Monday, July 27, 2009
Coffee
This just in from our nanny-state! Calorie-laden iced coffee drinks are putting people at increased risk of obesity and cancer an "expert" has warned.
Women could be consuming more than a quarter of their daily calories with just one drink.
Dr Rachel Thompson, science programme manager for the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF), analysed the calories at three leading high street chains: Starbucks, Caffe Nero and Costa Coffee.
Most iced coffee drinks contained over 200 calories, with some measuring in at around 450.
A Starbucks venti dark berry mocha frappuccino blended coffee with whipped cream has the highest number of calories - at 561.
Hmmmm, and it tastes so good! Rachel needs to get a life and stop scare-mongering. Her silly research is more than likely paid for by charitable donations and I think the money could have been better spent. In my experience the so-called experts know bugger all about what's good for us. I remember when an apple a day kept the doctor away, then it didn't, and now it does again.
Anyway, doesn’t she know that it’s been scientifically proven that caffeine staves off Alzheimers? Now if I can only remember to keep drinking it!
For anyone interested, here’s the calories in the major High Street coffee drinks!
Me, I’m a big fan of the Starbucks Dark Berry Mocha without the whipped cream! Hmmmmmmmmmmmm.
Starbucks
Venti dark berry mocha with whipped cream 561
Venti dark berry mocha without whipped cream 457
Tall dark berry mocha with without whipped cream 288
Venti iced coffee 5
Tall iced coffee 3
Caffe Nero
Double chocolate frappe 483
Mocha frappe latte 483
Mocha frappe latte with skimmed milk 452
Framme latte with skimmed milk 277
Iced latte 117
Costa Coffee
Massimo iced mocha 361
Massimo coffee frescato 332
Primo coffee frescato 199
Primo iced mint latte 167
Primo iced mocha 152
Women could be consuming more than a quarter of their daily calories with just one drink.
Dr Rachel Thompson, science programme manager for the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF), analysed the calories at three leading high street chains: Starbucks, Caffe Nero and Costa Coffee.
Most iced coffee drinks contained over 200 calories, with some measuring in at around 450.
A Starbucks venti dark berry mocha frappuccino blended coffee with whipped cream has the highest number of calories - at 561.
Hmmmm, and it tastes so good! Rachel needs to get a life and stop scare-mongering. Her silly research is more than likely paid for by charitable donations and I think the money could have been better spent. In my experience the so-called experts know bugger all about what's good for us. I remember when an apple a day kept the doctor away, then it didn't, and now it does again.
Anyway, doesn’t she know that it’s been scientifically proven that caffeine staves off Alzheimers? Now if I can only remember to keep drinking it!
For anyone interested, here’s the calories in the major High Street coffee drinks!
Me, I’m a big fan of the Starbucks Dark Berry Mocha without the whipped cream! Hmmmmmmmmmmmm.
Starbucks
Venti dark berry mocha with whipped cream 561
Venti dark berry mocha without whipped cream 457
Tall dark berry mocha with without whipped cream 288
Venti iced coffee 5
Tall iced coffee 3
Caffe Nero
Double chocolate frappe 483
Mocha frappe latte 483
Mocha frappe latte with skimmed milk 452
Framme latte with skimmed milk 277
Iced latte 117
Costa Coffee
Massimo iced mocha 361
Massimo coffee frescato 332
Primo coffee frescato 199
Primo iced mint latte 167
Primo iced mocha 152
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Dark Justice
I’m putting the finishing touches to Dark Justice and it just keeps getting longer. It’s now more than 135,000 words and there is more to come! It’s all good, though, and I doubt that it will be reduced much in the editing.
Dark Justice will be published in July next year as Hodder and Stoughton want to publish the Jack Nightingale book in January. They don’t have a title yet, but think that Nightingale is too soft!
I already have some great blurb quotes for the Nightingale book. James Herbert, who wrote the brilliant horror books The Rats and The Fog and loads of others, gave us: 'Another great thriller from Stephen Leather but this time with a devilish twist!'
That’s awesome, I’ve been a huge fan of James Herbert ever since I read The Rats at School.
And my good mate Anthony Horowitz, the mega-successful children’s writer, gave me several blurb quotes that we can use on the cover:
RAYMOND CHANDLER MEETS THE OMEN. A WICKED READ.
WHEN I WAS YOUNG, I USED TO LOVE DENNIS WHEATLEY. NOW A NEW GENERATION CAN DISCOVER STEPHEN LEATHER.
NIGHTINGALE IS A GUILTY PLEASURE. IT'S THE SORT OF BOOK KIDS WILL MOVE ONTO WHEN THEY STOP READING CHILDREN'S BOOKS.
Thanks, Anthony, you’re a star! Okay, back to work.... I want to take my daughter to Disneyland HK and I’ve promised myself, and her, that I’ll finish Dark Justice first!
Dark Justice will be published in July next year as Hodder and Stoughton want to publish the Jack Nightingale book in January. They don’t have a title yet, but think that Nightingale is too soft!
I already have some great blurb quotes for the Nightingale book. James Herbert, who wrote the brilliant horror books The Rats and The Fog and loads of others, gave us: 'Another great thriller from Stephen Leather but this time with a devilish twist!'
That’s awesome, I’ve been a huge fan of James Herbert ever since I read The Rats at School.
And my good mate Anthony Horowitz, the mega-successful children’s writer, gave me several blurb quotes that we can use on the cover:
RAYMOND CHANDLER MEETS THE OMEN. A WICKED READ.
WHEN I WAS YOUNG, I USED TO LOVE DENNIS WHEATLEY. NOW A NEW GENERATION CAN DISCOVER STEPHEN LEATHER.
NIGHTINGALE IS A GUILTY PLEASURE. IT'S THE SORT OF BOOK KIDS WILL MOVE ONTO WHEN THEY STOP READING CHILDREN'S BOOKS.
Thanks, Anthony, you’re a star! Okay, back to work.... I want to take my daughter to Disneyland HK and I’ve promised myself, and her, that I’ll finish Dark Justice first!
Saturday, July 11, 2009
The Crazy World We Live In
Just how crazy are we in the UK? I read the following story with my mouth open in amazement! Why do we allow a convicted child killer to waste the taxpayer's money on a ridiculous court case like this? It seems pretty obvious to me that when Peter Chester raped and strangled his seven-year-old niece he forfeited any Human Rights he might have had.
Anyway, read the story and see what you think.
Dark Justice is almost done. The theme is police vigilantes and the more I research it the more I think that vigilantism done properly is perhaps not a bad thing. I was thinking of starting a vigilante website and putting up the details of men like Chester.... release dates, home addresses etc. Maybe people might start behaving a little better if they thought that there would be repercussions when they behaved like animals...
A convicted child killer is to take the Government to court over its refusal to let him vote.
Peter Chester, 54, was jailed for life in the 1978 for raping and strangling his seven-year-old niece Donna Marie Gillbanks, in her bed in Blackpool.
He was ordered to serve a minimum of 20 years at Wakefield prison, but has now been behind bars for 12 years longer than his tariff, having been repeatedly turned down for release.
He is now challenging the law that bans serving prisoners in the UK from taking part in elections, claiming it violates his human rights.
Serving prisoners are banned from voting under the Representation of the People Act, 1969, but legislation forfeiting prisoner's right to take part in elections stretched back as far as 1876.
Chester, also known as Peter Chester Speakman, has filed a claim against Wakefield council and Secretary of State for Justice Jack Straw, which is due to be heard by the High Court in London in October.
He claims that the statutes preventing him from voting conflict with the Human Rights Act, by preventing him from taking part in free and fair elections.
Chester's lawyer, Marcus Farrar said he should be able to vote as he has served the punitive part of his sentence. Mr Farrar told the Yorkshire Post that Chester was "hopeful of voting in an election some time."
But June Gillbanks, Donna Marie's mother said the killer gave up any rights he had when he murdered her daughter. "I think prisoners have enough rights and victims very little," she told the Yorkshire Post. "The scales of justice are balanced more towards murderers."
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: "We can't comment on ongoing court proceedings."
Anyway, read the story and see what you think.
Dark Justice is almost done. The theme is police vigilantes and the more I research it the more I think that vigilantism done properly is perhaps not a bad thing. I was thinking of starting a vigilante website and putting up the details of men like Chester.... release dates, home addresses etc. Maybe people might start behaving a little better if they thought that there would be repercussions when they behaved like animals...
A convicted child killer is to take the Government to court over its refusal to let him vote.
Peter Chester, 54, was jailed for life in the 1978 for raping and strangling his seven-year-old niece Donna Marie Gillbanks, in her bed in Blackpool.
He was ordered to serve a minimum of 20 years at Wakefield prison, but has now been behind bars for 12 years longer than his tariff, having been repeatedly turned down for release.
He is now challenging the law that bans serving prisoners in the UK from taking part in elections, claiming it violates his human rights.
Serving prisoners are banned from voting under the Representation of the People Act, 1969, but legislation forfeiting prisoner's right to take part in elections stretched back as far as 1876.
Chester, also known as Peter Chester Speakman, has filed a claim against Wakefield council and Secretary of State for Justice Jack Straw, which is due to be heard by the High Court in London in October.
He claims that the statutes preventing him from voting conflict with the Human Rights Act, by preventing him from taking part in free and fair elections.
Chester's lawyer, Marcus Farrar said he should be able to vote as he has served the punitive part of his sentence. Mr Farrar told the Yorkshire Post that Chester was "hopeful of voting in an election some time."
But June Gillbanks, Donna Marie's mother said the killer gave up any rights he had when he murdered her daughter. "I think prisoners have enough rights and victims very little," she told the Yorkshire Post. "The scales of justice are balanced more towards murderers."
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: "We can't comment on ongoing court proceedings."
Friday, July 10, 2009
Our Crazy System of 'Justice'
Dark Justice keeps on growing! I had planned it to come in at 110,000 words but I’m just about to hit 130,000. It’s all good stuff, too, and all very topical.
A story broke today about a gang of youths in Hackney who killed a schoolboy. What the story doesn’t say, of course, is that the gang was made up of black youths. One of the themes covered in Dark Justice is that the major problem in London at the moment isn’t gun crime, or knife crime, it’s black crime, gangs of feral young black men who have no respect for society or the law. Of course it’s not politically correct to say so, but it’s the truth. Until they’re dealt with and dealt with harshly, the black gangs are going to continue to run riot. I’m not suggesting vigilante cops is the way to go, but we have to do something and soon. What we certainly shouldn’t be doing is allowing youths caught with weapons and with convictions for assaulting the police to be allowed to roam the streets... And when they kill, they should be sent to prison for life, not given 15 years or 18 years which means they’ll be out in less than ten.
I’m all for giving first-time offenders the chance to turn their lives around, but it seems to me that when someone joins a gang, carries a loaded gun, assaults a police officer and then stabs a young boy to death, that person should be locked away for life, ie until the day he dies. I don’t understand why our so-called justice system doesn’t take the same view.
Anyway, here’s the story, read it and see what you think. And bear in mind that killings like this are not unusual in London. And nor are the pathetic jail sentences handed out:
A gang of six youths has been jailed for life for murdering an innocent 14-year-old schoolboy who was stabbed in a park.
Army cadet Shaquille Smith was attacked by a ten-strong bicycle gang called the London Fields Boys last August as he sat in the park in front of his home in Hackney, east London.
George Amponsah, 19, Godiowe Dufeal, 20, Amisi Khama, 18, Freddie Amponsah, 17, Kadean Dias, 18, and Leon Atwell, 17, all from Hackney, were found guilty of murder last month and will serve sentences totalling a minimum of 96 years.
Amponsah and Dufeal were given 18 years' custody and the other four 15-year minimum terms each.
Earlier, the Old Bailey's Judge David Paget told them: "You were part of a gang of ten who went looking for trouble late at night. You were all members of a gang known as the London Fields Boys. The CCTV footage shows the arrogance with which you rode on your way looking for trouble. Shaquille Smith, a 14 year-old boy, was a stranger to most of you.
"He had done absolutely nothing to cause offence of provoke any one of you. He was truly innocent and what is more is he was yards away from his front door. One of you stabbed him fatally and you ran away like the cowards you are back to London Fields. You arrived together as a gang and you left as a gang."
The judge added: "It was completely unprovoked and completely unnecessary. It was mindless violence on a completely innocent young boy. You must all receive life sentences which are mandatory.
"You have taken away the life of a promising young boy aged 14 and have thrown away the chances of achieving anything in your own young lives."
The court heard Dufeal was on licence at the time of the murder following convictions for possessing a prohibited weapon and ammunition without a certificate.
He also had previous convictions for possessing knives, using disorderly behaviour and assaulting a police officer.
George Amponsah had previous convictions for affray, threatening behaviour, possession of an offensive weapon in a public place, possession of cannabis and common assault. His brother Freddie became a father while in prison.
Amisi Khama was a semi-professional footballer for Bishop Stortford FC in the Conference South division and Dias was described as a "promising student".
Shaquille was the youngest teenager to be murdered in a knife attack in London last year.
He was stabbed to death just yards from his home after he and his friends were confronted by the gang who rode around the streets of Hackney, east London, on bikes in hoodies looking to intimidate and harass anyone who crossed their path.
Shaquille was targeted because he was chatting to an 18-year-old boy who happened to be the brother of a rival graffiti tagger known as Pinky. After members of the gang were bitten by the youth's dog, they returned to their bikes to collect their knives.
One witness told the court how they jumped over the fence "like a wild pack of dogs" before attacking Shaquille.
A story broke today about a gang of youths in Hackney who killed a schoolboy. What the story doesn’t say, of course, is that the gang was made up of black youths. One of the themes covered in Dark Justice is that the major problem in London at the moment isn’t gun crime, or knife crime, it’s black crime, gangs of feral young black men who have no respect for society or the law. Of course it’s not politically correct to say so, but it’s the truth. Until they’re dealt with and dealt with harshly, the black gangs are going to continue to run riot. I’m not suggesting vigilante cops is the way to go, but we have to do something and soon. What we certainly shouldn’t be doing is allowing youths caught with weapons and with convictions for assaulting the police to be allowed to roam the streets... And when they kill, they should be sent to prison for life, not given 15 years or 18 years which means they’ll be out in less than ten.
I’m all for giving first-time offenders the chance to turn their lives around, but it seems to me that when someone joins a gang, carries a loaded gun, assaults a police officer and then stabs a young boy to death, that person should be locked away for life, ie until the day he dies. I don’t understand why our so-called justice system doesn’t take the same view.
Anyway, here’s the story, read it and see what you think. And bear in mind that killings like this are not unusual in London. And nor are the pathetic jail sentences handed out:
A gang of six youths has been jailed for life for murdering an innocent 14-year-old schoolboy who was stabbed in a park.
Army cadet Shaquille Smith was attacked by a ten-strong bicycle gang called the London Fields Boys last August as he sat in the park in front of his home in Hackney, east London.
George Amponsah, 19, Godiowe Dufeal, 20, Amisi Khama, 18, Freddie Amponsah, 17, Kadean Dias, 18, and Leon Atwell, 17, all from Hackney, were found guilty of murder last month and will serve sentences totalling a minimum of 96 years.
Amponsah and Dufeal were given 18 years' custody and the other four 15-year minimum terms each.
Earlier, the Old Bailey's Judge David Paget told them: "You were part of a gang of ten who went looking for trouble late at night. You were all members of a gang known as the London Fields Boys. The CCTV footage shows the arrogance with which you rode on your way looking for trouble. Shaquille Smith, a 14 year-old boy, was a stranger to most of you.
"He had done absolutely nothing to cause offence of provoke any one of you. He was truly innocent and what is more is he was yards away from his front door. One of you stabbed him fatally and you ran away like the cowards you are back to London Fields. You arrived together as a gang and you left as a gang."
The judge added: "It was completely unprovoked and completely unnecessary. It was mindless violence on a completely innocent young boy. You must all receive life sentences which are mandatory.
"You have taken away the life of a promising young boy aged 14 and have thrown away the chances of achieving anything in your own young lives."
The court heard Dufeal was on licence at the time of the murder following convictions for possessing a prohibited weapon and ammunition without a certificate.
He also had previous convictions for possessing knives, using disorderly behaviour and assaulting a police officer.
George Amponsah had previous convictions for affray, threatening behaviour, possession of an offensive weapon in a public place, possession of cannabis and common assault. His brother Freddie became a father while in prison.
Amisi Khama was a semi-professional footballer for Bishop Stortford FC in the Conference South division and Dias was described as a "promising student".
Shaquille was the youngest teenager to be murdered in a knife attack in London last year.
He was stabbed to death just yards from his home after he and his friends were confronted by the gang who rode around the streets of Hackney, east London, on bikes in hoodies looking to intimidate and harass anyone who crossed their path.
Shaquille was targeted because he was chatting to an 18-year-old boy who happened to be the brother of a rival graffiti tagger known as Pinky. After members of the gang were bitten by the youth's dog, they returned to their bikes to collect their knives.
One witness told the court how they jumped over the fence "like a wild pack of dogs" before attacking Shaquille.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Thai Sparrows
I bought a birdfeeder from England and put it outside my apartment for the local birds to try. At first they couldn't work out what it was and for weeks they just looked at it but wouldn't go near it. Then one brave sparrow tried it and ate a couple of seeds. He (or she) then began introducing his (or her!) friends to it. Gradually more and more of them got to use the feeder, and now they squabble all day over it. I've stopped putting seed in it and use uncooked rice instead - thai birds love to eat rice!
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Kittens In My Study
Almost done with Dark Justice... hopefully I'll finish next week. But my daughter's kittens, Firefur and Mousefur, are a big distraction!
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