Victory...Part II

Strangest thing...Saturday I headed into London to meet up with a friend I hadn't seen in about 13 years. As I was waiting at the Eurostar Arrival gate I thought it might be a good idea to look through the tourist leaflets just in case there was something of interest or value there. Amongst the leaflets was the following...

I had to look twice as I thought it was so strange that I had never heard of "Dig for Victory" before last week and now I've posted on it and found a leaflet for an exibit at the Churchill Museum.

Thought it was cool and figured appropriate to share! Read the original Victory post below.

Victory

“O Victory in Jesus, my saviour, forever. He sought me and bought me with his redeeming blood; He loved me ere I knew Him and all my love is due Him, He plunged me to Victory, Beneath the Cleansing Flood”

This song has been going through my head ever since yesterday morning when I got the word VICTORY. I’ve thought about posting about it but there isn’t much to say. I don’t currently go to Church and haven’t for about 8 or so years…I have my reasons. But this song must have made an impact on me as I remembered the words, and that is quite an achievement. I find I pretty much know the tunes for a lot of hymns but have no idea what the words are. This comes from years and years of playing in the Salvation Army band. I always played the tune…next to never sang it.

It is a good thing I’m not posting about the song…as this would be the end…So even though that song was running through my head the past two days I’m going to go a different way…of course.

V is for Victory, Churchill, WWII…as I was looking up stuff about Victory on the net (I needed some sort of inspiration!) I came across the following pictures.



And then I kept seeing mentionings of it and I became intrigued…Dig for Victory…what does this mean, what does it reference to? I tend to associate Victory with World War II. Obviously there are other Victory’s but this is what I’m focusing on today.

One month into World War II the British Ministry of Agriculture started the Dig for Victory Campaign. The British People were encouraged to turn their yards and pretty much any free and empty land into allotments to “grow their own”. This was started not only to provide much needed food for the British public but it also in turn freed up the much needed space on shipping convoy’s for war materials.

You would not believe the extent that Ministry went to promoting this scheme. They had songs and poems and even little characters to encourage people to eat Carrots and potatoes.



I’m not kidding in the slightest! Check out this site…it shows some of the poems and songs and characters.

It turns out that this worked a treat and people didn’t starve as being on our own tiny island over here…we were prone to the Germans sinking thousands of merchant ships as Britian imported 55 million tons of food a year before the war started.

How did this help the war effort? It meant that merchant ships could focus on supplying the war effort rather than supplying the British people with food.


I find it funny but very sad at my own ignorance that this was one of the most memorable campaigns of the 20th century and I didn’t know anything about it!

The moral of the story…it’s the small things that make a difference!

This was a post for the Blog Off for Breast Cancer V2.0. Please take some time to view some of the other blogs participating, all the links are on the right hand panel. Remember, it's the small things that matter...so do your small bit and please click on the banner below to make a contribution to Courtney and her three day walk so we can all have a VICTORY against cancer!

Fat Club - Week One

Well, the first week has been and gone...I had a rough weekend but regardless...I still lost 3lbs last week! Whoo hoo!

Fat Club

Well, I've discovered that this time...I can't lose the weight myself...in fact I've gained a good 20lbs in the past year! (Shock! I know!) So I went back to Fat Club or rather Slimming World. I lost 15lbs on it before but never reached my goal...quit as I thought I could do it on my own. I was doing ok until we went home in November for 2 weeks...and then it was Christmas...and then we went to New Zealand for three weeks in February...and then I had my surgery and stopped exercising...and then we went to Boston in May...and then we went to Riga in July...I eat and drink FAR too much on holiday.



So I knew it wasn't good as my fat pants (trousers) are getting a wee bit snug on me...and those are the only pair that still fit me...So I figured something needed to be done. I have 7 months till the wedding which is plenty of time to lose 25lbs. As of this morning's count I've lost 5lbs...and I've not done that well on following the plan this weekend. But it'll get better...I hope! I'm hoping for a 3lb loss on Thursday (at least!)



I'd like to lose a stone (14lbs) by the time I go away for my hen weekend in September. It's doable...and I'm going to sign up for the Cancer Research 10K which will force me to train again...which always helps!



This is what I want to look like (at least!) by my wedding....

This is what I look like at the moment...

Breasts

Breasts, big or small we all have them (and yes men too…Heck even chickens have them!) Fortunately I’m not going to write about Chicken Breasts tonight. Nor am I going to write about Man boobs, although I should at some point…as I’m very confused as to why it is socially acceptable for a man of larger stature who has bigger boobs not to wear a bra but it is expected that I do…but that’s another point for another day…

Breasts, or Boobs as I will kindly refer to them for the remainder of the post have a number of functions. These can range from breast feeding a child, a play thing for men, something to fill a bra or even something to help you put on lipstick (The Breakfast Club). They can get in the way as well…fortunately for me I have just enough that I can show them off but not too much that I can strap them down so they don’t slap me in the face when I run.

Boobs, they can give life (or something essential for life) and they can take life.

I don’t have any children, yet. But like to think that when I do, I will breastfeed them. I know that it has been proven that this is the healthiest start for a baby. Mother Natures Nectar. With all our technology available to us we still haven’t created anything as healthy for a baby as mothers milk.

“The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that an infant be breastfed without supplemental foods or liquids for the first 6 months of age” – taken from this site

Over the years there has been increased proof to show that breast feeding is beneficial for both mother and Child.

Babies who are not breastfed are at greater risk for a number of health issues including ear infections, allergic disease and respiratory infections. Also breast fed babies tend to be smarter (I was breast fed…can’t you tell!). Have a look at more benefits of breastfeeding here

We all know that breastfeeding is good for the baby…but what about the mother. Apparently it helps you lose your baby weight after giving birth but did you know it also lowers your risk of hip fractures and bone density not to mention Ovarian and BREAST CANCER.

Heck…who cares if my breasts sag (sorry Smiley)…with those kind of benefits for both me and my future children…I’d be mad not to. (I do know that there are some reasons why some women can’t breast feed and I’m not getting at those people…but not breastfeeding for fear of saggy boobs…heck! That’s what a Wonder Bra is for!)

Unfortunately Boobs can take life as well. And no I’m not referring to the fembot in Austin Powers that has guns for nipples (although that is very amusing and how cool would that be!)

The whole point of this blog-off is to raise money for a cure to Breast Cancer. Courtney lost her mum to the disease and so did Evey . There are others I’m sure and I’m sorry that I didn’t mention you (Eternity, your sis told me about your Aunt…I hope it all works out for the best!)

In the UK in 2005, Breast Cancer was the cause of 17% of all deaths caused by cancer. This is a lot of people, 12,417 to be exact.

Remember, Breast Cancer is not just for women, Men can get it as well (although it is rare).

Please remember to test yourself for breast cancer regularly. The earlier it is caught, the more chance we have of beating it. I’m horrible and next to never self test…if you don’t know how…here are some instructions

This was a post for the Blog Off for Breast Cancer V2.0. Please take some time to view some of the other blogs participating, all the links are on the right hand panel. Also, if you'd like this week's beer money to go to a worthier cause please click on the banner below to make a contribution to Courtney and her three day walk!

Riga (That's in Latvia!)

This past weekend we (as in me, Smiley, Smiley's Brother and Sister-in-law) went to Riga for 3 nights.

The best thing about living in England (other than the constant rain of course) is that we're so close to the rest of Europe. Riga was only a 2 hour flight away and it is so beautiful there.

We spent our three days walking, and looking at buildings and the "sights" and not to mention the food and the drink! A great time was had by all including Burt and Sean (although I'm sure they drank way too much this weekend!)

I've included some pictures...just to tease you of course. I will post more on facebook with a link here later (when I have half a moment). I will also post more about what we did as it was a great weekend.

But for now...I'm going to bed as I have a busy day tomorrow and I've gotten the next word for the Blog off and that needs to be up by Thursday night!

This is a view of "Old Town" Riga. There is some amazing architecture there. This picture was taken from the steeple of the St. Peters Church

A fine example of some of the amazing architecture. This is "Blackheads House"

Burt and Sean enjoying my cider far too much while I nipped out to the loo!

Hope

This is a post for the Blog Off for Breast Cancer V2.0. Please take some time to view some of the other blogs participating, all the links are on the right hand panel. Also, if you'd like this week's beer money to go to a worthier cause please click on the banner below to make a contribution to Courtney and her three day walk!

I got this word yesterday morning but didn't have a chance to write about it till tonight. I spent the four hours it took me to get home from Liverpool yesterday thinking about HOPE and how I was going to approach it. Even now I'm not entirely sure but I've run out of time so you'll have to put up with whatever I happen to come up with now.

I'm not sure what I think about the word HOPE. I use it all the time. In fact right now I'm hoping that Moose will be ok as we dropped him off at the Kennels for the weekend as we're going away. But we all know what HOPE is but I don't think its easy to explain. I spent some time chatting with my mate to see if I could come up with anything inspiring.

To me HOPE is "The Light at the end of the Tunnel". When we are uncertain about the outcome of an event we have HOPE that it will turn out well.

I grew up in Edmonton and we often used to take trips to Victoria. For those of you know the route between the Rockies and Vancouver know that you go through the town of HOPE. On one of these trips my Dad told me how the Town got its name. He said that the pilgrims named it once they got there after so many hard years of making their way through the mountains.

I looked up the origin of the town HOPE. Unfortunately the story that my dad told is just that, a story. I still feel that the town of Hope is a good representation of the meaning of HOPE.

I love the drive through the Rockies but even to this day I find I end up getting quite bored by the end and wish I was there already. I always feel that by the time we get to Hope we are nearly there...the mountains start to flatten out and I know that we're nearly there...it's the light at the end of the tunnel.

HOPE is more than just wanting..."I hope you have a nice day" is not the same as "I want you to have a nice day". Hope is something that you have when you are uncertain of its outcome. This could be anything from hoping you get the job that you had the interview for last week, or hoping that the cute guy in the next office calls you for that date he promised, or even hoping they find a cure for that disease you've been diagnosed with.

Hope is what keeps us going. It's the optimist in all of us...even a pessimist can have HOPE. No matter how negative our outlook can get there is always a glimmer of HOPE within us (even if we have to dig for it!).

Survivor

This is a post for the Blog Off for Breast Cancer V2.0. Please take some time to view some of the other blogs participating. Also, if you'd like this week's beer money to go to a worthier cause please click on the banner below to make a contribution to Courtney and her three day walk!

We’re all survivors and we all know survivors. We’re a mixed breed really. I kept thinking about this word and wondering how I was going to approach it. I thought about my mum and my future mother in law who have both battled cancer and have come out on top. I thought about random people who have over come their disabilities and situations to become better people. I’ve thought about those who have survived of "Acts of God", ie, Volcano's, Avalanches, earthquakes, floods, etc. and even thought about the TV show "Survivor" and wondered if scheming and backstabbing is what makes a person a "Survivor". All this thinking and I’m still not finding what this word really means to me. After a while I started to wonder what the difference between a survivor and a victim was. To me…a survivor is someone who has battled something and come out stronger…a victim is the same person who battles the same thing but comes out weaker. Obviously this is in reference to spirit and mind, not body. (and not a dictionary definition either, just how I happen to feel about the words)

For those of you who have been watching the news may have heard that the UK is having a rough week. On the selfish and shallow side of things my biggest problem is that we’ve not had any sun for ages…I’m pretty sure it has rained every day for the past 3 or 4 weeks. But this is me being selfish and if I was living in a bubble this is what would concern me the most. However…I don’t live in a bubble, so last week I was watching the news and seeing images of flooded streets and homes and rivers and reservoirs bursting their banks. For those of you who don’t live in the UK may think that this is normal for us. You know…it always rains in England…right? Unfortunately not, that is the case through out the winter but in the summer we are usually suffering from the heat and hose pipe bans as water is scarce.

An Aerial View of the village of Catcliff near Sheffield which was under water after two days of heavy rain.

If you would like to see other images of our week of flooding Please go to the BBC website.

In other news…it seems as though the terrorists have hit again…or at least attempted to. There have been a number of incidents since last Friday.

On the 29th there was an "incident" in London involving a car bomb planted in London which if exploded would have caused serious damage as the car was packed with 60 litres of Petrol, gas cylinders and nails. This was close to the infamous Piccadilly Circus.

On the 30th there was a "blazing car" that crashed into the main terminal at Glasgow Airport was loaded with Gas Cylinders.

On the 3rd there were Security alerts and controlled explosions at Heathrow Airport, Glasgow and Hammersmith in London.

Obviously there are many more details which can be found on the BBC website.

I would love to have a "boring" life…no floods, no terrorist attacks…I would like to say that none of the events over the past 2 weeks have affected me, but it’s obvious that they have as I’m writing about them now.

I refuse to be a victim. I refuse to be scared. What is the point? Isn’t fear the true weapon of a terrorist? I don’t go into London very often as it’s quite expensive and there is lots to do around here but I remember seeing a t-shirt after the July 7th bombings which stated that London is not afraid.

I love this t-shirt and yes…many, many people are afraid. Even though none of these incidents have directly affected me as I wasn't there I am still affected indirectly by media and just life in general.

I keep thinking about the difference between a Survivor and a Victim. Here is what the Dictionary says about Survivor:

sur·vi·vor –noun
a person who continues to function or prosper in spite of opposition, hardship, or setbacks.

This is who I want to be. I am a survivor.

We should all aim to be survivors regardless what life throws at us.

Excited!

Today is the day we get our first word for the Blog off! I know I won't get it till later...or possibly even tomorrow with the time difference! But I'm excited! I want to know what the word is so I can start thinking about it and writing about it! Whoo Hoo!

Stay posted!

Happy Canada Day!

Just wanted to say a quick "Happy Canada Day" to all of my fellow Canadians!

Happy 140th Birthday Canada!