Friday, August 31, 2007

Two days in Paris and other good news

I went to see a very interesting and funny film today. Its called Two days in Paris.

I haven't laughed so much since I went to see Death Becomes Her in the cinema in the early 1990's when it first came out. Then I was recognised as being in the audience by some of my fellow medical students because of my laugh which is quite distinctive and according to one psychiatrist at our medical school should be canned.

I was giggling for half this movie, and boy I needed cheering up today. It delivered.

There is enough smut, dirty looks, flirting and dead animals to satisfy anyone who has ever had a relationship because that is what it is about.

Its partly in French with subtitles but if you can speak French you still need them as there is a lot of colloquial slang in the film.

The New York Times reviewed it here

The other good news? My favourite video is on Youtube finally. It is the 1986 preview video from Yugoslavia featuring the beautiful Doris Dragovic singing her bittersweet love song Zeljo Moja ( My Desire/Fire/Passion)

Thursday, August 30, 2007

The Toad

 



This little fella appeared yesterday in the garden so I had to take a photo of him. They are usually nocturnal so I was very lucky to see him/her in the day time
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I have been politically active today

I have been growing vegetables from seed and transplanted them into pots today

Why is this being politically active you say? 80% of our food is now controlled by the supermarkets and their lorries dependent on computer generated barcode readings at the checkout and the price of diesel to move food from their depots to the stores.


True the vegetables I am growing are much cheaper if grown by the supermarket but the taste of them I can control and I can get them from pot to mouth in ten seconds.

Haplessly though I have sown them very late but it means that the peas and the beans and all the other veg will be in season the moment the temperatures rise and the days grow long again.

There are other things in the news, Diana's ten year death anniversary, the legal challenge of the 7/7 survivors and relatives for a government inquiry into the bombings.

Both today and tomorrow there are funerals for friends' mothers.

Friday, August 17, 2007

I am Poor

Yes its finally here. Crunch Day. I am now looking at my Nectar card and thinking I have £138 of shopping on this card if I redeem the points.

( info Nectar card a card which you get points on for shopping at certain places and gives you money off vouchers for the points you collect. 500 points for £2.50 off your shopping at Sainsbury's a supermarket; here in Britain)

Desperation yes, however I shall remain calm I can survive on Breakfast cereal for over three months on the above amount I figure. I shall lose weight and look good despite not having an income.

Thursday, August 16, 2007

Wonder where this got buried

Psychiatric wards are at crisis point. This has been the case for more than ten years and gets worse every year.

It is about time that something got done but it takes a murder for a doctor to speak out

Story here

Wonder where this got buried

see above

Saturday, August 11, 2007

Summer Holiday

I will be taking a short break from posting. Mostly because I want to start on my first novel and I keep getting ideas and not acting on them because I think about the blog first.

I will post from time to time but there should be plenty in the archives to keep you busy.

Back in about two weeks

Thursday, August 9, 2007

More woes from Pirbright

More woes in Pirbright today after it was found that someone working there had contracted legionnaires disease and there are strains of legionella at the laboratory. Pirbright are already denying any leak from the vaccines for foot and mouth.

This is one right royal F*** up, and what did the government think it was doing relaxing the animal transportation regulations so that the carcasses could be moved to incinerators? Surely that increases the likelihood of spreading the virus?

Another example of how government cannot organise a vertical urination in a brewery.

When will the spin end?

Wednesday, August 8, 2007

Snakes and Ladders

In Lancashire health and safety inspectors are cracking down on those people without ladder qualifications. I.e. in order to install a speed camera using a ladder you have to have a certificate to use a ladder reported by the Times Newspaper here

Sunday, August 5, 2007

Sign the petition to repeal the awful liquids rule

Sign the petition at the PM's website to get rid of the stupid liquids ban

http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Air-security/

Fun game

Foot and Mouth came from Lab

Well well well what can one say a strain of virus that hasnt been extant for forty years suddenly infects a herd of cattle three miles from where it is being used to make vaccines against the disease.

I know that there will be several statements by the corporations involved saying that their procedures etc were watertight but its not rocket science to reason that if its the same strain that it came from there. After all it didnt magically apparate or come through the floo network now did it?

More pie in the face for Gordon.

Edit: as Zinzin would say; Gordon puts his foot in it!

Friday, August 3, 2007

El Gordo comes back from Dorset

Foot and Mouth found in Surrey. Gordon has to break off his holiday.

Well that lasted a long time

Tant pis.

El Gordo goes to Dorset

Gordon Brown and family are holidaying in Dorset. I'm suitably impressed and happy that he is in Britain for his hols.

There is a ironic side to this. There is no way a family with children under a certain age can get through airport security without tears. Even Gordon's wife would have to eat her baby milk in front of the security bods.

Anyway to all those having holidays have fun I don't envy you at airport security though