A new year, a new way of life

The Royal bank of Scotland have lost 24 billion pounds, which means 20 thousand people will lose their jobs, and the man who lead the bank to this? Well he’s getting 650 thousand pounds a year pension!

Doesn’t it just make you want to scream?

~~~

Warning
by Jenny Joseph

When I am an old woman I shall wear purple
With a red hat which doesn’t go, and doesn’t suit me.
And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves
And satin sandals, and say we’ve no money for butter.
I shall sit down on the pavement when I’m tired
And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells
And run my stick along the public railings
And make up for the sobriety of my youth.
I shall go out in my slippers in the rain
And pick flowers in other people’s gardens
And learn to spit.

You can wear terrible shirts and grow more fat
And eat three pounds of sausages at a go
Or only bread and pickle for a week
And hoard pens and pencils and beermats and things in boxes.

But now we must have clothes that keep us dry
And pay our rent and not swear in the street
And set a good example for the children.
We must have friends to dinner and read the papers.

But maybe I ought to practice a little now?
So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised
When suddenly I am old, and start to wear purple.

Be Happy

It’s that time of the week, so lets all play along with Carmi.

This week it’s winter lovely

I took this last year at Baggeridge Park, a place I love to walk. We got up on a Sunday morning to find it white over and couldn’t wait to get out… and here’s another

Be Happy

— LITTLE BOY ASKS HIS DAD WHERE POO COMES FROM? DAD EXPLAINS THAT FOOD PASSED DOWN THE OESOPHAGUS TO THE STOMACH WHERE DIGESTIVE ENZYMES INDUCE A PROBIOTIC REACTION IN THE ALIMENTARY CANAL TO EXTRACT PROTEIN BEFORE WASTE PRODUCTS DESCEND VIA THE COLON AND RECTUM TO EMERGE AS POO.
“WOW” SAYS LITTLE BOY, AND WHAT ABOUT TIGGER?

Be Happy

On the news this morning a story about a 71 year old pensioner in Ormskirk who has been fined for using his roller blades in a shopping centre. He was fined and charged costs of £1.800, and what I can make out from the report it was other pensioners that complained about him. ‘Me thinks they are jealous’ and how come young people get away with it?
Now why doesn’t someone find this mad a nice piece of land give him a grant and let him teach the kids how to skate, he would be happy because he could skate and it would give the kids something to do. Every body happy.

This morning I have made a couple of jars of sweet chilli and pepper chutney, (it don’t half burn if you drop it on yourself) ha ha. I am going to have some for my dinner

Be happy

Sea Fever
by John Masefield

I must go down to the sea again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by;
And the wheel’s kick and the wind’s song and the white sail’s shaking,
And a grey mist on the sea’s face, and a grey dawn breaking.

I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide
Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;
All I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,
And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the seagulls crying.

I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,
To the gull’s way and the whale’s way, where the wind’s like a whetted knife;
And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,
And a quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trip’s over.

Be Happy

How Many

How many roads must a man walk down
before they call him a man?
How many seas must a white dove sail
before she sleeps in the sand?
How many times must the canon balls fly
before they’re forever banned?

The answer, my friend,
is blowin’ in the wind
The answer is blowin’ in the wind.

How many years must a mountain exist
before it is washed to the sea?
How many years can some people exist
before they’re allowed to be free?
How many times can a man turn his head
and pretend that he just doesn’t see?

The answer, my friend,
is blowin’ in the wind
The answer is blowin’ in the wind.

How many times must a man look up
before he can see the sky?
How many ears must one man have
before he can hear people cry?
How many deaths will it take till he knows
that too many people have died?

The answer, my friend,
is blowin’ in the wind
The answer is blowin’ in the wind.

The answer is blowin’ in the wind.

Bob Dylan

Be Happy

How many pancakes did you eat today? Happy pancake day

Another weekend gone, where is the year going?

On Saturday we went to an 80th birthday bash, all ballroom dancing, those ‘old uns’ can’t half move! No I didn’t dance, I used to be able to waltz and cha-cha char and I do a mean Gay Gordon’s, it’s been too long and they were all so good.

Sunday it was back to Baggeridge to walk the ridge walk, well part of it. A lot of the walk is along road and I hate road walking. I like to walk to get away from cars, fumes and crowds. So we did the first part of the walk, cut back into Baggeridge and on to Himley, but I am getting in front of myself here.

On top of the ridge was very windy, to the point that you couldn’t stand still, (it was like walking the coastal path at Dale). Then it stopped, in one of those strange natural moments, take one step back and you were being buffeted about by the wind, one step forwards and nothing but calm. The trail we then followed took us through a little woodland with farming land on one side and the backend of Himley on the other. Although not as windy down here there was still enough wind to make the trees creak. We made friends with this little fellow, an’t they cheeky. I took the lid of the seed and make tut-tut sounds and he flew straight down.

dinner time

Eventual we were back in Baggeridge Park and walked into Himley. We didn’t go down to the pond last week so we went and had a look; it’s very pretty and a lot bigger than it looks from the top of the hill. We headed back taking another trail we hadn’t walked before through some very old trees and back into Baggeridge. Last week the small river was full and running so we decide to walk along it, after getting down to the river we found it had dried up, in just one week! Not wanting to go back on ourselves we continued along the edge of what was a river, climbed over a few fallen trees and came out at a pool we had never seen before. We must have walked around that pool a million times and never knew it was there.

Himley pond

We were quite surprises to find we had been walking 3 hours it hadn’t felt that long.

I am so excited Tim Burton is doing a new flim, he’s doing Alice in wonder land and it’s due out next year.

Be Happy

The following was found posted very low on a refrigerator door.

Dear Dogs and Cats:

The dishes with the paw prints are yours and contain your food. The other dishes are mine and contain my food. Placing a paw print in the middle of my plate and food does not stake a claim for it becoming your food and dish, nor do I find that aesthetically pleasing in the slightest.

The stairway was not designed by NASCAR and is not a racetrack. Racing me to the bottom is not the object. Tripping me doesn’t help because I fall faster than you can run.

I cannot buy anything bigger than a king sized bed. I am very sorry about this. Do not think I will continue sleeping on the couch to ensure your comfort, however. Dogs and cats can actually curl up in a ball when they sleep. It is not necessary to sleep perpendicular to each other, stretched out to the fullest extent possible. I also know that sticking tails straight out and having tongues hanging out on the other end to maximize space is nothing but sarcasm.

For the last time, there is no secret exit from the bathroom! If, by some miracle, I beat you there and manage to get the door shut, it is not necessary to claw, whine, meow, try to turn the knob or get your paw under the edge in an attempt to open the door. I must exit through the same door I entered. Also, I have been using the bathroom for years – canine/feline attendance is not required.

The proper order for kissing is: Kiss me first, then go smell the other dog or cat’s butt. I cannot stress this enough.

Be Happy

I took a walk into town yesterday and saw a new shop due to open so when I got home I rang the job centre and after listening to a recorded message telling me that depending on where I was ringing from would depend on how much the call would cost, (well get a move on then I thought), I was asked to ‘press any key’ only to be put through to another machine which asked do I want to claim benefit or seek a job, so I pressed 2. Then began the trip into the twilight zone. After giving my details and explaining that I had seen the store and just wanted to know if they held the application forms. It then went like this

Jc. Do you claim benefit?

Me. No

Jc. What is the code number for the job?

Me I don’t know, I just saw the shop with a notice in the window.

Jc. How do you know there are jobs?

Me. I don’t, that’s why I am ringing you to see if there is.

Jc. Where is it?

I gave the address.

Jc. What is your post code?

I told them

Jc. Is this shop close to you?

Me. It’s a 4 to 5 minute walk.

Jc. Is it in over 5 miles away?

Me. No it’s just up the road from where I live.

Jc. Have they told you to contact us?

Me. No I walked past and saw the coming soon sign and thought I would ring you to see if you were holding the application forms.

Jc. No we are not, I will give you the number of another store, try them.

I did try the number and couldn’t get a reply. Is it just me? How do you find a job?

Your Soul is Searching

You are a wanderer. You constantly long for a new adventure, challenge, or eve a completely different life.You are not a very grounded person. You prefer dreams to reality. For you, it’s all about possibilities.You see yourself with pretty objective eyes. How you view yourself is almost exactly how other people view you.Your near future is a lot like the present, and as far as you’re concerned, that’s a very good thing. For you, love is all about caring and comfort. You couldn’t fall in love with someone you didn’t trust.

Be Happy

Yesterday I finished taking the inside wall of the pond out, refilled it with water and sat looking for bubbles, not a bubble in sight. It’s leaking from somewhere but I’ll be dammed if I can find it! We really have to get it sorted soon, the frogs are becoming very amorous!

Would you want to live for ever? That was a question on a chat show I was listening too while cleaning up yesterday. Well yes I would but only if I had my health and could look after myself. But thinking about it, it would have to be a very different world. There could be no more babies, and what would happen if we ran out of food and water? The only thing that bothers me about dieing is what I will miss when I am gone; I hate the thought of missing anything!

Come to Oz This is so funny.

And last nights ‘Jamie’ tea was this yummy pie

cottage pie with vegetables

Be Happy