Monday 12th

I am beginning to find it quite hard going writing this up every day, as so many days are routine, going to the hospital on Tuesdays and Fridays, and I am not doing very much out of the ordinary.  Yesterday, for example, I was reading at Emmanuel at 10.30 but then I really did not do anything to write about.  Perhaps I will write every three or four days, and drop an e-mail to my followers when I have something to comment about on the news.

Saturday 10th October

Goodness, Tuesday was my last entry.  What have I been doing the last few days.  Mostly knitting, crocheting and watching endless debates on who should be the next President.  On Tuesday the Democratic candidates are having their first televised debate, which I shall watch with some interest.

I have finished reading The Perfect Summer, 1911.   One surprising thing I learned was that when George V and Queen Mary were going on a foreign tour the Queen was very disappointed to learn that there was an Act of Parliament passed in the 18th century which decreed that the Crown Jewels should not leave the country, so she couldn't wear them on her foreign tour.  I didn't know our monarchs ever did wear them, I thought they had always been locked up in the Tower of London.   I think I might do a bit of research on that.

Something else which caught my interest today - there is a National Toy Hall of Fame which typically inducts three toys each year, with last year's honours going to miniature green army men, the Rubik's Cube and bubbles.  Bubbles - is that the thing you dip in soapy water and blow through? 

The 2015 finalists are American Girl dolls, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, spinning tops, Twister (?) Wiffle Ball(?)  Battleship, puppets, Jenga(?)  coloring books, Playmobil, Super Soaker(?) and scooters. Those with question marks beside them I have never heard of.

The National Hall of Fame said the toys are judged based on icon status, longevity, discovery and innovation.

I've just had another look at the website and it says "To be considered, the toy must meet certain criteria. It must have survived multiple generations. It also must be widely recognized. Finally, it must foster learning, discovery and creativity through play".


 

Tuesday 6th October

It has been pleasantly warm today, one thermometer said 81 degrees as I drove through town.   I am reading a very interesting book "The Perfect Summer, England 1911" by Juliet Nicholson.     It was the Coronation year of George V and Queen Mary; the first half of the book focuses on the life of the upper class, the aristocracy.   The second half is about the working poor - I thought I'd learned enough history to know what life was like for the working poor, but I was very shocked.    Anyway, the point I am making is that it was a very hot summer, and the temperature climbed to 81 degrees, and they thought that was very HOT!!!   I consider very hot to be 103.

 

Another interesting aspect of the book is that the young Winston Churchill features in it quite a lot.

 

I mentioned that Bill is doing something else for the next few months on Tuesdays, so I got to the hospital early and had breakfast, and spent most of the rest of the day watching the news, which at the moment seems to be all the latest poll figures.

 

Bernie Sanders is doing quite well, bless him, but I can't see him being President.  Hillary's poll numbers are dropping, and Joe Biden isn't even in the race.  He is going to make an announcement at the end of the week.  If he does run I think that will really  throw Hillary Clinton under the bus.

 

She is still being dogged by her e-mails.  She's signed a form to the effect that they have all been handed over, but there are still some missing, I think she is headed for a federal prison rather than the White House.   And the FBI must all be working overtime to get through them all.   One e-mail has revealed that President Gadhafi's son approached her for Peace Talks and she refused, and no one seems to know about it.  It is said that even in her autobiography, where she devoted a whole chapter to Libya, she didn't mention it.

 

I have recently finished Marco Rubio's biography.   He writes very touchingly of how his parents came to America from Cuba and struggled so that their children could have a better life than they did. He is very, very patriotic and talks sincerely of how wonderful America is that the son of a Cuban immigrant can work hard, achieve success and ultimately run for President.   Since I am not required to have any political biases I'm hoping - at the moment anyway - that he will win the Election.

 

His book has only just been published but I bought it for a knock down price, so I think he obviously wants to get it out, and has timed its publication very well.

 

Sunday 4th October.

Managed to make it to Emmanuel this morning in spite of my back pain.   Spent the rest of the day quietly watching the news.

The major news story is the weather in South Carolina which apparently has had the worst rainfall in 1000 years.

Look at that - the rain caused the side of the road to just break away.

The other news story is the cargo ship which disappeared a few days ago off the east coast, and now debris is appearing.   A very sad and anxious time for the relatives of all those on board.

This looks like a pretty purse but is actually the lunar eclipse a friend took on her cell phone.

I don't know if you remember me writing about this silly woman who worked in a maximum security prison and helped two inmates escape.   She was going to run off with them but got cold feet at the last minute.   She has been sentenced to seven years.   She looked very shocked at the sentence, I don't know what she was expecting, but the manhunt to find them cost over a million  dollars in police overtime.    Her husband is going to wait for her.   Very touching.

Friday 2nd October

The Tylenol is helping the back pain and I have been a little more active today, I went to the hospital this morning for my chaplaincy round.   Bill had been there since he was called in at 2am, so he went home to catch up on some sleep and I had lunch by myself, and was just watching television this evening.

 

You must have heard the dreadful news of the mass shooting at a school in Oregon, and everyone from the President down immediately starts talking about guns and gun laws.  They don't get it.  They just don't get it.   It is not guns which kill, it is people.  And unless - and until - they establish some mental health services in this country I can't see it stopping any time soon.     It certainly seems to me - the foreign bystander - that the mental health services here leave a great deal to be desired.

There have been 152 school shootings since 1990.   A figure I found very startling.

The intense summer temperatures seem to have dropped and it is now more comfortable, in the 70s.

Thursday 1st October

Have not felt too well today, I've been suffering from  back pain so just went out for some Tylenol, and been dozing.

 Will be back soon.

Monday/Tuesday am

The guest contributor is leaving later this morning (it's 1am at the moment) so normal blogging has been resumed.

It has been a wonderful few days with Jeremy - he has been wining and dining and driving me round Shawnee, and through the rolling Oklahoma prairies, I've been so happy to spend time with him.  We're both keen movie fans too, I can't remember if he mentioned that we saw two very good films, 'Walk in the Woods' about Bill Bryson attempting to trek the Appalachian Trail, and 'Pawn Sacrifice', about Bobby Fisher, the championship chess player.

Today we paid another visit to Barnes & Noble in Norman, we both love book shops and B&N, with its Starbucks in the middle, is a very big, and particularly good store.   Jeremy bought me a grown up colouring book there and I will make a start on that when he has gone.     Before setting off for Barnes and Noble though we stopped by the hospital and spent time chatting with Chaplain Bill in the cafeteria, which was very pleasant.

So, it's back to bed...