Heaven and hell

This made me smile, Michael!  Must say I wish I had at least a drop of mechanical and organisational ability myself.  I seem to have more and more difficulty lately getting things done.  It takes me all day just to keep the place tidy and do the cooking.  The saying, 'If you want something done, ask a busy person', is so true.  I used to do a thousand things in a day when I was younger and working full-time.

Frank, your latest comment is quite brutal!  Politicians the world over are pretty much the same...

Oh no!!!!

There are some things it's really better for us not to know!  Yesterday I bought a new hose for my very old Volta vacuum cleaner and a turbo dust filter to attach to it.  If you folk already have one of those whiz-bang Dyson vacuums you'll have been looking at your own dirt for a while, so will not be surprised, but for me, actually seeing what I sucked up was truly amazing.  The dust from the bed alone was nothing short of incredible.  And I thought I was the cleanest person in the world.

Out of curiosity I googled some pics of dust mites for your delectation...I'm sure you'll thank me.

Storm

I was sitting in a metal bus shelter on Thursday afternoon when this storm blew up.  A streak of lightning lit up the sky and hit the wall just inches behind my head!  I heard the

crackle and saw flashing lines of electricity, just like you see in cartoons.  Talk about a fright - what a close shave!

Meanwhile, in Scotland and England...

Just look at the contrast between these pictures and the ones in my last blog!  Thanks for your email this morning, Winifred, with your news of a bad weather spell.

Now, to answer your question, Olga:

There's not a big difference between sardines and herring. In fact, "sardine" means "small fish." (The fish in question were named after Sardinia, the second largest island in the Mediterranean, because they used to be plentiful in this region.) When they're young and small, these fish are called sardines. When they get older and bigger, they're called herring. For centuries, herring have been a dietary staple of northern Europeans - Scandinavians, Russians, Dutch, British and Germans.


I never knew this!  In fact, the saying, 'You learn something new every day' is very true.  Thank heavens for Google, which provides the answer to everything you ever wanted to know!

Out and about again

On Wednesday I went to Bondi with some friends to look at Sculptures by the Sea.  Here's one of them:

I know I'm just another Grumpy Old Woman, but it was such a lot of bother!  Public transport is a nightmare.  It must have been 34 degrees and there were thousands of people lined up for one lonely bus at the end of the walk, so we all piled on like sardines.  Is it too much for whoever organises these things to put on some more buses??????  It's not rocket science...

Great to have you back, Winifred.  I don't know what makes it so tricky to get into these blogs...so frustrating.