In a Swiss valley

the Fr 20 note that I found in the pocket of my newly washed and ironed jeans.

well and truly laundered and as good as new - thank goodness

On the train this morning I happened to sit in a 6-seat part with 2 teenage boys, who needed 4 seats just for them and all their stuff! They were en route to the International School, and so talking together, quite loudly, in English.
As I joined them, their conversation was about whom they would kill in their school given the chance. Apparently the main criteria seemed to be if they were enemies or "stupid". One boy in particular was agreed to be "stupid" and so deserved to die.

In some countries those boys would probably have been reported and arrested, but it seems to be just fantasy. I think if they were really planning something they would not plan it on a packed commuter train.

however, they did change the subject quite quickly after I asked them to pass me a paper and they realised that I was English

i read this morning in the paper about a 4 year old in Berlin, whose arm was ripped off by a faulty washing machine. His 11 year old brother put the severed arm in the freezer, and his brother to bed!!!! The next morning his mother discovered what had happened, and rushed the child to the hospital. Unfortunatly the arm could not be reattached as it was unusable after being frozen.

Now a lot about this does not make sense, like where was the mother when the accident happened, and how can a child go to bed with no arm? He must have been in agony
Now as I know some will be incredulousw, I did try to find the story, but only found someone else commenting on it here
http://intoxgaming.com/forum/printthread.php?tid=12194

but it is in the papers so it must be true.

in our household we have way too many gadgets. MP3's, digital cameras, mobile phones etc etc. And they all come with various power leads, and usb leads etc. We have a drawer full of them, and I am too lazy to wind them up when I put one back, so it is a bit of a rats nest in there.
Anyway, when I was in Nice I came across a Virgin store, and in there they had this nifty little bag to transport cables with 6 pockets in it. But it was €20!!
But it gave me the idea of getting a curtain or hanging storage thing with pockets in it, to store all the cables. I could hang the curtain on the back of the door, and label the pockets with the gadget the cable belongs to.
But now I am back, I have searched high and low, to no avail. All I can find is a shower curtain or postcard display with pockets. But cables are a bit fatter than postcards.
Looks like I might have to make one for myself.
Unless anyone has any better ideas?

some of you may have heard that the Pope, dear old Benedict, has invited all Anglicans who can't deal with women bishops or priests, or open homosexuality to come en mass to join the catholic church again. A brave try, and one that probably most bloggers could not give 2 hoots about. But today, I did come across an interesting article that shows that Benedict may be ahooting himself in the foot with this one.

Catholics and Anglicans: Some Unintended Consequences
By Kenny Moore

(Moore is a former Catholic priest and co-author of 'The CEO and the Monk:
One Company's Journey to Profit and Purpose')

For the last twenty years, I've worked in corporate America. Prior to that,
I spent fifteen years in a monastic order as a Catholic priest. Oddly
enough, the work has proven to be quite similar, though the Incentive Plans
varied greatly. I left the monastery because I wanted to get married. Now
that I'm married and raising two teenagers, I'd like to go back. And
presently it seems all I need do is join the Anglican Church. According to
the recent announcement from Rome, I'll even be able to bring my wife along.
Unfortunately, there's still the problem of the kids. The monks often said
that the Almighty has a wicked sense of humor.

With one wave of the Vatican's almighty hand, Anglicans who don't like women
bishops or gay priests are now welcome in the Catholic Church. Even their
married clergy can come along. But there might be one small difficultly.
These disenfranchised Anglicans will now be sharing the pew with a growing
number of disenfranchised Catholics: folks who are increasingly pushing for
women's ordination and a more Christian response to the gay community. And
don't be surprised if the priest celebrating Mass is himself gay. They
haven't disappeared, you know. They've only gone underground to survive the
Witch Hunt of the present Administration.
When the Bishops recently requested that Catholics start returning to the
confessional, it didn't seem to improve the numbers. Likewise, their PR
program 'Welcome Home' hasn't moved the masses to return to the fold.
Perhaps the broader Catholic community knows more than the hierarchy. The
Church leadership continues to be hostile to gays, indifferent to women and
intolerant of the meddling laity. The recent sex scandals have only
confirmed the people's suspicions: the hierarchy is not to be trusted.
Bishops believe it's better to have a diocese declare bankruptcy, as
Wilmington, Delaware and others have recently done, than release documents
revealing their ethical malfeasance. A growing number of the laity is
looking to leave, but havn't had a place to go. This may all be changing.

What the Vatican may not have realized is that in opening the door to the
Anglican Church, that door swings both ways. Why wouldn't our gay Catholic
priests switch to a religious group that treats them with dignity and
respect? Even the straight priests might be willing to cast their lot with
a liturgical tradition that at least allows them to marry and have the
support of their wives, since they seem to get so little of it from their
Bishops. Women, who continue to make up the vast majority of church-goers,
might also stop complaining to an all-male clergy for equal rights, and
embrace the Anglican way of celebrating their gifts as a valid ministry?
The Pope's recent decision could just prove to be the 'Law of Unintended
Consequences' played out in a divinely mischievous way.

And wouldn't it be refreshing for Catholic couples to finally find a
religion that allows them to be in harmony with their Church's teaching on
birth control without having to wait for the onset of menopause?

While Rome's at it, how about inviting those disenfranchised Mormon
polygamists over to our side as well? The number of their kids alone would
boost Catholic school enrollment tremendously.
And what about extending another free pass to those bonus-laden Wall Street
Execs? The Vatican could always use some help with its cash flow, and
buying Indulgences might be just what's needed to reinvigorate our faltering
global economy.

I'm sure we could get President Obama to endorse it as part of his Stimulus
Package. Even Tom Friedman might cast a favorable vote. I'm less sure
about the Dalai Lama.

While I've never been a big fan of Rome, I'm already liking this Anglican
thing a lot. It may be one of the few Papal pronouncements I'm willing to
support.

Kenny Moore
Kenny Moore Consulting, LLC
Author of 'The CEO and the Monk'
www.kennythemonk.com

feels like confession time!

so I will be posting some piccies at the weekend from my holiday I had in Nice recently plus from the visit to the new bear park that opened in Bern at the weekend. Bears are to Bern, what chocolate is to Bournville. Bern was founded on the spot where a bear was killed apparently, and they have always kept bears in the city. Up to now it was in a concrete pit, not at all nice, with some of them enjoying more space at the local animal park. But now, at great expense, we have a new park for the bears, by the river, with even somewhere to swim.
On Sunday 40000 people turned out to view their new home and have a Fest. The bears however, stayed hidden in their sleeping quarters, hardly daring to venture out. I guess they have to get used to it.

I am trying not to get too bothered about swine flu, and won't be having the vaccine, but this arrived from HQ today, so I thought I would share it on here:

Fever is rare with a cold.
Fever is usually present with the flu in up to 80% of all flu cases. A temperature of 100°F or higher for 3 to 4 days is associated with the flu.

A hacking, productive (mucus- producing) cough is often present with a cold.
A non-productive (non-mucus producing) cough is usually present with the flu (sometimes referred to as dry cough).

Slight body aches and pains can be part of a cold.
Severe aches and pains are common with the flu.

Stuffy nose is commonly present with a cold and typically resolves spontaneously within a week.
Stuffy nose is not commonly present with the flu.

Chills are uncommon with a cold.
60% of people who have the flu experience chills.

Tiredness is fairly mild with a cold.
Tiredness is moderate to severe with the flu.

Sneezing is commonly present with a cold.
Sneezing is not common with the flu.

Sudden Symptoms: Cold symptoms tend to develop over a few days.
The flu has a rapid onset within 3-6 hours. The flu hits hard and includes sudden symptoms like high fever, aches and pains.

A headache is fairly uncommon with a cold.
A headache is very common with the flu, present in 80% of flu cases.

Sore throat is commonly present with a cold.
Sore throat is not commonly present with the flu.

Chest discomfort is mild to moderate with a cold.
Chest discomfort is often severe with the flu.