I woke after Nap-fu practice, buttered a bread roll and poured a half pint of chilled sparkling mineral water. As I settled in front of the PC to read the news, I was shocked. I read “Elvis Presley private parts for sale”. As the fog of sleep lifted, I reread, because I couldn’t believe it… The headline was actually “Elvis Presley private jets for sale”.
Having recovered from that shock, let’s move along.
The temperature yesterday reached freakin-hotºC (that’s 41ºC) or intolerably-hotºF. The thermal sensation 50ºC, we were melting. I set up my private cachoeira (waterfall) by putting the hose through the tiles on top of the fence, borrowed a chair from the botequim and sat under the cascading water to drink my beer. Whenever I vacated the chair, the neighbours two girls took advantage, as well as their dad.
About 4pm we (neighbours and I) set up the BBQ and had grilled salmon, pork ribs, pork belly strips, liver and garlic bread for a late afternoon snack.
By the end of that, I was knackered, running the BBQ, the heat, the beer had all taken their toll. So it was home for the news.
I am miffed. I read the story of an English couple stranded in New York after a five day getaway before the birth of their child, who decided to make an early appearance by some weeks. They are being stung for $200,000 in hospital care, although they had insurance, it is not clear if it covers a birth.
Now, I may be wrong here. But to my mind the birth of a child is Mother Nature at work, sometimes she is unpredictable, therefore I consider this a natural emergency which shouldn’t be charged for, even by a bloody-minded stinking corporate private hospital. Childbirth should be free! We have been overtaken by our own capitalist greed. Somethings like this are just not right.
Boko Haram militants have kidnapped about 40 boys and young men in a raid on a remote village in north-eastern Nigeria. It’s time these cowardly bastards were hunted down like rabid dogs and disposed of. They claim to be Muslims, but their actions form no part of Islam.
Another headline: Most types of cancer can simply be put down to bad luck rather than risk factors such as smoking, a study suggests. This is something that I have thought for many years. From my own family’s experience… Both my grandfathers smoked and drank heavily from the age of about 14, they died at 90 & 92, neither from cancer nor heart problems, rather from natural causes. On the other hand, my father who neither smoked nor drank had heart problems at 59 and died of a stroke at 73. My thoughts have been that you either have cancerous genes, or as this report suggests, cancerous genes can mutate, or not. Lifetyles such as smoking or drinking may exacerbate them.
Now the weather today is much more reasonable, cloudy with the prospect of rain. Still sweating here, but not like yesterday.
It’s 1pm, time to check the botequim. Nothing is planned for the day, another day in which I fully expect to be a successful.
Later.
That is one expensive baby.
It’s true, some people can smoke forever and not have health side effects from it. But I think if one smokes, the likelihood of being affected negatively by it is probable. Out of all my friends whose dads have died, they all smoked. One got lung cancer at 35 and died a couple years later. The rest died at 50-60 mostly from some sort of cancer. The ones who aren’t smoking are still alive.
Great ‘to do’ list. I can make many of those beforehand for future purposes. Would you consider yourself a failure if your ‘to do list’ had ‘nothing’ but you ended up being busy the whole day?
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>MrJohnson, I would say possible rather than probable. I am careful to avoid naming a day a nothing day if there is the remotest possibility that I could do something other than relax and drink beer. Working here at the PC doesn’t count, that’s not ‘doing’ something, that’s love. 🙂
AV
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Yup 41′ C that feels like 50′ C is tough. We are having a snow storm here today.
A Canadian couple went to Hawaii. She went into early labour and of course had to deliver early. The Child had problems because it was premature. Now this couple is facing a bill of $1,000,000.00.Their insurance won’t cover it because it was a preexisting condition. This baby is even more expensive.
As for cancer, well it really is bad luck. Not sure I would go for the cure, it could kill you before the cancer does.
Leslie
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>Leslie, snow, that’s nasty stuff. Wow, that is an expensive baby. The good news is that the English couple have been assured of no costs. Yes, there are some things where the cure is worse than the disease.
AV
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You are right, snow is very nasty stuff and it will turn to freezing rain tonight. Hopefully we won’t have to shovel it.
They are giving the Canadian couple a hard time. There is no way they can pay that kind of money.
Leslie
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Apparently the English couple won’t have to face the impossible task of paying for the hospital stay. I read this yesterday: ” But now the hospital is said to be liasing with insurers to make sure they do not have to foot a six-figure medical bill.”
The US medical care system is unbelievable. I have a friend who lived there. She developed a brain tumour, and she and her husband lost their home, their business and ultimately their marriage over the darn hospital bills.
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>Yvonne, yes I read that an hour or so after I posted. Yes, the Americans know how to make you bleed.
AV
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I guess this is a by-product of Obamacare. They only care if you can afford to pay the bill.
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>Andrew, a bit like mind over matter ‘we don’t mind, you don’t matter…’ 🙂
AV
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Hot for you and below freezing for most nights here in Colchester, UK.
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>Alex, I’d rather have the hot 🙂
AV
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