WHAT'S IN A NAME?

 

My sister's been creating a family tree for some years and has carefully curated history over many generations from Scotland, Ireland, France, Canada, Australia and England. She just returned from overseas where she spent some time in Norfolk, having chased down information on the Franklins, a part of our family on my father's side.

Norfolk has a rich history with the population descending from the Iceni tribes (Boudica lived there) and intermingling with Romans, Picts, Saxons and the ubiquitous marauding Vikings.

"You've got to pick a pocket or two"

My sister's research centered on a relative - Horace 'Money' Franklin who was a direct ancestor of the maternal side of my father's family. His name intrigues me and I've often wondered where the 'money' nickname came from. Research shows that the family were landowners and likely well off before, for unknown reasons packing up and heading for Australia in the mid 1800s but I've always had an image in my mind of a Fagin-like character and imagined old Charles Dickens borrowing his name and image for Oliver Twist.

I was thinking of this last night due to this character in the Harry Enfield clip I put in the previous post: LOOKS FAMILIAR

I've never been to Norfolk but the place-names are familiar to me from film and literature and, coincidently I'm reading Bill Bryson at present. He lives in Wymondham, Norfolk and often writes about his local area.

The archives my sister looked through as well as the tombstones in the cemetery local to where they lived showed the odd Christian names that have endured in our family - Ruby and Lorinda for example. No Horaces though. I suggested to my sister that her daughter's firstborn (sex as yet unconfirmed) if a boy could be named 'Horace'. I might as well have suggested 'Money' for the look that she gave me.

LOOK, LISTEN AND TAKE HEED

Poor old Robert has been reading (skimming) the transcripts from Vatican II and copying and pasting them on his blog.

Miraculously he managed to condense down the multi-million words and hundreds of pages down to this:

"The biggest event in history was Christ calling all mankind to join God as friends and live with Him for all eternity." 

 - Robert the apathetic sanctimonious sinner, toilet cleaner, threatener of eternal damnation, music snob and sucker.

Well, 4 seconds really.

Simple really and it reminded me of this Harry Enfield skit where the complexity of relationships was equally condensed:

 

JIGGETY - JIG

 Home again.

I arrived back from Christchurch this afternoon. It was a good visit but It's good to be home. The Old Girl has another month there and will be pleased to get home at the end of July.  Next month we will spend a long weekend (4 days) in Greymouth and Franz-Josef, travelling on the Alpine Express. I'm looking forward to that. I like train journeys - I may have mentioned this once or twice in the past.

I note that not much posting has gone on in the blogs (other than my own) while I've been away although Robert excelled himself with two relatively long posts that included images.  Richard still has trouble posting comments on Robert's blog and has to do so anonymously which may not be a bad thing. I wish though that he'd upgrade his communication tools from that obvious steam-driven machine he uses.

Oh well, we'll wait and see.

INTERVIEW # 19

 

It's been a month since the last interview which prompted a phenomenal four comments including this thought provoking one from Robert:

In answer to Robert - no, I don't talk to these people in bed, I talk to myself - obviously when Lynn is away.

Anyway, spurred on by this success I thought it time for a new interview with a person representing an 'invisible' service that for centuries has kept everyone safe. A lighthouse keeper.

As you know there are still a lot of lighthouses dotted around New Zealand's coasts and at entrances to harbours but not as many as there once were. Times and needs change and, with lighthouses, communications - radio, telephone, television and now web-based services have largely taken over from the man, or woman, staring out to sea from the top of a tower. The lights in the lighthouses are automatically controlled now and don't need 24 hour custodianship. This is a shame and another example of the 'romantic past' slipping away.

We have with us today Mr Needto Golightly who will shed light on this subject (see what I did there?).

THE CURMUDGEON: Welcome Mr Needto Golightly and for agreeing to this ...

MR NEEDTO GO LIGHTLY: Ned.

THE CURMUDGEON: Pardon?

MR NEEDTO GO LIGHTLY: Please call me Ned. My father thought it was funny to name me 'Needto'. Boy, did Mum give him hell when she discovered that he'd gone to town and registered that name for me. I like to be ...

THE CURMUDGEON: Robert's Father Orange says that Hell is just really a separation from God.  It's not really a place. Robert disputes that though, since he firmly believes that those old nutty nuns and weird saints actually saw Hell with its flames and tormented souls and ....

MR NED GO LIGHTLY: Whaa? Have you just had a stroke son? Who's Father Orange and who's Robert? What the hell (sorry) are you talking about?

THE CURMUDGEON: Sorry Needto ... er, Ned. I just read a post of Robert's (I won't give you a link as in your occupation you need to stay awake) and it was on my mind given how bizarre it was so 'Ned' it is. Your surname is unusual though, are you rel ....

NED GOLIGHTLY: ... related to Holly Golightly? No, I get asked that a lot. I'm not related and frankly don't like her music much. Also, Holly Golightly in that novel Breakfast at Tiffany's is no connection either. Did you know that Truman Capote was a fag?

THE CURMUDGEON: Um, Ned, you aren't allowed to say things like that nowadays.

NED GOLIGHTLY: What? That I don't like garage band music?

THE CURMUDGEON: No - that Truman Capote was a 'fag'. You should say that Truman Capote was gay. Aren't you up on the LGBQT nomenclature?

NED GOLIGHTLY: Whaa? I'm a bloody lighthouse keeper not a bleeding heart liberal. Let me tell you I ...

THE CURMUDGEON: .... Ok, we'll park that ... ha ha ... I just had a thought ... in your occupation you don't have to worry about parking and traffic jams eh?

NED GOLIGHTLY: Sheesh!

THE CURMUDGEON: Sorry. Look I think that we got off on the wrong foot here. Do you know that I want to visit all of the lighthouses in New Zealand?

NED GOLIGHTLY: Yeah, I picked up on that bit of scuttlebutt at the Flare Up.

THE CURMUDGEON: The Flare Up?

NED GOLIGHTLY: Yes, the Flare Up - it's the Lighthouse Keepers Social Club. We usually get together once a year or, if the missus is acting up, twice a year ...

THE CURMUDGEON: Um ... you can't say things like that either Ned. Women have to be respected nowadays - unless you're a Catholic of course ...

NED GOLIGHTLY: ... Bloody h..heck! What's been going on here? Next thing you'll be telling me is that we'll soon have our first woman prime minister!

THE CURMUDGEON: Mmm ... lonely is it being a lighthouse keeper Ned?

NED GOLIGHTLY: Well we do keep to ourselves. The lighthouses I've looked after have all been in remote places so those new-fangled inventions haven't caught up to me yet ..

THE CURMUDGEON: ... like the internet, digital and satellite communication, apps etc?

NED GOLIGHTLY: No, radio and telephone. You're babbling again.

THE CURMUDGEON: Sheesh!

NED GOLIGHTLY: Mind you, a lot of other lighthouses are now run by some sort of magic that doesn't require a keeper at all. I remember old 'Bat' Anilid telling me …

THE CURMUDGEON: 'Bat' Anilid?

NED GOLIGHTLY: Yeah, I can't remember his real first name but we called him 'Bat' because he was as blind as one - get it?

THE CURMUDGEON: A blind lighthouse keeper?

NED GOLIGHTLY: Yeah, fancy that eh. Just as well we had a strong union back then. We don't now though as there are only a few of of us left.

THE CURMUDGEON: None.

NED GOLIGHTLY: What's that son?

THE CURMUDGEON: None. There are no manned lighthouses left. The last manned one was at The Brothers islands in Cook Straight and was demanned in 1990. All the rest are now automatic.

NED GOLIGHTLY: Are you sure son?

THE CURMUDGEON: I'm sure so …

NED GOLIGHTLY: … so that explains why I was talking to myself at the last Flare Up meeting. Mind you, I'm used to that by now.

THE CURMUDGEON: Me too. Did you know that I lie in bed at night talking to myself?

NED GOLIGHTLY: You should have been a lighthouse keeper son. Never mind, I guess that you've had a good career moaning about everything.

THE CURMUDGEON: Yes, mustn't grumble ..... ha ha.

NED GOLIGHTLY: Ha ha ... nice one - it reminds me of that Small Faces song. What was it?

THE CURMUDGEON: 'Lazy Sunday'.

NED GOLIGHTLY: Yeah, that's it, better than that garage band rubbish of Holly Golightly. Mind you, I fancied the pants off of that Audrey Hepburn in the Breakfast at Tiffany's film. Many the night I ...

THE CURMUDGEON: .... yes, we'd better leave it there Ned. Thanks for coming in. I'm sure that the readers will have appreciated your illuminations.

NED GOLIGHTLY: Don't push it TC. Hey! Good luck with your lighthouse trips. I see that you've already 'knocked one off' (and I'm not talking about Audrey). There are 23 lighthouses (and 75 light-beacons) in operation. They should keep you busy. I brought along a list of the lighthouses for you:

NED GOLIGHTLY:  And I also brought you a photograph of Audrey:

Audrey Hepburn

ONE DOWN*

 We drove to Akaroa yesterday and stayed the night. 

The weather was a bit rainy and dull but the roads were well maintained and safe (sensible 80km max  highway and 60km max over the hill road to Akaroa. I wish that we had the same in Whangarei Heads).

The accommodation was superb (pics following) and we had a magnificent meal at a local restaurant Ma Maison.

Our accommodation: Blythcliffe.

An old colonial mansion with great gardens

'The Stables' - our accommodation

We had the whole thing to ourselves - huge area and beautifully appointed.

We had a stroll around Akaroa on Saturday afternoon looking at the shops and the Akaroa Wharf that The Old Girl's been working on a renovation bid for.

For those who decry reversion to Maori place names for some New Zealand locations have a look at this map below. Some fuckwit many generations ago decided to change the Maori name 'Pohatu' to 'Flea'!

On our long walk along the bay we ended up at the relocated lighthouse which is very pretty.

.... but not as pretty as this vase that I spotted in a gift/antique shop:

 

"I like that " I said to which The Old Girl questioned my lack of taste.

I replied that I told her the other day how lovely she looked and received a frosty glare back.

Oh well, we did agree on a couple of sculpture/installations at a gallery at Little River (on the way to Akaroa) and thought that they'd look great - one in the back garden and the other attached to the house.

This is huge, (that's a studio cottage it's attached to so must be at least 10 foot high) made from some kind of metal and supported by rebars. It would look great as a house adornment and stand up to  the Northland storms very well.

This depiction of kea is also made out of metal and is a bit more delicate but would be an ideal garden ornament. I don't think we have a secluded enough garden but I will check it out. 

I've got the artist's details so will check out shipping logistics.

I mentioned earlier that we had a great meal at Ma Maison. This is a stunning restaurant which with its ambience, service, cuisine and wine list would give big city restaurants a run for their money at much, much cheaper prices. We shared a seared tuna entree and The Old Girl had a lamb dish and I had blue cod for mains.  All were beautifully prepared and presented and it was the best seared tuna and lamb fillets we've ever had.  The very fresh blue cod took me right back to my childhood when staying with relatives in Canterbury who took me fishing from Kaikoura to south of Christchurch. The great wine list gave us plenty of choice - a glass each of Pelorus methode and a Babich Irongate chardonnay (Hawkes Bay) for me followed by a Peregrine pinot noir (Central Otago). She had a glass of Black Estate Treble Rose (pinot noir) which was delicious and, to the the eye doesn't look like a rose at all as it is very dense in colour. It was chilled and refreshing and reminded me of when dining out with Richard and Shelley I stupidly ordered a bottle of an Italian red that needed to be chilled. I tell you, this Black Estate rose would knock the socks off of that 'Eyetie' one!

Breakfast (3 courses) was included in the nightly rate and we dined sumptuously (again) at 10 AM - not needing lunch at all afterwards. We had a leisurely drive back to Christchurch, checking out our 'old' house we owned back in the 1990s, dropped the rental car off and went back 'home' to Mount Pleasant.

All told it's been a really nice weekend.

How's your weekend gone?  I know that Richard, poor old guy, thought he was going to Marlborough but ended up in Martinborough! Tsk, tsk. No doubt the airline people are used to this with the very elderly so, no harm done.

* The "one down" refers to the lighthouse. I've decided that I want to visit and in some cases revisit all of the lighthouses in New Zealand. I haven't drawn up the plan yet so was surprised to see the (relocated) lighthouse at Akaroa but it was a pleasant surprise.

WOW! LUCKY ME

 The New Zealand Herald sent me some good news in an e-mail.

There's no blaming any global financial crises, the pandemic, shipping and transportation costs etc. No, the NZ Herald merely congratulates itself on how well they are doing and have the temerity to suggest that with upcoming popular sporting events they will be busy (busy making lots of money) and, because these events will be so popular they will increase the subscription price - " .. to invest in our journalism".

"We're committed to delivering the highest-quality journalism to our readers, and the price increase reflects the investment we're making in our content and services. We're confident that the value you receive as a Herald Premium subscriber is worth the increased price."

Fuck 'em! 

IT'S NOW THURSDAY ....

It's been a record 4 days since I last posted and already it's creating high levels of concern amongst readers*.

I've just arrived in Christchurch, flying in severe conditions with storms up and down the country. I was supposed to fly on Wednesday morning but late on Tuesday night Air NZ sent me a message to say the the first leg of the trip was cancelled. I went on line and rescheduled for Wednesday late afternoon. 

 .... I've lost a day of my holiday.

Shortly before I was to leave for the airport I received another alert from Air NZ advising of nighttime fog conditions at ChCh airport and suggesting a change. I called The Old Girl and we discussed whether I should take the chance anyway and fly out of Whangarei hoping that the ChCh fog would clear. We agreed that it would be a silly idea and I might get stranded in Auckland so I went on-line again and rescheduled for this morning.

This was wise as not long after that Northland experienced one of the worst thunder and lightning storms for a while and rain bucketed down. The flight was cancelled. The storm raged during the night which was quite spectacular with over 400 lightning flashes which lit up the bay and growling and booming thunder which, at times, shook the house.

This morning I was half expecting to get another flight alert but went to the airport at the scheduled time. The flight was delayed a bit due to rain which made for a quick dash at Auckland to connect with the ChCh flight.

I have to say that Air NZ provided damned good service. The alerts were handy and rescheduling on-line was easy and successful. They cannot control the weather. As we arrived in Auckland they made an announcement to passengers to stay seated and allow any people connecting to the ChCh flight to get off first so they could dash to meet their flight. This was very welcome.

I'm now safely in ChCh in a very warm house (it has underfloor heating and a quiet and unobtrusive heating system that keeps temperature at a steady 22 degrees). It's wet and dreary outside though and the forecast is for this to be the case for a few days. Bummer! When I was down last month the weather was perfect but I was crippled with back problems and couldn't enjoy it. I've made car and accommodation bookings this weekend for us to go the Akaroa. It would have been nicer in good weather but hey! We'll still have a good time.

I checked the blogs once I set up the computer (laptop) and was surprised to see that Richard hasn't posted for days either. I guess that he's been so worried about me that he just couldn't manage it. Robert the inconsiderate sinner and wisher that I would delete my blog hasn't written much. I blame  his diet which has too much processed meats in it. It must be clogging up his mental processes - well, that and his current fascination with the Baltimore Catechism. That'd clog up anyone's memory, emotion, perception, imagination, thinking and reasoning. Maybe he needs a good purge. I recommend Metamucil for his body and Richard Dawkins for his mind.

* Well, one anyway. Richard phoned me to see if I was OK.

ROBERT'S GOD LOVES A TRIER

 Old Richard tried to write a humorous post today. It was more like a humerus one for all the 'arm there was in it.

He rather grandly titled it: WORDS THAT SAY IT ALL

Which after reading proved to be false. He's not an essayist either. Certainly not like Bugs Baer.

"I can write essays and be funny" - Bugs Baer

He's more like either of these guys:

Still, he didn't put down any LGBQT people with outdated psychological and Christian prejudices.

FUN AND GAMES

 

Transgender sport has been on the news a lot recently with the latest being Sport NZ's new guidelines for the inclusion of transgender people in community sport, allowing athletes to compete in the gender they identify with. These were developed following engagement with transgender and sporting communities, academics, researchers and other advocacy groups.

SPORT NZ GUIDELINES

If a male declares a female identity, they will be entitled to play with and against females at community level sport, no questions asked. If sporting organisations have not been able to facilitate private bathrooms, they will also be entitled to use the facilities that they are most comfortable in, such as female bathrooms, changing rooms and female dormitories on sports trips. Sport NZ’s guiding principles also imply that community sport isn’t competitive and female athletes don’t play to win. The draft principles say that girls are involved in sport primarily as a social activity, and so requiring them to accept males that identify as girls or women into the female category is inclusive.

There are concerns at this so as outlined in the report link above. A couple are:

There is a risk that female participation levels will be impacted, if they are not comfortable playing with, or against, males that identify as women.

There will be less opportunity for females to win, place on podiums, or make a team. The ability for females to win will be under threat due to the biological advantage of male transgender athletes.

All good I suppose but with this 'new' group being so large and becoming such an issue in international sporting codes and events something has to be addressed (pun intended) as soon as possible. A lot of discussion is about changing rooms and toilet facilities, safety and dignity of female athletes, competitiveness and social acceptance but, to me, the most important consideration should be fairness and equality.

It's about time that sporting codes and events get rid of the male vs female separations in sports where gender isn't a sensible consideration,. These are for example:

• Lawn bowls
• Hurling
• Diving
• Archery
• Shooting
• Equestrian
• Darts
• Snooker
• Sailing
• Badminton

to name a few.

For the ones where male strength is a distinct advantage there should remain a separation.

When it comes to transgender though, where the trans person has advantages of male strength then there needs to be a change (pun intended). I propose a third category in international sports competitions - Trans gender. In sports where there is enough participation by transgender people then the categories should be men, women and transgender. I can see this being in most ball codes (I won't go near a pun there) like football (various), tennis, baseball and basketball, contact and martial sports, swimming, athletics, rowing and cycling.

What do you think?*

* I know that Robert would rather all transgenders be re-engineered, transported, re-educated and/or sent to hell.

TOASTED

 Another lovely day dawned - cool yes at 8 degrees but sunny and windless.

I dressed warm with 3 layers including a merino shirt. Robert, I was unable to take a heat pump with me.

Whilst it was sunny and I was moving around a bit, it was still cold and I only took my vest off halfway through.

I'm lucky with this tennis club being so close to home - about a 5 minute drive and the fact that it is convivial and no-one takes things too seriously. I really enjoyed the 2 and a half hours but munted my elbow somehow (add it to the list of injuries).

This filler post was brought to you by The Curmudgeon's Inc.ⓒ and Lucky Strike.

I DON'T KNOW THE ANSWER*

 * Not the answer to "the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything."

We all know now that it was 42.

No, I don't know the solution to the gang problem in New Zealand.

After penning not one but four posts today I thought that I deserved a sit down and a glass of chardonnay (Selaks Buttery from Hawkes Bay) but, when watching the 6 O'Clock news, I saw the mayhem caused by the Mongrel Mob funeral in Opotiki.

Here's the NZ Herald coverage:

MONGRELS

The TV One report (I looked for it to copy and paste but without success) was a balanced news report with a very literate female spokesperson for the Mongrel Mob speaking of Mongrel Mob Barbarians president Steven Taiatini who was murdered last week and recounting of what a benefit to the community he'd been. Well, I reserve my judgement on that as he could have been of greater benefit to the community if he hadn't 'worked' for an illegal organisation that is funded from the manufacture and selling of dangerous drugs, prostitution, theft and robbery and a host of other violent activities.

The police were on hand, in force (taking them away from important other duties) to ensure that there was no disorder. This didn't stop supporters driving dangerously (hanging out of car windows, riding on the back of utes etc,) and doing things that you and I would be arrested for. One arsehole, in an over-filled car hung out the window and shouted "Sieg Heil"!

This high-handed approach to law and order by the gangs in New Zealand gets my goat. They do things that the ordinary, responsible, law-abiding and tax and rate-paying citizens would get censured, arrested, fined or imprisoned for. Something has to give.

I also get pissed off by the apologists who come out to say what a great thing these guys do for the community. The very communities that they prey on, rob, undermine with drug usage and ultimately destroy. Some of these gangs employ professional PR and marketing people to lobby politicians and to spin to the media. Give me a break.

Successive Governments mumble about doing something but insufficiently fund the policing organisations who could do something about it. It's time for Maori - yes, Maori with a big capital 'M', to step up and sort out this stuff. If the country had a ballsy and responsible Maori political party - not the various fragmented and self-serving entities that exist at present, then ownership of Maori community problems could be a real thing.

But ... as I said ... I don't know the answer.

POT CALLS KETTLE BLACK - BREAKING NEWS

 

Yes, you heard it here. Mr pedantic from down south called one of my posts today a filler. This from a guy whose latest efforts at posting totalled less than a hundred lines (short ones) over 6 or 7 posts. He did toss a photo or two in as well to pad things out.

Sheesh!

Anyway, I promised Robert that I'd let him know what I'm making for dinner - not sausages and "mashies" that's for damned sure.

I'll be preparing Nicoise salad soon - tuna, potato, anchovies, cos lettuce, egg, tomato, capsicum etc. Yum. It'll be just right for the end of a splendid day. I'll have it with garlic bread.

NEW POST - THE RELIGIOUS CURMUDGEON

 

PROOF THAT GOD EXISTS

REVERIE

 

I'm reading T.S. Eliot's Murder in the Cathedral today.

Thirteenth-century manuscript illumination depicting Becket's assassination

Murder in the Cathedral is about the assassination of Archbishop Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral during the reign of Henry II in 1170. 

I first read this in the sixth or seventh form at St Pat's College. The lay English teacher Arthur Naylor presented it to us. He also had us read Graham Greene's The Power and the Glory about a renegade 'whisky priest' living in the Mexican state of Tabasco in the 1930s, a time when the Mexican government was attempting to suppress the Catholic Church. 

I'm not sure whether there was a subtext in Naylor's selections but admit that I half expected to arrive at school one day  to discover that old Naylor had run amok and shot all the priests.

I do have a fertile imagination.

This isn't the last post today. There's bound to be another one and I still haven't told Robert what my dinner plans are.

STUNNING DAY

 This morning has been wonderful and I hope that it lasts during the day.

It was cold first thing - 8 degrees outside but sunny and now things are warming up.

I rose early, changed the sheets and fitted a duvet into the duvet cover (I did mention that it's cold). It's always easier doing this when The Old Girl's away as it means I only have to do it once👨.

I put a load of washing through and have hung it in the bright sunshine.

I dusted every surface in the house - the sunlight streaming in the windows means that I can see the dust and cobwebs that I usually miss.

Not that she's here to witness it but I might drop it into the conversation tonight when talking to her on FaceTime.

I deserve a mid-morning coffee now. We too have a coffee machine but, unlike Richard, know how to use it.

I'll post later in the day as Robert will no doubt want to know what I've planned for my dinner.

YOU HEARD IT HERE FIRST

Remember this?

 DANGER WILL ROBINSON, DANGER

Of course you do. You probably have the link on 'speed dial' like links to most of The Curmudgeon's posts.

It seems that the dangers of AI and ChatGPT (the creators of which are currently being sued in USA in a landmark defamation case) are very real with many industries and professions including the Law profession being alarmed at indiscriminate use. A barrister was caught using it in a case submission when the judge called him out for misinformation. It seems that ChatGPT just makes things up when it doesn't have answers and in this case cobbled together bogus case precedents from the billions of algorithms it trawled. It even made up false case numbers for these.

Joe Bennett humorously writes on the threat of AI to humanity here:

JOE BENNETT

I like this.

Even the defenders of AI though admit that while there is a threat we ALL won't be eliminated. Boy, that makes me feel better.

Of course this could change. Over time we may build increasingly capable robots, and in a few decades we may reach the point where robots are doing a large share of physical work. At that point, an A.I. takeover scenario might become more plausible.

- Timothy B. Lee SLATE "Artificial Intelligence Is Not Going To Kill Us All."

AI IS NOT GOING TO KILL US ALL

This principle is particularly important for military hardware. One of the most plausible existential risks from A.I. is a literal  Skynet scenario where we create increasingly automated drones or other killer robots and the control systems for these eventually go rogue or get hacked. Militaries should take precautions to make sure that human operators maintain control over drones and other military assets.

        - Timothy B. Lee SLATE

MONDAY UPDATE

1) It's cold but not as cold as yesterday.

I checked the temperature and it had plummeted to 13 degrees this morning. Brrrr!

2)  Did I mention that it's cold this morning?

3) As my back is on the mend I went for another walk today (first one was yesterday). I went along the coastal bush track to Reotahi and sat on my favourite bench at the top. This provides great views across the bay and harbour.

The port

The half decommissioned Marsden Point refinery

The harbour

My favourite tree

The jetty

Mount Manaia

4) Home again and it's warming up. I might have to cool things down with the heat pump set to 'cool'.

***************

I wonder what the other bloggers are up to?

Richard wrote a new post that consisted mainly of him moaning about things.

Here's a few things that he's unhappy about:

1) It's cold down there.

2) There aren't enough kids at school (normally he complains that there are too many kids at school). 

3) It's still cold down there.

4) He has to go to a jam (normally he complains that he doesn't have a jam to go to).

5) He has to tidy up the spare living area because a friend is going to arrive imminently - at Christmas time! FFS! Maybe he should go to the airport now and find a carpark - just in case! I swear - he's getting worse.

6) He's got the heater on full but it's still cold.


7) He's complaining because his son gave them a fancy coffee machine that's beyond his understanding. No doubt he's already munted it by putting it on a stovetop element.




It's no use going over to Robert's blog. He's probably still shagged out from writing that 50 word post on Sunday. Either that or the nitrates from the hot dogs have got to him.

"You've been eating hotdogs again haven't you?"

SUNDAY QUIZ NUMBER TWO

I had this quiz set to post early Sunday morning but I can see by the interest already shown in it that you want to try your hand earlier. OK, here it is.

The inaugural Sunday Quiz was an outstanding success and I wonder why I didn't think of this construct earlier? All of the community bloggers responded with one (50%) completing the questions, albeit wrongly, and receiving a consolation prize of a lifetime subscription to Robert's blog.

This week the Religious Curmudgeon has compiled the quiz. Take it away TRC.

****************

Thanks TC. This quiz will be easy for those who listened up in school Christian Doctrine classes.

1. What is the name of the religious manual made up by Peter Canisius, a Jesuit, first published in 1555?

• The Cataclysm
• The Catechism
• The Catastrophe.

2. To Catholic schoolboys, which Mary was the 'hottest' and appealed most to their erotic fantasies?

• The Virgin Mary, mother of Christ.
• Mary the Magdalene.
• Mary Queen of Scots.

3. What do Priests, nuns and religious brothers wear under their cassocks?

• Longjohns.
• Frilly knickers.
• Nothing.

4. Was Mary the mother of Christ -

• Consumed by heathens?
• Assumed into Heaven?
• Assured by Insurers?

5. Is the Communion host made of:

• Leavened bread?
• Unleavened Bread?
• Lemonade?

Please get your answers in by close of day and, as Richard would say "have fun but don't sin".