It's raining cats and dogs

“Cats and dogs” may be a perversion of the now obsolete word catadupe. In old English, catadupe meant a cataract or waterfall.

Colonel Mustard

Now who could have done it...now who could have ordered his murder......let's think for a moment.....of course!
It was Colonel Mustard in the library with a candlestick. Solved.

Spock

Another small part of childhood has just disapppeared. Around 7pm on a weekday I would hurry to the TV and watch, in a completely spellbound manner, Star Trek. And so it is great sadness that I have heard of the death of Leonard Nimoy, or Spock as he will forever be remembered.

Ice-cream

An ice cream seller was today found on the floor of his van covered in hundreds and thousands. Police said he topped himself.

‘Taste of the Raj

“I went to a restaurant the other day called ‘Taste of the Raj.’ The waiter hit me with a stick and got me to build a complicated railway system.”
- Harry Hill

To read is to fly

“To read is to fly: it is to soar to a point of vantage which gives a view over wide terrains of history, human variety, ideas, shared experience and the fruits of many inquiries.”

A.C. Grayling

A. C. Grayling

“Middle age has been defined as what happens when a person's broad mind and narrow waist change places.''

A. C. Grayling

Elephant and Mouse

An idea, a plan a budget and then what? You end up with an elephant but it began as a mouse. Why? Because it was  built to government specifications with incompetent, unaccountable civil servants meddling in everything.

Abbreviation

Think about it, why is the word abbreviation so long?

Ruins and Shadows

Fading Elegance

Harmony of concrete and steel

non-stop flight

This is a non-stop flight the pilot informs us. I hope not as I want the plane to eventually stop at the designated destination!

Ironic

“He is a self-made man and worships his creator.”

Irvin S. Cobb

Oscar

“Some cause happiness wherever they go; others whenever they go.”

Oscar Wilde

Oscar Wilde

“He has no enemies, but is intensely disliked by his friends.”

Oscar Wilde

Irony

“History teaches us that men and nations behave wisely once they have exhausted all other alternatives.”

Abba Eban

On this day in 1935 Radar was first demonstrated by  Robert Watson-Watt.

On this day in 2001 The Darkness made their live debut when they played at Camden HQ.

On this day in 1965, Guitarist Jimmy Page released a solo single called 'She Just Satisfies' in the UK.

For donkey’s years

For donkey’s years

This British expression jokingly alludes to the considerable length of years the animal works with nothing to show for it. If you have done something for donkey’s years, then you have done it for an awfully long time without any change or much to show for it.

Hairy at the heel

Hairy at the heel

This disparaging phrase was originally used by the British upper-crust to refer to someone who is ill-bred, dangerous or untrustworthy. The image of a hairy heel is indeed striking and funny.

Fall off the back of a lorry

Fall off the back of a lorry

This is the British humorous way of saying you acquired something that was probably stolen, or you are trying to sell something that’s stolen or illegitimate. The American equivalent of the phrase is: “off the back of a truck.”

Enough to cobble dogs with

Enough to cobble dogs with

This incredulous phrase is used to refer to a surplus of anything. The humor in the image contained in the phrase becomes apparent when you consider that a cobbler repairs shoes. If a cobbler has enough leather to cobble an animal that has four feet, then that cobbler definitely has a surplus.

Bob’s your uncle

 Bob’s your uncle

This idiom is a catch phrase used when ‘everything is alright’ and means that something will be done, sorted or successful. It’s the British equivalent of “…and that’s that,” or “there you go!” How it is used is often quite funny.

The snow has receded, the streets begin to shrug off their dirt and the sun actually feels to have some warmth in it daily show of light, as if it has finished toying with us. There my actually even be an extra spring in our step.

United we fall, divided we stand.

United we fall, divided we stand.

City view

Sid James

King Henry VIII: 'Has she been chaste?'
Thomas Cromwell: 'All over Normandy.'
Sid James played Henry VIII in  Carry On Henry (1971)

Sid James

Dr Jimmy Nookey (Jim Dale): 'Hmm. That's a good skeleton. Did the last doctor leave it here?'
Gladstone Screwer (Sid James): 'That is the last doctor.'
Carry On Again Doctor (1969)

Sid James

Mrs. Fussey: 'Joan may think you're a gentleman but personally I've got sore misgivings.'
Sid Boggle: 'You ought to put some talcum powder on them.'
Carry on Camping (1969

Sid James

The Khasi of Kalabar (Kenneth Williams): 'May the great God Shivoo bring blessings on your house.'
Sir Sidney Ruff-Diamond (Sid James): 'And on yours.'
The Khasi: 'And may his radiance light up your darkness.'
Sir Sidney: 'And up yours.'
Carry On Up The Khyber (1968)

Jimmy Page

I'm just looking for an Angel with a broken wing.

Jimmy Page

Led Zeppelin-Down by the Seaside

Led Zeppelin - Bron-Yr-Aur*

Simple complexity of nature.

                                                             Simple complexity of nature.

Fragile Species

“I am a member of a fragile species, still new to the earth, the youngest creatures of any scale, here only a few moments as evolutionary time is measured, a juvenile species, a child of a species. We are only tentatively set in place, error prone, at risk of fumbling, in real danger at the moment of leaving behind only a thin layer of of our fossils, radioactive at that.”

Lewis Thomas,  Fragile Species

Fuel cell car

       Everything is evolving. The future of motoring for the majority of people in 10 years time?

Spring

Evolution

The finger no longer presses, it side swipes, the thumb does not hold nor press, but sideswipes a screen. Evolution just keeps rolling. rolling along.

Federico Fellini

“Talking about dreams is like talking about movies, since the cinema uses the language of dreams; years pass in a second and you can hop from one place to another.”

Federico Fellini

Voltaire

 “Let us read, and let us dance;
these two amusements
will never do any harm to the world.”

Voltaire

Chilly dip

                                                                       Chilly dip

Leonardo

“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” 

Leonardo da Vinci

Medieval Cockentrice was a dish with the upper  body of a pig sewed onto the bottom half of a capon chicken. Nice.

Hedgehog Medieval

Medieval thinking

The meat of a hedgehog is good for the health of lepers. So dry its intestines and grind them to a powder and eat a little of that dish.

Not for me!

po cygańsku

                             One hell of a tasty and filling dish. Filling being the operative word.

Tree

Life is complicated, no black and white, more shades of grey. Interwoven on the tree of life are sun and shade as all rise and then fade away.

Wall

There was a wall tall and wide built with consumate skill,
It kept all in, it kept all out,
It stood strong with never a doubt,
Its purpose was clear and it knew no fear,
The wall was brick and mortar, it would never alter.

Measure of a civilization

I do not think the measure of a civilization
is how tall its buildings of concrete are,
But rather how well its people have learned to relate
to their environment and fellow man.

Sun Bear of the Chippewa Tribe

Treat the earth well.

Treat the earth well.
It was not given to you by your parents,
it was loaned to you by your children.
We do not inherit the Earth from our Ancestors,
we borrow it from our Children.

Ancient Indian Proverb

Hamburger recipe

Hamburger recipe

Take a few aurochs and through the centuries and breed them selectively into the modern cow. Take the cow from the farm to a slaughterhouse and let it smell the fear of death. Then electocute it, or smash it in the head with a large hammer. Then drain it of fluids, skin it, cut nd chop it into joints and chops. Then take the left-over meat from the unsavoury parts of the cow, mix with some cheap meat from the carcass and pulp into a sludge. Package this in healthy lovely plastic and ship off to a supermarket.
Buy it and drive it home in a crass soulless peice of polluting metal. Unpack the dead meat and fry it in fat to help the heart beat even better. Take a flour based stodgy white bun to block the digestive system and add sliced GM tomatoes and pesticide coated crsip lettuce and hey presto! Bon appetit...

Spring

Cast not a clout till May be out.

Go North, South, East, and West, Young Man

Drake is going west, lads
So Tom is going East
But tiny Fred
Just lies in bed,
The lazy little beast

Spike Milligan

Spring

The spring is on its way!

Wood Allen

 

There are worse things in life than death. Have you ever spent an evening with an insurance salesman?

Wood Allen

Friday

I haven't been this happy about a Friday since, oh let me think...last Friday.

Revolution, devolution and evolution

Revolution, devolution and evolution baby!

There was an old man with a beard

There was an old man with a beard
Who said, "it’s just how I feared!
Two owls and a hen
Four larks and a wren
Have all built their nests in my beard.

Limerick

There once was a young lady named bright
Whose speed was much faster than light
She set out one day
In a relative way
And returned on the previous night.

Malice at Buckingham Palace

Outside Buckingham Palace
A dog was barking one day
When out of a house
Came a chocolate mouse
And frightened that doggie away.
And so that chocolate mousie
Was taken to the Queen-
Who swallowed him up
With a gobbledy glup
I do think that was mean.

Spike Milligan

Music

On this day in 208 two releases by Oasis were voted the best British albums ever recorded in a poll of 11,000 people. Their 1994 album Definitely Maybe came top, while their 1995 follow-up (What's the Story) Morning Glory was second in the vote for Q magazine and HMV.

Tradition

“You must believe that your past is not your future.
You are not stuck or defined by tradition
and you don’t have to listen to what others tell you to do.
Focus on the bright things,
the ones that bring a smile to your face.
Find that passion and focus.”

Gayle Carson

Schools, governments, economic systems, religion, politicians, everything is about control.

Woody Allen - Songs from Woody Allen's Films

Nikita Krushchev

Nikita Krushchev was denied entry to Disneyland by a macho Micky Mouse in 1959 for security reasons. Is that an ICBM in your pocket or are you just glad to see me?

“In spite of the cost of living, it’s still popular.”
  Kathleen Norris

Donner Party

Donner Party rescued on February 19th 1847. Now I know it is the 18th today, but they were so full up they could have been rescued today! Anyone for dessert?

Jimi Hendrix - Little Wing (Original music & Video)

Jimi Hendrix

On this day in 1969 The Jimi Hendrix Experience appeared at the Royal Albert Hall, London. Must have been quite an experience for everyone!

Victor Hugo

“Common sense is in spite of, not as the result of education.”

Victor Hugo

Democracy

“Anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that ‘my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.’”
 

Isaac Asimov

Electric Light Orchestra - Mr. Blue Sky (Official Music Video)

Blue sky

A clear cloudless blue sky is due to because molecules in the air which scatter blue light from the sun more than they scatter red light.  When we look towards the sun at sunset, we see red and orange colours because the blue light has been scattered out and away from the line of sight. Enjoy the blue sky day.

Cheese

Age is not important unless your a cheese.

Helen Hayes

Sundae

Soda fountain owner, Ed Berners of Two Rivers, Wisconsin is reputed to have invented the first ice cream sundae in 1881. Berners' customer George Hallauer requested that Berners serve him a dish of ice cream topped with the syrup used for sodas. Berner liked the dish and added it to his regular menu, charging a nickel.
George Giffy, a competing soda fountain owner from nearby Manitowoc, Wisconsin felt he had to serve the same syrupy concoction as Ed Berners. However, Giffy felt that the nickel price was too cheap and decided to only serve the dish on Sundays, which soon became the name of the dish - the Ice Cream Sunday. Once Giffy realized that he was making good money from the "Ice Cream Sunday" he changed the name to the "Ice Cream Sundae" and served it daily.

Elephants

Elephants are the only mamals that can't jump.

Tongue

The strongest muscle in proportion to its size in the human body is the tongue.No comment.

American

''...and blue lights advertising every kind of fast food a man could imagine, as long as it was a hamburger...''

American Gods

American Gods

''Tell him that language is a virus and that religion is an operating system and that prayers are just spam''.

American Gods

New book, American Gods by Neil Gaiman.......

Storm

May the storm pass over us, and leave us hale and unharmed,

Italy

Italy's birth rate drops to its lowest level in 150 year. But at least Berlusconi has been leading by example. Such a low birth rate for a nation that prides itself on its sexuality.Strange.

Bernard

And there were a few other people there. You know, the sort of people who can talk about salad for five hours.

Bernard Black

North Korea

"Let us turn ours into a country of mushrooms by making mushroom cultivation scientific, intensive and industrialised!" is an official slogan of North Korea.
Yeah, one huge mushroom cloud!

Bull

Each semen ejaculation by Yuvraj, a bull in Kurukshetra, northern India, is worth $3,000 (£1,948). Well paid work!

Language

Flexitarian. A vegetarian who sometimes eats meat or fish. Or someone very indecisive.

Changing language

Earworm. A tune that keeps repeating itself over and over again in our heads. Usually the last one we hear as we leave home.

Meat

Standing at the meat counter in the shop today. Then it comes to me as I stop and really look at what lies laid out before us. Something akin to a sanitized medieval battlefield under strip lighting. Rib vying for space with bloodied brisket, slashed sirloin next to fractured flank and so appropriately named chops. Backed up by viscous liver and unbeating hearts.

Don't you think the sun is bright?
I wonder where it goes at night?
Does it sleep or does it hide?
Or is the moon its other side?

Does it hide behind the hills?
Late at night as outside chills?
Do you think it needs to rest?
From all that warming it does best?

Could it even have a home?
Maybe in London or even in Rome?
Or does it just float around?
Moving slowly from town to town?

Yes, I think it must do that!
After all the earth's not flat.
So the sun goes round and round
Spreading sunshine on the ground!

Gareth Lancaster

It is sunny today, bright and beautiful weather. And what a change it makes. It cheers us up
by boosting the body's happy hormone, serotonin. It lowers heart disease rates and can prevent the onset of type two diabetes because of the vitamin D it gives us. Generous sun.

Sunshine also relieves our aches and pains and reduces the risk of cancers. At the same time it gives us more energy, and boosts fertility, one naturally following the other. And for those with IBD, smile, the sun can even help to relieve your discomfort.

No wonder ancient societies worshipped the sun. Enjoy!

Friday was World Radio Day, or Wireless as it was once called. I remember listening to  Lord of the Rings on a Sunday lunch time as  a boy. Wonderful...so evocative and one got to use one's imagination. Comedy panel games, so witty and sharp, the successful programs were put on the TV, but were never the same. The comfort of the radio is not lost nor diminished by time. The hypnotic BBC Shipping forecast, just in case one ended up one day in the North Sea. Radio, with you, a comfort, not taking over the room like the goggle box.

“If you ever need a helping hand, you’ll find one at the end of your arm”

Graceful

                                                                              Sublime Grace

When a clock is hungry, it goes back four seconds.

When fish are in schools, they sometimes take debate.

If you jumped off the bridge in Paris, you'd be in Seine.

Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.

Joke

Phoned up the local Chinese restaurant and said do you deliver. He said no we only do pork or chicken...

Photon

A photon checks into a hotel and the porter asks him if he has any luggage. The photon replies: “No, I’m travelling light."

Penguin joke

A police officer on traffic duty flags down a car.
“Sir, you appear to have 12 penguins in the back of your car.”
“That’s right, officer, I do.”
“Well that’s ridiculous – take them to the zoo straight away.”
“OK officer.”
And the car drives off.
Next day, the same policeman in the same spot sees the same car drive past – with the penguins in the back. He flags him down again.
“I thought I told you to take them to the zoo…”
“Yes, officer, and it was great – today I’m taking them to the cinema.”

Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath 1969 Full Album

Black Sabbath released their debut album, imaginatively entitled Black Sabbath, on this day back in 1970. Great music.

Irish Proverb

“As you slide down the banister of life,
may the splinters never point in the wrong direction.”

Irish Proverb

Bright green bobble hat.

Lesson wearing a bright luminous green bobble hat, we are talking big wobbly bobble. Then a  knock at the door summoned to an important matter. The person I must speak to notices the ludicrous bobble hat, I realize I an still wearing it. They remain straight faced which makes me want to laugh more. So check head before exiting classroom.

Bernard Black

I mean, you know, I have to price them, and then put them up on the shelves and store them and people will come in and ask about them and buy them and read them and come back and sell them, you know, and the whole hideous cycle will just go on and on and on and on, you know?

Bernard Black