The FastDay Forum

Where do you come from?
Nuneaton warwickshire

Where do you live now? (no, I'm not asking a postal address! a country or region is plenty)
Cheshire-the part that used to be Vale Royal

How old are you? (an age range will do!)
67

What do you "do"? (eg - what's your job, are you a homemaker?, volunteer work?, in education or training for something?)
Retired (another teacher)

What are your hobbies/interests?
Cross stitch embroidrey, walking the dogs, reading messing on the computer, treasurer of husbands amateur orchestra, photography, gardening(sometimes)Lunching with friends

What do you wish you had more time for?
i have plenty of time

Do you have a partner and/or kids?
Husband , daughter, son, 2 stepsons-all married.7 grandchilden
Do you have any pets?
2 dogs 11year old smooth collie, 3 year old lurcher
What's your favourite colour?
purpley pinks

What's your favourite film?
not a big film fan

What's your favourite song or band?
the 3 manchester orchestras

What's your desktop wallpaper?
not got round to personalising my new computer

[Debs]

This is great, and satisfies my nosy streak!!!
Looking forward to reading through them later with a cuppa!,

Where do you come from?
Born in Brighton, Sussex
Where do you live now?
45 minutes NW of Hobart in a rural area

How old are you?
49, just not sure how it happened!

What do you "do"?
Senior Environmental and Heritage Advisor. Formally a depressed Chartered Accountant!!


What are your hobbies/interests?
Bird watching, walking, conservation, natural history, watching cricket and football, travel

What do you wish you had more time for?
All of the above, working away from home doesn't leave much time for much else.

Do you have a partner and/or kids?
Hubby of 26 years

Do you have any pets?
No, unfortunately

What's your favourite colour?
Mmm, not sure. Green and Pilbara outback red/orange
What's your favourite film?
Sean of the Dead

What's your favourite song or band?
Too many, listen to anything except jazz and country and western. Last band we went to see was Radiohead

What's your desktop wallpaper?
Apple is a photo of Flatey Island in Iceland that we went to last year. iPad is a Crested Shrike-tit

Where do you come from? Born and raised in Northern Ireland, lived in Fermanagh growing up then moved to Belfast

Where do you live now? (no, I'm not asking a postal address! a country or region is plenty) still living outside Belfast but if the opportunity arises would move back to Fermanagh..

How old are you? (an age range will do!) 55

What do you "do"? (eg - what's your job, are you a homemaker?, volunteer work?, in education or training for something?) very lucky to have been able to take early retirement from IT.

What are your hobbies/interests? spending time on our cruiser on glorious Lough Erne and the inland waterways in Ireland. Cooking, Knitting, reading and holidaying..short breaks and sometimes further afield

What do you wish you had more time for? Feel very blessed to be able to do all the things I do

Do you have a partner and/or kids? Husband & 3 boys between us - not really boys, the two eldest are married and the younger one has set the date...

Do you have any pets? No, would love to have a dog but it would be a big time commitment and we spend too much time on the go

What's your favourite colour? Blue

What's your favourite film? Top Gun

What's your favourite song or band? Lots that I like ranging from Bruce Springsteen, to Queen, to recently discovered Laura Mvula & Gregory Porter

What's your desktop wallpaper? View from the aft deck of the boat on a misty morning

Where do you come from?
Surrey, Southern England

Where do you live now?
Hertfordshire, slightly further north

How old are you?
47

What do you "do"?
I am a garden designer, but currently working in a secondary school brewing toxic chemicals for the kiddies to play with, and laying out the dead animals etc (science technician!)

What are your hobbies/interests?
Riding at speed through the countryside, walking slowly up hills, tap dancing badly, shoe-horning pretty plants into my overstuffed garden.


What do you wish you had more time for?
All of the above

Do you have a partner and/or kids?
Hubby of 27 years and two almost grown up kids

Do you have any pets?
Rolo, a big hairy beast of a Clydesdale horse

What's your favourite colour?
Jewel colours

What's your favourite film?
all of them...

What's your favourite song or band?
No idea, I listen to music when driving, but have no space in my brain to remember who it is all by...

What's your desktop wallpaper?
My horse, and a view of Lundy Island, one of my favourite places.

Where do you come from?
Australia

Where do you live now?
Outer suburb of Melbourne, Australia

How old are you?
58

What do you "do"?
Happily retired. Like CreakyPete I had "engineer" in my title but my degree was in science.

What are your hobbies/interests?
Mucking around on the computer. Gardening, though this hot spell is making everything crispy! Reading, knitting. I'm heavily into choral singing. Haven't sung since Chrissie Eve and I'm getting toey.

What do you wish you had more time for?
I have plenty of time, not enough money.

Do you have a partner and/or kids?
Nope

Do you have any pets?
My beautiful BSH, Beth. She's not enjoying the hot weather!

What's your favourite colour?
Purple. I keep trying to buy clothes in other colours but my wardrobe is mostly purple.

What's your favourite film?
Don't have one.

What's your favourite song or band?
More into orchestras really as long as I'm not too near the gong.

What's your desktop wallpaper?
It changes seasonally. At the moment it's a rain forest with a lot of tree ferns. It looks so cool I just want to dive in!

[Tracieknits]

Where do you come from?
Glastonbury, Connecticut, USA

Where do you live now?
Saratoga Springs, New York, USA

How old are you? 47

What do you "do"? As little as possible! I'm a housewife and I volunteer with the local food bank program that sends backpacks full of food home with underprivileged students.

What are your hobbies/interests?
I love to cook and knit. We love to travel, so I spend a lot of time planning trips. In March we are going to Amsterdam and Brussels to accompany my husband on a business trip. In August, we are returning to France - 1 week in the countryside (Normandy, Brittany and possible Calais to see the white cliffs of Dover) and 1 week in Paris.

What do you wish you had more time for?
I'm pretty spoilt with time! But I wish I had loads more money for travel.

Do you have a partner and/or kids? Husband @BruceE and a 13 year old boy

Do you have any pets? a 3 year old Golden Retreiver/terrier mix and two 9 year old cats

What's your favourite colour?
Pink and blues. And my favorite clothing color is black.

What's your favourite film?
Midnight in Paris, Highlander and Amelie are three films I never tire of watching

What's your favourite song or band?
So many! I love 1980s alternative - the Cure, Elvis Costello, etc. I also love Adele and I have a few French pop albums in my car I listen to - Jennifer, Carla Bruni, or the Midnight in Paris soundtrack.

What's your desktop wallpaper? The family at Stonehenge.

Amelie is a fab film! X

Where do you come from? Adelaide, South Australia

Where do you live now? Forth, Tasmania

How old are you? 61

What do you "do"? Green party activist; Japanese teacher in a primary school

What are your hobbies/interests? cooking, gardening

What do you wish you had more time for? reading

Do you have a partner and/or kids? yes, grown up kids

Do you have any pets? well, chooks and pigeons, but they're not really pets; they are working members of the estate.

What's your favourite colour? red

What's your favourite film? can't remember all the films I've seen.

What's your favourite song or band? I like opera. My favourite opera may be Rigoletto.

What's your desktop wallpaper? photos I have taken of beautiful places or the garden

Given I have not managed to introduce myself "officially", this may do instead??
I look forward to progressively reading everyone else's info, but thought I would post this first.

I was born in Surrey, England, and emigrated to Adelaide 50 years ago; my parents were ten pound Poms.

I now live in the Dandenongs, with my husband of 22 years (who has lived on this property all his life) and our 20 and 18 year old sons, plus two 3yo Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, Lizzie and Mr Darcy.

I am 55yo and retired from the Australian Public Service on my birthday after 33 years as a social statistician and researcher. I now GREATLY enjoy being home-based, after too many years of working full-time, and miss NOTHING about work apart from having people to talk with (the forums help here!).

I love to sing and belong to a community choir; I am enjoying getting the garden in order (slowly, we have 2 acres...); and I will admit to liking TV and cinema, especially a wide range of British and the better quality Australian programs (plus Mad Men and Modern Family from the US).

I am very lucky that I really do have the time to do whatever I want now, but I do wish I could manage to catch up with friends more often.

I don't have a favourite colour - it depends on the situation. But probably nothing beats the colours of nature - a clear blue sky, or a seaweed-free ocean over white sand, or the greens of a rain-forest, etc.

The film I have seen the most often is "The Sound of Music" but I think my favourite film is "Dave", where the character played by Kevin Kline accidentally ends up as President of the US and is able to make good things happen. Idealistic and simplistic maybe, but I still believe such outcomes are possible. (I'll stop now before I get on my soap box!!)

I love almost anything sung by the Australian lyric tenor David Hobson, particularly from his French and Italian Arias CD. And from the pop genre, maybe "Bohemian Rhapsody", or most things by Queen (I was a mad fan in the 70's). But so much to chose from!

On my iPad, I just have the blue background that changes to a orangy colour at the very bottom. Not very interesting, but it makes it easy to see the icons.

Now I must make time to read everyone else's

Where do you come from?

I'm American, but was born in Kanagawa-ken, Japan.

Where do you live now?

Okinawa, Japan

How old are you?

48 soon to be 49, I mean 29 and holding

What do you "do"?

I'm a research scientist, professor, and science outreach enthusiast

What are your hobbies/interests?

running, piano, reading, indie music

What do you wish you had more time for?

piano. I've not gotten back in the swing of daily practice since breaking my arm.

Do you have a partner and/or kids?

no, no

Do you have any pets?

the adorable Mimei-chan and Sumi-chan, aka Sunrise Girl and Ballerina

What's your favourite colour?

I don't like colors per se, I like things when they are a particular color: the sky before it goes dark (midnight blue), the Okinawa ocean on a sunny day (turquoise on the land side of the reef, deep blue on the ocean side)

What's your favourite film?

Just one. Oh my. Days of Heaven directed by Terrence Malick is absolutely amazing, but I also love The Dekalog by Krzysztof Kieślowski. Anything by Kieslowski.

What's your favourite song or band?

Again, just one? Belle and Sebastian are my favorite band of all time, but I also love, in no particular order, Neutral Milk Hotel, Math and Physics Club, Veronica Falls, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, First Aid Kit. I also love classical music, particularly solo piano works.

My favorite song of all time is probably Birthday by the Sugarcubes. Bjork is just so amazing on that song. But I also love Nature Boy by Nat King Cole, and Jeff Buckley's version of Hallelujah.

What's your desktop wallpaper?

On my work computer, rotating pictures of my travels around Japan mostly; on my laptop, rotating pictures of my trip to Cambodia; and on my home desktop, rotating pictures of my travels around Morocco.

Hi,

Where do you come from?
I come from West Yorkshire in Northern England.

Where do you live now?
Same place.

How old are you?
Late (very) 50s.

What do you "do"?
I work as a therapeutic counsellor.

What are your hobbies/interests?
I love music and I'm interested in art and literature.

What do you wish you had more time for?
How long have you got? Reading, walking, cooking, visiting the Highlands of Scotland.

Do you have a partner and/or kids?
Yes, I have two grown-up daughters and a live-in partner.

Do you have any pets?
We have a rescue dog with "issues".

What's your favourite colour?
This changes from time to time. I like clear royal blue, deep turquoise, aqua, emerald green and purple.

What's your favourite film?
Without a doubt "Cinema Paradiso", but I also like "Babette's Feast" and "It's a Wonderful Life" which I saw again for the 100th time on Christmas Eve.

What's your favourite song or band?
There are too many to choose from really, but I particularly like Joni Mitchell, Richard Thompson, Archie Fisher, Martin Carthy and Neil Young. I could go on.....Seeing other entries, I also have to add Steely Dan. I am also very fond of Vaughan Williams, Elgar, Mahler and Beethoven.

What's your desktop wallpaper?
A nautalus shell.

Love this thread Moogie!



Where do you come from?
I was born in a small country NSW town called Werris Creek ( where Angelina Jolie is apparently filming a movie “Unbroken” at the moment. Local gossip is that she is very down to earth and friendly, possibly the highest praise you can get from Aussies!)

Where do you live now?
Inner West of Sydney

How old are you?
57

What do you "do"?
I trained and worked as a Registered nurse and midwife, then worked for the Meals on Wheels Association for the last few years. I’ve retired now to spend more time with my mother who is in a High Care facility.

What are your hobbies/interests?
Music- musical theatre, both amateur and professional, choral singing, reading, swimming, travel, socialising with friends and family.

What do you wish you had more time for?
I would like to be able to travel more but don’t like to be away more than a week at the moment as my mother is very dependant. All ok though, as when I’m home I have plenty of things to do!

Do you have a partner and/or kids?
Married for 27 years and have a gorgeous 22yr old daughter living at home.

Do you have any pets?
A cuddly rescue cat called April

What's your favourite colour?
It’s funny how this has changed over the last few years. I always preferred pink, but am changing now to the green/blue spectrum.

What's your favourite film?
I love all the old Musicals - High Society is one favourite. Hmm, also not so old, I really love Rent too, and Pippin. Don’t get me started!

What's your favourite song or band?
Song would probably be Ella Fitzgerald singing “Summertime” from Porgy and Bess. I love older and modern music- loving Bruno Mars. The Beatles would certainly be one of my favourite bands.

What's your desktop wallpaper?
A picture of my daughter and her friend swimming underwater last year. The friend’s sister was doing photography for her end of school exams and had bought a great underwater camera to complete her portfolio. The results are amazing. I have the pic up again as we are off to the same beach for hols on Saturday.

Hi

Where do you come from...GLASGOW

Where do live now...BRISBANE AUSTRALIA SINCE 1990

How old are you...52

What do you do....EDUCATOR IN EARLY CHILDHOOD

Hobbies/Interests...5::2 FORUM AND OTHER ONLINE SITES,READING

Partner/Kids...MARRIED FOR 28 YEARS...1 DAUGHTER ( 18 next month)

Pets....WESTIE named HEATHER

Favourite Colour...GREEN

Favourite film...NONE ...Favourite TV... THE WEST WING

Favourite singer...ROBBIE WILLIAMS

Desktop Wallpaper...COLOURFUL BALLOONS

Where do you come from? UK

Where do you live now? (no, I'm not asking a postal address! a country or region is plenty) East Anglia UK

How old are you? (an age range will do!) I turned 40 near the end of last year

What do you "do"? (eg - what's your job, are you a homemaker?, volunteer work?, in education or training for something?) I am a stay at home mum caring for my autistic son and I have just started selling my crafts

What are your hobbies/interests? I love reading. I mainly Cross stitch but have recently learnt to knit and am learning to papercraft will hopefully learn crochet next.

What do you wish you had more time for?

Do you have a partner and/or kids? I have been with my husband for over 25 years ( yes we met young) we have two boys one in their mid teens and the youngest is about to turn 10 he has autism so is younger than his age iyswim and takes a lot of looking after. It provides plenty of tears and laughter though

Do you have any pets? We have one cat who like the other two cats we used to have we aquired rather than chose.

What's your favourite colour? Lilac

What's your favourite film? oh this is difficult as it depends what mood I am in. I tend to like comedies and cheesy disaster movies

What's your favourite song or band? I like a wide range of music from Harry Connick Jr to Def Leppard

What's your desktop wallpaper? Is the lovely Richard Armitage.

Where do you come from?
Sydney
Where do you live now?
Sydney
How old are you?
43
What do you "do"?
Secretary
What are your hobbies/interests?
Cooking, hiking, reading, travelling
What do you wish you had more time for?
All of the above!
Do you have a partner and/or kids?
Partner and two teenage kids who I share the care of with my ex-husband and his partner - we're a big happy family
Do you have any pets?
No, but if I did it would be a cat
What's your favourite colour?
Red
What's your favourite film?
Love a feel-good film like Love Actually or a LOL film like Bridget Jones Diary, or a film that tells an important story like I Am Breathing
What's your favourite song or band?
Fix Me, Coldplay
What's your desktop wallpaper?
My kids