Ex-Pat Plonk

Greetings, all! Paraglider is currently in lockdown in England with no pressing work and a lot of time on his hands. So much time, in fact, that he has decided to launch a brand new blog to return to the ex-pat world just a little of his hard-won expertise in the vital field of Ex-Pat Plonk, its production, risks and virtues. Please visit, at your leisure.

The New Welsh Sphinx

Among this morning's Google selection of tailored appropriate advertisements, I find this one suggesting a trip to Wales. This might be a nice idea, but all I'm seeing is a gy-normous cat with a human head and hands. A latter-day Sphinx, maybe?

We don't need no education...

When Matthew Gloag (no relation to his namesake who founded The Famous Grouse distillery) was five years old, he wrote, in his exercise book, "My cat is a nice cat" and was duly praised by the teacher who, unfortunately, did not suggest the obvious improvement.

So it was that, satisfied with this construction, in his later school years Matthew went on to produce such sentences as, "The French Revolution was a very bloody revolution" and "The Tolpuddle Martyrs were notable martyrs".

Somehow, it matters not how, Matthew eventually found himself employed in a Health and Safety capacity by First Great Western Railways where, among other duties, he was assigned to produce platform signage. And that is why, on every lamp standard, on every platform between London Paddington and Hereford, we can read Mr Gloag's finest work to date:

THIS STATION IS A NO SMOKING STATION

We don't need no education...

Brexit, Bercow and Lord Krishna

The Blessed Lord Krishna said:

Know what your duty is
and do it without hesitation.
For a warrior there is nothing better
than a battle that duty enjoins.

You have a right to your actions
but never to your actions' fruits.
Act for the action's sake.

The wise man lets go of all
results, whether good or bad,
and is focused on the action alone.

The Speaker Bercow said:

The Government may not present
the house with the same proposition
that only two weeks ago
was rejected. Go think again!