NDW57

Its not about the 1%, its the principle. If people see less glitter and discover the reason they may well be surprised at how pervasive the use of plastics has become. If it causes them to think a little, put more pressure on retailers and manufacturers etc. it will be a job well done.

I do not understand this obsession with Christmas. Does it matter when you see your loved ones? I would have thought that it matters more IF you see your loved ones. When families mix inevitably there are a range of ages - youngsters who could have a very mild dose of asymptomatic COVID and older members who have health issues already. If people wish to reduce the size of next Christmas's gatherings, go ahead and carry on just like you did last year. It might reduce the size of your presents bill !

No. But those who refuse it should be placed at the back of the queue should they succumb to COVID and require hospital treatment.

Call me "Scrooge" if you like but I think its a brilliant excuse to avoid cooking and washing-up for the 5,000, avoiding the annual bun-fight and being able to enjoy a quiet Christmas for once.

Reusable and they are laundered after every use. ALL such masks should be treated as hazardous and either washed or disposed of carefully. Not only could they be contaminated with COVID but they could also contain other "bugs" from something as "innocuous" as the common cold virus, through flu and onto the real nasties like TB! If you're out and about and see one of these things chucked on the ground (as I have, far too many times) DO NOT pick them up with your bare hands.

Will I download this? NO! Why you ask. Am I being socially irresponsible perhaps? Well, maybe there's something in that but the main reason is my distrust of government IT systems. No, I don't think that they're a way for Bill Gates, or anyone else to snoop on my activities - they're pretty unexciting anyway (I hope!). No, I distrust them because far too often they don't bloody well work properly. Much too frequently the government, or any large public body, go for the cheapest option and get exactly what they pay for. The NHS did that and look where that got them. This has been beautifully confirmed by the various glitches with the new app - false alarms, not working on some 'phones and so on. You could argue that not all of this is the fault of the developers. Well, maybe not. But I leave you with this thought. These highly paid developers should perhaps have thought more carefully about what mobiles people have. Not everyone can afford, nor wants, the latest models. Assuming that everyone is IT savvy or has the latest gear is at best foolhardy and at worst is downright lazy - especially for what they get paid !

My favourite ? Mike and the Mechanics - The Living Years (easily found on YouTube). Speaks eloquently of the friction between generations caused by the different times and experiences we face.

Xylitol - HIGHLY toxic to dogs. If you have a dog make sure you haven't get any of this horrible stuff in your house. Used as an artificial sweetener and I believe that one or more of the manufacturers of peanut butter have started to add it to their nasty product.

Love Actually or what about The Holiday - both Christmassy films I know but.......

Personally I'd prefer to support British agriculture and our farmers, not just in relation to food safety but also with regards to animal welfare. However, my concerns with chlorinated chicken are not the obvious ones. We quite happily pour chlorine (and often fluorine) down our mouths everyday when we have a drink of tap water. We slosh bleach around quite contentedly as a cleaning agent. The issue with chlorine is NOT, and never has been, its potential as a toxin of some sort, it is rather the attitude it engenders in slaughterhouse personnel. They are well aware that the chicken will be "cleaned" by chlorine so there is a temptation to not be as careful as they might be when "dressing the chicken" or supervising that process by a machine. "This bird's gonna get bleached so why should I care if I spill gut contents all over the carcase?" And of course the majority of meat contamination comes from contact with gut contents. Hope I haven't spoilt anyone's dinners!

The simple answer is yes and do remember that other parts of the media aren't entirely innocent either. However, if the public didn't have such a prurient fascination with these stories the newspapers wouldn't print them. Private lives should remain that, private, unless the person says one thing in public and goes counter to that in their private lives - such as we must reduce our use of cars and then uses a limo to travel a few yards! And those in the public eye must realise they have a responsibility to behave and speak in accordance with their roles. Gary Lineker for example, is an employee of the BBC which is supposed to be an unbiased broadcaster. However he chose to express his "remainer" views over Brexit - this is not acceptable or he should at least have prefaced his remarks with "these are my personal views". Those celebrities etc. who behave in inappropriate ways must expect to suffer the consequences and set themselves up as a target for the press.

The side of the bed my wife doesn't sleep on!

Many sites for which security is essential have two-factor verification (or authorisation). Amazon has it, Outlook does and so do many others. Its a bit of a pain to set up and you will need to download an authenticator app for your mobile. Don't worry, they're free. Google has one as does Apple. Once set up, whenever you or anybody else tries to access an account from a different computer they will need a code generated by the authenticator app. And of course, use separate passwords for each and every site. Password managers will generate one for you.... Good luck

Yeah, I'm taking part in Dry January - dry gin, dry cider and the occasional dry white wine !

Lets say your favourite meal is steak and chips. Would you enjoy this meal so much every single day of your life? No? And yet you probably expect your dog to eat the same food each and every day. Are you still surprised he's a picky eater? Kibble (or complete feed) is produced mostly for the convenience of the owner although it should provide a balanced diet. You could try different flavours or brands of complete but there's really nothing wrong with the traditional meat and biscuits. or wet feed as you call it. About half meat and half biscuits - see what the tin says (some canned food is enough without biscuits). For your wee dog I'd suggest a small-bite mixer. You can even, dare I say it, give him human food. Cooked sweet potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower etc. My dogs love the cheapo sausages (fried of course) you can buy at Aldi (£1 for a bag of 20!). There are some foods dogs shouldn't have like chocolate and grapes and the artificial sweetener xylitol is a BIG no-no as it is actually poisonous to dogs. If you're in doubt just google it. One last caveat - make any changes to diet gradually especially if your dog has had a very limited one in the past. You should be able to persuade his gut to accept a nice wide range of food over time. Good luck !

Ceefor Cat.......?

Oh dear. Well meaning but quite misguided in some areas. There really isn't such a thing as a dangerous breed. Its simply that so-called dangerous breeds tend to be large and/or favoured by a "certain type of person". We've all seen them. Some tattooed youth swaggering down the road with a snarling canine sporting a studded leather collar. The legislation should be Dangerous Dog Owners Act. Ear tagging dogs? Have you never seen the tattered ears of some cattle when they've ripped theirs out - usually on feed barriers? Why inflict that on dogs. And could you imagine a chihuahua with a pair of ear tags? It'd look like Bet Lynch ! (To be fair, the ear tagging bit might be meant to apply only to large dogs). And don't even think about ear tattoos - just won't work. They wear out, the skin gets dirty and greasy.... just forget it. Stick to microchips - just make sure all appropriate authorities have access to one. And you say large mongrels should be licensed. What's large? A certain weight? That can vary. Dog's physical size? Lets say you define above 24" at the shoulder as large. Where exactly is the shoulder? What about dogs wriggling about? What about nervous dogs? Licensing for dogs? God help us, another money making scheme for whoever gets the job and a very unfair, expensive and tiresome burden for the dog -owning public. My answer. Enforce the rules that are already there and strengthen where absolutely essential. Lifetime bans that actually are life for example. Hammer owners of puppy farms. Enforce the Animal Welfare Act PROPERLY. Perhaps requiring Local Authorities to be more involved in animal welfare (some elect to be so involved whilst others do not). I'd even consider removing the Dangerous Dogs Act as is - it's a badly written piece of knee-jerk legislation that at the very least needs major amendments.