Yacht an idiot: Silly Billy wants war: Cannibal harlequins: Bombing Montecristo: some Chinese bodyguards: and a twenty first century ditty.

Cold and crusty yet again at the Castle this morn, the study is overpopulated with dodgy difference machines, the boiler is nearing the temperature of the sun and his Maj has discovered the joy of putting things in his water bowl.

Just returned from the stale bread, gruel and pussy food run at Tesco, the Elfandsafety would have a field day...

My lovely young lady has just trimmed my locks, and; A couple more inane pics:

  

His Maj skating on the frost.

And a cold statue.

According to the erudite education secretary

We should stump up more than a few million squids to present her Maj with a nice new “Royal Yacht”; Michael Gove believes the present would ‘recognise the Queen’s highly significant contribution to the life of the nation’.

He has written a private letter to Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who is overseeing the celebrations, and to the Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, suggesting celebrations for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee ‘should go beyond those of previous jubilees and mark the greater achievement that the diamond anniversary represents’.

Bollocks, give her a medal instead-much cheaper.

And:

According to the Express

Silly Billy (baseball cap and room sharing, but not gay) Hague reckons that military action against Iran cannot be ruled out as the rogue state steps up its nuclear threat.

Western governments, including Britain, have moved to step up sanctions over Iran’s nuclear programme, threatening an embargo on its vital oil exports. In response, Tehran has talked of blocking the Straits of Hormuz oil shipment route.

silly Billy said: “We are clearly not calling for or advocating military action. We are advocating meaningful negotiations, if Iran will enter into them, and the increasing pressure of sanctions to try to get some flexibility from Iran.’’

“We have never ruled anything out. We have not ruled out any option, or supporting any option. We believe all options should be on the table, that is part of the pressure on Iran,” he said.

No option then....

And in the gardens of Blighty

There is a real war going on, an explosion in the number of harlequin ladybirds has led to people's homes being infested with the creatures – and threatened native ladybirds.

While the two-spotted and seven-spotted varieties are emblematic of the British countryside, the larger harlequin, first seen in the UK in 2004 and now numbering billions, has become the nation's most abundant species. Rather than feasting on aphids and greenfly, the harlequin also eats lacewings, hoverflies and even other ladybirds.

Rolled up newspaper time.....

Over in the Med

The Island of Montecristo is to be bombed with poison after rat infestation, the uninhabited island, a protected nature reserve lying between the coast of Tuscany and Corsica has been invaded by thousands of black rats.

The rodents are believed to have arrived on the four-square-mile island as stowaways on boats a few years ago but have now multiplied.

Authorities are planning to use aircraft to bombard the island with poison pellets in a bid to tackle the infestation.

The plan is to drop around 26 tonnes of pellets on the island at the end of this month.



Who ‘counted’ the rats on Montecristo then.....

Over to the land of loads of oil and even more people

Female bodyguards from Tianjiao Special Bodyguards/Safety Consultants Limited had their “devil day” training.

This is the company’s first public female bodyguard training session. Tianjiao Special Bodyguards currently has 20 female bodyguards, the majority of them being university graduates. The girls need to undertake 8-10 months of professional training to master enough defence and protection skills in order to provide better service to clients.

Tianjiao Special Bodyguard Company will send the members of this squad of female bodyguards with the best performance to the Israeli International Security Academy to undergo even more professional skills training.

Not that tough, have a look at the pic...

And finally: the reason why I am a bit tardy this day:

Take me back to the old days

In days of yore when I were young

And we were taught to hold our tongue

When state provided heat and light

And chuff chuffs too-coo what a sight

When jobs were many, housing too

And life was simple-unlike ‘noo’

When go juice cost us just a bit

And cars were rare as phoenix shit

And schools were just as bad as now

Apart from caning-what a cow

And phones were things attached by wire

When black hard stuff were used on fire

When the box had just three channels

And our best programmes came in annals

When summer came and summer went

And global weather wasn’t bent

When MPs didn’t seem as bad

Its really changed since I were’ lad

I wish I could go back to then

And keep with me the current gen.

  

That’s it: I’m orf to search for planets

And today’s thought:

Angus

Wineing MPs: Bung-a-low price on two faced Minister: Fine lines: Bum auction lot: Magnetic stools: Flying pussy: and Rodent retrieval.

Cold, crisp, crusty and calm at the Castle this morn, the butler is feeding the furnace with fat teenagers like there is no tomorrow and his Maj has discovered the joy of sleeping on my head during the dark thing.

Up in the smoke

Allegedly The House of Commons has spent £275,000 over the past two years on taxpayer-subsidised wine and champagne.

The Commons wine cellar was filled with 44,000 bottles for MPs and their staff to enjoy in the Palace of Westminster’s unlicensed bars and restaurants.

It includes £28,000 on 1,838 bottles of champagne and £11,100 on 1,470 bottles of sparkling wine.

The wine was bought by the House of Commons catering and retail service, which has received a state subsidy of £11.5m over the past two years.

It amounts to a top-up of 42 per cent - meaning the taxpayer contribution to the wine bill was the equivalent of £115,000, or £176 per MP.

No fewer than 69 different wines were bought, including 47 bottles of the highly-rated Chateau de Fonbel 2003, at a cost of £932; 144 bottles of Joseph Drouhin Cote de Nuits-Villages, costing £1,854; and 204 bottles of Sancerre Domaine de Raimbault, costing £2,455.

The authorities also spent more than £40,000 on 7,300 bottles of sauvignon blanc and £24,000 on 5,000 bottles of Merlot.

The taxpayer subsidy means MPs can enjoy drinks at prices far lower than those found in high street wine bars, with wine from £2.35 a glass.

Which does explain some of the “Pissed” Poor Policies being made law at the tipsy temple of sots.

And up a smidge from the Smoke

Apparently a Cabinet minister sold her home close to the proposed High Speed 2 rail link just two months before the Government gave the go-ahead to the controversial project.

Cheryl Gillan, the Welsh secretary, sold the house in Amersham, Bucks, last November for £320,000 – just weeks before the Government gave the go-ahead to the £32 billion scheme.

The 17th century terraced house lies 500 yards from the proposed Birmingham to London train route.

Mrs Gillan had been one of the leading opponents to HS2 on the Tories’ benches and had previously threatened to resign if the project was given the green light.

However, after the government signalled its intention to press ahead with the scheme last Tuesday, Gillian emphasised the “good progress” that has been made in mitigating the effects of the new rail route in her constituency with longer tunnels.

A spokesman for the Welsh Secretary confirmed that the house was sold in November last year for 20% below the asking price after being on the market for 18 months.

He said that Mrs Gillan had decided to sell the property because she and her 84-year-old husband have difficulty climbing stairs.

Two faced inside deal?

Up a whimsy more

Patrick McCrystal was given a £70 ticket after double yellow lines were painted underneath his parked Ford Fiesta.

Mr McCrystal, from Derby, was further angered when he spotted flecks of yellow paint on his front bumper.

The 49-year-old petrol station worker - who regularly parked between the gaps in the lines - said yesterday: 'I couldn’t believe my eyes. They had extended the existing set of lines underneath my car, and then a warden had slapped a ticket on it.

'When I parked there were double yellows in front of my car, double yellows behind my car, but nothing in between.

'It has been my regular spot for two years and there was nothing to indicate I couldn’t park there.'

Although fine has since been rescinded, Derby City Council admitted the ticket was issued in error.

David Gartside, the council’s head of traffic and transport, said: 'It appears that there was a communication breakdown between our contractors undertaking the lining work and our enforcement officers.

'We apologise for any inconvenience.' 

Ah, the old miscommunication excuse-maggots....

Dahn Unda and right a touch

Tina Beznec, 23, placed an ad on the Trade Me website under the title 'YOUR Tattoo on my Bum!!' which offers a 9cm by 9cm square of flesh.

The highest bidder can have anything they like inked on the spot and will receive a framed photo of the finished work. They can even go to the tattoo parlour to watch it being done.

Tina, of Lower Hutt, admitted in her ad that people may think she was 'crazy', but insisted she needed the money.

'Ok so 20% of the auction winnings will go to a Charity of your choice and the rest will go to me, I deserve it, I have been made redundant TWICE over the past year,' she said.

Her idea has attracted plenty of public interest and the bidding in the auction, which ends on January 20th, has already topped the NZ$10,000 (£5,180) reserve price.

Tina also had some suggestions for what the winning bidder could choose to tattoo on her backside, including a business promotion or marriage proposal.

Or how about-“I’m an arsehole”?

Up to whacky baccy land

Dutch designer Jólan van der Wiel is making stools by mixing iron filings with molten plastic and creating the legs by "pulling" them up using magnets. When the plastic hardens you've got yourself a stool.

Gestenigd Numpty

Left a lot and dahn a lot

An elderly woman has been left fighting for her life in Argentina after a cat thrown out of a fourth-floor apartment during a heated argument landed on her head, local media reported.

The incident occurred in the Belgrano neighbourhood of Buenos Aires on Saturday when, during the dispute, a man grabbed the family cat and threw it at his wife.

She dodged the feline, which then sailed through an open window and plunged toward the ground, striking the woman, an 85-year-old neighbour.

Police told Argentine media that the victim suffered a fractured skull and was rushed to hospital, where she had to be connected to a ventilator.

The cat's condition is unknown.

 

Not funny really......

And finally: 

Up to the other bit of the Americas

More than 90 hamsters were found in one man's apartment, well-cared for and kept in aquariums, buckets and Tupperware containers.

The Boehm Street man had 94 hamsters in total and decided on his own it was just too many. He went to the MSPCA's Small Animal Shelter at Nevins Farm in Methuen last week to let officials there know he had a large number of hamsters he wanted to surrender.

"The situation was not dire, so we asked him to wait a week so we could prepare for them," said Mike Keiley, director at the Methuen shelter.

Keiley said the man planned to take a cab to the shelter to turn over the hamsters. Instead, the MSPCA officials sent a van with two workers and the city's Animal Control Officer Ellen Bistany to the home yesterday to pick them up.

"He started with one hamster, and there got to be more and more," Keiley said.

Breed like rabbits do hamsters-I hope Freddy Starr doesn’t see this.

That’s it: I’m orf to look for Phobos-Grunt.

And today’s thought:

Angus

Angus snaps: Civilian plod: EU-ooops: Old Shreddies: Carver kronid: and Automatic fire wood.

Colder than a ConDem’s heart at the Castle this morn, the falling down and lying in vomit thing seems to have gorn orf, and his Maj has discovered the joy of sitting on the top of the wardrobes.

As you may know my photography skills are a bit suspect, and like all bad workmen I blame my camera; so I have “upgraded” to a sparkly new 14mp digital do-dah with all sorts of bells and whistles.

New one-taken with the old one.

Snowdrops-which are nearly gorn.

His Maj being a vandal.

And a snippet of video.

So you can look forward to many, many more inane pics in the future...

In barmy Blighty

Apparently there are more than 2,500 citizens working for town halls and private security companies who can hand out fines, take photographs of offenders and demand their names and addresses.

These soulless Jobsworths are not accountable to the police, unless they break the law, and include car park attendants and dog wardens.

Under the scheme, which began in 2002, a chief constable can give employees of councils or private companies limited powers to carry out specific, approved roles.

For some, that means the right to hand out on-the-spot fines for offences including disorder, truancy, dog fouling and littering, stop vehicles for roadside tests and confiscate alcohol or cigarettes from children.

They have a uniform and badge, but despite having to be approved by police chiefs, they remain under the full control of their employer who dictates their role and deployment. If they are accused of misconduct, the victim has to complain to the private employer and would have to sue in the civil courts if still unsatisfied.

A Home Office spokesman added: “Our number one priority is public protection. The Community Safety Accreditation Scheme assists the police in keeping communities safe.

“Powers are limited to dealing with low level crime, individuals are thoroughly vetted and training is approved by the relevant force.”

Bollocks.

Across the Eurozone

A string of countries have had their credit ratings downgraded in a mass blitz by agency Standard and Poor's.

France, Austria, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Slovakia, Malta, Slovenia and Cyprus have all been cut in a brutal round of downgrades.

France and Austria both now hold AA+ ratings, while Italy, formerly an A-rated country, holds a BBB+.

Spain will move down to an A rating, while Portugal moves to BB, Slovakia to A and Cyprus to BB+.

Malta now holds an A rating and Slovenia finds itself on A+.

Austria, France, Malta, Slovakia, Slovenia, Cyprus, Italy, Spain and Portugal also had their long-term ratings lowered.

Only Germany, The Netherlands, Finland and Luxembourg kept their top-notch ratings in the cuts.

The euro fell to a 17-month low on the currency markets amid early reports of the news - the latest in the eurozone crisis - and stock markets across the world also declined.

Oh dear; what a shame...

Back in baffling Blighty

Boxes of Shreddies dating back to the early 1970s have been discovered in a village shop – and are now selling for about £160 a time on eBay.

The packs were found by 59-year-old Norma Fears behind shelves at her post office in Whitwell, Hertfordshire, and were initially rejected as feed by a customer’s chickens.  

The customer returned to the store to give back the Shreddies, but fellow shopper Dave King suggested to the woman and Ms Fears that she place the items on eBay.

Some packs still contain a free gift – stickers from the 1970 Disney film The AristoCats - making them popular bidding items online.

'When we saw the first bid at £36, we thought "that’s quite good" but then they sold for £158.98,' explained Ms Fears. 'I couldn’t believe they went for that.

Hope the Elfandsafety crunchers don’t get wind of that......

East a fair way

Kronid Gogolev is a master wood-carver who creates incredibly detailed artworks inspired by the rural and provincial life of Russia’s northern regions.

Using simple tools, he is able to turn rough pieces of wood into masterpiece depicting the way of life and the traditions of the Russian northern village, capturing its original beauty. Each of his creations has its own unique features and characteristics, but they all manage to capture the attention of the viewer, transporting him to the real-life picturesque settings of the north.

Very nice-let’s hope this next guy doesn’t get his hands on them.

Still in the land of colder than Blighty

A Russian villager discovered a stockpile of Kalashnikov assault rifles hidden in the wooden crates he bought for $15 from a stranger to use as fuel for his winter stove.

A total of 79 guns and 253 cartridges were stuffed in more than 60 wooden boxes bought by a resident of the village of Sovkhozny in Udmurtia, a region some 1,300 km South-East of Moscow, Interfax news agency reported on Friday.

The 57-year old local resident said he bought them from a random truck driver for 500 roubles ($15.81) to heat his home.

The fully functional rifles, produced in 1959-1960, were on their way to a recycling plant from Izhmash, one of the country's oldest arms manufacturing plants, the company said, when they wound up in the man's possession.

Good job the butler didn’t get hold of them…

That’s it: I’m orf to colour the Milky Way.

And today’s thought:

Angus

Duckess in the dock: British decency: Tesco Crimbo: Sonic balls-up: Cow bras: Toulouse le expensive: and Irisin arrives.

Cold, crusty and clear at the Castle this morn, the butler has set up a conveyor belt to shove fat teenagers into the furnace, the fall down and lay in vomit thing has returned, and his Maj has discovered the joy of the nice warm airing cupboard.

And the interweb thingy has gorn tits up-again, started this at 05.30, still here-08.00.

I see that the ugly sister’s female parent

Is in a bit of bovver in Turkey, a court has said it plans to prosecute the Duckess of York for secretly filming orphans in the country for a television documentary in 2008.

The court plans to accuse her of going "against the law in acquiring footage and violating privacy" of five children.

The Duckess visited the orphanage near Ankara while making a film for the ITV Tonight programme and filmed scenes of children tied to their beds and left in cots all day.

Turkish officials made a formal request to the Home Office for help as they tried to bring a case against her in the past.

British ministers refused to accede to the further request for legal assistance from Turkey so from a UK perspective the case is closed.

The reasons for refusal were that the minister considered that to provide the assistance requested would have been likely to prejudice the sovereignty, security, ordre public [public order] or other essential interests of the United Kingdom.

 

I can see millions out on the streets supporting the Duckess-not...

And the Piss Poor Policies Millionaires Club Coalition

Has “vowed” to overturn three Lords defeats on welfare reform, after peers dramatically sent the bill back to the Commons.

The government proposals were branded "devastating", "severe" and indecent last night, as peers argued that the plans would effectively deprive disabled children of funds.

"The government has been defeated because quite simply they tried to cross the basic line of British decency," shadow work and pensions secretary Liam Byrne said.

"For months Labour has been determined to stop this cruel attack on cancer patients in its tracks and today the House of Lords agreed."

Welfare Minister Chris Grayling told the Today programme the government intended to strand firm.

"We have said very clearly that we will seek to reverse the amendments in the Lords when it comes back into the Commons," he said.

"We are dealing with some extraordinarily difficult economic times financially."

If the government is acting confidently, it is because it knows it has significant public backing for its welfare reforms plans.

Bollocks; so why are they going to do yet another U-turn on child benefits?

Over to the land of automation and the home of the car crash

General Motors Co has issued a recall of over 4000 of their current year Chevy Sonic subcompacts, because there is a possibility that they might be missing inner or outer front brake pads. This recall is in effect for both Canadian and US vehicles as their internal research shows that between 20 and 30 vehicles were sold with missing brake pads. The issue was discovered during some routine maintenance on a rental fleet car.

And nobody noticed?

East to the old enemy of the aforementioned

Cows in Russia's republic of Yakutia are being given hand-made fur bras.

Because Yakutia is officially the coldest place in the northern hemisphere, even the cattle need to be prepared for very low temperatures.

And with it sometimes reaching minus 55 degrees Celsius, some farmers have taken to producing hand-made rabbit fur accessories for their animals, reports rt.com.

The cow bras are said to consist of a rabbit fur pouch for their udders which is held in place through a series of straps.

Udderly wonderful, wonder if they do a ball brace for the male members of the herd....

 

Back in overpriced Blighty

My favourite retailer didn’t do too well over Crimbo; apparently like-for-like UK sales at Tesco were down by 2.3% over the festive what knot, the supermarket giant has reported.

Britain's largest retailer said the results, for the six weeks to January 7, were "below expectations and disappointing".

It also warned that it expected "minimal" profit growth for the coming year.

The supermarket's share price plummeted by more than 14% on the news.

Non-food sales were particularly bad and the fall came despite Tesco's Price Drop promotion.

Tesco chief executive Philip Clarke said: "We are disappointed with our seasonal trading performance in the UK.

If they didn’t charge three times the price for cheese as they did a year ago then Worrall Thompson wouldn’t need to “borrow” it...

 

Dahn Unda

Toulouse le plummet is a $12,000 cat - and that's not due to his breeding but the cost of surgery after surviving a fall from a seventh floor flat.

The six-year-old tom landed on his feet in the early hours of December 30, but broke all four paws. Owner Renelle Williams said it was amazing Toulouse suffered no internal injuries when he landed on the bitumen below.

"We were on the balcony and the cat would normally have a routine of jumping on to the next-door neighbours' balcony for a visit. He's gone over and probably fallen," Mrs Williams, of Surry Hills said.

Mrs Williams and her husband had to decide whether to keep Toulouse alive with an operation that required metal pins to be inserted into every toe and from his ankle through to his feet.

The cost of the orthopaedic surgery and recovery is expected to be about $12,000. She said they weighed up the decision and based it on the quality of life he would have once the bones healed.

Toulouse is recovering at home and will have the pins removed in six to eight weeks.

Sydney University Veterinary Hospital specialist surgeon Ben Landon said it was fairly common for cats to fall from apartment blocks, with the phenomenon known as "high-rise syndrome".

One down, eight to go....

And finally:

Scientists have come up with a goodie

A newly identified hormone that mimics the effects of exercise could one day help people lose weight and fight obesity-linked diseases without surgery.

Lab mice that were injected with this hormone lost weight and improved regulation of their blood sugar levels, which lowered their risk of diabetes, according to researchers in a new study. Normally the hormone, which the researchers have named Irisin, builds up in the blood of people after doing months of endurance exercise. 

I want some-now!!!!

That’s it (finally): I’m orf to the workshop.

And today’s thought:

Angus

Top Gear in reverse: More for the EU: Graduating to free work: Big Pussy up North: Stainless virgin: Finger painting: and a stuffed Monkey.

Cold, damp and a smidge dismal at the Castle this morn, things are springing up in the garden that shouldn’t be there until...well spring, and I have purchased a couple of vandalism tools-an axe and a three foot bow saw which will come in very useful when I do a bit of “pruning”. 

The new android phone is not bad, gets the internet OK, works well on hands free, has loads of “apps”-you tube, Google etc, and even makes phone calls...

And Blogger is behaving itself today.

Top Gear is in the wars again

This time the “presenters” have managed to piss orf the whole of India.

During the 90 minute programme, Numpty Clarkson, one of the BBC’s highest paid stars, was filmed speaking to locals while operating a trouser press in his boxer shorts and with a Jaguar with a lavatory fixed to the boot.

The programme makers also put banners on trains reading: “British IT is good for your company”. Another said: “Eat English muffins”. The messages became obscene when the carriages parted, ripping the signs-“shIT is good for your company, and “eat English muff”.

21 July 2011

Letter from Chris Hale, producer, Top Gear to Indian High Commission, London

“Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May will travel across India in three cars filming a light hearted road trip focusing on the journey and the inevitable idiosynacies of the cars they will drive, as well as the country and scenary we see along the way.

“There will be spontaneous interaction between the presenters and their environment, and potentially people they meet along the way. This will be in an incidental manner, not interviews.

“Key ingredients of what we film will be beautiful scenery, busy city scenes, local charm and colour within these locations, areas to illustrate the local car culture that exists in India.”

6 January 2012

Letter from Indian High Commission, London to Chris Hale, producer, Top Gear

cc Mark Thompson, director general, BBC

“The programme was replete with cheap jibes, tasteless humour and lacked cultural sensitivity. This is not clearly what we expect of the BBC. I write this to convey our deep disappointment over the documentary for its content and the tone of the presentation.

“You are clearly in breach of the agreement that you had entered into, completely negating our constructive and proactive facilitation. We strongly protest and expect the BBC to make amends, especially to assuage the hurt sentiments of a large number of people.”

No sense of humour these sub-continentals...

And:

Son of a B....aronet (and alien reptile in disguise) George (my dad’s richer than your dad) Osborne reckons that Britain may need to pour billions of pounds into the International Monetary Fund to give it the resources to deal with more financial crises.

The “chancellor” told MPs, in an appearance before the Treasury select committee, that Britain would be willing to make a contribution if there was a "well-argued case put forward". But he stressed that any extra funds must be used for general purposes, and not to bail out troubled eurozone countries directly – and reminded MPs that he might have to go parliament for approval for any sizable contribution.

"If it is a good case then ourselves and other countries like Japan, like Australia, will look at that, I am sure, favourably,"

Go and get a proper job Osborne.

 

Up in Brummy land

Cait Reilly, who has been looking for work since leaving Birmingham University, was volunteering at a museum until she was ordered to take a work placement at a Poundland store in the city.

The geology graduate spent two weeks stacking shelves and sweeping floors after being told she could lose her benefits if she did not accept the ‘mandatory’ post. She is now asking the High Court to quash regulations that her lawyers claim were created by the government ‘without parliamentary authority’ and ‘forces people into futile, unpaid labour for weeks or months at a time’.

 

The 22-year-old, who was not offered an interview following her placement, told her Jobcentre Plus adviser of her previous retail experience and that she did not want to give up volunteering at the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery.

 

The Department for Work and Pensions said: ‘Our priority is to help people off benefits and into work. It is simply absurd to suggest that we should not be providing this support and effectively leaving people at home doing nothing.’

 

Poundland was unavailable for comment last night but said earlier: ‘Our partnership with JobCentre Plus is a positive step to get people back into work.’

Yeah right; especiallyif they don't have to pay them...

Up North-ish 

Dog walkers discovered the mutilated carcass of a roe deer on National Trust land near Stroud last week.

The injuries to the neck of the deer and the way the carcass had been consumed are believed to be highly indicative of big cat activity.

Experts have taken DNA samples from the remains of the deer to see whether a big cat, such as a puma or panther, could have killed it.

Local big cat expert Rick Minter, who has visited the site of the discovery at Woodchester Park, said: "It is very helpful to have this forensic study of the deer carcass.

According to Mr Minter "In the event of a close-up encounter, you should stay calm and face towards the animal as you back off, but not threaten or aggravate it.

"The chances are it will have backed off very quickly first."

I do like an optimist....

Over to the warm bit at the bottom of the new world

Some people say they've seen the likeness of the Virgin Mary in a stainless steel wall at a Tampa restaurant coincidentally named Hamburger Mary's,

Streaks on the shiny wall near the kitchen bore an uncanny resemblance to the Madonna, according to two women eating lunch in a nearby booth, The Tampa Tribune says.

The holy vision was so powerful that one woman wept, according to a manager who talked to The Tribune. Both ladies took pictures to savour the moment.

It hasn't exactly become a pilgrimage site like Lourdes, but word has spread in recent days and customers have been eager to see the wall, according to The Tribune.

Some might be surprised that the so-called Mother of God appeared at a diner known for gay karaoke nights and drag-queen shows, but hey, the Lord works in mysterious ways.

No shit.....

Dahn a fair bit

A street artist, who creates amazing landscape pictures in just three minutes despite using nothing but his fingers, has become an online hit.

Fabian Gaete Maureira, from Chile, paints 'fingerscape' images containing mountains, waterfalls, trees and sunsets without picking up a paint brush.

Instead he simply dips his fingers in paint and then applies it directly to sheets of glass rather than canvas.

 Handy.....

 And finally: 

Up a lot

Preston James Phipps was detained by a police officer after he hit the cop with a stuffed monkey.

Police officer Andrew Pirtle was struck by the stuffed animal toy after trying to arrest 24-year-old Mr Phipps, a resident of Des Moines in Iowa, who was seen by Pirtle after robbing a corner store.  

Officer Pirtle had reported seeing Mr Phipps walking out of the store carrying two stuffed animals, but thought nothing of it. It wasn't until he was later informed about a robbery involving the toys that he reacted.

Pirtle approached Mr Phipps questioning him about his recent whereabouts on the Saturday night when the incident took place. It was at this point when the 24-year-old became aggressive towards the officer giving him a right hook... with the stuffed monkey he was holding.

Police reports revealed that Mr Phipps had entered the Git-N-Go convenience store robbing it of not only the two fluffy toys, but also a pair of sunglasses and double packs of smokeless tobacco.

He was charged with fifth-degree theft, disorderly conduct and assault on a police officer.

The monkey was unharmed....

That’s it: I’m orf to wind up the Doomsday clock.

And today’s thought:

Angus

Food of the wards: High-rise recession: 15 day hotel: Nork gadgets: Museum of bad art: and the Kung fu cartwheel king.

More than a tad less temperature at the Castle this morn, the moon is hiding behind a whimsy of cloud, the butler is feeding the furnace with fat teenagers and his Maj has discovered the joy of hiding on the stairs in the dark and trying to break my neck.

Late this day, overslept, and now I can’t get going.

And now Blogger keeps freezing and won't let me insert pictures or videos....I will try later; managed to get the pics in using hmtl, but can't upload the video.

Breaking news: -EDF Energy is going to cut gas price by 5%

The move follows a sharp fall in the price of wholesale gas over the winter period due to the mild weather.

EDF increased its gas bills by 15.4% in November in response to rising wholesale gas prices.

 So why are they only cutting prices by 5% then?

Allegedly Hospitals feed patients on 90p a meal

Some hospital trusts commit just £2.57 for each patient’s daily food and drink, according to the latest statistics, despite growing concern about poor nutrition on wards.

At least 30 hospital trusts, almost one in 10 of the total, spend less than £5 a day on breakfast, lunch and dinner for each person in their care.

The statistics, placed in the House of Commons Library this week, drew allegations from patients’ groups that nutritional standards are slipping as managers strive to save money.

Compiled by the NHS Information Centre, the figures give details of spending on food and drink in 2010-11 by more than 350 primary care trusts, foundation hospitals and other NHS bodies.

They reveal large budget disparities, with some trusts spending more than £20 a day on each patient, while others commit barely a 10th of that.

The lowest spender was the Western Sussex Hospitals trust, which was listed as paying £2.57 a day to feed each patient.

Several other trusts spent less than £1 on each meal. Harrow in north-west London spent £2.75 for each patient each day, compared with £2.83 the previous year. North Somerset spent £2.76 per patient. Bassetlaw in Nottinghamshire spent £3.02, down from £4.78 in 2009-10.

In total, 30 of the NHS bodies listed spent less than £5 a day on each “patient meal day” — the average daily cost for the provision of all meals and drinks fed to an in-patient. By contrast, Wiltshire primary care trust spent £22.31. Several others spent more than £10 a day.

I’m orf to Wiltshire then...

According to my bank

Barclays Capital reckons that there is an "unhealthy correlation" between the building of skyscrapers and subsequent financial crashes.

Examples include the Empire State building, built as the Great Depression was underway, and the current world's tallest, the Burj Khalifa, built just before Dubai almost went bust.

China is currently the biggest builder of skyscrapers, the bank said.

India also has 14 skyscrapers under construction.

"Often the world's tallest buildings are simply the edifice of a broader skyscraper building boom, reflecting a widespread misallocation of capital and an impending economic correction," Barclays Capital analysts said.

The bank noted that the world's first skyscraper, the Equitable Life building in New York, was completed in 1873 and coincided with a five-year recession. It was demolished in 1912.

Other examples include Chicago's Willis Tower (which was formerly known as the Sears Tower) in 1974, just as there was an oil shock and the US dollar's peg to gold was abandoned.

And Malaysia's Petronas Towers in 1997, which coincided with the Asian financial crisis.

 Barclays Capital's Skyscraper Index has been published every year since 1999.

So that’s where what is left of my money is going....

And talking of high buildings

A Chinese company has released a time-lapse video of its construction of a 30-storey mega hotel in just 15 days.

Released by the Asian sustainable building firm Broad Group, the video shows the impressive infrastructure being constructed within a 360-hour time frame in China’s south central Hunan Province.

Using cutting-edge building technology, which uses six times less cement and is believed to be five times more energy efficient than regular construction material, the 17,000-metre-squared earthquake-proof skyscraper was completed at the end of 2011.

The Ark hotel was built using pre-fabricated modules and uses a diagonal steel bracing.

The remarkable building also boasts a filtration system with air 20 times purer inside than outside and can withstand a 9.0-magnitude earthquake, as tested by the China Academy of Building Research.

And it’s not just the hotel that was built in the 15 days, but all the furniture has apparently been moved into the building, so it’s ready for guests.

Note to myself-do not stay at the Ark hotel...

Dahn a bit

The perfect gift this coming Valentine’s Day could be the Japanese boob warmer (powered by USB and weighs only 38 grams-22 Japanese what knots), or you could purchase the breast pillow, or even the Nork roller for a loved one. 

Or maybe not…..

Over to the land of the canvas and the home of the artistically dyslexic

You can visit the Museum of bad art in the basement of the Dedham Community Theatre. The gallery is conveniently located just outside the men's room. The nearby flushing helps maintain a uniform humidity.

This, MOBA's first permanent gallery, proudly opened in October 1995. For a number of years, it was the world's only museum dedicated to bad art. A small museum in the basement of an old building, MOBA is appropriately lit by one large, humming fluorescent light fixture.

 Go on, click on the link, you know you want to....

And finally:

Back over to high rise China

Hu Jiakai has hit the headlines after cart wheeling continuously for 3.5km through the streets of Changsha, China.

It took Jiakai an hour to complete the pointless task

The 47-year-old who didn't stop or stand up during the whole event - although the reason for his hour of head-spinning is not yet known.

The local builder was aided by his brother-in-law throughout the stunt, who acted as an escort and witness to the bizarre spectacle.

It seems his apprentice struggled to keep up with the acrobatic stuntman however, revealing: 'His tumbling is really faster than our walking.'

And I thought I was desperate for “news”...

That’s it: I’m orf to have a gander at “the fat one”

And today’s thought:

Angus