Up late again, The Peacock and I'm not fussed on hoses

15 February 2013

Things are getting very silly here in Jaronland.  Yet again I didn't surface until 1030 this morning - and I wasn't late settling last night either!  Even so I'm still so very tired.  Jan says I must need it but I'm not so sure.  Thing is, I feel the days half gone by that time and to be honest I have far too much to do to lie in bed until that time.  I even set the alarm last night but I must have turned it off in the night - really annoying now!

Jan herself seems to be doing well.  All her drips were out yesterday when I visited and although she was still hurting somewhat overall she OK.  She is still tired though but could well be partly down to her pain level.  But don't forget that a hospital ward is never really a quiet place to be.  The sooner she is home and safe the better she will be.

A long time ago there was a pub in the Market Place in Dorktown.  It was called The Peacock and it was the very best pub in town.  I loved it in there, good beers, good company, good friends and an excellent landlord in Jezz Rosomond.  Jezz decided to take on The Furnace in Bed'th so the brewery moved another landlord into The Peacock.  His first act was to install a dart board.  Trade dropped off by over half over night.  But what really killed the place off was Mad Maggie her forcing breweries to sell of a large number of their pubs.  It was supposed to increase competition but in reality what it did was to close a large number of popular pubs because of the new management companies that took them on who didn't have a clue how to run a pub.

So there you are then - but has that got to do with today?  Well, The Peacock building is still standing and since it closed has been a number of clothing retailers, the latest being Burtons.  Today's News says that the electronics company Maplin is due to take it over soon.  They have applied for planning permission to erect now sings on the building.  I have no views on Maplins as company as I've not actually shopped there but it has to be good news for the town centre that such a large well known company wants to move here.  I wish them well.

So by now we should all know what 'bute' is.  I heard it mentioned before I was wondering.  Now we know that it is a pain killer for horses that is also used at time for serious arthritic suffers.  But the worry is that it can sometimes, very rarely they claim, lead to a nasty side effect.  But you know what?  I'm not all that worried by all the current fuss and bother over the horse meat issue.  The media and so on keep on talking about 'contaminated' beef products.  Why?  Contaminated points to there being something very seriously infecting the meat used.  But come on, horse meat is safe for us humans to eat.  Of course a lot of people will balk at the idea of eating horse, but that's cultural, not a food safety issue.  The main issue in this current situation is what seems to be a wide spread fraud that has been perpetrated on the public in many countries.

  

Getting to the bottom of that and bringing those involved to justice I fully support.  But come on folks, look at with eyes wide open and see it for it is, a fraud, not a food safety issue.

I've just looked for a horsy photo and I don't have any - not surprising really as I'm not overly interested in them even when they are still upright on four legs.  So here you are then ... 

European bison, snapped at the Highlands Wildlife park just off the A9 between Kinguise and Aviemore.  Anyone up for bisonburger?

Funny time ...

An old Australian battler lies dying in his bed. He calls over Shirley,  his faithful wife of 60 years, and says, "Shirl, when we started out,  tried to buy a business in the depression, went bust: you were with me"
"Oh, yes, Bruce", she says.
Then the war started, I joined up, and was sent to the front line, where I lost me legs. You stayed with me."
"Oh yes, Bruce" she says.
"Then, came home, couldn't get a job, due to me disability, and bought a farm."
"Oh, yes, Bruce", she says.
"The farm flooded, then just when we got over that, there was a  bushfire, and then the drought, which wiped us right out: you still  stayed with me."
"Oh yes, Bruce,"
"Now here I am, in excruiating pain, about to die, useless and you're still with me."
"Yes Bruce."
"Shirl."
"Yes, Bruce?"
"You're bloody bad luck"