My Valued Friends

Where has the week gone? It's Thursday and I haven't caught my breath yet! The weekend is however forecast torrential rain for most of the UK on Saturday and residual showers on Sunday so a couple of good books might have to come off the shelf.

Indeed my fellow blogger Magnumlady has sent me a beautiful book of photographs to which she is a contributor and I look forward to reading that and taking in good quality photography. It's called 'Quoted Moments' compiled by Joanne Malony with proceeds going to the Irish Cancer Society; with the most delicious photographs accompanying some famous and lovely well chosen quotes.

Now, nine years ago give or take a few months, I met for the first time Shirley Ann Summerwill and her partner Barry Chessman. They are mediums who I approached after an Internet search for a local medium to help me with a project which they did gladly and voluntarily. We have been firm friends ever since and they are now married having been partners for nearly twenty years.

I have been going along to a development circle run by Shirley Ann for nine years without missing hardly a week, it means a great deal to me. After nine years of keeping the faith with me, this afternoon, I accompanied Shirley Ann to a Spiritualist Church in Hull (John Street) and together we provided mediumship from the platform during their lovely service. 

This is a milestone in my spiritual life and my life in general.

It went well and feedback I've had is very positive. I don't want to shout about this because it's about giving others a service of messages of compassion, love, hope and truth from their loved ones now departed, but I do owe a debt of gratitude to a few people who have supported me and have put faith in me and I am so grateful. To Shirley and Barry who are simply stars - I can't say enough in their praise. To two Lindas who are both really good friends - Linda the Back who has encouraged and supported me and given sage advice over the years (as well as mending my back) and to Linda the Healer, who, although only coming into my life relatively recently has pointed me in new directions with the spiritual and angelic worlds, she is a great teacher and so enthusiastic about Archangels and their undoubted influence in our lives. To the lovely Tammy who started this journey with me at the same time and became a good friend, I thank her for sticking with me and believing in me - she is much more sensitive than I and would make an excellent medium/psychic.

To Su from the Midlands who gave me so much practical advice as a tutor through her class on the Spirit and the Artist course at the Arthur Findlay College; to fun Margot who guides us on a special philosophy circle who has broadened my horizons immeasurably. Maureen is my Reiki Master and who is never short of wise practical advice both spiritually and in Reiki terms. To Sharla Rae from  across the pond in Illinois who was so encouraging and supporting and with whom I would love to work again one day.

There you are. I am quite emotional writing this so if I have missed anyone, I am so sorry. There are many other friends I now have that I met along the way directly as a result of Spiritualism of whom I dearly love and are a part of my life now. Sounds like someone accepting an Academy Award. 

I can't share this with my wife because she doesn't believe in it, so I share it with you, being a believer or not, it doesn't matter, I just need people to know how important friends are.

I hope you have a great weekend when it arrives and hope the weather doesn't curtail your enjoyment of it.

Chat soon

Ta-ra.

Mixed bag...

Hi bloggers to this new week with some good news and less good news. Firstly, I would like you to do me a favour please. I would like you to read this blog by one of my regular blogging correspondents Magnumlady (Val) in Sligo who is experiencing a lot of frustration through the ineffectiveness of their local health service and the plight of her son Jonathan as a consequence. Let her know what you think by leaving her family a message of support. Thanks.

The diet is going on apace and today was 'weigh day'. The treadmill has been a big help I must admit and my other half has been very supportive of its use and indeed has started to use it herself. The sweat has been pouring off (yuk) in this warmer season - note I didn't say 'hotter'. In the last four weeks, I have lost over 12 pounds (5.6Kg). In her efforts to support me, my wife has been eating the same food and exercising herself, although she does have a job which involves a lot of walking and lifting and therefore is reasonably fit already. She got weighed herself and she has lost 19 pounds (8.6Kg).

In total then, since the end of February - I've lost 76.78 pounds, or 34.9 Kg, roughly five and a half stones.

Ironically, the picture above is my great grandmother who had this'fun' picture taken whilst on a trip to the seaside, just over seventy years ago (July 1939) - she looks a bundle of laughs!

My good friend Middleagedgapper will return in the next couple of days from his exciting adventure holiday in Turkey and I look forward to reading his blog with all the news and pictures. I am meeting him for a spot of tiffin on Friday this week. Welcome back. I wish I had the guts to do something like that, but it'll take me ages to get fit and I can't afford it (that's my excuse)! I would like to go and visit my ancestors First World War grave in Belgium one day and that might be a short break we'll take in the late autumn - in the car and across the North Sea ferry.

You may recall Ive been doing my family history for about thirty years now and I keep getting correspondence from all round the globe enquiring about the family and rarely are they connected - the enquiries are little more than a shot in the dark usually. I have however in the last day or so been corresponding with a lady in Kent - Janis who may well be connected to a great, great, great, great, great grandmother of mine, born back in 1769 in the sleepy hollows of Lincolnshire. Good to meet people from around the globe - like visitors to our blogs.

My story today concerns our favourite profession, bankers.

Two women were walking through the woods one morning when they nearly stepped on a frog on the path. "Help me, help me," croaked the frog. "I'm a banker, but a witch put a curse on me and turned me into a frog. If one of you gorgeous ladies would like to kiss me, I'll turn back into a handsome hunky banker."

One of the ladies picked him up and put him in her handbag. "Didn't you hear what he said?" Enquired the friend, "Kiss him and he'll turn into a handsome banker."

"Listen," her friend replied, "These days, he's worth more as a talking frog than a banker!"

Chat soon

Ta-ra

Menagerie

Menagerie... in the context of this blog, 'a diverse or miscellaneous group'. So much to say, so little time to write blog - indeed, it's gone 10 pm and I should be in bed.

But, dear blogger friends some good news to impart about the diet. I hadn't forgotten to update you, but if you remember I am only getting weighed once per month and Tuesday was the day. My belt is getting smaller, my trousers baggier and there is a gap appearing around my collar making my shirts just loose enough for me to button the collar for the first time in many a good year.

Well I did it again, I lost 4.9 Kg or 10.75 pounds in four weeks. That makes, in total, a loss in three months of three stone one pound. Low fat (as few saturated fats as possible) is doing the trick, plenty of fluids and walking. My wife who is also doing the diet has lost 14 pounds in the same period.

Work is busy and I have just had a promotion which is good news in this economic climate, but the price to be paid is a lot more responsibility and staff to supervise which I thought I had left behind some three years ago. But I like the challenge and having supportive, intelligent and 'can-do' line managers helps drive the job ever forward. One of my valued work colleagues and friend has moved to another department and although his move is temporary, I suspect it will become permanent as he such a professional and will make excellent headway in a difficult role. One of my line managers is retiring shortly after exceptional service and he will be sorely missed, but I am very lucky as a human being to count him as a friend and I will follow his retirement and the exciting plans he has with a lot of interest - more on that when he goes in July.

A blogger friend Magnumlady who lives in Sligo, Ireland has complained that while we were having glorious sun last Bank Holiday weekend, she was having drenching rain and her latest lovely picture shows a flower, perhaps an iris, covered in rain. Well news for you Val, its been raining here and temperatures have dropped dramatically and a cooler breeze has set in for the time being - a bit of a shock, but a nice weekend is forecast - I'll order some sun for you.

My psychic work took a turn for the better this week with an excellent psychic circle and clearer contact with the world of spirit than I've had for a while, it made it all worthwhile. Psychic ability, skill or gift, whichever you prefer to call it goes in peaks and troughs - good weeks, bad weeks and indifferent weeks and I suspect it very much depends on how you feel, what your attitude is, how calm and relaxed you are and what meditation and practise you do.

Well that's about it for tonight. Having watched Manchester United get turned over in Rome by Barcelona (they just didn't turn up!) on very poor quality ITV coverage and helped my middle son write some letters to cancel all his bills now he's moved out of his student flat, I am now going for a meditation while listening to some very soothing Gregorian Chants in the background. I think this weekend, I'll post some details about the way I do meditation (from a very good teacher) and see what you think to having a go to relax the mind and body yourself.

"I want to be young and wild; and then I want to be middle aged and rich; and then I want to be old and annoy people by pretending I'm deaf."
Rowan Atkinson, Blackadder

Chat soon

Ta-ra