Month: November 2020

The news is dead boring at the moment because it is mostly repetition of  theories and guesses rather than facts. But one fact that has put a smile on most people’s faces is that the short sighted, lockdown breaking Chief Advisor to the PM has already left Downing Street, never to return. BoJo asked Dominic Cummings to step down with immediate effect along with Communications Director Lee Cain. Two down, a few left to go. Am I wrong in thinking that government is all about re-shuffles and u-turns?

A motorist has filmed a Dorset police officer after being stopped due to the colour of his car not matching DVLA records. It seems the colour had been only partially changed which is allowed without the need to inform authorities. The officer, while brandishing a baton, demanded that the man step out of the car and the driver insisted that he had done nothing wrong and asked for an explanation. The officer replied that he was going to smash the car window and the man got out saying there was no need for the baton as he was innocent. The officer told him that he was going to charge him for ‘something’ and arrested him. He later de-arrested him, informed him he was perfectly innocent and to go on his ‘merry way’. Makes me wonder if the policeman wasn’t a little bit merry.

Soon after Buckingham Palace had been opened to the public for the first time I went there with my husband Sandy to have a look around. The visit very nearly turned Sandy into a socialist, the artwork alone must have been worth billions. Since lockdown the stately homes belonging to Her Maj. have been closed and she’s losing out financially. To top it all she has been lumbered with a whole load of 2021 Queen’s Palaces calendars which she had hoped to sell to the unsuspecting visitors. I can just imagine her standing there handing them out and collecting the £9.95 s. Well maybe not but it’s a nice thought. So now if you want one they will be flogged off online at half price. I think I will support some cottage industry more worthy and more needy.

I’ve never written (or bothered reading) about the Kardashians before but today an item caught my eye. One of the sisters and a few other Barbie type ladies have been buying and encouraging their followers to buy ‘mink’ eyelashes. It caught my attention because I happened to buy a pair way back in the early sixties when I was trying my luck at fashion modelling. They had been recommended by the academy I attended and I got mine in Boots the Chemist. They came with a little tube of glue and had to be worn with care. They’re in the news now because it’s considered very anti social to wear fur. Oh dear. Good night, only less than three weeks left of lockdown.😴💤😴

Went for a nice long walk with Margaret today through Bournemouth Upper Gardens as far as Coy Pond. Lovely sunny day and we did well not going yesterday when it was dull and windy. My friend took a flask of home made soup and we had a sandwich so although we couldn’t branch off anywhere for lunch we had a lovely picnic. I have to mention that my leg is giving me a bit of hassle as my knee seems to have seized up and I’m sure that lockdown and sitting around too much is the culprit. I couldn’t get up much of a march and we made use of a few of the benches but I can proudly say that according to the app on my iphone I have walked 11,570 steps today.

Over the pond a ‘million person march’ on Saturday is promised in support of the candidate who lost, in  other words of course, the trump. How many will actually turn out remains to be seen. Counting and re-counting continues but so far it has mostly meant more votes for Joe Biden. Only four republican senators have congratulated the new President Elect but most foreign leaders have been in touch. I’m beginning to feel for the American people who are having to live with political uncertainty.

About 20 students at Manchester University have taken over a university building in protest  over several grievances they have. It seems that the fences that were erected around campus was the last straw and students tore many of them down. They were removed by the university the following day. The protestors have said they are having to pay more rent for less facilities and what they perceive as a lack of support for their mental health. I can imagine how they felt when the fence went up imprisoning them inside. They are also demanding that staff are not made redundant during the pandemic. Go for it Manchester I’ve said it before but I believe our students are getting a very bad deal this year.

I’d think that our politicians have enough to worry about with Brexit looming ever closer and fifty thousand subjects dead from covid. Instead they seem to be arguing over who does which job. Lee Cain has quit over whether he would or wouldn’t take on the role of BoJo’s Chief of Staff. Several of his chums are threatening to quit too. Also there is a rumour that the infamous Dominic Cummings might throw in the towel. That’s not bringing many tears to the nation’s eyes. I guess this is the result of giving jobs to a load of entitled public school boys who think they’ve grown up. It’s a long time since we had a government we could be proud of. Let’s all go to bed, tomorrow is another day. Nighty night.  😴💤😴

A whole new deluge today and I was pleased that my friend Margaret and I had decided to put off our ramble until tomorrow. Forecast is sunny so we should manage to enjoy it and our planned picnic lunch. I’ll let you know how it goes.

Last evening I carried on watching GBBO with the Tanners. We’re all thinking that there’s not really one good baker amongst this year’s selection. The worst supposedly have gone but the remainers didn’t serve up anything to impress. Maybe with the exception of Hermine who won star baker last week and this. Like lots of people Sam and I were surprised to be reminded that Prue is 80 years old. I don’t think Matt Lucas adds anything to the show. All in all, why am I watching? because it makes me feel superior, I make a mean Dorset apple cake.

A programme to be aired sometime in December will be Sir Billie Connolly with his tv special looking back over his career. He is retiring from performing due to being diagnosed with Parkinson’s and will be filmed from his pad in Florida. He will be joined by his wife and several showbiz personalities will be appearing too. Look out for ‘It’s Been a Pleasure’.

Some bright spark at the University of Bristol has reportedly worked out that seagulls can tell the time. Well maybe not exactly but the birds have worked out when children are having school breaks and swoop in to steal their food. What a load of tosh, anyone living near the coast knows that seagulls can spot someone holding a burger, ice cream or anything else from a mile off. As soon as food is out in the open they are there. Haven’t those scientists at Bristol Uni got anything better to spend their time and our money on.

An evangelical Christian leader and Trump supporter who had been encouraging his flock to vote republican has been on Fox news saying that it seems Biden will be the 46th President. No doubt he heard that a commentator on that tv channel told another trump supporter to show proof of voter fraud or shut up and get off.

In Norfolk, that great county of country folk, people are still driving around in some old vintage vehicles. Just recently a rare Ford Escort RS1600i came onto the market and has been sold at auction. Originally costing in 1983 £6,700 it fetched a whopping £31,320 following a body restoration and engine rebuild. If I had that much spare cash for a new motor I don’t see myself buying a Ford Escort although, it’s fair to say I have bought a few dodgy cars in my time.

There’s much talk about students coming home or not at Xmas. A suggestion is that they travel home during a week long window to stagger their return. Hasn’t government realised that students naturally stagger their return depending on whom they might want to stay with or whom they might want to see in their home town and what’s happening where. Good night everyone, everywhere.  😴💤😴

The saga continues. When asked if he had a message for Donald Trump, Joe Biden said “Mr. President, I look forward to speaking with you”. He also said the Trump’s refusal to concede was an embarrassment and told his supporters “nothing’s going to stop us”. Let’s hope not. In the meantime, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has flat out denied election results and insisted there would be a smooth transition to a second Trump administration. Washington DC has become LaLaLand.

Mary Wollstonecraft was an English writer and philosopher during the 18th century. She was also an advocate of women’s rights stating that men were not intellectually superior to women, just better educated. She died age 38 just after giving birth to her second daughter Mary Shelley who wrote Frankenstein and happened to live in Bournemouth (she’s buried not far from my front door). But, back to Wollstonecraft, fans have campaigned for a long time for some sort of memorial to her and eventually a sculpture was commissioned. A big disappointment to those who had worked so hard to honour the feminist writer. The artist created a great big lump of silver coloured, erm I’m not sure what, topped by a small figure of a naked and unattractive female. Why does a woman philosopher, advocator of women’s rights need to be naked. The answer, she shouldn’t and her fans feel cheated.

A barber who looked after Elvis’ hair kept a lock which he sold after the King’s death in 1977. It was eventually purchased from an Elvis fan club member by a builder in the UK who has decided to sell it once again. It will be offered for sale by Hanson’s auction house who expect it to fetch at least £6,000. I wonder if it’s been DNA tested.

A Bolton man described as a ‘lonely pensioner’ stole £33,000  from the church funds of which he was treasurer to spend on adult websites hoping to meet women. It didn’t work out quite as he expected when he got friendly with Jessica who had a lot of hard luck stories and managed to get most of his cash. But lovely Jessica wasn’t what she seemed and was in fact a con man. Then auditors noticed that money was missing from the church funds and the thief owned up. He was hauled before the judge who told him ‘you might have been lonely but this proves that there’s no fool like an old fool’. He was given a 16 month suspended sentence and put on curfew for six months. Let this be a lesson to all old fools out there and good night to everyone of you.  😴💤😴

 

 

The big news is, and I’m sure you’ve all heard, is that Pfizer have a new vaccine that is 90% successful. I wonder who gets to be in the 10%. Of course they’ve been telling us about a vaccine since the beginning of Covid so we will still have to wait and see if it’s true. The PM said that he had ordered 40 million doses and each person will need two doses. Older people will be the first recipients so I can see people adding years on rather than knocking them off.

Talking of age, Britain’s oldest person celebrated her 112th birthday today in Swanage, Dorset. Lillian Priest is living in a care home and received lots of cards – including one from Her Maj., flowers and chocolates. Her carers had a party for her at lunch time and she loved her jelly and ice cream desert. She became the oldest person when the previous holder of the title passed away last month, also at 112 and also in Dorset. Happy birthday Lillian.

Prince Harry had requested that a poppy wreath be laid at the Cenotaph on his behalf. The request was denied as he is no longer a working royal. The wreath has been left unused at the British Legian HQ in Kent. What really irritated me was that the wreath cost £1000, how can that possibly be? That money could have been put to better use, maybe for injured soldiers, and how many wreaths were there?

You might be pleased to know that The Crown Series 4 will be back on your tv screen next Sunday. Reviews so far are very complimentary, in fact ‘positively glowing’. Obviously the newspapers and magazines have been given an early look and have given it a thumbs up. Streaming on Netflix from early Sunday morning, I believe. If it’s a rainy day you can binge view all day long.

A new scheme has been set up in Middlesbrough to help addicts live a more normal life and at the same time reduce crime. Medical grade heroin is given to users twice a day at a special clinic and first results are looking promising. Six of the seven people who started on the scheme are still on it and have stopped living rough, they have reduced their use of other drugs and their mental health has improved. They had all previously committed crimes to fund their habit. The local community has definitely benefitted from these people being off the street and sorting their lives.

An elderly couple in the West Midlands were left a house and it’s contents when the owner died. You would think the house was the biggest asset but in fact in the garage were several bin bags filled with Star Wars toys and memorabilia . There was so much that they ordered a skip thinking it would be thrown away. Their son invited an auctioneer around and it was eventually sold for £410,000. The auction huse said it was their best sale in fifteen years and also their last. They had already decided to close shop. What a swan song. Nighty night.😴💤😴

Just a quick update on the Trump and his team. The POTUS himself has only been seen playing golf since his opponent Joe Biden was declared winner. We’ll have to wait until tomorrow to see if he actually does try to bring charges of illegal voting. People have also been wondering what has happened to the Vice President Mike Pense who hasn’t been seen anywhere, maybe he’s out on the green looking for Trumps balls. It’s been reported that both Melania and his son in law Jared have advised him to accept the election loss but it’s also been reported that Melania is supporting her husband regarding the illegal votes. Yet another report quoting a ‘friend’ says she can’t wait to get divorced as soon as his presidency is officially over. Believe what you will or believe nothing and make up your own story.

Remembrance Sunday was respected by people all over the country but in a very quiet and solitary way. At 11 am the royals, veterans and politicians laid wreaths at the cenotaph and elsewhere wreaths were laid at war memorials and families stood on their doorsteps to observe a two minutes silence. Wherever people were they stopped what they were doing to show respect during just two minutes. Not everyone remembered, in one Tesco superstore a customer continued to talk and was asked to be quiet by another shopper. She didn’t take kindly to this and a very noisy argument broke out in the egg aisle. Security rushed over to find eggs smashed over the floor. They’ll certainly remember that.

The priest who was shot as he closed the Greek Orthodox Church in Lyon, France last week was not targeted by a terrorist but by a jealous husband who says the victim was having an affair with his wife. The man was arrested and confessed to police, his wife was also arrested but I know not why. The priest was seriously injured but not killed.

It’s now sixty years since the trial too place against Penguin Books to decide if Lady Chatterley’s Lover was an obscene article under the ‘Obscene Publication Act 1959’. The book had already been around for a few years but they were private publications and few people had read it. In 1960 the unexpurgated edition was published and Penguin were taken to court in a test trial. One of the questions the prosecution asked witnesses and jury was ‘would you want your wife or servants to read this book?.  Penguin won their case.

A teacher in Lancashire had had enough of teaching and decided to accept his father in law’s offer to start producing fruit infused gin. They had already made sloe gin for family and friends but branched out into other flavours and in a bigger way, Today they have a large distillery and have won awards for gin made at their Black Powder Gin Company based in Blackpool. Well done that man.😴💤😴

 

The counting continues but at last enough finished to name Joe Biden President Elect. Joe has been on tv and the other media outlets and claimed his title. Many people including world leaders have congratulated him and accepted the result although I suspect that most of the former were democrats. The outgoing POTUS didn’t put on his big boy pants and accept defeat. He instead put on his golf pants and hid on the green while sending his lawyer Rudi Giuliani to an industrial unit to inform reporters that they will be contesting the results in court on Monday. He was loud and obnoxious but no more convincing than the Trump, a whole lot of bluster. It’s going to be a long wait before any Republican congratulates the new President.

The new vice president is of course Kamala Harris, the first woman in this role, the first person of colour and the first Asian. Her mother was an  immigrant Indian and her father Jamaican. Her husband will become the first male married to a vice president as well as being the first Jewish person in that role. Kamala herself is a Baptist.

The new First Lady is Jill, a working teacher who says that is what she is, not what she does. I think she hopes to continue working even after entering the White House. She teaches English which I think might be difficult for a first lady and has had some books published, which she would find easier if she has the time. I’ve been wondering what they would call a husband if there ever is a female president. Will he become the first husband?

Back in the UK, we are on day three of lockdown. Visitors are once again flocking to beauty spots, parks and beaches. Bournemouth had plenty of people enjoying the sunshine along the promenade and a friend said that Hengistbury Head was like Piccadilly Circus this morning. Now that it’s been reported in the dailies, I’m sure it will encourage more people to turn up tomorrow. Still it didn’t seem to increase the covid cases last time even though sun bathers were packed onto the beaches and I don’t suppose it will this time either. I can report that they haven’t closed the toilets this time around which will please my friends. Plenty of takeaways too (not from the toilets) so no trouble getting a hot drink and a sandwich.

In Piccadilly Gardens, Manchester a man was seen supposedly feeding the pigeons. Nothing wrong with that you might think but in fact it was not the leftovers of his lunch that was being scattered on the ground but spice, a designer drug. He was hoping to avoid being arrested for possession but it didn’t work and police handcuffed him and collected the drug. I couldn’t find out if the birds ate any of it and if so what effect it had on them. Maybe my family up there will have more information. I’ve never seen a ‘high bird’. Good night everyone, everywhere.  😴💤😴

My daughter Sam, having been awarded a first class honours degree, should have been graduating today. Just like all other students around the country it didn’t happen due to lockdown. However she did unexpectedly receive her certificate in the post today as she would have done at the official ceremony.  A lovely surprise for her, I hope she wore her cap and gown when she opened the envelope.  Ceremony is postponed till March, I wonder what they will present her with then? I’m very proud of you Sam and hope to be with you next Spring.

The waiting continues over the pond. Sleepy Joe is expecting a win but so is Trump and if he doesn’t he is going to throw a tantrum and refuse to leave the white house. Meanwhile, the mayor of Philadelphia was speaking to reporters and told them ‘what the President needs to do, frankly, is put his big boy pants on. He needs to acknowledge that he’s lost and congratulate the winner’. Some hopes of that happening. And in another meanwhile,  the first son Donald Trump Jr. is facing a backlash for urging his father to go to total war over the incoming results. Who in their right mind can even think that let alone mouth it? The Trumps could have known about this result a long time ago. it seems that in an episode of The Simpsons eight years ago there was an eerily accurate election prediction showing a US split almost exactly as it is now. I would have thought The Trump might have watched this show, or is it too intellectual?

It’s the second day of lockdown and reading more of the details I see that garden centres are allowed to stay open. I should think so too, I don’t like to think of all those plants going to waste. But do be careful while you are out there gardening or taking your exercise walk or stroll I understand that wallabies are on the loose in the English countryside. 95 sightings have been recorded throughout England but none I believe in Dorset. I wonder if my family in Kent have seen any, there’s all sorts of wildlife running around Sevenoaks. It would have been quite cool to see one or two on the beach in Bournemouth.

The British actor Geoffrey Palmer has died aged 93. He’s well known for his roles in several tv sitcoms, shows, films and theatre. When I came to England in 1978 Butterflies with Geoffrey and Wendy Craig was just starting on tv. He played beleaguered dentist Ben married to Ria with two teenage sons whom he didn’t understand and didn’t want to. It very much captured the mood of the time and after living for so long in straight laced, fascist Spain was one of the programmes I absolutely loved. RIP Geoffrey , everyone says good things about you. And good night lockdowners, don’t let it get you down. Sweet dreams.  😴💤😴

 

My friend Rosemary was in Bournemouth today and the sun was shining so we walked along the sea front and enjoyed the first day of lockdown. Quite different from the previous time when there was hardly a soul to be seen in the gardens and the square. Lots of strollers and as the cafes were open for takeaways people were making good use of them. Let’s hope the restrictions help slow the virus down. I got some good advice today from someone I bumped into during the outing, and I won’t say who, that if I’m not sure if I should do something during restrictions I just ask myself, ‘what would Dominic Cummings do’?

Lots of words written about the US election, I’m amazed that money is paid to journalists for such a lot of drivel. They are still counting votes and some think it might take another 48 hours yet guesses, theories and opinions have been thrust upon us with not a shadow of fact to back them up. Until enough votes are registered no one knows. In the meantime it’s all a load of tosh.

Someone at Manchester University decided that it would be necessary to erect 7ft fencing around the campus to keep different areas separated during the restrictions. When students woke up this morning it was the first they knew about it and they were far from pleased. They said they felt trapped and as if they were in prison. Well, students did what students do and they protested and they tore it down as fast as the workmen put it up. I think it’s time that our students got a better deal. Their university experience is nowhere near anything they might have expected and even though no one expected the virus it’s up to the authorities to make it less intolerable not more so. And also in Manchester, infection rates have gone down for the first time since August

In Oldham last night people heard an explosion or a loud bang as reported by a witness. It turned out to be a cash machine robbery which burglars had blown up. The witness had seen them go into the coop where the machine was located then he heard the bang followed by the thieves running out and throwing notes into a car and driving off. Money was left strewn around on the forecourt, should help with someone’s Xmas shopping. The fire fighters arrived ten minutes later and the police after about 15 minutes. Neighbours had called 999 as soon as they had heard the explosion. Someone’s going to be in trouble. I for one am going to look over my shoulder when I next go to my local coop for cash. Although thinking about it I won’t need any for the next four weeks and I’m a long way from Oldham.  Good night one and all.  😴💤😴