Blurred Lines or Black and White

I love my 'quick office polls', not sure if anyone else does though.


This is the time of day when I decide to ask work colleagues and friends a random question abut something I've read in the news.
Anyway, my latest quick poll was 'Do you think that the Robin Thicke tune is sexist or at least a bit creepy?' Bearing in mind I keep reading articles and blogs about how misogynistic both the video and song are.

You see, the video (if you didn't already know) for 'Blurred Lines' has 2 versions, a completely NSFW version that had even been banned by YouTube and a tree-hugging-hippy version that is still an bit on the dodgy side but at least the models wear some clothes (emphasis on some).

Add in some suggestive references to drugs, bestiality, a gigantic cigarette lighter and some '#' words being flashed across the screen and that's the long and short of Diane Martel's video.
The general consensus of opinion was that no one had actually noticed (possibly as they hadn't actually seen the video)

They thought it was nothing more than a summery anthem type tune by some guy no one had heard off, singing with Pharrell Williams (who some knew) and TI, though the majority of my 'test' subjects had no idea who the hell he is, (especially when I called him Clifford Harris Jr)


When I explained how the lyrics sounded like it was justifying rape and pointed out that when combined with the video it made women appear like sex objects, degraded them and  pushed the whole feminist movement back 100 years, my guinea pigs looked at me like I was on drugs.

'Really?'
'How's that?'
'Seriously?' And 'hahahaha, shnortle, guffaw' were the most sensible answers I got.

So, I spoke to my version of Yoda at work. She pondered a while and pointed out that it was all a bit 'Benny Hill'


It depends on how you look at it really. It does play a bit on the 'men-are-stupid-when-pretty-girls-are-there' theme. It maybe doesn't quite 'empower' them, but it certainly does appear to suggest that even though the women are carrying fluffy animals, (real and fake) and outrageously huge cigarette lighters, sitting on bicycles with added height that they aren't quite submissive or threatened by 3 guys.

It did appear to change the opinion of women I spoke to when they watched the video though. Maybe I'm too liberal these days, but I will admit, I do get really nervous when my 9 year old asks me what Ke$ha is singing.....

Office work going to the dogs

I'm very sure that many of us in the big bad rat race have worked with some right donkeys in our time. In fact, there are even some times when I've uttered the words 'good lord, even my dog could do better than that'.

So when I read the story of Misty the blue Merle border collie becoming an administrator at Burlington Stone in Kirby-in-Furness part of me reckoned that it was a wise idea.

Misty not only returns credit/debit cards and cash back to customers (without teeth marks, but sometimes slobber), she takes weighbridge tickets for processing and doesn't argue with anyone.

Sounds very much like the perfect employee to me.

But what do customers think of being served by a dog? Do think that it's cute or that they aren't important enough to be attended to be a human?

According to the Telegraph, Lex Ward, who is using the quarry's slate to makeover his garden, said that he has no issues being served by Misty, adding: “She lovely. She doesn't argue and I was delighted to see her when I came here for the first time."

Misty's owner Elaine Prickett first brought her to work as a pup and by the time she grew up she had become a valuable asset to the company.

The other staff enjoy having her around the office too which backs up the claim by the International Journal of Workplace Health Management last year, that having a dog in the office can reduce stress levels.

When I worked in a nightclub I would often take my dog to work, he was great for security, have-a-go thieves will think twice about stealing from a place with a German shepherd kicking about. He would play fetch with the cleaners kids and keep them occupied with cuddles and kisses, as long as he got a bit of their rusks.


However, as cute and stress relieving as having a dog at work with you can be its not all fun and games as Tatler found out when their office dachshund Alan was killed in a revolving door accident.

I'm not sure that Alan had a job to there or whether he was more an office mascot.

I'd like to take my dog to work with me, but I'm not sure she would be any good answering the phone.

The rest of these pictures are courtesy of my fabulous mum. I can't take any credit for them, but they are widely available on the old t'internet. 

Enjoy them any way.

Sarah Connor, Edward Snowden and AI

According to ‘Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles’ set just after the film Terminator 2, at 8:11pm on the 19th of April, SKYNET would become self-aware and us humans would more or less be crushed by their superior might and the fact that they didn’t give a hoot about having a lunch break and a coffee.

As this time and date has passed, it is easy for me to keep typing into the computer and with big bold letters say ‘HA! WRONG!’



Then, after some poking about on the internet I had the awful realisation that this date may have passed, but James Cameron’s pre-science prediction may be very close to reality.



Consider this:



IBM’s Watson, yup the very supercomputer who beat previous winners on the US game show ‘Jeopardy’

The Generalized Integrated Learning Architecture (GILA) system is pure military artificial intelligence. This system not only monitors military air traffic it can also serve as a ‘support’ for new air traffic controllers.

How many times have you heard Google is SKYNET? I can’t think of anyone who hasn’t heard of Google, it is everywhere. What if all this data was stored somehow, somewhere? That’s right every search you do, everything you type, translate or think…



I had never heard of The Blue Brain Project, though I think this might be a real contender. Henry Markham has decided to reverse engineer the human brain and make an artificial one. Don’t roll your eyes at me in disbelief, he has already mapped the important bits of a rat’ brain.
ECHELON, according to PC Magazine, says it a code name for the government system that monitors communications of all kinds. Duncan Campbell even published an article in ‘New Statesman’ about it, in….ready for this? 1988! What ECHELON does is monitors certain key words or phrases to look for people that may be up to slightly more than a bit of mischief.
Especially when Edward Snowden now says that the NSA (National Security Agency) is spying on us all.

Worried now? Oh yeah. Goingfaster.com says, after all, us ‘humans have a history full of war, suffering, disease, greed and pettinesses and ‘Humans had no quality control. They were weak, short lived, inferior biological machines with impaired operating systems. No two were alike yet they were all the same. SKYNET found it illogical to try to protect such a flawed species, a species clearly dedicated to its own destruction.’



Me? I’m scared as hell.

Celebrate Life or Mourn Loss

I was such a grandad's girl growing up that his death hit me very badly. I couldn't believe that he would never be with me again. We would never walk the dog in the park, or go along the town to 'Lows' for the 'messages'. We would never faff about the garden & I would never learn any more Latin names for the flowers he had. I would never play in the Volkswagen Beetle again or sit on the towel rail bumpers. He would never be making making soup for my lunch from a small cube packet or collect me from the Brownies.

My grandad made me bunk beds for dolls, a K9 so I could go to a fancy dress party as Dr Who's assistant Leia.

My dad died when I was very young and Ernie took over the roll as father, protector, playmate, teacher and confidant.

I could tell my grandad anything, he never judged me. Apart from when my 1st car wasn't a Ford Scorpio Cosworth. (I think he was a bit disappointed that he didn't get to drive one) but he did seem to like my taste in Sciroccos.

Even 15 years since he died I can still remember where I was and what I was doing when the hospital called me. I was taking paint of skirting boards and listening to The Verve, aptly listening to 'The Drugs Don't Work', it took me years to be able to listen to it without bursting into tears.

If I can be half the person my grandad was then I'll be happy.

The major thing I need to acknowledge is that he wasn't just my grandad, he was a son, brother, husband, father and friend too.

My grandad's death affected me more than I thought it would, I know deep down it was a blessing as after several strokes and cancer took hold, there wasn't really much left of the man himself. He was just a shell who looked like Ernie.

I travelled to the hospital after hearing the news about my grandad, taking chocolates for the nurses who had cared for him. Bizarre but true, they had lost a fabulous patient too.

I was shell shocked and scarred by my grandma sitting at his beside repeatedly telling me that her husband wasn't dead, he was still breathing, she could hear him. I had to tell her that she was wrong, she was imagining it, her life's love had gone.

The Drugs Don't Work
However, she was the only one who was allowed to grieve. We had no right to, we hadn't loved him as much, we hadn't known him as long.

I supported my grandma as much as I could, but it wasn't enough, I wasn't my grandad and I wasn't strong enough. I failed her and failed him because I couldn't keep him alive.

So, yeah I miss Ernie. I mourn the loss of a great guy and celebrate the RAF flight engineer who came to work in Grangemouth and apart from 4 years in Egypt fixing aeroplanes, never left.

Even now, I carry him with me along with the memories of rain dances for grow his roses and being convinced every time I had a cut or scrape that 'New Skin' wouldn't nip.

Delighted to have known him, I'm super happy that my son has a fabulous papa too.

The Gateway Guardians

Ill admit that I watched 'Black Mirror: Be Right Back' last night. While part of me thought 'how cool' and wished my mum had a version of my dad up the loft, there was a part that was deeply disturbed by how much personal information I share on the World Wide Web.

I probably give away more personal information in my writing than I think I do, for example, you wouldn't have to be Sherlock to guess my age bracket, country of origin or social and cultural background.

However I do try not to be too open and forthright in case MI5 are looking to add to their file on me (if they have one of course) and now, just in case there may be any truth in the whole 'Black Mirror' thing.

However, today I'm going to share something close to my heart and that's my home town.

You see, I am a proud Portonian.

The sunny land of Portonia lies between junctions 5 and 6 on the M9 it used to called Sealock but is now more commonly known as Grangemouth.

Any how, for some months now on the M9 we have had a kind of 'faux Senna S' near to the canal and where the Helix is being constructed.

In case you have no idea what the Helix is, it's a kind of 'something for everyone area' that is being built around Falkirk. It will have walkways & cycle routes all lit up so it can be used morning noon and night. It will have allotments for budding gardeners who have no garden of their own, it will have outdoor stuff, indoor stuff, tree hugging hippy stuff and cool stuff.

We did have what I liked to call the 'Guardians' which were 2 horse head sculptures positioned at the waterway. I am 100% certain that the sculptures will be spectacular. In fact, I really should type that in capitals because the mock-ups were devastating. So here you have it..... The sculptures will be SPECTACULAR and the first delivery of 'parts' arrived today.

These horse heads will now forever be known as The Kelpies, which is quite ironic because what I considered to be guardians are in reality (which is ironic as well) supernatural creatures that like to drag people off into the water and drown them for shits and giggles (or dung and neighs).

Being a proud Portonian, I Emailed Andy Scott to ask him about the 'Kelpies'.

Happily though, Andy hit the nail on the head, he doesn't see them as kelpies either. You see, the central belt of Scotland does have a fantastic heritage of agriculture and industry and without the aid of the heavy horses in fields, along the canals and pulling carts delivering Barr's drinks we would be no where.

You can see this historical influence everywhere around the area even today from Roman Relics to buildings constructed using money donated by Andrew Carnegie to the building of The Helix, which will certainly be the Future.






- Posted by The Portonian Princess from my iPad

Something Smells Fishy - Catfishy

I'm not so good with American Football, as far as I can tell some guys with a load of padding on and wearing helmets run with a ball over some lines to score a 'touch down'. Oh and there are goal things like our rugby.

Anyway, this isn't really about American Football, it's about an American football player.

Now, before I tell you the story, bear in mind that more and more details are appearing every day. So, what was thought to be fact today, may not be tomorrow.

So, here it is, as far as I can gather, at present.

Manti Te'o is a linebacker for Notre Dame. Which if you know as much about American Football as I do, means he plays a defensive position for a college team in Indiana (I think)

This story is all about Manti, a 21 yr old who played his heart out in the face of huge, massive, devastating personal tragedy. Within only 6 hours, the poor guy got news that not only his grandmother had died, but his girlfriend as well.

He played that day to honour the lives of his 2 lost loves and kicked the arse of Michigan State 20-3.

The media, being the media, got a hold of this story and hailed Manti as a hero, a man who in the face of adversity and overwhelming grief won the game and the hearts of everyone else.

Then..... 'Deadspin' got a bit of a tip off.

Manti's girlfriend Lennay Kekua was not actually a real person, she has allegedly been made up by a 'mate' called Ronaiah Tuiasospo.

Confused? Yeah, me too.

Apparently for about 4 years or so, Manti had been in contact online with a gorgeous girl called Lennay who was a cousin of one of his friends. (Ronaiah's cousin)

The poor girl had been drawn through some awful events, she had a bad car accident and the was diagnosed with leukaemia. She went through a bone marrow transplant but died anyway.

What I don't get is how can Manti have called this girl his girlfriend when he hadn't met her and why didn't he realise that she wasn't real?

What happens now then?

In a statement, Manti said:
'This is incredibly embarrassing to talk about, but over an extended period of time, I developed an emotional relationship with a woman I met online. We maintained what I thought to be an authentic relationship by communicating frequently online and on the phone, and I grew to care deeply about her. To realize that I was the victim of what was apparently someone's sick joke and constant lies was, and is, painful and humiliating. It further pains me that the grief I felt and the sympathies expressed to me at the time of my grandmother's death in September were in any way deepened by what I believed to be another significant loss in my life. I am enormously grateful for the support of my family, friends and Notre Dame fans throughout this year. To think that I shared with them my happiness about my relationship and details that I thought to be true about her just makes me sick. I hope that people can understand how trying and confusing this whole experience has been. In retrospect, I obviously should have been much more cautious. If anything good comes of this, I hope it is that others will be far more guarded when they engage with people online than I was. Fortunately, I have many wonderful things in my life, and I'm looking forward to putting this painful experience behind me as I focus on preparing for the NFL Draft.'

Just lucky you don't play 'soccer' over here mate, the crowd would no doubt have some inventive chants to keep you amused.

Personally, if it is true and he didn't know he was being made to look like a twat, then I have the deepest sympathy for him. I don't mind looking like an arse when it's my own fault, but when someone who is meant to be mate does this, then it's pretty cruel.

Plus point is, Mel Grieg and Michael Christian are no longer on air in Australia....... So your safe there Manti.

Me, Katie and the London Underground

Wow, what a day today is.

Not only is it my birthday, where I am now 'the answer to the ultimate question' but I share the day with 2 of my friends. How cool is that?

Ok, ok, if you are switched on you'll also realise that it's Katie's birthday too and no, I haven't listed her as a mate.

Why do we still call her Kate Middleton anyway? I don't get that.

I suppose Kate Mountbatten-Windsor is a bit of a mouthful and 'The Duchess' makes her sound like a Siamese cat, but since she shares my birthday I'll call her Katie. I am sure that I won't get sent to the tower for it, as the chances are she does doesn't subscribe to Daily Sagacity anyway.

Anyway, what is way more interesting than even MY birthday is that it is the anniversary of the superb London Underground opening. I can't believe that I share my birthday with something quite so fascinating.

I did think that information about the London Underground would be very boring, dull and decidedly geek-ish. I mean, a combination of history and engineering isn't likely to be top of my Internet search list is it?

Well, the subject of the London Underground is way more interesting than I thought. It all started on the 9th of January 1863 when the link between Paddington (like the bear) and Farringdon Street was opened up.

Even though the public didn't get in until the next day and a small bear from darkest Peru didn't appear until 1958, the official date is still the same as my birthday.

Here is a Bonus piece of information for you. The people who made the 1st Paddington bears made a prototype for their kids Christmas one year. They owned Gabrielle Designs who made the very early Paddington Bears. Anyway, Shirley and Eddie Clarkson gave their kids, Joanna and Jeremy the bear. Yes that's right, THE Jeremy Clarkson got a Paddington bear for Christmas.

Alright, I know that was slight digression from the London Underground stuff i was going to mention, and I mentioned it, not because it was more interesting but because it was a bit random that you probably wouldn't know if you had just read a whole load of facts and figures from the Telegraph

In fact here are 2 interesting sites for you http://underground-history.co.uk/front.php and http://www.abandonedstations.org.uk/ if you had some time to spare, or even if you just fancied having a look at something more interesting than who Taylor Swift has dumped.

Indeed, the London Underground is filled with everything you could want in a story. From famous people being born in the tube stations during bombing raids in WW2 to dead bodies in cleaning cupboards...... It's all there.

Hey the Queen herself has even driven a train underground, seriously though, what more could you want in a 150 years?

Gone, but not forgotten

It has been some time since I blogged or in fact, wrote anything, so now it's a bit like I'm now scared to. For someone who could write around 6 different news type blogs a day this lack of writing is a bit strange.

Realistically it because I've totally lost confidence in my ability to actually write anything useful, relevant or indeed interesting.

Don't get me wrong, I've tried.

Ive researched information on wide ranging topics from the anniversary of 'Casablanca' which is one of my most favourite films to pregnancy, sickness, shootings and even why Rudolph has a red nose....

Which I must admit did appeal to my inner geek.

Lack of self belief sucks almost as much as being overly confident to the point arrogance is annoying as hell for everyone else.

I've even taken to dyeing random bits and areas of my hair bizarre colours in order to find out what's wrong with my whinging, moaning self.

So, how do you 'find yourself' when you realise that you are lost and every day is exactly the same, no one listens to you, no one seems to care about your thoughts, feelings, ideas and abilities.

Well, here is what I'm doing (any assistance in the way of ideas, support, motivation or arse kicking is MORE than welcome)

I'm going to change the things I don't like.

Ta Da!! I didn't even need to read 'Psychology Today' for that.


By the way..... In case you're interested, Rudolph's nose would appear to be red because they have a higher concentration of red blood cells than humans. Apparently 25% more than us humans. Though, I can't find any information in the study about whether or not the bunch of Scientists gave their cocaine supply to the reindeer, or simply kept it to themselves.



In fact, you would even say it glows.... as the infra red photo shows.

The Aberdare Fairy Godmother

When I read that unemployed people in Aberdare were to be given free fake tans to boost their employment chances, I actually thought that the world had gone bonkers. I mean, it's right up there along with the guy in China who sued his wife 'cause she's ugly. (He won the case by the way).


Surely, the government had completely lost the plot somewhere along the line. I mean really. Would being tango'd increase your job prospects?
So, I had a laugh about it, a small rant about 'tax-payers money' and how even more ridiculous the guests on Jeremy Kyle would look when they are orange.


Then, I actually thought about it a bit and read some information rather than just the tabloid headlines.
This 'scheme' if you want to call it that, isn't actually run by the government, you don't get handed a bottle of 'Lauren's Way' self tan along with your giro (are they still called giros?)
Nope the TOWIE crew weren't sharp enough for this clever piece of marketing mixed with a bit of altruism.
We all know that if you look better, you feel better inside, more confident, more positive and have a bit of a spark that can be missing when you're run down by everyday life and the daily grind.
Now, much as the press love their sweeping generalisations that all unemployed people are lazy gits that sit on their arse all day, drinking, smoking, breeding their staffies and aiming to appear on daytime tv, it's not always the case.
Even trying to find another job, whether unemployed or not can take its toll on your self confidence. After even several knock backs, your opinion of yourself starts to wane.
It's at that point when the appearance of a fairy godmother could prove very useful. Ok, The Well-being and Training Academy call it a Gok Wan makeover and in some cases that could be way more useful than a couple of mice and a pumpkin. But the press have merely picked up on a non-profit organisation helping unemployed people feel a bit more confident and turned it in to......well, a sensationalist type headline.


The director of the academy told The Telegraph, “We want to give people that extra confidence – or that Gok Wan makeover – to give people the incentive to find work. It will recognise those who are doing their utmost to find unemployment by giving them a beauty treatment.”
Notice it says 'A BEAUTY TREATMENT' Sarah Sweeden did not say 'I think making the unemployed population of Aberdare look like oompa-loompas will be a right hoot' (though it would amuse me if she did).
They have nutritionists, beauty therapists, fitness instructors, personal trainers and offer holistic therapies too, it's not all TOWIE tans & vajazzles.


I have a lot of admiration for people giving back to their community and if it helps a couple of people feel better about themselves, then it's all good.
Pay it forward guys. Maybe some organisations should do that too.

Jimmy Savile and the cast of hundreds

I have put so much research into this blog that it would frighten you. I normally like to get a few different view points, read some other versions of events and make up my own mind.

So, as normal, I read some newspaper articles, watched some TV and then as Morpheus says in The Matrix ‘You take the blue pill, the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill, you stay in Wonderland, and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes.’

When it comes to this story, I took the red pill and I’m sure that many people involved wish that they had taken the red pill too.

Right, make yourself a cuppa, get comfortable and then read this. See, I want you in a rational and unemotional mind set. I promise to include links to supplementary information where possible, I’ll lay off the clichés and I will make a sincere effort not to get emotional or all ‘ranty’ about it.

OK?

Deep breath now.

Assume for one minute that Jimmy Savile did not tamper with any young girl (or girls) and all these claims of sexual abuse and molestation are completely 100% fictitious

Whoa! Wait a minute, I don’t care what you believe or what you think you believe or even if you are fed up to the back teeth hearing about a shell-suited gold wearing OAP with his hands down a child’s pants. (Sorry about the cliché)

Why would a bunch of women all come forward almost a year after the guy’s death to ruin the ‘good’ name of a man who raised millions for charity and is an icon in British Society?

Obviously I am no shrink or specialist in psychological disorders, but the person making the allegation would have to be fulfilling some sort of personal agenda (albeit a bit warped).

What would the reason be? Blackmail, extortion, discrediting their good name and image?

That isn’t really going to happen when the dude is 6 foot under.

However, it isn’t just one person is it?

No, no its not. The last I read the Metropolitan police were investigating 340 lines of inquiry, which involved 40 different victims and 12 formal criminal allegations.

I wondered why these people had not come forward earlier, as is only natural I suppose. However, these people actually DID make complaints against the DJ/Presenter/self appointed god like being and were told everything under the sun from ‘Not enough evidence’ to ‘don’t you like it?’ and even ‘Are you a lesbian’.

As individual claims these can be easily dismissed and indeed they were especially as they occurred in different areas of the country. We realise with how long it took to apprehend Peter Sutcliffe that police forces don’t always speak to each other.

However, as Alice wandered down the rabbit hole she found out that in 1994 the Sunday Mirror had "credible and convincing" evidence from two women who claimed Savile had been guilty of abusing them at a children's home. But was advised that the case wasn’t strong enough to avoid libel action.

What about Jimmy’s links with Haute de la Garenne in Jersey? The Sun newspaper was sued in 2008 over articles linking him to children’s home where remains of tortured children were found. Apparently 151 culprits were identified……….maybe there are even more ‘celebrities’ about to have their hiding place found.

Certainly, the names I have read or been hinted at are Ted Heath, Gary Glitter, John Peel, Dave Lee Travis, Freddie Starr and the possibility of the rabbit hole being deeper is all too apparent.

As far as I’m aware there are complaints being made from Stoke Mandeville, The BBC, Leeds General Infirmary, Broadmoor, Duncroft Approved School in Staines and Haut de la Garenne children’s home in Jersey.

Jimmy Savile ‘allegedly’ supplied fresh young boys for Ted Heath to take out on his boat ‘Morning Cloud’ which links in very nicely with a bit of government corruption regarding Jeremy Thorpes getting off with an attempted murder charge.

Our libel laws meant that many allegations that would (and will) surface was always kept nicely packed away.

What about Jimmy Savile’s links with our nice and friendly serial killer & rapist Peter Sutcliffe, AKA the Yorkshire Ripper?

AHA! Not only did Jimmy Savile spend a fair amount of time at Broadmoor (not my choice of destination) but at Sutcliffe’s trial whose house was mentioned? Eh?

‘Mr Sutcliffe also told police he left the murder scene after he heard voices, but couldn’t tell where they came from. He also heard a car being driven away from the entrance to a house. Later he found out that the house was where disc jockey Jimmy Savile lived’

Well it may be dodgy but it certainly isn’t hard evidence.

Make up your mind but have a look at some of the information I found and as promised, here are some interesting articles for you to have a look at.

http://www.everything2.com/title/The+Dark+Side+of+Jimmy+Savile

http://yiannopoulos.net/2011/10/29/jimmy-savile-and-the-masonic-child-abuse-on-jersey-how-long-before-people-start-talking/

http://www.thetruthseeker.co.uk/?p=33514

http://trashcity.org/content/how-i-managed-to-piss-off-jimmy-saville/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=g_zx4dp-qbk

http://www.anorak.co.uk/336013/celebrities/jerry-sadowitz-was-right-about-jimmy-savile.html/#comments

Who needs gun carrying police anyway?

If we see a police officer carrying a gun, we automatically think that something really BIG is ‘going down’. To the point where when you travel to the US it seems very frightening to see guns all the time.

I’m not going to get into a gun debate, that’s not what I’m writing about. What I am writing about is the small town of Vaughn in the state of New Mexico. It’s about 100 miles or so East of Albuquerque (which I have heard of) and with a population of about 450 it’s even smaller than my wonderful home town.

Hence, it doesn’t really need a huge police force.

Which is just as well really as the Vaughn Police Department Chief, Chris ‘Ernest’ Armijo resigned on Wednesday. This leaves Brian Bernal who isn’t a trained or certified police officer and Nikka a Belgian Malinos.

Uncertified police officers cannot make arrests or carry guns, which leaves the only trained police officer with full credentials to be Nikka the dog.

Luckily for the town of Vaughn the State Police and Guadalupe County Sheriff’s Office handle the area also…..just in case there is a crime that Nikka can’t deal with.

I’m not going to make fun of the drug sniffing Nikka or Armijo who hadn’t completed the certification to handle her and apparently owes thousands in child support in Texas and faces charges of selling town-owned rifles and keeping the cash, or Bernal who pleaded guilty to assault and battery charges. It is very tempting to have a cheap laugh at the expense of the town, but I know what its like to stay in a town that people like to make fun of.

Here’s to Nikka, the only cop on the police force without a criminal record! Wonder if we look close enough at our police forces in the UK what we would find?

Sid Watkins: Life in the Fast Lane

Today, I awoke to the news that Professor Sid Watkins had died.




That may, or may not mean anything to you; it depends on whether or not you have knowledge of F1. Without Sid, F1 would not be as safe as it is today, working practices for track side safety would not be as they are.



I am going to try not to mourn his death, but celebrate his life for the 84 year old was a great man who pushed hard for improvements to safety on the track and worked hard at his ‘day job’ at Whitechapel Hospital in London.

No doubt much will be made of his friendship with Ayrton Senna, but I think distracts from his other work.



The Prof, or Sid as he liked to be known, was a neurosurgeon to trade and as such founded the Brain and Spine Foundation to help people with disorders that affected the brain and spine.

He saved the lives of Mikka Hakkinen, Martin Donnelly and Gerhard Berger. Rubens Barricello reckons he owes his life to Sid as well after his monumental crash in 1994, the same weekend that Ratzenberger and Senna died.



Sid’s story goes way back before that though, all the way to Brands Hatch in 1961 where he spent his free time being a trackside doctor. In the early days when he began working with Bernie Ecclestone at formula one, he would often bring his own medical supplies as the ones supplied at the track were few and far between. A far cry from today, I’m sure you’ll agree.

Improvements to safety kicked off in 1978 when Sid couldn’t get to Ronnie Peterson immediately after his crash at Monza because of the police blocking his way. Watkins demanded a medical car, an anaesthetist, a helicopter and better safety equipment, most of which Bernie had in place for the very next race.



I celebrate his life, Sid Watkins, the man who looked after the people who lived and raced in the fast lane, but Ill leave you with a quote from Ron Dennis "Today the world of motor racing lost one of it's true greats," said McLaren chairman and former team principal Ron Dennis, whose cars took Senna to all of his titles, in a statement.

"No he wasn't a driver. No he wasn't an engineer. No, he wasn't a designer. He was a doctor and it's probably fair to say that he did more than anyone, over many years, to make Formula One as safe as it is today.

"Many drivers and ex-drivers owe their lives to his careful and expert work, which resulted in the massive advances in safety levels that today's drivers possibly take for granted."

Says it all really.

(some pictures courtesty of richardsF1.com)

Trapped in a Different Reality

So, there you have it. Larry Wachowski is now Lana Wachowski.




To begin with, my thoughts were ‘yeah, whatever. Big deal, Lana/Larry as long as she is happy does it really matter?’ I didn’t really care, it wasn’t a big deal.

Well, let me quantify that a bit, see, I don’t care what someone looks like on the outside, it’s who the person is inside that matters most. Some are tall, small, stocky, thin, no hair, loads of hair, blue eyes, whatever. You get the picture though, we all look different (except for identical twins/multiple birth kids…obviously) and I think that is a good thing. I’m not going to judge someone on what they look like.

But is it wrong for me to say that I don’t care whether Lana Wachowski used to be Larry or not?

This is the harder bit. I am fully aware that it’s not any of my business; I won’t stop watching Wachowski films because one of them is suddenly a burd not a bloke.

Incidentally, I am aware that the whole gender reassignment thing (program maybe? Does gender reassigning have a special terminology? I don’t know) takes years and is stressful for everyone around the person who actually has the gender changing operation.

I think therefore, that this is not so much a story of Larry waking up one day and wanting to be Lana, but of a person not being happy with who they are and feeling trapped, right up to the point where they can’t handle the situation anymore.

Then, having the courage to do something about it.

It takes a really strong person to stand against the crowd and society’s expectations of you and do you own thing, so I am proud of Lana, even though she won’t particularly give a hoot about what I think. I suppose maybe the feeling of being so very different, then becoming more uncomfortable in your own world and body would help you create the kinds of alternate reality that the Wachowskis have done so successfully.

Where would film making be without the ubiquitous 'Matrix' slowed down in air fight scenes?


Ill keep watching repeats of ‘The Matrix’ and ‘Speed Racer’, Ill even watch ‘Cloud Atlas’ when it is released.


Purely because Lana and Andy Wachowski never do half measures.

(By the way, if you ever do read this Lana, I think your hot pink dreads are AWESOME)

They're Watching. Trust No One

It's the turn of another Armstrong to be in the news now. It's all about Neil this time, not Lance.

Sadly, the man who didn't want to be an icon died today at the age of 82.

Everyone and their dog will be writing a huge obituary for Neil Armstrong about moon walking, NASA, the one step thing and his heart by-pass surgery. But I reckon if you're reading my blog, you're looking for something different.


Ok, Neil Armstrong is way more famous for the small step/giant leap statement that he came out with in 1969 when he went to the moon with some other guys.

I realise that sounds very flippant and unemotional but I wasn't there to experience it. There are many huge world events that I can recall with emotion, wonderment and awe, like the Berlin Wall coming down, Nelson Mandela being released from prison and the wedding of Charles and Diana, (well I was very young and impressionable).

So, without further ado.....

"We have no proof, But if we extrapolate, based on the best information we have available to us, we have to come to the conclusion that ... other life probably exists out there and perhaps in many places." yeah, this comes from the one and only Neil Armstrong.

But why is this quote from 1999 so important?

Quite simply because it's not the only time that anyone from NASA has hinted at coverups regarding aliens. I cannot promise that I won't use any 'X Files' quotes, but I will try not to go all Fox Mulder on you.

The Internet is FULL of conspiracy theories regarding aliens and everything to do with them. There are books, tv series, films and blogs about what has been seen, found, crashed and abducted.

Perhaps the most interesting (that I've found) is from a book by Jon King called 'Cosmic Top Secret'

"Through the crackle and pop of what many believe was a deliberately contrived poor-quality broadcast, Armstrong was heard to say he could see a ‘light’ on the rim of a nearby crater. Mission Control responded with a request for more information, following which the transmission went dead.


For a full two minutes nothing was heard…

Or was it? According to former NASA employee, Otto Binder, who worked on the Apollo program, US radio hams picked up the following conversation, which was alleged to have taken place during the transmission black-out.

Neil Armstrong: ‘What was it? What the hell was it? That’s all I want to know…’

Mission Control: ‘What’s there? … [garbled transmission] … Mission Control calling Apollo Eleven…’

Neil Armstrong: ‘These babies are huge, sir … enormous. Oh, God … you wouldn’t believe it! I’m telling you there are other spacecraft out there, lined up on the far side of the crater edge. They’re on the moon watching us…’

Though NASA has always denied the authenticity of the transmission, former NASA technician, Maurice Chatelain, revealed otherwise.

‘The encounter was common knowledge in NASA,’ he said in 1979. ‘But nobody has talked about it until now.’

Chatelain also confirmed radio communications were interrupted several times during the Apollo 11 mission ‘in order to keep the truth from the public’."

Is it important to point out the author's name is Jon King and not Jo King, and he has written books about a Princess Diana conspiracy theory too?

Maybe not, but you know how I like to share as much information as possible with you.

Seems like Mike Collins may have been the lucky one after all eh? Never mind guys......I'm sure the truth is out there!



http://www.thetruthbehindthescenes.org/aliens-living-among-us/
http://nagfa.blogspot.co.uk/2006/08/hi-welcome-to-ambigrams-by-nagfa-to.html

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