No More Michael Jackson News PLEASE

If you are a Michael Jackson Fan I would advise you to stop reading now.

I am heartily sick of the number of pages his death has taken up in the press. How can anyone honestly worship this drug addled dysfunctional junkie?

True somewhere in his muddled and crazy life he may have had a bit of talent and sung (although to my mind what came out of his mouth was hardly musical) some songs that appealed to the general public.

He is reputed to be an amazing dancer, but unless I am missing something all I have seen is a whirling dervish who has the ability to perform a series of grossly unnatural and grotesque moves on stage. Hardly dancing!

How can so many people be so affected by the drug riddled death of this sad person? I fear it is the usual case of mass media madness and hysteria - something akin to the great swathe of feelings around at the time of the death of Princess Diana. But let’s get this right, I am not in any way associating Michael Jackson with Princess Diana.

Let’s try to take a constructive look at his life. He grew up in a modest house in Gary Indiana. He was the seventh of nine children born to Katherine and Joe Jackson. He was just five years old when he started performing, and aged ten when he was signed by Berry Gordy of the Motown record label. This was the start of the rise to fame of the Jackson Five. It is a known fact that about this time he was the victim of cruel mental and physical abuse at the hands of his ferociously ambitious father.

As his fame peaked, increasingly stories began to circulate about his eccentric lifestyle and unconventional private life. He was reported to have slept in an oxygen chamber – to stay young, and the chimpanzee Bubbles, is reported to have slept in a cot in his bedroom. There were regular reports of plastic surgery to alter his appearance. In 2002, when he dangled his 11 month old Prince Michael II out of a fourth floor Berlin hotel bedroom window, he created an outcry. As the anecdotes of his strange and bizarre behaviour grew, he attained the nickname “Wacko Jacko.” Strange attitudes to sleeping with children in his bed resulted in an eventual court case. Although to be fair he was found not guilty on all charges. With the stories outlined in this paragraph it is hardly surprising he became known as "Wacko Jacko!" In the cold light of day I would ask you to seriously consider - are these the behaviour patterns of a normal human being?

In and amongst all this was the daily intake of drugs (see my blog “Michael Jackson - The Effects of Drugs and Facial Surgery- Sunday 28th June).

SO PLEASE LETS LET THE POOR FELLOW REST IN PEACE AND HAVE THE COLUMN INCHES OF OUR NEWSPAPERS FILLED WITH SOMETHING A LITTLE MORE NEWSWORTHY AND DESERVING.

What a load of b---s Mr Balls

I opened my Yorkshire Post this morning and read an amazing pronouncement by Ed Balls – the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families. It seems he is proposing that parents of unruly pupils can be forced into school to attend “parenting classes” and if this is unsuccessful they can be taken to court and fined £1,000, and if the fine is not paid they can be imprisoned!

Having being involved in Education all my working life, I would suggest to Mr Balls that his scheme is doomed to failure before it even gets off the ground. By far the vast majority of those who will fall foul of this scheme will be children who come from socially deprived backgrounds. Many of their parents will be feckless, unemployed and single parents. Those we all recognise, but are afraid to name publicly as “scroungers on the state”. Now in all honesty how many of these kind of parents are going to attend parenting classes?

I know from experience, having worked in a very deprived area, where a high proportion of children came from homes where parents had been long term unemployed that the important things in the lives of these parents were booze, betting and fags. Education had a very low rating in their lives. School was simply “a place you sent the kids to get them out from under your feet”. Much of the good attendance at the school had nothing to do with complying with the law, or valuing the education the children were getting, but more to do with the school being a free child minder!

Many of the parents had an openly hostile attitude to school. “What good is it for our kids when they won’t get a job at the end of it?” was a frequently asked question.

Now come on Mr Balls, how many of these parents are going to be worried with your pontificating and threats? Ok, you say, so fine them. What are they going to pay the fines with? Their Social Security money? You must be joking! That has to pay for the booze, betting and fags!

So let’s bring in the heavy persuasion – prison – but just a minute, aren’t our prisons already bursting at the seams?

Ed Balls has been economic adviser to the then shadow chancellor, Rt Hon Gordon Brown MP, 1994–97; secretary of the Labour Party Economic Policy Commission, 1994–97; economic adviser to the chancellor of the exchequer, 1997–99; chief economic adviser to HM Treasury, 1999–2004. With the present state of the economy it does little to encourage our beliefs that Ed Balls will do any better in Education than he did in his economic and Treasury posts.

Oh! Just as an interesting aside, this is the same Ed Balls who in September 2007, with his wife Yvette Cooper, was accused of "breaking the spirit of Commons rules" by using MPs' allowances to help pay for a £655,000 home in north London. It was alleged that they bought a four-bed house in Stoke Newington, north London, and registered this as their second home (rather than their home in Castleford, West Yorkshire) in order to qualify for up to £44,000 a year to subsidize a reported £438,000 mortgage under the Commons Additional Costs Allowance. This is despite both spouses working in London full-time and their children attending local London schools. Through a spokesman, Balls and Cooper countered the allegation by saying "The whole family travel between their Yorkshire home and London each week when Parliament is sitting. As they are all in London during the week, their children have always attended the nearest school to their London house."

Michael Jackson - The Effects of Drugs and Facial Surgery

We take the Mail on Sunday. When I opened the paper this morning I read that the Jackson family were getting a "24 hour sober coach" for Michael Jackson. Now not being an American, or involved with the entertainment industry I was intrigued to discover what a “sober coach” is exactly. It turns out that he is a person who accompanies someone who has a drink or drugs problem 24 hours a day and tries to wean them off their habit.

The Jackson family were aware of Michael Jackson’s reliance on prescription drugs, and had hoped that he would voluntarily go into rehab prior to his 50 concert dates in London. This was not to be – Jackson apparently did not recognise his dependency on the drugs, so they tried the next best thing, and that was to hire a “sober coach.”

A Doctor Howard Samuels, the executive director of the “Wonderland Centre”, a £35,000 a month private drugs rehab facility was consulted.

Just to give you some idea of the amount of drugs Jackson was regularly using, this was reputed to be his daily intake:-

Demerol – known in the UK as Pethidine (a morphine related painkiller) Injection twice a day
Vistaral – a painkiller Injection twice a day
Dilaudid – a powerful narcotic 3 mg twice a day
Xanax – an anti anxiety drug similar to Valium 250 mg
Zoloft 100 mg
Ritalin - a stimulant or “upper” 10 mg
Prozac - an anti depressant 20 mg
Prilosec No dosage given

A leading pharmacologist is quoted as saying…..”A combination of antidepressants, anxiety pills, painkillers and stimulants would have left him listless and unresponsive. Some have been associated with serious side effects, including breathing problems and mood swings.

An un named Doctor has crept out of the woodwork to tell of Jackson almost dying of a morphine overdose on the night of Dec 29th 2003, shortly after a disastrous interview with Ed Bradley on American TV, where he nervously tried to defend himself on child sex charges which had been made against him.

The Mail goes into various other aspects of Michael Jackson’s troubled life, between pages 6 to 13 – Eight pages plus the banner headlines on the front page.

To requote my final comment on Friday’s blog – “What a sad way to end a life”, but I ask myself, is a hopeless druggie really worth all that amount of space?

Phew isn't it Hot!

I have just received a belated Father’s Day Card in the post from Jamaica. Ben and Hannah sound to be having a wonderful time. The temperature has been around a hundred degrees (YES, A HUNDRED DEGREES FAHRENHEIT) for most of the time, but tempered with a light breeze, which has made things bearable!

They are planning on a ride in a glass bottomed boat, kayaking, and going on a catamaran. We will no doubt be filled in on the full details when we pick then up from Manchester International Airport at around 07.00 BST on Monday morning.

We seem to have been having a fairly good spot of weather here at the moment, with the temperatures in the mid seventies for most of the week. Today, the temperature is at 23.5 degrees Celsius (74 degrees Fahrenheit.) Although there has not been as much direct sunlight just more hot and sultry.

I was interested to read that the Met Office in its wisdom has published a heat wave warning.

There is a 60% risk of a heat wave for Monday and Tuesday with daytime highs in London reaching 32C and remaining warm at night.
NHS staff have been warned to prepare for a surge of elderly and ill patients suffering from the heat.
The Department of Health has also asked people to check up on vulnerable friends, relatives and neighbours.
The Met Office has predicted that around the country daytime temperatures could reach 29-30C, (86 Fahrenheit) with minimum night-time temperatures of 15-18C (64 Fahrenheit).
London, the East of England, South West, South East and the Midlands are the most likely to be affected. Officials had already said this summer may be warmer than the past couple of years

Heat wave guidance
A Department of Health spokesman said consecutive hot days could be dangerous for people with heart and respiratory problems and in extreme cases, excess heat can lead to heat stroke, which can be fatal.
Ozone can be a big problem for those with breathing problems but although levels can be high during the day in a heat wave, they drop at night so staying indoors in the middle of the day can help.
"Keeping the home as cool as possible during hot weather and remembering the needs of friends, relatives and neighbours who could be at risk is essential.

"The elderly and those who are ill, are particularly vulnerable during hot weather and the most oppressive conditions occur in our towns and cities."
"Windows should be kept shaded and closed when the temperature is hotter outside than inside.
"People with respiratory problems should stay inside during the hottest part of the day."
If anyone is worried that their home or that of a relative or neighbour is too hot they should contact their local environmental health officer, he added.
Other advice in the government's heat wave plan includes drinking cold drinks like water or fruit juice regularly and avoiding tea, coffee and alcohol.

HOW TO COPE WITH A HEAT WAVE
Plan your day so you stay out of the heat.
Avoid going out 11am-3pm - the hottest part of the day.
If you go out, stay in shade, wear hat and light, loose clothes.
Carry water.
Take cool showers or baths - splash yourself with cold water, particularly face and back of your neck.
Eat as normal. Eat more cold food - salads and fruit.


HEAT WAVE ALERTS
Level 1 - Awareness - general vigilance during summer.
Level 2 - Alert - triggered when heat wave temperatures are predicted in at least one region.
Level 3 – Heat wave - triggered when threshold temperatures have been reached in at least one region.
Level 4 - Emergency - where the heat wave is classed as severe and prolonged.

So there you have it. Now you know how to survive and enjoy a heatwave. I would suggest you make the most of it whilst it is here. With our climate it may be snowing next week!

Wacko Jacko finally hits the Buffers

The headline grabbing news in most of the papers this morning was inevitably the death of Michael Jackson.

It appears that he had suffered a cardiac arrest whilst at the Beverley Hills home he was renting during rehearsals for his latest 50 date comeback tour, due to commence in the UK on July 13th.

Jackson had had a history of health scares prior to this. Brian Oxman, Jacksons lawyer was interviewed this morning and he stated that Jackson was on painkillers, and he said that “If this situation rises where Michael perishes because of medications, and my words were that if he one day wakes up and he is dead because of these medications I will not hold my tongue, I will speak out and I will speak out loud.” He went on to describe three incidents where Jackson had been injured. One was during the filming of the video for Pepsi, when his hair caught fire. Another occasion he fell off a stage and cracked vertebrae in his back. He also broke his leg on another occasion. “These two things were constant sources of pain. They made him fall down they were so painful. He took the medications because of that pain, and it became a part of his life.” After each of these instances he took painkillers, but continued to do so long afterwards.

Prior to this Jackson had obviously had work done on his nose, and chin, and although he denied having any work done to change the colour of his skin, it is very different from the colour of skin he was born with. Jackson's skin was a medium-brown color for the entire duration of his youth, but starting in the early 1980s, his skin gradually grew paler. This change gained widespread media coverage, including rumors that Jackson was bleaching his skin. In the mid-1980s, Jackson was diagnosed with vitiligo and lupus; the latter was in remission in Jackson's case, and both illnesses made him sensitive to sunlight. The treatments he used for his condition further lightened his skin tone, and, with the application of pancake makeup to even out blotches, he could appear very pale. The structure of his face changed as well; several surgeons have speculated that Jackson had undergone multiple nasal surgeries, a forehead lift, thinned lips and a cheekbone surgery.

There were also accusations and court appearences………..

He denied previous tabloid rumors that he bought the bones of the Elephant Man or slept in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber.

Jackson was accused of abuse by a 13-year-old child named Jordan Chandler and his father Evan Chandler. A year after they had met, under the influence of a controversial sedative, Jordan Chandler told his father what Jackson had done. Evan Chandler and Jackson, represented by their legal teams, engaged in unsuccessful negotiations to resolve the issue in a financial settlement; the negotiations were initiated by Chandler but Jackson did make several counter offers. Jackson made an emotional public statement on the events; he proclaimed his innocence, and criticized what he perceived as biased media coverage. Jackson began taking painkillers, Valium, Xanax and Ativan to deal with the stress of the allegations made against him. By the fall of 1993, Jackson was addicted to the drugs. His health deteriorated to the extent that he canceled the remainder of the Dangerous World Tour and went into drug rehabilitation for a few months.

Bizarre behaviour seemed to be part of Jacksons life style. Apart from the rumours of buying the Elephant Man’s bones , and sleeping in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber, Jackson had built Neverland – a childrens playground. The ranch operated as Jackson's private amusement park and home when the facility opened in 1988, but is no longer in operation. It contained, among other things, a zoo and a theme park, with a Ferris wheel, merry-go-round, zipper, spider, sea dragon, wave swinger, super slide, dragon wagon kiddie roller coaster, and bumper cars. It is named after Neverland, the fantasy island in the story of Peter Pan, where children never grow up.

Bubbles is a chimpanzee, known for his association with the American recording artist Michael Jackson. Jackson adopted the three-year-old chimp from a cancer research clinic in Texas. Despite the pair enjoying a close relationship, many media sources mocked their friendship while reporting many false stories on the duo. The public thought of Jackson as a bizarre eccentric, obsessed with recapturing his childhood, and he was subsequently dubbed "Wacko Jacko". Bubbles sat in for the recording sessions of the Bad album and escorted Jackson for the filming of the "Bad" music video. During the Bad World Tour, he and the singer shared a two-bedroom hotel suite in Tokyo.
Bubbles initially resided at the Jackson family's Encino home, but moved to Neverland Ranch in 1988, where he slept in a crib at the corner of Jackson's bedroom. Bubbles was allowed to use Jackson's private toilet, although the chimp sometimes wore a nappy



.

He hid the faces of his children behind scarves and the like, and on one occasion held his baby daughter out from a four story balcony.

One cannot deny the musical ability and popularity of the man. Below are the record sales of his albums

Off The Wall: 19 million
Thriller: 65 million
Bad: 28 million
Dangerous: 29 million
HIStory: 18 million
Invincible: 8 million

When it comes to the crunch, like many of his ilk, he could not take the pressures of fame and high earning. What a sad waste of a life.

Writers Block & Weddings

Well, today I know what writers experience when they say they have writers block. Here I am staring at a blank sheet of paper, and having read the morning paper, gone over the events of the last twenty four hours I have still not come up with anything to fill today’s blog with!

Oh! One piece of news I can tell you is that fellow blogger Barry has kindly put a link on his site through to mine so that his followers can see my efforts concerning Jamie’s First Birthday Barbecue.

So what can I tell you? – It’s the start of what I call “The Wedding Season”, and so I have a wedding to play for on Saturday. After that the weddings start to come thick and fast, and over the next three months I find I am at church most Saturdays and often on Fridays too. The reason for this is that the church where I play is a lovely old traditional church. It has a full set of bells and quite a picturesque churchyard, making it very suitable for wedding photographs. There seems to be a trend in couples deciding to get married on a Friday, probably because they cannot get the place they would like to hold their reception in on a Saturday as it is already booked up.

Thinking back over the weddings I have played for, one comes across some amusing events. I well remember one where the best man arrived looking somewhat battered (one arm in a sling and evidence of bruising around his eyes) It seemed he had had an over exciting stag night the previous evening, and the alcohol had got the better of him. He had fallen over a wall! I didn’t hear what his Bride had to say to him. Then there was an occasion many years ago, when it was a good idea to get married before Easter as you could claim a years tax back. Hence the Saturday before Easter was choc a block with weddings. On this occasion I had no less than five weddings to play for. One on the hour every hour from 10.00 am until 2.00 pm. The vicar at the church had stressed to each of the couples that they must be at church on time (otherwise the following weddings would become progressively later and later.) He had said that if any of the couples arrived more than 15 minutes late their wedding would be postponed until after the last wedding.

The third couple were West Indians, and as a race they are not known for good time keeping. They are very laid back and relaxed about time. Well I am sure you can guess what happened.

Yes they arrived almost 30 minutes late, and so had to wait until the 5th wedding had taken place. Fortunately they were very relaxed about the whole situation, and sat through the 4th and 5th weddings! So they got a couple of dummy runs before they had to take their own vows. No problem man we were word perfect by then!

More recently I played for a wedding, and nobody had thought to pay the wedding fees. The Vicar insisted that they must be payed before he could go ahead with the service. It was quite fun seeing the couple have a whip round their guests to pay for their wedding!

A Bit More About Teeth and a Very Special First Birthday

As a continuation of yesterday’s thoughts on teeth, Jamie’s Mum & Dad might find the chart below a useful aid.



UPPER TEETH

TOOTH DENTAL NAME ERUPTION AGE ROOT FULLY FORMED
A CENTRAL INCISOR 7-9 MONTHS 20-22 MONTHS
B LATERAL INCISOR 7-9 MONTHS 20-22 MONTHS
C CANINE 17-22 MONTHS 30-35 MONTHS
D FIRST MOLAR 12-17 MONTHS 27-32 MONTHS
E SECOND MOLAR 24-33 MONTHS 38-48 MONTHS




LOWER TEETH
TOOTH DENTAL NAME ERUPTION AGE ROOT FULLY FORMED
A CENTRAL INCISOR 6-8 MONTHS 18-20 MONTHS
B LATERAL INCISOR 7-9 MONTHS 20-22 MONTHS
C CANINE 17-22 MONTHS 30-35 MONTHS
D FIRST MOLAR 12-17 MONTHS 27-32 MONTHS
E SECOND MOLAR 24-36 MONTHS 38-48 MONTHS


We went to Jamie’s first birthday barbecue yesterday and were blessed with glorious sunny weather, convivial company and a super barbecue + drinks of all kinds!



Jamie and his Mum opening a present

Jamie with his Dad

Jamie on Grandad Derek's Knee

Blowing out the birthday candles proved a bit of fun,

and the chocolate cake was delicious!

Barry the Blog hard at work taking candid photos of the event

Don't panic - there's no need to send for the fire brigade.They are supposed to be flame grilled!

A Visit to the local ToothTugger

Did you hear about Mr Ree who went to the dentist for a single extraction. When he had finished his treatment his bill said:-

1 2 3 4 5 & 6

Being somewhat puzzled he asked the dental assistant what it all meant
"Oh it's quite straight forward," she replied. "It simply says One Tooth Ree for five and six."

(Those of you who remember the old money £ s d will probably get it!)

So let's start today with a smile!

It’s the annual visit to the dentists today, and we have managed to survive without dentures, although I seem to have lost one or two teeth along the way! I have a crown in my upper jaw which seems to delight in coming out at every possible opportunity. It has been out now for a little while, so I will no doubt be having another “Superglue” job from the dentist in the not too distant future. Although the number of times it has come out does little to recommend the brand of “superglue” he uses. He tells me I have a strong lateral bite - (which makes it sound as thought 1) I eat sideways or 2) I only eat at the side of my mouth.), and it is this that causes it to work loose so quickly. I had thought of suggesting that he welded it in, but then thought about the effects of a welding gun in my mouth.

This all got me round to thinking about teeth – so here are a few interesting facts about your teeth:-


Humans usually have 20 primary teeth (usually known as baby, or milk teeth) and 32 permanent teeth. Among primary teeth, 10 are found in the (upper) maxilla and the other 10 in the (lower) mandible. Teeth are classified as incisors, canines, and molars. In the primary set of teeth, there are two types of incisors, centrals and laterals, and two types of molars, first and second. All primary teeth are replaced with permanent counterparts except for molars, which are replaced by permanent premolars. Among permanent teeth, 16 are found in the maxilla (upper jaw) with the other 16 in the mandible (lower jaw). The maxillary (upper jaw) teeth are the central incisor, lateral incisor, canine, first premolar, second premolar, first molar, second molar, and third molar. The mandibular (lower jaw) teeth are the central incisor, lateral incisor, canine, first premolar, second premolar, first molar, second molar, and third molar. (If you’ve added that lot up you will find it totals 16 but there are a pair of each named tooth, which gives you a mouthful of 32 teeth!) Third molars are commonly called "wisdom teeth" and may never erupt into the mouth or form at all. If any additional teeth form, for example, fourth and fifth molars, which are rare, they are referred to as supernumerary teeth

.

Noticing that all our primary teeth are lost reminded me of the "Tooth Fairy” – who is a character from English folklore.

When a child loses one of its milk teeth, this is put in a safe place (usually under the child's pillow, but sometimes in an egg-cup or under a carpet), and the child is told that fairies will take it in the night, and leave a coin instead—or actually turn it into a coin. Between the wars, this was generally a silver three penny piece.

They always maintained that the silver coin was far superior to their school friends, who maybe received 6d.’ Nowadays, the money given has increased to 50p or even £1.

There is an allusion in Kenneth Graham's The Golden Age (1898: 133) to older boys being customarily tipped half a crown when a tooth is extracted by a dentist, which is a related idea.

There is one early source which links fairies and children's teeth, namely Robert Herrick's poem on ‘Oberon's Palace’ (1648); he describes this as a grotto adorned with various small and useless objects from the human world, ‘brought hither by the elves’—

....................and for to pave

The excellency of this Cave,

Squirrils and childrens teeth late shed

Are neatly here enchequerèd

Herrick's poem matches half the modern tale, namely that fairies collect shed teeth; the other half, the money left in exchange, may have grown out of the old belief that fairies will reward a hard-working servant by leaving sixpence in her shoe at night, a gift presumably placed there secretly by her employer; the child too is being rewarded, for being brave and not making a fuss.Up to the 1950s, the tooth-takers were generally referred to as ‘fairies’, in the plural, but now people more often speak of the Tooth Fairy, possibly under American influence.

A retired dental nurse in Lincolnshire recalls how ‘We kept special tiny envelopes for children to take their teeth home in for the tooth fairy; I used to write on the envelope “For the fairy”. The fantasy can become more elaborate; in letters to the Guardian in October 1988, parents said that when their children asked why fairies wanted human teeth, they replied that it was to make bricks for their houses, or to carve them into toys and ornaments.

Following my research into the tooth fairy, I found that there is a whole industry based on the tooth fairy.

Did you know that you can purchase umpteen books with stories about the tooth fairy, a DVD, a video, a sterling silver tooth fairy box with the tooth fairy (in gold plate) sat on top of a silver mushroom pot – in which can be placed the first tooth [only £34.95],

a make your own tooth fairy keepsake box, a boys (or girls) tooth fairy pillow, a tooth fairy mouse pad, a personal letter from the tooth fairy (only £12.67 – presumably at this price it includes VAT!), and a tooth fairy wash bag. There are four pages of tooth fairy gifts on Amazon!


Keep Smiling (as long as you have your own teeth!)

First Birthday Celebrations

There are big celebrations coming up tomorrow. It is my co blogger's son’s first birthday, and Jamie (I am sure) will be getting into his excited mode. I’ve stolen one of the photos from his Dad’s blog to show you just what an angelic little character he is!

I understand that a barbecue is planned, and I know that Jamie’s Grandma White and Derek (see above) have flown in from Northern Ireland so that they can be at the celebrations, and I am sure Grandad Mike and Grandma Judy (see below) will be there too.

We are just a little worried that we may have to attempt an assault course to get into Jamie’s home. Dad Barry has been keeping us amused with the ongoing saga of the cowboy workmen who have all but managed to destroy all the essential (and non essential) services to theirs and neighbours houses.

Father's Day (part two)

Well here it is - Father's Day has arrived at last!








We've just returned from a surprise picnic with Garry, Rachel, and grandchildren Mollie & Tom. Garry and Rachel have an allotment, and we spent a very pleasant afternoon sitting out in their allotment eating, and drinking and watching the world go by. Rachel has dragged me kicking and screaming into the twenty first century, by presenting me with an i-pod shuffle. So now I will have to gen up on the necessary information to download lots of music onto it. I have been told "If in doubt consult Mollie" (who is somewhat of an expert on these things!) and I have already been given a first lesson on the basics by her.

We took Ruby (our Labrador) with us, and she has probably put in two or three miles by being taken for walks with both Mollie and Tom. (She spent the rest of the day dozing in the sunshine, after being spoilt rotten and fed sausages, french fries, ham sandwiches in home baked bread etc.)

It's no surprise that Ruby is exhausted as she had been taken for a walk by our middle daughter Sarah, before the excursions with Mollie and Tom, and had walked into Bingley and spent a good deal of time swimming in the river. Needless to say, when Sarah called her to come she was loath to leave the water!

Sarah had arrived earlier in the day bearing Father's Day gifts - a bottle of red wine, and an autobiography of Parkinson, and a new sports shirt. We had been out for a meal with Sarah, Greg and Olivia last night and the meal and wine took their toll on me. For the first time ever, I managed to fall asleep during the sermon at church! Luckily, being the organist I am hidden away out of sight, and even more luckily not only did I not fall off the organ bench, but I woke up before the end of the sermon!

It's Father's Day Tomorrow!

Tomorrow, in this country, is officially designated “Father’s Day.” This has got me wondering about the origins of the event.

According to my research, Father's Day is a celebration inaugurated in the early twentieth century to complement Mother's Day in celebrating fatherhood and male parenting, and to honor and commemorate fathers and forefathers. Father's Day is celebrated on a variety of dates worldwide and usually involves gift-giving, special dinners to fathers, and family-oriented activities.




I wonder what my three daughters have got hatched for me?
I do know that our middle daughter, husband Greg and grand daughter Olivia are planning on taking myself & the missus out for a meal tonight. Our youngest daughter is in Jamaica at the moment, so I think I might have to wait for her recognition of Father’s Day! We will probably see our eldest daughter, her husband Garry and Mollie and Tom sometime tomorrow

I am led to believe that the origins of Father’s Day probably derive from a Sonora Smart Dodd of Washington, who whilst listening to a sermon on Mothers Day, decided to arrange a tribute for her own father on June 19th 1910. She was the first person to suggest an official Father‘s Day observance to honour all fathers.

Originally the idea was the target of much satire, parody and derision, and whilst Mother’s Day was met with enthusiasm, the idea of a Father’s Day was met with much laughter. Of course the Americans did little to help their cause when they also had such celebrations as “Professional Secretaries Day” and “National Clean Your Desk out Day!”

Fathers Day is celebrated at many different times by many different countries, but by far the most popular date is the third Sunday in June, which is the date selected by Canada, China, France, Hong Kong, Japan, Netherlands, South Africa, Switzerland, United Kingdom and United States of America to name but a few countries.

Just to round off thoughts of Father's Day, I found this delightful poem - from a Mother!

Fathers Day Poem From Wife to Husband

Of course, I'm not your child, but nevertheless

This card is sent to say

I played my part, I supplied the egg

Have a lovely Father's Day

PS to all those of you who are Dads - Happy Father's Day for tomorrow!

Public Transport and Holiday Hotspots

As the holiday season is approaching I got to thinking about those people who decide to leave their cars at home and use public transport. We have all been exhorted to do this and cut down on the CO2 emissions. The only problem is that public transport, even in some of the most popular tourist spots a can be a little hit and miss. Let me give you an example of what I mean.

I do voluntary work in a local TIC (Tourist Information Centre) and I regularly get asked about public transport to a place called Malham. It is at this point that my heart sinks, because I know that there are only two buses to Malham during the week. One departs at 07.05 and arrives in Malham at 07.50. It then departs at 08.10. The second bus of the day departs at 15.56 and gets into Malham at 16.35. This second bus immediately returns to its starting place. So you have a choice of getting up early and spending either 20 minutes in Malham, eight and a half hours, or else staying overnight.

During my time with TIC I have seen marked trends in holiday tourism. Film and Television have done much to popularise certain areas. Whilst you may not instantly recognise the church below, I am pretty sure that the pub called "The Woolpack" on the second photograph will tell you that I am talking "Emmerdale."

The "Woolpack", or to give it its real life name, The Commercial, has become the centre of Emmerdale village life. Yet those who come into TIC seeking Emmerdale are often surprised to learn that there is no such place. What they are talking about in reality is a small village, not far from Shipley called Esholt.

Even then, they are more surprised to learn that the Esholt they see on TV is actually a set built in the grounds of Harewood House, not far from Leeds. The reason for this is that when the real village was used, and its location became widely known, coach tours would regularly turn up to visit Esholt. The result was that this played havoc with the filming schedules so YTV paid for an imitation Esholt to be built in the grounds of Harewood House.This is closed to the public, so they have to make do with visiting the real Esholt!

Herriott Country became another tourist hot spot due to the popularity of the books written by James Herriott, the vet who used to work from a surgery in Thirsk. This was followed by an equally popular BBC TV series as well as two films. James' real name was Alf Wight, and in the books he gave fictitious names to all the villages in and around Thirsk where he worked. His Surgery in Thirsk has now become a museum.

The opening shot of a vintage car going through a watersplash seemed to epitomise those happy go lucky far off days.

Heartbeat Country is another tourist hot spot, due to the TV Series. Below is the garage featured in the series.

I suppose part of the popularity of this series was the nostalgia which it evoked. One only has to see the old Ford Anglia which was the police car in the series, and suddenly memories come flooding back.

Going back even further in time was the wonderful BBC TV Series "Last of Summer Wine." This was filmed in and around Holmfirth (not far from Huddersfield.) Once again, crowds of visitors head for Summer Wine Country even after all the time since the series first began.

A cast of wonderfully eccentric characters, with Compo, Foggy and Clegg, as the three aging reprobates, and Nora Batty (she of the wrinkled stockings) always defending her honour against Conmpo! Below is her cottage, and the photo above is what was Sid's Cafe in the series. Both can be found in Holmfirth.

The tourist trade has much to thank the makers of these series for. Thousands of tourists from all over the world still come looking for their favourite locations from their favourite series.

The Pleasures (?) of Driving

Just to continue yesterday’s theme. The Phillips Family will be heading for Tunisia in four weeks time, and I have been assured that Garry has now got luggage packing off to a fine art, having a bag which is the largest you can take on as hand luggage and using that. He manages to get in it a pair of jeans, a pair of suit trousers, 2 shirts and a t shirt, wash bag, and a laptop. He also manages to fit in his underwear. Crafty traveller that he is this also avoids the wait at the luggage carousel! However, when all the family fly to Tunisia….well we will wait and see!









A fellow Blogger has had cause for celebrations. He took his driving theory test yesterday and passed it.

To quote from his blog:

“The big thing I mentioned in my last blog that I was doing today was my driving theory test, for the third time, which I'm pleased to say I passed. So, once again, I am able to proudly proclaim that I CAN drive (in theory).”

Eventually he is going to become a fully fledged driver and sooner or later (so the law of averages states) he may well experience the need to call upon his insurance service. Now if any accident happens which is attributable to him, here are a few very good excuses I have gleaned from various sources over the years.

I collided with a stationary tramcar coming in the opposite direction.

To avoid a collision I ran into the other car.

The accident was due to an invisible lorry narrowly missing me.

The other man altered his mind and I had to run over him.

A bull was standing nearby and a fly must have tickled him because he gored my car.

A cow wandered into my car. I was afterwards informed that the cow was half witted.

Coming home I turned into the wrong drive and collided with a tree I haven’t got.

I would consider neither vehicle was to blame, but if either was to blame it was the other one.

The bloke was all over the road. I had to swerve a number of times before I hit him.

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

The accident was caused by me waving to a man I hit last week.