life

20:26:54 o'clock BST
Feeling Sad

A young life cruelly ended

I went to a funeral today. Funerals are sad enough events at the best of times but this one was especially so.

It was for the 16 year old son of a friend of mine. He had been diagnosed as diabetic many years ago and was using insulin. He was actually a very nice person and would do anything to help others. He worked hard at school and put in extra work for maths as he thought it was his poorest subject and was eagerly awaiting his GCSE results.

Sadly he never lived long enoughto see the results. About 10 days ago he cotracted a stomach bug and was being sick a lot. Aparently at some stage he had been told that if he was being sick he had to repeat the insulin treatment which he did. Unfortunately he had not been sick enough to bring up the first insulin dose and he sadly passed away two days later with heart failure caused by ooverdosing on insulin.

When his GCSE results came through he had achieved 14 GCSEs in the A to  C range including an A in maths.

A young life taken at an early age from a man who had the potential to go on to great things in life, why just why does life have to be so cruel.

RIP Matt

Andy

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20:40:52 o'clock BST To all my friends wha are giving me so much support

There comes a  point in your life when you realize who  matters, who never did, who  won't anymore... and who always will.   So, don't worry about people from your  past, there's a reason why they didn't  make it to your future. Give this heart  to everyone you don't want to lose in 2008,   including me, if you care.

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22:36:50 o'clock BST
Feeling Used
Hearing The Look of Love-Diana Krall

Just how well do we know people?

So Garry Glitter is a free man again. I agree very much with the comments Kirsty made about him in her journal but it set me thinking just how well do we know people?

I have been friends with someone for many years now in fact we regularly meet up for a few pints and a game of snooker or two. It was only after a couple of years that he admitted to me that he was bisexual. Not that it worried me at all he is a friend and I actually dont care what side of the bed he sleeps on.

I was working at Cannon Street in London today and at one stage was approached by a couple of gay pride activists. Each to ther own but I object to this in your face kind of attitude. Every body has the right to be happy and provided they dont hurt anybody or break the law they should be allowed to enjoy themselves.

You may gather that in recent weeks I have been in a rather strange mood and today is obviously no exception. In the last month I have lost nearly a stone in weight(no bad thing!) but my knees have been killing me, I have post chemo arthritus in both knees.

In story books the beautiful lady is swept of her feet by a handsome debonair man, now in this age of equality why has a beautiful lady not come along and swept me off my feet and taken me to the land of love and happiness.

Well I can dream cant I................

Andy

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22:55:02 o'clock BST

August 14th

Tomorrow is August 14th, yes I know it comes round every year just like Christmas really. So what is special about August 14th?

Those of you who like me are a bit long in the tooth will remember it as the day when the Marine Offences act became law. This act meant that it was illegal to work or supply or aid any of the off shore pirate radio stations. As a teenager these stations had revolutionised my radio listening. You no longer had to listen to such gems as Workers Playtime on the BBC Light Programme or put up with dodgy reception on Radio Luxembourg instead you had 24 hour music stations.

After 1967 we were blessed with Radios 1 & 2 and eventually Independant Local Radio starting with Capital in London. Eventually BBC local radio came along as well.

Ironically things have changed yet again! Certainly in Kent BBC Radio Kent offers a much more varied and ad hoc listening than the tightly playlisted ILR station which only seems to have about 30 pieces of music to its name!

It hardly seems possible that it was 41 years ago that all this started but there again I am no longer a teenager (dont tell anyone that I will reach the Heinz age in November).

Take Care

Andy

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22:38:24 o'clock BST

Thanks

Just a quick thank you to those of you who replied to my last entry- your support was very much apreciated.

Andy

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00:00:40 o'clock BST

To much for anybody

This week has been to much for me.

The most sleep I have had any night is two hours and enough is enough.

If there was any doubt about the decision I am about to make those doubts have completely gone,

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21:02:26 o'clock BST
Hearing Rising Sand-Alison Krauss and Robert Plant

Tempting fate!

I think I must be tempting fate by writing this.

Sometimes life seems boring-mundane even but thats the way it is. However every now and than something happens to make you think things are not that bad after all. Well in the last two weeks I have won the lottery twice!! OK it was only £10 each time but for a quick return on an investment of a £1 I reckon its pretty good. Maybe next time I will hit the jackpot and if I do I will send you all a pressie, in fact if its a rollover I will even pay the postage!

The other thing thats made my day today was receiving a phone call at work from a friend which made my day.

Talking of work I was at Margate today and wandered down to the sea front and had some fish and chips. They were OK but I have had better at Hastings. I also resisted the temptation to go paddling! Wont have that luxury tomorrow though, I am going to Woolwich although I could always go for a trip on the free ferry- maybe not.

On Sunday I went to a friends wedding reception at Chestfield and spent the afternoon in there garden drinking copious quantities of Pimms. Sadly the only beer they had was Fosters- which in my opinion is not beer. As it was the third time for both of them, they should of known better!

Its so hot here I have finaly dug out my shorts so if you see me close your eyes-its not a pretty site!

Take Care

Andy

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22:31:31 o'clock BST
Feeling Cranky

Back to normal-whatever that is!

No more bizzare stories from the Metro today but if you are missing your daily vist go to www.metro.co.uk and catch up there.

Anyway about this island I am so pleased with the number of people interested we could start our own comunity although I think I may be a bit past the free love thing man! There again no reasonable offer refused. As for the actual island at the moment I have no specific location in mind. It would be nice maybe to go somewhere feudal like Sark in the Channel Islands where there is absolutely no duty what so ever on any thing, so Barry you will be ok for your brandy.

For those who dont know Sark it is one of the smaller islands that make up the Baliwick of Guernsey and can only be reached by ship from St Peter Port. Once there there is no motor traffic and the only way to get around the island is by horse and carriage, cycling or walking. All very peaceful and the rule of the land is that handed down by the Signeur. There is one policeman on the whole island and he is only part time and with a crime rate of 0% he is not overworked. I am lucky in that the ferry route to Guernsey from Weymouth is a former British Rail one and I get a discount on the crossing by Condor Ferries fast ferry, otherwise its an expensive bit of water to cross. By the way petrol in Guernsey is aproximately half the price it is here but there road traffic law is different to the UK.

I would love to put some pictures on here but all those I have are on 35ml slides and I cant find an easy way to put them on to the computer. In fact the only way I have found by searching on line is to use a special lens adaptor on my digital camera, inserting the slides one by one and taking individual pictures. As I have several thousand slides thiscould become rather a long term project-unless of course you know a better way.

I suppose you could always pop round some time and we could have a 1970s slide evening!

Someone asked me the other day what my typical work day was and the simple answer is I dont have a typical day. Today for example I was up at 4.45 to get to the station to catch the 6.00am train to Crowhurst changing at Otford, Sevenoaks and Tonbridge to arrive there at 08.15. Left there at 09.20 changing at Hastings and Ashford finally getting home at 12.30 which left me an hour to do the report and associated paperwork. Going to Bromley in the morning which is a later start and a direct service so cuts down on the travelling. Thank god for my trusty MP3 player.

On a final note a new shop is opening in Maidstone soon called The Mountain Warehouse and I am fighting the temptation to pop in and ask for an Everest with a couple of Himalayas thrown in.

Take Care

Andy

 

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23:48:39 o'clock BST

Yes the world has gone mad!

Thanks to Kirsty http://journals.aol.co.uk/ksme30s/WillPower/ for her comments in her journal about my last entry. I can assure you that you are spot on when you said that the country is going mad.

The Metro is not a local paper but is a freebie published by the Daily Mail in London and other large cities. The following day it carried a story about DNA proving positive on a mans underwear proving that he had sex with a sheep!!!!!!!! All this happening in affluent Chislehurst about 10 miles from Charing Cross. I am sorry I dont need to know this kind of sordid information and certainly dont expect to read about in the paper. I know I am broadminded but this is revolting.

The other thing that has proved that the world has gone mad was an obituary notice in this weeks Kent Messenger that gave details of the wake after the funeral as being held at the local Chinese restaurant with the added information that you could get all you could eat for £5.50!!

Still I am finally catching up with some sleep but still wake up before 5 every morning with the sun shining through the window and the sound of bird song so feel I am fighting a losing battle-oh for a good 8 hours kip.

With all these things going on I am really contemplating running of to an uninhabited island somewhere nice and warm. Care to join me and we can have a civilised life-well this is your invite. RSVP

Anyway dont forget to look at Kirstys journal, it never fails to raise a smile, http://journals.aol.co.uk/ksme30s/WillPower/

See you on the island

Andy

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22:06:45 o'clock BST

As it is!!!

I am all in favour of newspapers printing attention seeking headlines and indeed there are good reasons to do it.

However the headline in todays Metro made me stop and do a double take. It was 'The real dangers of a casual shag' It was actually an article about sexually transmitted diseases but important as it is I honestly dont think it merited bold headlines on the front page. However going by the looks on peoples faces as they took a copy the message must of got through.

Only a brief entry tonight, I was called out to a break in at a station at 03.45 this morning and I am lookinfg forward to a shower and my bed.

Take care

Andy

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