my slippers an old piece

My Slippers ©

By 

Michael Casey

Well yesterday we looked at another house, sadly we have still not found our new home, it must be 6 months now since we started but only one house we felt deserved an offer, and sadly they did not want that offer. So I have nowhere new to put my slippers, when you are wearing your slippers you are at home and totally relaxed. I know Barry White never wore slippers he was a bare feet and fluffy carpet man, he’s singing in the background as I talk to you. My small daughter, 13 now, is a fan as she’s heard Barry sing so often for us.

But why do we wear slippers, because our mum will hit us with the broom stick if we dare ruin her new carpet. Or if you go to the East and I don’t mean Boston or NY, I mean to China and Japan there you take your shoes off at the door and wear slippers. We wear slippers all the time in our house too, mum, my wife, the witch from Shanghai as me and the girls call her, she insists that we wear slippers.

In fact when she’d been on holiday visiting Ma she’ll bring back all the free slippers that the hotel gives you on a daily basis. So she comes home with 20 pairs of white slippers, they are stashed in a bag in the panty under the stairs behind me. However on one trip the airline lost her bag of free slippers but 2 days later they turned up and were delivered to our house.

Slippers denote relaxation, no black formal shoes you wear in a hotel or an office, as I used to in days gone by. If you are wearing slippers you are at home and taking your ease as my dad called it. In my dad’s case size ten steel toe-caped boots, mum had to peel them off his feet due to the sweat from 10 hours in the steel works standing by the furnace. Then mum would use the wooden tongs she used in her manual washing machine to pull off dad’s socks.

Then she’s give him a bowl of water to wash his feet in, with a splash of Jeyes Fluid in it. Then dad would have his dinner using the back of a chair as a table so he could watch the tv news. After he’d always say it was good to wash your feet, no doubt Jesus and Veronica would agree with him. The washing up bowl was rinsed and was used to wash the dishes in after we’d all had the dinner. Then dad would put his slippers on.

Now decades later in my own home I wear slippers to save the carpets, and it so relaxing to wear slippers if you have been standing all day in a computer room or a hotel, or your law firm print room at sometimes 30 degrees. When you fired up all the printers in the print room it really was that hot, but the firm was really nice, Pinsent Masons Birmingham.

Now slippers get smelly over time, well if you have Casey feet they do, I did once evacuate an entire coach while on a school trip, but I’ve told you that story before. So what do you do when the slippers wear out or rather smell out, you throw them away, or leave them in the garden to frighten the foxes away, who’s territory is this, Michael Casey’s so stay away, it’s much easier that peeing all over your garden.

I have in the past used old shoes as slippers, if the sole is over worn and no good for outside use then just clean the sole and then use them as slippers in the home. A comfy shoe is a great thing after all, pure relaxation, if you have ever worked in a shop or if you are a Policeman then you’ll agree with me. Though why would a cop read my stuff?

Talking about pure relaxation, did you know that Sir Simon Rattle wears slippers when he conducts, I’ve seen it for myself. He was in Birmingham then he went to the Berlin Phil, so he’s not a Micky Mouse conductor, though Minnie may be upset to hear me say that. It took my ages to work out what conductors do, they are not trying to make candy floss with their stick, though I do think they would be good at it.  He is encouraging the orchestra to play the notes as they are in his head, it’s as simple as that. At the end he or a conductor rushes off stage for a quick 3 pints of Stella Artois or maybe Guinness before returning to acknowledge the applause.

Slippers are to keep us chilled, to have Barry White in our hearts. Though slippers can bring pain as I can attest from 1968 maybe, Mr Gallagher gave 4 of the best for not knowing my multiplication tables. The next time I knew them and to this day I am great at arithmetic. Once you are ever so relaxed and Barry White is doing his magic you can take off your slippers and roll in the fluffy carpet with the one you love and practice your multiplication tables, no slippers required.

Evening All 10th Oct 2018

Evening All 10th Oct 2018

So I've only 1/2 back with the wifi, maybe restored this weekend if I can manage to follow simple instructions.

Thanks to Polish and Russian readers and whoever is reading Korean translation of my stuff.
I have  yet to work out where Unknown Region is. maybe  the Space Station or some VIP with a masked IP. I don't think the Queen would read me, but a queen would.

Hope you are all well, my Tinnitus arrived a few months ago and is a nuisance, but so long as I play lots of music I can ignore it. I  have a ton of new music so I've been listening to that, Mylie Cyrus and Taylor Swift really have great voices, and Timberlake and Rag and Bone Man really should be listened to. They are new sounds to my 90s record collection, so I've jumped 30 years.

Hello To Egypt for passing by,  I hope they were not disappointed.

I'll do a new new piece in  a day or so, everything is in flux at the moment, chez nous.
However I did post 17 Again which is the first 150 pages or 50,000words or so of what will become my next book, so that's about 1/2 ready.

My arthritis and various chest pains still persist and can drain any spirit. At least I was able to provide a few words to help somebody with an application. I am good with words, even if nothing else, apart from my fantasies which I'll leave to your collective imagination.

here's something from 2 years ago to keep you busy


    
BBUMar2008.en.zh-CN (1)BBU in HebrewBBU in Arabic300 وBBU in KOREANBBU GermanBBU French50 Spanish ExamplesKOREAN TRANSLATION Still Alive 2015The Polish TranslationsSpanish BBU아직도 살아있는 2015아직도 살아있는 2015아직도 살아있는 2015Altogether Now2016

Drugs Addiction ©

By Michael Casey

I’ve got out of bed, its 1.am.  on a Sunday night into Monday morning, everybody including Totoro the cat is asleep upstairs. I was screaming in pain for a while then I decided to come down and take some pain killers, and I thought I may as well write something while I wait for the pain killers, Paracetamol, to kick in. It also takes your mind off the pain, it distracts you, as does watching the tv or something on the internet, take your pick.

Yesterday on the BBC we had a 30 min documentary explaining the plague of drugs in the USA, one million addicts, there was even a doctor or MD as you call them over there, and he got addicted to prescription pain killers before moving on to the nasty stuff. One million addicts, it showed some from the Rust Belt, I’m amazed they had the energy to go out and vote Trump, they were so hazed over.

I have pain killers for my Arthur as I call my Arthritis, and for my heart, 2 years on and I still get lots of pain at random intervals. Some sharp heart pain, or just above my heart is still not properly explained, it feels like I’m in a knife fight, like Trump planning his cabinet. But I’ve been told it’s not my heart. As for my Arthritis or  Arthur if I tried to do the Twist, ask your dad what the Twist was, then I’d rock the boat or rather my spine and I’d be screaming. The irony was that just before my unplanned quadruple heart bypass, I had a load of investigations for my Arthur and in the end a Chinese doctor at the hospital reckoned I may need a back operation.

Now why am I repeating all this? To let you know that I’m not just an airy fairy intellectual theorising about Pain, I know I’m still suffering from it. So I know in some small what way all these Drug addicts are going through. I also know from my own life experience, what a silly expression, life experience, if you excuse my French, I’ve had Shit on my life too. So I can bear witness to what these addicts are going through. And NO  I’ve never used any substances, I want to keep my Imagination alive. But I have seen Alcoholics at close hand, all our lodgers were alcoholics, one even begged for a pound for a pint from my dad when he was in hospital in his very sick bed.

The total sadness of the situation, sell their body or soul to get another fix of drugs. Pain of the Soul is more painful than physical pain, more painful than what has woken me up.  I know that oh so much from my own life, I am an observer too, so you can imagine.

I keep a record of how many painkillers I take because you can overdose so very easily. But if we imagine just how low people go, as shown on the BBC documentary last night, just for a fix that leads to oblivion and the death of the very soul itself.

Today on the BBC website we have an image of an all American Boy, who is now a drugs addict, all barriers have been blown down. It’s no longer the wrong side of the tracks people who are addicts, frankly it’s everybody. It could happen to you, yes you in your fancy suit reading this, you with you Gucci bag and you high fashion clothes and your expensive haircut.

It really is such a waste of lives and talent, these people these Souls are the lost generation, or even generations. Perhaps we don’t accept pain any more, we must have a Pill. Michael Jackson and Elizabeth Taylor his dear friend had addictions to pain killer. My mother used to keep her pain killers over the pantry door on a ledge, I can remember her screaming “JeeCus”  and then asking me to bring some to her, but otherwise she bore the pain, she bore so much pain you would never believe it.

From her I inherited Arthritis, and from my dad I got my Heart.  When I was having tests prior to my bypass I was in the bed next to where my dad had been 19 years previously, his bed had been removed to make space. So you could say History repeats itself. So what is to be done to help with this plague of addiction in the USA, 5% of the world’s population and they use 90% of the world’s drug supply?

I don’t have any answers Mr Trump says build a wall. How do you heal a soul, how do you encourage people to avoid drugs when they are so cheap?  I do know  in the 60s we were all inspired with Nasa going to the Moon, and the Music, now all we have is Simon Cowell. Now we are all cynical, how do return us to our lost Hippy Innocence, to the Monkees  and Beach Boys, the Man from Uncle and the original Star Trek times. There is not an easy answer, but I do know that broken spirits are the hardest to heal, but how many times do we forgive, 77 x 7,  and sometimes the answers are blowing in the wind. All we have to do is put our lips together and whistle, if we cannot pray we can at least whistle our favorite song, for the Lord is Music, and if we whistle he will pour his song into us.

And now it's Question Time

And now it’s Question Time ©

By

Michael Casey

Stop picking your nose we are on air in 5 seconds.

Stop shouting in my ear you will deafen me.

Let me put my best fake smile on.

Welcome to The Bell and Pump, no not a restored Victorian Pump House

The caretaker refused to let us in, said we looked like a bunch of loonies.

Moi, Angus Beefeater, THE top celebrity host, a loony.

What does the audience think?

MAD BASTARD that’s definitely you, MOOH.

The Landlord only let the BBC use his premises if the audience all drunk.

And now, they are all drunk.

Tonight we will discuss, or should I say dribble the days main events.

Please stop walking in front of my special charm soft focus camera.

Such drunken rabble, and that’s just the learned guests.

And no I don’t have any coins for the condom machine.

Have you got no self control, its only a 75 min show.

My first guest is Len short for Lenin, who is from Left.

My 2^nd guest is Amadeus who claims to be musical.

My 3^rd guest is Rex who is from the Right.

My 4^th guest is just confused who says her name is Shirley, she talks to walls.

My 5^th guest is the barmaid Sarah, who said we could not use the bar meeting room unless she was on the panel.

First Question, what bra size is Sarah, who put that in my question pile.

I did, I want to be a glamour model, says Sarah.

Moving on, do you think.

No you don’t heckles the drunken crowd.

Do you think they should bring back Capital Punishment?

Only if Sky shows it on Pay TV.

Are you so callous?

Crime should not pay, so we pay for crime by showing it on Cable TV.

Very Logical.

Amadeus what do you think?

I think therefore I am, would be a great dance anthem, rock me , rock me, Amadeus.

The pub audience takes up the beat banging he bar.

Shirley what about you, which way do you lean?

I really don’t know, it’s such a difficult question, can I phone a friend.

Shirley walks off the Stage, beer barrels with table clothes over them.

Does anybody have change for the phone?

Uncle Pierrepoint what do you think.?

HANG THE BASTARDS, if anybody hurt you I’d do it myself.

Thanks Uncle,Love you, it’s a right crock of doo doo this Question Show.

Shirley comes back and sits on her beer barrel.

I think my uncle is right, he’s such a sensitive man you know.

Shall we move on, another question from the audience.

Are condom machines in pub bars a good idea.

Who accepted these questions?

What the Producer, did you not know, the show is being canceled, after all these years.

Angus Beefeater this is your Abattoir, watch out for the blood spatters.

Len what do you think?

Well there are many a baby born in a bottle, so if it stops an unwanted baby I suppose it is a good idea.

But the price is too steep.

At that moment balloons made from condoms float all over the bar, not very Jules Verne, but still great tv for the director.

Can I have a drink asks Angus Beefeater, his career ending in tatters.

He is given a bottle of Polish Vodka from under the bar, Sarah has decided he’d make husband material, so she wants him to loosen up.

Normally at this point in the show arguments are raging and Angus Beefeater twinkles and leans over and tries to look masterful.

Sadly he is far from masterful, just like a weak chairman in some Carry On film, but to Sarah, he is the one she has adored for years.

The audience is getting more and more quiet now, a cheap bar will do that to you.

Can I have at least one sensible question, now that my career is ending?

Do you believe in love at first sight? And is sex on the first date cheap, or is it ok so long as you stay together forever after that one moment of lust?

Angus realises it’s Sarah who is asking him.

So as the credits roll Angus and Sarah get it on, and Barry White sings over the PA, You are My First, My Last, My everything.

Sometimes Questions are just a waste of time, why have questions, when there are always more questions than answers. You should  just put the Barry White on and and Let the Answer be  L O V E.

Question Time

Question Time   is a debate show on the BBC the host is from the "Kennedy" family of tv journalists if you like. The show has been on for ages
Now they want to replace him
Loads of the top reporters want the job
It is the Premier Debate and Influencer programme  on tv,
THAT'S WHAT THEY SAY

I think its past its sell by date like Boris Johnson
so tomorrow if I can keep the pain at bay I'll write a comedy piece about it.

PLEASE  Journalists People love Bread and Circuses but to think people care about that one programme. would be like saying The Pledge on Sky was riveting, the thing I prefer is the BBC show where knowledgeable journalists from all over the world talk about world events.

Anyway tomorrow Question Time will be my target.
and yes I know you'll all wait with baited breath for that.
If ever you believe your own publicity then you are dead, ask any politician. Events move on, and you are left behind.
Shakespeare and Dickens live on, but I don't expect Michael Casey to be remembered, so journalists and and TV programmers to expect a decades old show to have relevance and influence today, I think you are Trumpian in your own self belief and worth.
Apart from that I do love BBC news people, but this show will be a good target tomorrow, if I'm not too busy sorting out my broadband. Now that I've told you what my next target is you might be disappointed with my performance, like Theresa May's dancing, or Boris's performances of all kind.