Placenta Pie v Red Bull?

Ive never watched 'Mad Men'. In fact, I'm not at all sure that I had even heard of the TV series until last year. Needless to say I was amazed that this massively popular programme was now in series 5, especially when I had no idea what happened in years 1 to 4.

I know, very very little about it, apart from a bit of hype and some names like Christina Hendricks and January Jones.

I do know that Christina is celebrated for her curvy body, porcelain skin and red hair. As for January Jones, all I knew about her was that she had perhaps one of the coolest names ever. I mean, it really sounds like a famous persons name, or maybe the name of a stripper in Vegas, either or, it sounds very glam.

Now, however, I know another thing about January Jones. Yay me! Yup, I now know that she ate her placenta. Actually, I'm not sure if maybe that shouldn't be her baby's placenta. Though lets be honest, is ownership of the placenta really the issue here?

In fact, is it really an issue that some one ate a placenta? Animals do it, though some animals actually eat their young too, so maybe that's not a great example. In fact, I'll leave that statement there for the time being.

Ok, if some random person broke into maternity wards and started making off with 'used' placentas to turn them into placenta pie or whatever, that would most definitely freak me out. Even though, by rights, if I didn't want it, why shouldn't someone else have it?

I didn't eat THE placenta, I maybe chomped on the inside of my cheek during labour however, I can assure you that is the only part of my body I got my teeth into. But I don't even remember being offered the chance to eat my placenta, possibly it's not available on the NHS.

Maybe I was and was just to out of my face on Entonox, in fact, the only bit of child birth that I can recall feeling like how I imagined birth to feel like was when the placenta but came out. Rank and disgusting as that sounds, I can hand on heart say that not only did I not see it, but I've no idea what the hell happened to it.

And back to January Jones, if she wants to eat her freeze-dried placenta thats been shoved into capsules, then that's up to her. It's not my business and after all who am I to judge her?

Personally I used several cans of red bull a day to give me energy after having my son.

If I had been offered to have the placenta freeze dried & in capsules I'm not sure what I would've done. However after reading some recipes for placenta and seeing the pictures, I can honestly say that January made the better choice.

The Most Wonderful Thing About TIGHAR

Last year I wrote about a guy called Ric Gillespie who is the Executive Director of a company known as TIGHAR, pronounced tiger by the way, not the same way as Winnie the Pooh's mate. Anyway, TIGHAR stands for The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery so it's not hard to guess what they do.

Just in case you are having an off day, TIGHAR look for old, lost aircraft.

Amelia Earhart fascinates me, not in a creepy way, but more of a not letting things get in the way of what you want to do type way. In short Amelia Earhart kicked ass. Seriously, this woman was not held back by, well, being a woman in the early 1900's. She was a pilot, truck driver, navigator, writer (including an editor for Cosmopolitan), started her own airline and spent some time as a photographer.

Which to be fair, is pretty impressive in today's world, but even more so then, considering women only got to vote in the US in 1920.

Anyhow, in 1937, Amelia Earhart disappeared when her Electra aircraft vanished. Yup, that's right, it just vanished. No one really knows what happened to Amelia and her co-pilot Fred Noonan. Of course, with any sudden death/disappearance/mystery there are absolute pages of different conspiracy theories from alien abduction to being a spy.

So, why after so many expeditions, (at least 10) are TIGHAR going back, yet again to Nikumaroro?

Especially when the the bones fragments that were tested by forensic pathologists last year, we're found to be inconclusive, that is, they couldn't prove if it was human or not.

I appreciate that science is constantly moving forward and advances in DNA testing might be able to prove or disprove something in 10 years time that today we just don't know. Is it not time that someone had a word in the ear of Ric Gillespie and tell him that the chances of finding this aircraft & possibly Amelia and Fred's resting place is ever decreasing? Let's face it, this July it will be 75 years since all 3 of them (I'm including the plane in that) went AWOL in the world.

Some people, including Susan Butler, author of 'East to Dawn: The Life of Amelia Earhart' reckon that TIGHAR are looking in the wrong place altogether and that they really should consider moving their efforts to Howland Island instead.

What raised my interest in this was, if no concrete evidence for anything has been found, why has this story even made the news? I mean it's interesting and everything, but the couple were declared dead the same year that world war 2 started.

Surely, we should celebrate the life of the brilliantly brave and envelope pushing heroine that was Amelia Earhart not be looking for the remains of a woman who may have died from dysentery.

It was none other than US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton who expressed interest in the expedition saying, “Even if you do not find what you seek, there is great honor and possibility in the search itself,” Clinton told the explorers Tuesday. “So, like our lost heroine, you will all carry our hopes.”

Jeez, Hillary the next time you speak to Ric, can you not suggest to him to look in a different place?

Anyone for more Pi?

It's Albert Einstein's birthday today and also Pi day. Both are incredibly important in science, maths, biochemistry, physics, the universe and probably many other areas that I haven't thought about.

I will admit that when I realise it's Pi day I get a bit excited, then a bit glum when I discover it's not pie day. No apple, rhubarb, Mississippi mud, key lime, custard or mincemeat pies.

It's a bit obvious that today should be Pi day as (in the US anyway) it is March 14th as in 3.14 or that number that haunts you right the way through high school.

I always thought that mathematics had no business in everyday life, it should be reserved for geeks, boffins and members of MENSA. So imagine how upset I was when I discovered that Pi features in nearly every aspect of life. Yup, that little equation of π=C/d goes a long way from astrophysics to designing drugs. Not designer drugs, as that is something entirely different, though knowing Pi, it will probably affect even that somehow.

π = 3.14159265358979323846264338327950288419716939937510 and then some, in fact (some random information alert in which to impress/depress your mates) the last calculation that I know off Pi went to 10 trillion digits as calculated by Shigeru Kondo.

This number is something of a mystery as not only is Pi irrational and transcendental. In English that means that it can't be shown as one number divided by another and it should keep on going with out ending in any repeating numbers.

Now I remember learning that the funny symbol thing was the ratio of circumference to the diameter of a circle but apparently the whole π mystery goes much deeper.

I mean seriously, people have written books, songs and poems about Pi. There are t shirts, sweatshirts, mouse mats (for people that still have mouse mats), posters and car stickers. There are even jokes about Pi that I am never likely to understand at all, purely because I'm not a mathematical genius of course.

I am perfectly sure that if someone could do maths 'chat' like Brian Cox or Kevin Fong can do for other subjects then it would come alive and become way more interesting.

Anyone know of any candidates? Or anyone fancy tackling the subject of 2π or as some people say 'the true circle constant is the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its radius, not to its diameter.'

Yup 2π or tau is considered to be more important than good old Pi.

However, I'll have to wait until June 28th for that of course.......

Zombies, Run! The Part where Will Smith Pops by to Lend a Hand

Just been dog walking and used 257 calories!!! Seriously the 'Zombie Run!' App is quite addictive, you get into the story & forget that you are actually exercising as well. Though it is a bit freaky walking along the side of the burn in the dark with a German shepherd, hearing zombie noises on your headphones & the odd cracking branch that you step on.

If you haven't watched 'I am Legend' then you won't understand why I kept expecting Will Smith to appear & have to break my dogs neck!!!! Nooooooo my poor Bon!

Im not saying for one minute that I am a complete scaredy cat but I will freely admit that when I plugged myself into my iPhone and started the app it was very easy to get immersed in the storyline.

The beauty of this is that you don't actually notice how far or long you have been exercising. It's part story, part exercise app, part game. The story begins with you in a helicopter on a secret mission about to land in Abel Township.

Abel Township is a small outpost of survivors from the zombie apocalypse and as you'd imagine they need supplies and all sorts of stuff. So it's a bit unlucky when someone, somewhere shoots down your helicopter.

Whoops, it's now time to run for your life cause those zombies heard the crash and are on their way over to you now.

Getting back to base becomes your 1st mission. In short you get a bit of story and chat from Sam Yao who is the comms guy. He will help you navigate round the zombies so you don't get eaten.

A quick word of warning though, make sure you have a suitable playlist, because I didn't. When the Sam finishes his part of the story 'invisible light' by the Scissor Sisters only served to heighten my tension.

At random intervals throughout your playlist you hear that you have picked up a first aid kit or other useful item for Abel Township, these can be given to the township after your exercise session.

When your tune finishes you get some more of Naomi Alderman's story. This is the way that the app goes. You start the mission, get a bit of story, pick up some supplies on the way, listen to your playlist and keep exercising until you either finish the mission then you can distribute your booty to the hospital, recreation area or wherever you see fit in order to grown the township.

It's a super story and I'm getting really quite into it if I'm honest, which can only be a good thing, I mean, if Six to Start and Naomi Alderman can encourage me to get of my behind and move then I reckon it would work for anyone who likes a good story.

Zombies, Run! No Shaun of The Dead

How seriously boring is getting fit? In my opinion it really should be fun and there is no way I'm a gym bunny. Now, this is the case for a few reasons and not just pure, unadulterated laziness.

I have asthma, which doesn't bode well for jumping about daft in shorts and a t shirt while using an inhaler, hell, if the proverbial psycho was after me with a machete, I'd have to stand and fight. Super hero I ain't.

The second reason for not being a gym bunny, is time. If I had time and the lungs to run about daft with my inhaler on a string round my neck, you would notice that I'm way to old for those kind of shenanigans anyway. I mean really!

So, in order to try to motivate myself I thought I'd buy 'Zombies, Run' from the App Store for my iPhone.

That means that there must be something about this app that makes me think it'll get me off my arse and do something to keep me fit?

The way i see it is, well, apart from the obvious, like anything bad happening to my loved ones, the idea of zombies scares the crap out of me. Plain and simple, the idea of them scares the bejeezus out of me.

You can negotiate with a person, you can try to reason with them, but not with a zombie. They just want to eat you and nothing short of being a good shot to their head is going to stop that happening. Jeez, you have to read 'Feed' by Mira Grant or 'World War Z' and you'll see exactly where I'm coming from.

So, yeah, this app covers both, who cool is that? Like a computer game you can outrun zombies in a post apocalyptic outpost/camp type place to get supplies to the other survivors but it combines a fitness element too. You see you actually have to run, walk or cycle, depending on your fitness level in order to get the supplies like ammunition, batteries, medicine and spare parts. (By the way, I'll ignore any comments of pink tents and 'carry on' films).

But this app isn't just running and a computer game with no integration, no! All the blurb about the game/fitness app suggests that it will encourage gamers to increase their fitness or provide runners/cyclists a more fun way to train.

You want to know if I bought it don't you? Well I did, after all the proof of the pudding and all that.....

I'll let you know how I go when I'm being chased by zombies and that is the important bit, cause there is no point in spending a fiver if the thing is worse than useless.

Happy Ending for Once

I've struggled to write a blog for a couple of weeks now and I can only think of 2 valid excuses.

The first one is procrastination. Yup, it gets me too, sometimes I can't be bothered to express myself through the written word which is usually a direct result of my second excuse.

My second excuse is that there is an ever decreasing amount of happy or quirky news, to the point where I can't find anything that is if any interest to write about. I'm not sure you'd find it interesting about how I gave myself a black eye or how on the anniversary of my Grandad's death I still manage to feel guilty for not managing to conjure up a way for him to live forever and those are the only major things that have happened to me over the past few weeks.

I could have written about Angelina Jolie's leg making a guest appearance at the Oscars. I could've written about PC Rathband taking his own life. I had written about Falkirk MP Eric Joyce until I decided that I actually couldn't make my mind up about him.

So that really leaves me with Lillian Hartley and Allan Marks.

Now, I've not chosen to write about them because there is nothing else out there in the universe, but because I think it's a lovely story.

On Wednesday, Lillian and Allan got married in Indio, California. Not really a story winner there in itself but when I tell you the rest, i want a huge big 'awhhhhh'. OK?

They met 18 years ago and having been living together since, Lillian is 3 years younger than Allan who is a mere 98 year old. (Before you ask, I haven't pressed the wrong buttons on the keyboard. I have typed 98).

After talking about marriage for years, the couple finally decided to take the plunge, saying that they had been way too bus

Riverside County Clerk's Office Deputy Commissioner of Marriages said that when the happy couple appeared at her window, Lillian said 'I want to marry this man'. At this point, Allan put his arm around his bride to be and said 'I want to be with her for the rest of my life'.

And so, like all good stories, they got married and had a special lunch at 'International House of Pancakes' to celebrate, then went back to their condo.

So, not only have the couple found happiness again after being widowed but they are now in the Guinness Book of World Records for having the highest combined age of a couple on their wedding day (193 years, 8 months and 3 days).

This is your chance now to go 'awhhhhh' for the couple who are cuter than kittens.

MUSIC: HOW THE WORLD IS SHAPED THROUGH MUSIC...THE MARRIAGE OF MUSIC AND CULTURE

Since time immemorial, musicians have provided a delicate insight into the state of our society. Their vivid lyrics and instrumental tones have been a window into what a generation has endured, overcome, created and experienced. From listening to a song, it’s relatively simple to deduce what era it came from, as the values and social practices of that generation played a hand in inspiring its creation.

Comparing today’s music to that of yesteryear is a startling revelation.

Arguably some of the most influential musicians of all time. 

In 1963 The Beatles released a single entitled “I Want to Hold Your Hand.” The boys from Liverpool were ecstatic at the prospect of merely holding the hands of the women they adored. It was a reflection of how relationships were viewed in their time. That’s a stark comparison to the current generation’s social practices where, as suggested by Nelly’s 2002 hit “Hot in Herre,” it would be more appropriate to dangle the keys to your luxury car in front of a woman to coax her onto the dance floor. Where it should then be common place, according to Nelly’s interpretation of modern culture, for her to take off all her clothes, of course that is dependant of the temperature in the room and whether it is ‘hot’ enough in there.

How many kids do you think this photo has influenced?

In 1970, Creedence Clearwater Revival recorded a track called “Looking Out my Back Door.” The musical tone gave a jaunty, uplifting feeling and its lyrics described how an imagination could be sparked by simply sitting on the back porch. The conjuring of imagery such as ‘giants doing cartwheels’ and ‘flying spoons’ seemed so painless and natural. Now it would seem the fashionable way to evoke the imagination is to drink codeine laden cough syrup in the backseat of a car to emulate the sensation of “Flying Like a G6” jet. This, of course, is according to the Far East Movements 2010 release “Flying Like a G6.”

It’s often thought that musicians draw on their observations and experiences in life in order to compose their music, that their work is a reflection of the society they live in. Though there is definitely truth in that, I would go a step farther and suggest that their music also inspires culture, which puts them in a position of great responsibility.

This correlation is easiest explained in the context of war time, and anti-war protest songs.
In 1942 Dame Vera Lynn recorded the song “The White Cliffs of Dover.” Its intent was to boost the morale of the brave British soldiers and citizens that had endured arduous air battles and bombing raids from the German Luftwaffe. A song about the White Cliffs of Dover, being a symbol of British borders, could easily be seen as a galvanizing force for the peoples resolve and could have given them the courage to fight onward. Imagine an RAF pilot waiting in an aerodrome for his nights watch above the English Channel to start, and the last song he hears on the radio before heading to his spitfire is “The White Cliffs of Dover.” The mere act of hearing such an uplifting song before going into combat could have well been the difference in him coming back alive.

In the city of the Fortunate Sons, music helped spread the message. 

The Vietnam War has notoriously been seen, in retrospect, as one of the worst military engagements in US history. While support for the instigation of the war was acceptable, the later the years drew in, the more the support waned. Songs like “Blowin in the Wind” by Bob Dylan, “Fortunate Son” by Creedence Clearwater Revival, and “Bring ‘em Home” by Pete Seeger put forth the opinions of the US’s participation in the Vietnam War. Also, who could forget Jimi Hendrix warped Woodstock rendition of “The Star Spangled Banner” that gave the feeling of a country that was misfiring on its values and objectives. Again, I’d like you to imagine. Imagine during the time of the Vietnam War that you hear one of these songs on the radio, at a concert, or on the television and you immediately feel its impact, you hear its message. It stirs something in you, not a call to arms, but a call to bring arms, and the men that wield them home. It gives you the courage to join a protest, to stand up and have your voice heard. Your voice is joined by that of countless others, and together you become an anti-war movement that brings about the end of an era.

Now these songs may have been based upon already established feelings in the society, but musicians made sure their messages travelled farther than a single voice. They brought the concerns of a few and put them before the masses to be debated. It’s entirely possible that a song of such power can change the culture of a country.

So if music can influence change in society, politics, or culture, then what message is the music of today sending out? Are we becoming the people that rock bands, rappers and pop singers say we should be? Or if music is the merely the documentation of our social evolution, where is our civilization headed?

The popular music of today is often trite, formulated, with unintelligible lyrics, and it paints a grotesque picture of the modern world. Whether that is through musicians design or through their observation can never be decided.

Whichever side of the coin you look at, music is culture and culture is music. They dance together through various sounds and styles, but ultimately they are forever entwined.


Written By:  Phil McCarron

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Mind Your Language in Class

I would love to have the ability to speak fluently in many different languages. Ideally, I would be some sort of James Bond type who could not only speak many different languages fluently but also recognise the different regional variations as well. I would live for the day when I would be sitting at a cafe/bar in some foreign exotic country, when a waiter would make a cheeky remark about me and I would answer him not only perfectly in his own language but without the tell-tale school book foreign language foot prints.

HA!

In fact who am I kidding? I would settle for being able to communicate effectively with someone in a language other than my own without insulting them too much when I get things wrong.

Without effective communication it all goes to shit. Seriously. In every aspect of your life, for example, I constantly get the word for 'husband' and 'snake' mixed up when speaking Polish. I kid you not. Mąż pronounced 'mounje' means husband and wąż pronounced 'vounje' means snake.

So, yeah, that could definitely lead to a huge misunderstanding.

I could never squash anyone's desire to learn a language or anything about different cultures or societies, I think that the more that we can learn from different countries or even different areas of our own country the better the world could be.

So when I read about an American 7th grader in Wisconsin who was suspended for teaching a friend how to say 'hello' and 'I love you' in Menominee, which is her own Native American language.

Anyway, I can understand that some insecure teachers may be a bit paranoid if they heard a pupil speaking some random sounding different language. But lets be honest, loads of people, especially the younger generations (jeez I sound so very old) do tend to have a whole variety of new words every week.

The main problem I can see with the suspension of a student at the Sacred Heart Catholic Academy in Shawano, Wisconsin is that 60% of the pupils happen to be Native American. So, would you not think that the teachers should at least know a few words?

Personally I would be encouraging kids to learn different languages rather than chastising Miranda Washinawatok for teaching a friend who is interested some easy words.

The really ironic thing is that supposedly when you call the school, you can hear an answer message in English and Spanish......

Hmm, all sounds a bit cheeky to me.

If you are interested in Menominee, here is a website to kick of your search:
http://www.bigorrin.org/menominee_kids.htm

A Bodyguard Can't Save You From Yourself

I usually avoid blogging about the more popular items in news or current affairs. I like the quirky, small stories or the ones that make you think.

However, the death of Whitney Houston is compelling me to blog.

I won't go into her life, acting, singing, Bobby Brown, drugs etc cause that really isn't my business to judge. Whitney did what made her happy or allowed her to temporarily bury her demons or whatever.

Whitney Houston reminds me of my childhood, my innocence and my naive view that I would be someone who would make a difference in the world.

In 1985 some 22 year old singer was singing about a few stolen moments being all that she could get to share with some dude she was in love with. Meanwhile I was busy wishing I could have a few stolen moments with George Michael. (It wasn't until 1998 that I realised just how unlikely that was going to be.)

I remember the big hair, actually big should probably be in huge capital letters. The fluorescent clothing and fringe that denied gravity, the 'Insette Spiky' hair spray that went all bobbly when you washed your hair.

I remember Bobby Brown getting blamed for leading Whitney astray (maybe it was the other way around and he became the scapegoat).

Who can forget 'The Bodyguard'? Though certainly there were times when I wished I could as the song seemed to be played to death! 'I will Always Love You' must have made Dolly Parton even more cash than Dollywood.

The best tune I think is 'My Love is Your Love' the Wycliffe Jean one, though the one before that rocked a bit too. Each Whitney song that I sang loudly in the car while people tried to call the RSPCA to complain that someone was killing a cat makes me smile, it brings about past memories of a time when I thought I was invincible.


So, is it sad and tragic news regarding her death or is it sad and tragic the way we tend to view people with addiction issues?

It's very easy to be judgemental, you see someone with cigarettes, alcohol, drugs (prescription or otherwise), you hear someone throwing up in the toilet after they eat or do you see someone unable to cope with things in their life and looking for a crutch, an item that will always be there? Something they can control or something that will never let them down.

Part of me thinks that Whitney's death is no more tragic than Amy Whitehouse or every solider in Afghanistan killed for doing his job. All have contributed something to the world, which is more than I can say about myself. At least I can fight my demons with anonymity and know the world isnt staring & judging me.


Whitney famously said, 'The biggest devil is me. I'm either my best friend or my worst enemy'. I think she was 100% correct 'cause I know that no one on this earth can judge me harder than I judge myself.

The Real Death Row Dogs

There are some times that we believe if we close our eyes to things then they will either go away or they will cease to exist.

I've had my eyes opened recently, so I think it's only fair that I enlighten you too. After all, if you tolerate this, your children will be next as the Manic Street Preachers said in 1998.

If I promise really hard not to be graphic or use shock tactics on you, will you promise to keep reading and not turn the page?

Are you sitting comfortably? Then I'll begin.

This is about the plight of the unwanted dog.

Here are some figures for you to get your head round first.

Do you know that according to the 2011 Dog's Trust survey, that there was approximately 126,176 stray dogs picked up between 1st April 2010 and 31st March 2011?

So, what happened to these dogs then?

Well, happily 48% were reunited with their owners, 6% of dogs were re-homed by the local authority, 25% were passed on to rescue/welfare organisations and approximately 7,121 dogs were destroyed.
So, that's about 20 stray dogs destroyed every day in the UK because, well inconvenient, not enough space, being of 'type', aggression etc.

Being of 'type' basically means that someone, somewhere thinks your dog may be a banned breed, or be part banned breed or look a bit like a pitbull, regardless of what DNA testing says or how nice you dog is. Anyway, THAT is a whole different conversation.

Now, I'm going to tell you that the RSPCA in certain centres have stopped accepting stray dogs. Great eh? They managed in 2009 to pay their chief executive £105,000 seriously! Yes people, that is where your money goes, well that and taking people to court.....

So then the homeless dog, let's call her Freya, ends up in a local council shelter, she has been there 7 days and hasn't been claimed. She must've belonged to someone. She will sit, give a paw, appears house trained. What happened?

I'm not here to judge why someone has thrown out a dog. I'm only wanting to make people aware of what happens to dogs like Freya now. This minute. In this country.

Freya has found herself on a list, not a santa paws' good dog list, but a PTS list. Yup, possibly the next time Freya sees the light of day it will be when someone takes her to end her life.

The chances are that Freya who is only known by a number will end her days with someone she doesn't know giving her jag to end her life, then if she's lucky she will be put in a bin liner for disposal.

Luckily for Freya she hasn't been one of the 20 killed today. She has been saved by a rescue, not the RSPCA or Battersea dogs home or the over worked Dog's Trust, but a privately run rescue in this case once loved dog rescue. Here Freya will be fostered by someone who will fully assess her.

There are many different rescue organisations that don't get the same level of publicity as the likes of RSPCA & Dogs Trust, this doesn't mean that they are any less deserving of donations or offers of help.

Dogpages.org.uk is usually a good starting point though, there you can at least look by region as well as by breed.
There are breed rescues for every breed of dog from Afghan Hounds to Yorkshire Terriers. So when you decide you want a dog consider them first.

You may ask why I say that rather than contacting your local breeder or Dog's Trust branch. Well, in the first instance your would be saving not just one life, but two. You save the life of the dog you have adopted and the one that can take its space.

These dogs have been fostered, neutered, vaccinated and have an ID chip for easy identification. They are living with foster carers in their homes, In some cases with dogs, cats, kids and the normal everyday coming and goings of people.

I'll tell you a bit about what happens when you contact a rescue and say for example you wanted Freya, the rescue would ask you to fill out a questionnaire. This really isn't anything to be worried about, remember these people care about the dogs they have rescued from death row!

The questionnaire basically asks about where you stay, when you are home, if you have kids or kids that visit, the reason for that isn't to be awkward, it's to help match a dog to you and your lifestyle. That may sound really harsh or judgemental, but surely if you can't walk a dog for 10 miles a day, they will find a dog to suit you.

Some people only want puppies, some only want bitches, so on and so forth.

The rescue will send someone out to visit you, this is to check where you stay and have a chat with you. Now I know that sounds real scary, when I got a home check I was petrified I would be told that I shouldn't ever have a dog & my house was a mess, my garden was a disaster and I had a child under the recommended age.

It all went well, I let the lovely lady see my garden, she met the dog I had at the time, had a cuppa, chatted with my son and told me that they would always be there for me. Should the dog have settling in problems or whatever I could call them, if I wanted help with anything, I could call them.

That in itself is worth more than anything. I also knew that should something happen that meant I would have to give up the dog, the rescue would take them back.

In return for this, all I had to do was give them a donation and sign some forms.

Help was there every step of the way making it so very easy to save a life. You don't get that from Gumtree and you most definitely don't get the full story. Remember people there could tell you anything in order to rid themselves of their dog. It's not like that with a rescue.

So if you decide one day that you are going to see a man about a dog, tell me now where you think you should you go?

If you wish to help save a dog like Freya, you can donate via PayPal staffyclub@live.co.uk or via the emergency boarding link on http://www.staffyclub.com/discussion/

Written with help from oncelovedrescue.org.uk staffieclub.com second-chances.org hularescue.org dogstrust.org.uk bulliesinneed.org.uk www.islaydogrescue.org.uk Wendy, Angi and Cathy

True Blood Back Again? Fangtastic

Excited much? Oh yes most definitely....

What am I talking about? Well Sunday 5th of February is when the new series of 'True Blood' starts in the UK on FX.

Now, it's not news that there are differences between the Charlaine Harris, 'The Southern Vampire Mysteries' books and the tv series.

In my opinion the 4th book, 'Dead to The World' was the best out of the Sookie Stackhouse novels to date. It provided me with stacks of entertainment much to the aggravation of my husband who was subjected to me laughing out loudly at some parts. Then, perhaps more annoyingly, reading the part out to him.......

I am fully aware of just how much of a pain in the arse this makes me, but I can't help it, sometimes the jokes and clever quips from Sookie combined with the smart answers from Eric's sidekick Pam and excellent storyline led me to want to share the book with the world, or certainly anyone that had no choice but to hear me.

So, what can we expect from Alan Ball as opposed to Charlaine Harris apart from some serious eye-candy for both sexes?

More witches will be making an appearance and fairies too in the shape of the Sherlock Holme's very own fr-enemy Irene Adler from the episode entitled 'A Scandal in Belgravia'. Though you may not recognise Lara Pulver with her clothes on! It goes without saying that obviously there will be more werewolves, were-panthers, shapeshifters and vampires all looking extremely overly gorgeous.


We left Season 4 with Bill Compton in a fight with the queen of Louisiana over Sookie. Jason had 'inherited' the town of Hotshot from Calvin Norris. Eric was so severley pissed off at having been buried in concrete by Bill, that he spilled the beans to Sookie about Bill being told to seduce Sookie for the Queen of Louisiana who basically wanted her fairy blood so she could become a daywalker.

Tara is confused as hell and to be honest who can really blame her? Being kidnapped by Franklin the mentally insane and psychopathic vampire (thankfully due to my other love Criminal Minds I know he wasn't a sociopath), then finding out your fuck-buddy can turn himself into any creature he wants would certainly mess with my head.

The fabulous character of Lafayette had just discovered his boyfriend Jesus is a witch. I'm not sure whether typing that one sentence I may end up with a religious organisation wanting to burn me at the stake! Anyway, at the same time, Lafayette is starting to 'see things' ooooooh spooky!

So, what will happen now that Sookie has been taken the hand of Claudine the fairy? Who will win the battle of the vampires and will Eric get his mobile phone back from Bill? Who knows?

A word to the wise, don't DARE disturb me on a Sunday night when True Blood is on, I may have to get Alcide to come over and sort you out!

No Dodging The Viper

I didn't have much experience of children, babies and the like before I physically gave birth. New mother was not the word for it. I'll spare the gory details about pushing, labour, the stinging bit and the belief that you'll never ever cross your legs again and move on the the actual mothering bit.

Regardless of any advice given to me I was so very unprepared for the emotional side of it. I knew the minute that I held my son for the first time that if need be I would die for him. The overwhelming love that appeared from virtually no where had left me breathless.

I'm not the best mother in the world, indeed I think that it would be incredibly difficult to set the criteria for that coveted title, however on the other hand I know I'm not the worst mother either.

However, I bet when Ghadir Aleeyan spotted her 13 month old son Imad chomping on the head of a 12inch long snake she most definitely freaked out and uttered words along those lines.

Now, there are snakes native to the UK, namely the imaginatively titled 'grass snake', the even more imaginatively named 'smooth snake' and the better known, 'adder'. The adder is poisonous, but it's really rare to die from its poison. Don't quote me on this, but I think the last death from an adder bite happened around 1979.

However this isn't really the case in Israel, you see they have more species of snakes and more venomous ones too. So when Ghadir turned round from making her son's milk to see him with a snake in his mouth, she obviously thought the worst.

Imad Aleeyan's Aunt, Yasmin Shahin appeared with some neighbours after hearing his mother screaming at the top of her lungs. One of the quick thinking neighbours pulled the snake of the toddlers mouth and made sure it was dead. (Obviously the reptile not the child).

The youngster was then rushed to hospital in nearby Haifa. Luckily Imad was unharmed, he had no bites and had suffered no ill effects from his impromptu snack.

Now whether the half eaten is poisonous or not is still open for debate, the hospital told Ghadir Aleeyan that the snake was really deadly but considering the time of year they had been really lucky as vipers have less venom in the colder months.

Phew! You may think what a narrow escape that was..... Then some specialist tells you that it's a really young specimen of hemorrhois nummifer which is non venomous. Now what Dr Boaz Shacham is saying is probably very accurate, but being calm and rational is very easy when you're sitting in a university looking photos of a mashed reptilian head. It's a totally different ball game when your child might be asking for tomato ketchup to dip a snakes tail in.

It's also very well for him to sit there and say that snakes aren't really active in winter.....

At least now I know I'm not the only mother who has been scared shitless by something their child has done.

I daresay that will not be the last time her son does something to scare the bejesus out of her, and I daresay that my own child will keep doing the same to me for many years to come.

In fact, I'm not sure I would want to miss it for the world.

Til Death Us Do Part: Keeping A Promise

'Do what you desire, and take good care of the people you love, be they your parents, your siblings. You might never get that chance again.'

That is a superb saying/quote whatever you want to call it, but it's a bit along the lines of 'you don't know what you've got till its gone'.

Which I can only assume is how Chadil Deffy feels. Incidentally the first quote has been attributed to him. So what has made Chadil so retrospective?

Well, sadly, it is because his 29 year old girlfriend died. The tragic part is that even though they had been together for 10 years and had planned to get married, they never got round to it.

In short, life got in the way between studies and busy schedules, until 3rd January when Ann Kamsuk died in a car accident.

So, Chadil, did the only thing he felt he could do. He married his dead girlfriend.

Now take out the 'ick' factor and remove all the wedding night jokes and what we have is a guy who wanted to carry out a promise made to his girlfriend.

At the ceremony, which took place in Surin, Thailand, friends and family laid wreaths. Wedding snaps were taken and later posted on Facebook.

'But for us, it is the mistake which we could not go back in time to correct. Remember, life is short.

After all, guilt is a wonderful motivator says the cynical me, the romantic me says that for Chadil he did what he had to and fulfilling a promise made is something that is often missed in the day and age.

I came, I saw, I conquered, iPad, iPhone

So, yesterday I read that my fabulous iPad and iPhone had been built in China. Ok, that's nothing really new to me, as many things are made in China or the far east these days.

What appears to get some people's back up it that these 'luxury' items are made with huge profit margins.....ok is that not what business is all about?

Apparently no, these items, an many others I hasten to add are made very cheaply by kids who are working 12+ hour days in factories where the gates are manned by gun carrying guards.

Now, 'the Business Insider' (don't mock me, I sometimes read stuff like that!!) says that this is outrageous.

There is a distinct lack of employers actually giving a shit about their workforce.... Big massive note here - I may get on my high horse about the same being the case in the UK also. Anyhow, i am digressing way more than I should be on a blog written on my prized iPad.

Anyway the story goes that Foxconn is one of the companies that makes iPhones & iPads. They have a huge massive sized company that employs around 430,000 which is an awful lot of people, especially when you consider that the population of my home town is about 18,000. Around 4% of these workers are around 12 year old according to sources named by 'business insider'.

One of these workers maintains that a standard shift is 12 hours long, however it is more common for 14-16 hour says. Workers meantime stay in dormitories in a 12x12 room with about 15 beds. They use Hexane to clean the screens of iPhones which is a neuro-toxin, how lovely eh?

If you ask for payment for overtime you're so not likely to get any more money! No, you are much more likely to be out on a blacklist of troublemakers.

Though interestingly enough some people still maintain that this new style near slavery type of employment is still better than working on rice fields.

Im probably now, considered middle aged and can still remember stories of kids leaving school at 14 to start work. Stories of life down the pits and working in conditions that were not only dangerous but hazardous to your future health also.

Maybe production has moved to the far east because the western world has decided that they are unwilling to work in such conditions. Maybe moving work to the far east is saving jobs here in the western world. I say that because with the the relative price of these goods being so low, we as consumers would be unable to afford them if made in our countries.

Is, it wrong to complement foreign workers on their perfectionism, they are after all churning out quality goods and I for one can honestly say that my iPad and iPhone are some of the best products I own.

I remember long long ago when doing economics and sociology that the work ethic of the Chinese and Japanese was far superior than ours. Im going back to the old bit 'Protestant work ethic' etc. are we now too embarrassed to put in extra effort to our jobs?

Maybe the western world should have some new role models where we are encouraged to work harder, work smarter and move forward (think I'm maybe quoting some Toyota kaisen theories now). We seem too obsessed with what we get out of it now, what in it for us? Maybe peace of mind that when work ends you know you have done a good days work.

I'm not for one minute condoning the crappy treatment of employees, but large corporations should remember that their biggest asset is their workforce.


Here is a clip from Daily Show host Jon Stewart on Foxconn:

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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The Daily Show with Jon Stewart: 'Fear Factory'


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Snap, Crackle and Pop Goes Your Lungs

Once upon a time, in fact it was the day Brad Pitt was filming 'World War Z' in my fabulous home town, I had a bit of a cough. In fact I coughed and coughed and coughed some more. I was finding it a bit hard to breathe but being of the motor trade mentality, I put it down to my husband & his parents burning our garden shed in the back garden. I didn't really consider that anything was wrong at all, apart from maybe hypochondria, though something was catching my throat, something was making it difficult to breathe.

By the time it got to about 7pm I really wasn't any better at all. I had been coughing and wheezing like my old 1982 Ford Fiesta trying to get up a hill.

All night I coughed and coughed to the point where I had a headache, sore ribs, throat and a high temperature. I honestly thought I was going to cough my lungs up.

By the time I got to the doctor even she thought I was about to show her the inside of my lungs, by coughing them up onto her desk in a pile of soggy mucus laden villi. It was only then that we both realised I was having an asthma attack. Asthma eh? Who knew? Certainly not me anyway.

I now realise just how lucky I had been especially when I read the story of a 40 yr old woman from Birmingham.

This poor woman had asthma and had suffered a couple of days of chest pain and bad coughing much like me. During her examination at the hospital she had some cracking and popping noises from her right side.

After a further examination and an x-ray the doctors at Good Hope Hospital in Birmingham (I'm not going to make a joke about the hospital's name as its not really a challenge), they discovered that while coughing so hard, she had herniated her lung.

Ok, ok I know it's not the same as coughing your lungs up, but it is actually coughing your lungs out...... So I'm very nearly right.

So, between the ninth intercostal space the asthma sufferer had a bit of her lung. Now that in itself has a massive ick factor to say the least.

But what about the rare occasions when people have ruptured their spleen whilst coughing or even had an eyeball come out of its socket when puking or coughing like the grim reaper is holding your hand and wanting to take you on an adventure.

At this point I really should type some guff about how this is massively rare and coughing just clears crap out of your throat and if it goes on for too long then go to your doctor cause there could be an underlying problem, but, I'm not going to insult your intelligence.

I know that if you think you are losing your lungs via any which way you'd seek medical attention cause that's the sensible thing to do.

As for me, I've still got 2 lungs (I think) and apparently have asthma, which explains why I always thought I was massively unfit. In short, I wasn't, I just couldn't breathe.

Incidentally I've no idea what happened to the woman from Birmingham with the herniated lung, not sure I want to know how they shoved it back in between her ribs and muscles....

Apparently, they looked like this

RACISM & POLITICS...ON BOTH SIDES OF THE ATLANTIC

With the 2012 Iowa caucuses scrawled into the pages of history, the candidates for the GOP Presidential nomination, minus Michelle Bachmann of course, have shifted their theatre of operations to the Granite state of New Hampshire.  After Willard Mitt Romney’s victory, albeit a narrow one over Rick Santorum, many pundits have him as a cert to win the New Hampshire Primary and steamroll onward to the Republican National Convention.  It’s not earth shattering news that Mr. Romney is expected to win NH as even before the debate season started late last year, he was sitting atop the early polls in the north eastern state.  Mostly due to his previous stint as Massachusetts Governor.

Since NH is an uphill battle for all the other candidates, the endless tour of handshakes and rhetoric continue.  Not only are Mr. Romney’s fellow candidates trying to narrow the massive gulf in the polls between the frontrunner and the rest of the pack to an acceptable loss margin, they’re also viciously fighting among themselves in a tooth and nail death match to scrape a point of two from wherever they can in a war that promises to be more sadistic than a night of gladiatorial bouts in the Roman Colosseum.  The war they fight in NH, and for the rest of the election trail, is going to be one of sabotage, deceit, and verbal tactile nuclear missiles.

However, all the candidates in the GOP race have proved more adept at scuttling their own campaign.  The collateral damage caused by a campaign of rhetoric & desperation reaches much farther than merely the selection of GOP candidates, as the fallout burns at the very core of humanity and civility. With all the sound bites from this trench war that have been covered in the media, none have been more inflammatory than the recent racial charged comments from Rick Santorum, and Newt Gingrich.

Mr. Gingrich said, “African American people should demand paychecks and not be satisfied with food stamps.”

Mr. Santorum said, “I don’t want to make black people’s lives better by giving them someone else’s money.  I want to give them the opportunity to go out and earn the money.”

In the world of politics, opinions can change.  Ideas on the economy, foreign policy, homeland security, the budget etc are malleable.   They are so, because we live in an eclectic world with vast differences in the way we take the country forward.  Neither far right nor far left political views can be wrong…as they are only one view point in the spectrum of what is the best course to steer the advancement of our civilization. 

Racist sentiments, on the other hand, have absolutely no place in, not just politics, but the world!  These recent comments, coupled with previous comments of vial racist hatred that have cropped up through the GOP primary season, should not be allowed to pass into the pages of history.  The stand needs to be made today, it needs to be made now, and it needs to be decisive.  Many view the political race as a battle of republican vs. democrat, conservative vs. liberal, us vs. them…but what every voter from every side of the aisle needs to stand up in unison, now more than ever, and scream…is that there is no ‘them’…there is only ‘us.’  We are not black, white, latino, we are human.  We are all human.

EDITORIAL NOTE: From now on out, I'm going to refer to myself as 'we,' as this is not a case of varying opinions on political direction, but a global stance that must be adopted by all to stamp out racism.

Mr. Gingrich and Mr. Santorum’s incendiary statements are based on disgusting stereotypes and in the year 2012, have no place on this earth.  We, as equal people, are locked in the delusional ideology and egregious mistakes of the past.  We are shackled to that history, and in order to move on as human beings, we need to leave that history where history is always left…in the past.

Voters of today need to adopt a zero tolerance policy on any sentiments such as Mr. Gingrich and Mr. Santorum’s.  When a discussion turns to words and ideas that divide us into a smaller group based on the color of our skin, it will always be counter-productive.  It will always be a step into the past, a step farther away from us realizing that we are all equal in being human.

Written by: Phil McCarron

WHEN THE INDEPENDENCE SUBJECT IS BROACHED...RACISTS CRAWL FROM THE WOODWORK.

I actually don’t have anything to do with politics in any shape or form. I agree with the whole basic notion of someone looking after your best interests, making sure that your wants and beliefs are taken into account, then going with what the majority wants.

But we know that doesn't always happen.Like for example if 9 out of 10 people want pizza for dinner, everyone gets pizza. However, sometimes you find that if the politician wants to eat Thai then the pizza doesn’t get a look in, regardless of the majority.

Hey Ho, what’s that saying then? ‘It doesn’t matter who you vote for, the government always get in’.In the UK there is no ruling majority party, so we have a coalition, which is quite frankly working as well as a chocolate ashtray, in my humble opinion.

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has been around for only about 90 years, however previous incarnations of the British union have existed since circa 1706/1707. Consequently the question of devolution and/or independence for Scotland has been around for the same amount of time.

When this discussion about Scottish Independence arises it has a tendency to become very heated and very passionate, you see most of this is steeped in racism between Scots and English.I'll skip the history of Bannockburn, English Rule and being sold out by greed. I promise not to mention the play ‘The Cheviot, the Stag and the Black Black Oil’ which was incidently written by a guy from Liverpool. I don’t think it would be too leftfield to describe this as Scotlands version of ‘Roots’ by Alex Haley.

You see being Scottish, you are often brainwashed into thinking that you are way more unimportant that someone who is English, even though we are all supposed to be British. Try to hand hand over a Scottish tenner when you want to pay for something south of the border, you are stared at, snubbed and even in some cases, it will not be accepted, even though it is legal tender.

Watching 'The One Show' on BBC1 I've just heard the actor Paul Betany talk about being English and having English friends. Not British? No? Apparently not. This superiority complex from some English people, especially media related is very like fashion magazines telling women that your life is worth shit if you're over 25 and 8 stone.

Now, many English people are under the opinion that Scotland holds THEM back, no idea from what though, and if Scotland leave the Union, then it will have a massive drop in income and as a result become like Greece but without the nice weather. I ask you, if this was the case, and Scotland were all parasitic draining the already stretched resources of Westminster, would Scotland not be dropped like the proverbial hot potato?

Or could it be that some parts of England are jealous as hell that if you stay north of the border, where there is still a publicly operated NHS, free prescriptions and the education of future generations is supported for all, not just the rich or lucky.

The most amazing bit of a Scottish referendum on independence is that Scotland must first ask permission from Westminster in order to hold the referendum in the first place.

Yeah that’s right, the battered wife in the refuge, hiding her kids from her abuser has to ask permission to leave…..

Ok, creative licence there but you get the point.

I am not racist, I tell people I am British, I don't treat people differently because of where they were born or the fact that they wont accept my money. I've even been asked by a Londoner if we had electricity where I come from..... Yes seriously. Next time you hear someone saying something about scots people being drunk, eating fried food all the time and being miserable with money think about whether you'd use a stereotype for someone who is Asian/black/eastern European and if they would find it offensive.

Written by: Lynn Tulloch

Dave Shepherd, the Dog Who Rescued Me

I want another rescue dog. To be honest, I'm not really fussy what type, size or age it is. I just know that I want one.

It all started in the early 90s when I was living on my own and working as an assistant manager in a nightclub. This led to the usual threats of physical violence and verbal abuse.

Rather than admit I was a bit of a coward, I remembered what had been said to my mum when she had a stalker. 'Get a big dog, cause even if the dog won't do anything to an intruder, it's sometimes enough to put them off,' so with this ringing in my ears, I called around a couple of dog shelters, cause quite frankly I couldn't be arsed with training and anyway I wanted a dog now, not a puppy.

And so began my love affair with rescue dogs.

I will freely admit that having a teenage German shepherd sometimes led us to have arguments with each other. Like for example he would scavenge and rake for chocolate and had the ability to sniff it out wherever it was. So I would scold him, send him to his bed and refuse to speak to him. On other occasions, he would get annoyed at me for being later home and duly crap on the floor 3 minutes after a walk.

We got round that and to be frank, I was young and he was too. But he was my best friend, he knew my secrets, my weaknesses, my strengths, he understood when I was unwell and wouldn't pull on the lead. I knew when he was off colour or needing a cuddle right up till he had to be put to sleep. I didn't even know he was unwell.

My darling dog had hidden his illness from me when I was pregnant, as if he didn't want me to worry about him.

I cried for him for days and sometimes still do. I'd lost my hero. We shared everything from bottles of water to McDonald's Happy Meals, cuddles, tears and fights.

Later on we got another dog from a stray dog shelter, a shepherd cross type collie looking old guy. I called him Dave, cause, well, he looked like a Dave. Dave was old, moth-eaten, foosty, had missing teeth and breath like a pirate and I loved him to bits. I would grimace and adore him simultaneously as he took a drink of water and dribbled water for yards as he walked away from the bowl, soaking the carpet as he went.

I loved his grey whiskers and muzzle, like he had stuck his face in an icing sugar bag.

If Dave had been human, he would've worn a sheepskin jacket, drunk pints of heavy or Newcastle Brown and had a whiskey chaser. Dave would've nipped out to the 'bookies' to put a line on and bought the 'barmaid' a magazine and a strawberry tart to look after her. He would always have been polite, very old school and not allowed any of the younger guys to swear in front of a lady.

He had many of the same traits as my 1st dog. He was perfect. A gentleman. A joy.

At some point after we got another rescue dog, she was in the same place as Dave when I found him. Bon was a bit of an accident, I really wasn't actually looking for another dog, but I saw her and my heart went out to her furry coat didn't know what to do with itself and she had a squint ear. Kicked out cause she was pregnant, she had given birth to puppies in the shelter. This had left her a bit neurotic and a bit skinny. She was young and just what Dave needed.

She gave him life and energy and he chilled her out, taught her how to behave properly, relax, play games and find a good spot in the garden to lie in.

Bon was just as devastated as us when Dave didn't return from the vets that day, she paced and slept in his favourite places, as if to get closer to him. I slept with his collar under my pillow and she slept with his blanket on the couch.

So why should I want another oldie?

I know we only had Dave for few years, but it was worth every single minute. I rescued him and he rescued me right back. He would follow me around like a shadow, lie at my side of the bed and not leave my side if I was unwell.

Dave didn't eat the couch or chew my Louboutins, he didn't cost me a fortune in vets bills, he was undemanding and understanding. Dave was excited to see us when we came in, he never answered back and never told me that my arse looked fat. I could take him anywhere and know that he wouldn't disgrace me. Kids adored him, grown ups always looked at him and said 'Awh, you've a big heart to adopt a dog that old' with their heads on the side in the pose that said they felt sorry for me. Truth is, I felt sorry for them, they didn't have Dave.

I miss Dave as much as my 1st dog. Yeah, I feel slightly cheated that we only had a couple of years together but, they were the best ever.

So in honour of Dave Shepherd, consider a rescue dog or a rescue oldie, they will still make your life complete but without all the major hassles of a puppy.

Keeping Abreast of the Situation

Several years ago, Toyota became public enemy number 1. It was all over the news in the US and here, but not so much in Europe for some reason. In case you missed it, here is a quick re-cap.


In 2009 Mark Sayler and his family were tragically killed when the accelerator stuck in a loan Lexus ES 350. This kicked off a huge recall of potentially affected vehicles worldwide. This amounted to 1.8 million vehicles in Europe alone.

Now, this is a vast amount of vehicles to be checked and modified if required. Then there is the administration side to consider, the details of these cars had to be submitted to Toyota on the same day so that they could be taken of the recall list.

Incidentally the case involving the death of Mark Sayler was not due to anything Toyota had done, it was not a manufacturing defect.

So, consider this, as with any motor manufacturer, if they think for one second that something they have made could cause death or injury all affected vehicles are brought back to the dealer to check for the fault. The owner of the car is reimbursed in some way, usually with Toyota it is Marks and Spencers vouchers, fuel, a car care kit or the like.

Which brings me to boobs.

Now, taking into account what the motor industry does consider what happens when a manufacturer of fake boobs has a manufacturing defect.....

The story goes that Poly Implant Prosthese (PIP) somehow filled breast implants with industrial grade silicone rather than medical grade. Which means that potentially somewhere around 300,000 to 400,000 women in 65 countries could have dodgy boobs that could kill them. Incidentally PIP was shut down in 2010.

With an estimated 40,000 women in the UK who have PIP implants what are the authorities doing about it?

Not enough in my opinion.

In France, the government have recommended that everyone with these implants have them removed because there is a chance of rupture. In the UK? Andrew Lansley our health secretary is still pondering the situation.

I admit that different authorities are giving different percentages for chance of failure this being anywhere between 1% and 7%.

That's not really the point that I'm making.

Surely any failure is a failure and the fact that you could have industrial grade silicone leaking out and into your bloodstream isn't a good thing?

Ask yourself, what is more important, your car or your health?

Being powerful is like being a lady. If you have to tell people you are, you aren’t.

I read a story in the Daily Mail about Margaret Thatcher and to be honest, I wasn't sure how I felt about it. I was in a quandary.

Anyway I'll explain a bit about Mrs T, the Iron Lady or the longest serving British Prime Minister, what ever you'd like to call her. I think those are probably the most polite names I've mentioned as no doubt there are probably many more that even I am too well mannered to put into print.

Prime Minister Thatcher was in charge of the UK from 1979 to 1990, which were realistically my educational years from 8 to 19. However, there are landmarks I can recall without the aid of a history book, the ones that made an impression on me as a young pup.

I can remember the Falkland Islands conflict, the miner's strike, poll tax and privatisation of well, everything really.

Then we had the other things that I know about but don't directly remember like, the winter of discontent, USSR invading Afghanistan, Steel workers striking, Lord Mountbatten blown up by the IRA, the Brighton bombing, Reagan being elected President, Tiananmen Square Massacre, the Berlin Wall came down, USA air raids on Libya, Strangeways Prison Riots and of course the Trafalgar Square riot which kicked of due to the Poll Tax or Community Charge.

You can see that it really was quite an eventful time in politics. I don't DO politics, though I know that probably I should as what happens in Westminster will and does affect me. It's just so bloody dull and boring, a lot of stuffy old men shouting at each other.

Blah blah not interested, yawn yawn!

However, I'm not really going to write about politics, I'm writing about someone who used to be a politician. Incidentally Mrs T is also a qualified Chemist and Barrister as well, so you can't say she used her sexuality to get into the boys club. No, this is a smart cookie.

Not known for taking crap from people, she was considered brutal, calculating and ruthless by many, admired by some and when all else is said and done she more or less invented her own brand of politics.

Julie Burchill isn't my favourite journalist at all, however, she is quoted as saying something nice 'If she kicked away the crutches, it wasn’t for pleasure or profit — but because she genuinely believed that everyone had the ability to walk without them.'

I think this suits my Grandma too. You see it's the anniversary of my grandma's death today and I'll freely admit that she wasn't always the supportive loving grandparent that people expect.

Yes, sometimes I cried myself to sleep over things she had said to me and it is hard to take being subjected to that all the time. However, I didn't spend Christmas with her 2 years before she died and I feel guilty as hell that the time she needed me I wasn't there. I could say in my defence that I was in my mid 20s at the time and was being selfish but that realistically is no excuse.

So back to my original problem with Margaret Thatcher......

I read that for the last couple of years Baroness Thatcher has been spending Christmas and New Year with her niece and her housekeeper while her 2 kids are off living the dream so to speak like a pair of spoilt brats.

So for the sake of a couple of days I think Mark and Carol should at least bite the bullet and visit their mother more often.

She is your mother for Gods sake. Spent some time with her.

Now I know that sometimes families can be open to abuse, whether it's been physical, mental whatever and that sometimes it can be way too much to take. I know it can be really hard to watch someone you love and care about descend into dementia, I've been there. I know how much it hurts and that you don't want to remember that person in that way.


That painful memory of them not knowing who you are, or being able to converse about things from 1992 but can't remember if they put sugar in their tea will fade and go. Your memory is your memory and you have the power to recall what you want.

The Iron Lady is old, frail and unwell. Regardless of what she means to you, me or them, now she is an old biddy that needs her family.

I find it very sad that they aren't there when she needs them.

More Research I Could've Done

I think I've probably mentioned before just how much I adore research carried out by professionals that ends up exactly with the results that you knew they would.

For example I wrote about Canadian Researchers who proved that you are more likely to have unprotected sex if you are drunk. Yeah OK then. Could've seen that one coming if I was blindfolded and in the dark.

So here are some more that I stumbled across by accident. Well, OK we all know that is a slight fib, I didn't so much stumble across it, as look for something to write about and found it.

Ready for the most obvious answers to questions we either hadn't thought about or just accepted that it was a forgone conclusion?

Right apparently men suppress fear, pain and empathy. Eh OK. Indiana University of Pennsylvania are responsible for that little nugget of priceless information.

The next one comes from the journal Epidemiologic Reviews, here we are told that if you smoke marijuana/hash what ever you want to call it, then it's not safe to drive. Wow, bugger me if I hadn't worked THAT out by myself. I've seen people so stoned that I'm amazed they know who they are, never mind where the car is. But hey, who am I to suggest that this isn't legitimate studies.

I do have an amusing image in my head of someone trying to persuade the Police that the drugs are for professional use and not personal use.

Some more research reported during 2011 stated that pigs love mud. Seriously, even though they use it in order to keep cool, they sometimes just do it for, well, shits and giggles.

What about research results written up in April in the Journal of Ageing Studies? What do you think their findings were? Sadly, very predictable, fashion magazines very rarely show women over 40. That's my Vogue modelling career out the window then eh?

Another blog that I had written about was the secret to a happy marriage, which when converted into lay mans terms simply stated don't marry a dick. Marry someone who is actually nice to you and thinks about your feelings from time to time. Simple eh?

Here is another obvious statement that now, thanks to University of Michigan's C S Mott Children's Hospital we can say has basis in fact. Parents don't think their children have any bad habits such as underage drinking, drug taking etc. Pft tell that to my mum, who always thought I was up to no good!

In October an eye tracking device used by volunteers revealed to all of us, that only 1% of people read the nutrition labels on food packaging. Fancy that eh? I'll admit I look to see if it's vegetarian then look at the calories and I have very little interest in any other information. If I'm taking that honesty even further, I only look at calories because I'm trying to lose weight.

Pew Research reported in December that people go on the Internet for mindless entertainment and usually aren't actually doing anything in particular at all.
I will look forward to seeing what revelations various scientific journals and researchers can come up with in 2012.

Maybe we will find out that pigs can't fly?