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Archive for September, 2010

Luck- American le man series-was in for Luke!

OOPS EDITORS NOTE: See what happens when I deal with French 🙂
I got my man ( s) wrong so correction please note: the crash was at the American le man series and the Petit Le Mans will be October 2nd ( see end of post)

As regular readers know my cousin’s son –Luke Hines -was over here racing in the American le Man series. We managed to get to Mansfield to see the action. I sat with Luke’s mum , Tina – in some ways it was easier on the nerves as the vehicles roared around the circuit- just seeing part of the track with the live action.

When we arrived back at the pit we saw there had been some damage done to the car- that could only mean one thing – Mum Gulp!

However , nothing like this- this is what happens when you are clipped when doing 161 mph…….

As for Gavin– well if Nag Nog has anything to do with it he will remain in the “plastic wagon class” -1 Nag- Nog power only!!!!

NEXT RACE: Petit Le Mans, Road Atlanta, GA
SERIES: American Le Mans Series
DATE: October 2, 11:15 AM ET
TV: LIVE on SPEED and CBS
DURATION: 10 Hours

September 10, 2010 at 11:37 am 3 comments

WHAT A RIGHT C*CK- UP !!! BP

As my old grandmother used to say
“BEWARE_ a standing c*ck has no conscience”

A lesson learned by many a compromised young girl- and it seems on the corporate level no one is admitting to being the father of the disaster in the Gulf. Ah conscience sadly lacking me thinks

Does anyone do their job anymore???

Put the blame where you like this BP report reads like a comedy of errors that had disaster written all over it – and the “professionals get paid how much??” – I bet the legal eagles were all over every word before this was released.

In all this you-did – they did- we did wasn’t there one expert on the rigs or in the workforce among them that stood up and said :

errrrr excuse me guvn’r but shouldn’t we??????

MEN DIED!!!!!!!! because of this ineptness !!!

Where is your conscience??? Haliburton, Bp, Transocean
http://www.dailymail.co.uk:80/news/worldnews/article-1286197/Oil-spill-How-Blue-Dog-Boys-kept-Obama-s-boot-neck-BP-s-US-partner.html

73 per cent of all Gulf incidents involve Transocean
All bonuses banned after four died on firm’s oil rigs

Obama desperate for support of politicians linked to Transocean lobbyist

The American owners of the drilling rig at the centre of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill have been involved in nearly three-quarters of all significant safety incidents on rigs in the region since 2008, according to new figures.
Over the past five years, the US government has investigated four fires aboard deep-water rigs – all operated by Transocean. British regulators have also issued a warning over a Transocean rig in the North Sea because of worries over a key safety device, the blowout preventer.

Investigators believe April’s explosion on the Deepwater Horizon rig – which caused the death of 11 workers and the growing oil slick in the Gulf – was caused by the failure either of a seal meant to keep oil and gas from escaping from a well or by the blowout preventer, which is designed to close off the well in an emergency.

The company recently relocated its HQ to Switzerland, which has a more favourable tax regime for multi-national companies…..

It has so far proved far more adept than BP at handling the intricacies of US politics, and last month hired an influential lobbyist and former politician to represent its interests in Washington.

He is ex-Democratic Congressman Bill Brewster of Oklahoma, who remains a powerful figure in Washington among politicians linked to the oil industry.

He is also a member of the Blue Dog Coalition, a group of conservative Democrat Congressmen from the southern states whose support Mr Obama desperately needs in the face of difficult mid-term elections later this year which could see many of his party’s Congressmen unseated.

BP can you hear me NOW?

Or are you still being selective– I dutifully contacted the Press office at BP after my last couple of posts
https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2010/06/20/why-bps-tony-haywards-pr-nightmare-effects-us/

https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2010/07/19/bp-does-it-stand-for-bishop-priest-british-petroleum-or-bloody-pathetic/
as a courtesy and I got
OUT OF OFFICE REPLY only this one read

Thank you for email. we’re not actually “out of office”.
===============
If you are a media contact, we will reply as soon as possible, or you could try the unified command media response desk in Louisiana: +1 985 902 5231.
The BP London press office is on +44 207 496 4076, or switchboard/out of hours is +44 207 496 4000.
BP Houston press office is 1 281 366 0265.
rgds
BP Press Office

Now we have their thoughts on what happened- unconscionable – and a right cock up as we say in BP language.

http://www.bp.com/sectiongenericarticle.do?categoryId=9034902&contentId=7064891

Apparently BP puts the blame squarely on everyone
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-11225623

There were “no indications” that Transocean had tested intervention systems at the surface, “as was required by Transocean policy”, before they were deployed on the well
“Improved engineering rigour, cement testing and communication of risk” by Halliburton could have identified flaws in cement design and testing, quality assurance and risk assessment
A Transocean rig crew and a team described as “mudloggers” working for Halliburton Sperry Sun may have been distracted by what are described as “end-of-well activities” and, as a result, important monitoring was not carried out for more than seven hours
Crew may have had more time to respond before the explosion if they had diverted escaping fluids overboard.
“To put it simply, there was a bad cement job and a failure of the shoe track barrier at the bottom of the well, which let hydrocarbons from the reservoir into the production casing,” said outgoing chief executive Tony Hayward.

But we knew this didn’t we folks because what happened in the Gulf and with the big corporations happens to us little fish ALL the time lately present , past and future unless someone decides to have a conscience

ONCE AGAIN THE NOTORIOUS OPPONENTS OF EXACTITUDE AWARD GOES TO BP, HALIBUTON, TRANSOCEAN AND ALL THE OIL SLICK MEN AND THEIR PROPHYLACTIC POSTURING.

September 9, 2010 at 12:03 pm Leave a comment

Gorillas in the Midst-

Never apologize for showing feeling. When you do so, you apologize for the truth.
— Benjamin Disraeli

Chris' Facebook Page Icon

There is one who walks my path – just days after I lost my son , she too lost her son. Lisa has also written about what has happened to her , her husband and family since light of the “son” left her world.

Recently Lisa wrote about the “Gorilla in the house”

When your child dies, it is like coming home from a long trip and finding that a gorilla has moved into your house and taken over your life. You contact everyone you can think of to help you get rid of the beast. They hem and haw and shuffle their feet a bit before saying something like “…well, uh, whatcha got thar is a go-rilla and ain’t really a lot we can do about ‘em, y’know…” before sending you back home to the gorilla’s open arms.

The gorilla will wreak havoc in every aspect of your life. Your spouse may become withdrawn or move out because s/he just can’t deal with the gorilla. ………….

ED Note please follow this link for further reading and understanding
http://bustershouse.wordpress.com/2010/08/31/the-gorilla-in-the-house/

You try to live with the great ape the “Gorilla of Grief” – there are days after horrible nights when you try to avoid his logical hiding places. You know that to encounter him on such a day- when you are even weaker than you can bear could be dangerous.

These are the days you walk through the dining room not looking at walls covered with reminders, you stay out of your son’s bedroom- because it will always be his bedroom no matter the change in decor- – you make a conscious effort to avoid known trigger traps – you watch inane programs on television , that you know will have no reminders or significance.

You do everything to avoid the gorilla- you are apprehensive because you know he stalks and will jump at you bringing you to your knees with ripping sobs of despair pulled from the depths of your being .

You are scared of those times because the release is too torturous and you think you will not be able to endure for another moment .

Self- preservation dictates you must avoid the arms of the gorilla. And then a simple task of emptying the dishwasher is your undoing.

As you unpack the clean dishes your eyes alight on the ordinary drinking glasses that shine and sparkle- the new dishwasher working wonders and then the terror – in their reflection you see the gorilla –

The gorilla reminds and taunts you making you remember how your son hated the “bits” left on the glasses- no glass was ever clean enough – his eyes picked up the most microscopic piece – washing it over by hand two or three times would eventually appease his “standard of cleanliness” when it came to drinking glasses.

He so hated “dishwasher clean” we jokingly gave him plastic glasses that were thrown away . Many a holiday table found, what became a family joke , his place setting set not with the “crystal goblet” but pseudo plastic elegance.

Now as the crystal clear glasses sparkle , shine in the morning sun , smooth to the touch , showing no “bits” in their transparency as they are taken from the dishwasher-

the gorilla pounces and attacks –

and once again the simple act of everyday living becomes your waking nightmare.

You know the gorilla is there , you can feel his presence coming nearer – his prey has been located and you are helpless. Your eyes swollen , burning and red from months of tears find yet even more hot, desperate tears flowing down a face etched with loss and memories, a throat already sore from gutteral grief can no longer hold back the sounds of despair – a sucker punch to your gut causes the lungs to release the very oxygen of life – the body struggles against the pressure of the gorillas grip to breathe – your heart seems to fail and then the release as the silent scream is wrenched from you – and the gorilla satisfied for the moment leaves you once again on your knees.

YOU HAVE LOST!!!
The gorilla has found its prey once more.

The Gorilla of Grief is not soon destined for extinction

Chris in London 1989

September 8, 2010 at 10:35 am 7 comments

The Firefighter- ( remembered???)

It never fails whether on this blog or the old WoM just before Sept 11th comes around a lot of hits come through people searching for firefighter images and this week is no different. Hundreds of hits are coming through on this image ( the original artist unknown)

We remember the firefighters who ran into “hell on earth” on that September day as I did here – nearly two years ago
https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2008/10/22/firefighters-remembered/

May we remember, as we remember Sept. 11th, the firefighter, the police officers , the many city workers etc that clocked in that day for duty just as they do every day all over this country and elsewhere –

their ordinary day may expect them to perform extraordinary feats. We need to remember that every day not just every Sept. 11th ……

SOURCE
http://www.september11news.com/FDNYFireman.htm

September 6, 2010 at 1:58 pm 2 comments

“THE UNINVITED” – YOU ARE INVITED!!!

Some summer days along St. John River – New Brunswick could be filled with a damp cold fog followed by a sleeting rain that would permeate your bones akin to a November day rather than mid July. I was about 12, if memory serves, when such a day came crashing through the blue skies whipping trees and water into a frenzy of grey and smokey waters capped with dirty white, causing the river rocks to rattle and clatter in collective disaproval as the pounding surf moved them along the beaches.

The “town people” from the City of St. John would spend their summer days in “summer cottages” (up- country ) along the beautiful St. John River to remove themselves from the summer heat of the city .

All the kids , “town and up-country folk” would mingle each summer spending hours on the beaches, rock cliffs and forests taking us wherever our imaginations and “daring” allowed. Looking back parents seemed woefully absent it seems to me.

On those grey cold Atlantic days which swept in from the ocean and the Bay of Fundy we would end up in one of the summer cottages playing cards, board games , listening to the latest music of the day and just being pre- teens. At night we would light fires on the beach boil corn ( usually pinched from a neighbors garden) or roast hotdogs and marshmallows.

But it was on just such a dark afternoon of bleak cold grey skies and slashing rains when I first saw the movie “The Uninvited”. The movie was an old one (1944) – black and white- and somewhat scratchy but I remember we all sat huddled around the small set, the sounds of waves crashing on the beach , wind whistling through the clap boards and rattling the windows mesmerized as the story unfolded before us .

It was a perfect afternoon for imaginations to run wild.

We sat enthralled and even the “brave fellas” among us weren’t quite so daring that afternoon as we watched the plot unfold. There is a moment in the movie when the doors burst open and the mist appears. I can remember a collective scream and my heart pounding and a lot of heads behinds hands.

It was a time of innocence , there was no need for bloody axes, heads falling from closets – gore and guts needed to scare us – the movie did that beautifully ( and still does) and I have to say it is still one of my favourites to this day -even if it did come out before I was even born.

Workshop Players invites you to THE UNIVITED- may your pulse race and your nerves tingle ……

“The Uninvited” by Tim Kelly, directed by Dave Mackeigan, opens Thursday, September 9.

Seeking to escape the demands of life in London, Pam Fitzgerald (Cindy Bilby) and her brother, Roddy, (Paul Nelson) an aspiring playwright, discover a charming house in the west of England, overlooking the Irish Sea. The house has long been empty, and they are able to purchase it at a suspiciously low price. Fifteen years earlier a murder may or may not have occurred by the gnarled tree that can be viewed from the French doors.

Slowly the Fitzgerald’s begin to sense the evil spirit that still inhabits the house, announcing its presence with a sudden, bone-chilling cold. A séance is arranged and the house is forced, at last, to reveal its dark secrets. The action then builds steadily to a truly terrifying climax, in which the ghost is discovered to be not only real but dangerous.

Also in the cast are: Deb Burrow, Kelly Dillon, Bob Kenderes, Jonathan McCleery, Pat Price, Diane Schreiber, Jeanine Surace and Joy Van Kueren.

Production dates are: September 9, 10, 11, 17, 18, 24, 25 at 8 p.m., with Sunday matinees on September 19 and 26 at 3 p.m.

Tickets are $12.00 each or $10.00 each for groups of 15 or more and may be reserved by calling the box office at 440-988-5613.

Workshop Players Theatre-in-the-Round is located at 44820 Middle Ridge Road in Amherst, and our mezzanine area is wheelchair accessible. Check out our website at www.workshopplayers.com

September 4, 2010 at 7:56 pm 4 comments

“Remember the kind of September”- Chris Ritchey

TRY TO REMEMBER WHEN LIFE WAS SO TENDER THAT NO ONE WEPT EXCEPT THE WILLOW

The willow is not alone in her weeping. Planted before you were born, three times she was destined to be cut down, three times for some unknown reasons the tree surgeons failed in their task. She stands taller than ever and weeps.

Every day that passes, every week seems unreal in our world , the hours turn into months but time blurs and it is as if just minutes have actually passed. Time isn’t healing it is vanishing. Time disappears into a whirlpool of grief sucked into oblivion only to surface briefly before disappearing once more.

I cannot credit that it was last year on this date you were accepted into the SGN 35 trial. There had been that horrible news that it was your only hope but that the trial had closed the Friday before.

Then it seemed like a miracle -you were accepted into a trial in Texas! I remember thinking

this will work it has to be a sign- fate or whomever decides our destiny couldn’t be so cruel as to keep giving hope only to dash us on the rocks of despair- to give us the “avenue of against the odds”.

You were destined to live- I honestly believed you would that somehow you would come through. I cannot believe the cruelty that surrounds the last 18 months of your young life and the cruelty that continued after your death.

I am bewildered by it all. I am awash with the emptiness you have left in my being, the regrets of promises I couldn’t keep and the hot tears that bring no relief and recognize no ticking clock of healing.