Snippets

[Or even "random thoughts"!]

“Mongoose gene”

According to Rudyard Kipling, the motto of all the mongoose family is “Run and find out”

David has it not!

And I think I've got his share!!

I was re-reading an Agatha Christie story, and one of the characters described another person as having a mongoose instinct for information.  Well, I'm like that if something is different or "off", so whilst I can have my eyelashes dyed, or my hair cut and David won't notice, I can tell if he's used a different shaving oil when he comes home in the evening!

It's a blessing and a curse!

[A "Monk" reference for you.]

Masterchef

We’re watching Masterchef: the Professionals, and it’s bringing back memories of seeing the Australian version in the Summer.  We loved that, the experts seemed [mostly] supportive, with much less criticism than we’ve got used to in the UK programmes.

I think Gregg, Michel and Monica have got less “frowny”/scowly, but the variations introduced Down Under, coupled with the loveliness of their experts/critics makes our home-grown episodes seem a bit stale, or flat, by comparison.  I hope Really TV shows another series [now that digital TV actually seems to work more often that not, we think it’s quite good!  Admittedly it did take some weeks after switchover until we could regularly get anything on the BBC (ironically, the only TV we directly pay for!), but I suspect all the people complaining meant something was done about that.  If only the signal was good enough that the DVR recorded what it says it will...].

We're currently rooting for: Anton, Keri, and Oli...

OK, one of them may have gone home already (we didn't watch last night's episode yet), but we like them all and hope they all go on to fantastic careers.

"Practising yoga is Satanic, it leads to Evil..."

I just came across a newspaper clipping I cut out last year, and I remember thinking I should post about it!

The quote is from Fr Gabriele Amorth who was "the Vatican's chief exorcist and claims to have cleansed hundreds of people of evil spirits" according to the Daily Telegraph [Saturday, November 26, 2011].

Apparently, he is echoing the sentiments of the Pope whilst he was still Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger...

My second thought was: "let him who is without sin cast the first stone". [John 8:7]

Or if you prefer: "And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?" [Matthew 7:3]

Or even: "judge not, that ye be not judged." [Matthew 7:1]

I could go on in that vein for a long time, and I don't even have my bible with me!  The first thought I had was: well, that conveniently moves the focus away from the scandals attaching to the [alleged] abuse by priests of children that seems to have been covered up by parishes around the globe for decades...

According to the Telegraph, again, he 'claimed that Catholic sex abuse scandals are proof that Satan is waging a war against the Holy See'.  Well, that's OK then, isn't it?

Hmmm!  Sadly, I don't find his case persuasive enough to forego my weekly yoga class and whatever practice I can fit in at home...  Although my left hip is hurting after yesterday's three-legged-dog, so maybe he's not wrong?

And finally:

Is an ugly person actually allowed to practise medicine in Seattle?

[Grey's Anatomy re-runs!]