Three's

That three's thing has happened again.

We buried a good friend yesterday, and I found the service quite difficult and emotional. He had been ill for some time, and maybe the length of the illness makes you sort of think that it will all come good in the end. Even when you are told that there is nothing more that can be done, faith helps us believe that it will somehow work out. I must admit to thinking that he looked well when I popped along to the hospital. Maybe be was just at ease, at peace with what was about to happen, and what after all faces each and every one of us irrespective of background, ethnicity, social status or any other irrelevant factor.

I suppose that death is very much a part of life.

Death however is all around us at the moment. Our neighbour who was admitted with a not too much to worry about illness, does in fact have the big 'C', and one of our extended family has been given a terminal prognosis. This takes me back to the early 80's when we lost three close family within twelve months. The first was too young, but the second and third were younger still. Well I have said a prayer for each and every one of them, and on reflection, maybe life isn't that bad after all

Superstition Stuff

All of this splashing about in the water made me think about 'superstition'. Why is it that whenever something goes wrong; it happens in three's? I mean it was bad luck that my Xperia X10 starting drifting off here and there and I am unable to change the software as it constantly fails to upload onto the phone. You know, these sort of things happen and for every bad example of a product there are many thousand of A1 prime examples of hassle free usage.

But I was a tad annoyed when my 'few weeks old' Canon 600D fault was noticed. The shop tried to blame me and initially wanted £175 for the repair. Thankfully I am a bit methodical and used to putting across the odd argument or two. So armed with four bits of masking tape to mask off an area on my laptop screen; I was able to identify where the smudge in the photographs kept appearing. Better still I was able to show that it was irrespective of which of the two lens were being used. And best of all I was able to clearly show that the 'smudge' (for want of a better word) appeared with absolute clarity in at least 11 of the first ever 33 shots on the Canon 600D camera. Plus on the less visible images, you could move them into Corel Photopaint and change the hues to find the defect. And most importantly, I was able to prove without doubt that the smudge appeared on the first ever shot that I took with the Canon 600D camera. Which is great news as the shop assembled the lens to the body and hey ho, they are now paying. But that still leaves me without my Canon 600D for the next three weeks.

So two out of the dreaded three bad things done, and more importantly, what as this got to do with the last post? Because most of you realise that I try to link the posts so that there is some kind of sequence or story to follow. That of course is the challenge.

Now I can't ramble on about the 'Voodoo Doll' that I mentioned to two sisters when they were chatting to me a few days before my run of bad luck. Well I can mention that I mentioned about not saying something to someone in case she got out her 'Voodoo Doll', but unfortunately that doesn't link to the last post. Nope, the real link is that the third thing has happened. Given the last Blogging session about water; it may come as no surprise that I managed to tip a glass full of the stuff over my laptop. And when I say 'glass full and over', I mean 'glass full' and 'right over' the keyboard and electronics.

Now a lesser person may have panicked, but not me. No, I calmly held the mains connected laptop upside down to let the water pour out. Or is that gush out? And when the gush, became a dribble, and then an occasional spot, I turned the laptop back into its correct position and left it turned on and plugged in for 24 hours. The theory being that the heat would evaporate the water, and by golly, my laptop gets hot!

Footnote: please don't touch electrical equipment that has come into contact with water without first and safely isolating the power supply. Gosh, three things went wrong, but thank goodness the last thing went right or this Blog would have come to a standstill!

Georgie

Now that I'm back from holiday, Dr. Georgie AKA The Swim Teacher, tells me that I have to practice bi-lateral breathing or the muscles on one side of my neck are going to swell right up.

Now I don’t mind listening to Dr. Georgie as she is full of good advice. For example she told me that Breast Stroke is not her favourite stroke at all, and that no one should practice back stroke in a crowded pool. I was paying attention honest, well you can see from what I have written that the information has sunk in so far. But the next bit is a bit disconcerting.

Dr. Georgie wants me to drop the coffee on Tuesdays and Thursdays and enjoy a cup of peach tea instead. Or she suggested; maybe a pot of tea with a spot of lemon instead of milk. Now steady on Dr. Georgie. No breast stroke is one thing, but peach tea? Blooming eck, before we know it, I’ll be drinking water all day while doing the doggy paddle!

Mrs B and her Retail Therapist

While the number of Readers from across The Pond increases daily, I thought that it would be nice to post an image of Mrs B and her Retail Therapist aboard the Celebrity Eclipse. Yep, you got it right folks; her Retail Therapist. The best bit was, Mrs B was really kind and only had a few things on the cruise. Even better was her decision to keep selecting the cheapest item. Well done Mrs 'B' and well done to the Retail Therapist for helping Mrs 'B'. Wow, it really was 5* service. Now I imagine that the term Retail Therapist is big in the States, but here in little Wales, it's not something that you come across that often. Indeed the chap in the picture was the first Retail Therapist that I had ever met, and a lovely chap at that.

The Georgetown Quartet

The Georgetown Quartet. Now those that have been reading this Blog of late will know that Adam Westcott and the Inspiration String Trio on the Celebrity Eclipse were pretty darn good. Indeed, all four could fiddle pretty well. I was extremely impressed by Adam Westcott as he’s a first class musician. The ‘string trio’ were inspirational in both the looks department and the way that they played the music. Well done to Celebrity Cruises for booking such great performers. They were equalled by the four singers and a chap playing and singing. But one of my favourite bits of the Cruise was listening to the Jazz quartet in the Ensemble Lounge up on Deck 5. I must admit that I tended to gravitate towards the fifth deck, and I believe justifiably so.

The Georgetown Quartet
Joy Ellis, stunning voice
Adam Osmianski, one of the best drummers I have heard
Tony DePaolis, looks like he is in love with his instrument
Andy Boanco, the man best suited to be in black

Here I am post cruise listening to an album produced by the Georgetown Quartet called ‘Passepartout’ (can mean Character and is also a character in a certain film). I was a bit nervous with 13 tracks, especially after unlucky Tuesday and Coach 13 in Spain. But I should have chilled as the music suggests and ignored the omen. I don’t have a favourite in the band as to me it is a collective with each one complimenting the others. Now don’t get me wrong, I have an eye for a pretty lady, and Joy is very pretty indeed. But you see, the first time that I listened to them, I was sat and obscured by the bar. Wow, thought I, how do these guys do it? Only later that night did I learn of Joy being tucked away out of sight around the corner alone and with her grand piano. It’s a pity that Joy wasn’t singing that night, because if she had been, then I would have thought that one of the fellow’s had broken his voice. You see I am an advocate of ‘perception is reality’ and for a few hours I truly believed that there were only three of them. I’ve listened to some good jazz in the past, and some really dreadful stuff. Indeed some of the stuff that I have listened to before Georgetown came onto my scene, was so dreadful that some tracks had to be deleted from my iPod.

The Georgetown Jazz Quartet; both live and on their album ‘Passepartout’ are pure bliss. Believe it not; the album was as cheap as chips. Things this good shouldn’t cost so little, so grab a bit of them before they become BIG.


Check them out on the Web at: http://georgetownjazz.com/news

Check them out on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/search.php?q=georgetown&init=spell&tas=0.7095723279331396&ref=ts&sc_oq=goergetown&sc_h=163944578&sc_a=cs&ab=X&sc_r=1#!/pages/Georgetown/160414550639608

American brethren and the Brits

American brethren and the Brits. The Blog readership appears to be quite active at the mo. According to Google Analytics the readers from across the Pond include folk from Connecticut (Quaker hill), Washington State (Seattle), Florida (Miami, Ft Lauderdale, Hollywood), and New York. Whereas in the U.K. the readership level has simply gone off the scale! Phew, readers from; Birmingham, London, Chertsey, Teddington, Droitwich, Great Malvern, Guildford, Tewkesbury, Edgbaston, Cambridge, Kidderminster, Evesham, Worcester, Poplar, Stourport-on-Severn, Kempston, Hove, Northampton, Windsor, Reading, and Bedford. I hope that you are all enjoying the read folks!

Cindyanna

During an earlier post I mentioned Cindy-anna and how I mistook the State name. So here folks, is a photo of the lovely Cindyanna (now that I have managed to work out how to download the images from my camera). The bulk of the previous images from the Celebrity Eclipse cruise came from my mobile phone with its easy connection to the laptop and uploads.

You can tell the amusement from the smiles on the faces of the two in the photograph. That was a blistering hot day and being a tad deaf meant that it comes as no surprise that I misheard where she came from. Cindianna is from Indiana. Check out the United States of America Blog entry for the full story. The various name spellings are to help Cindi-anna find the Blog as I promised that the photo along with various spellings would be uploaded. Please let Cindiana know if you know her or recognise the photo back in the States.

14 Days of Excellent Service

Sumpoyo our excellent 5* Waiter in the fabulous Moonlight Sonata Restaurant on the Celebrity Eclipse. I am particularly proud of this shot as I used my Tamron 70-300mm lens at about four foot on Deck 14 of the Eclipse. Sumpoyo was expecting a full or half body shot and handed what he was carrying to a colleague. The best part was being able to wrangle a print of this shot on-board to hand to Sumpoyo before the end of the Celebrity Cruise. I managed to make the same gesture to 15 of the crew in all who we had befriended on our 14 night 5* cruise. I was only able to pay for 6x4 shots, but I think that all 15 were surprised and pleased to receive their photograph and gratuity envelope.

Celebrity Cruise Tip 22: We pre-paid our gratuities with our booking, but we also took along some money to say a special additional thank you to those who provided excellent service. It may be worth considering doing the same as the service is exceptional and you end up feeling like a million dollars. The recruiting programme for Celebrity Cruises must be exceptional for them to attract so many top class people who provide stunning service day after day

The African Bit

And now folks the African bit. It has been great blogging about Celebrity Cruises and Celebrity Eclipse, but the Blog is also about Africa so we need to find a suitable strand or strands from somewhere. Maybe it is the historical link and physical distances between our ports of call on the Celebrity Cruise and the African Continent would suffice. I must admit that I was surprised on our excursion in Gibraltar to be informed by our excellent tour guide just how close we were to Africa. It was hard to believe when he pointed out Morocco across the Straits of Gibraltar and I wonder just how close the Celebrity Eclipse had taken us to Africa as she sailed her curved route to the Rock.

Gibraltar was our first port of call on the Italian Mediterranean cruise. Gibraltar of course is linked to Spain while high speed ferries link the Straits of Gibraltar to Africa. With Africa only 14 miles away from Gibraltar: the twice weekly ferry from Gibraltar to Morocco takes just over an hour.

Our cruise then moved on to Provence in France. Of course France was one of the great Colonialist countries with French West Africa consisting of eight French colonial territories; Dahomey, French Guinea, French Sudan, Ivory Coast, Mauritania, Senegal, Upper Volta, and Niger.

Our next port of call was in Italy and along its coast. Italy was also a colonial nation and Italian East Africa consisted of; Ethiopia with its four governed areas, Italian Somaliland, and Italian Eritrea until the end of the Second World War.

We then cruised to Sardinia; a Mediterranean island belonging to Italy that is situated between Africa, France, Italy, and Spain. Interestingly the distance between Sardinia and Sicily is some 280km but the distance between Sardinia and Africa, Italy, and Spain is some 100km less. I.e. Sardinia is closer to Africa than it is to Italy.

The last two countries that we visited were Spain and Portugal. Spain played a bit part in the Colonisation of the African Continent. Spanish Morocco, the Western Sahara and Equatorial Guinea fell under Spanish control. Whereas Portugal was the first European nation that actively took an interest in Africa. There’s a good explanation of Portuguese influence in African affairs and colonisation including the ‘Slave Bridge’ at http://www.ohioswallow.com/book/Portugal+and+Africa of course various countries means various currencies if it wasn’t for the Euro! Although watch out as although you can spend Sterling on the Rock at a ratio of 1:1 apparently Gibraltar notes are not legal tender in the U.K. although it is in pounds etc., I may be wrong on this one, as I am relaying what I was told by another guest on our Celebrity Cruise.


Celebrity Cruise Tip 21: Celebrity Cruise ships like the Celebrity Eclipse are cash free but that doesn’t mean that you don’t need cash on your cruise. Not all places take American Express so make sure that you top up your dollars and your sterling with some Euro’s. Especially if you want a beer during one of the short excursions, that are in isolated locations without access to an ATM.

Celebrity Cruises Top Waiter

As far as we are concerned this is a picture of the best waiter ever (Sumpoyo on the left) and his assistant (Mahmad Mooradun on the right). 14 nights of top class 5* service on the Celebrity Eclipse in The Moonlight Sonata dining room compliments of these chaps.

The stunning food was served to an exceptionally high standard.

Setting the table to perfection, welcoming us and our dinner companions with a smile. Making sure that we were seated well. Bringing water and the bread basket and topping them up when needed and without being asked. Changing the knifes depending on the appetiser or entree. Cleaning and maintaining the table to a high standard. Sumpoyo carrying upwards of 14 meals on one tray on his shoulder. Always serving from the correct side. Always there but never noticed. Great recommendations on every night of the Celebrity cruise. Fantastic service from a great waiter and his assistant. Celebrity Cruises should be proud of these guys and all others whom I suspect also reach the same exacting standards.

More USA and some UK

Oops; I missed out the lovely Christine and Anne from Vancouver Washington State when I blogged my American piece yesterday. That was very naughty of me as they are so lovely, as are the lovely Kathy and Dave from England in the UK. We met Kathy and Dave for coffee today on Deck 5 and are meeting our American chums in the outside bar on Deck 14 tomorrow at 1630 Cruise Time. But watch out as there is so much to do on Celebrity Eclipse that the Blog tends to lag behind. So tomorrow can be today if you know what I mean!

I hope that you enjoyed the poem, but alas there is so much to do on The Celebrity Eclipse that I am too busy enjoying our Celebrity Cruise to do as much blogging as I would normally and also too busy for the poetry as well.

We had a great dinner last night and some great wine along with the food. Today has been a hoot. Mrs B and I bunked off the excursion bus and while they done the medieval thing, we sat on the beach and drank beer and coffee and then done some shopping for yours truly. A wonderful day, made better when we met up with some of our new friends. The ship is heading for Southampton now, and the band is playing in the background. Wonderful, sheer bliss; yes folks it is a holiday of a lifetime!

Celebrity Cruise Tip 20: Let the expert serving at your table pick your wine, and be brave enough to follow the food recommendations made by your waiter. These people are trained and experienced and they will enhance rather than detract from your Celebrity Cruise 5* experience

The United States of America

The United States of America
We have met some lovely Americans and North Americans on this trip. This is pretty strange as there are more children on board the Celebrity Eclipse on this Cruise than there are American citizens. But it seems some of the best people all come from the USA. In fact, the friendship is so good that I want to be adopted. Then I would have an excuse for a picture or a photograph of an Eagle on my study wall. Amongst those that we have met and in no particular order;

There is Fred “The Stairs” and Julie “Andrews” from Boston
Along with Fred and “Hey” Jude from New York City
The two lovely ladies from Chicago
There’s the “Chicago Bear”
Our dining companions the lovely cool Ray and equally lovely “Babs” from Connecticut
Jerry “Bagels” and Louise from Long Island who hail from Brooklyn and Queens
“Cindy-Anna” from Indiana
“Danni” from Washington DC
Jim and Sue from New York State
Irene "Dallas"
The late night coffee scooter duo from New York
Three more from New York City
Someone from the West Coast
Someone else from the East Coast
And someone from something called “Central Eastern Middle time” but I may have got that one a tad wrong

My favourite name association is “Fred the Stairs” as we chatted on Deck 5 near to the Moonlight Sonata staircase. My favourite accidental name is “Cindy-Anna”. I met a group at a cafe break on an excursion and said “Hi, where are you from?” To which the lovely lady sat towards the front of the table replied “Cindy-Anna”. “Cool” I said, “I don’t recall that State but it’s a nice name”. Now you know where this is going folks. The place was Indiana, but when I said ‘Cindy-Anna’ out loud it got a really good laugh from all of the Americans. I laughed along with them and the lovely lass, now has a new name. Ps in case she does a Google search I promised myself that I would input the name several ways so here goes: Cindyanna, Cindy-anna, Cindianna. Thanks for that everyone, please also enjoy the next bit as well.

After meeting so many lovely people from the States, it is fitting that the following poem is dedicated to them all. It is written in ‘Royal Rime’ consisting of seven lines per stanza in the rhyming scheme ABABBCC. It was written on Deck 5 on the afternoon of Tuesday the 09 August 2011 while on the Cruise Holiday of a Lifetime.

The Anthem

Oh how I long to sing
The Star Spangled Banner
With its unique ring
While in upright manner
Although I’m no tenor
To sing the national song
Is all that I long

To stand side by side
With cousins from across the Pond
That’s no longer so wide
Because of our special bond
From discourse and not a wand
Oh how I long to sing
That Star Spangled thing

Roger Bennett, August 2011
(All rights reserved)

Celebrity Cruise Tip 19: Try out the complimentary treats in Cafe al Bacio, but don’t visit too often because I can imagine that they could become quite addictive

Emergency Broadcast; “Heyday, Heyday”

Nothing should ever be this good. I mean, for goodness sake I haven’t been in a gym for a decade, and here I am on the Eclipse run by Celebrity Cruises and doing the gym thing daily. This is as almost as good as in my heyday, except I’m walking on the treadmill and not running. A few gradients here and there and I’m anybody’s. Take it up to 3.2 mph and I can just about keep pace. Which is a good thing as some of these tour guides set a mean pace and I can now keep up.

The good thing is that the gym is a great place to meet people and to see the sights.

Yep, I’ve done the Dolphin thing twice since I last blogged about it, and on both occasions I was looking out through the expanse of glass that encapsulates the gymnasium. I’ve also chatted to amongst many others; a lovely couple from Chicago and a great guy from New York. It seems as if all the best people go training. Mind you, I have to drop the speed to 2.5 mph and hang on while turning to chat to those who drop by.

Today we were in Cadiz. It’s a lovely place with lots of history and lots of narrow streets and shops selling at keen prices. Not that I was able to buy anything as I had paid for the 3.5 walking tour. Bet Mrs B was pleased with that unilateral decision. Walk and talk and talk and walk. I like the talking bit, but the walking part can wear you down. Especially in this humidity and when you enter some of the buildings. But hey ho as Mrs B would say, we just got on with it and had a giggle. There we were on the coach when the Chicago duo walked past. I waved frantically and with a surprised expression they waved back. They need to watch out as they are in danger of being sucked in as good friends. Only five hours later and they joined us for coffee in Cafe al Bacio on Deck 5. We had already drunk beer in Cadiz, and two glasses of non alcoholic something or the other with our lunch. It’s been another great day, but stop and pause. It’s only 5pm Continental time and we have the swimming, the treadmill, the show, and the four course dinner to look forward to. Then the Jazz lounge or out onto one of the Decks for poolside live music or a midnight stroll around the jogging track. Emergency broadcast channel Celebrity Cruises the Eclipse; “Heyday, Heyday, please send help urgently. The chap in Stateroom 3101 is taking the training seriously”.

Celebrity Cruise Tip 18: The Aqua Spa bar is not a drinks bar. It serves grilled salmon, poached salmon, and steamed salmon amongst many other delights like poached pears, frozen yoghurt, and all fruit smoothies. Miss it at your peril. Aqua Spa in the Solarium Deck 12, booking not required, and no cover charge

Nautical Miles and Adam Westcott

The Earth like any circle consists of 360 degrees. Each degree is split into 60 minutes which is nice and easy to remember as there are also 60 minutes in an hour. Now each of these degrees is a nautical mile. So one minute is also one nautical mile, and one degree is sixty nautical miles. So there was nothing tough about that then.

Therefore there are 21600 nautical miles going around the World i.e. 60 minutes multiplied by 360 degrees = 21,600.

So a nautical mile is different than the mile that we know about. Simply because most of us know that there are 25,000 miles to cover in order to travel around the World. So by land its 25,000 miles and by sea it’s 21,600 nautical miles. I have to check all of this with on the crew on the Celebrity Eclipse as I may have the values wrong as someone said that a nautical mile is less than a mile mile. But if that was so, then the number of nautical miles around the world should be greater than the number of land miles. If you see, what I mean?

Yesterday we were in Cagliari in Sardinia, Italy. Mrs B and I walked about 5 nautical miles in blistering heat over the ruins of Nora, and down from the City Battlements into the centre later in the day. Nora was first a Phoenician colony and trading port. Cagliari is on the southern tip of Sardinia and as the Capital it also hosts the largest community on the island. We have had a great day, but I am truly whacked. I am chilling in ‘Cafe al Bacio’ on Deck 5 while listening to the excellent Spanish Guitarist, Adam Westcott. Pure bliss, tip top surroundings, air conditioning, excellent coffee and a superb musician.

Celebrity Cruise Tip 17: Summer sailing, then buy a hat and some good sun block

Aye -aye Captain (AKA Living the Dream)

I truly believe in fate and I also believe that we all reap what we sow, i.e. what goes around, comes around. Now I know that Mrs B and I are lovely people; simply because we would never do another human being a deliberate harm, and if I seen you in distress in the street, I’m the guy that would come to your aid even if it meant putting myself at risk. That’s the long and the short of it, but to be fair, it’s no great shakes as there are many others out there who would do the same.

But I have to admit that we have done pretty well on the carousel of life over the last week. Most staterooms are circa 194 square feet, but ours is 289. I asked for an upgrade if one became available and it looks as if one did. Yesterday morning I returned to our Stateroom in the bowels of the ship, and found an envelope containing an invitation for Mrs B and I to attend the Captain’s Table this evening. Apparently this is not a status or expenditure thing. I have been told by a member of staff that only very nice people are considered and that a few on board think that we are very nice people. Now I could say that this is as good as it gets folks, and to be fair most of you would agree.

However, I done my good deed with the photography when out and about today, and insisted on taking a few shots of a couple of lovely people from guess where? Yes, of course the gold old United States of America aka where all the best people come from. Now it wasn’t done for anything other than being nice, because being nice, is what nice people do. So knock me over with a New York Cheese Cake when they told us later in the day that they were in the Royal Suite and invited us to Butler Served Tea tomorrow afternoon. We are not talking posh Stateroom here folks, this is the real deal. They even have a kitchen, but of course that’s for the Butler to summon the Chef to use. They have been on the Captain’s Table on this cruise too. I told them that I was not surprised, nice people get invited to all the best parties.

We were walking back onto the ship, there are 2800 passengers, and a uniformed voice says, “Welcome back Mr Bennett”. Now that’s good service. It was at that point that I was so glad that I picked this brand and this vessel.

So if you are impressed by our good fortune, then consider this; en-route to our Stateroom this afternoon I smiled back at one of the crew and was my usual friendly self. She asked Mrs B and I if we like white or preferred red wine. I thought it was a conversation piece and said red. Mrs B said that she didn’t drink wine. “Oh, do you prefer champagne?” To which Mrs B replied, “No, I’m fine with water”. Well good answer Mrs B because the lovely lady then bashed me with my second New York Cheese Cake of the day. “I will send a bottle of Red and some water to your Stateroom”. Wow, like double wow and sprinklies on top. Where did that one come from? The wine was duly delivered and we are talking $75 to $125 here folks. I can’t tell you for sure because we skipped the wine tasting tour yesterday and instead went on the ice-cream tasting event. And guess what? There was no spitting. I had to force down five ice-creams, and my favourite was the last one. All of them were handmade and two were made in front of us. But as good as chocolate and Vanilla are, the melon one was best. If you have the money and you haven’t booked your Celebrity Cruise yet, then be a bit sharpest about it. The berths are going fast and it don’t get much better than this, aye-aye Captain.


Celebrity Cruise Tip 16: think carefully when booking the Excursions as some moderate level excursions can be quite tough. Book early and check out the on-line and brochure detail and do some research on the internet. With borderline fitness, then think about the time of year and the country of destination

Memories

We all tend to take the camera for granted, so for this holiday I am also trying to sketch and paint some of the images that mean something special on our trip. It’s a ‘days gone by’ sort of thing. But it’s also pretty hard as there is so much to do, so it’s inevitable that some of the paintings will be done when we get back.

I have tried to learn how to use my new camera, and last night I managed to take a shot of the Jazz Quartet without flash in the ‘Ensemble Lounge’ at 11pm with dimmed lights. I set the White Balance to Tungsten Light and the ISO to 3200 and I must say that the image is pretty special. In fact I am well chuffed.

Mind you not all images have been captured, and these will have to be confined to my memory section:

I was in the gym doing my walking thing very early in the morning when I noticed the Rock of Gibraltar. That was pretty amazing, but then the Pilot boat approached our ship, followed by a shoal of 30 or so dolphins that sort of shadowed us into the harbour.

The scene looking out from Deck 12 and the dolphins made for a great image folks. This is why there is no picture with this Blog Post. Just think of the thrill of seeing the sea life. Add to that the pilot boat drawing near and the dolphins shadowing the Celebrity Eclipse into dock as it slips past ‘The Rock’. Brilliant, simply brilliant and no wonder why we want to come back.


Celebrity Cruise Tip 15: invest in a small camera or mobile phone for when you don’t have your telescopic thingy on you

Decks 12 to 14

There is no Deck 13 on the Celebrity Eclipse; so the Celebrity Cruise Tip also jumps from 12 to 14 so don’t go looking for that elusive 13th Tip folks. I like the life music and I like the chance to relax with a book or magazine. This photograph shows the Library that spans Decks 10 and 11. I was sat in a group of similar seats with the ones on view ahead of me towards the central balcony. This is just one of numerous special places on a very special ship.

We have been spending a fair amount of time in ‘Cafe al Bacio’ and the separate ‘Ensemble Lounge’ both located on Deck 5. We also found the ‘Aqua Spa’ restaurant yesterday and enjoyed poached fruit and poached salmon with salad before joining our excursion to Provence. The tranquillity of the Spa and the stunning views out across the bay from Deck 12 combined to make the ‘Aqua Spa’ a very special meal. That experience set us up for a fine day of sightseeing, relaxation and fun. This led into an evening of fine dining and live music. This was made better by the quality discourse of our American dining companions. Gosh, four people who speak the same language but yet speak a different language. How on earth is that possible? They would say something that we would think was funny, and we would do the same. We use the same words that have different meanings across the Pond, together with the use of phrases that both couples have never heard. It also helps that ‘Babs’ is so funny. That’s not her name or a nickname that we use by the way, it’s just my way of ensuring that their privacy is maintained. Indeed, her real name is quite long and I use it to the full, although it gives me a bit of a tongue lashing.

Today we repeated the ‘Spa’ experience but this time with the treadmill, dinner in the Aqua Spa, a snooze in the Solarium, use of the Jacuzzi, and topped off with a swim. Then it was up onto Deck 15 and a Sun-seekers Session, some drinks and then we watched the Ship slip Anchor near Florence on our way to Rome. Mmmmm very nice indeed.


Celebrity Cruise Tip 14: This one is for the ladies; laundry is only washing, your clothes return clean, dry and folded. For ironing you have to pay more to have your clothes ‘pressed’. It’s not big bucks for laundry and pressing, so your clothes can stretch for the twelve day or two week jaunt. But it’s better to convince hubby that you need an allowance for a Cruise Wardrobe  Get him to think of it as part of the holiday costs, an investment for towards your special memories, and of course some new garb for you!

Another Rare Treat

This picture was taken in a fishing village in Provence in France on a gloriously baking hot day. We both looked for shade and beer, and thankfully found it. I’m walking around with a continuous grin on my face. This is five-star pampering at its best! Well done Celebrity Cruises; the food, people, accommodation, and views are all magnificent. We are making friends all over the place and are enjoying every minute of every day.

Celebrity Cruise Tip 12: if there is more than one coach leaving for the excursion that you have booked, hop onto the first one that they are filling as that may leave before the start time and you will have longer on the excursion, whereas the last coach will wait at the port right up to the time deadline for starting the excursion.

Rare Treat

Now here’s a rare treat, a picture of yours truly. I asked the lovely ladies walking towards me on Deck 5 if they would have a go of my mobile phone camera. And hey ho, a few seconds later this was the result. Being a bit of a geek I was out on Deck 5 checking out the lifeboats most of which take 150 persons, awesome. There appears to be a medical launch and a raft thingy for 450 persons.

Deck 5 also turned out to be a great place for to sunbathe. Wooden deck chairs, wooden tables, sun trap, wind break, and peace and quiet. There I was, topless with my factor 30 rubbed almost all over. After we baked, Mrs B went off to get ready for the show, and I sat in the Celebrity Eclipse Library on Deck 11 reading a magazine and watching the world go by. Complete with an attendant to ensure that other guests were quiet when walking through the library. Pure bliss; topped off with the swim, the silver service dinner, and the Jazz Band in the Ensemble Lounger until 0100 when I rolled in.

Celebrity Cruise Tip 11: this tip is from Mrs B; don’t be afraid to talk to people as everyone is really friendly

Gibraltar

Gibraltar was really enjoyable with a chance to pop myself down in the shade and do a little sketch of a canon on a rock in the square. Just the job; relaxation, warmth, and no pressure

The excursion was great fun, made so by the lovely man who drove our coach on the Celebrity Cruise ‘Panoramic Gibraltar and Tea’ trip. If you ever go on that one, then ask for the Brit who works in Gibraltar, speaks English and Spanish, lives in Spain and studied in Liverpool. What a truly lovely guy, the best £65 for two that I have ever spent. Calypso Tours was the company and they run two coaches due to the narrow streets in Gibraltar to be towards the front of the queue in order to get the great tour guide come driver. We walked back from the centre to the port and continued to enjoy what the girls would call ‘the lush weather’. The fun continued into the night with live music outdoors by the main pool area.

In fact it was around 0300 when we settled down. “Oh” said Mrs B, “we’ve done Gibraltar and we spent £4.50”. Now that’s one good thing about a cruise, you sort of put a ceiling on the costs and there’s no need to go out and keep spending. Although to be fair there’s always an opportunity, especially when it comes to Welsh Gold. You see its Mrs B’s 50th this year. Shush, don’t tell everyone as no lady tells the World her age.


Celebrity Cruise Tip 10: At Gibraltar the shuttle in and out of the town was only a few Euro per person

Celebrity Coffee and Relaxation

While I sit and chat to the lovely people who often stop and chat to me, wifey AKA Mrs. B “the Boss” is off exercising her mind and having relaxation therapy. Nope not in the on board Celebrity Cruises Spa, but in the cinema watching today’s film that is some 113 minutes long. It wasn’t my cup of tea so I opted for another 46 minute treadmill session, use of the excellent changing room facilities and the live guitarist and Cafe Latte in ‘Cafe al Bacio’ on the 5th of 15 decks of the Celebrity Eclipse.

The treadmill being essential after the omelette and banana pancakes in the silver service breakfast. We even managed to view some Welsh Gold jewellery and some art. Life today is at sea, and this sea life is relaxing. This evening the dress code for Dinner in the stunning exceptionally well staffed ‘Moonlight Sonata’ is smart casual. I’m keeping my eye out for the Caviar and Mrs B is after the egg custard thingy with the hard crust that isn’t egg custard. If you are a professional chef like one of our American Cousins who dine with us, then please step forward and tell me what I am writing about. It’s Crème something or the other.

Celebrity Cruise Tip 9: In the main dining room, you can order off menu, or ask for something to be cooked in a particular way.

Celebrity Chair’s

This morning we woke up to see the light house flashing in the distance as the Rock of Gibraltar started to loom up from afar.

Now it’s one thing working out like a quasi tri-athlete (46 minutes on the treadmill this morning, walk around Gibraltar, 52 lengths of the pool this evening, 15 minute Jacuzzi, and 10 minute Sauna) but a chap has to have a sit down now and again. You can make use of a variety of Celebrity Cruise sun loungers, Celebrity Cruise Wicker Chairs, and other seats scattered around the ship. With piped and live music in different areas, it’s a great way to relax. Two days ago I sat in a padded wicker chair and drew the bit of artwork shown in this Blog post. It is a little study using water colour pencils. Which was no mean feat seeing that I have had the art products since January 2010! Yesterday I sat on a wooden chair and table and tried a water colour of two ships that we overtook. Being relaxed is great, and I doubt that many could do it better than the crew on this ship. Good food, tranquillity, and exercise. A great recipe for anyone wanting to re-charge their batteries and we are both enjoying the pampering.


Celebrity Cruise Tip 7: Read your ticket before any excursion and it should tell you where to be and when

Celebrity Cruise Tip 8: You can buy pre-paid drinks packages for you Cruise and probably save a good bit of money

Celebrity Photo’s of the budding Tri-athlete

So folks this is how it goes. Mrs B and I book a last minute Celebrity Cruise as it was time to stop talking about the doing, and actually do some of the doing. The thing is that those that do ‘free-cruising’ (a term that we coined with fellow guests regarding those that come back time and time again) know that it’s a recipe to put on weight. I mean; all that lovely food, caffeine and alcohol. Notwithstanding the indulging in the copious and varied soda’s and snacks between meals and late at night. My American breakfast today included pancakes with strawberries and blueberries. No cream out of choice, but still wow. But as wow as it is, its all got to stop and I knew that before we left the U.K.

I went out and bought extra swimming goggles and earplugs to ensure that I had some with me at all times and also went out and bought myself a chest strap and mid range Polar watch. So on day one on board I manager 40 lengths of the indoor lap pool which forms the centre piece of the Solarium. On day two I upped that to 42 lengths in the evening, having managed 25 minutes walking on the flat and gradient on the treadmill very early before breakfast. Those that know me will be impressed by that great start, but brace yourself for the Day 3 news. 42 minutes on the treadmill with an 0800 start, followed by 50 lengths of the pool during the early evening. In-between those two athletic sessions, Mrs B and I attended a fat burning and metabolic rate seminar and another talk later in the day on acupuncture. We believe folks, so enjoy this picture of us in 2011 and maybe a year from now we shall post another picture. Happy days are here again, now I have to try to improve the mental health. Mine that is, and not Mrs B’s. 

Celebrity Cruise Tip 5: You don’t have to eat everything, and that which you do eat includes sensible sized portions and healthy options

Celebrity Cruise Tip 6: You don’t have to buy your photo’s at the start of your holiday as others will be taken throughout the trip and some of them may be better

Celebrity 5* Midnight Coffee and States of the Union

Now everyone who knows me well, also know that I love Cafe Nero and Costa. So can you imagine my delight when sometime after Midnight I managed to slip into a lovely comfortable chair and enjoyed a very well made, very smooth Latte. Pure bliss and I am in second heaven. All washed down with listening to the String Trio, Live Jazz and other top shows and performances. The Celebrity Eclipse is great.

After a great night’s sleep on the boat that never moves, I enjoyed the treadmill, iced lemon water and a great shower before breakfast. Silver Service Breakfast; now that can’t be bad can it? Lovely people from Birmingham were sat opposite and we had a good old chinwag while enjoying the sea views with our window seat. Brecky for me was a real delight, and I can’t wait to tell my American Cousins at the Black Tie Dinner tonight that amongst other things I had ‘grits’. Semolina to you and me folks, but it’s called ‘grits’ and was delivered with a small personal serving pot of sugar and another small personal serving of raisins. Gosh, this really is the Celebrity Life. But in many ways it was also funny; as I had to stop Mrs B getting her hands on my grits. Now that is a conversational piece for any English language user who knows what ‘grits’ are.

Big apologies to my American Cousins as I mixed up the States a bit and put the Union duo in the Confederacy. Oops, easy mistake when you are from Wales. While I’m writing about Countries and people, I have to ask; where is Jung from Taiwan? A lovely chap whom I met this morning after the treadmill, for two seconds I thought that he was my motivator and was encouraging me to go back in. “You done?”, to which I replied “Pardon?”. “I say, you Done, Yes?”, “Yep, I’m done”. “You done, I’m Jung...Jung, from Taiwan.” Phew, thankfully he was just another lovely guest, as I had hit 25 minutes and was a tad worn out.


Celebrity Cruise Tip 3: You don’t have to drink and eat at the busy times; there is plenty of opportunity to enjoy the quality and some ‘me time’

Celebrity Cruise Tip 4: Dinner is set table and companions but at fine dining breakfast you are sat randomly which means that no two meals and therefore no two cruises are the same. Because you are going to meet new people all of the time.

Celebrity Ski Yoghurt and Horse Devours Darling

Well folks we have done what I never thought that we would get around to doing. You see Mrs. B and I are very good at talking about what we are going to do, but not that good at getting around to the actual doing of it. So, surprise-surprise when en-route back from York; ‘the Boss’, AKA Mrs B explained that she wanted to go on a cruise and I went and booked one.

So here we are on the Celebrity Eclipse and it meets the hype. I was told that this was as good as it gets and guess what? The lovely Thomas Cook lady was right. This is indeed the Hilton 5* hotels at their very best with brass knobs on top. Pure luxury on each and every deck and so big that I keep finding new gems every hour or so.

The lovely chap at the hotel yesterday said words to the affect of “oh, so you’re going skiing?” “Huh?” replied I, “Spending Kids Inheritance” he countered. Yes indeed, and a blinking good job too. That is, I’m have a jolly good stab at spending the lot. It may be the price of a small car, but it’s a jolly nice car, and I’m well impressed.

The best bit is that there is no need for any of you to worry about the house back in Wales. One of the children is there with Yoghurt Boy on guard duty with the perimeter almost as well lit as the Celebrity Eclipse. Albeit the lights from the house are not reflecting on the water as we glide onwards to Gibraltar. I also recognise that the two back in Wales, would appreciate a bit of the 5* service and food while crewing the Watch Tower.

On the Celebrity Eclipse it is astonishing food. I enjoyed the champers followed by the cheese burger relaxing in the sun around mid afternoon prior to our 2045 dinner sitting. Thankfully being a lad from the gasworks, it all began with an appetiser and not ‘Horse Devours’ as one of my gang likes to say it. It’s good to be reminded of your roots. A listing in Burkes Peerage and Gentry ain’t much good if you forget the gasworks. It is wonderful service, wonderful venue, wonderful food, and wonderful company. We are extremely fortunate to be on a table with four other guests, all of whom flew across 'The Pond' to catch the ship in Southampton. One hails from the Americas who collected her granddaughter in Washington DC en-route to the U.K. and the other two from the South. All genuine lovely people so it couldn’t be better.

So for the Thomas Cook Aberystwyth crew if you are reading this: (1) we got an upgrade and our stateroom is stunning. So much room we could breed a flock of sheep. I could also feed them on the grass on the upper decks, and exercise them around the running track, (2) yep, it was a double hit folks; we also got our preferred 2045 dinner sitting, and (3) parking was a breeze and the Cruise Parking team were lovely, (4) gratuities were paid for in advance in that price, and yet another well done as (5) the drinks package is handy and good value. Well, as well as being from the gasworks I am also a Cardi and we mustn’t forget that!

Gosh, its day one and I already feel as if I am a celebrity. It doesn’t get much better than this, now I have to start saving for the next one.

Celebrity Cruise Tip 1: Book with Thomas Cook, Aberystwyth
Celebrity Cruise Tip 2: Bring along a coloured highlighter pen to highlight items in the daily detailed itinerary, and thereby reduce your chance of missing something special

Extra, Extra - read all about it - 4 Bedroom House in Aberystwyth for sale

Well the 'Daily Blog' is back. Its demise was not linked to the NoW crisis, and when I say 'back', I actually mean that it is for this teaser session. Well it was put on hold because Mr Tister was home! And the lovely little fella made his way back to London today. So the 'Daily Blog' well more 'Weekend Magazine' than a 'Daily Blog' is back on track.

So as you can see from the heading our lovely four bedroom home near to Aberystwyth is for sale. But that's not the big news, the really, really big news. No that begins on Saturday and runs for two weeks or so if I can get an Internet connection. Meanwhile feast your eyes on this lovely detached house for sale in Aberystwyth. The selling agents await your call; 4 bedrooms in Penrhyncoch in the County of Ceredigion. Accompanied viewing through the selling agents will continue even if we are away because we can't afford to take everyone with us and the house is therefore occupied. So don't put off until next year, that which you could do in 2011.

This has been a true family home for our Family History contribution. It was big enough for lots of family there with us (and sometimes without us when we are off out and about) and with four double sized bedrooms it has been a great place. But now is the time to set forth onto pastures new and closer to some of our family. Or as one of my former friends once said; "as one chapter ends, another chapter begins".

Keep well Bloggers, and don't forget to pop back on Saturday night when I shall try to reveal what we are up to while the gang enjoy looking after our home.

Selling agent Lloyd Herbert & Jones
http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-34505984.html

Daily Blog

Hi everyone, I apologise for not writing much this week but we have been away, I have been trying to relax, and the brilliant news is that Mr Tister is home on one of his lovely visits. It all began a few weeks back with a repetitive "I neeeeeeeeed Grandad" followed by, "Grandad we're coming", only to be informed that they were on their way to Tesco, and not our home on the coast. Poor thing, he must have been crest fallen. But the next day they set out on their seven and a half hour adventure.

Mr Tister is like a whirlwind; and has even taken to encouraging me to make a few things. This morning it was Duplo Space Ships with "four, two, three, balst off" (nope it's not a spelling mistake), whereas this afternoon we dismantled the started and never finished 'n' gauge railway in order to make a flat board and keep it simple i.e. the trains go round and round. You see like Tom on the Apprentice I am also a starter-none-finisher. It started when I became ill and hasn't really re-engaged. I know that I do it, but I can't seem to shake it off. The commentary from Mr Tister has included; "Come-on Grandad" and "Grandad, where are you", and even "Oh, traiiiinsssSSSS! Choo CHOOOOOO". Brilliant; health, happiness and family, that is all that matters.

I have so much to tell you, but as is so often the case there is so much else impacting on my time and focus. Well writing is a passion, but you have to be up for it, even when dealing with your passions. There have been 362 posts over three years, so on average it appears to be one post every three days. Mind you, like today, some days I write more than one post. You know the feeling; when some days are good and other days are bad. So it is more akin to one post every 3.5 days or two posts per week. I'm more of a "Weekend Magazine" than a "Daily Blog". But the frequency is not just about ability, passion, enthusiasm or any other impact. One of my close friends is unwell at the moment and I feel for him as I have been through the wringer so many times. Well, three times to be precise.

So I do apologise that the writing is more often than not ad-hoc rather than 'Daily', but the best intentions are there. When I do pen something you can be assured that it really feels good this end. So with Mr Tister around; the Blog can be placed on the back burner for a few days or at least until late at night. But whoever you are and wherever you are, I sincerely hope that you enjoy and continue to enjoy good health.

The Apprentice

Don't read this if you have taped the programme and foolishly several days later still haven't watched it, but are dumb enough to trawl the Internet!


Well folks back in May 2011 the day after the first episode I blogged amongst others things; "My money is on the inventor". Well that was a very good call indeed as my two preferred candidates made it to The Final, and Tom the Dyslexia sufferer won. Well done Tom, you were a great contestant, you came across as a lovely chap, and you offer hope to Dyslexia sufferers everywhere.

Plus a big well done to Lord Sugar for continuing to run with the series and thereby providing lots of business ideas and experience to thousands upon thousands of people. No wonder he is a Lord.

Old boot Car Boot

Now I quite like a good old Car Boot Sale; as there's always a chance that you will meet someone interesting, maybe see something worth buying, and of course there's all that 'lovely lolly'. But there is a downside to lazing away a Sunday morning. No, not the lack of exercise, but the lack of impact that your money will have to help those who are less fortunate than ourselves.

I have spent quite a few months whiling away the hours downsizing our possessions. That which is worthy of resale has been distributed to Wales Air Ambulance, Oxfam, Tenovus, and Barnardo's. In fact, for all but the Wales Air Ambulance; I am a Gift Aid Card carrier. What we give, is in fact seriously important stuff. Not the physical items, but the actual act of gifting. So as nice as a good old Car Boot Sale is; the charitable need far outweighs having a jolly good day out and collecting a few bob.

So this morning I have been pottering around and putting out some rubbish (that which isn't passed on, tends to be recycled, but some of course to my eternal shame can only go into land-fill). I have booted up the Laptop to say hello to all Bloggers, and now intend to paint the downstairs toilet. But the most important jobs of today are all happening later this afternoon. That is when I leave the village to travel into town and drop off a large box of items for Oxfam, another large box of items for the Air Ambulance (whom I note sold our dining table and chairs this week [thankfully it was the donated one, and not the small one we are using this evening!]) and a large bag of clothes to Barnardo's.

I'm also popping in to hand over a small monetary donation to the current DEC (Disasters Emergency Committee) Appeal. Those affected by the drought in East Africa really do need I help. Nearly all of us can spare a few bob, and think of that the next time you want to take yourself to an old Car Boot Sale to turn your stuff into cash.

What you get, you will flitter away in almost an instant, but what you donate will save at least one life

.

Sir Henry Morgan

I have mentioned more than once on these Blogging pages that Mrs B. and I enjoy our food. We have eaten in some very nice places and in some of these very nice places we have been served some dreadful food. Maybe we are a bit unusual because on more than one occasion we have paid for our main course and left without eating it.

If we are off out for grub then we are not going to endure the ‘ping’ of the microwave or try to eat a steak where the chef doesn’t know the difference between braised and ‘medium rare’. Unless we are having a Nepalese or Indian meal, then we also don’t want food that is soaked in a sauce in order to hide the quality of the produce. In simple terms Mrs B and I want good food, well prepped and cooked well.

We had planned to visit what we know is an extremely good steak house in the Bay in Cardiff. But those who follow the Blog will know that I am a fatalist. Things happen for a reason, and when I suggested to someone that we were popping over the road for a lunchtime drink (non alcoholic thank you), they recommended The Sir Henry Morgan further down the road. Good choice folks as the nice clean pub had a suitable nice clean and large car park. I like a bit of leather, which is why in many ways I like the Volvo brand. Quality comes at a price and The Sir Henry Morgan like Volvo didn’t disappoint. Our lunchtime drinks, newspaper and nibbles went down a treat. The friendly staff mentioned the menu without being pushy. We both cast an eye over the well laid out double page, and decided to cancel our Bay idea and instead book a table for dinner.

Quite a few hours later after a hectic day in the City we trundled back by cab. Yet another pleasant welcome and a table already set with our names chalked on a small slate table mat. Nice touch, great smells, great anticipation. I can’t tell you what Mrs. B’s food was like, as she eats hers, and I eat mine. There’s none of this silly double spoon food sharing malarkey with us. But I must say that her cod starters looked exceptional and based on what was said at the time, the taste and texture matched the image. I can however wholly recommend the asparagus and poached egg. I’m a bit of a poached egg aficionado. Whenever we stay in the Hilton or the Marriott I always ask for two poached eggs with my breakfast. Our eldest Jodi can do a mean poached egg, equal to any 5* chef. Ok, I have to admit it; so can The Sir Henry Morgan.

Now Mrs B and I do like a bit of variety, you know, it being the spice of life etc. But on this occasion we were both drawn to the steak accompanied by homemade chips cooked in beef dripping. None of this ‘cook it until it flames’ with us, after a spot of touring in France, its medium rare at the most. The best way to sum up the main course is to mention the conversation between us and the group opposite. He and I speaking simultaneously both came out with the phrase; “that was probably the best steak that I have ever had in the U.K.“


The Sir Henry Morgan
635 Newport Road, Rumney. Cardiff
02920361311
Opinion: Fine dining at IKEA prices
Probably best to book for Friday or Saturday evening

Where is the NoW? And on Being Bonkers

In my last Blog post, I asked where the other news was. Maybe I should have asked where is the News of the World?

You have to be extremely naive to believe that spying including phone hacking is a new phenomenon. There are many examples of tape cassette recording, secret filming, telephone and room bugging of individuals to get a story. Best part is; this type of behaviour is nothing new. So maybe we have to ask ourselves what is new about what the News of the World has been accused of? Has our tolerance threshold for such behaviour declined, or is there some other influence that has caused the collapse of what is (was) the best selling Sunday newspaper.

You don't get that many readers from being useless or average, and you don't get that many stories from phone hacking.

To be perfectly honest with you, I am a (London) Times and Sunday Times reader. But I was shocked when I heard that the News of the World was closing. I mean lets be real, if you had sat at a table with a few friends a decade ago and one of them said; "In the next ten years, Woolworths will close, so will MFI, and Focus, and Habitat, oh and the News of the World", you would have quite rightly thought that he or she were completely and utterly bonkers. I mean, these were all institutions. OK, Focus wasn't right up there with the others. But hey ho, I'm sure that you get my drift.

I was so shocked about the News of the World, that this morning I had a copy of the last ever edition delivered to our hotel room. Along with my Sunday Times of course. "Hey, Mrs. B" I say, as I'm walking back into the room having just closed the door and with the two papers folded together. "I have the Sunday Times, do you want a read?"

"Yes," comes the reply, "chuck it on the bed and I'll have a look later." To which I respond as I swiftly take the goodies from behind my favourite read, "Oh, I've also got the News of the World!".

"Brilliant, pass it here" as she instantly starts the read. Sort of says it all, doesn't it? The fools, they should have sacked anyone who was to blame and ridden out the storm. Better still, they could have outed them all one at a time each and every Sunday and we would have queued to buy the next edition to see who was going to prison that week. It would have made a great serial. They could have even put a strap line under their Heading;

The News of the World
No hacking - only sacking

They missed a great opportunity, because everyone loves a bad boy turned good. Especially if others think that they had something to do with the cleansing. They may be rich and they may be powerful, but sometimes the best in the land could do with an impartial opinion of a qualified strategist. You have to look beyond the 'quick win'. There's no point in dumping a winning formula, if by doing so you run the risk of dumping everything else. I think that it was a big mistake, but then again, I'm not a billionaire so what do I know?

So what's next; 'the SUNday'

But where is the other News?

The level of reporting for the Stephen Lawrence murder trial may be correct, but there is certain other news that seems to have slipped from our radar. I would like to know what is happening to Ms Sakineh Ashtiani in Iran.

If the lack of news reporting is keeping her alive, then due credit to the Iranian authorities. We can all be quick to condemn but it's also important to give credit where it is due.

Now would be an excellent time for Iran to release Ms Ashtiani. To do so would be to seize the moral high ground in this saga. As any decision to release Ms Ashtiani would be made without any obvious external influence or pressure. Therefore Iran would be doing so of their own accord as a sovereign nation. The Iranian authorities could make the move and taunt the West. Especially if they accepted the Brazilian offer to grant Ms Ashtiani asylum. By taking this action, the Iranian authorities would be creating a win-win situation. They would seize the moral high ground, remove the problem to another Continent, and make new friends.

If you stop and think about it, then you realise that it's all too easy. But if it's not happening, then I would like to see some news coverage so that the case of Ms Ashtiani is not forgotten.

News

Yes the Stephen Lawrence murder trial, is in the news, but the story is not being reported at a level that I would have previously expected. Has society changed, or are the media backing off in case they hash this one up? I think it's more about the latter. The story is well known; black youth minding his own business, attacked by racist thugs and slaughtered in the street. You know the kind of story, little people, who are very brave in a gang. Especially when armed with a knife, and with the intent to use it on someone at some point in time.

The murder was sad enough, but the act was compounded by what appeared at the time to be poor policing. It led to a failed private prosecution and an enquiry.

I sincerely hope that the news is in many ways suppressed, if only so that at last justice can be done. If they did it then they go away for a very long time, and if they didn't do it then they walk free. The most important part being that the jury is not tainted by reporting and emotions, but instead consider the evidence and the pleadings as presented to them in the court room.

I was particularly pleased when I found the latest update in the (London) Times way back on page 28 or so. The small amount that was written and its position in the paper was relevant to the story as it now unfolds.

Independence Day

Most people will know that the 4th July is Independence Day across the Pond. As well as being an important anniversary for our American cousins, the date also holds fond memories for me. You see I was promoted to the giddy heights of Leading Fireman (the then correct term) on the 4th July 1986. I have always thought of that date as my Independence Day. Trying to gain promotion from the mass of firefighters was never going to be easy.

I had two written examinations to pass before I could proceed to the next bit. I struggled with the theoretical examination and managed to pass one paper and to fail the other. So for the next twelve months I worked really hard to understand that which I previously could not grasp. The examinations came around and I passed the paper. Which was all well and good, except I went and failed the paper that I had passed twelve months earlier. Then I met Mrs B and her Dad. A lovely man, the Dad that is, and Don set me on the straight and narrow. I remember living in our flat in Maindee in Newport South Wales, when I opened the results letter from the Fire Services Examinations Board after my third attempt at the Leading Fireman theoretical examination. I also remember all the whooping and shouting when I read that I had passed both papers.

This was all well and good, but in many ways it was also only phase one of the process. It simply meant that I was now eligible to sit the practical examination. Which was no mean task, as it involved detailing and controlling other firefighters undertaking physical drills contained in the Manual of Firemanship Drill Book, along with convincing several examiners that you could explain accurately and to a great level of detail two items of equipment selected by the Board. Which meant understanding technical notes, having working experience of the selected equipment, and grasping the detail in yet another Manual of Firemanship Book about equipment. But it didn't stop there, as other Manual of Firemanship Books contained this and that detail about those or other pieces of equipment and you had to know all of that as well. The thing is, I passed first time. No fluke mind you, simply sheer hard work and determination to succeed.

So there I was, now qualified for promotion to the rank of Leading Fireman. Only qualified mind you, there was no guarantee that I would ever get promoted. Then on Independence Day I was shortlisted along with four others for one vacancy at New Inn. And to be absolutely blunt about it, I was the underdog. There were four front runners of which one of two were certain to get it, and I was there for the ride. I went in first and after the interview I was ushered into a separate room. One by one the others joined me. In my ignorance, when the senior officer came in and called out my name, I truly thought that I was getting a bollocking. Hey ho, congratulations and all of that. The panel with the Deputy Chief Fire Officer and Elected Members deemed me suitable and I was duly appointed.

So you see; Independence Day means different things to different people, and not just in the United States of America. I hope that you had a lovely day, as lovely as the day I had all those years back, and again on the 4th July when I relaxed, reflected, and enjoyed time with family and friends. It was a great day, as indeed the Fourth of July should always be.

Expansion and busy bees

Yep, it may be a shrinking world, but what really gets me is that there is so much going on.

If Facebook is anything to go by, then Jeffers Ghana had a great adventure in part of the airport the other day. Lucky for him that he was trying to pay some import duty and not trying to accompany a friend through to the departure lounge. They don't like that sort of thing in Accra. You only get past the armed guard if you are flying that day. Pilot, Stewardess, or someone with valid travel documents.

But the parcels bit seems a tad more relaxed than the people bit. Electricity and back up generator failure meant lowering an electrical cable out of the window to hook up the supply from somewhere else. Jeffers then popped off to get some petrol to help with starting the standby generator. Gosh, Health and Safety would have a fit back in the UK. People with petrol, cables out of windows, hooking up to a supply from goodness knows where and in whatever condition. The worrying thing about this story is that it all appears to be so matter of fact. As if it's an everyday occurrence to lob the cable out of the window and to go off hunting for petrol. Well I suppose that in some ways it does beat hunting for tigers. Maybe the mid day sun had got to everyone. Indeed when I first read the story, I sent a message, enquiring if Jeffers had changed jobs.

And there was me, thinking that I was a busy bee. You see I have been pottering around outside for a few days and hence the lapse with the Blog. Well, I suppose that the fine sunshine here in Wales was always going to lead to some tidying up in the garden. Mmmmm, almost enough space for me to build an outdoor model railway. Well, maybe not, as Mrs B will have something to say about that idea. Still, I'm in her good books as along with the tidying I also managed to complete a few of those DIY tasks that us men, seem to forever put off for another day.

With it all looking so nice, I wonder if I can convince Jeffers and Tammy to pop over from Africa to enjoy our warm weather and Welsh hospitality? Now that would make for a good 2011.

Shrinking World

I find it astonishing that people from 43 countries have read this Blog. The highest number of readers come from in descending order; the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Ghana, and Brazil. In the last couple of days, readers from six States across the Pond have been reading the Blog. That’s interesting because I didn’t think that any of the recent posts were particularly relevant to my American cousins.

Then again, what attracted those readers from Turkey, Romania, Poland and the like? It’s just wonderful, not that so many people read my rambling, but that we are in the position to ramble and to be read.

It wasn’t that many years ago that I entered a department store in Bristol and as I went up the escalator, a chap was descending on the other side with a box in one hand, a lead coming from that box, and a phone in his other hand on which he was talking to someone. I gazed at him in awe. Me, the chap from the gasworks who had to walk two streets to push my coins into the telephone kiosk, after my statutory twenty minute wait stood in the cold and rain with others in the queue waiting for someone to run out of money and end their call.

Who could have thought at that time that we would have a thing call the Web, and hand held phones that would access the Web or call and text anywhere in the World. Oh gosh the words ‘Web’ and ‘Text’ would have caused serious confusion at that time. We have progressed at a phenomenal technological rate, to a position where we have the facilities to readily and effectively engage with others throughout the world. It’s simply astonishing.

Doing the right thing

I don’t mind losing because I never try to win.

I try to remain detached, and try and fight the issues involved in the way that I believe each situation or problem should be highlighted. Everything that I have ever done has always been about doing the right thing. I have never knowingly embarked on a project or made a decision that in some way was about or involved getting one over on the other side. If I needed someone to do something, then the likelihood was that I believed that others would benefit. When I have stood up for something, it is because I truly believed that the something deserved to be aired. I have strong views and am opinionated because I believe that some things are worth saying.

The world would probably be a better place if people made decisions and engaged in events as participants rather than competitors.

Maybe a little bit of humility, coupled with a willingness to see the other point of view, would go an awful long way. Instead of opposing one another; working together to find a relevant and equitable solution to the problem. You do not have to win to succeed.

We should look at problems on the basis of what is fair, equitable and right. What should we do to put it all straight? What can we do to make the outcome successful? Maybe we cannot do what is right for everyone, all of the time, but much of what we do, can and should be towards the greater good. So the next time you are trying to stick someone (an individual or a group), please stop and remember these are real people that you are dealing with. People, who, like you, have the same or similar; fears, aspirations, needs, and desires. If you ignore this and go ahead and stick them anyway, then remember that in many ways, you have also ‘stuck’ yourself; as you become a lesser person through your behaviour.

Well done to Justice Secretary Ken Clarke

A big well done to Justice Secretary Ken Clarke regarding his announcement today (29 June, 2011) of an intention to clarify the law regarding defending yourself when you find an intruder inside your property. I particularly welcome the remarks attributed to Mr Clarke that appear to suggest that ‘Reasonable Force’ may include killing an intruder providing that they are not running away from you, and you are not chasing them down the street as they attempt to flee. Nobody wants to see anyone die before their time, but as I have mentioned in two previous postings; a person faced with an intruder whether masked or not will at that moment in time, quite rightly and probably without exception be overcome with fear.

The size, physical strength, or professional background will not deviate from that fear. No one will know why the intruder is there, and the bottom line is that a reasonable person will be expecting violence against them or other members of their family.

I also welcome the comment from Mr Ken Clarke that; “nobody should be prosecuted and nobody should ever convict anybody who takes these steps”. I for one could not have convicted a person who harmed anyone who broke into their home and which they came face to face with. It is great news that the lawmakers have recognised that doubts in the existing law require clarity, and great news that the Coalition Government are doing something worthwhile and significant for all citizens.

Anyone who wants to break into a person’s home is welcome to do so as that is their choice. But in making that choice, please remember the new rule: ‘intruders beware’. You may get stuck with a knife, bludgeoned or strangled to death. The person who does it to you will not be prosecuted because of a new law that may recognise that an intrusion brings fear, and fear causes a reaction. Norbert Elias has taught us that fear drives people to act, and it is great news that as the law is developed it will recognise this response to fear. The new law will provide legal protection for those who are unfortunate to meet face to face with an intruder, and that fleeting moment where they will believe themselves to be vulnerable.

Well done Ken Clarke, and well done to David Cameron for supporting the move.

Stop rushing and top up the 'to do list'

In addition to my airbrushing blog post (You know, the one about things that you can't do and then suddenly it clicks) the following points have now been learnt:

Yellow paint airbrushed onto grey primer = gold and not yellow. It's best to prime with white when using light colours for the top coat.

Thinners isn't paint cleaner and that is now on my 'to do list'. I need to go and buy the correct cleaner for the paints that I use. The problem is I am using so many different kinds of paints. Model car paints, real car paints, and non car paints. Some water based and others not. I have cleaner for my water based paints, and Tamiya thinners works a treat with Tamiya paints; it's the other lot that are causing the problems. Now there's a lot of trial and error going on here, but I am pleased to announce that my current bit of spraying is all done. My mini air compressor is almost silent running, and my large cardboard box spray booth works a treat when resting on top of my donkeys years old workmate.

The spraying job was for 50mm edges for a Scalextric layout that I am building on a 4' by 4' board. The 50mm wide curved edges allow the cars to splay out on the bends. The edges are cut from laminate flooring (which is the same height as the Scalextric track) and smoothed with glass paper. Thereafter each edge was sprayed with Halfords Grey Primer. When dry, I used masking tape to break each piece into 50mm segments from either end and then decided on blue, green, white, yellow, and red colours. The next type of edging that I am modelling is the barriers around the outside curves and inside the tunnels. This barrier will be out of 60mm high strips of hardboard that are sprayed white base coat and then a single colour along each length. Possibly 'change purple' (changes colour with varying light). But that's tomorrow or the next day and today is about today's problems and solutions. The downside for the Scalextric track widening edges, was that the second lot of masking lifted the yellow as if it was plastic. The yellow paint was a water based paint with 'reducer' (like a thinners but also aids drying) added. I decided to re-mask and re-spray the yellow, and this time I used 'low tack' masking tape bought this afternoon. Not that low tack mind you, as it managed to lift bits of the red paint.

Lesson to learn: don't be in a rush and let things dry out properly.

Ghanaian Choco

Now there's a rare treat back in Wales. One of the gang bought me a small slab of Ghanaian Chocolate amongst other presents for Father's Day. If you have never tried any folks, then the best way I can describe it; is like our dark chocolate, but an awful lot stronger.

The sort of taste that if it wasn't 'your cup of tea', then a nice ice cold Pear Cider would be an ideal accompaniment. If you get my drift. It certainly isn't like our Cadbury's. Then again, that isn't everyone's cup of tea either. I prefer Cadbury to most, but then again you can't beat a good Thorntons. Apparently Cocoa is so important to the Ghanaian economy that the Cocoa Board has a Cabinet level politician and Cocoa is the second highest earner of export dollars for Ghana. The bottom line regarding the chocolate, is that what we think is good, isn't always regarded as that good by others. So trying to compare Ghanaian chocolate with ours is a tad difficult. The chocolate is so different, that for me, it is like trying to compare apples with oranges. But remember, Ghana export so much of their quality cocoa, it's highly likely that your favourite nibble has some in its recipe, or is made up entirely of Ghanaian Cocoa Beans.

Ghanaian Chocolate; "It's chocolate, Jim, but not as we know it."

Thingamajig and Mathematics et al

I have mentioned in a previous Blog posting how we like to think that we are good at something and then someone comes along who is a whole lot better at the same task.

The other side to this position in life is those things that we are not very good at. Indeed sometimes, we are so bad that we are next to useless. Then all of a sudden something clicks and we are up and running. Worse still, all too often we don’t actually know what influenced the change.

Quite a few years back, mathematics was my “thing that I can’t do”. I recall my friend Adam explaining that it was not magic, and that there were a series of rules that had to be understood and then applied as appropriate to whatever mathematical problem was being scrutinised. Don’t ask me how, probably with the help of Adam, Daniel, and Joe; I overcame the mental block and went on to score an astonishing 86% in my University examination. It sort of clicked.

My latest ‘Wall’ is airbrushing. As an accomplished artist, it follows that I should be reasonably good. With a few degrees behind me, it also follows that I should understand the principles involved and be able to work through to find the solutions. But that has not been the case. Maybe, some of the problems are from being unwell, maybe there was a lack of confidence, but whatever the problem, not only was the ‘Wall’ still intact, but it had started to get bigger. Now there's nothing worse than a big wall when you aren't capable of climbing.

Then suddenly, for absolutely no good reason (other than stumbling upon a few solutions through trial and error) I am now wondering what all of the fuss was about. The 'capability' started off by accidentally putting the thinners into the mixing pot that connects to the airbrush and then adding the paint. This ensures that the thick paint doesn't clog the paint flow orifice from the paint holding pot into the airbrush and go on to clog the airbrush nozzle as well. Adding the thinners first, ensures that no clogging occurs. Followed by realising that airbrush nibs (the type that I use) come apart into three sections, all of which were easy to clean in water. Then I worked out that you layer it and wait between coats for the paint to dry. And don’t forget to blast it off to one side (in the cardboard box that doubles as my spray booth) before sweeping a stroke across the object that is being sprayed. The reason for that is to ensure that any start-up droplets (instead of the required and previously often hoped for, fine mist) land on the box and not the object being sprayed.

So says the man who up until a few days ago couldn’t get any of the nibs to work, didn’t know that they came apart, and didn’t know how to mix paint for airbrushing. I also didn’t understand what the variable thingamajig on the airbrush was for. Then out of the blue it all comes together.

It’s a strange world isn’t it?