Syd and Gloria

If we had a Prime Minister called Gloria that would surely be a good thing? Gloria surviving 3 attempts to depose her just doesn't seem right to me, why would anyone want to overthrow Glo?
Margaret or Hillary or Harriet or Benazir I can understand but Gloria must be completely beneficent.

For Christmas I was hoping for an extra large T shirt with a huge picture of a smiling Sid James on the front - I saw one up at the dams at Rhayader a few months back and was very impressed. However the success of my bombay bad boy and eggs diet might mean that I do not have the canvass to do the face justice when the time comes. Mixed blessings indeed.

day 21 still drifting west

I am looking forward to being overweight, only another 10lbs to go.
I estimate that on the present diet of Bombay Badboys and eggs I should hit this happy zone in the dietician’s visual aid in 2 weeks time. You may say, “Well whats happy about that?” Well it wouldnt be very happy at all of course if you were moving from left to right.
I do like the way that terms like obese and morbidly obese are replaced by fat and very fat. I heard Alan Carr say the other night "She was so fat they had to cut her out of a hoola hoop"

Physics

The great Richard P. Feynman (1918-1988)

The best of my thinking today

Travis would be a good name for a dog.
I calculate 738 calories in my pork chop dinner.
I would be shocked if the Mccanns turn out not to have done it.

Any old irony

Certain words I find myself looking up in a dictionary 2 or 3 times a year going back years. The definition never quite persuades or sticks.
One of them is ‘irony’. Of course I can label the situation ‘ironic’ when a bus driver gets run over by a bus and know that I am on safe ground, even though he obviously was not. I recognise, but cant connect to the squashed bus driver, dramatic irony but wonder whether a film that lacked dramatic irony at its first outing acquires it when you see the repeat. I see Socratic irony turning up too. What I cant see is what connects these various things what are the necessary and sufficient conditions that hold together the concept of irony?.

Too old for comics

Lately I have been harassed by some comic readers . For some reason Stumblesent me to a comic strip and all I did was ask somebody to explain the joke and mentioned that I had to look up eviscerate in the dictionary. The line I like most in this little encounter is from a comic reader who urges her fellow literati to ‘stop feeding the Troll’ -meaning me I presume. Blow me down if the next thing I read is Icedink writing about eviscerated and headless deer. At least I didnt have to use the dictionary this time.

Can you see what it is yet?

This is a bad picture but I didnt have the nerve or the time to worry about the photography. The curving white line near the top might be a clue.
See Comments for the answer if you have a strong stomach.

I yamwhat I yam

According to Wikipedia “I Am What I Am" is a song originally featured on the Tony-award winning Broadway musical La Cage aux Folles (1983 -1987)’
Alec in Coronation Street I remember saying that if he heard another turn I yamming he would lose his mind.
Normally I fall asleep when the television is on but the other night I drifted into consciousness two thirds through a documentary film which actually woke me up for the rest. ‘Deep Water’about the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race of 1968. I cant think how I missed all this drama back in the 60’s. All fascinating characters but Donald Crowhurst the most interesting of all. In a round the world yacht race he hung about off South America faking with great difficulty his log and then slipped back into the race as the others came round the Horn. Then because the boat in front of him sunk and it would mean him winning the race (for the fastest circumnavigation) he completely lost his mind , wrote a 25,000 word essay, which included the phrase ‘I am what I am’ and jumped overboard.
So among other things I am wondering if he was in fact the first Iyamma or whether there where earlier examples.

The prisoner

Llangoed Hall which is just down the road to us was designed by one Sir Clough Williams-Ellis and by chance this week we visited Port Meirion for which he is much better known. Beautiful situation above the estuarine sands that Patrick McGoohan many times got to before being suffocated by the big white aggressive balloon which pursued him in the Prisoner. Here is a picture of me seated on what is definitely not a themed alfresco toilet but rather a kind of shelter.

Gracious Living

I had to laugh. We were in Llanidloes on our way home from Aberdyfi.
Couldn’t get in to the tea room Ann wanted and so she reluctantly agreed the place I like.
The ‘National Milk Bar’ beautifully stuck in 1960 I’d say.
There were waitresses but we ordered at the counter.
Me ‘Black coffee please’ – Ann ‘have you any earl grey?’
Reply ‘Yes cup or mug?’

Another Chapter

According to the paper Mr McCann said during the interview, "There is absolutely no suggestion that Madeleine and the children were drugged and it is outrageous,"
But I heard this little bit of the interview on GMTV and he actually referred only to Madeleine not being sedated but as soon as he said it he corrected himself to refer to all of the children not being sedated. This would be a totally pointless correction to make except that the Mccanns are relying on showing that the twins were not sedated and that therefore it follows (somehow) that Madeleine was not sedated. This is the same surprisingly cool calculation that has been shown all along. Nobody should be convicted for keeping their cool under fire but then this is not a court of law.

Unecessary signs and unecessary companies

Went to visit Anns Aunt in Bronllys hospital. Excellent place, they even allow the patient’s pets to visit, but under the usual threats of extinction..
Fine location too with the Black Mountains close by.
Unfortunately they too seem to be getting the taste for unnecessary signs, here is one requesting the car driver not to drive his car through the flower bed. I am so glad that I saw it in time and was able to avoid tearing up a strip right down the middle.

Earlier today I wanted to get some chocolate for diabetics and knowing that the loathsome Boots advertise a full range of such products I called in despite having vowed never to go near them again since they wouldn’t let me have a packet of Aspro Clear without unwanted advice from their pharmacist. When I got to the head of the queue I asked, without hope, if they had any chocolate for diabetics.
She looked rather shifty and said “We don’t sell it the Welsh Diabetic Association has said….” I interrupted her sermon with “So you haven’t got any then?”
The sooner Boots goes down the pan the better.

Alive & well and selling towels in the Cotswolds

Moreton in Marsh market week before last. This fellow was selling Egyptian cotton towels and Ann was very impressed with the quality. He had a good line in patter too. He said to the crowd that had gathered "Some people think that I look like somebody famous. Any ideas?" An uninhibited lady at the front gave the required answer "Bin Laden?" He looked startled and hurt and replied in puzzled tone "No, George Bush"

Its the way he tells them

I have just this minute returned from a funeral in the village, the deceased was an ex publican of the same turn of mind as myself. His death followed very quickly after the initial diagnosis of his illness and was a shock to everyone.
The first hymn was ‘Abide with me’ and was followed by the 23rd Psalm.
The Vicar then came to the pulpit and began in solemn voice the eulogy.
“ We are gathered here to celebrate the life of a miserable old bugger……”
You could almost hear the deceased laughing – that’s what I call vicaring.

Augustus Hare

Yesterday as I sat in the waiting room of Abergavenny hospital waiting to visit somebody I read the preamble to a book by AC Grayling called ' What is Good?’.
He made mention of Augustus Hare and how Hare’s bible had all references to praising God scratched out . Hare’s position was that since God was undoubtedly a gentleman he would not approve of all this praising business and I must admit that point has troubled me too.

What I did in the holidays – Chapter 1

I thought we would go away for a few days – 4 in all.
I thought we would travel across country over two days to the east coast and then return.
I got a map and picked out an area that was a couple of hours away for the first stop and plunged a pin into the chunk coloured green which showed no large settlements of humans. The nearest place to the pin was Shipston on Stour of which I had never heard. On the internet I found The White Bear and the price looked very good for that area £86 for bed breakfast and an evening meal off of the full menu. So that’s £43 each per night. I then noticed that it was close to other tourist places like Stratford and the Cotswolds villages and so idleness crept over me and after a very cursory look at Trip Adviser I booked for the 4 days.
I immediately liked it. It was an ancient pub, obviously much used by the locals. The carpet in the bar had countless holes in it where ‘generations’ of smokers had stubbed their cigarettes before being ousted to the ‘designated smoking area' by the PC . It really is scandalous the way that non-smokers have muscled their way into these institutions and dumbed them down. Its like Mary Whitehouse being appointed to run a brothel.
Me I haven’t smoked since the lung operation about 5 years ago but even so I have not joined the ranks of the self righteous, that carpet to me was a thing of beauty.
Ann visibly flinched when she saw it and I thought, ‘ there could be trouble here’. The room they showed us I admit was grotty , there was nowhere to sit down and it was up in the attic and didn’t have a shower. I didn’t mind any of this but Ann was not happy and fixed to see the manageress as soon as she came on duty at 7pm.
I did notice that the light pull in the bathroom was missing the end toggle and the chord was excessively dirty and tapered at the bottom end like some wetted thread before you pass it through the eye of the needle. This shows that I am not a complete philistine because even I felt some disquiet.
Here is a picture of Ann ringing her mother while waiting for the arrival of the manageress.

Another let down

Had a good visitor to my blog today from Serbia & Montenegro – but he didn’t stay long.
He got their via Google search engine which threw up my blog as likely to be of interest to him.
On one page I described how a couple of medics had attended my wifes uncle, taken ill in Church and said to him “Obviously you didn’t pray loud enough” to which the Vicar interjected at once “What do you mean – he’s alive isn’t he?”
Also on the same page was my collection of interesting names including one ‘Nigel Titt’. Somewhere else on the page the adjective big .
The curious Serb was seeking more information and what he had typed into the Google search was Big Titt Medics.
I am a constant source of disappointment to people.

redistribution of wealth

Just read the following.

‘The current position is that , if you own a (holiday) property abroad through a company but it is available for your own use it should be taxed on you as benefit in kind. This side effect of legislation was never intended ………… New draft legislation is now out for comment removing this tax charge…….’

The 'current position' seems perfectly logical to me but the 'never intended' 'side effect' is obviously affecting the net income of the politicians and their cronies who set the rule up in the first place. No I dont suppose they did intend it.

Smoking bible

The smoking bible clue is a valid one.

Samuel II, chapter 12, verses 15-21 is interesting.

5And Nathan departed unto his house. And the LORD struck the child that Uriah's wife bare unto David, and it was very sick.

16David therefore besought God for the child; and David fasted, and went in, and lay all night upon the earth.

17And the elders of his house arose, and went to him, to raise him up from the earth: but he would not, neither did he eat bread with them.

18And it came to pass on the seventh day, that the child died. And the servants of David feared to tell him that the child was dead: for they said, Behold, while the child was yet alive, we spake unto him, and he would not hearken unto our voice: how will he then vex himself, if we tell him that the child is dead?

19But when David saw that his servants whispered, David perceived that the child was dead: therefore David said unto his servants, Is the child dead? And they said, He is dead.

20Then David arose from the earth, and washed, and anointed himself, and changed his apparel, and came into the house of the LORD, and worshipped: then he came to his own house; and when he required, they set bread before him, and he did eat.

21Then said his servants unto him, What thing is this that thou hast done? thou didst fast and weep for the child, while it was alive; but when the child was dead, thou didst rise and eat bread.

22And he said, While the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept: for I said, Who can tell whether GOD will be gracious to me, that the child may live?

23But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me.

The bit that interests me is in bold.

Doctors who are not Christian still live by some moral code (one hopes) and the most reasonable one and likely one is the idea that one should act in order to maximise the good. A consequence of this is that if to ‘cover up’ an error leads to an increase in the ‘good’ then one is morally obliged to cover up the error. From a utilitarian point of view then the medical profession should be continually ‘covering up’.
But if you are a Christian , which I assume means that you feel obliged to act in the way that Christ would act then you would instinctively know that to ‘cover up’ was wrong and you might feel inclined to seek out some textual justification for what you are about to undertake.
So it could be that there is a culture of utilitarianism and a culture of Christianity and the text links the two.

Disposing of mental Junk

(Have a look at the clips wine tasting)

I am hoping to keep out from my head permanently the names, faces doings and sayings of all members of the present government. At the moment I remember, always with a start, that Brown is the Prime minister. I am confident though that I can unlearn this fact before he becomes truly embedded. I know there is some woman who is the Home Secretary but what her name is and what she looks like and what she thinks and what she does I am proud to say that I have already forgotten. That fellow Darling might prove a tougher problem solely because of his name which is by far the most important thing about him – I will have no trouble with what he says and does it is easily forgettable.
In the 1960’s there was that judge who famously enquired during a trial “Who are the Beatles ?” It was generally assumed that this was an affectation on his part. However I now see that it almost certainly wasn’t. I am pleased to genuinely fail to recognise nearly all celebrities, all footballers other than the unavoidable Beckham and all pop singers. I am now turning my active inattention to the government and anticipate no problems.