a further post.
In the meantime, if you like the idea don't forget that at the moment there's a chance to try out the new app and at the same time enter a competition to win one of four brand new iPads. You can find further details here.
April 30, 2013
The Trees are Coming Into Leaf
Sometimes being five is the best age to be. I'm not sure if I'd want to be five again but there's something fresh and joyful about the way most five-year-olds look at the world. This morning I was summoned from my station in the kitchen to witness an amazing new discovery:
'Look daddy, look what's happening to the trees!'
What was happening to the trees is what happens to the trees at this time every year. What was happening was as unremarkable and as ordinary as the sun rising in the morning. What was happening was that the leaves had started showing, unfurling and transforming those dead skeletons of wood outside our house into obviously living things again.
But to a five-year-old it was anything but ordinary; I suppose the run rising in the morning, waking him earlier and earlier at this time of year (more on that story later!) is anything but ordinary too. In fact, I suppose it's something of a minor miracle.
The atheists among us have a problem: all this eternal renewal - including the many millions of new humans born each year - doesn't get anyone anywhere. We're all going round in gigantic cosmic circles (or ellipses, I suppose) and the only teleological purpose of it all is extinction.
But you can't deny the utter beauty of 'creation' (including the humanity and its achievements) and it's therefore difficult - if not impossible - to conceive of it as being nothing more than a existential accident. Don't laugh; don't such difficulties keep you awake at night as well? No? Oh well...
It just occurred to me that if there was nothing else to life, no God, no purpose (and I'm not suggesting that there isn't, merely stating it for the sake of argument) then the simple joy of a discovery like new leaves on the trees, the sheer joy all children have (or should have) in discovering new and interesting things about the world around them (tired though they might be to the rest of us) might make it all - the struggles, the worry, the hardships and hassles - worth it. If that was all there is, I think I'd take it. The meaning of life? It's the joy of discovery, the delight in new knowledge and the ability to notice things - simple things, mundane things - and take delight in them and see the vast universe of unknowns as a tremendous, exciting opportunity.
And that's the problem with grown ups, isn't it?
We think we know it all.
'Look daddy, look what's happening to the trees!'
What was happening to the trees is what happens to the trees at this time every year. What was happening was as unremarkable and as ordinary as the sun rising in the morning. What was happening was that the leaves had started showing, unfurling and transforming those dead skeletons of wood outside our house into obviously living things again.
But to a five-year-old it was anything but ordinary; I suppose the run rising in the morning, waking him earlier and earlier at this time of year (more on that story later!) is anything but ordinary too. In fact, I suppose it's something of a minor miracle.
The atheists among us have a problem: all this eternal renewal - including the many millions of new humans born each year - doesn't get anyone anywhere. We're all going round in gigantic cosmic circles (or ellipses, I suppose) and the only teleological purpose of it all is extinction.
But you can't deny the utter beauty of 'creation' (including the humanity and its achievements) and it's therefore difficult - if not impossible - to conceive of it as being nothing more than a existential accident. Don't laugh; don't such difficulties keep you awake at night as well? No? Oh well...
It just occurred to me that if there was nothing else to life, no God, no purpose (and I'm not suggesting that there isn't, merely stating it for the sake of argument) then the simple joy of a discovery like new leaves on the trees, the sheer joy all children have (or should have) in discovering new and interesting things about the world around them (tired though they might be to the rest of us) might make it all - the struggles, the worry, the hardships and hassles - worth it. If that was all there is, I think I'd take it. The meaning of life? It's the joy of discovery, the delight in new knowledge and the ability to notice things - simple things, mundane things - and take delight in them and see the vast universe of unknowns as a tremendous, exciting opportunity.
And that's the problem with grown ups, isn't it?
We think we know it all.
April 28, 2013
Why do we sing?
Listening to the BBC World Service in the small hours (as is my wont when I'm unable to get back to sleep) I was assisted, abetted or frustrated (depending on your viewpoint) by a fascinating programme on a subject very close indeed to my heart... or should I say lungs. No, both: singing.
I sing. I love singing. I'm blessed (I'm told) with a half-decent voice and I've been lucky enough to sing on numerous radio and TV broadcasts, to make commercial recordings and perform at a range of high profile events from the BBC Proms the the first performance of Paul McCartney's first foray into classical music.
But although I've thought of the voice and vocal technique, read about it, studied and practised it (and am even planning - with Professor Kenneth Park and Marc Murray - to write a book about it) until the other night I'd never really thought about the evolution of it.
Why do we sing? What (if any) advantage does it give us as a species? And how did we acquire this remarkable ability.
Well, thanks this this programme I now know that singing is about attracting a mate, deterring intruders and binding a community together.
Actually I always knew that: I met my wife singing in a choir and first fell for her voice. As for deterring intruders, well... that's what the birdies are doing early in the morning, isn't it? Those lovely, fluting melodies are really 'gerrof my land' expressions of territorial possession (or sometimes, 'you lookin' at my bird?' - literally - examples of musical aggression).
And, on reflection, I've always known about the community aspect of singing too. Singers are healthier, less stressed, less likely to become depressed and a whole host of other things in no small part due to the social aspect of singing in choirs. And even soloists, of course, need an audience.
There's so much to be said (or sung) about singing that I'm going to have to come back to it in another post. For now, to finish, I'm going to share a performance by a singer I admire, attempt (badly) to emulate and would gladly enter a Faustian pact to have the voice of but who above all sums up why I sing and why I'm so passionate about singing. Some people love the purr of expensive petrol engines; some take pleasure in the roar of a mighty steam loco. This man's voice is both, as gentle as dove but with the power to break the sound barrier should he need to:
I sing. I love singing. I'm blessed (I'm told) with a half-decent voice and I've been lucky enough to sing on numerous radio and TV broadcasts, to make commercial recordings and perform at a range of high profile events from the BBC Proms the the first performance of Paul McCartney's first foray into classical music.
But although I've thought of the voice and vocal technique, read about it, studied and practised it (and am even planning - with Professor Kenneth Park and Marc Murray - to write a book about it) until the other night I'd never really thought about the evolution of it.
Why do we sing? What (if any) advantage does it give us as a species? And how did we acquire this remarkable ability.
Well, thanks this this programme I now know that singing is about attracting a mate, deterring intruders and binding a community together.
Actually I always knew that: I met my wife singing in a choir and first fell for her voice. As for deterring intruders, well... that's what the birdies are doing early in the morning, isn't it? Those lovely, fluting melodies are really 'gerrof my land' expressions of territorial possession (or sometimes, 'you lookin' at my bird?' - literally - examples of musical aggression).
And, on reflection, I've always known about the community aspect of singing too. Singers are healthier, less stressed, less likely to become depressed and a whole host of other things in no small part due to the social aspect of singing in choirs. And even soloists, of course, need an audience.
There's so much to be said (or sung) about singing that I'm going to have to come back to it in another post. For now, to finish, I'm going to share a performance by a singer I admire, attempt (badly) to emulate and would gladly enter a Faustian pact to have the voice of but who above all sums up why I sing and why I'm so passionate about singing. Some people love the purr of expensive petrol engines; some take pleasure in the roar of a mighty steam loco. This man's voice is both, as gentle as dove but with the power to break the sound barrier should he need to:
April 25, 2013
Win an iPad in the Kodak Moment Photo Competition
I've always had a lot of time for Kodak products. A few years ago I was invited - by a 'leading competitor' - to run a like-for-like trial between a new state-of-the-art wireless printer (from the 'leading competitor's' stable and a Kodak ESP 7250 with the promise that, at the end of the trial, I could keep the one I liked the best. I kept the Kodak. The other company wasn't pleased.
Now I've been asked to try something new and exciting - namely the Kodak Kiosk printing app - a free app you can download and then use to get creative and print greetings cards, calendars etc. direct from your phone or iPad while in the kiosk. I'll be able to tell you more about it when I've given it a try.
In the meantime, they're giving away not one but five iPads in their exciting Kodak Moment Photo competition so if you want to have a go, here are the details...
Now I've been asked to try something new and exciting - namely the Kodak Kiosk printing app - a free app you can download and then use to get creative and print greetings cards, calendars etc. direct from your phone or iPad while in the kiosk. I'll be able to tell you more about it when I've given it a try.
In the meantime, they're giving away not one but five iPads in their exciting Kodak Moment Photo competition so if you want to have a go, here are the details...
April 23, 2013
Cry God for Harry, England...
... and St George!
It's St George's Day today. Personally I don't think it matters that 'Saint' George - or plain old 'George' as he might be now - wasn't an English knight (if he was a knight at all) but probably came from Palestine. The current resurgence of interest in English national identity conveniently forgets that it was ever thus: we're a mongrel race and much the better for it; even the one untarnished jewel in our crown - the English language - is a wonderful hybrid of many different tongues, making it one of the richest languages ever to have existed.
In fact, I think we should celebrate St George precisely because he's not English. In doing so we're celebrating what really has made our nation great - an acceptance of everyone, a spirit of embracing the new, the different, whether that's in terms of peoples, ideas or of words.
Of course, today is also - splendidly, serendipitously and appropriately - the birthday of William Shakespeare (or St William, as he ought to be known for working such miracles with the English language). So here, in honour of both men is... no, not Henry V's rabble rousing speech at Agincourt - but this gem from the less-well-known (but wonderfully poetic) Richard II, spoken in Act 2 (Scene 1) by the dying hero, John of Gaunt...
This royal throne of kings, this sceptred isle,
This earth of majesty, this seat of Mars,
This other Eden, demi-paradise,
This fortress built by Nature for herself
Against infection and the hand of war,
This happy breed of men, this little world,
This precious stone set in the silver sea,
Which serves it in the office of a wall
Or as a moat defensive to a house,
Against the envy of less happier lands,--
This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England.
April 19, 2013
Win a custom iPhone Case!
Or Samsung Galaxy S3 case if you'd prefer.
Yes. Cases. I've been trialling a number of cases recently, including the very hi-tech Pong one I told you about last week and this really lovely luxury leather iPad case which comes courtesy of Maroo:
As off-the-peg cases go, this is about as good as they get. But what if you want to customise your case? Well, with CaseApp you can. Upload a favourite image, rotate it, scale it, crop it, add text or even multiple images - in fact, be as creative as you like - and you can be the owner of an iPhone or Samsung S3 case like no-one else's.
Personally, I'm rather fancying an 'Old Jack's Boat' case (see previous post) or maybe something blog-related. It's fun having a play. And for one lucky reader, there'll be no need to pay either because the nice people at CaseApp have a code for a free case!
So take a look, get creating and then leave a comment below saying you'd like to win and I'll select someone by next Wednesday. It's that easy.
Case dismissed!
Yes. Cases. I've been trialling a number of cases recently, including the very hi-tech Pong one I told you about last week and this really lovely luxury leather iPad case which comes courtesy of Maroo:
.png)
As off-the-peg cases go, this is about as good as they get. But what if you want to customise your case? Well, with CaseApp you can. Upload a favourite image, rotate it, scale it, crop it, add text or even multiple images - in fact, be as creative as you like - and you can be the owner of an iPhone or Samsung S3 case like no-one else's.
Personally, I'm rather fancying an 'Old Jack's Boat' case (see previous post) or maybe something blog-related. It's fun having a play. And for one lucky reader, there'll be no need to pay either because the nice people at CaseApp have a code for a free case!
So take a look, get creating and then leave a comment below saying you'd like to win and I'll select someone by next Wednesday. It's that easy.
Case dismissed!
April 16, 2013
Old Jack's Boat
Since mentioning my holiday last week I've been overwhelmed by at least three expressions of mild interest in seeing the pics, so here they are.
We went to Staithes. Lovely place. I've been there before. (Jen's - MumintheMadHouse - mum was born there would you believe? Small world...)
Anyway, it's famous now as the location for this lovely CBeebies series...
As something of a reactionary when it comes to children's telly I've surprised myself by falling in love with this charming, beguiling and utterly captivating programme. I notice it's pedigree: created by the two of the channel's royalty in Chris Jarvis (no introduction necessary) and Pui Fan Lee (incidentally, did you know the Pui was once a Tellytubby?) and written (at least two episodes) by Russell T 'Doctor Who' Davies.
For those who don't know, Old Jack's Boat stars Bernard Cribbins as the eponymous Jack, whose old boat - The Rainbow - is the setting (both physically and creatively) for a series of tall tales of past voyages and adventures on the high seas. Unfortunately The Rainbow ('what 'ave you got for us today old girl?') wasn't at berth in the harbour when we visited (grown-ups: yes I know it's only an animation) so here's a picture Charlie drew of it instead:
The pretty little North Yorkshire fishing village of Staithes, just north of Whitby (you've heard of Whitby - Dracula, a famous seventh-century Synod, Caedmon - a sort of Anglo-Saxon Philip Larkin - and some of the finest fish-n-chips you'l ever taste) is the setting for the series and is peopled by a cast of colourful characters who add an entertaining sub-plot to each story. Emily sells ice-cream; Shelly (played by former Doctor Who girl Freema Agyeman) runs the cafe and Ernie (real-life owner of Scudge who play's 'Salty', Jack's dog) is the local fisherman.
As far as I know Staithes really is peopled by such wonderful characters. The people we met were certainly friendly. But then, they always are in Yorkshire. They didn't even mind Charlie sitting on the bench in front of Old Jack's cottage (which you can hire as a holiday let, you know):
We had a lovely time looking round because Staithes is such a lovely place. It didn't matter that there wasn't much of 'Old Jack's Boat' to see because part of the programme's magic comes from this special little location tucked away between Redcar and Whitby.
We went to Staithes. Lovely place. I've been there before. (Jen's - MumintheMadHouse - mum was born there would you believe? Small world...)
Anyway, it's famous now as the location for this lovely CBeebies series...
As something of a reactionary when it comes to children's telly I've surprised myself by falling in love with this charming, beguiling and utterly captivating programme. I notice it's pedigree: created by the two of the channel's royalty in Chris Jarvis (no introduction necessary) and Pui Fan Lee (incidentally, did you know the Pui was once a Tellytubby?) and written (at least two episodes) by Russell T 'Doctor Who' Davies.
For those who don't know, Old Jack's Boat stars Bernard Cribbins as the eponymous Jack, whose old boat - The Rainbow - is the setting (both physically and creatively) for a series of tall tales of past voyages and adventures on the high seas. Unfortunately The Rainbow ('what 'ave you got for us today old girl?') wasn't at berth in the harbour when we visited (grown-ups: yes I know it's only an animation) so here's a picture Charlie drew of it instead:
The pretty little North Yorkshire fishing village of Staithes, just north of Whitby (you've heard of Whitby - Dracula, a famous seventh-century Synod, Caedmon - a sort of Anglo-Saxon Philip Larkin - and some of the finest fish-n-chips you'l ever taste) is the setting for the series and is peopled by a cast of colourful characters who add an entertaining sub-plot to each story. Emily sells ice-cream; Shelly (played by former Doctor Who girl Freema Agyeman) runs the cafe and Ernie (real-life owner of Scudge who play's 'Salty', Jack's dog) is the local fisherman.
As far as I know Staithes really is peopled by such wonderful characters. The people we met were certainly friendly. But then, they always are in Yorkshire. They didn't even mind Charlie sitting on the bench in front of Old Jack's cottage (which you can hire as a holiday let, you know):
We had a lovely time looking round because Staithes is such a lovely place. It didn't matter that there wasn't much of 'Old Jack's Boat' to see because part of the programme's magic comes from this special little location tucked away between Redcar and Whitby.
April 13, 2013
This week we have been mostly playing...
...LEGO City: Undercover:
This new game for the Nintendo Wii U has been keeping us - *ahem*, Charlie - amused while the weather has been miserable and you can hear from the laughter how much he's been enjoying it. And you can hear from my cries of agony (there aren't any) how much I'm enjoying not stepping on sharp-cornered plastic bricks during this particular phase of LEGO play. But don't despair - the creativity is all still there not least in the multitude of LEGO objects to be built - on screen - as part of the game. But they don't hurt your feet when they're on the telly:
...with boxes:
Yes, cardboard boxes. In complete contrast to the high tech, remote controlled, computer animated action of the above we have been making things out of all sorts of old boxes and some that were supplied especially for the purpose by Fellowes, namely their Bankers Box ('Together we can build anything...') including a rather splendid cardboard wendy house which has provided hours of fun:
We have been mostly eating...
...this, courtesy of the new Chesil Smokery ('the hottest little smokery in the West').
And at the moment they've offering your first box for just £10 ('delivered, chilled, by 24-hour courier') - amazing value and you can mix-and-match all you like.
In other news I've been testing out a smart new iPhone case (or rather, not being an iPhone5 owner, it's been tested by my father. Yes, he has an iPhone5. Yes, I am jealous). It comes from Pong Research (no, I'm not joking) and - in addition to being a rather smart case - it claims both the reduce radiation exposure and boost mobile phone reception. Not having the qualifications or equipment to test the former (read what it says about how it works on Pong's website) we've taken that as read but in field tests we haven't been able to find any significant difference in signal strength with or without the case.
This is with the case on:
And this is with it off:
Still, it really is a very nice case. And that's not the last you'll be hearing about cases, as - next week - I'll be offering one lucky reader the chance to create a customised iPhone (or Samsung) case of their own. Watch this space!
This new game for the Nintendo Wii U has been keeping us - *ahem*, Charlie - amused while the weather has been miserable and you can hear from the laughter how much he's been enjoying it. And you can hear from my cries of agony (there aren't any) how much I'm enjoying not stepping on sharp-cornered plastic bricks during this particular phase of LEGO play. But don't despair - the creativity is all still there not least in the multitude of LEGO objects to be built - on screen - as part of the game. But they don't hurt your feet when they're on the telly:
...with boxes:
Yes, cardboard boxes. In complete contrast to the high tech, remote controlled, computer animated action of the above we have been making things out of all sorts of old boxes and some that were supplied especially for the purpose by Fellowes, namely their Bankers Box ('Together we can build anything...') including a rather splendid cardboard wendy house which has provided hours of fun:
We have been mostly eating...
...this, courtesy of the new Chesil Smokery ('the hottest little smokery in the West').
And at the moment they've offering your first box for just £10 ('delivered, chilled, by 24-hour courier') - amazing value and you can mix-and-match all you like.
In other news I've been testing out a smart new iPhone case (or rather, not being an iPhone5 owner, it's been tested by my father. Yes, he has an iPhone5. Yes, I am jealous). It comes from Pong Research (no, I'm not joking) and - in addition to being a rather smart case - it claims both the reduce radiation exposure and boost mobile phone reception. Not having the qualifications or equipment to test the former (read what it says about how it works on Pong's website) we've taken that as read but in field tests we haven't been able to find any significant difference in signal strength with or without the case.
This is with the case on:
And this is with it off:
Still, it really is a very nice case. And that's not the last you'll be hearing about cases, as - next week - I'll be offering one lucky reader the chance to create a customised iPhone (or Samsung) case of their own. Watch this space!
April 11, 2013
Guess who's coming to dinner?
A great game to play at dinner parties with friends and family is to imagine who you would invite to your dream dinner.
Assuming that you’re not going to cause any offence by implying that the current roster of guests wouldn’t be invited, that is. Take it in turns to go round the table and ask each person who they would have as their ideal guests for a dinner party. Each guest gets to choose five other people, either living or dead whom they would invite (they can even be fictional if you like - it's your party and your game).
Just as a person's friends reveal a lot about their character, you can learn a lot about someone from the people they would choose to have sitting round their dining table. What, for instance, would you make of someone who invited Napoleon, say, or Winston Churchill? Interest in history, perhaps? Or politics? It might be safer to assume that someone who invited Michael Schumacher or Sterling Moss to dinner would be rather keen on motor sport. And any male guests inviting Brigitte Bardot or Kate Moss are really dreaming.
Who would you have at your dinner party? Sharing a meal is something humans across all cultures have in common. And the inexorable rise of the TV dinner doesn't seem - yet - to have dented sales of dining room tables. The food, clearly, is the main draw. But so is the company. But the fact that - no matter how you know someone, whether from work or a sports club, choir, or - sitting down to dinner together gives you a chance to really bond and find out what makes people tick. That’s why the dream dinner party game works so well. It's an ideal opportunity to sit down with people you find fascinating and find out more about them.
Of course it’s only a bit of fun - but think about what you want to know about your dream guests and then apply the same logic to your current guests and your dinner party can enter a whole new dimension.
This is a guest post from Sainsbury’s. Thanks to a great range of tables from Sainsbury’s you can always have a great setting for your dinner party, whether it’s a fantasy party or just with regular friends.
Assuming that you’re not going to cause any offence by implying that the current roster of guests wouldn’t be invited, that is. Take it in turns to go round the table and ask each person who they would have as their ideal guests for a dinner party. Each guest gets to choose five other people, either living or dead whom they would invite (they can even be fictional if you like - it's your party and your game).
Just as a person's friends reveal a lot about their character, you can learn a lot about someone from the people they would choose to have sitting round their dining table. What, for instance, would you make of someone who invited Napoleon, say, or Winston Churchill? Interest in history, perhaps? Or politics? It might be safer to assume that someone who invited Michael Schumacher or Sterling Moss to dinner would be rather keen on motor sport. And any male guests inviting Brigitte Bardot or Kate Moss are really dreaming.
Who would you have at your dinner party? Sharing a meal is something humans across all cultures have in common. And the inexorable rise of the TV dinner doesn't seem - yet - to have dented sales of dining room tables. The food, clearly, is the main draw. But so is the company. But the fact that - no matter how you know someone, whether from work or a sports club, choir, or - sitting down to dinner together gives you a chance to really bond and find out what makes people tick. That’s why the dream dinner party game works so well. It's an ideal opportunity to sit down with people you find fascinating and find out more about them.
Of course it’s only a bit of fun - but think about what you want to know about your dream guests and then apply the same logic to your current guests and your dinner party can enter a whole new dimension.
This is a guest post from Sainsbury’s. Thanks to a great range of tables from Sainsbury’s you can always have a great setting for your dinner party, whether it’s a fantasy party or just with regular friends.
