Sunday, 20 November 2016

Wovewy widdle girl

A precious little girl walks into a pet shop and asks in the sweetest little lisp, "Excuthe me, mithter, do you keep widdle wabbits?"  As the shopkeeper's heart melts, he gets down on his knees, so that he's on her level, and asks, "Do you want a widdle white wabby or a thoft and fuwwy bwack wabby or maybe one like that cute widdle bwown wabby over there?"  She, in turn blushes, rocks on her heels, puts her hands on her knees, leans forward and says in a quiet voice, "I don't fink my pet python weally gives a thit.



Saturday, 19 November 2016

Paris, ooh-la-la!

Photos by Paul Almasy, of young people in Paris in the 1950's and 60's.






Friday, 18 November 2016

Proceed with caution


A police officer called the station on the phone.

"I have an interesting case here. An old lady shot her husband for stepping on the floor she just mopped." 

"Have you arrested the woman?"
"Not yet. The floor's still wet."

Thursday, 17 November 2016

Cuteness around your fingers

These rings by Mary Lou Bangkok are very cute. I can't wear rings because they snag on things and I find them annoying, but these are pretty...






Wednesday, 16 November 2016

A new resource for art lovers

I received an interesting email a few weeks back, from a guy who found our blog while searching for Dale Chihuly stuff on the internet. Matt works on behalf of a site called Artsy, where there is a Chihuly page. He asked me to add a link to the page and I was happy to oblige. Once you click on the link, you can look at Chihuly pieces and also immerse yourself in a world of sometimes beautiful, sometimes provocative works of art by browsing the rest of the site. Here are a couple of screenshots to whet your appetite. Enjoy!




Tuesday, 15 November 2016

Feast your eyes on these beauties

It was too cloudy over here last night, so we have to content with pictures from the internet...

    Granada, Spain 


    NYC, USA 


    Fremantle, Australia 


    Somewhere in Hungary 


    Hanoi, Vietnam 


    Lawrence, Kansas, USA 



Friday, 11 November 2016

Whooosh!

I don't like windy days. I don't mind wind if I'm safely indoors, I just dislike being in it. I don't think I would like to go on a vacation to this place, even though it's a very interesting landmark:









Thursday, 10 November 2016

Anyone for dessert?

We're still traumatised after Tuesday's events, so I thought we needed to feast our eyes on something nice, to soothe our frayed nerves... These delicious treats were created by Italian pastry chef Matteo Stucchi.







Wednesday, 9 November 2016

Post mortem

I try to avoid politics on this blog, but there's very little point in trying to ignore what is on everybody's minds.

Amy's comment about Trump knowing the election was rigged in his favour, making a fuss about voter fraud, not accepting results, not conceding, were all an act to preempt any challenges from Hillary, is spot on and exactly what I thought last night.

It was a long game with marked cards. Neoliberalism in fascist flavour is doing very well, thank you. Brexit gave the UK's extreme right the "mandate" to start removing all the safety nets in the benefits system. Their recent changes, which capped benefits below an acceptable level, the cuts to housing and disability benefits, will plunge millions into poverty and/or homelessness, including half a million children, just in time for Christmas. They're also going to freeze pensions and take away the seniors' winter fuel allowance. They don't even pretend they're all about compassionate capitalism anymore.

They're destroying the NHS so they have an excuse to privatise it. The insurance companies are salivating already. Other sectors in their sights are Education, Social Services, prisons and I forget what else. If it's worth anything, they'll sell it (and line their pockets in the process). 

Theresa May can't wait to repeal the Human Rights Act, removing all workers protections, getting rid of equal opportunities and all other protections that make the UK a civilised country. Cheap labour in a police state is her wet dream.

Once they're free from EU regulations, the UK will be a free for all for the corporations. Forget the Cayman Islands, Panama and all the others. Welcome to a posh tax haven!

The racism and xenophobia are just the icing on the cake. The UK is finished as a decent country.

I went on and on about the UK and Brexit because it was a sample of what you can expect over there.

The USA doesn't have human rights and other protections, but watch out for the end of Obamacare, social security, Medicaid, Medicare... Be prepared for more racism, more tensions, more black lives don't matter at all.

Nato already moved missiles to the borders with Russia. We're screwed within our countries and also abroad. Next year could see a shift to the extreme right in a number of European countries: France, Netherlands and Germany. That could signal the end of the EU, as Brexit behaviour spreads like a virus.

I'm deeply depressed.

It seems that the best we can do is to sow the seeds of our ideals in our children's minds and hope they'll will germinate, take root and spread when future generations see a relaxing in all this horrid stuff and have a chance to flourish once again.

Monday, 7 November 2016

Birthday party!

Happy birthday, dear, dear CC. 1SC provided a lovely teapot cake and I stayed with the theme. I found a tea cup and cupcake site where there are very beautiful examples of both. I also included some hors d'oeuvres and drinks for every taste. Have a lovely day and I really hope you get a birthday gift tomorrow (it would be a gift to EVERYBODY, actually).