So, here I am packing again,trying to put two separate quarts into separate pint size pots. It is an art that I am trying to cultivate when needs must, but one that seems to elude my skills.

Lightweight clothes, which take up less space, make it easier to pack more changes, yet when all is said and done, here I am concerning myself about whether my medium sized suitacase and small back pack will take everything I need for a month or so. I would love to lighten my load even more, however, what business items I am taking are down to a bare minimum and are based on need. I shall have to purchase more business stuff when I get to my destination.

My daughter backpacked to Mongolia for the same period of time with a lot less than I am stuffing into my bags. Mind you, the things she decided to leave behind would have weighed a darn sight more than my stuff, which of course, is why she left them.

I am banking on there being a reduction in some of the baggage bulk during the time away. The problem is, there will be an increase in business stuff; I shall make every attempt to leave what I cannot carry on my return trip and collect it at another time.

It might have been easier to pack for Mongolia or even outer space, as you can be sure, I would not have been wondering how I was going to squeeze the unsquashables into the unsqueezables.

For now... Hasta La Vista

We were out for a walk not far from the sea shore when we came across a smooth grey, hand-sized, oval-shaped pebble. Though appearing pretty ordinary, it did bear a distinct resmblance to something familiar. Then;

"Well would you believe it!" hubby exclaimed.
I looked at the stone, puzzled. Had I missed a vital geological clue.
"well would you believe it," hubby repeated,
"that's an ancient one."
"Is it?" I queried,
"an ancient what?"
"A mouse."

At last! Joy Lawrence now has a very public stand from which to state her grievances about the murder of her wonderful son, Stephen. She is obtaining justice (not retribution), in her own very dignified manner, through the pages of her recently published book. Names are being named, and every time someone reads her book they will be named again and again. Official organisations involved, such as they were at the time of the murder, are being appropriately shamed.

It is long awaited justice for this wonderfully courageous woman,
justice of a personal kind which has been forced upon this family because the standard British justice system failed Stephen, his parents and his family.

The culprits, the murderers still live freely in our communities. Of course, it is possible they may be using different names to the ones that are being publicised. We should be concerned. I can only trust that these individuals have the knowledge that they are known and will be watched because they are known, whatever names they may be using. Names will not change their characters nor the fact they are known.

Owen was out of play in the England - v - Sweden match; the camera flipped over to the UK substitutes bench and the commentator, in fine flow, worthy of a world cup commentating oscar, breathlessly introduced the new boy, "...there is Wallcott and he just has a provisional licence."

Using the underground in London recently, with the high temperatures there have been, has been a steam bath nightmare and like everyone else, I carried a bottle of water.

The best place to travel in these sweat tubes is at either end of the carriage, if you can bear to let seats go and stand for the major part of a journey. Windows can be opened which allows a strong air flow through, albeit a warm one, that revives ones flagging energies. Never mind sagging knees, they become very secondary!

Advisory announcements were made over the tannoy systems about self-help and seeking assistance if feeling unwell, and what not to do, such as not alerting emergency help between stations, in tunnels etc. The announcements were not a lot of use in the span of their delivery as there was too much interference from the wonderfully regular arrival of trains, at least that was so on the lines I was using. You could just make out the full pattern of advice after about three or four journeys or changes of line. Goodness knows what, if anything, foreign visitors made of these fractured pronouncements.

One evening many stations were closed simultaneously, though temporarily, or a few were closed for the duration of the night, because of flash flooding caused by tropical storms and torrential rain. I hit the disruption on the return journey. The threatening skies (seen when overground) and the forks of lightening were quite exciting. I did not get soaked, I experienced a barely noticeable dash of water and my bright rainbow-coloured umbrella did not see the light of day or the darkened skies of the night time.

The following day was noticeably fresher for a short while then the electric stormy tension began to build up again very quickly, though not to the same disruptive levels as seen the day before.

The safety procedures had been completed, the usual flight announcements had been made about keeping on seat belts in case of turbulence during the journey. Our flight attendants were soon, we were told, to offer refreshments (at a cost, no freebies) and in due course, there would be goods for sale.

The plane had risen to 25,000 feet and was still climbing when the chief steward's distinctive lazy speech pattern broke through to enlighten us passengers in no uncertain terms that, "This is a non-smoking flight; it is forbidden to smoke in any place. Anyone breaking the rules, anyone who is found smoking, will be asked to leave...IMMEDIATELY!"

Post script - what was even more amazing, bar three of us passengers, including hubby, no-one else batted an eyelid; those that had been listening seemed to be accepting the 'guidance' as gospel. One could only hope that reasonable parachutes were provided for the ongoing journey!

This blog space will be quiet for a week or so, needs must and I am being called elsewhere.

Before I go, I must report that we have had our second warm day this month; or is it this season, yep, I think it is this season and both in one week, yay! My dress code was just a teensie bit heavy for the first one, it did after all, take me by surprise. By late tea time I found that my garb was about right.

Today, I was not caught out. I looked the part, even though I say so myself, with open-toed footwear, cropped lightweight trews and a very short-sleeved patterned summer top. It all felt great, everyone was bright and cheery, matching the weather, even those people who were 'missing out on it' by working inside. By 7.45pm a fleeting shower descended upon us, barely noticeable and I needed to wear a light fleece jacket.

Today I have had a good dose of natural Vitamin D.

BFN folks, I'll be back in blog mode again ere long. D

Various religious groups have demanded that Dan Brown's book The Da Vinci code should have a disclaimer printed on it to the effect that "This story is fiction." Ian McKellan, who acts in the film has commented that he hopes, in that case, the same disclaimer will be applied to the Bible.

Surely, if there is no foundation to the underlying story, why all the episcopal fuss? Obviously, The Holy Blood and Holy Grail originally published in 1982, now republished and having been featured as BBC Radio 4 book of the week recently, is not as feared, yet this book it would seem, is one of the foundation works for the current spawning of similar stories to Dan Brown's book; it was a book credited in Dan Brown's work.

Perhaps what worries the various theological thinkers most, is the high exposure that both the book of The Da Vinci Code and the film are receiving and that some people may just start to consider that there could be something worth thinking about in these new myths that is more interesting than what is contained in the old ones.

According to recent research, people with heart disease can "now turn the clock back" It is possible to reverse the effects of the fatty acids that clog up the arteries.

The results of ASTEROID, which is the name for a two year study that demonstrated this feat of pharmaceutical science, was presented at a conference in Atlanta. The statin drug call Rosuvastatin (Crestor) was shown to reduce the fatty acid build up in the artery wall.

Edinburgh university was involved in this study. An investigator of the study stated, "For the first time we have shown that it is possible to essentially turn the clock back in the arteries of people with heart disease. This is the first time we have seen signficant reversal of the fatty deposits that clog up arteries. This has exciting implications for people at risk of heart disease." (Dr Neil Uren)

Source: P5. Edit Magazine Summer Issue 2006 The University of Edinburgh.