The BEEB, a new book and the RAF

8 October 2012

Feeling pretty rough first thing this morning folks.  Very head-achy, blocked nose, sore throat - and I'm due my annual flu job right now.  I don't think I will be having it though somehow. 

Front page of the News this morning is about the Hussy Hospital again.  This time it's looking at a £5 million deficit.  The use of high cost agency staff is part of the problem.  What I can't understand is why they have to depend on agencies so much anyway.  If there is a shortage of staff why aren't they hiring more staff in the first place.  Getting better use out of their staff also needs to be looked at.  I've lost count of the number of times I've been there and seen staff, both nursing and support staff, just standing/sitting around gossiping instead of getting on whit what they should be doing.  Last I had an emergency trip to A&E because of angina I was put in a bay right by the nurse's station.  I was there for nearly four hours and all that time two doctors were sat there chatting and messing about on laptops.  Seemed to be a bit of a waste considering how many people were waiting to be seen and the long waiting time just then.

Also in the News today is a story of Bracebridge Street being cordoned off by the police after reports of someone there with a bladed weapon and a possible fire arm.  I'm rather glad we are no longer living there.  When my family first moved in on January 2 1970, it was a really nice, friendly, quiet area where residents took pride in their homes and helped out as and when needed.  That began to change in the early 1980's.  A lot of the house were sold off as owners died and their homes were converted either into bedsits or flats.  Now there are a number of drug dealers in there and that has an effect on everything that happens there.  It's sad to see a once thriving area become so sad and neglected.  Yes, there are still people there who care but their efforts are spoiled by the usual minority of selfish tow-rags who drag down the area.

Last night we sat and watched Antiques Roadshow on the BEEB.  For those who didn't see it, it was filmed at an active RAF base where Tornado planes are based.  I spent over 12 years in the military and I know just how proud and fussy they can be when it comes to the public's view of themselves.  So I was more that I little surprised to see some of the Tornadoes being used as backdrops for the show that hadn't been cleaned properly.  The tail planes were covered in black soot from their fuel.  That wouldn't have been allowed in my military days, operational or not!

And while I'm on about the BEEB ... just what the hell was going on there while Jimmy Savile was working there?  Of course it hasn't been proved that he was guilty of what he has been accused of, but if he was someone must have known about it.  If so, why wasn't it flagged up and dealt with?  Did he have such a hold over the BBC that they were frightened of him?  The sooner this sorted out the better for all concerned!

Good news for me today; my proof copy of Web of Hate has arrived.  Jan will start to read it soon and then I shall.  Once the corrections are made I can get a new one ordered and once that is done I can get it released.  Novel #4 on sale then ;-)))

Today's photo is from Saturday ... 

It's a shot of one of the falls on the River Swale.  It's not like so many other images you see today in that the water looks like it's static and creamy.  The Swale is a fast moving river, a powerful river has to be respected!  This shot shows just how powerful it really is - as well as showing running water as it should look.  Pity I can't add a sound file to go with it ;-)))

And today's funny then ...

A man with a bald head and a wooden leg is invited to a fancy dress party. He doesn't know what to wear to hide his head and his wooden leg so he writes to a fancy dress company to explain his problem. A few days later he receives a parcel with a note:
Dear Sir, Please find enclosed a pirate's outfit. The spotted handkerchief will cover your bald head and with your wooden leg you will be just right as a Pirate. The man thinks this is terrible because they emphasized his disability, so he writes a letter of complaint. A week passes and he received another parcel.
Dear Sir, Sorry about the previous parcel. Please find a monk's habit.  The long robe will cover your wooden leg and with your bald head you will really look the part.

The man is extremely furious now, because the company has gone from emphasizing his wooden leg to drawing attention to his bald head. So he writes a really rude letter of complaint. A few days later he gets a very small parcel from the company with an accompanying letter:

Dear Sir, Please find enclosed a tin of Golden Syrup. Pour the tin of
Golden Syrup over your bald head, stick your wooden leg up your arse
and go as a toffee apple.