When is a walk not enough?

If you own a dog, walking is an essential part of having that responsibility. For your peace of mind and the health of you and your canine ‘friend’ you should amble about the hood on a regular basis. The sniffing pooing weeing and God knows what else also gets tended to. It is amazing who you meet; a social benefit for you both. I have many new friends as a result of my ‘walk-plus’ experiences now.

However, if you think that walking is enough then think again, particularly of you have one of those breeds (if you have knowledge of your dog’s lineage, that is) that tends to be totally manic at the best of time, never lone when you don’t exercise the hairy monster. If your dear little pooch happens to be a Jack Russell, then walking is never enough. The little devils reincarnated must be run off their feet in order for you to achieve anything approaching a peaceful evening. If you don’t, then be prepared a night from hell; too bad if you are feeling tired or just feel like staying in.

Jack Russells are born to run. They are a frustrated whippet or a wannabe greyhound. They want to run. They need to run. They must run till they almost drop and even then they will rest momentarily before they are off again. You must not shorten their run in the belief that ‘they have had enough.’ Enough is not on their large vocabulary. They want to run forever. It is only at the stage, when you have run them off their little feet that they will willingly accompany you home to a relatively peaceful evening.

Feel for me folks. I have not ‘run’ Perdy for two days, because I was tired and late home. She achieved new heights in her endeavours to entertain herself and bedevil us! I have been served a warning---‘take me out tonight or suffer the consequences.’ The bitch has spoken!  www.authorneilcoleman.com

Father takes 'P' and family takes off! What would you do?

NEWS FLASH---FATHER TAKES ‘p’ and family in turmoil. What will it take to ‘save him?’

Find out by downloading ROSKILL onto your kindle or other reading tablet. Just Google Amazon kindle and search Roskill, by Neil Coleman and the link will come up. Please review the book if you read it. ($4 US)

www.authorneilcoleman.com

Australian 'same sex' couples welcome to New Zealand to get married! BUT!

I see that many Australians are coming to New Zealand to take advantage of our new laws legalizing same sex marriage. We welcome them. That we are not welcome in Australia to the point where NZers receive the same benefits of living there that other immigrant groups receive is beside the point. That NZ gives Australians living in NZ the benefits of being a NZer is beside the point. That we are generous to our Australian friends is taken as a right. BUT----please Australia, treat us with the same respect. You can still make your sheep jokes---OK!

www.authorneilcoleman.com

Egypt, teeterting on the brink!

Who ever thought up the name ‘Arab Spring’ must have had some sort of weird premonition; one based on fantasy rather than the facts. Having said that, for a while there the world wanted to believe that the people of the vast region we call the Middle-East had a chance to realise their dreams of a better life. How sadly wrong we were in holding those aspirations for them.

Now as we watch events in Egypt unfold we hold our breaths in anticipation of a bloody civil war that could potentially be even worse than the deadly conflagration in Syria.

ON one hand in Egypt we have a ‘military-backed civilian government’ and on the other a deposed, but elected government that was looking like it had more in common with the Taliban than it had with true democratic ideals. For the people of Egypt, the choice, if they ever get one, is not good.

The military has vested interests in backing the present leadership, one brought about a coup, or folding and then possibly having far less influence and more likely a complete purge by an angry Brotherhood-led Government if it returns to power. No words from Obama or any other world leader can be taken as being helpful because they too have barrows to push in this unstable region.

I have painted a sorry picture and there are those out there who will see age-old messages about the events as they unfold. For me, it comes down to the people of the region seeking their own answers, none of which will ‘suit’ the West and increasingly, Russia and the emerging giants of India and China.

IN the meantime, we watch events unfold on the streets of Cairo and conveniently forget the on-going self-destruction of Syria. Perhaps Egypt takes the spotlight of the ‘Butcher of Damascus’ and the opposition that also has plans to cleanse Syria of those who criticise them.

If there was ever a time when the ideals of the UN could be followed, then now is the time, but one lacking in the ‘will.’

www.authorneilcoleman.com

ASOS---great prices--is it any wonder that NZers chose to buy overseas?

I heard from a colleague at work today that the site above (ASOS) based in the UK has Summer specials (70% off) and I couldn't resist taking a look. I was well satisfied with what I saw. Think about it; their summer specials are our new season offerings at a sale price. Well, a few minutes of trawling through the site had me buying for about NZ$175 items that were originally going for about $500. I had some guilt feelings, for a while, wondering what I was doing to the NZ retailing industry. I know that many shops are doing a bit of a squeeze. Who am I hurting, NZ workers or the big profits of the shareholders? For my own piece of mind, I chose the latter! Go check it out but be sensible---only buy the specials. By the way, the shipping was free. How does the NZ retail scene respond? Maybe they get smarter. My only concern is for the smaller clothing shops, not so much the big chains. Who gains? Maybe just the delivery businesses. I guess it's the same reasoning that I use to sell my books---as a part of Kindle. Go check them out too on Amazon (ROSKILL by Neil Coleman  Kindle version)
www.authorneilcoleman.com
 

Try this link to Roskill---it will take you straight to the download! Happy reading.

 http://www.amazon.com/Roskill-ebook/dp/B00EH3LZRI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1376344184&sr=8-1&keywords=roskill+neil+coleman

Mugabe tells his oppositon to 'go hang themselves.' Hasn't he already sort of done that?

Mugabe is a buffoon but a very dangerous one. His hold on power is such that the people of Zimbabwe will never be able to enjoy real democracy while he and his cohort hold power. The history of his party is one that started with an ideal, but he has gradually stamped his own brand of state fascism come extremism, all with no other aim than retaining power. His southern neighbour is strangely silent on the abuse of power; a fact that does not portend well for the future of that nation.
The Commonwealth is incapable of turning this potentially powerful nation around and the UN sits idly by because that too lacks teeth to call the megalomaniac to heel.
What is sad is that Mugabe is not alone in his relentless ambition. He has built up a system that will carry on once he departs this earth, probably very soon. The 'stolen election' is but a pointer to what will come next--more of the same, but unfortunately after a bloodbath amongst the 'wannabe' Mugabes. When will it end?
www.authorneilcoleman.com