One of the proudest memories of my musical career is of a mission undertaken on behalf of the Dutch nation to a Swedish folk festival, at which a programme of James Last covers was performed to accompany the wobblings of a display team of penny-farthing riders. Some believe that the deep affinity that exists between…
From The Independent, re the death of 19 Chinese cockle pickers in Morecambe Bay: The intensification of the industry has been driven by Conservas Dani, based in Vilassar de Mar… Dani’s products are a household name in Spain by virtue of the fact that Espanyol, the club chaired by the company’s wealthy owner, Daniel Sanchez…
I just hope there’s a baker next door: Pastor Don Schafer believes a church should be “a laboratory and not a museum.” The Lutheran Church of Our Savior, behind Big Fish Grill in Rehoboth Beach has opened its door to many parts of the community under his leadership and now it’s breaking down language barriers.
Either condoms have suddenly become hideously expensive or there’s a missing link when The Guardian says that “British teenagers are better off … than ever before” while the BBC says they’re using crisp packets because they can’t afford the real thing. The solution is obvious – sell crisps wrapped in condoms – and the title…
“It is unfortunate it happened but it could have happened to them anywhere,” said the Spanish Tourist Office of a roadside attack here on a family from Devon by a Latino gang. Er, probably not in Devon.
Not only (as Margaret Marks notes) has the BBC started using trucker instead of lorry-driver or patient with chronic back pain and a dietary disorder: the Americanism has been the preferred usage in Holland for years. Henk Wijngaard’s 1978 hit, Met De Vlam In De Pijp, is probably the best-known Dutch truckliedje. Try singing this…
While garden show presenters who can’t tell the difference between cannabis and cabbage would probably do better sticking to alcohol, I’m intrigued to note that healthcare scammers, All Nutritional Supplements, are advertising bags of Jamaican bat guano, apparently for human use. (Yes, it’ll also do wonders for your cabbages, although the Scots may want to…
I want to illustrate at ridiculous speed the change in status of Ficus carica – once found outside the back door of farmhouses around the Mediterranean – over the last couple of thousand years. Since you’re all familiar with Genesis 3, I’ll start a bit later, with the Ethiopic version of the Apocalypse of Peter.…