Bloating

My wife was really nice and bought us bread and a jam doughnut for me. The bread she bought was awesome and as I have done before, I ate most of it for breakfast. And then I experienced bloating. I have never really been troubled with it before, but this was quite marked, so much so that my wife enjoyed being able to balance cups and a bottle on my stomach! The kids enjoyed making fun of me, but the bread was awesome and certainly worth it. 

Striking Junior Doctors

After being elected in 2010, the government cut the number of places in Medical Schools. In 2016, we had the first Junior Doctors strike. The government also abolished the NHS bursaries for groups such as student nurses. They have reversed decisions on the numbers of doctors and nurses being trained but they way they treat staff has resulted in many leaving, either leaving healthcare completely, or many have left to work abroad. 

The bottom line when it comes to the Junior Doctors strike, is that the UK can continue to train doctors for nations like Australia and New Zealand, or we can do something to retain the GP’s and Consultants of the future. The 35% increase that is being asked for, is one that is staged over several years, not a hit to NHS finances now.

There are some who blame those who strike for the state of the NHS, or want to hold strikers accountable for patient harm, but they ignore how the NHS is faring under the Conservatives when there are no strikes. 

The sad thing is that the Conservatives have been ruining the NHS for so long, that many cannot remember how it used to work so much better when Labour was in charge of it.

James Cleverly and jokes

I am in a strange situation where I am backing James Cleverly. There has been outrage over a joke he made, this being a Date Rape one about his wife. 

According to reports first published by the Sunday Mirror newspaper, Mr Cleverly told some guests there that “a little bit of Rohypnol in her drink every night” was “not really illegal if it's only a little bit.” It also says he laughed that the secret to a long marriage was ensuring your spouse was “someone who is always mildly sedated so she can never realise there are better men out there.”

I understand that some people will be offended by the joke, especially when it is reported out of context, but like many jokes, such as that which Jimmy Carr got into trouble before, it needs to be viewed in context

Shakespeare in Drag

When I met up with my family on Saturday, one of my brothers stated that JK Rowling was a thoroughly unpleasant person.  I did not challenge him on this, though my two children knew that I wanted to.  It was a family meal and while I do feel strongly about her views, I agree with a lot of them.

However she is often given a lot of stick for increasing transphobia which does exist.  I am not sure if this is due to the increased visibility of non-binary people, or the way that people are trying to discriminate against them (in ways that JK Rowling and I would disagree with). 

What was interesting was this video on how gender boundaries have been blurred for a long time. 

Also, just in case those who are more transphobic than me try to say that trans issues have not been present for a while, this video is of interest.

Family meet up

We met up with my family today. One of my brothers traveled down from Manchester for it (he also went to see an old friend of his afterwards). My other brother came alone, his partner staying at home after having a stressful Christmas. He has booked the pub meal near my mother’s place. My Mum loved seeing us all together, Leia liked seeing my two brothers, especially my youngest one who had house sat before and trained her to fetch a ball which was thrown to her.

Anyway, now we are relaxing. My wife and I are to continue watching Slow Horses, but might get an early night as my daughter was out late. Both kids are awake and active still, which is surprising, considering how late they were up last night. 

Yesterday involved a return to The Westleton Crown

Yesterday I forgot that I had taken the day off work. I went in to be asked why I was in! So I returned home, took my daughter out for a driving lesson, dropped her at my work for her job, returned home and my wife, Leia and I went out to Snape while my son got ready for a date. My daughter had been out to one earlier in the week, but both reported back that it was not a date and did not speak about it at all otherwise.

Leia loved being at Snape Maltings. My wife drove, as helping my daughter learn to drive can be a bit draining. She loves it there as well, which is why we visit it at least once a year. Leia found the drive there a bit stressful as my daughter fed our lactose intolerant Cockapoo some cheese before the trip, which meant that we had to keep pulling over for her. The only part of Snape Maltings that she did not like was a wooden walkway.

I had refused to book lunch in advance, and for a while, it appeared that we were not going to find anywhere, but The Westleton Crown was not too far away so we returned there. Great food once again, and for the person not driving, a fantastic bottle of wine (the remainder of which was shared once we got home). 

Overall, it was a good day and we bought a birthday present for my mother as well! The only blip was Arsenal getting beaten at home by West Ham. 

A Haunting in Venice

Watched this last night with my wife. I am not a big fan of Agatha Christie, but I enjoyed this more than Death On The Nile. While that film started better, this was more of a slow burn. I worked out who it was, almost for the right reason. I doubt that I would watch it again, but apparently others have enjoyed it much more than I.

There has been outrage though about the BBC adaptation of another Agatha Christie novel because the work of fiction was altered slightly to be more inclusive of the population demographics of today. Due to this, I may take the time needed to watch Murder Is Easy, which I doubt I would have watched otherwise.