Bears

In the animal 'cuteness' stakes, Polar Bear Cubs must be top of the list.

Most of us, of a certain age, have always loved Polar Bears on account of Rupert. He was an adolescent bear, with a mother who always wore an apron, and a father who wore plus-fours and smoked a pipe. Just an every-day family of Polar Bears in amongst a world of humans.

I know that most Teddy Bears are gingery/beige colour, and they are named after a Bear that was probably darker, but I would like to suggest that the very best Teddy Bear imaginable would have the face of a Polar Bear Cub, and the body of a traditional early Steiff.

I didn't have a Teddy Bear as a child (just Alphonse), but I do occasionally buy them as gifts for new-borns. One baby, who was born at the height of Winter received a Polar Bear 'Teddy', which was almost as 'cute' as the one's above.

However, when going around all the shops that sold Teddy Bears, I was amazed to see how very few traditional Bears there were around. Mostly they were horrible Japanese objects that would have scared most small children to death! I probably should have looked online; although even there it's disappointing.

All three of my own children had proper Bears.... Bryn, Mrs Pins, and Harry. 

 

It's all right for some!

Some people have all the luck. If you can call it 'luck' flying in and out of The Middle East.

My son Kimbo is a constant traveller. He has recently been in Dubai (lucky escape), and is just about to go to Egypt.

I have suggested that he takes a Flack Jacket, and Armoured Sombrero; just in case. I believe he is going where it is considered 'safe', but you can't trust those crazy Iranians. 

Meanwhile, Lady M is building sandcastles on a small Thai island with Boo Boo and The Cherub.

I am staying at home with Billy, and crossing my fingers!

 

The Good, the Bad, and the Dangerous.

As we welcome the beginning of WW3, Iran is playing its part by bombing fellow Muslim countries (Syria, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, UAE, Oman, and Iraq) who have nothing to do with the present conflict.

Iranians (and many others) have been celebrating the news of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's demise. They can sense a new era of democracy; although when it will come is anyone's guess!!!

Meanwhile in London a few cock-eyed protestors mourned the passing of their darling Ayatollah, and praised his tenure as 'Supreme Leader'.

Yes, it was the fragrant Jeremy Corbyn, and his charming brother Piers, who led the protesters, and supported the Mad-Mullah's 30 year regime of brutality. They blamed Iran's evil on everyone but Khamenei and his nasty henchmen. Amazingly, they were proud to show their support for the man who ordered the killing of tens of thousands of his own people in recent times. They were there to sing the praises of the No 1 sponsor of world-wide terrorism. 

I find this both disgusting and, frankly, unbelievable!

There is one glaringly obvious truth in UK politics, if you follow the ways of the middle-of-the-road politicians/political parties (Lab/Con/Lib Dem), you are probably safe to be allowed out and about. But if you follow the words of the Corbyn brothers you are probably NOT.

Why is it that BAD people always support each other? There isn't a single member of the 'Axis of Evil' countries that these brothers don't love and support.

 

I say you fellows; here's one I made earlier!

These 'Food Waste' boxes have been appearing all over the place. They were originally delivered to each home, and simply left on the doorstep in advance of the new food waste bins being inaugurated at the end of this month (March).

Since then I have seen them all over the place. It looks as if people simply don't want them, and are discarding them!

This particular one I found by the big dustbins, and I rescued it. Someone had taken the plastic bags (that comes with them), and chucked the actual container itself.

So, what does one do with a spare container? One makes a 'Tuck Box' of course. It will be perfect for use in the car, on long journeys.

Appropriate 'Billy Bunter' decoration was completed by group effort.

Verdict: 10/10

 

Bacon

I'm on a bit of a diet at the moment; no wine (almost), and hardly any pukka breakfasts. Thankfully my son, Kimbo, joins me every Friday morning for a 'sorting-out-the-world-full-English'. And it always gets me dreaming about proper BACON.

Bacon is a thorny subject in England; much as Haggis is in Scotland.

Generally, and I mean GENERALLY, English Bacon isn't as good as it could be. The taste is good, but when you see it frying, you understand at once how it's been made; the QUICK way!

Rather than being salted in the traditional manner, it is injected with a salt/water solution, which cures quickly, then seeps out as 'white gunge' when cooking. OK, it's only salty water (with a few inoffensive chemicals), but it looks horrible.

This bacon below is of my own making, and as long as you have a good supply of Belly Pork, Preserving Coarse Sea Salt, and Sugar, you can have a permanent supply of un-sullied home-made Bacon, that you will never forget.

The process couldn't be simpler. Take a large lump of Belly Pork, preferably from the thin end (no bones), and rub into it a mixture of coarse Sea Salt and Brown Sugar (2 parts Salt, to 1 part Sugar), and plenty of coarse ground Pepper, then lay the whole thing on a layer of the same mix, and cover with yet more. A large clean washing-up bowl is an ideal container.

After 4 days, rub off all the Salt mixture, and dry thoroughly with paper towels. Then hang somewhere 'airy' in a muslin bag (below) for a while (a large French inglenook fireplace is ideal), until you can wait no longer.

 

You are now ready to taste the flavour of Real Bacon; Bacon how it always was. The Bacon of our ancestors. The first thing you notice is that no gunge comes from the meat when cooking, the second thing is the taste; delicious. This is the un-smoked Streaky Bacon that the Italians call Pancetta.

Once you have made your first lot, and you see how easy it is, you will also see where you might change things to suit your own taste. The above is the BASIC recipe; added herbs and spices are optional.

Beam me over Scotty!

 

The most arduous thing of the day is consulting the menu of that small beach restaurant, on a island off Thailand. Life can be hard.

Here is Boo Boo in deep thought. He simply cannot decide between the giant Prawns or his favourite Tom Yum Goong spicy soup..

Lady Magnon is visiting her two youngest grandsons for a couple of weeks, and like all grandmothers is 'spoiling them rotten'.

Here (below) is The 'tousle-haired' Cherub, also consulting the menu. I just wish I was over there too; but someone has to look after Billy!

Just look at that water. I'd be in there in an instant; I love swimming in the sea. 

Dogs in Islam: A Sunday Special.

Oh no! I knew Billy was up to no good. It seems that he's KEEPING ANGELS AWAY from our house. Did you know about this???

In the past I've noticed a few (who I presume were) Muslims being wary of Billy, but I always thought that (even though he's a Border Collie) they imagined he might tear them to bits. Now I see that it's all the fault of those Islamic Angels of theirs. Thank goodness that Protestant Angels are so much more animal-friendly.

The woman in the video also goes-on about 'losing two mountains daily', what on earth is the woman on about???

Do they REALLY believe all this gubbins?

We all know that religion is based on fear, and their hierarchy's desire for money. Maybe in times past people really DID believe in gods, devils, heaven, hell, etc, but we now live in different, more aware times. I have nothing against people signing-up to any religion, but it does annoy me when their followers talk blatant nonsense about things that we ALL know couldn't possibly be true. 

I do think it's about time that religions spoke the truth, and stopped their Mumbo-Jumbo. What they don't seem to realise is that if they became more like 'philosophies' than 'religions', they might attract far more members, and their coffers might fill-up (that's what it's all about). As it is, their members are quitting in their droves; and they're taking their money with them.

My own nearby church (St Nicholas) has been without a priest/vicar for the past FIVE MONTHS. Are we surprised?