If like me your eyesight has changed considerably over a few short years you may, also like me, have drawers full of old spectacles.
What to do with them? Throwing them out seems such a waste, especially considering the initial cost. However help is at hand as there are services that will happily accept your old spectacles and put them to good use. In the U.K. Vision Aid Overseas will jump at the chance of recycling your old specs. As their website asks "Did you know that 10% of the world's population are disabled because they don't have spectacles?" Now that is bad news in the 21st Century. It goes on to list:
There are many collection points around the U.K. The website offers a postcode checker to locate your nearest collection centre. For me there are many close by and a couple in our City centre. They are located at shops providing an optician service and this includes some ASDA supermarkets. You can also consider reusing your frames the next time your prescription for glasses changes but that is not always practical. Many frames these days are not easy to adapt but you could always ask the optician. You can learn more about vision aid overseas, fundraising or leaving a legacy at the following link. Most of us take our good eyesight for granted until it begins to fail. However in the U.K. we have easy access to optician services and ophthalmologists when needed. We are much luckier than some people overseas so why not share your good fortune by helping out Vision Aid with your old specs? If you are creative and have tons of old specs and cases get creative. Who knows what you could make but make sure you help out Vision Aid Overseas first.
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On June 18, 1942, Paul McCartney was born. Paul and Ringo Starr are the last two surviving members of The Beatles a band that in many ways had a relatively short-lived time at the top of their game. But for those of us who remember the heady days of the sixties The Beatles remain a huge reminder of our youth. It may be the rose-coloured glasses of age that make us think the time was perfect but for many of us it was close to perfection in many ways. So what was it about The Beatles that was so special? How come their music has lived on so many years after their split? Did they just happen to be in the right place at the right time or did they spearhead a musical revolution? At the age of 12, in 1964, this blogger was too young to attend a local Beatles Concert. Still as an ardent Rolling Stones fan that was not a worry. Those days you were sometimes only a fan of either The Beatles or The Stones. It was not possible to have a foot in both camps if you were a teenager. As a rebellious teenager the raucous Stones had to be my choice. However with time it is easy to appreciate the Beatles and their music. Those four young guys were all talented and, even when they went their separate ways, developed good individual careers. There has been much speculation over the years regarding what they would have been up to today, had they reformed or simply survived. John Lennon's untimely death in 1980, at the hand of an assasin, put paid to any full reformation of the Beatles. Now, with just Paul and Ringo left alive and, well into retirement age, the best is over. So, rather than consider, and linger, on what might have been just enjoy the Fab Four in all their foremer glory. The Beatles short lived career, as a group, left future generations with a wealth of music. Each member then went on to create more in their own right. From poems, writing, songs, producing records and more each one left their mark on this world. Listening to some of their classic albums is still such fun, although some are dated. They do however take me back to my youth. Other Beatles tracks were so quirky at the time that they still seem fresh today. These four young men made music history and changed our music listening in the same way that Elvis did. If you are of today's generation check out The Beatles or, John, Paul, George or Ringo and I think you will be pleasantly surprised. They influenced many current performers, many more than you may realise. The History of The Beatles The Beatles were a four piece band from Liverpool, England. Their music was pop before popular music was truly established. Born in the forties, The Beatles were to ultimately add fame and fortune to Liverpool and themselves. To a generation, the Beatles were the Fab Four who changed music forever. The band consisted of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. In the early days though the line up was a little different.These days only Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney live to carry on a little of the Beatles legend. John Lennon and Paul McCartney met at a parish church fete in 1957. These two were to become the songwriters of the group and the main vocalists. The Fab Four FROM SCOUSER TO AMERICAN John Lennon John Winston Lennon was born on October 9, 1940, during a German bombing raid over Liverpool. Entering the world during such precarious times meant that soon after his birth he was placed under his mother's robust hospital bed for safety. There was no father at his birth as John's Dad, Alf, was away at sea. John is named John after his grandad and Winston after the war-time politician and Prime Minister Winston Churchill. Ironic when you consider that the adult John would be an ardent peace activist. At the age of two John was moved into the care of his Mum’s sister Mimi and her husband. Not long after this Julia Lennon, John’s Mum, decided to split from the erstwhile Alf and soon began a new relationship. Reading between the lines it would seem that Julia had more than one relationship which resulted in children. In 1958 Julia was killed by a motorist very near to Mimi’s house where John was at the time. On August 23, 1962, John married his long time girlfriend Cynthia Powell. Still married and now a father John met Yoko Ono in November 1966. The rest as they say is history. Cynthia did not sue John for divorce however until 1968. After Yoko’s divorce to her husband came through, in February 1969, Yoko married John. They became Mr and Mrs Lennon in March 1969. As music’s Mr and Mrs Strange they certainly were very much of the time. Both of them artistically talented and living bohemian lifestyles helped make them popular youth culture celebrities but figures of fun to the press. Following a drug conviction in 1968 the American government attempted to have the Lennon’s deported in 1972. John and Yoko separated temporarily but reconciled in 1975 and Yoko became pregnant. John started a legal battle to remain in the USA and due to Yoko’s pregnancy the deportation proceedings were halted. In 1975 Sean Ono Taro Lennon was born to John and Yoko. The following year Alf Lennon, John’s Dad, died of cancer. Finally in the summer of 1976 John received his Green Card and was allowed to stay in America. John disappeared from the music scene until late 1980 as he had decided to become a house husband and help raise Sean. In August 1980 John starts recording music again, for the first time in six years. On October 9, 1980, as Sean celebrated his 5th birthday John celebrated his 40th. By November that year a sensational double album is released. But of course the rest is history. On December 8, 1980, late in the afternoon as John left home in New York, he stopped to give an autograph to a "fan." At 10:49 that same evening this fan, one Mark David Chapman, assassinated John as he returned home with Yoko. John was shot and killed and the world wept. John was the controversial Beatle. He was artistic, talented, at times wacky, very much of the moment, had strong beliefs and died not only in tragic circumstances, but way before his time. The Quiet One - George Harrison George Harold Harrison was born on February 25, 1943, and was therefore the youngest Beatle. He was the lead guitarist. He soon became known as the quiet Beatle due to his shy and somewhat introspective personality. As Lennon and McCartney soon became the main songwriters for The Beatles there is little wonder that George was pushed into the background. Also he did not have Lennon's "in your face" personality. However he did write some classic tracks and usually one or two made it on to the albums. When George began performing with The Quarrymen he was only fifteen. After The Beatles had all become disenchanted with meditation and the mystic east George was still following this more unconventional way of life. Once the Beatles split George had some solo success and then joined the super-group The Travelling Wilburys. Among Harrison's famous compositions are My Sweet Lord, While my guitar gently weeps, Here comes the Sun and Something. George was married twice. He married Patti Boyd in 1966 and then Olivia Trinidad Arias in 1978. George sadly died of lung cancer in 2001. Macca - Paul McCartney Paul was born James Paul McCartney on June 18, 1942, in Liverpool. Paul was encouraged to be musical by his father who was a self taught pianist. He was originally given a trumpet but was not keen on this instrument. He later swapped it for a Zenith acoustic guitar and so the die was cast. When his mother died at an early age, he became close to John Lennon who had already experienced a similar situation with the loss of his mother Julia. They both found comfort in playing music. Lennon invited McCartney to join his band The Quarrrymen along with a school friend of McCartney’s, one George Harrison, who joined as the third guitarist. Ringo Starr was to become the drummer in 1962, and this formed the final line up. The song "Yesterday" written by Paul has been covered by over 2,500 artists. He also wrote the classics Hey Jude, Let It Be and The Long and Winding Road. As a young man Paul had a long standing relationship with Jane Asher but eventually married Linda Eastman in 1969. Linda was disliked by Beatles' fans of the day but not as much as Yoko Ono. Paul and Linda had a successful musical career playing together under the band name of Wings along with Denny Laine and others. They also had a long and very successful marriage until Linda's death in 1998. She died from breast cancer. Paul went on to marry Heather Mills in 2002 but this marriage failed and they divorced in 2006. It was an acrimonious split and the press wrote many sensational stories and there was much gossip. When Paul celebrated his 64th birthday in 2006 it put a whole new meaning on the song "When I’m Sixty-Four," which Paul wrote at the young age of sixteen. Many Beatles fans blamed Paul back in 1970 for the degeneration and split of The Beatles. However he has always been a worker and has achieved worldwide success over the years. Full discography- The Drummer Ringo Richard Starkey was born in Liverpool on July 7, 1940. He was to become famous as the drummer in The Beatles but he was not their first. He was the last member, of the now famous Beatles, to join the band. Ringo was the eldest member of the band also but only by a few months. It was Ringo's Mother's second husband who encouraged the youngster to take an interest in music. Playing with various bands before The Beatles Richie earned his nickname of Ringo by the amount of rings he wore. Ringo met the Beatles in Hamburg when both he and they, were performing. He also stood in for Pete Best a couple of times before actually replacing him as The Beatles permanent drummer. After the Beatles split Ringo went on to achieve success with some hit albums. During his time with the Beatles he sung as well as writing some of their material. He as also acted. As a successful drummer pre The Beatles Ringo had his own fan base already. Many current artistes credit Starr with influencing their drumming style. On a personal note Ringo married Maureen Cox in 1965 and they divorced ten years later. In 1981 Ringo married Barbara Bach. Fancy checking your website or blog for BS? Perhaps if we here had failed the test we would not be writing this post but, as we came out smelling of potpourri, A Rated and fresh as can be, we thought we would give it a whirl.
White Rhino offers a Marketing BS Detector and the result may or may not surprise you. Simply add a URL or piece of text for an on the spot evaluation. Officially White Rhino said of OWSMB "This copy smells of potpourri. Breathe easy – this copy is so neat and clean we could eat lunch off of it." Our opinion? Way to go! We followed the violations link and the result was "No one can turn up their nose at this copy. Good as this is, you’ll be inspired with our helpful tips for developing better marketing content." This is where you should be cautious. We opted to follow the tips link but to receive those tips you will need to add your e.mail address. You can also opt for a regular newsletter. We could not resist testing a few other sites well known to us and of course we were pleased as punch when they got no higher than a B rating. The BS description for the B Rated websites was "This copy is a tad fragrant. Don't be embarrassed – everyone lets a bomb slip once in a while." That left us wondering what the description would be for C, D, E or whatever rating. As we have no idea how low the rating goes, but we suspect E is the lowest, the mind boggles. Try as we might we could not find a site less than a B Rating. But that was a while back. We thought we would pop in a couple of websites today and one came up as a C rating with the message "You can probably blame that one on the dog. See how to clean up this copy – and clear the air" accompanied by a spade and the message "How It Piles Up". If there is room for improvement try removing broken links. The main-page of White Rhino says this "Test any copy and see if it comes off smelling like roses – or shiitake" before it offers you the chance to "Let It RIP". The image of the bull turns to show its backside ready for the BS indicator. Whilst this gizmo may have limited appeal it is fun testing sites. What's in it for White Rhino? Well it is a marketing company so bear that in mind if you are adding your email to the link. If we are anything to go by it will soon be a high ranked link. We found it just too tempting and tested a number of sites. Source: White Rhino Like the look of the purple tomatoes shown in the image above? When they are cut in half they reveal something that resembles a tomato but is various shades of bright purple. Whether or not you think they look appetising they could be coming to a shop near you and for many people the bad news is that they are GMO, genetically modified.
Touted as having as many health benefits as blueberries the purple tomatoes will reportedly be cheaper. Transferring a gene from a snapdragon plant to the tomato triggers a process within the tomato plant which allows anthocyanin to develop. This results in the purple colour and, according to proponents of GM, adds a range of health benefits. Tests on animals show anthocyanin could help fight cancer. Any negatives are not revealed. Prof Cathie Martin who has led the research at the John Innes Centre in Norwich said "With these purple tomatoes you can get the same compounds that are present in blueberries and cranberries that give them their health benefits - but you can apply them to foods that people actually eat in significant amounts and are reasonably affordable." Still at the research stage purple tomatoes used in products such as ketchup and as pizza toppings are only a whisper away. What this writer found odd is that Canada, a country which banned the sale of British foods such as marmite, penguin biscuits and ovaltine due to added vitamins is involved in purple tomatoes. That news was a couple of years ago meaning purple tomoatoes may already be used in some products you buy. Canadian authorities look at GM foods in a more favourable way than manufacturers in the EU and so production is underway in that country. Purple tomatoes grown at the UK centre are shipped to Canada for processing. If the research is successful, and the product goes on sale, or is included in a range of foodstuffs, will the Canadian food agency add them to their list of approved foods, or is it a case of, we don't mind making money out of this latest research but will not approve the end-result? European restrictions on GM foods are tight so Professor Martin looked elsewhere and found Canada a willing partner. This news also throws the UKs GM stance into question post BRexit. Owen Paterson, Britain's controversial former environment secretary claims that GM crops are probably safer than conventional plants. In 2013 BBC News reported "Owen Paterson has signed an open letter calling for the immediate rollout of "Golden Rice" - rice genetically modified to contain vitamin A - which it claimed could save the lives of 670,000 people a year. Mr Paterson claims groups opposing the GM crops are "wicked." Helen Wallace from Gene Watch responded by claiming that there are better, more cost-effective ways to solve the problem of vitamin A deficiency. Opinion: As the GM or GMO food debate continues there is money to be made out of genetically modified crops and big business stands to be the biggest winner. What is weird is that the research in this case was apparently funded by the EU a body that is reportedly opposed to GM crops. More info: http://www.nhs.uk/news/2008/10October/Pages/Purpletomatoes.aspx http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-25885756 With so many people visiting the UK getting the lingo right is important but then there is Cockney rhyming slang.
Cockney rhyming slang is traditionally spoken by those Londoners within the sound of Bow Bells, or so it is said. This blogger lives far away from London in Yorkshire and although she has visited this capital city knows only a little about cockney rhyming slang. However, in common with most other British people she does know a few cockney slang phrases. So let's see what she can dig up on this subject.
With comedy shows such as Only Fools and Horses examples of Cockney rhyming slang, real and fake, are often heard. A classic from the is series was a Ruby Murray for a CURRY. So where did all this strange talk come from, I hear you ask? With no definite history written it generally seems to be thought that cockney rhyming slang was the talk on the streets in years gone by. In fact it appears that it was the slang of thieves and rogues. In other words cockney rhyming slang was a type of secret language. Messages could be passed to the intended recipient without fear of being overheard. If someone did overhear they had no idea what the conversation was about. Very clever really, and certainly crafty This cockney language was particularly useful when it was invented in the 19th century for use in front of police officers or coppers, as they were often called. Instead of saying a word out loud a word that it rhymed with was used instead. With time parts of the phrase were dropped which caused more confusion to non-cockneys. However for cockneys it helped confidentiality. An example of this is Daisy Roots which means Boots. These days cockneys would tend to say Daisies for Boots. Confused? Well hopefully not too much so. Here are some more phrases which you may find entertaining. Having tried to stay clear of expletives or words that some may find offensive, this cannot be guaranteed.
In order to cope with modern day life new cockney phrases are being created all the time. Even the old phrases are adapted at times. It is quite common for a couple of Cockney rhyming slang words or phrases to be strung together. Take for example:
Archer = £2000 Bag of Sand = £1000 Grand = £1000 Monkey = £500 Ton = £100 Carpet = £30 Pony = £25 Macaroni = £25 Apple Core = £20 Score = £20 Speckled Hen = £10 Uncle Ben = £10 Nigel Ben = £10 Paul McKenna = £10 Ayrton (Senna) = Tenner = £10 Lady (Godiva) = Fiver = £5 Taxi Driver = Fiver = £5 Nicker or Quid = £1 Ten Bob Bit = 50p piece Oxford = 5 shillings Lord of the Manor = Tanner (sixpence) Tanner = sixpence Some of the coins are no longer valid. Decimalisation changed the face of British currency forever. However most of the note denominations still exist. These days the term cockney is often used about anyone living in London, which is strictly speaking not true. If you visit our capital city though try not to bandy about cockney rhyming slang unless you are confident of the company you are keeping. Are slugs establishing bustling communities in your garden and ruining your best efforts to grow well?
You can purchase many products to help control slugs but they can be costly plus harmful to pets and wildlife that may also enjoy your outdoor space. There are many other 'green' ways to try to control slugs but some have mixed success. So what about using used ground coffee to beat the slugs and keep your garden in tip-top shape? The Costa Coffee franchise in the UK has a novel way of disposing of its 'used' coffee which is green and could be just what you need to control slugs in your patch. Called Grounds for Grounds it is a simple way to boost trade and offer a free service. An email from our local Costa says "Our used coffee grounds make fab fertiliser and super slug repellent, and from now on you can collect them free from your local Costa. It's all part of our commitment to great taste and less waste." (Check with your local coffee shop if they are taking part) What a great idea! It will of course bring punters into Costa Coffee shops and has to be a win win situation for all. Does the used coffee do the trick and keep slugs off your luscious plants? I haven't a clue but the next time we pop into Costa for refreshment we will pick up a bag of the free used coffee grounds and test it out. The fact that it also acts as a fertiliser has to be a bonus. If you drink a fair bit of filter coffee at home test the theory out for yourself. One 'fertilising' green tip which seems to work involves pushing a banana skin into the soil or earth at the base of rose bushes. Check out the Costa Coffee website for just a taste of their environmentally friendly work ethic which includes: "Recycling: Our coffee roastery is one of the greenest in the world with year on year carbon reduction, an amazing 100% renewable energy supply and 0% waste to landfill. Last year we diverted over seven thousand tonnes of waste and increased our recycling in-store. Many of our stores recycle their organic waste and coffee grounds helping create renewable fuels. Recently we even recycled over three tonnes of unwanted uniforms using our existing delivery lorries to pick up bags of clothes from most of our stores. Our Grounds for Grounds Project: At Costa we make the most of every one of our coffee beans. That’s why through the Costa Grounds for Grounds project, customers can come into our stores to request our used coffee grounds for free. These grounds can bring your garden to life either as a natural plant fertiliser or to create a naturally balanced compost pile. We hear they are great for fending off snails and slugs too! Pop in to store now to request your grounds and watch your garden flourish!" |
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