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The one person I would most like to meet is Germaine Greer. I actually saw her in person once, but there was not an opportunity to actually talk to her. There are few television personalities who have managed also to be writers and teachers, bringing new ideas to such a wide audience. I would like to talk to her about what she now feels as an older woman, having lived from the riotous life of the sixties through to the consumerist post millennial period. I wonder if she has calmed down now, or if she can detect some new radical vibe that will characterize the next decade? At any rate I bet she would be a good laugh at a dinner party and nobody can say she is boring.

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• Germaine Greer tells of her affair with film director Federico Fellini (telegraph.co.uk)

So you bought fire extinguishers and now you need to know where to place them. You should keep a fire extinguisher on all floors of your home. Do not keep it up too high or you might not be able to get to it. A fire extinguisher should be kept near a door and definitely not in a closet. Generally you would want to put it in the kitchen as this is where most fires occur. Another spot to keep a fire extinguisher would be in the garage, especially if you do car repair or keep chemicals in the garage. People also recommend keeping small co2 fire extinguishers in your car.

Now that I am retired I can think back on that job in the office and I am so glad it is over. The people were nice, or at least most of them were nice for most of the time, but what was really difficult was the attitude of the general public. People don’t seem to realise that the office staff are not personally responsible for service breakdowns, and they seem to take great pleasure in ranting and raving instead of talking rationally about their latest disaster. It was good to come in to work early in the morning and have a quiet coffee while ordering the day’s tasks and checking emails. I will not miss the late shifts, however, and the long hours when nothing much happens. Retirement has such a lot going for it!

Fire safety should always be our primary concern especially in our house. There are steps on how to ensure the safety of our house. First, one must purchase electronic equipments that have passed the safety standards and requirements. Second, one must make sure that there is a fire extinguisher readily available in fire prone areas such as the kitchen. Third, owning fire extinguishers is not the end – all, one must learn how to use them. Replace them according to the instructions. Lastly, one must always be sure to unplug all appliances and regularly check them for loose cords or hazardous parts.

We went to an open air theatre on one of the free days of our trip and this was absolutely fantastic. The location was a low building with walls which were open on three sides. We sat on the floor, which is rather killing for Westerners, but the Japanese didn’t seem to mind. It was a combination of monotonous percussion sounds and wailing songs along with lots of masks and stylized dancing. At first it was weird, but after a while the regular dink, dink sound of the music grows familiar and it is very soothing. There wasn’t any dialogue, and the songs were of course in Japanese but nevertheless I understood the story was a love story involving a princess and a river god. It was simply unforgettable.

I have always wanted to go to Hawaii. That new treasure island game on facebook has just reminded me that this was once my all time favourite ambition. Life is just too hectic now and  there is something about that gentle music and the palm fringed beaches that draws me to Hawaii. I have to admit that there is also some attraction in the fruit cocktails and moonlight dancing. Ever since I saw the Elvis film I have wondered what it would be like to sleep under the moonlight and wear a grass skirt like the native peoples there. I am determined now to do the research and book my ultimate rest and relaxation holiday to make up for all the stress I have been suffering lately.

Norway has just got to be the coolest place ever, in every sense of the word. I was blown away by the scenery and the fresh air. In December it was minus 20 degrees even in the daytime and I had to wear my pyjamas under my jeans to keep warm. The locals take it in their stride but for visitors it takes some getting used to. Snow and ice are part of daily life for them. The strangest thing for me was to see ice floating in the sea. I had the feeling that we were hovering on the very edge of the world. Fortunately there were no polar bears but I think there were wolves about the place. One of these days I will get the hand of skis, but I think a trip or two more will be necessary if I am to get the practice in.

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• Tracking polar bears in Manitoba (telegraph.co.uk)

I have just discovered that my best mate is moving into a flat in the next street. I can’t wait to help her get settled in because at last there will be someone to go shopping with. All the time since I got down here it has been weird having to go out alone. There is just no fun in going to Oxford Street if there is no one to show off your new gear to! She likes films too and so I am planning to get us both tickets for Avatar. Yep. I still haven’t seen it! The rest of the day is sorted now, because I know she will want a supply of my millionaire’s shortbread for the housewarming party.

The French word travailed from which the word travel originates means ‘to work’. This meaning was perfectly apt in ancient times, when to travel meant a struggle against nature.  But modern means of transportation have conquered distances and natural barriers. Men acquired these facilities after hundreds of years of experimentation through trail and error. When early man wanted to go from one place to another, he walked. When he had a heavy load to move, he carried it. Then, he found it was easier to drag his load on branches or sticks lashed together. Later, people learned to train animals to carry packs and pull their crude sleds.

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• Car or Public Transport? Which is the Most Frugal Alternative? (myinvestingblog.com)

Last week I took a Malayalam novel from my college library. The novel was “pathummayude aadu”, written by the famous novelist” Basheer “. He had written many novels like ‘enduppuppakkoranayundayirunnu’, ‘madilukal’, ‘vishwavikhyathanaya mookku’. In the novel ‘pathummayude aadu’ Basheer wrote his own family story. The central character in this novel was the aadu. In this novel aadu means ‘the lamb’. Basheer excludes and includes the entire life of each and every one in the family. The story is a satire. He comically classifies character. From reading this novel we can get a clear picture about the whole family. And we will enjoy this novel while reading. In all the novels of Basheer himself places him as a character.