It´s been a terrific weekend and Andy Murray has given British tennis a well-needed shot in the arm. Can he win Wimbledon? Can the fans raise enough Murraymania to outshout the old Henmania? Whatever happens Queens was a mint performance. Will the weather stay fine? Let´s give you the Alicante forecast.

Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday
31° C | 19° C	30° C | 18° C	28° C | 17° C	29° C | 17° C	30° C | 18° C

I was watching one of the debate shows on TV over the weekend and the question was debated as to whether or not the BNP should be allowed to have their voice heard. The show´s presenter was so biased against the British National Party that I almost began to feel sorry for these extremists. However, the following two questions debated confirmed my thoughts regarding integrated learning.

The second question raised was about the funding of the NHS and whether it was fair to allow too much money to be spent supporting the elderly in Britain. The third question was about then monarchy in Britain and whether or not it should end with the current monarch.

The first question seemed to isolate the BNP in its extreme views but the question kept coming back to a definition of what is ´being British´. This tended to show a little more sympathy to these extremists who began as an isolated duo. The audience came closer to them when the NHS funding became more of an issue of who had paid money into the country´s National Health System. The BNP representatives were more in the age bracket of this discussion and appeared less menacing. They even appeared almost benign when they declared themselves great fans of the monarchy.In fact, for me as a casual observer, the programme´s presenter seemed more of a threat as a very biased interviewer!

The one thing these questions did indeed highlight was just how much commonality seemed to run through the three questions which at first glance would have appeared very different. Here’s our Spanish word for today.

Cumplir

(koom-pleer’) (transitive verb) – to carry out, to fulfill, to achieve; to obey, to serve; to keep

• Los solicitantes deben cumplir todos los requisitos. – Applicants must fulfill all requirements.
• Mañana cumple 24 años. – Tomorrow she will be 24 years old.

For more information and examples, visit the SpanishDict.com entry for Cumplir.

Spain had a 5-0 win against New Zealand and there’s news of other sporting successes, the newspapers are full of the events in Iran and there.s a story about a little girl being refused communion because she is a Downs Syndrome sufferer. Let’s get the Spanish news for today.

If it has ever crossed your mind that many children in Britain do not seem to be as articulate as they should be, then here´s a report that might ring a few alarm bells. It is not my own work but I though it was worth showing you.

“According to a recent study published in the Archive of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, the problem isn’t television itself — it’s the lack of parent/child interaction.

It doesn’t matter if you’re watching TV with your children or if you’re plopping them down in front of programs designed to “enhance infant development.” The bottom line is that any time spent in front of the TV is time you’re not spending interacting with your children.

The author of the study, Dr. Dimitri Christakis, said that for every hour of television watched, parent/child communication dropped 15 percent, which resulted in children hearing 770 less words from adults — and ultimately led to kids making fewer verbalizations.

This isn’t the first study that’s raised red flags on this issue. Previous studies have shown that even DVDs and videos designed for babies can lead to a drop in language acquisition. Again, the problem isn’t the DVDs themselves. It’s the fact that digital media are functioning as substitute parents. And no matter what anyone says, Barney the Purple Dinosaur and Sponge Bob Square Pants just can’t compete with the benefits of time spent with mom and dad.

I’m sure you can imagine how widespread this problem is. In 30 percent of American households, the TV is on most of the day. It’s all too easy to plop kids down in front of the boob tube babysitter to keep them preoccupied. It says more about the parents than the kids, but ultimately, the kids are the ones who are going to pay the price.”

http://clicks.douglassreport.com//t/AQ/LPw/MME/WRY/AQ/Atd3ng/WToP

Price  of gas in  France

A  thief in Paris  planned to steal some paintings  from the Louvre. After  careful planning, he got past security, stole  the paintings, and made it safely to  his van.

However,  he was captured only two blocks away when his  van ran out of gas. When asked how he  could mastermind such a crime and then make such  an obvious error, he replied, ‘Monsieur, that is  the reason I stole the  paintings.’

I  had no Monet to buy  Degas to  make the Van  Gogh. See if you have De  Gaulle to send this on to someone  else. I sent it to you  because I figured I had nothing  Toulouse.

Isn’t sleep a wonderful thing?  You go to bed feeling done in and wake up feeling done in! Just a minute…..That’s not right. You should feel invigorated when you wake up shouldn’t you? I have woken up today feeling like I haven’t slept for a week. I think this is down to a number of factors. Firstly, the pollen is in the air and my throat is constantly aware of it. Secondly, I am thinking about something that’s constantly on my mind. I think we’ve all had experience of the latter. I am trying to make up my mind who really is to blame in the Ronaldo transfer money immorality.

For starters, you could give most of Africa access to water if you gave the same amount of money to the right people. You could buy a whole village and repair its infrastructure in Spain. You could build schools and hospitals where they are needed. You could buy a number of other over-priced and over-paid footballers and increase the size of your squad. Sorry. This whole sorry scene is against everything I stand for and believe in life.I would also like to point out that I love football and I am not against any individual person. In fact, I applaud the business acumen  of Sir Alex Ferguson.However, it is not right.

My major beef is that we are in a recession and I do not understand how football clubs like Manchester United and Liverpool can be allowed to operate in this vacuum of credit when we know the world’s economic problems have been caused by credit. I think even a Philadelphia lawyer would struggle to fathom out this one! Let’s look at the weather.

5-Day Forecast Customize Your Icons Friday Saturday Sunday Monday Tuesday 28° C | 17° C 29° C | 19° C 29° C | 19° C 28° C | 17° C 27° C | 15° C Clear Clear Partly Cloudy Chance of Rain 20% chance of precipitation Chance of Rain 30% chance of precipitation

It is roasting hot in Spain today but there might be a little sting in the tail. The GB pound today is worth 1 euro 17 and the euro is worth 85 pence.  Let’s have our Spanish word of the day…..we all need this!

La suerte

(swer’-teh) (noun) – luck, chance, fate, destiny; sort, type

• Por suerte no estaba sola. – Luckily she wasn’t alone.
• ¡Qué suerte que tengo la extra llave! – How lucky that I have the extra key.

• Tentar a la suerte – To try one’s luck
• Dejar a uno a su suerte – To abandon somebody

For more information and examples, visit the SpanishDict.com entry for La suerte.

The papers in Spain are having a field day with the Ronaldo transfer. The nearest headline to reality is is that the transaction would pay 10, 000 unemployment benefit payments. The escalation of the Swine Flu epidemic has caused alarm in the papers. It is the speed with which the disease is spreading that is the root cause for alarm. Elsewhere, corruption and prostitution continue to gain column inches. Let’s peep at the Spanish news for today.

I was sent the following that you might find interesting.Please Note I have not checked the facts which have been claimed.………………..Here’s a shocking fact:

The average American spends over $5,000 per year on health procedures and medications that are completely UNNECESSARY. And do you know why this happens?

Because you’re being brainwashed by pharmaceutical advertisements duping you into thinking you’re sicker than you really are. The solution to this, as I have often said, lies in the power of your own mind.

I need you to watch this eye-opening video. The entire online community is talking about it, and you’ll know why when you see it: http://silvamindbodyhealing.com/important?lt=1736

and finally, something to lighten the day.…

The pastor entered his donkey in a race and It won.
The pastor was so pleased with the donkey that he entered it in the race.
Again, and it won again.
The local paper read:
PASTOR’S ASS OUT FRONT.

The Bishop was so upset with this kind of
Publicity that he ordered the
Pastor not to enter the donkey in another race.
The next day, the local paper headline read:
BISHOP SCRATCHES PASTOR’S ASS.

This was too much for the bishop, so he
Ordered the pastor to get rid
Of the donkey?
The pastor decided to give it to a nun in a nearby convent.
The local paper, hearing of the news, posted
The following headline
The next day:
NUN HAS BEST ASS IN TOWN.

The bishop fainted.
He informed the nun that she would have to
Get rid of the donkey, so she
Sold it to a farmer for $10.
The next day the paper read:
NUN SELLS ASS FOR $10.

This was too much for the bishop, so he
Ordered the nun to buy back the
Donkey and lead it to the plains where it could run wild.
The next day the headlines read:
NUN ANNOUNCES HER ASS IS WILD AND FREE.

The bishop was buried the next day.

The moral of the story is?
Being concerned about public opinion can
Bring you much grief and misery …
Even shorten your life.
So be yourself and enjoy life.
Stop worrying about everyone else’s ass and
You’ll be a lot happier and
Live longer!

I hope you can join me at midday on FabFM

The GB pound is worth 1.16 against euro today and the euro worth 85 pence.The sun is absolutely cracking the flags today. Let’s see whether it will last.

Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday	Monday
28° C | 18° C	29° C | 18° C	28° C | 18° C	29° C | 19° C	28° C | 18° C
Scattered Clouds	Clear	Clear	Scattered Clouds	Chance of Rain 30% chance of precipitation

Swine Flu is back in the news. It’s not looking good as more and more countries witness the spread of this pandemic. The better news is that the number of deaths is low when compared to the numbers contracting this flu. The BBC resident doctor has made the claim that Britain is not faring badly as a result of aggressive measures to contain it. The measures include the closure of schools which has been a contentious issue.

Another contentious issue addressed by the Beeb today is the issuing of Blue Badges to disabled drivers. It is a real headache for the authorities who have the remit of only issuing these badges to those most in need. Footage of drivers who have obtained the badges but abuse the privilege shows how the public takes the mickey whenever they can. Fit young men are seen leaving their cars to inconvenience people with genuine need of appropriate parking. Even when they are caught in the act they are not punished and they are certainly unrepentant.So how do you solve the problem?  Usually, bureaucracy gets heavier and the genuine cases suffer.

There was an interview today on Breakfast TV. The subject was home schooling and there was an inspector who was explaining that they didn’t want to impose themselves on the educators at home. The mother and child were being asked how they go about their education programme. The mother explained they have no written work and the student decides the programme. The inspector wasn’t too heavy in explaining they need to inspect just in case the child was being abused. I suppose there is a point here but where is the principle of being innocent until proven guilty?  I am a fan of student-centred learning but I think this needs to come when the student is old enough to see the differences and then make appropriate choices.

Let’s get our spanish word for today.

Correr

(coh-rrerr’) (intransitive verb) – to run, to race; to hurry, to go fast; to flow

• Corría por el parque cada mañana. – I used run through the mark every morning.
• No corras tanto que te equivocarás. – Don’t do it so fast or you will mess it up.

• ¡Cómo corre el tiempo! – How time flies!
• Corre a mi cargo. – I’ll take care of it.

For more information and examples, visit the SpanishDict.com entry for Correr.

Next we have a look at the Spanish news for today. The main stories appear to be about a raft of changes in the motoring laws here in Spain. Connected to my earlier comments there will be a 200 euros fine for parking in a bay designated for the disabled. The temperatures are set to soar here in Spain and it is a much hotter day today. Hope you can join me at midday on Fab FM.

I have the idea that something a little more sinister might be afoot in  England. It might just be another Night of the Long Knives but my guess is this is now slightly different. The two major concerns for everyone should be the extent of the villainous behaviour of the MPs and the state of the economy. Now Gordon Brown has stated publicly that he wants to clean up Parliament because it has rocked the very reasons why he is in politics. Obviously, if there is more to come out on the MPs fiddles it is in their own interests to get rid of the man who wants to find them out.

Hazel Blears has been very cute as she has now been able to deflect her own misdemeanours and she has the perfect scapegoat. Jacqui Smith has also been able to deflect her situation and I think, collectively or individually, there is the realisation that it is better to have the focus on Gordon Brown’s leadership rather than catch more snouts in the trough.

David Cameron has a few problems with his own mortgage to deflect and he knows that if the overall system is changed before another election the Conservatives might not get back in power. The Lib Dems want proportional representation and Labour and Conservatives never want them to have it. It really is all part of the old boys’ network. If we change the system we can’t get away with our perks.

Paddy Ashdown said it all on Question Time last night. The country is being run in a place where grown men behave in a manner that would not be tolerated in a primary school classroom. To shout a speaker down when s/he is trying to speak is the very height of rude manners. You only have to watch parliament in action to see how bad it is. People being whipped into shape and forced to toe the party line. Members caught on camera snoozing in the chambers. Evidence that more time and energy has been spent in furthering their own ends than working for their salary.

I am not Gordon Brown’s biggest fan but he is the scapegoat in all of this. He is obviously a shy man at heart and not the media embracing personality of his predecessor. The country is not best managed by attention solely to the media. Listening to Question Time I even suspect subconscious influences begin when people refer to the Prime Minister by his surname only. We often seem to come back to the two words discipline and respect. The MPs have no respect for themselves and certainly we see very little evidence of great discipline in their lives. Why expect them to respect their Prime Minister?

Let me lighten up with a quiz for people who know everything! I found out in a hurry that I didn’t.These are not trick questions. They are straight questions with straight answers

1. Name the one sport in which neither the spectators nor the participants know the score or the leader until the contest ends.

2. What famous North American landmark is constantly moving backward?

3. Of all vegetables, only two can live to produce on their own for several growing seasons. All other vegetables must be replanted every year. What are the only two perennial vegetables?
4. What fruit has its seeds on the outside ?
5. In many liquor stores, you can buy pear brandy, with a real pear inside the bottle. The pear is whole and ripe, and the bottle is genuine; it hasn’t been cut in any way. How did the pear get inside the bottle?
6. Only three words in standard English begin with the letters ‘dw’ and they are all common words. Name two of them.
7. There a re 14 punctuation marks in English grammar. Can you name at least half of them?
8. Name the only vegetable or fruit that is never sold frozen, canned, processed, cooked, or in any other form except fresh.
9. Name 6 or more things that you can wear on your feet beginning with the letter ‘S..’

Don’t peep at the answers just yet…..they’re down below

The weather still looks fine on the weather forecast although here in La Nucia it has been a little cloudy of late. In all honesty it has become a little more bearable. The heat is there but the clouds offer a little respite.

Friday	Saturday	Sunday	Monday	Tuesday
27° C | 17° C	27° C | 16° C	24° C | 16° C	25° C | 16° C	26° C | 14° C
Chance of Rain 20% chance of precipitation	Clear	Clear	Clear	Clear

The pound has dropped back to 1 euro 15 today making the euro worth 88 pence. This might well be a reaction to the resignations in Gordon Brown’s cabinet.

Let me say a personal ‘Thank You’ to the actor David Carradine for his portrayal of Cain in the series Kung Fu. I loved this series and it is easy to forget the work that goes into providing such entertainment in our lives.

Here’s our Spanish Word for Today

04 – June – 2009
El sol
(sol’) (noun) – sun, sunlight; darling
Examples:

* En esa habitación no da el sol. – That room doesn’t get a lot of sun.
* Me encanta tomar el sol en el jardín. – I love to sunbathe in the garden.

Idioms:

* No dejar a alguien ni a sol ni a sombra. – Not to leave someone alone for even a second.
* De sol a sol – From sunrise to sunset

For more information and examples, visit the SpanishDict.com entry for El sol.

In the Spanish News today there is a very hot summer forecast for the Costas. The Royals help a lady who fainted, the birth rate is up and i in 5 newcomers is not Spanish. There is the usual information about corruption including a member of the Guardia Civil crossing the line.

I am currently watching the Spanish TV Canal 5 and this particular report is from a barrio (neighbourhood) in Valencia where the locals are up in arms because the prostitutes are on duty day and night. The locals think the local police are not doing anything to stop it and this should not be allowed whilst children are about. It is getting very heated and there are two women who are saying there is no problem. This is a very narrow side street and obviously feelings are running high. One of the two women who see no problem has just said she has been a prostitute here for 20 years.

From the pictures I am watching, taken secretly by locals,  it rather looks like a street in Thailand not in Spain. The pictures have been filmed by some of the locals and clearly shows prostitutes mixing very openly. The stree , at the time of the secret filming, is very crowded and you can clearly see a child with a schoolbag. The lady of the night is talking very forcibly about the right to work as she pleases….. The rain is falling in Valencia and | have work to do and the lady is now playing to the camaras……….she is obviously quite a character….if you know the expression…hijo de puta…..seems to have caused merriment in the studio and the presenter is cracking up!

The panel is now allegedly discussing all this and I am going to switch off as they are all chattering at the same time. Do the Spanish need to develop their listening skills? They are worse than the house of Commons!

If you work with computers Rockin Dave sent me a poem on Why Computers Crash

If a packet hits a pocket on a socket on a port,
and the bus is interrupted as a very last resort,
and the address of the memory makes your floppy disk abort
then the socket packet pocket has an error to report!

If your cursor finds a menu item followed by a dash,
and the double-clicking icon puts your window in the trash,
and your data is corrupted cause the index doesn’t hash,
then your situation’s hopeless, and your system’s going to crash.

If the label on the cable on the table at your house
says the network is connected to the button on your mouse,
but your packets want to tunnel on another protocol,
that’s repeatedly rejected by the printer down the hall,
then you may as well reboot and go out with a bang,
cause as sure as I’m a poet, the screen is going to hang!

When the copy of your floppy’s getting sloppy on the disk,
and the microsoft instructions cause unnecessary risk,
then you have to flash your memory and you’ll want to RAM your ROM.
quickly turn off your computer and be sure to tell your mom!

Answers To Quiz:
1. The one sport in which neither the spectators nor the participants know the score or the leader until the contest ends .Tug of war
2. North American landmark constantly moving backward.
Niagara Falls (The rim is worn down about two and a half feet each year because of the millions of gallons of water that rush over it every minute..)
3. Only two vegetables that can live to produce on their own for several growing seasons . .
Asparagus and rhubarb
4. The fruit with its seeds on the outside ..Strawberry.
5. How did the pear get inside the brandy bottle? It grew inside the bottle.
(The bottles are placed over pear buds when they are small, and are wired in place on the tree. The bottle is left in place for the entire growing season. When the pears are ripe, they are snipped off a t the stems.)
6. Three English words beginning with dw
Dwarf, dwell and dwindle
7. Fourteen punctuation marks in English grammar. . Full-stop, comma, colon, semicolon, dash, hyphen, apostrophe, question mark, quotation marks, brackets, parenthesis, braces, and ellipses.
8. The only vegetable or fruit never sold frozen, canned, processed, cooked, or in any other form but fresh Lettuce.
9. Six or more things you can wear on your feet beginning with ‘S’.
Shoes, socks, sandals, sneakers, slippers, skis, skates, snowshoes, stockings, stilts.

Pauline McGough is broadcasting on the internet as I write this blog and I hope you have been able to join her on Fabfm. I will be ‘live’ at midday until 3 pm followed by Barry Britten at 3 and Peter Desarnois at 5 pm. My guests will be Iris the Silver Surfer and Jo Caress from the Costa Blanca Lawyers.

There’ll be no fond farewells to the ministers departing their posts from Gordon Brown’s government. Maybe their own friends and family will still like them but many will strongly dislike everything about them.

I know it’s wrong to hate so I have chosen words appropriately. However, outrage is the word I feel I should use. Who do these people think they are?  It’s a clear question of biting the hand that feeds them. If your dog bit you every time you fed the animal there would come a time you would not want the dog to be around you. It’s their arrogance after they’ve been caught with their hand in the till that gets me. Moreover, why should they get a golden handshake? They should be forced to give back their ill-gotten gains and then they should be deprived of their future ill-gotten gains. If the current legislation forbids this action bring in new legislation. Iris, the Silver Surfer, has also felt compelled to write her feelings as follows…

Morality is the word that covers it, none of which of these MP’s seem to possess, surely they knew it was morally wrong no matter what advice they were or were not given. Stealing is a crime and we are supposed to have laws that cover that …but it seems this law is selective!!…they have just set society back about 100 years with laws for the rich and laws for the poor. I agree they should be made to pay back the money and be prosecuted ! Who do these people think they are!

Whilst they are all wiping the swill from their snouts spare a moment of reflection of why they have been free to do this. Empathise if you can with the men who would have been waiting in the terrible waters of Normandy to do the job planned in the Normandy Landings.The contrast is stark. Men willing to give their lives for our freedom and others willing to rob us freely.

Staying with terror and water let’s say a silent prayer in memory of all those who lost their lives in the terrible air disaster off then coast of Brazil. I never like flying at the best of times and this rationalises the fear that I, and many others,  have of flying.

Do you remember the MMR vaccine in the news in the UK? The Government is now being advised by medical experts to enforce this vaccination. There is a proposal to punish parents who do not give their children the jab. Parents are not comfortable with the injection but Nanny State knows best! Check who’s got the investment in the products that will be used alongside checking the medical credentials might be a starting point.

The weather is really nice today and June is becoming the flaming June of old. Let’s get the forecast.

Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
26° C | 16° C	28° C | 18° C	27° C | 17° C	24° C | 16° C	25° C | 16° C
Clear	Clear	Clear	Clear	Clear

Five egg yolks tell the tale. Is the exchange rate sunny side up?The exchange is climbing in favour of the pound against the euro holder. The pound is worth 1 euro 16 today and the euro worth just 85 pence.

Andy Murray went just a game too far and was knocked out of the Rolland Garros tournament. Meanwhile Kaka is on the move to Real Madrid for 56 million pounds. You know my feelings!

Here’s a Spanish word for the day.

Situar

(see-twarr’) (transitive verb) – to place, to put; to situate; to locate

• La fábrica está situada al lado del río. – The factory is located next to the river.
• Situa los flores en el centro de la mesa. – Place the flowers in the center of the table.

For more information and examples, visit the SpanishDict.com entry for Situar.

The Spanish news informs of three Spanish victims from the Jet disaster off the coast of Brazil and this included an air stewardess born in Malaga. Kaka’s move to Real Madrid, and three triplets arriving on planet Earth join the usual collection of stories staying in the media. Here’s the link for the Spanish News

As I am writing this Blog I am listening to Pauline McGough on FabFM. Pauline does a terrific job and I thoroughly recommend joining her online between 9 and midday. I take the hot seat from midday to 3 and Barry Britten drives down from the mountains to join us between 3pm and 5pm. Our live broadcasts end with the dynamic Petrus, our Dutch colleague, who remains on-air until 7 pm. We then will recap on the days broadcasting giving you a chance to catch up. My guest today will be my old mate Eric Malpas who will be chuffed to bits that Manchester City have signed Gareth Barry.

Have a really good day. Hope you can click on your appropriate player to join me on FabFM at midday.