Finally Found One Thing I Like

On Facebook, that is. I can view my page in pirate (language) if I so choose, matey! Here's an example:

2 sorry louts think they're yer mates!
1 matey proposed for ye
1(lil) farm life be requestin' permission ta board ship
There be 99 more on ye horizon!

And, of course, when I saw this postcard on Post Secret, I knew I had to grab it, because that's mostly what everyone I'm connected to on FB do. I have enough addictions without adding Farmville to the list. The other day, at the persistence of one of my many cousins, (to keep in touch with them is basically the reason I signed up over there) I tried that family link thing and got a hi-jacking warning, so forget that! Oh, and I didn't forget to check my visitor counter number on Post Secret. I wrote it down and put it somewhere. I remember it was an even number for once.

While I'm writing this, I might well mention two things in the news that have tickled my funnybone lately. As Spain at present has the Presidency of the EEC, a special website was set up, I assume, with orders from the President, Sr. Zapatero. Well, somebody immediately plastered a photo of Mr. Bean on the page! If you're one of those who hasn't seen the President of Spain, believe me he does look like Mr. Bean. I'm not convinced that Mr. Bean doesn't impersonate him sometimes.

 Spanish politicians must have really common faces because the FBI recently found a photo of a Spanish MP (Member of Parliament) on the internet and used it to show what Osama Bin Laden could look like now. As the person whose forehead, hair and jawline had been cut and pasted for Bin Laden's 'updated photo' said, "Bin Laden's safety isn't threatened but mine is." And what can we say and think when a government agency does something like this? Another case of do as I say and not do as I do? I would at least expect more professionalism and I don't mean the photoshopping.

Sale, No Sale

I'm back on my soapbox today after not having written much of anything during the holidays.  A couple of days ago I was reading the news headlines on the internet when one particular headline caught my attention and got on the one nerve I had left as Maxine would say.  I won't name the two shops involved to anyone who is trying his/her best not be wasteful or selfish.  I'll only say, (and I'm sure you'll know which shop I'm referring to) that there will be few, if no American shoppers, who haven't patronised one of these two department stores.
Paul McCartney's daughter has a line of clothing in the other.  The name of these two shops is not important nor who designs clothing for them.  What is important is what has happened to lots of unsold items of clothing.  Bags and bags of clothes were found with the sleeves cut off and holes deliberately made in shoes so that they couldn't be worn.  What a clever idea!  It probably took all of 30 seconds to reach the conclusion that because these were losses which they couldn't benefit from neither could anyone else! And how long would it have taken to make the things 'ready' to be disposed of?  More money foolishly wasted.

One of the shops has since promised to donate their unsold merchandise in the future, but this has got me thinking.  Just because two well- known shops were named in the article doesn't mean that others aren't guilty of the same crime.  It just means that they got caught trashing perfectly useful (for somebody) stuff.  I've always wondered what happened to all the coats and shoes, etc that weren't sold, but I didn't think about it enough or I imagined they saved these things back to sell in the future.  I imagined!  I can only hope that there's a lesson to be learned here by both businesses and consumers. Donating unsold items to charity is a logical feel good solution.

January is the beginning of a new year for many of us.  It's also the first of the two big sales in Spain.  I don't buy a lot of clothes because my job doesn't require me to spend a lot of money on my wardrobe.  Still, I have too many clothes I'm sure.  However, because winter is finally upon us, I'm contemplating buying one of those puffy trench coats so that I'll be able to face that cold Arctic wind even if I do look like Buzz Lightyear or a poop-coloured rubber raft (that's the only colour the one that is 50% off comes in) - that is, if they still have them in my size. If not, I can, and often do, wear layers and layers.