It's a cats life!

I wanna be a cat!


Bliss

Lying in

Ditto it seems is having a 'demotivated day' too.
This cat is chilled!!


Lying in

Laziness

PG and I have a whole free day together today and the thought that we should get out and do something is strong .............. the motivation isn't!

By tomorrow we will be miffed that we wasted the opportunity and I doubltess will be moaning that I'm bored being in the flat so much of the time! It's such a schlep to get anywhere from here. Sometimes the distance from civilization is a plus, on lazy days it's a definite minus.

Maybe we'll make the effort......... hmmmmmmm? Lol.

Grrrrr @ me

I've just done something really stupid, I've taken remedial action which I hope works but I shouldn't have done it in the first place! Grrrrrrrrr @ me. I shouldn't be let near a pc this early in the morning!
To the person on the recieving end of my stupidity........SORRY :o/

Finished!

Well the website is done and uploaded, hurrraaaaaah!!

It's taken me better part of the day and there is still bits I don't like but I've had enough for now :o/

Revamp

I knew this website revamp was gonna be something I wished I had never started!!

6 hours in and I am nowhere near finished, bed not made, not a pot washed, eyes on stalks and heaven knows when it will get published.

Aarrgghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!

Protocols

I'm never quite sure of the protocols with this blogging stuff, are there any, if there are what are they?

With that in mind, if you find I have linked to you and you don't want me too, my apologies....... just shout at me and I will un-link you.

Absolutely nothing

I have a whole day today to my self....Heaven. Nothing whatsoever that I have to do and PG at work and then on the golf course. (I will from now on refer to my partner as 'PG'.....'Mr gemmak' sounded somewhat condescending.)

I am one of Scotland's vast numbers of 'golf widows'. Golf in these parts seems to be the national pastime and an obsessive one at that, none of the once a week on Saturday stuff here. PG manages something in the region of 7 rounds a week plus competitions etc. As a game it's completely lost on me, I have tried it once or twice, abysmally I might add but the only thing I can see to recommend it that the course he belongs to has a good selection of wildlife trundling around on it to watch!

So what will I do with my day...........I want to revamp my website, it's all 'pink and girly' right now which is just not me and has various other bits that need 'attention'. I built it with absolutely no idea what I was doing and now the software isn't quite so terrifying I need to get to it!

Oh..... and I might watch a bit of BB! I can't get into it this year tho'

Incidentally.............talking of having no idea what I'm doing, does anyone know how I can back this blog stuff up???

Swallow update #3

This morning I went to check on the 'house building activities' as soon as I got up, only to find the entire structure smashed to pieces on the floor!!! I have no idea how or why but it seems such a shame, all that perseverance and hard work for nothing. I can only imagine they will give up the unequal struggle now and that's the last we will see of them :o(


Gone

Swallow update #2

By last night the lodging swallows had made good progress with the repairs to their home and seemed settled for the night. I manged to get a few shots of them in situ and awaited further developments hopefully.


A new home

Oh...and I forgot to mention....

......a complete stranger did something for me yesterday that required that individual to trust my word, something very rare nowadays. Kinda made my day that there are still people out there prepared to do that.

You know who you are and thanks :o)

Back to work

Back to work today after 5 days off. Never the best of experiences but you always know that once you drag yourself there and get going you sorta don't mind it anymore, even enjoy the company and routine.

One of the aspects of 'returning to the fold' I particularly dislike is the almost obsessive need of colleagues to impart any 'negative workplace information', almost before I have walked though the door! Today was no different, hardly across the threshold and I was the recipient of two such gems. Don't misunderstand me, I'm not unsympathetic, quite the reverse, I just dislike with a passion, being reminded so early in the day, just how heartless management can be!

Amusingly, the official response to this problem seems to be to endeavor to dissuade individuals from this behavior by explaining that negativity breeds more negativity. I don't dispute this theory, I just wonder why decisions are so often made that instill the negativity in the first place. I try, I really try to understand a given situation from both sides but sometimes I just can't...........Perhaps it's in the training!

A bottle of milk

Day to day necessities dictated a journey into one of the local villages today, the boring stuff. Pick up a prescription, get some milk etc. For once I remembered to take a camera with me.

We might be short on amenities here. Supermarkets, cinemas, take-aways and mains gas are non existent but the up side still amazes me, we do a damn good line in local castles! ........where else would I get views such as this going to get a bottle of milk!


Duns Castle

Swallow update!

They have come back!

The occupants of the gale destroyed nest on the door have returned and are busy repairing the damage. I don't know if any of the eggs survived (I don't want to disturb them by investigating too closely)or if they will start all over again but maybe all is not lost. :o))

Gmail or not to Gmail

I am suffering a 'whoosh' moment, that is to say the Gmail 'hoo ha' seems to be going straight over my head!

TBH I hadn't taken much notice until now, ok so it offers large storage capacity but so what. With that in mind I set about tying to find out a little more and in the top 5 Google search returns I found this.

My limited intellect has yet to sift thorough all the points raised and form an opinion but it does seem a little 'creepy'. Not exactly related but in the same vein I read this (post June 20th 2004, The danger of artists and blogs revealed) a few days ago too!

Is paranoia setting in or should we be concerned?

Can anyone tell me what's so stunning about Gmail? Am I missing something?

Purgatory

It stopped raining at last.........somewhere between the hairdressers and Safeway, I didn't actually notice the event until it was over!

I was forced today, by the imminent threat of nothing edible left in the fridge, to brave Safeways, well actually it's Morrisons now but that only makes matters worse. No Tesco or Sainsburys here, the nearest of either is 60 miles and even the horror that is Safeway won't persuade me that far for a few apples etc.

So I trundled, herd like around the isles, trying to dream up some culinary delights with the usual lack of enthusiasm and people ramming their wayward trolleys into my legs. Why are supermarket isles used as meeting places where all and sundry can gossip over the latest news, greet long lost friends and pass the time of day whilst causing a 'people jam', that the offenders are completely oblivious to??

This delight was preceded by another one of my favorites......the hairdressers! Women I know, are supposed to enjoy all the pampering etc. Me? I just want my hair cut ..... no chance! They have you trapped.

So having almost rendered me unconscious at the delight that is a 'back wash' and ushered me, on a slippery floor, without my glasses and looking less than glamorous in a gown and towel to my seat, I am presented with the obligatory luke warm cup of something pertaining to be coffee. At this point I am asked what I would like doing........er, my hair cut maybe?
'How would you like it today madam?
'you're the hairdresser isn't it your job to sort that bit?
'You know what would suit you madam, highlights, just one or two colours,
'Would they now, well thank you but that requires even longer in here'
Have you ever thought of nail extensions madam'?
'No.......If I want long finger nails I'll grow them'

and on it goes.

'Have you done anything exciting recently'
'No, I live in a field'
'Are you going somewhere nice for your holidays'
'Yes, but not somewhere hot where I can acquire a tan, so no, I don't need your sun shower either'

Goddamn it woman...... Will you just CUT MY HAIR and let me back out looking moderately presentable!!!

Disaster!

The swallow's nest I so happily found on Tuesday has been annihilated overnight by the constant battering from the wind and rain. It's inhabitants have fled and the eggs are smashed on the ground! Sometimes I hate nature :o((

Remains.

A strange sense of humour

I found this link on someone elses blog.......... it made me laugh, maybe it will you.............or maybe I have a strange sense of humour! :o)

The British obsession

It has rained and blown a gale continuously now for over thirty hours! The weather in these parts seems to have an uncanny ablility to change more rapidly and with more severity than anywhere else in the UK. Certainly more so than anywhere I have lived. Tuesday was beautiful, Tuesday evening displayed a beautiful sunset and then 'bang', somewhere in the night it all disappeared, the barometric pressure fell like a stone and it was winter again!

I have perhaps more than the usual British obsession with the weather......'Bloody hell' I hear you say, 'we've got some boring nerdy chick here, into HTML, the weather and yesterday she gave us bird watching'......... I have bits and pieces of electrical gadgetry intended to forecast the local weather, which I watch avidly and which are reasonably reliable........... I love the extremes, with the exception of intense heat! I couldn't live in a country with one weather pattern, it fascinates me that just 3 months ago here we had a 'whiteout' and two days ago it was bright sunshine with 23 degrees! If anyone has a free 'storm chasing' holiday available I'm ya gal!

Ditto on the other hand is not best pleased and hasn't ventured across the threshold for 24 hours, wind and rain aren't her 'thing' and she has resorted to tormenting the life out of Poppy for entertainment. Her pent up energies have got to the stage all cat parents will recognize and involve intermittent and frequent mad dashes around the house with little regard for anything in her path...........she is soon to require 'peeling off the ceiling' if the weather doesn't improve!

Lodgers

Yesterday evening I noticed this swallow's nest attached to the front door.........I have no idea how I had managed to overlook it previously. I spent most of the early evening trying to capture a shot of it's inhabitants arriving or departing but despite much activity missed them each time! This was the best I got......if you enlarge it and look closely you can at least, see their little heads popping out :o)

Nest.

Action!

So the sun shone and Ditto had a better day today!


Action!

Thank goodness........

She is ok...........well not exactly ok but my worst fears were not realised!
The dog of course, had to take me for an arm wrenching drag and Ditto looked on with some displeasure when she realised that the mad animal shouting at her was attached to me! I always think I don't want to go but it does at least force me off this chair and into the nearest thing I have to a back garden. At 8 in the morning with the sun shining and a gentle breeze I am reminded why I like it here so much!


My 'back garden'

What's my next move

I have a German neighbour, a lady of about 60, the owner of the dog that on occasion takes me for a walk.

She has suddenly become a worry to me, yesterday she complained of chest and arm pains, she has angina and is awaiting tests. Despite my best endeavours she would not be persuaded to contact a doctor and so I took control of the dog and her domestic day to day stuff while she rested, feeling unable to enforce my thought that she should have at least some medical advice.

The dog took me for a walk again at 22.00 last night and having made sure she had my number and made her promise to take the key from the back of the door I left her to rest having assured me she was improved.

Thus far I have seen no sign of her this morning. Do I risk waking her and alarming her that I'm that concerned or do I give her a bit more time.........I wish I could remember what time the dog normally gets taken for his morning forray!

I think, with some trepidation, I will take the former course of action...........

Sunbathing

It having rained all day Ditto has had her activities somewhat curtailed, she has a strong dislike of getting herself wet!
Her bad day in mind, the moment the sun appeared this evening she felt it necessary to do a little sunbathing. She has miles and miles of interesting spots she could choose but no, instead she chose here!


Sunbather

Telephone troubles

A few days ago our 2nd telephone line was installed. Primarily to provide another internet connection although the other plus is that it means there is now some possibility that those who won't call our mobiles will be able to get hold of us within the decade!! Even we don't remain connected on two lines 24/7.

And so.....internet connection number two had been set up, the telephone connected to the less used line and we awaited our first call, a small excitement I know but not for 2 years has the phone rung here!......guess what......the first call, this morning, was a salesman and a persistent one at that. Suddenly I had to recall all my best put downs!! I remember vividly now why I liked being incommunicado so much...........

This sticks in my craw

I apologise if you are a dentist and reading this.....well actually,no I don't!

Dentists and the dental profession are currently on the top of my rant list and have been for the last few years.

We were all bought up to take care of our teeth, told time and time again that they are precious and to lose them would be terrible, had fluoride put in our water systems and marched fearfully every six months to the local dentist for a check up and any appropriate treatment.

What was that all for then when years later we discover that the dental profession is so damn greedy that thousand upon thousand of us now don't have access to a dentist at all!

I for one have been unable, despite many attempts, to see a dentist for nearly 3 years. The only option now open to me is to wait until a dental problem becomes severe and attend the accident and emergency department of my local hospital. So much for preventative measures and all the crap trotted out by this profession regarding early treatment and diagnosis! On one such visit I was 'patched up' by a very nice guy who then told me, with a wry smile, that I needed to get a dentist and get the problem treated thoroughly, he added almost as an afterthought that I would be unable too and that he would expect to see me again!!

There has also recently been much advertising by the British Dental Association regarding awareness of oral cancers and the need to have a dental check up regularly because as ever with the big C, early detection is integral to a successful outcome .......fat chance!

Do these 'professionals' not have a duty of care similar to that of a doctor, were many of them not educated in our schools and universities? Where then is their sense of fair play. It would appear that many of them don't see dentistry as anything more than a means to make a buck. Those currently practicing chose to go into the field when the NHS system was intact and so presumably understood how poorly paid (not) etc. they were going to be, before they even commenced their education, so why the sudden about turn? Economic self gratification is my guess!

So I have no great political understanding, I'm not completely aware of all the arguments I'm sure dentists present, I'm just a ordinary 'Jane Doe' and maybe you lot have a point, though I'm damned if I can see it. What I have yet to see is a poor dentist living in the rough part of town unable to feed his or her family!

Project this situation ten or twenty years and maybe I can see where you are all coming from. We will have a nation of individuals with horrendous dental problems and you will, if you haven't already done so by operating solely in the private sector, make your fortunes repairing all the damage caused by the current situation. You can't lose!!!

I don't want to hear you blame the government, the NHS or anyone else for that matter. We all live within those constraints one way or another. This is no longer for me about whether or not I can afford private treatment (which incidentally I can't) it is about not wanting to line the pocket of a profession that it appears to be without morals or integrity!!

I hope you can all sleep in your [water] beds at night!

Is it just me?

I have discovered since I began this blogging thing that I now have a tendency to wander around my daily life, in it's less interesting moments, mentally writing my next or another post!

I seem in these moments to have a multitude of interesting ideas and a reasonable command of the English language. Why then as soon as I sit down infront of this infernal machine does whole lot desert me! Tsk.....

Is it just me??

Escape

Wooooooo...

They sent me home as soon as I arrived, job done! They might have called to save me the 30 mile trip but I'm not gonna complain :o)

I feel like a child let out of school early, all the better for it being so unexpected.

Retroguy!

So you wanted your name in print eh?.... I can do better than that! :o)
(Seems it wasn't only Menina and I playing with this. Lol)


Retroguy

Hrumph!

I am not a happy woman....
I apologise in advance for my impending absence , I have to work today from 16.00 until the wee small hours and then be back again for 07.00!
I HATE IT with a vengeance, it's only one day I know, no big deal really, it's the manipulation and company attitude that enforces it that really winds me up! I could bleat on about the specifics but I'll spare you that. :o)

Oh..... and I have included a guest map but that's giving me trouble as well (see my shoutbox). Any help appreciated.

Back in a day or two :o/

I survived..........

.... a whole day away from this machine! :o)

Outlaws

'Outlaws' in this case is not a term used to describe individulas with a dubious criminal history, it is the only suitable term I can come up with for my partners parents in relation to myself. We are not technically married and therefor they are not my 'inlaws'!

So today we are off out of this green paradise to visit the outlaws in the real world, in this case the real world being Newcastle, a place full of fond childhood memories for me. My father, along with my partner, is a Geordie (very Freudian I know)and so many happy childhood holidays were spent at my grandprents in the Newcastle/Gateshead area.

The escape to the city also affords me some time for serious retail therapy,:o) one of the few things I miss in my field, along (time permitting) with dinner and maybe a movie :o)

A whole day away from my pc............will I cope!!?? Lol. :o)

I'm impressed

I apologise unreservedly.......Mr BT is as I type on his way as promised!

Real crazy.......

Well the day has dawned when our 2nd phone line is due to be installed, well theoretically at any rate! Excuse my scepticism but until the guy (or gal!) appears on my doorstep I'm not convinced....this is after all BT I am talking about.

Unfortunately this momentous occasion slipped my mind, along with the fact that I needed to be 'up and at it' by 07.30 and only re entered my thoughts as I dragged myself off IRC at something close to 04.00. I know...no sympathy and all that , my own doing but if this guy/gal does a 'no show' I will not be happy!

Along with Mr or Ms BT (this 'pc' stuff is hard work anon. poster)I should also get a visit from the postperson who in this case is a postman. I ordered some CD's a day or two ago, courtesy of an IRC friend who is vocals in a band..... Real Crazy Apartment. This lot are good, I mean really good and not because he is a friend of mine. It's hard to understand why we are subject to so much commercial musical banality when bands of this calibre exist relatively little known. Well it's not hard to understand, it's economics and A&R people but it borders on the insane. Don't take my word for it.... go listen and enjoy :o)

I'll stick to cats!

Yesterday was a peculiar day. I remained distracted all day, somehow just couldn't sort it out!

I was on dog walking duty against my better judgement. I have a neighbour who's 'baby' is a first cross Border terrier, tho she would have you believe he is full pedigree. This dog, whilst being a nice natured creature, hates Ditto with a passion and must be the most wayward domestic animal I have ever had the misfortune to deal with. He is completely uncontrollable, barks manically at any movement, be it leaf, cat or bird, pulls incessantly on his lead and worst of all has me completely sussed.

My instructions, as ever, when I take on this dubious role are to walk him every two hours if you please, for fear that he might 'disgrace' himself indoors...... and so my two hourly foray into the strange world that is dog behaviour began.

Firstly I have to wrestle him into a corner to get his lead on, not because he is scared or doesn't fancy a walk but because he is too excited at the prospect of walking me to remain still. Having achieved that feat and made a grab for the delightfully provided plastic bag, I am immediately dragged unceremoniously, shoulder almost removed from it's socket, in whatever direction he fancies. No use me deciding, in go his heels, down goes his head and no amount of persuasion on my part will shift him! My choice would be a cat free route, his apparently is not and so begins the constant barking on each and every sighting.

Yesterday I was walked on all 4 occasions to a cornfield, I'm still a city girl at heart and too aware of my personal safety, all this pottering and ferreting about in the middle of nowhere alone still makes me uneasy. So whilst he merrily investigated each and every little thing that took his fancy I, less than riveted by a beetle in the grass etc. was looking over my shoulder wishing he would get on and do what we came here to do!!

And that is why I say he has me sussed...............he knows, I'm sure, that my fear of him 'disgracing' himself at a latter point in the day and therefore my failing in my duty, will ensure that if he doesn't 'make use of the facilities' I will be obliged to take him out time and time again........and it works Goddamn him!!!!

Walking duty over and I have then to face Ditto's palpable disapproval for what she sees as my gross betrayal of loyalty! She has to endure being harassed by this dog day in and day out and should he ever catch her I doubt she would escape unscathed. She just isn't pleased at seeing her human apparently siding with the enemy......... little does she know................

Staring blankly & Tornados

I'm having one of those frustrating days it seems, despite half hearted efforts I just can't get my head together........it's all jumbled bits and pieces. I have a 1001 things I ought to, or want to be doing but thus far am unable to even muster the presence of mind to organise them into some sort of priority, let alone get doing any of them!

So instead I am alternating between gazing uselessly out of the window and staring blankly at this screen trying to string a few sentences together!

My random, disorganised thoughts are frequently interrupted by my own private 'air show', military jets hurtling overhead at what seems only about 50 foot. The only thing my 'ex' left me with a slight passion for, is military aircraft and here the airspace is used by the forces for low level practice. The locals hate it, complain bitterly about the earth shattering noise that comes from out of nowhere. I love it! These guys have the ultimate 'boys toys' and they play impressively!! Ok..... so those of you who know about that stuff will doubtless say its all 'fly by wire' etc. but hell it's impressive. It won't ever cease to amaze me how one can have the abiltiy to be upside down, pulling that sorta 'G', close enough that I can see the pilot and still be in control! I struggle with a car at times! :o)

My days of being able to identify each and every one of them are gone....probably a good thing, but there is some damn scary hardware up there.

What's more scary is the obvious increase in air traffic that goes hand in hand with any international political wranglings being reported at the time!!

Into the lions mouth

It's back to work for me today, I was only off 'post op' coincidentally but it saved me from the unpleasantness of having to phone in sick and face being spoken to like a naughty child.

I'm not sure how it's gonna go today, my voice is still pathetic and still hurts...... my job usually requires me to speak loudly or shout for much of the time!

I feel a little like I'm about to walk into the lions mouth,(well a small lion maybe) once I'm there, if it all goes horribly wrong the possibility of escape, other than by death, is remote.

Employers it seems make all the right noises but somehow lack the ability to follow through or to be genuinely sympathetic.......yeah ok,I know, I'm being very naive!!! :o)

Gremlins & 'Parental warnings'

Yet again my host seems to have gremlins, this is becoming a rather too frequent thing in my book and as such my profile pic is absent. Having lost patience, I have spent the morning so far, downloading an alternative means of posting a picture but I'm having a 'dense day' and I'll be damned if I can get it to do as I want! So for now there is STILL no pic.

One the good side I have found one of the funniest blog's I have yet to read..this is where the parental warning comes in!:o)

I have endeavoured not to include too much 'profanity' in this blog because I don't think it is necessary but just now and again something is worth it! In future any such inclusion will be preceded with my 'parental warning', which should also be considered to be a' not suitable for minors or those of an easily offended nature' warning.

I'm sure my parents can cope, they're pretty savvy, it just ain't their 'thang' and I'm a considerate kinda daughter....hmmmmmm!?? Lol.

So for those that want a giggle go here ..........this lady is hilarious, well I think so! :o)

And courtesy of Menina, if you have an hour or two to waste go play with this, its a hoot!

A new toy.

Oooooooooo.......I want one of these!

Ferocious beast!

Ditto doesn't 'do' windy days as a rule and this morning hovered with a look of distain on the doorstep for 10 minutes, while she decided if she would stay in or go out! Needless to say 'out' triumphed and off she went, still looking miffed and with her coat blowing backwards........ something she seems to have a particular dislike of.

That was it, not a sign of her for hours. Her fear of the wind apparently overcome quite easily, though it was patently obvious she had been in the vicinity when a recently deceased mouse turned up on the doorstep. She had obviously decided against a 'personal presentation' after her last efforts only resulted in a stern ticking off.

Again, hours later and without preamble, she rushed headlong through the door and straight under the sofa, always a sign that she has a 'catch'. As ever in my endeavours to save whatever she has in her clutches we did the 'chase me' thing, she was caught, the ungainly process of trying to prise her jaws apart was successful and her prey fell to the floor ............

a small piece of navy blue fur fabric!!!!

She looked at me, picked it up again and walked off swiftly, head and tail held high with pride!!!

Tsk!

B**ger!! My throat still hurts like hell...........I remain on squished food and the local shop has no Haagen Dazs. :o(

What is the world coming to?

Oh.... and to the continued joy of those around me I remain silent-ish!

Sunshine and chocolate brownie.

What a beautiful day..........

Bright sunshine, a gentle breeze and cows and sheep pottering about lazily. Yesterday I had repeated emails from a friend in the centre of London giving graphic despcription of the beautiful weather while I was languishing in cold damp fog all day!

Things are looking up all round, I have even managed to nibble my way, hamster like, through a slice of bread and butter and half a chocolate brownie this morning......strange how one manages a chocolate brownie isn't it?! My intake having been minimal over the last 36 hours I should perhaps have tried something marginally more nourishing but what the hell......I'm poorly and you gotta make the most of it. :o)

Have I missed something here?

I am a veteran of IRC and have regularly used chat rooms, or more specifically two chat rooms on one server, for years. The rooms I use are well moderated and overseen by responsible adults but the concern is always there that a 'groomer' may slip through the net.

I have no real idea of the statistics involved but worldwide chatrooms receive more hits than just about any other type of site (porn aside) and despite the efforts of many out there to keep them safe, some of those rooms leave a great deal to be desired. I consider myself un-shockable and very open minded but none the less, believe me, there are some weirdo's...... and one groomer operating is too many.

And so I read with interest this morning an article in the the BBCi News email that hits my inbox at 5am every day that the police in many countries are considering eavesdropping on internet chat room conversations.

My immediate reaction was positive in that anything that can reduce the dangers for young people is a good thing but as I considered it further I began to wonder if I was missing something!! Apparently if the police are 'listening in' an icon will appear on the screen to inform the chatter that their conversation is being monitored. Would that not mean that in the event that the conversation was with a groomer, he or she would just log off and that if a server became known as one that is monitored in those with such intent would just use another?????

I considered the idea further and gradually became a little miffed, we live more and more in a 'nanny state' where individuals and their guardians are not allowed to take responsibility for themselves and from a purely selfish point of view I just don't want to have the police monitoring my conversations. That is very much not because I am doing anything nefarious but because my conversations are private and mine!

I don't have children and so probably have no idea how hard it is to keep track of what they do or to control what they get up to but I'm damn sure some are left to their own devices and parked infront of a computer just to keep them 'out of the way'. I am no great techie but even I know that what a child can access on here can be controlled to a great degree if the effort is made to put those controls in place.

Is parental responsibility not the real answer here?

I'm not naive and I suppose in the end sadly not all parents take that responsibility. Even for those that do their offspring are likely to be more 'pc savvy' and able to circumnavigate whatever efforts are made to keep them safe! Ultimately in that case any controls put in place by the professionals have to be embraced.

One child harmed is one too many!

Sadly I think if a room is overseen by the police people will cease to use it. I consider myself to be responsible, reasonably informed and 'pro police' and whilst I deplore the activities of groomers and their like, if I'm honest I have to admit I don't think I would use a room if I was aware it was being eavesdropped!! That doesn't rest easy with me and presents me with a moral dilemma I feel I should do everything I can but I also value my privacy.

Maybe like I said ,I'm missing something here....... and what do I know anyway!

Silence!

Yesterday was a good and bad day in equal measure.

I had to attend a hospital appointment (I am particularly not good at hospitals) to investigate something 'peculiar' in my throat. In my sublime ignorance I imagined the surgeon would merely take a look and decide on a course of action to be followed at a later date............ How wrong was I??

Within minutes I had a gob full of needles and knives, thankfully allowing me no time to panic in my normal fashion!!

I now can't eat temporarliy and to the joy of those around me can't speak in anything more than a very pathetic whisper....I am not renowned for having 'demure feminine tones' and the relative silence has caused much humour among those around me :o)

We hear much criticism in the media on the subject of our national health service, in fact we seem to hear nothing but criticism.......well for my part I have never had anything but excellent and sensitive treatment at the hands of our medical professionals......and believe me I have had my fair share of dealings with them. Yes, I'm sure waiting lists could be shorter, management more efficient and that among their numbers there must be one or two 'dodgy characters' but at the sharp end it seems to me we are damn lucky to have so many dedicated individuals.

So it's soup and ice cream on the menu for a few days............bring on the Haagen Dazs :o)

Jostling for position

Well it's barely a week since I made mention here (post: 27 May) that the acquisition of a laptop to our household would bring an end to the constant jostling for position at the pc but undoubtedly would lead to a new 'problem'......that of who needs the dialup!!

I was not wrong............. yesterday saw me order phone line number 2! Having discovered BT owed us a sum of money more than equal to the cost of the installation there seemed little to stop the inevitable..... it was meant to be :o)

Let's face it......I can't split a connection now can I, that at best makes 46 Kbps and broadband ain't gonna wing its way to these parts until July 2005!!

The cat house

I know the phrase is 'the dog house' but in our household, for obvious reasons, serious misdemeanours result in the occupation of the 'cat house' :o)

Ditto is currently in residence having run riot for the day yesterday!!

It is horribly apparent that with the onset of warmer weather she has made a decision to hone her hunting skills! On four occasions during the day I had cause to rescue a small rodent from the clutches of her jaws. On each occasion she proudly arrived 'post haste' through the door, tail and head held high with pride to present me with her 'gift'!! Gift my foot. To her utter annoyance and chagrin a swift shake and adept prising of her jaws apart released the terrified, squealing rodent to hide under the furniture!

We then have a race to see if she can catch it again before I can, I'm pleased to say that on each occasion I won, the poor little things where inspected for injury to the best of my ability and released back into their field, hopefully not too much the worse for wear.

Not content with her day’s activity the night bought more misbehaviour. This tiny cat that must always sleep in the same position at the foot of our bed and who without fail arrives home for her tea at 21.30 hrs was still missing by midnight. I 'do' worrying..... One of the local toms has a particular dislike for her and has battered her intermittently quite badly, and so began the hunt by torchlight for her.

Two grown adults ferreting among the shrubbery, shaking various boxes of favourite food and calling daft pet names into the darkness...to no avail. By 2 o'clock she was still absent, 'Mr gemmak' was fast losing patience and the heavens had opened, the search was called off.

By 3 o'clock, having checked she wasn't at the door probably more than 100 times and 'himself' in bed I set off on another search in the rain, by this time the torch was no more. My dislike of the complete darkness in the countryside got the better of me within 15 minutes and convinced now that she had met some dreadful end I went home to bed. Of course I didn't sleep and after some careful manipulation managed to get 'Mr'to go on yet another cat hunt against all common sense and protestations!

Half an hour later, miffed and wet he returned still Ditto-less

We went back to bed.....within 10 minutes a familiar scratching was apparent at the door...in she sauntered, not a care in the world, checked out everything was still in order and settled down in her spot on the bed!!!!!!

Grrrrrrrrr ....why do I worry????

What on earth...

....has happened to 'Big Brother'???

I have to have the courage of my convictions and admit to having been an avid Big Brother fan in previous year's, judging by the first week of BB5 that's gonna change.

This years motley crew of contestants beggars belief, ok so C4 want viewing figures but is this the way to do it? Did the programmes researchers misunderstand their remit when they set about recruiting this years batch of hopefulls...were they under the impression they where employed to staff a circus!!

We have Marco who must be the most aggravating individual to ever grace our screens and gives a whole new meaning to the phrase 'happy clappy', 'Kitten' who has more than her fair share of personal psychological 'issues',a gay guy who seems only to be interested in straight men and a plethora of female wannabes who's only interest seems to be getting their kit off on TV. The rest barely warrant a mention save for Stuart who thinks he's (and I quote) 'probably the brightest person the researchers have ever interviewed' solely on the basis that he has a few 'A' levels........come back to us on that one with your PhD sunshine!

It seems to me the entire approach has been for two purposes only, to incite conflict and to achieve on tape the 1st live sexual exploits within the house.....they may well achieve their goal........this lot seem more likely to indulge in an orgy of some description than one on one action!

Don't get me wrong, I'm happy to live and let live and it takes allsorts to make a world, I'm hopefully un-shockable and all that but this just seems to be a bit OTT......who in there do the majority of us identify with this year?

Maybe I'm just getting old.......... and despite my misgivings you will notice I have been watching!!!! :o)

Murder in paradise.

My mother has commented throughout my life that I seem never to be far from some disaster or trauma.........

As a 16 year old I started work in a department store in the west end of London, quite awe inspiring at that age. Straight out of school and completely 'un-savvy'. My first journey home on the underground, already 'shell shocked' by the world of work, I was witness to some poor soul hurling himself under a train. Its was the mid '70's when the IRA were at their height and despite only working in town for 6 months I managed to be involved in or in the close vicinity of, one bombing, one hoax and an armed jewellery raid.

My catalogue of unpleasant happenings continued. I moved to Manchester and two days later the 'Moss Side' riots began within a mile of my new home! I was caught up in the first IRA bombing of the city centre and a number of years later, having two weeks previously moved to the outskirts of Cheshire, watched with disbelief when my house appeared on 'Crimewatch'............I might add here that it was coincidence and not any reflection on my lifestyle!!! :o)

I never liked that house and my feelings for it and the area where only confirmed when it became apparent that I was living only 100 yards from the infamous Harold Shipman's surgery during the latter years of his heinous wrong doings!

And so..........this little green paradise I now call home, a small village in the middle of nowhere woke yesterday morning to a murder.....it's first in living memory it seems. The normally quiet main street was a hive of activity and police vehicles and gossip was rife, though gossip these days even here it seems is conducted mostly by text!

I won't bore you with the details, in the main because I don't have any. Suffice to say it's a sad business for all those involved.

I shouldn't make light of such a terrible crime but forgive me if I have a few moments of paranoia!