Runnin On Empty-Wind Beneath My Things

Some will know that I’m  fond of the odd prank or two, and the night before the Windy weather began I went down the garden path as usual and opened the gate into the woods to feed some of the woodland animals, it was only five o’clock, but with the nights drawing in it was already dark.      

And It was there I had my comedic lightbulb moment. But first let me explain ….Many years ago my mother saw a Puma in the woods at the back of our house & due to it being a Sunday Morning and the park filled with children playing, she called the police but they didn’t take it seriously and were asking if she’d been drinking etc. However, just a few weeks later sightings of the Puma started being reported all around the country, & since then I’ve always joked that one of these times, I’m going to go feed the animals and end up being eaten by a huge black panther……now hold that thought.

I could see mum was busy watching telly, so leaving the garden gate wide open, I took one of my trainers off and threw it on the path and then hopped over the garden to hide behind the garage and wait. Sure enough I heard the back door open and the sound of her voice calling me……silence…..she called again…….silence.  Then she went and put her shoes on and started coming down the path where through the darkness she spotted the open gate and my lone trainer and then WAAAAAAAAAAAA!  Which was cue for me to hop out “Ta Da?”  It was safe to say she wasn’t amused.

The next night the winds came up, ripping through the bungee cord holding our bin upright sending it flying along with all its contents. I felt like an Orangutan trying not to be blown over while trying to gather up the airbourne rubbish from our neighbourhood. Just got back to the house when from the back garden came THUD! ..Yes the back fence had collapsed, there was nothing I could do about it so I headed back into the house, but a gust of wind blew the door shut just as I was walking in & severed my lower arm…okay so not severed exactly but its a multitude of  wounded colours . The moral of the story &  note to self?   You are not 12, your pranks never end well &  Karma has a way of getting you in the end. 

Moving onto Gizmo/Gadget/Gift of the week, & first up  for all you dog lovers is this talking bow tie  that comes with a remote control for its owner. Imagine the fun as your pooch approaches your guests to ask “Does my breath smell?” or “Look deeply into my eyes and hand over the biscuit”  and four other phrases….I should just point out  for all the females reading this that there’s nothing on the box that states you can’t attach it to your husband/Boyfriend if you prefer, available at Find Me A Gift for £13.99 

http://www.findmeagift.co.uk/gifts/talking-bow-tie-for-dogs.html

Next up from the Gifts Company comes this IBed tablet  tray  £9.99 a great accessory for those with an IPad that like perusing under the covers with a coffee and a plate of food, The IBed can hold it all. Available in a number of colours from:

http://www.gifts.co.uk/ibed-tablet-lap-desk.html

In ME news it’s so exciting to see this major shift occurring and more and more celebrities stepping up and willing to be counted in our fight not only to educate people about the seriousness of the illness but also for research , a universal diagnostic test and eventually a cure. Recently we’ve had Ruby Wax, Jenny Éclair, John Challis (Boycie) Pete bennet, Paul Manners, & the X-factors Steve Ritchie getting involved with the Chilli ME Challenge, you can watch Steve taking the challenge himself over on his Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TheSteviRitchie/videos/1645480475721513/?fref=nf             

& just the other week lead singer with Belle & Sebastien & also writer, director & filmmaker Stuart Murdoch left a message in the “Lets Do It For ME” guestbook. Stuart has spoken openly in radio interviews about his own battle with M.E  & you can read more about it here: http://ldifme.org/message-from-stuart-murdoch/

While I consider myself a fairly tough cookie, I could cry with appreciation, having spent decades battling a devastating physical illness, we’ve had to contend with a barrage of abuse from an ignorant media, treated as lepers, branded lazy & liars, constantly fighting ignorance, prejudice & injustice, & seeing fellow sufferers unable to take anymore commit suicide.

In the early years I spent many a frightened time cowering behind closed doors aware the worlds perception of M.E was that of Victorian times, My story is similar to most, that every doctor, hospital I sought for help tried to convince me that I was going crazy, eager to lock me up, & pump me full of drugs. Thankfully I was sane enough to fight my corner and insist they were wrong. I’m certain that one day just like other illnesses once branded hysteria, M.E will sit side by side with Cancer, MS, Epilepsy, Heart disease etc I’m also certain that day is drawing nearer & every celebrity that has the courage to come forward with their own story, every celebrity that offers to help and show support in our battle no matter how small are helping us to change medical history & it doesn’t come bigger than that.

In local news, this week saw the opening of the German Christmas Market in Watford, complete with wooden chalets selling festive treats, and a beautiful Carousel, all open til 10pm…absolutely wonderful but all slightly bittersweet, knowing that some of the regular market holders that served our town for many years in the old unit, have since moving to the new units, gone bust & lost their livelihood, The majority of Watfordians knew the Market and its community spirit would not survive  this move as it was the wrong place to put it, but as usual nobody wants to listen until its too late. 

                                   Til Next Week, Stay Blessed

                                       Back Before Elvis X      

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