THE SITUATION IS SCARY, YET SHE COOKS AND PLAYS THE PIANO!

Well hello all!   Yes, it is the return of the oldie blogger, Margaret, the unvanquished.   My replacement knee is finally settling down.   I no longer need two crutches or even one to get around.   I have done all my exercises, and look forward to having two well-functioning knee bones.   This is all thanks to the marvellous surgeons and the nursing staff of Raigmore Hospital in Inverness.   Here the National Health Service is working magnificently, and Gerald and I are glad we moved to within a few miles of this great establishment.

That said, and having been constantly encouraged to start doing my occasional blogs again, I have been thinking of things to talk about.   Sadly I seem to have got hooked on a subject brought on by the “Start the Week” programme on BBC Radio 4.   This goes out on a Monday morning around 9 a.m. and I always try to listen to it.   This week it was a discussion about a book, “Ten Billion”, by Stephen Emmott.   The author, a pessimist about the situation of the planet, was talking to Danny Dorling who has also written a book on the subject, with a bit more optimism.    Also an Indian philosopher and Nobel Prize winning economist was taking part.   His name is Amartya Kumar Sen, and he believes that we must individually change our behaviour to save the planet from Global Catastrophe.   In particular he believes that the education of women would result in a fall in the fertility rate of poorer people.   Danny Dorling, on the other hand, thinks that we must think that things will be OK.   We must be positive.  He described himself as a “Possibilist”.  He contended that economists cannot cope with the idea of reducing consumption and the restriction of growth.   We must stop buying so much stuff, especially clothes.   These things take an enormous amount of water and energy to produce, and are for the most part unnecessary to our lives.   Danny Dorling maintains that the ‘baby peak’ has passed in 1990, and there have been a smaller number of babies born since then.  

But to confound the issue, we are all living longer and this is a big cause of increased population numbers.   According to Stephen Emmott the scale and the nature of the problem is simply not being communicated.   We must tell the politicians ‘WE WANT ACTION NOW!”  Another contributor to the discussion, Jill Rutter, a former director of strategy at DEFRA, agreed that governments must do more, but politicians prefer to think only in the short-term. 

Did you know that it takes 4 litres of water to produce one plastic bottle of water, and we throw away 9 billion plastic bottles in the UK in a year?   You could if you wanted to do a small thing take the same plastic bottle with you all day, and fill it up with water from a tap.  This is just a small fact on a long list.   Don’t talk about cars and mobile phones, computers and t-shirts, and our waste of resources.   And, don’t forget that the rest of the world, the underdeveloped countries want to be like Europe and the USA.

Anyway you can buy the book “Ten Billion” by Stephen Emmott for £6.99.   It’s frightening stuff.   Also there’s a big article about it in the Sunday Observer, on 30.06.13.

MY REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL

1.      The garden is looking lovely.   We have fantastic peachy, orangey roses, and white roses and red roses.   Gerald has been working hard.   We also have a raised bed, and we are growing lovely fennel bulbs, leeks, onions, rhubarb, and loads of lettuce.   The tomatoes and strawberries are not ready yet.

2.      I have started practising the piano again and can make a fair rendition of ‘Let it Be’, ‘The Entertainer’, and ‘Fur Elise’!

3.      Going to Glasgow on Thursday for the graduation of Jessica, granddaughter who has     managed to get a First class honours degree in International Business Studies.   I am so proud of her.   She is a little worker, and deserves to succeed.   Also I will meet ancient college friends, and sister and brother-in-law for a dinner at George Square.

4.      Andy Murray is in the quarter final of the Wimbledon Tennis Championship.

5.      We are having filet de porc, Chasseur for dinner tonight.

6.      I bought a new hat and beach bag at highly reduced rate in TK.Maxx.   They are sort of orangey shades, no doubt will match my over-scorched skin when I return from a holiday in Tenerife.   Will be married to G. for 28 years then, if God spares us.

7.      I’ve lost 7 pounds in weight since my knee operation.

8.      The ironing is finished for the week.

9.      We’ve now got two water hoses in the garden which makes watering the garden much easier.   Listen to me using up the earth’s resources.   Well in Scotland we have too much rain, and therefore too much water.

10.  Last, but not least Linda, my doctor granddaughter now working in New Zealand is coming home to take up a job in Aberdeen hospital, a few hours drive away.   The call of  boyfriend, Gregor, and of course her very friendly and humorous family was too strong to keep the girl away from Bonnie Scotland!  Cheers!   Keep on keeping on!