Again, the weather is excellent and I decided to take advantage of this better environment to pop up to our town and make a visit or two. Spain is a very busy country early in the day and it is easy to slip into the habit of  not getti9ng out early when the weather is colder. However, the mountains are looking good and you just know it´s going to be a good day. The fact that Liverpool beat Tottenham has got nothing to do with this at all. Kuyt earned some of his money last night and one or two seemed to working a little harder. In fact, if we had a really good replacement for when Torres is injured then  the team wouldn´t really look to bad. Over at Villa there was a real thriller. Blackburn must have thought they were going to Wembley after the first twenty minutes. They were like demons and possessed a two goal lead very quickly. However, Villa are a quality team and the gaol rush came hurtling at Blackburn. There were also goals at Arsenal where Bolton caught the Blackburn bug and went two ahead. Arsenal replied with four of their own to go top of the table. It was an interesting night. Let´s get the weather forecast for Alicante province.

Jueves	Viernes	Sábado	Domingo	Lunes
19° C | 7° C	19° C | 8° C	15° C | 9° C	17° C | 8° C	15° C | 6° C
Despejado	Despejado	Nubes Dispersas	Probabilidad de Lluvia 20% Probabilidad de Precipitación	Probabilidad de Lluvia

Here´s a bit of news the expat community needs ………..

The SiMAP union, representing public health doctors in Spain, said non-Spanish EU nationals in Alicante, which has a large British expat community, account for 15-20 per cent of hospital admissions.

Criticism is not directed at those who register their residency status and pay taxes, but at expats in the black economy who expect to get treatment by producing a European Health Insurance Card (Ehic), which is designed for the emergency care of holidaymakers.

Some of the many thousands of Britons who regularly flip between homes in Britain and Iberia are also thought to arrange trips according to where they may get the best treatment, or jump waiting lists.

Politicians have been concerned about healthcare “freeloaders” for several years, but Spanish doctors have been more muted.

Full Story

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Many years ago, I stood outside the Lobster Pot Hotel in Newquay and Tom, the owner, was telling me why there are a lot more effeminate men in the world. He was not being sexist nor was he saying this was a good or bad thing but referring to an article which was in his hand and he´d just been reading. Strangely, the same sort of information is contained in the following…………

Why some boys have breasts

If Hillary Clinton were president, I’d say there was a conspiracy at hand — a conspiracy to change the few remaining men in this country into tree-hugging, rainbow-wearing fruitcakes.

Conspiracy or no, there’s still an all-out assault on the male population. Men are exposed to estrogen at every turn, from birth to the grave — and we’re only just beginning to feel the effects. From low sperm counts, to increased testicular cancers, to increased numbers of homosexuals, men are fighting a losing battle.

I’ve already warned you about soy and BPA. Now, there’s another chemical to avoid at all costs.

The latest research links phthalates, a common chemical found in plastics, to abnormal breasts in boys — a “budding” problem today. (Heck, some of these feminized little lads should be fitted for training bras!)

When researchers compared 40 boys with abnormal breast growth to 21 boys without the condition, they found that the boys with boobs had between 2.8 and 25 times the levels of phthalates than those with normal flat chests.

Because phthalates soften plastics, they’re in everything from shower curtains to plastic wrap to food containers. They’re also used to stabilize scents — which means you find them in fragrance-based products like perfume and shampoo.

So what should you do? For starters, the less plastic you use, the better. Whenever you can, stick to products that come in glass containers. And if you’re eating food from the perimeter of your grocery store, you won’t have to worry as much about the chemicals from the cans and jars.

If you stop purchasing products that contain phthalates, the manufacturers will take notice. BPA is a perfect example of that.

Even though the FDA has refused to regulate this cancer-causing, estrogen-mimicking toxin, more and more manufacturers are voluntarily doing away with it — not because they care about your health, but because they’re focused on the bottom line.

But does it really matter why? For you, the end result is the same

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Word of the Day

suave swah’-veh  (adjective)

soft, smooth, delicate, gentle, pleasant, mellow, mild

EXAMPLES

Este mole está bastante suave. – This mole is quite mild.

Los coches de lujo tienen la dirección muy suave. – Luxury cars have a very smooth ride.

IDIOMS

¡Qué suave! – Fantastic!

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On this Day in History

1793 – During the French Revolution, King Louis XVI was executed on the guillotine. He had been condemned for treason.

1846 – The first issue of the “Daily News,” edited by Charles Dickens, was published.

1900 – Canadian troops set sail to fight in South Africa. The Boers had attacked Ladysmith on January 8, 1900.

1911 – The first Monte Carlo car rally was held. Seven days later by French it was won by Henri Rougier.

1924 – Soviet leader Vladimir Llyich Lenin died. Joseph Stalin began a purge of his rivals for the leadership of the Soviet Union.

1941 – The British communist newspaper, the “Daily Worker,” was banned due to wartime restrictions.

1970 – The Boeing 747 made its first commercial flight from New York to London for Pan American.

1998 – A former White House intern said on tape that she had an affair with U.S. President Clinton.

2003 – It was announced by the U.S. Census Bureau that estimates showed that the Hispanic population had passed the black population for the first time.

In the World of Music

1957, Frankie Vaughan was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘The Garden Of Eden’.
1978, the soundtrack album ‘Saturday Night Fever’  at No.1 on the US album charts, it went on to sell over 30 million copies world wide, making it the best selling soundtrack album of all time.
1982, B.B. King donated his entire record collection of over 20,000 discs to Mississippi University’s centre for the Study of Southern Culture,
1984, Soul singer Jackie Wilson died aged 49. . His 1957 single Reet Petite became a posthumous No.1
1984, Yes started a two-week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘Owner Of A Lonely Heart ‘ No.28 in the UK.
1987, Bruce Springsteen inducted Roy Orbison into the Rock’n'Roll Hall of Fame.
1987, The Coasters, became the first vocal group to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
1989, Phil Collins scored his seventh US No.1 single with ‘Two Hearts’.
1996, Edem Ephraim and Dennis Fuller of The London Boys were killed in a car crash in The Alps, also killed was Edem’s wife Bettina.
1997, ‘Colonel’ Tom Parker, Elvis Presley’s manager and agent died of a stroke in Las Vegas, at the age of 87. Born Andreas van Kuijk, a Dutch immigrant who changed his name as soon as he arrived in the US, Parker never applied for a green card and feared deportation his entire life.
1997, Songwriter Jesse Levine died of kidney failure aged 58. Co-wrote, ‘Knock Three Times’ and ‘Tie A Yellow Ribbon’
2002, American singer and actress Peggy Lee died of complications from diabetes and a heart attack at the age of 81. 1958 US No. 8 UK No.5 single ‘Fever.’
2007, Mika scored his debut UK number one hit single with Grace Kelly
January 21st: Born on this day
1925, Telly Savalas, singer, actor (1975 UK No.1 single ‘If’). Who loves ya, baby?
1939, DJ Wolfman Jack.
1941,Placido Domingo, Spanish singer,
1941, Richie Havens,
1942, Edwin Starr,
1942, Mac Davis, singer, songwriter. (1972 US No.1 single ‘Baby Don’t Get Hooked On Me’, No.29 in the UK. Wrote ‘In The Ghetto’ and ‘Don’t Cry Daddy’ for Elvis Presley).
1950, Billy Ocean,
1959, Vic Reeves, -UK comedy act Reeves and Mortimer
1976, Emma Bunton, Baby Spice, The Spice Girls, (1996 UK No.1 & 1997 US No.1 single ‘Wannabe’, 2001 UK No.1 solo single ‘What Took You So Long’).

Today´s Podcast

It´s a beautiful day here in Spain on the Costa Blanca. It´s the sort of feeling you want looking onto the mountain where perfectly clear blue skies give the mountain its wonderful definition where you can see the vegetation line clearly. I will get the forecast a little later. First I´m looking at a story of  a convict on the run who taunted the police on Facebook — becoming an Internet sensation in the process. After almost four months on the run, British prison escapee Craig “Lazie” Lynch was finally nabbed by Scotland Yard on Tuesday night, police say.

Following his Sept. 23 jailbreak from a minimum security facility in Suffolk, the 28-year-old convicted burglar repeatedly made mocking online posts accompanied by pictures of him enjoying life on the outside.  Among the online abuse he heaped on his pursuers was a special Christmas post in which he shared a photo of himself dressed in tinsel, holding a turkey with one hand and flipping the bird with another.

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Here´s the weather forecast ….

Miércoles	Jueves	Viernes	Sábado	Domingo
20° C | 8° C	18° C | 8° C	19° C | 9° C	18° C | 9° C	14° C | 10° C
Despejado	Despejado	Despejado	Nubes Dispersas	Probabilidad de Lluvia

I have been sent the following letter which highlights the frustrations felt in the UK. I have toned down some of the language and have left a few words which, if changed, would alter the context too much.

………………………………………………………….

Dear  Sirs,

I’m in the process of renewing my passport, and still cannot
believe this.  How is it that Sky Television has my address and telephone
number and knows that I bought a bleeding satellite dish from them back
in 1977, and yet, the Government is still asking me where I was bloody
born and on what date.

For Christ sakes, do you guys do this by hand?  My birth date you have
on my pension book, and it is on all the income tax forms I’ve filed for
the past 30 years. It is on my National Health card, my driving licence,
my car insurance, on the last eight damn passports I’ve had, on all those
stupid customs declaration forms I’ve had to fill out before being
allowed off the plane over the last 30 years, and all those insufferable
census forms.

Would somebody please take note, once and for all, that my
mother’s name is Mary Anne, my father’s name is Robert and I’d be
abso-bloody-lutely astounded if that ever changed between now and when I
die!!!!!!

I apologise, I’m really pissed off this morning. Between you an’
me, I’ve had enough of  this bullshit!  You send the application to my
house, then you ask me for my xxxxing address !!!!

What is going on?  Do you have a gang of Neanderthal arseholes
workin’ there?  Look at my damn  picture.  Do I look  like Bin Laden?  I
don’t want to  dig up Yasser Arafat, for God’s sake.  I just want to go
and  park my backside on some sandy beach somewhere.
And would someone please   tell me, why  would you give a shit whether
I plan on visiting a farm in    the  next 15 days?  If  I ever got the urge to do
something weird  to a  chicken or a goat, believe you me, you’d be the last
xxxxing people I’d  want to tell!

Well, I have to go now, ’cause I have to go to the other end of the poxy
city to get another xxxxing copy of my birth certificate, to the tune of
£30.  Would it be so complicated  to have all the services in the same
spot to assist in the issuance of a new passport the same day??
Nooooooooooooo, that’d be too damn easy and maybe makes sense.  You’d
rather have us  running all over the xxxxin’ place like chickens with our
heads cut off, then have to find some arsehole to confirm that it’s
really me on the damn picture – you know, the one where we’re not allowed
to smile?! (bureaucratic xxxxin’ morons)  Hey, do you know why we
couldn’t smile if we wanted to? Because we’re totally pissed off!

Signed

An Irate Citizen.

P.S. Remember what I said above about the picture and getting someone to
confirm that it’s me?  Well, my family has  been in this country since
1776 …….. I have served in the military for something over 30 years
and have had full security  clearances over 25 of those years enabling me
to undertake highly secretive missions all over the world. ……..
However, I have to get someone ‘important’ to verify who I am – you know,
someone like my doctor WHO WAS BORN AND RAISED IN xxxxING PAKISTAN !
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It would appear that very little appears putting marriage in a positive light. I, therefore, found the following interesting………………………………

Stay married, stay happy

No matter how much your spouse may drive you crazy, a new study found that being married is actually good for your mental health.

According to a study published in the British journal Psychological Medicine, married people have a lower risk of depression, anxiety, and substance abuse.

However, if you lose your spouse through separation, divorce, or death, your risk shoots right back up. Women are more likely to turn to substance abuse, while men are more likely to fall into depression.

None of this surprises me one bit. You don’t need a study to tell you that being with someone you love is the best antidepressant around — and that’s a gift that keeps on giving no matter how long you’ve been together.

But besides that, few things can top divorce when it comes to stress. The emotional separation is bad enough on its own, but it usually comes with tremendous financial pressure on both sides.

Still, here’s where the stats miss the mark: Take the study to its logical conclusion and you’d have to assume it’s better to stay in a cold and loveless marriage than to move on.

Please. I can’t think of a fate worse than that.

But if you’re happy in your marriage – or have a union worth preserving – then do everything you can to make sure that your lifelong partner really is your partner for life.

Staying sane – one way or another,

William Campbell Douglass II, M.D.

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Planting Potatoes

A farmer gets sent to jail, and his wife is trying to hold the farm together until her husband can get out. She’s not,  however, very good at farm work, so she writes a letter to him in jail: “Dear sweetheart, I want to plant the potatoes. When is the best time to do it?”

The farmer writes back: “Honey, don’t go near that field. That’s where all my guns are buried.”

But, because he is in jail, all of the farmer’s mail is censored. So when the sheriff and his deputies read this, they all run out to the farm and dig up the entire potato field looking for guns. After two full days of digging, they don’t find one single weapon.

The farmer then writes to his wife: “Honey, now is when you should plant the potatoes.”

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Word of the Day

enviar ehn-vee-ar’  (transitive verb)

to send, to dispatch; to ship, to mail; to fax

EXAMPLES

Tengo que enviar una tarjeta a mi abuela para la Navidad. – I have to send a card to my grandmother for Christmas.

Envíale mis saludos a tu familia. – Send my regards to your family.
For more information and examples, visit the SpanishDict.com entry for enviar.

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Sick Leave

I urgently needed a few days off work.

But, I knew the Boss would not allow me to take leave.

I thought that maybe if acted ‘Crazy’ then he would tell me to take a few days off.  So, I hung upside-down on the ceiling and made funny noises. My co-worker asked me what I was doing. I told her that I was pretending to be a light bulb,so that the Boss might think I was ‘Crazy’ and give me a few days off.

A few minutes later the Boss came into the office and asked, ‘What in the name of our good Lord are you doing?’ I told him I was a light bulb.

He said, ‘You are clearly stressed out. Go home and recuperate for a couple of days.’

I jumped down and walked out of the office… When my co-worker followed me, the Boss asked her, ‘…And where do you think you’re going?!’

She said, ‘I’m going home too. I can’t work in the dark!
…………………………………………………………………………….

Planting Potatoes

A farmer gets sent to jail, and his wife is trying to hold the farm together until her husband can get out. She’s not,  however, very good at farm work, so she writes a letter to him in jail: “Dear sweetheart, I want to plant the potatoes. When is the best time to do it?”

The farmer writes back: “Honey, don’t go near that field. That’s where all my guns are buried.”

But, because he is in jail, all of the farmer’s mail is censored. So when the sheriff and his deputies read this, they all run out to the farm and dig up the entire potato field looking for guns. After two full days of digging, they don’t find one single weapon.

The farmer then writes to his wife: “Honey, now is when you should plant the potatoes.”

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Today´s Music

1965, American disc-jockey Alan Freed died from uraemia at the age of 42. Freed called himself the father of rock and roll; appeared in the movies such as Rock Around The Clock and Don’t Knock the Rock. His career was destroyed by the payola scandal that hit the broadcasting industry in the early 1960s.

1967, The Monkees TV show was shown for the first time in the UK.

1982, during a Ozzy Osbourne concert in Des Moines, Iowa, a member of the audience threw an unconscious bat onto the stage. Thinking it was one of his rubber fakes, Ozzy picked it up and bit off its head. The singer was taken to hospital to be given a rabies injection.

1985, Foreigner had their only UK No.1 single with ‘I Want To Know What Love Is’. London-born Mick Jones wrote the song and sang lead vocals with the British-American rock band.

1988, The Beatles were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. George Harrison, Ringo Starr, Yoko, Sean, and Julian Lennon all attended. Paul McCartney did not attend. He sent a letter stating that continuing business differences with the other ex-Beatles was the reason for his absence.

1999, Bill Albaugh drummer from the 1960psychedelic group The Lemon Pipers died aged 53- 1967 US No.1 single ‘Green Tambourine’.

2000, Ray Jones, bass player with Billy J Kramer and the The Dakotas died. 1

2000, Incredible as it might sound, Tourism chiefs in Liverpool were banned from putting up motorway signs saying ‘Liverpool, the Birthplace Of The Beatles’.

2001, a memorial service was held for Kirsty MacColl who was killed in a boating accident off the coast of Mexico in December 2000. Bono from U2 and Billy Bragg were among friends and fans that packed St Martin-in-the-fields church in London.

Born on this day,

1924, Slim Whitman, American country singer, (1955 UK No.1 single ‘Rose Marie’,

1943, Rick Evans, singer, Zager and Evans, (1969 US; UK No.1 single ‘In The Year 2525′).

1945, Eric Stewart, guitar, keyboards, vocals, Mindenders, (1966 UK No.2 single Groovy Kind Of Love’),

1946,Jimmy Chambers, singer, Londonbeat, (1990 UK No.2 1991 US No.1 single ‘I’ve Been Thinking About You’).

1965, Heather Small, singer, M People, (1993 UK No.2 single ‘Moving On Up’

1971, Gary Barlow, vocals, piano, songwriter, Take That, . Written songs for Donny Osmond, Charlotte Church, Bryan McFadden and Atomic Kitten. Re-formed Take That without Robbie Williams in 2006 for a sold-out European tour.

1979, Will Young, singer, UK TV’s Pop Idol winner, (2002 UK No.1 single ‘Anything Is Possible / Evergreen’).

Today´s Podcast

It´s a rather pleasant start to the day with the clouds beginning to lift from the mountains and their definition looking good. It is not too warm but it is pleasant and a very nice day in prospect. This follows a rather horrendous evening when a trainee tarantula decided to invade our sleeping space. The rather hairy and menacing looking spider decided to park itself on the ceiling and my missus refused to go0 to sleep until I got rid of it. Armed with a glass tumbler and a sheet of paper I climbed precariously onto the sideboard where I perched myself trying to trap our visitor ratrher than kill it.m Egged on by she who must be obeyed I eventually encouraged the hairy monster to step into my glass tumbler. I could then put the `paper on top of the tumbler and despatch our visitor to the garden. We could then settle to a more restful evening.

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The thing always happens that you really believe in; and the belief in a thing makes it happen. – Frank Lloyd Wright, 1869-1959

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Word of the Day

molesto moh-leh’-sto  (adjective)

(ser) annoying, irritating; unpleasant; awkward, embarrassing; (estar) upset; annoyed, cross

EXAMPLES

¿No estas molesto por lo que he dicho? – You’re not upset by what I said, are you?

Me encuentro algo molesto después de esa película extraña. – I feel uncomfortable after that weird movie.
For more information and examples, visit the SpanishDict.com entry for molesto.

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* Evangelist Rick Warren’s Prayer Answered *

Evangelical pastor Rick Warren’s plea for donations to fill a $900,000 deficit at his Southern California megachurch brought in $2.4 million, Warren announced to cheers during a sermon at the church on Saturday.

Warren said the amount raised after the appeal was posted online Wednesday included only money parishioners brought in person to Saddleback Church by New Year’s Eve. More was arriving by hand and by mail, he said.

Go here for the complete news story.

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The  following is the philosophy of Charles Schulz, the  creator of the ‘Peanuts’ comic strip.

You don’t have to actually answer the questions. Just ponder on them.
Just read the e-mail straight through, and you’ll get the point.

1. Name  the five wealthiest people in the  world.
2. Name  the last five Heisman trophy winners.
3. Name  the last five winners of the Miss America pageant.
4  Name  ten people who have won the Nobel or Pulitzer Prize.
5. Name  the last half dozen Academy Award winners for best actor and actress.
6. Name  the last decade’s worth of World Series wi nners.

How did you do?

The point is, none of us remember the headliners of yesterday.
These are no second-rate achievers.
They are the best in their fields.
But the applause dies..
Awards tarnish..
Achievements are forgotten.
Accolades and certificates are buried with their owners.

Here’s another quiz. See how you do on this one:

1. List a few teachers who aided your journey through school.
2. Name three friends who have helped you through a difficult time.
3. Name five people who have taught you something worthwhile.
4. Think of a few people who have made you feel appreciated and special.
5. Think of five people you enjoy spending time with.

Easier?

The lesson:
The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with the

most credentials, the most money…or the most awards.
They simply are the ones who care the most

Pass this on to those people who have either made a difference in your life,

or whom you keep close in your heart, like I did.
‘Don’t worry about the world coming to an end today. It’s already tomorrow in Australia!’

”Be Yourself. Everyone Else Is Taken!”

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January 19th: On this Day

1959, The Platters ‘Smoke Gets In Your Eyes’

1963, The Beatles made their first national TV appearance in the UK on ‘Thank Your Lucky Stars’ performing ‘Please Please Me’.

1967, The Monkees were at No.1 on the UK singles with ‘I’m A Believer’, the group’s only UK No.1.

1971, The Beatles White Album was played in the courtroom at the Sharon Tate murder trial to find out if any songs could have influenced Charles Manson and his followers to commit murder.

1980, ‘Brass In Pocket’ gave The Pretenders their first UK No.1 single.

1985, Alison Moyet went to No.1 on the UK album chart with her debut solo album Alf.

1990, Tragically, singer Mel Appleby died of Pneumonia aged 23 following treatment for spinal cancer. Had been one half of the duo Mel and Kim with the 1997 UK No.1 ‘Respectable’.

1991, Enigma went to No.1  on the UK singles chart with ‘Sadness Part One’.

1993, Fleetwood Mac re-formed to perform at Bill Clinton’s inauguration. The band’s “Don’t Stop” was used as the theme for his campaign.

1997, Madonna won the Best Actress award for her role in Evita at the Golden Globe Awards.
1998, American Rockabilly singer, songwriter Carl Perkins died aged 65 from throat cancer. He wrote the classic rock & roll song ‘Blue Suede Shoes’, the first record by a Sun label to sell a million copies.

2001, It was reported that Paul McCartney was in the money and about  to become the world’s first pop star billionaire.
2006, American soul singer, Wilson Pickett died in hospital near his Ashburn, Virginia home of a heart attack aged 64. Pickett recorded the soul classics ‘Mustang Sally’, ‘Everybody Needs Somebody to Love’ and ‘In The Midnight Hour’ plus  15 other US Top 40 singles.
2007, Canadian singer songwriter and former Mamas and the Papas singer Denny Doherty died at the age of 66.
2008, singer songwriter John Stewart, who wrote the Monkees hit Daydream Believer died aged 68 after he suffered a massive stroke or brain aneurysm in San Diego. Stewart was a member of folk group The Kingston Trio and went on to record more than 45 solo albums with his biggest solo success being a US top five single, ‘Gold’, in 1979.

1935, Born on this day, Johnny O’Keefe, singer known as “Australia’s King of rock ‘n’ roll”. He co-wrote and had the 1958 Australian hit with, ‘Real Wild Child’, which was covered by Iggy Pop in 1986.

1936 Ursula Andress Switzerland, actress

1939, Born on this day, Phil Everly, singer, songwriter, The Everly Brothers, (1958 UK & US No.1 single ‘All I Have To Do Is Dream’ plus over 25 other Top 40 hits).

1942, Born on this day, Michael Crawford, UK actor, singer, (1987 UK No.7 single ‘The Music Of The Night’) and star of Some Mothers Do ‘Ave them..

1943, Born on this day, Janis Joplin, US singer who had a 1971 US No.1 single with ‘Me And Bobby McGee’ . She died on October 4th 1970 after an accidental heroin overdose.

1946 Dolly Rebecca Parton Sevierville TN, country singer (Dolly, 9 to 5)

1903 New bicycle race “Tour de France” announced

1986 Spain recognizes Israel

Featured Podcast Beat the Panel

Latest Podcast

We ´re back to a Cornish haar this morning. It´s not cold by any means but it is grey and if you suffer with SAD then you might feel a little down. From my reading and my own experience it´s not a good idea to stay indoors when you feel like this. The best advice is to put on something bright to cheer yourself up. Then, go outside and take a walk if you can. If you have problems with walking then even to be wrapped up and reading in the fresh air is probably better than to stay indoors where it is often colder. Also, I am very interested in the debate raging on TV this morning as to the goodness of butter. I overdosed a few weeks ago on butter. I love the taste but my body does tell me that it is not best to eat a lot of it. This morning on Breakfast TV a doctor has called for butter to be banned. As you would expect howls of protests have been surfacing in the form of e-mails and text messages. However, there is money to be made from selling butter and there is machinery everywhere to produce butter. Whether the good doctor is right or wrong he has a very difficult adversary. From the doctor´s corner he told us this morning that too many people are going under his knife for surgery for clotted arteries and the suchlike and that is why he feels so strongly. He has no vested interest in selling butter that´s for sure!I´m going to deepen this a little with words and advice from the rebel doctor….

Common drugs increase risk of stroke and death

Reasons #47 and #48 to avoid antidepressants: They increase your risk of stroke and death.

If your immediate reaction is to toss them in the trash or dump them down the toilet, wait just a second. The researchers would like you to know that it’s a “relatively small” risk — so there’s no cause for alarm, and, of course, there’s no reason to stop taking your meds.

Of course that’s what they said. No matter how great the risk, or how small the benefit, the best line these scientists can come up with is that you need to weigh a drug’s risks against its benefits. I could be wrong here, but isn’t that what this study just did?

Out of the 136,293 women in the Women’s Health Initiative, the ones taking SSRIs like Prozac and Zoloft were 45 percent more likely to have a stroke and 32 percent more likely to die, compared to those not taking the drugs.

Those are odds I’d rather not take my chances with, especially when the drugs aren’t that effective to begin with – and when there are plenty of other safer ways to beat the blues.

In study after study, placebos routinely outperform antidepressants. In fact, these meds are consistently beaten by just about anything researchers put them up against. I wouldn’t be surprised if a study proved that you could beat depression by going fishing. After all, staying active is one of the best ways to pull yourself out of the dumps.

So if you’re battling the blues, skip the meds and take a vacation… go out to dinner with friends… take up a hobby.

Or, as one new study suggested, have some green tea. A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that seniors who had four or more cups of green tea per day were 44 percent less likely to suffer from depression.

And if you STILL feel like you need to pop a pill to feel better, try some St. John’s wort. It’s cheaper, safer, and more effective than most commonly prescribed antidepressants.

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Let´s get the weather for the Alicante Province and move on…..

Lunes	Martes	Miércoles	Jueves	Viernes
19° C | 10° C	19° C | 8° C	18° C | 9° C	17° C | 8° C	9° C | 8° C
Despejado	Nubes Dispersas	Despejado	Nubes Dispersas	Nubes Dispersas

Word of the Day

el brazo brah’-soh  (noun)

arm, foreleg (of an animal); branch, channel (of a river, tree)

EXAMPLES

Me encanta pasear del brazo con mi novio. – I love walking arm in arm with my boyfriend.

Les acogié con los brazos abiertos. – I welcomed them with open arms.

IDIOMS

Dar el brazo a torcer – To give in

Cruzarse de brazos – To fold one’s arms

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Memento

Friend: “I suppose you carry a memento of some sort in that locket of yours?”

Woman: “Yes, it’s a lock of my husband’s hair.”

Friend: “But your husband is still alive.”

Woman: “I know, but his hair is gone.”

Received from Thomas Ellsworth.

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A story of male chauvinism from Debbie

Fixing Dinner

This guy was watching TV as his wife was out cutting the grass during the hot summer. He finally worked up the energy to go out and ask his wife what was for supper. Well, his missus was quite irritated about him sitting in
the air-conditioned house all day while she did all the work, so she scolded him. “I can’t believe you’re asking me about supper right now! Imagine I’m out of town. Go inside and figure dinner out yourself.”

So he went back into the house and fixed himself a big steak with potatoes, garlic bread, and a tall glass of iced tea. The wife finally walked in about the time he was finishing up and asked him, “You fixed something to eat? So where’s mine?”

He said, “Huh, I thought you were out of town.”

Received from Debbie.

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1960, Johnny Preston started a three week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘Running Bear’. Written by J.P. Richardson (The Big Bopper)i t was also a UK No.1.

1986, ‘That’s What Friends Are For’ by Dionne Warwick began a four-week run at No.1 on the US singles chart, all company and artists profits were given to aids charities.

1993, Elton John resigned his directorship of Watford Football Club.1996, Lisa Marie Presley divorced Michael Jackson after less then two years of being married.

2008, Four photographers were arrested for reckless driving after they chased Britney Spears’ car on the outskirts of Los Angeles.

1941, Born on this day, Bobby Goldsboro, US singer, (1968 US No.1 UK No.2 single ‘Honey’).

1941, Born on this day, David Ruffin, vocals, The Temptations

1779 Peter Roget thesaurus fame/inventor (slide rule, pocket chessboard)

1904 Cary Grant England, actor (Arsenic & Old Lace, North by Northwest)

1950 Gilles Villeneuve Canadian auto racer
1955 Kevin Costner Los Angeles CA, actor (Fandango, Silverado, Bull Durham)

1890 Amadeus I FM king of Spain (1870-73), dies at 44

1936 Rudyard Kipling author (Gunga Din, Nobel 1907), dies in Burwash England at 70
1985 Wilfrid Brambell actor (Hard Day’s Night, Boys), dies at 72

Today´s Podcast

It really is a very pleasant Sunday and people are walking round in their shorts obviously enjoying the sunshine. I´ve just been down to the studio top do my show and my guest was Neil Colbourne with Leapy, Iris and Rob on the telephone.

The following arrived from Facebook

We are deeply saddened by the reports of the destruction and death coming out of Haiti. We’ve been heartened by the outpouring of support and donations coming from the Causes community. Thousands of donors have together given over $150,000 to help nonprofits that are working on the ground to provide food, shelter, medical care, water, and other necessities to the people of Haiti.

The people of Haiti still very much need our help.

There are two ways that you can help with Haiti relief today:

1. Give a Haiti relief charity gift to a Facebook friend.
When you give a charity gift on Facebook, you are buying a specific item needed on the ground in Haiti. We have several new gifts in the Facebook Charity Gift Shop, including:

• Water for Haiti from Oxfam
• Light a Candle for Haiti from UNICEF
• Food for Haiti from CARE
• Shelter for Haiti from the American Red Cross
• Survival Kit from World Vision

Visit the Facebook Charity Gift Shop to see all the Haiti relief Gifts.

2. Join and donate to a cause.
Many nonprofits have started fundraising projects, with funds specifically for Haiti relief, such as:

• Doctors Without Borders
• Friends of the World Food Program
• International Rescue Committee

Thank you for donating at this important time to those who need it most.

The Causes Team

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Iris´Sunday Challenge (Answer at FOOT OF BLOG)

(1) He was born March 3, 1977 and is an Irish Pop artist who had hits with a famous boy band and as a solo artist. Some of his hits are “Rollercoaster” and “Make You Feel My Love”

(2) On June 6, 2006, He sang at the World Cup opening party at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin , Germany in front of an audience of nearly 250,000 people. Also in June 2006, He posed naked for Cosmopolitan magazine’s 10 Years Of Naked Centerfolds

(3) To date he has released five solo albums, four of which went straight to number one in the UK . His last solo album ‘Songs for My Mother’ was released in 2009. He is listed in the Guinness Book of Records for being the only artist ever to have 30 consecutive top 10 singles in the UK chart, having beaten the likes of Elvis.

(4) On May 9, 2007, he became the first international number-one selling foreign artist to perform a concert in the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh . He performed at the Olympic Stadium Indoor Arena. He did a duet with Elton John at Madison Garden in New York and has sung for the Pope twice. He performed for Prince Charles at The Prince’s Trust 30th Birthday which took place at the Tower of London . He performed on stage for the Swedish Royal family at the Crown Princess Victoria’s Birthday Celebrations, and at the Opening Ceremony of 19th European Athletics Championships in Gothenburg.

(5) On the 3rd May 1997 He presented the Eurovision Song Contest along with Carrie Crowley. He presented the MTV Europe Music Awards in 1997 and 1999, and co-presented the MTV Asia Awards in 2002 with Mandy Moore. He has also hosted the Miss World contest.

(6) In June 2009 he received a Special Achievement Award from Cancer Research UK , he was singled out for his work with them since 2006. He along with the Charity that was set up for his mother has helped to raise over £1.7 million for the UK charity. This money is used to fund 3 special mobile units which raise awareness throughout the UK .

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Let´s get the weather…..

Domingo	Lunes	Martes	Miércoles	Jueves
20° C | 7° C	19° C | 10° C	19° C | 8° C	18° C | 9° C	17° C | 8° C
Nubes Dispersas	Despejado	Nubes Dispersas	Despejado	Nubes Dispersas

Avoid January fitness gimmicks

If suckers are born every minute, then clocks in January run a little faster.

That’s when millions of Americans are conned out of cash by greedy gym barons eager to capitalize on that annual wave of empty promises we call New Year’s resolutions.

Weight loss is the most common resolution, so every January the fitness overlords fill the newspapers with enticing offers aimed not at getting the fat off your middle, but getting the money out of your bank account.

But here’s the best gym offer you’ll never see: Keep your money, and forget the gym.

Endless studies show how exercise doesn’t lead to weight loss — because most people just end up consuming more food to make up for any calories they’ve burned. Not only that, but it’s a dangerous hobby that could leave you hospitalized or dead, no matter how young and seemingly “fit” you are.

As long as you get a normal, natural amount of movement in your daily life, you’ll be fine. It’s the way nature intended.

And if you’re trying to shed a few pounds, do it through your diet — not on a hamster wheel. Skip the sugar and other carbs, and load up on steak and other fresh animal fats.

You’ll eat better, live better and feel better, too.

Exercising the mind,

William Campbell Douglass II, M.D.

Planting Potatoes

A farmer gets sent to jail, and his wife is trying to hold
the farm together until her husband can get out. She’s not,
however, very good at farm work, so she writes a letter to
him in jail: “Dear sweetheart, I want to plant the potatoes.
When is the best time to do it?”

The farmer writes back: “Honey, don’t go near that field.
That’s where all my guns are buried.”

But, because he is in jail, all of the farmer’s mail is
censored. So when the sheriff and his deputies read this,
they all run out to the farm and dig up the entire potato
field looking for guns. After two full days of digging, they
don’t find one single weapon.

The farmer then writes to his wife: “Honey, now is when you
should plant the potatoes.”

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we are in trouble...

The population of this country is 300 million.

160
million are retired.

That leaves 140 million to do the
work.

There are 85 million in school.

Which leaves 55 million to do the work.

Of this there are 35 million employed by the federal
government.

Leaving 20 million to do the work.

2.8 million are in the armed forces preoccupied
with killing Osama
Bin-Laden.

Which leaves 17.2
million to do the work.

Take from that total the 15.8
million people who work for state and city
Governments. And that
leaves 1.4 million to do the work.

At any given
time there are 188,000 people in hospitals.

Leaving
1,212,000 to do the work.

Now, there are 1,211,998 people
in prisons.

That leaves just two people to do the
work.

You and me.

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Word of the Day

desear deh-syar’  (transitive verb)

to want, to wish, to desire

EXAMPLES

¿Desea algo más? – Would you like anything else?

Os deseo toda clase de éxito. – I wish you every success.
For more information and examples, visit the SpanishDict.com entry for desear.

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1953, American jazz singer Kay Starr (Katherine Starks) was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Comes A Long A Love’. Starr was born on an Indian reservation in Oklahoma; her father was a full-blooded American Indian and her mother Irish.

1963, The Beatles played at the Cavern Club at lunchtime and in the evening played at the Majestic Ballroom, Birkenhead. At the Majestic, every ticket had been sold in advance, leaving 500 disappointed fans waiting outside.

1970 singer Billy Stewart and three of his band were killed when the car they’re traveling in crashed off a bridge. Had the 1966 US No.10 single ‘Summertime’.

1972, a section of Bellevue Boulevard in Memphis was renamed Elvis Presley Boulevard. The remaining length of road kept its original name after protests from the Bellevue Baptist Church.

1974, Dean Martin’s son Dino Martin was arrested after attempting to sell two AK-47 machine guns to an undercover agent.1976, Barry Manilow scored his second US No.1 single with ‘I Write The Songs’, written by Beach Boy Bruce Johnson.

1982, Tommy Tucker died, aged 48, after being overcome by poisonous fumes while he was renovating the floors of his New York home. He had written the 1964 US No.11 hit Hi Heel Sneakers

1927, Born on this day, Eartha Kitt, US female singer, Kitt died from colon cancer on December 25 2008 at her Weston, Connecticut home at the age of 81.

1943, Born on this day, Chris Montez,  singer,

1948, Born on this day, Mick Taylor, guitar, John Mayalls Bluesbreakers, joined The Rolling Stones, in 1969 left in 1974. (1971 US No.1 & UK No.2 single ‘Brown Sugar’). Also worked with Bob Dylan, Mike Oldfield, Jack Bruce and Ron Wood.

Iris´Challenge is Ronan Patrick John Keating

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It´s a beautiful day on the Costa Blanca with clear blue skies and people able to sit out enjoying their drinks. I´ve just been down to do my show and now I will spend ages battling to get the podcast up on the internet. This is now going from bad to worse!

A P&O ferry service to Spain operating from Portsmouth is to be withdrawn due to “unsustainable” losses, putting 252 jobs at risk.

The Pride of Bilbao´s final crossing to Bilbao – which P&O Ferries has operated for 15 years – will take place on 27 September, the firm said.

The 252 employees, including 130 agency workers, all work on the vessel. Twelve others work on shore in Bilbao.

P&O said it was talking to unions. The RMT said the route “remains viable”.

Contacting passengers

Steve Todd, the RMT´s national maritime secretary, said: “We believe the Portsmouth-Bilbao route remains viable and that there is no case for axing the service.

“We will be working with the company to look at options to keep the route sailing.   Full Story

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Help For Heroes Darts Marathon will be held at the Duke of York, Benidormon Saturday3oth January from 11am until late. All welcome. Darts Marathon, Pool, special 5 Digit Eyes Down plus a super raffle donated fromotherbars and local businesses. A donation from The Duke of York. Bar, music, karaoke and cabaret throughout the day.

Here’s today’s challenge from Iris the Silver Surfer

(1)    Born 5 October 1951 and is an Irish singer, songwriter, author, and political activist. He rose to prominence as the lead singer of a famous Irish rock band.

(2)    He started out as a music journalist in Vancouver, Canada , for the weekly publication Georgia Straight. although he had worked as a slaughter man, road navvy and pea canner,

(3)    In 1979, he wrote a No. 1 Hit song in the aftermath of Brenda Ann Spencer‘s attempted massacre at an elementary school across the street from her house in San Diego, California.

(4)    He left the band in 1986, to launch a solo career and publish his autobiography, Is That It? Which was a best-seller.

(5)    His first solo records sold reasonably well and spawned the hit singles “This Is The World Calling” (co-written with Dave Stewart of Eurythmics) and “The Great Song of Indifference”. He also occasionally performed with other artists, such as David Gilmour of Pink Floyd and Thin Lizzy. A performance of “Comfortably Numb” with David Gilmour is documented in the 2002 DVD David Gilmour in Concert.

(6)    He has received many awards for his fund-raising work, including an honorary knighthood (as Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire) from Queen Elizabeth II, in 1986. He is entitled to use the post-nominal letters “KBE”, but as he is not a citizen of a Commonwealth realm, he is precluded from using the title “Sir”. Regardless, the nickname has stuck, and media reports will frequently (but erroneously) refer to him by his nickname as if that were his correct title.

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Here´s the weather picture for Alicante ….

Saturday	Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday
18° C | 9° C	20° C | 7° C	19° C | 10° C	19° C | 8° C	18° C | 9° C
Clear	Scattered Clouds	Clear	Scattered Clouds	Clear

Word of the Day

compartir kohm-par-teer’  (transitive verb)

to share

EXAMPLES

¿Por qué no compartimos el resto del pastel? – Why don’t we share the rest of the cake?

Gracias por compartir este tiempo comigo. – Thank you for sharing this time with me.
For more information and examples, visit the SpanishDict.com entry for compartir.

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Old friends of my show will remember Don Woods. Don sent me an e-mail yesterday with news of his show with Elvis’ guitarist James Burton……

Did another concert with James Burton last November…great show…I’ve added it to my website (www.donwoods.co.uk)…some good photos…I also found the following on Don’s website which notes how we met.

Vince Tracy
Vince was a DJ on Local Radio in the 80′s and also did the clubs which is when I got to know him. At the time the German Embassy in Liverpool criticised the City for its scruffiness..and itso happened at the time that I was promoting one of my songs extolling the virtues of the area.So Vince suggested we march on the German Embassy and give them the record and a piece of our minds…which we did-to a rather bemused bloke behind the desk. We then went round to Radio Merseyside and the late Bob Azurdia gave us a spot on his show and played the record…which was my first introduction to radio.

Recently I saw Vinnie’s name on the internet and contacted him and discovered he is now a radio presenter in Spain with his own show.I asked him if he would be interested in playing some of my local songs which may be of interest to the ex-pats out there which to my delight he did…and to top it all has me on his show on a live link up.I also get to chat with Paul Melba who is also on the show…which is wonderful because for my money Paul is the best impressionist ever…and I am a big fan.
Vince can be checked out on his website … click on this link
http://www.vincetracy.com
If you go into his podcast library you will hear interviews with many local celebs…great stuff.

There is an old saying which Don epitomises…..old friends are often your true friends.

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Prehistoric History

The historical references I’ve made so far can only be considered as relatively modern
history when considered alongside the evidence of life in prehistoric Iberia … strictly
speaking we shouldn’t refer to the concept of “Spain” before 1469 when the marriage of
Fernando and Isabela united the two most powerful states of Aragon and Castile. The
oldest human bone fragments in Europe were discovered at Atapuerca near Burgos and
are said to be 780,000 years old (this isn’t far away from the town of Vivar where the
notorious El Cid Campeador was born in 1040).

There are many cave paintings around the country which are well worth a visit if you’re
nearby. The most famous are the Caves of Altamira in Santillana del Mar (Cantabria)
which date back to 12,000 BC. Nowadays, to see these cave paintings you need to make
a formal request a year in advance as too many visitors were starting to destroy the
paintings. If you’re in the south you should pay a visit to the Nerja Caves which are
Spain’s 3rd most visited tourist attraction after the Prado Museum and Alhambra Palace.
For something far less touristy try to get to the Cueva de la Pileta which is a relatively
unknown cave structure just a few kilometres from Ronda where you can see 25,000
year old cave paintings in the company of a local guide who will show you around using a gas lantern. This is one of my favourite finds in recent years.

spain@spanish-fiestas.com
http://www.spanish-fiestas.com

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Iris’  Challenge-
Bob Geldof
Today’s  Podcast

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1956, Tennessee Ernie Ford was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with his version of the Merle Travis coal-mining song ‘Sixteen Tons.’ Written in 1947 about the misery of coal mining.

1957, The Cavern Club opened in Liverpool. It became the home of many Liverpool bands including The Beatles who appeared at the club 292 times.

1987, TV presenter Jools Holland was suspended from Channel 4′s UK music show The Tube for 6 weeks, after using the phrase ‘groovy fuckers’ during a live trailer broadcast in children’s hour.

The Breast Cancer site is having trouble getting enough people to click on their site daily to meet their quota of donating at least one free mammogram a day to an underprivileged woman. It takes less than a minute to go to their site and click on ‘donating a mammogram’ for free (pink window in the middle).

This doesn’t cost you a thing. Their corporate sponsors/advertisers use the number of daily visits to donate mammogram in exchange for advertising.

Here’s the website! Pass it along to people you know. http://www.thebreastcancersite.com PLEASE  ask your  FRIENDS to click on the link

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The weather is better today. It´s warmer and we haven´t got that bite in the wind. In fact it´s a warm wind and I´ve been out for a long walk to enjoy the change in the weather.  The visitors will see 19 degrees posted in La Nucia today! Talking of tourists……

Spain suffered a drop in foreign tourists of 8.7 percent last year due to the global economic slowdown, the government said Wednesday, its second straight year of falling visitor numbers.

The country received 52.5 million visitors in 2009, the industry ministry said, down from 57.4 million in the previous year when Spain lost its ranking as the world´s second most visited country to the United States.

The government had expected the number of visitors to drop this year by 10 percent but Secretary of State for Tourism, Joan Mesquida, said the the decline in arrivals eased towards the end of the year.

“It was a complicated year,” he told a news conference, adding that he was “moderately optimistic” for 2010 because of the improvement in the economy in Britain and Germany, the two main sources of visitors to Spain.

Full Story Personally, I cannot see this change in the British economy. If anything I would say it has gone worse and we certainly won´t see a huge number in people coming to Spain if the British media keeps showing the horror stories of people having their homes knocked down and if Benidorm is perceived to be epitomomised by the series ´Benidorm´. What should be shown is a land where the weather is better on the costas but certainly suffers as much as Britain in the winter months. The snow here has been every bit as bad as that suffered in the UK. There are manyu glood things about living here and the climate on the costas is a great starting point. However, as with all tourist destinations, a lot of the work here is seasonal and not well paid. Benidorm and the Costas needs its tourists and benidorm has ttraditionally enjoyed lots of british money. The Valencian Community, of which Benidorm is a flagship destination, is very disparate and Valencia itself is the hub of the yeaqr round Tourism Plan. I put the link to the plan in  yesterday´s blog. It would appear that domestic tourism is growing in numbers and I have read reports which indicate Russia and Italy are the current targets for growth. If the threat to close down the radios continues there will be the likelihood that more English speakers might feel disenfranchised.  Incidentally, for residents and visitors alike, this is a very special time for Benissa which lies inland  between Calpe and Moaira.  Let´s get the Alicante weather  forecast…………..

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Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday	Monday
17° C | 8° C	16° C | 7° C	19° C | 9° C	20° C | 7° C	17° C | 11° C
S

It was awful listening to the Liverpool performance against Reading in the FA Cup last night. It was worse than awful. It was embarrassing. It appeared to me that there was no spirit in the Liverpool team apart from the reliable efforts of Jamie Carragher who would die for his club. Apart from Kuyt and Benayoun the rest of the team appeared to be more concerned about their bank balances as Reading showed what pluck and spirit was all about. Am I glad I don’t have to face too many Manchester United fans tomorrow!

It is good for football to have these upsets. I didn’t like it happening to my club before nor did I enjoy it last night. However, we have had our fair share of great nights and we shouldn’t begrudge the supporters of Reading who must be chuffed to bits. They’e had a bad season up ‘ til now and maybe they’ll beat Burnley in the next round. One thing that is for sure is Liverpool are a very mediocre team without Gerrard and Torres and Benitez has had enough time to choose and motivate his mediocre collection of players who do not belong to the Liverpool tradition. I doubt if he will last the rest of this season now.

This is another interesting article which says pretty much what I have written about in this blog for many weeks.

Remember Y2K?

There we were on New Year’s Eve 10 years ago, huddled around our stockpiles of canned goods and duct tape, waiting for midnight in Sydney, Australia. If the whole grid was going to go down in the first moments of 2000, Sydney was ground zero.

Aaaaaaand…nothing.

Well, not exactly. Tech guys the world over were scrambling to solve minor computer problems. But jets didn’t fall from the sky, nukes didn’t spontaneously launch, the lights stayed on, and every bowl game kicked off on schedule. All was right with the world.

So here we are 10 years later and…say…weren’t we supposed to be in the middle of a dreadful pandemic right about now?

Yep. The season of swine flu “panic” ended the decade just as it began – with a surge of fear, then a fizzle. Much ado about nada.

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If only…
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That’s what CDC officials must be muttering into their beers.

IF ONLY…those millions of doses had arrived on time. And IF ONLY…millions of Americans had lined up to get their shots and every single dose of the vaccine had been used by Thanksgiving. Then the CDC guys could have pointed to the scant H1N1 outbreak and claimed the vaccine worked beautifully

“See! We told you the vaccine was effective! It saved untold thousands of lives! Oh no no…don’t thank us. We were only doing our job.”

Yeah, they could have been heroes. If only…

As it is, the whole situation just appears more comical every day.

For instance, a recent Reuters Health report offers unintended humor. The article starts off with this: “Swine flu continues to wane across the United States.” And that claim is backed up with this news: “The CDC said just over 20 percent of specimens sent for testing from patients with flu-like illness were positive for H1N1 swine flu, meaning that 80 percent of patients had something else.”

Then, in the very next paragraph, we get this: “Swine flu continues to dominate, with 99 percent of flu cases being due to the H1N1 strain.”

Uh…how’s that again? That’s some powerful flu! It went from 20-something percent to a whopping 99 percent in just two paragraphs!

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WHO hangs tough
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Meanwhile, Tamiflu – that other mainstream defense against H1N1 – is also going off the rails.

Recently, HealthDay News reported on a review of 20 clinical trials of Tamiflu. The finding: There’s no evidence that the drug prevents pneumonia or other complications in otherwise healthy flu patients.

D’oh!

As with the H1N1 vaccine, many governments have spent millions to stockpile Tamiflu, bracing for the ravages of H1N1. And that’s why a World Health Organization antivirals expert had to hang tough, telling HealthDay, “This will not change our (Tamiflu) guidelines.”
“Swine Flu Still Down in US But 198 children Dead” Maggie Fox, Reuters Health, 11/30/09, reutershealth.com
“Review Questions Tamiflu’s Effectiveness” HealthDay News, 12/8/09, healthday.com
“WHO Backs Findings on Tamiflu for Seasonal Flu” Stephanie Nebehay, Reuters Health, 12/11/09, reutershealth.com But then, just two days later, Reuters Health reported this: “The World Health Organization on Friday endorsed findings that there is no clear evidence that the antiviral Tamiflu prevents complications such as pneumonia in otherwise healthy people with seasonal flu.”

D’oh!

So what’s an international agency with egg on its face to do? Never fear, WHO officials continue to recommend Tamiflu use in patients at risk of complications.

Hey, when you’ve advised government officials all over the world to bet millions on a horse, you have to keep cheering for that horse, even when it limps across the finish line – in a tie for last place with the H1N1 vaccine.

(www.hsibaltimore.com)

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Word of the Day

cubrir coo-breer’  (transitive verb)

to cover; to fill; to meet (a demand)

EXAMPLES

Cubré los ojos con una almohada. – I covered my eyes with a pillow.

El presupuesto no cubre todos los gastos. – The budget doesn’t cover all the costs.
For more information and examples, visit the SpanishDict.com entry for cubrir.

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I received this today. I am living in hope…

Concentrate on this Sentence

‘To get something you never had, you have to do something you never did.’  When God takes something from your grasp, He’s not punishing you, but merely opening your hands to receive something better.  Concentrate on this sentence… ‘The will of God will never take you where the Grace of God will not protect you.’ Something good will happen to you today; something that you have been waiting to hear.

This is not a joke; someone will call you by phone or will speak to you about something that you were waiting to hear.

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1984, Paul McCartney was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Pipes Of Peace.’ With this release McCartney made chart history by becoming the first artist to have a No.1 in a group, (The Beatles), in a duo, (with Stevie Wonder), in a trio, (with Wings) and as a solo artist.

2003, Linda Gail Lewis the sister of Jerry Lee Lewis, dropped a claim of sex discrimination against Van Morrison. Lewis had claimed that Morrison had ‘publicly humiliated’ her on stage and had tried to ruin her life by asking her for sex. She withdrew her claim after discussions with her lawyer. Morrison denied all the allegations.

1936, Born on this day, Clarence Carter, blind US singer, guitarist, (1970 UK No.2 single ‘Patches’ -minor hit Looking for a Fox).

1937, Born on this day, Billie Jo Spears, US female singer, (1975 UK No.6 single ‘Blanket On The Ground’).

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Our day has been a bit like a Cornish day with haar around and grey skies threatening rain. Nonetheless, we decided to put on our winter clothing and brave the elements with a trip to see the elephants and other animals at Terra Natura. It´s a theme park right on our doorstep nestling in the hills at the foot of the mountains overlooking Benidorm. There was plenty of activity especially with the smaller4 monkeys but the highlight of the visit for me was the enclosure with two fabulous black Jaguars. They are stunning and you can get really close to them. The park was nice and clean and the animals look well cared for. Each of the enclosures has an explanation of what lives there and it is a bit of exercise as well as an educational opportunity. Let´s quickly check the weather ahead for Alicante Province….

Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
17° C | 9° C	18° C | 6° C	18° C | 6° C	18° C | 9° C	19° C | 7° C

We are given 17 degrees as our high but I doubt if that is what it is. I am feeling about 12 would be more accurate.

Last night, I was working on my laptop and the thoroughly depressing television was on. The news was full of misery caused by the weather. There were stories of war and violence and hardly a humourous news item. To lighten the load we have the soaps. Did I say lighten? Practically all the soaps are full of mischief and evil. Currently, the common strand would seem to have a murder that could be perpetrated by any one of several people. There’s illegitimate babies, infidelity, incest and blackmail prevalent in a cast of less than 50 actors. The ongoing question is whether the soaps reflect society or cause society. Is it any wonder that the UK is in a mess!  The answer for me is to watch less television and I am comfortable with that. I have many projects on the go and several waiting in the wings. Furthermore, the television breaks up around 9 pm and the influence from the UK diminishes for a few hours.

Valencia has a new Strategic Plan for its Tourism. The figures involved are 300.000 jobs for the Valencian Community with a production of 13% of Valencia´s GDP if I have read the report correctly. It would appear that Valencia hosting such prestigious events as the Americas Cup, the World Moto GP and the Formula 1 GP are central to the plan.

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There’s a pill for everything these days.   Want to quit smoking? Take this pill.  Having trouble shedding those extra pounds? Take that pill.  Suffering from a broken heart? Well, as it turns out, there’s a pill for that, too.

Two new studies found that acetaminophen–the main ingredient in Tylenol–could help decrease heartache, hurt feelings, rejection and other forms of social pain. Is this really what it’s come to?

Broken hearts are a part of life. You hurt, and then you move on. End of story.

But somehow we’ve turned into a nation of pill-popping pansies who can’t take a little pain now and then — even the kind that’s good for us. After all, these experience are how we learn and grow.

But if the only thing we learn is that a pill can solve all of our problems, then the only thing that grows is a Big Pharma bank account.

Acetaminophen isn’t some safe, happy pill no matter how readily available it is. It’s the leading cause of acute liver failure in the United States. In 2005, acetaminophen overdoses sent 106,000 adults and 25,000 kids to emergency rooms, leading to 73,000 hospitalizations and hundreds of deaths, according to the American Association for the Study of Liver Disease.

And those are conservative numbers.  Other side effects include abdominal pain, nausea, diarrhea, the sweats, convulsions and even coma. Kidney failure and heart problems are also possible. Still feel like popping an extra Tylenol to chase away the blues?

I’m not saying you should flush it all right now–you shouldn’t dispose of meds that way in any case–but if you’re going to take a painkiller like acetaminophen, do so only at the lowest dose and only for REAL pain.

Sorry, but heartache doesn’t count. In pain over bad research,  William Campbell Douglass II, M.D.

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Many of my friends and listeners to my show from my days with Onda Cero will be aware that I  have travelled the length and breadth of the Costas to try and explain what is needed but others who have the radio stations have not had the information and seemingly haven´t wanted to know what is coming. For those of us who use English as our first language it is going to change again over the coming year and I just hope we can change within the new arrangements. I hope this next news item might explain the difficulties being experienced by English (and other languages) radio stations in Spain  and how plans must be carefully made within the guidelines set up by the Spanish Government. Please remember this is not just Spain with broadcasting laws. It is also very difficult to set up a legal radio station in the UK. Here´s the latest news on the subject……………………….

Spain’s planned State Radio Communications Agency has been tasked with evaluating and closing down up to 3,000 illegal radio stations throughout Spain. In some regions of Spain, especially the major cities and along the Coast, illegal ‘pirate’ stations outnumber the legal frequencies by two, sometimes three to one. Thus, those that are legal have been complaining to the Government for years of their loss in revenue and wanting action to be taken.

The agency has been created following pressure by the AERC, the Spanish Association of Commercial Radio. They have already presented a list of broadcasters they consider to be outside the law including 482 on the Canaries, 387 in Andalucía, 338 in the Valencia region, 183 in Cataluña, 144 in Madrid and 143 in the Basque Country. In addition there are many so-called Municipal Radios that are breaking the law as they are run by companies and not by the local Town Hall.

Some of the local English-language stations around the Costa Blanca have been operating without the correct business licences and may face closure sooner rather than later, mainly because they interfere with and impact the revenue potential of the Spanish broadcasters. The coverage area of some Spanish broadcasters has been reduced by the setting-up of these English-language stations.

Central Government has said it is to draw up a map of Spanish radio, which will allow a cleaning up of the FM band followed by the quick and firm closure of those broadcasters who lack the correct permissions. The State Radio Communications Agency is scheduled to be set up by 1 June, so the stations have a few months to get their official paperwork in order. But the illegal operators complain that no new concessions for licences have been made available and that many of them have submitted applications for licences but have not heard back from the commission.

(Source: SpanishNews.es)   Full Story

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Why do I think working with an English speaking radio is so important? The English speakers can enjoy as much music as they like wherever and whenever they like but there are times when the community needs to be galvanised in both radio and newspaper. The next story shows how we can all fall foul of a rotten situation and need the media to help struggle against tyranny………………

British property owners in Spain are taking to the streets to protest at homes being demolished as they were allegedly built illegally despite having planning permission.

In the biggest demonstration by expatriates to date, hundreds of mainly retired British residents from Andalucía, have been waving placards and marching outside the offices of officials they hold responsible for ‘persecuting’ innocent home owners who bought properties in good faith.

The organisers, AULAN, are demanding an end to real estate and planning corruption across the region and an end to the insecurity thousands of owners are feeling as to whether or not they will be affected by the latest round of demolitions.

They are also demanding compensation for Leonard and Helen Prior, both aged 64, whose property was demolished a year ago despite having planning permission from their local town hall. The permission was subsequently declared void and their home declared illegal. They are now living in a garage on the site of their demolished home.   Full Story

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Word of the Day

acentuar ah-sen-twar’  (transitive verb)

to accent, to stress; to accentuate, to emphasize

EXAMPLES

En su ensayo acentuó la importancia de aprender español. – In her essay she emphasized the importance of learning Spanish.

La inflación ha acentuado la crisis. – Inflation has made the recession worse.
For more information and examples, visit the SpanishDict.com entry for acentuar.

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1962, Chubby Checker went back to No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘The Twist’.

1962, Cliff Richard scored his second UK No.1 album with ‘The Young Ones’.

1973, Eric Clapton made his stage comeback at the Rainbow Theatre, London, with Pete Townsend, Ronnie Wood, Stevie Winwood, Rebop, Jim Capaldi and support from The Average White Band.

1979, Soul singer Donny Hathaway committed suicide falling from a 15th floor New York hotel window.

2003, Diana Ross appeared in a US court charged with driving while twice over the drink driving limit. Police in Tucson reported that Miss Ross could not walk in a straight line, touch her nose or count to 30 after she had been stopped for swerving across the road.

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