One Day Match - Sydney

Well done to the boys. Finally we win a cricket match. And we win it convincingly. It does beg the question, how come we couldn't do this before but even so, excelent result. Considering that 24 hours ago everyone thought that rain was the best we could hope for, this has to be a turn around of immense proportions. The majority of the honours fell to one person, joyce, and the rest still didn't score particularly well but this can't be ignored. Congratulations.

Democracy in Inaction

Dear old Tony was interviewed today about the cash for honours saga. He said that he was not going to leave now because it would be undemocratic! I am sorry but is he still in contact with this world. When the majority of the people do not want our army in a country where the majority of soldiers do not want to fight and the majority of nationals do not want us, where is democracy.

Caught

I was in London for the launch of a strangles awareness campaign to be run by the Animal Health Trust and the British Horse Society. I am interested in anything that promotes the welfare aspects of this disease. While I was in practice I was lucky enough to only ever deal with one outbreak but my own horse was on a yard that got strangles. This is a horrible disease. So I have a long standing desire to fight this disease, and the fact we have a vaccine for it just helps my interest.

Normally I would keep quiet when I go along to a meeting organised by someone else. I don't think it ever looks good in someone elses meeting to speak out, it can just look commercial. So I am keeping my head down, very interested in what is being said, learning a lot. Then a question from the floor and it involves our vaccine. So the next thing I know is my name is being mentioned and someone is saying that maybe I would like reply. That really makes it rather difficult to keep my head down. For a moment I think it may pass, but now everyone is looking at me. Can I look busy writing, maybe they will think I am not there. But no, I happen to be sat right in the middle of the lecture theatre. Maybe if I drop my pen then they will move on. Hmm, maybe that wouldn't look too professional. people either side so I can't pretend that I suddenly have to go. To answer is both unavoidable and inevitable. Afterwards someone says "you must have expected that question" and, to be honest, I really didn't!

{No pictures because any picture of strangles is going to be a bit gory}

Benidorm

I have just watched Benidorm. I thought I would watch it as the reviews were good and it has a named cast. I actually thought I wouldn't like it but I reckoned it would be the next big hit and I at least wanted to know about it. Well, I was right. I didn't like it and I reckon it will be a hit. It is all the things that Jam and Jerusalem was not. It ridicules people, not the situation. It is cruel, not sympathetic. It is sour, not kind. It is superficial, not deep. You can guess I won't be watching it again, in the same way as I would never watch Eastenders, and I fully expect to hear people tell me I am missing something but, you know what, I will be happier for missing it.

The Good, The Bad

Down in London again. Yes, that's right, I did have a day off today, but I have come down to London for a meeting tomorrow. Seemed better than fighting the rush hour. Anyway, to the point. The good news is that the hotel had a room for me tonight (different hotel, Radisson Berkshire). After last week I really didn't want a repeat saga. Further good news (or at least so it appeared) is that I have been upgraded. I do like being upgraded (although still waiting for it to happen on a plane). Silly though it is, I get a "I am special" rush when I hear the words "we are upgrading you". And yes, I do realise it just means they had a room spare but that isn't the point. Whoops, digressing. Anyway, good news turns into bad news. I appear to have the room next to the lift shaft (what do I mean appear to, I DO have the room next to the lift shaft). And it is a very noisy lift. I have a feeling it might be a very long night, and I can't drink myself into oblivion as I have a meeting in the morning.

Ship called Dignity

{Actually no ship at all but I wondered how many would get the reference}

Anyway, while at the spa I had a thought. If it is only me who this is true of then I am going to be embarrassed but if everyone gets it then I think this is a wonderful piece of psychology.

So there I was wandering around in my speedos (sorry for that mental image but it is a necessary part of the tale), and I realised that I didn't mind all these strangers seeing me, and I wouldn't mind if it was friends who were there, but if it was people I knew and saw regularly, for instance work colleagues (and before I upset anyone, obviously some work colleagues are friends as well), then I would be mortified.

And I have a theory about this, it all comes down to dignity. Friends should know you well enough that dignity is not an issue. With people who you will never see again you don't need any dignity. But acquaintances are different and dignity becomes very important, it is a vital piece in the chess of life and loosing it can quickly lead to check mate.

Phone off

A nice day off at the spa. Not sure about the dry floatation experience, nothing wrong with it but neither did it do anything for me so I think I will give that one a miss in the future. The body massage was good, just managed to avoid falling asleep. And I managed to not think about work most of the time, (although I did allow a bit of blue sky thinking to creep in, I think that is allowed, dreaming up new schemes is fun), what I wanted to avoid was worrying about things that are happening and considering the next few days this was really an achievement. One of my favourite rooms is the sanarium, not quite as hot as the sauna but it has sounds of birds and running water, it's like being in a rainforest without the leeches. And some people will be pleased to know that they were playing Snow Patrol in the restaurant at lunch time.

The Best Days ...

This morning I heard an interview on "Today" with Alison Wolf. I haven't quite worked out who Alison Wolf is (possibly a Professor of the Public Sector Management but that doesn't sound like a real job), but they were talking about education and leaving ages. In defence of NOT having leaving ages she said that she believed that "people know when they can get the most out of education".

Well she is a expert so I don't want to be controversial but WHAT RUBBISH! Some children are lucky and know what they will want to do, they have a vocation. But for many they have no idea. And if you don't have something to aim for then it is hard to see the value of school, after all it is simply stopping you getting out and experiencing the world. I don't agree with trying to make everyone go to university but we do have to make sure that our children are able to give their best and are educated to their potential. Sadly to reach our potential we do have to be forced to do things we don't want to.

Rant

Although let down by Dog Collar it is fair to say my other friends and I have had a few rants lately. Well, I feel a need to keep them coming.

So it is a little while since I posted that our conservatory was complete. In fact, you would notice in the same post that I mentioned that my daughter might have been a bit distracting. It would seem she was. We have a list of "snags", eg a scratch on the glass, a scratch on the window frame, a lack of skirting board (originally there was no plan to have skirting but, and this is really weird, although the floor is level and the window cills are level there is an ever widening gap between floor and damp course as you look around the wall of the conservatory), a lack of door fills etc.

I saw these at the time. I withheld £1000 of the final payment. I kind of thought that would be an incentive for them. Well, somewhat surprisingly, £1000 doesn't seem to be enough.

After weeks of phone calls we finally got them to come around last Saturday. But they only brought the window, nothing else. To be honest I just told them to go away again. Is it unreasonable to want it all done at once? I don't want to spend my life, or "J"s life, waiting for builders to come and fix things bit by bit.

We may have come to an impasse. They don't seem bothered about loosing £1k. Whereas I am quite happy to have £1k more in the bank than I expected. We have given up on the window frame being fixed, as apparently they have to take the entire roof off (and why did they fit it in the first place with a big scratch), and I could probably do the skirting myself. So I don't have the fight in me that I need to get this done.

One Day Match - Perth

Well, to accentuate the positive, we did score over 150 runs, I thought that was our current limit. In fact 260 isn't a bad score. Just a pity the kiwis scored 318! The fact that the kiwis are able to talk about being disappointed at not get a bonus point indicates how low we have sunk. And in a month we are off to the world cup. This really could get emarrassing. Pictured is a beautiful shot by Jacob Oram.

Worth mentioning is an after match quote from Andrew Flintoff - "We're still in it" he says. Sorry, did he get a blow to the head?

Adoption

There are times when you have to think that the church doesn't want to be popular. I can't understand the position against adoption by gay couples. All they want to do is adopt a child, a child who needs a home. Gays are not deviants. They do not want the children in order to perform dark rites. Ah, I've got it, maybe it is a subversive method to increase their numbers, give them children and they will make them gay. Did you know there are gay animals? Some bulls can only be used for semen collection if you show them another bull. This is not unnatural, it is just the way some people are, and they have the same rights as anyone and everyone else.

Washing Clean

Shower,
Water cascading,
Filling ears,
Drowning
All sound.
Water blending
To hide
The tears.
A cocoon
Running down my sides.
Sluicing blood,
Pain spiralling
To open sewars.

In Memoriam - David Rattray

I have just learned of the murder of David Rattray. I am shocked. My parents were lucky enough to be able to count him as a friend, I have just met him the once. This man was someone who was special. He had an immense respect for his fellow man, and an ability to recognise the best in each one. He worked hard for South Africa and for its people. He was active in fighting apartheid.

To hear him talk on the Zulu wars was to experience a life changing event. I saw him at the Royal Geographical Society last year, and at 1900hrs at night in a packed lecture hall he could make you believe that you were at Rorkes Drift. David knew the Zulu wars. He knew them as no-one else did. He knew them because he grew up being told the stories by some of the warriors who were there. He knew them because he cared for all those who lost their lives, no matter the colour of their skin. He knew more than just the big events, he could tell you who was more interested in finding a rare beetle than firing his gun, how a boy led his injured pony back to camp, how a trading post became the scene of a story where more VCs were won in one day than any other battle. It was in his bones and his life-blood. Get hold of "The Day of the Dead Moon", his guide to the Zulu war. Listen to it. As you hear of how brave men on both sides lost their lives I defy you not to have tears in your eyes.

I am proud to have shaken this mans hand. A man who had time for everyone. I am saddened that others will never have the chance because of a mindless act of violence. Whether it was assassination or botched robbery probably matters little. I only met him the once, but I have tears in my eyes as I write this.

One Day Match - Adelaide

You may be thinking I have failed to report on a match. Well, as far as I am concerned, there was no match. Some guys went out and knocked a cricket ball about a bit, but nothing that could have been described as a match occurred.

Masonic Myths

1) Masons want to take over the world - actually we are too busy getting on with our lives. Being a megalomaniac is a tiring business, and if we took over the world then someone would expect us to run it.

2) We harbour murderers - actually we take an oath to uphold the law of the country above all else.

3) We are taught how to pass our driving licence to policemen so as to be let off the offence - will someone please tell me how to do this one, I would love to know (not that I speed obviously).

4) We give preferential treatment to masons - to be honest there probably are some masons who would do this, but then the same thing happens in golf clubs, between gym buddies etc. Humans empathise with others who like the same things as we do. However, this is not compulsory, just a fact of life, and I have never treated a mason differently to a non-mason.

5) A mason must never contradict a brother - I can't even begin to imagine a world where I have to agree with what other people think.

6) Tony Blair is a freemason - not sure if this is a myth but I hope it is (see 5).

7) We have a goat in the lodge - a frequent wind up of initiates who do not know what to expect during their first ceremony. But nothing more than a joke.

Dreamboy

What Your Dreams Mean...

Your dreams seem to show that you're a bit disturbed... but nothing serious. You may have a problem you're trying to work out in your sleep. Overall, you are very content in your life. Your dreams tend to reflect your insecurities. You have a very vivid imagination and a rich creative mind.

What Do Your Dreams Mean?

The NHS

The health service strugggles. It will always take more money because medicine is advancing. Does this mean a line should be drawn?

A free health service is essential. But can everything be free?

Should the operating principle be the greater good. Is it right to spend a phenomenal amount on one person when the same money could treat hundreds?

There will always be one more treatment, there will always be one more operation, one more life that can be saved. That is the nature of the beast.

The only person who can make the decision is the one with nothing to gain. Politicians should not be allowed to choose because they are after more votes. The people who are ill, and their families, cannot choose because they will (rightly) always want the most expensive and best option. Find the man (or woman) with no motives and let them decide.

Oh Bother

A number of my friends have seen which level of Dantes hell they would be sent to (liz, Squeak, Sally, C). I have taken a detour in order to see how I do with the deadly sins. I think I am not a good person. {I actually did not publish my place in Dantes Hell but suffice to say there is a lot of wind and I share the level with Helen of Troy and Cleopatra (which may make it worth while considering why we are there)}.

Greed:	High
Gluttony:	Medium
Wrath:	High
Sloth:	Medium
Envy:	Medium
Lust:	Very High
Pride:	High

Discover Your Sins - Click Here

Not Waving

You made me believe
I could walk
On water
So I went to the sea
To drown

Back to London

I have just realised that I didn't tell you why I went to London yesterday. I had a meeting at the EMEA offices. They are based at Canary Wharf (which seems strange for a European group, kind of expect them to be in Brussels). We had a pharmacovigilance meeting to attend. Fascinating. I am always amazed by people who can not only remember rules but also quote the relevant article without any references in front of them. I couldn't do history at school because I couldn't remember dates, I didn't pass psychology because I couldn't remember who wrote what (I could remember the important bits about what it meant but not who first thought of it, in itself there is probably some psychology in that). So for someone to say "according to article 45 ..." stuns me. And the set up of the meeting room. You have seen pictures of meetings in the EU. It was just like that. Little signs saying "United Kingdom", "Espana, Spain", "Polska, Poland", "Deutschland, Germany" etc with the representatives sitting behind. I loved it, great day.