Alistair Campbell on Alcoholism
Alistair Campbell has written a Panorama program on alcoholism, which is shown tonight.
As he was responsible for framing a lot of Nulabor policy, is there any connection to the financial mess that the Blair and Brown governments left us is.
Just looking at various cabinet ministers of the last fifty years or so, you can tell that some don’t have the healthiest of lifestyles.
Why Does Anybody Buy a Gas Cooker?
This house came with a complete set of appliances. Most have suffered at the hands of ten years of tenants, who looked after them as if they were their own and not the care you would if they were someone else’s.
The cooker didn’t suffer too much at the hands of the tenants, but judging by the fact that the microwave was in the garage and rather burnt, I would think the reason the cooker was OK wasn’t misuse, but no use!
But that doesn’t alter the fact that cooking anything as simple as bacon and eggs is very very difficult. Or it could be that I’ve cooked on a variety of AGAs for forty years and before that it was a sophisticated all-electric hob and oven!
So the next time a modern day Steptoe passes my door he gets it. And probably a double hernia as well, as it was obviously built by a company that knew weight could settle all problems. But not everywhere of course!
The cooker isn’t totally useless in that it can cook things that just need the electric oven or just one pot on a gas. so I can cook my fish pies or Moroccan Chicken Casseroles.
It’s just simple things like meat and two veg and of course bacon and eggs, that are difficult.
At least in the 1950s, you could always use them to kill the lamb before you ate it! Even that function has been removed on safety grounds.
Is This Optimism?
I took this picture on a very cold day outside Carluccio’s in Islington.
Outside Tables in the Cold
Is it the height of optimism to expect people to sit outside?
A Doggy-Bag Story
We had dined in one of Mumbai’s finest restaurants and they didn’t stint on the portions.
And we failed to eat it all!
So they gave us a large doggy bag and told us to give it to one of the beggars outside. We tried to refuse the bag, but they insisted.
In some ways it’s sad that mothers have to beg for their food in one of India’s richest cities, but they have put a system together to help.
US’s Legacy To German Pharmacist
Obviously, it a day for German stories, this one was on the BBC.
But at least it proves there’s nothing wrong with American lard, no matter how old it is.
Alcohol Has Never Been Allowed On US Navy Ships – Wrong!
Anybody who knows anything about warships, knows those in the United States Navy are alcohol-free.
However, may years ago, I met a guy, who in the early-1960s had been an officer on a nuclear submarine in the United States Navy. They had been doing a joint exercise with the Royal Navy and he started the tale by saying that when the two navies work together, if possible all meetings between senior officers are held on Royal Navy ships, as food and drink is better. Especially on November 11th.
After this exercise the submarine went into Portsmouth for a bit of rest and recreation and to replenish supplies, before returning to the United States. The duties of the teller of this tale included getting the provisions. As one can imagine and especially in the early-1960s, lots of things they needed were not available in the naval base at Portsmouth, although they would be now. The only thing for which there wasn’t an obviously an easy substitute was the fresh orange juice. After all, Portsmouth isn’t exactly Florida. So the helpful men of the Senior Service substituted several hundred bottles of beer.
When he got back to the submarine, he was obviously rather nervous and decided to make a clean breast of it to the Captain. After all several members of the crew, if not all, now knew of the beer, so to ditch it would ruin his relationship with them. The Captain warned him not to do it again, said could he try a few bottles and provided he didn’t see any of the beer or anybody the remotest bit intoxicated, he would let the matter rest.
So where did they hide all of these bottles of beer, as you could imagine that secret space is a bit limited on a submarine?
They hid the bottles in the torpedo tubes.
I’ve Never Eaten A Chicken McNugget!
And after Rod Liddle’s description of what goes in them, I surely don’t think I’ve missed any essential food or vitamins. He entitles the piece,
Listen up, you silly McNuggets: start saying ‘no’ to kids, so I think you can get his drift. Or should I say his very caustic drift, as he weaves the story round the life and imminent death of Stacey Irvine, who’s lived on McNuggets since she was two.
A Dangerous Van?
I saw this van parked in the City
A Dangerous Van?
But it did catch my eye, which is the purpose the paint job.
Do We Really Need More Subways?
It has been announced today, that Subway is to open a large number of new outlets and create a lot of jobs.
The jobs are welcome, but do we really need all these sandwich shops selling obesity?
As a coeliac the answer is an overwhelming no, as they have no gluten-free products. But then we’re all going to pick up the bill for the obesity through the NHS.
One of the biggest problems too is that they might create a lot of jobs, but how many small places will be put out of business, thus adding to the jobless pile.
We should tax all fast food shops on the calories of the average order.
That would fix them! Hopefully, by restructuring the product ine.
I particular hate Subway for two other reasons; they are always throwing junk mail through my letter box, despite a prohibition notice and lots of pavements are blocked by their salesmen handing out flyers.
Do we really want to import the United States’s worst export; obesity?
Cleaning Ducts
Outside my house at the moment is a van from a company that says it cleans ducts.
By this it means those big air vents you get in places like kitchens and I guess they are cleaning the ducts in the pub a couple of doors away, that is being refurbished.
It reminds me of a story about Enfield Rolling Mills.
An apprentice called Dave Howard was asked to clean the ducts in the canteen. On putting his head inside, he found that they contained quite a number of rats. As he didn’t like the thought of mixing it in the ducts with little furry animals, he decided on another course of action. He just switched everything off and made sure a lot of hot air was driven through the ducts.
The strategy worked in that it blew the rats away, but the canteen wasn’t able to sell any food for several days because of the smell.
The Anonymous Widower 