Life in Shirley

A change we need

I will not deny I preferred Hillary but that is history. Obama can break the mould and I hope he will.

I am switching from an American network to another to BBC news.II will probably be up all night as I could not possibly go to sleep. New York  and Chicago are teeming with people waiting to know. I wish I could be there and not watching it on telly.  Ohio might go for Obama. If it does, it will be a miracle. This state is my idea of hell on earth, cultural desolation. I remember a head teacher in a bright green jacket welcoming me with a 'You come from London, France'! I remember driving around for hours in a blue Spitfire, being refused wine in a Toledo restaurant as I did not have my driving licence with me, getting lost along the never ending Turnpike. Also my nephew's host family saying 'We were not quite sure if you took showers in Italy'. And the night receptionist at the motel I was staying at: young, huge and adoring as I lived in London. She had never left Fremont and wanted me to tell her about the Queen and Buckingham Palace before she let me go to bed, night after night. What a relief it was returning to Europe

Ohio has just been called. 195-76. The dream is getting nearer. Will it change our world too? CNN gives 174-69. Cleveland has not come in. It is too early to say anything. How many Joe bloody plumbers are there? They care about themselves only. Well , suddenly we have 194-69. I will take a break and have a walk around the house. And a drink.

I came back to CNN 206-89. Senate looks good too. Is it going to be a landslide? I remember the elation of this country when Blair was first elected and what followed. Still, Obama is not Blair.

Andrew Pelling came to our meeting tonight. He looked good. It would be great to have a real change in Croydon. He has got a brain and he is an excellent orator. Somebody might regret a hurried choice. Perhaps they have not got much to choose from.

McCain is conceding defeat. Graciously and with dignity.

We are starting a new journey. I am really happy and so relieved the Palin woman will go back to Alaska.

Yes, we can when we try hard enough.

 

Hypocrisy, denial and racism

Yesterday night I watched Elisir on Italian television and, after that, a documentary about cultural and social changes pre and post 1968. I really must get it in UK as it is always good to see another way of looking at what is going on around us.

In both countries intelligent programmes are shown too late so one goes to bed incredibly late. Is it done because 'they' think one will not watch (one must go to work/school etc.) or because the great majority prefers diabolically stupid (yet mind-controlling) shows/soaps etc?

Educational apartheid was discussed. A Lega Veneta MP (one of Bossi's man if you are not familiar with Lega Veneta. And if you are not familiar with Bossi's name either, one of those who thinks foreigners dilute and eventually destroy Italian culture. There are lots of them in every country, UK included.) tried to say that 'new comers had to be taught Italian before joining Italian children in schools'. It sounds perfectly acceptable to many but you must look beyond this immediate acceptability.

'Foreign labour' is cheaper. Exploitation is rife. Ghettos are growing in number. Why? Because the majority is in denial and racism is alive in different shapes and forms. Europe is rotten to the core.There is so much fear of change. Why? Are people afraid to discover that there is more to life than what they know? Again, why? 

America might spark a profound change with Obama. Not a black man but a man with a white mother and an African father. His mother's memory is at the centre of a revival in blogs and various search engines. I like this as it highlights the fact that two cultures are better than one. I watched him speak in Tampa yesterday and I saw hope in his followers. We all need a change. His rival, who acts and looks as a robot, is an empty shell peddling old slogans and offering more of the same poison. Will Americans start dreaming again? I hope so, for our sake.

Waves

A quiet day.

Even the sea is calm after the fireworks yesterday night.

I will prepare a Marina di Massa album. I have taken some good pictures.

 

Barak Obama

I have been reading a lot of demented American fascist blogs today and decided to resume mine. Imagine my surprise when I found a voice from my past life...Grazie Signora Macchieraldo. I have not changed, only got worse as I have decided that we can change the world if we get kindred spirits fighting together! Do get in touch with me, please.

Back to Obama. I supported Hillary but she lost her bid. Obama is the Democratic candidate and is fighting a senile Republican who should not be running at all. Obama is the only decent choice. Can he change a few things? Yes, he can. I see him as a man with a double heritage, therefore richer.

I am a Tuscan living in England. Shirley is my adopted home. I brought a dowry when I moved there...

I will not acquiesce

I went to bed aggrieved.

Il quieto vivere (anything for a quiet life) is not for me as compromising with principles is not acceptable to me. Call me whatever you like and burn me at the stake but I will not acquiesce.

Pinocchio

One wish before going to bed: I wish people's noses grew every time they lie. One cm would be enough. Our roads would be almost empty. Our environment cleaner. Our hearts at peace.

I witnessed total amorality. I will pray those people be rewarded the way they deserve but, in the meantime, I will have to think of ways to defend myself and those dear to me. It is frightening to see that the majority has given up thinking altogether.

Still around

I have not written anything for months as I am always doing something or writing something else.

The weather was nice today, so I decided to walk to Miller's Pond to check on the SPRA Anniversary tree as it does not look very appealing. There were four youths sitting on a bench: 3 boys and and a girl. They seemed bored with life. The girl got up to chase two geese. The boys sat smoking. I walked very slowly around the pond, stopped opposite them on the other side and then walked back towards Shirley Way. One the boys decided to throw stones to the birds. Another one followed suit.

I walked towards them and asked them to stop what they were doing. I looked straight at them. No shouting. I simply said that they were not allowed to do it and that I would call the police if they did not.

One of them mumbled something. I did not move. They did.

Why are people so afraid to intervene? I was not confrontational but I showed no hesitation in my body language.

Young people need something to do and people who can open their minds.

Personal lives

A few people and a national newspaper have written and phoned me asking for comments about Andrew Pelling MP.

I can not and will not comment on something I know nothing about.

However, I will say that Andrew has always done his best as an MP and I respect him for that.

Save Oak Gardens

We must save Oak Gardens.

First move: Write to the Leader of the Council and ask that independent planning consultants be employed  to defend the appeal and prepare a case for rejecting the new planning application.

A certain case officer is minded to recommend approval.

Birthday

It is my birthday tomorrow. My nephew Andrea wished me a happy birthday today. My friend Peter remembered my birthday and phoned to ask if I wanted to do anything. My husband is off tomorrow. A good start were it not for Oak Gardens. I sent off the objection to the ridiculous appeal those creatures presented at 23:32 yesterday night. We had a group picture tonight which should go in the Croydon Advertiser next week. And I am thinking how to tackle the new planning application. Two bungalows instead of two houses. Money is a curse.