Winter Olympics: amazing.

I am not a big sports fan .  I do like watching on T.V. but I get grumpy at the football fanatics  who seem to think soccer is the only game in town.  I have just watched the Canada/U S A Ice Hockey  game from Vancouver and it was truly amazing. After watching the excitement and speed and skill of the game it is obvious nothing comes close to this for thrills and skill. I also watched some of the specialist ski and snow-board events and these people are either incredibly stupid or incredibly brave,either way they do stuff that just leaves me saying "how do they do that".In a world where war and hunger and injustice are rife it is encouraging to see nations competing in honest competition and following a principle where it is all important to take part.  Some of our over paid football players should take note. And how do you get the message to the terrorists of the world ?   

Bottled Water and The Sell By Date Question.

I am no fan of bottled water because I object to paying for anything that comes out of my kitchen tap for free.  Also some of the claims they make for spring this and mountain stream that and mineral content just annoy me. What annoys me even more is the mountain of waste bottles that ruin the environment and cause major problems for wildlife.  This little story made me smile and makes you wonder how stupid our society has become.   This guy had called in a radio station to say that he always buys a particular(well known) brand of water. Today on his commute to work on the train he read the blurb on the label for the first time. Sourced from the foothills of The Alps...From a natural alpine spring...Filtered through Alpine Rock for thousands of years..A miracle of nature that takes each drop 15 years  to reach the bottle....... Sell by 15 Feb 2010.    Now that just says it all.

The Gas Man Commeth. The Gas Man Brings Heat Warmth & Comfort.

You don't need too many hours without central heating to drive home the fact that you live in a cold country. It is my own fault because the Gas Man has been shaking his head at our old(27 years) central heating boiler for about five years now saying you really need a new boiler. However as you may have guessed it lasted another few years until January, the coldest January in living memory almost. What actually happened was the smoke alarm started chirping just before the family arrived for Saturday diner.I duly changed the battery but the chirp persisted? it was the carbon monoxide detector   PANIC. Call the emergency number.Its a silent odourless killer so there was not a moment to lose.We will get someone to you within the hour the lady said ignoring my attempt to explain the noise was intermittent.

Any way the guy came said the detector was faulty and would be replaced under warranty but he should check out the boiler anyway for our safety. That done he shut it down disconnected the gas supply and said there all is save now.   Very cold but very safe. Now to be honest I would have went down the "live a little dangerously but be cosy " route but with the family gathered around  risk was not my business.

Cut a long story short after getting a few quotes and checking a few prices on the INTER-WEB we found a local guy who seemed totally professional and had all the accreditation and certs so, we went with him.  He repaired the old boiler specified the new set up and did it all in a day for around a third of the cost the national gas company wanted. The guy was so pleasant and helpful even replacing and upgrading parts of the system he hadn't quoted for but insisted it was required so, he did it. It was a big lesson for me that we ignore the local trades people to our cost.We have all been drawn into the" big is best" lie where you believe the big guys do it better and cheaper because that's how they got big in the first place. The real lesson of course is to shop around no matter what you are buying  and always call the local guy,he could be your best bet.  

Thin Ice + Car + Two Clowns = Disaster... Followed By Arrest.

The fact that the big thaw had started went un-noticed by these two jokers. 

I think this may be a world first for stupidity and the fact that it happened in our part of the world is painfully embarrassing. The two guys were lucky to escape as they allegedly drove their car on the frozen Union Canal in Scotland. Police have not said if they were under the influence of anything other than idiocy. They have been charged with reckless behavior.

Their mates cannot wait to talk to them down the pub...and no ice in the drinks. 

Happy New Year and the Long Trudge to Work.

So as the Xmas/New Year Holiday ends it is still freezing and snowy.We have been pretty much snow bound for most of the two weeks as winter has really set in with minus 10's and a minus 15 forecast in some parts of the country. As predicted (by every one exceptt the roads dept.) salt supplies have run low or even out altogether but it's the suppliers fault not the highways dept. We did venture out however  and one highlight was the fireworks in Edinburgh to herald in 2010 a truly amazing experience which every one should see at least once.

It's back to work now though and we hope lots to grump about as we get back to "normal"  which the weather report says will be in about 2 to 3 weeks

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRR  !   

Ozone Hole is Healing So We are Doomed ?

It must be me. I seem to have a clear memory of being told there was a hole in the ozone layer and frantic scientific effort was dedicated to finding a way to fix it or we were all doomed. My memory may be flawed but generally that was the story, am I right so far?  Now the good news is the hole is healing and sealing up nicely.  Hold on a minute that means that global warming will speed up the ice will melt faster and.....we're all doomed. Don't you just love the way science helps us confront the big problems of life and provides utter confusion on almost every problem we face in the modern world.  Turns out the hole in the ozone has been keeping us cool, so does that mean they called it wrong first time around?  Probably not  it's my flawed memory. 

Driver Charged for puddle incident. YES YES YES!

O.K. no long winded bad driving grumps. This has made us decidedly less grumpy. A woman driver has been charged after deliberately driving through a flood to drench schoolkids.  The dangerous driving charge comes after the clip was posted on the web and it makes you wonder at the mentality of some people. We hope against hope that this lady will be made an example of and given the maximum fine and punishment the law permits.  Her partner who filmed the event should not escape either as he is as bad as her.  Name and shame  it is the only way.

First Frost has made Me GRUMPIER THAN USUAL

WELL IT HAPPENED THIS VERY MORNING.....FROST Brrrrrrrrrr. It made me really grumpy as I thought it was just dampness on the windscreen but it was my old friend Jack. I normally like the changing of the seasons but this seems really early even for Scotland. I mean we still have green leaves on trees so its just not right. This coupled with Christmas Fare appearing in the shops has just catapulted winter to the front of my brain. On the up side however it coincided with the first batch of home made soup which is  always one of winters pleasures. So only five months to go and it will be spring...maybe. 

Jingle Halloween & A Happy New Christmas Year.Confused? I Am.

I have been dreading this but it really does make me grumpy. It actually happened almost two weeks ago,same day and place as the "garlic bread incident"   In fairness they were just setting it up but it was a Christmas Tree. It was still September for goodness sake.Just a few days later in the local supermarket right along side the pumpkins and scary stuff for Halloween ........Advent Calenders. As you might expect a kid seeing this at the check out immediately started "Can I get one ?Can I get one ? Can I get one? I almost told him NO myself but his harassed Mum beat me to it.  I am seriously tired of the way retailers manipulate us and screw around with the seasons to suit their marketing strategies. The only redeeming aspect of it is when you see all of the stuff discounted after Christmas or Easter. Just this year they were practically giving Easter Eggs away at one store.They had been on display since the end of February. So what has been your earliest Christmas tree sighting? I recon September 28th will take some beating.......unless you know differently?

This Week's Laundry Fragrane is...

For anyone who is interested this week's laundry smell is...Breath of Fresh Air.

So that means I smell like a breath of fresh air and I can only tell you it's a whole lot better than  Loganberry and Sea Breeze or even Mountain Stream.   The real problem I have with this one is ... well I sort of getthe others or at least know where the fragranceologists (just invented that one) were coming from with sea breeze and the rest  but a BREATH of FRESH AIR? Now that's a whole different thing and, as a country dweller I can say that one persons fresh air is another's chicken manure. Remember the farmer who made ice cream with his surplus milk  to supplement his earnings from selling eggs and chicken manure? He very quickly discovered that ice cream in his chicken manure was no big deal...however  chicken manure in his ice cream was a disaster.  So the jury is out on the Breath of Fresh Air fragrance, but as always we will keep you posted.