DaChispa

Just read an article about improving your pension by shopping round for annuities. One of the suggestions it made was to check whether you could get a better deal if you were a smoker or had a health condition (eg cholestorol, high blood pressure etc) as, if you had a shorter life expectancy, companies might pay you more if they thought it would be for less time.

I had to smile, first time that having high blood pressure might have a positive result!

I’ve broken a bone in my foot and have found it a real eye opener – some obvious realisations, and some not so apparent. First of all – pain and over compensating for part of the body that doesn’t work properly is really, really tiring. Secondly having a visible injury means everyone you know stops and talks to you – which from a KM point of view, is a goldmine! Finally – mobility scooters are really dangerous. I am in the ideal house for someone who can’t walk well – a stairlift (really slow), walking sticks and 2 mobility scooters. I’ve used the scooters to get into town and you really have to think about what you are doing. Cars don’t see you and pedestrians think you are faster than you are. I can understand why elderly people get into difficulties with them. I won’t use it unless I have to.

Easter Sunday 2010, Pissouri, Cyprus

It was great to be in Cyprus for the Greek Orthodox Easter celebrations, particularly because we had the chance to be a small part of the local village traditions. I have no idea whether there was a deeper meaning to the traditionally dressed women and men seated at tables in the village square, who showed off their dancing skills, but it strongly reminded me of Irish village festivals. The same sense of a close knit community consolidating their identity through a shared event. I guess villages are similar, no matter where they are in the world, the sharing is the same – it’s just the tradition that varies.