Hazel goes "gay"

The gloves are off! Hazel and I are entering the same categories in the Prestatyn flower show on Friday! On the surface it is just some friendly rivalry but both of us are out to win, especially as we have both entered the dreaded "granny's basket" category, who no-one ever enters. She is going classy I am going Kat Kitson..................watch this space.

Clapham Junction

During the 12 months to January 2006, apparently the Metropolitan Police dealt with 1,359 incidents of homophobic hate crime, a rise of 120 since the last available statistics, this fact coupled with the tragic homophobic murder of 24-year-old Jody Dobrowski on Clapham Common in 2005, was the obvious inspiration for Channel four's drama Clapham Junction (2007), Writer Kevin Elyot paints a rather bleak of gay life in London, with a whole set of generally unlikable gay (and straight) characters who car crash together during the murder of an innocent young gay waiter in Clapham common.

I am sure that Elyot does not want to act in any way, as a PR agent for gay communities, and wants to show the "reality" of the problem how he sees it, but the whole film is beset with a somewhat unrelenting misery and sadness which does not feel quite right, well at least not to me.

We have negative stereotypes of the non monogamous "married" gay professional, closet gay psychopath,closet gay married guy, and most damaging ( and unconvincing of all) a gay pedophile (Joseph Mawle pic) who is seduced by a fourteen year old boy; but to be fair I suppose, the straight characters were just as bad and cardboard in their characterisations (overbearing mother who equates paedophilia with being gay, embittered wife of the closeted hubby).

Now I know like most stereotypes, they actually DO exist, and perhaps are more recognisable to the gay scenes in Kevin Elyot's life, but I found the whole story so uneven, I just didn't believe in most of the protagonists . The audience has to believe in the characters , whether it is a positive or negative way in order to engage with the messages within the narrative, and that didn't happen, which is sad as this film could have been a whole lot better.

Having said that, I think some points were made well, ie smashing the idea that teenage boys cannot be predatory in gay issues and Rupert Graves' portrayal of a middle aged single gay man who is content with his singleton existence but who faces homophobic idiocy during an "educated" dinner party, was particulary strong.
But the main thrust of the drama was the idea that attitudes and behaviour towards gay men have not significently changed for the better as Elyot indeed states :-

“While there seems to be a greater acceptance of gays in society…homophobic violence has not disappeared. Bigotry is still bubbling just below the surface and sometimes in the most surprising quarters.”

Perhaps I am lucky....I don't often see this bigotry in my everyday life and perhaps it is important to be reminded that to some, it is always there and is all very real.

Chicken run number 2 in on line

I have now two runs up and running (so to speak), and thank god for a brief break in the weather this morning, as this has allowed me to to get the grass removed and 50 metres of electric fencing set up clean and true!. The new run will allow me to move the girls from used land to clean, but will also allow me to set up a small flock of Buff Orphington layers, (pic) which are a little less robust than my original girls! and allow me to get a few of the Indian runner ducks I have always wanted.
Chris is still withdrawing from nicotine and doing very well, although he feels rather out of sorts! He is lying prostrate on the couch in his pajamas at the moment looking somewhat like a heroine out of an Emile Zola novel.. ......courage Camille!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here's to giving up!

Today Chris is starting on the roller coaster ride of giving up the fags! He has managed to give up before and has done exceedingly well but this last lapse has been the most difficult for him to overcome.

As a non smoker I find it difficult it understand the cravings and mood swings of withdrawal, so I am steeling myself for long periods of biting lips and eggshell walking. Having said that I would gladly watch Miss Marple every night if he would give up, as I have always hated smoking with a desperate vengeance. My parents were chain smokers of the 1970 sort. They lived, breathed and worshiped cigarettes at a time that no-one understood the effects of tobacco smoke on the human body, let alone the effects it had on a family of passive smokers. My sister grew up with a chronic respiratory problems because of them, the walls always smelt of dirty pubs and looked magnolia when they were actually painted white and both parents died prematurely of smoking related conditions; no, I have never been a fan of the dreaded cigarette.

I know Chris will succeed in giving up because he is focused and successful in most things that he sets his mind to! That is one of his talents. Well here's hoping!!!!!

Home...high and wet

Victoria station, like the rest of the UK was flooded this morning on our way back to Wales. I was surprised but we made it back in six hours with only one fairly short delay, which could have been a lot worse given the misery many had to put up with today. Arreva Trains , I must admit put on a particularly disgusting set of carriages for us to stand up in when travelling from Crewe to Prestatyn. It was so dirty,run down and crowded, I am sure it wouldn't have looked out of place in the film North West Frontier (1959)

The dogs were all totally knackered when I picked them up from the kennels, and in a touching display of affection Meg is now welded to my thigh and sleeping her first sleep in five days.

Broadstairs was a nice sunny break and as always it was great to catch up with Sorrel, but like the queen of all queen's Judy Garland always said "There's no place like home!"

I have experienced facebook, the other day, when a friend e mailed me with a"want to join facebook?" invitation. Haven't a clue how it all works, but it does look a bit too geeky (hum even for me) to join in full time

pacing

The picture just about sums it all up. If you go to a beach daily, you assume a certain pace to life. Sit, sweat,drink coffee,read, sleep and watch; all very relaxing! I think I have got into the way of it all rather quicker than Chris, who has been suffering today with the heat and humidity.( and a burnt forehead)
The beach was rather quiet today which was bliss, yesterday afternoon was a tad of an ordeal as several
thousand ten year olds from inner city London ( well at least several hundred of them at least), descended on the sands with a score of harassed looking 17 year old teachers!
Tonight we are off to Chris' brother for dinner and last night were fed and watered by Duncan and Izzy
chris' nephew Leo (pic) is a sweet little chap who resembles the cute looking Milky Bar Kid. I know I am hovering around my usual Grumpy old man status when I say that I find him very sweet and very polite! which does make a refreahing change nowadays!

Holiday weather

Apologies for the bad photo (taken by phone) but it sort of illustrates how lovely the weather has been today. Spent the day on the beach and although Chris was nursing badly burned feet in the shade, Sorrel ( looking remarkably like Farrah Fawcett- Majors) and I sat in the glorious sunshine.

I cannot really remember how long it has been since I have read books uninterrupted in the sunshine and have been battling all day with 102 Minutes by Jim Dwyer and Kevin Flynn. The book is a meticulous and unrelievedly tense chronicle of the events of 9/11 from the perspective of the office workers from the Twin Towers, and is at times terribly upsetting reading. I have made myself quite depressed by it all!

Anyhow on a lighter note I saw from the news this morning that prestatyn suffered a disaster of its own,,albeit a small one. A flash flood shot through the high street spilling raw sewerage into Woolworths (I would have paid to see that) Janet reported that it was all pretty exciting! but at least all the hens are ok and not affected!

Cruel but funny

Recieved this e mail from an old work mate in Sheffield, very funny...enjoy

>>Please give generously to those less fortunate! Major floods hit North >>Britain... Epicentre: Rotherham, England News of the disaster was swiftly >>carried abroad by the town's 35,000 racing pigeons, as victims were seen >>wandering around aimlessly muttering 'fookinhell' and 'chuffinnorah'.>>The flood decimated the town, causing almost £30 worth of damage. Several >priceless collections of mementos from the Balearic Isles and the Spanish >Costas were damaged beyond repair. Three areas of historic burnt out cars >were ruined.>>Many locals were woken well before their Giro arrived. Radio station >RotherFM reported that hundreds of residents were confused and bewildered, >still trying to come to terms with the fact that something interesting had >happened in Rotherham. One resident, 15 year old mother of 3, Tracey Sharon >Braithwaite said:>>'It were such a shock, my little lass Chardonnay-Madonna came running into >my bedroom crying. The twins, Tyler-Morgan and Megan-Storm slept through it >all. I were still shaking when I were watching Jeremy Kyle t' next >morning'.>>However, locals were determined not to be bowed, as looting, muggings and >car crime carried on as normal. So far, whilst the British Red Cross has >managed to ship 4000 crates of Sunny Delight to the area to relieve the >suffering of stricken locals, rescue workers searching through the rubble >have found large quantities of personal belongings including benefit books, >jewellery from Elizabeth Duke at Argos, and bone china from >Pound-Stretcher.>>Can You Help? Please respond generously to our appeal for food and clothing >for the victims of this disaster. Clothing is needed most of all, >especially:>>Fila or Burberry baseball caps>Kappa tracksuit tops (his / hers)>Shell suits (female)>White sports socks>Rockfort boots or any other product sold by Primark.>>Culturally sensitive food parcels are harder to put together, but your >efforts will make a difference. Microwave meals, tinned baked beans, >ice-cream and cans of Colt 45 or Special Brew are ideal. Please do not >donate anything that requires peeling.>Remember: 22p buys a biro for filling in compensation claims, £2 buys >chips, crisps and a blue fizzy drink for a family of 9, £5 will pay for a >packet of B&H and a lighter to calm a child's nerves. And for only the >price of a bottle of house sparkling wine in a south west London pub will >be able to buy a house for a typical household of 9 + 3 dogs!>Urgently required: Tinned whippet food, Caesar for Jack Russells. Please do >not send tents for shelter - the obvious improvement in housing might cause >residents to believe they have been forcibly relocated to Sheffield.>>_________________________________________________________________