The Cat's Whiskers.....Teeth.....Ears.......Claws....and Eyes

Today was a mammoth day in our feline care. Today was our double-header vet's appointment. Both Pandora and Charlie had checkups today.

They have so many niggles at the moment, I have to make a list, so I remember what to say/ask/purchase.

Pandy's List (pink for a girl!)
Check Eyes (she has a blue caste on her aged eyes now, so that is checked quarterly)
Clip claws (she bites!! - and Tim is quicker than me!)
Check tummy (old cystitis problems)
two vials of Feliway (more on that later!)
repeat prescription of Cystaid (one a day keeps her cystitis at bay - mostly!)
Well, she got a clean bill of health, nothing much wrong with her - and she purred at Tim through most of the appointment!

Charlie's List (Blue for a boy!)
Check Eyes (he has PPM - see below)
Check teeth (why aren't his teeth growing?)
Pre-neutering check (woo hoo! nearly time!)
Blood test (diabetes is always a worry with cats)
Earmites (shudder)
Charlie is not quite so straightforward as the Old Woman above!
He has PPMs - Persistent Pupillary Membranes on his eyes.
During the embryological development of the eye, the iris initially forms as a solid sheet of mesodermal tissue. This is called the pupillary membrane. Later on, some of this mesodermal tissue dissipates, and this results in the formation of the pupil.
Sometimes, after birth, a few of these fine strands of pupillary membrane remain. It is not unusual to see such pupillary membrane remnants in 6-to-8 week old puppies, however, if they persist beyond this age they are then are described as persistent pupillary membranes (PPM) and are considered to be defect.
The most common manifestation of Persistent Pupillary Membrane is a fine strand of pigmented tissue which arises from the iris collarette and attaches to another spot on the iris. Sometimes the strand will cross the opening of the pupil. In more serious cases, the PPM arises from the iris and attaches either the the lens - where it may produce a cataract, or to the inner surface of the cornea - resulting in corneal damage, scarring or persistent corneal edema. In the latter cases, impairment of vision may occur.
Charlie has one of the former and one of the latter - so he gets regular eye checks. As you can see, PPMs are mostly found in dogs (basenji, mastiff, corgi and chow chow predominantly) but sometimes in cats.
Teeth - wow, yet again we have had to reassess Charlie's age! At five months (latest guesstimate) he should have his adult teeth coming through, but he has lots of gaps, lots of baby teeth and no adult teeth - so he is no more than four months old. Tim says he is MASSIVE! Gonna be a big old ginger puss at this rate. It also explains his erratic behaviour, he must be in agony....
Diabetes - Charlie's fluid intake and output is prodigious, even by kitten standards (their kidneys are rather small and kittens do drink/wee a lot!). He is drinking at least half a pint of water a day. He is too young for an accurate blood sugar reading, so they will do a test when he goes in for his neutering.
Neutering - he is overall healthy and will be neutered next month as planned if he weighs over 2kg! I pointed out to Tim that he already exceeds that!
Earmites (everyone still shuddering?) - Charlie is a martyr to earmites. He was given ear medicine, but we found out today it only kills the mites, not the eggs. A dose of Stronghold (crap on fleas, excellent on mites!) should sort out the eggs, and he got another batch of ear medicine tonight.
Tim was peering into Charlie's ears with his auralscope with intent.

"Tim..." I said........

"Tim?" I repeated a little louder........

"Tim! You are showing an unhealthy interest in earmites!"

"But we don't get to see them that often" came a mumbled voice "they're fascinating!! You can see them wriggling and stuff........"

"ok" says I "I think you've seen enough. We'll take it on good authority Charlie has earmites"

Tim reluctantly straightened up, while HWMBO and I struggled to keep straight faces.

Upshot - Charlie is still a baby, he has an infestation, but when he's all growed up he's gonna be a giant. :-) That's my boy!
Here is my tuckered out Little(!) Man after the vet marathon....
















cq

Do You Have a Guardian Animal?

Craziequeen, you are Fluffy!

Ahh, you're such a kind, considerate person, you're destined to have a pet that goes by the name of Fluffy. It's just a shame that it happens to be Hagrid's ferocious pet three-headed dog.

Now, we can think of other people who are more deserving of a deranged mutt with more bite than a JCB, but we all have to live with our misfortunes. The good news is that this savage beast is easily calmed by soothing music and your particular pooch just loves to hear the calming melodies of good deeds.

You see, a creature with three heads has a lot of internal issues. Three brains are just dangerous when it comes to decision making. They have to all agree on which lamppost to pee up, who's got the worst doggie breath and most importantly whose turn it is to lick his dangleberries. The good news is that you're such a nice person that Fluffy rarely wakes up; but make sure you keep it that way. Dogs like Fluffy are notorious for needing lots of exercise and with all those hungry heads you would need to invest in a very large pooper-scooper!

Back to tried and trusted http://uk.tickle.com/- beats blogthings and suchlike any day!
Although they don't give you your results in HTML...

cq

Life, Sleep Deprivation and - Skiing!

Bit of a mixed bag here today, folkses.

Life - as I have previously mentioned my life is Boring with a Capital B. I have no children, no fun job and no real hobbies - I am a boring person. Hence my surprise when Aginoth nagged me to death about starting a blog. 'I'll have nothing to say!' - of course, since then I have discovered other blogs, blogthings and made a couple of friends in blogland [waves at Spindleshanks and Mary P]. So my blog is still evolving. It was to be about skiing - but I can only post 'done my exercises, 4 months to go' so many times before people turn off! :-) And I have quickly become addicted to blogging, posting a variety of things to gauge peoples' interests. Maybe it's time I restricted my blogging? But it's all new and shiny :-)

Sleep Deprivation - Charlie is a Cat in the Doghouse! He woke me up at 1230 this morning and then commenced walking on my head until I walloped him. Then he went downstairs and I heard the awful sound of falling ornaments. OK, that was it - 0115 and I was up and downstairs, fishing my very old and hard to replace china seal from behind the telly and checking my Pocket Dragon wasn't chipped (the dearest one, bought for me by cyberkitten in Cornwall to celebrate 5 days washing up duty!). Now I was up, it was a free for all. Charlie jumping on Pandora, Pandora swearing and jumping on me, me jumping on both of them.

Well, I made up for the ridiculous hour by catching up on last week's Lost, Grey's Anatomy and 4400. woo hoo! Lost - I was yelling at the telly (well, stage whispering cos HWMBO was still snoring upstairs!!) 'don't die, Charlie!' - being as Charlie is my favourite character (coincidence or what!).By 0430 I had run out of taped programmes to watch, so I turned on Discovery and Health to hone my birthing skills! I have spent many an ludicrously early morning watching women scream, squirm and deliver bouncy babies!Finally Charlie ran out of power at about 0530 and I was able to doze off in my chair until 0700, when I had to get up and go to work! [whisper] I was back home and in bed by 1130!

Skiing - not one to let moss grow, I went shopping armed with my e-voucher. I bought thermal vest and socks (always useful), skin gloves (excellent for day to day and under ski gloves), a nice neck warmer and 2 pairs of ski socks (posh thermalite ones as I am allergic to wool) and....













my 'FilmStar Hat' (as modelled by my delightful Assistant Frostie the Bear - who will be accompanying me in January!). It's such a lush hat for £15, couldn't really say no, could I?

cq

To Confuse Santa...

18. Instead of milk and cookies, leave him a salad and a note explaining that you think he could stand to lose a few pounds.

17. While he's in the house, go find his sleigh and write him a speeding ticket.

16. Leave him a note, explaining that you've gone away for the holidays. Ask if he would mind watering your plants.

15. While he's in the house, replace all his reindeer with exact replicas. Then wait and see what happens when he tries to get them to fly!

14. Keep an angry bull in your living room. If you think a bull goes crazy when he sees a little red cape, wait until he sees that big, red Santa suit!

13. Build an army of mean-looking snowmen on the roof, holding signs that say "Go away Santa."

12. Leave a note by the telephone, telling Santa that Mrs. Claus called and wanted to remind him to pick up some milk and a loaf of bread on his way home.

11. While he's in the house, find the sleigh and sit in it. As soon as he comes back and sees you, tell him that he shouldn't have missed that last payment, and take off.

10. Leave a plate filled with cookies and a glass of milk out, with a note that says, "For The Tooth Fairy." Leave another plate out with half a stale cookie and a few drops of skim milk in a dirty glass with a note that says, "For Santa."

9. Take everything out of your house as if it's just been robbed. When Santa arrives, show up dressed like a policeman and say, "Well, well. They always return to the scene of the crime."

8. Leave out a copy of your Christmas list with last-minute changes and corrections.

7. While he's in the house, cover the top of the chimney with barbed wire.

6. Leave lots of hunting trophies and guns out where Santa's sure to see them. Go outside, yell, "Ooh! Look! A deer! And he's got a red nose!" and fire a gun.

5. Leave Santa a note, explaining that you've moved. Include a map with unclear and hard-to-read directions to your new house.

4. Set a bear trap at the bottom of the chimney. Wait for Santa to get caught in it, and then explain that you're sorry, but from a distance, he looked like a bear.

3. Leave out a Santa suit, with a dry-cleaning bill.

2. Paint "hoof-prints" all over your face and clothes. While he's in the house, go out on the roof. When he comes back up, act like you've been "trampled." Threaten to sue.

and last but not least...

1. Instead of ornaments, decorate your tree with Easter eggs. Dress up like the Easter Bunny. Wait for Santa to come and then say, "This neighborhood ain't big enough for the both of us."

cq

What's Your Blogging Personality?

Your Blogging Type Is Thoughtful and Considerate

You're a well liked, though underrated, blogger. You have a heart of gold, and are likely to blog for a cause. You're a peaceful blogger - no drama for you! A good listener and friend, you tend to leave thoughtful comments for others.

What's Your Blogging Personality?

cq

What Part of Fall Are You?

You Are Fall Flowers

Beautiful yet often forgotten.

What Part of Fall Are You?

you know - somehow that is *so* depressing... :-(

cq

What is Snow?

A posting for my god-daughter in chilly Calgary.

Snow is not frozen rain. Snowflakes are created inside clouds by tiny ice crystals colliding and sticking together. Most snowflakes melt on their way to the ground and fall as rain. Only when the air near the ground is cold enough will snowflakes fall as snow. All snow crystals are six-sided (hexagonal) and no two snow crystals have ever been found to be identical. Some snowflakes can grow to be 5-7 cm (2-3 in) across. When fresh snow is moist enough to stick together, snowrollers may form on hillsides or in large fields. A ‘snowroller' is like a cylindrical snowball in shape and is blown by winds of more than 32 km/h (20 mph) until it grows too large to travel any farther. Snowrollers can reach nearly 1.5 m (4 ft) in diameter.

Snow can be Wet or Dry

When it is very cold, "dry" snow falls - the ice crystals do not stick together easily and the snow is fine and powdery - in very cold dry conditions ‘diamond dust' ice crystals may fall. At less cold temperatures near freezing point, "wet" snow falls and large snowflakes form, especially if there is no wind. There are lots of different types of snow, as skiers know only too well. The Inuit people of the Arctic have lots of different words for snow as they live among it all year round and so understand it extremely well.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

cq

MATRIX

Despite denials and attempts to downplay the role of data mining in the Multistate Anti-Terrorism Information Exchange (MATRIX) program, the new documents reveal that data mining - also known by the euphemism "factual data analysis" - has been a central part of the program. Data mining is controversial because it involves not the attempt to learn more facts about known suspects, but mass scrutiny of the lives and activities of innocent people (through the information signatures they leave behind in various databases) to see whether each of them shows any signs of being a terrorist or other criminal.

Does this leave a nasty taste, or what?

Does the Data Protection Act protect us from actions like this in the UK?

cq

Never say Never.......

Ghana's snow leopard skis for glory

Rarely do you associate an African with skiing, but Ghanaian Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong wants to enter uncharted territory.
As Ghana's first professional skier, he aims to compete next February in the downhill race at the winter Olympics in Turin, Italy.
Nkrumah-Acheampong, who loves to be referred to as the "snow leopard", was actually born in the Scottish city of Glasgow, but grew up in Ghana's capital, Accra, where the nearest most people get to snow is imagining "cold cotton wool".

"The first time I saw snow was on TV back home in Ghana," Nkrumah-Acheampong told the BBC's Fast Track programme.
"Watching skiing then, I loved the way the skiers turned, moved fast in a zigzag manner and I said to myself, 'Some day I'll ski!'"

Nkrumah-Acheampong, who moved to the UK in 2000, only took up the sport two years ago when he got a job as a receptionist at a skiing centre in Milton Keynes.
"I began skiing at the indoor ski centre and took a few lessons as they were free for staff. But I quit my job when the love affair with skiing grew because I felt I had a good chance of making it professionally," he explained.
Even though he was ridiculed when he first took to the slopes, Nkrumah-Acheampong's passion and perseverance have taken him far.
"For me, skiing is a daily thing. It's like a car, the more you drive, the more you perfect the art of driving," he said.
"When I started, people poked fun at me and never took me seriously, but after competing in some events in France - where I performed well against people who had begun the sport in their childhood - respect for me grew.
"They believed I could make it to the Olympics."
Attracted sponsorship
To qualify for the Olympic Games, skiers need to get their personal rating down to between 120-140 World Ski Federation points.
These are worked out after each competitive race - the nearer a skier finishes to the winner, the more points are deducted from their score.
Nkrumah-Acheampong started out with a rating of 1,000 and has been bringing his tally down steadily.
"I am close to the Olympic standard. Already I am on 275, so I have to cancel out 135 points before the winter Olympics deadline of 16 January."
He's been preparing for Turin in the French alpine resort of Meribel under the watchful eyes of former Olympians and he has already attracted thousands of dollars in sponsorship.

"I have been getting support from within and without. And my family has been a pillar of support and I know my faith in God will see me through."

Like most boys, Nkrumah-Acheampong tried out more traditional sports like football and athletics when growing up.
But he feels his experience should serve as an example to other African youngsters to try their hand at more unusual sports such as archery, rowing and darts to bring the continent easy medals.
And he says more people from Africa should consider strapping on some skis.
"I think Africans have a good chance of making it in skiing because of our physical structure. The only thing we have to overcome is the cold."
Story from BBC NEWS:http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/world/africa/4313548.stm

Best of luck to him :-)

cq

Big Day

Big Day Tomorrow.......

Tomorrow is 'Looking for Thermals Day'........I will be nipping up the A38 to Whitminster to Attwoolls Camping Store. Their branch there has a very well recommended ski shop.

Attwoolls Ski Shop

I need vests, socks, longjohns, shortjohns and most of all - a hat! I'm tempted to Peruvian style, with funky stitching and those adorable little earflaps :-)

Main problem is I am allergic to wool and nylon - which necessitates lots of reading of garment labels!

Well, well, well.......while double checking the Attwoolls link, I stumbled across an e-voucher for 10% off ski-wear until 31 Oct 05! [prints off voucher] - what a happy coincidence!

cq

ok, I'm calm, I'm calm.....

Public urged to be calm over flu. People should not panic after the discovery of a deadly form of avian flu among birds in Turkey, the UK government has said.
The Department of Health stressed its advice on who should be vaccinated against flu was unchanged.
It said vulnerable groups, such as the elderly and some children, to have the seasonal flu jab as normal.
EU veterinary officers have agreed a package of measures aimed at stopping the virus entering member states.

I don't think, at this stage, the public should feel they are under a different threat than before Dr David Salisbury, Head of Immunisation at the Department of Health

People in the UK with weak immune systems, such as children with asthma or diabetes, have long been advised to have an annual jab to protect them against flu.
Since the H5N1 strain of bird flu, which has killed 60 people in South East Asia, was confirmed in birds in Turkey on Thursday, concern has risen about the UK's plans to contain any outbreak here.
News of the outbreak in north-west Turkey came after avian flu was also confirmed in ducks in Romania. The EU said those cases were assumed to be the same strain.
Samples of the dead birds were sent from Turkey and Romania to the UK for laboratory analysis.
Preparations
David Salisbury, head of immunisation at the Department of Health, told BBC News that people in identified groups, including the elderly, children with conditions such as diabetes or asthma and others who had weakened immune systems should get the seasonal flu vaccination as normal.
But he added: "The currently available vaccine is for people vulnerable to flu, but will not protect them against an emerging pandemic strain."
The government orders around 14 million doses of flu vaccine for the annual vaccination campaign again seasonal influenza.

However, Dr Salisbury said experts were planning for the eventuality of bird flu mutating to spread between humans.
"The risk is very real, we're very aware of what's happening in south-east Asia and are monitoring very carefully the spread of disease amongst birds.
"We're watching very carefully for cases in humans and the presence of bird disease in Europe of course raises everybody's anxieties."
Dr Salisbury said the UK public should not feel the dangers from bird flu had increased, following the emergence of bird flu in Turkey.
"I don't think, at this stage, the public should feel they are under a different threat than before."
But he said the developments in Turkey would be considered in UK preparations.
He said developing a vaccine would take three to five months, and could only be undertaken once the strain of any virus causing a pandemic was identified.
This time delay was the reason the UK was stockpiling antiviral drugs to treat symptoms if they emerged, Dr Salisbury said.

The government has ordered 14.6m doses of the antiviral drug Tamiflu.
This would be enough for 25% of the population - the proportion the World Health Organization predicts would be affected in a pandemic.
"Normal" flu affects 5 -10% of the population.
Conservative Shadow Health Secretary Andrew Lansley said the UK was not completely ready for the effects of a human flu outbreak.
He added: "The government has done too little, too late, to protect the health of the population if an outbreak is imminent."
He said the country was behind some countries in the queue for anti-viral drugs from pharmaceutical companies.

BBC correspondent Jill Higgins said if there was a pandemic, UK officials would start health screening at UK ports to help keep infections out.
"They'd consider closing schools around the country and they'd set restrictions on public gatherings to make it as difficult as possible for the virus to spread", she said.
Sales 'damage'
The UK government said plans were also in place to contain the spread of avian flu among wild and domestic birds.
However, the National Farmers' Union has expressed concern that public fears over the virus could damage chicken and poultry sales - even though the virus cannot be passed on through eating chicken.
The EU veterinary officers meeting in Brussels agreed measures which focused on "strengthening bio-security measures on farms and introducing early detection systems in high risk areas".
A separate EU meeting of bird flu experts is expected to issue advice on the potential risk for humans who come into contact with migratory birds.
EU foreign ministers are to hold emergency talks on the bird flu threat on Tuesday when they meet in Luxembourg for WTO negotiations
Story from BBC NEWS:http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/health/4341496.stm

I'm not worried.... but perhaps I should be [looks worried] - anyway - are we ever really ready for the flu? any flu?

cq

YOU KNOW YOU ARE LIVING IN 2005, WHEN??...........

1. You accidentally enter your password on the microwave.

2. You haven't played solitaire with real cards in years.

3. You have a list of 15 phone numbers to reach your family of four.

4. You e-mail the person who works at the desk next to you.

5. Your reason for not staying in touch with friends and family is that they don't have e-mail addresses.

6. You go home after a long day at work and still answer the phone in a business manner.

7. You make phone calls from home and accidentally dial "9" to get an outside line.

8. You've sat at the same desk for four years and worked for three different companies.

10. You learn about your redundancy on the 10 o'clock news.

11. Your boss doesn't have the ability to do your job.

12 You pull up in your own driveway and use your mobile phone to see if anyone is home to help you carry in the groceries.

13. Every commercial on television has a web site at the bottom of the screen.

14. Leaving the house without your mobile phone, which you didn't have for the first 20 or 30 (or 60) years of your life, is now a cause for panic and you turn around to go and get it.

15. You get up in the morning and go on line before getting your coffee.

16. You start tilting your head sideways to smile. :-)

17. You're reading this and nodding and laughing.

18. Even worse, you know exactly to whom you are going to forward this message.

19. You are too busy to notice there was no number 9 on this list.

20. You actually scrolled back up to check that there wasn't a number 9 on this list!!!!!

AND NOW YOU ARE LAUGHING AT YOURSELF


[stolen from A bit of this a bit of that!]

cq

Rebranded!

OK, it had to happen. I haven't been happy for a while with my blog's name, and have itched to change it.

Why oh why didn't I think three weeks ago that 'craziequeen' was a perfectly good title?

I mean the blog is about me and my life, not necessarily my felines.

So this is now the craziequeen's palace! A place where crazie people can find friends and silly jokes - oh and stuff about skiing and cats!

I sent my mother the first page of my blog, to illustrate my new venture into IT. She said that blogging seems essentially narcissistic.

I wonder - is it narcissistic? Or is it a reflection of the loneliness of the modern technological age? Or is it taking advantage of a wonderful opportunity to put oneself 'out there' and meet new people?

cq

Sex, Anyone??

Got your attention? Good.......

I am a girl. I have a lumpy jumper and mood swings. I cry at movies and love kittens and puppies. My blog is pink. I am a girl - honest........

[stamps feminine foot]

I am so a girl........ :-)

CQ

Making a Meal of it....

OK, so there I was in Burger King - not somewhere I frequent! The impatient and overworked order clerk called for the next order.

'Please can I have a veggieburger, no mayo, no pickle' I blurt out
'You want that in a meal?'
'I don't know - can I tell you what I want and you tell me if it's a meal? I'll have a veggieburger, no mayo, no pickle.....'
'Is that a meal? You get it in a meal with fries and a drink!'

[CQ pauses and takes deep breath]
'I - will - tell - you - what - I - want - and - you - can - tell - me - if - it's - a - 'meal'!'
[CQ collects self]
'Please may I have a veggieburger with no mayo and no pickle, large fries and a coffee?'
'That's a meal'
'Last time I was in Burger King they didn't have coffee with meals'
'ah - now you can have coffee with meals'
'thank you'
[CQ collapses slightly against cyberkitten who is shaking gently with laughter]

It must be me.......it must be! Not everyone must have this difficulty in communicating! I was clear, precise, polite and definite. I was merely handicapped in that I rarely eat in Burger King (or any burger joint for that matter)......

Oh - and as an end note - I also forgot to say 'no cheese'.....so ended up peeling plastic yellow stuff off my burger.....

CQ

I'm a dragon - what are you?

Mary P asked me about my Chinese sign and how elements fit in - well here is a simple explanation:

Astrology's naysayers are often silenced when reminded that this age-old art is based on math and science. Such is certainly the case where the Chinese Elements are concerned.
Ancient Chinese astrologers favored a 60-year cycle, a tendency common to both Eastern and Western astrology. In this cycle, each 60-year span is a third of the "Great Solar Cycle" of 180 years. It is also equivalent to the number of years it takes to assign each of the five Chinese Elements to one of the twelve animal signs (5 x 12 = 60).
As such, the Chinese Elements add an extra layer of meaning to each of the animal signs. Whether it's reinforcing a stern disposition or mellowing a happy-go-lucky mood, the Elements of Metal, Water, Wood, Fire and Earth serve to put our basic "animal" characteristics in a sharper light.

I am Wood:
Like the rings of a tree circle out and expand through the years, so too do those born under the Chinese Astrology Element of Wood. You Wood personalities seek chances for growth and for renewal in all you do, 'branching out' (excuse the pun!) whenever possible. Your open, expansive mind makes you a compassionate and generous friend, colleague and ally. You understand the inherent value of what you and those around you possess, and your confidence allows you to act upon your beliefs.
While your strength forms the backbone of any social group or partnership you're a part of, you could have a tendency to be a bit too systematic in your thinking, and sometimes your passivity allows others to overwhelm and inhibit you. Don't let yourself be lost in a vast forest, an anonymous tree among millions of others. Make your mark on the world -- you're especially adept at business ventures.

Find your Chinese horoscope.

CQ

Big Day

OK, we don't get Trafalgar Day or any of the other remembrance days we have been asking for....

but today is 'John Peel Day'!!

I mean, WHAT? He was a DJ, that's all. I used to listen to him, but never thought he was anything that special.

Apparently there are concerts and tributes all over the UK, and even as far afield as Australia.

John Peel Day

Has the world gone barmy? Will we have a Terry Wogan Day when the Togmeister shuffles off his coil? Or a Dale Winton Day (everyone dresses in pink!)?

CQ

Natural Wonders

The kind people at 'Research' are working so diligently on our behalf (and for their grants, of course!) to tell us about mid-life amnesia and that being bullied as a kid makes you a depressed adult (well D'UH!!). And the Scientists have made sure we now know (if we want to) that Santa and the tooth fairy aren't real, that every single snowflake is different and why rainbows are - well, rainbows.

My question is - are we running out of natural mysterious wonders and myths to wonder at?

And - do we remember when rainbows were just pretty colours in the sky with a pot of gold at the end, or when we didn't see the snowflake, but the opportunity to build snowmen, or we didn't see the human genome, just the baby?

Research, mythbusting - is this spoiling childhood for adults? :-)

Everyday there is a new research house or science magazine publishing results (some banal, some amazing) that make our world that little bit smaller.
And if/when all the mysteries of the world have been uncovered, there will still be the ultimate mystery - Faith.....

CQ

Memory loss link to early stress

Psychological stress early in life may lead to memory loss and mental decline in middle age, research suggests.
A study on rats suggests infant stress has a negative impact on the way brain cells communicate with each other.
The researchers believe parental loss, abuse or neglect may contribute to a type of memory loss in middle age more normally seen in the elderly.

The study, by the University of California, Irvine, features in the Journal of Neuroscience.
These studies point to the development of new, more effective ways to prevent cognitive impairment later in life Dr Tallie Baram
The California team highlighted problems in the signalling mechanism between cells in an area of the brain called the hippocampus, which is known to play a key role in learning and memory.
Lead researcher Dr Tallie Baram said: "The loss of cognitive function later in life is probably a result of both genetic and environmental factors.
"While it is not yet possible to change a person's genetic background, it may be feasible to block the environmental effects, particularly of early life stress, on learning and memory later in life.
"These studies point to the development of new, more effective ways to prevent cognitive impairment later in life."

Nesting panic
The researchers induced stress in rats by limiting the nesting material in cages containing females and their new-born young.
The young rats appeared to overcome their initial feelings of stress but during middle age started to show signs of memory lapses.
The difficulties worsened as the rats grew older and developed much more rapidly than similar problems in rats raised for the first week of their lives in a nurturing environment.
Analysis showed faults in the communication mechanism between hippocampal cells in the stressed rats as they entered middle age.
Similarly, electrical activity in the cells, while normal in youth, became increasingly disturbed as the rats grew older.

A report by the UN-body UNESCO released last year estimated that more than 50% of the world's children are raised under stressful conditions.
Early life stress has previously been linked to later cognitive impairment - but it has not yet proved possible to test the association in human studies.

Immune effect
Rebecca Wood, of the Alzheimer's Research Trust, said previous research had shown chronic stress and recurrent depression damaged both the immune system and brain structures that are important for memory and learning.
"This new study provides the first evidence that moderate stress in young rats causes problems when they are older in the parts of the brain that are responsible for learning and memory.
"Further research will be needed in humans but these results suggest that a period of early-life psychological stress could cause decline in memory later in life."
Mrs Wood said the same parts of the brain were affected in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease.
The Alzheimer's Research Trust is funding research to investigate whether stress contributes to the development of Alzheimer's.
Story from BBC NEWS:http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/health/4327992.stmPublished: 2005/10/11 23:52:15 GMT

I'm doomed - but I don't remember why!!

CQ

WOOD DRAGON Horoscope

Dragon people are the most eccentric in the Chinese Zodiac. Soaring high into the serene heavens, they can be stubborn, passionate, excitable, honest, and brave, wear purple and walk barefoot in public fountains. They listen to their own drummer, thank you very much, while the rest of the world stands in amazement.
People always admire their individuality and feisty personality. Dragons are capable of doing great work for mankind and they inspire trust in almost everyone. The Dragon symbolises life and growth and is said to bring the five blessings: harmony, virtue, riches, fulfilment and longevity.
Chicken Soup and Bamboo Shoots are among keys to even greater good health!

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Dragons are majestic creatures. These Dragons are the chivalrous knights and guardian angels of life, generous with their friendship, compassionate, even heroic, in their deeds. Showing great tolerance towards others, they move easily among all social strata and travel extensively, opening their minds to new things. Brave as matadors, their courageous lives are truly inspiring. Natural curiosity leads Wood Dragons to pursue very interesting career paths. The dichotomy is they are successful human beings but not all that successful in their careers, despite all the help they get from friends and mentors. Fortune comes to them anyway! Now, as you know, the chances of winning the lottery are pretty slim, but Wood Dragons just might do it. Rainy days or sunny, good fortune seems to shine on these money magnets, just like magic. The Wood Dragon is steady as a rock when it comes to Love & Relationships. They just don't believe in love at first sight. To them, love, relationships, and marriage follow a progressive course, evolving naturally and slowly out of friendship. Once the love bug catches them, their love is deep and passionate. The Wood Dragon partner is loving and supportive of the loved one's needs and love is never taken for granted.

Famous Dragon People: Ringo Starr, Edward Heath, Dr. Seuss, John Lennon, Harold Wilson, Helen Keller, Pearl S. Buck, Salvador Dali, Francois Mitterrand, Hosni Mubarek, Maya Angelou.

That's me, that is :-)

CQ

Out and About

Well, today was my monthly trip into deepest darkest Zummerzet to visit the other 'half' of our office - well, Yeovil.

Finally, the six month works on the M5 just south of our junction are finally cleared away. What Norman authorised major roadworks on a major artery to one of the country's biggest holiday area through the holiday season?
They have put in an interesting feature on the northbound carriageway. I was pleased to see a slow lane has been added (bringing the lanes to four) up a nasty hill, and scooted up the almost empty outside lane. Imagine my surprise when there were suddenly signs saying 'lane closed'. After swerving into the next lane I noticed the 'closed lane' consisted of painting diagonal white lines across the lane for about 100yds, pushing the traffic into the left hand lanes in order to get back to three lanes, which then merge back into the original Motorway lanes. Confused?? I was.......
Why not just put a merge on the new slow lane.........?
Just to balance the books, the M4 is now undergoing a 6 month works, also just off our junction east bound! Is it me.......?

Another unpleasant feature of my trips to Yeovil is the quantity of roadkill I have to avert my eyes from on the A road - today it was a pet cat, badger and a fox, not to mention various local vermin, birds and lorry tyres [chuckle]. And, being deepest, darkest Zummerzet, there is always the live animal transports. No respectable vegetarian likes to be next to a lorry full of miserable sheep or sad pigs. Just call me Softy....

On the plus side, my meeting went well - well, I only had one action which involved sending an email, so I could be there most righteous. I'm only really there because I am the walking talking reference to the rule book (see red tape in A-Z) and they find it useful to pick my brains. But hell, it's a day out of the office (ok, so it's in another office!).

Got the meeting done, felt ultra crappy [you know when you think you are coming down with something, but it just doesn't materialise?], so hit the motorway home.

Home, paracetamol, book, bed........ [snore]

CQ

President's Questions

George Bush was giving a talk to a class of 4th graders at a public elementary school. At the end of his little talk, he asked if any of the students had any questions. A little boy raised his hand and Bush called on him."My name is Timmy," the boy starts, "and I have three questions for you Mr. President. First, how did you get elected in the first place when Al Gore got more votes than you did? Second, where is Osama Bin Laden? And third, what ever happened to the weapons of mass destruction?"

Just as Timmy finished asking his third question, the recess bell rang. Bush apologized that he would not get to answer the question but told the kids to go to recess and have a good time playing on the playground. So all the students filed out of the room to go to recess.

Half an hour later the students came back to the room, and George Bush was waiting for them. "I'm sorry that we got interrupted by recess," the president said, "maybe now I can answer some of your questions."

Another boy in the class raised his hand and Bush called on him. "My name is Billy, Mr. President" the boy said, "and I have five questions for you. First, how did you get elected in the first place when Al Gore got more votes than you did? Second, where is Osama Bin Laden? Third, what ever happened to the weapons of mass destruction? Fourth, why did the recess bell ring 20 minutes early today? And fifth, where the fuck is Timmy?"

CQ

Good News All Round!

Firstly congrats to Aginoth for managing to persuade the parole board (sorry, escape committee) to let him go home to his loving family (yellow font in honour of his room!)

And I see from Juggling Mother that Mrs A is also due some congrats - for successfully swapping her children without anyone noticing :-)

Wonderful, Aginoth Clan - much love from the Crazie One.

I managed to get one and a half gold stars last week. My indulgence in pizza and luxurious day off were punished with half a star, but My Pumpkin also awarded me a whole star just for the 'shopping on foot' weekend. I felt stupidly pleased (which is why we have set up this elaborate system - otherwise, I would fall at the first hurdle!!)

Charlie is still desperately trying to get Pandy to play with him - he doesn't get that she doesn't play! However, he is also attempting to snuggle down and sleep with her - which she doesn't appreciate either. Last night she got so exasperated she bit his face - I was impressed, it fits in her mouth!! She's not a hard biter these days (no teeth!) and having had her own face bitten to shreds in the past she is reasonably gentle - just enough to show him he's not wanted.
But they are eating together, sharing 'facilities' and co-existing without bloodshed. I got home from the hospital about 8.30 last night, and they were quietly sitting in the lounge. One on the chair and one on his radiator bed - good as gold! In fact they looked surprised to see me.....

More from the Crazie One tomorrow........

CQ

Animal Personality Test

Your Animal Personality

Your Power Animal: Shark Animal You Were in a Past Life: Polar Bear You have a strong character - you are an aggressive, ambitious, go-getter. You were born to lead.

The Animal Personality Test

So cool - I am a shark.....I like sharks.......but I would counter 'aggressive', 'ambitious', 'go-getter'.....

CQ

Military Cutbacks

Is this the wave of the future? I guess it's environmentally friendly.....sort of.......

CQ

What's Your Pizza Personality?

Cheese Pizza

Traditional and comforting. You focus on living a quality life. You're not easily impressed with novelty. Yet, you easily impress others.

What's Your Pizza Personality?

In a Past Life You Were...

In a Past Life...

You Were: A Greasy Monk. Where You Lived: Italy. How You Died: Decapitation.

Who Were You In a Past Life?

Food Pr0n

I left Mr A in good company this evening. He has a magazine of wonderful artistic pictures to cuddle up to.

Food Pr0n!! In his paper today was a free magazine with a selection of tart and cake recipes by the chef Jamie Oliver, accompanied by full colour pictures.

Such mental cruelty to a man sentenced to hospital food for another week [wink]

I left him alone with his magazine - I'm nothing if not tactful :-)

ps - he said to spell it pr0n - to keep the weirdies away!!

CQ

Extreme Shopping

Not as glamorous as it sounds, sadly.

Further to my decision yesterday to go beyond my training regime, I decided to do the weekly shop on foot on Saturdays and Sundays (theorizing that splitting the shopping weight would make it more manageable).

So I slung Trusty Rucksack on my back and toddled off the very pleasant mile down the pedestrian alley to the supermarket. Our pedestrian alley is great, it runs parallel to the road, but is all bushes and ratruns instead of cars and smog. A great place to walk the dog, stroll to town or (if you are a feline) hunt!

When shopping isn't it funny how you rethink everything you take off the shelves when you know you have to lug it a mile home? :-)

'Do I really need two of those?'
'I'll do the fruit and veggies tomorrow'
'ah, this is reasonably light'
'don't they have this in a smaller bag?'

I remembered Aginoth's special munchy requests and even his Saturday paper - he hasn't seen the newspaper man in hospital for days!

So I packed it all neatly into Trusty Rucksack, and nearly fell over putting it on! Knowing I was being watched by Tesco staff, the Crinkly Brigade and various other paying customers, I carefully hefted Trust Rucksack onto my back without actually toppling over.

And started the walk home - what a walk! I think I misjudged my weights somewhere along the line. After half a mile I was reduced to a solid 'can't go back, must go on' plod. The two extra carrier bags with light stuff (well, the Saturday Guardian isn't that light!) even seemed to gain weight, and - of course - got in my way!

I decided to weigh my shopping when I got home. Of course, I neglected to remember that the scales are upstairs, so after lugging Trusty Rucksack home, I then had to haul it upstairs to weigh it (of course, the more observant amongst you might think 'why didn't she take the scales downstairs? Interesting argument and one I considered after lugging Trusty Rucksack up and down the stairs!).

28lbs!!!!!!!!
2 stone!!!!!!!!!

I carried 28lbs for a mile, and was still standing - just! I was impressed - sod that, I was very impressed. It made up for the aching shoulders, the running sweat and the painful back.
I can carry 28lbs+ for a mile!!

If I can do that - I can ski ;-)

Tomorrow it's fruit and veggies, so my Trusty Rucksack will weigh a measly 15lbs or so...

CQ

Update Schmupdate

Let's see where I stand on my training regime - which is, after all, why I started this blog. It's two weeks today since I started.

Still training, still abstemious with my junk food. I treated myself to 1/4 tub of malteasers last night after my pizza, but could eat no more - perhaps I have reached the 'cleansing' stage of my regimen? Is there such a period, or is it a fallacy?

HWMBO is home tonight, so it's back to the oven/sink with the shackles on for me. Not all bad, though some might think so, as I do have long-standing issues with food and my eating this week has been sporadic at best. With HWMBO back home, I have to cook (and therefore eat!) at least one proper meal a day. Although I may reduce my own portions.

I managed two lots of training today and intend to move on ahead of my schedule - I see another gold star in the offing! I have also dialled my exercise bike up three notches!

Visiting Aginoth in hospital is of benefit to both of us, as I park about half a mile away (up and down a nasty hill) and walk briskly to and from the hospital, which adds to my regimen. When I go to the movies, I park the car at the cinema and walk (again briskly!) across to the Mall to meet people then walk back, rather than driving every last foot!

I am losing weight (I am pleased to say!). Not too much, but I can't be sure if that's the exercise and 'sensible' (mostly!) eating or whether it is down to the high dose of Prozac I am currently on.
Prozac is an appetite suppressant as well as being an anti-depressant, which helps with the binging common in depression.

Tune in next week for more updates on my own personal purgatory.

CQ

Celebrity Challenge?

Celebrity gossip

Movie star couple John Travolta and Kelly Preston have reportedly told Tom Cruise’s fiancée Katie Holmes that she must keep quiet during the birth of her child. Not for Katie the luxury of screaming out while enduring the agony of childbirth, oh no. Instead, according to the laws of Scientology (and subsequently its high-profile Hollywood followers), the poor starlet must suffer in silence. And that’s not all. The controversial religious organisation also believes that pregnant women should shun painkilling drugs. On and they also demand that a newborn baby be quiet as well.
According to Scientology, children should be brought into the world without any fuss and allowed to quietly get used to their surroundings. That means no music, no chatting, no expressions of pain from the mother – and presumably no cries from the child itself.
Baffled?
Allow John’s wife Kelly Preston to explain: "It's just because everything in moments of pain is really recorded and you want to have that (the birth) peaceful and clear of the sort of suggestions of different words that can then affect them (babies) in their future." Hmmm… we wonder if Kelly was able to practise what she preaches during the birth of her two daughters.

Could be a new game show........

CQ

Life is Strange

A Little Pride, A Little Prejudice

I have just been to see Pride and Prejudice for the second time, this time with an avowed Austen fan who studied P&P at A level. (The first time I went with cyberkitten who is an Austen virgin! :-) )

Well, she said (as I waited with bated breath for her announcement), it's not quite the book, but it's better than the BBC version!!

Good Lord, and there's everyone else telling me the BBC version (which I haven't seen) is much better than the new film.....how about that then.........?

I like the new film (Keira Knightly, Donald Sutherland). It's fun and quirky with enough lateral translation of Austen to make it palatable for today's audience. Of course it's dumbed down; not many people read Austen these days - although as fan-friend says, this will pull more to Austen's work!

[wanders off to find Austen omnibus and read all about Elizabeth and Darcy in the original format]

Perhaps new versions of Northanger Abbey, Emma and Sense and Sensibility might be on the cards? :-) Couldn't hurt....

CQ

On Top of Ol' Smokey

Well, I survived my trip to London! My heart sank as the train rushed toward Paddington, but I kept my cool – even though I was drowning in a sea of rushing commuters. Why do they all run, are they always late? Perhaps they should get up earlier [wink]
I discovered the escalators have an invisible dividing line down the middle; ‘standers’ to the right and ‘walkers/runners’ to the left – am I the only one who remembers ‘don’t walk or run on escalators’?
And I was particularly intrigued by one girl on the Underground who had a piercing inside her ear – wow that must’ve hurt!
And don’t tell me I’m the only person these days who checks out anyone with a knapsack!

So, handled the Underground and finally found my way to Main Building; being me and a map reader, I went the long way round (not complaining, it all adds to my exercise regime!)

But I was embarrassed on arrival and sought the help of the guard. Twas only a minor embarrassment but he was very kind.
You see, since getting off the train at Paddington, across London on the Bakerloo and half way around Westminster – I had been carrying an empty coffee cup. There are no bins in London. I asked the nice young man in the Underground ‘no, miss, we don’t have any bins on the Underground’. I hunted around Embankment and kept an eagle eye out all the way to the office. No bins! I asked the guard at the office ‘no, miss, we don’t have a bin’ I looked a little worried, thinking I would be forever attached to the cardboard cup, and he said in a fatherly tone ‘but give it to me, and I’ll see to it’. I gratefully relinquished my hold on the now way too familiar cup.

Another thing that caught my attention was our fire alarm muster point. Most people have ‘car park’, ‘outside South Door’ - our Main Building have ‘the statue of Bartle Frere’ – our immediate response was 'the statue of WHO???' Immediately I woke up this morning I googled old Bartle, turns out he and his family are heroes……

George Frere (1774 - 1854) came to Twyford House after his wife, Elizabeth Raper, inherited the grand Queen Anne mansion and estate from her grandfather John Raper. He was a founder and sometime President of the Law Society (c. 1836) and his 6th child Bartle John Laurie Frere, born in 1814, himself became President in 1867/68. When his father died in 1854 Bartle J.L. Frere financed and organised the complete renovation of the fabric of the St. James, as a memorial to his father. Through his London connections he employed Lewis Vulliamy (of Regent Street fame) as the architect and Sir Gilbert Scott to design some of the furnishings. In 1892, following an occasion when he had to send a friend all the way to Cambridge for treatment, he conceived the idea of a hospital for Bishop's Stortford. After his death, his wife Adelaide Frere and family completed the fund raising. His nephew, Eustace Frere, was the architect and Rye Street Hospital was opened in January 1895.
Bartle J.L. Frere's grandson, Bartle Laurie Stuart Frere was born in 1896 the eldest child of Laurie and Maud Frere. Following his education at Eton he was expected to join the family law firm at Lincolns Inn. In 1915, before he had finished his education, he enlisted as a Lieutenant in the 4th Batt. Bedfordshire Regiment went to France and was killed November 1916 at Beaumont Hamel. An oration delivered at his memorial service at Thorley church gives a flavour of this young man. It contains references to 'a strong character for a boy so young …….. infectious sense of humour …… quick witted …… life and soul of any gathering. He had a fine singing voice, a true ear and glorious lungs but it was the rich humour of his personality that made his comic singing what it was'.
Many references can be found for the most honoured of the Bartle Freres, Sir Henry Bartle Edward Frere (1815 - 1884). Following a long and distinguished career in the Indian Civil Service, he was created a Baronet in 1876. In 1872 he had successfully negotiated the abolition of the slave trade with the Sultan of Zanzibar. In 1877 he was appointed to be the Governor of the Cape Province, South Africa to implement the policy of confederation. To this end he provoked a war with the Zulu tribes, the first battle of which in 1879 ended in a disastrous defeat for the British army. Despite eventually winning the trust of the Boer element of the proposed confederation he was recalled to London in 1880. Sadly he died of a chill in 1884 and was buried in St. Paul's Cathedral. In 1888 Edward Prince of Wales unveiled a statue to him in the Victoria Embankment Gardens Whitehall Extesnion that was paid for by public subscription. Here is dear old Sir Henry:

I escaped the building at lunchtime and checked out Old Man Thames and the London Eye (about as near as you’re going to get me to it!). I also dodged the telly people. It’s weird seeing reporters, cameras and big fluffy booms in real life - apparently Mr Putin was in town to thank the Brits.
Finally struggled back across town in the height of the evening rushhour, collapsed on my train home and began texting people, mad with relief I was out of the city - and, as ever, vowing never to return.

CQ

7 Things

This is in response to an open tag by MaryP. I should be recording my trip to London – but I’m still recovering…maybe later!

7 things I plan to do before I die:
1. Go skiing – well, that’s a given!
2. Be debt-free – like that’s ever gonna happen!
3. Get off Prozac permanently
4. See my Boo in Canada
5. Cuddle a chimpanzee
6. Swim with dolphins (yeah right – how many have that on their list!)
7. Hold Boo’s children (which would make me a great-godmother!)

7 things I can do:
1. Negotiate
2. Read copiously
3. Blog (thanks Aginoth!)
4. Admire a droplet of rain amidst a downpour.
5. Be honest.
6. Be gracious in defeat
7. Teach (well, I was always supposed to be a teacher – now I guess I am a teacher of life!)

7 Things I cannot do:
1. Hear my child say ‘I love you, mummy’.
2. Eat meat.
3. Ice skate
4. Ski – yet!
5. Remember simple things – thanks Prozac!
6. Hurt an animal
7. Play complicated computer games.

7 Things that Attract me to the Opposite Sex:
1. Left-handedness
2. Red hair and freckles
3. Supportive
4. GSoH
5. Respect
6. Freedom
7. Independence

7 Things I Say Most Often:
1. Charlie!
2. Get off of her!!
3. What do you want for dinner, dear?
4. No such thing as a stupid question, only stupid answers
5. Charlie! (well, I say it so much atm it warrants two entries!)
6. Drive carefully
7. Don’t drink too much!

7 celebrity crushes:

Lost count over the years……….
Johnny Depp
Vin Diesel
Cliff Richard (well, I am old)
Not to mention all the nice young men whose posters decorated my walls throughout teenagerhood!

7 People I tag:
Like Mary, I'll let you tag yourselves, whoever wants to!

CQ

Movies and Chocolate

Along with my precious felines, HWMBO, the cars, the crazies, blogging (and my hospital visiting !) - I also enjoy going to the cinema. This is usually quite an affair when I cry off cooking, get Pizza Hut and indulge myself with a tub of Malteasers in the film.

Tonight however, in due reverence of my current state of abstention, there was no Pizza Hut and, more importantly some might say, no Malteasers!

The film was History of Violence. 'oh goody,' I thought. 'Viggo Mortensen and Ed Harris in a movie together!'. The film started 'oh goody,' I whispered to cyberkitten. 'Stephen McHattie, I like Stephen McHattie!'. Ten minutes later I resigned myself to the fact that ten minutes was all we were getting of the adorable McHattie. Then we lost Ed Harris, and my interest definitely started to wane.
The culmination was centred around Viggo's character's big brother Richie. Now, it was actually William Hurt sporting a goatee - but he looked so like James Lipton that I expected him to lean forward and say gently 'Tell me, where did it all begin for you?'.

Did I like it? hmm - good question. Being Cronenberg (famous for his horror flicks, I understand) it was gruesome and bloody.
But did I like it? I love Viggo (one of my fave films is 28 Days!) and Ed Harris is an icon.
But did I like it? Honestly? No. It was slow, almost lethargic. We got to certain answers long before the film seemed to reach there. And the sex scenes were fairly gratuitous.

On Thursday I am going to the flicks again - but this time I'm going to a film I know I'm going to enjoy! Pride and Prejudice was such fun I am going to see it again.
And on Thursday I will have earned myself Pizza Hut pizza and Malteasers - as it will be two weeks since the start of my training drive [drool].

CQ

Time to meet the family! Pandora Cat

This is Pandora (aka Pandy) my grande dame pussycat of 16 years. She is old and sleepy now, but has a Killer reputation :-) She likes sleeping in the sun and having her cheeks stroked. Since the sudden death of her lifetime companion Ambrose about five years ago she has suffered depression and crippling cystitis (the latter is brought on by stress). Her cystitis is managed with cystaid and cuddles.
Our vet reckons she will live for a good few years yet and has asked to be invited to her 20th birthday party!

CQ

Time to meet the family! Charlie Cat

This is Charlie. He was abandoned on a roadside with his two brothers at about ten weeks. We took him as soon as we heard he was looking for a home. He likes eating my dried grass arrangement and making Pandy's life hell. He is bouncy and annoying, but also loving and devoted.
He had terrible earmites and mats when we got him, but he's screamingly healthy now.
Due his neutering next month and he also gets to have an eye test due to a small problem with his eyes.

CQ

Now you see it, now you don't

Poor Blogger seems to be rather poorly. What with going offline, grinding to a halt and struggling to publish.....

Perhaps it is being overworked?

Perhaps the customer base was slightly(!) larger than first envisioned?

I've been trying to publish photos for three days now - perhaps I'll leave it for a bit [wink]

CQ

Inmate Aggie

I was surprised to see Aginoth's dubious mashed potato reappear tonight - masquerading as processed cheese! Same colour, same consistency! Yet another possibility for wall decoration! He declined the cheese, after testing it and watching his thumb sink through it - but I impressed upon him the need to keep the sealed pack of crackers. I also reminded him of the hospital motto 'always always hoard your butter - never give it back - you never know when you're gonna need a pat of butter!'.

I have now added My Cousin Vinny, Day After Tomorrow, National Treasure and Good Morning Vietnam to his DVD collection. Must be me feeling guilty that I won't be able to visit him for three nights this week.
In the pile for tomorrow, I have Hero, A Very Long Engagement, Manchurian Candidate (Washington version) and the amazing Man on Fire for Aggie's delight and delectation! Well, one can only watch so much terrestrial TV before signing on for a rubber room - and Aginoth is half way there with his yellow walls! :-(

To ensure his brain doesn't rot (what with the food and the yellowness of his environment) I have also donated a rather thick and difficult quiz book to the entertainment. Damn! Should have pulled out the answer pages! His eyes lit up when I pulled it out of the bag :-)

No work for me tomorrow (having craved a few days off) so I get another lay in [huzzah!]
I have perfected the art of detaching Charlie from my hair at 4am and going back to sleep! Not something I can do with HWMBO in the house. Of course, life would be easier if Charlie didn't eat my hair, but our late lamented Echo did the same - so maybe it's a kitten thing.

CQ

Bedtimes

If you receive an email entitled "Bedtimes" delete it IMMEDIATELY. Do not open it .

Apparently this one is pretty nasty. It will not only erase everything on your hard drive, but it will also delete anything on disks within 20 feet of your computer. It demagnetizes the stripes on ALL of your credit cards. It reprograms your ATM access code, screws up the tracking on your VCR, and uses subspace field harmonics to scratch any CD's you attempt to play. It will program your phone auto dial to call only 0898 numbers. This virus will mix antifreeze into your fish tank.

IT WILL CAUSE YOUR TOILET TO FLUSH WHILE YOU ARE SHOWERING. It will drink ALL your beer. FOR GOD'S SAKE, ARE YOU LISTENING?? It will leave dirty underwear on the coffee table when you are expecting company. It will replace your shampoo with Nair and your Nair with Rogaine. If the "Bedtimes" message opened in a Windows 95/98 environment, it will leave the toilet seat up and leave your hair dryer plugged in dangerously close to a full bathtub. It will not only remove the forbidden tags from your mattresses and pillows, it will also refill your skim milk with whole milk.

***WARN AS MANY PEOPLE AS YOU CAN. ***And if you don't send this to 5000 people in 20 seconds, you'll fart so hard that your right leg will spasm and shoot straight out in front of you, sending sparks that will ignite the person nearest you.Send this warning to everyone!!!THERE'S A LOT OF SADNESS IN THE WORLD! Right now, as you read this, 17 Million people are having SEX!!! And look at you - you're on the computer!!!!

Nuff said!

CQ

Name Your Poison

It was pointed out to me that the question of the Simpsons was worth blogging.

What is your favourite episode of the Simpsons?

Mine is Bart's Soul - so many excellent social and religious comments. The electric door not working, Bart not being able to breathe on the glass, and as he deteriorated, the change in character with hissing and marvellous cats eyes.

CQ

Visiting Hours

I took the evening shift of visiting with Aginoth. Reasoning that wife and mother would have provided basic sustenance, I went armed with his favourite luxury snacks (Tunock's Teacakes and Jaffa Cakes) and an armful of magazines to supplement his books. I also took him a Sudoku book and a stock of pens - cruel, ain't I??

Hospitals are really miserable places by nature. However, with another Crazie in tow, we passed a pleasant three hours discussing everything from God to the Simpsons. When we started comparing favourite episodes of the Simpsons, we decided it was maybe time to leave :-)

Aginoth's room is yellow - not only is it yellow but it is a horrible yellow. What on earth possessed hospitals to paint walls yellow?? I was in a nice sunny ward in 96 that was magnolia and a soft blue - why isn't that difficult??

He is housed in the old hospital (they ain't joking - built in 1733!) with walls about a foot thick and a definite 'former workhouse' feel to it. Being in the centre of a big city, the Infirmary is actually in three 'bits' (with a few sundries thrown in!) and it took us about ten minutes to work out where the bit was that held Aginoth. We finally ran him to ground in a windowless private room with a rattling aircon machine.

Although the city centre is a 'wireless' area (ie you can catch the internet anywhere) within the solid walls of the hospital there is not a whisper of a signal. Of course, you also have to factor in the six inches of paint on all the walls - we quipped that the room used to be 20' by 15' before 300 years of paintjobs!

Now we're debating what Aginoth can cover those horrendous walls with. A chuff chart was mentioned (where he can cross off his 21 days!), also using the hospital food was suggested (well, it beats eating it!).

All ideas will be passed to Aggie when I visit him tomorrow evening.

CQ