Snow

Snow has come to the UK once again and as always it causes chaos everywhere. Snow piles up in drifts at the sides of the roads, side streets are blocked and gritter lorries never go down there, railway line at times become blocked when the points freeze, and this year the Forth Road Bridge has been closed because of the snow for the first time since its opening in 1964. Cries of woe and shock are heard everywhere, except from the kids who avoid school for a week, business it hit as workers stay at home, shops are struggling, and some folks with little cash must be freezing like I am!

When weather like this hits us, and this is early snow and very much heavier than expected, we find ourselves asking why? Why can we not cope with the weather? Why are  we not ready for this? Why is something not done? The answer is simple, money! The folks that demand lots of grit be put on the roads are the same ones in mild winter asking why so much grit needs to be stored? The failure of the railways due to the cold occurs on two or three days of the year, maybe a week at the most, and to keep on standby all year round sufficient material to ensure the trains run would cost so much there would be questions asked in parliament. There are those that mutter about Germany and Sweden coping better than us in such a winter forgetting that in those lands winter is deeper, longer, and far harsher than our short week or two. They can then spend the cash and prepare properly for the conditions. If the UK was to do this questions would be asked by all the screaming tabloids about the financial waste, and suggestions made as to how such money could be better spent! The hypocrisy is overwhelming in such papers! 

This weather has been severe, especially in the north, but the southern softies have been hit quite badly also. Coming to us from an easterly direction, starting from the Arctic circle and arriving via Siberia, Germany, the North Sea it make land on the coats and travels right up the trouser leg with a ferocity known only to those who have stood on the terracing at Gayfield Stadium, Arbroath, in February! It does the individual no good I tell ye! It will last a few days more, and already the Scottish football weekend has been almost completely wiped out. The grounds may be fit but many roads are not,and while the main roads might be open folks cannot get out of the side roads to enter them! Soon however it will end, unlike in Sweden where it will continue until the end of March or April, and by this time next week all will be forgotten by most folks. The press will return to talking about 'that marriage' and the behaviour of cretinous famous folk, the world will continue to seek gratification via the Christmas shop, and energy company directors will sit with glasses of brandy and smug grins on their overfed faces. Normality will have returned.

A more serious question requires asking however. Could it be that weather patterns are indeed changing? Can it be that 'global warming' (look outside as you read that) is occurring? Can it be that the world is going through a change, and is it short term or longer? I first read about melting ice floes around about 1968! Scientists were claiming the Arctic was beginning to shrink, but nobody cared. Now, while huge areas of Greenland are being exposed some still claim there is no 'global warming,' I wonder why? Politicians, or lying scoundrels may be a better term, fight over such things irrespective of any damage that might ensue to the world around them. A long time ahead to a politician is next week or the next election and as long as his seat is safe that is all that matters. However whether the sun is cooling, or the earth shifting or the world about to come to an end and Jesus ready to leap through to us for a final time the fact remains that something is happening around us and most people walk about looking no further than the end of their nose. Our self, that most odious part of us, will sit and watch while the world burns, or it appears, freezes as in our case today.

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St Andrews Day

Today is St Andrews Day, a saint ignored by the Scottish people for five hundred years since the reformation. He is of course of no importance today, even if the bones that monk carried with him when he landed on the Fife coast actually belonged to Andrew himself, but the nationalistic emotion is expressed through this day. Any nation treated with contempt by a bullying neighbour will magnify patriotic feeling, and the Scots pride has long been treated with contempt by English arrogance. So on a day like this, even with several inches of horrible unwanted snow making life difficult it is important for Scots everywhere to gather together, hail their nation and then go out and insult an Englishman for the good of mankind!

While Scots rightly complain of English oppression we are in a wonderful position in comparison to some in this world. In forgotten Darfur Sudanese aircraft still bomb and harass refugees, in the Democratic Congo women are still raped and men murdered by any of several rebel forces or indeed the national army itself. Many find their home to be no more than a collection of scrap metal walls or plastic sheeting, possibly lucky ones will have tents supplied by aid agencies after a natural disaster, many others will have less. While I complain about the cold I can still find heat at the touch of an expensive button, in North Korea, where it may get as low as minus 50% many do not have this luxury.

The 'Daily Telegraph' features a video of a woman so hungry and feeble she eats grass, and another fighting back when a bribe is demanded by a police officer. The mad mullahs in charge of this nation do appear to have gone too far in recent days, a change to the monetary system has left many bereft and rebellion is arising throughout the nation. While the state retains control the people once again face deprivation and starvation, and this in turn may encourage the military leaders, the ones with real power, to create a war situation in an attempt to save themselves. While the people starve and the powerful fret we can carry on regardless towards another 'Merry Christmas,' and all that brings. Hopefully the girl in this video is still alive by Christmas.....

                                 The Daily Telegraph North Korean Report  

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Dreich

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This is a good shot of the early morning, at least MY early morning! Cold, snow covered, and generally miserable. Just like me I suggest! The several inches of snow up north do not make me jealous.  I don't like the cold and I want to be somewhere warm, beside the sea, and with a pretty young girl attending to my needs.


Fat chance!

He is 80, a multi millionaire, and recently they were attacked and robbed of jewellery worth £200,000.
I just wonder what a 31 year old lass would see in a multi millionaire who travels the world constantly, has a weak heart and has recently suffered a terrible shock? What does he see in a girl slightly older than one of his daughters? Does she perhaps share a love of Formula 1?

Wiki Leaks have revealed that political folk talk about one another and do not always like what they see! Arabs have been demanding the US remove the Iranian nuclear threat, US ambassadors have been offering honest appraisals of world leaders, and one of our Princes (just what does he do?) has been pretending he is his father and putting his foot in it. I wonder why the politicians are claiming Wki leaks are dangerous? have they something to fear....? This tells us nothing we did not guess already, it just brings it into the open.   

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Why It's Good To Be A Man...

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Men

1.           Phone conversations are over in 30 seconds flat.

2.          Movie nudity is virtually always female.

3.          You know stuff about tanks.

4.          A five day vacation requires only one suitcase.

5.         Sunday Afternoon Football.

6.          You don’t have to monitor your friends sex lives.

7.          Your bathroom lines are 80% shorter.

8.          You can open all your own jars.

9.          Old friends don’t give you crap if you’ve lost or gained weight.

10.      Dry cleaners and haircutter’s don’t rob you blind.

11.       When clicking through the channel, you don’t have to stall on every shot of someone crying.

12.       Your ass is never a factor in a job interview.

13.       All your orgasms are real.

14.      A beer gut does not make you invisible to the opposite sex.

15.       Guys in hockey masks don’t attack you.

16.       You don’t have to lug a bag of useful stuff around everywhere you go.

17.       You understand why Jokes are funny.

18.       You can go to the bathroom with out a support group.

19.       Your last name stays put.

20.      You can leave a hotel bed unmade.

21.       When your work is criticized, you don’t have to panic that everyone secretly hates you.

22.      You can kill your own food.

23.      The garage is all yours.

24.      You get extra credit for the slightest act of thoughtfulness.

25.      You see the humor in Terms of Endearment.

26.      Nobody secretly wonders if you swallow.

27.      You never have to clean the toilet.

28.      You can be showered and ready in 10 minutes.

29.      Sex means never worrying about your reputation.

30.      Wedding plans take care of themselves.

31.       If someone forgets to invite you to something, he or she can still be your friend.

32.      Your underwear is £5 for a three pack.

33.      The Cheerleaders are to be looked at.

34.      None of your co-workers have the power to make you cry.

35.      You don’t have to shave below your neck.

36.      You don’t have to curl up next to a hairy ass every nite.

37.      If you’re 34 and single nobody notices.

38.      You can write your name in the snow.

39.      You can get into a nontrivial pissing contest.

40.     Everything on your face stays its original color.

41.      Chocolate is just another snack.

42.      You can be President.

43.      You can quietly enjoy a car ride from the passenger seat.

44.     Flowers fix everything.

45.      You never have to worry about other people’s feelings.

46.      You get to think about sex 90% of your waking hours.

47.      You can wear a white shirt to a water park.

48.      Three pair of shoes are more than enough.

49.      You can eat a banana in a hardware store.

50.      You can say anything and not worry about what people think.

51.       Foreplay is optional.

52.      Michael Bolton doesn’t live in your universe.

53.      Nobody stops telling a good dirty joke when you walk into the room.

54.      You can whip your shirt off on a hot day.

55.      You don’t have to clean your apartment if the meter reader is coming by.

56.      You never feel compelled to stop a pal from getting laid.

57.      Car mechanics tell you the truth.

58.      You don’t give a rat’s ass if someone notices your new haircut.

59.      You can watch a game in silence with you buddy for hours without even thinking (He must be mad at me)

60.      The world is your urinal.

61.       You never misconstrue innocuous statements to mean your lover is about to leave you.

62.      You get to jump up and slap stuff.

63.      Hot wax never comes near your pubic area.

64.      One mood, all the time.

65.      You can admire Clint Eastwood without starving yourself to look like him.

66.      You never have to drive to another gas station because this one’s just too skeevy.

67.      You know at least 20 ways to open a beer bottle.

68.      You can sit with your knees apart no matter what you are wearing.

69.      Same work….more pay.

70.      Gray hair and wrinkles add character.

71.       You don’t have to leave the room to make an emergency crotch adjustment.

72.      Wedding Dress £2000; Tux rental £100.

73.      You don’t care if someone is talking about you behind your back.

74.      With 400 million sperm per shot, you could double the earth’s population in 15 tries, at least in theory.

75.      You don’t mooch off others’ desserts.

76.      If you retain water, it’s in a canteen.

77.      The remote is yours and yours alone.

78.      People never glance at your chest when you’re talking to them.

79.      ESPN’s sports center.

80.      You can drop by to see a friend without bringing a little gift.

81.       Bachelor parties whomp ass over bridal showers.

82.      You have a normal and healthy relationship with your mother.

83.      You can buy condoms without the shopkeeper imagining you naked.

84.      You needn’t pretend you’re “freshening up” to go to the bathroom.

85.      If you don’t call your buddy when you say you will, he won’t tell you friends you’ve changed.

86.      Someday you’ll be a dirty old man.

87.      You can rationalize any behavior with the handy phrase “F*#k it!”

88.      If an other guy shows up at the party in the same outfit, you might become lifelong buddies.

89.      Princess Di’s death was just another obituary.

90.      The occasional well-rendered belch is practically expected.

91.       You never have to miss a sexual opportunity because you’re not in the mood.

92.      You think the idea of punting a small dog is funny.

93.      If something mechanical didn’t work, you can bash it with a hammer and throw it across the room.

94.      New shoes don’t cut, blister, or mangle your feet.

95.      Porn movies are designed with your mind in mind.

96.      You don’t have to remember everyone’s birthdays and anniversaries.

97.      Not liking a person does not preclude having great sex with them.

98.      Your pals can be trusted never to trap you with: “So…notice anything different?”

99.      Baywatch

100.  There is always a game on somewhere.

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Freezing Cold

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As the mist cleared this morning we were left with a thin white layer everywhere! For one horrible moment I thought it had been snowing! Ugh, horrid stuff! We keep reading about 'Global Warming' and when we look out the window there is frost everywhere! Even my woollen gloves have to be replaced with the big ones, and that when I'm asleep in my bed! I will complain to my MP as I did not come to the driest county in England just to be frozen, it's a disgrace! This would not happen under Labour! 


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The First Salute

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The first salute refers to the action of the people of St Eustatius firing a one gun salute at the entrance of the American ship the 'Andrew Doria' entered the harbour on November 16th 1776. This ship flew the flag of the American Congress and the reaction to this event, in Britain (referred to annoyingly throughout this book as 'England'), in France and among the Dutch, led within a few years to American independence. 


Barbara Tuchman is an excellent historian and one of her books has already been mentioned among my rambling as you will remember the excellent book, 'Bible & Sword.'  That book was well researched, easy to read, and packed full of facts, and such a delight I have read it twice. Sadly this book was not the same. Certainly it was well researched, certainly it was full of information, but I found it quite stodgy to read and a bit of a nuisance going backwards and forwards in places. While the maps were good, most important when discussing so many places rarely mentioned outside of their locale, and much of the information interesting, the description of the conditions aboard the ships of the line did not encourage me to enlist in the navy, and while there was much information concerning the main characters I was left feeling somewhat let down by this book. Maybe it was the nauseous American belief that independence brought a new 'democracy' into the world, and that the world was 'forever changed for the better because of this,' a fact that has been proved wrong worldwide outside of the States, maybe she just tried to get too much into one small book. I found it disappointing.  


The people involved are what you would expect from those days. Humans looking after number one whether to rise in the political sphere, serve the nation (by getting rich), or just fill an empty life by fighting a war. The British soldier appears as a somewhat rough egg, not the type to take home to mother and the American was less interested in his independence than he was in his farm and his wages. Both suffered horrendously in terrible conditions! The leaders did all right of course, that is democracy everywhere! Slackness in both governments, especially when money was required, slackness in leadership among the British, a quick eye for the smart chance by the French led in turn to their revolution, and while the Dutch were early involved they were more concerned to profit and argue among themselves than much else. In short while some see a wonderful event occurring what actually happens is just another war. Britain lost America, and most, other than King George III did not care, America got itself a myth to misuse, France received a revolution, and the Dutch got cash. 


Could Britain ever have held the States by force? No, too far away and too many involved. Maybe a better situation could have arisen if George had been less militant, many died for this attitude of his! Trade resumed and we got rid of many seeking a new life, but whether they found a better one is arguable. Europe returned to the usual wars and conflicts,and the States continued abusing black men, one another and then stealing land from the Indians. Barbara Tuchman ends with a thought, "What is this 'new man' the American," and continues "Revolutions produce 'other men' not 'new men.' Halfway 'between truth and endless error,' the mould of the species is permanent. That is earth's burden."


By the way it is very difficult to type here when my fingers are frozen! Who let the cold weather come down here? keep it in the north where it belongs! 

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Poor Little Rich Boys

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Otago Daily Times

Once again the poor little middle classes are revolting. The future lawyers, doctors, bankers and multinational high earners are complaining that they will have to use some of their high wages to pay for their education. What a shame! I feel so sad for the future big bonus earners that I might even consider sending them a food parcel for Christmas, unless I have frozen to death by then of course. When I was an imitation Hippy students wanted to end war and bring a peaceful revolution to this hard world, now these spoilt brats just complain because they will not earn as much as their fathers earned by over charging folks. Shame!

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Bankers, Ireland and Recession

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A fuss has arisen concerning the Irish financial collapse. The EU is of course supplying money to help them out, with the UK paying a certain amount of that. The Euro itself also adds to the amount given to help the Irish and on top of it all George Osbourne has decided to offer a loan of seven billion pounds to ease their worries. We can do this he claims because of the savings we have made since the coalition stole power a few months ago. The savings? About seven billion funnily enough!  This has brought a lot of fuss. People complain that this is our money given to a foreign country and we need it here (Charity begins at home they say), and a resentment has arisen over this deal.  The Irish banks are in trouble and once again the cry is "It is their fault, let them suffer!" A cry most of us sympathise with of course. A cry made worse when we note how the bankers still give themselves million pound bonuses.

The fact is Ireland, the southern bit, not only shares a border with part of the UK, and much finance crosses over there daily, but our banks have loaned their banks millions also! The Sir Fred Goodwin's who retire on pensions of £760,000 a year (cut by himself to a mere £370,000 after the outcry) loaned vast sums everywhere and now it is all collapsing around our ears. The bankers have become targets and this is exaggerated by their refusal to loan money to individuals and small businesses thereby causing mayhem throughout the land. Houses are lost, businesses collapse and people are thrown on the scrapheap as a result. No wonder the banks are criticised and considered worse than robbers! However it does appear to be in our interests to keep the Irish afloat. Not only are they a major trading partner, if we play our cards right they might help us out by taking Celtic football club off our hands! Here's hoping about that one!

However a thought wanders around inside my twisted little mind. From my position here in the soup kitcchen I look at those sleeping in their cardboard boxes, muttering rude words about the bankers, and wonder a little. You see while the banks did indeed handle the economy badly we also are at fault! Who was it that believed we had a right to a bigger house? Who was daft enough to take on a mortgage costing more than we earned to pay for a house bigger than we required and filled with goods we did not need? Us! The public! We along with the banks, and our listening to those who tell us what our life ought to be, are just as guilty! We wished for a lifestyle we could not afford, and now we have gone bust! The banks did not tell you to grasp what was offered, but common sense, much opposed these days, did say don't borrow what you cannot repay (says me!).

The grasping banks, who charge huge amounts when the overdraft goes over, are indeed heartless money grabbers who care nothing for individuals who fail. Was it not the one time chairman of the Bank of Scotland who was noted for saying, "Don't listen to the sound of a different drum, just take the cash?" I bet he retired on a good pension!  We can rightly blame politicians and bankers but a bit of honesty is required here. The public believed they could spend, spend, spend, and did not consider that the job might fail, sickness would arrive and life would become difficult, and then when their world crashes down they cannot blame the banks and the recession situation alone but must accept some responsibility also.

Georges seven billion may or may not help the Irish sort themselves out, it might not even be enough to pay off my Visa card to be honest, but when I wander into the job centre, in rags, and get depressed at the lack of an opening for a creature like me I cannot blame the folk in the office, (apart from arrogant Graham who sits there in his suit being important and begging for a slap in the cakehole), I cannot even blame the banks, I must take my share of blame by not having a trade to fall back on, apart from criticising and moaning of course and being more adept at grasping the opportunities that have appeared and quickly vanished. Let the public winge about the banks and the politicians, we all agree with that, but let them show a bit more honesty while they do so.      

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Jim Cruickshank RIP

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Jim Cruickshank 1941 - 2010

Heart of Midlothian Legend

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Royal Wedding Build Up Post No. 1


I remember the day  in 1981 when Charles married the freeloader Diana. I had thrown out the telly some years before, I did without one for eight years and it did me no harm, but did manage to watch this 'great occasion,' and well remember bot her mistake in getting her words wrong during the event and his deliberate mistake to make her feel better. I did not question then why a man of his age and intellect, interested in the environment, architecture, world politics, effective charity work, history and art, should be marrying a lass who found anything beyond '19' magazine a 'bit orff.' However I watched the overlong process, endured the fawning commentary, and watched the delightful programme which followed.


It must be said that I remember more about that programme than the wedding. Possibly it is because when you have seen one wedding, and I have seen lots, then you have seen them all. This however was worth watching. It was a long programme to fill in time as most of the nation was waxing lyrical about Diana's dress, her hair, her words, her.....zzzzzzzz so the BBC just shoved on a long documentary about Namibia, or South West Africa as it was once known. This excellent programme covered the vast desert area along the Atlantic coast, including the area known as the 'Skeleton Coast.' This featured many ships that had fallen foul of sea, wind and strange currents and ended up beached along here. Some of the crews no doubt remain here still! This huge country contains a mere two and half million people, and appears to have very little to maintain itself, apart from tourism, agriculture and mining for gold, diamonds and uranium of course! Only Mongolia is more sparsely populated and half the Namibians live below the poverty line, and many of them suffer from Aids!


Aids was of course of little interest in 1981, then it was a disease for the sexually loose still to discover, and this programme ignored such things to concentrate on the wildlife. The wildlife is what really sticks in my mind on that wedding day. Now I appreciate that many of you will associate weddings with a bit of wild life, but a drunken hedonistic evening is not what I have in mind, well actually it is. You see in one part of this divergent landscape there grows a type of fruit, the name of which escapes me, which causes the animals to gather every year. This in itself is not unusual however the cameraman was able to record a fabulous piece of the aftermath. This unnamed fruit falls in abundance and while the greedy elephants, chimps, zebra's and rhino's chomp away merrily the stuff begins to ferment inside them. Shortly after we are left with a gathering of drunken animals. Now in my mind 'drunken animals' brings to mind Rangers and Celtic fans laying waste the land as they pass, as Manchester can confirm, but these drunken animals do nothing of the kind! They just danced! The chimps were seen cavorting around fallen logs, the elephants swinging back and forth and I have a feeling the rhino was dancing. The whole variety of creatures were having a ball and no trouble was captured on this occasion.


However, the morning after was pictured. The rhino sat still and his expressionless face told nothing, but his eyes spoke of headache and weariness. Daddy elephant was not rejoicing and the lion looked somewhat depressed. The chimpanzees glared from red eyes, and this was black and white TV, at the world around them, and all the animals were heard to mutter, "Never again." But I bet they did! 


Anyway Charles put the bint to the use for which she was bought and had two (?) children and dumped her for someone he actually loved. If only he had married her in the first place,what a better life we all would have had!     

Suite 101

Max has asked a pertinent question, "Why do the women all seem to have to wear hats all the time. Is it just a tradition? And do the hats HAVE to be outlandish, or can the also be regular hats? Do earmuffs count as hats?"


Indeed why do people wear hats these days? Does anyone know, or indeed care? In the fifties it became the thing not to wear hats. Generations untold had worn head gear of some sort for whatever reason, and suddenly we were more concerned for our DA haircut and, in the UK at least, happy to get our heads cold and all to often wet in the dreadful weather. Throughout the sixties few but the older generation wore hats. My dad always wore his cap, and kept his good cap in the wardrobe for any special occasion he may have attended. I can recall as a child spending what appeared to be eons in shops while mum tried on hat after hat, each discussed with a wide variety of other women involved in the same event, while my mind froze from boredom. Yet rarely did we wear any form of headgear. There was a fad for army bush hats around 1969/70 but this was a fad, nothing more. Yet about 10-15 years ago I started to wear a cap to keep my head worm in winter, and to avoid the hysterics of others I changed tack and began to wear one of those awful American baseball caps. Since then I, and many others, are never seen without one! Why the change? It is still fashionable for trendy tough guys wannabes to shave their heads and act macho, but so many others wear caps and in times past we would have thought this somewhat unfashionable! Why did we change?


Women of course are always changing their minds , let alone their hats. Fashion comes and goes and hats were always worn for weddings or 'fancy do's,' but not for everyday wear. That appears to have changed. certainly some women look very good in hats, and a few I know would look better in a Yashmak, but that's another story. The days of a headscarf over hair covered in curlers appears to be dead, although it was popular in British films of the early fifties, and a lass is more likely to wear a baseball cap which doesn't suit her because it fits in with those around her rather than something that actually suits. The weather being kind of windy and containing much rain makes it difficult for a self conscious girl to know what to put on her head today. A hat keeps her warm but might fly off and cause embarrassment while it may also spoil her hairdo! A brolly will be chosen even though it will turn inside out, although she will not notice how many eyes she removes with it of course! Hmmm such a choice to make!


For those of you who really wish to know how, and indeed when, to wear a hat you will find advice here on the Suite 101 site. Good luck to you but in this weather I am sticking to my ageing cap.




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Royal Wedding

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I'm sick of it already! How much more gushing pap will we have to suffer 

before they decide to crucify one or the other I wonder? 

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Five Years Ago

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I started this blog.
The world was a different place then. I was working hard, money was jingling in my pocket, people smiled at you as you passed and muttered "Good Morning."  You could leave your door open and no one would break in, policemen looked like Jack Warner and caught criminals instead of slapping their wrists, and I thought the world needed to know my opinions.
Not all of the above is correct!


I suppose the desire to have my opinions heard was the reason I started this. I have found that these were not always popular! In fact some people have been downright forthright in their opposition. On the other hand I have discovered an enormous number of good people out there. From the four corners of the world, having disparate views, writing about a wide variety of subjects they have been jolly good sorts all round! I am glad to have met them!


I intended to make a serious point with a touch of humour. Sometimes I thought it was almost working and sometimes this failed. I have never attempted to stick to one subject, except moaning of course, and have likewise favoured with my presence blogs covering many areas, some surprising to me, and keep links to these excellent blogs and their excellent people. Most I visit daily at the moment, some when I feel like it. All teach me a great deal, many make me laugh, all reveal a variety of lifestyles, some lifestyles I would never wish to emulate, (isn't that paint?) and some make me jealous with their intellect, talents, lives, and photographs!    


I discovered all this as I looked for one particular item, which I never found, on previous posts and was surprised to discover five years had past. Doesn't time fly when your having fun, or getting old? Anyway so far it has been a lot of fun, whatever you lot think, because I have enjoyed shoving my opinions down your throat and indicating to you all your mistakes! That's what friends are for after all! So I intend to continue whether you like it or not, so there!
  
  
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