My Profile on Robbie: The legendary Bournemouth bus driver

Robbie Bartle: Always smiling

ROBBIE Bartel, a bus driver for Wilts and Dorset buses in Bournemouth and Poole for 10 years, has been coined a ‘legendary’ bus driver and even has his own Facebook group created by his fans.

The bus driver from Canford Heath in Poole, aged 31, could not be any more delighted with his Facebook group with 535 members. In fact, he said he used to carry around a printout of the group to begin with which he proudly displayed.

Robbie said, “A student friend of mine, Alex Cooper, in Herne House started the group off. I was really touched and the group just continues to grow and grow. I have 1,577 friends on Facebook at the moment, people just keep on adding me.”

He has earned the respect and adoration of his passengers, mainly students, who ride the A, B, C and E buses, with his extremely friendly and kind nature, which according to them, is unusual for a bus driver.

Amaka Osakwe, a student from Wooten Mount in Bournemouth, aged 23, said: “Everybody that ever goes on the buses in Bournemouth knows Robbie. They might not all know him by name, but as soon as you describe him they realise who you’re talking about.

“He’s such an amazing guy. Usually drivers are boring and not very happy but he’s the friendliest bus driver ever!”

Sehliselo Ngwenya, aged 20, a student from Frederica Road in Bournemouth, said : “Robbie really brightens up my mornings, I’ve never seen him without a friendly ‘ello!’ and a huge Cheshire-cat grin.”

Robbie said: “I love being a bus driver, my dad has been one all his life, I used to go with him to work on his bus sometimes. I decided to follow his footsteps.With each day driving the bus, every day is different, no trip is the same.

“I meet many interesting characters and I love to make people happy. Everybody gets on the bus and expects a miserable driver – and then they get on mine.”

A glimpse at his kitchen fridge shows his sweet nature. It is covered with animal pictures and he reveals he feels passionately towards animal and child cruelty. I had seen he was a member of several anti-child cruelty and anti-animal cruelty groups on Facebook.

He said: “I’m disgusted with the Baby P case. I think it’s disgraceful that the child’s services should have figured out he was being abused and they should have done something about it ASAP.”

Robbie’s lovable character has resulted in him previously been written about in the Nerve magazine for Bournemouth university students.

He said: “On my last Birthday I was driving the B bus to Cranborne House and all the students came down the stairs and sung happy Birthday in harmony. It even made it to Nerve magazine. I went absolutely red and I didn’t know what to say – I was gobsmacked.”

Dylans bar is one of Robbie’s favourite karaoke spots, and he can often be seen at the Talbot Campus bar singing along to a number of old hits and socialising with the students.

He said: “I really love singing ‘Through the Baracades’ by Spandau Balle. They are some really good singers in Dylans but some are downright awful. I’ve got a bad throat at the moment but give me a few weeks and I’ll be back!”

Robbie mentioned that his bus driver colleagues get very jealous of the attention he receives.
Robbie said: “A few weeks ago I was with a colleague at the Corfe House student refractory. We were both eyeing up the pizza and my colleague ended up buying a slice.

“A student friend of mine came over and insisted on buying me some. My colleague couldn’t believe his eyes. I was a bit cheeky and asked him how his pizza was. Then I teased him and said that mine tasted better because it was free.”

However, being a bus driver can be difficult. Robbie said: “The running times are a kick up the backside. Sometimes they give you a month to get back and other times you have to drive it like you stole it.”

Bus drivers also often face difficult situations with rowdy drunk passengers in particular. Robbie thankfully hasn’t really experienced any big problems.

He said: “The government should ban drunks who always cause trouble on the bus. I’ve never been abused physically or verbally. I never have a problem with drunks so long as they sing in harmony and are in key.

“I have had a window smashed when they threw something from the outside though and I’ve had an egg thrown at my bus, free range, in the middle of Winton.”

Robbie clearly has a great sense of humour and he doesn’t take things too seriously. What makes him such a special character is the fact he claims he can block out all the negative things in his life and remain happy, despite having experienced a few personal tragedies.

Robbie said: “I married in 1999 when I was 23. My wife was 21, we were both so young but I was so deeply in love with her. I proposed to her at dinner on bended knee. We weren’t even married a year when I came home from work early and I found my wife in bed with our lodger.

"We had the flat in both our names and he was paying for his rent in return for sexual favours. I couldn’t believe it, I divorced her immediately. It only took her 32 days to remarry after our divorce was finalized.”

I’m not sure what is more shocking – the fact she would do this extremely cruel thing to such a lovely person, how she could remarry so soon after or how Robbie ever married such a woman in the first place.

Robbie may not have made the best decision in getting so deeply romantically involved with such a woman, but he very surprisingly, revealing his forgiving nature, said: “I don’t regret it. We’re amicable now since we’ve got an 8 year old sprog.” His son, Robbie junior, sometimes accompanies Robbie when he drives his bus, just like he accompanied his father.

Robbie has also experienced the pain of seeing someone he loves very deeply affected by the mentally crippling disease of meningitis. His brother, David, who is five years older than Robbie, got meningitis when he was 4 days old. He was affected mentally, but still manages to live a normal life, something Robbie is very proud of.

Robbie said: “He’s been working for Asda for 17 years. He began as a work assistant in Poole and they offered him a full time job as a trolley assistant, and then he began working in the Bournemouth St Paul’s Branch. Now he’s been there so long he’s part of the fixtures and fittings.”

Robbie’s parents, brother and sister live just around the corner from him. They are a very close family and are always there for each other. When I asked Robbie why he is as lovable as he is he said: “I have my parents to thank for that. It’s the way I’ve been brought up. I owe it all to mum and dad.”

Bournemouth’s most popular bus driver has a lot he can teach us on our attitudes to life. Robbie said: “I’m always positive, never ever negative at all. I just cut all the negative thoughts out. I haven’t read any self help books it just comes naturally I don’t know why. Maybe it’s all the jelly babies I eat.”

If only adopting his attitude was as easy as a trip to the sweet shop, but for most of us, we have to make a big effort to remain happy in times of adversity.




If you wish to check out the lovable Robbie's group on facebook, simply type in 'Legend Bournemouth Uni Bus Driver' into the seach box at the top of the page and you will be sure to find it.

Hanks apologises to Mormons

Hanks: formally apologised

TOM Hanks has recently publicly apologised to the Mormons he offended after he criticized them for supporting Proposition 8, a constitutional anti-gay marriage amendment to California law.

Having recently completed ‘Big Love’, a television series that he produces and concerns a polygamist Mormon sect, Hanks said that the proposal amounted to "codified discrimination". He also added that it was ‘un-American’.

Hanks made his apology adding to his initial statement tactfully “Everyone has a right to vote their conscience - nothing could be more American."

Credit: Photo from http://images.askmen.com/galleries/men/tom-hanks/pictures/tom-hanks-picture-1.jpg

First lady of Fashion

MICHELLE Obama has already caused a stir in the fashion world after just a few days of her husband’s Obama’s inguration.

Her Jason Wu gown with a single shoulder strap has inspired other celebrities to follow suit in the style. Celebrity divas like Teri Hatcher, Viola Davis and Evan Rachel Wood have been spotted in similar single strapped gowns.

We suspect Michelle Obama will set many more trends while her husband is President, and this is just the beginning of many.

Credit: Photograph taken from the New York Times website

Record year for West End

Les Miserables, one of the most popular West End shows

WEST End Theatres have not suffered from the economic downturn and figures reveal another successful year in 2008.

Box office sales have increased by 3%, totalling more than £480, state The Society of London Theatre (SOLT)

SOLT said attendances weakened in the second half of the year due to the economic crisis, but Christmas time boosted the figures.

Nica Burns, president of SOLT said:

"Last year was a record breaking year, we didn't expect to surpass it or match it.”




Credit: Photograph from http://www.applause-tickets.com/images/les-miserables.jpg

Halliwell’s well in love

Geri Halliwell and her multi-millionaire businessman boyfriend, Fabrizio Politi, were spotted looking very loved up after leaving Nottinghill restaurant E&O, after a meal with friends.

The pair have been described as ‘inseparable’ and a source who is a close friend of the couple said: “It's definitely the real deal. Geri can't believe how well they get on.”

Friends say that Fabrizio has already been introduced to Bluebell, Geri’s daughter, and he is “great with her”. Things seem to be very serious indeed.



Credit: Photo taken from http://celebrity.rightpundits.com/?p=4945

Local Priests Support Vatican

POPE Benedict XVI has launched his own dedicated channel on the popular video sharing website, YouTube.

His videos, audio footage and news concerning the Holy See will be posted onto YouTube.

It aims to get the messages of Catholicism across the world, with the Catholic Church being in full control of the content.

Archbishop Claudio Maria Celli, head of the Vatican's communications department, told the newspaper the Pope hoped to reach out to "the digital generation".

Father Jude McHugo, from the Catholic church Christ the King in Bournemouth, believes that the launching of the Vatican YouTube channel is a good thing.

“Any publicity for any good cause is a great idea, so long as it is in the right hands. I’m happy to hear that the Catholic Church will be in full control of what gets put up.

“Many more people will be able to hear the message of Catholicism through such a popular website, which is a great thing.

“The internet is a very useful tool, without it we wouldn’t have been able to advertise on our website for South Americans to come and visit and help with the running of the Church.”

Father Denis Blackledge from Corpus Christi Church in Bournemouth said:

“I think its great that the Vatican are going to be using something like that is launching the site because they said that they would use all ways of communication to get the message across.

It’s a great thing as they will spread the good news of Jesus Christ and his Kingdom around the world.”

Burglaries leaves shop owner wanting to quit

A SHOP owner is considering selling his shop and retiring after being targeted by burglars three times in 10 days.

Joe Gajic, 55, the owner of ‘Special Occasions' card and gift shop which sells jewellery on Penny’s Walk, has had losses of thousands of pounds.

The burglars’ first attempt was unsuccessful, but three days later they returned and stole jewellery valued between £1,500 and £2,000.

Mr Gajic experienced a second break in last Thursday in which the burglars managed to break into a locked stock cabinet and make off with hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of stock.

He said: “The nature of the area is not considered in any way. There is no CCTV. Our theory is the main high street has CCTV now. Burglars are looking for secondary places with no CCTV and less local residents to see them break in. Superdrug next door was burgled three times before Christmas."

Mr. Gajic added: "I wonder if it’s worth continuing in this game. We’re all struggling to pay rent and can’t afford things like this to happen. Insurance excess is very expensive. I’ve made three claims as a result of these burglars and that’s a £250 increase each time."

The crime prevention people have been in touch and recommend iron bars in the front of the shop. Mr. Gajic wants to get something that doesn’t make it look like he is locking up the prison at night.

Section Commander for East Dorset Inspector Mike Darkin said that officers will be taking action to catch the thieves and prevent further burglaries in the area.

Castlepoint is last free parking spot

Sainsburys at Castlepoint in Bournemouth

RESIDENTS have not lost their last free parking area in Bournemouth as Castlepoint will remain a free area to park at.

Last week it was reported that over 200 signatures had been gathered from residents in petition against what was believed to be the last free parking site becoming a pay-and-display parking site. The parking spot in is in Bourne Avenue and the petition was created by resident Anne Griffin.

However, councillor David Smith pointed out on Friday that the Castlepoint area will remain a free parking site. He said:

“The Castlepoint area is still remaining a free parking area, so this is not the last free parking spot.

“Over the next two to three weeks we will be making a decision on whether to make the parking in Bourne Avenue a paid parking area.

“If we do introduce paid parking it will free up parking space close to the shops for people to use. At the moment it’s very difficult. A lot of people park for longer than they should and for the wrong reasons. People who work in the area often park there and move their car around a bit every now and again and then return to work.

“It is a problem as it’s difficult for traffic wardens to know who has parked for the one hour they are allowed and who has overstayed without issuing tickets.”

The proposals include the parking spot possibly becoming a pay-and-display site between 9am and 8pm Monday to Saturday and 10am to 8pm on Sunday. Drivers will be allowed a maximum stay of two hours.



Credit: Photo taken from the Billington structral steelwork contractors website

Congestion charge claims were ‘tongue in cheek’

Councillor Robert Chapman:

The councillor is adamant plans for congestion charges were never decided

A BOURNEMOUTH councillor has refuted the reported proposals of the congestion charge in Bournemouth.

Last week it was reported that 84% of Bournemouth Echo readers polled were against the introduction of a congestion charge for Bournemouth. This introduction was reported as ‘inevitable’ and could arrive as early as in five years’ time in the words of Alex Carter who is the managing director of Poole-based Go South Coast.

Bournemouth councillor Robert Chapman said:

“They are definitely not going to introduce it. Alex Carter is also the chief executive of the Wilts and Dorset bus company. He obviously wanted the streets to be clearer so there would be more road space for his buses so it was a tongue in cheek comment.

"The congestion charge would be a good idea if it weren’t for the fact most visitors to Bournemouth come by car and if we did introduce it would be death to the tourism trade.

"The congestion charge is only appropriate in central London because it was very congested and there is no reason why people should drive as there is a very good underground system.

"The only other big cities in the UK who would consider a congestion charge is Birmingham and Manchester and any towns smaller than Birmingham and Manchester wouldn’t ever consider it.

"Roads do get congested here so better designs need to be made of the congestion spots by improving the highway system, and giving more priority to buses and at the same time allowing access for cars.”

Campaign against texting and driving

Last Year's Campaign:
‘Don’t become a crash statistic'

A CAMPAIGN has been launched to attempt to reduce the number of young people involved in car accidents in Dorset.

Last year statistics showed that one in four people injured in car accidents in Dorset were under the age of 25. The current Campaign targets young people who write texts on their phones while driving.

Posters are being placed nationwide of a blood covered mobile phone with a half written text message on it. The message is ‘Texting And Driving Don’t Mix’ and is endorsed by the members of Dorset Road Safe, including Dorset Safety Camera Partnership, Dorset County Council, Borough of Poole and Bournemouth Borough Council.
Statistics from the RAC Foundation report created last year reveal from a survey of 2, 000 users of Facebook that 45% of UK drivers engage in texting whilst driving. Most of these people are young people.

The RAC Foundation study involved seventeen drivers (aged 17-24 years). Drivers completed one normal drive and one drive in which they were given text messaging
tasks. Reaction times were around 35% slower when writing a text message.

Last year there was a campaign entitled, ‘Don’t become a crash statistic,’ and featured the image of a body lying on a mortuary table with a label on its toe which had written on it, ‘UR BST M8’.

Chief Inspector Robert Nicols from the County Council Road Safety Team said:

“What I can say is that I think campaigns such as these will eventually make a difference as it will help a shift in social attitudes. I’m hopeful that campaigns like this help attitudes to change over time towards responsible driving.”


Credit: Photo was taken from the Bournemouth Echo website

My Tesco TV news story (the first ever TV piece)

Sarah House - Assessment from Mammj on Vimeo.


This was my first TV news piece, I was responsible for all (the story, the voice over, the filming, and the editing)
It was a struggle using Adobe Premiere Pro but by the end I think I pretty much mastered it! whoo hoo!
I was very proud of this peice and even tried to mimick the intonation from the best BBC news reporters.
Though unfortunately, I didn't get the marks I expected due to not including Tesco's comment on the matter.
I thought as it was a very short news peice, and my angle was a negative one, it was not needed.
I have to remember in the future to always include comment from the other side, and I'll just take this as a learning experience.

"TWINCREDIBLES!"

'Twincredibles!' is the headline that the Sun gave to this extremely rare case of a new set of twins of a different racial appearance being born after their older twin sisters, who also have a differennt racial appearance.
In both cases one of them takes after their father, Dean Durrant, 33, of Mixed Heritage, and are darker in complexion.
The other has white skin and features and takes after their mother, Alison Spooner, 27, who is Caucasian.

The Hampshire couple are ecstatic, and are very surprised that this could happen to them again.

Doctor Carol Cooper, author of a book on twins, said there was a two in a million chance of a second set of twins like the Durrant girls.

On the Sun website she said:

“On average, non-identical twins share half their genes — sometimes it’s more, in which case they are quite similar, sometimes it’s much less.

“In this case they’ve not got the same number of genes from each parent.

“To have a second set of non-identical twins is unusual. It means the mum is very fertile.

“I think the first time this happened was in Germany in 1978, when a woman gave birth to one black baby and one white.”

I disagree with the media reports that these twins are of different races, and how two of them are labelled as black, and the other two as white. That is the reason why I referred to them as having a 'different racial appearance'. Both of them are mixed race, some have more genes for a particular race resulting in their misleading racial identification but that still doesn't make them 100% black or white.

How could any of them be described as entirely black really is a mystery, when their father is of Mixed Heritage.

I am reminded of Barack Obama here. In a similar way he is constantly referred to as 'The First Black American President', even though he had a white mother. People of all races worldwide make this mistake.

However, ironically although the reportage didn't provide a good start, this family predicament will probably result in people acknowledging that the twins are made up of two different races. People who otherwise wouldn't. The twins hopefully will embrace both sides of themselves as a reaction to their acceptance of being of mixed heritage.

I wonder if this could happen to me when I decide to have children, as I am half white and half black and my mother was a non identical twin. It could happen to me even if I don't have twins, or even if I have a black partner. I've heard of several instances of this.

But really all I hope for is healthy children, boys or girls, of any colour. However, I can imagine the annoyance this couple must feel over the stares and having to explain over and over that their twins are actually twins!

The two sets of twins photo was taken from the yahoo website, but originally it is a
Sky News Photo

Powerful artwork reflecting the current times of the Israeli and Palestinian conflict

This piece, by Ben Heine, entitled 'I Love you, But..." is the most powerful and highly appropriate art work reflecting the hatred of the Israelis and the Palestinians.
You can see that their faces are covered up, but they are trying to kiss each other.
This could reflect how both of them refuse to see the other side's predicament of anguish and loss, so peace making is entirely futile. They are blinded by their own interests.
The grenades they both carry imply that there will be no winner or resolution, they will both continue to suffer.
Perhaps the only way to resolve this situation is if they both removed the material from over their heads and saw the reality of the situation.

Heine modified the original artwork by Rene Magritte, entitled 'The Lovers' and is shown below.




















A blogger from http://www.demandmore.org/ commented on the painting, saying:

"In modern relationships, even in sexual relationships, each party comes to the table hiding his or her true self. Relationships are seen as a long and draining bargaining process where the needs of the other party are constantly ignored or belittled. Neither party is prepared to make the necessary sacrifices that must go into nurturing a healthy relationship; on the contrary, the parties involved seek to extract as much as possible from the other side. Healthy relationships (sexual and otherwise) require the lowering of interpersonal barriers and the production of a natural give-and-take, something that can only come when the needs of the other person are elevated more than the needs of the self.
The shrouds wrapped around the faces capture the fact that even in intimate contexts, we choose to remain separate from others. Where there is separation and division, there can never be genuine love."

It's easy to apply this analysis of the painting to a different context - the relationship between Isrealis and Palestinians.

Today it was reported on the BBC website that 879 Palestinians have died since the Isreali offensive began on 27 December. It has been liked to the Jewish Holocaust. In contrast, only 13 Israelis - 10 soldiers and threee civilians have died.

The Isreali/Palestinian conflicts have been raging for over 60 years. The Jewish Israelis and the Muslim Palestinians both belief that Israel/Palestine was given to them by God, and to allow anyone else ownership would be an insult to God and a sin. Surely the killing of innocent civilians would incur the wrath of God far more?

With every death and act of terrorism, the deeper their hatred for each other becomes. Will there ever be an end to this madness? Or will we be experiencing another world war in our lifetime?

Are there any solutions? Is there anything we can really do as mere citizens? Or are we powerless to stop the loss of innocent lives on a mass scale? Will this conflict survive our generation and the next? There seems to be no end, the prognosis is bleak.



For more of Ben Heine’s artwork, which include similar paintings to the one discussed, please visit his flicker page at http://flickr.com/photos/benheine/

Article on DATING TIPS - Avoiding the plague of undesirable bachelors for women

(This is supposed to be taken lightheartedly by the way)



LEOPARDS CAN’T CHANGE THEIR SPOTS: You cant change a guy - from the more trivial (depending on your viewpoint) - he’s not going to stop farting in bed - to the downright awful - once he’s cheated he will not stop if you take him back. He won’t wake up one day with the ability to keep his trouser snake inside his trousers having failed several times before. Either accept the way he is and your despicable treatment because you ‘LOVE’ him (for some foolish reason) or kick his ass to the curb. Easy choice.

ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS: Let a man use actions instead of his mouth - don’t listen to false promises. I.e “I want to spoil you with X Y and Z..” “I want to fly you around the world.” “I’ll treat you like a princess, you will never want for anything again.” How many times have you heard this from a man and it actually materialises? Men who want to do all these things don’t announce it again and again in order to brainwash you into thinking these things will eventually come. Well guess what? After 4 months has passed and there is not a hint of spoiling - they won’t! By the way if Prince Charming exists he is probably not a handsome man with a dazzling smile and remarkably believable and romantic promises. He is more like the frog in the fairytale - some ordinary guy - average at best - working in an office cubicle maybe even with super thick geeky glasses and a stutter who you wouldn’t give the time of day to, and nor would any woman above a 5/10 either.

TOO MUCH SELF LOVE IS SELF DESTRUCTIVE: Confidence and self belief are wonderful in small doses. Confidence is often reported to be the key to success, professionally and one could say regarding love. No woman wants a man who shakes when he speaks to her or lets her walk all over him. We want cahonas and a certain amount of arrogance is acceptable, whether you are aware of that fact or not. When someone is arrogant we subconsciously accept that they possess some quality worthy of arrogance and we respect them more.
However arrogance becomes very unattractive if it is displayed too much. Have you ever dated a man that looks in the mirror more than you? I am sure you were uncomfortable with this, as was I. It is simply NOT natural and one could say it is in fact a feminine trait. Have you ever dated a man that loves the sound of his own voice? Over promotes himself? Tells you how wonderful he is day and night? Brainwashing….sound familiar?
Anyway back to the point. The point I was trying to make and got carried away in the process - when a man loves himself so much and thinks he is the be all and end all and knows everything and no one can tell him different - he will never give you the level of respect you deserve. Stay away girl stay away!

SIMPLE RULE: HE DOESN’T HAVE TIME, THEN DON’T GIVE HIM ANY! : When someone shows that you are not a priority don’t make them yours.

HE’S JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU: You can tell VERY early on if a guy is really into you or not depending on the first date. It might seem obvious but if he invites you to his place or invites himself over then he is probably expecting you to be ‘casual’ during your first so called ‘date’. If you are cool with that then fine. But 99% of men don’t wish to have a second encounter of any type after a first date shag, just a warning.
If for some weird and inexplicable reason he really DOES just want to ‘hang out’ at yours or his and has nothing freaky planned then ask yourself if he doesn’t make an effort to begin with then why would he make an effort later? If you accept this it falls into a routine. Can you really handle spending such ‘exciting’ quality time like this?! (ALL the time). You’ll be playing bingo together within a year.
On the other end of the spectrum - if he tells you he loves you after a few days do not believe it! You can safely conclude that he is definitely NOT thinking about marriage and having babies with you and living happily ever after in the countryside with your 2 goldfish, 5 dogs and 9 cats - .he has some sinister ulterior motive, the most likely being he just wants a shag. Don’t humour him or wait it out - embarrass him by laughing (long and hard preferably with a few snorts thrown in for maximum effect) at him for his foolish move.

PHONES AREN’T WATERPROOF - If he says he’s going to have a shower and his phone has mysteriously disappeared from his coffee table - what bigger warning do you need? Mind in the early days it is not as worrying than if your relationship has long been established.
Calls/texts late at night he acts strange about are also a giveaway. If he’s naturally nocturnal, his friends are too and he acted like it wasn’t a big deal then its probably not. But if he acts shifty/leaves the room then you know something’s definitely up. Like DUH.

CONFUSED GUYS ARE CONFUSING SO DON’T CONFUSE YOURSELF - A confused guy is useless - he will never make up his mind. Wouldn’t you rather be with someone who you know is sure of his feelings for you? Realise your own self worth - your time is precious - don’t waste it with some loser who doesn’t know how lucky he is.
You’ll find him aged 89 rocking on his chair on the porch STILL scratching his head over the trivialities of egg versus bacon for breakfast. Guys who don’t know what they want never do. They think they do, perhaps for several years but then change their mind again. *KICK*

A REAL MAN HAS COHANNAS - A man that wont stand up for you is also useless! What kind of man does he call himself? He’s as good as a post-op tranny (no offence trannies, hope you understand my point).

HE JUST WON’T GROW UP: Simple and sweet: After 25 men do not mature anymore! They stay that way forever. Imagine said subject EXACTLY like that 50 years from now but more wrinkly, more ugly and more irritable, and in aid of Viagra to function. Terrifying prospect. Imagine this before you say your vows!

YEAH HE CAN’T COOK BUT HE CAN WATCH - OK this is not a negative point. GASP- YES, I am capable of making some nice comments towards men.
A man that watches you cooking and keeps you company while you do it is a diamond, it shows how much he appreciates you cooking for him. Instead of a man that sits on the couch watching TV farting and picking his nose while waiting for his slave to return from the kitchen with his 3 course feast.

Add your own pointers, share your horror stories and maybe we can gather with pitchforks and...


:P

oh yeah men feel free to defend yourselves or agree!

Baby steps

A Young me in Dover! not the most flattering photo...

Okaaay... so here I am...attempting to write my first blog post I guess I should begin with an Introduction of myself.

My name is Sarah House. I originally wanted a blog url with 'HouseOfSarah' included since people have been cracking that joke since birth, thankfully it was already taken, as in hindsight it did sound quite naff. I always said from a young age I can't wait to get married so I can change my last name and then the teasing would stop

'SarahsCasa' sounds less cheesey and is appropriate. Here you will see what goes on in the mind of Sarah. Whenever she feels the need to jot something down of importance. Ok third person referrals are now over.

This blogspot is going to contain my views on the news of the world that affects me personally, some of my Journalism master's work and anything else I want to include.

This blog will perhaps include entertainment, reflective, self expressive and theraputic posts. I've always thought it would be pretty cool to have a record of thoughts throughout different time periods to look back on how I was feeling at the time.

It would also be nice to write little articles and actually have people relate to them, so I know I'm not the only one of my kind out there. And I guess I am a victim of the 'me me me', starved-for-attention-adult-baby-sydrome-people out there who love to talk about themselves. Come on let's face it, we all are. Otherwise facebook wouldn't be so popular.

Where was I? Oh yes, back to me :D I do digress quite a lot...but I guess that's because I'm a woman, it's expected of me...look at this I'm doing it again. Let's call it nervous babbling...since this is my first blog...
About me - I'm of mixed heritage, my mother is from Kenya and my father is from Wales. Although he always tells me not to call him Welsh (sorry to any Welsh people reading this). He asserts that he is not ashamed of being Welsh and the reason behind this is that he left Wales when he was very young and never returned, and has since lived in several different countries. He worked for the UN and as a result my childhood was filled with beautiful experiences of different cultures and different types of people, as well as constant packing and being torn away from best friends, whichever way you decide to look at it. The former triumphs over the latter. I have no regrets, even though of course I had no choice in the matter.

I've written quite enough for a first post. I still can't work out the html for neat paragraphs but hopefully I'll figure that out soon. I think I'll leave it for now. Hope you enjoyed learning about me!

(Oh yeah I wrote this a while ago, but when I just corrected the spelling mistake it's saying I posted it on today's date. I'll just have to ensure to check everything several times before posting in the future....)