I love cheese and now it seems, cheese loves me. For years now my dentist and, more recently, my doctor have been telling me I should cut down on dairy products. The dentist because the calcium marks my teeth and the doctor because he wants me to lose weight as part of a package for managing my blood pressure.
Recent research (http://www.rssl.com/services/foodanalysis/FoodEnews/pages/Foode-newsedition.aspx?Category=Edition_461&a=1#293) suggests that increasing your intake of dairy products as part of a weight loss diet can actually help reduce weight. This is music to my ears. I can cope with having my teeth cleaned more often (assuming I can find a dentist up here in Cumbria - my old dentist has gone private and is not taking on new patients) and if call centres could be abolished I'm sure my blood pressure would improve. Now I only need to know which is the best type of cheese to eat - blue cheese I hope, it's my favourite.
Thursday, 29 October 2009
Monday, 26 October 2009
A Thought - Not That Its Likely to Happen
If I were to achieve something worthwhile during my lifetime I would not want my life scrutinised because of it; that would surely devalue it.
Wednesday, 21 October 2009
Meat Sacrificed to Idols
In Corinth in ancient Greece meat sacrificed to the gods was distributed to the populace for consumption. The early Christians were concerned that eating this meat would signify worship of false gods and the idols associated with them. The Apostle Paul in his first epistle to the Corinthians explained that no harm could come to a member of the Lord's Church through eating the meat because the idols were false gods and could not hold power over the saints. However, he counselled, it would be best to refrain from eating such meat lest those who did not have this knowledge should see the saints eating and be led astray into the worship of false gods.
Even in our modern world there are symbols that have powerful associations in the minds of the people. For the British, Winston Churchill our great war-time leader and the Spitfire, flown by the few over the sky of London in defence of the many, symbolise the defense of the realm against tyranny. In a cynical reversal of Paul's counsel the BNP have chosen to adopt these symbols for their own political ends and no doubt there will be those, not understanding the insidious forms tyranny can take, who will be led into a world of intolerance and bigotry believing themselves to be saviours of our way of life.
Even in our modern world there are symbols that have powerful associations in the minds of the people. For the British, Winston Churchill our great war-time leader and the Spitfire, flown by the few over the sky of London in defence of the many, symbolise the defense of the realm against tyranny. In a cynical reversal of Paul's counsel the BNP have chosen to adopt these symbols for their own political ends and no doubt there will be those, not understanding the insidious forms tyranny can take, who will be led into a world of intolerance and bigotry believing themselves to be saviours of our way of life.
Friday, 16 October 2009
J O P Jones
A while ago I came across this picture on an Internet site. This is J O P Jones, headmaster of Longlevens Secondary Modern School, Gloucester, and his dog Suzie. For the five years (1962-1967) I attended the school JOP and Suzie were permanent fixtures - yes Suzie attended school too.
JOP was a very gentle man who shook continuously. Rumour had it that during the Second World War he'd been aboard a ship that had been torpedoed.
He interviewed me just before I left his school. I was going on to the 6th form at Sir Thomas Rich's Grammar School, Gloucester and he strongly advised me to study English, Mathematics and History for GCE A Level and then to take a BEd. I've often wondered how my life would have turned out if I'd taken his advice. As it was I took English, Mathematics and Art for my A Levels and failed all three miserably. Dad wasn't keen on me re-sitting them so I took a job with an insurance company in Cheltenham instead of going on to higher education - it wasn't until my 40's that I got to study at university.
Shortly after we married my wife's parents moved to North Wales, first to Benllech on Anglesey and then to Penmaenmawr in Gwynedd where this photograph was taken - small world.
JOP was a very gentle man who shook continuously. Rumour had it that during the Second World War he'd been aboard a ship that had been torpedoed.He interviewed me just before I left his school. I was going on to the 6th form at Sir Thomas Rich's Grammar School, Gloucester and he strongly advised me to study English, Mathematics and History for GCE A Level and then to take a BEd. I've often wondered how my life would have turned out if I'd taken his advice. As it was I took English, Mathematics and Art for my A Levels and failed all three miserably. Dad wasn't keen on me re-sitting them so I took a job with an insurance company in Cheltenham instead of going on to higher education - it wasn't until my 40's that I got to study at university.
Shortly after we married my wife's parents moved to North Wales, first to Benllech on Anglesey and then to Penmaenmawr in Gwynedd where this photograph was taken - small world.
Thursday, 15 October 2009
Endangered Species
Is the Greater American Meat-eater now an endangered species? I've just spent a few minutes reading a review of a study published by the US National Cancer Institute in the American Journal of Epidemiology (http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/kwp280). Dr Rashi Sinha and his colleagues have analysed data collected from over 175,000 American males looking particularly at meat-eating habits. During the course of the study 10,313 of those participating developed prostate cancer, 1,102 were advanced cases and 419 died. The conclusion is that there is a 12% increased risk of developing prostate cancer among those who eat red meat and a 7% increase among those who eat processed meat.
This is just one of a number of studies that have looked at the cancer related risks associated with eating red and processed meats escpecially those cooked at high heat. It does appear that the Greater American Meat-eater, usually seen presiding over a Bar-B-Q, truly is an endangered species unless, of course, you know better.
This is just one of a number of studies that have looked at the cancer related risks associated with eating red and processed meats escpecially those cooked at high heat. It does appear that the Greater American Meat-eater, usually seen presiding over a Bar-B-Q, truly is an endangered species unless, of course, you know better.
Disabled Parking Trouble
Yesterday I drove my wife into Carlisle so that she could catch a train to North Wales to visit her mother. The station forecourt is very small and regular parking spaces are invariably taken. Because she has limited mobility my wife has a disabled sticker for the car and we can usually find a slot in one of the disabled parking spaces provided.
Yesterday all but one were already taken by people displaying valid disabled stickers. The remaining one was occupied by a paramedic (he was sat in the car messing with his mobile phone) and when I challenged the guy he told me he had permission to be there.
Why is it, wherevever you go, if any parking space is going to re-allocated to another purpose - usually builders skips (paramedics on stand-by is a new one on me) - it is always a disabled parking space. It's bad enough that the ignorant able bodied take advantage but that the owners of the parking areas should do so too is unacceptable.
Yesterday all but one were already taken by people displaying valid disabled stickers. The remaining one was occupied by a paramedic (he was sat in the car messing with his mobile phone) and when I challenged the guy he told me he had permission to be there.
Why is it, wherevever you go, if any parking space is going to re-allocated to another purpose - usually builders skips (paramedics on stand-by is a new one on me) - it is always a disabled parking space. It's bad enough that the ignorant able bodied take advantage but that the owners of the parking areas should do so too is unacceptable.
Monday, 12 October 2009
Time flies
It's more than a year since we returned to Cumbria; how time flies! In that year so much work has been done on the house - new doors and windows throughout (only the garage doors were spared) - the roof was stripped back, rotten wood replaced, insulation laid (for the first time ever in the parts of the roof space that couldn't otherwise be accessed), new roof felt and, finally, the slates and coping stones were relaid - all internal walls repainted, door frames and skirting boards varnished - new floor coverings laid (what was there, even the new carpets we'd laid three years earlier when we decided to rent the house out while I was working in the south of England, was just too far gone) - all the electrics updated and white goods replaced - and, luxury of luxury, a completely new bathroom. We just have to agree on new curtains now which is proving to be more difficult than anticipated.
The most frustrating part was sorting out who supplied our gas. We thought it was E.ON and had set up an account with them (so we thought) and then along came British Gas who insisted that they were our supplier. When we checked back with E.ON they denied supplying us with gas so we went with British Gas. Then E.ON came back and insisted they were our supplier. It dragged on for most of the year but in the end Bristish Gas backed down and sent a bouquet of flowers by way of apology. Everything was confused by the old farmhouse, of which we own part, being further sub-divided, new meters being installed and allocated to the wrong properties, a new billing system at British Gas, duff information on databases and wrong postal addresses being used. In short, a total mess. A third utility company got involved at one stage so that at one point we had three utility companies arguing over which meters were in which properties and which belonged to whom. Remember the line from the introduction to each episode of Soap - "Confused! You will be." E.ON came out the winner but only on points - it was they who finally sorted everything out, but only after British Gas and E.ON were shamed into talking to each other.
Contact with the Church in this area was re-established and, as before, I attended Carlilse Branch for a short while before being asked to go to Workington. Workington is what you would describe as a happy branch, lots of smiling people and welcoming hugs. A lot of good work is being done there and it's a joy to be part of it.
Just one final thought, I've so much work to do, so much to read, so much to write that I haven't missed being employed - not once! Retirement is so good.
The most frustrating part was sorting out who supplied our gas. We thought it was E.ON and had set up an account with them (so we thought) and then along came British Gas who insisted that they were our supplier. When we checked back with E.ON they denied supplying us with gas so we went with British Gas. Then E.ON came back and insisted they were our supplier. It dragged on for most of the year but in the end Bristish Gas backed down and sent a bouquet of flowers by way of apology. Everything was confused by the old farmhouse, of which we own part, being further sub-divided, new meters being installed and allocated to the wrong properties, a new billing system at British Gas, duff information on databases and wrong postal addresses being used. In short, a total mess. A third utility company got involved at one stage so that at one point we had three utility companies arguing over which meters were in which properties and which belonged to whom. Remember the line from the introduction to each episode of Soap - "Confused! You will be." E.ON came out the winner but only on points - it was they who finally sorted everything out, but only after British Gas and E.ON were shamed into talking to each other.
Contact with the Church in this area was re-established and, as before, I attended Carlilse Branch for a short while before being asked to go to Workington. Workington is what you would describe as a happy branch, lots of smiling people and welcoming hugs. A lot of good work is being done there and it's a joy to be part of it.
Just one final thought, I've so much work to do, so much to read, so much to write that I haven't missed being employed - not once! Retirement is so good.
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