Interviewing

Was watching an interview today of Gordon Brown, the British Chancellor (equivalent to Finance Minister) and apparent heir to Tony Blair. And it brought to mind what really irritates me about some aspects of political journalism.

The journalist kept asking various versions of the same question - basically he wanted Gordon to either embarrass the PM and the administration or speak on behalf of the PM re his intentions. Now the questions he was asking, it was obvious the Chancellor could and would not answer them, yet he kept on at it.

I am finding more and more that this type of journalism really annoys me. It does nothing for me as a taxpayer - it only hopes to evoke or draw out a scandal. I wish they'd ask probing questions about policies that affect me as a (heavy) taxpayer. Sometmes it seems that the British media and politicians live in their own little mutually beneficial world where the objective is fame. I exclude from this the Independent which I find to be an excellent paper, giving pertinent and relevant facts regardless of what the useless scandal of the day is.

Anyway, later.

Tornado in Leeds

There was a tordano here last week. A terrible storm. I looked at some of the pictures on the web and in many places there was some serious flooding and trees that were uprooted completely! It looked awful.

There was also major disruption at the train station - apparently lightening struck Leeds train station and caused a lot of delays.

In fact the weather here in jolly old England had been going haywire the last few years. For instance, in the past, when it rained you usually got a half hearted drizzle that might get a little heavier later and would peter out. Nowadays we get sudden torrential downpours and equally sudden stops. Also, when it rained in the past it was almost always cold, now it rains and stays hot. Global warming in action mate!

At least it's still relatively warm - I hate the cold so I hope the heat stays around for a while - but I shudder to see what the effects of global warming is going to produce in the winter - especially come Februaruy March when it is the coldest.

Later.

Remembrances

Today has been nothing but remebrances of September 11.

I hate it.

Why on earth do they have to constantly rehash it? Not out of any feelings for the victims. And you should see the terrible programmes TV has come up with. There's been the 911 milionare widows, the Man Who Predicted 911 and my personal favourite, the 911 liars - a group of people who apparently lie about having a loved one die in the attacks.

Enough already - let the people dem rest in peace.

One thing all of this reminds me of though - the fact that every day thousands of people are killed in horrible circumstances - but the world doesn't care.

Things will only collectively get better when we all feel that EVERY life lost in brutal circumstances counts. There's a part of me that is disgusted with all the grief over 911. I'm not saying that we shouldn't feel grief and anger - but at the same time, is the extent of the grief and anger because the people that died were of a certain world?

This isn't splitting hairs - it's something humanity has to seriously look at. All over the world there are different groups of people who place life of a certain background and colour in a higher value category than others. Perhaps if we didn't there'd be more room for us wanting to prevent attacks and more room for helping the victims of them.

I wish the survivors of the attacks well. I also pray for peace of mind and ongoing safety, which most of them will have (the safety that is). But I also would like to take the anniversary of 911 and remember the millions of people throughout the world who have died in similar circmstances, for whom the world does not weep and who probably have no peace of mind whatsoever because the threat of atrocities re-occuring is high and ever present.

God bless.

Delusional People

I've been watching the audition rounds of the X-Factor and His Royal Highness and I are amazed at how delusional some of the people are.

We love to watch this show at this stage because many of the people are so cringingly bad - we laugh until we are weak!.

But I can't believe that some of them seem to genuinely believe that they have a chance! Have they no friends? Have they ever listened to themselves? Clearly not.

I would love to be in the room when they are auditioning - it's one of the few ocasions I get to really laugh hard.

I haven't had the chance to see the Jamaican talent search type show - missed it when I was on the rock in July. Is it just as funny as watching say American Idol? Let me know. Also, if anyone has any clips or can point me in the right direction (if they are funny) drop me a line.

Later.

Tony to leave according to papers

So Tony Blair is to leave next year according to the papers here tonight. We'll see what they all say in the morning but it looks like he's finally getting the message. I do hope that Gordon Brown can clean up the party and take it back to Old Labour. I must tell you it's a pretty depressing time when I go to vote right now. There's no way I'm voting Tory, and the Lib Dems have gone crazy since they chucked Charles Kennedy out. In my district there's no independent candidate and I'm sure as hell not voting for the BNP candidate! I've been unhappy with Labour for a while but have felt there's been no option. Let's see if I can feel confident in voting for them again after Blair has gone on to earn his millions on the lecture circuit.

It's a crying shame you know, he started off well and just got into bad company with the Jackass from Texas. He's really cocked up what could have been a great legacy. Three terms you know, three terms! Why oh why would you want to cock that legacy up?

Later.

Sorry for the silence

Sorry for the silence. We put in wireless internet and for some reason it all went pear shaped.

Anyway I'm back and ready to complain about more foolishness.

Like that poor postman! There's this nice little postman who told the people he delivered to how to avoid getting junk mail that Royal Mail gets paid to send out and they suspended him. He's getting a lot of local support though so they may have to re-instate him.

Anyway, as you can imagine I have a whole heap of emails to catch up with so I am gone for tonight.

Later.

Slackness!

You heard about the British guy who had an argument with his wife while on holiday in Greece and then grabbed his two kids (a 6 year old boy and a 2 year old girl) and jumped off his balconey? Apparently the wife had declared her intention to divorce him and take the kids with her. He shouted that he would take them before she did - only he didn't mean to his mother's house. He then proceeded to attempt to murder them.

He succeeded with the boy, luckily the little girl only broke her arm. And what of him you might ask? Alive and kicking with broken limbs. He claimed that he was drunk and had taken some anti depressants. Local Greeks are disgusted and a local official said that once he realises what he has done (i.e. the father) he should commit suicide. Nothing of political correcteness there.

This is terrible!

I pray for the wife and little girl.

Glad for Peace - Well sort of peace

I'm glad to see that the ceasefire in Lebanaon is still keeping. I pray that good sense will prevail and the killing won't start again and that this part of the world can stop the constant war. Now if only Iraq could get on the road to prosperity for the Iraqis . . .


On the job front, I have an interview soon. Wish me luck.

Excitement at the Airport

Seems like I am always travelling close to the time of excitement at airports. In September 2001 I was at the hairdressers in the Springs getting braids put in while the twin towers were obliterated. The following week I was booked on a plane to the UK. And now just 2 weeks after returning to the UK from Jamaica there is this big scare at UK airports. No hand luggage at all except for loose change etc. in a clear plastic bag.

My thought is how can they possible go back to letting people carry hand luggage as they used to? Won't the terrorists just try again? But go back to the old ways they are - today it was announced that people can again take on hand luggage. The only restriction is the size. YoOu can't take anything larger than a small computer bag. So excuse me, expolsives or their components cannot fit in a computer bag?

I'd be more comfortable if they kept the clear plastic bag restriction indefinitely!

Acclimatising

Was talking to hubby today about our experiences on the rock. We concluded that maybe if we had stayed a little longer and in better circumstances (our hotel was terrible!) maybe we would have got back in the groove so to speak - for him in terms of the heat - for me in terms of the culture. When we go back again, we'll go for longer and stay somewhere better than the hotel we stayed at in Ochie - I'll let you know how it goes when it happens.

In other news, the job search is going a little better. I have a temporary gig until next March but it pays less than half of what I was earning before. Why did I take it? Was out of work for 6 weeks and the redundancy money was drying up - I needed to take something so I took the 1st thing offered - with a view to looking for better at the same time. Some income is better than no income right? There's hope for a permanent role though at £10-£15k more than my last job. In the meantime I need to find a night gig. It's a matter of location - not many temporary comms gigs in Leeds. If I was in London now . . . Maybe a move is in order . . .

More tomorrow on current affairs hopefuly - I never wanted this blog to be about only me.

Apologies

Hi all,

Sorry for the long absence but I was off getting married on the rock. All is done now and I am back in the UK. My visit was an eye opener I can tell you.


I had a rather unpleasant epiphany. I lived in Jamaica between the ages of 10 and 29 and have always considered myself to be Jamaican even though Jamaicans consider me to be British. But when I went back I felt like a foreigner in the extreme - I actually felt British. I didn't recognise Jamaica and I didn't like it. Isn' t that terrible?! I feel like a traitor.

What I didn't like were the things that were bothering me a lot just before I left - they seemed highlighted. (Things like bad service and waiting endlessly for things to get done). Oddly enough I wasn't bothered by the heat at all I was fine and nothing much bit me but my now husband suffered and he was born on the rock!

What shocked me most was 2 things. The incredibly high prices (one day the dollar was 120 to 1 for the pound, the next day it was 123) and and how run down everything seemed to me. I wonder if I have been tainted by living in a 1st world country or have things in Jamaica really got much worse?

All I know is I am really comfortable with the 'easier' life I have here and definitley don't want to give it up. I'm staying in the 1st world for sure. How I've changed!

Ah confuse!

Maybe I should wait until I stay a little longer and see what I think then.

Glad to see justice done

Just a quick post to say how glad I am that they punished both Zidane and the other guy for provoking him. Full time!

Later.

Visit to The Yorkshire Dales

My mum came for the weekend last weekend and we went to visit Herriot land and York. James Herriot wrote some really good books - humorous ones - about his experiences as a vet in Thirsk, Yorkshire between the 1930s and the 1960s. The books were also made into a successful television series that aired in the 1970s - I grew up watching it and have loved the books for years so it was lovely to visit the house that he lived and worked in.

The house has been restored to its 1940s state and it is lovely to see all of the old furniture, pictures and utensils. The kitchen in particular was fantastic. There was also a vintage car in the back which you were encouraged to get in and have a picture taken.

Upstairs, there was an exhibition of vet instruments and a long room where there were interactive games. Downstairs in what used to be the barns, there was a display of information and a 20 minute film explaining the history of Herriot. There was also a section which was arranged as the set for the TV show, where you could look through cameras and even take a phone call as though you were in the show.

It was lovely to see first hand what I had read about and it was amazingly only £5 per adult! I've been to other so-called interactive museums take for example the Viking museum in York which costs a lot more and was useless!

The next day we took mum to York which she hadn't seen since her schooldays ( a looong time ago people!) and it was lovely. It was about 32 degrees celcius! When we got to York Minster (after visiting the National Railway museum) there was a set of travelling Shakespeare players - done in the ancient style. They did a play, packed up the stage and rolled it to their next destination in the town and did another play.

We finished off with a lovely lunch at O'Neil's pub- for £2.95 for a full meal each- great value for money.

We went through the old cobbled strets and enjoyed the scenerey and indulged our sweet tooth. I took mum to my favourite fudge shope where you get to see them making it.

All in all a lovely weekend. If you ever find yourself in this part of the world, I do reccomend you check out the Yorkshire Dales - in the summer of course!

Sympathy for Zidane

It is time for a more honest approach to dealing with violence and provocation in football. Too many times the only thing that is punished is a footballer’s reaction when the provoker is allowed to walk free. I know, (and so does he) that what Zidane did in the World Cup final was wrong but the fact of the matter is he would not have done it if he hadn’t been provoked. Surely that is the more terrible action, provoking a man to violence and not the reaction to the provocation? A lot of footballers put up with terrible comments thrown at them from the often racist public and from other footballers on opposing teams. Punishing footballers for reacting violently to provocation will not stop the incidents – they aren’t saints for God’s sake. But if footballers and fans know that they will be punished until it hurts for hurling racist abuse (on the part of fans usually) and for provoking other footballers by abusing their family members then there would be a severe drop in the incidents.

I’ve long believed that when you have a whole stadium of arseholes yelling racist abuse at some players, the punishment should be that the match is immediately ended, with a forfeit to the other team. If a team knows it will lose matches and points because it’s supporters are racist, they will work even harder to get rid of that type of following.

Just a quick Hi for now

Sorry for the long silence. been busy being lazy - it's amazing how unmotivated you can be to do anything useful when you are out of work!

Anyway, I've vowed to discipline myself so you shouldbe hearing me rant some more in thte future.

As part of my idleness, I watched the first 2 episodes of Buck Rogers in the 25th century yesterday and today - hilarious!

Later.

Incredible Heat

It has been amazingly hot here in the UK the past few weeks - up to 32C most days. His Royal Highness and I have been falling asleep in the middle of the day in spite of being pretty inactive - it's the heat that does it. We can't remember how we managed on the rock. What a thing eeh, aclimatisation!

Well the football is down to the last few teams. Most of the matches have been mind numbingly boring, but Italy vs Germany was pretty exciting, for the last 2 minutes of extra time that is. We wait to see what happens with France and Portugal.

In the meantime the job hunt continues - I'm still to get even some temp work - quite depressing.

New Claim

Just read in the Independent that some Canadian scientists are claiming that what makes a man gay or increases the chances of him being gay are the number of older brothers he has. (They claim some gene a mother develops in her womb after giving birth to many boys contributes) Apparently the more older brothers he has the more likely he is to be gay. Better watch His Royal Highness, he has three older brothers!

But really now, how do they explain lesbians then?

What a load of rot.

The Leadership of the Anglican Church Awakes

Read today in the Times that the Archbishop of Canterbury has decided to split the church. Effectively those churches who remain faithful to biblical teaching stay in and those that choose their own way, in this case by ordaining gay priests, shall effectively be out. This is a good thing – it has taken the Anglican church, in fact all churches too long to definitively outline the Christian stance on this. It seems that nowadays to say that you believe homosexuality is a sin, is tantamount to social death. Well Christianity does state it is a sin. The next argument pro gays then give is that if you believe homosexuality is a sin then you advocate violence against gays. Not true. Christians do not advocate violence against gays. They also say that to believe homosexuality is a sin is the same as whites saying blacks were inferior back in the day and that as times changed with regards to race, that the church must modernise and accept homosexuality as a natural and good occurrence. Rubbish! God’s word is immutable. It was never right to discriminate re: race and being the race you are is not a sin, you just are. Indulging in a homosexual lifestyle is a choice – many people argue that people are born gay but there is no prrof of this. There are however plenty of examples of people becoming gay after bad experiences with members of the opposite sex.

Christians should be able to state without persecution that they believe homosexuality is a sin. We are all given free will and are able to decide what type of lifestyle we lead. This is between you and your God – but in terms of Christian leadership, you cannot possible be living a sinful life and be in church leadership! Those Anglicans who believe it is right to do so are crazy!

You could argue that the Bible is ambiguous on lots of things, but no one with a brain in their head can state the Bible is ambiguous on homosexuality. It states categorically that it is an abomination, and there are no instances where it is condoned. If these Anglicans want to indulge in a homosexual lifestyle, they should be honest enough to hold their hands up and acknowledge it is contrary to God’s will and not try to twist things. Also this ridiculous claim that Christians are homophobic is a lot of crap. No one is afraid of homosexuals or homosexuality and as far as I know a phobia is a fear. We simply believe the lifestyle is sinful Agree or disagree but don’t trample on our right to freely express ourselves. So I am glad the top leadership of the Anglican church has remained true to Biblical teaching. It is the right thing to do. I pray that they will be given strength now to pay attention to the needs of the world and not have to spend much more time on this issue.

Football Everywhere

Well the fottball fever has truly taken hold especially in our house. I have no hope of redeeming the remote from His Royal Highness' grasp so I am reduced to reading voraciously. In the meantime, the job search continues. I got a temp job last week but am again free this week. Funnily enough I don't feel stressed. I wait to see what the future brings.

At the moment, summer has once again disappeared here in the UK. Right now it's freezing and the weather forecast tonight said we might get frost tonight! Frost I ask you?!!!! What next? Mi cya tek dis ya cowl counchi no longer you know! I count down the days until I visit the rock at the end of next month. Pray for me that I don't freeze to death before then.

Later.

Football a tek ova!

Started a temp job today and while I am glad of the opportunity to earn some money, I am once again reminded that I loathe the traditional office environment. I have worked two places in my life where the working environment was good, my colleagues intelligent and fun and the work fulfilling. Apart from that my work experiences have been miserable. You know what made those two expereiences so great? Not money. What made them great was the fact that you were judged on your output and its quality, not how many hours you spent in the office, there was flexitime, you could see the results of your work, my bosses allowed me and my co-workers to get on with it and the co-workers were lovely. How I wish I could find this again!

I am a football widow like many others. Added to this Wimbeldon starts next week - and Seymour does love his tennis. The other day, after switching back and forth from the US (or was it the French?) Open and World Cup, he then switched to the darts - that's when I lost it. It turns out he will watch any sport except ice hockey and American football. I am doomed!