Very Pinteresting.

According to recent facts and figures, 80% of up-and-coming 'social pinboard' Pinterest's users are women. Apparently something to shout about in the manly world of online, it's got the rest of the internet stroking their beards trying to figure it out. Why don't men like it as much? What is it about the gender-neutral site that has appealed so strongly to the girls?

I'll tell you what.

Mood boards.

It's a never-ending online collection of our very own curated tastes, desires and aspirations. Have you ever read a magazine for ladies? It's a big ol' mood board of expensive clothes, blue make-up and ugly £100 cushions, all stuck together by manicured women in a posh office.

But with Pinterest, the fairer (and more creative) sex can cultivate their own aesthetic. Push off Marie Claire/Elle/Vogue. We can collect our own ideas. We can arrange them in a stylish way for future reference on that inevitable miraculous day when we decide to make our lives prettier, smarter, better etc.

Women can connect with, share and display their creativity. And it's a powerful force to be reckoned with; Pinterest drives more traffic than YouTube, Reddit, Google+, LinkedIn and Myspace (and is visually much more stimulating that the powerhouse that is Twitter).

It's scrapbooking without the Pritt Stick.

It's a glossy mag without irritating diet tips.

It's style, dictated by the individual.

It's what women want, boys.

Stop using the force.

Yes, I've seen it. We've all seen it. Star Wars is good.

Well done George Lucas.

But when did this happen?

Star Wars
n (functioning as singular)
   1. lazy way to inject some sense of (perceived) awesomeness into your ad.
   2. an expensive way to align yourself with 40 year old men.

Last year saw baby Darth Vader go viral for Volkswagen after the Superbowl. Rightly so, he was damn cute.

This year Volkswagen had a fat dog that wanted to lose weight. The dog lost weight, was happy, whooshy shot of car, end of ad...right? Wrong. Volkswagen couldn't quite let go, and tagged on a pointless bar scene set on the Death Star. Que?

And then there's Currys, who made the most of Darth Vader's extensive (if a bit, you know, murder-y) skill set by hiring him as their HR representative last Christmas.

Star Wars, as we all know, was set at Christmas. It was of course loosely based on the story of Frosty the Snowman. Except that in Star Wars, Frosty the Snowman gets all burnt and goes all crossface helmet head.

Oh, and now we have Vodafone, who have commendably used YODA in their ads and admirably not called anything YODAFONE. Things have got a bit rubbish for poor old Yoda, who now frequents his local Yo Sushi, pestering boring couples who play with their phones at the table and wonder if people taste of the foods that their skin is the colour of. Bit racist.

Please stop using the force. It is weak in this one.

Notre voyage à Paris

 Last Tuesday, we all headed for Paris on the Eurostar...

Aren't we lucky?

After arriving at Gare du Nord, we headed for Bastille (where we were treated to lunch) before heading our separate ways to make the most of the few hours we had before our evening train home.

Invariably, high jinks ensued.

Some of our collective top moments were:

-  the chocolate mousse at lunchtime

-  trying to speak French and failing

-  all the non-smokers smoking for the day

-  dancing in the street 

-  spending quality time with each other (awww...)

-  Dom borrowing a busker's accordion and playing the Tetris theme

-  cornering a random woman on the train home and making her sing the hits of Shania Twain
-  two TBCHers not being allowed on the 9:15pm train home...and then somehow managing to get on at about 9:14pm.

Obviously, there are stories that continue on and beyond the 9:15pm train home...but I'm not going to tell you those, am I?