Supporting your country come Rain, Hail or Shine

Amongst pouring rain, thunderstorms and lightening we went out to support the Women's Road Race. Front row seats this time as the crowds were definitely well down from the Men’s race on Saturday.

I saw the Aussies (eventually), got soaking wet in the process, but wanted them to hear at least one ‘Aussie Aussie Aussie’ in the Brit dominated crowd. Yes you might as well let go and get a bit feral when supporting your country, no one knows me here!

Aussie Aussie Aussie

Actually H and I must look a sight when we walk out the front door. I’m in the green and gold sporting my custom painted toenails and holding the boxing kangaroo flag. I even got a ‘I should be so lucky’ comment yesterday!  Meanwhile, Hamish is in the Brit red, white and blue topped with a bowlers hat sporting a Brit flag. I would put a photo here but I might get in trouble J

I must leave you now, I'm watching the Brits in the men's synchronised diving - go Tom Daly!

Highlights of Day 1

I have to fit in one more post before I go to sleep tonight.

The 39 year old Bulgarian gymnast; his 6th Olympics. His team members are young enough to be his sons (nearly). Well done!

The Russian outfits, flashback to the 80's.

Watching the Italians win the archery.

Seeing O'grady and the Aussie team cycle past in Kingston.

Aussies win gold in women's 4x100 relay.

So much to see, I can hardly keep my eyes open. Not sure I will keep up all the blogs on the Olympics but hope it stirs up your interest to watch and support your teams.

Nite nite.

Men's Road Race reaches Kingston

With anticipation building the crowds continued to arrive and in some places were 10 or more deep. We managed to get a position right on a corner as they passed the famous Telephone Box sculpture in Kingston.

British flags were everywhere and amongst them were some odd ones out, South Africa, Pakistan and of course Aussie !

Police motorcycles revved past us waving and sometimes stopping to rev up the crowds. 

I got told off for waving my Aussie Flag but I didn't care no one was stopping me screaming Aussie Aussie Aussie as they raced past us.

O'Grady

Well done Aussies for coming 5th and well done Kazakhstan on 1st !

Spectacular Opening Ceremony

I don't think there is any question that our fellow Poms were very proud last night by what was a fantastic opening ceremony. I felt very privileged to be amongst it and soak up the atmosphere.

Arriving at Hyde Park we were greeted by a mass security screening. It took about an hour to get to the front of the line and then it was an airport type check. I guess that's why we've been told to arrive at events well in advance of them starting.

Arriving at Hyde Park (with some randoms)

The park was decked out with sponsors, large screens, merchandise and catering stalls. After an hour in the line we went straight for a drink!

Pushing our way towards the mosh pit we didn't quite get there, however were close enough to enjoy Duran Duran when they made it on stage.

When the opening ceremony kicked off the crowd went absolutely wild. Brits, Aussies and all nationalities carrying their flags over their shoulders screamed in support.

We saw the red arrows fly past smoking out red, white and blue.

Remnants of the Red Arrows

I won't go through the whole opening ceremony as I'm sure by now you've read the news or even seen the repeats on television.  But I have to mention my favourite bit....James Bond aka Daniel Craig, the Queen and her corgies. There was utters of 'no that can't be the queen', 'is that really the queen' and when full realisation hit that it really was, the crowd just went off. 

In between the ceremony we had Stereophonics and then Snow Patrol. I missed the Aussies arrive into the stadium as the band was playing but caught up on that this morning.

One other point of note or question is where was Wenlock the mascot in the whole ceremony, unless I missed an important bit I didn't see it anywhere?!

Duran Duran

It took us a good two hours to get home. Sitting on the bus one of the nurses from the NHS piece of the ceremony was chatting to an Aussie telling her about the experience. Apparently all the people in the NHS performance were actual NHS staff who have spent every weekend since April and after work hours rehearsing.

We are now sitting on the comfy couch relaxing before the bike race reaches Kingston in a couple hours. Go Aussie Go!

  

Excitement builds in London

This is not going to be a long post but I really just wanted to share with you how excited Britain is with the Olympic Opening Ceremony kicking off tonight. 

Its buzzing.

This morning as the torch passed Kingston atop of the Queen's rowbarge 'Gloriana' on the Thames, a mass bell ringing around London took place (8.12am to be exact). Even Big Ben rang for 3 minutes for the first time since King George VI's funeral.

From first sight of the boats on the horizon to seeing the rowbarge with the torch.

If you look closely at the 4th photo you can see an Aussie boat called the 'Barramundi'

Departing Kingston under the Kingston Bridge

Gossip is raging on who will be the person who lights the cauldron to signal the opening of the Olympics. Some of the names include The Queen and David Beckham.

There is also gossip about the mascots so I learnt yesterday. Apparently Wenlocks one eye represents the 'all seeing eye'....! Odd.

So what am I doing on this special occasion?

H and I are off to Hyde Park to watch an opening ceremony concert featuring Snow Patrol, Stereophonics, Duran Duran and someone called Paolo Nutini (?).

I have my green and gold (really yellow) outfit sorted and even painted the toenails!

Helping out the Homeless

I'm going to make an admission. 

I've always had a certain perception of those that are homeless. That is they are typically classified as alcoholics and druggies and hence that is the reason they are homeless.

However, today when I went to the Homeless Shelter my eyes were opened up. 

Of course, you will always get the dodgy ones and you can pick those a mile away, Russian mafia comes to mind on some of those, particularly the ones I saw today. And I'm sure a large percentage are in the place they are due to drugs, alcohol and crime.

But others....I was talking to a young woman last time I went in there and thought she was a volunteer, but today I found out she was homeless. A nice dressed and pleasant girl who is obviously well educated. If you passed her on the street you would not know she doesn't have a place to sleep tonight.

Another young lad carrying his possessions in his back pack, was just pleased to get a drink, shower and sandwich - where the hell are his parents or extended family. 

A tall chap who was helping us out was telling me he's studying to be a maths teacher and also working full time. He was telling me how challenging it is particularly as he's homeless. 

And then an old lady, neatly dressed and clean, whose face lights up with her smile, happy to sit back and have a cuppa and relax. I gave her some extra sandwiches to put in her bag that already carried all her worldly possessions.

I can't imagine their stories, their pasts and the present and why they are in the situation they are in. 

I know some are just bad people as we've been warned about a few, but others appear to be innocent victims of bad situations.

I will go back next week.

Summer arrives in Blighty

Sunshine tickles my face at a very early 6am this morning. It’s going to be a warm day as I can feel it in the air.

A cloudless vivid blue fills the sky and in the distance I see a slight smoggy haze, remnants of the urban environment.  

Semi-naked people sunbake along the banks of the Thames.  Motor boats pass with women in bikini’s sitting atop of the bows, showing off their fake tans. Bike riders pedal past and families pushing prams wander along, kids skipping, laughing and jostling one another. Mothers yell at them to stay close.

Ducks and swans swim along the banks hoping for a feed.

People walk past complaining of the heat. I overhear one conversation, a woman is moaning that it’s too hot to walk the dog and that she had to get up at 6am to take him for a walk. Oh dear!

An awesome foursome rows past, past being the operative word as on closer investigation they look in their 70’s; fit old buggers.

A boat, the Tilbury Hope rests waiting perhaps hoping for customers so it can cruise along the Thames, I dare say the skipper won’t mind if no one turns up as he is stretched out relaxing in the sunshine, a cigarette smouldering in one hand. I know he’s awake as every now and then the hand moves and he inhales the cigarette, a deep inhalation as if it’s the last one of the day.

I’ve found a hidden gem of a cafe; its plain and simple not fancy like the high street ones. It’s essentially a small shed, hidden from the main road by trees and can only be found if you dare to walk further than the local high street shops. It caters for the essentials coffee and ice cream and today I opt for the coffee, perhaps an ice cream later.

Sitting here I’m reminded of a hot summer’s day in Oz only there is no gum tree to sit under and escape the searing heat, its willows and ash trees. Plus it’s not really searing hot as it’s not quite 40 just a mere 31. No need to escape to the cinema or shopping mall for some air conditioning but a day to escape and sit near the banks of the Thames and soak in the atmosphere.

The Olympic Torch arrives in Kingston

On a warm summers morning the Torch arrived in Kingston.  We were lucky to get a prime position along the route as we didn't have far to venture - just downstairs and out the front door. 

Standing among the crowds we saw the sponsors arrive first with Coca Cola making the loudest impression with music blasting.

Next we saw the mascot who's name apparently is Wenlock after a town called Much Wenlock in Shropshire (see photo on top left below).

The torch finally arrived at 9.18am being carried by someone we didn't know and apparently no one else did either after questioning a few people including volunteers near me. 

And you might like to know that the torch arrival probably lasted less than 10 seconds before everyone was on their way back to work or whatever they were planning on doing today. Me well I went to the gym!

Where I live

As I sit here on our balcony enjoying cloudless blue skies (still a novelty here) and the trickling water of the solar powered budda which has recently joined our eclectic mix of plants, I was pondering what to write when I remembered that tomorrow morning I have a date with the Olympic flame in Kingston. Well not a real date but I plan to go check it out if the crowds will allow me to. 

So on the eve of the Olympic flame arriving in Kingston and the upcoming Olympic Opening Ceremony on Friday, I thought I would write and tell you a bit more about this little spot called Kingston Upon Thames.

Kingston in the UK is nothing like the stinky seaweed town of Kingston in Oz (apologies if you like stinky seaweed). It sits in South West London on the edge of the Thames and borders some of the more famous areas such as Richmond, Wimbledon and Hampton Court Palace.

Hampton Court Palace gardens

It’s centre point is an ancient market square which still houses markets every day. I can get my fruit and veg down there during the week and on the weekend they tend to have a few extra stalls ranging from clothing, jewellery and other bric-a-brac.

Market Square

Near to the market square is the mall filled with a wide variety of shops. I’ll just add, particularly for the girls reading this, that yes it has a Zara, TopShop, Accessorize to name a few! If you get sick of shopping there are a number of bars and restaurants nearby and along the Thames. Of course if you want peace and quiet then just a hop skip and a jump over the bridge are the parks.

What I didn’t know until I did some research is that Kingston is an ancient market town where Saxon Kings were crowned. It was first mentioned in around 838 when it was called Cyninges tun. It had a few variations on the name until it became Kingston Upon Thames. I still find it bizarre when reading dates here because so many of them exist well before Australia was even a spot on the map.

The apartment where I’m living edges on the River Thames and so it’s walking distance to all the nice things that Kingston has to offer. 20 minutes from Waterloo on the train we can be in central london quite quickly. Below are some pics for you. Enjoy!

View from the roof of our apartment block

Kingston Bridge

 

Other roof view!

The red apartment block is where we are!

Front of apartments - Kingston Bridge in distance

Bushwalking in Blighty

Across the Thames from where we’re living in Kingston are numerous adjoining parks that lead onto Hampton Court Palace. 

One of my favourite places to visit in the UK, Hampton Court Palace was the home of the famous Henry VIII. When we have visitors I tend to take them on one of the local boat rides along the Thames from Kingston to Hampton Court Palace, but yesterday in the hope I could gain some inspiration for my writing course homework, I decided to go for a walk.

Home Park being the destination of choice is a mere 700 acres compared to its neighbour Bushy Park which is 1099 acres. I share with you the size because the expanse of these parks is surprising considering how close they are to what I term the city.

Walking across Kingston Bridge I can disappear out of urban life and into tranquillity within 5 minutes.

The Ice House

Past the entrance into Home Park I am greeted by a large brick structure to the left, it's actually an old Ice House from the 17^th Century. 

Looking at where its located Henry must have had a long long walk from the palace to get ice for his Gin and Tonics!

The Big Trees : Sherwood Forest?

Wandering along I pass massive tree’s, they remind me of Sherwood Forest not that I’ve actually ever been there but it just has that feel about it.

I suppose the one real difference that gets me every time I go for bush walks in Blighty is the long grass. In Oz we typically mow it where we can, or back burn it where we can’t to protect ourselves from bushfires and venomous little creatures such as the tiger snake. I utterly refuse to walk near long grass particularly in warm weather back home but here I find myself almost running through it in utter delight, yes it is a bit of a novelty.

Deer in the long grass

As I keep walking I come across deer roaming freely. They can do that here and feel utterly safe because it is illegal to hunt them thanks to the Queen. At home we’d be adorned with our rifles hoping to get some nice venison for dinner, well my brother would anyway.

The random hole...odd?!

The lake (or one of them)

Continuing on I get distracted when I find a few holes randomly scattered not far from a lake. What ever could be living here? I can’t see anything worth investigating further so continue on enjoying the view of the swans on the lake.

Passing a Golf Course I was just wondering where next to go when I see them..... hundreds and hundreds of rabbits. It is quite rare to see so many in one place so I quietly creep along trying to get as close as possible to take some pictures. It doesn't work of course because one step and they run and hide in their burrows.  I did try and take a picture but you probably cannot see the rabbits, you'll just have to believe me when I say there were lots.

The Rabbits

Actually it brings back memories of my childhood on the farm, standing on top of the ute and shooting bunnies with my Dad and brothers. Back then they were vermin to the farmers so we’d have competitions on how many we could shoot. No apologies to those animal Liberationist's as that was how we did things back then. 

But back to the topic at hand, bushwalking in Blighty is probably less challenging than in Oz as there are no mountains to climb and no venomous creatures to avoid. It's easy to just get lost in your surroundings and enjoy.

Boat Rides or Roller Coasters?

I once thought that Roller Coasters were scary. 


I have a particularly vivid recollection of being persuaded to try one out at a local fun park while on holiday.  And whilst my stomach was doing somersaults of nerves prior to the experience, I was near complete and utter collapse by the time it was finished. 


Meanwhile my friends managed to get lovely snaps of them at the peak of the ride smiling and waving at the camera, mine showed a face of complete fear.  Actually it looked like something from a horror movie, hence the reason I never bought it.


So this brings me onto another quite different experience and something that has a sense of peace and romance about it, which is sailing along the coast of Italy. Well it can be peaceful, however sailing also has the possibility to turn out much like a Roller Coaster.

Easing our way into the weekend of sailing we were greeted by a beautifully warm 29 degrees, a little cloud and calm vividly blue seas. Some lovely italian food and wine along the way, swimming in the bay amongst the local fish and sunbaking on board. It couldn't get better. That was until we had to sail back to port. 


Now whilst I have to admit that I am not the best sailor and resort to qwells regularly where water is involved, having to sail over 10 foot waves for nearly 2 hours has to be placed in the same file as Roller Coasters and hence is not something I wish to subject myself to willingly in the near future. So for the purpose of imagery picture this, a boat lurching up and down massive waves, some breaking over the bow and completely drenching us. While I was told it was safe, I still had a life jacket on and my hands were clenched to two different positions holding on for dear life. All I could do was was stare out into the distance so as to try to control the sea sickness that was trying its best to fight the maximum dosage of qwells I had taken. I didn't relax until we had reached port and I had my feet firmly planted on solid ground - thank god I survived.


As for the next holiday... preferably no sailing and perhaps a hike!

The Sailing Boat

The trouble with children

It's Friday afternoon and after navigating our way to Gatwick Airport and all the check in procedures we're finally relaxing with a small tipple in the executive lounge. Actually I'm enjoying the tipple particularly as I find a Langmeil red and its not often you find a decent Aussie red wine in Blightly. Meanwhile, Hamish is frantically trying to finish last minute emails before the laptop is switched off for the weekend. 

At the gate for the British Airways Flight to Rome I look around at the people cuing for the flight and realise there are quite a lot of kids and a couple babies. I hold my breath hoping that wherever we sit is no where near the babies in particular, as there is one thing that gives me a really bad headache and that's a screaming baby. Particularly when you're about to start a holiday, it's just bad karma. 

You will share a sigh of relief with me when I realised we were not packed in next to babies. The only children in my direct vicinity was a mother and two children sitting directly behind. 

Shortly after take off and as we all settle into cruising at x'000 feet some little feet start kicking the back of my seat. Initially I think, well this is a small child, he's likely to get frustrated sitting down longer than 10 minutes and the mother will control him. But as the flight progresses it gets worse and the mother is doing absolutely nothing to tell him off or control his movements.

I decide a little nap will help the situation, escape into my dreams and hopefully I will wake up as we land. I do nod off for a while however are startled back into reality when the back of my seat receives a really big kick catapulting my body forward into the seat in front. That is about it. Hamish turns around and asks the mother to please control her child as he will not stop kicking the seat. She abruptly responds that she cannot control a 4 year old child and refuses to converse any further.

I know I'm stepping on tender ground talking about children and discipline but it's got to be said and I have to get it off of my chest. Where is the discipline and control that parents should have over their children? Not even that but basic manners. I doubt this child even knows please and thank you. Of course you can't control your child if you're not even trying to teach it right or wrong, the mother didn't even ask the child to stop kicking the chair. 

I don't doubt it would be difficult to travel with two small children however mothers need to adhere to the basic principles of teaching manners and discipline not just for their own sanity but the rest of the adults in the nearby vicinity of their offspring.

Volunteering in Richmond

One of the items on my ‘to do’ list has been volunteering work. Since I cannot legally work in the country I can at least contribute to society by doing something worthwhile (or try to).  

One of my fellow gym buddies recommended a homeless shelter in nearby Richmond called The Vineyard Community Centre which I dropped in to today to attend an afternoon tea for volunteers.

If you’re not aware Richmond is quite a posh area and I think the opening sentence on the Visit Richmond website summarises it ‘swimmingly’ as the posh people say... “Welcome to London's most attractive borough, which for hundreds of years has been a favourite retreat of Royalty, the rich and the famous.”

The bus ride to it from Kingston takes you through a very scenic road of green pastures, cobble stone roads and enormously large houses. You also cannot miss the well manicured polo ground.  I must say, it does seem odd going to Richmond to visit a homeless shelter and meanwhile the average resident probably earns well above the median wage in the UK and drives the latest Mercedes, BMW or Ferrari.

However, getting back to the topic at hand, the centre itself is located within the basement of a local church. It’s recently been renovated so looks more like a local cafe than what its real purpose is for.  It opens out onto a terrace with a large cottage garden.  It’s open for its residents so they can drop in, have a shower, get some food and relax in the atmosphere.  If you’re interested in knowing more you can visit their website at http://www.vineyardcommunity.org/ .

I met a number of different people, mainly volunteers who devote a lot of their time either working in the charity shop, in the cafe or in the garden amongst other things. One old lady in her 70’s looks after the vegie patch which apparently this year has not done very well due to the weather. Another very welcoming volunteer happily gave me a run down on some of the residents and who to avoid.

I have to be completely honest and say that other than participating in a fundraiser for an Adelaide charity called The Hutt Street Centre which was ‘Walk a Mile in my Boots’, I think that’s the correct term, I have not had anything to do with homelessness.  It can be quite confronting as there are a few odd people that you typically avoid when you see them down the street but I’m determined to at least give it a try and if it doesn’t work out then I’ll move onto the next one. Wish me luck, my first shift in the cafe starts next Thursday!

The cupcakes I baked for the Afternoon Tea. One person thought they were from Waitrose!

A New Experience (Number 1)

In the effort to keep my sanity, get out of the house and meet some more of the locals I have embarked upon a number of new experiences. One of which is a writing course through the local adult education centre in Kingston.

Being the Taurean I am, there was a mass of research to do before I signed up!

The winner was a short course ‘How to write a Novel’ and I chose this because; 

1. I wanted to see whether I liked it ; and 

2. To test whether I actually had any writing talent. Well there’s no need to continue if I don’t!

Point 1 I believe has been proven as a yes considering I came out of the class buzzing with an overwhelming sense to write. I also liked the fact it was a nice small class of 5 (including the teacher), me being the only Aussie amongst 2 Brits and an Irish woman (who I can't understand at all!). All I could interpret from 3 hours with her was the statement 'I only read Irish literature'. No comment.

The upcoming session this week will undoubtedly prove yes or no for point 2 because we have to submit the start of a novel. I'm rather nervous to submit something that is starting to be put to paper after being in my head for such a long time, what if its completely crap?! 

An Evening at the London Zoo

I never would have thought about going to the London Zoo had it not being for H booking the tickets. If you've experienced the craziness of Oxford Street, it completely destroys any sense of a peaceful oasis for animals ever existing in London. 

In any case during summer London opens up the Zoo in the evenings for adults only. So the ability to walk around the Zoo without prams and screaming children seemed particularly inviting.

Of course what we didn't think about was if you take away prams and screaming children it's replaced with something else ; alcohol and a completely different clientele. Which early on appears very well behaved until a few hours into their pimms and you find they're mimicking the animals we've come here to see. 

Overall the Zoo was fantastic to see and I was rather impressed by their exhibits with the rainforest area being my favourite. Essentially the birds and cheeky monkeys fly around and above you as you walk through. It's amazing to be so close to them.

Cheeky Emperor Tamarin

The Best Exhibit

However I have to make note of the Zoo being inundated by Chav types. And if you're not familiar with this term I can describe them as follows;

• Both Male and Female Chav's are bathed in fake tan (daily)
• A male Chav typically wears coudroy (grandpa) pants and shirt with jacket but definately no tie.
• Another point to note on the male Chav is he typically has facial hair and not just a light dusting of beard growth, a full beard. The hair is of a medium length and combed over with the use of a good dose of hair product.
• The female Chav decorates her fake tan with a heavy dose of makeup including the fake eyelashes. Typically you would not see a female Chav without the fake eyelashes.
• And she typically wears heels no matter the location or reason for an event which is decorated with a particularly short as possible dress or skirt. 
• This leaves the Male Chav and any other observer to note that it leaves not much to the imagination and hence breeding or the part before that is high on the minds of the Chav female. This is particularly enhanced when alcohol is involved, the drink of choice for these types.

If you're still not getting the Chav then I can summarise for those Aussies out there, essentially if you were in a small Aussie country town and you saw a male Chav walking down the street you would think he was batting for the other team and if you saw a female Chav you would wonder what a Sydney corner worker is doing here!

The Supermarket Experience

The topic of Supermarkets doesn’t particularly sound very interesting, however there is something that really bugs me and I just have to share it with you.

I’m not sure what the statistics show in terms of landfill around the world, but if we were to base it on the amount of pre-packaged goods within Waitrose, for example, the UK would beat any country hands down.

Let’s take the example of a simple roast chook. Now in the real world one would expect to buy a plain chook, preferably free range, and at home add the flavours desired. My preference is lots of lemon, garlic and thyme.  We would then take our vegetables from scratch, wash, peel and chop them and cook them as we require.  

Now, going back to Waitrose.... if we popped down there to purchase the items for a ‘simple roast chook’ we’d be met by an array of options.  The chicken would be wrapped in so much plastic and cardboard it would sufficiently fuel a little campfire to toast marshmallows. Additionally you could have the option of going gourmet and picking up a Delia chicken or perhaps going even more gourmet (double gourmet) and getting a Heston chicken, whereby it comes with a lot of little extras and very specific instructions on how to cook the ‘perfect chicken’. Then when it comes to vegetables, well you have a specific ‘roast vegetable’ pack that you essentially just need to chuck into the oven as it’s all been peeled and chopped for you. And the roast potatoes, well they’re already pre-cooked so you just have to warm them up!

Essentially I can come home after a days’ work to just rip the packaging off a chook, vegies and bits, toss it in the oven or on the stove top and presto I have a gourmet roast. Now my other half maybe very impressed by my cooking Heston’s ‘perfect chicken’ however that kind of cooking just doesn’t cut it for me. How bland and boring is it to just take some food out of plastic, throw it in a pot and serve it up.  Not to mention the health aspects, god knows what additives they’re adding in there secretly!

And let us not forget to mention the laziness society is breeding with the addition of more and more pre-packaged options. Women of the next generation(s) will not have any idea how to cook (or clean but don’t get me started on that one).

Don’t get me wrong, the odd Lean Cuisine is a necessary addition to the freezer for those opportune moments, however there is the art of balance.

OK I’ve had my whinge now so will leave you in peace, but welcome your thoughts on this British phenomenon.

Pretty Pink with a Teddy Bear on Top

Today I ventured into the world of ‘official’ cupcake decorating. I put the official in inverted commas because I have been dabbling in decorating cakes for sometime now. 

The full days course was just down the road at a place in Putney called Cakes 4 Fun,  www.cakes4funshop.co.uk. With only 3 of us in the course, it was very hands on and we ended up with a dozen of them to bring home (H and I will be eating them for the next week!).

Thankfully I did learn some new techniques, but overall it did make me realise that I do know more than I thought. Perhaps it doesn’t just have to be a hobby...mmmm

Here are some pictures:

  

  

  

  

25 Days until the London Olympics

After a quick meeting in central London today I went for a walk down Regent Street to Trafalgar Square to take some photo's. As London prepares for the Olympics the flags are coming out and the city is looking good....

  Regent Street

Regent Street

Picadilly Circus

Look carefully in this pic, you can see the counter!

The trouble with Vacuum Cleaners (Hoovers)

There are some people out there that rarely pull a vacuum cleaner out the cupboard but as I come from a background where cleaning is firmly ingrained in my being, I typically am well acquainted with the modern vacuum cleaner or Hoover as it’s called here in Britain.

You will therefore find it rather amusing that this week I had to google ‘how to use a Dyson vacuum cleaner?’

Have you seen these things? You almost need a license to use them, well I obviously do!

Upon switching it on, there was absolutely no suction coming from the bottom so after looking at all the pipes and openings I finally found the suction which was coming from the top. I then proceeded to search for a button that could change the location of the suction and got rather frustrated when I couldn’t find it. So what do you do when you’re stuck in this situation? Google it!

The next problem was emptying the bin, after trying about a dozen buttons I finally succumbed to googling again. In the end a 5 minute job actually turned out to be half an hour, at least now I am qualified to use it again.

ps. If you didn’t already know, which I didn’t hence googling again... the term Hoover is used because it was one of the first brands of vacuum cleaner. Typically the poms use the term!