The Daily Gaggle

    I am fast becoming a keen shopper and I am able to spot a bargain in the food departments of major retailers without sacrificing quality.      I do most of my shopping at Aldi, There are some items that even Aldi does not offer or due to sales promo's at other outlets which sometimes reap a saving.      Reading my Sydney Daily Telegraph today The Telegraph stated that there were egg shortages around the Sydney suburbs in all categories, maybe the the reporter  means the silver tail areas only,as I see it there is no shortage at Aldi where yesterday at Lake haven the egg boxes were stacked high; but mainly cage eggs. To me eggs are eggs,, people who are those who can afford to be conned, think differently.      Recently I decided not to use an Aldi shopping trolley and I am not alone, the reason being  the handles on Aldi shopping trolleys leave much to be desired in the way of cleanliness and it would seem the oppos...

     Our weekend started off ok until we reached the train station at Wyong. We had not travelled trainwise for umpteen years; our prepaid Opal train and bus card was fully subscribed, however, Rosemary's card defied the system so the clerk at the station entrance told us to climb 25 steps from platform one over the concourse and descend on the other side of the line to platform 2; then pay at the station shop, then return to plaform one tap on the tickets to whence we arrived at, and having done this return again to platform 2 ,where we missed the #@%*(%@y train and waited another half hour for the next train. on our arrival at strathfield station our connection for Richmond was at a different platform (another scurry), eventually we were met by our son and family and spent a refreshing and pleasant weekend on their acreage with horses ducks dog and sheep etc, Where I rode around on the R/o Mower to save my wobbly legs..'      Our return home started at ...

     Today, Rosemary and I will be popping off down the coast to Nth Richmond and will be returning to our idyllic Central coast home on the pacific this Sunday.     Also today, the The Queen  of Great Britain and her dominions becomes Ninety Years of age, I am trailing her by 86 days. Back soon.. Vest.

     Contrary to popular belief, I am still alive and mobile however, for me to write a post has become a privilege of sorts; meaning to have respite from what is expected of me in terms of dealing with the the available time allotted to me beyond the compulsory chores of the day has become minimal unless something expected of me is sacrificed for a personal few moments of personal pleasure.      My wife Rosemary  the mother of our five sons, three of whom we rarely see due to distance, is suffering from  dementia. and incapable of satisfactorily completing most tasks given to her. Rosemary's has a limited memory time frame of approx ten seconds and twice in the past six months I have lost her in the huge shopping centre after having told her to wait outside of the toilets for me and I believe it is on four occasions that she has gone walkabout from the house without me knowing, which involved the the local wooden tops an...

     An Asian Tiger and a Billy Goat strike up a friendship, thereby  teaching all humanity how to get on together.    A male goat sent to a Russian safari park as a live lunch for the big cat has the world agog with wonderment. the big cat and the goat have become inseperable. Amur the tiger and Timur the billy goat  now sleep eat and play in the same enclosure.. Recently they were both seen playing and head butting each other in the snow at a park in Vladivostok in eastern Russia. The Zoo chief  stated that the goat showed no fear on entering the tiger domain. which may have baffled the the big cat, however, it seems a diet of live rabbits has the lunch problem solved for the tiger while the goat like most goats will eat almast anything digestible. It has been said that there is a lesson to be learned from these animals ie co existance between  humans on this planet for starters however, Vest who lived in the country and aro...

CHAPTER 13 My First Career On 5 January 1942, I went to Shotley Royal Naval Base for a medical examination, which I passed despite being under the height requirement of five feet. I was four feet ten and a half inches, six stone six lbs (42.3 kg), and fifteen years, five months and twenty days old. I was an under-sized, under-aged piece of ‘cannon fodder.’ The school received a twenty-five pound Sterling bounty payment upon my delivery to the Royal Navy. My body was sold for approximately 55p or Aus $1-15 a Kilo or 30 cents U/S per lb. After a gruelling train journey to Fleetwood (near Liverpool,) I embarked in the early morning on the Isle of Man steam packet, ‘Rushen Castle’. It took four hours to get to Douglas, the capital and main port on the Isle of Man. I hadn’t been at sea for four years. Looking piteously at the first-timers berleying on the boisterous Irish sea, I was reminded of my first experience of sea sickness on a Portsmo...

      I was a youthful 19.5 year old when I had my pic taken on the Rani in Hobart 1945. It is a pity being as I lost most of the contents in my personal locker in 1948 while on leave from HMS Duke of York  which included said photo and many more stolen or destroyed.      It was on a Sunday January 6, 1945 in Sydney  that the ship I was serving on The HMS KING George V was returning home to the UK months after the end of WW2  due to the lengthy repairs which took  place in Sydney.Then finally on our way home  Via Hobart Tasmania at a breakneck speed of eight knots (due to a steering defect we arrived in Portsmouth UK on March 13 , A bit bedraggled  but pleased to be home after the mayhem of the Pacific war and the following months of love-ins in Sydney(Another story) It must be dreadful to believe that the poms won the inaugural race. 1945 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race From Wikipedia, th...

A storm hit Sydney yesterday with wind strengths up to 212 Kls per hour . some dreadful damage occurred read about it in the Sydney Daily Telegraph on line. Vest is not new to such phenomena having experienced a typhoon at sea off of Sakishima Gunto March 31  1945 which in fact saved our bacon and kept us the BPF out of operations for 24 hours until the yanks landed the next day on Okinawa; Easter Sunday and all fools day.The next Typhoon was in Sagami bay Japan late Aug 1945 prior to entering Tokyo bay. quite a scene with many smaller ships losing their moorings and floating around perilously. However, the worst was yet to come when in 1962 living with my family of wife and three sons in the suburb of Laichicok New territories Hong Kong, the  epicentre of Typhoon Wanda  the mother of all typhoons arrived over the colony. I leave out my personal experiences because they would not match the horror and suffering of others at the time of this tragedy. Wikki w...

Like the old song went, "dont have any more MissuS Moore", it is now a stark fact that Sydneysiders have reached their peak of discontent and are still maintaining the rage. Todays statement  from this blinkered Mare AKA the Mayor of Sydney Clover Moore , will have enraged most people, only a person devoid of tact with the brain of a blind rocking horse would claim the Lindt Cafe siege in 2014 was not terrorism. The whole world heard of this atrocity in grim detail which was committed by a  Muslim person who was declaed insane, I would believe that anyone blowing themselves to smithereens or engaging in a suicidal shoot out would have to be likened to a headless chook or a Lord Mayer. Question . "Has the title 'Lady Mayoress' been dropped for the blokie title Mayor, or was it chosen to suit her likely differing gender " ? Live in such a way that you would not be ashamed to sell your parrot to the town gossip. Vest,.... Back soon. https://www.youtub...

     A  Russian  hacker has disclosed that the space traveller to planet Mars leaked a unreported official message received from the probe that so far there has been no sighting of heaven or angels on its travels, The pontiff in Rome and other eccleslastical faith industry followers are refusing to comment  apart from a well known American human  pygmy scientologist a top gun flier called Tarm who has stated "ar harve bin to heaven with arld nic, arm harving prarblems finding my way back.     Federal authorities have recently deported a large number of high profile bikies  and other big time crims after realising none had become Australian citizens, despite living here in OZ most of their pitiful lives. It doth seem that any person who upsets the applecart big time will have their marching orders should they not be bonafide Oz cits.  it will also prevent them from  receiving pensions from w...

Today's Sydney Daily Telegraph frightful cock up would worry a heap of Poms seeking news regarding the value of the pound . Again we have the Pound in the Euro spot and visa versa for the Euro in the Pound slot      This follows Saturday's Faux Pas by a proof reading wobble head  who allowed the Friday's score card to be replaced by one dating back to January 2015 Joke of the day  : The little boy was asked by his teacher, 'When was the Magna Carta signed."  The boy replied," Lunchtime at a quarter past twelve.sir." Vest Say's , my hand was sore from the cane administered by (Attila) A D Bates - my History teacher. Proving it doesn't  pay to be smart. Vest.... Back soon. PS the pound is on 47 and the euro on 65.. some dif.

Dear friend or relative. This is a general mail out to enable those of you who do not wish to receive mail outs in the form of letters posts and other material delivered by PC.from me. the rule is quite simple (for most people) Should you not reply within 21 days of receiving this message indicating you wish to continue, all messages will cease from then on, unless at a later date you inform me of your wish to continue as before. Over the past four months , my time has been gobbled up by travel and its consequences; domestic and health issues , most of which have been sorted out although controlling the problems of hers truly(Dementia) and the infectious knock on my shin is a worry. However, I passed my aged driving test recently and my next test will be when I am 91 July 16 2017.. Shortly I shall start on my lengthy Christmas card list. This mail out will help somewhat. most of those who sent them last year will be in the offing but probably not all. and fo...

     Newspaper proof readers are paid oodles of dosh to get it written right not written rotten. It could be assumed that today's  Sydney Daily Telegraph" Sports Scoreboard" was contrived by an unqualified ex thugby tattooed retarded mutton head living in Rip van winkle land.      Instead of displaying the past twenty four hours major sports results, we have a  last January scoreboard; IE the first Ashes test cricket scores plus the mid season thugby league  scores.      I expect we shall see yesterdays results sometime in January or possibly tomorrow or an announcement of a possible new Editor taking up the slack. Ask yourself always: how can this be done better? Have the Sydney Daily Telegraph delivered daily to your door monthly for less than forty bucks. Vest... Back soon.

     I don't care a hoot if I insult you because you are a face book moron , it is about time you long time users and losers were told the truth      Here I shall give you a few reasons not to like face book any more full stop.     First of all Face book is always watching like a sweaty old middle aged bimbo or dirty old geezer whose only interest is immorality and depravity; take your pick. It is also a a source of anything likely to be of little use plus a guide to future depravity for the  unemployable school leavers expanding the dole queue's.. The predators mentioned watching  and recording every thing you like or desire and every ones info you have recorded, yes every one you have ever  visited..      The face book man keeps are not simply filed away under I bet you wish we were not watching you so closely, your news feed is based on this info All of your past love trysts and ago...

  When you're from the country your perception is a little bit different. A farmer drove to a neighbour's farmhouse and knocked at the door. A boy aged about 9 opened the door. "Is your dad or mum home?" said the farmer. "No, they went to town." "What about your brother Howard? Is he here?" "No, he went with Mum and Dad" The farmer stood there for a few minutes, shifting from one foot to the other and mumbling to himself. "I know where all the tools are, if you want to borrow one, or I can give Dad a message." "Well," said the farmer uncomfortably, "I really wanted to talk to your Dad. It's about your brother Howard getting my daughter Suzy pregnant." The boy thought for a moment... "You would have to talk to Dad about that. I know he charges £500 for the bull and £50 for the pig, but I don't know how much he charges for Howar...

My jaunt to the land of hope and glory didn't quite cut the mustard as did previous times, Maybe it was our age factor and less interest by those we visited. To be truthful the best efforts to make our stay pleasing were shared equally by relatives residing in Benson Havant and Dover. To give and not to count the cost may be an old parable but adding up the amount of time through the ages when relatives have stayed with my family on their overseas visits to us is at least three times greater than we have prevailed upon them. Admittedly some relatives in the UK are reluctant to travel the long distance or are scared of flying despite offers to pay 50% of their fare . The other factor which delivered a constant flow of anxiety came from the anti social antics and garrulity of our prodigal son who failed in his role of  both driver and assistant; (It is better we leave the details unspoken) Better still unprinted. More details can be obtained on request. So far I have...

It was Eighty Nine years ago when Vest AKA LJB, Me, was born at 21 Homerton High street Hackney London E 8; within the sound of Bow Bells . Thank you for those relatives and friends who have sent Birthday wishes from far and wide  and those from my sons face book friends. Nothing much happening at the moment, tomorrow I shall be doing my Aged Persons driving test, and then on Sat & Sunday finalise packing for the trip to the sceptred isle set in a silver sea, departing 1510  Mon 20, arriving Heathrow 0530 Tuesday 21st. and retuning to OZ Aug 25.  I shall be taking the wife, and the youngest son to do the driving and baggage handling , which will make the trip less arduous. So that is all for now see you all later on. Vest .... Back soon. It is better one lives richly than dies rich.

MUSLIM BOOK STORE __________________________________________________________________________________________________________ So, there I was, walking through the new mall, when I saw that there was a “Muslim Book Store.” I was wondering what exactly was in a “Muslim book store” so I went on in. I was wandering around taking a look and the clerk stopped me asked if he could help me – I imagine I didn’t look like his normal clientele. So I asked for a copy of the UK Immigration Policy Book regarding Muslims. The Clerk said, “Piss off, get out, and stay out !” I said, “Yes, that's the one. Do you have that in paperback?”

Going overseas no matter where you will require a passport, if it is a foreign or British passport you will have to have a valid Visa for your return to Australia. If your passport has expired, you will be required to apply for a new one, and this may be achieved by going on line for the info. Here is the problem., IT WiLL TAKE 9 WEEKS before it arrives back from merry England.. However if you are like some of my sons who are Brit Born and have not moved from Aus since their arrival in 1971 and have not become naturalized, not only will you have the previous problem but another denying you an Aus passport, which means a six month Wait to become a Aus Citizen after your application. The application for an Aus passport will take around two weeks and cost half as much as a Brit passport. There are concessions for the aged and infirm.. In the past there have been anomalies where sportsmen like Kepplar Wessells a springbok from Suid Afrika was allowed to play c...

Three strangers strike up a conversation in the airport lounge in Bozeman, Montana, awaiting their flights. One is an American Indian, passing thru from Lame Deer. Another is a cowboy on his way to Billings for a livestock show. And the third is a fundamentalist Arab student from the Middle East, newly arrived at Montana State University. Their discussion drifts to their diverse cultures. Soon, the two Westerners learn that the Arab is a devout, radical Muslim and the conversation falls into an uneasy lull. The cowboy leans back in his chair, crosses his boots on a magazine table and tips his big sweat-stained hat forward over his face. The wind outside is blowing tumbleweeds around and the old windsock is flapping, but still no plane comes. Finally, the American Indian clears h...