Reblogged from Bear Tales:

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On the first day, God created the dog and said, sit all day by the door of your house and bark at anyone who comes in or walks past. For this I will give you a life span of twenty years.

The dog said, "That's a long time to be barking. How about only ten years and I'll give you back the other ten?"

Read more… 329 more words

Reblogged from K-EARTH 101:

Reblogged from Bizarre World News:

Many times, as kids we would be taken down to the sea-shore at Worthing or Hastings with nothing more that a ball and a picnic which usually featured eggy butties. We did nothing much other than messing about on the beach, rock pools and on the wooden groynes. The crown on such a day was usually an ice cream, a “99″ with maybe some sprinkles and on some occasions we would have fish and chips, in newspaper.

Sailing on Marin Lake – West Kirby

Well I’m a bit older now but the simplicity of walking along the prom at West Kirby,
inhaling the fresh sea air, watching the boats on Marine Lake,

A Mirror Dinghy sailing Marine Lake – West Kirby

watching  the “scousers” walking on water, they are really walking the Marine Lake wall and

Marine Lake – West Kirby

enjoying the views across the Dee estuary to Wales. Money cannot buy these pleasures and none is required.

Well, actually, you do need some money if you are to have an ice cream. And we did top of the experience and partake of a very nice ice cream, not a “99″ but tasty even though it lacked the flake.

Glorious.

Leasowe Castle Hotel

Leasowe Castle Hotel

Gazebo – Leasowe Castle Hotel

The hotel has an interesting history and I have lifted the following straight off their website…..

Leasowe Castle was originally built in 1593 by Ferdinand, 5th Earl of Derby, second heir to the English throne. Named “New Hall”, it consisted only of an octagonal tower. The door was about six feet above ground level, for security and protection from high tides; the walls were one metre thick. The Earls of Derby were kings of the Isle of Man between 1407 and 1735 and a stone bearing the date 1593 and the “Three Legs” emblem of the Isle of Man was removed from the Castle and is now displayed at the Williamson Museum and Art Gallery in Birkenhead.

It is thought that “New Hall” was built for sporting activities, hawking and a viewpoint for horse racing for which Wallasey was well known. The lower portion could have been used as a stable. Turrets were added later, possibly by William the 6th Earl. It is said that the Castle has had many famous guests including members of the Stuart family and King William III, who stayed overnight before boarding a ship to Ireland, an expedition which ended in the battle of the Boyne in 1690.

Over the years the Castle’s owners have added extra towers, wings, turrets and outbuildings but towards the end of the 17th Century the Castle became derelict and acquired the name “Mock beggar Hall”, a name given to any deserted or lonely building.

Robert Harrison acquired the building in 1786 and then in 1802 it passed to Margaret Boode, daughter of the Rector of Liverpool and friend of the shipwrecked. She was tragically killed in an accident in Wallasey in 1826 and her son-in-law Sir Edward Cust became the new occupant, attempting unsuccessfully to turn the Castle into an hotel and residing here on and off until his death in 1878. During this time the building was converted into a home. Alterations included the erection of a perimeter wall; a new entrance and oak from the submerged forest of Meols brought to the library. In 1836 Sir Edward Cust purchased some paneling from the old Exchange Buildings which were to be demolished. There was a Star Chamber, so called because the ceiling was decorated with bright stars so convicts could gaze up at them when sentenced at the Court of Westminster. He brought this to the Castle and it still remains in our Star Chamber along with four beautiful tapestries depicting the four seasons.

A fine stone and iron staircase dominates the entrance hall, the renowned “Battle Staircase” so called because of the named plates of famous British battles set into the wrought iron rails. Erected by Sir Edward, the handrails also show dates, battles, the reigning Sovereign and Generals in command of the troops. He was probably responsible for “Canute’s Chair”, a huge oak seat which stood on the sea wall above high water mark. The chair, which bore the inscription “Sea came not hither nor wet the sole of my foot”, disappeared some 25 years ago. After the death of Sir Edward the Castle passed through several members of the family until it became Leasowe Castle Hotel in 1891. It was bought by the trustees of the railway Convalescence Homes in 1910 and except for a short time during the First World War, when it accommodated German prisoners, it was occupied by retired railway men until to 1970. It again stood derelict as it had some 300 years before; a 20th Century Mock Beggar until in 1982 when it was purchased by a local businessman and restored as a hotel and conference centre. The Castle is now owned by Lawton Hotels Ltd who have refurbished it in keeping with its great history and character.

Just a small comment regarding the refurbishment mentioned in the quote. The hotel and certainly the room in which we stayed is now looking a little tired and is in need of a bit of tidying. Having said that the staff are friendly and the food at breakfast was what you would expect for a buffet style serving.

Reblogged from Bear Tales:

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Did you hear about the fat, alcoholic transvestite - All he wanted to do was eat, drink and be Mary.

I got invited to a party and was told to dress to kill. Apparently a turban, beard and a backpack wasn't what they had in mind.

After a night of drink, drugs and wild sex, Jim woke up to find himself next to a really ugly woman.

Read more… 573 more words

Having paid into the NHS via taxes for over forty years. I have had little or no need to call on the NHS throughout my early life. So, as you can imagine, I am disgusted to find, just when I am reaching an age where I may need to the services of a GP a little more frequently, the government has an eye to limit my access and make me pay, AGAIN !!.

It is hard enough to get to see a doctor at the best of times. The last thing we need is a limit on the number of visits you are allowed.

Take a read and see if you don’t feel the same way. If you do, add your name to the petition.

This could be very serious. The Conservatives are floating plans to cap the number of times we are allowed to visit our GP. [1] If we run out of visits – because we’ve got a sickly child or long-term health condition, for example – we could be forced to pay to go elsewhere.

At the moment it’s just a proposal. [2] But if the Conservatives don’t see a big public backlash, it could soon be a grim reality. So let’s raise an outcry as quickly as possible and push them to drop the idea immediately.

Please sign the urgent petition now: tell health minister Jeremy Hunt to rule out limiting our access to NHS GPs:

https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/dont-cap-GP-visits

Jeremy Hunt will be watching the public’s reaction carefully. He is an ambitious politician with an eye on his own popularity. If he sees a huge petition growing fast, he’ll realise this is damaging his ratings. So if enough of us sign, we could play a key role in getting this idea dropped.

Being able to visit the family doctor when we need it is a bedrock of a decent health system. GPs are often our first port of call when we’re ill. [3] Limiting access to GPs could mean a dangerous illness is left undetected until it’s too late – unless of course you’ve got private medical insurance…

But this isn’t just about GPs. This is about a principle at the heart of our battle to protect the NHS. Since the NHS was created, everyone in Britain has been able to rely on visiting a doctor as often as we need to. Limiting access would undermine the NHS at its very foundations. So let’s send the Conservatives a strong message: drop this terrible idea.

https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/dont-cap-GP-visits

Thanks for being involved,

David, Rebecca, Travis, Blanche and the 38 Degrees Team

PS: Here’s what the chair of the Royal College of GPs said about these proposals: “This was obviously written by someone who has never been unwell, or has never met people who work in the health service.” Let’s not let the idea get any further – please sign the petition now: https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/dont-cap-GP-visits

NOTES
[1] Daily Mail: Fury as Tories look to limit the number of times you can see your GP each year:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2331068/Fury-Tories-look-limit-number-times-GP-year.html

Independent: Cap on number of GP visits being considered by Tories:

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/cap-on-number-of-gp-visits-being-considered-by-tories-8632396.html

[2] The proposal is contained in a “Conservative Policy Forum” paper on NHS policy, you can see the whole thing here:

http://www.conservativepolicyforum.com/policy/local-health

[3] See for example this campaign on the importance of going to see your GP early if you could have symptoms of bowel cancer:

http://www.macmillan.org.uk/Cancerinformation/Cancertypes/Colonandrectum/Symptomsdiagnosis/Symptoms.aspx