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dragonmartellstark · 3 years

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It was believed that the couple would be sterile because of Naerys' great physical weakness, but in 154 a. C., Naerys became pregnant for the first time, giving birth to her first child, Daeron and this birth was a great joy for the marriage which remained very close and Aemon did not separate from his wife when she began to weaken after giving birth. .

The couple continued to have more children, but due to Naerys' poor health, her pregnancies were four or six years apart:

Daeron Targaryen (154 a. C - 220 a. C) was the hand of King Daemon I Targaryen for 18 years being known for his patience, kindness and great intelligence.

He married the Dornish princess, Mariah Martell as a form of peace between Dorne and the iron throne, but despite being a political marriage, both spouses came to love each other and had four sons: Baelor, Aerys, Rhaegel and Maekar, in addition of a woman: Naerys.

Daeron was a great administrator and a great advisor to Prince Daemon who, when he sat on the iron throne, appointed his cousin as the hand of the king. His work as a hand was respected by many, but some names, including his uncle Aegon, did not see well that the prince held the position since they believed that Daeron manipulated his cousin to have the throne in his hands and rumors were created about the bad intentions hand in hand. It is believed that Aegon invented these rumors as he felt a grudge towards Daeron and his brothers as they were the product of love between Naerys and Aemon, Aegon's brothers.

Despite rumors, Daeron continued to be the king's hand, being considered an efficient hand with no monetary ambitions other than serving his king and the Seven Kingdoms.

Daeron suffered great pain when in 202 a. C., his wife, Mariah, died of an abortion at 49 years of age and it is known that Daeron never remarried, nor had lovers and took shelter in his work until almost affecting his physical health until in 207 a. C., he decided to retire from his position by moving away from political intrigues and dedicating his time to reading or caring for his grandchildren. In 217 a. C., Daeron began to suffer from gout attacks quite often and stayed in bed for a couple of weeks in the company of his children and grandchildren, until he died one night before reaching 60 years of age.

Alysanne Targaryen (157 a. C. - 207 a. C.) was Lady of Winterfell by marrying Barthogan Stark and known for being the only daughter of the princes to have political ambitions, as well as being considered the joy of the court in Winterfell

Her marriage to Barthogan was devised by her uncle, Daeron I, to have the North in her favor and in 169 a. C., the commitment of the princess with the heir of Jonnel Stark was made official. In the year 172 a. C., the princess came to the North meeting her fiancé and that same year they were married in the forest of Gods. Not much is known about the relationship between the couple, but it is known that Alysanne was a great political support for her husband being her compared to the queen Alysanne Targaryen being called "Alysanne of the ice". The marriage had three children: Brandon, Brereton and Baltasar Stark known as the three wolves.

Alysanne managed to introduce music, banquets and the arts to Winterfell further encouraging the court, being seen in a bad way by some lords for taking many liberties in the lordship of the North and in politics, but the princess ignored those complaints. It is known that she managed to find good marriages for her sisters-in-law Sarra, Alys, Raya and Mariah Stark with lords of Winterfell, but she promised her son Brereton with her aunt Mariah since it is said that she was the favorite sister-in-law of Alysanne.

The princess was widowed when Barthogan died in 200 from a sword wound during training. Her son, Brandon, became the lord of Winterfell and Alysanne was his main adviser and advisor, this caused numerous envies on the part of his daughter-in-law, Alia Umber. Alysanne Targaryen passed away in 207 a. C., at age 50 after falling down the stairs and breaking his back. She was buried in the crypts of Winterfell with the inscription "Lady Alysanne, Queen of Ice."

Aemon Targaryen (164 a. C.-192 a. C.) known as "The Dragon's Sword" was a member of the Royal Guard from 182 a. C., being the youngest member with 17 years of age. He was known for his dexterity with the sword and the spear being considered a great warrior as well as his father being also called as "Aemon, the young man".

Aemon did not want to marry and have a family so he joined the royal guard, but it is known that he had an affair with a young woman known as "Red Barbara" a woman with hair as red as fire and it is known that with her he had two bastard children, Jaime and Larra who founded a minor house known as " Whitesword ".

This relationship was a great scandal due to Aemon's disloyalty to his oath, this was shameful for Aemon and his parents, but Daeron covered this up by stating that the children of this romance were born before his brother joined the royal guard.

The popularity of the prince was affected by this scandal, he being seen as a disgraced knight and his children as spawns born of that disloyalty. Aemon was disappointed by this and became addicted to alcohol spending his days in the tavern where he drank himself to sleep. It was said that one day before he was 28 years old, he affirmed that his children, Jaime and Larra, were his legitimate heirs, leaving them the silver that he received for being prince of the Seven Kingdoms and being a member of the Royal Guard.

On his birthday Aemon escaped from the castle to go drinking with his friends, but on his return he was assaulted by scavengers and one of them stabbed him in the chest when he tried to take his bag of money from him. Aemon died at the same moment when he was just 28 years old, the death of the young man was a disgrace for the family and especially for his mother, Naerys.

Naerya Targaryen (170 a. C.-211 a. C.) was queen of the Seven Kingdoms by marrying her cousin, Aegon IV Targaryen.

She was considered a delicate, kind and smiling girl, she was as white as her mother, but she had more physical strength to enjoy horse riding, hunting and the bow and arrow. Since she was a child she helped her mother take care of her little sister, Daenerys whom she adored and she also had a good relationship with her brother Daeron despite her age difference.

In the year 178 a. C., Princess Visenya gave birth to a healthy son, Aegon being a great joy for all. Naerya with eight years of age took care of her little nephew along with her cousin with whom she had a great relationship and Visenya declared that she would like her cousin to marry her son. When Daemon and Visenya sat on the iron throne, Daemon agreed to allow his heir to marry Naerya, trusting that she would be the ideal wife for the prince of Dragonstone.

In the year 188 a. C., the princes were married in the Great Septo, Aegon was 10 years old and Naerya 18 years old. The marriage was consumed in 191 a. C., being Naerya pregnant at 21 years of age and she gave birth to her first child, Daemon future Daemon II Targaryen. The marriage was happy and Aegon loved his wife very much with whom he had four more children: Alyssa, Aerion and Rhaenar, but only Aerion died in full adolescence.

In the year 209 a. C., Daemon I passed away that same year and Aegon sat on the throne as Aegon IV Targaryen, being Naerya his consort with 39 years of age. Two years later Naerya contracted winter fevers by staying in bed for a few days until one night in 211 a. C., Naerya passed away at 41 years of age. Aegon was hurt to lose his wife and dressed in black until her death, but two years later he remarried his cousin, Saera, with whom he had three more daughters.

Daenerys Targaryen (172 a. C.-234 a. C.) was the princess consort of Dorne by marrying Prince Maron Martell, the brother of her sister-in-law Mariah Martell.

Daenerys was a young woman just as beautiful as her sisters, she being considered cheerful, sweet, calm and a lover of nature. She was very close to her sister Naerya with whom she continued to be in contact even through letters. In the year 182 a. C., she met Maron Martell, Prince of Dorne and brother of Mariah Martell, wife of Prince Daeron. The princes liked each other and it is known that Daenerys played in the palace gardens with Maron and claimed to marry him when he was older.

In 191 a. C., Daenerys' brother, Aemon, passed away and shortly after her mother, Naerys, passed away and it was a great pain for the whole family, but especially for Daenerys who adored her mother. That same year Daenerys was reunited with Prince Maron who proposed to her and the princess agreed, this engagement was well seen by Daemon I and the wedding took place in 192 a. C., Daenerys was 20 years old and Maron about 25.

Daenerys left for Dorne to be declared Princess Consort and Lady of Sunspear, she was received in a good way as the Dornish people saw her as a symbol of peace after so many rebellions and battles between the Martells and the Targaryens. As a wedding gift, Maron had the Water Gardens built where his descendants could play in hot weather, but Daenerys allowed any child of any social rank to play in the gardens.

The marriage was harmonious and they had a total of ten children, being considered a miracle. Daenerys spent the years taking care of her children, but it is also known that she was very sad since in 211 a. C., her beloved sister, Naerya passed away and when King Aegon IV married her cousin, Saera Targaryen, Daenerys firmly believed that her brothers had murdered her favorite sister of hers. Daenerys survived her other brothers of hers being this very depressing for her and she sheltered from her in her children and her grandchildren whom she loved with her life.

In the year 229 Maron died of natural causes and their son, Dagon became Lord of the Spear of the Sun, Daenerys retired to the Water Gardens after the death of her husband and during her stay she longed for the presence of her husband and his brothers. Daenerys passed away in 234 a. C., at 62 years of age from cardiac arrest while she was sleeping. Her remains rest with Maron's in Dorne.

Se creía que la pareja sería estéril por la gran debilidad física de Naerys, pero en el 154 d. C., Naerys se quedo embarazada por primera vez, alumbrando a su primer hijo, Daeron y este nacimiento fue una gran alegría para el matrimonio el cual se mantuvo muy unido y Aemon no se separo de su mujer cuando esta empezó a debilitarse tras el parto.

La pareja siguió teniendo mas hijo, pero debido a la salud delicada de Naerys, sus embarazos tenían una diferencia de cuatro o seis años:

Daeron Targaryen (154 d. C.- 220 d. C.) fue la mano del rey Daemon I Targaryen durante 18 años siendo conocido por su paciencia, su amabilidad y su gran inteligencia.

Se caso con la princesa dorniense, Mariah Martell como una forma de paz entre Dorne y el trono de hierro, pero pesé a ser un matrimonio político, ambos conyugues llegaron a amarse y tuvieron cuatro hijos varones: Baelor, Aerys, Rhaegel y Maekar, además de una mujer: Naerys.

Daeron fue un gran administrador y un gran consejero para el príncipe Daemon el cual cuando se sentó en el trono de hierro, nombro a su primo como mano del rey. Su trabajo como mano fue respetado por muchos, pero algunos nombres entre ellos su tío Aegon no veían bien que el príncipe ejerciera el cargo ya que creían que Daeron manipulaba a su primo para tener el trono entre sus manos y se llego a crear rumores sobre las malas intenciones de la mano. Se cree que Aegon invento estos rumores ya que sentía rencor hacia Daeron y a sus hermanos ya que estos eran producto del amor entre Naerys y Aemon, hermanos de Aegon.

Pese a los rumores, Daeron siguió siendo la mano del rey siendo considerado una mano eficiente y sin ambiciones monetarias mas que servir para su rey y para los Siete Reinos.

Daeron sufrió un gran dolor cuando en el 202 d. C., falleció su esposa, Mariah de un aborto a los 49 años de edad y se sabe que Daeron jamás volvió a casarse, ni tuvo amantes y se resguardo en su trabajo hasta casi afectar su salud física hasta que en el 207 d. C., decidió retirarse de su cargo alejándose de las intrigas políticas y dedicando su tiempo a leer o a cuidar a sus nietos. En el 217 d. C., Daeron empezó a sufrir de ataques de gota bastante seguido y permaneció en cama por un par de semanas en compañía de sus hijos y nietos, hasta que falleció una noche antes de cumplir los 60 años de edad.

Alysanne Targaryen (157 d. C.- 207 d. C.) fue señora de Invernalia al casarse con Barthogan Stark y conocida por ser la única hija de los príncipe en tener ambiciones políticas, además de ser considerada como la alegría de la corte en Invernalia.

Su matrimonio con Barthogan fue ideado por su tío, Daeron I para tener al Norte a su favor y en el 169 d. C., se oficializo el compromiso de la princesa con el heredero de Jonnel Stark. En el año 172 d. C., la princesa llego al Norte conociendo a su prometido y ese mismo año se casaron en el bosque de Dioses. No se sabe mucho sobre la relación entre la pareja, pero se sabe que Alysanne era un gran apoyo político para su marido siendo comparada con la reina Alysanne Targaryen siendo llamada “Alysanne del hielo”. El matrimonio tuvo tres hijos: Brandon, Brereton y Baltasar Stark conocidos como los tres lobos.

Alysanne logró introducir la música, los banquetes y las artes a Invernalia animando mas la corte, siendo vista de mala manera por algunos señores por tomarse muchas libertades en el señorío del Norte y en la política, pero la princesa ignoro aquellas quejas. Se sabe que ella logro buscarles buenos matrimonios a sus cuñadas Sarra, Alys, Raya y Mariah Stark con señores de Invernalia, pero prometió a su hijo Brereton con su tía Mariah ya que se dice que era la cuñada favorita de Alysanne.

La princesa quedo viuda cuando Barthogan falleció en el año 200 por una herida de espada durante un entrenamiento. Su hijo, Brandon se convirtió en el señor de Invernalia y Alysanne fue su principal asesora y consejera, esto provoco numerosas envidias por parte de su nuera, Alia Umber. Alysanne Targaryen falleció en el año 207 d. C., a los 50 años de edad después de caerse por las escaleras y romperse la espalda. Fue enterrada en las criptas de Invernalia con la inscripción de “Señora Alysanne, reina del Hielo”.

Aemon Targaryen (164 d. C.-192 d. C.) conocido como “La espada del Dragón” fue miembro de la Guardia Real desde el año 182 d. C., siendo el miembro mas joven con 17 años de edad. Fue conocido por su destreza con la espada y la lanza siendo considerado como un gran guerrero al igual que su padre siendo llamado también como “Aemon, el joven”.

Aemon no deseaba casarse y tener una familia por lo que se unió a la guardia real, pero se sabe que el mantuvo un romance con una joven conocida como “Barbara la roja” una mujer con el cabello tan rojo como el fuego y se sabe que con ella tuvo dos hijos bastardos, Jaime y Larra quienes fundaron una casa menor conocida como “Espadablanca”. Esta relación fue un gran escandalo debido a la deslealtad de Aemon a su juramento, esto fue vergonzoso para Aemon y para sus padres, pero Daeron tapo esto afirmando que los hijos de este romance nacieron antes de que su hermano se uniera a la guardia real.

La popularidad del príncipe se vio afectada por este escandalo siendo visto como un deshonrado caballero y a sus hijos como unos engendros procreados de esa deslealtad. Aemon se sintió defraudado por esto y se volvió adicto al alcohol pasando sus días en la taberna donde bebía hasta dormirse. Se dijo que un día antes de cumplir sus 28 años afirmo que sus hijos, Jaime y Larra eran sus legítimos herederos dejándoles de herencia la plata que recibía por ser príncipe de los Siete Reinos y ser miembro de la Guardia Real.

El día de su cumpleaños Aemon escapo del castillo para ir a beber con sus amigos, pero a su regreso fue asaltado por unos carroñeros y uno de ellos lo apuñalo en el pecho cuando trato de quitarle su bolsa de dinero. Aemon falleció en ese mismo instante con 28 años recién cumplidos, la muerte de el joven fue una desgracia para la familia y sobre todo para su madre, Naerys.

Naerya Targaryen (170 d. C.-211 d. C.) fue reina de los Siete Reinos al casarse con su primo, Aegon IV Targaryen.

Era considerada como una muchacha delicada, amable y sonriente, era tan blanca como su madre, pero tenia mas fuerza física para disfrutar de la equitación, la caza y el arco con flecha. Desde niña ayudo a su madre a cuidar a su hermana pequeña, Daenerys a la cual adoraba y también tuvo una buena relación con su hermano Daeron pesé a diferencia de edad.

En el año 178 d. C., la princesa Visenya dio a luz a un hijo sano, Aegon siendo una gran alegría para todos. Naerya con ocho años de edad cuido a su pequeño sobrino junto a su prima con la cual tuvo una gran relación y Visenya declaro que le gustaría que su prima se casara con su hijo. Cuando Daemon y Visenya se sentaron en el trono de hierro, Daemon acepto que su heredero se casara con Naerya confiando en que ella sería la esposa ideal para el príncipe de Rocadragón.

En el año 188 d. C., los príncipes se casaron en el Gran Septo, Aegon tenia 10 años y Naerya 18 años. El matrimonio se consumo en el 191 d. C., quedando Naerya embarazada a los 21 años de edad y dio a luz a su primer hijo, Daemon futuro Daemon II Targaryen. El matrimonio fue feliz y Aegon amo mucho a su mujer con la cual tuvo cuatro hijos mas: Alyssa, Aerion y Rhaenar, pero solo Aerion falleció en plena adolescencia.

En el año 209 d. C., Daemon I falleció ese mismo año y Aegon se sentó en el trono como Aegon IV Targaryen, siendo Naerya su consorte con 39 años de edad. Dos años después Naerya contrajo fiebres invernales permaneciendo en cama por unos días hasta que una noche del año 211 d. C., Naerya falleció a los 41 años de edad. Aegon estaba dolido de perder a su esposa y vistió de negro hasta su muerte, pero dos años después se volvió a casar con su prima, Saera con la cual tuvo tres hijas mas.

Daenerys Targaryen (172 d. C.-234 d. C.) fue la princesa consorte de Dorne al casarse con el príncipe Maron Martell, hermano de su cuñada Mariah Martell.

Daenerys fue una joven igual de bella que sus hermanas siendo considerada alegre, dulce, tranquila y amante de la naturaleza. Estuvo muy unida a su hermana Naerya con la cual siguió estando en contacto incluso por cartas. En el año 182 d. C., conoció a Maron Martell, príncipe de Dorne y hermano de Mariah Martell, esposa del príncipe Daeron. Los príncipes se agradaron y se sabe que Daenerys jugaba en los jardines del palacio junto a Maron y aseguro casarse con el cuando fuera mas grande.

En el 191 d. C., falleció el hermano de Daenerys, Aemon y poco después falleció su madre, Naerys y fue un gran dolor para toda la familia, pero sobre todo para la Daenerys quien adoraba a su madre. Ese mismo año Daenerys se reencontró con el príncipe Maron el cual le propuso matrimonio y la princesa accedió, este compromiso fue bien visto por Daemon I y la boda se celebro en el 193 d. C., Daenerys tenia 21 años y Maron unos 25.

Daenerys partió hacia Dorne para ser declarada princesa consorte y señora de Lanza del Sol, fue recibida de buena manera ya que los dornienses la veían como un símbolo de paz después de tantas rebeliones y batallas entre los Martell y los Targaryen. Como regalo de bodas, Maron mando a construir los Jardines del Agua donde sus descendientes podrían jugar en los tiempos de calor, pero Daenerys permitió que cualquier niño de cualquier rango social jugara en los jardines.

El matrimonio fue armonioso y tuvieron en total diez vástagos siendo considerado un milagro. Daenerys paso los años cuidando a sus hijos, pero también se sabe que estaba muy triste ya que en el 211 d. C., su querida hermana, Naerya falleció y cuando el rey Aegon IV se caso con su prima, Saera Targaryen, Daenerys creyó firmemente que los hermanos de esta habían asesinado a su hermana favorita. Daenerys sobrevivió a sus demás hermanos siendo esto muy deprimente para ella y se resguardo en sus hijos y sus nietos a los cuales amaba con su vida.

En el año 229 falleció Maron por causas naturales y el hijo de estos, Dagon se convirtió en Señor de Lanza del Sol, Daenerys se retiro a los Jardines del Agua después de la muerte de su marido y durante su estancia anhelaba la presencia de su marido y sus hermanos. Daenerys falleció en el año 234 d. C., a los 62 años de edad de un paro cardiaco mientras dormia. Sus restos descansan junto a los de Maron en Dorne.

#Naerys Targaryen #aemon the dragonknight #daeron the good #alysanne targaryen #aemon targaryen #naerya targaryen #daenerys i #daenerys martell

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lowlife4lifesposts · 3 years

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Old Saint Peter is going to “bitch slap” you you right across the face at the Pearly Gates for what you’ve done.

How does one understand when your closest and most trusted person “plays you” for profit?

20 Brothers say you are a liar and never talked to them about you taking care of his things. Most everything you put in the divorce documents is manifestly untrue. Your tales of the abuses that you suffered aren’t even logistically possible but his witness is your own mother! You contributed nothing and demanded everything in court then after both lawyers quit you wrote to the judge that you getting 100% of everything was a fair 50/50 split after ensuring that your husband was so fucked in the head that he couldn’t make it to court 800 miles away with no money because you took it all! Now as you do everyone online in dating apps you wonder why you aren’t seen as this great person who was victimized by a “monster”? This monster however has not ever had any similar complaints to your even though he was married for 2 years before he met you. He has 3 adult children and 9 grandchildren and was the “Neighborhood Dad” as well as mentoring and assisting dozens of people both men and women in his profession and was never a cheater or unfair in any relationships. Yet he is your monster? You were abused per your words in all your relationships. You were offered 60% of everything in the divorce not just the marital assists and you demanded 100%. Every accusation that you’ve thrown out has no proof and the plausible deniability is overwhelming. The documentation of your online antics in harassing your husband with your boyfriend is documented by both Google, Verizon and AT&T as well as your ex husband. Now all your Ex husband is thinking is; “How does one care so deeply for someone that would not only discard them so easily but also go to extraordinary effort to cause them significant damages? “

In more specific terms the scenario is based on how my world came to be as it is today. There were explanations given to others about “what went down” but the stories always left out some important details like how he was losing his mind due to stress, how she had been secretly communicating with Exes, how he told repeatedly when he was upset that it was nothing to do with her how he just needed to vent. It also was lacking in context when conveyed as both people had recently lost their Fathers tragically and outside of each other these were the most important people in the world to them.

To learn that the one you love is just like anyone else is a harsh awakening but to learn that they comfortably function in the lower segment of the population can be a devastating thing! You can wait and see if they become the “stand up” that they portrayed themselves to be but so far in my experience everyone that fucks you over either did it intentionally or couldn’t care less about anyone other than themselves. This leads us right back to the first paragraph.

To close this all up, he didn’t do most of what she says he did and after the “ghosting “ it was all guess work on his part, so what we can take from this is that it’s all bullshit and the truth is never to be known by the only two people that it really mattered to. The communication supposedly given to others to be passed along never made the loop. The courts weren’t given the true or valid information and both lawyers quit the case before fruition. They both did more for each other than they have said and they both damaged each other more than they’ll ever know. The one thing that is clear is that communication was severely lacking. There was too many secrets on the one side and too much anger and frustration on the other side. Assumptions, Third Party Fuckery and Bad Judgements are what prevailed in the end. The end of the story shows more than anyone knows but basically she ended up with everything, immediately was in another relationship and tormented him. He years later he’s still single and not interested, he has a small business and everyday is more challenging than the one before. There are accusations of one being driven by greed, lust and selfishness as well as narcissistic and malicious. The other is accused of being a narcissist, rapist, murderer, BI Polar, Psycho, Pathetic, unworthy of any of there lifetime accomplishments and notoriety, being abusive, cruel, unfaithful, untruthful, selfish, emotionally unavailable, uncaring, unkind, gang affiliation, stalking, threatening and malicious! One party lost a lucrative 25 year career in Executive Management while the other went from multiple years of being unemployed and supported without being required anything in return to a new career as an author and self proclaimed victim/survivor.

I’m glad she’s happy but sad that she had to do it at my expense and to all those 3rd party types out there “keep your head low, your eyes forward and don’t ever, under any circumstances get in my way ever as it won’t be over telephone or computer when we cross paths again! I’ll also say that if you are covertly planning an exit from a relationship you aren’t trying to fix it!

#fuckery #fix it #lies never solve problems

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newstfionline · 3 years

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Sunday, April 18, 2021

Biden’s Afghanistan plan a plus to some vets (AP) Patrick Proctor Brown says the war in Afghanistan was lost within a year of its start. The suburban Milwaukee lawyer, who was an infantry captain in Iraq, said the trillions of dollars spent and the thousands of lives lost, including a lieutenant he trained with, make it “a tragedy.” “And the Taliban will be back in power in a year,” said Brown, 35, who also studied diplomacy at Norwich, a military university in Vermont. “It’s insane.” Brown supports President Joe Biden’s decision to withdraw all troops from Afghanistan by Sept. 11, and by voting for the Democrat, he represents a subtle but potent shift in the voting behavior of some in the military. Voters who served in the military have long leaned toward Republicans. But there are signs that Biden may have cut into that advantage. “This president has got to end these wars,” said Jon Soltz, a former Army tank captain who formed the Democratic-leaning VoteVets.org in 2006. “He’s got to fulfill some of these promises. There’s a war-weariness in the military.”

Riot declared after windows smashed in Portland protests (AP) Police in Portland, Oregon, declared a riot Friday night after authorities said protesters smashed windows and burglarized businesses during demonstrations that started earlier in the day after police fatally shot a man while responding to reports of a person with a gun. The vandalism downtown came after the Friday morning police shooting but also was part of vigils and demonstrations already planned for the night in the name of people killed in other police shootings nationwide. They include 13-year-old Adam Toledo of Chicago and Daunte Wright, a Black man in a Minneapolis suburb. Deputy Police Chief Chris Davis told reporters earlier in the day that a white man in his 30s was shot and killed by police, who opened fire with a gun and weapons that fire non-lethal projectiles. A witness who spoke to reporters at the scene said the man, who had removed his shirt and was blocking an intersection, appeared to be in a mental health crisis.

Castro era in Cuba to end as Raul confirms he’s retiring (Reuters) Raul Castro confirmed he was handing over the leadership of the Cuban Communist Party to a younger generation at its congress that kicked off on Friday, ending six decades of rule by himself and older brother Fidel. In a speech opening the four-day event, Castro, 89, said the new leadership would be party loyalists with decades of experience working their way up the ranks and were “full of passion and anti-imperialist spirit.” The new generation of leaders, which did not forge itself through rebellion, has no easy task. The transition comes as Cuba faces the worst economic crisis since the collapse of former benefactor the Soviet Union, while there are signs of growing frustration, especially among younger Cubans. A tightening of the decades-old U.S. trade embargo and the coronavirus pandemic have exacerbated a liquidity crisis in Cuba’s ailing centrally planned economy. Shortages of even basic goods mean Cubans spend hours lining up to buy groceries.

Argentina closes schools, imposes curfew in Buenos Aires as COVID-19 cases spike (Reuters) Argentina’s government will tighten pandemic restrictions in and around the capital Buenos Aires to rein in a sharp spike in COVID-19 cases, including shutting schools and imposing a curfew from 8pm to limit social activity. President Alberto Fernández, 62, given his all-clear earlier in the day after he was infected with the virus, said the South American country needed to “gain time” in the fight against COVID-19 after daily cases hit a record this week. The measures will see schools closed in Greater Buenos Aires from Monday, and the suspension of indoor sports, recreational, religious and cultural activities until April 30.

The queen says goodbye to Philip, continues her reign alone (AP) Sitting by herself at the funeral of Prince Philip on Saturday, Queen Elizabeth cut a regal, but solitary figure: still the monarch, but now alone. The queen sat apart from family members at the simple but somber ceremony in accordance with strict social distancing rules during the coronavirus pandemic. But if the ceremony had been for anyone else, at her side would have been her husband of 73 years, who gave a lifetime of service to the crown. The monarch’s four children and eight grandchildren sat in small groups nearby, during a stripped-back service at Windsor Castle that made their loss somehow more personal for people who often live their lives in public. The service was quiet and without excessive pageantry. Philip was deeply involved in planning the ceremony. At his request, there was no sermon. There were also no eulogies or readings, in keeping with royal tradition. Former Bishop of London Richard Chartres, who knew Philip well, said the 50-minute service reflected the preferences of the prince, who was a man of faith but liked things to be succinct. “He was at home with broad church, high church and low church, but what he really liked was short church,” Chartres told the BBC.

Philip’s legacy lives in chef who traded prison for kitchen LONDON (AP)—Jon Watts was 18 years old when he woke up in a prison cell and decided he had to change. He enrolled in every course he could find, from mathematics to business. But he says it was a program founded by Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, that gave him a “passion for food” and a career as a chef when he got out of prison 3 1/2 years later. “I was a young boy in prison,” Watts, now 32, told The Associated Press. “It helped mold me to be what I like to think is a good person, and it set me up to believe in myself, to believe that I can achieve things.” After Philip’s death last week at age 99, politicians and world leaders rushed to eulogize his lifetime of service to his wife, Queen Elizabeth II, and to the British nation. For many people across the country, though, his greatest contribution was the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, a program which seeks to give young people the skills and confidence they need to succeed. Participants in the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award must complete volunteer work, improve their physical fitness, learn new skills, and go on expeditions to earn each of three progressively more difficult levels of achievement—bronze, silver and gold. More than 6.7 million people between the ages of 14 and 24 have taken part in the U.K., and the program has expanded to 130 countries since Philip founded it in 1956.

A Bitter Family Feud Dominates the Race to Replace Merkel (NYT) With less than six months to go before Germans cast their ballots for a new chancellor, the political vacuum Angela Merkel leaves behind after 16 years of consensus-oriented leadership is coming more sharply into focus. A rare and rancorous power struggle has gripped Germany’s conservatives this week as two rivals vie to replace her, threatening to further hobble her Christian Democratic Union, which is already sliding in the polls. Normally, Armin Laschet, 60, who was elected in January to lead the party, would almost assuredly be the heir apparent to Ms. Merkel. Instead, he finds himself unexpectedly pitted against his biggest rival, Markus Söder, the more popular head of a smaller, Bavaria-only party, the Christian Social Union, in a kind of conservative family feud. Experts and party members alike are calling for the dispute to be resolved within the coming days, as it risks damaging the reputation of the two conservative parties, jointly referred to as the Union. Because the two parties operate as one on the national stage, they must choose one candidate for chancellor.

Russia to expel 10 US diplomats in response to Biden actions (AP) On Thursday, the Biden administration announced sanctions on Russia for interfering in the 2020 U.S. presidential election and involvement in the SolarWind hack of federal agencies—activities Moscow has denied. The U.S. ordered 10 Russian diplomats expelled, targeted dozens of companies and people, and imposed new curbs on Russia’s ability to borrow money. Russia responded by saying it would expel 10 U.S. diplomats and take other retaliatory moves in a tense showdown with Washington. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also said Moscow will move to shut down those U.S. nongovernment organizations that remain in Russia to end what he described as their meddling in Russia’s politics. The top Russian diplomat said the Kremlin suggested that U.S. Ambassador John Sullivan follow the example of his Russian counterpart and head home for consultations. Russia will also deny the U.S. Embassy the possibility of hiring personnel from Russia and third countries as support staff, limit visits by U.S. diplomats serving short-term stints at the embassy, and tighten requirements for U.S. diplomats’ travel in the country.

Russia’s surveillance state (Washington Post) Russian authorities are ramping up the use of facial recognition technology to track opposition protesters to their homes and arrest them—a powerful new Kremlin tool to crush opposition. But when state security agents are suspected of murders or attacks on journalists and opposition activists, surveillance cameras have at times been switched off or “malfunction.” And the system is so leaky that surveillance data on individuals can be bought for a small sum on Russia’s notorious black market in data, along with all kinds of other personal information. There is even a name for the clandestine cyber-bazaar: probiv. China leads the world in rolling out a vast network of facial recognition technology, including a system to track and repress its Uyghur minority. But Putin’s Russia is racing to catch up. Russian firms such as NtechLab produce some of the world’s most sophisticated facial recognition software as authorities grapple with counterpunches by the opposition, including using social media to expose Russia’s kleptocracy such as extravagances by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s political allies. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said the facial recognition system—rolled out in Moscow en masse in January 2020 and expanded to at least 10 other Russian cities—is now used in 70 percent of crime investigations. Moscow has more than 189,000 cameras with facial recognition capabilities, as well as more than 12,300 on subway cars in Moscow’s Metro.

Health care: The medical cost crisis will outlast COVID (The Week) Few would disagree that “much-reviled Big Pharma pulled off one of the great achievements in medical history,” said Geoff Colvin at Fortune—quickly developing multiple effective COVID-19 vaccines. Hospital workers, too, “have been heroes in the truest sense” in the fight against the pandemic. These are not groups America “wants to punish” right now. But something has to give. A system of “perverse incentives,” from drug distribution to insurance rebates, has made health-care costs “maddeningly untamable.” In the six years since the Affordable Care Act was passed, health-care spending per capita has increased faster than it did in the six years prior. Three-quarters of Americans say that the quality of the health care they get isn’t worth what they are paying for it. Big Hospitals and Big Pharma are “at each other’s throats” over who is to blame, but the trend in costs “isn’t about to reverse.” Poorer hospitals have “limped through the year,” straining under the costs of COVID, said Jordan Rau and Christine Spolar at Kaiser Health News, but many wealthier ones have done just fine. The U.S. has budgeted $178 billion in aid for health-care providers, and even profitable hospitals have gotten help. After receiving $454 million in federal aid, Baylor, the biggest nonprofit hospital system in Texas, “accumulated an $815 million surplus, $20 million more than it had in 2019.” Despite this, hospitals have devised ways to pass on costs, said Sarah Kliff at The New York Times. Lenox Hill, one of the oldest and best-known hospitals in New York City, has “repeatedly billed patients more than $3,000 for the routine nasal swab test” for COVID, “about 30 times the test’s typical cost.” The hospital “advertised its COVID-19 testing on a large blue-and-white banner,” then charged each visit as an emergency room procedure. Federal legislation mandated that coronavirus testing be free for patients. “But eventually, American patients bear the costs in the form of higher insurance premiums.”

#headlines #news

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basicsofislam · 4 years

Text

ISLAM 101: 5 PILLARS OF ISLAM: ALMS AND CHARITY: FIQH OF ZAKAT IN DETAIL: RECIPIENTS OF ZAKAT: (Part 5), (Last Part)

WHO CANNOT BE GIVEN ZAKAT ?

Zakat is a financial deed whose benefactors and recipients have unequivocally been specified. In addition to declaring all the eight eligible categories, the essential references of Islam— Qur’an and Sunna—have also identified the groups which are not entitled to zakat.

In enumerating the two deeds that are truly worthy of envy (not to be understood in its negative sense), the Prophet (upon whom be peace) includes the person who “constantly donates to where merited, to the point of insolvency,”21 an allusion to the inappropriateness of giving zakat or sadaqato undeserving people or places.

Put in a nutshell, people ineligible to receive zakat can be enumerated as the rich; those who have the power and ability to work; and intimate relatives or progeny of the Noble Prophet (upon whom be peace). Let’s now scrutinize each of these categories in light of the respective evidence.

The rich

The rich are obliged to give zakat, not to receive it, as attested to by the hadith, “Sadaqa is not permissible for the rich (to receive);’’22 equally, the Prophet’s advice to Muadh before dispatching him to Yemen attests: “It (wealth) is taken from the rich and given to the poor.”23

In another hadith, the Prophet (upon whom be peace) forewarned, “A person who asks of others, despite possessing enough wealth for sustenance, will be brought on the Day of Judgment with his face scarred by his demands as if it had been scraped with nails.” In answer to subsequent inquiries about what could be considered “enough wealth,” his answer was “50 dirhams.”24 Furthermore, the Messenger unambiguously stated, “Sadaqa is not permissible for whoever is wealthy with the power to work.”25

The general exclusion of the rich from zakat notwithstanding, there are some who have been identified as being eligible to receive it, as justified by the subsequent hadith, wherein the Prophet included certain among the rich in those eight categories: “Charity is not permissible for the rich, except for the following five: a warrior in the way of God, a zakat collector, a debtor, a person who buys the charity collected as zakat, and a rich person who receives from a poor the gift that was given to him as zakat.”26

Officially wealthy children or a female, regardless of whether or not they exercise authority over their possessions, are also ineligible to receivezakat, since a female with a wealthy husband or the child of a rich father is also classified as being rich because Islam has obliged the male—whether it be the father or husband—with the duty of providing her sustenance. By the same token, zakat cannot be given to the children under the financial protection of a wealthy guardian.

Those with the power to work

Islam does not condone supporting those who, although they possess enough ability and power, adamantly insist on leading a parasitical life; contrarily, the Qur’an praises and emphasizes personal effort and toil, as accentuated by the verse: “…and that each can have nothing save what he strives for” (Najm 53:39).

In a hadith overruling the eligibility of those with the power to work, the Prophet declared that, “Sadaqa is not permissible for a wealthy person or for one with the power to work.”27 The Prophet extols personal effort in another hadith:

A man from among the Ansar (Medinan Companions) came to the Prophet (upon whom be peace) and begged from him. He (the Prophet) asked, “Have you nothing in your house?” He replied, “Yes, a piece of cloth, a part of which we wear and a part of which we spread (on the ground), and a wooden bowl from which we drink water.” He said, “Bring both to me.” He then brought these articles to him and he (the Prophet) took them in his hands and asked those present, “Who will buy these?” A man said, “I shall buy them for one dirham.” The Prophet said, “Who will offer more than one dirham?” Another man said, “I shall buy them for two dirhams.” He (the Prophet) gave these to him and took the two dirhams and, giving them to the Ansar, he said, “God and buy food for your family with one dirham, and with another buy an axe and bring it to me.” He then brought it to him. The Messenger of God fixed a handle on it with his own hands and said, “Go, gather firewood, sell it and meet me after 15 days.” The man went away, cut wood and sold it. When he had earned ten dirhams, he came to him and bought a garment with some of them and food with the others. The Messenger of God (upon whom be peace) then said, “This is better for you than that begging should come as a spot on your face on the Day of Judgment.”28

Notwithstanding the view of some scholars who advise donors to give zakat to persons simply according to outward appearances because of the utter impossibility of knowing another’s status with certitude, many scholars are adamantly against giving zakat to a person who may be considered “an idler.” Ideally, it is perhaps bet ter to initially offer them assistance via zakat, and thus give them an opportunity to stand on their own, an approach that will, in time, effectively discern between the hard workers and freeloaders.

Warring non-Muslims

Withholding zakat from those in active warfare against Muslims is a verdict that is established by both Islamic sources and logical thinking, in addition to the consensus of scholars. The Almighty has explicitly declared, “God only forbids you to make friends with those who have fought against you on account of your religion and driven you from your homes, or abetted others to do so” (Mumtahina 60:9). This clearly dictates the code of conduct to be embraced against those with obstinate hatred, who incessantly and publicly strive to thwart the splendor of Islam.

This is actually what common sense calls for, as lending financial support to those preparing to engage in hostilities would practically be tantamount to self-destruction. Even though such a donation might be considered to stimulate peace, this would certainly be a highly strategic decision, in need of meticulous planning and a great deal of preliminary thought.

As made palpable by the verse, the group in question refers to non-Muslims who have made a habit of callously attacking and assaulting Muslims—not to be confused with the minorities living in Muslim realms who, as verified by the consensus of the scholars, may at least be given supererogatorysadaqa if in need. It is a well-known fact that Caliph Umar had even allotted a salary from the treasury for an aged non-Muslim lady. Concurrently, this sort of benevolence is necessitated by the teachings Islam promulgates in the name of humanity. Exemplified by the muallafa al-qulub charity, heartwarming grants like these are providentially the means for many to bear witness to the positives of life, a scene that may well culminate in the precious result of the acceptance of Islam.

Intimate family members

A person cannot give zakat to those he is obliged to look after, who include his usul (origin and progeny), namely parents and children, but exclude the furu (other relatives). Giving zakat to parents or children will not realize the profound goal of zakat, causing wealth to continuously change only between the same hands, a procedure prohibited by the Qur’an: “…so that they will not become the property of the rich among you” (Hashr 59:7). Equally, this is equivalent to us ing zakat money to close a debt in that the sustenance of parents and children is commensurate with a debt awaiting payment.

Insofar as grandparents and grandchildren are concerned, scholars have opted for both sides of the issue, stemming from different categorizations as either usul or furu. While some maintain their ineligibility due to their inclusion as usul, other scholars insist on their eligibility as furu, granting the responsibility on both occasions to the father.

As for giving zakat to other relatives, it is considered not only acceptable but commendable, and a means of strengthening community bonds throughsila al-rahim (the reinforcement of relational ties). Thus it is said to acquire double the rewards, as attested to by the assurance of the Prophet (upon whom be peace) in the following hadith: “A sadaqa given to a destitute is one sadaqa, whereas a sadaqa given to relatives is sadaqa and sila al-rahim.”29 The Noble Messenger’s advice to Abu Talha and Sa’d ibn Abi Waqqas spawns from this exact approach, recommending to them, on behalf of the entire Muslim community, that it is much more appropriate to give priority in charity and alms to family and relatives, lest they become dependent on others.

The descendents of the Prophet

The progeny of the Noble Messenger, collectively known as Bani Hashim (the children of Hashim), are equally ineligible to be zakat recipients. Shafii, contrary to the opinions of Abu Hanifa, Malik and Ibn Hanbal, further extends this boundary by similarly integrating the children of Abd al-Muttalib, the Prophet��s grandfather. So, accordingly, the Prophet’s (upon whom be peace) relatives comprise his own family, plus the families of Aqil, Jafar, Abbas and Haris.

The Prophet had once appointed a man from the tribe of Bani Mahzun to collect charity, who had then asked Abu Rafi, a former slave emancipated byBani Hashim, to join him, so as to acquire a share of it. Upon hearing this, the Messenger proclaimed, “An emancipated slave of a tribe is a member of it, and certainly sadaqa is not held (allowed) for us.”30 When Hasan, the grandson of the Prophet, reached out to a date given in charity, the Prophet prevented him by saying, “You should know that we do not eat of zakat.”31 Likewise, the Prophet (upon whom be peace) had said, “Time and again when I return to my abode, I come across a date fallen on my bed; and as soon as I seize the date for consumption, I drop it in fear it may besadaqa.”32

On top of prohibiting his family members and relatives from charity and alms, the Prophet (upon whom be peace) equally did n o t consent to them working as zakat collectors, a profession that entailed a compulsory receival of zakat. Nonetheless, he did authorize for himself and his family a portion of one-fifth of the gains of war that was entitled to him, in addition to the gifts he had received.

The eighth chapter of the Qur’an begins by emphasizing the basic principle that the gains of war belong to God and His Messenger, “They (the believers) ask you about the gains of war. Say: “The war-gains belong to God and the Messenger,” (Anfal 8:1) and then clarifies the how the gains of war will be distributed, “And know that whatever you take as gains of war, to God belongs one fifth of it, and to the Messenger, and the near kinsfolk, and orphans, and the destitute, and the wayfarer (one devoid of sufficient means of journeying)” (Anfal 8:41). This verse assigns one-fifth to God first, that is to public services by mentioning the people who represent these services: the Messenger, his near kinsfolk, orphans, the destitute and the wayfarer who does not have sufficient means to complete the journey. The remainder is distributed among the warriors.

The Messenger (upon whom be peace) devoted all his life to communicating Islam to others and to the service of the people. He was not in a position to provide for the poor among his kinsfolk. In addition, there were many other places or items of expenditure for which the Messenger had to pay as both a Messenger and the head of the state. The share assigned to him may, in some respects, be likened to the funds assigned for the special expenditure of heads of state.

It is a historical fact that the Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings, spent his first wife Khadija’s wealth on the cause of calling to Islam, while he, his family and his kinsfolk lived as the poorest of all Muslims. They also spent all the shares of the gains of war that were assigned to them on Islamic services and the needy.

It has also been narrated that the Prophet would investigate the source of each gift and would then use it only if and when its legitimacy had been confirmed; if such could not be established, he simply transferred the alms or charity to others, or returned it back to the Bayt al-Mal (treasury).

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tigers-eyes-26 · 4 years

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My Headcanon Of Genealogical DNA test results based on the Don Rosa Duck/Coot/McDuck Family Tree

Clinton Coot was 50% English 50% Native American. Maybe of the the Ohlone Tribe, because Duckburg is located close to where San Francisco is. Clinton traveled to all the Indigenous people to write down their knowledge. He Married Gertrude Gadwall who, I am just going to say, is 100% English. Not a lot of info on her.

Elvira Is 75% English, and 25% Ohlone Native American. My headcanon is that Elvira and her children and grandchildren participate in The Annual Ohlone Pow Wow. She married Humperdink. What I can find about the name Humperdinck is its German. Also, the Distelfink is Pennsylvanian German. I could see him having an affinity with the traveling painter that painted the Triple Distelfink. I think I’ll say he is 60% German and 40% English.

Quackmore is 12.5% Native American, 30% German and 57.5% English. He Married Hortense McDuck. She is 50% Irish and 50% Scottish.

That makes Donald and Della 6.25% Ohlone Native American, 15% German, 25% Irish and 25% Scottish, and 28.75% English. Donald and Della have the McDuck Tartan Outfits that Hortense made for them.

Daphne would be the same as Quackmore. 12.5% Ohlone Native American, 30% German and 57.5% English.

I looked up the name Gustave it was Swedish but there is also English and French. I would put Goostave as 30% English, 30% Swedish, 25% French %15 Irish. His family don’t want to talk about their Irish part, but it is there.

Gladstone would be 6.25% Ohlone Native American, 7.5% Irish, 12.5% French 15% German, 15% Swedish and 43.75% English

Gladstone in an act of rebellion attached himself to the Irish part of his Fathers Family. He Read about the Green Man and Shamrocks and incorporated that into his style. Daphne and Hortense were pregnant at the same time. Daphne asked Hortense about Scotland to bond. Hortense told her about some neighbors they had in Glasgow whose last name was Gledstanes or Gladstone. Daphne loved the name so much. Gustave’s family disproved of the name they wanted Goostave the 2nd. Goostave just let his wife have her way. It was a joyful name.

Eider would be the same as Quackmore 12.5% Ohlone Native American, 30% German, and 57.5 English

I don’t want Lulubelle to be blond most loons are black or gray anyways. I would give her black hair with a little bit of Auburn in the sunlight. I think she would be a Yellow-billed Loon because the beak looks bigger chinned and the Fethery in DT17 has kinda big chin. Loons are mostly in the Artic Region. I am going to say she is Inupiaq (singular) woman. 60% Inupiat and 40% Irish. I think her parents moved south for her health. She was skinny and would get cold too easy. People thought she was weird, but she just had a different culture. Lulubelle didn’t see any reason to conform. Eider Resonated with her. He was so proud of his Native Heritage and seeing her live her Native life inspired him. They named their first boy WhiteWater a native name and their second boy they named off his description Feathery. She raised her boys to respect nature and to be themselves.

WhiteWater and Fethery Duck are 6.25% Ohlone Native American, 20% Irish, 15% German, 28.75% English, 30% Inupiat.

Disclaimer:

1. Almost no one in the world is %100 of anything there is so much mixing and globalization since the beginning of humanity.

2. English meaning coming from England not the language.

3. I don’t totally believe in the accuracy of DNA Ancestry Tests but they are fun things to do and it can help people who are stuck with their Genealogies.

4. Native American or Indigenous blood quaintly laws are very controversial. I am not down with outsiders judging how much of a native you are. I feel like Tribes can do what they want. To me they can invite/adopt anyone they want to into their tribe or kick anyone out of the tribe. Your blood percentage doesn’t make you more or less native. Your leaders and your participation can determine that and NOT outsiders.

5. Not all Indigenous tribes that live in the Artic are Inupiat. I just choose this because it is the most northern tribe in Alaska.

6. This Family is %100 a Modern American Family. I feel like all modern American Families have Immigrants and a mixing of different Ethnicities in them.

7. This was done for fun only.

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npr · 5 years

Photo

Priscilla Bogema lives in a rural town called McGregor, Minn., in a part of the state that has more trees and lakes than people.

She came here about 20 years ago seeking solitude during a major crisis in her life. She had just gotten divorced and was dealing with some health problems. "So I came to a place where nobody could see me," she says.

Now, Bogema is in her 60s, frail and mostly confined to her house. Her arthritis and other health problems have limited her mobility. She struggles with the upkeep of her home and yard. She drives into town once a week for groceries and a movie with other seniors. But she doesn't have close friends she sees regularly and her children and grandchildren only visit once every few months.

The solitude she once sought is no longer as comforting. "It can get lonely, very lonely," she says.

According to a recent poll by NPR, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Bogema is one of about 2.5 million rural residents (about 7% of the total rural population) who say they have no friends or family nearby to rely on. An additional 14 million (about 39%) say they only have a few people. Like Bogema, many feel isolated.

Bringing Together Young And Old To Ease The Isolation Of Rural Life

Photos: Meredith Rizzo/NPR

#photos #NPR #environment #rural area #health #isolation #elders

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residentgoodgirl · 5 years

Link

"I don't want to have kids."

It's the kind of statement that often prompts total disbelief.

It's known to end conversations, leaving behind confused blank faces and dropped jaws.

Especially when coming from a woman.

"The response is always, 'You'll change your mind eventually'," says Jess Saras, 32.

She's childfree by choice, and despite being confident in her decision, Jess is constantly undermined by society's inability to separate women and motherhood.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics says that sometime in the next decade, the number of couples without children will overtake the number of couples with.

That means more women are choosing not to have kids.

It's a trend psychotherapist Zoe Krupka says is often wrongly labelled selfish, shallow and immature.

ABC podcast Ladies, We Need To Talk is sharing the stories of women who choose to be childfree to help clear up some pretty shitty misconceptions.

Why women choose not to have children

Dr Krupka defines childfree by choice as a woman making a conscious decision that she doesn't want to have her own children.

"It doesn't mean she doesn't want to co-parent or step-parent or help her friends out with their kids or be an aunty, but she's made a conscious decision that's not based on infertility or chance or circumstances beyond her control," she says.

And rather than it being about cost, ruining your body or the fact having kids can be a rough gig, Dr Krupka says women are turned off by the ridiculous standards around motherhood.

"You would think that it was about the terrible deal it can be when you have kids.

"It's not just that there isn't support for women to 'have it all', but that there is intense social criticism of mothers that makes it a particularly unattractive option."

Research shows women's reasons for choosing not to have children are multifaceted and complex.

Overpopulation and climate change, a lacking maternal instinct, health concerns and a desire for independence and freedom are just a few.

"There's this assumption that you're selfish because you've chosen not to have children," says Tory Shepherd, who has published a book on her decision to remain childfree.

"And there is something in that, because if you're having kids you need to give them everything.

"But then if you're having a kid just so they look after you when you're older, that's pretty selfish."

Dr Krupka adds there is no evidence to show people are more selfless as a parent.

'Life has to change' when you have a baby

Actor Jess, who we heard from earlier, says she doesn't really like children.

And given the state of the world, she worries about what kind of life they would have anyway.

"It's a huge weight on my mind … what problems are we passing on to them that they had no control over?"

Caroline Epskamp is 48 and says she's never felt maternal. And her husband of 22 years didn't have a strong opinion either way.

"I'm a big animal lover, like show me a puppy and I'll be pretty excited. Show me a baby, and I'm fairly blasé about the whole thing."

She values her freedom and independence and says kids would have hindered that.

"You have to give some stuff up when you have children, life has to change," she says.

"We travel a lot … [and] we've always been really happy with our marriage and our partnership and the life that we lead."

Melbourne writer Gemma, 40, says the choice not to be a parent was made with her mental health in mind.

"The main reasons I'm childfree by choice is my fear that my post-natal depression will be so debilitating that I would not be able to bond with my child," she says.

Women are happy with their decision, but no-one else is

Whatever the reason, the research shows most women who choose a childfree life are confident in their decision.

It's everybody else who struggles with it.

"There's this kind of cultural ideal that [as a woman] you're supposed to want to nurture and care for," Dr Krupka says.

"So when you say, 'I don't want to do that', it's like you're not a real woman."

Tory says she's been made to feel like if you don't use your womb, "you're not really a woman".

"It's just the next step you do, you get married and you have kids."

Caroline says there is "stunned silence" when correcting people who assume she has kids.

"I mean I've started saying to cab drivers, 'Nah mate, my ovaries are done, I'm not going to change my mind'," she says.

"And how dare you suggest that I made the wrong decision by implying that I'll come to the right one eventually."

Another woman Ladies, We Need to Talk spoke to put it as: "I would love it if people wouldn't see it as something you lack … [but rather] as something that embraces other things."

No kids? No invites

Women without kids don't just face judgement and scrutiny, they can be socially excluded too — and not just during the 'childbearing years'.

That can be in small ways like being excluded from conversations, or bigger ways like not being invited to a kid's birthday party, explains Dr Krupka.

"Women who don't have children are really socially on the periphery."

It continues throughout life, to the point women are expected to not just be mothers, but grandmothers too.

"You get to the age people expect you to be a grandparent," Dr Krupka says.

"Women I know in their 60s and 70s who haven't had children say it's the first thing people ask you, just like they used to in your 30s.

"[Except] now it's like, tell me about your grandchildren. I don't have any. End of conversation."

The Ladies, We Need to Talk team spoke to a woman in her early 50s who relates to exactly this.

"Women your own age don't seem to know how to talk to you anymore unless they're in the same boat because all they seem to talk about of their children or their grandchildren," she says.

"Because you don't have children, you just don't count anymore."

The best part of being childfree

Jess says the best thing about being childfree is "not having to think about anyone else in terms of choices that I make with my life being spontaneous. Being true to myself".

"We generally sleep all night, we can cook whatever we want for dinner and it gets eaten by the other person in the house — gratefully received. No bottoms to wipe," says Caroline.

Tory says it's the extra brain space she enjoys.

"I have constant anxiety anyway, but I would have a constant thrum of anxiety about them. Are they OK? Am I doing the best? … Did I leave them in the car?"

Ultimately, the freedom to choose, one way or the other, is something we should celebrate.

But just how free that choice actually is, when much of society still expects women to choose to be mothers, is something worth considering.

Posted 17 June 2019

#motherhood #news #parenting

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howwelldoyouknowyourmoon · 4 years

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Sun Myung Moon and Hak Ja Han refused to help Hyo Jin pay court ordered money to Nansook and their grandchildren. Hyo Jin was jailed.

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The Moon family tactic was to grind Nansook down financially so she would be forced return to her husband who had threatened to kill her. The “True Parents” failed because the judge understood their game. The “True Parents” had also failed to raise or guide their son to treat others with decency. The “True Parents” consistently blamed Nansook, whom they had married to Hyo Jin at age fifteen, for their own son’s failures and criminality.

Judge Edward Ginsberg didn’t buy Hyo Jin’s claim of poverty. He said he believes the Moon family is trying to squeeze Nansook Moon and her five young children. Judge Ginsberg agreed she must have money to pay her legal defense, and ordered Hyo Jin back to jail for another sixty days.

Nansook’s attorney, Weld Henshaw: “The church is, and the [Moon] family is going to devote all their energies, not to try to resolve the situation but to winning and grinding [Nansook and] their own grandchildren down. It is a pathetic, terrible situation.”

Suzanne Bates for WBZ News 4 in Boston: “Whether or not Hyo Jin can afford to pay, it is certain the Moon family could. Reverend Sun Myung Moon, who claims to be the messiah and the champion of family values, has millions of dollars in Trust Funds which have always supported his family, but he is not writing any checks to get his first son [Hyo Jin] out of jail.”

________________________________________________

Full transcript of the WBZ reports:

WBZ-TV Boston News 4

Next on WBZ News 4 … And tonight, a WBZ exclusive: Her life within the powerful family dynasty of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon. She says the family is living a lie. …

A mother of five children, who says she was beaten and abused for years, is seeking help and shelter here is Massachusetts. Her name is Nansook Moon and she was married to the oldest son of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon, leader of the Unification Church. You may know them as the Moonies. They are a wealthy and powerful family whose influence extends around the world. But as Nansook Moon told WBZ’s Suzanne Bates, the Moon family is anything but the ideal one that Reverend Moon claims it to be.

▲ Nansook being interviewed by Suzanne Bates.

Nansook: I didn’t know him. He didn’t know me.

Suzanne Bates: Nansook Hong was fifteen years old when her marriage to Hyo Jin Moon was arranged by Moon’s father, the Reverend Sun Myung Moon, leader of the Unification Church. She had seen but never met anyone in the Moon family, including her husband. Why did she go along?

Nansook: Because how I was raised, all my life, to say yes to Reverend Moon when it comes to the wedding.

Suzanne Bates: The Moons are a wealthy, powerful family, Nansook says, living the good life with swimming pools and mansions. But as for her marriage, Nansook says, ‘It was hell’. She says Hyo Jin was frequently drunk or high on cocaine, sometimes locking himself in their bedroom for days to do drugs and watch pornographic films. For most of their marriage, she says, Hyo Jin beat her, abused her sexually and emotionally, and threatened to kill her if she spoke up.

Nansook: He started [to be] physically abusive when I was pregnant with my second daughter. Well, I was afraid for the baby. He was, he was saying he was going to kill the baby, he was going to punch my stomach and kill the baby. He would hit my tummy, and then he, well, he basically he kept punching until he felt better.

Suzanne Bates: Nansook told me she endured the abuse, believing it was her mission from God and, she says, she found the courage to leave when she realized she might not survive.

Nansook: But I realized once he punched me [and] he sees the blood, then he, he says this is a thrill to be violent. And he kept going, punching here and there, my face, my chest, and on, everywhere.

Suzanne Bates: So she plotted her escape, and with the help of a friend, Madeleine Pretorius, Nansook made it to Massachusetts by packing her five children in a minivan in the middle of the night and fleeing to Lexington, Massachusetts, where her brother lives. She fled, not just her husband, but the family headed by the Reverend Sun Myung Moon, who at age 75, commands a multi billion dollar empire of churches and foundations. The Reverend Moon is known for these mass wedding ceremonies in stadiums around the world. But many don’t know, according to Nansook, Moon lives a lavish lifestyle, traveling by private jet with servants and bodyguards to homes and vacations all over the world.

▲ The Moon family at their East Garden mansion.

Nansook: Reverend Moon, he controls the whole church’s finances which up to now I think is billions and billions of dollars.

Suzanne Bates: Moon claims he is the messiah; that he and his wife are the True Parents; the Moon family, the ideal family. He preaches against drinking, drugs and promiscuous sex. Yet, Hyo Jin, the oldest son who could inherit the power and riches of the Unification Church appears to defy his father’s words.

Concord District Court: Do you promise to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help me God?

Suzanne Bates: Last month Hyo Jin was in criminal court in Massachussetts to face charges he violated a restraining order by sending a threatening letter to Nansook. He pleaded guilty.

Judge: Moon, do you wish to plead guilty to this, Mr Moon?

Hyo Jin Moon: Yes

▲ Hyo Jin Moon looking at the judge in court.

Suzanne Bates: The judge sentenced him to 18 months probation, ordered him to undergo random drug tests and counseling for drug and alcohol abuse.

Judge: A violation will subject you to two and a half years in the house of corrections. Do you understand that?

Hyo Jin Moon: Yes

Suzanne Bates: After the hearing his attorney said Hyo Jin will comply with the judge’s order and Hyo Jin said he will speak publicly when his divorce is final. …

Hyo Jin Moon: Well after everything is over. If I am through the divorce proceedings if I am… after the termination, I would love to sit down with you and talk to you, all about it.

One of Hyo Jin’s attorneys: I think we will defer proceedings until that time.

Suzanne Bates: You don’t have any further comments on your wife’s allegations about your threats to kill her?

Hyo Jin Moon: Not right now. When it is all over, sure.

Hyo Jin’s attorney: Thank you

5:25

Suzanne Bates: Though his attorney promised he will follow the judge’s order, there is no evidence Hyo Jin Moon has any regard for the law. Not only did he threat Nansook, a violation of the restraining order, he was on probation for two drunk driving convictions when he was arrested again for driving with a suspended license, a charge to which he pleaded guilty. And, Nansook says, her husband has ignored another judge’s order to turn over a sizable collection of guns to police.

▲ Hyo Jin Moon was videotaped by the police when he drove his car to a police appointment. He was arrested for driving with a suspended license. It was reported in a local paper.

Nansook: He has no regard for the law, for the system, it always, everything always covered for him. He could get away with everything using people, resources, basically the church’s foundation.

Suzanne Bates: While the criminal matters get resolved, Nansook is also fighting in divorce court to get her husband to support her and her five children. She has spent thousands and thousands in legal fees trying to collect monthly child support payments ordered by the court which, she says, are almost always late.

Nansook: One constant fear for me was whether I can support my children or not. And what I wanted from the family is to acknowledge their responsibility about the children.

Suzanne Bates: Nansook decided to tell her story in part because she is still afraid of what her husband and his family will do.

Nansook: I think they will be very upset over the fact that I went public, and, Oh gosh, I don’t know what they are gonna do. I don’t know. If they decide that always their interest that I disappear then there is some possibility.

Suzanne Bates: Nansook also wants to expose the Moon family and some church leaders.

Nansook: Reverend Moon’s life style is lavish. He has 50-60 security guards, maids and cooks and personal maids and he travels first class. He was thinking about buying a private jet. Once you have the favor of Reverend Moon you can basically do whatever you want.

Suzanne Bates: Reverend Moon has said he will conquer and subjugate the world. Once proclaiming, “I am your brain.” Nansook Moon, the first and only member of the family to break away, says she fears the Moons, but she will never again be silent.

__________________

7:55

Jack Williams: In a letter to WBZ-TV, the Moon family attorney said they consider broadcast of Nansook Moon interview to be a violation of a court order in the case. However, according to Nansook’s attorneys, she is not barred from speaking publicly by any court order or agreement. We will follow the story. We will let you know what happens

Liz Walker: A follow-up now to our exclusive story earlier this month on Nansook Moon. She is married to the oldest son of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon, the leader of the Unification Church. Nansook Moon and her husband are involved in a bitter divorce battle that includes allegations of physical abuse, drug abuse and threats. Tonight her husband is in jail serving thirty days for contempt of court.

▲ Hyo Jin Moon, in handcuffs, being taken away to jail.

Liz Walker: Hyo Jin Moon was led away from Concord District Court in handcuffs today in stark contrast to what he is used to. Last week in an exclusive interview with Suzanne Bates, Moon’s estranged wife, Nansook Moon, alleged he had beaten and threatened her. Mrs Moon fear for her life convinced her to leave the stormy pre-arranged marriage and flee to Lexington with her five children.

Liz Walker: Nansook Moon tells of the Moon family’s lavish lifestyle and of her husband’s use of drugs. Last month Hyo Jin, pleaded guilty to violating a restraining order. He agreed to undergo random drug tests and counseling for drug and alcohol abuse.

In the Middlesex County Court, the Moon v. Moon matter

Liz Walker: In court today Hyo Jin was held in contempt for ignoring a court order to pay $65,000 in fees to his wife’s attorneys. The defense claims the defense claims Hyo Jin does not have the money.

Attorney James O’Connell : Anyone who looks at the evidence in this case would be satisfied that he does not have $65,000 available to him to make that payment.

Liz Walker: The judge wan’t convinced.

▲ Judge Edward Ginsberg

Judge Edward Ginsberg: He is in contempt, he is in contempt.

Liz Walker: Judge Edward Ginsberg ruled that Moon’s lifestyle makes it obvious the money is available.

Nansook’s attorney, Weld Henshaw: The marital home, which admittedly is used for other purposes too, has been appraised for over $23 million.

Liz Walker: The judge ordered Hyo Jin Moon to spent thirty days behind bars at Middlesex County Jail unless he finds a way to pay up sooner.

▲ Hyo Jin looking at Nansook in the divorce court.

Liz Walker: Hyo Jin Moon’s attorney is planning an appeal. He has filed for a stay of the sentence. A request that was taken under advisement late this afternoon. But at this hour Hyo Jin Moon is still behind bars in Cambridge. Of course we will keep you posted on this story.

10:50

____________________________

Liz Walker: Now a follow-up to a News 4 exclusive. You may recall the story we did on the divorce case involving Nansook Moon and her husband, Hyo Jin Moon. Hyo Jin Moon is the oldest son of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon, and heir to the wealthy, powerful Unification Church. Tonight Hyo Jin remains in a Massachussetts jail, still refusing to pay tens of thousands of dollars. News 4 anchor, Suzanne Bates, broke this story and now has this follow up.

Suzanne Bates: Shackled and slightly subdued by thirty days in the Middlesex County Jail, Hyo Jin Moon came back to court [in Cambridge] and claimed again he is too broke to pay $65,000 in his wife’s legal fees ordered by the judge.

Suzanne Bates: The Moon family, headed by the Reverend Sun Myung Moon, is widely believed to be worth billions. Hyo Jin’s own secretary recently testified in court he brought home $600,000 cash in brown paper bags, but today Hyo Jin’s attorney said Hyo Jin can’t pay because the Moon family cut him off.

Attorney James O’Connell: His compensation has been terminated. He is no longer a beneficiary of the Family Trust.

Suzanne Bates: But Judge Edward Ginsberg didn’t buy Hyo Jin’s claim of poverty. He said he believes the Moon family is trying to squeeze Nansook Moon and her five young children.

▲ Nansook Hong sitting in court

Judge Edward Ginsberg: He can pay the money. That money can be paid. If he chooses to be stubborn that is his problem, not this court’s problem.

Suzanne Bates: Nansook Moon fled her husband and the Moon family compound after surviving what she described as a violent and abusive marriage. Judge Ginsberg agreed she must have money to pay her legal defense, and ordered Hyo Jin back to jail for another sixty days.

Suzanne Bates to Hyo Jin Moon: Why haven’t you paid the money? …

▲ Hyo Jin Moon smiled but did not answer when asked “Why haven’t you paid the money?”

Attorney James O’Connell: My client has paid all the support for his wife and children that this court has ordered. He has paid it consistently from day one. He paid it on a voluntary basis and he paid it pursuant to court order.

Suzanne Bates: He hasn’t paid the legal fees that were ordered in February.

Attorney James O’Connell: The legal fees are not support for his wife and children.

Suzanne Bates: Nansook’s attorney says the family is now threatening to cut off child support as well and Nansook has no other income.

Attorney Weld Henshaw: The church is, and the [Moon] family is going to devote all their energies, not to try to resolve the situation but to winning and grinding their own grandchildren down. It is a pathetic, terrible situation.

Suzanne Bates: Whether or not Hyo Jin can afford to pay, it is certain the Moon family could. Reverend Sun Myung Moon, who claims to be the messiah and the champion of family values, has millions of dollars in Trust Funds which have always supported his family, but he is not writing any checks to get his first son out of jail. – In Cambridge, Suzanne Bates, WBZ News 4.

13:40

___________________________

60 Minutes with Mike Wallace

Mike Wallace: If you’re a 15 year-old Korean girl and your spiritual leader, your messiah, selects you to marry his son, that is about as close as you can get to heaven on earth. But sadly Nansook Hong’s marriage into the Reverend Sun Myung Moon’s family turned out to be more like hell on earth. As you will hear from her, and from one of Sun Myung Moon’s daughters, Moon himself and some of his children had not always practiced what Moon preaches. His Unification Church stresses no sex outside marriage, no alcohol, no illegal drugs. But Nansook says that is not what she saw after she married the Reverend’s eldest son, Hyo-jin Moon, the young man they call the prince.

Nansook Hong: He was the prince, the prince. He was very abusive, both physically and emotionally. He is alcoholic. He is addicted to drugs.

Full transcript: Nansook Hong, transcripts of three interviews, including ‘60 Minutes’

___________________________

Nansook Hong: “I snatched my children from Sun Myung Moon”

Nansook Hong In The Shadow Of The Moons

Sam Park reveals Moon’s hidden history (2014)

Sun Myung Moon’s family – his words and the reality

#Nansook Hong #Hyo Jin Moon #Sun Myung Moon #Hak Ja Han

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misslisterkeepsajournal · 4 years

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1826 Wednesday 19 April

7 20/60

11 1/4

Read over and sent by George the note I wrote last night to Washington and the 4 notices I desired him to deliver today one to each of the firm of Messieurs Walsh, Hinchcliffe, Oates, and Green, saying that my father’s tenant John Bottomley had complained he could not get them to fence off the coal-road as was agreed, and if they did not do it ‘within the space of 10 days from the date hereof’....John Bottomley should be ‘empowered to keep the gate locked and to prevent their making any use of this said road’ - Read over and gave to George for the P.O. (at 7 3/4) my letters written yesterday to ‘Mr Murray Bookseller Albemarle Street London’ and to ‘Mr Colburn Bookseller Burlington Arcade London’ vide the last few lines of page 167.

James Sykes came - Charles Howarth junior cannot will not have the rail-posts gas-tarred there - I shall go and see by and by how the matter is - Sent James Sykes off (at 8 3/4) to seek hollys at Huddersfield of wherever he thinks he can get them - wrote the above of this morning, and set off to Halifax at 8 50/60 to see Mr Parker about Mrs Lees’s note - (having 1st gone to Charles Howarth’s to ask about the rail posts - young Charles civil - said he wanted them to be reared against the shop end for fear of the children’s [?] themselves - thought it best to seem satisfied, and said I had ordered William Green with the cart to take the posts and rails too immediately into Lower brea lane) - about 1/4 hour at the office of Messieurs Wiglesworth and Parker - Mr Parker had just sent me a note along with a form for the risiduary account of my uncles will - by George which George seeing me go there brought back to me - ‘Mr Scatherd does not seem inclined to give anything like an adequate rent for the premises’ at Northgate that we have done with him - Mr Parker to ask Mrs Lees £60 a year for the house and coach house - mentioned to him that while times continued so bad, we might might make some allowance, some return of rent, but this to be talked of after we knew what Mrs Lees would give - Briggs refused to honour the draft - neither Mr Stocks senior nor junior would pay it - but Mr Parker had this morning got the money (a man brought it while I was at the office - from Briggs’s bank I suppose) and I received it, £15.16.1, on behalf of the commissars of the Brighouse and Denholme gate road, the remaining £50 being to be secured on the road - Messieurs Wiglesworth and Parker had sent up John Williams the appraiser to value the furniture plate etc etc previous to making out the residuary account belonging to my uncle’s will - Mr Wilkinson of Heath, surrogate, will meet me here respecting the probate -

Returned as I went along the old bank and got home at 10 25/60 - Mrs Firth and her 2nd daughter came almost immediately afterwards she brought her bill, at 2 months, for £25 for me to accept and which I did accept - Told her very civilly I was going to leave the country, and should leave orders with my steward to pay her her money at the day, as it became due - while she lived in Halifax this would be the best plan - my late uncle wished it - She begged for time begged me not to do it all at once - I said I would do the best I could for her, and would settle this matter with my steward, but must have the money paid on the day it was due - there was now no occasion for bill-drawing - she leave Halifax she might again have this accommodation, but not otherwise - She wishes to get her oldest daughter aetatis 22 and of whom she speaks most highly the place of a companion in some family - she could instruct young children - I set my face against this - mentioned a lady’s maid place - promised to let her know if I heard of one, and, if on making inquiries respecting her daughter I found them answered to my satisfaction, promised to recommend her - said I could give her no hope of succeeding, but I would remember her - Had wine and biscuits in and was as civil as possible - both Mrs Firth and her daughter seemed much affected, and behaved very well and properly - said I was much engaged and left them at their wine and water - (they went very soon afterwards) - and sat down to breakfast at 10 55/60 -

Read, partly aloud, the 1st 34 pages Matthews’s Diary of an invalid - came upstairs at 12 5/60 - wrote the last 26 lines - settled my accounts which too me till one - then came downstairs - Mr Parker soon afterwards came bringing a written list of all Mrs Lees would want doing at Northgate house for which, all these things being done which will cost at least £100, she will give £80 a quarter - a new entrance to be made to the cellar - a window to be broken out under the stair case window into the little back court, and a new cabinet d’aisance to be there made, etc etc to meet Mr Parker at Northgate (to look about all these things) at 3 1/2 -

Went down into the fields - the 2 young men gas-tarring the railing round the bottom of the Dolt wood - got to Northgate about 3 - settled in my own mind - Mr Parker came as appointed - thought Mrs Lees would be well satisfied - the house to be ready for her to enter upon the 1st of September - she wants to have a lease for 10 or at least 5 years - so advised by Mr Edwards of Pyenest - if she did not live, it would be a home for her grandchildren - said we did not like to tie up our property for so long - would agree to a lease for 5 years, but Mr Parker was not authorized to say for longer - Staid talking to my father and Marian, and looking about - Mrs Lees will not have the walk which we think of throwing to the field, nor the room and chamber over it next to the stable which it struck me let off as a cottage -

Got home at 6 20/60 - Mr John Williams the appraiser had not quite done - Dressed - dinner at 6 55/60 - Mr Williams sent in his valuation - I noted the following items silver plate £160.7.6 - Farming stock, including our gig horse, £165.5.6 - my uncle’s wearing apparel £15.4.3 - Books in the library £30 - Drawing room furniture £18.9.6 - Furniture in my aunt’s lodging room £27.9.6 - etc etc making altogether a total of £675.4.2 - the furniture at Northgate is still to be valued - I fear we cannot make the personalty come under £3000 - tea and coffee at 8 3/4 - Afterwards wrote the last 16 lines - very fine day - Barometer 1 degree above changeable Fahrenheit 52˚ at 10 p.m. at which hour came up to bed - my aunt not so well today - bad night last night after being out yesterday in Mrs Rawson’s (of Stony royde) Bath chair - much shaken - very rheumatic (acute rheumatic pains) today, and hardly able to stir - Told Mr Parker I would rather meet the surrogate at their office - did not wish him to come here on account of my aunt - the occasion would only distress her - to meet him probably on Tuesday next - wrote a note to Mr Freeman to go early in the morning to ask him to fix an early time for calling here - I want to settle about the stone, and want ‘£500 or more, or less, at present as may best suit Mr Freeman’ -

Reference: SH:7/ML/E/9/0088 - SH:7/ML/E/9/0089

#anne lister #anne lister code breaker #gentleman jack #1826

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girlactionfigure · 5 years

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He knew the importance of family, and he cared about the children.

Even today, he is passionately remembered, many choosing to remember the good he inspired, a few trying to disrespect that same good in a divisive world. He died on July 1, 2015, but many people on social media have been sharing an NBC news story that he just recently died. Meanwhile, a memorial in Prague honoring his heroics and the children he saved from the Nazis was recently vandalized, a reminder of the hate that still exists today. The Farewell Memorial remembers the 669 children who were taken to Britain before the Nazis invaded Czechoslovakia, where most of their parents were murdered during the Holocaust, and the efforts of Sir Nicholas Winton, a British humanitarian worker who organized eight train evacuations in 1939. Winton’s daughter Barbara tweeted about the vandalism, writing, “How very sad to see this.” Many on social media know Winton's story after a video of a BBC television program “That’s Life!” went viral. In the video, Winton sits in the audience, not knowing the program is honoring him, as the host tells a story about a group of children who had survived the Nazi death camps during the war. The host introduced someone in the audience who was one of those children, explaining that the woman was one of more than 600 children who was rescued by one courageous man, and, that for 50 years, the woman and the other former children never really knew who that man was. The host told the woman that the man who rescued her was sitting next to her in the audience. The elderly gentleman, now beset with emotion, surprisingly looked at the woman sitting next to him, as she could no longer hide her own emotion, hugging the elderly man who only then realized the impact of his courageous deed and what it meant to many. The host then asked whether there was anyone else in the audience who owed their life to this man - nearly half the audience would stand up, as the elderly man, overwhelmed, looked around at the faces of the former children he had saved, no longer able to hide his tears. Sir Nicholas Winton was that man. During the war, Winton had seen the influx of refugees fleeing from the Nazi invasion. He did not have to do anything, he could have simply just looked away as most of Europe did. But, he saw the innocent children, and he chose to act, risking his own life to help save the life of others. He could not and would not walk away. Nicholas Winton saved the children from certain doom and the Nazi death camps, but he never thought he was doing anything special, saying,"I just saw what was going on and did what I could to help." He never kept in touch with the children he saved, never knew what happened to them, until that night, his wife had brought him to the program. After the war, he lived a fairly uneventful life. During the 50 years no one knew about him, Sir Winton had been helping developmentally disabled people and building homes for the elderly. He never bragged about his heroics during the war, and many people, even family members, did not know that their neighbor, their friend had rescued more than 600 children from the Nazi death camps during the war. It wasn't until his wife found an old scrapbook in the attic that his story was revealed to the world. His wife had given the scrapbook to a Holocaust scholar, then to the television program, who researched his story and found the children, who were pleased to know that they would finally meet the man they owed their lives to and be able to thank him personally. People would ask why this unassuming, humble man would risk his life. His daughter Barbara Winton, in her biography about her father would say it was all about family. Winton knew how important family was, saying, “My family knew what was going on in Germany. We’d had people who were being persecuted staying with us. We had families staying with us. We had refugees staying with us. We were being fed the whole time with what was going on, which was much more than the politicians were.” In a 2014 interview with Sir Winton on 60 Minutes, he was asked whether there were any other countries he had asked to help him take some of the children he was trying to save, and he responded, "The Americans. But, the Americans wouldn't take any . . . which was a pity. We could have got a lot more out." Because of Sir Winton, however, 669 children were saved. And, in the 60 minutes program, it was noted that because of Sir Winton, it wasn't just the 669 children he saved, because those children grew up and had their own children, who also had children and so on. 60 minutes surmised that Sir Winton may be responsible for at least 15,000 lives because of the original children saved, several generations, alive today because of one man. He was one of the unsung heroes of World War Two, now recognized as the Schindler of Britain. As survivor Vera Gissing said: "I owe him my life and those of my children and grandchildren. I was lucky to get out when I did and having the chance to thank Nicky was the most precious moment in my life." That's the story the memorial in Prague was sharing before a glass panel in the memorial was apparently removed from its frame and cracked in half with a blunt object in June of this year. The Peace Page doesn't know whether that news story served as a reminder of what this brave man did, which caused a 2015 story of Sir Winton's death to re-circulate. The monument, which features imprints of hands of children on one side and of the window and parents on the other, told the story of those who bid farewell to each other and the one man who risked his own safety not to look away and ignore what was wrong but to do what he could to save the children. According to Sir Winton, "There is a difference between passive goodness and active goodness, which is, in my opinion, the giving of one’s time and energy in the alleviation of pain and suffering. It entails going out, finding and helping those in suffering and danger, and not merely in leading an exemplary life, in a purely passive way of doing no wrong." He added, "Don’t be content in your life just to do no wrong, be prepared every day to try and do some good."

The Jon S. Randal Peace Page

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hollenka99 · 4 years

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Okay but if you don't think Siobhan Maria Jackson didn't dust herself off after grieving, you've got another thing coming.

Like yes, obviously she took Jameson's death hard. Dude was her husband for 22 years and she'd known him since she was 18. Not to mention she lost her brother a month before becoming a widow. There was a period where she took the 'be there for the kids first and foremost' philosophy a little too far and the kids had to say "Uh Ma? Listen we're all hurting but maybe you should grieve without thinking about us for a while."

So she grieves. Then she comes out the other side ready to get down to business.

She sees her eldest son graduate college, something no-one in her family has ever done. She gets Thaddaeus House for the Disadvantaged built and personally helps out when and where she can once it's open. Her 2nd and 3rd sons get accepted into the high profile colleges they wanted. She couldn’t be prouder of them.

Even in the late 30s, once her father is dead from advanced age and she is living in Ireland again, she gets shit done. As loving and kind of a man as Jacob O'Hara was, those traits don't leave his daughter much in the way of monetary inheritance. Siobhan has to support her little girl somehow. Even the money Jameson left her shouldn't be something to live off of, in her opinion. So she gets any qualifications needed at the time to be hired as a music teacher. By the time Nora is settling into life as a woman with a husband and young family of her own, a point where Siobhan knows she's capable of going on without her mother down the street, it is the early-to-mid 1950s.

She returns to California to finish what she started. Thaddaeus House isn't quite as needed as it was when first built yet it's an important and necessary establishment nonetheless. She ordered a place to learn ASL to be added before she left for Ireland in '37. Now she's planning to include somewhere on site to receive basic qualifications, enough to get a job but with as little expenditure on the students' parts as possible. Actually, let's merge the ASL area into the school. No, hang on, we should have enough donations to put the school on it's own dedicated site. We'll provide cheap scheduled transportation between the two sites. That's great.

She likely campaigned to make ASL a mandatory subject in schools nationwide. Yes, obviously French and Spanish are fantastic for students who plan to travel when they're older. But what about those wanting to stay closer to home? There are plenty of Americans who rely on sign to communicate. So teach them an equally important language that they may need more than a European one.

Since the TLoJJ-verse is based on the real world, she probably wasn't able to make it a reality. But could you imagine her looking some authority in the eye and saying "I don't care for this whole nonsense with the Soviets. Never mind whether our ideologies are better than theirs. Let's focus on creating a fairer society. If we manage to improve the lives of the type of citizens who need it most right now, don't you think that will show the Reds who's the greater nation?"

The government twisted the arms of her two youngest sons when they were barely adults. They took part in a war that was far bigger than either of them. Damn right she’s going to try twisting the government’s arm to progress on issues bigger than the USSR being communist.

Either way, she'd probably work together with some of her children to build a centre for teaching and promoting the use of ASL. First in Los Angeles then, if that proved successful, New York and other potential major cities.

Speaking of fighting for better equality, I feel she would do what she could in the fight for civil and gay rights. Well, Anthony, she doesn't know if she's quite up for marching in large crowds now that she's in her 70s but she'll try to help things on a more local level. And no, Oliver, she is a bit conflicted on homosexual couples vs being told her whole life it should be a man and a woman only. However, she doesn't see why having emotions that do nothing to cause harm to others should be punishable by law. Is there anything she can do to help?

Throughout her life, Siobhan composes music. She wrote the melody that people immediately associate with the Jolly Gentleman. The music from Carving for Beginners is her own. Music is her creative outlet the same way writing had been for Jameson. She even sets something up at Thaddaeus House to encourage people to take up playing an instrument if they want.

Oliver visits her one day and discovers the pile of compositions, some complete, others that have been works in progress for varying amounts of time. He convinces her to compile them into an album. She agrees so long as the ones with more personal reasons for creation are left out. If they really want those ones out in the world for public consumption, they'll have to wait until after she's dead. She doesn't want to live with the knowledge someone could casually listen to something she created as a way of coping during the most despairing points of her life.

It's Pearl's death in 1973 that makes Siobhan consider slowing down slightly. 85 by now, she could certainly leave her children and grandchildren to carry on her efforts. She could travel to foreign lands and see what they have to offer. But nope, that's not Siobhan Jackson. She'll cut back on some things that require more physical effort, sure. But spending time at Thaddeus House gives her people to chat with when her friends and family are busy living their own lives.

In later life, I'm sure she enjoys spending time with her grandchildren and even great-grandchildren. Not to mention dogs. She has always been partial to Dalmatians. Maybe some piano playing and garden maintaining too. I love the thought of her becoming this figure in the community, this old woman who has done more than a few things with her life and tries to keep going within reason.

She reaches 90 and yeah, maybe she's not as active as she wants to be but she still goes out and does what she can. Her memory is starting to go now, it's getting more evident as the months and years roll by. When nearing 95, she gets asked if she's aiming for the big 100. She usually chuckles and say "Well we'll see, won't we."

She turns 96 in July 1984 and two months later, she's gone. When she sees Jameson again, she tells him she tried her best to fulfil his last wishes. He just laughs like it's obvious before replying along the lines of "Angel, you did more far more than try. Thank you."

And that's the contrast between them. Jameson left early, his ideas of how to give back to a world that allowed him financial security came too late for him. But Siobhan was given more than enough time. She had 52 years more than him to get it done.

She could have stopped in the ‘30s. She could have said "It's done. I fulfilled my promise to him. It's standing and functional and that's what he wanted." But she doesn't.

In the ‘50s or early ‘60s, she could have said "To try change the education system is a monumental task that one 70 year old Irish immigrant couldn't successfully lead." And maybe she was somewhat right about that. She sure as hell gave it her best shot though. Without her, people in the 21st century would have less opportunities to learn ASL. Just because you can’t complete a marathon doesn’t mean the distance you managed is redundant.

Siobhan lived a goddamn full life. Part of her life’s work might have been fulfilling her husband’s last wish. But to focus on that or just see her as simply Jameson’s widow is to erase so much of what she did with her life. She was a composer, talented pianist, supportive mother, someone willing to fight and speak up about the things she cared about, a woman who came to America aged 16 with the hope of finding better prospects there than Limerick offered then did so several ways over.

In short, I stan an Irish queen. I hated myself for making her wait 52 years to be with her other half. But she didn’t waste those five decades. She killed it. Now she can look back on it all and be proud. Like she deserves to be.

Just... Siobhan.

#the life of jameson jackson #tlojj #tlojj spoilers #siobhan jackson

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bountyofbeads · 4 years

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‘So much living to do’: stories of UK's latest named coronavirus victims

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/18/not-ready-to-go-tributes-paid-to-uk-first-named-victims-of-coronavirus?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Post_to_Tumblr

Though these deaths didn't occur in the United States, it's important to remember our brothers and sisters across the pond! They represent every walk of life, age, race and creed. Covid-19 does not recognize borders, religion, race, occupation or age.

SO MUCH LIVING TO DO’: STORIES OF UK's LATEST NAMED CORONAVIRUS VICTIMS.... Personal details have emerged of more than 50 people who have died in the Covid-19 pandemic

By Matthew Weaver, Helen Pidd and Simon Murphy | Published:12:19 Fri April 3, 2020 | The Guardian | Posted April 05, 2020 |

The oldest is 108, the youngest only 13. These are the faces of some of the country’s coronavirus victims, among them doctors, councillors, a D-day veteran, a diplomat, a comedian and an academic.

By 4pm on Thursday 2 April, 3,605 people admitted to hospital in the UK had died after contracting Covid-19. Many were elderly and had underlying health conditions. Some did not.

In several cases, family members and medical professionals have been keen to emphasise that victims had their lives cut short. Even if they were suffering underlying health conditions, they had been expected to live for many years, they said.

Of the deaths so far in the UK and those connected to the country, details have emerged in more than 50 cases. Here are their stories.

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Lord Gordon of Strathblane, 83

James “Jimmy” Gordon was formerly political editor of STV and founded Radio Clyde. He is understood to have died of Covid-19 at Glasgow Royal Infirmary on Tuesday 31 March.

Outside the media, Gordon was a member of the Scottish Development Agency and chaired the Scottish Tourist Board – later VisitScotland – and was made a life peer by Labour in 1997. A statement from his family honoured “his generosity, his kindness and his enthusiasm for life”, adding that being “Papa” to his four grandchildren was the role that had brought him most pleasure. The former first minister Jack McConnell said Gordon had had “an outstanding career in business and public service” and had “transformed broadcasting”. The comedian and radio host Andy Cameron, who worked at Clyde for a number of years, said: “Another good guy gone. Jimmy Gordon, Lord Gordon Of Strathblane has passed on. What an absolute gentleman. RIP Jimmy.” He leaves behind his wife Anne, three children and four grandchildren.

****

Aimee O’Rourke, 38

O’Rourke was an NHS nurse and mother of three girls, Megan, Mollie and Maddie. She died on 2 April at the Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Hospital in Margate, Kent – the hospital where she worked. She studied at Canterbury Christ Church University before joining the NHS in 2017. She started showing symptoms of the coronavirus about two weeks ago before her condition deteriorated and she was taken into intensive care at the QEQM and put on a ventilator.

Her daughter, Megan Murphy, wrote on Facebook that it had always been “us 4 against the world!”, and said she and her sisters would now look after each other. “Look at all the lives you looked after and all the families you comforted when patients passed away … you are an angel and you will wear your NHS crown forever more because you earned that crown the very first day you started,” she wrote. Now a family friend has set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for O’Rourke’s family.

A colleague, Lucy Page, wrote: “Aimee O’Rourke taught me to fight for what I believe in and gave me courage so many times to do it.” Another colleague, Soraya Zanders, said:“Aimee cared for many patients in her time as a nurse. She brought warmth and comfort to many.” On the evening of the day she died family and friends lit candles and clapped in her honour during the weekly Clap for Carers.

****

Areema Nasreen, 36

Nasreen was an NHS nurse who had worked for 16 years at Walsall Manor hospital in the West Midlands, where she died on 3 April after contracting the coronavirus. Nasreen, who had three children and was from Walsall, developed symptoms on 13 March, including aches, a high temperature and then a cough. Her family said she had no underlying health issues. Her sister Kazeema Nasreen, 22, a healthcare assistant at the same hospital, said Nasreen was “an amazing nurse” and urged others to take the virus seriously. In a tribute posted on Facebook, her friend Rubi Aktar said: “She was the most loveliest, genuine person you could ever meet, she went above and beyond for everyone she met. I’m so grateful that I had the honour to call her my best friend, she saw me at my best and my worst and accepted my every flaw. I am so broken that words can’t explain.”

A relative told Birmingham Live: “The immediate family are devastated. Everyone is in shock this morning. She was always so full of life. She was devoted to her job as a nurse, she absolutely loved it. She passed away doing what she loved. I’m really sad for the rest of the family, she was a fantastic person.”

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Danny Sharma, 38

Sharma was an avid fan of Liverpool Football Club and devoted much of his time to amateur football. The 38-year-old was considered to be high-risk because of his diabetes and other health conditions, and he died on 26 March after battling with coronavirus in intensive care at Hammersmith hospital in London. On 24 March, Sharma posted a picture of himself making the thumbs-up sign, and wrote: “Day Four Update. Looks nice out from the window wish I was participating in the Vitamin D. Finding hard to breathe, still fighting.”

The 38-year-old attended St Paul’s College in Sunbury-on-Thames before studying computer applications at Kingston University. His brother Vinny said he wanted Sharma’s death to make people take the threat of the coronavirus seriously. “He was a fantastic guy with a big heart, and he is someone who we are going to miss a great deal. Hopefully he will find some peace,” he said. Luke Thompson called his friend the “most selfless individual I ever met.” Traditionally the Sharma family, who are of Indian heritage, would hold an open house for 12 days after a death to enable people to pay their respects – but both Sharma’s brother and mother, Parveen, had to self-isolate because of their close contact with the 38-year-old.

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Danny Cairns, 68

Cairns was one of the first Scots to die after contracting the coronavirus to be named publicly. He had tried to self isolate at his home in Greenock in Renfrewshire but after a few days became so ill he was transferred to hospital, where he died on 26 March. His brother Hugh, who lives in the United States, said the experience was a “nightmare” for the family. “He wasn’t just my brother, he was my best friend,” he said. “From the time of going into hospital within three days he was dead. His last words to me were, ‘I’m on my way out mate’.”

****

Sheila French, 80

French from Broughty Ferry, a suburb of Dundee, died after six days in Ninewells hospital intensive care on 27 March. She had been admitted after becoming ill on a family holiday in Lanzarote to celebrate her 80th birthday. Her family spoke of the pain of not being able to visit her in hospital, but her son Colin said dedicated NHS staff were determined to ensure her “comfort and dignity right to the end”. Originally from Glasgow, she married Eric French in 1962. The couple were well-known figures in the local community and shared a lifelong love of tennis.

The 80-year-old sang in the Barnhill St Margaret’s parish church choir for more than four decades. Her son said she was “interested in so many things”, including music, singing and reciting poetry. “She was also always surrounded by wool for knitting and crochet,” he told the Dundee Courier. “Her main thing in recent years was crocheting blankets to raise money for charities including Chas, and she also collected for Save The Children.”

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Dr Habib Zaidi, 76

Family GP Dr Zaidi is thought to be the first doctor in the UK to have been killed by the coronavirus. The 76-year-old, from Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, died on 25 March in intensive care just 24 hours after being taken ill. He and his wife, Dr Talat Zaidi, 70, were both managing partners of Eastwood group practice and had served three generations of families in the area for nearly 50 years. The couple’s four children all work in the medical profession. Daughter Dr Sarah Zaidi, also a GP, said his death was “reflective of his sacrifice. He had a vocational attitude to service.” She added: “We can’t mourn in the normal way. We can’t have a normal funeral. He left a gaping hole in our hearts, but a loss that is also felt within the community that he devoted almost his entire life to. We are praying for the safety of everyone right now.”

Dr Jose Garcia-Lobera, GP chair at NHS Southend clinical commissioning group, said Zaidi had left behind an “incredible legacy”. He said: “[He] was a “hugely respected, selfless man who dedicated his life to helping others. Dr Zaidi will always be remembered for his significant contribution to local health services through his long career as a GP.”

****

Mark Barnett, late 60s

Barnett was the headteacher at Westfield in Acomb, one of York’s biggest primary schools, for more than 17 years when he stepped down in 2008 aged 55 to work for the City of York council as a consultant headteacher. His family confirmed that he was taken into York hospital with breathing difficulties and died of Covid-19 on 1 April. Praised as a deeply committed teacher, he was a recipient of the Teacher Of The Year title at the Community Pride Awards.

Cllr Andrew Waller, a school governor at Westfield who knew Barnett well, said: “He was an inspirational headteacher and a legend in the community. Everyone knew Mark and he had a huge amount of respect.” Singer and former teacher Ian Donaghy said: “Mark was all about the children and not himself. You see a lot of career teachers out there, but Mark wasn’t one of them. The city has lost a big, big influence on children. His big thing was happy kids learn, it’s not about jumping through hoops or league tables. We could do with a few more like Mark.”

****

Eddie Large, 78

Large, best known as one half of the comedy duo Little and Large, died after contracting the coronavirus in hospital where he was being treated for heart failure, his son said.

The Glaswegian comedian, whose real name was Edward McGinnis, found fame alongside Syd Little in the 1970s and 80s, when their TV performances attracted millions of viewers.

His son, Ryan McGinnis, broke the news in a Facebook post on 2 April, explaining that his father had caught Covid-19 while in hospital. He wrote: “It is with great sadness that Mum and I need to announce that my dad passed away in the early hours of this morning. He had been suffering with heart failure and unfortunately, whilst in hospital, contracted the coronavirus, which his heart was sadly not strong enough to fight. Dad had fought bravely for so long. Due to this horrible disease we had been unable to visit him at the hospital, but all of the family and close friends spoke to him every day.

“We will miss him terribly and we are so proud of everything he achieved in his career with Syd and know that he was much loved by the millions that watched them each week.”

****

Caroline Saunby, 48

Saunby, a mother of two young boys, had no known underlying health conditions and started exhibiting Covid-19 symptoms on Thursday 26 March. By Sunday, she had died.

She collapsed at her home in New Marske, North Yorkshire, where she had begun to struggle for breath after initially having a sore throat, which she thought was tonsillitis. An air ambulance was dispatched and Saunby was put on a ventilator at home before being taken to James Cook University hospital in Middlesbrough, where she died the same day. She leaves behind her husband, Vic, and six-year-old twins, Joseph and Elliot.

Her twin sister, Sarah Jarvis, described her “unbearable heartbreak” as she pleaded with people to take the coronavirus seriously. She told the Northern Echo: “Caroline took every precaution under the sun. She was practising social distancing, she was washing her hands, took hers and everyone’s safety seriously, was healthy, yet she was taken from us in only four days. This virus does not discriminate.”

****

Paul Ramsden, 80

It was only when Ramsden’s wife, Jacky, struggled to wake him that it dawned on her something was seriously wrong. Paul was fit for his age and had no known underlying health conditions.

He fell ill soon after the couple returned from the Canary island of La Gomera. Jacky said Ramsden’s only obvious symptom was tiredness, but when she tried to rouse him from his sleep on 22 March, the penny dropped. He died five days later.

Jacky, from Lytham near Blackpool in Lancashire, told the Blackpool Gazette: “It’s very clear that while the vulnerable are susceptible to this virus, it also strikes down fit and healthy people. I wish people to take the government guidelines seriously and to abide by them so we can avoid further heartbreak. I feel lucky to have enjoyed 40 years of love and adventure with Paul, but I am saddened that our marriage has been cut short in this way.”

****

Linda Tuppen, 66

A former nursery nurse and teacher, Tuppen died from suspected coronavirus after caring for her son, who is also thought to have caught the disease. She was found lifeless by her son, Rob, on 28 March, a day after she had refused to speak to NHS’s 111 service when she fell ill, deciding to sleep instead.

Tuppen – who suffered from asthma – had been looking after Rob after he developed Covid-19 symptoms following his return from Krakow, Poland, earlier last month, but then began to feel unwell herself.

Her other son, 23-year-old James, was admitted to hospital a day later with coronavirus symptoms. In an interview with MEN, Rob recalled the moment he found his mother at her home in Bolton, Greater Manchester. “I was in a panic, she was just lay there, and I shouted ‘Mum, mum,’ but she didn’t answer,” the 28-year-old software engineer said. “I was doing chest compressions until the ambulance came. I was still in the room when he came over and said she was gone. It’s devastating. We lost our father in 2008, so we’re pretty much on our own now.

“She was a kind, loving lady who adored me and James and would have done anything for us. She always used to say that we were her lives. She would do anything for anyone.”

****

Thomas Harvey, 57

The NHS healthcare assistant caught coronavirus and died after treating patients with only gloves for protection, according to his family.

It is claimed Harvey fell ill after helping a patient who later tested positive for Covid-19 and eventually died on 29 March. He had been signed off work more than two weeks earlier when he developed symptoms including a cough, shortness of breath and body aches.

His family said that if he had had the correct personal protective equipment, he might still be alive. Goodmayes hospital in east London claims there were “no symptomatic patients on the ward”. But a former colleague told the BBC that Harvey contracted the virus after treating a patient who later tested positive.

Harvey’s daughter, 19-year-old Tamira, told the BBC: “It’s so sad. I feel like he was let down in so many ways. It’s an absolute tragedy and he didn’t deserve to lose his life in the way he did. If he had just had the right equipment, we wouldn’t be in this predicament and it wouldn’t have escalated in the way it did.”

****

Peter Sinclair, 73

Sinclair was a professor of economics and a former tutor to David Cameron. He taught the future prime minister during his time at Oxford before joining the University of Birmingham in 1994. He later became director of the Bank of England’s Centre for Central Banking Studies. Cameron described him as “one of the cleverest people I ever met” and said he had inspired “generations of students”. He added: “It was a complete privilege to know him.” Sinclair died in intensive care on 31 March after testing positive for coronavirus.

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Alfa Saadu, 68

Saadu was a distinguished former medical director of Princess Alexandra hospital NHS trust in Harlow, Essex. He grew up in Nigeria and travelled to the UK to train as a doctor at University College London. He retired in 2016 after a 40-year career in the NHS. He was volunteering at his local hospital in Welwyn, Hertfordshire, one of the counties worst hit by coronavirus, when he became infected. He died after a two-week battle with the disease, according to his son Dani. Dani said: “My dad was a living legend, worked for the NHS for nearly 40 years, saving people’s lives here and in Africa. Up until he got sick he was still working part-time saving people.”

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George Mason, 71

Mason and his twin brother, Malcolm, had been cutting hair in the same barber shop in Gosport, Hampshire, since they trained together as teenagers. In a statement, the Mason’s Barber Shop said he “always brought laughter and happiness and it will be so hard not working alongside him any more”. Speaking to Solent News, Malcolm said: “George was good fun – we had our moments like all brothers do, but got along brilliantly. He was a real family man and cared deeply about those around him.” As he began suffering from the virus, George told his brother he “wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy”. He was placed on a ventilator last weekend and never recovered. He is survived by his wife, Bobbie, his children Joanna and Natalie and grandchildren Hannah and Ben.

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Ismail Mohamed Abdulwahab, 13

The rare death of someone so young from coronavirus has prompted widespread shock and concern. Ismail, who had no underlying health conditions, died on 30 March at King’s College hospital, London, after testing positive for Covid-19. Ismail, who had six siblings, lived in Brixton, south London. His family said they were “beyond devastated”. In a later statement they said: “Ismail was a loving son, brother, nephew to our family and a friend to many people who knew him. His smile was heartwarming and he was always gentle and kind.”

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Luca Di Nicola, 19

Di Nicola was a chef from Nereto, near the Adriatic coast of Italy, who was living with his mother and her partner in Enfield, north London. He died on 24 March in North Middlesex hospital. His death was announced on the same day as Ismail Mohamed Abdulwahab’s. A postmortem revealed that Luca had Covid-19. His aunt Giada told La Repubblica that a GP had prescribed him paracetamol for a cough and fever. She said the doctor had told him “he was young, strong and [had] nothing to worry about”.

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Harold Pearsall, 97

Pearsall was a hero of the D-day landings who was awarded the Légion d’honneur for his part in the allied assault on Caen in 1944. He landed on Juno Beach along with the Royal Artillery. “We never fired a round. When that first shell came in, I could have crawled down a worm hole,” he said last year at an event to mark the 75th anniversary of D-day. His unit went on to suffer heavy losses as it was attacked with phosphorous bombs and grenades, he said of the Caen operation. He died in Birmingham’s Good Hope hospital on 27 March after testing positive for Covid-19. Pearsall had two sons and had been an active member of D-day veterans’ groups. “He was very proud and always clean, smart and tidy,” said Peter Lloyd, secretary of the 1944 Alliance Normandy-Market Garden veterans’ association.

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Andrew Jack, 76

Jack was a dialect coach and actor who appeared in three Star Wars films. He died in hospital in Surrey on 31 March. His wife, Gabrielle Rogers, also a dialect coach, tweeted: “We lost a man today. Andrew Jack was diagnosed with coronavirus two days ago. He was in no pain, and he slipped away peacefully knowing that his family were all ‘with’ him.” Jack lived on one of the oldest working houseboats on the Thames. According to his agent, Jill McCullough, he was fiercely independent but also madly in love with his wife. He appeared in Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi as General Ematt, as well as Solo: A Star Wars Story and Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens. He had been working as dialect coach on a new Batman film. Sam Neill was among many actors to pay tribute. He said Jack was a “lovely man” and “joy to work with”.

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Maria Lawrence, 48

Lawrence ran a business selling gift bags in Derby. According to her son, Dan Clark, she was also a “community champion” in the city and founded a Secret Santa scheme which she ran for free. Speaking to the Derby Telegraph, he said: “She was like an angel and very well regarded in the community. She was selfless too. Nothing was done for herself. She ran all these things out of charity.” Lawrence was unaware she had any health problem until she was diagnosed with coronavirus. Further tests revealed she also had vasculitis, an inflammation of the blood vessels, worsened by Covid-19. She died at Royal Derby hospital on 20 March.

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Frank Rust, 81

Rust was a Labour councillor for Rushmoor borough council for 28 years, and was due to serve a second stint as mayor next year. A passionate Spurs fan, he was a retired NHS manager and had also held senior posts in education. The former Labour cabinet minister Hazel Blears was among those sending tributes, describing him as a “lovely man”. His son Karl wrote: “Sorry dad you were added to the pandemic stats today but you were not a victim or casualty in these dark days. You lived life to the full never stopping learning new things, keeping active, helping people and the community you represented. You were a good dad. I am pleased you had enough time to enjoy being a grandad to Archie.” Rust died on 30 March at Frimley Park hospital, Camberley, Surrey.

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Pat Midgley, 82

Midgley was a Labour councillor in Sheffield for 33 years, and was described by her family as a “true woman of steel”. The shadow chancellor, John McDonnell, was among many figures in the Labour party to praise her years of service. In a message to her son Neil, McDonnell said: “The flood of tributes to your mum shows just how loved she was and how respected for her dedication to her community to the end.” Julie Dore, the leader of Sheffield city council, said: “I am heartbroken. This makes coronavirus all the more real.” Midgley was admitted to Sheffield general hospital on 24 March and was confirmed positive with Covid-19 a day later. She died on 29 March. She is survived by her husband of 60 years, three children and five grandchildren.

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Frank Hammond, 83

Hammond died in Stepping Hill hospital in Stockport on 26 March. He tested positive for coronavirus despite having no cough and only a mild temperature. His daughter, Trisha Conroy, paid tribute to a “lovely, funny man who always wanted to make people laugh”. He enjoyed art and making scraperboard images and loved walking in the nearby Peak District. A photography enthusiast who worked in a Jessops camera shop for many years, Frank had suffered from chronic lung disease and had reduced mobility but was otherwise in good health before he fell ill, Trisha said: “He used a walking frame in the house and a mobility scooter when he was out after he lost a lot of the strength in his legs but was otherwise in decent shape.” He is survived by his wife, Brenda, daughters Trisha and Claire, and four grandchildren.

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Christopher Vallely, 79

Vallely died in Belfast’s Mater hospital just hours after his wife, Isobel, passed away in the same hospital room. Earlier this year, he had been diagnosed with lung cancer. He was admitted to hospital and placed in isolation after testing positive for Covid-19. Vallely, who was known as Arty, retired to his native Belfast in 2003 after working for decades in England. He lived near the Falls Road in west Belfast. He died on 29 March.

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Isobel Vallely, 77

Vallely died on 28 March, the day after the couple’s 53rd wedding anniversary. She had had a stroke last year, and was admitted to hospital on 26 March after testing positive for coronavirus. Her daughter Fiona said both Isobel and Christopher were “amazing parents”. She added: “They were fantastic people who did not deserve to go this way.”

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Amged El-Hawrani, 55

A respected ear, nose and throat consultant who worked at Queen’s hospital Burton in Derbyshire, El-Hawrani was the first confirmed hospital frontline worker to die in the UK after testing positive for coronavirus. His death prompted tributes from ministers and senior health leaders. In a statement, his family said: “His greatest passions were his family and his profession, and he dedicated his life to both. He was the rock of our family, incredibly strong, compassionate, caring and giving. He always put everyone else before himself.” He died on 28 March at Leicester Royal Infirmary.

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Hilda Churchill, 108

Believed to be oldest coronavirus victim in the UK, Churchill was a survivor of the 1918 Spanish flu. She died in a Salford care home on 28 March, hours after testing positive for Covid-19 and just eight days before what would have been her 109th birthday. Before she died, she had been reminiscing about the Spanish flu, according to her grandson Anthony Churchill. She and most of her family in their home in Crewe had become infected, including her father, who collapsed in the street with the flu, she recalled. They all survived apart from her 12-month-old baby sister. “Grandma said she remembered a small box being put in a carriage,” her grandson said. “She was saying how amazing it is that something you can’t see can be so devastating.” Hilda was a seamstress who moved to Salford during the depression to find work. She was known for her cooking skills, particularly her gravy. She had four children, 11 grandchildren, and 14 great-grandchildren.

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Adil El Tayar, 63

Tayar was the first working NHS surgeon known to have died from Covid-19 in the UK. He had been volunteering in A&E departments in the Midlands to help the NHS cope with the virus. “He wanted to be deployed where he would be most useful in the crisis,” said his cousin, the broadcaster Zeinab Badawi. “It had taken just 12 days for Adil to go from a seemingly fit and capable doctor working in a busy hospital to lying in a hospital morgue.” His former colleague Abbas Ghaznafar, a renal transplant surgeon at St George’s hospital in Tooting, described Tayar as a “noble human being” who was a “hardworking, dedicated surgeon”. He died on 25 March at West Middlesex University hospital, London.

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Pooja Sharma, 33

Sharma was a hospital pharmacist who died from the virus a day after it claimed the life of her father. She worked at Eastbourne District general hospital in East Sussex. Lara Stacey Young, a nurse in the area, said: “So many people will be devastated. She was such a lovely soul.” Amarjit Aujla, a friend from childhood, said: “Her laughter was contagious and her random calls made my day. From when we were in primary school until we last spoke two weeks ago, you gave me nothing but love, support and a tummy ache with all the laughter.” She died on 26 March.

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Sudhir Sharma, 61

Sharma was an immigration officer at Heathrow Terminal 3. He died on 25 March, a day before his daughter also succumbed to the virus. It is unclear whether the pair had any contact before both contracted the disease. Sharma had health problems and had not been on duty at Heathrow since early January. Nick Jariwalla, director of Border Force at Heathrow, said: “Sudhir was a very well-respected, kind and experienced officer. He will be greatly missed by everyone.”

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Adam Harkins Sullivan, 28

Harkins Sullivan, from Camden, north London, was a painter and decorator and father to a six-year-old son. He worked with his father who gave him his nickname, Spud. Speaking to the Camden New Journal, his mother, Jackie Harkins, said: “I’ve lost something very precious to me that can never be replaced. We are all just in shock because he was only a young man. He was healthy – you didn’t have to tell him to eat his greens, he was always like that.” An otherwise fit man, he had been taken to hospital with suspected pneumonia. He died on 24 March at University College hospital in London in an isolation ward for coronavirus patients.

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Doreen Hunt, 72

Hunt was born in 1947 in Canning Town, east London, into “extreme poverty”, said her son Steve Hunt, adding that she was brought up in “one of the poorest families in a poor area”. After leaving London for Dunstable in 1973, Hunt ran an insurance business for many years with her husband, John, in the Bedfordshire town. “She became as successful in business as she was as a mother, grandmother and great-grandmother,” her son said. “She travelled the world and enjoyed a rich and varied life.” Hunt had been on dialysis for kidney problems at Luton and Dunstable hospital but her condition deteriorated rapidly and she was admitted to intensive care last Friday. She died two days later, on Mother’s Day, her family said. After her death, tests results confirmed she had been infected by the coronavirus.

****

Steven Dick, 37

Dick was the UK’s deputy ambassador to Hungary. He had been with the Foreign Office since 2008 and had previously served in Kabul and Riyadh. His parents, Steven and Carol Dick, said: “Steven was a much-loved son, grandson and nephew. He was kind, funny and generous. It was always his dream to work for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and he was very happy representing our country overseas.” Shaun Walker, the Guardian’s central and eastern Europe correspondent, said: “He was a jovial, intellectually curious and extremely helpful person. He spoke fluent Hungarian, having undergone a year’s training before taking up his position last autumn. Early last week he helped coordinate arrangements for me to get back into the country, and mentioned that he had tested positive for coronavirus, but at that time said he was feeling fine.”

****

Allan Oldcorn, 74

Oldcorn was a retired lorry driver for Bowater-Scott, which manufactured tissues and toilet rolls. Wendy Cavin, one of his three daughters, fondly remembers him leaving sweets for her and her sisters on the family mantelpiece in Flookburgh, Lancashire, when he was doing night shifts. Speaking to the Cumberland News and Star, she said: “He was the go-to man when it came to Flookburgh charter fair day, when everybody needed toilet rolls to make their float flowers.” She added: “He was an amazing husband, dad, grandad and great-grandad – the anchor of our family.” Oldcorn, who had been “fit and healthy”, died on 21 March, a day after being admitted to hospital with shortness of breath and backache. Doctors later confirmed he had tested positive for coronavirus, Cavin said on Facebook.

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Michael Gerard, 73

Gerard was a teacher, musician, campaigner and lifelong Guardian reader. His daughter, Sushila Moles, described him as “loving, kind and always supportive”. She said he made up daily limericks and entertained her with bizarre conversations. Gerard grew up in Shortlands in Bromley, south-east London. He met his wife, Caroline, at Durham University and the couple both worked as teachers in Leicester. Later Gerard specialised in teaching visually impaired children. Moles said: “He was a hoarder, which worked well for this occupation as he always had a boot full of noisy toys and tinsel that he used to help children.” He played many musical instruments but was most accomplished at the violin and founded several orchestras and bands near his home in Clarendon Park, Leicester. He was a Woodcraft Folk leader for 30 years, a former president of the Leicester Secular Society and a frequent attender of anti-war demonstrations. In later years he had a number of health problems including Crohn’s disease. He was diagnosed with Covid-19 on 18 March and died four days later at Leicester Royal Infirmary.

****

Jon Jacob, 69

Jacob was a successful property lawyer and partner at the London firm Bower Cotton Hamilton, who lived in Chesham, Buckinghamshire. He was a stalwart of quiz leagues in London and the Chilterns, known for his formidable knowledge of classical music. A friend said Jacob “wore his knowledge lightly, and was very modest and self-effacing, always genuinely surprised to be told how good he was. He was also a lovely man: kind, generous and absolutely delightful company. He will be sorely missed by all his friends in the quizzing family.” Paddy Duffy, another fellow quizzer, tweeted: “Just a lovely man, brilliant fun and incredibly erudite. I’ll remember fondly our Sunday matches and our japes on the quiz holiday in Rhodes.” Jacob died on 23 March of complications from Covid-19.

****

Ruth Burke, 82

Burke was the fourth victim of coronavirus in Northern Ireland, according to her daughter Brenda Doherty. She said her mother had “unbelievable strength and suffered many challenges in her life”, adding: “Unfortunately this was one that she was not going to overcome.” In an emotional video on Facebook she said: “We couldn’t be with her when she passed. We’ll not see her coffin, we’ll not get to kiss her.” Doherty urged the public to stop panic-buying and stay indoors. “My mum would not have believed how people are behaving. She would have thought better of society. My mum was a woman who loved life. If you value life, you will stay in and do as you’ve been asked.” Burke’s death was announced by Doherty on 24 March.

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Marita Edwards, 80

She was a very gentle loving woman and a friend to everybody,” Edwards’s son Stuart Loud said. She grew up in the village of Mangotsfield near Bristol. She worked as a cleaner in a factory in the city and brought up two children with her first husband. She found a new life with her second husband on the other side of the Bristol channel in the village of Bulwark in Monmouthshire. She was a regular at the Conservative Club in Chepstow, where she enjoyed dancing. “She had a very rich social life, much better than mine,” said Loud. Edwards was a former captain of the women’s golf team at St Pierre country club in Chepstow, and continued to play golf until she was admitted to hospital for a routine operation in February. She died three weeks later of hospital-acquired Covid-19 a day after testing positive for the virus. Loud said: “She was a lovely lady and it was just a horrendous way to go. I just want to make people aware of that.”

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Peter Myles, 77

Myles’s struggles with Covid-19 were documented on social media by his daughter, the actor Sophia Myles. She said she had done it to show the “harsh reality of the coronavirus”. In 2018 she tweeted about her father’s diagnosis with Parkinson’s disease. Before he retired in 2008, Myles was an Anglican vicar at St John’s church in Isleworth, west London, where he was described as a “liberal soul”. After being ordained in 1971, his first job as curate was in Tideswell in Derbyshire. He spent the rest of his career in west London, including stints as a priest at St Peter’s church in Notting Hill and as chaplain to the bishop of Kensington. In his final years he lived in a care home close to St John’s. He died on 21 March.

****

Wendy Jacobs

Jacobs was the headteacher of Roose primary school in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria. Her leadership of the school was repeatedly praised by inspectors. “This vibrant school provides a good quality of education with outstanding features,” they said in a recent report. The school’s chair of governors, Fred Chatfield, said her death was devastating for the school and the community. “This is a huge loss,” he said. Jacobs died on 22 March.

****

William Stern, 85

Born Vilmos György Stern in Budapest, Hungary, on 2 July 1935, Stern was imprisoned as a child in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp during the second world war. He shared his memories of Torah readings in the camp on the Shoah website. After the war he settled in London and went on to build a successful property empire. Stern Holdings collapsed in 1973 and in 1978 Stern was declared bankrupt with debts of £118m, a record that stood for 14 years. He was a member of the ultra-Orthodox Haredi community in London.

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Rina Feldman, 97

Like Stern, Feldman was a member of the ultra-orthodox Haredi community. No other details about her have been reported.

****

Jean Bradford Nutter

Bradford Nutter was the aunt of the former England rugby player Will Greenwood. In an Instagram post he said she “never did anything but bring sunshine into my life”. Greenwood said his aunt lived near his boarding school in Sedbergh, Cumbria. He said she was the eldest of three sisters and was in her 80s “but had so much living to do”. She died on 21 March.

****

Hassan Milani

Councillor Ali Milani, who was Labour’s parliamentary contender against Boris Johnson in Uxbridge and South Ruislip in the 2019 general election, revealed that his father, Hassan, had died after contracting the coronavirus on a trip to Iran. “In the early hours of this morning,” he said on Saturday, “my father tragically passed away after having contracted Covid-19. Please keep him in your prayers. This virus is taking millions all across the world.”

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Craig Ruston, 45

Ruston, a rugby fan and father of two from Kettering, Northamptonshire, had been a footwear designer, including at Dr Martens, before being diagnosed with motor neurone disease. He had been writing about his struggle with the condition before he tested positive for Covid-19. But his posts became less frequent as he began losing the strength in his upper body. In one of his last, he wrote about a dream he had of standing beside his wife and daughters at his own funeral. He wrote: “I don’t fear death, but I can tear myself to pieces if I dwell too long on what happens when I’m gone.” His family said he was “not ready to go”. He died on 16 March.

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Leonard Gibson, 78

Described by his family as a “typical jolly Irishman”, Gibson died on St Patrick’s Day, 17 March. He was born in County Tyrone and had 12 siblings. After moving to South Yorkshire aged 26, he worked at the coking plant at Orgreave. In retirement he enjoyed gardening, but problems with his lungs forced him to move into a sheltered housing flat in Oughtibridge, near Sheffield. He died in Sheffield Northern general hospital after being diagnosed with Covid-19. His daughters, Lisa, an NHS worker, and Michelle, a teaching assistant, were not allowed to visit him in hospital. Lisa said: “It is sad that we weren’t able to be with Daddy, but the nurses were there for us.”

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Nick Matthews, 59

Described as a “true legend” of the Avon and Somerset police, Matthews retired as an officer in 2010 after a heart attack. He and his wife, Mary, from Nailsea in Somerset, had a week’s holiday on the Canary island of Fuerteventura at the end of February. Matthews was taken to Bristol Royal Infirmary after complaining of breathing difficulties on 12 March. He died on 14 March after testing positive for Covid-19.

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Darrell Blakeley, 88

Blakeley was a churchgoer from Middleton in Rochdale and sang in the choir. He had a beautiful voice, according to a spokeswoman for St Michael’s church. He was also regarded as a “gracious gentleman”, she said. He had underlying health conditions and fell ill after coming into contact with someone who had travelled to Italy. Blakeley was admitted to North Manchester general hospital on 3 March with sepsis. He tested positive for Covid-19 on 10 March and died three days later.

****

Kimberley Finlayson, 53

Finlayson was the first British victim of coronavirus to be named after she died on holiday on the island of Bali in Indonesia on 11 March. She was the founder of a dental communication business based in Shenley, Hertfordshire, one of the counties worst hit at the start of the outbreak in the UK. She had four children. Her colleagues paid tribute to her “passion, creativity and determination”. Finlayson had lung disease and diabetes.

🕊️🙏🕊️🙏🕊️🙏🕊️🙏

#u.s. news #politics #politics and government #uknews #uk news #uk #covidー19 #covid 19 #covid19 #covid2019 #covid2020 #corona virüsü #coronavirus #world news #worldpolitics

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finn0 · 4 years

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All the houses I’ve lived in

1. 94 Queens Rd, New Lambton, NSW

My parents current house since 1989 and the house I’ve had sex with the most people in. A regular two storey house opposite bush on a nice street with neighbours that don’t talk to you (perfect). 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms with air con, a big fireplace, pool and massive garage. Lovely, but I don’t expect to inherit it so the attachment must remain minimal.

2. 11 Cobb Ct, Annandale, QLD

Okay formative toddler years were spent here. A tropical style bungalow with the lowest ceilings you’ve ever seen and even lower hanging ceiling fans (take off your shirt with caution). A massive pool constantly populated with cane toads year round that saturated the yard with chlorine every time a cyclone blew through. More floor space than is necessary for anyone. Horrible, angry neighbours that hated children. Short walk to shops, no air con despite Townsville being the armpit of the country. I spent almost all of time sitting on a Big Bird beanbag watching Sesame Street and screaming in abject terror every time there was a toad sitting in the toilet bowl (which was worryingly frequent).

3. 27 Woodrose Cres, Sinnamon Park, QLD

Literally the ugliest house I’ve ever seen in my life. Gaudy, over-tiled, far too big for any family, nothing but white tiles everywhere and not a tree, nor plant, nor weed in the backyard, just grass the colour of hay. Who in Brisbane requires an attic? Who requires THAT many bedrooms? What the FUCK is that suburb name? This house we thankfully lived in for no more than 7 months but good God what a relief.

4. 45 Clarence Rd, Waratah, NSW

My grandmother Bessie’s house. We lived there for a year while I was in pre-school and while my parents house was being renovated. Absolutely fascinating house that each grandchild loved to visit. The most bizarre things were to be found there. First of all it was a regular 2 bedroom home with gaudy wallpaper and a 1950′s kitchen and bathroom, plenty of living space etc. BUT the bizarre flat that was downstairs under the house that was built for my great-grandmother to inhabit was like stepping a 1950′s motel room. Pea green bathroom, pink kitchen, rising damp, mouldy wallpaper, dust upon dust upon bugs upon discarded venetian blinds. Oh my goodness it was amazing down there. It smelled like a nursing home. PLUS under the house was this enormous space all covered in dirt and other crap and trinkets and sheets. ZERO light penetrated this space and therefore was the best place to crawl around and get spooked. The laundry, also under the house, had high ceilings that were stained a Jackson Pollock amount of colours from years of laundry and rising damp and rain leaks AND leading from under the cupboards in the kitchen upstairs was a laundry chute that led all the way down to the laundry WHICH smaller grandchildren could actually fit into and snake their way down to avoid the prying eyes of older cousins during games of hide and seek. Until you were too big to fit. Like I found out one day. Not an easy search and rescue mission, I’ll tell you that. OH AND the back bedroom had some creepy as shit naked dolls with no hair and meth eyes that rolled back in their head along with like strange 60′s childrens paraphenalia and tiny trinkets that I later found out were things like ACTUAL jewels from Scotland and vintage broken Rolex watches. Also I remember sleeping in that room in my mothers childhood single bed while she slept next to me in another, while my father slept next to my grandmother in a separate single bed in her room (why??). Later after she died, new owners bought the place and my mother met them after a few years and asked if they thought the place was haunted to which they replied an unequivocal “YES”, my mother then asked if they left dishes out in the sink of a night, to which they replied “.....yes” and Mum was like “Well that’s the culprit, my mother would NEVER allow that” and the look of understanding coupled with genuine fear cements the fact that my grandmother was and is a motherfucking force to be reckoned with, alive or dead.

5. 7/58 High St, Randwick, NSW

I moved to Sydney! Why? I don’t know! My partner was doing a degree at UNSW and I went with him because I was 21 and couldn’t stand my parents any longer so I buggered off. Now. This apartment was a second floor walk-up in a WW1 era building opposite a hospital and BEHIND a Coles loading dock. Plus there was a screaming autistic Arabian child downstairs and the loudest dog you’ve ever heard next door. Serene. Peaceful. Damaging to the psyche. We lived with my partners brother which was fine, but that place not only had no heating nor ceiling fans it also had no flyscreens. I didn’t even have my own set of keys. I shared ONE set of keys with my partner for two years. Fucking ridiculous. Yes, the food nearby was good. Yes, I commuted back to Newcastle most weekends to keep my casual job. Yes the neighbours were fascinating, ranging from the American guy across the way who never ever closed his bathroom window and gave me many shows of his frankly monstrous penis, to the chainsmoking nurse below who had a permanent frown despite living across the street from her work, to the Koreans downstairs who constantly cooked delicious barbecue while pretending to not speak English, to the gorgeous gay couple who lived above us who could add a new synonym to the dictionary to define “unfriendly”. We got out just before the new light rail was to begin construction right outside our building, but regardless, because of all the noise that surrounded that place before that, I now can sleep through the sound of a fucking jet engine roaring right next to my face.

6. 145 Wilson St, Carrington, NSW

Back to Newy! Okay so this was the first house we even Googled when looking for a new place back in Newcastle, and weirdly, we got it!. It was a tiny cottage in a harbourside suburb that was across the the street from wheat silos that are literally the size of Windsor castle. The day we moved in, a representative of the Port Authority knocked on our door and told us that if we ever heard a particular siren, that it meant the silos were on fire and an explosion was imminent and that we would have about 10 minutes to evacuate before half the city was Hiroshima-ed. Lovely welcome. We heard that siren (or a siren at least) about 50 times in the 2 years we were there. Pretty alarming, as it were. Anyway, the house was literally 3 rooms and a kitchen, 2 tiny cubicle afterthought bathrooms, and a nice big back deck. Now I was happy there, it had everything I needed, it was pleasant. I had a good garden going and I really learned to cook there. Carrington is where my family is originally from, and it was easy to walk everywhere and I loved the history of it. However, our landlord was a Chinese lady called Winnie who could not have misunderstood the concept of landlord responsibilities less. Any repairs or things we needed, she was not just unavailable but actively apathetic. It was like pulling teeth to get her to even communicate to the property manager in even basic English in regards to anything we required. Our neighbours on one side were a lovely couple with 2 babies but they had a dog called Trippi that would bark whenever someone in the opposite hemisphere coughed, and on the other side were a couple in their 70′s who were both suffering dementia, constantly screaming at each other and who also had two elderly dogs that would bark whenever someone nearby inhaled. For two years I heard literally nothing except Matt’s piano, Trippi barking, the other dogs barking, the neighbours angrily SCREAMING at one another, wheat silo alarms, screeching train tracks and coal tankers blasting their horns as they entered the harbour. Again, seasoned professional, can sleep through anything.

7. 46 Garden Grove Pde, Adamstown Heights, NSW

Alright, so two friends of mine, also a couple, were living in a tiny half house situation and also wanted out of their place, so we decided to all move in together, into a place that was much larger and that we could all collectively afford. So we found this lovely large house with 4+ bedrooms so that we could all have our own space and get on rather well. And it worked out! My partner and I had a great big bedroom, Matt had his own study, we had a library, a music room, and my friends had an enormous bedroom downstairs plus a huge bathroom/laundry AND there was 3 tiers of yard that we grew all sorts of vegetables in, plus it had a driveway that looped around (I would call it a plantation driveway?) so heaps of space for everyone. It was great, plenty of space for guests which we had a lot of, plenty of outdoor areas for entertaining, it was wonderful. But unfortunately my friends relationship ended and an old friend took one of their places for a year (also fine) but eventually it turned out that the place was getting sold and after literally months of surprise inspections and open houses we’d all had enough and decided to move out separately. Now this so far has been my favourite place. It was 10 minutes to work, everyone had their own space and we lived, I think, pretty well harmoniously together. But nothing good lasts so now...!\

8. *** Kings Rd, New Lambton, NSW

From Queens Rd to Kings Rd! We found a gorgeous house right near a train station that I am currently in and pretty happy with. For the first time I have ceiling fans again plus air con and FOUR bedrooms that I barely know what to do with. Currently I’m sitting in my study surrounded by all my books with the fan on typing this out and it feels good to have my own space for a change and actually have trouble furnishing a house as opposed to making concessions about what I keep and what I can’t. I’ve planted a veggie garden, I have my kitchen the way I want, and the house has been renovated, re-carpeted, painted and made livable for a modern couple. We have spare space for guests (or a spare room for me when I don’t want to wake up Matt when I go to bed at 3am, but that’s the sleep pattern of a shift worker) and overall I feel good about it. Finally. I’ve been looking for a good home to just COME HOME to for ages and for a long time I haven’t really felt that. My last home was lovely, but honestly 3 tiers of gardens to maintain and roommates (though they remain dear friends) are just not what I want to deal with anymore. Actually not even that, I’d be fine with roommates, but it’s just nice to feel like I have MY house and it’s mine to come home to.

Anyway, apologies for this long post, and I know barely anyone will read it, but I started this blog TEN years ago so and I don’t have a print journal to write all of this stuff in, so I might as well talk here. HOUSES! If they’re not haunted, then where’s the drama we so desperately crave?

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