FastFreddy2

Proper shiny, one of the Baldwins...

There is still a supplier with size 8 in black. What is the fit like?

The very lovely, Cindy Crawford.

Nice heel, but far from discreet:

Another step closer to Brexit, achieved last night despite efforts from the dissenters. It would seem the Labour Party is now as close to being a Marxist organisation as it has ever been. The media is currently reporting it wants to use an illegal cross-industry "General Strike" to attempt a downfall of the current government. Obviously, Marxists only want to use the ballot box, when they win when using it. Losing, at the ballot box, means circumventing democracy to cause general unrest and division. I have fairly strong socialist inclinations, but my attitude toward democracy trumps any interest I have in socialism. I am unsure how this situation will all pan out, but there is a growing consensus even amongst the Remainers (widely reported after recent polls) that we should leave the EU. It's almost advertised by the main dissenting party as "the third way", since the dissenters have finally recognised that immigration may be one of the main drivers of the Leave campaign. (Who knew?) The suggestion for the 'third way' is that immigration might be restricted, and the UK stay part of the EU Single Market. Thing is, Merkel and her Commissar's sorry Commissioners, have said "free movement of people" is not negotiable. It's a fundamental part of the membership criteria for access to the Single Market. So put bluntly, there is no third way. Odd thing I found out a couple of days ago, the UK had the option of restricting immigration for 7 years after the old Soviet Bloc countries joined the EU. Most of the other member states took up that option, including Germany. The UK did not, which (seemingly) surprised many. At the time, the government of the day said the numbers that came here would not be significant .... Liars. "They" (Blair) is the author of Brexit, since it was his government that did not take up the restrictions, and allowed unfettered immigration, while at the same time reduced the funding to the NHS, schools, and other infrastructure that newcomers would need when they arrived. With no new housing plan for example, where were 2M newcomers to live? Rents have doubled, property prices have done the same. Why? Demand, with little or no new supply. Same with schools. While much of Brexit will not undo the current shortfall in infrastructure, at least the tide of newcomers might be slowed down. Many of us hope.....

We've seen this style before, but hopefully not on the same person ...

£500 PVC trousers ...

Daywear - shiny leggings.

No men in my (past) social circles, would have refused the opportunity to be paid to have sex with older women. In fact for myself, that's still true. To criticise his lifestyle, seems an uncalled for thing to do - especially given his hard work getting to be as successful as his is. A bit like berating a reformed drug-taker for their past. People who have overcome their short-comings, (if indeed they were short comings to start with) should be celebrated I would have thought. I like him. He seems to be the most genuine person on the panel. And as my previously posted video shows, he's also a man who likes to wear a heel.

Craig seems the most sincere of all the judges. I like him, although his judging does seem harsh at times. He's probably mindful of how much the participants are being paid, and (sometimes) how little effort they appear to put in for the money. As to the seemingly sour comment about his background, I would offer two "ism's" about that .... Firstly; Walk a mile in my shoes..... I very much doubt that when asked about his career intentions at school, being part of an underground sex-industry came up. The other ... But for the grace of God go I .... The character who provided the drugs for one of my near misses with Mr Reaper, once had us both hitch-hiking into the West End, at quite a young age. I might well have been 17 or 18 at the time, (I suspect younger since I wasn't driving at the time) and we managed to get to Piccadilly Circus. No-one we knew, had been told where we were going. I may well have told my parents I was out for the night, with no other details provided. Going to London hadn't in any way been planned. While there we met some 'interesting' people... After some time watching and participating with others, in the early hours we realised we had no way of getting home. One of the people we had talked to, offered us a place to stay, which we were compelled to accept. A long taxi ride later, we arrived at his semi-derelict flat, and we were (eventually) offered an unmade mattress on a floor. Before that time, it was made obvious to me, if I wanted to do more, I could. (At the time, I would have had the build and stature of a 14 year old.) The situation wasn't progressed, and my mate not so attractive any attempt was made to seduce him, so it was easy to refuse. That said, if there had been other men invited, the outcome may not have been so uneventful. We woke early, and excusing ourselves, left for a train station and our journey home. Hindsight is a wonderful thing. My parents were never told of the night in London, nor were many others. I'm aware things could have turned very nasty, and I count myself lucky they didn't. This is especially true as I read about child abuse that is so rife. It would seem the odds were stacked against any child that went to a faith school, didn't live with their parents, were coached for football when young, or had anything to do with celebrities. More recently, if a young girl and lived in an inner city in Northern climes. I don't know people ever want to join the sex industry, but it's there looking for people to 'suck in', and it has a pretty voracious appetite. Thanks largely to middle-aged men with money, power/influence. From my very very very limited experience, it's easy for me to understand both how ordinary it may be to fall foul of these 'encounters' with people (men) looking for them, and possibly how often they attempt to make them happen. In an environment where encounters are made every day, possibly multiple times a day, I can see how likely it is a young person might succumb.

I'm okay with that. If he wasn't "hugely" popular, (if he wasn't popular) I'm sure he'd be off the programme. I find his standing and arm swaying, too much like pantomime for my taste. He's quite tolerable as long as he stays seated.

As expected, the weather on the way to Basildon for the opera was horrendous. Not only did we have to contend with 25-ish miles of the M25, several times we were subjected to 40mph speed limits due to congestion, and several bouts of monsoon grade rain. Fortunately we weren't on the anti-clockwise carriageway during 5.30-6.00pm period as we were going the other way. While we did see a lorry and motor car parked on the hard shoulder on the other carriageway and a police car with blue lights on behind (suggesting an incident), worse must have happened close by. The lorry we saw was between Junction 24 and Enfield's Junction 25, but it didn't need all the emergency vehicles we saw trying to move through slowing traffic backing up behind them. We saw at least 6 fire tenders with blue lights on, perhaps 4 or 5 ambulances, again with blue lights on, and an untold number of police vehicles. We even saw Highway Agency vehicles with lights flashing, going the same direction. A few miles further round the M25, we saw what I can only describe as a police motorcade. Going in the same direction as all the other vehicles, but no blue lights. There were 2 or 3 police vehicles, and around 20 police bikes, all in convoy. Although Mrs Freddy did a search for local news as we travelled, nothing pertinent came up on a search. Despite the congestion (Friday evening on the M25) despite the weather (as reported previously), we arrived on the outskirts of Basildon pretty much on time, at 6.55pm with the show to start at 7.30pm. The only trauma for us was at a large roundabout. We were crossing from one dual carriageway to one the other side, and I kept on the righthand carriage way as we crossed. Just as well. If you can imagine another road user completely ignoring the presence of our vehicle, and leaving the junction (on our left) with the intention of driving straight into the side of our car, you have an idea of the Exocet-like trajectory of the old bird driving a silver (Corsa) that my sudden braking managed to avoid. She made no attempt to avoid us, nor brake to avoid a collision. If we had been on the outside lane (aka left lane of the carriageway) a collision would not have been avoidable. As Mrs Freddy and I scraped ourselves off the windcreen, the old bird waved as she carried on her merry way. Hopefully she won't be driving for much longer ... Arriving at the venue, I'd found a discreet place to park (for free) away from any liability of a parking fine. The parking near the theatre was awkward in that the multi-story closed at 10pm (though we were assured by the theatre, patrons never had a problem leaving at later times), and the ground level car park said "2 hours max" parking, but also offered 6pm-12am parking for £1. ??? We parked around 100 years away from the venue, and some unbelievable luck, a respite in what was torrential rain from some of the blackest clouds I've ever seen. Within 5 minutes we arrived at the venue and were inside safe, dry, and on time! All-in-all, I would say the performance was mediocre, with one of the main singers so weak, his voice could barely be heard over the orchestra. On my right were two girls in their late 20's early 30's, who tried to eat chocolates from a very noisy bag. The one closest to me thought this highly amusing and got into a fit of giggles. I tried to wound her with my 'look that could kill', but to no effect. We got an apology during the break, but they did the same thing during the second act, less the giggles. It was like being in a cinema, and sitting next to some 10 year olds. Since the women next to me fidgeted through the whole performance, I concluded the wine she was drinking was not the only mind altering drug she might have consumed.... During the interval, we got to talk to a 92 year old who was standing up through the break to keep herself from 'freezing' into her sitting position. What a game bird! Still driving (though not tonight) she was going to give up next year on her 93rd birthday. Still plays Bridge too, 3 times a week. She mentioned about the weak singer, who I thought looked more like a Russian gangster, than an American seaman. (Bald, but with long shoulder length hair tied in a pig tail?) Chucking out time revealed the average age of the audience must have been in the 60's. There were some younger people, but not very many. Mostly, attendees were of later years, some looking like they may have left an open casket to attend. (Bit unkind, but you get the idea.) Not so the lady we spoke to during the break, who could have easily passed for someone almost 30 years younger. When we left, the pavement outside was all but dry, and the sky clear. I would have been happy to walk around the town centre for a while, and maybe even found a place for refreshment, but Mrs Freddy had endured enough and wanted to get home. We had an uneventful hours drive back, with no evidence of any incidents apparent on the motorway? Even today, there are no reports indicating what was going on. I'm sure it will remain an enigma.

When copy editors start running the English language, that will be a point worth making. As you will know, language isn't a static commodity. We have Americanisms thrust upon us every day (thru TV) and other media. Street slang has also worked its way into every day - common English. My favourite from a whole list of misdemeanours ..... "Hugely". Something is either huge, (referred to as huge) or it isn't. "Hugely" suggests 'large-ish'. This is now a word I hear and read everywhere, included use by Oxbridge educated journalists during news reports on prime time television. To try and keep words in a box with the notion they are precious enough for limited use, suggests a distant family connection to King Canute. As to 'refute' or 'repudiate', and accuracy of either, I will agree the latter may well have be more accurate in the 'text-book' sense when used above, but repudiate isn't part of my vocabulary nor have I ever seen it used in prose. I "refuted" and I'm not the one who has developed it's use as a common term in deference to repudiate. Nor and I responsible for the adoption of "hugely". For example; "it is a hugely important aspect of the governments policies...." As with "insurance debates", I think grammar debates" might deserve a different thread if there's a need to continue a general debate.

Had I the benefit of your expertise back then I would have gladly put it to good use. At the time, I had escaped a possible court appearance for a 'driving without due care' charge. My then subsequent best interest, was keeping the injured party as 'on side' as they deserved. While the £50 was inconvenient, some of that would have been due under any excess arrangement anyway. I didn't feel unhappy about the £50, as I think I got off quite lightly given the circumstances. As before, my only gripe (so to speak) was that contact could have been avoided if the driver barrelling down the outside lane in the company Granada, had been a little more observant. But ultimately, I was responsible, and it cost me a bit of money. All-in-all, a 'fair' outcome regardless to anything else.

Thing is, when the rest of the world says "leaves are green", they are green ....

The three gentlemen judges, were part of a pantomime that made the show a success. Each had a role, each plays/played their part dutifully. I would prefer to watch Len for 6 hours than Bruno Tonioli for 5 minutes. He has become a caricature of himself.

The "edit" recognises some potential for ambiguity. (The original narrative was edited down from a longer statement, and when published, made perfect sense to me. It still does, but I had hoped the potential for ambiguity was removed with the last edit.) It seems it may not be the case... The person doing the "refuting" was me. I vehemently denied I had completed the form incorrectly, I was adamant I had included the endorsement mentioned on my previous application. On production of a photocopy of my second years application, (with the same insurer) it was self evident I had missed the endorsement mentioned on the previous years application. Were there any intention of deceit, I would have at least changed insurers, and brokers too. I had not, and thought I had completed the second years application, in exactly the same way I had completed the first. Certainly the premium was identical, but the photocopy indicated I didn't mention the endorsement. While my driving conviction was known to the insurer, and the inclusion of it would not (seemingly) have affected the premium, I gave the insurer an escape route. AFAIK the same thing still applies. Details missing that could affect the "risk" being taken on by the insurer, are opportunities for cover to be declined - almost always after a claim. As in the example here. If there's a need to dig deeper, please feel free to start a new thread. I've nothing to hide, and everything I've written here, fits in with everything else written about it. There's no lack of continuity, despite me relying on a 40 year old recollection. To that end, a post-mortem on events of 40 years will produce no benefit to me, but I'm happy to respond to further queries - but NOT here.

Off to the opera tonight. Would like to be in courts and high heels, but the venue is probably some way from the parking, and it's likely to be raining. While the temperature has been 'around' where it should be for the time of year (or maybe a tad cooler), we've had more rain than we should for the time of year. The hurricane season on the West of the Atlantic has seen some wind and water fallout over the UK when the weather system moves back across the Atlantic. There are several more weeks of it, for both the Caribbean and South East coast of the US, with them having to contend with record breaking weather. Some 5,000 miles later, the storms still have energy (winds) and water (rain) when they arrive in Western Europe. I imagine we are in for a wet Autumn. Dorset, today. Autumn storms in: Britain is on gale alert as 60mph winds batter the country and half a month's rain is set to fall TODAY England's south coast will suffer prolonged heavy rain today before strong gales arrive later in the weekend Southern areas could be hit by up to 0.8in (20mm) of rain today, but this could rise to 1.6in (40mm) in parts Today will be bright for most with sunny spells but there will be scattering of heavy showers, some thundery Tonight will bring more showers while tomorrow will be bright with sunny spells but there will be more rain Full article >> here << With a bit of luck, it'll have stopped raining tonight. I will be in 'foreign territory', so won't be tempted to wear anything outrageous like thigh-high red patent boots, (not that I own a pair,) I'll more likely be wearing the ones I use when I go into London. They aren't that obvious, and will tolerate getting damp. When I booked the tickets, I had thought I might get away with courts, but the weather says otherwise.

It wasn't the only place I found that reference, and it's been my understanding of the word for some considerable time. If the attached reference had been taken from chav.com I might have been more inclined to agree, but it wasn't. You can clearly see the source from the picture.

Bella, continuing her route to somewhere "off the rails" .... From the same article.... Full article >> here << Bit of a side note .... It has become 'trendy' for some young female models to have a nipple pierced. I assume they only get the one done, because it's not a pain-free procedure. Not only has Bella had both hers done, but there is an intimation in one of the photo's, that Bella has both hers done twice.

I think there is something "people" need to remember about S.C.D. It isn't a talent show with well-trained dancers displaying their expertise, gained over years and years of hard work. It's an entertainment programme for celebrity fans, created from the ashes of a defunct ballroom dancing programme that failed to draw an audience any longer. Len made good TV. So good, he was employed in the UK, and in the US where he would have been all but unknown. It may be his US TV persona bled into the UK one, but he did at least seem fair to me. I'm not convinced two women on the judges panel is going to work, any better than having two women for the presentation team works. Anton du Beke should be on the presentation team (in place of Bruce or the talking mannequin who is Tess Daly), or HE should have been given the job of Head Judge. He's witty, can think on his feet (as can Claudia) and is a gentleman. We'll find out if the new team works, soon enough.

It's good enough. And you are 40 years too late to offer advice.

Me neither, until I looked. (I hadn't read the article.) She is the new head judge on Strictly Come Dancing.

The claim I had made an omission on the application form was 'refuted', which I challenged right up until I was sent a photocopy of the original application. There was never, and will never be a time when I would intentionally lie or mislead an insurer. Back then, my form would have been filled out by a broker on the other side of a desk. I still remember the name of the brokerage and its location. The original sole trader, long passed onto the next world. Ultimately, the responsibility was mine to ensure the application was filled out correctly, which plainly it wasn't. I don't recall anything about a refund. Back then, consumers were much less educated on these matters, and enjoyed much less protection. At the time I felt like I was in a situation that could have turned a bit nasty. With the opportunity to settle on reasonable terms, I felt relieved there was an agreeable solution. While the initial cause of the event may not have been mine, I was the instigator of the knock. Again, the event could have had a much worse outcome, so I was relieved at only having to pay for a modest amount of damage. As you rightly say; "lesson learned".

Someone with a few more years under her belt .... Good look.