What’s the Story in Dalamory

The Elder-blogging community (particularly in the States) has been getting in a state about ageism on the net. Facebook comes in for a great deal of criticism. See here….for an example. This has just come to my attention at the same time as the BBC’s Panorama has been exposing violent crime videos uploaded to Youtube.

It is difficult to know how to respond to monitoring of individual websites or of the internet in general. It seems to me that the only way is for those who come across such items to be vociferous in demanding a just and equitable solution as soon as possible.  For violence on Youtube, that means flagging up their unsuitability and monitoring that they have been removed. For any kind of -ism…..that means being constant in pointing out anomalies or intentional prejudices. There is one major problem though. And that is in the area of religion. For one can end up being called a biggot, or belittling another’s deeply held beliefs.

Sometimes I despair of the human race. But it is just as well it is only sometimes.

The good news, for me, is that there is no further sign of the mouse.

The bad news, for the mouse, is that it has probably been eaten by the cat……… I hope.

Help us to learn that goodness is stronger than evil;
that love is stronger than hate;
that life is stronger than darkness;
that life is stronger than death;
that victory is ours
through your forgiving love.

Desmond Tutu

Picture the scene: one orange fuzzball cat, silent and still, intently watching one end of a bookcase in the hall. Then he purposefully moves to the other end of the same bookcase and again sits and sits. Him Behind the Wheel says…..there’s a mouse behind there. Don’t be ridiculous, says I, anyway the cat only brings in dead ones. The cat moves away and I use this as evidence that there is no mouse anywhere near.

The next morning …….what do I find on top of the aforementioned bookcase?

Got it in one…….mouse droppings!

Son #1 directed me to a new site that searches the electoral role. According to statistics there are 60 Freda Marshall’s in the UK.

Wonder where they all are and what they do?
Will you resist checking your name?

Great excitement today. Son #1 and entourage (that means Mrs #1 plus three little #1’s) are coming to visit. Our house is a bit small, so the visitors will be camping in the campervan overnight. It takes me back to my own childhood when anything out of the ordinary was a great adventure. Misty is thrilled, but Fox is considering moving into the garage for the duration….at eleven years old he is getting past too much change.

Look away now if you are fed up with hearing about computer operating problems.

Today has been another bad technical day. At various times various mail programs were working, part-working or not working. Similarly for both browsers (Explorer and Firefox)….. so much of the day was spent talking to BT abroad again. By general agreement, problems are occurring world-wide with Windows Vista incompatabilities and these are being exacerbated by Microsoft’s updates – ie their attempts to fix the original problems in their program. No, I am not turning into a geek, but I am rather a confused and angry little person tonight. The latest problem is that my photo editing software (Photoshop Elements 4) has gone on strike, and I do not understand the instructions to download something or other from its creator, Adobe.

OK – I know it is boring. Thank goodness it is bedtime and tomorrow is another day.

The question is……will I sleep, or will my brain mysteriously become part of cyberspace? Have I handed over control? Or did I take it back.

Have spent much of today with my computer being controlled by BT in India…… at least so I presume from the accents. Despite the promises of help, neither the first operative nor her supervisor were able to sort out a glitch in Windows Mail. I am presuming this is just another of the teething problems that Vista has presented us with. Am using Thunderbird for now, but am not yet convinced of its reliability or my ability to use it properly.

Anyone else heard of problems with their email suddenly stopping sending emails, when settings etc have remained the same? 

love is a place
and through this place of
love move
(with brightness of peace)
all places.

E.E. Cummings

This is a compilation from my falconry day last month. It has taken rather a long time to understand the new video programs.

That was me with those birds!

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZmd5i0C-NU]