Pomposity

 Knorr-Bremse and Siemens Mobility sign agreement to supply entrance systems for 94 London Underground trains

Or as someone put it a little more clearly, doors.

Memories

Three years ago we had not long returned from England after our Mediterranean cruise. While the capital city Kotor in Montenegro was the most surprisingly wonderful place, we saw many fine other places including the Greek Island, Santorini. We can only dream of what we could do back then and how carelessly we could do it, unmasked, mostly unsanitised and certainly not two metres apart.

These aren't my photos. They just popped up somewhere yesterday at a site I have already forgotten. They are better than mine of course.

Can you see why in gloom of just before dawn as we sailed in, I wondered what these snow covered cliff tops were about when the weather was so warm?

We roamed the town and then sat at a bar with a view looking down on a scene like this.

For animal our welfare reasons we didn't ride an ass up the cliffside. We caught, I think a funicular. 

Who doesn't like a cute ass, or are they donkeys or maybe  mules?

Oh dear, I hope this appears in a better state than I can see it on Preview with the new Blogger.

Friday Funnies - Maintaining your deck

This is vulgar. Watch at your peril and don't complain if you do.

There would be very few Australians who detect that R is English born by his voice or accent but there is at times an English 'O' vowel sound that I pick up on. 

Likewise for Kiwis from New Zealand. They will speak perfect Australian until there will be a strange vowel sound that gives them away as being from our little islands to our east.

Former NZ Prime Minister Helen Clark had quite a broad Kiwi accent, but now as a VIP at the United Nations, her accent has changed and is much more worldly (acceptable?). 

The further you go south in New Zealand, the broader the accent will become and with some very strange vowel sounds. By the time you get to the south of the south island, they are speaking with a Scottish accent. But having visited New Zealand last year, I think the broader accent is disappearing, as are regional accents all over the world.

This is a good play on the Kiwi accent. Yes, vulgar but a bit amusing.

English is a nightmare

If a radio station holds a talk back session on words and language, it is pretty well guaranteed to kick off. I listened to a podcast.

ABC broadcaster Indira Naidoo hosted a talk back show about mispronounced words, that is those where you don't really connect with what you read with the correct pronunciation. Oddly it was kind of co-hosted with a New York State librarian, who was fine and agreeable to listen to, but I would have thought with the different pronunciations between our countries, well, it was an odd choice.

I'm sure I've done this before and I am also sure there are mispronounced words I have forgotten, but here are a few of mine whereby I did not connect the written word with what I heard.

Penelope...it is not pronounced like antelope.

Hyperbole is not hyper bowl. They were at a young age but I went on with not getting words right.

While visiting Sydney, I learnt that the hotel called Beauchamps in Oxford Street is pronounced Beechams and that is how you pronounce the name too.

Hermione which I had read in many books, Her Moyne, was a puzzling one for me until the arrival of Harry Potter books and films, none of which I have read or watched but somehow I picked up enough to know it is Her Marn E.

The Irish can do your head in. Music performer Sinead O'Connor is Shinade O'Connor. This other Irish name really got me though. I should have learnt from Sinead but Siobhan pronounced She-a-vaughn.

When we visited South Africa one of the wonderfully amusing Irish nurses we toured with and was kind to us old gay blokes was Orlaith, pronounced Orla.

It was also years before I knew Sean is said Shaun.

In Australia we have a least two places named Albany. One is pronounced as Al-banny and the other Or-banny. Over to you on that one Strayer.

So come on. Fess up. What are yours?

Dates

At about 7.30pm on the 5th of August I was switched to New Blogger. My post for 5am on 6th of August was already written and just required a little grammar and style correction. I did so, and clicked the arrow to publish. Up popped a confirmation that my post will be published on 8/6/2020. No no. I don't want my post published back in June.........or is it the American date system? That is in spite of my blog being set to UK English. 

So if there is a post about words at 5am Thursday, Australian time, you know it was the American date system. If there isn't another post at the same time, go back to the 8th of June and it will be there.

Dear Glad

Gladys Brerejiklian is Premier of Australia's arguably most important and certainly largest Australian state. Interesting like #45 in the US, she is 45th Premier of the State of New South Wales.

I recall saying to R a couple of weeks ago how I would like to wear a mask when at the Aldi supermarket but I would feel a bit embarrassed wearing a mask.

Then our State Premier ordered us to wear a mask once outside our home and we have. You can remove you mask to eat, drink or smoke when outside, if you don't have a medical exemption. That is it. No other exceptions. Compliance has been high with only my opinion, young tradies on work sites not masked up. They are at times doing hard physical labour and I am sure they struggle with masks. But what I have also observed about young tradies, they are not socially distancing at all. Note, Tradies are manual workers on building sites, or those who attend to fix your plumbing or wiring, or install something in your home.

So Gladys, take the bull by the horns and order Sydney people into masks for perhaps four weeks. We quite like being told what to do and any embarrassment will disappear.

"Maaaaaaaaaate, I am not risking my beer money with a fine".

Mother!

It's been a while since I have recounted a Mother story. She insisted on a 120 day settlement period for her house, which probably will suit the property developer buyers anyway. She is so determined to have this last garage sale. We will know on the 14th of this month whether their financing of the purchase is ok and the conditional sale will go ahead. The buyers must then pay the balance of the non refundable 5% deposit.

I called Mother a couple of days ago and she couldn't hear me on the phone. She said I will call you back when ABI Brother is home and he can turn on the speaker on the phone. I can't believe he hasn't shown her the speaker button already.

Several months ago after numerous attempts by her doctor and his nursing staff to clear her right ear of wax, she went to a specialist woman who really knew what she was doing and although the cost was $80, her ear was cleared.

The wax has built up again but because of COVID she is reluctant to return to the specialist and again her doctor and his nurses can't clear her ear. She is effectively deaf in one ear and so can no longer hear on the telephone.

But wait. I know what you are thinking. Doesn't she have two ears? Yes and her other ear is fine, but that is not her telephone ear. Only her right (blocked) ear works for the telephone. For some reason it is impossible for her to hold the telephone to her left ear.

Monday Mural

This is a strange one. I don't know what it is about or where I took the photo in April. I am getting a bit low on mural photos. I don't have many up my sleeve now.

Dear Fellow Victorians

Well, I am not sure I have regular readers who reside in my state. Isn't that odd. I have in the past. Leter: Oops Hels and Cathy.

A state of emergency has been declared in our state after days of hundreds of new infections. Last week there was a hopeful figure of under 400 but then up the number went again. Very sadly each day so many people are dying in mostly privately run nursing homes. Who would have thought it was a good idea to put the elderly, infirm and bewildered into nursing homes that are set up to make money! I've seen some prices and to get into one, they cost about the price of my mother's house when it was sold. This is partly refundable but there are also daily costs as well. So they take much of the resident's government pension too. These nursing home operators, who also receive Federal Government funding have amassed huge wealth from these profitable businesses, that is poor care for the elderly. It is truly a broken model.

For Melburnians along with being masked once out of your home, we are now have a 8pm to 5am curfew. We can't travel more than five kilometres from home for essential reasons ie shopping, care purposes, exercise and medical reasons. Outdoor exercise is restricted to one hour. Fishing, golf and similar are banned.

This one really affects us, only one person from a household is allowed to go out to the shops. This will mean less traffic on the roads and less accidents, along with less numbers in shops and less people sitting in public places eating takeaway and drinking coffee (yes Andrew, you are guilty as accused).

Schools and childcare will close, with a few exceptions.

The rest of Victoria will move to the restrictions we already had in Melbourne, that is not driving without a legitimate reason and masking up.

It won't be easy but I am now over the shock. This will continue until at least the 13th of September. Announcements will be made tomorrow about restrictions to some businesses.

If you a New South Welsh person, protect yourself by masking up if you visit a busy area.

Sunday Selections

EC is having computer issues, it seems. She can't tell us because if she is having computer issues, she can't tell us. Good for her to have a break perhaps anyway. So, who knows if she will join in for Sunday Selections.

We stole this from Mother. Well, she said we take anything we wanted. The dishwasher eventually wears the measurement marks off. As a right handed person, I have a problem with the measurements as the metric measurements are on the far side, which is fine if you are left handed.

Before lock down Mark II, we took Mother to the nursery for something or 'tother. These are called something like Candy Frost and they really look like they have frosted leaves.

I think it was a full tea set once, my grandmothers. All that remain are the cake serving plates. My foolish Mother asked if we wanted them. What? Do we have anything like that now in our apartment? I should send these photos to Brighton Antique Dealer to find out if they are worth anything, but I doubt it.

A strange sculpture outside an office building. I like it.

During Lock Down Mark I, I discovered this nearby barber shop. R had his haircut first and wasn't offered beer, and he probably would have accepted the offer. I had my hair cut there later and I was offered beer. Given R paid considerably more to have his luxuriant locks cut than I did for my much sparser hair, that seems unfair. I think we will have to return there, after our last haircut in the interim in the city at our usual place.

It looks a little like someone was feeding the birds, but not so. They were just gathered at the edge of nearby Albert Park Lake.