Monday 27 July 2009 21:59
Where was I? Oh yes, the plague. Apparently, good medical care was
an essential part of survival. And, of course, the UK has a long
tradition of an accessible health service. In the 1300s, this took the
form of the plague doctor.
The mask would have been filled with nice smelling things. Obvious, I guess. Like I said yesterday, it's amazing how little you (or I should say I) know about local history. While learning more about the great plague, we spent Saturday in Hexham. It's easy to forget what's around you. I mean, I'd not realised that the very first gaol in the country was built there ... in 1332, or thereabouts.
It's quite an impressive building, with very thick walls.
Of course, these would have had a vital part in containing the dangerous vagabonds of the day.
Sunday 26 July 2009 23:20
It's funny how you don't really know much about the area where you live. When in Gotham Town
the other night, I read something on the wall about how the plague
wiped out half the population of Newcastle in the 1300s. Although I did
know that, there was reference to old Gotham Town.
I'd no idea what this meant, since Newcastle's been Newcastle for
longer than 700 years, so I've been having a dig around on the
internet. Apparently, up until around 1900, the local slang for
Newcastle was Gotham Town. I can't find anything that explains why, but at least that's a mystery solved.While on the subject of Gotham Town (the bar, that is), does anyone know where I can buy one of these lights?
I was going to continue with plague-talk, but it's late and I need to be up early for work tomorrow.
Saturday 25 July 2009 01:59
I think I must be getting old. I'm home watching America's got talent after a few pints in Sunderland and a brief visit to Gotham Town. I've left my spouse and eldest child in town. Like I say, I must be getting old.Anyway ... I've possibly mentioned in the past that our next door neighbour is an axe murderer. Well, that's our belief. I mean, we've lived here now since 2004 (I think) and our neighbour's not spoken once. Weird, you'd think; an obvious axe murderer.
Well, today we received a letter addressed to a Mr thomas McXXXXXXX. We do still receive mail for owners long past, but I was curious since I'd not seen this name in previous correspondence. So I opened the letter.
Anyway, Mr Mcx, who I suspect is my axe murdering neighbour, does display some bizzarre behaviour. And, apparently, he receives Incapacity Benefit, although there's an indication (and a half) that other State benefits are claimed.
Anyway, here's an extract from the accompanying Doctor's letter ...
I last saw this gentleman in surgery on 31 March 2009.
He has quite a severe problem with heavy alcohol intake and currently drinks according to him 4-5 litres of cider daily.
He feels depressed and lives alone with no contact with his two sons in the last few years.
He tells me he hasn't worked in the last 20 years but was previously a fork lift truck driver.
He asked me to refer him to a psychiatrist to get matters'sorted out' but I really feel the root cause of his problem is his alcohol intake which he seems 'unable or unwilling to tackle at the present time. Accordingly I don't feel that referral to a psychiatrist would be helpful but I have suggested he be referred to the 24/7 Gateshead Drug and Alcohol Service ....
.... In summary I feel that he is in no fit state to work at the moment and will not be until such time until he is able to tackle his huge problem with alcohol.
It's very sad isn't it? I'm sure that a woman's behind it.
Monday 20 July 2009 20:54
The past couple of weeks have been really busy; spare time seems
to have been spent decorating (although the kitchen's now finally
finished). Last weekend, Amy stayed; so the beach and parks were our
locations of choice. The beach was a hit, despite us ending up with a
dripping wet child.
Of course, it's not all fun and care had to be taken to supervise the infant while she played on the equipment.
I almost forgot. While copying pictures from my phone I came across one of Paula outside Central Station, taken a couple of weeks ago. She always had class you know.
Sunday 19 July 2009 22:35
Have you ever wondered whether we're alone in the universe? Well,
I have conclusive evidence that we're not. If you doubt, then take a
look at these pictures, taken from our very own garden. Yes, I was once
a disbeliever too.
So, perhaps it's time to believe. Of course, you can't see Paula standing on a chair in the garden, holding a lampshade.
While on the subject of technology, I need to make public our newest acquisition. Well, it was new technology a few years ago. It's truly the best thing we've ever bought. It's now full of good music; well, apart from Paula's rubbish.
Tuesday 7 July 2009 21:15
I think I've just about recovered from Glastonbury; next year I
think I'll take the whole of the following week off work. It looks as
though I'm going to Leeds festival this year too, so I should probably
start either training or sleeping in preparation.For the past few months, the slug population of the garden, which had seen a huge explosion, seemed to be in decline. Bordering on extinction in fact. Finally, a couple of weeks ago, the cause of the sudden demise of the slugs became apparent. The new resident of the pond ...
I'm assuming it to be a toad, in view of its size. But I'm no expert in these things.
On Saturday, after doing some decorating at Debbie's house and taking photographs of the above creature, we went down to the quayside to have a drink in the sun. Unfortunately, within minutes of our arrival, there was a huge downpour. Between showers, we dashed from the Tyne Bar to the Fair Trade Inn, which possibly has the best beer garden in the country. Well, more accurately, the beer garden with the best view in the country. There's also some quite interesting literature on the toilet wall; some of it very profound ...
Although not the view from the pub, which overlooks the Tyne from a hill, this one was pretty good, even when caught by a mobile phone.
