Henry/Jemima

"Children should be seen and not heard." This was the philosophy of the time when I was being dragged up. It was certainly the case when adults were around and we as kids always knew our place. For goodness sake we were put there often enough, and frankly would do more or less anything to avoid the company of adults.

The current cohort of children seem to be enjoying a different experience, and it seems that for some parents, the child is always right! I find it annoying to say the least, that fully grown people will bow down and change their own plans on the whims of a child.

It seems that as soon as little Henry, or Jemima is bored with whatever the family is doing, then it is time to move on to something new, regardless of the needs or wants of others. Little Henry/Jemima now rules the roost and does more or less what they want. Children today are brought up to fear nothing, to respect nothing and by and large to be utterly selfish. They are not being taught tolerance or patience and feel that they can always get what they want when they want it.

If Henry/Jemima misbehave in a public place, woe betide any adult who steps in to say anything or do anything. Parents will fly to their side and defend the indefensible, to the extent that teachers and even the Police have no standing in the minds of these precious little gits. Did I really say that? Oh well as always I speak from the hip and sod the consequences.

This is not a particularly new phenomenon, children have been spoiled throughout history, and such obnoxious persons have been described in literature since the time of Chaucer. I cannot go that far back but I do have a neice, a single child, utterly the focus of her parents lives (sad isn't it!) even at the age of 28. AS a family group we went to a baseball game in the national stadium. An interesting event, especially for those of us who had not seen such an event before. However, in the second half, the aforementioned brat, decided that she was bored. Now that isn't surprising at the age of 6 but what was surprising is that the whole party, all three generations, were then forced to leave and go home to satisfy the whim of brat! She still has brattish tendencies if allowed to express them, however she now has brats of her own and will no doubt be cultivating the brat habits with them - I can only hope that they rebel!

Just imagine what the backlash will be like when Henry /Jemima decide to produce their own litters. The backlash might be catastrophic..........I do hope so!

Things to learn before leaving school

That you may be the centre of your own universe, but you are not that of others.
That no-one owes you anything.
Some people care about you, MOST don't.
Money goes out faster than it comes in.

How to prepare a balanced meal from basic ingredients.
How to read
How to write
How to be polite to others
How to seek help when necessary
How to keep clean
How to deal with the opposite sex or same sex
How to use electricity and gas safely and economically.
Where in the world is..............?
How to swim
Where food comes from
Where energy comes from
That other people have feelings
How to wire a plug
How to fix a leaky pipe
How to build a compost heap
How to resist temptation
How to solve problems
How to recognise the edible and the inedible things around us.
How to make lists
How to let love into your life
How to think for yourself and not to be led easily by others!

Ignorance

The older I get, the more i realise how little i know.

I am in a quiz team and normally we do pretty well, in fact we win too often for comfort and most teams are glad when we don't turn up. We are also the ones to beat of course, and last night we were! Fundamentally, there were two complete rounds, about which we knew almost nothing. The first of these was about auctions, and never having attended one of these, and having almost no interest in shopping of any kind, I had no idea of the differences between Christies, Tattersals and Sothebies, I had bnever heard of a commission auction, although I had heard of ebay. The next round was even worse, and was all about various computer games. Now i am no stranger to computers and to games, but I know nothing of fighting dolphins and the like and so we failed dismally.

The quiznight is a great indicator of ignorance and I know that I know almost nothing about a whole list of topics, including American sport, American state capitals, soap operas, television in general and especially reality TV, I know little about sport in general, and i care nothing for celebrities. My geography is weak, as is my history, and I have no idea which of our monarchs preceded which and who arranged for the murder of whom. I speak no foreign languages and that includes Astrology. My recall of Greek and Roman mythology is shaky, and I am terrible at recognising the faces of the rich and famous.

I could go on, the list seems endless, and the list of things that I do know about is very short. I suspect that I am not alone here. I never considered myself particularly smart, nor stupid, but sometimes a quiz can make one feel the latter very easily.

Most people are in the same boat of course, and some can barely tie their own shoelaces, but there are so many things that everyone ought to know or be able to do in order to survive in a changing world. having said that, there is plenty of knowledge out there that I am grateful not to have, as they say - (THEY again!!) Ignorance is Bliss.

Music - play on

This has been the year of the live gig! Never before have i attended so many events in the course of such a short space of time, and i have to say that i could get used to it!

I just got back from a long weekend in France, and this may well have turned out to be the most expensive concert so far. The tickets were a reasonable price but added to that were, the ferry fares to the mainland and then the overnight boat to St Malo and then the drive to Quimper and the three overnight stays in questionable hotels. Taking meals and drinks and other incidentals into account, it was a very expensive gig indeed. However it was worth it.

The object of the expedition was Loreena McKennitt, who was the star feature of the Celtic festival taking place in Quimper. I have for several years been a fan of Loreena and her amazing band of players and to see her in the flesh, as it were, was too great a temptation. To make things more interesting, Holly and her father also attended - they flew in from Southampton, and Holly managed to get backstage passes in the hope of meeting the great lady. That however wasn't to be, but we did meet an equally lovely and talented Caroline Lavelle, the cellist in Loreena's band. She is a delightful person and generously offered Holly free cello lessons. I hope that she can take her up on that offer.

It was a wonderful evening and my illusions were never in danger of being shattered. Loreena enthralled a huge audience and received a well deserved standing ovation.

We were a little disappointed not to have met her, but on the other hand what would I have said to her that hasn't been said so many times before? I guess that maybe in restrospect that things turned out well. Ironically though, as Holly checked out of her hotel, she found that Loreena had been staying in the room opposite hers!

Tuesday afternoon

Nothing to say and here I am saying it! Tuesday afternoon always link to the song by the Moody Blues. I had a friend who had that album when it first came out and it was the only one that he played, probably because it was the only one he had. Sharing a room with an album can have long lasting effects and one might think that I'd hate it, but no, Days of Future Passed with all the cliché, bad poetry and lack of real meaning, remains as one of my favourite albums of all time. Some days i try to compile lists of favourites and yes dear reader, today is no exception. I am mind numbingly bored today and am finding ways to fill in time so here goes - today, at this moment in time, these are my favourite albums.

The division bell - Pink Floyd
Led Zepplin 2 - Led Zepplin
Days of future passed - Moody Blues
What we did on our holidays - fairport Convention
Bookends - Simon and Garfunkel
Surfs up-Beach Boys
Abbey Road - Beatles
Raising Sand-Robert Plant/Alison Krauss
The Mask and the Mirror- Loreena McKennitt
Greatest Hits- Leonard Cohen

Tomorrow I may change my mind but those are pretty much always with me in my heart and in my head, some for very good reason and others not.

People Torn By Fate

People Torn by Fate is a line from the national anthem of Hungary. It struck me that I, like probably many others, know very little about Hungary as a nation and even less about its people. I have only ever spoken to one Hungarian person that I am aware of, and although I sense a great deal of pride in the country, there is also a degree of modesty, associated with one of the smallest and possibly poorest of the European states. It is a fascinating country nevertheless. The great Enrico Fermi when asked whether extra terrestrials existed replied "Yes they do - they re called Hungarians!" I am not sure what he meant but one day I'd like to find out for myself. It is on a short list of places that I'd like to see before i die.

I collected stamps as a child, in fact I still have them somewhere, and I recall being quite fond of the Hungarian part of my collection, being puzzled by the fact that the word Hungary never appeared on them, instead MAGYAR POSTA was boldly emblazoned on the colourful scraps of paper. i never knew where Hungary was, just that it was east of here and west of Russia. I knew that they had good reasons for not liking Russians or Germans for that matter, but even now i am embarrassed by my utter lack of knowledge.

I have been looking things up and to my surprise find that 10,000 Magyars live in the UK. I know that doesn't seem many set against the number of Muslims, but that is still a small town's worth of displaced souls.

Hunga has the biggest lake in Europe within it's borders - Lake Balaton covers 598 square miles - that is a lot of water and a great place to hide all sorts of things. maybe Sadaam Husseins weapons are sunk into it.

I never knew until today that it borders on Austria. To think that I have been quite close to it and never even noticed. How could I have overlooked what is clearly a jewel set in the middle of an increasingly characterless Europe. I have seen something shining there and now i want to see it for myself.

Black bags

Is it just me? Or are black plastic bags really very poor these days? The other day while clearing the debris from my decorating adventures, I dropped some rubbish into a bag and it fell straight through the bottom. It wasn’t particularly heavy or sharp, the bag was just not good enough. Nowadays if I fill these things with stuff to take somewhere else, usually the end of the drive so that the refuse men can collect them, but frequently to the refuse tip itself, as they are not too keen to take some materials away, I struggle to put more than leaves into the things without sharp pointy thing sticking through, splitting the bag and allowing everything to fall out!

Things like black bin bags are probably made in China. Let’s face it, most of the crap that we are sold these days does come from there. I once vowed that I would never willingly buy anything made in the People’s Republic, but that is very hard these days. It would seem that they are taking over the industrial processes that produce all those little things that we “need” in 21st century living. Dammit I bought a new laptop the other day. Apple are so well known for quality, and now they are assembled in China! I almost sent it back, but I will wait for it to breakdown first.

Black plastic bags are important. They are a symbol which in the end signifies US. When we die, effectively our worldly things will end up in them, and not long after we have been carried out in our boxes, our goods will follow, hastily shoved into bags so that our next of kin can clear the house and sell it.

I don’t want all my worldly things falling out as the bags are dragged out to the end of the drive. I’d hate to think that my remnants were on display to the whole world. Maybe I will request cardboard boxes, both for me and my stuff, and maybe we can be incinerated together.

They

"They" are amazingly powerful people, and I don't even know who they are. I have searched high and low all of my life and have never yet met one of them. They are the ones that predict the outcomes of our actions and our decisions, they are the ones whose voices are so often heard while others are not, they are responsible for many of the big decisions that we make in life.

I wonder why we are so subject to their views and why they are so universally accepted as being the final word on things? It seems that few of us make decisions unless "they" are consulted. I mean this evening I am going out. They say it is going to rain, so I will wear a raincoat! See what i mean? I believe them and yet there is no reason why I should. What makes their word any different in value to mine? Ok I say that it isn't going to rain! No one listens, and no-one would believe me if "They" say the opposite.

There have been times in my life when decisions that have had huge impact on me, have been made on the basis of what "they" say or think, and i really would like to meet them and punch them on the nose. Actually I wouldn't as i don't do that sort of thing. I have never intentionally punched anyone anywhere let alone on the nose. I would like to give "them" a pice of my mind however and maybe suggest that they keep their opinions to themselves.

I wonder if they operate outside this country? Do the Chinese have a "They"? and if they do, what are they saying about the forthcoming olympic games? They say that a third of the population is Chinese and I reckon that means that they can say and do pretty much what they want!

Bloody rain

The rain today is heavy and unyielding. I know that i needed some to fill up the empty water butts but I have had enough now, it can stop. Not only is it raining but I also feel cold! Cold in the first week of July??? Yet another wonderful British summer. This is all made to feel so much worse when i get messages from my daughter telling me how hot it is in Greece right now.

It has been suggested by some that peoples are the products of their climates, and that it is the dour and miserable weather that we get here that makes us what we are - dour and miserable i guess! And also as a nation, very hard working and industrious. I suppose that while it is raining like this, you might just as well be at work as on holiday.

I see that Iran has just tested a rocket with a range that would make Israel a potential target if ever they manage to complete their weapons programme. Now forgive me if i get things wrong here, but Iran is a Muslim state, yes? and we are told that Islam is a religion based on peace and understanding and tolerance of others? Now what would a religious state want with weapons capable of such mass destruction? I am clearly missing something here. The thought of nuclear capability in the hands of any religious group is surely a scary prospect but in the hands of Iranian fundamentalists who have openly declared that Israel should be erased from the map (peacefully, and in an understanding way of course as God is good!), is so scary, and today has come a step closer to being a reality.

Rain in Israel may soon contain a lot more than water, and if that happens then farewell Iran!

Maybe that is why the Muslims are all moving here, the weather dampens their enthusiasm for everything except making money.

Ok hands up those who I have offended today!!

life, don't talk to me about life

LIfe is strange. There are times when I think that it is quite ridiculous and am not surprised that people look for a meaning. I mean, what is the point of it all? We are born, we grow, we learn and some make a big impression on the world, but in the end we all die and for the majority of us, the world is no better, nor any worse for our passing.

Ok some of us choose to breed and so our own little cluster of nucleic acids, albeit in a shuffled up and diluted form, gets another spin of the wheel, but even then within a few generation, what made us unique will have spread and mingled so far, that our impact has been no more than a pebble dropped into a very large pond.

I am a great adherent to the ideas of Richard Dawkins, who among other things, maintains that we are simply the tools that our genes have assembled as a means of ensuring their care, survival and procreation. I know that this is an over simplification but for me it works. I often see myself as an assemblage of genes and i have done my biological duty, producing two wonderful children who in their turn, may or may not choose to become biologically successful.

One of the big changes that science has brought about is that people now do have that choice. Before modern contraception, the biological urge for sex ensured that people bred, as long as they were able to anyway. Those with the greatest drives were often the ones that produced most offspring and so their genes proliferated. Alas it seems that now the choices made for economic or other reasons mean that the intelligent, or genetically more able, are choosing to delay the breeding process or not bother at all, while those less well endowed genetically speaking, are not exercising the same choices, thus altering the balance in the composition of the gene pool.

Those of us who have been lucky enough to get this far, have become redundant. I know that I have nothing more to offer and can contribute nothing more to the world, at least nothing that makes any difference. I did just finish decorating my study, and while it looks ok now, I know that it is a temporary thing and if i were to drop dead this instant............