Would you like to live next door to these house?   

Artist Jens Werner Andersen from Norway painted his house in Burberry check pattern. He said he woke up one day and thought it would be a fun idea. The 33-year-old decided to turn his home, a former public lavatory building in Larvik, Norway, into a "gathering place for happy people". 

An architect who painted his entire house and everything in it bright blue left his neighbours in Klagenfurt, Austria, seeing red. Arty Peter Kaschnig said he wanted to see the psychological effects of living surrounded by just one colour.

"One Planet, One Chance" runs the mural on this house in Totterdown, Bristol.

A child walks past Angela Lenihan's technicolour council house in St Georges, Hulme. Lenihan was ordered to remove the paint from the brickwork by Manchester City Council but refused to comply.

The Farm pub in St Werburghs, Bristol, was painted by graffiti artists Xenz and Paris.

...The house was built out of bottles in 1906 by a 76-year-old Australian. The bottles act as insulation, meaning the interior is 20 degrees cooler than the outside temperature in summer.

The picture`s not original to this puzzle from yesterday`s Children`s section of the paper.

It works.  I don`t know how but it works!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Think of a number, any number

Double it

Add 10

Divide by 2

subtract your original number

The answer will ALWAYS be 5

Newspaper Headline:

Illegal aliens cut in half by new law.

Global Facts . . .

At Any Given Moment:

FACT:    79,000,000 people are engaged in sex -                right now.

FACT:    58,000,000 are kissing.

FACT:    37,000,000 are relaxing after having

              sex.

FACT:    1 old timer is reading emails.

You hang in there, Sunshine . . ..

picture not original to song

He

He can turn the tides and
calm the angry sea.
He alone decides who
 writes a symphony.
He lights every star that
 makes our darkness bright.
He keeps watch all through
each long and lonely night.

He  still finds the time to hear
 a child's first prayer.
Saint or sinner call and
 always find Him there.
Though it makes Him sad
to see the way we live,
He'll always say, "I forgive."

He can grant a wish or
make a dream come true.
He can paint the clouds and
turn the gray to blue.
He alone knows where to find
 the rainbow's end.
He alone can see what lies
 beyond the bend.

He can touch a tree and turn
the leaves to gold.
He knows every lie that
 you and I have told.
Though it makes Him sad
 to see the way we live,
He'll always say, "I forgive."

Riddle:

What do they call pastors in Germany?

German Sherherds

I am the Lord God.  I created the heavens streching above you.  I made the Earth and everything that grows on it.  I am the source of life for all who live on this Earth, so listen to what I say.

Issiah 42:5

Bible for Today 

What kills me is how none of them suspected a thing all those centuries as we sat quietly in their homes, observing and plotting.

Our mobile phones may look like this

Our car`s like this

And our bikes this

Then our monument`s would be

Goola-willeel, the Topknot Pigeon

Young Goola-willeel used to go out hunting every day. His mother and sisters always expected that he would bring home kangaroo and emu for them. But each day he came home without any meat at all. They asked him what he did in the bush as he evidently did not hunt.

He said that he did hunt.

'Then why,' said they, 'do you bring us nothing home?'

'I cannot catch and kill what I follow," he said. "You hear me cry out when I find kangaroo or emu: is it not so?'

'Yes; each day we hear you call when you find something, and each day we get ready the fire, expecting you to bring home what you have killed, but you bring nothing.'

'Tomorrow,' he said, 'you shall not be disappointed. I shall bring you a kangaroo.'

Every day instead of hunting, Goola-willeel had been gathering wattle gum, and with this he had been making a kangaroo—a perfect model of one, tail, ears, and all complete. So the next day he came towards the camp carrying this kangaroo made of gum. Seeing him coming, and also seeing that he was carrying the promised kangaroo, his mother and sisters said, 'Ah, Goola-willeel spoke truly. He has kept his word and now brings us a kangaroo. Pile up the fire. Tonight we shall eat meat.'

About a hundred yards away from the camp Goola-willeel put down his model, and came on without it. His mother called out, 'Where is the kangaroo you brought home?'

'Oh, over there.' And he pointed towards where he had left it.

The sisters ran to get it, but came back saying, 'Where is it? We cannot see it.'

'Over there,' he said, pointing again.

'But this is only a great figure of gum.'

'Well, did I say it was anything else? Did I not say it was gum?'

'No, you did not. You said it was a kangaroo.'

'And so it is a kangaroo. A beautiful kangaroo that I made all by myself.' And he smiled quite proudly to think what a fine kangaroo he had made.

But his mother and sisters did not smile. They seized him and gave him a good beating for deceiving them. They told him he should never go out alone again, for he only played instead of hunting, though he knew they starved for meat. They would always in future go with him.

And so forever the Goola-willeels, the topknot pigeons, went in flocks, never more singly, in search of food.

A.W. Reed, Aboriginal Fables and Legendary Tales

Actual Court Case:

Plough v Fields.

Warning label on a bottle of dog shampoo:

"Contents should not be fed to fish."

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Warning label on a carpenter`s drill:

"Not intended for use as a dental drill."

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Warning label on a Japanese food processor:

"Not to be used for the other use."

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Warning label on a blanket:

"Not to be used as protection from a tornado."

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Warning label on a fishing lure with a three-pronged hook:

"Harmful if swallowed."

Pandas Wang Wang and Funi arrive at Adelaide Zoo on November 28

GIANT Pandas Wang Wang and Funi arrive in Adelaide this month but the public's first glimpse of them two weeks later will be through a glass barrier.

The pandas, which will live in their $8 million state-of-the-art enclosure at Adelaide Zoo for a decade are in quarantine for 30 days in China, Zoos South Australia President, Heather Caddick, said this morning.

Once at Adelaide Zoo on Saturday, November 28, they will spend a further month in quarantine in their enclosure.

Wang Wang and Funi will still be in quarantine in Adelaide when their exhibit is opened to the public by Governor General Quentin Bryce on December 13, but will only be visible through massive floor-to-ceiling glass viewing areas.

The pandas should be able to use the outdoor sections of their enclosure early in the New Year.

Zoos SA CEO Professor Chris West said he was delighted that a date had been confirmed for the arrival of the pandas and that Chinese officials visiting Adelaide last week had been very impressed with the facilities in Adelaide.

Wang Wang (male, born 31/08/05) was born at the Wolong Giant Panda Research Centre. His dad is Lin Lin and his mum was Mao Mao. He is a very laid-back and placid boy. Like all Giant Pandas, he loves to snooze and the only thing that can rouse him is a fresh stalk of bamboo. Wang Wang’s name means Net Net.

Funi (female, born 23/08/06) was also born at the Wolong Giant Panda Research Centre. Her dad is Lulu and her mum is Long Xin, and she has a twin brother called Fuwa. Funi is much more nimble than Wang Wang. In fact, she is actually quite elegant (for a Giant Panda!) and is also a bit of a princess. She is extremely active and playful and often makes excited mewing vocalisations at feeding time. She is also very intelligent and curious and loves to explore her environment, she especially enjoys climbing trees and splashing in water. Funi’s name means Lucky Girl.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Before looking for these pictures I thought they were only going to be here for 12 months but even so I`m glad to say I will be going on the bus tour on Tuesday, yep my meals delivery day, to visit these exquisite animals. 

As I have been reading through all the info on them it appears they will be the only Pandas in the Southern Hemisphere!  I can`t wait to see them.

We had a fierce electrical storm last night with gale force winds, just to top of a terrible day.  At least today is much better thank goodness.  The fire that was burning south of here is now under control but quite a few others were started by lightning over night.  The one near here could have had a sad outcome as 2 fire trucks collided.  Thank goodness, although 2 men were flown to Adelaide, no-one was killed.

This morning, after a realy bad night, I woke to much cooler conditions.  It was at least 20C (about 35F) degrees lower!  It has even tried to rain a bit today but that has tended to make it muggy.  Still I`ve been able to open the house up and air it a bit as it isn`t windy today.

I`m running a bit late as I went over to a town about 50k`s (30 miles) away to book a day trip for next April.  It`s with the same company that I am doing the mystery Christmas Day trip.  I`ve also enquired about 2 more trips with them, an 8 day one to Norfolk Island and another of about the same length to the west coast of South Aust to see the whales. 

My next post will tell you all about the April trip!

Have a great Friday and a really terrific weekend.

Riddle:

What`s the difference between a lawyer and a vampire?

A vampire only sucks blood at night.

It`s just on 3pm now and the "Weather Watcher", a program I have on the computer, tells me it is currently 41.1C (106F) in Adelaide.  As I live about a 100 miles north it is probably hotter here.

Below is a story, hot of the press!, about a fire that is burning about 82k`s (50 miles) south of here.  I think I`ll get off line now and listen to the radio for any reports so I will see you tomorrow. 

Bushfire rages on SA's Yorke Peninsula

"For most of history, Anonymous was a woman."

English author, essayist and critic Virginia Wold, 1882 - 1941

Ancients 'had heart disease too'

Hardening of the arteries has been found in Egyptian mummies - suggesting that the risk factors for heart disease may be ancient, researchers say.

A team of US and Egyptian scientists carried out medical scans on 22 mummies from Cairo's Museum of Antiquities.

They found evidence of hardened arteries in three of them and possible heart disease in three more.   All the mummies were of high socio-economic status and would have had a rich diet.

Details of the study by the University of California, the Mid America Heart Institute, Wisconsin Heart Hospital and Al Azhar Medical School in Cairo appear in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The team said the subjects' bodies had been preserved by mummification because they were serving in the court of the Pharaoh or were priests or priestesses.

The X-rays were checked by five experienced cardiovascular imaging physicians on the team.  They showed that 16 of the 22 mummies had identifiable arteries or hearts left in their bodies after the mummification process.  Nine of these had calcified deposits in the wall of the artery leading to the heart or in the path where the artery should have been.  Some mummies had calcification in up to six different arteries.

Definite hardened arteries or atherosclerosis, in other words a build-up of fat, cholesterol, calcium and other substances in the blood vessels, was present in three.

Of the mummies who had died when they were older than 45, seven out of eight had calcification whereas only two out of eight of the younger mummies did.  There were no differences in calcification between men and women.

'No hunter-gatherers'

The researchers said that while ancient Egyptians did not smoke tobacco, eat processed food or lead sedentary lives, they were not hunter-gatherers. Agriculture was well-established and meat consumption appears to have been common among those of high social status.

Dr Gregory Thomas, from the University of California, said: "While we do not know whether atherosclerosis caused the demise of any of the mummies in the study, we can confirm that the disease was present in many.  So humans in ancient times had the genetic predisposition and environment to promote the development of heart disease.  The findings suggest that we may have to look beyond modern risk factors to fully understand the disease."

Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind.

A quote by Rudyard Kipling 1865 - 1936

He who throws dirt loses ground.

Picture of our emergency call number not original to this newspaper story.

How could it be an unavoidable case as the hospital has stated?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hobart Private Hospital patient has to call 000 for help

A MAN lying in a Hobart hospital bed had to call triple zero to get urgent help when he got no response to the nurse call button.

The man was in the Hobart Private Hospital's high-dependency unit after an operation and woke to find he was bleeding from a wound drain, The Mercury reports.

He rang his bell to obtain help from nursing staff, said the Health Complaints Commissioner annual report released yesterday.

But after waiting for 10 minutes without a response, the still bleeding man phoned his wife and asked her to phone the nurses' station. That call also went unanswered, the report says.

Finally, the man called the emergency triple-zero telephone number before he was treated.

Commissioner Simon Allston's report says a night duty supervisor arrived at the man's bedside at the same time as two nurses who had been attending other patients in the ward.

The Hobart Private Hospital said the unnamed man's case was unavoidable as there would be times when all available nurses would be occupied with other patients.

However, during Mr Allston's investigation the hospital admitted the high-dependency room where the complainant was located was not ideally situated in relation to the nurses' station. 

It has since been moved and arrangements have been made to ensure all calls made to the nurses' station are diverted to the switchboard or the emergency department.

The hay fire that started days ago is still burning and depending which way the winds blowing I can smell it.  It`s about 34k`s (20miles) from my place.  It turns out it wasn`t deliberately lit but rather it was from spontanious combustion. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Finally sense has won out.  The young boy that was being charged with recieving the stolen Freddo Frog has had the charges dropped.  Pblic outrage can change things sometimes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Today was suppose to get to 100 again and the weather bureau has issued a Catastrophic Fire Danger rating for parts of South Australia but I think they`ve jumped the gun.  It may have got to the mid 90`s but it hasn`t been hot enough for me to use the cooler which is terrific.  It`s been more humid as it has been cloudy all day but now the sea breeze has blown in and it`s quite pleasant.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 One last story about my baby.  Marji I may have mislead you a bit, yes I have tried to put Nelson`s things away but as I look out the window next to the computer I can see his old bed, an old 2 seater lounge chair, sitting by the shed!  A neighbour is going to take it to the dump because Nelson use to scratch around in it and it is over 20 years old.   All his other things, like his leads, toys and bowls are in the shed.  On Saturday I was having a lot of problems and thought if I put his things out it would help, no way.  His favorite room was the kitchen, well you never knew when food would drop on the floor, so I really feel him there, but then I feel him everywhere.

Today I got 2 sympathy cards, one from the Vet Clinic with an inked copy of his footprint and some of his fur and the other from one of the vets.  She wants a photo of him.  Her letter to me is so beautiful it had me crying again.  In part she said "He was indeed one of my favorite and special patients".  Also saying " He was always so happy when he visited the clinic, such a gentle (but excited) gentleman". 

Our Vet Clinic is a bit expensive, they have had no competition until just of late, but everyone was so fantastic  and they were all so wonderful with Nelson no way could I go to anyone else.

Wheelchair athlete completes Kokoda Track crawl

Slumber

Salvaged wood from condemned house.

Unassuming building the most expensive 100sqm property in Australia

Don`t tell God how big your storm is.

Tell the storm how big your God is.

Boy charged over stolen Freddo Frog

A 12-year-old Aboriginal boy has been charged with receiving a 70 cent Freddo Frog, allegedly stolen from a supermarket in regional Western Australia.

Fairfax newspapers say the boy has no prior convictions.

He's been charged with receiving the chocolate, allegedly stolen by a friend, and faces a second charge involving the receipt of a novelty sign, value approx $5, from another shop.

The boy will face Northam Children's Court, about 100km from Perth, today.

His lawyer, Aboriginal Legal Service chief Peter Collins, has asked police to withdraw the charges but has not received a response.

"It's scandalous that a 12-year-old child should be subject to prosecution for a case of this type," he told Fairfax.

Mr Collins said the boy had missed an earlier court date because of a family misunderstanding and was apprehended at 8am on a school day and locked in a cell in "appalling" conditions for several hours.

A WA police spokesman said it's appropriate to have the court deal with the boy, because police have been forced to speak to him about other matters previously.

Tourists play on croc trap at Jim Jim Falls

TWO tourists have been photographed tempting fate as they pretend to ride a crocodile trap like cowboys at a popular tourist spot in the Northern Territory.

Brent Hobes took this photo of the "clowns" on top of the trap at Jim Jim Falls in Kakadu National Park earlier this month.

The Victorian visitor said he was shocked to see them laughing and joking as they posed.

"I can't believe they would play on a crocodile trap," he said.

"I thought 'geez, I hope there's nothing in it'."

But he said the men, who had illegally climbed around the banks to reach the trap, "seemed to like the attention" given to them from the handful of travellers standing on the banks watching.

Park ranger and crocodile expert Garry Lindner said the behaviour of the men was absurd. "Crocs are attracted to the bait in the traps, so it is extremely dangerous to fool around like this," he said.

"It's irresponsible to assume there are are no crocs there ... crocs can move in at any time - they may move in as the waterholes downstream dry out."

He said in the past they had captured big salties at Jim Jim Falls in August, September and October.

He said if the larrikins were caught they could have copped a fine of more than $3000.  Commonwealth legislation states anyone caught interfering with croc traps in Kakadu face a fine of $2750.  A $550 penalty also applies for people going off-track from the walking paths.

Accidents:

 An ironically twisted word: while people cause most accidents, accidents also cause most people

A jury of her peers awarded a woman from Austin, Texas $780,000  after breaking her ankle tripping over a toddler who was running amok inside a furniture store. The owners of the store were understandably surprised at the verdict, considering the misbehaving tyke was the woman's own son.

A 19 year old youth from Los Angeles won $74,000 and medical expenses when his neighbour ran over his hand with a Honda Accord. The young man apparently didn't notice someone was at the wheel of the car whose hubcap he was trying to steal.

A thief from Bristol, PA, was leaving a house he had robbed through the garage. He was not able to get the garage door to go up, the automatic door opener was malfunctioning. He couldn't re-enter the house because the door connecting the house and garage locked when he pulled it shut. The family was on vacation, so the robber. found himself locked in the garage for eight days. He subsisted on a case of Pepsi he found, and a large bag of dry dog food. This upset the thief, so he sued the homeowner's insurance claiming the situation caused him undue mental anguish. The jury agreed to the tune of half a million dollars and change.

A man from Little Rock, Arkansas was awarded $14,500  and medical expenses after being bitten on the buttocks by his next door neighbour's beagle. The beagle was on a chain in its owner's fenced-in yard, as was the man. The award was less than sought because the jury felt that the man who, at the time, was shooting the animal repeatedly with a pellet gun might have provoked the dog.

A Philadelphia restaurant was ordered to pay a woman from Lancaster, PA, $113,500  after she slipped on a spilled soft drink and broke her coccyx. The beverage was on the floor because the woman had thrown it at her boyfriend thirty seconds earlier during an argument.

A woman from Claymont, Delaware, successfully sued the owner of a night club in a neighbouring city when she fell from the bathroom window to the floor and knocked out her two front teeth. This occurred while she was trying to sneak through the window in the lady's room to avoid paying the $3.50 cover charge. She was awarded $12,000  and dental expenses

How It Happened

And God populated the earth with 
broccoli and cauliflower and 
spinach, green and yellow 
vegetables of all kinds, 
so Man and Woman would
 live long and healthy lives. 

And Satan created McDonald's. 

And McDonald's brought forth the 
99-cent double-cheeseburger.

And Satan said to Man,
 "You want fries with that?" 

And Man said, "Supersize them." 
And Man gained pounds. 

And God created the healthful yogurt, 
that woman might keep her figure that 
man  found so fair. 

And Satan brought forth chocolate. 
And woman gained pounds. 

And God said, "Try my crispy fresh salad." 
And Satan brought forth ice cream. 
And woman gained pounds. 

And God said, "I have sent your heart
 healthy vegetables and olive oil with 
which to cook them." 

And Satan brought forth chicken-fried 
steak so big it needed its own platter.

And Man gained pounds and his
 bad cholesterol went through the roof. 

And God brought forth
 running shoes and Man
 resolved to lose those extra pounds. 

And Satan brought forth cable TV 
with remote control so Man would
 not have to toil to change channels 
between ESPN and ESPN2. 

And Man gained pounds. 

And God said,
 "You're running up the score, Devil." 

And God brought forth the potato,
a vegetable naturally low in fat and
 brimming with nutrition. 

And Satan peeled off the healthful skin 
and sliced the starchy center into chips
 and deep-fat fried them.

And he created sour cream dip also. 

And Man clutched his remote control
 and ate the potato chips 
swaddled in cholesterol. 

And Satan saw and said, "It is good."

And Man went into cardiac arrest. 

And God sighed and created 
quadruple bypass surgery. 

And Satan created HMO's.

(author unknown)

The “Long Count” calendar system tracked “Great Cycles” of time. The beginning of the current cycle — date 0.0.0.0.0 — corresponds to Aug. 13, 3114 B.C. on the Gregorian calendar.

The Long Count tracks the duration of what the Maya called "great cycles" of time. The cycle we're currently in ends on 13.0.0.0.0, what we non-Maya call Dec. 23, 2012.

"I tell my students it is similar to an odometer," says archaeologist Lisa Lucero of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. "After it hits 100,000 miles, it starts again – but there is no new car, nor does the car self-destruct."

Worries about the date rest from a Maya inscription fragment suggesting the date's importance at the site of Tortuguero in Mexico, says archaeologist Kristin Romey, science adviser to Asylum.com. "The only problem is the Maya had Long Count calendar inscriptions mentioning baktuns (millennia) much further in the future at other sites, so 2012 hardly seems the end of the world."

On the plus side, the Mexican tourist industry could use a 2012 boost, Romey says, after swine flu and violence associated with narcotics. "I'm sure they will be selling a lot of T-shirts."

In all, the ancient Maya constructed calendars extending trillions of years into the past and future.

"They saw themselves as players in this awesomely long expanse of time," says epigrapher Simon Martin of the University of Pennsylvania. "Their calendar actually went back longer than the life of the universe."

If 2012 fails to bring about the end of the world, don't worry, adds Romey. "There is always another calendar somewhere coming to an end."

An Aztec calendar ends in 2027, for example. You might want to order your T-shirt now.

Well finally we have had a bit of a cool change.  It`s only suppose to get to the mid 90`s at the most today and at the moment it`s only 82!  We had 10 days straight well over 90 and 6 of them over a 100 and they say by Wednesday it will be well over 100 again.  I`m getting a little tired of all this heat along with the strict water restrictions but what can I do, nothing!

I know Nelson would not have survived the last couple of days and that I did the right thing but I still miss him terribly.  It may sound callous but I got rid of his bed, the inside and outside one, plus his water bowls straight away.  The food I have left over and his toys have gone to his "girlfriend" Milly.  I thought it was better than having all the things on display all the time as I have to cope without him.

I`m not going to get another pet for a while though as I think I will do some more travelling.  I have a "new" cousin in Queensland I have yet to meet and my friend who moved up there last year keeps inviting me to visit.  Then there`s my penfriend who wants me to pop over to Croatia again, this time in summer, for another visit and I do so want to go to Cornwall which is where both my, mother and fathers families all came from.  I`m 4th generation on both sides but I do know a lot about my Mum`s anscestors history so would love to go and see for myself.  My fathers family name is a very common one in Cornwall so haven`t got far with that history at all. 

Have a wonderful week and I hope the weather is being very kind to you.

picture not original to poem.

These are the first 6 verses of this poem, there are another 10!  It was written by Mowbray Morris but more often attributed to another Australian poet, Adam Lindsay Gordon.

I thought the first verse in particular describes our current weather to a "T".

A Voice from the Bush

High noon, and not a cloud in the sky to break this blinding sun.
Well, I've half the day before me still, and most of my journey done.
There's little enough of shade to be got, but I'll take what I can get,
For I'm not as hearty as once I was, although I'm a young man yet.

Young! Well, yes, I suppose so, as far as the seasons go,
Though there's many a man far older than I down there in the town below -
Older, but men to whom, in the pride of their manhood strong,
The hardest work is never too hard, nor the longest day too long.

But I've cut my cake, so I can't complain, and I've only myself to blame;
Ay! that was always their tale at home, and here it is just the same.
Of the seed I've sown in pleasure, the harvest I'm reaping in pain;
Could I put my life a few years back, would I live that life again?

Would I? Of course I would! What glorious days they were!
It sometimes seems but the dream of a dream, that life could have been so fair,
So sweet but if a short time back, while now, if one can call
This life, I almost doubt at times if it's worth the living at all.

One of these poets — which is it? somewhere or another sings,
That the crown of a sorrow's sorrow is remembering happier things.
What the crown of a sorrow's sorrow may be, I know not; but this I know,—
It lightens the years that are now, sometimes to think of the years ago.

Where are they now, I wonder, with whom those years were pass'd?
The pace was a little too good, I fear, for many of them to last.
And there's always plenty to take their place when the leaders begin to decline;
Still I wish them well, where'er they are, for the sake of auld lang syne.

WORLD'S LARGEST INDOOR SWIMMING POOL
World Water Park, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada - 5 Acres

WORLD'S LARGEST OFFICE COMPLEX
Chicago Merchandise Mart, Illinois, USA

WORLD'S WIDEST BRIDGE
Sydney harbor bridge, Australia - 16 lanes of car traffic - 8 upper, 8 lower

WORLD'S BIGGEST PASSENGER SHIP
MS Freedom Of The Seas - 4300 inside passenger capacity

WORLD'S HIGHEST STATUE
CHRIST THE REDEEMER STATUE - RIO D.J. - BRAZIL

I can tell you from experience it`s very very VERY high.  I was terrified!

WORLD'S BIGGEST EXCAVATOR
Built by KRUPP of Germany 45,500 tons, 95 meters (311 feet) high, 215 meters (705 feet) long

Biblical Humour:

Who was the greatest financier in the Bible?

Noah; he was floating his stock while everyone else was in liquidation.

You, God, lead me to quiet peaceful streams.  You restore my soul, refresh my life, give me new strength.

Psalm 23: 2 - 3

Bible for Today

This may look like a photograph of a little old lady in a rubbish-strewn alley, but it is in fact a fabric sculpture  made with nylon stockings by Lisa Lichtenfels

Lesson number one
A crow was sitting on a tree, doing nothing all day. A small rabbit saw the crow, and asked him, “Can I also sit like you and do nothing all day long?”
The crow answered: “Sure, why not.” So, the rabbit sat on the ground below the crow, and rested. All of a sudden, a fox appeared, jumped on the rabbit and ate it.
Moral of the story is: To be sitting and doing nothing, you must be sitting very, very high up.

Lesson number two
A turkey was chatting with a bull. “I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree,” sighed the turkey, but I haven’t got the energy.”
“Well, why don’t you nibble on some of my droppings?” replied the bull. They’re packed with nutrients.”
The turkey pecked at a lump of dung and found that it actually gave him enough strength to reach the first branch of the tree. The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch.
Finally after a fortnight, there he was proudly perched at the top of the tree - he was promptly spotted by a farmer, who shot him out of the tree.
Moral of the story: Bullsh*t might get you to the top, but it won’t keep you there.

I was going to post this story yesterday that I found in the paper but I`m afraid I didn`t feel like doing a lot.  Sorry.  I`m still finding it hard and probably will for some time to come and I`m still feeling guilty.  Yes I know it was the right thing but........

Loving, like cat and dog

THEY may not seem like the most obvious companions, but this lion cub and his canine chum are becoming the firmest of friends.

Three-month-old cub Zimba is one of the main attractions at the Gyoengyoes zoo, near Budapest in Hungary.

He was given to the zoo by a generous private donor in Italy.

Since the cub's arrival, Bogi - a three-year-old male Puli, a type of ancient Hungarian shepherd dog - has been acting as Zimba's companion.

Despite their differences they don't appear to be fighting like cat and dog.

Christmas  arrived in South Australia today!  Yes that`s right Christmas is here.  The first pageant of the season is always the big one In Adelaide on the second Saturday of November.  Before this time no decorations are put up and the only reference to Christmas is for overseas gift and card buying.

The pictures with this story are of pageant`s of years gone by with the latest one being about 5 years old and most being in the 80`s.  The pageant alway`s start`s with the police grey`s and of course ends with the man in the red suit!  As you can see there are no baracades just a blue honour line drawn on the road for the children to sit behind with the parents standing back further.

The pageant was started in 1933 by the late Sir Edward Hayward who owned the department store John Martins, no longer in existence.  It ran for around 40 minutes with just 8 floats and 3 bands and it attracted 200,000 spectators.  Remember this was during the great depression so he said it had to be free.  Now there are about 75 sets and 1,700 volunteers, including 57 floats, 15 bands, 164 clowns, dancing groups, and walking performers, all culminating in the arrival of  Father Christmas.   The pageant covers a a 3.35 kilometre route (just over 2 miles) and today with the temperature`s well into the 30`s (90F) at the start there were less specators than normal.

When the store finally closed we thought we would loose the pageant but then the credit unions all got together and bought it lock stock and barrel, even to the extent of keeping all the employees.  These people are employed to come up with ideas, then build them along with making all the costumes and be ready for that one day of the year when we say Christmas is here.

This large pageant puts our little on to shame!  Still our`s is a community event with only volunteers to do everything.  It also means the school kids get to make a float and participate which I guess makes up for it.  Anyway we all have a lot of fun and we get to see family and friends being silly for a short while!

Hybrid:

When you cross a concrete mixer with a chicken, you get a bricklayer.

photo taken 24th August 2005

Please forgive me Nelson but you just were not enjoying life any more.  You couldn`t see and so were bumping into everything and I was scared you would hurt yourself.  You couldn`t hear properly and would get scared of noises.  The clinic told me you had a heart murmur and you would get lost in the house and yard where you have lived for the last 9 year`s of your life.

The house feels so empty and so quiet.  It`s funny because you hardly ever barked, only when you could see to chase the birds on the beach or when we were out driving, but it still feel quiet.

Thank you God for giving me Nelson. When he came to live with me no way could I have coped with a puppy so instead you found this beautiful, loving and oh so friendly adult dog to come and help me over my problems.  Everyone he came in contact with and even those he never met fell in love with him.  How his original owners could have just abandond him is beyond me but, as funny as it sounds, I`m glad.  

I do hope Kimmy, Trixie and Tessa were waiting to escort you to the best place`s for digging and for food Nelson and that you will make friends with Tuppence, Milky (my cats) and Tweety (a budgie).  I know we will meet again one day but until then have fun my beautiful boy with your new friends. 

We were told that this heat wave would end on Saturday but now it`s going to be Monday and then only for a couple of days before the temperature rises way up once more.

Nelson has to go to the Vets tomorrow morning as it`s a month since he went on the dementia meds.  I`m worried I may not bring him home once more but I will have to listen to them and do what`s best for Nelson. 

He is getting bad in that he bumps into everything now, he can`t seem to remember when everything is, and now this heat has really knocked him for six.  He`s never been much for the inside but now I can hardly get him to go out!

I had a 9am appt to get my new glasses today so look out books here I come!  We may be in the country but a lot of these things are now quite quick.  Once we would have had to wait 2 or 3 weeks after the testing and that`s if we could find someone in a nearby town to test our eyes. 

I got a call from the clinic and they have my blood test results back already and the doc want`s to see me.  The nurse that rang asked permission to check the results, I bet she already knew, as they are going to be short of doctor`s next week and there`s none left with my doc this week. Soooooo to cut a long story short it will be the week after that I go and get them!  At least that sounds good so there`s nothing there to say why my bp dropped so alramingly. 

I must say I`m wondering if it was a touch of dehydration.  I do drink a lot of water but with the heat hitting so suddenly maybe that`s the answer.

Anyway enough of our probs. Have a great Thursday and stay warm/cool.

toon not original to quote

Newspaper Advertisement:

Now you can borrow money to get completly out of debt.

picture not original to quote

Friends are God`s way of taking care of us.

Anonymous

We`ve just had the best growing season for all crops, including the growing of hay, for a number of years.  Just north east of here are a couple companies with giant hay shed`s where the hay from all around the area is stored before shipping to other parts of Australia or the World.

Last night I could smell smoke but thought I was imagining it as this area isn`t as prone to bush fires as some I`ve lived in, but.........

More than 20,000 bales of hay worth $3.5 million have been destroyed in a fire that will burn for at least five days on Yorke Peninsula.

Two hundred firefighters are creating a fire break at the SP Hay processing facility, about 8km (5 miles) from Paskeville on Price Rd.

The fire, which started about 9pm last night, is contained to the property.

A fire, deliberately lit, on the same property in July 2008 destroyed about $10 million worth of hay.  A CFS (Country Fire Service) spokesman said this fire is not suspicious.

Sleep:

That fleeting moment that ends alarmingly.

No prizes for guessing which way the coolers blowing on him!

He moved when the flash went of so I only got this one photo of him. 

The following story is from the "Way We Were" section in the paper.

The picture`s are not original to the newspaper story.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Deborah Kerr, Robert Mitchum, Peter Ustinov and Glynis Johns, stars of the Warner Bros, film "The Sundowners", will arrive in Whyalla on Monday, according to the press relations office for the film (Mr Carl Coombes) . . . "We are nearly finished shooting at Cooma.  A couple more fine days and we`ll be packing up and going over there" (Mr Coombes said).  In South Australia scenes are to be shot near Port Augusta at a Carriewerloo Station wool-shed, on Mr V. T. French`s Corrabera Station, at Corunna Station (near Iron Knob), near Port Augusta and at Quorn and Hawker.

I love both Quorn and Hawker.  They are small towns in the Flinders Rangers and are so beautiful.   All the towns, except Cooma, and the stations are in South Australia.  Cooma is a pretty town in the Blue Mountains in New South Wales. 

Whyalla is across the gulf and a little north of where I live now and is where the Duke of Edinburgh pattered my head and commented on my curly hair when the Queen and Duke were on their first official visit down under in 1954!  Gee I bet you didn`t know I mixed with royalty!!!!!!

Question in need of an answer:

If money doesn`t grow on trees, why do banks have branches?

I`ve been waking early, well it hasn`t been getting below about25C (80F) of a night, and we have been going for our walk straight away to beat the heat.

I went up to the next town to do my banking, pay bills and do my big shop today but was most upset with the grocery store.  I kept an eye on the time and as it was almost 11am I thought they would make an announcement but no they didn`t.  Well I just stood still for a little while, probably not the full minute, and I noticed a few other`s around did the same so at least some of us are thankful for the men and woman who have gone to war to keep us safe and free.

I think everyone from the whole world had the same idea, shop early!  The problem with that was that there were long lines at the checkouts.  Oh well I got home before lunch and shut the house up and put the cooler on.  The trouble was I had to then go out again at 2pm to have my blood test.  Thankfully they did it quickly and I was once again home in the cool.  

Australia`s last surviving World War One vetran died only a couple of months ago and they said on the news there was only something like 6 or 7 men left in the world now from this war.

Thank you to all the men and women from not only WWI but all the other wars for keeping us safe and free.  I pray that we will live up to the standards you have set us.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning we WILL remember them.

picture not original to poem.

Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae of the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps who in May 1915 when after watching the death of a close friend in Belgium wrote the following poem:

picture not original to story

British Army officer, Major Summerford, was fighting in the fields of Flanders in February 1918 [1st World War 1914-1918] when he was knocked off his horse by a flash of lightning and paralysed from the waist down.  Summerford retired and moved to Vancouver, Canada.

One day in 1924, as he fished alongside a river, lightning hit the tree he was sitting under and paralysed his right side.  In 1930 he was out walking on a summer's day when a lightning bolt smashed into him, permanently paralysing him.  He died two years later.  But lightning sought him out one last time.  Four years later, during a storm by an amazing coincidence, lightning struck a cemetery and destroyed his tombstone.

picture not original to poem

The Living Water

God is the Living Water
An Ever-flowing Tide
The steady Rock of Ages
An Ocean, vast and wide.

He restores my fleeting spirit
Puts spring into my step
Adds a bit of sunshine
Where Godly things are kept.

He is a Sure Foundation
Removes the doubts and fear
When I am overcome by life
His voice, I often hear.  

He is the Rose of Sharon
The Keeper of my Soul
The Lily of the Valley
The One who makes me whole.

He is a Gentle Current
A River, running free
My Refuge at the harbor
An Anchor on life’s sea.

He is the Living Water
The Fruit upon the Vine
The Grapes when I am hungry
The Essence and the Wine.

Author/Written By:
Marilyn Ferguson
©2003

Well we warned that we are in for a long hot summer and it`s certainly starting out that way.  It`s still a couple of weeks before summer officially starts but both yesterday and now already today we have hit the old century, or 100 fahrenheit, with the next 3 days expected to be well over it.

We only had 7 meals to deliver on our round today, I think a lot of the folks either didn`t want us letting the hot into their houses or most probably didn`t want a hot meal.  The rules are they have to have a hot main course along with a hot soup but dessert can be hot or cold.  So many just want salads and cold meat without the soup but with a nice cold fruit salda or similar.  One good think is I got home and brought Nelson inside and put the cooler on and here is where I`m staying!!!

There has also been the first shark attack on Sunday.  A young fellow was on his second or third dive after going through lessons when he was bitten on his leg and his hands.  His hands were from fighting of the shark.

Nelson and I went for our walk at 5.45 this morning to try and beat the heat but we didn`t beat the flies or mosquito`s that`s for sure.  I have a"net" that I use over my face, it`s a tubular piece of net that has elastic at one end to fit over the crown of a hat and a drawstring at the other to pull tight under your chin, but it doesn`t keep the bities of the rest of me.  Looks like I`ll have to plaster myself with personal insect repellant too.  

As you can no doubt see I haven`t done my shopping today, I`ll wait until the morning and hope I can get home before it`s too hot.  I have to go for my blood test in the arvo though so that`s one thing I`m not looking forward too.  Have a great Tuesday and keep cool/warm!

…a sidewalk engineer? — A pathologist.

…a high school or college graduate? — A diplomat.

…a car body shop worker? — A dentist.

…a casino black jack dealer? — A cardiologist.

…someone who blows with the wind? — A draftsman.

…the manager of a political candidate? — An electrician.

…a guy who likes to pile up dirt? — A banker.

…a trampoline artist? — A bouncer.

…someone who likes to put people away for good? — An internist.

…a cemetery worker? — An engraver.

…a cab driver who gets under your skin? — A taxidermist.

Article:

Ice sculpture

Okay Okay you were all correct and I was wrong, I should have gone to the hospital not rung it!!!!!!  Yep I`ve been told off by the doctor!!!

He thought I rang the hospital when it was still very very low and had started to write a complaint but I told him by the time I had rung up my b/p was starting to go up again.

Oh well he did a lot of tests and asked if I had had a stroke as my left leg is weaker than my right, now that`s scary, and then asked me to have a blood test.  I told the girls at the desk to make it on Wednesday so it`s hi ho hi ho and of to the doctor`s I go!!!!!!

One thing he has done is to stop the new b/p medication and to only use the 2 old ones for the time. 

Lets hope all of this works out OK.  Thank you all for your kindness and prayers.

May I send prayers to all among our wonderful Grab Family for health and happiness. 

These are some pictures of how some men in Lithuanian built a car.

First strip your old car back to the chassis.

Then cover it with foam!

Let it dry after you have sculptured the style you want.

Finish drying ouside before you paint it!

Then of course you show the world!

The paintings you see may not be worth a great deal. The thing that make`s them a story is because of who the artist who brought them to life is. He is blind. 
He was not blind from the birth but rather he lost his sight during a digging operation in the forests of Ukraine, where they tried to find remains of Russian soldiers who are considered to be missing since World War 2. He got blown up on a 50 year old German Nazi land mine and since then he hasn`t been able to see.

This is a picture after he became blind

When he lost his sight he lost everything.  He became a disabled person that nobody needed or cared about. He was in a deep depression.  He once got a call from an old friend, who tried to support the artist and offered to conduct an public exhibition of his old works. Of course he agreed. Then they had some time before the exhibition and Dmitri - that is the name of our hero - decided to try to draw something again to present at the ongoing exhibition, to show the world that he is still an artist, even with his sight missing. He called it “Even the longest way starts with a tiny step.”
At first he couldn’t draw anything, but after hours of practice and persistance he managed to give birth to his first painting of his new life. Now there are 250 new works, created after the accident in which he lost his sight, and some of them are highly recognized by critics and were bought for private collections of Russian and foreign art lovers.

This is a "before" painting

French Author, playwrite and screenwriter

Francoise Sagan 1935-2004

I like men to behave like men - strong and childish.

picture not original to poem

"Men who make inappropriate advances should be exposed."

.

"Police quiz victim in fatal shooting."

.

"Cemetery faces grave problems over space."

.

"Hospitals sued by seven foot doctors."

.

"Forty pedigree dogs have been stolen.  Police say they have no leads."

.

"Briton gored by bull in intensive care."

.

"Magician disappears."

.

"High school dropouts cut in half."

.

"Passengers hit by cancelled trains."

I`m just thinking about it!

It`s in the bag!

Well you use a pillow soooooo.

Hmmmm something smells good!

The "Aye`s" have it!

God is our shelter and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble.  So we won`t live in fear.

Psalm 46:1

Bible for Today

I`ll get online later and do my blogs but just to update you on my BP.  It was up to 127/74 this morning when I took it so thats great.  I`m possitive I didn`t take a double dose as I have one of those pill boxes where you put a the pills in each days "box" for the week  and as that was OK I`m sure it wasn`t that I`d done anything as silly as take a double dose, forget a days yes but not a double dose.

I did ring our hospital and spoke to a lovely nurse who took all the details I had.   I`d been taking my BP about every hour and sometime`s it was going up then it would drop again.  Anyway the nurse I spoke to said not to take my night BP pills until she spoke with the doctor when he did his rounds.  She also said to drink lots of water and to lay with my legs up on a cushion so I did that.

She rang back and said not to take the new BP pill at all but to start the other today if my BP was back to normal or as near as possible and to ring my doctor tomorrow.  So it`s of to the clinic tomorrow if I can get in.  I am going to say that the on call doctor advised I see someone so I may get pushed in ahead.

Thank you all for you kind thoughts and worry about me.  I knew something was wrong as I was so light headed and giddy.  My machine is pretty close to the doctors, he asked me to bring it in to check against his, so that reading was correct even if I didn`t at first believe it.

It`s just after 9.45 Sunday morning and the temp is already 32C (91F).  Oh well looks as if the Air-Con will get a work out today.   

Some new gadgets for you

Coffee Anyone!

The Mocha Dunk Mug is the ideal cup for you if you like a couple of biscuits with your tea or coffee. Why clean two dishes when you can carry your coffee and cookies in the one utensil! Left handed dunkers haven’t been forgotten either as it’s available in both right and left handed versions. The slot of the Dunk cup should always face away from you when drinking so that the biscuits in the slot slide towards the back of the mug rather than onto your lap!

Breakfast Time!

Burnt or under-done toast could soon be a thing of the past thanks to the new glass toaster that lets you see your bread as it browns. Bread is placed between two sheets of heated glass and cooked in full view so you can eject your slice at the perfect moment. A traditional timer dial is still incorporated for people who are too busy to keep an eye on their bread.

I hope you have a great weekend and that the weather is kind to you.  It looks as if we are about to break all records this week.  We are in for a heatwave, an unheard of thing for November.  Today`s forecast is for 33C (92F) but a heatwave consists of so many days, I can`t remember how many, over 35C (95F) and that starts tomorrow.  The forecast for the next week is:

          Sunday         35C

          Monday        35C

          Tuesday       37C     (99F)

          Wednesday 37C

          Thursday       37C

           Friday           36C    (97F) 

The long range is showing no relief either so lets hope they are wrong.  Can you imagine if this is the last month of Spring what Summer will be like!!!!!!!

The worse thing too is that I`m not feeling 100% today.  I think I must have taken my pills twice this morning as I feel very light headed, yes I know that`s normal(!!!!), and giddy.  I have a blood pressure machine  so at lunch time I took it and my pressure was 56/45 and two and a half hours later up to 91/56.  According to the internet normal is 120/80.  If it hasn`t improved I`ll ring the hospital later and see if I should miss taking my BP pills tonight without causing any problems.  If I didn`t double up my pills this morning, and I`m sure I didn`t, then I think it might be the weather, gotta blame something!  This is one time when I wish I lived with someone as no way would I drive anywhere.  

From the Aussie Comic "Ginger Meggs":

A child`s greatest period of growth is the month after you`ve bought new school uniforms.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When we changed from pounds shillings and pence 1 shilling, the price on this old comic, would have become 10 cents!

The Great Barrier Reef will be so degraded by warming waters that it will be unrecognizable within 20 years.  Charlie Veron, former chief scientist of the Australian Institute of Marine Science, told The Times: “There is no way out, no loopholes. The Great Barrier Reef will be over within 20 years or so.” Once carbon dioxide had hit the levels predicted for between 2030 and 2060, all coral reefs were doomed to extinction, he said. “They would be the world's first global ecosystem to collapse. I have the backing of every coral reef scientist, every research organization. I've spoken to them all. This is critical. This is reality.”

Teeming with millions of species and one-fifth of the world's fresh water, the Amazon is the world's largest tropical rainforest. However, global warming and deforestation are reversing the forest's role as a carbon sink, converting 30-60% of the rainforest into dry savannah. Projections show the forest could disappear completely by 2050.

Scientists are seeing signals that the Sahara desert and surrounding regions are greening due to increasing rainfall. If sustained, these rains could revitalize drought-ravaged regions, reclaiming them for farming communities. This desert-shrinking trend is supported by climate models, which predict a return to conditions that turned the Sahara into a lush savanna some 12,000 years ago.

It isn't only reefs and low-lying islands that are under threat from global warming. In fact, a major threat is for those large urban areas which are at risk of eventually being submerged underwater. This is caused by a change in sea levels that occurs when global warming takes place, resulting in coastal cities being destroyed by flooding. Dozens of the world's cities, including London and New York, could be flooded by the end of the century, according to research which suggests that global warming will increase sea levels more rapidly than was previously thought. London is one of the major world capitals at high risk of this type of flooding, as depicted in this shot from the 2007 movie Flood. Scientists say that the city could be under water as early as within the next one hundred years.

The lowest and flattest country in the world is suffering coastal erosion, and could find itself submerged if sea levels carry on rising, with the islands growing smaller and smaller. This extreme prediction is a devastating prospect for residents and bad news for the tourists who descend on its soft white beaches and warm waters each year. Scientists give it only about one hundred years before it completely disappears into the ocean surrounding it.

This is another story from the online news site.  I have to admit I never even thought about this before but now I wonder what will happen to my emails, Grab and all other computer "stuff".

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What happens to your email when you die?

IN a digital world your deepest secrets no longer die with you. Andrew Ramadge reports on what happens to your private emails when you pass away.

REMEMBER that time you poured your heart out in an email to your best friend after one too many glasses of wine?

Or that sexy message from an old lover that made you blush at work?

Well, if you die, your family and others could end up reading them.

Web email services owned by internet giants Google and Microsoft have a policy of keeping your data after you die and letting your next of kin or the executor of your estate access it.

There is no way for users to flag that they don't want this to happen and no recourse under Australia's existing privacy laws.

More than one in four Australians uses webmail, with around six and a half million people logging on to one or more of the top three providers Hotmail, Gmail or Yahoo! in September, according to Nielsen Online NetView.

Unlike a shoebox in the attic, these services can hold tens of thousands of messages. Accounts with Google`s Gmail can hold up to 7GB – or roughly 70,000 emails with a small to medium picture attached to each.

And they archive the messages you've written as well as received.

When it comes to deleting the data, Microsoft's Hotmail will remove an account if it is inactive for 270 days, while Gmail leaves the responsibility to the next of kin.

Of the top three providers, only Yahoo! refuses to supply emails to anyone after a user has died. The user's next of kin can ask for the account to be closed, but cannot gain access to it.

A Yahoo! spokesperson said the only exception to this rule would be if the user specified otherwise in their will.

Australian privacy laws do not cover the emerging problem of what happens to your web-based data when you die. The Privacy Act only refers to people who are alive.

On top of that, many of the most popular web services are not covered by local privacy laws because they are based in the US.

The subject has also proved problematic for social networking sites Facebook and MySpace. More than eight million Australians visited one or both of those sites in September, according to Nielsen's figures.

Facebook has recently publicised a feature called memorialisation that lets the family of deceased users keep their profile page online as a virtual tribute.

Turning a profile into a memorial will remove sensitive information from the page and restrict access to the deceased's friends. The family will not be allowed to log in to the account or access private messages, but can request that it be taken down.

MySpace on the other hand says it addresses the issue of family access to sensitive data on a "case by case basis".

A spokesperson for MySpace could not rule out letting a user's next of kin log into their profile – potentially giving them access to private messages.

There is no way for users to tell MySpace that they don't want this to happen, however the site said it was "a good idea that we are exploring".

Read on for a summary of the policies of popular email and social networking sites:

picture not original to joke

There were two elderly people, George and Sheila, living in a North Carolina mobile home park in the suburbs of Concord. He was a widower and she a widow and they had known one another for a number of years.

One evening a supper was held in the communal refectory and the two found themselves at the same table, seated across from one another. As the meal progressed, George made several admiring glances at Sheila and he finally gathered his courage to ask her, 'Sheila, will you marry me?'

After about five seconds of "careful consideration", Sheila answered. 'Yes. Yes, I will.'

The meal ended and, with a few more pleasant exchanges, then they went to their respective caravans. Next morning, George was troubled: 'Did she say "yes" or did she say "no"?' He couldn't remember. Try as he would, he just could not recall. Not even a faint memory. So it was with some trepidation that he went to the telephone and called Sheila. Firstly, he explained that he didn't remember as well as he used to. Then he reviewed the lovely evening past. As he gained a little more courage, George inquired gingerly, 'Sheila, when I asked if you would marry me, did you say "Yes" or did you say "No"?'

George was delighted to hear her Sheila say, 'Why, I said, "Yes, yes I will" and I meant it with all my heart.' Then she continued, 'I am so glad that you called, because I couldn't remember for the life of me who had asked.'

Anagram:

Statue of Liberty -

Built to stay free.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My prayers go out to all Americans today but especially to the loved ones of those who died needlesly at Fort Hood.

God be with you .

picture not original to poem

The Valleys of Life

I’ve viewed the world from lofty heights
I’ve flown just like a dove
I’ve perched upon the highest crest  
On mountaintops above.    
                                 
I’ve seen the towering snow-capped peaks
Where eagles dare to fly
I’ve touched the moon, the universe
I've soared across the sky. 

From up above to valleys deep
I’ve lived so brave and bold
But now I’m slowing down a bit
I know I’m growing old. 

Just like the blazing sun that sets 
The years have slipped away
I stop beside a peaceful stream
And close my eyes to pray.

No longer do I rise above
The mountaintops on high
But down below, I quietly go
Where sheep and cattle lie.

I stroll across a field of grain
Such beauty spilling over
A prairie filled with grass so green
A meadow full of clover. 

I venture to the woodlands
Where a cricket can be heard
The sights and sounds are so profound
The chirping of a bird. 

Walking down a faded path
            I relish in delight              
The countryside has come to life
Like fireflies in night.

Thinking back on younger years
I always soared up high
I’m living in the valley now
My time on earth is nigh.  
       
In valleys there is blessed peace
I never feel alone
I’ll walk in fertile pastures 
Till my Saviour calls me home.  

Author/Written By:
Marilyn Ferguson
©2008

I`m running late today so will only be posting a couple of things.  I had to go and have my 2 yearly eye test and yes I`ll need new glasses.  The girl in the office is someone I use to work with and her off sider is her daughter, boy they grow up so quickly.  We caught up on a lot of gossip and the optomotrist is so fussy he took well over half an hour to do all the testing.  He even likes to know what meds I`m on as they can sometimes effect the eyes.

Then I`d just got myself all settled after doing the big clean up, it`s Pageant meeting time tonight(!!!), when I got a phone call from Centerlink, the Government pension office, to ask questions about my income.  I have an Annuity and a Superannuation account beside my everyday passbook but they wanted to know about another account.  It is an old account number that was closed about 4 years ago but they recon it has been updated right up to and including this year.

It`s such a worry when these things happen especially when you hear about identity fraud.  I think we got it all worked out in the end, well the girl has closed it altogether and it now doesn`t appear on their records at all.

Have a lovely Thursday.  Our`s started out sunny then came in cloudy and now it`s sunny again but windy.  Oh well it is Spring!

Absent-Mindedness:

Searching for the horse you are riding.

Wayambah

The judge then asked the deceased if he had anything further to say.

.

Dying is to cost more at King`s Lynn, Norfolk.  Higher burial charges are being introduced.  Increased cost of living is blamed.

.

Kamikaze pilot: "Watch closely, I`m only going to do this once."

Marriages are made in heaven. 

But so are thunder and lightening

.

The game of love is never called off on account of bad lught.

.

French Proverb:

Love is friendship set on fire.

This picture isn`t original to the following news item from the Australian online news site I read each day.

I`m sorry but I think the court was wrong in it`s ruling.

.................

Crucifixes in classrooms 'violate rights'

Ageing:

You know you’re getting old when “getting lucky” means you find your vehicle in the car park.

Picture, if you will, the scene: Washington DC Metro Station one cold January morning. This man is busking – playing his violin; he plays for about 45 minutes and completes six pieces by Bach.

Now does anyone take any notice? During that time approximately 2,000 people pass through the station, most of them on their way to work.

After 3 minutes a middle aged man notices there was a musician playing. He slows his pace and stops for a few seconds and then hurries to meet his schedule.

4 minutes later: The violinist receives his first dollar. A woman throws the money in the till and, without stopping, continues to walk.

6 minutes after that: A young man leans against the wall to listen to him, then looks at his watch and starts to walk again.

10 minutes later: A 3 year old boy stops but his mother tugs him along hurriedly, as the youngster stops to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushes hard and the child continues to walk, turning his head all the time. This action is repeated by several other children. Every parent, without exception, forces them to move on.

45 minutes later: The musician plays on. Only 6 people have stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 have given him money but continued to walk at their normal pace.

He collected $32.

1 hour later: He finishes playing and silence takes over. No one notices. No one applauds, nor is there any recognition.

Now – who was the violinist?

No one knew this, but the violinist was *Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a Stradivarius violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Two days before Joshua Bell sold out a theatre in Boston where the seats averaged $100. 

This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and people's priorities. The questions raised: in a common place environment at an inappropriate hour, do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize talent in an unexpected context?

One possible conclusion reached from this experiment could be: If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing some of the finest music ever written, with one of the most beautiful instruments .................How many other things are we missing?

picture not original to "recipe"

How To Create The Perfect Family

Is there room for my luggage and me please!

Always fill up before starting any journey!

Hope he doesn`t need to use his side mirrors!

Family Gathering!

House moving day!

Practical Wisdom:

If at first you do succeed, try to hide your astonishment.

Well I got my hair done and the shopping  so was able to read everyone`s post`s which is great.  At the hairdresser`s I caught up on all the gossip!  My cousin came in not long after I arrived and she was saying her grandson had been asked to go to India to represent Australia in the junior Olymp