The weather is still holding the trump cards as everyone waits to see where the Autumn rain will fall heaviest.

We have had a mixed day with some nice sunshine in the morning followed by rain in the afternoon.

Elsewhere heavy rain has caused problems around Spain.

Let´s have a very quick look at the weather for the next few days.

Jueves	Viernes	Sábado	Domingo	Lunes
25° C | 16° C	25° C | 16° C	25° C | 16° C	25° C | 16° C

We are near the mountains and the Mediterranean and things can change quickly. However, it looks as though this unsettled pattern continues with heavy rain imminent at times.

I was just watching a very moving recount of twins, separated at a very early age, who were brought up as adopted children in Norway and California. The two young girls were reunited at a very young age and it was a very moving experience to witness nevermind experience. What was so special was that even without the common language these two girls easily showed a transparency of affection for one another the minute they met.

My new podcast has the following……

30th September with the
Beatles, the Who and
Donavon ready to  hit the
airwaves on Radio 1, Radio
Caroline revived, John
Travolta met Olivia Newton
John and Sir Elton painted
his house

If you tune in then I hope you enjoy the memories.

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I get all sorts of lettersw and invites sent over e-mails and the following is quite typical of my in-box…….

The Touchstone
By: Unknown Author

When the great library of Alexandria burned, as the story goes, one book was saved. But it was not a valuable book; and so a poor man, who could read a little, bought it for a few coppers.

The book wasn’t very interesting, but between its pages there was something very interesting indeed. It was a thin strip of vellum on which was written the secret of the “Touchstone”!

The touchstone was a small pebble that could turn any common metal into pure gold. The writing explained that it was lying among thousands and thousands of other pebbles that looked exactly like it. But the secret was this: The real stone would feel warm, while ordinary pebbles are cold.

So the man sold his few belongings, bought some simple supplies, camped on the seashore, and began testing pebbles.   He knew that if he picked up ordinary pebbles and threw them down again because they were cold, he might pick up  the same pebble hundreds of times. So, when he felt one that was cold, he threw it into the sea. He spent a whole day doing this but none of them was the touchstone. Yet he
went on and on this way. Pick up a pebble. Cold – throw it into the sea. Pick up another. Throw it into the sea.

The days stretched into weeks and the weeks into months. One day, however, about midafternoon, he picked up a pebble and it was warm. He threw it into the sea before he realized what he had done. He had formed such a strong habit of throwing each pebble into the sea that when the one he wanted came along, he still threw it away.

So it is with opportunity. Unless we are vigilant, it’s easy to fail to recognize an opportunity when it is in
hand, and it’s just as easy to throw it away.

As you might have guessed, this is the first part of a sales pitch and there is a link if you hunger for more….http://www.healthywealthynwise.com/100day

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You might well have wondered about the friend to whom I have alluded in the title of this blog. If it has intrigued you then the answer is in the podcast.

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Spain’s top energy official said on Monday the country had enough spare generating capacity to phase out nuclear power stations in the medium term, in line with government policy.

In recent years, Spain has subsidized renewable energy in order to cut its heavy dependence on fuel imports and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It is now the world’s third-biggest producer of wind power and the second-biggest of solar.

Nuclear power is unpopular in Spain and both major political parties ruled out building new plants in last year’s elections.

“Investing in nuclear energy makes sense when there are problems in ensuring supply. In ‘99 or 2000 that was the case with our energy margin,” Energy Secretary Pedro Marin told a conference on energy policy.

“We now have substantial spare generation capacity, a very broad demand structure, without any problem,” he added.

Spain has an installed generating capacity of some 90,000 megawatts and record demand of 43,000 MW, and has been a net exporter of power for several years.

A Citibank research note last week estimated Spanish electricity demand would grow by a slow 2 percent a year as of 2011, and power prices would be depressed for years by more renewables production and additional gas supplies.

Marin spoke in response to International Energy Agency chief Nobuo Tanaka, who said nuclear power helped boost energy independence and reduce carbon emissions.

“Phasing out may not help the current challenge that Spain is facing with energy security and climate change,” Tanaka said at the same conference.

STILL A MAJOR PRODUCER

Although Spain is bucking a trend amongst several European countries, which are mulling over building new nuclear plants, Marin noted Spain already had more nuclear capacity than most of its neighbors.

“Not only are we on top now, but will remain so for the next five or 10 years because long-term investments are needed to build up a broad nuclear infrastructure,” Marin told a conference at the Industry Ministry.

Spain’s eight remaining nuclear plants are designed to produce up to 7,800 megawatts of power between them. They generate about 54,000 gigawatt-hours a year, or some 20 percent of total demand for electricity.

The government has ordered the 38-year-old 460 MW Garona plant to close in 2013, but the rest will not reach the end of their working lives until 2021 at the earliest.

National grid operator REE has said it cannot yet balance intermittent supply from renewable sources without a steady baseload generated by nuclear plants.

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Word of the Day

Callarse kah-yarr’-seh  (pronominal verb)

to keep quiet, to be silent, to stop talking

EXAMPLES

¿Te quieres callar? – Would you keep quiet?

Se calló del divorcio de sus padres. – She kept quiet about her parents’ divorce.

IDIOMS

¡Cállate! – Shut up!

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There is a newish scam about. Please remember the sender is only after your details so never respond….

Hello,
Are you looking for a business loan,personal loan,home loan,auto
loan,student loan,debt consolidation loan,unsecured loan,venture
capital etc…OR Were you refused a loan by a bank or any financial
institution for one or more reasons.You are in the right place for
your loan solutions!
I am a private lender,I grant loans to companies and individuals at a
low and affordable interest
rate of 3%.
Interested? Contact us for the follow up processing of the loan and
transfer within 48 hours;

APPLICATION DETAILS

Name
Date of birth :
Gender:
Marital status:
Address:
City:
State/province:
Zip/postal code:
Country:
Phone:
E-mail:
State Purpose of Loan:
Loan Amount:
Loan Duration :
Net monthly income.

Get back to me as soon as possible with above details for more information.
I hope to hear from you.
Regards
CONTACT US WITH
leo1brown.loan@gmail.com

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If anyone might be interested in a move to Galicia the following might be of interest

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

We had another night of heavy rain and thunder and the roads were well and truly deluged in the early hours. However, around midday, the clouds began to move away and we had a very pleasant afternoon and early evening. Let’s see whether this is the start of a new weather pattern or a temporary blip with the rain returning.

Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
23° C | 16° C	25° C | 15° C	26° C | 16° C	27° C | 15° C	25° C | 13° C
Chance of T-storms 40% chance of precipitation	Chance of T-storms 40% chance of precipitation	Chance of Rain 30% chance of precipitation	Clear	Chance of Rain 20% chance of precipitation

I’ll leave the verdict up to you!

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If someone in Britain offers to take care of a friend’s child it is not as easy as it sounds. The friend must complete a criminal record check, learn first aid, take a childcare course and even follow Labour’s “nappy curriculum” for under-fives.This might seem a little over the top but officials insisted the rules were needed to safeguard children. You can see a logic but if it is obvious a child is involved then I’ll go with the ‘campaigners who have backed the move as “absurd” and a serious intrusion into family life.

Parents giving lifts to other children face prosecution if they fail to register with the Government’s vetting and barring scheme, a new anti-paedophile database. I think most would be in agreement if the friendship could not be well and truly proven. This enters the territory of commonsense although most would prefer to err on the side of sensible and measured caution where children are involved.

Dr Richard House, senior lecturer in Psychotherapy at Roehampton University, and founder of the Open EYE campaign group, said: “In any ‘couldn’t-make-it-up’ league table, this latest Government incursion into family life surely has to come very near the top.

“It beggars belief that Ofsted is now telling parents that a private co-operative arrangement whereby friends choose to take care of each others’ children is against the law. It appears that the stealthy nationalisation of childcare is now proceeding at full throttle.”   The rules have been available since 2006 and were set out in Labour’s Childcare Act 2006. In a little-noticed move, regulations were adopted two years’ later.

For anyone wishing to move back to Britain and make a few bob by looking after a friends’ child, adults must register with Ofsted if they look after children for more than two hours on any one day. This is the case  even if it time is split between an hour in the morning and over an hour at night. If they don’t it means officials can inspect their homes to vet standards of care and ensure premises are safe. Inspections are carried out every three to four years.

Childminders must also take a course and follow the Early Years Foundation Stage – a new “curriculum” for under-fives setting out a series of targets covering literacy, numeracy, problem solving and social skills. Many official childminders have already been forced out of business after blaming the demands of the EYFS.

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Did you ever wonder why you never see dead penguins on the ice in Antarctica ?  Ever wonder where they go?  Wonder no more……..

It is a known fact that the penguin is a very ritualistic bird which lives an extremely ordered and complex life.  The penguins have a very strong community bond.  They are very committed to their family and will mate for life.  They also maintain a form of compassionate contact with their offspring throughout its life.

If a penguin is found dead on the ice surface, other members of the family and social circle have been known to dig holes in the ice, using their vestigial wings and beaks, until the hole is deep enough for the dead bird to be rolled into and buried.

The male penguins then gather in a circle around the freshly dug grave and sing….
…”freeze a jolly good fellow”

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Principalmente preen-cee-pal-men’-teh  (adverb)

principally, mainly, mostly, chiefly

EXAMPLES

Principalmente, está dedicada al estudio de la lingüística española. – She mainly concentrates on the study of Spanish linguistics.

Doy clases particulares de inglés como lengua extranjera, principalmente a hispanohablantes. – I give private English as a foreign language classes, principally to Spanish-speakers.

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

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Benidorm is back! Friday 2nd October, ITV1. 9pm UK time, 10pm Spanish time in the new 1 hour long format.

Our holiday makers are back for a free week’s holiday in Benidorm that they received as compensation after being taken hostage by a drug dealer last year.

Martin (Nicholas Burns) has a very different new girlfriend Brandy (Sheridan Smith) who is desperate to break out of The Solana and have a good time.

While Mel (Geoffrey Hutchings) enlists the help of Mick (Steve Pemberton) to open his new mobility shop with disastrous results.

If you missed the Summer Special, you can catch that tonight on ITV2.

Viewers in Scotland in the STV region will not be able to watch the show on ITV1, but you can watch it the following Monday on ITV 2.

Or, you can watch ITV London live from anywhere in the world, and for free, on the internet at http://www.filmon.com.

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Girls as young as 16 could end a pregnancy without parental consent under plans by Spains socialist government to liberalize abortion, authorities said.

The cabinet-approved plan would make abortion available on demand for the first time in Spains history, the BBC reported Sunday. Parliament has yet to vote on the plan.

Currently, Spanish law allows abortion only when the health of the mother is at risk, when genetic defects are found in a fetus and in pregnancies resulting from rape.

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Supporters said the new plan demonstrates respect for the rights of women, while opponents, including the Roman Catholic Church, said the plan lacks broad support in Spanish society.

Church leaders and conservatives plan to rally against the proposal next month in Madrid, the BBC reported.

The abortion plan is the most recent battle between Spains Roman Catholics and conservatives and a liberal government that has already legalized same-sex marriage and eased restrictions on divorce.

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My Dear Wife,
You will surely understand that I have certain needs that you, being 54
years old, can no longer satisfy. I am very happy with you and I value
you as a good wife. Therefore, after reading this letter, I hope that you
will not wrongly interpret the fact that I will be spending the evening
with my 18 year old secretary at the Comfort Inn Hotel. Please don’t be
upset—-I shall be home before midnight.

When the man came home late that night, he found the following letter on the dining room table:

My Dear Husband,
I received your letter and thank you for your honesty
about my being 54 years old. I would like to take this opportunity to
remind you that you are also 54 years old. As you know, I am a math
teacher at our local college. I would like to inform you that while you
read this, I will be at the Hotel Fiesta with Michael, one of my
students, who is also the assistant tennis coach. He is young, virile,
and like your secretary, is 18 years old.
As a successful businessman who has an excellent knowledge of math, you
will understand that we are in the same situation, although with one small
difference – 18 goes into 54 a lot more times than 54 goes into 18.
Therefore, I will not be home until sometime tomorrow.

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We have had a stack of rain today and the roads have been a nightmare. Fortunately, I have been indoors most of the day but, having to face the elements around 6 pm, I can tell you the conditions were pretty foul. Let´sm take a very quick peep at the week ahead. We have been on orange alert all week so…..here goes……….

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
25° C | 15° C	25° C | 16° C	26° C | 14° C	27° C | 15° C	26° C | 14° C
T-storms 70% chance of precipitation	T-storms 70% chance of precipitation	Chance of T-storms 40% chance of precipitation	Chance of Rain 30% chance of precipitation	Clear

The temptation might be to stay indoors and eat a bit more but the rebel doctor might see the dangers………

Midnight snacks pack on the pounds

Everyone knows that midnight snacking is hardly the path to fitness. But there’s new research that shows that late night snacking could be packing more pounds on you than you thought.

The Northwestern University study examined groups of mice and found that the mice that fed when they should’ve been sleeping actually gained twice the amount of weight as the mice that ate during normally active periods. This was the first study to examine the link between mealtime and weight gain.

The study’s authors put this down to circadian rhythms, and claim that eating at the wrong time disrupts the body’s natural metabolism.

I’m wouldn’t say that this is news of the stop-the-presses variety. It’s been known for years that you’re less apt to burn calories that are consumed during rest hours. But if you eat a big breakfast, those calories are burned off by evening.

The big conclusion of this research? Avoid snacking after dinner if you want to avoid weight gain.

Always fattening your brain by feeding you the truth,

William Campbell Douglass II, M.D.

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BE VERY SURE AND READ THE VERY LAST PART !

Please read and forward to as many people as you can.  Please feel free to cut and paste.  You’ll understand after reading this.

To My Child (don’t delete ~ its being tracked)

Just for this morning, I am going to smile when I see your face and laugh when I feel like crying.

Just for this morning, I will let you choose what you want to wear, and smile and say how perfect it is.

Just for this morning, I am going to step over the laundry, and pick you up and take you to the park to play.

Just for this morning, I will leave the dishes in the sink, and let you teach me how to put that puzzle of yours together.

Just for this afternoon, I will unplug the telephone and keep the computer off, and sit with you in the backyard and blow bubbles..

Just for this afternoon, I will not yell once, not even a tiny grumble when you scream and whine for the ice cream truck, and I will buy you one if he comes by.

Just for this afternoon, I won’t worry about what you are going to be when you grow up, or second guess every decision I have made where you are concerned.

Just for this afternoon, I will let you help me bake cookies, and I won’t stand over you trying to fix them.

Just for this afternoon, I will take us to McDonald’s and buy us both a Happy Meal so you can have both toys..

Just for this evening, I will hold you in my arms and tell you a story about how you were born and how much I love you.

Just for this evening, I will let you splash in the tub and not get angry.

Just for this evening, I will let you stay up late while we sit on the porch and count all the stars.

Just for this evening, I will snuggle beside you for hours, and miss my favourite TV shows.

Just for this evening when I run my finger through your hair as you pray, I will simply be grateful that God has given me the greatest gift ever given.

I will think about the mothers and fathers who are searching for their missing children, the mothers and fathers who are visiting their children’s graves instead of their bedrooms, and mothers and fathers who are in hospital rooms watching their children suffer senselessly, and screaming inside that they can’t handle it anymore.

And when I kiss you goodnight I will hold you a little tighter, a little longer. It is then, that I will thank God for you, and ask him for nothing, except one more day…

Hi. I am a 29 year old father. Me and my wife have had a wonderful life together. God blessed us with a child too. Our daughter’s name is Rachel, and she is 10 years old. Not long ago did the doctors detect brain cancer in her little body. There is only one way to save her and that is an operation. Sadly we don’t have the money for the operation. AOL and Zdnet have agreed to help us. The only way they can help is this:

If you send this email to other people, AOL will track this email and count how many people get it. Every person that opens this email and sends it to at least 3 people will give us 32 cent.. Please help us.
George Arlington
- Pray for a Cure

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Doctor’s Office

While I sat in the reception area of my doctor’s office, a woman rolled an elderly man in a wheelchair into the room. As she went to the receptionist’s desk, the man sat there, alone and silent.

Just as I was thinking I should make small talk with him, a little boy slipped off his mother’s lap and walked over to the wheelchair. Placing his hand on the man’s, he said, “I know how you feel. My mom makes me ride in the stroller, too.”

——————————————————————————–

Environmentalist?

My friend Julie and I were eating at a Chinese restaurant when an elderly waiter set chopsticks at our places, Julie made a point of reaching into her purse and pulling out her own pair. “As an environmentalist,” she declared, “I do not approve of destroying bamboo forests for throwaway utensils.”

The waiter inspected her chopsticks. “Very beautiful,” he said politely. “Ivory.”

Received from Thomas Ellsworth.

——————————

Alicia de Larrocha, a former child prodigy considered by many to have been the best Spanish pianist in history, has died in Barcelona at the age of 86, officials said.

“She was an extraordinary ambassador for Spain,” Culture Minister Angeles Gonzalez-Sinde said in a news release following the death of the petite pianist, who was less than 5-feet tall, in Barcelona’s Quiron Hospital on Friday night.

The Barcelona Symphony Orchestra was due to hold a minute’s silence before this weekend’s performances in honor of de Larrocha, whose public performances began at the age of six and stretched into her 80s, state news agency EFE said.

De Larrocha played with major orchestras around the world, won several prestigious Grammy awards for her recordings and was known for her interpretations of Mozart, Schumann and of Spanish composers.

Her championing of the Spanish repertoire, particularly the piano works of Isaac Albeniz and Enrique Granados, helped to make world audiences more familiar with music that has since gained enormously in popularity.

“Spanish music is very, very, very hard,” she once said.

“Young people come to me and think they can play it right away. But Spanish music must have the right rhythm, just as Bach and Mozart must have the right rhythm.”

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Word of the Day

Quejarse keh-har’-seh  (pronominal verb)

to complain, to grumble, to moan

EXAMPLES

A menudo se queja de las pocas oportunidades que tiene de estar con ella.. – He often complains about the few opportunities he has to be with her.

No sé de qué te quejas. – I don’t know what you are complaining about.

IDIOMS

Quejarse de vicio – To complain without reason

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

SpanishDict has upgraded! Check out the New SpanishDict.

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Burglary

The detective was interviewing the man whose clothing shop had just been burgled.

“It’s bad,” said the proprietor, “but it’s not as bad as it could have been if he’d robbed me yesterday.”

“Why is that?” the detective asked.

“Because today everything was on sale.”

Today´s Podcast is now available

We´re on amber alert for heavy rain along the Costa Blanca. It´s normal for this time of the year. We have grey skies and lots of rain at the moment and Sunday is certainly not the weather I was looking for. Nonetheless I went off to do my show with Cool FM between 9 and midday and there were British holidaymakers roaming the town with no shirts on. Is this a macho thing or do they genuinely not feel the rain and cooler air?

There were a couple of cyclists with their capes on and a few joggers wearing running tops but the cavalcade of holiday Brits seemed oblivious to our change in the weather. Sadly for them, it would appear this is the weather for most of the week.

Here is something sent to me very recently which is very well worth reading. It should touch your heart and I hope it does…..

Change Your Thinking ……….It will take just 37 seconds to read this and change your thinking.

Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room. One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour each afternoon to help drain the fluid from his lungs. His bed was next to the room’s only window.
The other man had to spend all his time flat on his back. The men talked for hours on end. They spoke of their wives and families, their homes, their jobs, their involvement in the military service, where they had been on vacation.

Every afternoon, when the man  in the bed by the window could sit up, he would pass the time by describing to his roommate all the things he could see outside the window. The man in the other bed began to live for those one hour periods where his world would be broadened and enlivened by all the activity and color of the world outside. The window overlooked a park with a lovely lake. Ducks and swans played on the water while children sailed their model boats. Young lovers walked arm in arm amidst flowers of every color and a fine view of the city skyline could be seen in the distance.

As the man by the window described all this in exquisite details, the man on the other side of the room would close his eyes and imagine this picturesque scene. One warm afternoon, the man by the window described a parade passing by. Although the other man could not hear the band – he could see it in his mind’s eye as the gentleman by the window portrayed it with descriptive words. Days, weeks and months passed.

One morning, the day nurse arrived to bring water for their baths only to find the lifeless body of the man by the window, who had died peacefully in his sleep. She was saddened and called the hospital attendants to take the body away.

As soon as it seemed appropriate, the other man asked if he could be moved next to the window. The nurse was happy to make the switch, and after making sure he was comfortable, she left him alone. Slowly, painfully, he propped himself up on one elbow to take his first look at the real world outside. He strained to slowly turn to look out the window besides the bed. It faced a blank wall.

The man asked the nurse what could have compelled his deceased roommate who had described such wonderful things outside this window. The nurse responded that the man was blind and could not even see the wall. She said, ‘Perhaps he just wanted to encourage you

Epilogue:
There is tremendous happiness in making others happy, despite our own situations. Shared grief is half the sorrow, but happiness when shared, is doubled. If you want to feel rich, just count all the things you have that money can’t buy. ‘Today is a gift, that is why it is called   The Present.’

You have to agree. This is a little bit special. Its poignancy is even sharper for me as I was watching a very interesting insight on the BBC the other evening. It showed how some of the British troops have to recover their lives after losing limbs and even eyesight.

Let´s get the grim weather picture for the week ahead………….

Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday
24° C | 16° C	24° C | 16° C	25° C | 16° C	27° C | 16° C	27° C | 16° C
T-storms 60% chance of precipitation	T-storms 70% chance of precipitation	Chance of Rain 20% chance of precipitation	Chance of T-storms 40% chance of precipitation	Chance of Rain 20% chance of precipitation

Michael Addo is a devout Hull City fan. Just to show the nature of a good sportsman he sent me a couple of good gags straight after Hull City´s mauling at the hands of Liverpool. Cheers Mike. Well done to Tottenham. Keep an eye on Peter Crouch. I always said he´s a good player despite being ridiculed by the so-called experts.

GOD AND THE BIKER

A man was riding his Harley along a California highwaywhen suddenly the sky clouded above his head and, in a booming voice, the Lord said,

‘Because you have TRIED to be faithful to me in all ways, I will grant you one wish.’

The biker pulled over, thought for a while, and said, ‘Build a bridge to Hawaii so I can ride over anytime I want.

The Lord said, ‘That request is materialistic, think of the enormous challenges for that kind of undertaking; the supports required to reach the bottom of the Pacific and the concrete and steel it would take!

It will nearly exhaust several natural resources.. I can do it, but it is hard for me to justify your desire for worldly things. Take a little more time and think of something that could possibly help mankind.’

The biker thought about it for a long time. Finally, he said, ‘Okay, I wish that I, and all men, could understand our wives; I want to know how she feels inside, what she’s thinking when she gives me the silent treatment, why she cries, what she means when she says ‘nothing’s wrong’, and how I can make a woman truly happy.’

And the Lord replied, ‘You want two lanes or four lanes on that bridge?’

—————- ——————————————————————-

An award should go to the Virgin Airlines desk attendant in Sydney some months ago for being smart and funny, while making her point, when confronted with a passenger who probably deserved to fly as cargo.

A crowded Virgin flight was cancelled after Virgin’s 767s had been withdrawn from service. A single attendant was re-booking a  long line of inconvenienced travellers. Suddenly an angry passenger pushed his way to the desk.

He slapped his ticket down on the counter and said, ‘I HAVE to be on this flight and it HAS to be FIRST CLASS’..
The attendant replied, ‘I’m sorry, sir. I’ll be happy to try to help you, but I’ve got to help these people first,
and I’m sure we’ll be able to work something out.’

The passenger was unimpressed. He asked loudly, so that the passengers behind him could hear, ‘DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHO I AM?’
Without hesitating, the attendant smiled and grabbed her public address microphone:

‘May I have your attention please, may I  have your attention please,’ she began – her voice heard clearly throughout the terminal – ‘we have a passenger here at Desk 14 WHO DOES NOT KNOW WHO  HE IS. If anyone can help him find his identity, please come to Desk  14.’

With the folks behind him in line laughing hysterically, the man glared at the Virgin attendant, gritted his teeth and said,  ‘F… You!’ Without flinching, she smiled and said, (I love this bit)
‘I’m sorry, sir, but you’ll have to get in line for that too.’

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Word of the Day

Desgraciadamente des-grah’-cya-dah-men’-teh  (adverb)

unfortunately

EXAMPLES

Desgraciadamente, falleció en el accidente. – Unfortunately, he passed away in the accident.

Por fin los bomberos apagaron el fuego pero desgraciadamente, miles de árboles fueron destruidos. – The firefighters finally put out the fire but unfortunately, thousands of trees were destroyed.

Notes

This adverb has two tonic syllables. The second being stronger than the first.

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

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The Rebel Doctor is always worth a read…..

Researchers ignore reporting rules

I’ve already warned you about the problems with our leading medical journals. They’re not worth spittle anymore, and that ghostwriting scandal I just told you about is only the beginning.

New guidelines require that researchers register their clinical trials in a government database before they begin their work. If they don’t, they’re not supposed to publish their results.

As it turns out, not only are the researchers routinely ignoring these requirements, the editors at those journals are publishing those studies anyway. I wish I could say I was surprised about this latest mass ethical lapse, but I’ve learned that it’s just par for the course.

This new survey found that less than half of studies involving clinical trials that were published in “leading” medical journals were registered. Of those that were registered, a third had discrepancies between what they registered and what was published.

So why is this a problem? Let me explain:

Let’s say a shady researcher designs a study to find out if a med will help patients live longer. Let’s further suppose that the results show that patients who take this med actually die quicker — but that it improves their memory right before they kick the bucket.

If the researcher never registered the trial, he could then write a glowing report focusing on how great this med is for your memory. No one would ever even know that he looked at survival rates, so he’d never need to reveal that data.

Or he could simply never publish the results and sweep it under the rug. In either case, no one would ever know that this drug is killing people.

It’s called “selective reporting of data,” and it’s just about the worst form of bias a researcher could put into his study.  And it happens all the time. I still remember a study published last year in PLoS Medicine that found a wide range of discrepancies between the data from a study and what was published. And guess what? In every single case, those discrepancies made the drugs look better.

You can call that an honest mistake if you want, but I prefer to call it what it is: lying, cheating garbage. Ready to shred those studies,

William Campbell Douglass II, M.D.

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I know this is out of my area but I have been asked to help promote the following Press release
Eclectic Images -  at Dibleys, La Cala de Mijas,

9 artist members of the Andalusian International Artists Group exhibit a selection of their works in an exciting exhibition in DIBLEYS.

Come along and meet the Artists at a small cocktail between 8 and 9 on Tuesday 06/10

Nine artists – Five different countries.

In this exhibition the Artists are from Ireland, Britain, Spain, Denmark and Peru.

The exhibition consists of a variety of images in textile, watercolours, coloured pencils, oil, acrylic and photography.

The AIA-Group was formed five years ago by professional and dedicated visual artists from around Europe, who are all living and working in Andalucía.

Further information is available from the Chairman, Roger Cummiskey at 952 592 652 or their web site www.aia-group.net

Dibleys, -  opp. The Catholic Church in La Cala de Mijas (down from the roundabout towards the sea).

Gallery open: Daily 1-4 and 7-9, except Sundays.

Great new show for you to listen to……

The weather might be improving. I will check the forecast in a few moments but my eyes have seen less threat from the clouds on the mountains and we had a few hours of brilliant sunshine during the day. I have had another hectic day at the end of a very hectic week. I will be writing more about my current challenge over the next few weeks. I have had my reasons for holding back as the past six months have been spent working for people who have then not paid me. It is really quite bad here in Spain and I feel really sorry for others who, like myself, have trusted people and worked hard for them only to find the trust has not been warranted.

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Here comes my good friend the rebel doctor. He´s always got something thought provking for us……….

GM foods could give you a belly boost

I told you years ago how genetically modified foods would soon be used to help millions, even billions of people around the world. Every day, scientists take steps in the right direction — like this latest discovery.

Researchers believe they’ve found a way to genetically engineer probiotics into food, making it easier to get those helpful bacteria into your stomach — where they aid digestion, fight off harmful pathogens and can even help you avoid illnesses like pneumonia.

Probiotics are starting to pop up in some foods, usually sugar-packed yogurts, but if the research I read in the journal Gut is any indication, GM technology can help put them in more foods and make them available to more people.

The most frustrating part to me is that we have to turn to GM foods to get probioitics in the first place. There’s a readily available source right in front of us — you’re just not allowed to touch it.

That’s right — it’s raw milk.

You know how much I love this stuff, and there’s about a million reasons why. Next time you see me, ask — but only if you have a few hours to spare, because it takes that long to explain all the reasons why you should be drinking it — and all the reasons why pasteurized milk is making you sick.

One of the great benefits of raw milk is that it’s naturally packed with helpful probiotics. Problem is, all of them are destroyed by pasteurization.

So where does that leave us? Living in a bizarre government-mandated reality where we have to create genetically modified foods to get something we could all have easily and naturally.

But until politicians manage to break free from Big Dairy and allow the sale of raw milk, the best way to get your probiotics is through supplements and foods — and, perhaps soon, some of those will be GM products.

Just don’t fear them the way the brainless politicians fear raw milk.

With nothing funny in my tummy,

William Campbell Douglass II, M.D.

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My friend Rockin Dave has sent us a few posers. The answers will be written below but why not try this without first looking at those answers!

1. The maker doesn’t want it; the buyer doesn’t use it; and the user doesn’t see it. What is it?

2. A child is born in Boston, Massachusetts, to parents who were both born in Boston, Massachusetts. The child is not a United States citizen. How is this possible?

3. Before Mount Everest was discovered, what was the highest mountain on earth?

4. Clara Clatter was born on December 27th, yet her birthday is always in the summer. How is this possible?

5. Captain Frank and some of the boys were exchanging old war stories. Art Bragg offered one about how his grandfather led a battalion against a German division during World War I. Through brilliant maneuvers he defeated them and captured valuable territory. After the battle he was presented with a sword bearing the inscription “To Captain Bragg for Bravery, Daring and Leadership. World War I. From the Men of Battalion 8.” Captain Frank looked at Art and said, “You really don’t expect anyone to believe that yarn, do you?” What’s wrong with the story?

6. What is one thing that all wise men, regardless of their religion or politics, agree is between heaven and earth?

7. In what year did Christmas and New Year’s fall in the same year?

8. A woman from New York married ten different men from that city, yet she did not break any laws. None of these men died, and she never divorced. How was this possible?

9. Why are 1990 American dollar bills worth more than 1989 American dollar bills?

10. How many times can you subtract the number 5 from 25?

11. How could you rearrange the letters in the words “new door” to make one word? Note: There is only one correct answer.

12. Even if they are starving, natives living in the Arctic will never eat a penguin’s egg. Why not?

13. Which is correct to say, “The yolk of the egg are white” or “The yolk of the egg is white”?

14. In Okmulgee, Oklahoma, you cannot take a picture of a man with a wooden leg. Why not?

15. There were an electrician and a plumber waiting in line for admission to the International Home Show. One of them was the father of the other’s son. How could this be possible?

16. After the new Canon Law that took effect on November 27, 1983, would a Roman Catholic man be allowed to marry his widow’s sister?

17. How many outs are there in an inning?

18. How many animals of each sex did Moses take on the Ark?

19. A clerk in the butcher shop is 5′ 10″ tall. What does he weigh?

20. A farmer has 17 sheep and all but 9 die. How many are left?
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Here’s a short story sent to me by Patrick W

Once upon a time, a guy asked a girl ‘Will you marry me?’

The girl said, ‘NO!’

And the guy lived happily ever after and rode motorcycles and went fishing and hunting and played golf a lot and drank beer and whiskey and had tons of money in the bank and left the toilet seat up and farted whenever he wanted.

The end……but the Big Question on everyone´s lips should be the title of my blog!

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Here´s the Alicante weather for the week ahead….

Friday	Saturday	Sunday	Monday	Tuesday
27° C | 16° C	25° C | 16° C	22° C | 16° C	23° C | 17° C	24° C | 13° C
Clear	Chance of Rain 30% chance of precipitation	Chance of Rain 40% chance of precipitation	T-storms 70% chance of precipitation	Chance of T-storms 50% chance of precipitation

Word of the Day

La semilla seh-mee’-yah  (noun)

seed; origin, beginning

EXAMPLES

No me gustan las uvas con muchas semillas. – I don’t like grapes with a lot of seeds.

Mi empresa está en fase semilla. – My company is at the startup stage.

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

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Spanish Vida have carried a very interesting story from Spain. It concernes a little-known Spanish matador who is breaking with a sacred tradition. He has agreed to to advertise on his cape while slaying bulls and endorse a soft drink that caters to gays.

Matador Joselito Ortega will be plugging a club-scene energy beverage called Gay Up and have those words embroidered into his cape in large, red cursive letters.

In Spain, matadors are seen by many as the pinnacle of macho, and Ortega’s agreeing to endorse a product geared toward gay men is raising eyebrows.

But Ortega sees no incompatibility.

“I am a bullfighter. That is not going to change. I am going to go out into the ring as I have done until now, to risk my life, and the seven goring wounds on my body prove that,” he told The AP Wednesday. “If the gay community welcomes me as an image or a symbol, that is fine.”

Topflight Spanish bullfighters are celebrities, just like football or movie stars, and it is common for them to have commercial endorsement gigs for everything from wine to cars to fancy clothes. But it is almost unprecedented for them to advertise something while in the arena.

Bullfighting writers said the only case they recall is that of a matador named Luis Reina, who signed a deal in the 1980s with the Japanese electronics giant Akai and had that brand name embroidered on the sleeves and legs of the glittering traje de luces,’ or suits of lights, that he wore while fighting.

No one expects Ortega to start a trend. It would border on scandalous for a top-rated bullfighter to advertise from the ring.

Gay Up is a new product in Spain, developed by firm based in the southern city of Malaga that bought the European rights to it from a manufacturer in Colombia. There, it was made from strawberries. But the Spanish firm decided that to make it a hit with gays in Europe it needed to be an energy drink, said Jose Maria Terron, the company’s president.

“The fact that it is oriented toward the gay community stems more than anything from its name,” Terron said.

Both he and Ortega said the advertising cape is a good way to shake up bullfighting, which they described as steeped in male bravado.

“It is a matter of changing what is normal, or usual, within this world that seem so untouchable,” Ortega said.

Ortega is hardly a superstar. He became a full-fledged matador in 2006 but has been hampered by repeated and serious gorings and has not fought often, said Juan Belmonte, a bullfighting critic for TV station Canal Sur in Seville.

Belmonte said those who criticize Ortega’s Gay Up deal will be angry not so much because the product is geared toward homosexuals but because Ortega is advertising in the arena, violating a tradition.

“It is like prostituting the cape,” Belmonte said.

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Answers to Rockin Dave´s Quiz

1. A coffin.

2. The child was born before 1776.

3. Mount Everest (it just hadn’t been discovered).

4. Clara lives in the Southern Hemisphere.

5. World War I wasn’t called “World War I” until World War II.

6. The word “and.”

7. They fall in the same year every year. New Year’s Day just arrives very early in the year and Christmas arrives very late in the same year.

8. The lady was a Justice of the Peace.

9. One thousand nine hundred and ninety dollar bills are worth one dollar more than one thousand nine hundred and eighty-nine dollar bills.

10. Only once, and then you are subtracting it from 20.

11. “one word”

12. Penguins live in the Antarctic.

13. Neither. The yolk of the egg is yellow.

14. You have to take a picture of a man with a camera, not with a wooden leg.

15. They were husband and wife.

16. No. A dead man can marry no one.

17. Six. Three in each half of the inning.

18. Moses took no animals. It was Noah on the Ark.

19. Meat.

20. Nine.
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Catch me on Cool at 9 am Saturday and Sunday and I´ll try to podcast the show later in the day

I´ve just been in the hallowed company ofn a grey parrot that enthralls from the bar whilst you eat in the restaurant. From a good distance, Larry will whistle the exact tune about Hitler having only got one testicle and his timing is usually to perfection.

Kids also use the word ¨wicked¨to signify something of worth and Larry´s cackle is par excellence. He lives at the Greek restaurant round the top of the hill in Albir. The food is well worth a visit but if you´re not that hungry then sit in the bar and enjoy Larry´s company. You will not be disappointed. He might even stick his neck through the bars of his cage for you to give him  a scratch if he likes you.

All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. – Edmund Burke, 1729-1797

Today’s Lesson given by the Reverend and Mrs Addo of Hull

Daddy’s car in the woods?

Little Johnny watched his daddy’s car pass by the school playground and go into the woods.Curious,
he followed the car and saw Daddy and Aunt Jane in a passionate embrace.

Little Johnny found this so exciting that he could hardly contain himself as he ran home and started to
tell his mother.’Mummy, I was at the playground and I saw Daddy’s car go into the woods with Aunt Jane.I went back to look and he was giving Aunt Jane a big kiss, and then he helped her take off her shirt.Then Aunt Jane helped Daddy take his pants off, then Aunt Jane…’

At this point Mummy cut him off and said, ‘Johnny, this is such an interesting story, lets save the rest of it for supper time.I want to see the look on Daddy’s face when you tell it tonight.’

At the dinner table that evening, Mummy asked little Johnny to tell his story Johnny started his story, ‘I was
at the playground and I saw Daddy’s car go into the woods with Aunt Jane.I went back to look and he was giving Aunt Jane a big kiss, then he helped her take off her shirt.Then Aunt Jane helped Daddy take his pants off, then Aunt Jane and Daddy started doing the same thing that Mummy and Uncle Bill used to do when Daddy was away on the oil rigs.’

Mummy fainted!

Moral: Sometimes you need to just shut up and listen to the whole story before you interrupt!

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My friend the rebel doctor has a new message for us…..According to recent estimates, nearly 1-in-3 American adults has high blood pressure. But for the Kuna Indians living on a group of islands off the Caribbean coast of Panama, hypertension doesn’t even exist. In fact, after age 60, the average blood pressure for Kuna Indian islanders is a perfect 110/70.

Is it because they eat less salt? No. Kuna Indians eat as much, if not more salt, than people in the U.S.

Is it due to their genes? No. Kuna Indians who move away from the islands are just as likely to suffer from high blood pressure as anyone else!

So what makes these folks practically “immune” to hypertension — and lets them enjoy much lower death rates from heart attacks, strokes, diabetes, and cancer?

Harvard researchers were stunned to discover it’s because they drink about 5 cups of cocoa each day. That’s right, cocoa!

Studies show the flavonols in cocoa stimulate your body’s production of nitric oxide — boosting blood flow to your heart, brain, and other organs. In fact, one study found cocoa thins your blood just as well as low-dose aspirin!

But that’s not all. A Harvard Medical School professor claims cocoa can also treat blocked arteries, congestive heart failure, stroke, dementia, even impotence!

I hope Cadburys has the same effect as I have been into a night-time cup of cocoa for many a year…………..Incidentally, my mum used to swear by us having a spoonful of Cod Liver Oil which nearly made me puke every time I was force fed it as a child. He has this to say on the subject….

You know you probably don’t eat enough fish — and need more omega-3 fatty acids than you’re getting now. So why not follow Grandma’s advice and take a spoonful of cod-liver oil each day?

Bad idea. While cod-liver oil can give you a good dose of omega-3 fatty acids, it also gives you a good dose of something you don’t want: Contaminants like mercury and PCBs (linked to cancer and liver damage). No wonder the stuff tastes so awful!

He also has this to say on the subject of eating tomatoes…..

Unless you’ve been asleep under a rock for the past decade, you’ve heard the news about tomatoes. They contain a potent antioxidant called lycopene that’s been proven to reduce the risk of certain cancers — in particular, prostate cancer.

A famous Harvard study back in 1995 found that out of 48,000 men surveyed, those who ate 10 or more servings of tomatoes a week reduced their risk of prostate cancer by more than one-third. What’s more, they lowered their risk of aggressive prostate tumors (the kind that are really tough to treat) by HALF!

But before you reach for that slice of pizza or bottle of ketchup, listen up. What if I told you about a sweet, refreshing food Dr. Steven Pratt recommends in your FREE-Preview copy of Bottom Line’s SUPERFOODS RX that’s even better for your prostate than tomatoes?

This NEW prostate protecting champ is watermelon! Ounce for ounce, watermelon is even richer in lycopene than tomatoes. And since you probably eat more watermelon in one sitting than you do tomatoes, you don’t have to gorge on it 10 times a week in order to slash your cancer risk! Just a few times a week should do it.

Do I get you good news or what?

Clear up flu symptoms…
with cognac?!

A shot of cognac is a popular flu remedy in Germany, where it’s thought to ease symptoms and help the body cleanse itself. But this flu-fighting formula goes one better, by adding an ingredient that clears up mucus so it doesn’t clog up your throat and nasal passages.

The secret formula. Pour a quart of 90-proof cognac into an airtight bottle. Add a half pound of the diced vegetable named in your FREE Special Report, 21 Fix-It- Quick Cures, then use as directed. But that’s not all…

• Quiet a cough… with gingerroot? Yes, it’s true! Ginger is an anti-inflammatory that actually has sedative benefits. Just follow these instructions.
• The vinegar gargle that kills off bacteria. Take 6 ounces of warm water and add 2 teaspoons of this type of vinegar. Gargle with this mixture as instructed, and you’ll kill off the bacteria that cause many sore throats!
• Interested in receiving Dr. William C. Douglass’ highly acclaimed monthly newsletter — and FREE bonus gifts? Call (915) 849-4615 or visit http://clicks.douglassreport.com//t/AQ/cfE/dyg/C+Q/AQ/Atd3ng/KK7C

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Let´s peep at the weather before we reach for the tomatoes or cod liver oil!

Friday	Saturday	Sunday	Monday	Tuesday
26° C | 15° C	26° C | 15° C	22° C | 15° C	24° C | 16° C	26° C | 16° C
Clear	Chance of Rain 30% chance of precipitation	T-storms 80% chance of precipitation	Chance of T-storms 30% chance of precipitation	Chance of T-storms 40% chance of precipitation

Word of the Day
La semilla seh-mee’-yah (noun)

seed; origin, beginning
EXAMPLES

No me gustan las uvas con muchas semillas. – I don’t like grapes with a lot of seeds.

Mi empresa está en fase semilla. – My company is at the startup stage.

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Former millionaire Colin Coats has gone on the run from his Spanish villa after facing arrest for Air Rage charges in Alicante.

He left the luxury Costa Blanca mansion in rush to avoid detention for allegedly punching an Easyjet employee.

He also apparently loudly threatened to “bomb passengers” on the flight as well as burn passengers children.

This happened last Tuesday on a Glasgow to Alicante flight less than an hour from its destination.

The former IT engineer is said to have “lost it” after he believed another passenger was making advances on his girlfriend.

He has a considerable criminal file including several for acts of violence.

Catch the latest podcast

Yes. The weathermen got it right and we´ve had a load of rain in the past 24 hours. This has tested my new wall and my patience as we have also had poor TV reception.  The lightning has been sparodic but it is a pesky thing to have around when you´re using computers.

My friend the rebel doctor is now having a look at the benefits of coconut oil. Here´s what he has to say….

If you’re not crazy for coconut oil, you should be.

It’s taken a while, but mainstream research is finally starting to catch on to the health benefits of coconut oil — even if they still can’t quite put two and two together, as usual.

But that’s OK — I’m ready to do that for them.

I was all set to celebrate when I read the latest study on mice in the journal Diabetes, which found that coconut oil can protect against insulin resistance without leading to fat accumulation in the body.

But my jaw dropped when I read the conclusion these knuckleheads came up with.

Despite their own evidence that a diet rich in delicious, fatty coconut oil can help you lose weight and avoid diabetes, they spewed the same tired line about how high-fat diets are the main cause of diabetes.

They called their own results “interesting” and said that maybe, just maybe, it means that someone looking to maintain their current weight can use some coconut oil in place of other oils.

Did they even read their own results?

Because of its high saturated fat content, coconut oil has been the target of a vicious hate campaign over the years, orchestrated by the anti-fat lunatics who have been ruining our diet for generations.

These are the same brilliant minds who got the entire nation hooked on trans fats. That switch led to as many as 100,000 entirely unnecessary cardiac deaths each year, and trans fats are now being banned everywhere.

Talk about the mistake of the century!

I’m a firm believer in the powers of coconut oil, and this latest study is just the tip of the palm tree. I can’t possibly tell you everything you need to know about its amazing health benefits in this short space, but if you subscribe to The Douglass Report you can read all about it in my online archives.

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Next is an extract from  SpanishVida.

Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, 49, had never had it as rough since taking office in 2004.

Not only is the conservative opposition having a heyday lambasting him over the country’s persistent economic slump, the criticism appears to have spread to the ranks of Zapatero’s own Socialist Party.

Even the usually supportive daily El Pais has turned against the prime minister.

However, the sudden change of attitude of the powerful daily is being attributed partly to a backstage battle over digital television rights, rather than just Zapatero’s economic policies.

Zapatero’s first term is remembered largely for his liberal social reforms, such as legalizing homosexual marriage and promoting women’s rights, while the second term has stood out so far as an economically disastrous one.

The global crisis and the collapse of Spain’s key construction sector plunged the country into its worst economic slump since the 1936-39 civil war, with the European Commission expecting the economy to shrink 3.7 per cent this year.

The 18 per cent unemployment is the highest by far in the EU, and Spain is expected to recover from the crisis slower than other comparable EU economies.

The government has resorted to what have been criticized as ad hoc short-term measures, such as large-scale public works to boost employment, which are contributing to public deficit rising to an expected 10 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) this year.

The government is planning to shore up the budget by raising 15 billion euros (22 billion dollars) in extra tax money, a policy which critics see as crippling consumption and making the recession last even longer.

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Word of the Day

El castigo kas-tee’-go  (noun)

punishment, penalty; damage, pain

EXAMPLES

Mi escuela no usa el castigo corporal. – My school doesn’t use corporal punishment.

El árbitro señaló el área de castigo. – The referee pointed to the penalty area.

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

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Here´s the weather forecast.

Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
23° C | 15° C	26° C | 15° C	27° C | 15° C	25° C | 15° C	23° C | 16° C
T-storms 60% chance of precipitation	Chance of Rain 30% chance of precipitation	Clear	Chance of T-storms 50% chance of precipitation	Chance of T-storms 80% chance of precipitation

It looks like the rain is here for a few days. It´s like being back in britain working all week and waiting for a nice weekend. No chance.

Country and Western Song Titles that just might appeal!

1       I Ain’t Never Gone To Bed With Ugly Women, But I’ve Sure Woke Up With A Few
2     She’s Looking Better After Every Beer
3     Her Teeth Was Stained But Her Heart Was Pure
4     You’re The Reason Our Kids Are So Ugly
5     She Got The Ring And I Got The Finger
6     My Wife Ran Off With My Best Friend And I Sure Do Miss Him
7     If I Had Shot You When I First Wanted To, I’d Be Out Of Prison By Now
8     I’m So Miserable Without You, It’s Like You’re Still Here
9     I’ll Marry You Tomorrow, But Let’s Honeymoon Tonight
10     I Wouldn’t Take Her To A Dog Fight ‘Cause I’m Afraid She’d Win
11     I Still Miss You Baby, But My Aims Gettin’ Better
12     I Liked You Better Before I Got to Know You So Well
13     How Can I Miss You If You Won’t Go Away?
14     If The Phone Don’t Ring, You’ll Know It’s Me
15     If I Can’t Be Number One In Your Life, Then Number Two On You
16     It’s Hard To Kiss The Lips At Night That Chewed Your Ass Out All Day Long

Great new podcast

The rain in Spain is well and truly off the plain! We´ve been drenched since about midday and there´s probably more to come. However, this is what we expect at this time of the year.

I am working my way through the Frenedol, which is the Spanish equivalent to Beechams, as I try to shake off my cold. There´s dozens of us all suffering the same sore throat and stuffed up noses. However, it´s always easier to believe your cold is worse than anyone else´s.

The Carling Cup is being carried on the BBC sports multiscreen and it looks like there are a few good games. Household names like Snodgrass are being mentioned en passant as the lower teams challenge the money barons from the Premiership in this Carling sponsored competition. To be fair, Snodgrass is having a good game for Leeds against Liverpool and Mark Lawrenson reckons he turned down the chance of a trial with Barcelona. All channels have been affected by the weather so we´ll have most of the night without television.From what I saw on Channel Five before the pictures went this will prove a blessing in disguise.

If you want to make peace, you don’t talk to your friends. You talk to your enemies. – Moshe Dayan, 1915-1981—————————————————————————–

Let´s see if the weather is going to cheer up later in the week

Martes	Miércoles	Jueves	Viernes	Sábado
25° C | 16° C	23° C | 15° C	26° C | 15° C	26° C | 15° C	26° C | 16° C
Probabilidad de Lluvia 40% Probabilidad de Precipitación	Chance of T-storms 40% Probabilidad de Precipitación	Probabilidad de Lluvia 20% Probabilidad de Precipitación	Despejado	Probabilidad de Lluvia 20% Probabilidad de Precipitación

Keep your wellies handy! In all honesty, if you´ve come to Benidorm for the weather you haven´t picked the best week of the year but you never can tell with Benidor. We´re near the mountains and we´re near the Med so things can change pretty quickly.

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Whilst the twitchers are getting twitchy in the UK because of a rare Puffin or two worldwide Twittering is in the news……….

Twitter Users Network to Raise Funds for Charities *

That’s the call to action for “Twestival,” a multicity international fundraiser scheduled Thursday through Sunday that uses the social network Twitter as its starting point.

It works this way: People with Twitter accounts write tweets — messages of 140 characters or less — suggesting a charity they support and want to help. They volunteer as event organizers and sponsors, and invite their network of friends and co-workers to attend, says Amanda Rose, a London-based communications consultant who originated the concept in 2008.

Go here for complete news story.

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The doctor is busy sending us more information. I feel I should pass it on but always advise caution.

It’s not everyday that I find a good reason to send an e-mail to my entire address list. Today, I sense a moral obligation to send this to everyone I know.

I’ve never believed that there’s such a thing as a panacea, or a miracle cure that eradicates cancer and all other diseases.

However, I recently came across a remarkable, natural therapy that has been successfully used for over 170 years.  Reports of its effectiveness have been suppressed or downplayed by industries that stand to lose a lot of money if the therapy goes mainstream.

This therapy I’m talking about doesn’t “cure” the body per se — but apparently, creates an environment within the body where cancer and other diseases cannot survive, let alone thrive.

Imagine if your body could become uninhabitable by cancer and virtually all disease-causing microorganisms, pathogens, viruses and bacteria, for that matter.

There has been a mountain of scientific evidence about this simple, at-home therapy amassed over the last century –and it is enormous enough to justify serious consideration.

Read on below for a special offer and watch the 5-minute video because you simply won’t know the immense value of this information to your health and the health of your family until you see the compelling proof for yourself.

Best regards,

Matthew Simons
Publisher

FACT: Every 60 seconds someone dies from cancer — and every 3 minutes, someone new is diagnosed with cancer.  That someone could even be you. If you know anyone who’s suffering from cancer — and who doesn’t? — you must watch this 5-minute video titled “ Is This the Cure for Cancer That Really Works?“ This is the video that the pharmaceutical industry doesn’t want you to watch. When this video was first put online, it circled the globe and was viewed by people in all continents within a matter of 31 minutes.  It has gotten over 297,000 views in the last couple of weeks alone. Don’t forget to send the link to everyone you know who has cancer (even those who are in remission).  It’s that important. You might even end up saving someone’s life. Watch the video by clicking on this videolink http://clicks.douglassreport.com//t/AQ/c8w/eQY/wBg/Aw/Atd3ng/gFZP

I have to admit that although the cure might be kosher the hard-sell is American. I would much rather there was a chance for those without much money to get their hands on any wonder care. I am not really convinced although it might well be worth a try. My gut feeling is that it cost a lot of money for this over-produced advert. I don´t see the work of another Mother Theresa in any of this. If anyone really had the compassion for the rest of mankind I think an organisation would have been set up by now to get this medicine or cure to the masses toute de suite. Am I cynical or what?

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Here´s our SpanishDict Spanish Word of the Day
Sudar soo-darr’ (intransitive verb)

to sweat, to perspire; to work hard
EXAMPLES

Nunca dejo de sudar cuando estoy en México. – I never stop sweating when I am in Mexico.

Las mujeres no sudan sino que brillan. – Women don’t sweat; they glisten.

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

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We have quite a world renowned black economy here in Spain and The Ministry for Employment has said that the submerged or black economy grew by 30% over the summer in Spain. The areas where increased fraud was of particular note were in the hostelry and agriculture sectors. Despite the fall in employment, the amount of money in circulation in the street rose. Inspectors expect to collect 320 million € in fines this year, and that will be a record. The information and the rest of the story is linked to the source.

Here in Benidorm, and in a nutshell, the town is now under the control of the PSOE or Labour-ish if you like after 16 years batting for the Conservatives or PP. How this will affect us we´ll all have to wait and see..

I´ll manage another podcast once I get rid of this cold. In the meantime, I´m off for an early night!

FACT of the day. On Sunday there was an earthquake followed by a football eclipse in Manchester.It lasted for six minutes during which time Manchester City fell back into the shadow of Manchester United. Police are still questioning witnesses to find where the missing six minutes came from.

This is the time of the year when germs are at their happiest. They have a new lease of life flying to the Costa Blanca on charter flights from all around Europe. You can almost hear them getting off the planes and looking for the nearest air-conditioning to lie in wait for the Autumn victims. Virtually every other person I´ve met this week has got a bad throat and the sniffles. I am rapidly running out of Kleenex mensize tissues.

Let´s find the weather report although I can quickly add that it has been a lovely day today. There has been a good breeze which has been most misleading. I was convinced I was not catching the sun when I was outdoors about two o´clock but my head is now reminding me of the dangers of the sun in southern Spain.

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
24° C | 14° C	25° C | 15° C	24° C | 14° C	25° C | 15° C	27° C | 13° C
Chance of T-storms 30% chance of precipitation	Chance of Rain 30% chance of precipitation	Chance of Rain 50% chance of precipitation	Chance of Rain 20% chance of precipitation	Clear

There is rain about and yesterday I sat and watched a bolt of lightning about twenty yards down the road from where I was sitting. It was uncanny in that it came from nowhere and was most unexpected. The classic bolt out of the blue. Let´s take a peep at our Spanish word for today.

Word of the Day

Animar ah-nee-marr’  (transitive verb)

to encourage, to motivate; to cheer up, to liven up, to revive, to excite

EXAMPLES

Tu llamada me animó mucho. – Your phone call really cheered me up.

Al final me animé a solicitar al trabajo. – I finally worked up the courage to apply for the job.

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

SpanishDict has upgraded! Check out the New SpanishDict.

For those who have been to a Spanish hotel for a holiday you will probably have met the Animador. This is the Entertainments manager who usually comes to Spain from some foreign agency. Often without a word of English this young underpaid worker usually is promoted to running all the entertainment in the hotel for barely a basic wage. The employer has them over a barrel and they are glad to have a job. In return they book the entertainment for the older British visitor knowing very little about the needs of the customer. My view is probably biaised but that´s what experience does for you.

My friend the rebel doctor is bringing us another insight to the good work of the profession. …….He had this to say about insurance and medicine…For once, bad insurance leads to good medicine……….

” I’ve been trying to for decades to get doctors to stop treating our kids like human pin cushions… but I didn’t expect to get help from those bozos who run our insurance companies.

Those managed-care boneheads have finally — and entirely by accident — come up with a plan to slow the foolish mass-vaccination craze, and it’s all about money.

You probably know a little about how these reimbursement schemes work. Doctors set fees for their services, and insurance companies ignore them and pay whatever they want.

Try using that twisted logic next time you pay for a meal. “I know the check says $50, but I’m going to pay $23.”

In the real world, they’d call the cops — if they didn’t toss you out on the sidewalk first. But that’s how insurance company math works, and many doctors are losing as much as $50 a pop on every vaccination.

That can add up faster than you can say, “Don’t poison my child.”

Up to 11 percent of pediatricians say they’re considering dropping vaccines altogether. As a result, many kids may end up not getting their vaccinations at all.   And that’s a darn good thing.

So while I don’t like how we got to this point — doctors need to make a living like anyone else, and these criminal insurance companies are driving many of my colleagues into early retirement — I can’t argue with the results, however unintended they were.

We need to stop jabbing our children with these poison needles and focus on the kind of care that really makes them healthy. But of course, insurance won’t pay for that, either.”

I wonder how this stacks up against the medical practices around the UK and Spain. There has to be a number of absolutely wonderful caring doctors but the medical companies are selling drugs. Enough said!

He also tells us of the dangers in even the common cold. He has this warning for those of us with elderly relatives….

Link between illness and Alzheimer’s

I know you’re probably one tough son of a gun. Chances are, you think that nothing as little as a cold is going to get the best of you.

But a cold is nothing to sneeze at — especially if you’re already suffering from dementia. A study in the journal Neurology found that even minor infections like a common cold can hasten memory loss in dementia patients by 50 percent.

Researchers tracked 222 Alzheimer’s patients with an average age of 83 over six months. During that time, almost exactly half of them — 110 — suffered from an infection or injury. And they experienced twice the rate of cognitive decline as those who managed to keep healthy over that time.

I wasn’t surprised by this in the least, because — whether you’re a dementia patient or not — many illnesses can hit us hard in unexpected ways.

The best way to fight these conditions is to avoid them in the first place. That means taking good care of yourself no matter how old you are. Eat right and remain socially active.

And when you do get sick, don’t let it get the best of you — get taken care of quickly, before it has a chance to turn into something bigger. Acting quick so you don’t get sick, William Campbell Douglass II, M.D.

Thought for the day comes from Michael Adamson, a Hull City fan…

You can’t live in the past
Whatever has happened has happened
The important thing is not to live in the problem
You have to live in the solution..

We´ve got the technology. My message to the FA is use it. We all see what happens now and you´re all beginning to look a little silly.

I´m full of cold and I am taking the sensible precaution of having yet another early night. Please visit yesterday´s 3 hour podcast which should keep you happy until the next is ready.

Thanks for all the text messages and phone calls during my shows at the weekend. Where on earth did the timekeepers find another six minutes for the Manchester derby? I have every sympathy with Mark Hughes and I think the Old trafford triads have got to the officials again. I have mixed emotions as Michael Owen is in my fantasy football team! Please notice I aqm not a gloating fan. Liverpool had to work for their win at West Ham.

I was watching the match with a Man Utd. fanatic and even he couldn´t see where those extra minutes came from. There were no fouls and no lengthy stoppages. Where did that extra time come from?

A friend of mine who works with spectacles told me that eye-examination charts vary according to the manufacturer, but one thing they have in common is that they don’t spell anything.

One day a patient came into his office for an ophthalmological exam. He asked him to read the 20/40 line of
the eye chart, but obviously the letters FZBDE were mostly a blur to him. Finally he ventured a guess.

“I can’t pronounce his name,” the man said, “but I think he was the referee at the Manchester Derby.”

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Everywhere you turn, you read and hear about  Social Networking and Social Media Websites. Examples include Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, Digg, and Delicious. It looks like they are taking over.Every time I go to my mail someone has contacted me on FRacebook. They haven´t really. They were using Facebook and they were too lazy to put my mail through my own mail account. It saves the sender a second or two but makes more work for me. I have to go to Facebook and click form here to Kingdom Come in order to read what someone has written. It is usually very trite and a wate of time. Just now and then there´s a gem. This is the exception rather than the rule. Should I really bother .

I am informed that Facebook has 200 million members.  YouTube visitors are viewing 13 billion videos a month. LinkedIn has over 15 million businesspeople networking. Twitter is growing at over 40% a month.Digg and Delicious are driving millions of visitors to websites every month.

The big question on many people’s mind is a simple one: Are these websites Useful or mostly a Massive Waste of Time? I suppose the answer is in the way that you use the technology. As usual….you pays your money and makes your choice!

We were watching the match and a thunderbolt and flash of lightning landed about twenty yards down the road from us here in La Nucia………Let´s get the weather for the week ahead.

Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday
24° C | 14° C	24° C | 14° C	25° C | 15° C	24° C | 15° C	25° C | 13° C
Chance of Rain 20% chance of precipitation	Chance of T-storms 30% chance of precipitation	Rain 60% chance of precipitation	Chance of T-storms 40% chance of precipitation	Chance of Rain 20% chance of precipitation

Sorry if it´s your holiday week but it looks a little grim. Keep your raincoats handy and stay on the coast.

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My friend works as a technician in a college.  He got a call from a computer user. The user told the tech that her computer was not working. She described the problem, and he concluded that her computer needed to be brought in and serviced.

He told her, “Unplug the power cord and bring it up here and I’ll fix it for you.”

About ten minutes later, she showed up at his door … with only the electrical cord in her right hand.

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I started my first cold of the winter and there are p’laneloads of germs on the way. Usually, the end of July and beginning of Septemebr heralds germs returning from all corners of the globe to test my immune system. I am not just talking Swine Flu. Just about any old germ visits durinmg the winter and I always appreciate the cold weather as it is a chance for the bugs to be killed off. Our medicine cabinet is usually full of Frenedol and Strepsils and boxes of Kleenex Mansize piled up ready for us to defend ourselves. Churches, schools, Social centres and anywhere people are gathering germs follow in thier bid to get us.

Along with gnats and mosquitoes germs are the sneakiest of items lying in wait to get us when we are at our lowest ebb. It´s no use swigging vitamin C once they´ve got you. The trouble it´s when you´ve not had a cold for a long while that you start worrying about why you´ve not had one. Then, the minute you relax and enjoy the moment they´ll have you. My wise old doctor friend once told me. “If you treat a cold it will last only a fortnight. If you don´t treat the blessed thing it will last fourteen days!”

After I had injured one of my shins for the umpteenth time, my doctor suggested I wear some sort of protection. Remembering the shin guards I wore when I played soccer over 60 years ago, I went to a local sporting goods store.

I’m a petite, elderly woman, so when a young man came to help me, I said, “Don’t laugh, but I’m looking for a pair of shin guards for soccer.”

“Okay,” he said with a completely straight face. “What position do you play?”

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In case you are taking a late break in the north of Spain I was reading recently that San Sebastian has more Michelin stars per capita than any other city in Europe and neighbouring Bilbao has some top notch restaurants. Located on the Atlantic coast with the fertile mountains inland there is no shortage of fresh ingredients from which young innovative chefs produce the finest quality fish and meat dishes.

If you´re not inclined to travel quite so far in Madrid has many fine restaurants and quality restaurants abound in Barcelona. Valencia has seen an upsurge in its fortunes thanks to the construction of the City of Arts and Sciences there along with its role as host of the 2007 America’s Cup. It is now a modern city which attracts a lot of tourists and a large number of new restaurants have appeared to satisfy the tastes of the new arrivals. If you just fancy a really tasty beefburger visit the little snackbar opposite the main entrance to the America´s Cup area. He really knows how to make a nice burger!

Word of the Day

Promedio pro-meh’-dyo  (noun)

average, middle, mid-point

EXAMPLES

El promedio de mis ingresos fue menos
que el año anterior. – My average income was less than last
year.

Corro un promedio de tres milas cada
mañana. – I run an average of three miles every day.