IS the pollen count lower this year as I don’t seem to be suffering as much from hay fever?
Around June I normally get horrendous hay fever and I think it is linked to the tree pollen.
It results in a runny nose, sore eyes and a dry throat. Although this year I don’t seem to have had those symptoms yet. But I don’t want to tempt fate.
Will Andy Murray this year become the first British tennis player since Fred Perry to win a singles grand slam?
His form since losing to Roger Federer in the Australian Open has been mixed, so the chances of him winning must be slighter than last year.
He lost in the last 16 at The French Open, but I think his best opportunity is at The US Open because that is his favourite tournament.
Meanwhile, one of Alfred Hitchcock’s finest films was shown last Tuesday afternoon on Channel 4. Although I missed it.
Psycho and The Birds may be more famous, but North by Northwest I think is more gripping.
First it has one of the most famous scenes in the film – the one where Cary Grant is being shot as from a crop-dusting plane.
And secondly it is action packed and has a cracking storyline with many twists and turns to boot.
Saturday, 5 June 2010
Monday, 17 May 2010
One lucky EuroMillions winner
The winner of Friday’s £84m EuroMillions jackpot has yet to be made public.
If one person has won the prize they will have almost as much money as the singer Robbie Williams and Rolling Stone Charlie Watts. And they would be 789th on the list.
The winning numbers were 1, 17, 31, 43, 47 and the Lucky Star numbers were 2 and 3.
Lottery operators - Camelot - said that the millions could be in the winner’s account by today (Monday).
The last big winners of the EuroMillions were a man from Cirencester who shared £113m with a Spanish winner.
Research done in Toronto and published in The Sunday Times has showed that youngsters who learn to lie at an early age have better developed brains and therefore could end up at the top of the pile.
They believe lying uses many brain processes, for example combining sources of information and using the knowledge for their own gains.
The study looked at 1,200 children, from the ages of 2-16.
According to the study the most deceitful age was 12.
Meanwhile, The Monaco Grand Prix - where sport meets glamour - was held on Sunday.
This is the most colourful venue on the Grand Prix circuit. It is also very gruelling for the drivers as there is little room for manoeuvre on the circuit.
It is held at the same time as the Cannes Film Festival, so a handful of A-list celebrities are guaranteed to be walking the pit lane before the race.
If one person has won the prize they will have almost as much money as the singer Robbie Williams and Rolling Stone Charlie Watts. And they would be 789th on the list.
The winning numbers were 1, 17, 31, 43, 47 and the Lucky Star numbers were 2 and 3.
Lottery operators - Camelot - said that the millions could be in the winner’s account by today (Monday).
The last big winners of the EuroMillions were a man from Cirencester who shared £113m with a Spanish winner.
Research done in Toronto and published in The Sunday Times has showed that youngsters who learn to lie at an early age have better developed brains and therefore could end up at the top of the pile.
They believe lying uses many brain processes, for example combining sources of information and using the knowledge for their own gains.
The study looked at 1,200 children, from the ages of 2-16.
According to the study the most deceitful age was 12.
Meanwhile, The Monaco Grand Prix - where sport meets glamour - was held on Sunday.
This is the most colourful venue on the Grand Prix circuit. It is also very gruelling for the drivers as there is little room for manoeuvre on the circuit.
It is held at the same time as the Cannes Film Festival, so a handful of A-list celebrities are guaranteed to be walking the pit lane before the race.
Monday, 10 May 2010
Waiting for a compromise
THIS year’s general election was more gripping than those of 2005, 2001 and 1997.
In the last three elections Labour returned to power with a convincing majority.
But this year no-one was sure how the result would go. However it was predicted that a hung parliament was a distinct possibility.
So I am astounded that no party had made any plans for that result.
David Cameron, Nick Clegg and Gordon Brown should have each put together an action plan, in case there was a hung parliament.
Labour and the Lib Dems could have talked about what they would do in the event of a hung parliament and the Tories-Lib-Dems done the same.
This would have prevented the state of limbo we are currently going through. The result was known on Friday and a government has not been formed yet. How long will it take for a conclusion to be reached?
There are many issues that need to be resolved in the country and a government must be found sooner rather than later. We can’t afford to waste more time.
Meanwhile, I was very disappointed that Liverpool finished in seventh place in this year’s Premier League, below Man City, Aston Villa and Tottenham.
That’s another season gone without any silverware.
Something must now be done to try and reverse the fortunes of this great club.
In the last three elections Labour returned to power with a convincing majority.
But this year no-one was sure how the result would go. However it was predicted that a hung parliament was a distinct possibility.
So I am astounded that no party had made any plans for that result.
David Cameron, Nick Clegg and Gordon Brown should have each put together an action plan, in case there was a hung parliament.
Labour and the Lib Dems could have talked about what they would do in the event of a hung parliament and the Tories-Lib-Dems done the same.
This would have prevented the state of limbo we are currently going through. The result was known on Friday and a government has not been formed yet. How long will it take for a conclusion to be reached?
There are many issues that need to be resolved in the country and a government must be found sooner rather than later. We can’t afford to waste more time.
Meanwhile, I was very disappointed that Liverpool finished in seventh place in this year’s Premier League, below Man City, Aston Villa and Tottenham.
That’s another season gone without any silverware.
Something must now be done to try and reverse the fortunes of this great club.
Sunday, 2 May 2010
Turning back the clock
IT will be interesting to see what will happen when The Times and The Sunday Times begin to charge for online content from June.
To be able to read an online article in those papers from June you will have to pay a week’s subscription for £2, or a day’s access for £1.
The decision was made last August by Rupert Murdoch, the chairman and chief executive of News Corporation. It was decided to go down this route because advertising revenues are falling.
When the change is made, it is uncertain what the consequences will be.
Will people decide not to pay to read news on these sites, because they can go to other avenues which don’t charge? Or will readers pay to log onto The Times and The Sunday Times?
It may mean that people decide to buy the paper instead of accessing their news by the internet and it could lead to an increase in sales? Who knows?
Meanwhile, snooker’s veteran Steve Davis, 52, turned back the clock to beat the sport’s world number one, John Higgins, at The Crucible in Sheffield. He outfought Higgins and took the match 13-11.
Davis was playing in his 30th World Championships and last won the event in 1989. He has six World titles.
Although the 52-year-old lost last Tuesday to Australia’s Neil Robertson.
To be able to read an online article in those papers from June you will have to pay a week’s subscription for £2, or a day’s access for £1.
The decision was made last August by Rupert Murdoch, the chairman and chief executive of News Corporation. It was decided to go down this route because advertising revenues are falling.
When the change is made, it is uncertain what the consequences will be.
Will people decide not to pay to read news on these sites, because they can go to other avenues which don’t charge? Or will readers pay to log onto The Times and The Sunday Times?
It may mean that people decide to buy the paper instead of accessing their news by the internet and it could lead to an increase in sales? Who knows?
Meanwhile, snooker’s veteran Steve Davis, 52, turned back the clock to beat the sport’s world number one, John Higgins, at The Crucible in Sheffield. He outfought Higgins and took the match 13-11.
Davis was playing in his 30th World Championships and last won the event in 1989. He has six World titles.
Although the 52-year-old lost last Tuesday to Australia’s Neil Robertson.
Sunday, 18 April 2010
Mickelson a worthy winner
ALTHOUGH I wanted Lee Westwood to win, I thought Phil Mickelson was a worthy champion at this year’s Masters.
Phil Mickelson had started the final round one shot behind the Englishman, but finished with an overall score of 272 as opposed to Lee Westwood’s 275.
This was Mickelson’s third green jacket as he took the title in 2004 and 2006.
One of the highlights for me was the shot Mickelson hit from the trees at the 13th onto the green.
For Westwood it was another major gone where he had an opportunity. In the last three he has now finished third, third and now second. Surely his time will come soon.
It was good to see Tiger Woods back again playing competitive golf after his five month absence.
Although he looked far from happy with his game, Woods still finished fourth. He could be seen often taking one hand off the club in the follow through and his facial expressions showed he was far from pleased.
His three-putt from six feet on the 14th green was uncharacteristic though.
I thought the event was covered well by the BBC.
Hazel Irvine proved to be a good presenter and Peter Alliss was his usual quirky self.
I am sure that the event finished earlier and I remember in the past that the winning putt used to be sunk well after 12am, compared with this year when the tournament ended at 12am.
Meanwhile, I found the first televised leaders’ debate a bit of a turn-off. There were no real confrontations between the politicians and it would be good to see more audience participation.
Phil Mickelson had started the final round one shot behind the Englishman, but finished with an overall score of 272 as opposed to Lee Westwood’s 275.
This was Mickelson’s third green jacket as he took the title in 2004 and 2006.
One of the highlights for me was the shot Mickelson hit from the trees at the 13th onto the green.
For Westwood it was another major gone where he had an opportunity. In the last three he has now finished third, third and now second. Surely his time will come soon.
It was good to see Tiger Woods back again playing competitive golf after his five month absence.
Although he looked far from happy with his game, Woods still finished fourth. He could be seen often taking one hand off the club in the follow through and his facial expressions showed he was far from pleased.
His three-putt from six feet on the 14th green was uncharacteristic though.
I thought the event was covered well by the BBC.
Hazel Irvine proved to be a good presenter and Peter Alliss was his usual quirky self.
I am sure that the event finished earlier and I remember in the past that the winning putt used to be sunk well after 12am, compared with this year when the tournament ended at 12am.
Meanwhile, I found the first televised leaders’ debate a bit of a turn-off. There were no real confrontations between the politicians and it would be good to see more audience participation.
Tuesday, 13 April 2010
Locked in!
I couldn’t believe it last week when I was locked inside the bank!
It was on my day off and I was in town and had paid a visit to the bank.
I was just about to leave the premises when a chain was put across the door and all customers were told they could not leave the building.
No members of the public were allowed in the building either.
From what I observed, it looked like a cash delivery was being made to the bank and the front door was shut for security measures.
Obviously these deliveries have to be made, as they are essential for the running of a bank, but customers should be given prior notice before the front door is shut.
It was annoying that this had happened, as I only had a few minutes left on my car park ticket at the supermarket and if I had exceeded that I would have had to pay a large fee.
That leads me on to another point, why is there nowhere to park for free in town centres these days?
Pay and display must bring in a large income for councils, but what about the shopper?
Could there not be areas in the town centre where shoppers could park for free?
If you visit town by car and use the pay and display, you are always looking at the clock, because you know if you are slightly over you will be faced with a parking ticket and a hefty fine.
No wonder people are flocking to the supermarkets, which offer a range of goods under one roof and free parking.
It was on my day off and I was in town and had paid a visit to the bank.
I was just about to leave the premises when a chain was put across the door and all customers were told they could not leave the building.
No members of the public were allowed in the building either.
From what I observed, it looked like a cash delivery was being made to the bank and the front door was shut for security measures.
Obviously these deliveries have to be made, as they are essential for the running of a bank, but customers should be given prior notice before the front door is shut.
It was annoying that this had happened, as I only had a few minutes left on my car park ticket at the supermarket and if I had exceeded that I would have had to pay a large fee.
That leads me on to another point, why is there nowhere to park for free in town centres these days?
Pay and display must bring in a large income for councils, but what about the shopper?
Could there not be areas in the town centre where shoppers could park for free?
If you visit town by car and use the pay and display, you are always looking at the clock, because you know if you are slightly over you will be faced with a parking ticket and a hefty fine.
No wonder people are flocking to the supermarkets, which offer a range of goods under one roof and free parking.
Monday, 5 April 2010
Benefits of chocolate
THERE were two interesting studies in the papers last week.
The first of these could be seen on Tuesday and was about chocolate, while the second was published on Thursday and was about diet.
According to Dr Brian Buijsse, a bar of chocolate a day can cut your risk of heart disease by 39%.
Dr Buijsse said dark chocolate was better than milk as it contained greater amounts of antioxidants, which are good for beating cancer. He added dark bars also have more cocoa, believed to be good for blood pressure and the health of the heart.
A total of 30,000 people were used in the study of Dr Buijsse and he carried it out over an eight year period.
He found that even a small chocolate square can help and the optimum weight was 50g, comparable to a Wispa bar.
It was good to see a study that showed the benefits of chocolate, especially to a chocoholic like me.
I found the second study slightly more surprising.
In it scientists in America found that bacon for breakfast was healthier than muesli or fruit.
They carried out their study on mice and saw that eating fatty food in the morning led to the mice's metabolism starting earlier, which in turn meant they snacked less in the day.
The first of these could be seen on Tuesday and was about chocolate, while the second was published on Thursday and was about diet.
According to Dr Brian Buijsse, a bar of chocolate a day can cut your risk of heart disease by 39%.
Dr Buijsse said dark chocolate was better than milk as it contained greater amounts of antioxidants, which are good for beating cancer. He added dark bars also have more cocoa, believed to be good for blood pressure and the health of the heart.
A total of 30,000 people were used in the study of Dr Buijsse and he carried it out over an eight year period.
He found that even a small chocolate square can help and the optimum weight was 50g, comparable to a Wispa bar.
It was good to see a study that showed the benefits of chocolate, especially to a chocoholic like me.
I found the second study slightly more surprising.
In it scientists in America found that bacon for breakfast was healthier than muesli or fruit.
They carried out their study on mice and saw that eating fatty food in the morning led to the mice's metabolism starting earlier, which in turn meant they snacked less in the day.
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