Red sky at night

Ok....can you tell it's another day of bank holiday retail hell heaven, more images, no words, no time!

This sky was my view yesterday evening driving home from a late shift after a particularly crap day......almost compensation. :o)



(Clickable)

Saturday silliness

Friday's Feast (91)

Appetizer
On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being highest, how polite are you?

Ummm....6 or 7 maybe.

Soup
What was the last thing that made you laugh out loud?

Something someone said to me in an email.

Salad
Who is your favorite cartoon character?

Shrek...does he count, is he technically a cartoon??

Main Course
Tell about the funniest teacher you ever had.

I don't think I ever had a funny one....funny peculair maybe but not funny 'ha ha'.

Dessert
Complete this sentence: I strongly believe that ...... Life sucks sometimes!

Through the cloud.....

Sunset ~ 27.04.2006 (Clickable)

Snacking!

How not to nurture!

A camellia and a pick up truck!

Some years ago, maybe seven or eight, whilst I made my way across a Sainsbury's car park on my daily foray from work to find myself some lunch, I looked on in some degree of miff-ment as a woman driving a very large American pick up truck, merrily reversed into another vehicle.

Not satisfied with merely hitting this parked and brand new car she proceeded to drag her very hefty bumper the full length of it....and then move forward and drive off. She knew without doubt I had watched her antics but off she drove anyways.

Incensed I hastily took her index number and left a note on the windscreen of the now badly damaged victim vehicle giving details of where I could be contacted.

Two days later a woman I didn't recognise approached me as I went about my business in the store I worked in at the time and introduced herself as the owner of the damaged car. I gave her further details, she thanked me and left....returning later that day bearing a small thank you gift for me.

The gift in question was a small Camellia, no taller than maybe a foot, a twig really but I 'do' plants, my dream job would be to be a botanist or horticulturalist at Kew gardens (ok I'm twenty years too old and short of a first class degree but that aside) and so I took it home touched that this stranger had been kind enough to offer me a gift at all and planted said twig to begin its new life with me.

And it grew and it grew but when I left London for Scotland I decided it would unlikely enjoy such bitter howling winds and so transplanted it into a pot for re-homing at my parents.

Every year now my father regales me with progress reports and photographs and my once little tiny twig, has in it's seven or eight years now transformed itself under the close supervision and tutelage of my mothers green fingers into this:



It's now bigger than me (yes I know most things are) and happily produces it's stunning blooms year after year...much the same as the insurance companies involved in the original accident claim who harassed me year after year for five years for one statement after another.....but each spring it is worth it. :o)

(Images clickable)

Into the big wide world

Yesterday Tilly made her first foray alone out into the big wide world, well not exactly alone, I chaperoned her of course, she needs a little practice at finding her way back before she will be allowed full freedom and anyways I was mindful of her still relatively small size and the local thug tom cat who still regularly terrorizes the larger more battle hardened Ditto. Ok....so I'm an overprotective parent but hey....

So, her contraceptive issues having been suitably dealt a lethal blow and having healed up nicely It was decided yesterday was the day for the first big outing but
things did not work out quite as the young Tilly anticipated, for having spent six months rushing excitedly to the door each time it has been opened and trying to jam herself through the little gap as we attempted to close it again she suddenly discovered that 'outside' is somewhat more scary place than she had anticipated, particularly that stuff we humans call wind and that she had never encountered before. Her first attempt was rather abortive, she rushed headlong through the door onto the balcony, came to a shuddering halt, turned tail and rushed back in again!

Second and third attempts progressed only marginally further but eventually she found a little more courage, became fixated on a sparrow and with a little persuasion made it all the way to the bottom of the stairs......before she turned tail again and headed for the front door in a state of rush and panic!

This however is not a bad thing, we barely see Ditto over the summer months and I rather like the idea of a more 'indoor Tilly' to keep me company....I suspect though that she will soon find her feet in the big wide world and it won't be long before the both of them are bringing me 'summer gifts'. Ugh!

The first sunny Sunday

Some things never leave you, some things, however distant, can return and fill your mind and senses in an instant with memories usually long forgotten, vivid all absorbing memories, the sights, the sounds, the smells, the feelings, all conjured up in a moment by perhaps a very small incident.

The first sunny Sunday is for me one such incident. The first sunny Sunday is not a fixed date, it is just what it says, the first Sunday in any spring where the sun shines all day and everything feels new, the tantalising promise of the summer to come, the Sunday when from an early dawn the sun is high in the sky already evaporating the dew, transforming it into a light veil hovering above the ground, a day when new lambs are rushing around madly, no longer huddled for warmth by their mothers, a day when daffodils bob their yellow heads gently in a light breeze and suddenly everything green seems greener.

But it is none of this that transports me to another place, that fills my head with long forgotten memories and alerts my senses, for me the first sunny Sunday means just one thing and yesterday, on my routine early morning drive to work some guy, someone I don't know and have never met turned my ordinary day into a very different one, just for a few minutes.

This is not a tale of great love or loss, not a tale of any world shattering event but it is a tale of a passion that once found is never lost.

It happened in a moment, a split second, without warning he was there, almost unbearably close, breathing down my neck, big and powerful and stunningly beautiful, dangerously exciting and offering a tantalising promise of things to come.

......And then in an instant he was gone leaving me lost in another time, lost in my memories.

But as I said this is no tale of a great love lost, my unknown man, he who inspired in me on this first sunny Sunday such memories was no long lost lover, no hero, he was merely an unknown guy on a bright gleaming all powerful motorbike who hung on my offside rear for that split second it takes at phenomenal speed to make the decision to 'go for it'!

Bright chrome and paintwork glinting in the early sun, expensive and matching leather race suit, harsh halogen headlight glaring at me from behind, the feel of extreme power rumbling through me, of tangible torque waiting to be unleashed for that split second, the sound, the sweet sound of a highly tuned 1200 cubic capacity 'doing it's thing' the engine whistle, the can popping with impatience, the gentle 'clunk' of dropping one cog.... and then with an almost imperceptible flick of the wrist my leather clad stranger was gone, leaving me almost breathless in his wake, lost in my memories!

For me the 'first Sunny Sunday' is not about lambs, it is not about gentle mist or bobbing daffodils but about the promise of dry roads, warm air and the possibility of a whole long new summer, released from the confines of snow and ice and biting cold, it is the memory of raw power, of excitement, of Friday nights at Chelsea Bridge, of Sunday afternoons at Box Hill, of hours and hours just riding, the high speed turbulence beating against leather, of (wo)man and machine in harmony, the smell of petrol and exhaust, burning rubber and knee sliders making their first contact with tarmac, the aching limbs and muscles, unused for months, to such punishment, the fear, for there has to be a little fear, the momentary frission of a rear wheel twitch......


Hey, you can take the girl out of the bike but you cant take the bike out of the girl!

Evening glow

Saturday silliness

I wonder, should I get the knitting needles out now and begin creating two of these designer 'must-haves' for Ditto and Tilly in readiness for next winter?


....but the real silliness today is that it's 5.20 am, I'm on about and hours sleep and I have to go to work now, ugh!

The child in me

When I was a child I used to imagine that ‘old’ people, I think at the time I defined ‘old’ as anything over about 23 years , knew what life was all about, they had it well and truly sussed, they knew the answers to the stuff I didn’t, they could solve problems, nay, they probably didn’t even have them, they seemed ‘grown up’, they seemed 'together' and in my little mind there was always going to be that stage in life for me, the one where everything in life ran like clockwork and on the rare occasions it didn’t I would be grown up too, I would fix whatever the problem was without delay and with expertise, after all, that’s what all those tall people I saw around me did wasn’t it?!

I was told in a moment of childhood complaint, about something I now don’t recall, that ‘no one promised me life was going to be fair or easy’, I can still remember it vividly, not because of the message it should have been taking from it but because my young mind was so astounded that anyone should even so much as suggest such a thing let alone believe it, my life, that’s for sure, was going to be all things good, including fair and easy!

How so then it didn’t quite work out like that? Don’t get me wrong, I may have had my fair share of life’s ups and downs but no more or no less than most of us.... but it just doesn’t seem to work out like that child imagined, where are the instant and all encompassing answers? Where did ‘fair’ go to and what on earth happened to the perfectly fun life I envisioned all those years ago?

Er..........life happened I suspect.

And then there is the question of life and it’s up’s and down’s, those tall people ( ok so everyone is tall in relation to me before one of you points that out) I saw as a child, those that had it sussed, they learnt things from life did they not, or that was the theory that I commonly heard bandied about, they came up against life’s troubles big or small, they struggled through them and they learnt stuff didn’t they? They gathered this vast store of knowledge on how not to fcuk up again and how to mend those glitches that occurred when all else failed and life dumped a big heap of something unpleasant on top of their heads.

So what happened to my childhood ideal then, how comes this ‘grown up’ isn’t, how come that when things go pear shaped in gemmak’s-ville there is no vast store of knowledge, no instantly available solution and no magic wand to put it right. How come that I like everyone else seem to flail around in a state of confusion just trying to do the best I can......and usually getting nowhere fast? Where did all those adults go that knew it all and what happened to my theory that ‘grown up’s’ had it sussed?

The child inside is still there, that idealist little kid that saw the world as a wonderful place full of wonderful things, that thought life was fair and the lives of grown ups were hunky dory, she’s still there but maybe, just maybe this time she has learnt a little, maybe despite herself she is beginning to be a grown up, just not the grown up she imagined.

.....but she never did get tall!

ABC meme

I can't rememeber where I found this but it suffices for a day when my brain in fried!....oh and this time I feel mean, go to the bottom for those I have tagged! Heh.


Accent – Lord knows....South Eastern England, with a little mancunian somwhere in there.

Booze of choice – None, tee total...yes, really!

Chore I hate – Cooking.

Dog or Cat – You need to ask?

Essential electronics – Hey...... ok, computer, camera, phone, memory stick, is it possible to live without those?

Favorite perfume - Thierry Mugler, 'Angel'

Gold or Silver? Gold.

Hometown – Near London is as close as you get.

Insomnia? – Not usually.

Job Title – Customer Service supervisor.

Kids? – Nope.

Living Arrangement – Co-habit.

Most-admired trait – Mine? heaven knows, you're asking the wrong person there!

Overnight Hospital Stays – Yes, peritonitis age 12.

Phobia – SPIDERS!!!!

Quote – "The pursuit of happiness is the greatest cause of unhappiness" Anon.

Religion – None.

Siblings – One of of each...both younger.

Time I wake up – 6 ish....unless Tilly decides otherwise.

Unusual talent/skill – Um..... does still being able to do the splits (I think)count? If it doesn't I don't have one!

Vegetable I refuse to eat – brussels sprouts. Ick.

Worst habit – Smoking.

X-rays – Yes, quite a few but I don't recall what they were all for.

Yummy foods I make – Told you before I don't do cooking! ;o)

Zodiac sign – Aries but it's all hogwash to me.


...and those required to please join in are:

Natty, Paddy, Fletch, and Wallo

Go guys.......and don't say I never give you anything!

As Google says....

......Happy Birthday Joan Miro.

Sulking!

....and more than glad to be shot of it now!

Now I'm angry......

....in fact absolutely bloody steaming.....for not only does PG find himself in his recent sorry situation of being unemployed but now we discover that the 'little madam' that made the accusation against him in the first place, that led to all of this malarky, has 'been there before'.....yes, she made the exact same accusation against a colleague in her previous position and the result on that occasion for the guy involved was much the same....he too felt he had no option but to resign!

....no doubt, if PG's ex-employer had made even the smallest effort to investigate the accusation properly, instead of reacting with with an ill considered knee jerk, they too could have discovered this piece of somewhat relevant information!

Yup, I think we can safely say that angry, damn steaming mad angry, about sums up our current mood!

F***wits!

What a lightweight!

Late yesterday evening, having stumbled in from a typically none too delightful bank holiday in retail PG instigated a discussion regarding Tilly and her 'bucket' and given that she so hates it and that we had managed to keep her
miserably tied into if for eight days, the minimum prescribed healing time being five days, the optimum being ten, he considered that now was the time to do away with her bucket.

The obvious of course immediately happened and freed of her encumbrance she immediately began pulling at her stitches.....as she had on every occasion we removed her hated head gear!

PG's solution was of course that rather than trundle her to the vets today or let her hurt herself by removing them with her teeth.....we would do it! Ok, I don't do things medical, this may not be open heart surgery but I just don't 'do' medical procedure at any level. My protestations went unheard and armed with a Leatherman (yes I know not very surgical but the best knife in the house) I was instructed to play nurse (no lewd comments please!).

The whole issue was over in a few moments, PG has apparently done this on a number of occasions before but while he and Tilly were happily celebrating her final freedom and congratulating themselves on a job well don't yours truly was parked on the floor doing her level best not to faint! What a lightweight! Lets just hope I never have to deal with anything major!

Oh....and whilst on the subject of Tilly and her recent medical maneuverings, the following little was taken when she first arrived home post-op. It felt unkind to post it then when she was feeling so poorly but now she's all fit and well her still 'recovering from anesthetic' gait is quite amusing! Just don't laugh out loud if she's within earshot! :o)

A lazy post

From Take Two because the rules say if you read it you have to do it!

1) smoked - Yes
2) consumed alcohol - Yes
3) slept in the same bed with someone of the opposite sex - Yes
4) slept in the same bed with someone of the same sex - Yes
5) made out with someone of the opposite sex -Yes
6) made out with someone of the same sex- No
7) had someone in your room of the opposite sex - Yes
8) watched porn - Yes
9) bought porn - No
10) done drugs - No


11) taken pain killers - Yes.
12) taken someone elses prescription medicine - No
13) lied to your parents - Yes
14) lied to a friend - Yes
15) snuck out of the house - Yes
16) done something illegal - Yes
17) cut yourself - By mistake yes! Not intentionally
18) hurt someone - Yes
19) wished someone to die - Probably said it in the heat of the moment but never meant it.
20) seen someone die - No


21) missed curfew - Yes
22) stayed out all night - Yes
23) eaten a carton of icecream by yourself - Yes
24) been to a therapist - Yes
25) been to rehab - No
26) dyed your hair - Yes
27) recieved a ticket - Yes
28) been in a wreck - Yes
29) been to a club - Yes.
30) been to a bar - Yes


31) been to a wild party - Yes
32) seen the Mardi Gras - No
34) had a spring break in Florida - No
35) sniffed anything - No. Well ok, nice things!
36) wore black nail polish - Yes
37) wore arm bands - No
38) wore t-shirts with band names - No
39) listened to rap - Yes
40) own a 50 cent cd - No


41) dressed gothic - No
42) dressed prep - Yes
43) dressed punk - No
44) dressed grunge - No
45) stole something - Yes
46) been too drunk to remember anything - Yes
47) blacked out - Yes
48) fainted - Yes
49) had a crush on your neighbor - No
50) had someone sneak into your room - No


51) snuck into some else's room - Yes
52) had a crush on someone of the same sex - No
53) been to a concert - Yes
54) dry humped someone - Uh? :o/ nice question (not)....5th!....can we change this question please?
55) been called a slut - No
56) called someone a slut -No
57) installed speakers in your car- No....don't car come with them ready installed??58) broke a mirror - Don't rememeber.
59) showered at someone of the opposites sex's house - Yes
60) brushed your teeth with someone elses toothbrush - Yes.


61) consider ludacris your favorite rapper - Never heard of him so no
62) seen an R rated movie in theaters - Ok...what's R rated? X? if so of course.
63) cruised the mall - No
64) skipped school - Yes
65) had an eating disorder - No
66) had an injury - Yes
67) gone to court - Yes
68) walked out of a resteraunt without paying- No
69) caught something on fire - No
70) lied about your age - Yes


71) owned an apartment- Yes
72) cheated on your boyfriend/girlfriend - No
73) cheated with someone - Yes but only becasue I didn't know! :o/
74) got in trouble with the police - No
75) talked to a stranger - Yes, it's my job
76) hugged a stranger - Yes
77) kissed a stranger - Yes
78) rode in the car with a stranger - No
79) been sexually harrassed - Yes
80) been verbally harassed - Yes


81) met face to face with someone you met online - Yes
82) stayed online for 12 hours straight - Yes
83) talked on the phone for more than 6 hours straight- Yes
84) watched tv for 12 hours straight - No
85) been to a fair - Yes
86) been called a bad influence - Yes
87) cursed - Yes
88) prank called someone - Yes
89) laid in the bed with someone of the opposite sex -Yes...some odd questions in this.
90) cheated on a test - Not that I can recall


91) cheated on homework - Hell...too long ago to rememeber!
92) held hands with someone of the opposite sex - Yes
93) been pushed into a pool - Yes
94) played pool - Yes
95) watched 5 hours of mtv straight - No
96) had a crush on someone 10 years older than you - No
97) had a crush on someone younger than you - Yes
98) worn eyeliner - Yes
99) skinny dipped - Yes
100) laughed at someone who was seriously hurt - No

Nowt so strange as folk!

It goes without saying that retail and Easter are not good news, never have been never will be, it's the point at which Joe Public seems to completely lose the plot one way or another each year in my line of retail and this year promises to be no different!

Over the years I have encountered many an indication of mans (that's the human race not a sexist remark incidentally) inability to behave rationally from the moment they walk into a store. I have been shouted and screamed at, insulted, had things thrown at me, been assaulted and threatened, asked out for dinner (and one or two other less appealing options) and asked to perform all manner of odd things, most of which seemed to fall well outside the usual remit of someone employed in customer service!

Ah, but yesterday one of the oddest presented itself to me.

I was approached by a man, maybe a few years younger than myself with partner and small child in tow, who asked me if I had a pair of tweezers. Stupidly I assumed he meant for purchase so informed him that no, not an item we stock. His response was that he didn't want to buy and, just borrow them....had I got a pair of tweezers he could just borrow. Um........., let me think about that one.....no I told him, sorry but no.

He persisted. Ok I thought, I'll check out the first aid grab bag and see if I can find this guy some tweezers.....four bags later and having navigated the entire store, still no tweezers.

I returned to my customer with this sad news but still he persisted so I asked him what exactly he needed this implement for so desperately, in the vain hope that I could find some other way to help.

I wish I hadn't asked for he began to regale me with details of an ear infection he was currently suffering and that he had further exacerbated the problem buy stuffing a piece of cotton wool so far into his ear that he couldn't now retrieve it! I was about to suggest that he make a trip to A&E when he leant toward me, ear proffered rather too close to my face and said "maybe you can just hook it out with your finger nail for me"!

Ummmm.......aside from any legal first aid implications, I think not! How delightful and why the hell was his wife/partner stood next to him not being subjected to this heinous almost irresistibly tempting offer, rather than myself?!

Yup, nowt as strange as folk.....I've had some offers I was happy to decline in the past from customers but this one has to be one of the less tempting!

Having made my point, I thought suitably, and having offered advice regarding the local A&E department I thought the whole 'ear' business was over but that wasn't to be the end of it, twice more he returned to me asking for my assistance and twice more I declined politely. A third tie might have forced me to be a little less gracious but thankfully he finally got the message and wandered off, wife and child still silently in tow with a huffed look on his stupid face like somehow I had not fulfilled my duties in the line of customer service!

Hmmmmmm.......gimme the guys that shout in preference anytime....I can 'do' shouting I can't 'do' ears!

HAPPY EASTER! ;o)

Saturday silliness

Hey......and it's not even a cat!


© Xavier Chantrenne

The joys of the DSS!

The inevitable has happened, PG has had to approach the dreaded DSS office in what is turning out to be the not unexpectedly unpleasant business of claiming benefits.

What a bloody nightmare! Bear in mind here that I worked in the civil service for 12 years and in an equally unpopular department, yes I worked for the Inland Revenue so pelt me with tomatoes now if you wish) I know the drill, I know how it works and yet it is still a maze of what seems mostly to be pointless stupidity and red tape.

I appreciate there are those that 'work the system' to put it politely but hell, between the two of us we have worked something in the region of 45 years and only claimed on weeks unemployment benefit in total and still the attitude of the department seems to be that if you claim any benefit at all you must by definition be a chav with the I.Q of a peanut!

The system has changed it seems and the first point of contact is by phone where myriad details are asked for. Once that is over another phone appointment is made where one is required to put aside and hour to be interviewed by phone. Next is the required visit in person to an office where one is greeted tersely by an almost underage upstart with an attitude Vinny Jones would be proud of...who again goes through the same endless list of questions! Can you believe, and I exaggerate not, I was asked how much money I had in my purse...right down to the loose change! I'm sorry but I just couldn't resist asking the aforementioned upstart if he would also need to know what colour my underwear was!

Throughout this delightful meeting 'upstart' seems unable to prevent himself from treating us as though we couldn't possibly be doing anything other than fiddling the system and manners or sympathy were barely skills he had heard of, let alone practices.

During the 'are you looking for suitable employment' stage of this it was suggested incidentally that because PG felt that to travel 40 miles each way to a job of 20 hours a week duration for only minimum legal wage was not quite what he considered worthwhile, it was suggested that his attitude wasn't all it should be! Give me strength. Do any of these people actually think for themselves?

And so, torture over and once home again, having been dragged though all this hoo ha for what will doubtless be only pennies what happens? yesterday, two days later onto the doormat falls the written proof of just how little PG is entitled too....followed this morning by another missive telling him that they got it all wrong and have to start over!!! FFS, is it really worth it?

It would seem that the principle that is oft bandied about, that if you are honest the whole thing just falls apart is way too close to the truth, hey, I knew I got it wrong somewhere in life...... I'm sure if I was 17, we had never done a days work in our lives and had 6 kids we'd be worth a fortune in payouts! As it is the term 'social security' is in practice neither sociable or secure!

Gah! I think I'd rather starve than deal with this lot again. Can you tell I'm a little less than impressed!?

Are these real?

Are these really baby porcupines? If they are I need me some! :o)

I need cake!

Really, it's the only way I can conceive of coping with the fact that I am yet another year older today....and never mind how many years, I ain't tellin', but cake, big, fat chocolatey cake might just take the sting out of the birthday tail......oh and from here on in I think all things chronological should be counted in reverse! ;o)

Two years old today!

My blog is two today!

Two years and almost 1200 (don't do the average ok? I know I have no life ;o) ) posts later I'm still kicking about somehow and driving you mad with cats and generally insignificant ups and downs....but someone is still reading so I thank you.

Happy Birthday little blog.

This bucket thing......

....wasn't designed with my ears in mind! Fffbbttt.

Playing catch-up again

This last week seems to have been madness in many ways and I'm still in some degree of disarray. My usual routines have disintegrated and there has been so much to do and to sort out that I'm back to playing catch-up again. Another of those times where I find myself having to offer many of you an apology because I still haven't replied to your email or a comment and I have to thank so many of you for your truly kind and supportive words over the last few days, it's at times like this last week in mine and PG's life that the old adage 'you find out who your friends are' proves just that, you really do find out who your friends are and many of mine are here in this virtual little world. So I thank you, your words of advice and encouragement have meant a lot to both of us and an extra special thankyou to those who seem to stick by my side through thick and thin, you know who you are L, M. and J.

So what else......Tilly's little operation went according to plan and she is gradually returning to normal, if having a bucket on your head can be considered normal! The vet as ever after an anesthetic advised us last night to offer her a light meal, scrambled eggs for instance, but she was having none of it, the real deal it had to be and so I gave in and fully expecting her to 'return' it to us gave her her usual cat delicacies.....robust little madam that she is she wolfed the lot down quite happily and that was the last we saw of it. She made a cursory attempt at cleaning around her offending and hated new adornment and then fell back asleep for the night. It shouldn't be too long now before she's back up to speed, I just wish she would listen when I tell her that if only she would leave her stitches alone she could be bucket-less!

And finally it is a week of birthdays in gemmak's-ville so maybe things will improve for a day or two, on Wednesday this little blog is two years old and on Thursday I am 'x' years old....probably the less I concentrate on that aspect of the week the better!

So that's it, my small bits of news caught up with, all that remains is to find a job for PG and to catch up on some design work and emails now and to thank you all again once more. :o)

Post-op puss

One very sorry for herself little cat came home from the vets at three o'clock. :o(


The vet reported thankfully that she had got through her little operation with no ill effects and had been 'absolutely no trouble' since....almost as soon as she came though the door here things changed a little however. My hope that she wouldn't require her 'bucket' was soon shown to be rather too hopeful as she immediately began chewing and pulling at her stitches and trying to get her into her required piece of equipment proved to be quite a test of perseverance when she suddenly turned form a staggering weak little thing to her usual feisty self...my hands now bear the scars!

Once adorned with her 'crown' she made concerted efforts to remove it but thus far has been unsuccessful, despite almost tying herself in knots in the process.

She is so sad to watch, I hate this bit, she can't walk properly, staggers like she has made far to greater inroads into the Guinness and falls over looking completely confused in a little heap somewhere.

After maybe an hour of fighting the bucket and the wobbly legs effect she was completely exhausted and has now spent the last three hours fast asleep on PG's lap making occasional little sad squeaks when she tries to reorganise her sore little body and bucket into some position of comfort.

All that said though, and I hate to see her looking so 'out of sorts', her surgery went well and no doubt she will be back to her usual state of madness in a day or two. :o)

Nil by mouth

Tilly has come of age, her last big growing up milestone is upon us and I don't like it too much. That little tiny, almost helpless kitten, has reached the age of of maturity where a mother daughter talk was necessary recently and among all the other adolescent feline life skills issues to be covered, contraceptive advice was required if she wishes to go out dating, something she is showing somewhat of an interest in lately!


Was she really ever this tiny?

To that end, the once tiny wee Tilly kitten has just been shipped off in her little box, complaining loudly for the entire journey, having been less than impressed by the 'nil by mouth' rule over the last twelve hours, to the vets for her first ever surgery. Hopefully her one and only. Much as it was tempting there will be no 'Tilly kittens' it's just not practical in a small flat and with our current 'employment status' not a good move at all, to save the cost of the surgery now would be something of a false economy compared to the cost of a pregnancy and the resulting offspring......besides which I would never be able to give any of them away!

So now I'm like a nervous parent, it's her first anesthetic and that always makes me a nervous wreck little uncomfortable. Hey ho, nothing more can go pear shaped this week surely, so it's fingers crossed and back off to the vets at 3 to collect what will likely be someone feeling very sorry for themselves temporarily and sporting a shaved patch and bucket on her head!

How do I just know that Tilly and the 'bucket thing' are going to mean trouble this evening!

The true use of a laser pointer....

....is to exercise and consequently wear out small cats in an effort to ensure a reasonable nights sleep!

Exercise for cats
Video sent by gemmak

Saturday silliness

The next step

I'm sat here this morning and things seems a little surreal, everything about me is exactly the same, looks the same, smells the same, sounds the same but conversely everything's changed completely. I can't feel anything much, I'm just kind of numb.

Yesterday was probably one of the most difficult days of mine and PG lives, so much to consider, so much information to take in in such a short space of time, it felt among all the other issues that we were trying to complete a crash course in employment law inside about four hours but one can only make a decision on the information one has so that information has to be as complete as it possibly can be within the given time restraints.

Coming to a decision within such a short time frame was tough, very tough, it had to be PG's decision ultimately but with the help of the lawyer and bouncing our thoughts off my father the decision was made and duly carried out.

PG I think spent the day in a haze, for those of you who don't know what he did he worked and has always done, with severely mentally and physically disabled adults so aside from all the usual losses he has to deal with, the financial loss, the self esteem issues, the 'belonging' and having an identity he also has to deal with the loss of the clients he has taken care of, some for many years, and they to the loss of him, someone they trusted, because he was good at his job, very good. It's an industry that most don't remain in for very long but he survived all of his working life thus far because he cared about his clients and wanted to make a difference. He was also a great advocate for them and I think if the truth be known, therein lies part of the problem, he would always fight for their rights, their quality of life and he wasn't afraid to go up against the health board or management in an endeavour to attain what he considered was the right care someone....in these days of cutbacks and business management within our health services etc. that is rarely popular and given that this kind of industry leaves it's employees very vulnerable to all kind of accusations they maybe saw a chance to rid themselves of a 'thorn in their sides'. The accusation made against him didn't even involve a client, it involved another member of staff and was so utterly ridiculous that it's hard to believe the situation has ended where it has.....but it has so we have to deal with it and to that end today it's onto the practical issues.

So that's it, today we have to take stock, kill off a few peripheral expenses like Sky Television (ok, that's not a bad thing!), reduce my massive industrial sized broadband connection, take stock of our finances eekkkkkk and begin to make some plans for survival. PG has managed already to find eight positions to apply for so there will be much letter typing, form filling and phone calls to make and it's onward and hopefully upward.....one thing is for sure, I'd rather be sat here right now typing this than taking him to the tribunal he would have attended this morning just to have the system whitewash the whole issue!

"It won't happen to me"

Don't you believe it!

We've all been there, listened to friends talking, read the reports, overheard conversations between strangers or merely had it cross our minds that something awful could happen to us unfairly that we couldn't escape, that no matter how we tried we couldn't find an acceptable way to resolve the given situation, the classic and worst scenario of course is to to be wrongly convicted of a crime and to never be able to prove one's innocence.

We all think of these things fleetingly from time to time but we all imagine "It won't happen to me". We mostly believe in the Western world in justice and in fairness of our systems....well believe you me it can happen to you and it just has to me....or more specifically to PG.

Anyone popping into this little patch of the blogoshere will know things haven't been quite their usual self over the last week or so but until now I couldn't blog any of it, some of the issues going on I may never be able to blog but one I now can.

Last week, out of the blue PG was called into the office at his place of work and without any preamble was suspended from his job. The reasons? Someone had seen fit to make an accusation against him that required investigation. As you might expect he was shattered, we both were but I think at that point we assumed that 'things would work out'. They didn't, despite fighting almost to the end, despite much research, despite expensive legal advice and despite any protestations or proof of innocence, things very much didn't work out.

Whether we like it or not the mighty dollar reigns and carries the weight, common sense and fairness do not and the employers fear of litigation, however ridiculous the accusations, seem to dictate that fairness is not a necessary commodity. Bear in mind that in British law, matters of employment don't require proof as in a court of law or criminal investigation, ultimately there seems to be no real or workable form of defense. Yes, PG could appeal against a decision, take his employer to a tribunal or ultimately begin proceedings against his accuser and/or employer but to what end?....likely none other than more stress and great expense.

And the the upshot of all this?

Today, feeling left with no other alternative and having fought from every angle we could think of PG has been left with no real option but to resign from the job he loves and has done well for thirteen years, before he could be fired at a disciplinary hearing tomorrow morning. In reality there was no other choice but to escape while the one thing he could retain in tact is his right to a halfway decent reference and a little dignity!

This is not fun, there are tragically few jobs in these parts and we can maybe only survive financially for perhaps a couple of months.......... anyone know where the nearest DSS office is?, Oh though of course having resigned, and not been fired, he can't even claim benefits!

So, 'it can happen to me', it just did and it sucks and again the law seems to be an ass. The whole situation is so ridiculous and borne out of greed or vindictiveness, or both that even our lawyer, on reading the papers, felt forced to laugh out loud but still, there is nothing in real terms, else that PG can do, he just has to bite the bullet and accept that sometimes life is just utter crap, if someone accuses you of something there is nothing you can do to defend yourself in an employment situation....because proof is not required!

Smile please

Especially for Natty who wanted to see more of Ditto!.

One hundred films meme

As my mind is still in somewhat of a funk and the thought processes required for a real post are still not much in evidence...... here's another cheat! I don't even recall where I stole it from but if it was you sorry and thankyou! The idea is that you bold/highlight each film in the list you have seen, so without further ado, here's my list and this time, just for once I won't be so unkind as to tag anyone, if you wanna have a go feel free to join in, just let me know in my comments so I can go visit your list.


1. Citizen Kane
2. Casablanca
3. The Godfather
4. Gone with the Wind
5. Lawrence of Arabia
6. The Wizard of Oz
7. The Graduate
8. On the Waterfront
9. Schindler's List
10. Singin' in the Rain
11. It's a Wonderful Life
12. Sunset Boulevard
13. The Bridge on the River Kwai
14. Some Like It Hot
15. Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
16. All About Eve
17. The African Queen
18. Psycho
19. Chinatown
20. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
21. The Grapes Of Wrath
22. 2001: A Space Odyssey
23. The Maltese Falcon
24. Raging Bull
25. E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial
26. Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
27. Bonnie and Clyde
28. Apocalypse Now
29. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
30. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
31. Annie Hall
32. The Godfather, Part II
33. High Noon
34. To Kill a Mockingbird
35. It Happened One Night
36. Midnight Cowboy
37. The Best Years of Our Lives
38. Double Indemnity
39. Doctor Zhivago
40. North by Northwest
41. West Side Story
42. Rear Window
43. King Kong
44. The Birth of a Nation
45. A Streetcar Named Desire
46. A Clockwork Orange
47. Taxi Driver
48. Jaws
49. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
50. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
51. The Philadelphia Story
52. From Here to Eternity
53. Amadeus
54. All Quiet on the Western Front
55. The Sound of Music
56. M*A*S*H
57. The Third Man
58. Fantasia
59. Rebel Without a Cause
60. Raiders of the Lost Ark
61. Vertigo
62. Tootsie
63. Stagecoach
64. Close Encounters of the Third Kind
65. The Silence of the Lambs
66. Network
67. The Manchurian Candidate
68. An American in Paris
69. Shane
70. The French Connection
71. Forrest Gump
72. Ben-Hur
73. Wuthering Heights
74. The Gold Rush
75. Dances with Wolves
76. City Lights
77. American Graffiti
78. Rocky
79. The Deer Hunter
80. The Wild Bunch
81. Modern Times
82. Giant
83. Platoon
84. Fargo
85. Duck Soup
86. Mutiny on the Bounty
87. Frankenstein
88. Easy Rider
89. Patton
90. The Jazz Singer
91. My Fair Lady
92. A Place in the Sun
93. The Apartment
94. GoodFellas
95. Pulp Fiction
96. The Searchers
97. Bringing Up Baby
98. Unforgiven
99. Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
100. Yankee Doodle Dandy

Thermodynamic charactersitics

Read to the end, I know its long.... But worth it.... :o)

The following is an actual question given on a University of Washington chemistry mid-term. The answer by one student was so "profound" that the professor shared it with colleagues, via the Internet, which is, of course, why we now have the pleasure of enjoying it as well.

Here is the professor's "Bonus Question":
Is Hell exothermic (gives off heat) or endothermic (absorbs heat)?

Most of the students wrote proofs of their beliefs using Boyle's Law (gas cools when it expands and heats when it is compressed) or some variant.

One student, however, wrote the following:

First, we need to know how the mass of Hell is changing in time. So we need to know the rate at which souls are moving into Hell and the rate at which they are leaving. I think that we can safely assume that once a soul gets to Hell, it will not leave. Therefore, no souls are leaving.
As for how many souls are entering Hell, let's look at the different Religions that exist in the world today.
Most of these religions state that if you are not a member of their religion, you will go to Hell. Since there is more than one of these religions and since people do not belong to more than one religion, we can project that all souls go to Hell.

With birth and death rates as they are, we can expect the number of souls in Hell to increase exponentially. Now, we look at the rate of change of the volume in Hell because Boyle's Law states that in order for the temperature and pressure in Hell to stay the same, the volume of Hell has to expand proportionately as souls are added.

This gives two possibilities:

1. If Hell is expanding at a slower rate than the rate at which souls enter Hell, then the temperature and pressure in Hell will increase until all Hell breaks loose.

2. If Hell is expanding at a rate faster than the increase of souls in Hell, then the temperature and pressure will drop until Hell freezes over.

So which is it?

If we accept the postulate given to me by Teresa during my Freshman year that, "it will be a cold day in Hell before I sleep with you", and take into account the fact that I slept with her last night, then number 2 must be true, and thus I am sure that Hell is exothermic and has already frozen over. The corollary of this theory is that since Hell has frozen over, it follows that it is not accepting any more souls and is therefore, extinct...leaving only Heaven . . . thereby proving the existence of a divine being . . . which explains why, last night, Teresa kept shouting "Oh my God."

THIS STUDENT RECEIVED THE ONLY "A"

Yes it's pink!

You may all detest pink but I love it, it cheers me up, it's a happy colour and it's my blog, so for now it's pink, no arguements! :o)

Shush Fletch!

You might wonder...

...if you're one of the loyal regulars in gemmak's-ville why things have become a little slower than usual in this little patch of the blogosphere.

Well all that I can say is that things have been less than fun at times here recently, we've had one problem after another, you know, one of those times when just when you thought you were getting to beat one problem another presents itself.

None of the details I can blog, I wish I could but it's not appropriate that I do, even I have a little decorum here and there. You can be rest assured though that there is a chink of light at the end of what feels right now, is quite a long tunnel, I have some good support going on (thank you you know who you are both of you) and if you could just bear with me a while, and perhaps put up with even more of these than normal (what more cats? I hear you scream)


in the interim, soon things will return to normal...or at least I damn well hope they will! ;o)

Hey ho, ain't life grand sometimes.

Saturday silliness

So, you travel all the way from Scotland to London, you take a walk along the South Bank to take in the sights, sounds and smells of the city and what do you hear??? From every point, above the day to day melee of voices and traffic could only be heard one thing.......

Turn up the sound.....and if for some reason you can't, scroll down to the bottom!

South Bank
Video sent by gemmak

Bagpipes! Bloody Scottish bagpipes is what you hear! :o)