Brits have been revealed as a nation of holiday "neat-freaks", with a huge 59% admitting to tidying their own hotel rooms so it's clean when the cleaners arrive.
Despite going on holiday to relax, a study has found Brits to be a nation of compulsive cleaners, with most of people tidying hotel rooms before the hotel staff come in.
Before leaving for home, 60% of those surveyed admit they make the bed, 45% fold the towels and more than one in 10 (11%) even go as far as cleaning the toilet.
Asked why, 59% said it was "rude" to leave a hotel room in a state, 45% were eager not to be labelled "messy" by hotel staff and a 4% said they just enjoyed cleaning.
We always tidy up when we get Housekeeping in- it's only being polite, after all.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Crazy
A pub in New Zealand has started selling a rather odd drink- apple flavoured horse semen.
Bosses at The Green Man Pub in Wellington say they started offering the spunky 30 ml shots after coming up with it for a food contest, and they have been blown away by the demand for the £12 drink which is served chilled and is said to contain about 300 million individual horse sperm cells.
Women have been more curious than men about the unique drink, though men have often dared each other into downing one.
Bosses at The Green Man Pub in Wellington say they started offering the spunky 30 ml shots after coming up with it for a food contest, and they have been blown away by the demand for the £12 drink which is served chilled and is said to contain about 300 million individual horse sperm cells.
Women have been more curious than men about the unique drink, though men have often dared each other into downing one.
The Cost of Kids
Two thirds of kids have at least one item of designer clothing in their wardrobe and a third owned their first designer item by the age of two, it's been found, after a study polled parents of school-age children to discover what was in their wardrobes and how much it had all cost.
Researchers found the average cost of a child's wardrobe is now £1 677 with 62% of children owning at least one item of designer label clothing.
Influenced by the rise of mini "celebs" such as Suri Cruise, Romeo Beckham and Kingston Rossdale (who?) parents now fork out on average £764 a year on kiddy attire.
The average child was also found to have more than 154 items of clothing in their wardrobe, a shoe collection valued at over £190 and a toy collection worth £1 676.
Researchers found the average cost of a child's wardrobe is now £1 677 with 62% of children owning at least one item of designer label clothing.
Influenced by the rise of mini "celebs" such as Suri Cruise, Romeo Beckham and Kingston Rossdale (who?) parents now fork out on average £764 a year on kiddy attire.
The average child was also found to have more than 154 items of clothing in their wardrobe, a shoe collection valued at over £190 and a toy collection worth £1 676.
How?
ENGLAND have been moved to fourth in the world rankings in a move clearly designed to flip the FA the bird.
He's just trying to enjoy himself
Blatter said: "No, England, you're tons better than Brazil or Argentina, I really really mean that and as a reward I’m going to take the World Cup off Russia and let you hav...AAAAAHHHH!!!! SICK BURN!"
He then ran around FIFA headquarters shouting 'Psych!' for several minutes before collapsing onto a chaise longue made entirely out of financial inducements and restoring his energy with a 12-course snack.
Footballologist Wayne Hayes said: "If we were to take England's rating at face value, we'd have to accept that by the time you got to teams in the 25-plus ranking you'd be looking at a group of seven vaguely-humanoid beings that could identify a football if induced to do so with a lump of raw meat.
"By rating Wales at 114th, FIFA are essentially crediting them with less sentience than an Argos biro, which I’m not necessarily saying is wrong."
Fifa will release England's true rating later today, expected to be somewhere in the 50s, dropping five places every time the FA use the word 'corruption'.
Fabio Capello said: "When I first saw that we are fourth, I watch training DVDs of Peter Crouch and John Terry and think - how do you say? - 'my saggy left bollock are we fourth'."
DMash
Union Blues
AS the country's public servants once again challenge Britain to notice the difference, experts have issued an essential guide to national strike etiquette.
Do try not to spray tea directly into their face
National strike dos and don'ts:
When crossing a picket line do so with poise and grace. Imagine one is trying to balance a badly educated child on one's head.
However, it is important to remember you are now in the striker's place of entitlement. The striker is your host and you should treat them with respect. Do not put your feet up on the seats they put their feet up on.
If one finds oneself eating lunch in the same restaurant as a striker, always use a dessert fork to stab them in the face when when they start helping themselves to a third of your soup.
Never be arrogant or condescending - particularly when pointing out the horrendous spelling mistakes on a teacher's placard.
Listen patiently and politely to the striker as he or she explains loudly why their pension needs to be better than yours, before smiling and saying 'thank you so much, that was very entertaining'. You should then offer them a sweet - perhaps a Rolo or a Chewitt.
Do not burp, spit or pick your nose at them.
A man should always open a door for a lady striker, even though she will find it violently sexist.
If the striker continues to insist that you should pay for his pension and that he should retire five years earlier than you, always say 'pardon me?' rather than 'huh?', 'come again?' or 'what in the name of shitting fuck are you talking about you delusional, self-serving piss-bucket?'.
DMash
All Out
TOMORROW'S public sector strike could leave UK airports exactly the same in every conceivable way, it was warned last night.
Eurotunnel has also warned that everything could be catastrophically normal
Roy Hobbs, PCS shop steward at Gatwick, said: "You see this queue that stretches the full length of the terminal, full of smelly, desperate people with terrifying thousand-yard stares? It'll be very similar to that.
"If only the government would abandon its ideological crusade and allow me and my friends to help ourselves to other people's money, then travellers would not have to not notice any difference whatsoever.
"But as things stand, thousands of people are going to turn up here tomorrow expecting it to be somehow - somehow - even worse than it is day after day after day and they are going to be sorely disappointed. I hope Mr Cameron can live with that."
Meanwhile Unison has warned that a strike by its members would leave taxpayers being completely ignored by truculent council workers, while the National Union of Teachers stressed their walk-out would lead to millions of children not learning how to read and write properly in the 21st Century.
A Unison spokesman said: "Unless the government hands over your pin number - and does so with a smile on its face - then we will keep making things exactly the same as they are, down to the finest detail, for a very, very long time."
Traveller Tom Logan, who was obviously going to turn up at Gatwick 42 hours early anyway because he has been there before, mumbled into his £3.75 cup of brown: "Fucking pensions… won't need a fucking pension when they're all locked up in my dungeon of unbearable fucking pain.
"Electrodes… starving rats… oh look, here come the hot pins…"
"How you liking me now, Mr Pension?"
DMash
Gan Tits Up- 9
2 :: Soap Opera Digest
The magazine's future has been ruined by two trends. The first is the number of cancellations of soap operas. Long-lived shows which include "All My Children" and "One Life to Live" have been shuttered and replaced by cheaper talk shows. The other insurmountable challenge is the wide availability of details on soap operas online. Soap Opera Digest's first quarter advertising pages fell 21% in the first quarter and revenue was down 18% to $4 million. In 2000, the magazine's circulation was in excess of 1.1 million readers. By 2005 it fell below 500,000 where it has remained for the last 5 years.
Gan Tits Up- 10
1 :: Nokia
Nokia is the world's largest handset company. But it has a very modest presence in the rapidly-growing smartphone industry dominated by Apple, Blackberry, HTC, and Samsung. Microsoft, which is Nokia's primary software partner, could easily buy the company and is often mentioned as a suitor. The world's largest software company recently moved further into the telecom industry though its purchase of VoIP giant Skype which has 170 million active customers. Two other large firms have many reasons to buy Nokia: Samsung and LG Electronics have the scale and balance sheet to takeover Nokia.
Gan Tits Up- 7
4 :: Kellogg's Corn Pops
Sales of the brand dropped 18% over the year that ended in April and their sales are barely a third of brands like Cheerios and Frosted Flakes. There is also profit margin pressure on Corn Pops because of the sharp increase in corn prices.
Gan Tits Up- 8
3 :: MySpace
MySpace, once the world's largest social network, died a long time ago. It will be buried soon. News Corp is looking for a buyer this year for as little as $20 million after paying $580 million in 2005. MySpace held the top spot among social networks based on visitors from mid-2006 until mid-2008, when it was overtaken by Facebook. Its audience is currently estimated to be less that 20 million visitors in the US. News Corp has hinted it will close MySpace if it does not find a buyer.
Gan Tits Up- 4
7 :: American Apparel
The once-hip retailer reached the brink of bankruptcy earlier this year. It currently trades as a penny stock. Store sales have declined and the firm likely will continue to post losses. American Apparel is under gross margin pressure because of the rise in cotton prices. The retailer raised $14.9 million in April by selling shares at a discount of 43% to a group of private investors. It does not help matters that the company's founder and CEO, Dov Charney, has been a defendant in several lawsuits filed by former employees alleging sexual harassment.
Gan Tits Up- 5
6 :: Sears
The parent of Sears and Kmart-Sears Holdings is in a lot of trouble. Total revenue dropped $341 million to $9.7 billion for the last quarter. New CEO Lou D'Ambrosio recently said of the last quarter that, "we also fell short on executing with excellence." Shares are down 55% during the last five years. The path D'Ambrosio is likely to take is to consolidate two brand into one-keeping the better performing Kmart and shuttering Sears.
Gan Tits Up- 6
5 :: Sony Ericsson
In a period when smartphone sales worldwide are rising by double digits and sales of the iPhone double year over year, Sony Ericsson's unit sales dropped from 97 million in 2008 to 43 million last year. New competitors like HTC now outsell Sony Ericsson by widening numbers. Management expects several more quarters of falling sales and the company has laid off thousands of people. There have been rumors that Sony will take over the operation, rebrand the handsets with its name, and market them in tandem with its PlayStation 3 consoles and VAIO PCs.
Gan Tits Up- 3
8 :: Saab
Saab was never more than a niche brand in an industry dominated by very large players such as Ford and Chevrolet. GM decided to jettison the brand in late 2008, and the small company quickly became insolvent. Saab finally found a buyer in high-end car maker Spyker which took control of the company last year. Spyker quickly ran low on money. Only 32,000 Saabs were sold in 2010. Pang Da Automobile agreed to take an equity stake in the company. But the agreement is not binding, and with a potential of global sales which are still below 50,000 a year, Saab is no longer a financially viable brand.
Gan Tits Up- 1
10 Brands That Will Die in 2012- as per The Atlantic
10 :: Sony Pictures
Sony has a studio production arm which has nothing to do with its core businesses of consumer electronics and gaming. Sony bought what was Columbia Tri-Star Picture in 1989 for $3.4 billion. This entertainment operation has done poorly recently. Revenue dropped 15% this year. Its gaming system group is under siege by Microsoft and Nintendo, and its consumer electronics group faces an overwhelming challenge from Apple. The company's future prospects have been further damaged by the Japan earthquake and the hack of its large PlayStation Network. Sony Entertainment will disappear with the sale of its assets.
Gan Tits Up- 2
9 :: A&W
A&W Restaurants is owned by fast food holding company giant Yum! Brands, which has had the firm for sale since January. There have been no buyers. The A&W Restaurant business is too small to be viable now. It had 322 domestic outlets, plus 317 overseases. By contrast, Yum!'s flagship KFC had 5,055 stories in the U.S. and 11,798 overseas. A&W does not have the size to efficiently handle food purchase, logistics, and transportation cost compared to competitors many times larger.
We Like Him
“It’s like Whac-A-Mole.” That’s how John C. Reilly described his eclectic career a couple of weeks ago at a swank Park Avenue hotel in Manhattan. From prestige films like Gangs of New York and Chicago, to broad comedies like Talladega Nights and Step Brothers, to indies like Cyrus and Terri (out Friday), Reilly has made a living toying with audience expectations. “If you start to do the same thing, it just gets boring on a personal level.”In the Azazel Jacobs-directed Terri, Reilly stars as Mr. Fitzgerald, a blustery vice principal who takes a shine to the film’s titular teenager, an overweight misfit who wears pajamas to school every day. It’s a perfect role for Reilly — broadly funny, but with an underlying sense of real humanity — which isn’t all that surprising since his wife, Terri producer Alison Dickey, was the one who suggested he take a look at the material in the first place.
The Oscar nominee spoke to Movieline about the new film, the pros and cons of young co-stars, and what fans can expect from two highly anticipated upcoming projects: Roman Polanski’s adaptation of God of Carnage and the potentially happening Step Brothers 2.
Your wife Alison Dickey produced Terri. How did she approach you about appearing in the film?
She got the manuscript that [author] Patrick deWitt wrote originally — way early on, before it had even become a script — because Patrick was going to write a book based on these characters, and then Azazel Jacobs and he turned it into a script. I trust my wife, she’s got great taste! It’s so funny — so many journalists have asked, “So you worked with your wife — was that a nightmare?” Mostly guys! It’s like, “Wait a minute, I think you’re talking about your marriage, not mine.” It was great working with my wife. She’s got really great taste — she reads a lot, she was an English major in college — so I trust her. So when she says, “You got to really read this; this is a great piece of material,” I definitely listened. And I agreed, once I saw Fitzgerald on the page.
Mr. Fitzgerald is so kind and well-meaning, he really reminded me a lot of the role you played in Magnolia.
You’re the second person who said that. It hadn’t occurred to me while making it, but looking back I have to admit, yeah, that’s true. That person who’s trying to make it through life, and understand it all, but trying to be as direct and as honest as can be. Yeah.
So, was the script changed at all to suit your particular strengths once you signed on?
It was there. It was there. We did a little bit of editing, me and Aza, on the day. “This speech I give to the kid is four pages long.” I mean, literally: there were a couple of speeches — seven pages, all at once, in one take. “Maybe this is repetitive here, maybe we can drop this.” But I didn’t really improvise. I think I only improvised one line in the whole movie. So for the most part it was just great writing by Patrick deWitt, and then you just surrender yourself to the character.
One of the things that really surprised me about Terri was its honesty and heart. When you have a tremendously overweight teen who wears pajamas to school, it seems like a recipe for cheap jokes and easy laughs. Was there a concerted effort during production to shy away from the obvious?
I think that’s a reflection on Aza, as a filmmaker. He’s not a mean-spirited person at all. He’s extremely compassionate; he has a lot of empathy. He has a real commitment to honesty and storytelling and truth, in terms of the way the characters were portrayed. He wasn’t trying to push some agenda that he had; he was trying to be patient and listen to what these characters needed. It’s a real testament to him. I was just trying to do the best I could to make the guy as honest as I could. When I was doing it, I thought it was a lot broader than it ended up playing. Because some of that stuff he says is pretty odd, but then it just seems of a piece in the movie, and he really does seem like a real person in the film. It was nice to see that come through.
You obviously share most of your scenes with Jacob Wysocki. On the whole, do you enjoy working with young actors?
When they’re good, I like working with new actors. Luckily, Jacob was really good. I auditioned a bunch of people for the film with Aza, and I was a big fan of Jacob’s from the moment I met him; I like that quiet confidence he has. The fact that he had a background in improvisation really helped a lot because he was someone who could give and take in a scene, and would be really reacting to what’s going on. Some younger actors practice their little thing at home, and then they come in and [stilted, sing-song-y] they do what they practiced. And you can go, “[SCREAMS],” and they keep doing their scene. it was great having Jacob there. Jacob, literally, from moment to moment would react with his eyes to what was really going on.
I liked him. Young people can be annoying, let’s face it. But they can also be really refreshing to be around and full of enthusiasm. There’s nothing worse than a bunch of old people complaining about how uncomfortable they are on set. And kids come in, and they’re like, “We get to make a movie, man! Oh my God, what scene are we doing today!” It’s kinda cool. It’s contagious.
You’ve been cast as a mentor a couple of times in 2011: Mr. Fitzgerald, Deansie from Cedar Rapids. What is about you that makes casting directors go, “We need a mentor; call Reilly!”
If Deansie is your mentor, you’re gonna end up in AA. [Laughs] I don’t know. Why people pick me for the roles that they do is a bit of a mystery. To a certain extent, you know yourself, and to a certain extent, all of us don’t really have a truly objective view of what we really look like to other people. We’re living one reality inside here, and what people see or feel or experience in our presence is often something different. I’m just glad I’m working.
You work a lot. And in recent years you’ve bounced around a lot, too. One minute you’re in Chicago, the next Talladega Nights, and then something like Terri.
Yeah, it’s like Whac-A-Mole.
It is exactly like Whac-A-Mole. Do you intentionally try to change it up on a regular basis?
You have to. If there is anything deliberate about what I do, it’s that. I don’t deliberately go into comedy or go into indies, but I do deliberately try to keep changing tact, because I think that is the key to longevity in a career. To continually surprise people. It just gets boring. If you start to do the same thing, it just gets boring on a personal level. I try to keep myself from being bored. I’m sort of a restless person, in general, so I try to do stuff that keeps me engaged.
Have you found over the years that you prefer indies to big studio productions, or vice versa?
I like the salary of one more than the other. [Laughs] It would be great gross participation in an indie film that becomes a monstrous hit. That would be like having your cake and eating it too. Look, I obviously don’t pick things based on the size of their budgets — you can see that from the stuff I’ve chosen to do. I’m just looking for people that seem like they’re inspired and know the stories they want to tell; good scripts and characters that seem like I could do well with. It’s as simple as that.
You mention good scripts, and I would imagine the adaptation of God of Carnage that Roman Polanski directed would qualify. What was that like for you — especially being in a cast with such heavy-hitters?
It was amazing. Living in Paris, first of all, was amazing. I was there for about 10 weeks altogether. It’s 90 minutes in real time in one location with these four people. It was a really intense experience getting to know everyone. Intense in a good way. Jodie Foster plays my wife, Kate Winslet and Christoph Waltz are the other couple; luckily there wasn’t a diva in the bunch, Roman included, because it would have been tough. The set was the size of two rooms. We were in there everyday, all day, five days a week. Every character is in every minute of the script. There’s no time jumps at all. It will be really interesting to see how it works as the film, because it really is — this script you could perform on stage, easily. Even the movie version of the script. I heard it was coming out in October in Europe. It’s going to be at the Venice Film Festival in September.
Speaking of other upcoming projects, what’s the status on Step Brothers 2?
We’ve met, so we’re talking about that. We’re kinda in the spitballin’ stage; we’re thinking about it. Where it goes from here, I don’t know. Whether it actually comes together, we’ll see. I think we’re all interested in it. No one wants to make a lame sequel, cause it’s such a beloved movie; people really respond to that movie.
With The Hangover Part II being a notable exception, it seems that a lot of the successful studio comedies — I’m thinking Anchorman, Wedding Crashers, Zoolander — never get the sequel. Why do you think that is?
I think because most people are interested in doing the next original idea, creatively. The studio has been asking about doing a sequel to this movie for a long time, and all of our first reaction was like, “Well, we could do that, but we also just could do some other new movie.” But, lately, we’ve been thinking it might be pretty fun to go back, and we’ve started to think of some ideas, and there’s a lot. It’s very fertile ground.
From Movie Line
Famous Last Words
Steven Wright once said that he wished the first word he spoke was "quote." Then, right before he died he could say, "Unquote." While that would be the greatest last word ever uttered, we have to be realistic here and admit no one could be that cool, lest the universe implode. Nonetheless, here are some valiant efforts worth remembering, last words such as:
1. "This is no time to make new enemies."
1. "This is no time to make new enemies."
These are supposedly the last words of the philosopher Voltaire, uttered when a priest asked him to renounce Satan. Voltaire had been a critic of the church for years and, according to some accounts, his last words, directed at a priest, were actually an angry cry: "For God's sake, let me die in peace!"
Apparently back in the day, the church wouldn't even let you die on your own terms. And it sure as heck wouldn't bury you in its cemetery after such a deathbed quote. Which is exactly why Voltaire's friends, in a final ironic twist, snuck in and buried his corpse in the Abbey of Scellières. Take that, church!
Apparently back in the day, the church wouldn't even let you die on your own terms. And it sure as heck wouldn't bury you in its cemetery after such a deathbed quote. Which is exactly why Voltaire's friends, in a final ironic twist, snuck in and buried his corpse in the Abbey of Scellières. Take that, church!
2. "My wallpaper and I are fighting a duel to the death. One or the other of us has to go."
Oscar Wilde said these last words, referring to the walls of a French hotel where he eventually passed away. What better final quote for a man who debated about the meaning of beauty and art for the better part of his life? However, whereas the first round was won by the wallpaper, in the end, Oscar Wilde fans tore the place apart and refurnished it in the style of a British flat. We like to imagine that somewhere in heaven Oscar Wilde was laughing manically as a mob armed with torches burned the offending French wall decoration.
3. "How's this for a headline? 'French Fries.'"
These are the last words of James D. French, just before he was executed via the electric chair. Get it? We'll take a break here, so everyone can re-read that joke and truly appreciate its genius. But, whereas we love a good pun as much as the next guy, the true reason this sentence is remarkable is the length to which Mr. French went to get himself executed. He was the last man to be sentenced to death in Oklahoma and the only person to get the electric chair in all of the US in 1966. In fact, his original sentence was life in prison, but Mr. French then murdered his cellmate, allowing him to share his joke, and the rest of the world to groan at one lousy pun. It's a win-win scenario ... sort of.
4. "One last drink, please."
Jack Daniel said these words just seconds before dying from a blood infection -- a problem that started when one morning he kicked his safe in anger and broke his toe. The moral of the story, printed on a 2006 marketing poster is: You should never go to work early in the morning. We think a better moral is: Use some of the whiskey you're producing by the gallons to disinfect your toe before it kills you. But, you know, that's just us.
5. "... and now for a final word from our sponsor ..."
Not many people remember Charles J. Gussman, but he was the brains behind countless old-school radio shows, as well as the show Days of Our Lives -- and even some episodes of Gilligan's Island. Gussman lived for media and went out the same way he ended most of his shows, placing the spotlight on whoever bankrolled his show.
6. "They couldn't hit an elephant at this distance."
Just one out of countless morbidly ironic last remarks, this one belongs to General John Sedgwick, who was trying to encourage his troops during the Civil War. If you can't predict what happened seconds after he finished saying this, you've never seen a comedy sketch. Suffice it to say that his troops were extremely motivated -- if by "motivated." you mean scared sh**less because they just saw their leader sniped by the enemy.
7."Only you have ever understood me ... and you got it wrong."
Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel was just one of the many philosophers who tried to create a logical system that would encompass all of existence. Apparently, he came pretty close. But, no one could follow his logic for long enough to make any sense of his claims about the universe. These were his last words to his favourite student before dying and leaving hundreds of philosophy majors to wonder what exactly he meant in his books. After which, they wondered what the hell they are going to do with a philosophy degree.
8."Leave the shower curtain on the inside of the tub."
When you ask someone like Conrad N. Hilton, the man behind the Hilton Hotel Empire, if he has any final wisdom to share with the world, well, you kinda expect something a tad bit more profound than stuff your mom told you every time you took a shower. Then again, this is the family that gave birth to Paris Hilton, so maybe this isn't so bad after all.
9."I should never have switched from scotch to martinis."
Humphrey Bogart was the equivalent of Harrison Ford, George Clooney and Johnny Depp all rolled up into one stone-cold, rugged piece of pure awesomeness. For someone as manly as he, there was no other way to end it all but denounce mixed, fruity drinks and join Jack Daniel in ordering another glass of good old whiskey, be it Scottish or American. We can only raise our glasses and join in a toast -- a toast to all the memorable, funny last words ever uttered.
Growing Britain
Britain's population leapt by almost half a million last year, the biggest jump in half a century.
The 470 000 increase was driven by near-record levels of immigration and a rise in birthrates that was itself partly a result of growing numbers of immigrant mothers.
The country is now home to nearly 62.3million, 3.1million more than just nine years ago.
The 470 000 increase was driven by near-record levels of immigration and a rise in birthrates that was itself partly a result of growing numbers of immigrant mothers.
The country is now home to nearly 62.3million, 3.1million more than just nine years ago.
Poland in the Chair
Poland is to take over the rotating presidency of the EU for the first time since it joined the bloc in 2004.
Its priorities for the six month term include building relations with the EU's eastern and southern neighbours, and encouraging economic growth. It also says it wants to promote further EU enlargement.
We wish them well.
Squeaked In
Germany beat Nigeria 1-0 yesterday and together with France, now go through to the quarter finals of the Ladies' WC. By all accounts it was a nervous display and we can only hope they improve in confidence.
The Germans face France (who beat Canada 4-0) in the final group match to see who wins their league. The winner then plays the "easier" game against the runners up of the other group- and it could be England. They play today against New Zealand and need to win.
The Germans face France (who beat Canada 4-0) in the final group match to see who wins their league. The winner then plays the "easier" game against the runners up of the other group- and it could be England. They play today against New Zealand and need to win.
Mugello
Is this week end's MotoGP round, starting today for the timing laps. I wonder how Rossi will fare on his "home track" on a Ducati. He's won in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008, but I'll be surprised if he makes it to the podium this time.
Murray into Semis
Will he choke once again, against Nadal? Find out later today- I personally couldn't care less.
And I hear Sharapova has made the ladies' Final- literally. We're only 7 000 miles way and yet her shrieks can still be heard here.
And I hear Sharapova has made the ladies' Final- literally. We're only 7 000 miles way and yet her shrieks can still be heard here.
Wifey's Keep Fit Regime
Her favourite way to knock off the calories is by window shopping in town. It's almost a daily affair and it keeps her healthy and trim. This week she bought her third 30 day pass- I'm on just my second and with fewer trips.
My tally is 30 trips (still six to go), whereas wifey totals 65 journeys and has around ten left.
Women and shopping- the real Mars v Venus.
My tally is 30 trips (still six to go), whereas wifey totals 65 journeys and has around ten left.
Women and shopping- the real Mars v Venus.
That Rarely Happens
When we first landed in Bangkok and found the night market across the road, we loved it. Plenty of options for eating good food at great prices, a place frequented primarily by locals, live music and of course, cheaper beer.
The price of a 3 litre tower of beer at the time (July 2008) was a bargain THB 400, with a bucket of ice (for the ladies) at THB 10. A year later they jumped the cost of Tiger beer to THB 450 (tax increases, apparently) but no one really complained as at £9 it was still a bargain.
However, yesterday we popped over to the market and noticed a large blackboard with the price list advertised. All the beer has come down in cost and our 3 litres of Tiger is now an even better THB 400 per tower.
Prices going down in 2011? That can't be right, can it?
I love Bangkok. :o)
The price of a 3 litre tower of beer at the time (July 2008) was a bargain THB 400, with a bucket of ice (for the ladies) at THB 10. A year later they jumped the cost of Tiger beer to THB 450 (tax increases, apparently) but no one really complained as at £9 it was still a bargain.
However, yesterday we popped over to the market and noticed a large blackboard with the price list advertised. All the beer has come down in cost and our 3 litres of Tiger is now an even better THB 400 per tower.
Prices going down in 2011? That can't be right, can it?
I love Bangkok. :o)
Quote/Unquote
"Even if you do learn to speak correct English, whom are you going to speak it to?"
- Clarence Darrow
- Clarence Darrow
Pokes With a Stick
Well, it looks OK today. Time will tell but welcome to a new month and our 63rd month on the road.
Now will this publish?
Now will this publish?
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
I've Had Enough
Sorry, but the bug is back and I can't be arsed any more. I'm off into town for a look about and perhaps will carry on later.
Shame it's Only 1st Class
Malaysia Airlines has banned infants from flying in the first-class cabins of its jets, its chief executive, Tengku Azmil, reminded flyers. He said earlier this month that the policy was put in place after the airline received complaints from first-class passengers spending big money but unable to sleep due to crying infants. The first-class ban applied to the airline's Boeing 747 jumbo jets and will also apply to the Airbus A380 when Malaysia Airlines takes delivery of the superjumbo.
According to the Age newspaper, a survey last year found 60 percent of travellers wanted airlines to create a "family friendly" section of aircraft to keep children contained.
The survey, by Skyscanner, found non-parents were the biggest supporters of the idea, with the majority saying they wanted to sit "as far away as possible from children." Only 8% of those surveyed arguing that families should be able to sit wherever they like.
Earlier this year Ryanair said it would introduce child-free flights from October. The airline announced the child-free flights on 1st April and have not responded to suggestions that it may have been an April Fool's joke.
According to the Age newspaper, a survey last year found 60 percent of travellers wanted airlines to create a "family friendly" section of aircraft to keep children contained.
The survey, by Skyscanner, found non-parents were the biggest supporters of the idea, with the majority saying they wanted to sit "as far away as possible from children." Only 8% of those surveyed arguing that families should be able to sit wherever they like.
Earlier this year Ryanair said it would introduce child-free flights from October. The airline announced the child-free flights on 1st April and have not responded to suggestions that it may have been an April Fool's joke.
Results
Ladies' WC results from yesterday; Brazil seal a 1-0 win over Australia while Norway beat New Guinea by the same score in the opening Group D matches of the Women's World Cup.
Germany play Nigeria tonight and England take on New Zealand tomorrow.
Germany play Nigeria tonight and England take on New Zealand tomorrow.
Postponed
As the access to the Blog is a bit ropey to say the least, we'll carry on with funny filum title translations series tomorrow.
The King's Speech
I've resisted watching this filum as I didn't think it would be one I would enjoy. However, wifey watched and insisted I give it a go- and I am very glad I did. I'm not a huge fan of the UK monarchy but the acting skills were incredible as was some of the humour. I'm not sure exactly how much was fully accurate but I'm pleased I did see the movie and can't understand why Geoffrey Rush didn't get an Oscar. If Colin Firth did (and deservedly so) why didn't Rush?
Worth a look.
Worth a look.
Back to Basics
And the page view has defaulted to the odd one with all the side bar gadgets at the bottom of the page. I reckon they have big problems at Blogger HQ today. :-(
Logical?
Windows NT was so named because the letters "NT" follow "MS", which is an abbreviation for Microsoft. Windows XP follows a similar convention, where the letters "XP" follow "WN", being an abbreviation for Windows.
Fecked
FF5, Chrome and even IE are all coming up with the same error messages- so that will be it for a while until they sort things out their end. We may be back later today, but probably tomorrow if all goes well.
Time is Running Out
Today in exactly a fortnight we'll be packing our bags for the final time this year and leaving the Imm Fusion. Just the thought is depressing but we do still have two weeks to go and we are most definitely coming back before Christmas, so it's not all doom and gloom.
And we have so much more to look forward to- seeing friends and family after 5 years away, a week in Morzine with old pals, a whole month touring through Germany and then three months is delightful Izola with our friends Olivera and Orhan.
Life ain't too bad at all. :o)
And we have so much more to look forward to- seeing friends and family after 5 years away, a week in Morzine with old pals, a whole month touring through Germany and then three months is delightful Izola with our friends Olivera and Orhan.
Life ain't too bad at all. :o)
Good Run
Considering we get a wi-fi code for thirty days and we've been here for forty days now, I don't understand how come the original ticket is still keeping us connected. Neat.
And Yet
I clear history, I re-log in into our Blog and I get the option to post back.
Enough of this- we'll muddle through as best we can today and keep fingers crossed this sorts itself out soon.
Enough of this- we'll muddle through as best we can today and keep fingers crossed this sorts itself out soon.
What's Going On?
Another attempt to post and we get the following coming up with FF5. This is becoming very annoying... back to Chrome.
Bad Request
Error 400
And More Problems "Solved"
We use our vidcam so infrequently that we can't even find the icon to open the function. However, recently we've been having problems with our camera when using Skype (it comes automatically in this program) and so I thought I's have a look see at what the fault could be.
I've spent ages looking at how to get the Motion Eye Blah, Blah running and finally realised that it actually has a dedicated key on the laptop to start it off. Good to know in future but not sure if this will help in getting it to run on Skype again...
I've spent ages looking at how to get the Motion Eye Blah, Blah running and finally realised that it actually has a dedicated key on the laptop to start it off. Good to know in future but not sure if this will help in getting it to run on Skype again...
Very Strange
Did a Crap Cleaner, cleared history, cache and cookies and re-booted. Finally, we seem to be back with FF5 and all appears well- for the moment...
Oh, hang on- the "captchas" have appeared; just great.
Oh, hang on- the "captchas" have appeared; just great.
Quote/Unquote
"Humility is the embarrassment you feel when you tell people how wonderful you are."
- Laurence J Peter
- Laurence J Peter
Partial Success
OK, that published and I can see the post in FF5, but it still won;t unlock the "new post" option. Guess we'll just have to use Chrome for the day and see what happens later/tomorrow.
Trouble at the MIll
Hhmm- Blogger seems to have developed a hitch and I can't access my "new post" option in FF5. Chrome gives me the option but will it go through?
So, On the Subject of Beer
A handful of 7 year old children were asked what they thought of beer.
'I think beer must be good. My dad says the more beer he drinks the prettier my mum gets.'
--Tim, 7 years old
'Beer makes my dad sleepy and we get to watch what we want on television when he is asleep, so beer is nice.'
--Melanie, 7 years old
'My Mum and Dad both like beer. My Mum gets funny when she drinks it and takes her top off at parties, but Dad doesn't think this is very funny.'
--Grady, 7 years old
''My Mum and Dad talk funny when they drink beer and the more they drink the more they give kisses to each other, which is a good thing.'
--Toby, 7 years old
'My Dad gets funny on beer. He is funny. He also wets his pants sometimes, so he shouldn't have too much.
--Sarah, 7 years old
'My Dad loves beer. The more he drinks, the better he dances. One time he danced right into the pool.'
--Lily, 7 years old
'I don't like beer very much. Every time Dad drinks it, he burns the sausages on the barbecue and they taste disgusting.'
--Ethan, 7 years old
'I give Dad's beer to the dog and he goes to sleep.'
--Shirley, 7 years old
'My Mum drinks beer and she says silly things and picks on my father. Whenever she drinks beer she yells at Dad and tells him to go bury his bone down the street again, but that doesn't make any sense.'
--Jack, 7 years
'I think beer must be good. My dad says the more beer he drinks the prettier my mum gets.'
--Tim, 7 years old
'Beer makes my dad sleepy and we get to watch what we want on television when he is asleep, so beer is nice.'
--Melanie, 7 years old
'My Mum and Dad both like beer. My Mum gets funny when she drinks it and takes her top off at parties, but Dad doesn't think this is very funny.'
--Grady, 7 years old
''My Mum and Dad talk funny when they drink beer and the more they drink the more they give kisses to each other, which is a good thing.'
--Toby, 7 years old
'My Dad gets funny on beer. He is funny. He also wets his pants sometimes, so he shouldn't have too much.
--Sarah, 7 years old
'My Dad loves beer. The more he drinks, the better he dances. One time he danced right into the pool.'
--Lily, 7 years old
'I don't like beer very much. Every time Dad drinks it, he burns the sausages on the barbecue and they taste disgusting.'
--Ethan, 7 years old
'I give Dad's beer to the dog and he goes to sleep.'
--Shirley, 7 years old
'My Mum drinks beer and she says silly things and picks on my father. Whenever she drinks beer she yells at Dad and tells him to go bury his bone down the street again, but that doesn't make any sense.'
--Jack, 7 years
Important
Just had an update on the "dry" times this election weekend. They've now decided that no alcohol will be sold anywhere in Bangkok from 18:00 on Saturday, 2nd July to 00:01 on Monday, 4th July morning.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Flying Rabbits
German Bulls say they have caught an 84 year old woman who had been feeding her pet rabbits with cannabis. The pensioner was contacted by Dibble after they spotted a field of the metre-high pot plants growing in a field she owned next to her home.
While the elderly woman denied growing the plants herself, she says they just sprung up, she did admit using them to feed her pet rabbits, which the Rozzers say is plausible. She said that not only did the rabbits really enjoy munching the plants, but because they grew back so quickly they were an ideal food.
Unsurprisingly the Fuzz chopped down the cannabis plants and took them away in three large plastic sacks.
While the elderly woman denied growing the plants herself, she says they just sprung up, she did admit using them to feed her pet rabbits, which the Rozzers say is plausible. She said that not only did the rabbits really enjoy munching the plants, but because they grew back so quickly they were an ideal food.
Unsurprisingly the Fuzz chopped down the cannabis plants and took them away in three large plastic sacks.
Bargain
A handbag one owned by former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher has been sold at auction for £25 000. The black Asprey handbag, which was being sold by Christie's to raise money for charity, was owned by Thatcher for more than thirty years before the sale.
It was famously pictured with the former Prime Minister alongside US President Ronald Reagan during her famous visit to the United States in 1985.
It had been expected to attract up to £100 000 during the sale organised by Jeffrey Archer and also containing donations from Eric Clapton, Bernie Ecclestone and Sir Michael Parkinson, but it wasn't to be and an unnamed Cypriot was able to snap up the bag for £25 000.
It was famously pictured with the former Prime Minister alongside US President Ronald Reagan during her famous visit to the United States in 1985.
It had been expected to attract up to £100 000 during the sale organised by Jeffrey Archer and also containing donations from Eric Clapton, Bernie Ecclestone and Sir Michael Parkinson, but it wasn't to be and an unnamed Cypriot was able to snap up the bag for £25 000.
Chilli Mint Sauce?
GENETICISTS have created a sheep that produces kebab meat, it emerged last night.
It's like something out of Star Trek
Scientist Stephen Malley said: "Nancy looks and behaves like a normal sheep, just with greyer, greasier skin.
"But when we humanely removed slivers of flesh from her back, cooked them intermittently on a spike for several weeks then ate them from a dough pocket with a bit of everything from the laboratory salad bar, the taste was unmistakeable doner.
"Kind of salty and fatty, with a hint of more salt and more fat."
He added: "Animal-grown kebab has long been the holy grail of the food science community. In 10 years' time even microwave burgers could contain animal meat."
Tom Logan, from Peterborough, said: "As a kebabist I'm not really comfortable with the idea of eating something that comes from an animal.
"I like to know that what's in my pitta bread comes from the obscure 'fourth place' that exists outside the tedious norms of the natural world.
"That said I would probably eat a used car if I were drunk enough and it was coated in medium chilli sauce."
DMash
Vying for Top Dog
The government has announced plans to introduce greater competition in the higher education sector, citing prime-time television as a perfect example of how quality dramatically improves when you introduce more competing choices.
Universities could be forced to compete for students, forcing them to offer things teenagers really want, rather than silly qualifications that they hope will be valuable in ten years time.
Universities minister David Willets said, “Do you remember what television was like before Sky, Virgin and Channel 5? That’s right, it was absolutely dreadful.”
“Now think about all the lovely gambling-related game-shows and docu-soaps following vacuous simpletons that we have today – all thanks to the wonders of competition.”
“You can’t count rubbish like Doctor Who, Luther or Sherlock, as they aren’t borne out of competition – the BBC will keep on making drivel like this until we can make them more like Channel 5.”
Higher Education competition
Education professionals claim the plans to give the ultimate power in the higher education sector to hormone-ravaged teenagers disliked even by their own blood, is as far from being a ‘wise move’ as it’s possible to get whilst not being illegal.
Former lecturer Simon Davies told us, “If you’re looking to get some building work done, then fine, a bit of competition is great – but I’m not sure the same principle applies when we’re talking about educating the people we will need to pay our pensions.”
“Remember, if we go down the competition route, nothing sells better than sex. Is that really a shock to anyone?”
“And do you know who likes to have sex? Teenagers. Especially teenagers dying to get away from home.”
“Trust me, the first university to offer a ‘you will definitely get laid’ pledge will be challenging Oxbridge for funding within a decade. Mark my words.”
NT
Universities could be forced to compete for students, forcing them to offer things teenagers really want, rather than silly qualifications that they hope will be valuable in ten years time.
Universities minister David Willets said, “Do you remember what television was like before Sky, Virgin and Channel 5? That’s right, it was absolutely dreadful.”
“Now think about all the lovely gambling-related game-shows and docu-soaps following vacuous simpletons that we have today – all thanks to the wonders of competition.”
“You can’t count rubbish like Doctor Who, Luther or Sherlock, as they aren’t borne out of competition – the BBC will keep on making drivel like this until we can make them more like Channel 5.”
Higher Education competition
Education professionals claim the plans to give the ultimate power in the higher education sector to hormone-ravaged teenagers disliked even by their own blood, is as far from being a ‘wise move’ as it’s possible to get whilst not being illegal.
Former lecturer Simon Davies told us, “If you’re looking to get some building work done, then fine, a bit of competition is great – but I’m not sure the same principle applies when we’re talking about educating the people we will need to pay our pensions.”
“Remember, if we go down the competition route, nothing sells better than sex. Is that really a shock to anyone?”
“And do you know who likes to have sex? Teenagers. Especially teenagers dying to get away from home.”
“Trust me, the first university to offer a ‘you will definitely get laid’ pledge will be challenging Oxbridge for funding within a decade. Mark my words.”
NT
Sir Cliff Does Tennis
Hi Cliff fans! Hi tennis fans! Hi Cliff fans who are also tennis fans! Hi Cliff fans who don't like tennis, but would still be interested in purchasing my new Christian rock CD!
I have so many happy memories of the place. Years ago a close pal of mine was Britain's Number One women's player and she showed me around the ladies' locker room at the end of play. I was like a kid in a sweet shop! "Think of all the really, really great women players who've been in here over the years. Look! There's Martina's kit bag over there - and there's a picture of Virginia Wade winning the Singles in 1977, 4-6, 6-3, 6-1!" I think my friend was feeling a bit stressed and tired because she'd wrapped herself in a towel, laid herself out on a bench and asked me to give her a back rub. Unfortunately I had one of my headaches.But the Championship isn't just about strawberries and cream or Andy Murray getting knocked out by one of three players who will always be better than him. It's about history, it's about tradition, and best of all it's about the Cliff Richard Celebrity Pro-Am Classic, which takes place on the middle weekend of every Wimbledon and, even though it remains consistently untelevised, is without the doubt the high point of the international tennis calendar.
The first year of the Cliff Classic I remember being paired with my great friend, the wonderful character actor, Richard Griffiths. He had the crowd in fits of laughter when, following a close line call, he stood in front of the official and bellowed his famous catchphrase 'linesman, you terrible c**t!'. So Richard, so Wimbledon.
Henri Leconte and Brian Dennehy eventually retained their title with a straight sets victory over Tracy Austin and Russell Grant.
The one thing I do miss these days is the old Centre Court - you know, the one minus that wretched roof. Okay, there are many who argue that it means play can go on and people don't have to wait around for hours during rain breaks. But what the organisers haven't taken into consideration is the fact that Cliff fans worldwide will never again experience the sheer joy of a fab, impromptu concert in the pouring rain.
All England Club? 'All Fucking Bastards Club', more like.
DMash
End of the Line
Thorntons is to close 180 stores after officials confirmed that the current economic climate has left many of its core market of gluttonous fatties unwilling to pay two quid for a bar of chocolate.
A chocolate maker, which gave a profit warning in May, said that unless fat people could be encouraged to pay a huge premium for chocolate patterned with different coloured chocolate, further closures might be possible.
A spokesperson told us, “We have a long tradition of charging way too much for what everyone knows is just a bar of chocolate in a fancy wrapper, but it’s a model that in the current economic climate is simply unsustainable.”
“People have realised that chocolate is chocolate, and there are cheaper ways to go about eating several pounds of it whilst crying in front of the TV about how miserable your existence is.”
Thorntons closing
Consumer expert Mike Smith told us, “Thorntons is suffering because fat people have learned that if they can be arsed to waddle their way to Aldi they can get a Kilo of chocolate for about twenty pence.”
“However, some people will still pay a lot for chocolate, I know this because I was at the M6 services yesterday and a Dairy Milk was 90p, NINETY PENCE! I tell you, if you want to know what prices will be like in 2020, go shopping at a service station today.”
The final word went to industry analyst Shane Williams who said, “Affluent fatties are a shrinking market, but they are also very lucrative. So you can’t blame Thorntons for hanging on in there.”
“They have lots of money, a desirable amount of self-loathing, and an innate unwillingness to get up and look around for a better deal.”
NT
Boring
THE latest Transformers sequel has somehow made enormous flying robots seem like the dullest thing that has ever happened, it emerged last night.
The face that embodies Michael Bay's dreary contempt for humanity
Professor Henry Brubaker of the Institute for Studies said: "Michael Bay's rendering of the Transformers franchise could force us to reassess our understanding of human psychology, specifically the maxim that large aggressive robots are inherently brilliant, a principle outlined in Carl Jung's seminal work Giant Robots and Giant Sharks: Why You Cannot Not Like Them.
"In it he describes how giant battle robots stimulate the cerebrum in a similar way to pornography or cheese and onion crisps, triggering a large release of serotonin that overrides more complex thought processes.
"Yet despite this the new Transformers looks shit."
He added: "In considering the paradoxical dullness of Transformers 3D: Dark of the Moon, we should perhaps begin by looking at the title.
"The phrase 'dark of the moon' makes virtually no sense, and suggests that it was going to be 'dark side of the moon' until about two days before the release date, when a studio executive's son suddenly reminded him of the title of his third favourite Pink Floyd album.
"Secondly but not leastly, its human stars are an underpants mannequin whose name simply does not matter and Shia LaBeouf, who seems to be the bastard child of KD Lang and Tintin."
DMash
Lacklustre
Boxer Wladimir Klitschko has said he is disappointed after boxer David Haye told reporters he wanted throw some punches his way ahead of Saturday’s heavyweight title fight in Germany.
Klitschko expressed his dismay after Haye was quoted as saying that he intended to “repeatedly punch him in the face until his is unconscious and probably bleeding.”
The Ukrainian told reporters, “I’ve told my lawyers, and we’re pretty sure a threat of this nature will go before the UK’s CPS in due course.”
“Of course, if he does actually hurt me then we’ll have the whole issue of premeditated violence to address, and that won’t look good for Haye at all.”
“I’d hoped we could resolve our differences like gentlemen, without the repeated attempts to push a fist through the back of each others skulls, but it appears this was nothing more than a pipe dream.”
Klitschko upset
Saturday’s fight is sure to have an extra edge now that one of the boxers has said some words about hurting the other boxer, much to the annoyance of that boxer.
Boxing commentator Ian Darke told reporters, “Not only do we have two men going into the ring to hurt each other, but we’ve got them putting the media into a frenzy by clearly articulating their intentions well in advance.”
“That’s well worth £14.95 of anyone’s money. What more could the nation’s fight fans possibly ask for?”
NT
News Briefly from DMash
Blue Peter already developing sense of entitlement
Long-running children's show arrives in Manchester and immediately begins blaming everyone else for its problems.
'Juéshì' is Chinese for 'sir'
Europeans to learn a series of handy phrases including, 'I am decadent scum not worthy of your inspiring leadership' (Wǒ tuífèi de bàilèi bù zhídé nǐ de gǔwǔ rénxīn de lǐngdǎo) and 'please may I have some more boiled guinea pig meat, oh wise and mighty overlord?' (Qǐng ràng wǒ yǒu gèng duō de shuǐ zhǔ tún shǔ ròu, ó míngzhì hé qiángdà de bàzhǔ?).
Ponce Charles Increases Freeloading by 18%
The amount of taxpayers’ money that the Prince of Wales spent on doing princey-related stuff increased by 18% last year.
Amongst the purchases included in the £1,962,000 he received from taxpayers last year was a mouthwash that was made using the tears of an orphaned pheasant.
It was also revealed that the full-time equivalent of 132.8 members of staff were employed to look a after Charles, Camilla, William, Kate and Prince Harry at the end of March this year, an increase in neediness of 7% on the previous year.
The Prince’s principal private secretary, Sir Michael Peat, blamed the figures on the rising cost of princing.
“People think that all Prince Charles does is get driven around in posh cars, attend functions where people fawn all over him, go on fancy holidays and talk shit.”
“I would suggest that People who think Prince Charles has an easy life should try walking a mile in his shoes”
“However, he buys new shoes after every five hundred yards, so that would be against royal protocol.”
NT
Unnatural Southpaws
Approximately 2% of female golfers are naturally right handed and play golf left handed. Among men, the rate is approximately 0.052%.
Five US Problems
Hopes that 2011 would see the US recovery strengthen have so far been dashed as higher gasoline and food prices erode the spending power of millions of Americans. Here are the five biggest threats faced by the world's largest economy, as per TTel:
The introduction in 2009 of a tax incentive to buy a home briefly spurred the market, but the volume of sales has retreated since it expired. While further declines in prices don't pose the threat to America's financial stability in the way they in 2008, the troubled state of the market remains a ball and chain around the economy.
After a disappointing 2010, the labour market gained momentum in the first four months of this year, helping push the unemployment below 9pc for the first time since the crisis. Importantly, signs of a turn in the market helped consumers battling higher gas prices.
Last month saw that momentum stall, with just 54,000 jobs created. Few now expect a quick turnaround. The Fed last week forecast that unemployment will stay above 8pc throughout 2012.
The more pressing question is whether May's disappointment is the start of a worrying trend. The release this Friday's release of June’s figure will begin to offer an answer.
Without an agreement to cut spending on programmes such as medicare, as well as tax increases, that ratio will worsen. Any accord before next year's presidential election would be a major surprise.
But there’s a far more urgent deadline. If Congress fails to lift the country's legal borrowing limit by August 2, the US could potentially default on its debt. Focused on Europe's debt crisis, bond investors have so far paid little attention. But Republicans last week walked out of negotiations that have become increasingly fraught.
Though a failure to lift the limit remains remote, the prospect of negotiations going right to the wire and fraying investors' nerves during a difficult summer is highly likely.
Mr Bernanke said last week that US banks have little direct exposure to Greek government debt. But there's no doubt a disorderly default by Greece would cause convulsions across financial markets.
Perhaps the biggest impact of the current episode has been to drain some confidence from financial markets as well as businesses. The US economy can ill afford for more to seep away over the next few months.
Inflation
The petrol station is as reliable a place as any to take America's economic pulse. The sharp rise in gasoline prices in the first few months of the year knocked the confidence of consumers, who still account for about 70pc of the country's gross domestic product.
That squeeze has been all the more painful because the majority of Americans have not enjoyed pay rises since the crisis. Indeed, inflation-adjusted average hourly earnings fell 1.6pc in the past 12 months. Like Sir Mervyn King at the Bank of England, Fed chief Ben Bernanke insists that inflation will prove short-lived.
The good news for the bulls is that gasoline prices have dropped by almost 10pc since reaching a three-year high at the start of May. While the news is improving, the Fed and The White House know their control over such a key variable is very limited.
House prices
Alongside their wages, house prices are the yardstick most Americans use to measure their financial well-being. Prices have already dropped a third from the peak they reached in 2006, according to the S&P/Shiller Index. But the declines aren't, for now at least, over. Almost three years on and the housing market is still grappling with the excess supply of homes left over by the boom. That's meant more than a third of the homes currently being sold are classified as distressed sales.The introduction in 2009 of a tax incentive to buy a home briefly spurred the market, but the volume of sales has retreated since it expired. While further declines in prices don't pose the threat to America's financial stability in the way they in 2008, the troubled state of the market remains a ball and chain around the economy.
Unemployment
It's been the recovery’s Achilles heel. About 8m jobs were lost to the recession. Just over 1m have been created since.After a disappointing 2010, the labour market gained momentum in the first four months of this year, helping push the unemployment below 9pc for the first time since the crisis. Importantly, signs of a turn in the market helped consumers battling higher gas prices.
Last month saw that momentum stall, with just 54,000 jobs created. Few now expect a quick turnaround. The Fed last week forecast that unemployment will stay above 8pc throughout 2012.
The more pressing question is whether May's disappointment is the start of a worrying trend. The release this Friday's release of June’s figure will begin to offer an answer.
The deficit
As with unemployment, there's no quick fix to America's deficit. A combination of costly, state-funded retirement programmes, high defence spending and the financial crisis have sent America's share of debt to GDP ballooning to 62pc last year from 40pc before the recession.Without an agreement to cut spending on programmes such as medicare, as well as tax increases, that ratio will worsen. Any accord before next year's presidential election would be a major surprise.
But there’s a far more urgent deadline. If Congress fails to lift the country's legal borrowing limit by August 2, the US could potentially default on its debt. Focused on Europe's debt crisis, bond investors have so far paid little attention. But Republicans last week walked out of negotiations that have become increasingly fraught.
Though a failure to lift the limit remains remote, the prospect of negotiations going right to the wire and fraying investors' nerves during a difficult summer is highly likely.
Europe's debt crisis
Europe's debt crisis has been lapping against US shores for more than a year now. And the failure of European leaders to find an answer is an increasing source of concern in Washington.Mr Bernanke said last week that US banks have little direct exposure to Greek government debt. But there's no doubt a disorderly default by Greece would cause convulsions across financial markets.
Perhaps the biggest impact of the current episode has been to drain some confidence from financial markets as well as businesses. The US economy can ill afford for more to seep away over the next few months.
Animal Wonders of Evolution- 9
Purple Frog
Discovered in 2003 in western India, Purple frogs are part of a lineage that originated 180 million years ago. They last shared a common ancestor with existing frogs in the southern supercontinent of Gondwana.Image: S.D Biju & Franky Bossuyt/Nature
Animal Wonders of Evolution- 10
Mushroom Coral
After mammals and amphibians, EDGE of Existence has turned its attention to coral, which most people don't even consider to be animals.Unlike most colony-dwelling members of its class, Mushroom corals are solitary. They're also related to just one other species.
Image: Samuel Chow/Flickr.
Animal Wonders of Evolution- 11
Okarito Kiwi
In coming years, EDGE of Existence will expand to include birds. Though full phylogenetic comparisons still need to be completed, it's safe to say that kiwis will place near the top of the list.The smallest of the ratites, a group that includes ostriches and emus, these flightless birds evolved without predators for millions of years. With the introduction of cats and dogs to Australasia, that's no longer the case.
Rarest of all New Zealand's kiwis is the Okarito kiwi, discovered in 2003 and numbering about 350 birds. Capable of living for a century, they're following in the footsteps of the dodo.
"We're entering a period of mass extinction. We will lose a lot of species," said Baillie. "It's essential to make sure that these creatures, so different from all species on the planet, don't get lost without us even noticing."
Image: Save the Kiwi
Animal Wonders of Evolution- 6
mons
Image: National Human Genome Research Institute
Duck-Billed Platypus
The undisputed champion of mammalian evolutionary distinctiveness, duck-billed platypuses are the last living members of a family that originated 150 million years ago. The Australian egg-layers are so odd that some scientists have considered them reptiles.Image: National Human Genome Research Institute
Animal Wonders of Evolution- 7
Chinese Giant Salamander
While EDGE of Existence started their conservation efforts with mammals, they've since moved on to amphibians.The largest of all amphibians is the Chinese giant salamander, which can reach lengths of 6 feet and weigh 100 pounds. Its origins date to 50 million years ago, though its ancestors were just a fraction of its size.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Animal Wonders of Evolution- 8
Archey's Frog
Virtually unchanged in 150 million years, and belonging to a line that split 200 million years ago from other toads and frogs, this primitive resident of New Zealand even predates the existence of birds.Archey's frogs have muscles for a long-lost tail, but no eardrums: Rather than communicating with sound, they use scent. They're also an EDGE success story, with conservationists' attention helping to delay mining plans in the frogs' mountain habitat.
Image: Dr. Paddy Ryan/The Natural Heritage Collection
Animal Wonders of Evolution- 3
Sunda Pangolin
Covered in scales made of keratin, the material from which fingernails are made, pangolins split off from edentates — the order containing sloths, anteaters and armadillos — 60 million years ago. Any features they share with anteaters are the result of convergent evolution, with natural selection and adaptation arriving at similar traits in unrelated animals.There are seven species of pangolin. One of the rarest is the Sunda pangolin. "When I first saw one, I was in Laos, on a boat. A woman put this bag in the boat. It was quite heavy. She said, I want $5 for it," said Baillie. "They're phenomenal creatures. Magical. Absolutely wonderful."
Image: Animal Concern Research & Education Society
Animal Wonders of Evolution- 4
Asian Tapir
Of the four species of tapir, the Asian Tapir most closely resembles those that lived 50 million years ago, at the root of an evolutionary branch that later sprouted horses and rhinoceros, their closest relative.Their fleshy snouts, however, are believed to be a relatively recent adaptation.
Image: Suneko/Flickr.
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