Et cetera ...
By practicing a little laughter each day, we can enhance social skills that may not come naturally to us. Research has shown that the health benefits of laughter are far-ranging. Studies so far have shown that laughter can help relieve pain, bring greater happiness, and even increase immunity.
Instead of complaining about life's frustrations, try to laugh about them. If something is so frustrating or depressing it's ridiculous, realize that you could 'look back on it and laugh.' Think of how it will sound like a story you could tell your friends, and then see if you can laugh about it now.
In other words don’t sweat the small stuff!
Have a happy week!!!
On Aging
When you see me sitting quietly,
Like a sack left on the shelf,
Don’t think I need your chattering.
I’m listening to myself.
Hold! Stop! Don’t pity me!
Hold! Stop your sympathy!
Understanding if you got it,
Otherwise I’ll do without it!
When my bones are stiff and aching,
And my feet won’t climb the stair,
I will only ask one favor:
Don’t bring me no rocking chair.
When you see me walking, stumbling,
Don’t study and get it wrong.
‘Cause tired don’t mean lazy
And every goodbye ain’t gone.
I’m the same person I was back then,
A little less hair, a little less chin,
A lot less lungs and much less wind.
But ain’t I lucky I can still breathe in.
... by Maya Angelou
Liz Truss will replace Boris Johnson as Britain's new prime minister after defeating Rishi Sunak in the Conservative leadership election.
Truss, the Foreign Secretary, defeated the former chancellor of the exchequer 81,326 votes to 60,399, winning 57 per cent of the vote.
On Tuesday she will head to Balmoral in Scotland to be sworn in by the Queen as the United Kingdom's 56th prime minister, becoming the third woman to hold the role after Margaret Thatcher and Theresa May.
Swearing in at Balmoral is a break in tradition as the Queen is too unwell to travel to London. According to news reports, the Queen may never travel to London again.
Notting Hill Carnival ....
Pictures sourced from The Guardian
A brief history of this event....
After a series of racially motivated attacks on the West Indian residents of West London’s Notting Hill area in August 1958, Trinidadian human rights activist Claudia Jones decided to create a special gathering in an attempt to unify the community.
Called the ‘Caribbean Carnival’, and broadcast on the BBC, it was held the following January, in St Pancras town hall. Little could Jones have then imagined that, more than 60 years on, this expression of community solidarity would have grown to become the largest street party in Europe, held every August bank holiday weekend …and an event that has become a cornerstone of British culture.
I remember as a youngster, we sneaked off to have a look and it was not as grand as it is today (our parents didn’t know)…however…I have always loved it !!
(Picture Credit: LEON NEAL/AFP/Getty Images)
Being the first cat of the United Kingdom is not an easy job, especially when you have to deal with a revolving door of prime ministers. Larry is the first cat to hold the title of Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office.
Larry the cat, who resides in 10 Downing Street, has outlasted the past three prime ministers of the United Kingdom: Boris Johnson, Theresa May, and David Cameron.
Even though the timeline for Boris Johnson’s replacement has not been confirmed, Larry is expected to still be at 10 Downing Street when the new prime minister takes office.
Larry spends his days greeting guests to the house, inspecting security defences and testing antique furniture for napping quality.
His day-to-day responsibilities also include contemplating a solution to the mouse occupancy of the house. Larry says this is still ‘in tactical planning stage’.
(Taken frm Snopes.com)
The Queen looking frail but cheery as she greets the new UK Prime Minister''
Queen Elizabeth II welcomes Truss during an audience at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, where she invited Truss to form a new government.Jane Barlow/APedition.cnn.com
Is that a royal courtsy that Truss is doing ??
Queen Elizabeth II waits in the drawing room before receiving Liz Truss for an audience at Balmoral. Credit: Jane Barlow/AP
Perthnow.com
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The Best Tulips in Perth are at Araluen Botanic Park and I’m off to see them!! Have a great weekend all.
It is expected that Charles will be officially proclaimed King on Saturday. This will happen at St James's Palace in London, in front of a ceremonial body known as the Accession Council.This is made up of members of the Privy Council - a group of senior MPs, past and present, and peers - as well as some senior civil servants, Commonwealth high commissioners, and the Lord Mayor of London.
More than 700 people are entitled in theory to attend, but given the short notice, the actual number is likely to be far fewer. At the last Accession Council in 1952, about 200 attended. At the meeting, the death of Queen Elizabeth will be announced by the Lord President of the Privy Council (currently Penny Mordaunt MP), and a proclamation will be read aloud.
The wording of the proclamation can change, but it has traditionally been a series of prayers and pledges, commending the previous monarch and pledging support for the new one.This proclamation is then signed by a number of senior figures including the prime minister, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and the Lord Chancellor.
As with all these ceremonies, there will be attention paid to what might have been altered, added or updated, as a sign of a new era. After a fanfare of trumpeters, a public proclamation will be made declaring Charles as the new King. This will be made from a balcony above Friary Court in St James's Palace, by an official known as the Garter King of Arms.
He will call: "God save the King", and for the first time since 1952, the national anthem will be played with the words "God Save the King".
Gun salutes will be fired in Hyde Park, the Tower of London and from naval ships, and the proclamation announcing Charles as the King will be read in in Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast.
King Charles said the Queen’s loss would be ‘deeply felt throughout the country’. Photograph: Carl Court/AFP/Getty Images
WHO IS THE GARTER KING OF ARMS?
The Garter King of Arms is the senior King of Arms, the highest rank of an officer of arms. Since 1415, the Garter has been the principal adviser to the sovereign of the United Kingdom with respect to flag-flying, ceremony and heraldry – which encompasses the design and display of coats of arms, badges and mottoes. His seal and signature appear on all grants and arms made by the College of Arms.
On the death of the British monarch it is the Garter’s duty to announce the new monarch. The current Garter King of Arms is David White.
All the best to King Charles III ruling in turbulent times on many fronts including his own family ructions, economic pressures in the UK and global tensions. Hope his mother's legacy of calm, wisdom and dedication serves him well.
Despite incessant London rain, the crowd continued to build outside the palace gates through the night.
In the evening, a symbol appeared.
A double rainbow stretched across the sky above the mourners gathered outside Buckingham Palace.
At Windsor Castle, another arched over the grounds just as the Union Jack flag was lowered.
A gun salute and national day of mourning: Here's how Australia will mark the Queen's death
Australia is mourning the passing of the nation's head of state with a number of events and other measures planned to mark Queen Elizabeth II's death.
Flags around Australia are being flown at half-mast and federal parliament has been suspended as the nation mourns the passing of Queen Elizabeth II.
A gun salute will be held at Australia's Parliament House at dusk on Friday, with one round fired for every year of the Queen's life.
Parliament will be suspended for 15 days and flags will likely remain at half-mast until the day after the Queen's funeral, except for Saturday, when Prince Charles is proclaimed as the new sovereign.
A National Day of Mourning will be held following the return of the prime minister and Governor-General from London, with a moment's silence to be observed. A date for this has yet to be announced.
Canberra Times
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