Well then folks how time flies, we are at the end of October so we must be two months away from Christmas!
All Hallows Evening has passed, when apparently, the veil between worlds is at its thinnest!
Have you ever seen a ghost? I have seen some strange things in my time, but I can’t say that I have seen a ghost, however I wouldn’t knock those who said they have.
I certainly believe that if somebody does the same thing every day in the same place, at the same time that will leave some sort of “imprint” in what we call reality, and possibly the echoes of this action might explain what we think of as ghosts, or in French “Fantoms”.
For instance, a man walking his dog every evening at 6 o’clock round the same route for several years. I would be more surprised if we didn’t see this performance shown again as a kind of projection for years to come.
I also believe that if a powerfully emotive event, good or bad, occurs at a location that can imprint itself into the surrounding environment, be it a house, garden or wood etc.
As a man of Science and Engineering I am more likely to be a cynic and a sceptic of paranormal tales and more often than not I enjoy “debunking” reports with a paranormal angle as I know that 99% are fake or reported in error.
Its that 1% that interests me.
I’m not a great fan of Sigmund Freud, I think he had an anal fascination that that went far and above what was necessary. However, sometimes he did come up with the odd little gem, and I think he hit the nail bang on the head though with the this:
Sometimes, the ghost is a cat.
Sometimes, the ghost is a dog.
And sometimes, the ghost is a ghost.
Anyway, Bonfire Night is up next and its funny how this has now been overtaken by Halloween, Its not difficult to see why as Halloween is much more marketable than Guy Fawkes with loads of accessories like plastic capes and vampire teeth. It also appears throughout cinema both sides of the Atlantic so that helps to keep the ball rolling along with “Trick or Treat”.
Bonfire Night must be a nightmare for the Security Services, God knows how many plots are worked on by pathetic anti-everything groups.
And it must be said that most Brits would like and support the treatment handed out to Guido Fawkes who was a terrorist: Hung, Drawn and quartered with his head on a spike on London Bridge at Traitors Gate.
In the Barrett Clan however, we always have a bonfire and a few fireworks for our family around November the 5th.
And where has Ted been this month? Well how about Bristol, Eastbourne, Crawley, Southampton, Winchester, Luton, Brackley, Bedford and Worcester.
November can be one of my favourite months, this is when leaves start to turn beautiful colours and frosty days through forests can be really magical.
But make no mistake. I prefer summer. I hate the rain. I don’t need it to be hot, Just please take the fecking rain away it makes everything miserable.
My regular readers will know however, that the period after Christmas is my least favourite time. This is when I start to pine for the three S’s – Sun, Sand and Sangria (what else would there be?).
If I’m not careful, I will descend into that long, dark “teatime of the soul” in January, cos I definitely get that SAD wotsits, I wonder if I can get a few months in Spain on the NHS?
I wonder how my alter-ego, that swash-buckling adventurer version of me would deal with the “Winter Blues”? I suppose it doesn’t really bother him cos he’ll probably be prospecting for diamonds or opals in Australia where I don’t think they really have a “winter”, it probably just stops being red hot and pisses down with rain for a couple of weeks.
Whatever the weather is doing, he’ll probably be the life and soul of the party in some wild outback bar leading them all in “Waltzing Matilda” and regaling them with tales of fortunes lost (and found). He’s so bloody jammy, he’s very likely to trip over a lump of gold into the arms of some sensational Sheila who owns 500 square miles of Australia.
For my “Gourmet” food review this month I am going to look at the lower end of the scale and report on my findings… In McDonalds in Eastbourne at the Admiral Retail Park they lost my order so had to put it through the system again, a total wait time of 30 minutes, when it eventually appeared my meal was so flat and dry I could have used it as a discus. And the tomato sauce was like battery acid. I will not be back to that particular McDs again in a hurry.
My next breakfast at Eastbourne was at Tescos in the same retail park as McDonalds but this I could thoroughly recommend, It was a bit more expensive than McDs but was pretty much worth it (although I thought a hash brown in with the bacon roll was a bit odd).
When you are staying in a hotel that doesn’t provide breakfast there aren’t many places you can go at 7 o’clock in the morning for breakfast so sometimes McDonalds can be a lifesaver. And usually the standard is consistently good.
When I am training at Millbrook Proving Ground just outside Bedford I stay at a Travelodge in the middle of nowhere at a place called Marston Mortaine. It is a real truckers pitstop and certainly not for those of a genteel disposition. However, its saving grace is a Greggs right next to the service station. And the morning symphony of a Greggs Bacon roll with tomato sauce and pepper accompanied by a large cappuccino, to quote Bertie Wooster is “Sheer Ambrosia Jeeves”.
With regard to my new electric pushbike, I think its bloody marvellous, its just the job for going between my house and my daughter’s house on the back roads, but I wouldn’t like to ride ANY pushbike on the main road cos I don’t like riding in the gutter and I’ve got a healthy respect for vehicles that are bigger than me.
For two wheels on a main road I prefer my motorbike.
However, for the electrical engineers amongst my readers you will realise that batteries need to have a fairly constant Charge/Discharge cycle. So unless I took my electric bike out for a fairly long spin every month it wouldn’t be long before the battery starts to malfunction. I will show how I built a discharge rig/load bank in my next report (and if it bloody worked at all).
Adios for now muchachas and remember to keep your powder dry until you need it.