Below are actual insurance claim form gaffes. These are the collection made by Norwich Union for their annual Christmas mag-

"I started to slow down but the traffic was more stationary than I thought."

"I pulled into a lay-by with smoke coming from under the bonnet. I realised the car was on fire so took my dog and smothered it with a blanket."

Q: Could either driver have done anything to avoid the accident?
A: Traveled by bus?

A Norwich Union customer collided with a cow. The questions and answers on the claim form were:
Q - What warning was given by you?
A - Horn
Q - What warning was given by the other party?
A - Moo

"On the M6 I moved from the centre lane to the fast lane but the other car didn't give way."

"Three men approached me from the minibus. I thought they were coming to apologise. Two of the men grabbed hold of me by the arms, and the first slapped me several times across the face. I Knee'd the man in the groin, but didn't connect properly, so I kicked him in the shin."

"I was going at about 70 or 80 mph when my girlfriend on the pillion reached over and grabbed my testicles so I lost control."

"I didn't think the speed limit applied after midnight"

Q: Do you engage in motorcycling, hunting or any other pastimes of a hazardous nature?
A: I Watch the Lottery Show and listen to Terry Wogan.

"First car stopped suddenly, second car hit first car and a haggis ran into the rear of second car."

"Windscreen broken. Cause unknown. Probably Voodoo."

"The car in front hit the pedestrian but he got up so I hit him again"

"I had been driving for 40 years when I fell asleep at the wheel and had an accident."

"I pulled away from the side of the road, glanced at my mother-in- law and headed over the embankment."

"Coming home, I drove into the wrong house and collided with a tree I don't have."

"I thought my window was down, but I found out it wasn't when I put my head through it".

"A pedestrian hit me and went under my car".

"In an attempt to kill a fly, I drove into a telephone pole."

"I was on my way to the doctor with rear end trouble when my universal joint gave way causing me to have an accident."

"To avoid hitting the bumper of the car in front I struck the pedestrian."

"My car was legally parked as it backed into the other vehicle."

"An invisible car came out of nowhere, struck my car and vanished."

"I am sure the old fellow would never make it to the other side of the road when I struck him."

"The pedestrian had no idea which way to run, so I ran over him.

"I was thrown from the car as it left the road. I was later found in a ditch by some stray cows."

-Jokefile

1] What colour is the most attention-getting?
Black
Yellow
Red

2] Villains usually wear what powerful colour?
Black
Red
Blue

3] What is the colour of royalty?
White
Purple
Green

4] People lose their tempers most often in rooms of what colour?
Black
Yellow
Pink

5] Hospital rooms are often painted in what relaxing colour?
Pink
White
Green

6] In ancient Rome, public servants wore clothes of what colour?
Blue
Brown
Red

7] What solid, reliable colour implies genuineness?
Green
Brown
Black

8] What colour can cause people to lose energy?
Green
Blue
Pink

9] While brides in the West wear white, traditional Chinese brides usually wear what colour?
Red
Beige
Green

10] What is the least appetizing colour?
Black
Yellow
Blue

Colour: sand
Music: Kamran & Hooman :: 20 :: Man Toro Mikham
Shakila :: Magic Of Silence :: Shahe'E Mani

Things you do not want to hear during surgery.
1. Better save that. We'll need it for the autopsy.
2. Someone call the janitor. We are going to need a mop.
3. Accept this sacrifice, O great god of the Volcano.
4. Ola! Ola! Come back with that! Bad dog!
5. Wait a sec, if this is his spleen, then what's that?
6. Oops! Hey, has anyone ever survived 500ml of this stuff before?
7. Sterile, shcmerile. The floor's clean, right?
8. OK, now take an XRAY from this angle. This is truly a freak of nature.
9. And now we remove the subject's brain and place it in the body of the ape.
10. Could you stop that thing from beating? It's throwing my concentration off.

xxx
If a person with multiple personalities threatens
suicide, is that considered a hostage situation?
xxx

I've booked my trip to Germany, for health reasons, I will check into a spa town, and seek solace in the pine forests, fresh spring water, healthy, clean and cold air, and the all important back massage, radiating a whole host of methods which they will use upon my broken spine. Ranging from hot crystals, to eucalyptus ointments, intensely hard massage, and other methods of brutality which work wonders. (Yes, a HEALTH spa!)
It'll last all of four days, only, and I will stay with relatives, but yesterday, returning to English matters, was a 20 minute examinaton of my spinal problems, can you believe since January, they still sought confirmation of my diagnosis...so there I was, along with a dozen other suffering souls, all of us just waiting, waiting, waiting...three hours in total, for a humiliating examination to see if earlier diagnoses were correct...one left in tears, another with crutches gave an enormous sarcastic sigh, a girl hurtled out at the completion of her appointment, and mine was the last of the day.

The result of this will be in 7 weeks...WEEKS! And the MRI waiting list, which I thought was 7 months...any guesses how long??
18 months!!
Yes, eighteen months, I thought it a mistake, but no, this is the revised estimate, as of yesterday.

When people say merde stinks, they are right.

No matter, chin-up, and I shall stay supremely positive I hope.

It is no mere coincidence that the mind, lies above all else in the human body. At least most of the time.

Bye bye.

~~~

Positivity must rise above the immense quagmire of negativity which continually holds us back, threatens our energy, heaves at our emotions, and is generally a ruinous brute...if we allow it to be...and ONLY if we allow that!

Colour: Black and grey with a hint of orange
Music: Faithless: Sunday 8pm
Royksopp: The Understanding
Listening to, "Saturday Night Fry" a recording from 1988 and very, very funny.

The season has been so serene in general, that I think the equinoctial tempests like the squadrons, have passed the autumn in harbour and that they will all come forth together.
-Walpole, October 31st, 1779

Something mysterious is formed, born in the silent void. Waiting alone and unmoving, it is at once still and yet in constant motion. It is the source of all forecasting knowledge. It has no name, so we call it the Tao.

1 If the chart is seen, the surface form is seen.
If the Tao is seen, then the underlying form is seen.
Then there is truly harmony.

2 The foolish forecaster is told about Tao and laughs at it.
The average forecaster is told about Tao and searches for it.
The wise forecaster is told about Tao and follows it.

3 A novice asked the Master Forecaster: "Sometimes my forecast verifies, and other times it doesn't. I have followed the model guidance, yet I am totally baffled. What is the reason for this?"
The Master replied: "You are confused because you do not understand Tao. Only a fool expects rational behavior from the atmosphere. Why do you expect this from a machine that humans have constructed? Computers simulate determinism; yet Tao arises from chaos. Therefore, you must contemplate Tao before you can use numerical models. Only then will you receive Enlightenment."
"But how will I know when I have received Enlightenment?" asked the novice.
"Your forecasts will be perfect," replied the Master.

4 There once was a Master Forecaster who consulted computer models in detail. Often he shook his head mightily and cried out in disgust. Often he tapped the chart in silent approval.
The Novice, seeking to imitate him, also began to consult computer models, either crying out or tapping the chart in approval.
When Novice asked the Master to evaluate his progress, the Master criticized him: "What is appropriate for the Master is not appropriate for the novice. You must understand Tao before transcending beyond the real atmosphere."

5 Taking a break from his forecast, the Student Forecaster said: "Master, what is Enlightenment?"
Said Master Forecaster: "Enlightenment is complete attention on reality itself, instead of focusing on our intellectual and emotional reactions to reality. Reality is the ever-changing, ever-growing, indefinable something known as the atmosphere."
The Student held up the 500 millibar chart: "But how does that help me with this?"
The Master said: "Ignorance is seeing the lines and marks on the chart, and forecasting from that. But Enlightenment is using the lines and marks to see the atmosphere lying underneath."
Feeling the humid breeze which wafted through the open door of the forecast office, Student and Master meditated on this.

6 Said the Student: "Show me the way to Enlightenment."
The Master dug through a pile of weather charts and pulled out a satellite photo. "Do you see this?"
"Yes."
"Enter here."

7 "All this Enlightenment stuff is nonsense," said the Bureaucrat.
"You are perfectly correct," responded the Master Forecaster. "But this is a teaching I normally reserve for only my most advanced students."

8 Master and Student stood outside the forecast office, admiring a beautiful mammatus display underneath a thunderstorm anvil.
Said Student: "Is there anything more miraculous than the wonders of nature?"
Said Master: "Yes. Your appreciation of those wonders."

9 Said the Master: "When Student depends on numerical models, it is like chasing his own shadow. It makes Student healthy, fit, and enthusiastic, yet all the time he is running away from the sun."

10 A renowned Professor once visited the Master to learn about Enlightenment. "Let us see the weather patterns," said the Professor.
The Master sat at his weather analysis computer, began with a blank weather chart, and pulled up hundreds of transparent overlays, turning the map into a chaotic sea of green. The Professor cried for him to clear the screen and start again.
Said the Master: "The screen is full of weather maps and can hold no more. In the same way your mind is full of ideas and there is no room for my teachings, unless you empty it."

11 The Master's student was wrestling with a difficult weather forecast. Finally he set his pencil down and said: "Look at this ETA run. Look at it! How can it show the warm front here when my analysis shows it's clearly over here? The RUC even sinks it southward. This is chaos! Where is the Tao now?"
The Master brushed the pencil away from the hand analysis and pointed at it. "There it is."

12 Bureaucrat went to the Master Forecaster and showed him the requirements to forecast for the Superbowl.
He asked the Master: "How long will it take to produce a forecast if I assign five forecasters to the task?"
"It will take three hours," said the Master promptly.
"But we need a more timely forecast! How long will it take if I assign ten forecasters to it?"
The Master Forecaster frowned. "In that case, it will take two days."
"And what if I assign a hundred forecasters to it?"
The Master Forecaster shrugged. "Then the forecast will never be completed."

13 A great storm was bearing down on the village. Pompous Forecaster was intently studying the radar with Novice, while the Master Forecaster was meditating in his chair.
Said Pompous Forecaster, "Come over here and see this radar image. Notice the hook shape on this storm. Notice the mid-level mesocyclone alert. Notice the appearance of high VIL values. Surely there will be a tornado. We should take cover now."
The Master Forecaster said. "There will be no tornado." He then resumed meditating.
Pompous Forecaster was stunned. "You fool! The facts are right here on the screen. Do you not see?"
The Master ignored him.
It came to pass that the storm moved away, with no tornado. The Novice confronted the Master in private. "Please enlighten me, Great Master. How did you know there would be no tornado?"
"Do you see the window over there? Look through it, Novice, and there you will find Tao."

14 The Master and Novice were sitting on a rock in the park. Energized by the sun, the Novice said: "Master, enlighten me so that I may find harmony in my forecasts."
The Master pointed. "Look. Do you see that old man? A friend told me that he would climb Mount Xianjing tomorrow and stay up on the summit all night, drinking wine and carousing. Do you agree he will do this tomorrow?"
Said the Novice: "I do not know. True, I could accept your friend's opinion, but I would want to go over right now and talk to this man, ask him questions, and understand him thoroughly before I could answer for certain."
"You have been enlightened," said the Master.

15 Said the Master Forecaster:
"A well-developed analysis is its own Heaven;
A poorly-developed forecast is its own Hell."

16 Much to the dismay of the Master, the forecasters in the weather office eagerly accepted the duty to devise an immediate forecast for the Emperor's anniversary ceremony, ten days away. Many of the forecasters argued to use the MRF, while others insisted that the ECMWF should be followed.
In a flash of insight, the student blurted, "Let us combine both models!"
The Master suddenly came forth and reprimanded the student with a stick. "Novice! Enough nonsense. Come with me and let us meditate."
The two went outside into the rock garden. The Master said, "Let us sit over here, where we cannot possibly be bothered by the blacksmith's smoke." The two went to a corner of the garden and sat in silence, relaxing their minds and staring into the sky, contemplating its great mysteries.
After much time had passed, a small cloud of smoke from the blacksmith's fire wafted over and choked both Master and student. Suddenly the student was enlightened.

17 The Master was explaining the nature of Tao to one of his novices.
"The Tao is embodied in all meteorology -- regardless of how insignificant," said the Master.
"Is the Tao in a stratocumulus cloud?" asked the novice.
"It is," came the reply.
"Is the Tao in a SKEW-T diagram?" asked the novice.
"It is even in a SKEW-T diagram," said the Master.
"Is the Tao in a numerical forecast model?" asked the novice.
The Master gently cleared his throat and stood up. "The lesson is over for today."

18 Prince Li's forecaster was analyzing a map. His pencil danced upon the weather map. His forecasts had always been faultless.
"I am astonished!" the Prince exclaimed. "Your technique is faultless!"
"Technique?" said the Master, turning from his map. "What I follow is Tao -- beyond all techniques! When I first began to forecast, I would see before me the atmosphere on separate charts. After three years, I no longer saw this. Instead, I saw the atmosphere blended together from all of the different charts, combined in three dimensions within my mind, and compared against the numerical models. Now I see nothing. My whole being exists in a formless void. My senses are idle. My spirit, free to work without a plan, follows its own instinct while I put pencil to paper and sift through all the charts. In short, my forecast produces itself. True, sometimes there are difficult problems. I see them coming, I slow down, I watch silently. Then I focus, use all of the tools available to me, and the difficulties vanish like puffs of idle smoke. I then complete the forecast. I sit still and let the joy of the work fill my being. I close my eyes for a moment and then go home."
Prince Li said, "If only all of my forecasters were as wise!"

19 The Novice held up a chart for the Master. He said, "This ETA chart shows that the CAPE over here will be quite large, but I do not understand this, because the dryline should mix rapidly eastward."
The Master disappeared and came back with a glass of iced tea for the Novice. "This is to help you think."
The Novice bowed deeply, took the tea, and sipped it. He looked at it, thought, and sipped it again. He said, "Master, did you sweeten my drink with saccharin?"
"Ah, Student. Your senses tell you that it is not sugar! Is it not good?"
"Yes, Master, it is good. It is very much like sugar and sweetens my drink nicely."
"And like your ETA chart, it is one of the best substitutes for nature that humans have been able to devise."
The Novice looked at his chart and suddenly was enlightened.

20 A well-used door needs no oil on its hinges.
These are the truths of the Tao of Forecasting.

21 When a forecaster computes stability indices, he sees the sounding within man-made constructs.
Truly, this is not the Tao of Forecasting.
When a forecaster studies the sounding, he sees the underlying form.
Truly, this is the Tao of Forecasting.

22 Computer met Capitalist on the road to Changtse. Computer said: "You are Yin and I am Yang. Together we will find Tao, redefine the science of forecasting, and obtain vast sums of funding."
And so they set forth together, thinking to conquer the world.
Presently, they met Hand Analyzed Chart, who was dressed in tattered rags and hobbled along propped on a thorny stick. Hand Analyzed Chart said to them: "I have seen Tao, and it lies beyond Yin and Yang. It is silent and still as a pool of water. It does not seek money; therefore nobody knows its presence. It does not seek to teach, for those only those who desire it can find it. It does not seek enlightenment, for it is complete within itself. It exists beyond space and time."
Computer and Capitalist, ashamed, returned to their homes.

[http://www.weathergraphics.com/tao.htm]

~~~
This is refreshing food for thought when confronted with all the doom-laden predcitions of global warming which shower us regularly from the hands of the 'experts'.

As I have mentioned before, I am sceptical about the whole theory, we should always seek the bigger picture, not the greater statistics.
lauren6

today lurching freshly, intoxicated ~ medication
seeking plateau, mesmeric pain ~ excruciatingly
afternoon awaits, trepidation, fear ~ inundation
today marching stale, unbeknown ~ debility.

aujourd'hui vacillant fraîchement, médicament intoxiqué
plateau cherchant, douleur mesmeric atrocement
l'après-midi attend, agitation, crainte, inondation
marcher aujourd'hui éventé, débilité inconnue.

Colour: red
Music: Paul McCartney: We All Stand Together...but I can't think why!!!
The Regents: 7Teen

Lone mouse delays flight

MANILA, Philippines (UPI) -- A lone mouse scampering through the aisle of a Qatar Airways jet in Manila caused the flight to be delayed 12 hours as workers hunted for it.

Just minutes before takeoff for Doha with 242 passengers aboard, a flight attendant spotted the rodent and alerted the captain, who immediately returned to the gate Sunday night, the Philippines Star reported Wednesday.

Passengers were unloaded, and the place was emptied as workers scoured the craft and fumigated it, but there was no sign of the mouse.

Flight QR 645 finally departed 12 hours late.

On the ground, airport management ordered a thorough cleanup of the terminal and a second spraying of pesticides to prevent another occurrence, the newspaper said. Mice can cause deadly damage by gnawing on wires and cable straps.

A German company has come up with a novel way of beating bans on smoking in pubs - put the nicotine in the beer.

A new beer, known as NicoShot, is undergoing testing in Germany with hopes it can be moved toward approval in the next few months.

Each beer contains three milligrams of nicotine and a 6.3 per cent alcohol reading.

Its German maker, Nautilus, claims the beer is designed to help smokers quit the habit rather than make the drink addictive.

"While NicoShot can lessen cravings, it is not a 'cure' for smoking," Nautilus said.

"But it can help you make changes in your lifestyle without having to walk out of the bar for a quick smoke to deal with sudden withdrawal symptoms.

"Over time, when you are more comfortable being a non-smoker, the use of nicotine beer can be reduced and then stopped."

AAP

Actual Writings on Hospital Charts

1. She has no rigors or shaking chills, but her husband states she was
very hot in bed last night.

2. Patient has chest pain if she lies on her left side for over a year.

3. On the second day the knee was better, and on the third day it
disappeared.

4. The patient is tearful and crying constantly. She also appears to be
depressed.

5. The patient has been depressed since she began seeing me in 1993.

6. Discharge status: Alive but without my permission.

7. Healthy appearing decrepit 69-year-old male, mentally alert but
forgetful.

8. The patient refused autopsy.

9. The patient has no previous history of suicides.

10. Patient has left white blood cells at another hospital.

11. Patient's medical history has been remarkably insignificant with only
a 40-pound weight gain in the past three days.

12. Patient had waffles for breakfast and anorexia for lunch.

13. She is numb from her toes down.

14. While in ER, she was examined, x-rated and sent home.

15. The skin was moist and dry.

16. Occasional constant infrequent headaches.

17. Patient was alert and unresponsive.

18. Rectal examination revealed a normal-size thyroid.

19. She stated that she had been constipated for most of her life, until
she got a divorce.

20. I saw your patient today, who is still under our car for physical
therapy.

21. Both breasts are equal and reactive to light and accommodation.

22. Examination of genitalia reveals that he is circus sized.

23. The lab test indicated abnormal lover function.

24. The patient was to have a bowel resection. However, he took a job as a
stockbroker instead.

25. Skin: somewhat pale but present.

26. The pelvic exam will be done later on the floor.

27. Patient was seen in consultation by Dr. Blank, who felt we should sit
on the abdomen, and I agree.

28. Large brown stool ambulating in the hall.

29. Patient has two teenage children but no other abnormalities.

~~~

Famous last words of the anthropologist:
"This is a standard custom here."

Cheese makes you dream?
http://cheeseplz.blog.de

Foggy morning and weekend is here, I thought it was Friday until I saw the traffic, which was emphasised by it's non-existance...my eyes are not accustomed to that upon parting my blinds each morgen.
Only my postman to be seen delivering one item of happy mail, a cd from my friend in Japan, with the latest offering from Japanese music, mostly his favourites, but I'm grateful to receive this...especially as one year ago today I was flying to Tokyo. Actually, this time in 2004, I was in the lovely Schipol airport, my connection from Norwich necessitated a whopping seven hour wait, which brought on a humungous migraine upon boarding the KLM flight, and two hours into the flight I became so sick I hit the internal panic button. I threw cold water over my face in the pencil case-sized toilet, then knocked back one whole Heineken and went to sleep, ...it worked!

I miss Japan so much.

Not to detract from England, I love it here also, to a great degree, and this autumn has been pleasant, warm, and really no-one could have asked for better weather than this, now could they?

Blog buddies, what is your strongest memory from this time of year?
Is autumn your favourite season?
I believe, it probably is my favourite.

Had an awesome dream, the fourth in my life to feature the Gallagher brothers! Noel and Liam, my father (!!) and I were in the studio with them, Noel was seriously putting together a fine tune, Liam was seated, away from the song, with a guitar, and messing around. He looked at me, with a peculiar expression, and handed me the guitar, we smiled, and I played...played!!! I cannot in reality, but in the dream, I could put together a 3-minute tune, that Noel enjoyed, Liam liked more, and I was knocked-out by it.
I remember the dream was in England, Liam wore a brown jacket, the material of which I cannot recall, with jeans, Noel was in dark colours, with the slight squint under a spotlight, sometimes standing, sometimes leaning back to barely sit on a stool.
My father was silent throughout, not being Oasis' best fan.
And there we are, no further details, whereupon my dream went somewhere else...

Colour: Pinkorangered...like the Cocteau Twins song~~
Music: Spongebob Squarepants theme music...similar to the 'Home Truths' music when the late-great John Peel held the reigns...both seem to offer me great happiness, consolation, warmth and security...amazing really.
Oasis: Don't Go Away
Reading: a stack of this month's newspapers.

What occurs once in a minute, twice in a moment, but never in a thousand years?

22:46pm; what is this one?

Weight in my belly,
Trees on my back,
Nails in my ribs,
Feet I do lack.

Music: Outkast: Roses
O'Jay's: For the Love of Money...absolute classic!
Groove Armada: Superstylin'

I am here, my cousin, with my daughter, her son, her step-daughter and the good abbé, and the finest weather in the world.
-Madame de Sévigné. Livry, October 28th, 1685

A good morning it isn't with rain beginning to lash down from a sea-like sky, the astonishing warmth of yesterday now past like a golden memory, fresh though it is, and the warm legacy just stumbles into today, at least here in Norfolk.

I stand here...well, not entirely true, due to my spine I can't stand anything...
yesterday, apart from enjoying the unprecedented glory of 'weather' I also had another health shock, setback even. What was it, and what am I on about?
I'm on about the now official "mismanagement" of my health case at the hospital. Wednesday was the day when I had confirmation, that my waiting for urgent spinal MRI, let alone even more urgent treatment, is the result of the said hospital loosing my papers. They cannot find my records!! What bumbling fools, what shocking irresponsibility.
But before their admission, what was their declaration? It was to denounce and overrule the consultant's and GP's diagnosis as "normal", "non-urgent" and "an age-related bone movement"...this is disgraceful!
I saw the x-ray, read the physiotherapist's report, attended my GP's surgery, all showing the extent of my spinal injuries....the missing bone since childhood, the use of the word 'fracture' by a senior consultant, the physiotherapy for 'slipped disk'.
It then transpired, after third party pressure, that the hospital finally conceded they do not have ANY paperwork relating to myself and my MRI appointment, (so all my waiting has been for 'nothing'?), and their initial words were without proof. That is shocking in the extreme...in my case spinal injuries, if it happens to others, who knows?
So, I could have waited for years, patiently, with NO CHANCE of ever being seen, by which time my spinal condition would have neccessitated the need for a wheelchair...a further and unneccessary cost to the country, as well as a huge social adjustment for self...I am still heading in that direction now.

What shocks me most, is that I was ignored, (of course, I'm only a human condition), my GP was ignored, and finally I snapped and went to my excellent MP and local press...only, ONLY then did any truth come out. And it is far from being resolved even now.
This is how things are in the local hospital. I, of course placed myself below those who required urgent orthopaedic treatment, and like so many British people, waited my turn and some...without any wish to appear selfish, despite the intense pain...until now, waiting since January's collapse, March's x-ray confirmation...is long enough.

So, it means, with respect, that a hospital can fob-off anyone to reduce numbers, no matter what the diagnosis??
It means, that only those that fight, and fight hard, will EVER get seen?
It means that only those who seek help of higher powers will be treated as seriously ill?
What of the rest?

I never expected such an appalling situation for the treatment of fellow human beings, and still retain faith in the doctors and nurses from around the world who are themselves breaking their backs to help people, but the administration is not bringing hospital's to their knees; it has already broken the backbone of their very rôle.

Cling not to experiences for ever-changing are they

A question dear bloggers, a brain teaser really...

From which song is this lyric taken?

"...mushrooms on the horizon..."

On the news today, they informed us that it is better to 'sleep on the problem' and that a good night's sleep will offer a better solution than making a decision "after 6pm".

But, while agreeing to some extent with this announcement, I would like to add that, if the answer doesn't appear in the first few throes of the problem, the chances are that it never will, at least not an adequate one. This is my opinion, and I will readily concede that it doesn't suit all!!

I mean, we cannot say that a 100% swing either way is satisfactory. Some of the reports that are being constantly thrown at us by our beloved media, make good reading, good entertainment, and great blog fodder, (try saying that quickly and see if you get away with it!! ), but should also be taken with a pinch of salt too, as if choosing your food at a buffet, we have some experience of all those things, but don't need to take it all on board unless we are in 'one of those moods.'
The decision is still our own, and we do not need to be led down the garden path unless the garden is ours.

Anyway dear blog friends, how do you tackle a problem?

For myself, I have an immediate response, (I'm a leo!!), then sleep on it, (I'm a leo!!), and wake up going back to my initial response, (I'm a leo!!).
In my view the initial response is the one from within, from our heart, and hopefully head too, but it belongs to us, the one that is delayed or slept on, tends to be the one of others. So my feeling to go with my initial response after a night's sleep is the best of both worlds, the one "within you and without you" and authored by one's self.

Colour: autumn gold of course, in this weather!
Music: Heather Nova: Island (whom I met in my dream last night)
:P
Reading: Killer hornets by Richard Lloyd Parry, The Times, October 25th article

~~~

We were talking-about the space between us all
And the people-who hide themselves behind a wall of illusion
Never glimpse the truth-then it's far too late-when they pass away.
We were talking-about the love we all could share-when we find it
To try our best to hold it there-with our love
With our love-we could save the world-if they only knew.
Try to realise it's all within yourself
No-one else can make you change
And to see you're really only very small,
And life flows ON within you and without you.
We were talking-about the love that's gone so cold and the people,
Who gain the world and lose their soul-
They don't know-they can't see-are you one of them?
When you've seen beyond yourself-then you may find, peace of mind,
Is waiting there-
And the time will come when you see
we're all one, and life flows on within you and without you.
-The Beatles

(1) Do not bend down and look between your legs. You will see a ghost.
(2) Do not sweep dirt out of the front entrance. It will make all your money go away.
(3) Do not sweep at night. It is bad luck.
(4) Do not clean the spider web at night. You will lose all your money.
(5) Do not open an umbrella in the house. It will make you bald.
(6) Do not eat candy that has dropped on the floor. It now belongs to the ghost.
(7) Do not put valuable things away at night. The ghost will see and steal it.
(8) Do not keep broken Buddha images in the house. It will cause your family to be separated.
(9) Do not tell other people about your bad dream when you are eating. If you do it will come true.
(10) Do not rock an empty cradle. Your child will become sick.
(11) Do not throw anything onto the roof of the house. It is bad luck.
(12) Do not tap a kid on his head. It will make him a bed wetter.
(13) Do not enter a house through the window. Bad luck will come to that house.
(14) Do not allow wedding guests break any plates or glasses. It will cause the couple to become separated.
(15) If you have a scratch, do not attend a cremation. It will make your scratch infected.

A game for today - Using only the Amazon.com description, guess what product is being sold...
"Easy to Assemble & Clean. Glow-In-The-Dark Spike with
Squeeze Bulb"

Any guesses?

a rich country is a country that loves it's people, and cares for them, as well as smiles warmly to those within it's sphere.

Therefore, the Philippines will always rank higher than my beloved England.

England, you have everything,
and sometimes show yourself nothing,
England, see yourself more clearly,
and heal yourself urgently
England, I love you
but where are you in my hopelessness?
England, I need you,
but where are you now?
England, I die for you,
but please don't let it be because of you

=dedicated to all England's suffering giants, stuck hopelessly on obscene hospital waiting lists.

England, I say again, I love you,
but why are you so disloyal to me?
England, your people are the salt of the earth,
but why must you govern surrender?

Written in frustrated love...NOT hate!! For England will be forever my number 1

addenda:
This was written after my hospital now say they do not think the original diagnosis of my spine was correct, but another consultant says it was...so while they squabble amongst themselves, what about me?
Since January, what A told B but not me, disagrees with what B now tells me, without telling A...until today.
I have also been told that I should have been placed on the waiting list 'sooner' but 'wasn't'...another 27 weeks to wait at present estimate?
I want to learn to run again, so I can run my head into the wall.
Oh God help us.

At the sound of me, men may dream
Or stamp their feet
At the sound of me, women may laugh
Or sometimes weep

answers please ~~!!!!

In this gusty Norwich evening, when Liverpool have succumbed yet again, (I swear Liverpool should start playing all games on the continent), I want to give a shout and BIG thanks to my dear and precious blog buddies.
Having this blog, this outlet, this shelter, this corner seat, this place, has allowed me a lot of thought and hope during the fear and gradual realisation of what I'm entering into, with regards hospital waiting lists and crippling injuries. The year from start to finish will seem like viewling a string from one end to the other...but the string is not straight...one side is ability but halfway, the string twists round a great tree at a right angle and heads into shade, the end of which I can't yet find nor see.

Anyway, my wonderful blog buddies, stay close, you are very much appreciated in many, many ways, and again a warm thank you.
You are stars.

Colour: Oceanblue
Music: Faithless: Why Go?
Reading: Nature Through the Seasons by Shinzo Maeda

I am becoming increasingly sure that my dear hospital have lost my paperwork, because nobody seems able to get a respone from them...they ignore my GP, MP and of course little me.
My GP declared my spine so serious that I must refrain from work, a deep shock to my craniums' inners, but, upon receiving incapacity benefit for the first time in my life, I have received a mighty swift doctor examination appointment, via the Dept. of Work, not the NHS, as if by miracle, the waiting list is only 5 days...so, so, so...I get it all now, this country which I love so much acts with haste in the department that governs money, and shuts the door on the ones that need basic treatment to save an even more basic gift, that of being able to walk.

In summary;
I have waited since January for ANY treatment to a cracked spine which now threatens my ability to move.
Within a few weeks of being forcibly told to stop work, against my wishes, and placed on incapacity benefit...I get a miraculous doctor's appointment, a doctor willing to see me, not to help me, but for diagnosis/confirmation