Streamworld

No, it's not a new place to visit.  Recently (thanks to Mr B) I have been watching quite a lot of streams. 

Our platform of choice is Twitch, and there are lots of options there.  Like I said, lots of gamers for all types of games - some awesome ones and some not-so-awesome too.  There are some massive streamers out there who EVERYONE has heard of (the likes of Shroud and Ninja) but its fun to watch the smaller guys, who are working themselves to the bone to build up a fan base and entertain people. some of my top picks - in no particular order - would probably be these...

Jimb0 - plays various games and has some brilliant effects that chat can play with

Rovefogle - PUBG gamer who really should be better known than he is 

 ^^^^  this dude is an awesome shot!

RTGameCrowd - Insane guy who loves making his Sims miserable.  Simply hilarious!

Mostly people play games n stream, but there are some other channels too - its a little amazing what people put out there.
There's a whole selection of IRL streams - mostly people chatting/opening new stuff/chilling in front of a webcam...

IRL stream selection 

These guys are streaming breakfast. Yes, breakfast.

 and of course...there's a Bob Ross channel

Bob Ross - the legend!

What you can't really see in the photo above is just how many people were watching when I took that shot......

7pm on a Sunday and 1,725 people are watching a Bob Ross Marathon.  That number in grey is total views.

So next time you're bored of watching the same old TV, or you're looking for some inspiration why not go and have a peek at the wonderful streaming world you probably didn't realise was there.

Conspiracy Barbie

I love a good conspiracy theory.  A GOOD one, not the Avril Lavigne one or flat earthers (They're just crazy people ;) )

Today sparked a bit of conspiracy in my mind though, everyone was complaining about being tired, like they hadn't slept well last night.  It's a pattern I've noticed a fair bit recently too.

Obviously, my brain went straight to aliens...maybe all of my work colleagues are being abducted....maybe there's a government test going on at night that disturbs your sleep in the area....maybe we all just had a heavy weekend....maybe it's just Monday...but it could still be the aliens.

Sandman Returns

When I was aged about 15, I got into comic books.  This, according to Mr. B makes me not just a geek, but an uber-geek.  Between then and about aged 25, I amassed quite a collection.  I was always loyal to the same shop - Abstract Sprocket - they were friendly and didn't treat me like an alien (as many comic book shops seemed to do back then when a g.i.r.l. walked in). 

Most of the comics I collected were slightly off the wall, independent publishing house type stuff.  I never really went for the standard super hero type of thing.

One of my biggest loves at the time was Sandman - I have the all of the comics from the time of their release (although admittedly, some of the earlier ones in graphic novels rather than in single format, although I do have single copies of No.1 and a No. 7 (the first introduction of Death) regardless).  They all live in designated comic boxes in my study, only opened with permission, and books handled with care - especially as being aged 15 was quite some time ago now!

I was delighted a year or so back, when Neil Gaiman announced the release of The Sandman Overture, a short miniseries following on from the end of the series.  It was great to be able to step back into the stories I once loved so much again.  This month was also pretty exciting, as a new series was released - The Sandman Universe.

Obviously, I no longer live in the same place as I did when I was 15 - the comic book shops locally didn't seem overly appealing (I did try one - I swear!)  Thankfully, whilst my old childhood comic shop doesn't have a website, they do kindly transact orders via email, so a brief exchange later with the wonderful Mr Dean and No.1 of the new series landed on my doormat, securely packaged like the prized possession that it should be!

I'm now looking forward to the rest of them...

Twisted Barbie: Karaoke Queen

I love singing.  It was my ambition to be fully professional when I was younger.  Unfortunately it didn't quite work out how my young brain had planned so the best I managed was a few support gigs and some local pubs - I still love to sing though. 

The only opportunity I get now is at Karaoke.  It's a marmite pastime, some love it some hate it, but thankfully I have a few local friends and a world full of fellow ninjas who also love it!  I occasionally drag along poor Mr B, who seems to enjoy the atmosphere but wouldn't get up to sing if I held him at gunpoint!  He claims to not be able to sing...I know differently, but to get any better he actually needs to do it more often!

Everywhere I go there seems to be karaoke arranged...

Ninjas in Berlin

Dentists in Hong Kong

Proof the Mr B does come along!

The home of Karaoke...

Proof that I do get up too!

One of the things that I enjoy about it most is the look of surprise on the face of people who don't know I sing.   I must have a terrible speaking voice as people do seem awfully shocked! The group in Hong Kong are even demanding my return simply so they can get me on the mic again...maybe I shouldn't give up on that dream after all...

Happy 2012

We made it!! Another year successfully completed! (Yes, I know, my mind IS convinced I live in a sims style computer game)

B-Man had a celebratory tub of haribo at Chez Gurn ....

and a game of Vampirology... (I was so excited to see that they provided a purple playing piece specifically for me!)

Happy New Year!

Barbies revelation

Living in a city that I didn't grow up in can be quite a challenge. Not just because I'm still not 100% on where each part of the town is in conjunction to the rest of it, but because as an adult, getting out and making friends is a very hard thing to do. **important note** I'm not making any false claims - my local geography knowledge does lie somewhere between medium-bad and utterly useless!

Firstly, please dont get me wrong here on the friends issue. I have some wonderful friends, many I have known for decades, (which when I think about exactly how long is a little scary and makes me feel old!) but the vast majority live a great distance away from where I am now. I moved to Edinburgh in 2005, and contrary to my actual "normal" nature, I can be a bit of a wallflower in person, social situations often get me exteremly nervous and I become introverted which I'm told can come across as aloof and snobby. This doesn't help.

I've now lived here 6 years and its taken me a while to even start to build up a circle of friends. I do feel like I'm getting there but its taken patience, a bit of alcohol(quite a lot on a few occasions!), and a few pep talks from the ever trusty B-Man!

So, my advice for anyone who has those desolate, stranded feelings? Get up and do something about it! Strangers are not going to come knocking on your door seeking out friendship, and striking up the odd conversation about the weather on your daily commute probably isn't going to bud into a lifelong friendship. Join clubs, meet friends of friends you already have, go to work social events. It may sound cheesy and cliche but it actually does work. I have proof. Right here :)

Magic Number

Celebration time for having 100 Followers!

I promised a photo of fellow blogger Gurns face at the news of me reaching this milestone...so here it is...


Lovely! :s Thank you everyone!

Camp Blood 2010

For this years annual camp blood camping trip we had another victim...uh no, attendee... along...Sarah!

it was her first trip with us wild camping, and she handled it really well, (I totally understand that wild camping really isn't something many girls are up for - thankfully Sarah is almost as much of a freak as me ;))

After a trek around several places that Gurn had chosen on a map we eventually settled ourselves in a totally different spot and set camp. All was well....until dinner time. Gurn decided that he would make "cheese and beef" (cheese and spiced mince beef in a wrap - like a burrito I think!) with the fire burning he cooked them up, then we realised that we had forgotten something...Plates!! so, being the resourceful lot folk we are we quickly "invented" Hobo Plates! (previously known as bits of torn up cardboard box!)

After one too many marshmallows, and even a few melted haribo, B-Man and Gurn threw some poses for the camera...

The real Gurn...


B-Pob...

and B-Man joins the cast of Harry Potter...
The next day we made a visit to the Forest Adventure Theme Park. We had been there two years before and figured it was worth another trip. Obviously, most of the park was the same as before, with some log flumes, and tree walks. To our surprise however two new attractions had been opened...a roller-coaster, and a visual fun house. The roller-coaster was amusing, although tiny. Its size however was greatly overshadowed by its fantastic sign...

Which seems to ask you first and foremost not to dance. (Or turn into a sex doll in the final request!)


As we got off the roller-coaster I spotted another sign, illustrating the life of woodcutters in the past, showing their "floaters"..

Ok, I know. I'm a child. Its an awful pun.

In the funhouse I finally got to get my revenge on B-Man...


**Disclaimer** No B-Man was hurt or injured in the making of this post

So....very....close.....

Ohh the anticipation is killing me! I've been stuck on 97 Followers for sooo long! I realised today that I'd managed to suck in another poor soul so I'm at 98.... If I get 100 it will just kill(no not literally, but he'll be super jealous!) fellow blogger Gurn!

Come on invite those friends! ;) I'll post you all a photo of his angry jealous face!

Not a quitter...

I use FaceBook. I'm not ashamed of that, it my main contact with my friends and family across the world. Theres been huge amounts of controversy about FaceBooks permission settings etc and privacy which has led to a good number of people binning the site.

I noticed today an article on MSN titled 12 Signs its Time to Quit FaceBook. As often happens, curiosity got me and I had a browse...their points included..

• You've ever written "First" as a comment on a post. Ummm Nope. Its something I've seen, but have always though infantile.

• You have a separate account for your baby/animal/plant. Nope again! (I'm winning so far!)

• You speak to your friends more on FaceBook than in real life. OK so this one is true...but seeing as a great deal of my friends are a fairly long distance away, its one of my few options.
  

• You take pictures of yourself. Don't we all anyway??

• Your mood varies with friend numbers. Definitely a no here. I don't need to add random people just to feel loved.
  

• You've ever updated your status from the loo. Ewww please! No! I never want to know if any of my friends have either!

I think I can safely conclude that provided I can put up with its usual "quirks" I'm not someone ready to go back to life without FaceBook.

Barbies bad news

OK. I've not been posting much the last few weeks, my reason? I've had some tough news that took me away from home. My Grandmother died the second week in January which I feel quite justified in describing as a shock to say the least.

I'm not someone who really finds dealing with death difficult, I view it as part of life, and a natural conclusion, but this time I admit did take it quite badly. Its the first bereavement I've suffered since I've lived away from my hometown and the distance from my family when it happened suddenly felt far greater than it normal. The funeral wasn't held until the first week in February, so at least I had some time to get organised.

I was dreading the trip, my Parents were over and a number of the distant family were making the effort to attend too, so it had the opportunity to be difficult. Thankfully I was pleasantly surprised by the whole thing...

We hired a car and drove the 370 miles to Norwich, Arnold Clark had kindly given me a free upgrade on my hire car (from a Kia Picanto to a Peugeot 207) which made the trip a huge amount more comfortable. Arriving late afternoon on the Saturday there was some commotion among my friends about going out. It didn't really take much persuading to be honest as the club I used to frequent often was having its 10th anniversary so I felt compelled to go for nostalgia's sake if nothing else. I'm glad we did as I had a fab time, and got to show B-Man what the Norwich alternative scene is like in comparison to Edinburgh. (I think he was impressed, at least with half of it!) I did however mange to slip over on the ice and bang my head! Thankfully, I got a little bruising and swelling but no black eye!

We had a few days to spare, so did the obligatory family visits, and even managed to squeeze in a night round at an old friends before the funeral. (note: when I say old friends, I haven't seen Jerry and Jo for about 5 years now so you can image the look on their faces when I walked into their front room unannounced!)

The funeral itself was actually lovely, my Nan would have been so proud of all the commotion caused in her name - she did love a big show! There was a horse drawn hearse, four funeral cars and a massive trail of followers on the way to the crematorium. It took over an hour to drive just 6 miles! After the ceremony my parents had organised for a white dove to be released which I think possibly made Grandads year as he is a huge bird lover, and he got to hold it before setting it free. Afterwards there was a reception, and it was really nice to catch up with some of the family. Especially my cousin David who moved to Australia 20 years ago (although I could have done without being reminded that at the age of 6 I had a massive crush on him!)

Its so true that it takes a wedding or a funeral to get people together, but it does remind me that I do actually have a big family out there who care.

Facebook to the rescue!

Thursday I changed the colour of my hair again. Not all of it, just the front quarter (I'll maybe take a photo later once I look a bit more presentable!) Whilst waiting for the dye I was bored so updated my facebook status to:
Twisted Barbie is slowly going blue...One of my friends very sweetly posted to check that I was OK, thinking that I was maybe trapped outside in the cold or suffering asphyxiation or something. Whilst this made me laugh, its not a strange idea at all. Two girls were in the news lately after they became trapped in a storm drain in Adelaide and used their mobiles to update Facebook of their plight instead of calling the emergency services. Ok....so some people are actually dumb enough to do that.

Its not all bad though, in my internet wanderings I also came across these two stories...

Facebook, Twitter to the rescue in 'Ondoy' disaster-"During a nine-hour deluge that cut power lines and forced people on to their roofs, tech-savvy Filipinos made pleas for help and informed friends of their plight via mobile Internet links and text messaging. Meanwhile, Twitter and Facebook were a frenzy of activity as people posted notices about places people should avoid, with government critics saying later this online news was faster and more reliable than the official information. Local television network ABS-CBN used Google Earth maps on its website to mark the addresses of those needing rescue."

tCG-Facebook to the rescue - "A Coast Guard Sector Northern New England Search and Rescue Controller used Facebook to ultimately contact a missing boater. According to the Controller, “Sometimes we have to be very creative in our information gathering.” "

So sometimes it seems using Facebook for rescue might be a good idea..but maybe not instead of calling 999.

One in a million

Whilst playing Left 4 Dead tonight something weird happened. Whilst looking for a server to play on I stumbled into a lobby that contained a very old friend of mine. You might not think this is unusual but there were over 18000 people playing at that point! I knew he played, but I wasn't sure of his chosen platform, and I'd looked on steam for him but without knowing his username the search was useless. We recognised each other instantly, which is typical of our relationship - we have popped up in each others lives at very random points, usually by total chance. Last time we met in person was when we were both on a trip to Norwich after living away for a time and spotted each other in a packed shopping mall, before then it was a chance meeting in a nightclub after we had lost touch for a couple of years. Seems the only time I come across him is a million to one event!

Good thing is we now have a fourth player for our team who seems to play as often as B-Man, Gurn and me! maybe our long suffered fourth player syndrome is over?

Festival fun Part 2... FREE DAY!

With my recent house move I've been a bit skint. It always happens, everything seems to cost a lot more than you plan for, anyway, I was quite taken by the idea of seeing some shows during the festival, but with tickets being very expensive for many and being sold out for most well-known performers I thought I would try out some of the free fringe shows. A work colleague, Annabelle (who thinks I'm crazy but isn't all there herself) agreed to come out with me to catch some shows and see how much free stuff we could get/see.

We didn't start too early, so our first show was Afternoon Tea which promised free cake with your comedy. Upon arrival the audience was given individual cakes as you took your seat, so they definitely held up their offer...I could have done with a drink to go with it, but hey, theres no ticket to buy! The comedy was good - a little disjointed at times, swapping between two performers who had quite different styles, but definitely enough to raise more than a few giggles (and groans) Best line: "I may be a redhead but my dungeon is not fiery" (I think Annabelle nearly spat out her cake at that point - it was perfect!)

On our way to our next show we got stopped in the street by a lady giving out limes for a Smirnoff promotion. Annabelle was going to party later that night so the lady gave us 4!

The next show was my choice...A week before, whilst out with B-Man we were accosted by a mad Australian chap giving out flyer's for his show. We had a quick chat with him as he pleaded with us to visit his show promising that it wasn't a man with an olive on his head! This of course spun into a discussion about how you could make that into a cool show... :s Anyway the guys pleas amused me enough that I dragged Annabelle along on our free day.... and we certainly didn't regret it - he was hilarious! Mark Trenwith is definitely a name that I expect to be hearing more of in the future - at least I hope so! His show was a multimedia-social-experiment-gone-wrong along a similar vein to Dave Gormans style of show which was over all too quickly. He added to our list of free stuff by handing out biscuits! I was even more impressed when he came over after the show and chatted to us (he recognised me from the olive conversation!) We gave him a lime. He was very impressed by that!

On our way to the bus stops, Annabelle spotted lots of people sporting straw cowboy hats, and she became quite intent on getting one. We cleverly followed a trail of tourists wearing them to a small tent like object in George Square. As we got close to the tent we were ushered inside by a man on stilts and a small oriental lady in a yellow cagoule. Inside was another free show going on. A surreal mix between Taiko Drumming and the Blue Man Group. I have no idea who they were but they had a man with a TV on his head and everyone of them was in a matching yellow cagoule!.
There was free face painting too, and a free hat if you entered a prize draw. Of course we had to enter the draw! B Man was very impressed with his new hat when I got home :)

So there we have it. Proof that the free shows at the festival can be worth seeing....They feed you as well as keep you entertained for an afternoon!

Festival fun

In the four years that I have lived in sunny Edinburgh I (until now) had never managed to watch any shows during the festival. I think thats a bit rubbish really, but it always seems that during festival time the streets are full (and I do mean FULL) of tourists - usually huddled in slightly confused manner around a bus stop - and lots of semi clad people handing out flyers for things (over the years I've seen girls in just bodypaint and a thong, and a whole group wearing only towels)

This year however I had to make an exception...

Now don't fall over but .....one of my friends from Norwich came to Edinburgh!!!!...not to actually visit me per se, but to appear in a show for the festival. Obviously this meant that I was obliged to go and see his play, so I made a trip (all the way to another part of my workplace) to see Rapture. It was great! (and I'm not being biased here, if it was awful I would happily say so!) well written, cleverly produced in and very small space and on a very small budget. I was very impressed.

My first ever festival show was a hit for me (although they didn't seem to get the largest of crowds) so a big WELL DONE to Sam and the rest of the cast and crew!

Not a favourite

I try as hard as I can, but its a simple truth that I dislike weddings. I'm not sure why, but even when I was a little girl and was always everyone's bridesmaid I've hated going to weddings. I do however always attend weddings of my friends and family, smile and wish them well, so please don't think I'm some kind of anti-wedding demon.

I think the biggest problem I have is that I tend to get bored, I'm not great at meeting new people, especially in large groups, so I tend to be a bit of a wallflower at these occasions. Whilst looking through some other blogs tonight however...I found this...I suppose if you're going to have a wedding you may as well might make a good entrance!

Coincidences

I've lived in Edinburgh for 4 years now and so far only one of my friends have managed to get up here and visit me. I'm not worried about that, we are still all very good friends. I got an email a few weeks back from Sam, who is coming up to perform in the festival with his theatre group from Norwich which is pretty cool for a start, but today I found out the name of his show and that its actually being held in the complex of my work!

I really have no excuse to miss it now. As with many festival shows its on at a stupid time (3:15) but at least I can sneak along in a late lunch break.

Barbie owns up

"Where the hell has she gone???" (Honestly I can hear the screaming of this phrase from here)

I'm here to answer that question...In my room playing games. That's it. Sorry. Nothing any more exciting than that.

"But Barbie, you have the attention span of a small insect, what on earth has managed to keep you away from drivelling posts full of nonsense?" (It must be the voices in my head)

Well, loaaaads of very, very addicting games - Left 4 Dead, Sims 3, and World of Goo for a start.

"Ooh I've heard of one of those" (Obviously the voices are as clever as I am)

Well If you're very patient and keep coming back I might manage to rustle up a post or two to tell you all about them, and why the hell I'm soooo addicted

Halloween

As I mentioned earlier we were invited to a Halloween party this year. Fancy dress of course. It took a while to find and finally order costumes but they arrived on the day *phew* BMan opted for The Mask and I went for Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz...(theres no pics of me yet though)

BMan (The Mask), Katherine (Woodland Fairy), Sarah(Bad Fairy), Annabelle(Princess Fiona from Shrek) and Katie(Zombie)

Maria(Crazy danish lady...oh no, Nun)

Another trip down south and yet more apprehension

The last trip I took down to Norwich in March went well, I didn't kill anyone, my friends loved BMan, and my family started asking leading questions about him by the time we got home (which means they approved). Soooo... its my grandparents 60th wedding anniversary in August so I'm expected to turn up to their party. I booked train tickets a while back and now the trip is looming in the near future like a train coming through a tunnel towards me...and its making me nervous already! I can't believe it! The only difference from the last trip is that my parents are going to be there too (as well as several other random family members who I hardly know). My parents are probably the scariest thing I ever have to deal with because I just don't seem to be able to stand up to them, they nag and criticise me and treat me like a child and I seem to be helpless to their power.

I'm on an assertiveness course a few days before we leave (for work really) but I'm hoping I can improve on my coping skills...either that or I'm just going to let BMan have at 'em!