A moon just for me

I thought I was going mad on my drive home from a friends house at 9.30pm this evening. As I crossed over the traffic lights onto a country lane I saw in front of me what looked like an amazing African sunset –a huge, orange/ red glowing sun. I was confused because a) it was in the east and b) it was 9.30pm at night.

so it must have been the moon - I’d never seen anything like it before.

When I got home all excited I researched the net and good old wikipedia told me there was meant to be a lunar eclipse on the 6th august – (yesterday) as did the rest of the Internet?? How weird! I am surprised that no one on the Internet predicted a lunar eclipse on the 7th August 2009

So am I going completely bonkers or has everyone just missed this beautiful sighting? Maybe I'm still drunk from my 30th birthday celebrations last weekend and its all in my head ;o) !!!

if any one has any answers I'd like to hear them

On a different note did anyone do anything today at 12.34: 56 07/08/09

Diamond Dreams

Just dropping in to say – I’m loving life! – hope you all are too!

The funeral industry is so exciting - and it's really gaining momentum. Phoenix Diamonds were on Channel 4 last Friday night - now I'm getting tones of enquires from folks all over the UK wanting advise on what to do with their loved ones ashes!


night everyone!

Who gobbled up all the time?

I know I know – it’s been soooo long. June and July just seems to have been some kind of whirl wind and time has sped up to 100mph! .

So what have I been up to I hear you ask! In a nutshell....

4 days at the National Funeral Exhibition –wow, I think my feet are still recovering 6 weeks on!

4 weeks of being ‘Goldie Cook Secret agent’ trying to win £20,000 so I could invest into Sentiment.. Didn’t win by the way, but hey ho, some nice deserving hardworking chap did win and I was very happy for him. (How gracious of me!!)

5 days of Poxy Child....My Little girl Constance got the chicken pox! (check out her spots!)

5 days and nights at Glastonbury festival - Connie's 3rd Glasto and she's not even 3 yet!!



1 day at Wireless festival - spot my Goo on the loose flag! - Please refer to Goldiecook's youtube channel for more flag flying!

In between the festivals, fun and rum I have been working working working... recession? what recession! I am now recruiting for new crew across the UK, my email is filling up daily with applicants - now i've gotta find the time to go through them!

Friday was the last day of pre-school for Connie for 7 whole weeks... 7 WEEKS!!!! So tomorrow is the first day of being supermum & superbuinesswoman - wish me luck!

One last photo WARNING 'parental brag coming up' ... my daughter is a genius ;O) she not only started to learn to read at 2 and half but 2 months before her 3rd birthday I walked into to find this on her blackboard (Below) yes she wrote and spelt her own name all on her own... I AM SOOO PROUD!!
Right enough of that - I've got work to do!!

Take care everyone xx

I laid in a coffin!!!

It has taken me until today to finally recover from the National Funeral Exhibition!!!

What an incredible weekend. I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who came to see us on the stand. I was amazed at the positive response from the Funeral Directors (amongst a few grumbles!!) It seemed about 80% of them were open to the idea of video production and photo montages at a funeral. About 30% of Funeral Directors said their families were asking more and more about video productions. 50% Funeral Directors who came to the stand walked away wanting to offer our service, which was a fantastic feeling that’s for sure!!!

I will no doubt write more about the expo weekend over the next coming weeks however I am currently on a mission to win £20k and I need all the support I can get.

Last week it was confirmed that I was into the final stage of a Cadburys competition. I am now competing with 9 other Cadbury Cream Egg Twisted Super Agents to hunt down the Goo on the Loose! Goldie Cook is my Super Secret Agent name and my mission is to track down ‘the GOO’ that is on the loose. I have to follow the clues to where the Goo is going to attack next by trekking up and down the country to secret locations. I have to document my progress by Twitter, YouTube videos and gain as much support publicity as possible.

When I was at the exhibition I got a secret mission from HQ to do to a Rap and upload it to YouTube!!! So I laid in a coffin and did my rap!! I had a great audience and it created lots of laughs from funeral directors and suppliers alike ... there really is fun in funerals” (Thanks to SK imports for lending us their cofffin)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpuTrPo35_c&feature=channel_page

In 2 weeks time the mission will end and all my activity will be assessed. The winner is the one who gains the most support and PRESS!!! I need help in drumming up as much press interest as possible – DO YOU KNOW ANYONE, can you help?

By clicking on all of my YouTube videos and following me on twitter and sending the links to all your friends you can also help raise my profile.

Please support me by following my twitter campaign http://twitter.com/goldiecook
And check out my other crazy YouTube videos http://www.youtube.com/goldiecook

We are at the National Funeral Exhibition this Friday – Sunday

Sentiment is at the National Funeral Exhibition 12th – 14th June (this week) Come and see us in the in the innovations area (Hall 1).

We will be promoting tribute DVD’s and video production for the funeral industry

Why visit Sentiment? - As well as being lovely approachable ladies, we will also have loads of freebies to give away!

The innovations area is a great place to sit and chat with Sentiment and the other suppliers on the stand. Take the time relax in the seating area and view tribute films and photo montages on our BIG TV!

Come and see Sentiment and we'll can keep you informed on:

· Video and photo montages / slideshows
· Tribute films
· Filming of funerals
· Hire of Screens, TV, projectors and PA’s
· Editing · Filming
· Photo and slide scanning
· VHS, cine and audio transfers

We are also here if you have any questions about how we work with Funeral Directors all over the UK and how it can complement your business.

Stiff old funeral directors make me laugh!!!

Ohh you’ve got to see the funny side of the funeral industry, half the industry are a bunch of old crooners stuck in their ways, fighting with other funeral directors over business, bitter and twisted arguments over who has the contract for the hospital, moaning about the coroners, and stealing car keys from each other hearses... http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/may/12/funeral-hearse-keys-stolen

After 3 years I have met many bitching, moaning, competitive old boys with one foot in the grave while their heads so high in the clouds they have a altitude problem.... I’ve been cold shouldered by about a 2/3 of funeral directors that I have met along the way!

I did a presentation to a group of funeral directors last week - most walked into the room and avoided me!! However during my presentation I felt the room was divided. Most sat there and smiled while a handful sat there and scowled or looked utterly bemused ... one even shook his head and walked out!!! How can you possibly be offended by a beautiful photo and video tribute??!!!

I will say though, at least 1/3 of the industry are Lovely! There are funeral directors out there who are pretty special, who really do think about family needs, who think much further than the profit margin on a coffin.... Those who are amazing are the ones that embrace the changes in trends and cultures, bend over backwards to help families and don’t turn their nose up at an unusual request. These funeral directors are the ones who will walk away smiling when they’re business is growing while others are failing – they are the future.

My theory on this... The ‘crooners’ are fearful of change, too dam lazy to allow their minds to think out of the box so they hide their fear with ignorance and stubbornness.

So my message to my grumpy old chums is this... life is short as you well know, there is plenty of business out there for everyone , do your job well and you’ll have nothing to worry about!

Precious friends

This is the photo of me and my girlfriends at a picnic a few weekends back.

There we were sitting in the sun having our photo taken, feeling nostalgic and thinking how lucky we are to have such a great friendship. Seconds after this snap was taken one of the girls told us she was having a baby and getting hitched! This beautiful news made us overspill with happiness and caused a fantastic reaction from each one of us! Our screams could be heard from the other end of the park!

There we were crying and jumping up and down like utter lunatics followed by a massive group hug - what a bunch of overexcited girls we must have looked like! Our reaction caused my daughter Connie (in the photo on my friends lap) to burst into fearfull tears, I don’t think she had ever witnessed such a reaction and she wasn’t quite sure what to make of it all!!

When I remises about that moment I get all teary because it just highlights how I feel about the most beautiful simple things in life. This is life at its best, so simple so beautiful, no flash car or big house, no designer suit or swanky dinner can make you feel that way – to truly be overwhelmed with excitement for someone you love - friendship is so powerful.

I am well aware that life won’t always be this simple, maybe that’s why I’m such a sentimental fool. Every day I look at my husband, my daughter, my family, my friends and even my 2 cats and just feel so grateful for what I have because I know all too well how precious they are and how in a flash it can all be gone. Life is short and can be very sweet.

Have a good day everyone.