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Waddesdon Manor

Today we took a drive out to Waddesdon Manor, which is not that far from Aylesbury (though infinitely more attractive). After walking about 17 miles from where we parked the car we eventually found our way to the main entrance. Unfortunately we were too late to look around the house so that left us with 2 or 3 hours to wander around the grounds. And what grounds they are! All I can say is there must be an army of gardeners to take care of it all.

We strolled down to the aviary and peered in through the caged enclosures but the birdlife was hiding amongst the foliage and it was very difficult to make them out.

The house closed at 5pm so it was about then that we decided to head off for dinner... which was a pub/restaurant that N had Googled off of the Internet. The Woolpack in Stoke Mandeville was pretty damn good and we enjoyed an excellent meal (yes - eating yet again!)

Eurovision

The thing that makes me laugh about the Eurovision Song Contest is not just the fact that countries blatantly vote for their neighbours. It is also the fact that it doesn't work in the UK's case. So I can only conclude - WE ARE UNIVERSALLY HATED! Sod the lot of you!!

Rant over.

Washing The Car


I must admit I only got around to washing our new car yesterday evening. After two months of use and 3 weeks standing idly on the drive collecting volcanic dust I thought it was about time. Once I had finished I stood back to gaze at my gleaming efforts and then went indoors for dinner
Of course that night it p*ssed down with rain.
F*cking weather!
Rant over.

"Debt-hit Europe spends £740m on new Bank HQ"



I like The Sunday Times... it takes all week to read it properly. Another article that caught my attention was about the new Euro Bank HQ.

"The timing could hardly have been worse. With the European Union mired in a debt crisis and the single currency hitting new lows, the continent's financial leaders have laid the foundation stone for a gleaming 600ft £740m headquarters"

And the British taxpayer is contributing towards it!

Rant over.

Disappointed with the last of Lost

I loved Lost. It had all the elements I like in a TV drama series such as great characters and a weird storyline. The pilot episode was superb. Now after 5 years I feel cheated, because in the end the majority of the weirdness was never explained and therefore felt utterly pointless. It really does look like the critics were correct... the writers didn't know where it was going.

Rant over.

iPads for MEPs

I've been sitting out in the back garden today reading The Sunday Times and a few stories caught my eye. One of them was the fact that when the iPad comes out in Europe this Friday all MEPs are going to be given one... WHY? The Eurozone is currently f*cked, major cutbacks are being made across various European countries and these retards are going to be each given £500 toy to play with for no f*cking reason. The implementation will cost millions... and all because the d*ck responsible for their IT loves his f*cking iPhone. It just never ends does it?

Rant over.

Smith rues adult film expense claim


"Former home secretary Jacqui Smith said she made a "monumental mistake" in claiming for a TV package that included adult films.
Ms Smith, who was ousted from her Redditch seat at the election, described the headlines that followed revelations about her parliamentary expenses as "absolutely horrible".
The article then continues to say...
It was that pressure on the family that caused me to resign as home secretary. Perhaps I did (deserve it) because I'm in the public eye, but my kids didn't, my husband didn't and my sister didn't."
Ms Smith also faced criticism for designating her sister's house in London as her main home rather than her home in Redditch, where she lives with her husband and their two children. She was found to have broken the rules on expenses, claiming more than £116,000 over six years from her living arrangement." -- AOL website.
I bet she f*cking well does regret it all... and as for saying "Perhaps I did deserve it" absolutely beggars belief. IT MAKES YOU WANT TO THROW UP!!! GOOD RIDDANCE AND P*SS OFF!
Rant over.

Cr*ppy London Olympic Mascots...

Look... I'm all for innovation and originality, however I just don't get this! It is like the 2012 logo - it just doesn't seem to work. What have weird one-eyed creatures got to do with it? They don't look cute and there doesn't seem to be any kind of relevance to them. They aren't memorable. Bloody 'ell when you think about it couldn't they have hired some decent marketing people. They should have contracted it to the company that created the brilliant Meerkat adverts. Simples.

Rant over.

The Brand New Peugeot RCZ...

Hmmm... let me see. Lets copy the previous generation Audi TT and bung on the front end of a 308. Not exactly original are you Peugeot?

Rant over.

Oakley Sunglasses


Go on... How many fat chavvy w*nkers, wearing threequarter length trousers have you seen, adorned with Oakley sunglasses? Loads aren't there?
Okay, in fairness some of their designs look pretty good - it is more the repulsive, lardarse, Brits abroad that wear them that get on my t*ts.
Remember my post about the bin men, in particular the one where I nearly ran down the apething as it stepped from behind its wagon? Well that b*st*rd wears a pair. So that is enough for me to despise them.
Rant over.

How do you break a knife block?


Talk about the most outlandish thing to break in the home... a knife block! How the f*ck did that happen? One of the simplest kitchen items you can have and the crappy thing fell apart. This sort of item should last for centuries - not ours though. And have you seen the price of a new one?
B*st*rd thing.
Rant over.

Cycle Paths



Tell me... what is the point of cycle paths? WGC for instance has loads. And... do you see any f*cker using them? - NO! Instead the tossers carry on riding along the road. The times I have seen some soddin' cyclist on the road holding up the traffic when there is an empty and safe cycle path a matter of a few feet away is mind boggling... and as I have said before they are always some bony bastard wearing skin tight cycling gear and Oakley sunglasses - Oh yeah - Oakley sunglasses another thing I hate. More on that later!

Rant over.

Lembit Opik's loss in Montgomery...


Bloody 'ell... Lemsip's lost his seat! What a shame. Looks like he'll have to get a job now. The mind boggles that this tw*t has managed to be a member of parliament for 13 years. All we know him for is his name, shagging a weather girl, shagging a cheeky girl and shagging a glamour girl... Oh and of course he is as ugly as f*ck!
Rant over.

Bookie pays out on Cameron victory


A bookmaker has announced it is paying out early on bets placed on David Cameron to be Prime Minister and the Conservatives to win the most seats in the General Election.
Paddy Power said it is so sure of a Tory victory that it is stumping up £100,000 before the results of Thursday's ballot are revealed.
The pay-out applies to single bets placed before 9pm on Monday.
The bookie said Mr Cameron's strong performance in the final TV debate last Thursday shortened the odds on the Tories winning the most seats from 1/5 a week ago to 1/16.
Paddy Power said: "Dave is heading for Downing Street and punters can come and collect their cash.
"If money talks then what we have seen in the last few days tells us the Conservatives are going to win the Election.
"The only question remaining is whether they secure enough seats for the all important majority - and the betting is starting to suggest they can." -- AOL website
Seems a trifle bizarre to me... why on Earth would a bookie pay out on a bet on something that hasn't occurred yet? It's like betting on Lewis Hamilton to win the next Grand Prix before the race has been run!

Cape Town V - Part 15

Cape Town International has been radically revamped for the 2010 World Cup and now looks very impressive. Sadly we found ourselves in departures checking in at the 1time desk ready for our long journey home. MC, GC, LAB and Little c met us at Mug & Bean for a farewell coffee... and then it was time for N and me to leave...

The journey home was largely uneventful and consisted of three flights. The first leg was Cape Town to Johannesburg courtesy of the budget airline 1time and it was a mere two hours later that we found ourselves at Oliver Tambo Airport in Joburg. I was rather disappointed that the huge spaceship that used to hover above the city had now departed and that I was not going to see it! The airport had a bit of a pungent smell to it and after mercifully retrieving our luggage we set off for something to eat. The first restaurant we tried looked okay, however their chip and pin system was broken and they would only accept cash... the second was running out of food so we ended up dining on beef stew.

I've noticed that whatever airport I am at and at whatever time - there is always a flight to Addis Ababa that is running about 17 hours late. Everytime. Next time you're at an international airport look at the departures board and you'll see what I mean!

Anyway after 2 or 3 hours at Oliver Tambo we boarded the Emirates Airbus A340 bound for Dubai. When you board an airliner and you walk through first class and business class etc. have you noticed the wave of contempt that the b*st*rds sitting there give you as you squeeze past? Even though in most cases their tickets have been paid for by the companies they happen to work for. Usually consists of an arrogant scowl. Of course it is highly probable that none of them needed to be on these business flights in the first place as no doubt things could be done via video link etc... but hey lets perpetuate the unnecessary perks... eh? Tossers.

The flight to Dubai took 8 hours. 8 hours in a constricted position with an annoying metal box bolted to the floor beneath the seat in front strategically positioned to impede the comfort of my left foot. I didn't bother watching any films on the way back, instead I spent most of the time with my head lolling from one side to the other... N's legs draped across my lap. When it came to grub time the meal N wanted had run out. However after a 15 minute wait or so the original meal N wanted turned up. Maybe the chef rustled one up especially.

At last we made it to Dubai and horror of horrors we had resigned ourselves to an 8 hour wait. After eventually finding the transfers desk N asked whether there was any space on an earlier flight (a request she had made at least twice earlier which resulted in an emphatic "afraid not"). Miraculously though this time it was a case of "yeah no problem can get you on the next flight in 2 hours time"... What was all that about?

Of course I was concerned at how our luggage would be bumped forward to the earlier flight (although I needn't of worried). After a quick roam around the shops and a bite to eat we headed for the gate.

Have you noticed the amount of people that "work" at airports who just seem to aimlessly roam around doing sod all?... or who sit behind a computer screen doing nothing?... or who are standing there leaning against something chatting. What do people do who "work" at airports? Of course most of them are so bloody big you must spend half your day walking from A to B and you bet there are plenty of distractions en route.

Dubai to Gatwick (yes we had to change to Gatwick instead of Heathrow) was pretty much like the 2nd leg. This time on a Boeing 777. N was stuck with the mysterious metal floor box this time and I took it upon myself to get up to speed with Whitney by listening to her latest album on the interactive thingie.

Gatwick North Terminal and our plane touched down... a long wait in the cramped baggage reclaim for our cases and much to my intense irritation I discovered the plastic rigid bit at the back of my suitcase had been shattered and more disturbingly the leather name address label had gone missing. Like bin men it clearly seems they employ lobotomised chimps in the baggage handling area.

As we emerged in arrivals we were greeted by the obligatory crowd of people many of whom were displaying name cards. Our driver was proudly wearing a superman top which stood out by a mile. Well done MO. We were home.

Coming soon... Cape Town VI

Iron Man 2


RDJ does it again! This guy is so charismatic that he fits the role of Tony Stark perfectly. With his colossal ego and his genius intellect it makes a formidable combination. I would say the film is on a par with its predecessor. Mickey Rourke is a trifle subdued and I'm not too sure that he makes a believable technical genius. I mean he looks as tough as ever and is covered in tattoos... doesn't quite sit right with me. Scarlett Johanson does bugger all which is just as well because I can't stand her. Sam Rockwell is brilliant as rival Justin Hammer... he comes over as a complete prat but you can see how he is trying to be like Tony Stark but can't cut it.
My main grievance with the film is that once again Iron Man is fighting other armoured drones / battle-suits... I want to see him fight a supervillian with contrasting powers.
You must remember to watch the after credits sequence at the end where you get a glimpse of Thor's hammer...!
Rating: 7.5/10 (not as good as Kick Ass)