The Rantings of a Looney

THAT'S ALL FOLKS

2009-05-09T09:55:00.003+01:00

My time is currently being split in too many directions and I need to take a time-out for myself. Mctavish is fine and currently awaiting surgery and we have been told this week (never in a rush) that the toe will be amputated and not the leg! phew

For now .......

I will be checking back and leaving comments .... you don't get rid of me that easily!! I am just needing some "me" time and as you have seen (if you've been looking lol ... blogging isn't at the top of the agenda atm.

Love you all, take care and see ya soon XXX

Happy Easter

2009-04-12T10:23:00.002+01:00

Wishing you all a very happy Easter time. 'Lang may yer eggs roll' lmao

A wee Easter poem for ya's all -

Funny Bunny

Little Easter, the comedienne bunny,
Tried too hard at being funny.
She juggled and she dropped the eggs
They fell and smashed between her legs.

Poor Easter left the stage in shame
And thought that she might change her name.
But then that bunny read this ad,
"This Sunday we need help real bad."

So Easter Bunny kept her name
And through the years has gained much fame,
When Easter's Sunday comes each year.
She delivers eggs and we all cheer.

(Grandpa Tucker)

Marmy ... hope this answers your question - nice tartan wrapped eggs lmfao

Stolen blog posting

2009-04-07T17:17:00.002+01:00

I am yet again bowing to the blogging prowess of that guru of all things blog - newplanet!

I had such a good laugh at his urban dictionary post that I thought I would give it a go. I had 7 pages of entries for my name so I am not going to post them all here.

All I did was post my name in an urban dictionary search and here are a few of the entries it came up with. (some of the 'contributors' are obviously obsessed by the size of their manhood lol)

here we go ....

1. James

Someone who is un usually well hung. People with the name James are generally known for their good looks (especially the eyes) and women are just simply attracted to them.
"Oh Yeah, he's definately a James"

2. James

A name for someone who is absolutely fantastic and is your favourite.
"That James is by far my favourite, no matter what!"

3. James

In early European lore the demigod James was said to possess unrivaled charm and seductive prowess in addition to having genitalia of supernatural size. Throughout medieval times and up until the late Renaissance, Pagan and Christian farmers routinely prayed to James as a god of fertility, believing that his massive penis would inspire them to spectacular heights of fertility. Today, the term James still carries with it subtexts of truly gigantic genitals which is perhaps why James is the name most frequently given to male newborns in the United States.
Currently the word James can be used to mean an enormous penis and anyone with that name can be assumed to possess a heavy and girthy penis.
"Man, check out that James!"

"Look at the buldge in his trousers, he MUST have a James in there girlfriend!"

"I don't think I could ever fit a James in my mouth."

4. James

The best guy in the world. He is the most amazing, perfect, handsome, charming, lovable, and cuddliest man on the planet. He is very sweet and will brighten up your day just by smiling. he has very bright and beautiful hazel eyes and kinda darkish brown hair. Hes very funny and he likes to laugh a lot.
oh... my gosh... did u just see that really cute guy?

"Yup, he looks like a James."

5. James

An absolutely perfect organism that is an inspiration to all other life on earth. He combines good looks and clear thinking, in the end resulting in an amazing Philosopher-like Demigod of unbeknownst power. No Women can resist a James, except those whose names begin with a N. Those women exist to attempt to destroy such James' in a ritual known as dating.
"(Calling Role)
Teacher: James?
James: Yes?
Teacher: Oh I just wanted to beg forgiveness for profaning your perfect name with my unworthy tongue.
James: You are forgiven, oh imperfect one."

The above postings were obviously chosen at random hahahahaha

Witty pilots

2009-04-06T13:31:00.002+01:00

Actual exchanges between pilots and control towers

Tower: "Delta 351, you have traffic at 10 o'clock, 6 miles!"
Delta 351: "Give us another hint! We have digital watches!"

*****

Tower: "TWA 2341, for noise abatement turn right 45 Degrees."
TWA 2341: "Center, we are at 35,000 feet. How much noise can we make up here?"
Tower: "Sir, have you ever heard the noise a 747 makes when it hits a 727?"

*****

From an unknown aircraft waiting in a very long takeoff queue: "I'm f...ing bored!"
Ground Traffic Control: "Last aircraft transmitting, identify yourself immediately!"
Unknown aircraft: "I said I was f...ing bored, not f...ing stupid!"

*****

O'Hare Approach Control to a 747: "United 329 heavy, your traffic is a Fokker, one o'clock, three miles, Eastbound."
United 329: "Approach, I've always wanted to say this...I've got the little Fokker in sight."

*****

A student became lost during a solo cross-country flight. While attempting to locate the aircraft on radar, ATC asked, "What was your last known position?"
Student: "When I was number one for takeoff."

*****

A DC-10 had come in a little hot and thus had an exceedingly long roll out after touching down.
San Jose Tower Noted: "American 751, make a hard right turn at the end of the runway, if you are able. If you are not able, take the Guadeloupe exit off Highway 101, make a right at the lights and return to the airport."

*****

A Pan Am 727 flight, waiting for start clearance in Munich , overheard the following:
Lufthansa (in German): " Ground, what is our start clearance time?"
Ground (in English): "If you want an answer you must speak in English."
Lufthansa (in English): "I am a German, flying a German airplane, in Germany . Why must I speak English?"
Unknown voice from another plane (in a beautiful British accent): "Because you lost the bloody war!"

*****

Tower: "Eastern 702, cleared for takeoff, contact Departure on frequency 124.7"
Eastern 702: "Tower, Eastern 702 switching to Departure. By the way,after we lifted off we saw some kind of dead animal on the far end of the runway."
Tower: "Continental 635, cleared for takeoff behind Eastern 702, contact Departure on frequency 124.7. Did you copy that report from Eastern 702?"
BR Continental 635: "Continental 635, cleared for takeoff, roger; and yes, we copied Eastern... we've already notified our caterers."

*****

One day the pilot of a Cherokee 180 was told by the tower to hold short of the active runway while a DC-8 landed. The DC-8 landed, rolled out, turned around, and taxied back past the Cherokee. Some quick-witted comedian in the DC-8 crew got on the radio and said, "What a cute little plane. Did you make it all by yourself?"
The Cherokee pilot, not about to let the insult go by, came back with a real zinger: "I made it out of DC-8 parts. Another landing like yours and I'll have enough parts for another one."

*****

The German air controllers at Frankfurt Airport are renowned as a short-tempered lot. They not only expect one to know one's gate parking location, but how to get there without any assistance from them. So it was with some amusement that we (a Pan Am 747) listened to the following exchange between Frankfurt ground control and a British Airways 747, call sign Speedbird 206.
Speedbird 206: " Frankfurt , Speedbird 206! clear of active runway."
Ground: "Speedbird 206. Taxi to gate Alpha One-Seven."
The BA 747 pulled onto the main taxiway and slowed to a stop.
Ground: "Speedbird, do you not know where you are going?"
Speedbird 206: "Stand by, Ground, I'm looking up our gate location now."
Ground (with quite arrogant impatience): "Speedbird 206, have you not been to Frankfurt before?"
Speedbird 206 (coolly): "Yes, twice in 1944, but it was dark, -- And I didn't land."

Sun, Sea, Sand and S......

2009-04-05T19:48:00.005+01:00

My thoughts are turning to Summer time and holidays. My problem is that I can't decide where in this vast world to go. It's not just me to consider however, 3 of my friends are also coming along.

I want to go back to Barbados. I love the Caribbean and especially the island of Barbados. Lots of white, fine sand and palm tree lined beaches, rum punch and great, laid back hospitality.

Maybe a trip back to Egypt. I adore this country and it's amazing, mystical history. The sphynx and pyramids were awe inspiring and to get inside the pyramids was breathtaking.

I have always wanted to go on a cruise. Huge, luxury cruise ship making it's way through the oceans and seas of the world, docking in some of the most exotic ports around the world.

Safari has also been one of my all time holiday greats. Getting out into the Kenyan plains and trying to spot the big 5 in their natural environment.

I have a friend who has her own diving school in northern cyprus and the thought of diving in the clear turquoise seas and spotting turtles swimming by is very tempting.

A holiday on a barge is also a hot favourite. Barging through the canals, stopping at the canal side pubs .... hmmmmm lovely!

The bright lights and attractions of London are also an option. Take in all the tourist sights, a musical or two and enjoy the big city.

Canada. I love this country. I have always wanted to tour from one coast of this amazing country to the other in a winnebago - going wherever we want and stopping whenever we needed.

I just have too many options. I started to discuss these with 2 of the friends who will be coming along and one of them suggested this .......

Oh dear, what am I to do? lol

The good old days

2009-03-26T21:16:00.002Z

First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and drank while they carried us and lived in houses made of asbestos. They took aspirin, ate raw egg products, loads of bacon & processed meat, tuna from a can and didn't get tested for diabetes or cervical cancer.

After that trauma, our cots were covered with bright coloured lead based paints. We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes we had no helmets or shoes ... not to mention the risks we took hitchhiking.

As children, we would ride in cars with no seat belts or air bags. We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle. Take away food was limited to fish & chips wrapped in newspaper - not pizza shops and Mcdonalds, KFC or Nandos. Even though the shops shut at 6pm and did not open at the weekends we did not starve. We shared one soft drink with four friends from the same bottle and not one died of this.

We use to collect old drink bottles & cash them in at the corner shop for sweets and bangers to blow frogs up with. We ate cakes, white bread with real butter and drank soft drinks with sugar in but we were not overweight because we were always outside playing. We would leave home in the morning and play all day as long as we were back home when the streetlights came on. No one was able to reach us all day long and we were ok. We would spend hours building go carts and then ride them down hill with no brakes, we built tree houses and dens and played in the river. We did not have Playstations, Nintendo or have 999 channels on the tv. No mobile phones or personal computers or the internet but we did have friends and we went outside and found them.

We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and there were no lawsuits from these accidents. Only girls had pierced ears. We ate worms and mud pies. You could only buy Easter eggs & hot cross buns at Easter time. We were given air guns & catapults for our 10th birthday, we rode bikes or walked to our mates and mum did not have to go to work to help dad to make ends meet.

Our teachers use to hit us with canes, the leather strap and gym shoes and bullies always ruled the school playground. The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of - they actually sided with the law!

Our parents did not invent stupid names like Kiaora, Blade, Blackcurrant & Rainbow. We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility and we learnt how to deal with it. Thank God we didn’t have the health and safety brigade back then!

(I cannot take the credit for this but it certainly rang true for me lol so thought I'd share)

Meme

2009-03-25T18:50:00.002Z

Just stolen from newplanet ......

1. Where is your cell phone? pocket
2. Your significant other? who?
3. Your hair? disappearing
4. Your mother? loving
5. Your father? retired
6. Your favourite thing? love
7. Your dream last night? x-rated
8. Your favourite drink? Coke
9. Your dream/goal? peace
10. What room you are in? lounge
11. Your hobby? curling
12. Your fear? loneliness
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? abroad
14. Where were you last night? bed
16. Muffins? blueberry
17. Wish list item? house
18. Where you grew up? Crieff
19. Last thing you did? eat
20. What are you wearing? clothes
21. Your TV? on
22. Your pets? none
23. Friends? close
24. Your life? good
25. Your mood? happy
26. Missing someone? yes
27. Car? silver
28. Something you're not wearing? shoes
29. Your favourite store? Sainsburys
30. Your favourite colour? purple
33. When is the last time you laughed? earlier
34. Last time you cried? Sunday
35. Who will resend this? nobody
36. One place that you go to over and over? school
38. Your favourite place to eat? Corierri's
39. Why you participated in this survey? bored
40. What are you doing tonight? shopping

That KODAK moment

2009-03-24T20:04:00.004Z

I love it when you get back from a holiday and you look at the photos ..... then spot something unexpected in the background lol

I was sent this as an email and felt the need to share ......

Awwww

2009-03-17T21:07:00.002Z

Had a shit of a day and this cheered me up!

Also sending this gorgeous heart to everyone who reads this blog, hope it brightens up a dull day xx

The Bells ...

2009-03-17T19:35:00.008Z

... wedding ones .... and jeezo - deffo not mine!

A right guid Scottish 'shin-dig' was had at the tail end of last year when my best friend of many years was getting married to another good friend of mine.

Vicki and Tam, friends for years, decided ... at last ... to tie the knot and become 'official' lol

The night before, we were all out at the hotel setting up table decorations, place settings and helium balloons hahaha ... oh the joys of helium never fade!

I was tasked with the job of usher and was given a reading to do at the church - being a teacher and used to public speaking does have some disadvantages - everyone thinks you won't mind making speeches and readings. Ah well, it was for great friends, so all was well. A cheeky slug or two from the hip flask certainly helped to settle any nerves lol

The day of the wedding arrived and I got kitted out in the kilt ... and being a true Scotsman, there was no need for any undies!! It also has the advantage of having one less item of clothing to take off at night when you've been drinking alcohol all day and night and maybe be a little worse for wear.

The bride was piped into the church by a school friend and great guy with the bagpipes. Highland Cathedral - god I love that tune!

The deed done and the happy couple now officially Mr & Mrs, it was off to the hotel for the knees up and meal.

There was a good bit of hanging around for the official photos to be taken which just meant a great deal of drinking time lol One of the bridesmaids stole my hip flask from my sporran and had a good drink ... bloody cheek!

After all 200 dinner guests took their seats in the hotel dining room, the happy couple posed for photos and cut the cake!

The meal was beautiful and so was the wine and champagne lol

It was back to the bar after the meal to allow the disco to set up for the nights entertainment. I have no idea how much I had been drinking but by the time another 200 evening guests had arrived and the disco and ceilidh music had started, I was well oiled. I must have been a little under the influence because I managed to get hauled onto the dance floor by the bride - not something that I usually do lol

As a guest at the hotel, with my room booked, I was able to take advantage of an all night bar hahaha ... myself, one of the bridesmaids, the bride and groom and a couple of the guests had a couple of nightcaps before heading to bed (not all together lmao)

A FABULOUS wedding for 2 FABBY friends!

Homework

2009-03-15T15:52:00.003Z

A little something I was sent ......

The moral of the story - CHECK YOUR CHILD'S HOMEWORK

(Here's the reply the teacher received the following day)

Dear Mrs. Jones,
I wish to clarify that I am not now, nor have I ever been, an exotic dancer.
The truth is I work at Home Depot and I told my daughter how hectic it was last week before the blizzard hit. I told her we sold out every single shovel we had, and then I found one more in the back room, and that several people were fighting over who would get it. Her picture doesn't show me dancing around a pole. It's supposed to depict me selling the last snow shovel we had at Home Depot.
>From now on I will remember to check her homework more thoroughly before she turns it in.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Smith

Some video clips to bring a smile

2009-03-15T14:31:00.005Z

Women drivers .... I am saying NOTHING .... the video speaks for itself! LMAO

Upgrading your mobile phone? Fancy placing an order for one of these?

Don't judge too quickly ...

Back ......... again

2009-03-15T13:52:00.003Z

Well ....... don't want to count the number of times I have said this .... but here I am again!

Have been super busy ... lots of family stuff been happening over the past couple of months.

The BEST news is my new baby nephew Calum. Super gorgeous little bundle of joy - well, I can say that because I don't have to put up with the screaming, constant feeding, burping, peeing and pooing ........ oh the joy of being an uncle - you can hand them back LOL

The bad news involves me old dad "McTavish". As if everything he has been through already wasn't enough, he got MORE bad news! The kind of bad news that involves amputation!

After all of the health issues he was sent back to hospital with a "toe infection". Now, to me that sounds pretty harmless ..... oh no .... can't be simple or harmless for me old pops .... the toe has to come off! Well, that was the best of the diagnosis. 'The best?' I hear you cry .. YES. The next bit of news was met with stunned silence, only the sound of jaws hitting the ground could be heard! Amputation of the LEG may be needed as there may be poor blood supply to be able to save his leg! The toe is now in the early stages of gangrene and we are awaiting the results of the latest scan to find out if it's a toe for the chop or a leg.

So, when I say that things have been kinda hectic and intense, you now know - it's been a laugh or cry situation .. the more laughs the better - drowns out the bad!

Ink

2008-11-01T21:08:00.002Z

Been thinking about getting a tattoo .... very patriotic .... comments on this ...

maybe this ....

playing with my stones!

2008-11-01T20:02:00.007Z

Some people have filthy minds!!! I meant playing with the curling stones!

Having NEVER stepped onto an ice-rink and NEVER played a ngame of curling - I was recruited by a curling team and placed into a league playing other teams who have been playing for many years.

Now, for those who have never heard of curling or have never seen a curling match on tv, here's a little intro ...

The aim of the game is to get your curling stones as close to the centre of the target (house) as possible and closer than your opposing teams stones. All of this is done by pushing 44lb granite stones up a sheet of ice. A bit like a game of bowls and a game of chess mixed together and played on ice.

Teams of four play against another team of four with each team member curling 2 stones each. The skip lets each team member know where to try and curl their stone each time and if you are not curling then you are sweeping! Little did I know just how energetic curling actually was.

The sport originated from Scotland and was played outside on frozen lakes. Records take the sport back to 1511 in Dunblane, Scotland.

Now ..... imagine the icy slippy pavement in winter ..... and then imagine that not being slippy enough and adding a smooth, slippy sole to one of your shoes and chasing after a 44lb polished, granite stone up a sheet of ice with a brush in your hand .... yep .... that's me :D hahahaha

Here's how it should be done ...

Anyway .. not content with training and coaching sessions and being recruited by a team I also joined another league ..... maybe the cold and the ice are my thing afterall pmsl

Wind Turbines

2008-10-13T13:54:00.005+01:00

I was having a read at some old posts and found this from April 2007. I was out passing this spot again yesterday on the way to Sunday Dinner and had to stop to take a piccy or two.

This spot is about 10 minutes drive from my place and I love the views. Well, there goes my hard exterior image lmao. Scots likes the views in the countryside hahaha. Anyway, there were a lot of cars parked up with their occupants either walking through the hills, looking at the views or fishing on the loch.

I will turn the camera round a bit and show you the 'gorgeous' view of the "hidden" turbines ......

... now call me a bit thick if you like but, I can see a few white, giant turbines sticking out of the beautiful backdrop of the Ochil Hills in Clackmannanshire. I was a little puzzled as I thought they were to be HIDDEN from view. If I drive for and hour and over 60 miles, I can see them from the other side of the hills in Perthshire - very hidden NOT.

Now, I become a bit of a hypocrit here because I do now think that turbines are magical looking structures, towering above everyone and everything, slowly turning in the wind. I just don't think they should be placed in area of local beauty and interest, spoiling the view for evermore.

Puppy

2008-10-13T13:42:00.003+01:00

Here are some pics of the gorgeous Collie puppy that my folks have running about their house.

He has been chasing everything and everyone that comes into the house. A right little bundle of fun.

I was hoping for the name "Hamish" but I will settle for "Skye" hahahaha

Calvaliers and Roundheads

2008-10-09T12:53:00.007+01:00

*** WARNING *** ADULT CONTENT *** WARNING ***

Well I said I would post about the "wee op" and here goes ...

From the heading some will be able to guess that the "wee op" was infact me allowing the surgeon to take a scalpel to my 'bits' and circumcise me. OUCH!

After plucking up the courage, after a LONG time, I decided that a problem that I had (phimosis) needed fixing and I wasn't going to put it off any longer. I did a lot of research on the internet and ploughed through all the rubbish from the "Pro Foreskin Lobby" - (jeez they are a fanatical bunch of weirdos)

and decided that I was going private for the op rather than having it done on the NHS. Other options for differnt solutions were not an option.

Why private? Well, until I started to research this problem I wasn't aware of the number of different "styles" of cut I can actually have. Now don't laugh!!! Sounds like going to the hairdressers - "What style would Sir like?" hahaha. NHS is a one style fits all.

I HATE hospitals and have a real, genuine fear of general anaesthetic so I searched out the best specialist surgeon I could and took the plunge to email and book a consultation. Within 20 minutes of sending an enquiry to the surgery I was emailed back by the Practice Manager and had my surgery booked for 1 week later and flights to London booked also. This is when I started to panic a little as things were moving VERY quickly ... possibly a little too quickly for my liking but with BA flights to London City Airport booked and paid for and the surgery and consultation paid for ... there was no pulling out now.

I didn't tell anyone what I was doing or anything about the surgery until 2 days before I was flying to get the chop. Even after letting family know that I was going into hospital for a bit of surgery, I still wasn't letting on what I was actually having done. My Mum was not happy that I was having surgery and I wasn't telling her or my Dad what I was having done. BUT .... this kind of op isn't the kind of conversation a mother, father and son should be having over the Sunday dinner table lol.

I flew done with no hassles at all ... and a lovely lunch on the plane courtesy of BA. I arrived in London at 13.05 and had the surgeons consultation at 13.25. Thankfully no time at all for worrying or talking myself out of the procedure.

I took a cab to the surgery and was met a reception by the theatre nurse and the practice manager. e sat down for a brief chat and to sign the papers etc before I was taken straight through to see Dr Z, the man who I was going to allow to become very intimate with me lmao.

I had a 30 minute consultation going through all the procedure from start to finish, the aftercare and the possible PROBLEMS!!!! It was then that I had to jump on the consulting table and get my trousers round my ankles for an examination. The EVIL NASTY PPAIN INDUCING BAST*RD only wanted to do something to me that was going to make me hit the roof with pain. "Can you suffer some pain for a short time for me to allow you to see what you will look like after surgery?" NO YOU FU*KING CANNOT. He did laugh and took it in good spirits. He decided it was probably best not to until I was 'frozen up'.

He took me through to the theatre room and I met the theatre nurse again. I was stripped to the waist and laid upon the bed, smothered in freezing cold iodine (as if I wasn't small enough with fear of getting the chop hahaha). It was then that the pain started to become real. 6 injections into my manhood OUCH OUCH OUCH. That was SOOOOOOOO painful and not something I ever wish to feel again lol. Dr Z then did what he wanted to do with no anaesthetic ... and then wanted me to look ... BLOOD! BLOOD everywhere. How the hell he expected me to go through THAT with no anaesthetic I don't know.

He got down to work and encouraged me to watch what was going on. I declined the offer ;o) Out of the corner of my eye I start to notice smoke coming from where he's working. The smell of burning flesh .... I can't go to a BBQ without having flashbacks lol. He was using something like a bleddy soldering iron to seal blood vessels.

The op was over quite quickly and he was sewing me up when I started to feel the needle. The last 5 or 6 stitches were a bit uncomfortable but I was being wrapped in pressure bandages and sent to a recovery room to drink lots of water.

Everything was fine, no pain and I was discharged. Off to the airport and flight back home.

The pain hit when I got home. I could not get any sleep for hours and managed to drift off for about an hour or so. I woke to find myself soaked in blood. PANIC !! I was NOT expecting to wake finding myself and the bedclothes covered in blood. Not just spots of the red stuff .... I was saturated. The pain was tear inducing and I decided this was not what should be happening and called Dr Z. He was fantastic and gave me instructions, advice and put my mind at rest.

I had to call for help from my folks. I could hardly walk hahaha John Wayne walking was my speciality lmao. I obviously explained to the folks what I had been through and within the hour I was being driven to the folks house to be looked after. It is VERY strange to be looked after when you are 34 and especially when I left home at 18 yrs old and being a very independent person ... this was quite difficult for me.

I wasn't allowed to shower or bath for a week - OMG - I love hot showers every day and this was a bit alien hahaha. After a week I was allowed to have a warm salt water bath and I had to CAREFULLY remove the pressure bandgae. Well .... the sight was a shock! My Gran had a new shoulder operation and her wound had 12 stitches. Now I am not bragging or anything .... BUT ... my "wee op" had 30 stitches. The sight of a mans prized posession covered in dried blood and swollen (not in a nice way) and looking like a crochet project gone wrong ... was not a good sight. The bath on the other hand was LOVELY! I had to take 2 of these warm salt baths a day.

Still in huge amounts of pain though and still walking like John Wayne. I was doing some more research on the internet when I came across a mens health site with an adult circumcision help forum. Thank God there were others who were sharing experiences and tips for faster recovery. I made a few really good mates on there and continue to chat to them.

The surgeon told me I would have 2 weeks off my work (I was on holidays at the time) give or take a week. He had told me of a guy who went back to work the following morning hahahahahaha ... I was the exception and had 3 weeks of pain. After the third week I was safe enough to be left alone and comfotable enough to be able to sit and drive.

Now, 3 months on everything is fine, back to normal, functioning fully and I am sssssoooooooooo glad that I eventually had something done about the wee problem hahaha.

Jeez ... this is a really long post and I expect you are all asleep by this time or thinking 'what a wuss he don't know what pain is'. hahahaha Believe me ... I don't ever want to experience pain like I have done with this.

meme

2008-10-07T17:17:00.003+01:00

I have 'borrowed' this from newplanet. Hope he don't mind. Time to find out more about li'l old me ...

1. What was your best job?
The one I have now, although it may be my next one.

2. What were your worst jobs?
Paper Boy when I was a nipper, I hated the early mornings and being out in all weathers.

3. Tell me all the places you worked.
Newspaper shop, Health Food shop, Hotel (kid’s club), Outdoor Activity and Training Centre (Assistant Manager), School.

4. Tell me about your best friend.
My oldest and ‘bestest’ friend is Vicki. We have been mates for years and will remain so for years to come. We have decided that we will be grumpy old gits together in our retiring years, a bit like Jack, Victor and Isa hahaha(Chewin The Fat). We tell each other MOST things. There are some things she doesn’t know about me and I am sure there are some I don’t know about her.

5. Tell me about your family.
Direct family – Mum, Dad, 2 younger brothers and a younger sister and sister in law. Lots of aunts and uncles, cousins and hangers on ;o) One neice or nephew on the way xx

6. Tell me about your relatives.
Too many to mention ... see above.

7. What was your first car?
A Ford Escort. God, I loved that first car. It was a piece of trash and gave you a foot bath when it was raining, but it was my first car. It came to a spectacular end when it was crushed by Big Foot at a public display of monster machines. Ah, the fame!!!

8. Favourite movie star?
Jodie Foster.

9. Favourite entertainer?
Ms Victoria Wood, Ms Karen Dunbar, Mr Frankie Boyle and Mr Craig Hill – my taste is far and wide!

10. Favourite song?
At the moment it is .

11. What were your life changing moments?
Leaving home and going to Uni, first job, promotion, love, yadda yadda yadda

12. First girlfriend/boyfriend?
Oh Jeez. First girlfriend was a lass called Angela when I was about 10 yrs old. Aww the memories ;o) No boyfriend.

13. First kiss?
First kiss would be Angela but first real kiss was an older girl (ooh get me) called Elaine. Apparently when I was younger I was classed as cute by the older girls ... hmmmm now, did I play on that fact or wot!

14. What is the dumbest thing you have ever done?
Reverse my car along the road to let a car pass, and drive right into a tree! Ha ha ha ... so many people saw me do it. I was SO embarrassed.

15. Have you ever been arrested?
No. Came close on a night out in Glasgow but that’s a whole different story – young jumped up police officer! Huh

16. Political affiliation?
Swinger ... as in my vote ya filthy gits!

17. Have you voted for someone you wished you hadn't?
Erm ... nope.

18. Have you used drugs?
As little as possible. Don't like doctors or hospitals and stay away as much as possible.

19. Do you like to shop?
I hate shopping with a passion. I was dragged round shops by a lass every Saturday when I was at Uni – It took all the fun (if it was ever fun) out of shopping!

20. Best way to relax?
A hot bath with lots of bubbles, relaxing music and a glass of something bubbly.

21. Favourite thing to do alone?
The least said about this one the better I feel.

22. Ever had a one night stand?
No comment – I am an angel and have no desire to tarnish my halo ;o)

23. Do you save money?
Yes.

24. What hobbies do you spend money on?
Eating out and drinking (do they count), theatre, concerts, curling. Can’t think of any more at the moment.

25. If you found a $100 note, what would you do?
Lose it again. Well, what use would foreign money be to me?

26. Do you want children/more children?
Possibly. It feels like I have 200 of them with my job though.

27. Are you a good parent?
I am not a parent but with 200 youngsters in my care it feels like I am sometimes and I think I do a damn good job.

28. What makes a good parent?
Love, compassion, understanding, good listener, fair ... the list goes on and on

29. Are you romantic?
I am a romantic at heart. Long winter walks beside the river with the snow falling, arm in arm with A N Other, wrapped up warm, stopping at a roasted chestnut stall at the riverside market and eating those as we walk home to a roaring real log fire to enjoy the rest of the afternoon ;o)

30. Ever lose a pet?
Yes.

31. Dog or cat?
Dog.

32. Pets growing up?
4 dogs, rabbit, guinea pig, birds, hamsters, goldfish.

33. Sleep in the nude?
Sometimes, but not when it’s cold.

34. Favourite midnight snack?
roasted cheese sandwich with lashings of Lea & Perrins.

35. Do you exercise?
I do a little but I have let my gym membership lapse and should really get back into the gym. Used to be there 4 times a week (an no I wasn't 'just' perving) – jeez what a glutton for punishment.

36. Did you ever see your parents making love?
Thankfully, NEVER!!!

37. Peanut butter and what?
I hate peanut butter.

38. What is one food you will never give up?
Pasta.

39. What is a food you can live without?
Anything with a creamy sauce.

40. Favourite drink?
Coke – addicted to the stuff.

41. Perfect day?
Beautiful sunlight streaming through the window. Get up and open the door to the sounds of the sea lapping against the shore and the birds singing in the trees. Breakfast outside in the garden under the sun. Walk along the beach. Take a swim in the sea and lie under the sun to dry off ..... you get the picture ... Do I need to go on?

42. How many CDs do you own?
Far too many.

43. How many DVDs do you own?
Again, far too many.

44. Favourite thing to spend money on?
Food, drink and travel.

45. What is the weirdest thing about you?
Erm ... curl my tongue.

46. What is on your bedside table?
Lamp, alarm clock, phone and a book.

47. Are you cheap or thrifty?
A bit of both depending on my mood lol but prefer to be neither.

48. Ever been in love with two people at the same time?
No. Have I ever really been in love?

49. Grades in high school?
Not too good but they were good enough to get me into Uni and a job I love.

50. Favourite teacher and why?
Mrs Anderson. Old (really old) teacher who had actually taught my mum when she was at primary school too. She lived along the road from us and I used to get sent on messages to her house if she’d forgotten something. I still remember little tricks of the trade she taught me. When I became a teacher she offered me her Lochgelly Tause ;o) hahaha

51. Relatives in jail?
Nope.

52. Toppings on pizza?
I like plain cheese n tomato with torn basil leaves and pesto with black pepper and parmesan.

53. Black or white?
White or black underwear but not multicoloured.

54. Glass half full or half empty?
Kinda depends ... mostly half full unless I am in a really depressed mood.

55. Ever been to a food shelf?
Almost daily at the supermarket.

56. Ever milked a cow?
Nope. Cows are WAY to big and ugly to go near those bits!

57. Ever tipped a cow?
Nope. Poor beast!

58. Bath or shower?
Prefer a shower, although mine has given up the ghost this morning ... Imagine my reaction when I jumped under a freezing cold jet of water this morning! Hahaha I do like to relax in a hot bath though!

59. Mountains or the beach?
Beach.

60. Plane, train or automobile?
I love flying so planes all the way.

61. Favourite all time movie?
Too many good un’s to choose from.

62. Worst movie you have ever seen?
Hadalgo – it’s a long story, don’t ask!

63. Best concert you have been to?
Don’t laugh too much ... Deacon Blue. Was in Glasgow and the party started on the train with friends on the way through with bubbly and Pimms hahahaha A great meal, almost got caught up in a fight (see above almost arrested) blagged great area that we hadn’t paid for and had a great night.

64. Beer, wine or coffee?
Wine.

65. Best vacation?
Barbados or Egypt are probably the best and most memorable.

66. If you could retire tomorrow what would you do?
Travel round the world on a luxury cruise liner.

67. Worst vacation?
Haven’t had a bad one really.

68. Three places you would love to visit?
Kenya, Canada and NYC.

69. Worst boss?
Nasty bitch of a HT who didn’t back me up when I was assaulted by a pupil. She took action though when the little ****** assaulted her ;o) Oh how I laughed!

70. If you could do anything what would it be?
I am a great believer in the spirit life and trying not to be too similar to newplanet, I’d love to me able to speak to the spirit world as a medium.

71. Super powers you wish you had?
Wish I could fly.

72. Ever had a massage?
No. Couldn’t imagine anything worse. I hate being “exposed” and under someone’s control.

73. Ideal romantic dinner?
Gorgeous company, candlelit Italian meal, beautiful wine ..... and who knows. ;o)

74. Dumbest purchase you ever made?
My last car. Had my “turning 30 crisis” and bought a fabulous sports car but had no thought about the money I’d be shelling out on petrol every day as I travel over 60 miles a day to work.

75. Where did you find money when you were flat broke?
I have always had a job of some sort. I used credit cards (EVIL) and decided to get rid of them all (yes, I had 3 maxed out cards) as I was getting further and further into debt. Mum and Dad were FANTASTIC when I was desperate at Uni.

76. Ever sold blood?
Sold blood? What the hell????? I don’t even give blood to the Blood Transfusion Service – it’s mine, all mine!

77. What sporting event/concert/entertainment would you buy tickets to regardless of price?
I’ll have to think about that one.

78. Ever hit a jackpot on a slot machine?
Have won £25 on one once, but that was all.

79. Ever won the lottery?
The odd £10 here and there. My mum did get 5 of the 6 numbers though ;o)

80. What would you do with your lottery winnings?
Family, friends, charity, homes (yes, plural) cars and holidays.

81. Are you a neat freak?
At work - yes. At home – NO! Jeez, what a mess this place is in.

82. Can't stand being around people who_________?
... are so far up their own backsides they have lost touch with reality.

83. Crowds or small groups?
Small groups.

84. How old do you want to live to?
As long as I can.

85. Lose your sight or hearing?
Oh jeez. Erm ..... hearing I think, if I really had to choose.

86. Ever had a crush on a member of the same sex?
Erm ... yes. See answer to No. 4 hahaha

87. Pet peeves?
2 faced-ness (is there such a word?)

88. Most annoying/gross habit?
I don’t have any ... pfffffttt.

89. Sexiest parts of a member of the opposite/same sex?
Eyes and legs.

90. Major turn offs?
Burping, farting and swearing.

91. Tattoos?
Don’t have any atr the moment but I am searching for a fabby design for my back.

93. Piercings?
No. Don’t like piercings.

94. Plastic surgery - would you/have you?
No and no.

95. Computer geek?
Define geek.

96. Trekee?
Deffo not.

97. Play an instrument?
I used to play flute and cello when I was very young but to a very poor standard. My cello was taller than me hahaha.

98. Been in a band?
In a band - no. Have sung on stage in musicals though ;o)

99. Most embarrassing moment?
Realised that my flies were undone at the END of a parents night at school. Oh the shame. I was wearing very nice boxies though lol.

100. Nude beach yes or no?
Yes. How else would I get that all over tan that I lust after? Skinny dipping is very .... erm ... invigorating! lmao

SCATTERGORIES

2008-10-07T15:47:00.001+01:00

GIVE IT A TRY.

SCATTERGORIES...it's harder than it looks!

Use the 1st letter of your name to answer each of the following.
They have to be real places, names, things.. nothing made up!

WHAT IS YOUR NAME:
James

BOY NAME:
Jamie

4 LETTER WORD:
jump

GIRL NAME:
Jessica

OCCUPATION:
jazz musician

A COLOUR:
jade

SOMETHING YOU WEAR:
jersey

BEVERAGE:
juice

FOOD:
jambalaya

SOMETHING FOUND IN A BATHROOM:
jacuzzi

A PLACE :
Jamaica

REASON FOR BEING LATE:
jetlag

SOMETHING YOU SHOUT:
juuuuummmmpppp

a wee update

2008-08-20T21:30:00.005+01:00

Just been having a wee chat with some maties - trying to take my mind off things .... life .... whatever!

I must have been a right nasty bast*rd in a past life cause the past few years have been SHITE! Not to me personally but to those around me.

Got a call from my dad to tell me that my uncle had been involved in a head on car smash and had been trapped for over 2 hours before being airlifted to hospital. Now in intensive care on a life support machine :( Been on machines now for a week. He is stable but critical. Same ICU that my dad was in - now that is spooky!

My own "wee problem" has almost fully healed lol - no more wincing pain when I move about and the swelling is all but disappeared. I can tell ya ..... I would never want to go through that amount of discomfort again :) - what a woose I am :D

I did say that I would tell you all about it (no piccys though ... I aint wanting an X rated blog) - and my next post will do just that .... men .... warning .... you may wish to cross your legs and hold the jewels tight ... it's eye watering stuff!

On a lighter note ... mum and dad got themselves a new puppy. He is gorgeous! A cute little black and white fluff ball border collie. I will upload a piccy or two of him soon.

Also ... went to a family BBQ 2 weeks ago and was told that I am gonna be an uncle ... yeah! An official uncle (I have a few unofficial nephews and neices!) - kid is gonna be spoiled. The "bump" ... there aint much of one but sis in law likes to think there is (3 months) .. has a nickname. Yes, my bro and his wife have nicknamed the bump. The 3 month scan looked so much like a baked bean they have called it Heinz. Thankfully not to be called that after it's born :o)

well .... just a quickie ... I will get round all the blogs that I love reading and visiting - kinda missing the stories, posts, pics and gossip!

Luv you all

XXXxxxXXX

OUCH

2008-08-05T14:38:00.002+01:00

Howdy all in Blogland

Just a short message to say I am recovering from the surgery, very tender and popping painkillers like smarties!

If I had known a simple op was going to take weeks to heal I may not have bothered lol - I am VERY impatient and don't make a good patient hahaha

Staying with the family at the moment cause I haven't been able to do much but should be home and back to "normal" soon hahaha

Hope you are all well xxxxx

I'll tell you all about the burning flesh and smoke, 6 injections instead of 3, the bloodbath, delayed flights and a very sorry for himself Scotz in a post next week ... oh I can so tell everyone wants to hear my woes pmsl xx

Tomorrows future

2008-07-19T12:43:00.002+01:00

This was sent to me in an email and I thought I'd share ...

WHEN YOU THOUGHT I WASN'T LOOKING

A message every adult should read because children
are watching you and doing as you do, not as you say.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you hang my
first painting on the refrigerator, and I immediately
wanted to paint another one.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you feed a
stray cat, and I learned that it was good to be kind
to animals.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make my
favorite cake for me, and I learned that the little
things can be the special things in life.

When you thought I wasn't looking I heard you say a
prayer, and I knew that there is a God I could always
talk to, and I learned to trust in Him.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make a
meal and take it to a friend who was sick, and I
learned that we all have to help take care of each
other.

When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw you give of
your time and money to help people who had nothing,
and I learned that those who have something should
give to those who don't.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you take care
of our house and everyone in it, and I learned we have
to take care of what we are given.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw how you
handled your responsibilities, even when you didn' t
feel good, and I learned that I would have to be
responsible when I grow up.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw tears come
from your eyes, and I learned that sometimes things
hurt, but it's all right to cry.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw that you
cared, and I wanted to be everything that I could be.

When you thought I wasn't looking I learned most of
life's lessons that I need to know to be a good and
productive person when I grow up.

When you thought I wasn't looking I looked at you and
wanted to say,'Thanks for all the things I saw when
you thought I wasn't looking.'

Each of us (parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, teacher, friend)
influences the life of a child.

What wine are you?

2008-07-19T12:42:00.001+01:00

Being a bit of a lover of wine and bubbly, this was a must for me ...

You Are Chardonnay

Fresh, spirited, and classic - you have many facets to your personality.

You can be sweet and light. Or deep and complex.

You have a little bit of something to offer everyone... no wonder you're so popular.

Approachable and never smug, you are easy to get to know (and love!).

Deep down you are: Dependable and modest

Your partying style: Understated and polite

Your company is enjoyed best with: Cold or wild meat

What Kind of Wine Are You?

FINISHED

2008-07-16T18:27:00.003+01:00

After tripping over packs of wooden flooring for months I thought it was about time that I lifted the carpet in my lounge and fitted the new floor.

On impulse, I bought a whole load of antique oak flooring over a year ago and nearly killed my poor car driving it back from Glasgow. I had originally gone to Glasgow for a bit of a wander round the shops and wasn't expecting to have 14 x 16kg packs filling up the car.

I started yesterday afternoon and have been on my hands and knees since. All finished now .. phew! I now have wallpaper to strip, skirting to fit and then wallpaper to hang. I was hoping to get away with painting the walls but they are such a mess that I can't without having them all re-skimmed and I really can't be bothered with that.

The plan is to have the walls stripped and ready for wallpapering by Saturday. I may be forced to call on my mum to do the wallpapering for me .. she's a bit of an expert at it and she'll do it in half the time that I will ;o) - and what are mums for? hahaha

Back

2008-07-14T09:37:00.002+01:00

My oh my ... it's been a long time ... but here I am back in blog world.

I have been catching up on blogs this morning. I can't actually believe that I am up so early in the morning at the start of week 3 of my holidays .... but I was woken up at 08:10 by the practice manager of a surgery that I am visiting next week and now can't get back to sleep! I am lazily typing this as I lie here in bed hahaha

I finally plucked the courage to have a wee problem fixed. Had I realised that it would mean me going for private healthcare and travelling to London for surgery ... I may have decided not to bother.

We do have a fabulous NHS service in this country - despite some flaws - but after deciding that I needed to get this done, I didn't want to wait for a consultant appointment and then wait a very long time for surgery appointment .... so Internet searching came into its own and off I went looking for the best surgeon I could find.

Now that the procedure is booked and flights paid for I am not looking forward to next Monday at all!

Men are typically not good dealing with medical things and because this is a problem of a "male only type" I don't relish the thought of a surgeons scalpel chopping away .. down below lol

My surgeon will meet with me to do an examination and consultation to discuss all the options open to me and then ... thankfully ... straight into theatre without the need to wait and worry and change my mind! Thankfully, it's not a long procedure and unlike the NHS, this guy is going to do the procedure under local anaesthetic rather than a general.

Am I looking forward to Monday? No!!!! Am I looking forward to the results? Well, after 2 weeks of bathing 3 times a day and pressure dressings and then a further 2 weeks of "light use" hahaha I wish there was even light duties at the moment lmao .. then yes I will be happier!

Don't play with it!!!!

2008-04-27T20:18:00.005+01:00

Get your filthy minds out of the gutter! We are talking food here. Do you remember your parents telling you not to play with your food? I wonder how long these took ....

just for a laugh

2008-04-20T15:31:00.005+01:00

I was sent a fantastic email with some alternative titles for kids books. They made me laugh so much that I thought I'd share them ...

THE WOMBLES GO HAPPY SLAPPING ...

THE VERY ANGRY CATERPILLAR ...

LITTLE MISS TEEN PERGNANCY ...

THE BIG NODDY DOGGING BOOK ...

THE SECRET GARDEN ... (took me a while to spot the type of garden this was!)

SPOT THE DOG ... (bit bitchy this one!)

OMG, WTF, BFG ...

BUNTY - DONNA'S ON THE GAME ...

BI-CURIOUS GEORGE ...

WHERE GLUE COMES FROM ...

LITTLE MISS TRANSVESTITE ...

I hope you have a good chuckle to yourselves, I certainly did :o)

A bit of culture ...

2008-04-12T16:08:00.009+01:00

I feel like a bit of a stranger in blog-land. I haven't been here for a wee bit due to being worked off my ass, medical issues of my own (nothing serious ... "men's problems" hahaha) family medical issues (thankfully not McTavish) and strange phone calls from a Private Investigator!!! I'll keep all of these for future use :o)

Anyway, I promised a bit of culture ....

I was out and about with a couple of friends and we decided to head off on our usual road trips on a cold and wet Sunday a couple of weeks ago.

After many miles, we ended up in Melrose and decided a culture trip to Melrose Abbey was in order.

Melrose Abbey was founded around 1136 by King David I and was dedicated to the Virgin Mary. Richard II, in retaliation for a raid by the Scots in 1385, sent a force North of the border which burnt the Abbey to the ground. Work started on the complete rebuilding of the Abbey almost as soon as Richard's forces had left, and it is the remains of this new building which we see now.

The heart of King Robert I (The Bruce) is buried in a leaden casket in Melrose Abbey. Widely recognised as the greatest knight in Christendom, Robert the Bruce had always wished to take part in a crusade. His wish was fulfilled only after his death, when his embalmed heart was carried in a leaden casket on a crusade by his great friend James Douglas who was killed in battle. Bruce's heart was brought back to Melrose and buried in the Abbey.

The inscription beside the place where his heart is buried reads:
"with gret worshyp has gert bery The kingis hart at the abbey Off Melros ..."
- roughly translated as - 'The King's heart buried with great solemnity at the Abbey of Melrose'.

When walking amongst the ruins and climbing the very narrow staircase to the roof platform of the Abbey, I saw many of the gargoyles with their strange faces and large open mouths for the rain water. The statues and large, towering spires with their fancy and elaborate carvings were gorgeous, but I was getting frozen to death in the biting cold wind and decided to head down the stairs and back to ground level again.

A beautiful and very peaceful place to visit, steeped in Scottish history. Highly recommended from me!

A whole load of birthday!

2008-03-15T16:07:00.009Z

Well, Scots is back, for the moment anyways! I got far too lax about posting here and my time got taken up with a hundred and one other things ... but after logging on and catching up ... I thought I'd post again.

I received an email this morning from a good matie with a link to a birthday site. Now, it aint my birthday - that has passed a couple of months ago, but I though I'd put in my DOB and see what happened.

See what facts you get here!

Here are some of the facts that appeared on the screen .....

You were born on a Tuesday
under the astrological sign Aquarius.
Your Life path number is 6.

Your fortune cookie reads:
None of the secrets of success will work unless you do.

Your birthday falls into the Chinese year beginning 1/23/1974 and ending 2/10/1975.
You were born in the Chinese year of the Tiger.

Your Native American Zodiac sign is Otter; your plant is Fern.

You were born in the Egyptian month of Parmuthy, the fourth month of the season of Poret (Emergence - Fertile soil).

You are 34 years old.
You are 410 months old.
You are 1,780 weeks old.
You are 12,464 days old.
You are 299,148 hours old.
You are 17,948,891 minutes old.
You are 1,076,933,474 seconds old.

Your age is the equivalent of a dog that is 4.87827788649706 years old. (You're still chasing cats!)

Your lucky day is Saturday.
Your lucky number is 4 & 8.
Your ruling planet(s) is Saturn & Uranus.
Your lucky dates are 1st, 10th, 19th, 28th.
Your opposition sign is Leo.
Your opposition number(s) is 1.

Today is not one of your lucky days!

There are 320 days till your next birthday
on which your cake will have 35 candles.

Those 35 candles produce 35 BTUs,
or 8,820 calories of heat (that's only 8.8200 food Calories!) .
You can boil 4 ounces of water with that many candles.

Your birthstone is Garnet. Garnet is used as a power stone.

Your birth tree is the Cypress Tree.

The Faithfulness - Strong, muscular, adaptable, takes what life has to give, happy content, optimistic, needs enough money and acknowledgment, hates loneliness, passionate lover which cannot be satisfied, faithful, quick-tempered, unruly, pedantic and careless.

WOW ..... now I had to find out what the "life path number 6" was all about ...

The Life Path 6 suggests that you entered this plane with tools to become the ultimate nurturer, and a beacon for truth, justice, righteousness, and domesticity. Your paternal, or maternal, as the case may be, instincts with a 6 Life Path exceed all others by a considerable margin. Whether in the home or in the work place, you are the predominant caretaker and family head. While the 6 may assume significant responsibilities in the community, the life revolves around the immediate home and family, for this is the most domestic of numbers. Conservative principles and convictions are deeply ingrained and define your character.

You are idealistic and must feel useful to be happy. The main contribution you make is that of advice, service, and ever present support. You are a humanitarian of the first order. It is your role to serve others, and you start in the home environment. You are very human and realistic about life, and you feel that the most important thing in your life is the home, the family and the friends.

This is the Life Path related to leadership by example and assumption of responsibility, thus, it is your obligation to pick up the burden and always be ready to help. If you are like the majority with Life Path 6, you are one who will willingly carry far more than your fair share of any load, and you are always there when needed. In doing so, you take ownership and often become an authority over the situation.

In romance, the 6 is loyal and devoted. A a caretaker type, you are apt to attract partners who are somewhat weaker and more needy than yourself; someone you can care for and protect. The main ingredient that must prevail in the relationship is complete harmony. You don't function well in stressful relationships that become challenges for you to control. It is the same with friends, you are loyal and trustworthy. But there is a tendency for you to become dominating and controlling.

It's likely you feel compelled to function with strength and compassion. You are a sympathetic and kind person, generous with personal and material resources. Wisdom, balance, and understanding are the cornerstones of your life, and these define your approach to life in general. Your extraordinary wisdom and the ability to understand the problems of others is apt to commence from an early age. This allows you to easily span the generation gap and assume an important role in life early on.

The number 6 Life Path actually produces few negative examples, but there are some pitfalls peculiar to the path. You may have a tendency to become overwhelmed by responsibilities and a slave to others, especially members of you own family or close friends. It's easy for you to fall into a pattern of being too critical of others; you also have a tendency to become to hard on yourself. The misuse of this Life Path produce tendencies for you to engage in exaggeration, over-expansiveness, and self-righteousness. Modesty and humility may not flow easily. Imposing one's views in an interfering or meddling way must be an issue of concern.

The natural burdens of this number are heavy, and on rare occasions, responsibility is abdicated by persons with this Life Path 6. This rejection of responsibility will make you feel very guilty and uneasy, and it will have very damaging effects upon your relationships with others.

or .... am I just ..... me!?!
JEEZO .... a huge amount of that is very true - perhaps there is more to this than meets the eye? :o)

The best of British ;o)

2008-03-15T15:26:00.000Z

12 of the finest double-entendres that have been aired on British TV & Radio

1. Pat Glenn, weightlifting commentator - 'And this is Gregoriava fromBulgaria. I saw her snatch this morning and it was amazing!'

2. New Zealand Rugby Commentator - 'Andrew Mehrtens loves it when DarylGibson comes inside of him'

3. Ted Walsh - Horse Racing Commentator - 'This is really a lovelyhorse. I once rode her mother.'

4. Harry Carpenter at the Oxford-Cambridge boat race 1977 - 'Ah, isn'tthat nice. The wife of the Cambridge President is kissing the Cox of theOxford crew.'

5. US PGA Commentator - 'One of the reasons Arnie (Arnold Palmer) isplaying so well is that, before each tee shot, his wife takes out hisballs and kisses them ..... Oh my god!! What have I just said??'

6. Carenza Lewis about finding food in the Middle Ages on 'Time TeamLive' said: 'You'd eat beaver if you could get it.'

7. A female news anchor who, the day after it was supposed to havesnowed and didn't, turned to the weatherman and asked, 'So Bob, where'sthat eight inches you promised me last night?' Not only did HE have toleave the set, but half the crew did too, because they were laughing sohard!

8. Steve Ryder covering the US Masters: 'Ballesteros felt much bettertoday after a 69 yesterday'

9. Clair Frisby talking about a jumbo hot dog on Look Northsaid: 'There's nothing like a big hot sausage inside you on a cold nightlike this.'

10. Mike Hallett discussing missed snooker shots on SkySports: 'Stephen Hendry jumps on Steve Davis's misses every chance hegets.'

11. Michael Buerk on watching Phillipa Forrester cuddle up to a maleastronomer for warmth during BBC1's UK eclipse coverage remarked:'They seem cold out there, they're rubbing each other and he's only comein his shorts.'

12. Ken Brown commentating on golfer Nick Faldo and his caddie FannySunneson lining-up shots at the Scottish Open: 'Some weeks Nick likes touse Fanny, other weeks he prefers to do it by himself.'

Feeling kinda grumpy, kinda down in the dumpy!

2008-02-24T10:28:00.004Z

Oh how I hate this time of year with all the little darlings coming in bearing many many little bugs and viruses.

I have a bad cold now, which is leading to blocked sinuses .... I am the true "face ache" and to top it all off ..... I now have a throat infection too .... booo hooo!!!

Jeez .. my nose is like a shining beacon that can be seen at 500 paces and I have gone through 2 boxes of snot-rags (tissues) in the last 2 days ffs. I need to take shares in Kleenex, I think.

As if that wasn't enough for poor me to cope with ..... I broke a tooth on Thursday at lunch. I had just finished a lovely bowl of parsnip and pumpkin soup with crusty bread and butter and had decided to have a cheese and ham toasted sandwich to follow - BIG MISTAKE.

I was about to take my last bite of the sandwich when I felt a strange feeling at the back of my mouth. One tooth (a right big fecker) had partly broken off at gum level. The space left was VERY sensitive to heat and cold - the weather was rotten and taking a breath of cold air nearly made me turn the air blue LOL.

A phonecall to my dentist and an emergency appointment was made for the following morning at 9.20am. When I got to the surgery on Friday morning I wasmet by a sea of people all in similar situations to myself. This was going to be a long wait!

I finally got taken through to "the chair" at 10.20am and the lovely dentist had the tooth built back up and had me on my way within 30 minutes. I only missed half a day at work .... shame :o) hahahaha.

So, face-ache blocked sinuses on the left and frozen mouth on the right .... I was a complete picture of "happiness" :o) ..... NOT.

Hopefully this coming week will NOT bring quite as much hassle in my direction and hopefully this cold and grotty feeling will soon disappear.

Defence of the Dark Arts

2008-02-18T12:47:00.006Z

NO ... not Harry Potter .... the bloody spying little trojan feckers!

I am running an anti-virus and spyware firewall but the little bugger seems to have gotten through the defences! Here's a trojan ...

OOPS .. that's the condom collection ... I meant this ....

I have used 3 different spyware detection and removal programmes, just to make sure, and I have more protection running on this computer than I know what to do with. Hmmmm wonder if that's the reason I can type one letter every 10 seconds now? LOL

The confusing thing is that, depending on the spyware programme that you run - you get different results! How bloody confusing is that?

Anyway .... all cleaned and protected - that's the reason for sharing the trojan condoms! hahaha

And .... Marmy ...... here's a wee something for you ...

It's amazing what sh*te people put on the net these days (THIS IS NOT ME)

V.D.

2008-02-14T21:04:00.005Z

Oh dear me ... it's VD time again :o(

That's Valentines Day by the way .... not any other variation of VD !!!!!!!!

Here's a big smoochy kiss to you all and a bunch of roses! xxxxx

Well, now that the formalities are out of the way I can celebrate my 100th blog posting!!!!! Yeeeeha :o)

Been having a bit of a tough time with bits n bobs happening over the past couple of weeks but I see light on the horizon hahaha .. and I, Scots, am back!! BEWARE!!

PS ... I aint no GINGER scots git ya cheeky mare!

I feel like I should be getting a telegram from Her Maj :o)

A Winter Wonderland .... well ... sort of

2008-02-02T09:40:00.000Z

Oh the excitement .... as the weather forecaster woke me up with comments about blizzards, gale force winds, deep snow and travel chaos! My first thoughts were - will I be able to get from my wee backwards village, through the country roads and onto the motorway? Where did I file the emergency closure policy for the school, just incase we have to close? ha ha ha ... I have my priorities right.

Did I need to bother? You guessed it .... did I feck! I opened the blinds a crack - just enough to look out at the weather and not enough to give anyone a fright at seeing me starkers at the window ha ha ha ha!! NOT a sign of any snow activity at all.

I drove to school with no bother and did get a little excited as there was a small flurry of the elusive white stuff ... but then .... NOTHING!!!!!

The travel report kept cutting off Radio 1 and Chris Moyles, to tell me about closed roads due to drifting snow, travel chaos due to bad snow ..... where was it???? It certainly hadn't reached anywhere I was driving through.

At work the wind was bitingly (if that is not a word it should be) cold and blowing fiercely around the grounds whipping up dropped crisp packets .... oooohhhh wait till I get all the little cherubs at assesmbly - a captive audience - dropping litter is a wee bug bear of mine! mwahhahaha <<< evil laugh!!

I looked out my office window and noticed the large, fluffy white SNOWflakes falling to ground .... oooohhhh the excitement. I could hear some kids in the corridors talking about the "blizzard" outside, about sledging and snowmen. I went up to the window and my excitement levels dropped as it was melting on contact with the ground and it certainly wasn't going to be lying easily.

The drive home was no more unusual than normal, some high winds, but no sign of the white stuff that was supposedly going to cause widespread chaos across Central Scotland.

When I eventually went to bed last night there had been a little 'icing sugar' dusting of snow and there may have been the same again over night BUT none of the major snow that we were forecast!!

A disappointed, one year older, Scots!! :o(

FURIOUS !!!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-01-20T12:34:00.001Z

A few posts ago, when I was at a bit of an all time low, I mentioned a friend who turned up 'out of the blue' to stay with friends of mine. He came with a story of how he had been in hospital and was bleeding from his eyes etc etc - resulting in him being told he had between 3 and 6 months to live.

His house had been broken into and those responsible had ransacked the place, ruining much of the furniture and stealing a lot of his possessions ...

WELL, AT LEAST THAT'S WHAT HE SAID AT THE TIME!!!!!

The friends he was staying with have been like a second family to me and when M called in tears to tell me what had happened, I lost all faith and started to question much of what he had said. I was so angry that I had to put the phone down, rant and rage and then call her back! I am not someone who angers easily!!

Whilst staying with my friends, he lied to, and stole from, them. 3 Christmas presents were taken and a large amount of money was also stolen from the house. Money which did not belong to my friends, but which belonged to many people they were buying theatre tickets for. My friends run a theatre club, running trips to the theatre for many older folks in the town and surrounding area that wouldn't normally manage to get to Glasgow or Edinburgh. The ticket money had been collected and a large portion was stolen.

He was apparently also opening a new business. Rightly or wrongly, I started to question much of what he had said and I went all Miss Marple and started to investigate for myself. The new business DOES NOT exist! He has moved house and changed phone and mobile numbers. There was absolutely NO communication of any kind over the Christmas and New Year period which was very strange as he calls at least once per week - he knows that we now know!!!

I am now questioning the hospital stay and the 3-6 month diagnosis. My friends decided to call the hospital where he had apparently been admitted and where he had all his tests. As he had gone missing we asked if he had been admitted again and explained the story about having a tumour etc etc and were told that the last admission was months and months ago - there was NO recent admission to hospital!

Words fail me when I think about how we have all been taken for a ride by this complete and utter fu*kign bas*ard. He had few family and real friends and has completely isolated himself from those he did have by telling lies that had us all in a very emotional state thinking he only had months to live, all the time he was stealing and fabricating this elaborate story!

The silence from him and change of address and phone number with no communication tells me, he knows what he has done. The friends he stayed with have replaced the stolen money and stolen presents but I know that they have been shattered by this experience, M inparticular, who has stood by him through a very messy divorce and some very low times.

I sincerely hope that he NEVER contacts any of us again, I don't want to hear any pathetic excuses and I certainly don't want two very close friends, M and R, to go through all this again!

Sorry that my first post back was a bit of a 'hum-dinger'!!!! I have been spending huge amounts of time at work after the holidays and have been doing some extra work for a local university so I have had little time to actually spend updating this wee ditty - I will be more regular from now on :o)

McTavish is doing really well at the moment. He and mum had a bit of a war of words, she felt he was wallowing in self-pity and not helping himself - since which he has made a great return to the man he used to be :o) bloody argumentative and grumpy git hahaha and he's very slowly putting on weight and getting stronger and healthier each day :o)

me ...

2008-01-03T11:17:00.000Z

Thanks to CASDOK for this .... saw it on her side panel and got curious lol

The Recipe For Scots

3 parts Wit
2 parts Aspiration
1 part Prosperity

Splash of Flirtation

Sip slowly on the beach

What's the Recipe for Your Personality?

PS ... it's started snowing again hahahaha

Happy New Year!

2008-01-03T10:15:00.000Z

A very happy and prosperous New Year to everyone! xx Here's hoping that 2008 is miles better than 2007 has been.

The last of the turkey has gone, the decorations are down and life can start to get back to normal after the festivities .... or can it?

I am writing this new year blog from the study and I am watching the snow falling from the grey, cold sky and I have to say that it is getting very heavy. Doesn't look as if it is going to stop either - I love falling snow! I just don't like it once it has fallen and it starts to get all slushy and dirty. Pure white, driven snow - there's nothing like it to lift the spirits after weeks of frost and rain.

A quick update from the holidays ....

I enjoyed a large family Christmas with my mum and dad, brother and his wife, sister and her boyfriend, youngest brother and my nan with friends and other family dropping in throughout the day. Much was eaten and there are quite a few empty bottles for recycling :o)

The day after Boxing Day I got a phone call from a company who were delivering my new leather suite. I had ordered the suite in July and it had taken this long to come. Originally I was promised a 10 week delivery date but after 12 weeks I got a call from the company telling me there had been a problem and they were having to re-order the suite from Italy. Bloody cheek!!!

Well, true to their promise I got a call on the Thursday at about 4.30pm saying they had arrived to deliver. Now, to let you understand, I live in a flat (well a flat of sorts as I have an upstairs and loft ... but classed as a flat). A first floor flat, so there weren't too many stairs for the chaps to climb and deliver my suite. I had ordered a 2 seater sofa and a 3 seater sofa and I could tell from the look on the delivery mens faces that they were less than impressed by the amount of stairs!

There were arguments about the size of the front door and the internal door but they would give it a try. "Junior" was sent to the lorry to prepare the sofas whilst the other two chaps hummmmmmmmed and haaaaaawwwweeeeddddd over the size of the 3 seater and the size of the door.

The swearing was colourful, the 3 delivery men falling out with each other was a right laugh but with a few trapped fingers a bloody elbow and some very high blood pressure - the delivery was complete. I now have the problem that when I leave this wee village I may not be taking the leather sofas with me as I can't see them getting back out of the flat! lmao

..... what else has hapened? ... oh yes ... the snow that I thought wasn't going to stop .... well it just has!!!! So much for the crippling snow in Scotland today! hahahaha ... another washout.

McTavish continues to get better at home and was out and about visiting my sister on Hogmanay. My aunt, his sister, lost her husband (my uncle lol) just before Christmas last year and I was really chuffed to see her through staying with mum and dad and out visiting my wee sis for New Year celebrations.

I personally HATE New Year .... I'll not go into it too much, but for reasons in the past, it is one of the festivities that I try to steer clear of as much as possible. I was in bed just after midnight but couldn't actually get to sleep until 5.20am!!!!!!! I was NOT chuffed at all.

I have, two doors away, a family from hell! Their Hogmanay party started at 1am and I could hear the words to their music in my house! I would not liked to have been living directly beside them that's for sure! I had no problem with the music and their party as it was New Year and they were celebrating .... I did have a problem with the 3 street fights that were started with their family and others who were first-footing! Watching grown-up (ha ha), drunken men and women fighting in the street (the main high street trhough this village) with cars and taxis swerving round them fighting is not a good advert for the village (or ghetto) or the family from hell! They eventually ran out of steam and went their different ways. The music stopped at 5am, coinciding with the last of the 3 fights hahahaha - oh the joys! I was able to get some sleep and later found out that I was awake longer then my friends who were out partying! huh!

Anyway .... that is all behind us now and I am enjoying the last of the Christmas holidays before the schools return on January 7th.

PS ... the snow has all but melted away and the sun is shining again ... hahaha Scotland without snow ... how sad!

I'll leave you with a wee pic I have found of my local area in winter ...

Merry Christmas

2007-12-24T21:55:00.000Z

Tis the season to be jolly ......

We have the best Christmas present ever .... dad (aka McTavish) is out of hospital and back home :o) All the family are meeting at my folks house for Christmas day which should be a great, if emotional occasion.

I will return after the Christmas period ... back to normal, I hope, to blog away the hours. I haven't been around much and apologise, but I didn't really have a great amount of time.

I'll tell you all about the staff night out where some poor slapper from another establishment had saved up all her pennies to buy a Christmas dress but had spent so much she obviously couldn't afford any knickers LOL and fell flat on her arse on the dancefloor to show everyone!!!!! LMFAO ... and the member of my staff who went outside for a cigarette and missed the raffle draw and her prize of 6 bottles of Moet ... shame ... maybe she'll have given up by next year PMSL

All that is left for tonight is to wish you all a fantastic Christmas and fabby New Year.

LOADS and loads of love, hugs and kisses .... Scotz XXXXXXXXXX

12 Days of Christmas

2007-12-16T18:46:00.000Z

That time is nearly upon us again (an not a present bought yet!!) I was listening to Sarah Kennedy on BBC Radio 2 last week when she played this .....

I was in stitches and had to share it with you :o)

McTavish Update - He is now back in hospital in Perth - I will not be missing the journeys to Dundee! He is much better and actually smiling and joking again. Hopefully be out by Christmas :o)

Kylie and George

2007-12-09T16:51:00.000Z

.... NO ... not another weird celebrity couple lol!!! Came across this and had such a laugh .....

The Drunk Test

2007-12-02T12:43:00.000Z

The police in this great country of ours have been issued with a test to help them decide if someone is drunk or not! What next? Is it really that hard to spot a jakey?

Here are some of the indicators:

Noticeable change in behaviour: bad tempered, aggressive, offensive language, becoming loud, boisterous or disorderly, becoming physically violent, becoming incoherent, slurring or making mistakes in speech, becoming argumentative.

Lack of judgment: being careless with money, annoying other persons, inappropriate sexual behaviour, drinking quickly or competitively.

Clumsiness and loss of coordination: swaying, staggering, difficulty with walking, falling down, bumping into furniture, spilling drinks, difficulty in picking up change and fumbling for cigarettes or other items.

Decreased alertness: drowsiness, dozing or sleeping, rambling conversation, loss of train of thought, difficulty in paying attention, not understanding what is said, glassy eyes, lack of focus. Appearance - unkempt, dishevelled.

I am stone cold sober at this very moment in time but I could probably hit a few of these pointers LMFAO!!

I think these guys have the right idea .......

He was DEFFO pished as a fart!!! LOL

PANTO

2007-12-01T14:25:00.000Z

It's that time of year again when the theatres are crammed full of families and kids watching stars of the TV and stage making absolute tw*ts of themselves ... yes ..... it's Panto season!!!

I am off to the King's Theatre in Glasgow on Wednesday with my godson (pmsl - I am the Godfather hahaha) to see their panto - Sleeping Beauty. I am looking forward to this as one of my all time favorite female comediennes, Karen Dunbar, has the role of Nanny BeGood.

I will meet up with my sister and her b/f, my aunt, youngest brother and godson for the raising of the curtain on Wednesday night. A few friends are also travelling through. I am NOT a fan of panto usually, but this has become a sad tradition of the last few years that we all meet up for some laughs.

The stalwart, Gerard Kelly, is also starring but sadly Elaine C Smith (Mary Doll) will not be on stage :o(

Here's hoping for a good laugh and some of the great Karen Dunbar wit ;o)

McTavish Update -
Dad is doing really well at the moment - I'm very cautious to say too much just in case he is jinxed yet again lol. He's hoping to be transferred back to the Perth hospital which will save us all a great deal of travelling every day I can tell you. The liver has started and he's off all machines and looking pretty good too! Fingers crossed that he may be out and home by Christmas :o)

Ghost Hunting

2007-11-25T14:03:00.000Z

As you may know from earlier blog posts, I love ghosts and the thought of the spirit world being all around us. I am also a bit of a family history geek and love researching the past from a family perspective, not learning loads of dates and facts that history classes were famous for.

I had the perfect opportunity to explore both on Friday. A student we have on placement at the school spoke to me at lunch in the staffroom on Friday asking if we had historic records for pupils going back many years. We are an old Victorian school which opened its doors to the city in 1892 and are lucky to have all the original school documents, log books and registers going back to the opening day. Amazingly, over 560 boys registered for the school on it's opening day in 1892.

Anyways, back to the story .... She (the student) had been to visit a medium with her mum the night before and had been gobsmacked at the information that the medium had shared. A great deal of it was personal information that very few knew about and this made her a little freaked out! The medium then interrupted to say that a young boy was trying to pass a message and then started to give loads of details about my school and it's past etc etc.

This young lad was called Daniel whose surname started with a W, and he apparently loved school and loved being in our school when he was a pupil. He hated the huge, heavy wooden doors but was really happy there and remains in the school to this day. He apparently died at the age of 12. He follows the student around the school at the moment, looking after her, and was telling the medium about incidents that had happened during her placement.

She was a little worried about this now because the medium had come up with this boys name which made things a little too real for her.

I jumped at the chance to investigate and after school on Friday we started to look through the original registration documents for all the children. We came across one pupil called Daniel whose surname started with a W. He was born on the 19th of June 1894.

Then came my family history enthusiasm! I have been searching the online documents and census information to find the boy and have currently drawn a blank!!! I am so disappointed and if truth be known, a little jealous of the student. I know that sounds a bit weird, but I love the thought of the spirit world and would love to think that a child from the schools past, who loved school, was looking after me when I was in the building.

I have many more school records to trawl through on the hunt for Daniel as this register only goes as far as 1912. I'll let you know if I find him :o)

Was needing a laugh

2007-11-24T16:31:00.000Z

I was needing a laugh and logged into YouTube. I came up with these funny commercials:

She has a wicked sense of humour just like myself lol

These guys are just helping each other out in a difficult situation. Who says men can't multi-task!! pmsl

filthy minded buggers is all I will say on the matter !!!!!

PS - "McTavish" update - he is out of intensive care and HDU and is now on a ward. Things aint brilliant but his kidneys have started functioning again. Worried about liver function at the moment but he's getting there ;o) Thanks for all messages and emails xxxxxxxxxxxx

Awful week and worse weekend!

2007-11-18T19:54:00.000Z

After making such a great recovery from major surgery, and with things looking all rosey and bright, things started to take a turn for the worse!

Dad was doing so well and looking so well in HDU that the decision was made to take him to his side room on the ward to recover. Big mistake!!! Things started to go downhill and he was in great amounts of pain and discomfort. He worked through it and 2 days later was feeling better. I got a phone call the next day to tell me that he was back in HDU and things were looking bad. I didn't realise just how bad that actually was until Friday.

A txt came through on my mobile to tell me that Dad had been transferred from Perth HDU to Dundee Intensive Care Unit by ambulance, with emergency doctor with all lights and sirens blaring! Things were not right at all and he may need yet more surgery.

I was with Mum when we got a call about an hour later to say that he was in Intensive Care and was settling comfortably. I went to visit friends and about 30 minutes later, Mum phoned; the surgeon had called to say Dad had deteriorated drastically and could not wait any longer, he would have to operate immediately. We were assured that it was pointless making our way to Dundee again as he would be in theatre and be sedated until the morning.

Mum and my sister went to see him first thing yesterday and were pulled aside by the doctor when they arrived. He had had his gall bladder drained but because it had been so enlarged it had been pressing everything upwards inside Dad and his kidneys were not working. Huge amounts of toxins were in his bloodstream and the MRSA was highly active. It was at this point he told Mum and wee Sis that he might not survive and to expect the worse!

Mum called me and I called round the family and friends to let them know the situation. Tears streaming down my face and voice cracking .... it was tough ... and I wanted to be there for Mum so couldn't show how upset I actually was at the news. My brother is out in the Maldives at the moment but we decided he had to know and she called him.

I went in with Mum and Aunt today. I never thought I would say this but THANK GOD Dad is a stubborn git!!!!! LOL He had a really good night in Intensive Care and whilst we were there today he came off the ventillator and had the breathing tubes removed. He was just about to have 4 hours of dialysis to purify his blood as the kidneys are not working. This will continue as long as the kidneys take to work again, if they start again at all.

He is still in a critical condition and things have a VERY long way to get back to where they were only last week, but I was so relieved after seeing and speaking to him today. There are monitors and screens and wires and tubes everywhere but I know he is in the best place possible for him at the moment.

To cap things off, when I was visiting friends on Friday night (before all the phone calls) another friend arrived unannounced. He had just come from hospital in Glasgow (despite what it seems .... we are not all ill buggers up here LOL) with the news that after bleeding from his eyes and having had numerous tests and scans etc over a week in hospital, he has been told he has a tumour that cannot be operated on and has between 3 and 6 months to live! FFS .. WHAT THE FUCK HAVE I DONE TO DESERVE ALL OF THIS ??????? I just feel that my whole world is crashing around my ears at the moment. Famiy and friends are great and VERY supportive ... thankfully! I think I'd be a greetin' wreck if they weren't.

I apologise for not visiting and posting as much as normal and apologise for not chatting to those I normally spend hours talking to, I have been a little "short" with some folks and ... I just have one or two things on my mind :o) hahahaha ... if I didn't laugh I'd cry :o) xxxxxxxx

Flying the flag ....

2007-11-11T15:48:00.000Z

I am almost embarrassed to admit .... but what the hell .... I have been watching ...

I tell myself every year that it is a load of tosh but I get hooked each time. Leon Jackson is the Scottish contingent on the show with a really unusual quality to his voice, a little like Paulo Nutini. Here's a wee clip ...

I think the guy has a fantastic voice but Simon Cowell and Louis Walsh have it in for Leon and he has little hope of going much further if he doesn't lose his nerves on stage.

I'll keep rooting for the lad :o)

Now I'll go and hide my face in shame at watching X Factor pmsl .. and blogging on it ffs!!!!!!!

the 'old man'

2007-11-07T20:55:00.000Z

HUGE hugs and thanks for those asking for my dad and for the emails I have received .. much appreciated!!! XXXXXXXXXX mwah

I got a phone call on Sunday evening from my dad ... there was no real purpose for the call, he was calling my brothers, sister and I before he went into hospital and I later found out from my mum that he was in tears after the calls. He had decided that he was not coming back from the operating theatre alive! Mum, who was holding it together told me this later and I was in tears myself.

He went into theatre on Monday morning at 9.20am and I called the hospital at 4pm to see how he was recovering. I was a bit shocked and worried when they told me that he was STILL in the theatre. He got out at 6pm that night! I had visions of the surgeons opening their "piece box" and having their sandwiches and flasks of coffee in the middle of the operation lmao

The surgeons had said that everything went well but it was much more complicated than they had first thought and dad almost went into renal failure during the operation! FFS ... he doesn't like to do things by half!

I called the High Dependency Unit to get the latest and was greeted with a friendly nurse saying " *Scots* is that you?" [*insert any name you wish hahaha] It was a friend of mine from school who is looking after him :o) pmsl He couldn't be in better hands.

I went in this evening to see him after finishing work and had a right good blether. He was getting pretty emotional again when he was telling me that he thought he wasn't going to make it. This was a bit of a shocker for me as my dad has NEVER been the emotional type at all.

He is looking fantastic - if that is possible attached to lots of machines hahaha ... but the surgeons are really pleased and he is moving to his wee pvt room (the lucky bugger) probably tomorrow. He still has a long way to go but everything has been corrected and is all in working order again!

My mum has gotten so used to driving his car that he has decided that it would be too much hassle to get it back so he's going to have to buy another for himself hahahahahaha .... good on my mum!

She took great delight in calling his district nurses (who have been absolutely feckin amazing) to tell them that they can collect the 3 boxes of medical supplies from the house as he won't be needing them lol It will be strange not seeing them around as they have been visiting almost daily for the past few months :o)

I must confess that it was a HUGE relief to get the good news and to see how well he actually looks. It may sound a bit weird, but seeing him today, he looked more healthy than he has done for months - even though he is attached to so many machines etc at the moment.

Thanks again for the concern, messages and emails ... love you all loads XXXXXXXXX

Scottish

2007-11-04T19:33:00.000Z

I was reading the great Scottish dictionary over at His Girl Fridays place and remembered about this corker ..

translations available :o)

Charity ...

2007-11-03T16:31:00.000Z

... begins at home in my humble opinion!

The season of the charity collectors is upon us and everywhere I seem to go, the jingle of charity collection tins is ringing in the air. This annoys the hell out of me!!! I really don't know exactly why it irks me so much, but it does!

I don't mind the calls of "Big Issue, Sir?" as I walk down the street. I usually buy a copy and then tell the rest "no thanks, mate" in a polite way which seems to go down ok with the folks selling the magazine. But, tin shakers .... the glare and scowl from them as you walk past, jeez ... if looks could kill there would be a messy bloodbath outside M&S. Nuns! Nuns with collecting tins ... watch out ... not just a glare when you don't put your money in the tin, but I am sure they are having a word with the good Lord upstairs and placing a curse on you as well.

Now, I am not a scrooge and I do support a few charities. I actively support NCH Scotland, a fabulous charity raising money for kids. I support them so much that I was prepared to jump out of a perfectly good aeroplane (well, that is debatable) 2 miles up into the sky and skydive to raise money for them a couple of years ago and actively fundraise still.

What a day to remember that was! Up very early to drive to the airfield, do the safety stuff, get kitted out and wait for the weather to clear to get jumping. 2 jumpers were called and I was one of them. We went off to the hangar to have our final checks and then into the plane. Jeezo! The plane with no door and no seats!!!!!

It took 20 minutes to get to the right altitude to jump and everything was looking beautiful until the instructor of my fellow jumper told her to get into the doorway and prepare to jump. I watched as Gillian fell into the clouds below and knew it was my turn next.

I got into the doorway and waited for my instructor to push out of the door. We were off! OH MY GOD - the rush of adrenalin was amazing! We were falling to the ground, through the clouds at over 175mph. The noise was deafening. After falling for 10 000 feet it was time to pull the ripcord and hope to hell that the canopy would open! The fact that I am typing this lets you know that it did open :o)

The noise disappeared and everything was silent. I was able to look at the patchwork of fields below being crossed by roads and I was able to see the Ochil Hills that I see from my flat everyday, from above!

It took about 15 minutes to parachute the second 10 000ft and sadly it was all over. I was desperate to get right back on the plane and get up there to do it all again.

SO ... when I have people rattling charity collection tins in my face and asking for money I get very tempted to ask them if they would do what I have done to raise money and not judge me just because I didn't put a few coins in their tin. I did raise a huge amount for charity with the huge help of my friends and family .. although I do sometimes wonder if some gave so generously on the off-chance that I may have been splattered across the rural Perthshire countryside :o) LOL

Haven't been around for a bit and haven't been visiting as often as I should have ... apologies! Things ain't quite all rosey here at the moment but I'll be back as often as I can :o) Dad going into hospital for major surgery (again) tomorrow so I may be away for a bit xxx

Road Trip 2

2007-10-23T20:31:00.000+01:00

Firstly, apologies for a wee break from blogland ... a recharge of batteries and time-out was needed!

On Sunday 3 friends and I got together for lunch and decided to go to a great pub for something to eat in nearby Stirling. If you haven't ever been to the 'Portcullis' I can strongly reccommend a wee visit ... just be warned ... don't eat anything for 24 hours beforehand as the chef doesn't believe in small portions! The Portcullis is right ot the foot of Stirling Castle esplanade ...

After lunch, a laugh and a glass of something fruity we were off again on a magical mystery tour. I said I wanted a beach (why when it was freezing and blowing a force 10 gale I have no idea) but, I usually get what I want :o) hahahaha .. so off we set.

The next known landmark I saw was a place in Glasgow called Milngavie - pronounced "malguy" and then into Taggart territory ("...there's been a murder!" - lmfao .. some of you may have to google good old Taggart!) and then round and about Glasgow. I reminded 'T' the driver, that I wanted a beach, so we headed for Ayr ... the roundabout route hahaha

On the way down the road 'K' and I remembered a place called Nardinis in Largs, so it was off to Largs for a lovely Italian coffee and a famous Nardinis ice-cream. 'T' told me that I had arrived at my "beach" ... LMFAO ... pebbles ffs ... pebbles does not constitute a beach FFS!!!

We then headed through Ardrossan, Saltcoats (or the other way around - I can never remember) Troon, Ayr, Turnberry, Newton Stewart, Castle Douglas (stopped for a late dinner) Dumfries, Lockerbie and then back to Stirling and then home!!

Over 10 hours later and I arrived back to the comfort of my wee abode. We did have a cheeky layby "relief" stop .. god I ain't usually a layby-stop-point-pee type of chappy .. but needs must! hahaha The 2 female friends were very jealous of the two males in the car .. was a bit more of an ordeal for them PMSL!!

Until the next time ........

PS .. there were lots of piccys for this trip but my pc is playing up and doesn't like them! :o(

never assume!

2007-10-17T18:33:00.000+01:00

Saw this on ye olde bebo site and had to share it ...

I know this is a lazy post ... but hey ... I am kinda busy :o)

No-one likes a smart-arse!

2007-10-11T22:18:00.000+01:00

.... but these are bloody funny ...

SMART ALEC ANSWER 6
It was mealtime during a flight on a British Airways plane: 'Would you like dinner?' the flight attendant asked the man seated in the front row. 'What are my choices?' the man asked. 'Yes or no,' she replied.

SMART ALEC ANSWER 5
A flight attendant was stationed at the departure gate to check tickets. As a man approached, she extended her hand for the ticket and he opened his trench coat and flashed her. Without blinking an eyelid she said, 'Sir, I need to see your ticket not your stub.'

SMART ALEC ANSWER 4
A lady was picking through the frozen turkeys at a branch of Sainsbury's store but she couldn't find one big enough for her family. She asked a passing assistant, 'Do these turkeys get any bigger?' The assistant replied, 'I'm afraid not, they're dead.'

SMART ALEC ANSWER 3
The policeman got out of his car and the boy racer he stopped for speeding, rolled down his window. 'I've been waiting for you all day,' the bobby said. The kid replied, 'Yes, well I got here as fast as I could.' When the policeman finally stopped laughing, he sent the kid on his way without a ticket.

SMART ALEC ANSWER 2
A lorry driver was driving along on a country road. A sign came up that read ' Low Bridge Ahead.' Before he realised it, the bridge was directly ahead and he got stuck
under it.. Cars are backed up for miles. Finally, a police car comes up. The policeman got out of his car and walked to the lorry's cab and said to the driver, 'Got stuck, eh?' The lorry driver said, 'No, I was delivering this bridge and ran out of petrol!'

SMART ALEC ANSWER OF THE YEAR 2007
A teacher at a polytechnic college reminded her pupils of tomorrow's final exam. 'Now listen to me, I won't tolerate any excuses for you not being here tomorrow. I might consider a nuclear attack or a serious personal injury, illness, or a death in your immediate family, but that's it, no other excuses whatsoever!' A smart-arsed chappie at the back of the room raised his hand and asked, 'What would happen if I came in tomorrow suffering from complete and utter sexual exhaustion?' The entire class was reduced to laughter and sniggering. When silence was restored, the teacher smiled knowingly at the student, shook her head and sweetly said, 'Well, I suppose you'd have to write the exam with your other hand.'

Thank you to David for emailing this ... fitted my sense of humour perfectly!

The Family

2007-10-06T15:24:00.000+01:00

My Grandad passed away in 2004 and shortly afterwards I began to get really interested in my family tree. The whole mystery of where we all come from and what sort of life our family led in the past fascinates me.

I have spent a great deal of time here researching my familys past. The actual records building is amazing!! On my first trip I was in the atrium, looking up at floors and floors of records, archived for the likes of me to search through located in a large, round, glass-domed room.

I hadn't really got much of a clue as to what I was doing so I started with ME! It is very interesting to see the amount of information that you can dig up about yourself from birth, marriage and death certificates and all of the previous census documents.

The initial information wasn't great! All of the family records showed that family members tended to die young. Jeezo!! That is until I came across my Great, Great Grandad who was almost 100 when he died.

It got me to wondering ..... was there money in the family? hahahaha Well, money is important! ... especially when you don't have it :o)

Well I was to be disappointed in one hand and proud in the other. No money, well, not any left over the years anyways. My folks on my fathers side were all hardworking land people. Crofters, farmers, forestry workers, stone masons etc etc. The family on my mums side had much of the same really. No money but they were all grafters - who didn't believe in small families!!!!! (13 children one of them had!!)

One disturbing fact reared its head. Why was my dads family surname on my mums family side? I know I have always thought I was Royalty in a previous life; was this the first sign ... inbreeding amongst the family 3 generations ago? hahahahaha

Thankfully in my searches I have found no link to the two families!

So far I have managed to go back to the 1700's on both my dad's side and mum's side of the family but need to go one more generation to see if the story about fighting with Bonnie Prince Charlie and being gifted land is true. I have written documentation that the Clan that my family were part of did fight with him, but I need to see if any of my actual ancestors did. That is my next quest!

I love genealogy so much that friends have asked me to do some research on their behalf. It did cause a wee bit of friction and embarrassement when I had to explain that their father WAS NOT who they thought it was and that their mother had actually been playing away :o) oops ... I had a lot of soal searching before I approached that subject! Luckily for me they did have a little clue that this was the case. I managed to track down the real father to the Canadian Airforce where he is/was an officer.

Today

2007-10-02T20:29:00.000+01:00

I have been a complete lazy git today! Here is a breakdown of my day .....

12.30pm (ish) got up out of bed :o)
had a shower and got dressed after slobbing about in a pair of boxys watching some tv
2pm had lunch
txt some friends
posted on some blogs
had 3 calls from other friends (same friend twice - dozy git)
joined Facebook (lol)
Researched my family Coat of Arms - very nice it is too :o)
filled the dishwasher
downloaded some music from itunes
just heading out to collect my dinner from the take-away

to come .....

chat on msn
post messages on blogs

go to bed

What a great slobby day :o)

A GORGEOUS autumn day ...

2007-10-01T17:43:00.000+01:00

Today, the first day of my October holidays from work, has been gorgeous! The sun has been shining and I was able to get out into town and have a wander around Stirling in a t-shirt :o)

Last week I was freezing in temperatures as low as 2 degrees C ... today my wee village was basking in the Autumnal temp of 19 degrees C.

As I sit typing this at my study window, the sun is shining down on the hills, bright copper and russet autumn colours and the birds flying around. I was a bit down yesterday (reason unknown) but this has cheered me up 100% ... here's a wee piccy ...

Condoms

2007-09-22T17:17:00.001+01:00

stolen from someone ... laughed like feck .. so thought I'd share

Imagine if major brands produced condoms and kept their slogan....

Sainsbury condoms - making life taste better
Tesco Condoms - every little helps
Nike Condoms - Just do it
Peugeot Condoms - The ride of your life
KFC Condoms - Finger Licking good
Minstrels Condoms - melt in your mouth, not in your hand
Safeway Condoms - Lightening the load
Coca Cola Condoms - The real thing
Ever Ready Condoms - keep going and going
Pringles Condoms - once you pop, you can't stop
Burger King Condoms - Home of the Whopper
Good year Condoms - "for a longer ride, go wide"
Muller light condoms - so much pleasure, but where's the pain?
Flash Condoms - Just sit back, relax and let flash do all the hard work
Halfords Condoms - we go the extra mile
Royal Mail Condoms - I saw this and thought of you
Andrex Condoms - Soft, strong and very very long
Renault Condoms - size really does matter!
Domestos Condoms - gets right in the rim
Heineken Condoms -reaches parts that other condoms just cannot reach
Carlsberg Condoms - probably the best condom in the world
Pepperami Condoms - its a bit of an animal
Polo Condoms - the condom with the hole!! (VERY poor seller !!)
McDonalds Condoms - I'm Lovin' It

Days gone by ....

2007-09-22T16:14:00.000+01:00

I was having a wee moment to myself (ooer missus) and got thinking to the olde sweeties that I used to love.

I remember taking my karate grading with another lad from the club when I must have been about 10 yrs old. I was kicking and punching away whenever they shouted a command and he was disqualified for chewing on one of these ......

I loved the thick chewy toffee/caramel stuff .... a great one for pulling out your teeth hahaha.... just not for eating during a grading exam pmsl ... poor chap :o)

Spangles were one of my favourites too until a fateful day ... when I returned from karate training (god ... there must be a link between karate and sweeties) .. and I was sucking on a spangle, when I choked and half swallowed one of the boiled sweets. I couldn't breathe, my dad lifted me upside-down and was slapping my back and my poor mum was frantic .... out popped the little b*gger and I didn't eat another one of these for a long time ... shame really, cause I really liked them!

These to were always in my "mix-up" bag from the sweetie shop ...

Good old flying saucers - kind of rice paper shapes filled with really sour sherbet ... and ....

strawberry mojo's! ... Great wee strawberry flavoured chews. There were many flavours but, strawberry were the best!

Can't forget these wee beauties .... always made your tongue black too .... infact ... the wee sweet shop used to be called "The Black Jack" if my memory serves me correctly lol

The Cabana bar was the top of the list - the dogs b*llocks! It was a chocolate bar filled with coconut and cherries with a thin layer of caramel under the chocolate coating. I had died and gone to heaven when I found these - well ... a little dramatic there, but you get my drift!

As a wee treat ...

The Caramac was a bit too sickly for me .... and god knows I have a sweet tooth! This one was only as a rare treat ... too many and you felt really sick! hahahaha

I loved eating sweeties and chocolates and you'd think I would be a 10 tonne lard-ass ... but NO ... thankfully I was blessed with a high metabolism and can basically eat what the feck I want with little consequence! Phew ... cause I couldn't give up my crisps, biscuits and Magnum ice-cream bars :o) pmsl

OOOOhhh ... just thought of another wee treat ...

Sherbet dip dabs .... I used to eat the lollipop and dip in my fingers :o) hahaha

Any other favourites?????

Which Superhero are you?

2007-09-22T15:40:00.000+01:00

Saw this and decided that with my superhero talents (yes .... some are hidden lol), I would see who I am most 'like' pmsl

Your results:
You are Superman

Superman		75%
Spider-Man		70%
The Flash		65%
Robin		55%
Catwoman		55%
Supergirl		45%
Green Lantern		45%
Hulk		40%
Batman		35%
Wonder Woman		35%
Iron Man		35%

You are mild-mannered, good,
strong and you love to help others.

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Quiz

I am a little concerned that I am 35% like Wonder Woman pmsl

Blogger Awards

2007-09-16T20:18:00.001+01:00

I am going to bestow this Blogger Award to the wonderful and gorgeous Marmy and Ciara. They both deserve a wee recognition from li'l old me for keeping me entertained and for their fabulous posts on the blog (that was blog, not bog!)

Here's to you both!

Many thanks to Peter Ford for the award ... well, you didn't think I could make this on my own did ya? pmsl

no hotel and no expenses = bloody cheek!

2007-09-16T16:10:00.000+01:00

I am off on my yearly crusade to 'the big smoke' - GLASGOW - on Wednesday of this week to the annual SETT exhibition and conference at the SECC. (boring teacher thing hahaha)

I have been going for the last goodness knows how many years and have usually been put up in a nice hotel in the city, had expenses paid and had a lovely evening meal (and drinks) at the Moat House. This year however, no such luxuries!!

I have booked myself into a few seminars and am expected to attend one which STARTS at 6.00pm!!! Well, with no slap up meal and drinks and with no hotel to rest my weary head, I think I may have to miss that seminar and be heading into town or heading home along the motorway.

Previous years have found myself and colleagues thoroughly enjoying the luxuries of being a "Masterclass" member and of being a "GLOW Mentor" - and rolling out of the Moat House at midnight, being taxi driven back to the hotel and then indulging in a few more liquid refreshments. Luckily I don't do breakfasts as I was never presentable at that ungodly hour!

So, Wednesday of this week I shall be fighting my way through the Glasgow traffic and heading for the Armadillo and after a good few hours of listening, walking and purchasing within the walls of the SECC, I may just be tempted into town before heading back throught the nose-to-tail traffic.

Why do I do it every year?

Cartoon of the Week .....

2007-09-09T22:37:00.001+01:00

I am going to post a wee funny each week .... this one made me laugh ....

and as it's the first of the Cartoon of the Week, here's another ..

a handful of my ripe juicy plums...

2007-09-09T14:08:00.000+01:00

Well, after the slagging of my innocent previous title, I thought this would make a good follow-up! ... for you luck readers, I may even post a piccy of my ripe, juicy plums at the end of this post .......

As I have been neglecting the blog, I thought I would give a wee update ...

I have had a sh*tty couple of weeks. I have allowed myself to get bogged down in internal politics and more often then not, I am the one left to take the flak from the fall outs. This, coupled with the fact that I have a couple of issues that I don't want to deal with and my dad waiting for surgery ... well, forgive me as I am on a bit of a slippery slide downwards at the moment.

I have 2 weeks of holidays to look forward to in 3 weeks time and I think I will start to look for a wee getaway to sunnier climates to recharge the batteries. I have no idea where I want to go or what I want to be doing when I get there. Perhaps a beach holiday to relax rather than a more active holiday - who knows? My wee bro and his wife are off to Sicily next weekend ... that sounds pretty good to me!!

I went to my folks place on Friday after work and was having a catch-up chat with my dad. He had been to see his surgeon on Friday afternoon and has been told that he is scheduled for his long awaited operation in November. It is going to be a huge operation with 3 surgeons working on him. He has the aneurysm by his heart, the tear in his bowel, the stoma reversal and the large open wound to clear and close .... phew!

Anyway ... my plums!!! as it was a gorgeous day I went into the garden with him for a seat in the sun and to wait for my mum to get in from her work. As I was looking round the garden I noticed how laden the plum tree was with fruit - what a bloody cheek - he had been keeping that a secret. I love plums, cherries and grapes, all of which he grows in the garden. The grapes were not good this year, the cherries were eaten by the birds before I could get to them but the plums ... well ..... loads of the ripe juicy beggars ... just waiting for me to come along and pick them!

I came away having more than a good handful of juicy plums, most of which I have now scoffed and the remainder sitting in the fruit bowl, looking very inviting :o) lol

Here's a wee piccy of my plums ...

for those who are disappointed and were expecting something else - shame on you!!! Get your filthy mind out of the gutter!!! lmao ... If you want to see my other ripe and juicy plums ... let me know ;o) ha ha ha

Well ..... blow me!

2007-08-29T20:13:00.000+01:00

I got an award!!!

The gorgeous Ciara has seen fit to bestow this award on l'il old me xxxxxxxxxx

Harley-Davidson

2007-08-26T21:11:00.000+01:00

My little bro and his wife have both just passed their motorbike licences and have just taken delivery of a new Harley-Davidson to add to their collection of motor vehicles.

A few years ago his wife bought him a Vespa scooter for his 25th birthday. Now that he is 30 he's obviously outgrown the scooter (although why you need it when you have a 4x4 and a Porsche I don't know) and they have bought this motorbike.

Now, me and my ignorance!!! I though all Harleys were the type you see with the Hells Angels on sitting in the "legs out front" position. How stupid was I. I have looked up the bike and here it is ... the Harley Davidson Sportster Low 883

I am not a bike person so it means little to me! It is a gorgeous bike don't get me wrong, but I prefer the comfort of my car with the soft seats, music system, aircon, heaters etc etc and getting togged up in leathers to sweat my nuts off or driving in the pissing rain getting soaked, or driving and getting flies in my gob just aint my idea of fun!

Aristocratic Title

2007-08-23T20:10:00.000+01:00

I know I said I was easing myself back in ... and here's the second post of the night .... but the gorgeous Ciara had this and I wanted one too hahahaha

My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is:
The Right Reverend Scots the Haunted of Helions Bumpstead
Get your Peculiar Aristocratic Title

I seem to be a man of the cloth? lol

back from the abyss :o)

2007-08-23T19:36:00.001+01:00

Hi folks ... sorry I aint been around in blogging world for a bit. I have a lot on my mind at them moment and this is just the end of the 2nd week back at work after my lovely (but rather wet) six weeks summer holidays.

I am gonna ease myself back into things lol and steal ... erm .. borrow this from newplanet ... the "I look like" meme ... here goes -

James looks like a walking suitcase ... eh???
James looks like he wants to do me. I'm not gay but James is so cool I might consider the offer anyway. pmsl ..
James looks like a muppet
James looks like he could be James Blunt's long lost brother
James looks like a man!! A really hot man!! I agree Graham btw ... this is all true ... well nearly all :o) Not sure about #2
James looks like a man of action!
James looks like he's made of light grey plastic
James looks like someone I know
James looks like a creepy librarian ... lmao
James looks like Chad Michael Murray
James looks like he might be wearing a tracksuit .. hahahahaha
James looks like a young Russell Crowe
James looks like a film out of the 1980's
James looks like rich and promising material
James looks like he's about to cry
James looks like a dork. Well, he looks pretty damn hot for a guy in a pink ruffled shirt I suppose
James looks like Quasimodo ... cheeky bast*rds
James looks like the king of rock and roll
James looks like Vin Diesel .... pmsl
James looks like a nerd... I would kick him in the shin and take his pumpkin pastie
James looks like a Weasley with his face as freckly as the clan
James looks like a college Prof.
James looks like he's been wearing those bleachy trays on his teeth
James looks like a sensible choice for the party
James looks like Gerrard! ... film stars, musicians and now a footballer ... heehee
James looks like an old pro ....hahahah pmsl

Think I'll leave it there lol

Well, well, well ... this sure made my mood lighten and cheered me up LOADS ... Chad Michael Murray, Russell Crowe, Vin Diesel, Gerrard, James Blunts brother ????? hahahaha

I'd kick the bu**er back who was gonna be nicking my pumpkin pastie though!!

Scary Mary

2007-08-10T13:00:00.001+01:00

I was posting away on a teachers site on a thread about youtube and memories. One of the other forum members posted this beauty ......

If only I had known about this all those years ago when I worked in a hotel entertaining and looking after kids - I hated Mary Poppins by the time I was finished there and went to uni - this would have saved me many hours watching the same movie over and over and over again!

I now see Mary Poppins as a bit of a dark, evil, nasty instead of the usual warm, fuzzy, loveable!

Women know your limits!

2007-08-08T10:06:00.001+01:00

I can't believe I am actually going to post this ..... I can see the backlash already! LMFAO

This is a couple of wee funnies that I found whilst trawling through youtube. Harry Enfield was never something that caught my eye when I was younger but looking at the sketches now brings a smile to my face!

Ladies ...... please take this with the humour in which it was posted LOL

Women drivers eh!?!

I love my job!!!

2007-08-07T22:23:00.000+01:00

I love my job! Jeez - how often do you hear that eh? lol

Teaching has to be one of the most rewarding careers around! I have been teaching primary school kids (aged 5 - 12) for the past 11 years in some fantastic schools. Some of the schools have been in very challenging and deprived areas but this has made the job even better.

I have had my fair share of kids swearing at me, throwing chairs and desks at me, sticking up the fingers, threatening parents (one with an German Shepherd dog at my classroom door) and a whole host of nasties ...... but the good always outweigh the bad. Sure I have thought about jacking the whole lot in - but then all it takes is one single kid to say something to you as they pass in the corridor and I have forgotten all the crap and I'm all singing and dancing again!

I think I was a good class teacher, the parents and kids certainly thought so and as I was promoted I guess my bosses though so too. I went from the newest member of staff in the school to the 2nd in charge! I feel my head growing already!! ha ha ha

Now, after a move to a new school, new local authority and a new promotion I don't get into the classrooms often enough to teach much :o( I have to spend too much time in my office dealing with paperwork, the authority, admin issues, budgets etc etc etc The good thing about this though (every cloud has a silver lining) I get to work with some of the most angry kids [that was NOT a typo] who can't stay in a class too long before causing a whole heap of trouble and disruption. These are the kids who need that extra time to build a trust before they can achieve their full potential - that's where I come in.

Some of the "playground hard lads" who end up at my office because they have been fighting, or been disruptive etc etc have a tale to tell and some are desperate for an adult to just listen to them and not to judge them. Some of these kids have gone through more in their 12 years of life than I have in my 33. I take the time to chat, offer the olive branch, give them a chance to get out of the corner they've backed themselves into, be honest and build up a mutual respect and trust.

I had spent a great deal of last year working with one lad who has deep issues that he eventually opened up to me about. That particular morning was very emotional and he cried for over an hour, I shed a few tears myself but he said that he wouldn't tell anyone I was a "crybaby" flashing a cheeky smile, if I didn't tell about him - through all the emotion he still had a sense of humour! He hadn't spoken to anyone else about this but felt that, after a few months of chatting and listening, he could open up to me. We worked hard together and got through a difficult year. He has now left to go to secondary school and I have had meetings with the staff there to make sure all the support he needs is in place for him after the holidays. He is one lad I am extremely proud of.

My Gran keeps asking when I'm going to get married and have kids - I keep telling her that I already have over 200 kids but I am in the enviable position of handing them all back at 3pm hahahahaha

Jeezo .... anyways .... I got a lovely letter delivered from his parents thanking me for my "kindness and patience" all year with 'X' and for building a "trusting relationship". I had a lump in my throat and a tear in my eye when reading the rest of the letters contents. I worked with the kid because I could see through the bravado and tough image and see a cry for help - NOT for praise and recognition! Thank god the rest of the kids don't know about this blog or my tough reputation would be in tatters!! hahahaha. Being one of only two males in the school has it's advantages, even the 'pushiest' kids tred wearily LOL (that was not meant to sound sexist btw)

Teaching young kids is a priviledge! To those teachers who complain, stifle creativity, over burden children and stamp out enthusiasm (sadly I see too many teachers like this) - Get out of our schools, give yourself a rest and give our kids the best chance in life! Education is about being fun and enjoyable, it's about motivated children who take an active interest and who become independent learners ... It's NOT about "chalk and talk" - thankfully those days are long gone.

Where has all the sunshine gone?

2007-08-05T20:18:00.000+01:00

Whilst the south of the country was basking in sunshine I was freezing me nuts off and getting soaked to the skin in Edinburgh!

Today was the opening parade for the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and as I have done for a few years now, I met up with mates and headed off on the train to watch the parade and soak up the atmosphere.

When I left the ghetto it was a nice sunny morning, when I got off the train in Edinburgh - dressed in a summer shirt, 3/4 length shorts and trainers - it was pissing down with rain! Now I would NEVER say that I was fashion conscious BUT I was NOT going to wear a bloody plastic poncho which seemed to be the height of fashion with the tourists sheltering from the rain. Me .... well ... let's just say that I am glad skin is waterproof beacuse the rest of my clothing wasn't LMAO. I was certainly soaking up something and it wasn't just the atmosphere!

The parade was excelllent as usual but I wish that some of the acts WOULDN'T parade down Princes Street. Belly dancers may do it for some but certainly not for me!!! There was a large crowd of South American lads behind me and they were having a ball shouting and cheering and having a competition to gather/collect as many of the festival beads as they could. This attracted the BBC tv cameras but alas ... I am not famous - I've just seen the BBC news and the shot was about 5 people too far to my left - typical!

My tickets are booked for a great comedy show next Saturday night and we are all looking forward to a couple of wee drinks at as many pubs/bars as possible before and after the show .... it has to be done!

A small aside - The Lady Boys of Bangkok - if these are the 'most convincing transvestites' .. then I am the Pope! OMG ... this years lot were better and more convincing than last years shockers but sheesh ..... these lads are obviously not looking in the mirror!

Nearly 100 usless facts all about ME lol

2007-08-02T20:35:00.000+01:00

1. Slept naked? Yes usually, or in me boxys
2. Taken a shower with someone? Yes
3. Kissed a member of the same sex? Mucking about …. yes … serious .. no
4. Driven a car? Yes and missing my last one …. Should never have gotten rid!
5. Stolen anything? When I was v v young but my mum found out and took me back to the shop to apologise
6. Been in love? Yes
7. Been dumped? By mutual agreement LOL
8. Stole money from a family member? No
9. Gotten in a car with people you just met? Nope … apart from taxi drivers lol
10. Been in a fist fight? Once at school pmsl .. as a pupil btw
11. Snuck out of your/someone’s house? Nope
12. Had feelings for someone who didn't have them back? Yes … sadly
13. Been arrested? Hell NO!!!! Have been frisked by a bobby in Glasgow though ... little git only looked about 16 - on a power trip me thinks lol
14. Hugged a stranger? Yip … aint that what New Year is all about?
15. Met up with a member of the opposite sex somewhere? Yes
16. Left your house with out telling your parents? Erm … yes .. have my own place and have done for many years!! LOL
17. Had a crush on your neighbour? Feck NO!
18. Ditched school to do something more fun? As a pupil, yes lol
19. Slept in a bed with a member of the opposite sex? Yes
20. Lost a friend in a shop? Erm … I don’t think so
21. Been on a plane? Yip, quite a few, even jumped outta a perfectly good one at 10,000 feet lol
22. Been to an island? Sure have
23. Slept in until 3? That’s what school holidays are for!
24. Miss someone right now? Erm … yeah
25. Laid on your back and watched cloud shapes go by? Love making things outta clouds pmsl
26. Made a snow angel? When it snows :o)
27. Played dress up? Too often!! lmao
28. Cheated while playing a game? Don’t we all?
29. Been lonely? Yes
30. Kissed more than 4 people in one night? Ain’t that what New Year is all about too? lol
33. Touched a snake? Never felt the need :o)
34. Ran a red light? Erm …. I confess .. Yes a few times … by mistake of course!
35. Been suspended from school? Nope …. I do the suspending now though! mwahhahahaha
36. Had detention? Yes .. Mr Winters my maths teacher … git!
37. Been in a car accident? Yes … just a wee one though .. and the KILLER BUNNY incident pmsl
39. Used a fake id? Never needed it
40. Crawled through a window? At Uni Halls, yes lol
41. Been lost? A few times
42. Been to the opposite side of the country? Been all over (no smart comments please!)
44. Cried yourself to sleep? Nope
47. Done something you told yourself you wouldn't? Yes … I am weak! lol
48. Laughed until something u were drinking came out ur nose? Yes … and most embarrassingly in a full lecture theatre :o) Tracey – your fault (slurp slurp!)
49. Caught a snowflake on your tongue? Aww .. yeah
50. Kissed in the rain? Nope … hide inside in the dry … but how romantic
51. Sang in the shower? Depends what mood I am in
52. Had sex in a park? Nope
53. Had a dream that you married someone? Nope
54. Glued your hand to something? Erm, no …. What fool does that!
55. Got your tongue stuck to a flag pole? PMSL … nope but I have a great story about the flag pole and naked dancing round it PMSL
56. Ever gone to school partially naked? Partially naked? Have been completely naked but that was in the showers after PE lol
57. Been a cheerleader? lmao hell NO - all those pom poms and ra ra skirts pmsl
58. Had more than ten boy/gal friends? You calling me a slag?
59. Didn't take a shower for a week? Minging! I like my showers ;-)
60. Ever too scared to watch scary movies alone? I crapped myself watching The Shining for the first time in Uni Halls (old mansion with long dark corridors) LOL
61. Played chicken? Erm .... don’t think so
62. Been pushed into a pool with all your clothes Yes!!! Numerous times – bastards! LOL
63. Been told you're hot by a complete stranger? Yeah .. she had a white stick though!
64. Broken a bone? Nope
65. Been easily amused? All the time
66. Laugh so hard you cry? Many times lmao
67. Mooned/flashed someone? Erm .. ((blushing)) both! hahahaha
68. Cheated on a test? Probably … okay … Yes!!!
69. Forgotten someone's name? I do that too often … sorry peeps lol
71. Done something dumb while drunk? Feck yes ….. but this ain’t the time or place LOL
73. Blacked out from drinking? I can hold my drink!
74. Played a prank on someone? All the time lol … only a couple have backfired
75. Gone to a late night movie? Went to one with a group of mates … and found it to be pure filth hahaha .. there was a shifty guy in the row behind us with a long mac making weird noises ha ha ha ha
76. Made love to anything not human? Ewwwww minging … NOPE!
77. Failed a class? No
78. Choked on something you're not supposed to eat? HA HA HA HA
79. Smoked pot? Nope
80. Cheated on a boy/ girl friend? That’s just wrong!
81. Celebrate the 4th of July? Why would I do that?
82. Thrown strange objects? Yes
83. Felt like killing someone? Kill? No .. seriously hurt … yes LOL
84. Thought about running away? I did as a youngster and packed stuff in a suitcase that I couldn’t even carry …. So didn’t bother
86. Got a piercing? Nope
89. Made a parent cry? My mum … I didn’t call her on my first night away from home at Uni
90. Cried over someone? Yes
91. Kept somebody else's clothes you borrowed? Erm .. nope
92. Dated someone more than once? No
93. Had/Have a dog? Had a dog most of my life till I moved into my own place
96. Been in a band? Nope
97. Drank 25 sodas in a day? lmao nope … but I could be up for the challenge!
98. Broken a CD? Yeah
99. Shot a gun? Yes … quite a few actually. I was a classified marksman and used to be a member of the rifle club too but thought it wasn't really the type of sport to keep up in my profession :o(
100. Wanted someone but could never have them? Sadly yes :o(

Classic Leading Man ....

2007-08-01T17:38:00.000+01:00

I stole this form Ciara who in turn 'borrowed' it from The Psycho Therapist ...

Your Score: Clark Gable

You scored 33% Tough, 9% Roguish, 9% Friendly, and 47% Charming!

You're a helluva guy, a real split personality and a bit of an enigma. On the one hand, you're a man's man, tough talking and ready for anything. But on the other hand, you soften your rough and tumble core with a disarmingly smooth exterior, and you make the ladies swoon. You're equally admired by both men and women alike, drinking other men under the table all the while charming the socks off half a dozen lovelies. You're a commanding presence, and you know how to get what - and who - you want when you want it. You're drawn to women who, like you, are savvy enough to deal with the world on their own terms. You work well with spitfires. Leading ladies include Joan Crawford, Myrna Loy, and Jean Harlow. No damsels in distress for you.

Find out what kind of classic dame you'd make by taking the Classic Dames Test.

hmmm ..... food for thought PMSL

Fringe Festival

2007-07-28T22:23:00.000+01:00

I love the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and have been heading down to the Capital every summer for the past .. erm ... dunno how many years ... but a few!

The city is heaving with tourists and folks heading out to the pubs, street bars, theatres and clubs to see many of the varied, funny, sad, weird and wacky shows that the world brings to Edinburgh!

Last year we were off on the train to see a couple of shows one evening. My 'posh' matie was in charge of the carry-ouy for the train (as is customary when we go anywhere on the train these days). She took out 3 bottles of champers with straws, one bottle and one straw for each of us, a few packets of munchies and kept a wee surprise in the clinking bag for afters! (Not really much of a surprise as she has been getting the same carry-out for most of our wee trips out LOL)

Well, there we were sitting in the train opposite some workers heading home with their "Costa" coffee [other brands available lol] and there were the three of us popping champage corks up the carriage.

Bollinger through a straw was a new experience for me LMFAO ... and eating pringles at the same time too hahaha. Five stops down the line the bottles were coming close to empty and the surprise came out of the bag ...... Pimms!!! Oh I love a Pimms in the summer and this was no exception! We polished off a bottle of Bolly each and a bottle of Pimms between the three of us and as the train edged into Waverley Station, we stumbled off ... rather merry!

The shows we were off to see were fantastic and a great laugh, tears rolling down our faces and much of the hilarity was probably due to the loosening of our tongues .... alcohol tends to do this to me. The carry-out was topped up with a couple of voddys at the restaurant (sensible things we were to eat!) a couple of doubles at the show to ease things along and 4 doubles on the way back to the train (visiting a couple of pubs to sample their hospitality)

Here's hoping that we can see a number of the fantastic comedy shows again this year but I could do WITHOUT the hangover from hell the next morning!

awwwww .. I want to live in the city!!!!! :-(

Flirt .... me ..... never!

2007-07-26T22:14:00.000+01:00

I will paint a scene .... sitting with 2 mates in a fancy restaurant (not McD's!!! pmsl) and happily chomping through the meal ... absolutely gorgeous. Waitress comes over and asks the usual stuff ...."everything ok with your meal?" etc etc ... always at the time when I have a mouthful of food in my gob.

She was a really nice lass and was chatting to me and my mate. My female friend then started taking the piss outta me and saying that she hadn't really seen me in serious flirt mode before ... but I was apparently going all guns blazing for this lass!

Erm ... I do not flirt! ... although she was lovely and we were chatting when she was passing our table ... but not flirting. She did chat to us more then most other tables but I just thought she was being attentive to our needs!

Well ... I got a bit defensive at this comment as my other mate and I were both chatting ... but apparently he was being polite and I was being suggestive .... my eyes talk apparently!

Well ..... not sure if we (these particular maties and I) will go back there again .... I couldn't cope with the accusations LOL

I did leave her a nice tip though! Hahahaha

Feeling kinda grumpy, kinda down in the dumpy!

2007-07-22T21:11:00.000+01:00

Why? Why can things never go smoothly when it comes to my life? - oops, a little over dramatic there LOL

Back in the distant past, well okay ... a few months ago, my dad went through a pretty horrific time and was in hospital for a number of weeks and for a wee time, on a ventillator in intensive care, things were touch and go!

He's been out of the hospital for a good few weeks now and is recovering at home from his ops with the help of family, friends and the district nurses - all of whom have been angels xxx.

He has been building his strength back up for the final operation to reverse a stoma op and fix a tear in his small intestine - he's had an open wound and drains since leaving the hospital ... these have caused him some discomfort and a lot of hassle.

On Friday he and my mum drove to the hospital to speak to his surgeon about the final stage of the operation and were smacked in the face with some really bad news! Unknown to my dad (the docs hadn't told him) he has an aneurysm close to his heart that must be operated on before it perforates and kills him! No operation to reverse the stoma op he had can be done before the aneurysm is treated.

I was not reallly clued up on what an aneurysm actually was but the phrase "...perforates and kills him ..." kind of made me think it is serious. I had to find out more so have, probably very stupidly, gone to the internet in search of information.

An aneurysm is the swelling of an artery wall, a bit like a balloon. If it continues to grow it obviously becomes more unstable and can rupture, causing the unthinkable or start to press againt internal organs or the spine. I stopped reading the information on the NHS site as I got to .. "the risk of death from surgery is sometimes greater than the risk of the aneurysm itself."

I don't mind admitting on here, as I know my family don't read this, I am fucking petrified! He has a CAT scan to determine the size of the aneurysm in the next couple of weeks. Usually under a certain size it is not operated upon, but due to the need for surgery i.e. dad having a gaping open wound needing repaired, not operating is not really an option!

After his last stint of time in the hospital I had a check up at the docs and had the all clear from anything un-toward, but I think the doc and I are about to get re-acquainted pretty soon. I hate the docs and don't ever go unless I really have to. I think on this occasion I may need to have another more thorough check-up. Although in saying that I have had a niggling and annoying "thing" wrong with me for years and it needs surgery, but I haven't spoken to my doc a) because I hate the docs and hospitals, b) beacuse I am not having someone putting me to sleep - that is VERY unnatural and c) male pride and embarrassment.

The last time I was in a hospital (6 years ago when I couldn't eat and lost a stone in weight in a week ... about 7kg - as I only weigh 10 stone, that was a bit drastic. Even the smell of food made me run for the bathroom) I had to have an endoscopy (camera down my throat into my stomach and duodenum and a few biopsies - thankfully nothing but stress was the cause of my symptoms) I was so bothered about needles in the back of my hand and being put to sleep that I refused any anaesthetic and had it done in surgery with none - not really an experience I want to go through again ... but I wasn't trusting my sleep and re-awakening to someone else! - an irrational fear I know, but a fear none-the-less!!! Thankfully my surgeon at the time was willing to do this and he was fantastic .... the discomfort was minimal.

Here's hoping that all goes well for my 'old man' and that everything is a success and I better make an appointment to speak to my own doc! Oh the joy! And a wee tip ... don't use the internet to look up medical information unless you are really prepared for all the uncensored gory facts!!!

Have a laugh!

2007-07-19T21:19:00.000+01:00

I was reading an email from a buddy with a warped sense of humour ... bit like my own hahaha ... David ... this is your 3rd mention on t'internet!!!

The first was a great wee poem ....

As I mature ....
I've learned that you cannot make someone love you,
All you can do is stalk them, and hope they panic and give in.

I've learned that no matter how much I care,
some people are just arseholes.

I've learned that it takes years to build trust,
and only takes suspicion, not proof to destroy it.

I've learned that you can get by on charm for about 15 minutes,
After that you better have a big willy or huge boobs!

I've learned that you shouldn't compare yourself to others,
the are more screwed up than you think.

I've learned that you can keep vomitting,
long after you think you have finished.

I've learned that we are responsible for what we do
Unless we are 'celebrities'.

I've learned that no matter how hot and steamy a relationship at first,
The passion fades and there had better be a lot of money to take its place!

I've learned that 99% of the time when something isn't working in the house,
one of your kids did it.

I've learned that the people you care about most in life,
are taken from you too soon and all the less important ones just never go away!

Ladies ... have a look at this one :o) PMSL

...... and have a think about this!

Lads ... be careful next time and keep this in mind .......

... and don't you just hate a show off!! PMSL

and the last one .......

Order of the Phoenix

2007-07-19T11:53:00.000+01:00

I admit to being a bit of a Harry Potter geek! When the first installment of the series was published my class of 8 yr olds asked me to read it to them. I was hooked as were the class. Ever since, each class has had to endure the story telling of the latest adventures of the boy wizard - not sure if it was they or I who had enjoyed it the most.

On Sunday I joined 2 friends and we took ourselves and our pre-booked luxury seat tickets (sad I know) to the cinema in Perth to see the latest film, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.

This is certainly the darkest of the films yet. Harry is being bothered by haunting visions and flash backs to his last encounter with the Dark Lord Voldermort (I ain't sacred to say his name ... he who must not be named ... huh!!! lol) The Ministry do not believe Harry or the Headmaster of Hogwarts, Dumbledore.

They send a new teacher of the Dark Arts to the school who teaches them nothing about defending themselves. Imelda Staunton plays the character of Dolores Umbridge perfectly! The fluffy (or not so fluffy) pink character takes control of Hogwarts from Dumbledore and starts her campaign of oppression.

With the lack of any real teaching of defence, Harry and the gang start "Dumbledore's Army" and decide to teach themselves how to defend against the feared Voldermort.

I won't go into any more of the details of this exciting episode ... but I would advise a viewing! In my opinion, the best of the films so far. Check out this to see trailers etc.

Midnight on Saturday, and I may have to roll into the nearest Waterstones ... or Asda if I want to save a few pennies to get the final book in the series, The Deathly Hallows". With Dumbldore now dead, what is going to happen to Harry? Is Snape really the bad guy? Will Draco Malfoy succeed in his task set by Voldermort? Is Harry going to survive? Who is going to be killed? ..... so many questions!

Well, I have been asked to go back to the cinema to see ... yes ... Harry Potter ... and could I say no ... not likely. Seats are book again, and Ciara ... you were right, that last hotdog didn't keep me quiet for too long! hahaha

the twist .... mwah ha ha ha

2007-07-14T22:08:00.000+01:00

Last week on Big Brother 8 (UK) we had "fake week". Was all a bit cr*p until the 'fake' eviction.

Now for those not watching, Charley is one housemate who you will either love or hate with a passion. I am one of the former and really like her! Her housemates put her up for eviction not knowing about 'fake' week.

It came to last night and the gorgeous Davina (phwaaar) evicted Charley. The normal shouts, cheers and booooo's were not to be heard and Charley came out to silence. She was taken to the studio and interviewed. She was shown the nominations and what her housematies had said about her. Unknown to her at the time they were watching all of this on the plasma screen in the BB house.

Davina got her to talk about her housemates, who she liked, who she didn't, who should win etc etc .. and then dropped the news that as it was 'fake week', Charley was to re-enter the BB house!

The faces of her two arch enemies - Chanelle and Ziggy - was a picture ... they could not believe Charley was coming back.

Charley has used her 'eviction' to her advantage and played it for all it's worth. Long live Charley in the BB house .....

Name and Shame!

2007-07-09T16:20:00.000+01:00

After a lovely day with friends in Aberdeen we headed out to Cadonas beach amusement park for a laugh .. I have been known to enjoy a wee rollercoaster or two! After pottering about we headed for the afore mentioned 'eatery'.

I was NOT impressed! After waiting ages for a member of waiting staff to come to our table, we didn't like to interrupt the conversation that 5 members were having ... yes FIVE staff having a chat and diners waiting to be served .. I could feel the blood starting to simmer LOL

Once served we witnessed other tables, like ours, who had decided to leave after waiting for over 10 minutes for some attention.

There were 9 members of staff having a laugh and chat in the bar area of the restaurant completely ignoring the customers and the constant ringing of the phone. The blood was now boiling and not simmering .... instead of waiting for the food I walked up to the bar, asked if anyone was working, and politely asked for the bill for the drinks we had had whilst waiting!

We left and advised the 2 families waiting that they would be better at another place if they wanted to eat Sunday dinner and not Monday breakfast!

with that little rant out of the way ... I can now enjoy reading my daily list of blogs and finish munching on my jelly babies.

Did you know that the Jelly Babies all have names? strawberry's name is 'Brilliant', lemon's is 'Bubbles', lime is called 'Boofuls', blackcurrant is 'Big Heart, orange's name is 'Bumper' and raspberry is called 'Baby Bonny'. Awwwwww

Saturday afternoon at the flicks

2007-07-07T18:16:00.001+01:00

Shrek the Third ... if you want an hour and a bit of laughs (well laughs if you share my sense of humour) Shrek is the very thing LOL

Shrek and Princess Fiona save the day yet again in Far Far Away! It come sunder threat from Prince Charming again. I love the humour. Managed to cheer me up on a dull, boring Saturday afternoon.

The "ladies" are fab!

Bit of another 'lame' post .... but I am having an off day! .. "again" I hear you cry! PMSL

Pucker Up .....

2007-07-06T19:12:00.000+01:00

National Kissing Day! Oh what an excuse LMFAO!!!!!

I was reading about National Kissing Day and some of the stuff was pretty embarrassing for us Brits. We are not kissing enough! Apparently, in a recent survey, 95% of women believe they are not getting enough smooch time.

The good news apparently is that Brits do score highly on quality if not on quantity. In the same survey we Brits scored highest with 42% of the replies stating that we are the best kissers. The Italians came second with a mere 15% ha ha ha ... Casanova eat your heart out! PMSL

Our German neighbours top the worst kissing list with 38% of the votes.

Kissing "etiquette" states that - bad breath, slobbering and smoking are the top 3 put offs. Johnny Depp tops the list of blokes for the most sought after snog and Angelina Jolie tops the women!

On doing a wee bit of research I was shocked to find "kissing schools" to help kissing technique LOL ... this comes from the 'Kissing Tip of the Day" from one such site ....

popsicle kiss

Eat popsicles together - each a different flavor - and then halfway through, switch and finish off each other's popsicle. Afterwards, give your love a long, passionate kiss. Your cold tongue will wake them up!! :)

***note to self - must give that a try!

SO anyhoo .... I now have an excuse for the rest of the night .... hahaha .. Firstly it is National Kissing Day and secondly we Brits just ain't at it enough!

so .... pucker up ... MMMMMMMWAH

Are you addicted to blogging?

2007-07-05T15:16:00.001+01:00

As blogging is a fairly new concept to me personally - I was inspired after reading newplanets blog ... I did this quiz thinking I was going to be about 30 - 40% ...

62%

perhaps I need a new hobby?

The Bank Manager

2007-07-05T14:28:00.000+01:00

My mobile started ringing and vibrating this morning ... anon call on the screen. Now usually I won't answer and anon call ... can't stand mobile insurance calls etc, but this morning I did.

"Hello this is your favourite branch bank manager calling...." was the reply after my curious "hello". Who has their bank manager calling their mobiles at 11am in the morning with a welcome like that?

I love my bank manager .... there is a reason for that but I will wait with the details for the moment hahaha. She started the call with "... do you realise that your credit card blah blah blah.."

Turns out that I have a rather large one (ooer missus) balance that is! I haven't used the card for many a month / year ... infact I had, believe it or not, forgotten about it. There was a monthy balance being made to the c/card company from my current account and I just forgot all about it I suppose!

Well she wants me to come to a meeting and review my accounts. Oh what joy! She knows that I hate the review process and I have managed to fend off such requests for the last 3 years ha ha ha. Well I suppose it's time to bite the bullet and head off to the bank. There was a nice part to all of this ... I was asked what my favourite choccy biscuits were sso that we could enjoy a coffee and biscuit whilst going over my finances.

Don't get me wrong - my bank have looked after me well over the years of banking with them and the wine and mince pies at Christmas are great! I bet you are all wondering what bank I do business with eh! hahaha. Thankfully my bank manager aint nothing like this wee cartoon I saw on't t'internet ...

After making my appointment at 1.30pm next week she ended the call with, "perhaps you could come through at 12.30pm and take me to lunch first?" .. hahaha ... I laughed and replied that I knew there had been an ulterior motive and she's abviously noticed my healthy balance! LOL I am looking forward to my bank account review this time lol.

I also realised that the morgage rates are probably going to rise again this week! I have just finished a fixed rate deal and have moved to variable rate ..... and I don't like the look of the growing interest rates! I have another appointment to see if my bank can beat the rate I am on and give me a good fixed rate deal. One good thing I read on my mortgage papers was the increase in value of my flat. In the past 5 years it has gone up in value by over £40k .... I may just sell after doing the decorating and make a nice tidy profit :o) ... who wouldn't like a view like this?????

anyway .. enough for now ... I need a nap :o) hahaha .. the holidays do strange things to my body clock!

PS - my auntie is my bank manager xxx

Happy 4th of July

2007-07-04T17:58:00.000+01:00

Happy Independence Day to our American cousins x

...and they all said I was a flithy git!

2007-07-01T14:07:00.000+01:00

How wrong were they! hahaha .. perhaps when I am out and in company I tend to be a little risque ... PMSL ... but this proves it ... I am a clean kinda guy :o) ... enjoy xxx

WHY??

2007-07-01T13:20:00.000+01:00

I sat in shock watching the terrible terror attack on Glasgow Airport unfold yesterday. I felt a false sense of security up here in Scotland, well away from the power base of the UK and all previous terror attacks. How wrong was that!

This is the first terror attack in Scotland. Even through all of the troubles in Northern Ireland, when Britain was under threat of attacks, Scotland was never touched. I am actually struggling to come to terms with some insane fundamentalists targetting a busy airport, in summer, on the first weekend of the school holidays when families are heading to sunnier climates.

Two men drove a large 4x4 vehicle into the main terminal building just after 3pm yesterday (Saturday 30th June 2007). I have been to Glasgow airport many times and how they managed to pull this off, I have no idea! Thankfully the vehicle never got into the building and both occupants of the 4x4 were arrested by police. I dread to think what would have happened if a 4x4 truck laden with petrol and gas canisters was to have entered the terminal.

Thankfully no one was injured, apart from one of the occupants of the 4x4. You can read more about the detailed facts here.

Terror has come to Scotland! I could get all political now but I shan't - I'll keep my thoughts to myself for the moment. BUT .... (I knew I couldn't keep quiet for long) it does reek of hypocrisy that our former Prime Minister, who took us into an illegal war in Iraq, has the audacity to become our Middle East PEACE envoy!!! Are his actions coming back to haunt us all? Is the fact that another Scottish man is now Prime Minister? (Tony Blair was born in Edinburgh) Is it time we left Iraq and stopped trying to impose our democracy onto others? All I do know for certain is that I don't want to be constantly looking and wondering .. 'is that suspicious?' ... 'should I report that?' ...

A bit damp!

2007-06-29T12:17:00.000+01:00

There was I, fast asleep in dream land, snuggled into my duvet when I woke suddenly at 3.28am to the sound of rushing water! I jumped out of bed and looked out of the window but nothing .... and as I slowly came to my senses I realised that the sound was coming from the bathroom!

Panic mode .... ran to the bathroom to hear a gushing water noise coming from the toilet cistern. I gingerly lifted the cistern lid to see what was happening ... and got a face full of water - that certainly woke me up!

The lid was quickly replaced as I thought about my next move - I'm a teacher FFS not a bloody plumber and I'm a Scotsman and I aint paying for a plumber at this time of the morning!

Where do I turn off the water to the cistern????? In my 10 years in this place I have never needed to do this and I vaguely remember the last owners telling me something about the stopcock but I didn't pay much attention - man was I regretting that now - the noise of the water was getting louder and I could hear it hitting off the lid now.

Now .. to let you know .... everthing in my bathroom is tiled - floor to ceiling and all the pipes etc are hidden. Well I searched for my claw hammer and started to carefully (PMSL) remove tiles from behind the toilet. OOPS ... I realised that I was searching on the wrong side of the toilet for the water stopcock after smashing 5 tiles. 8 smashed tiles later and I had the water turned off and I crawled back to bed .... just a little damp from the experience.

Emptied the cistern this morning and got my novice plumbers head on to have a look and see what was wrong ... in my professional opinion of course! Took the workings apart and found a jelly like orange circle which must have been a washer at some time in the distant past. I am now off B&Q to see if I can get another and I will hopefully remember how it all fits back together!

What a day :o)

2007-06-24T20:53:00.000+01:00

I was picked up by 3 friends at 11.30am and off we set for Glasgow! We were on a mission to "pop" my friend Karen's Ikea cherry. Unbelievably she had never set foot in an Ikea store. Mission accepted ... and off we set.

Travelling towards Glasgow we were met with a sea of red brake lights on the dual carriageway ahead. I had the bright idea of taking the slip road to our left and bypassing the trouble on the road. That would have been a great idea had I not suddenly realised that the slip road was not the one I thought it was .... and so began the magical mystery tour!

We did arrive at Braehead in Glasgow .... only an hour behind schedule .. but safe and sound ... although the driver was a little frazzled by this point.

We went straight for the food hall in Braehead Shopping Centre. For those not in the know ... Braehead is a huge shopping mall filled with stores of all description ... here's a wee piccy to let you see what I mean ...

After lunch and a couple of hours shopping we set off for the big blue store .. Ikea. We walked round the place for quite some time. I am a big kid in these places and I have to "test" al of the chairs, beanbags, sofas and beds for comfort. This done and our purchases paid for it was back to the car. Parking in the first spotted space when we arrived seemed like a good idea in the sun. Now in the rain and having to walk halfway to Stirling (a slight exaggeration) to find the space didn't bring the same thoughts to my mind.

Tam (the driver for this mission) decided that he wouldn't ask for directions and he took us home! Well I say home .... but via the whole of the centre of Glasgow, the Gorbals etc etc .. you name it ... we were passed or through it. It did give us the chance to see parts of the city we hadn't seen before.

I thought we needed a wee break and refreshment so I phoned ahead to my favourite Italian restaurant and booked us in for 7.30pm. Now you can tell from this time check that we had been on the go for quite some time!

Meal finished, Karen's Ikea cherry had, smiles and laughter all the way .... what a way to spend a relaxing Sunday PMSL

Melting into a puddle of stress .....

2007-06-21T21:15:00.000+01:00

Hi all ....

As the holidays loom even closer and the teachers and pupils are winding down .... my work load seems to be winding UP! All of the end of year paperwork, forms, audits, plans etc etc etc ..... and to top it all off my boss is away all week leaving the work to land on my office desk!

Teachers and pupils are reaching the end of their tether a little quicker than earlier in the year ... but mind you .. after teaching 30 kids ALL year or being stuck in a class with the same teacher all year .. I can't blame some of them!

The complaints that get brought to me are classic ... you can tell people need their holidays ...."Someone is leaving the teaspoons unwashed in the sink" cried one teacher throwing her hands up in despair .... "GET A LIFE" was the thought that came into my head .... "Oh dear .. let me speak to everyone" were the actual words to come out of my mouth!

It is a happy and sad time of year in school. The oldest kids are leaving to go to secondary school - some will NOT be missed .. others (most of whom spend a large portion of their time being sent to my office) WILL be missed, even though they don't believe me. Spending a huge amount of my time talking to and calming down some very angry, disaffected and deeply troubled kids gives me a great insight into their chaotic lives - some of these guys have gone through more in their 12 years of life than I have in my 33. It brings a tear to a hardened heart ... but I make time for everyone of them to show that they CAN rely on someone who isn't going to let them down. Some of the hardest and most troubled kids come to speak to me and safely inside my office (where their playground status doesn't matter) burst into tears and pour their hearts out. When people say teachers have an easy life of 9am - 3pm it makes my blood boil! I find it really hard to switch off from some of the heart breaking life stories that some of these inner city school kids have.

BUT ... it is also a time of celebration and welcoming in the new nursery kids and primary 1 kids. They are full of energy and enthusiasm and lighten my mood every time I go to their classrooms to visit. A chorus of "Good morning Mr ......" welcomes me all around the school ... and yes ... said in that great melodic way that kids in school have.

You can probably tell that I love my job ... a lot .... I wouldn't change it for the world! Some folks think I am totally mad but when you work with kids and have a chance to make a difference and shape the future ... no job could be better. The kids in my school today are going to be the decision makers in 20 years time and they need all the encouragement, love, care and attention that can be lavished upon them. Yes my school is in a fairly deprived area, families with little money and kids eating unhealthy food ... and for some of them they don't even have a clue who their real mum or dad is .... but why should that disadvantage them?

Jeezo ... this has turned out to be a bit of a right 'humdinger' of a post. I lost the thread as you can probably tell ... but .. get me going on a subject I am passionate about and I'll rant for ages!

God bless all the great kids leaving the school for secondary and beyond this Wednesday .. I'll be thinking of you all and watching your progress. One of you has to become famous and when it happens ....just remember your favourite depute head :o)

Love you all ... best wishes ..X

Big Brother

2007-06-10T13:00:00.000+01:00

I was getting a bit bored with the house of women and then Ziggy was put into the house and I was still bored with a house full of women! Now BB has put 2 'men' into the house to join Zippy erm .. Ziggy soz!

Gerry and Seany entered the BB house on Friday evening hosted by the the gorgeous Davina. From the moment I clapped eyes upon the troll like features of Mick Hucknalls love child, more commonly known as Seany, I knew my time watching the series was in jeopardy.

Here .. have a look and see what you think .......

This guy has bugged the t*ts off me from the minute he walked in. He even annoyed 60 year old Lesley so much that she walked - nasty troll! LOL

Sorry BB but you should have left the whole BB thing alone for a few years. My own personal thoughts are that series 1, 2 and 3 were by far the best. After that BB started to interfere too much and the whole concept has been ruined! boo hoo

If it were not for watching the gorgeous love goddess that is Davina ... dunno if I could bear it all summer ...

The Holidays are Coming

2007-06-10T11:46:00.000+01:00

Well .... 17 days and the long awaited summer holidays will be here. 12 noon on Wednesday 27th, the final school bell rings, mass exodus of pupils and the staff are off to the pub for a lunch and drink to celebrate the fact that we have survived another year of the little darlings trying every trick in the book to get us to crack!

6 weeks of bliss!! Well, I say 6 weeks, but I usually spend the first week of the holidays in the bloody school getting sorted and clearing the desk and in tray and then come back during the last week to get ready and prepared for the start of the new term - so not really 6 weeks of holidays I suppose - well that's how I qualify it to friends and family anyways!! LOL

Not sure what I am going to do this year. I want to get myself down to Wales and visit my cousin Elly and her gorgeous family and out to Paris to see my cousin and her beautiful baby daughter cause I haven't seen her in ages.

My close friend Cazza and her man Drew have a dive school in Cyprus and I really want to get out there and do my open water PADI course too. My last email from Cazza was asking when I am coming out to see her - perhaps this is the perfect opportunity. She and Drew have the Turtle Bay Divers school in a place called Kyrenia in Northern Cyprus. They are based at the Hotel Sempati, a local family run business offering price cut deals for holiday makers.

I have always wanted to go diving in the warm waters seeing all the gorgeous sealife and Cazza was telling me that last year that they were seeing turtles on every one of her dives in the warm seas - I would be so gobsmacked that I'd probably be forgetting to breath and end up being rescued PMSL.

I also have the dreaded decorating to be completed. After a few weeks of painting or attempting to paint I have decided that I don't like it and the whole lot needs to come off and I need to start again! I am a bit fussy when it comes to decorating ha ha ha. I have decided that a complete overhaul with new carpets, furnature etc is needed - now considering that painting alone took 2 weeks .... this will probably be completed in June 2010 :o) I also want a wooden floor layed in the hallway, new tiled floor for the kitchen and my bathroom floor needs to be re-grouted. I think I should bite the bullet and get in the professionals.

Who said that summer holidays were relaxing? HUH!!!

A holiday doesn't really seem right unless I have been to an airport and off somewhere on a plane to the heat and sun. For a wee white Scottish lad, I really like the sun and heat and a sandy beach! None of this pebble cr*p - must be sand and even better if lined with palm trees and turquoise seas :o) not that I am asking for much.

It is a bit tricky though. The friends I go on holidays with don't have the luxury of 6 weeks holidays and the ability to have a case packed and head off whenever, and this is a pain at times. I aint the type of person to jet off for 2 weeks in Barbados on my own - wee jimmy nae pals - I'd rather have the company of mates and have a laugh for a fortnight. SO .... not really sure what I am going to do hahaha .. I could have said that half an hour ago and saved all this typing and your reading :-)

Okay ... enough for now but I am sure I will be back today ... I have a Big Brother rant to get out ... but I'll save it for now

The Big Yin

2007-06-07T20:59:00.000+01:00

The great Billy Connolly!

I love this guy - his observational humour is second to none. The way he can turn anything into a belly full of laughs is 'pure dead brilliant so it is!' A Glasgow born, banjo playing, mad hairy man who swears like a trooper.

For those in foreign shores (a few miles south of the River Clyde) this clip may need subtitled!

Billy Connolly's 13 things I hate about people:

1. People who point at their wrist while asking for the time....I know where my watch is pal, where the F*ck is yours? Do I point at my crotch when I ask where the toilet is?

2. People who are willing to get off their arse to search the entire room for the TV remote because they refuse to walk to the TV and change the channel manually.

3. When people say "Oh you just want to have your cake and eat it too". F*cking right! What good is a cake if you can't eat it?

4. When people say "it's always the last place you look". Of course it is. Why the F*ck would you keep looking after you've found it? Do people do this? Who and where are they?

5. When people say while watching a film "did you see that?". No tosser, I paid 10 quid to come to the cinema and stare at the F*cking floor.

6. People who ask "Can I ask you a question?. Didn't really give me a choice there, did you sunshine?

7. When something is 'new and improved!'. Which is it? If it's new, then there has never been anything before it. If it's an improvement, then there must have been something before it.

8. When people say "life is short". What the F*ck?? Life is the longest damn thing anyone ever F*cking does!! What can you do that's longer?

9. When you are waiting for the bus and someone asks, "Has the bus come yet?. If the bus came would I be standing here, Knob head?

10. People who say things like 'My eyes aren't what they used to be'. So what did they used to be? ears, Wellington boots?

11. When you're eating something and someone asks 'Is that nice?' No it's really revolting - I always eat stuff I hate.

12. People who announce they are going to the toilet. Thanks that's an image I really didn't need.

13. McDonalds staff who pretend they don't understand you if you don't insert the 'Mc' before the item you are ordering..... It has to be a McChicken Burger, just a Chicken Burger gets blank looks. Well I'll have a McStraw and jam it in your McEyes you F*cking McTosser.

Here he is getting a little 'high brow' and chatting about opera ....

I am gonna leave you with this wee funny .......

Gingers for Justice

2007-06-01T20:42:00.000+01:00

This is for you marmite babes ..... "ya failed to mention how many jocks have ginger hair LMFAO" huh .. take this .....

ha ha ha - another of my Catherine Tate favourites :o)

PS - I aint a ginger

Scottish .... and proud

2007-05-25T21:06:00.000+01:00

Saw this and had to share .....

Being Scottish is about driving in a German car to an Irish pub for a Belgian beer, then travelling home, grabbing an Indian curry or ,a Turkish kebab on the way, to sit on Swedish furniture and watch American shows on a Japanese TV.

And the most Scottish thing of all? Suspicion of all things foreign!

Only in Scotland can a pizza get to your house faster than an ambulance.

Only in Scotland do supermarkets make sick people walk all the way to the back of the shop to get their prescriptions while healthy people can buy cigarettes at the front.

Only in Scotland do people order double cheeseburgers, large fries and a DIET coke.

Only in Scotland do banks leave both doors open and chain the pens to the counters.

Only in Scotland do we leave cars worth thousands of pounds on the drive and lock our junk and cheap lawn mower in the garage.

Only in Scotland do we use answering machines to screen calls and then have call waiting so we won't miss a call from someone we didn't want to talk to in the first place.

Only in Scotland are there disabled parking places in front of a skating rink.

NOT TO MENTION..

3 Scots die each year testing if a 9v battery works on their tongue.

142 Scots were injured in 1999 by not removing all pins from new shirts.

58 Scots are injured each year by using sharp knives instead of screwdrivers.

31 Scots have died since 1996 by watering their Christmas tree while the fairy lights were plugged in.

19 Scots have died in the last 3 years believing that Christmas decorations were chocolate.

Scottish Hospitals reported 4 broken arms last year after Xmas cracker-pulling accidents.

18 Scots had serious burns in 2000 trying on a new jumper with a lit cigarette in their mouth.

A massive 543 Scots were admitted to A&E in the last two years after trying to open bottles of beer with their teeth.

5 Scots were injured last year in accidents involving out-of-control Scalextric cars.

and finally...

In 2000 eight Scots were admitted to hospital with fractured skulls incurred whilst throwing up into the toilet.

If you're proud to be a Scot, send this on!

SCOTLAND - Love it, or Leave it!

Big Brother 8

2007-05-24T19:34:00.001+01:00

Wednesday 30th May ... BB8 day!!

I am a bit of a Big Brother fan and look forward to this time of year. Every time a new series starts I am sure that I am not going to like the contestants but every year I get hooked and spend hours watching the shenanigans of the cooped up housemates.

I was glad to hear that the gorgeous Davina McCall will be hosting the series once again ....

I am going to miss Big Brother's Big Mouth and the hillariously camp and quick witted Russell Brand. Not sure that Chris moyles is gonna 'cut the mustard'!!!

So here goes another summer hooked on B.B. Not sure who or what the housemates are going to be this year .... but hey .. as long as their aint another moaner like Nikky from BB 7 ... that would destroy all faith I have in Channel 4 and the producers of B.B.

I had a good laugh at this .....

2007-05-22T16:45:00.000+01:00

I give in ....

2007-05-20T19:28:00.001+01:00

okay, okay ..... jut one wee piccy of me ... that's all you're getting ...

lil ol' me between me mum and me auntie at my wee bro's wedding - happy days :o) I was absolutely plastered by this point after having a couple of bottles of champagne with my brother before leaving his flat for the church, a hip flash of vodka at the church, a good few vodkas at the meal with my mix of red and white wine hahaha .... not that I am addicted to alcohol!!! pmsl

Near death experience

2007-05-20T18:32:00.000+01:00

well fellow bloggers,

I was almost looking down on you and blogging with the angels above after a near brush with death on Thursday evening.

Thursday had been a good day, the kids had organised a dress as you please day at the school and we were all relaxed and enjoying the day. I had a bit of work to do after 3pm and left for home at about 5.45pm.

As I was travelling south down the M90 I was about to overtake a 4x4 when the basta*d steered his great hulk of a motor towards me in the outside fast lane! Well I was heading towards the central reservation barrier and certain squashed'ness at 70mph had I not slammed on my breaks!!!!! The fu*@ing idiot kept driving as if nothing had happened.

I did eventually get passed the maniac and watched him swerve all over the motorway and hard shoulder from my rear view mirror when suddenly, he crossed 2 lanes of motorway, the hard shoulder, through a fence, into the woods, pieces of tree flying everywhere ... and disappeared!

I did my civic duty and pulled over to the next emergency phone and called 999 - I started to worry about the chappy just incase he was really ill at the wheel of his truck.

40 minutes later the boys in blue caught up with me for a statement after finding and rescuing Mr 4x4. Statement taken and me a little shaken I drove home and arrived after 7.30pm. My biggest fear was that someone saw me getting out of the police Range Rover with all its blue and red lights flashing and thought I was in trouble! I wanted a sign to say that I was a witness ha ha ha

All sympathy for Mr 4x4 went out of the bloody window when I found out he'd been drunk driving - tha basta*d nearly killed himself and ME!!!!! I bet he has the fu*@ing cheek to plead NOT GUILTY to drunk driving and dangerous driving and I end up in court as a witness.

My verdict is to ban the fu*kwit from driving for life - and any other drink drivers!

.... yes another one!!

2007-05-20T18:25:00.000+01:00

I have decided that it was about time that I was back blogging away - it has been a while! To get me started I will post this email that I recieved from a buddy and let you all know just a wee bit more about me .......

1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? My dad, his dad and his dad's dad

>2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? couple of weeks ago .. some bad news

>3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? Yes! My handwriting has to be lovely :o)

>4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE LUNCH MEAT? erm .... don't really eat meat at lunch .. prefer goats cheese and roasted veg at the mo lol

>5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS? personally .. none !!

>6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? Of course .. what's not to like ha ha ha

>7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? moi? never!

>8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? I certainly do ... all bits intact

>9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? deffo! I love the rush of extreme sports

>10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE CEREAL? I don't do cereal ... no wait .... I don't do breakfast - it interferes with sleep

>11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? Yes

>12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? mentally ... yes .. physically ... nah :o)

>13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE ICE CREAM? plain old vanilla for me ... although I prefer a Mr Whippy

>14. WHAT'S THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? Smile and eyes ... and sexy specs if they have them lol

>15. RED OR PINK? Red

>16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVOURITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? pale, untoned bod .... why do I waste money on gym memberships?

>17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? Miss chats with my bestest pal Cazza now that she's living it up abroad. Think a lot about my Grandad too

>18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? They had bloody better!

>19. WHAT COLOUR TROUSERS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? Black pinstriped trousers and black shoes

>20. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? A gorgeous Italian meal

>21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? erm ... keys tapping on a keyboard

>22. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON WHAT COLOUR WOULD YOU BE? Orange or purple

>23. FAVOURITE SMELLS? Fresh cut grass -= but it plays havoc with my hayfever! and my aftershave hahaha .. Chanel Alure Sport :o)

>24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? My good friend Louise who I met for a meal this evening

>DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? Of course I do X

>FAVOURITE SPORTS TO WATCH? Rugby

>29. EYE COLOUR? Blue

>30. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? Nope ... can't stand things going near my eyes

>31. FAVOURITE FOOD? Italian

>2. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Scary ... BOO!!

>33. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? Blades of Glory

>35. SUMMER OR WINTER? Summer for the sun and the sand and the beach and winter for skiing in the snow

>36. HUGS OR KISSES? Hugs ..... hmmmmm .. and kisses :o) hahaha

>37. FAVOURITE DESSERT? Boozy trifle

>38. MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? All of them bloody better!

>39. LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND? No one if they know what's good for them

>40. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING? Biography of Derek Acorah

>41. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSEMAT? Don't have one here

>42. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON TV LAST NIGHT? The F Word

>43. FAVOURITE SOUND? Porche 911 engine

>44. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES? Don't really like either ... soz

>46. WHERE WERE YOU BORN? Perth

>47. WHO'S ANSWERS ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING BACK? Everyones ... I am a nosey git :o)