[blogfocus saturday] you want exotic?

I was looking at Matt Sinclair's take on the blogosphere-musings of various luminaries and wondered what I myself look for in the sphere:

# "Something different" would be first, something exotic maybe. JMB and Steve G are two great sites catering for this and I've left out many friends from this list. A different take on an issue is vital.

# Then human issues such as someone in difficulties sharing it and getting international support is a key function of the sphere.

# The bringing together of North America and Britain is a key mission of mine and I'm absolutely delighted that this is going on - it's also vital.

# The cursed cabals and presidential politics comes next.

# Local politics, I'm afraid, comes a very long last in my book. I'm sorry - I know that the NHS or what Karl Rove said or what Hillary did has ramifications for us all but it's a bit of a yawn on a blog.

So to the blogfocus this evening:

1] Maryam of Marrakesh - just the name sends shivers down my spine - has posted from her corner of the world:

The Marlboro man look-alike, Chris, scanned the ocean for perfect waves. The surf’s voice beckoned to him. The bohemian shell collecting woman, Maryam, managed this: A portrait of an American family at the beach in Morocco.

2] Kizzie is a Sudanese blogger who has only just joined us and that, for a start, is interesting enough. The fact that she can blog also adds that touch of spice:

What happens when a Scottish professor man falls in love with a Sudanese widow. Interracial relationships are unusual. Inter-religious relationships are even more difficult. Let me ask this again. What happens when a Scottish man who believes in God but is not necessarily religious falls in love with a Sudanese woman who is a strong believer in god,religious and also veiled?

3] Lady Macleod is another in the exotic class and this is a small sample:

In the Rabat Medina on my walk home I saw two young boys standing about four or five meters outside an open hannut, and in their hands they each held four thick threads, balancing the two hands to keep the eight lines of thread separate. Now you see the boys and men in the Fez Medina as a matter of course weaving the thread to different thicknesses.

One chap will hook the threads onto an anchor some ten meters away or have someone hold the end, and then swirl the threads to one for the desired thickness. You cannot imagine the array of colors in the shops where you buy thread in the Tailor’s souks.

Alas, most of us are not living in exotic locations but in Scunthorpe, Smallville or Norwood and we have day to day problems which really are quite upsetting.

4] Alice in Blogland is in such a situation. She's just been vandalized by ASBOs and doesn't know what to do. I don't know why I should be so personally angry but I am. Look at the before and after photos of her teepee:

And I will never again be able to safely stick my fingers into my soil because it’s all completely covered with tiny shards of glass. There is also a layer of large and medium sized shards of glass which I spent two hours today picking up without seeming to make much difference.

My goodness that makes me angry.

5] Dayngrzone also has her troubles on the other side of the pond. A party girl and nifty organizer, there are times one simply can't:

As the reunion committee chairperson you'd think I would have been the first one in the door but the decision not to go was a personal one. I never thought for a minute that I wouldn't be partying up and boogying down with my former classmates when I started the reunion planning last year. Since then though much has changed in my life. Specifically losing my mother in April. I just don't feel like partying and all the things that go along with it.

6] We have to have a dose of politics so here is this evening's. Phil A brings this to our attention:

Couples who live together should have the same property rights as married couples if they separate according to advice drawn up by Exeter University academics for the UK Ministry of Justice.

Doesn’t that sound grand (in a deep resonant voice) “Ministry of Justice”… It conjures up images of steely eyed agents bringing UK crime to it’s collective knees doesn’t it?

Back on topic - It seems the Law Commission may be coming up with something similar. The only trouble is the recommendations don’t seem to consider how long a couple must cohabit before the rights apply…

7] Jams O'Donnell goes left field with this piece on the Morbid Moggy:

Oscar, who was adopted as a kitten by staff at the advanced dementia unit of Providence's Steere House Nursing and Rehabilitation Centre, has revealed an uncanny tendency to pick which patient is going to die next. According to David Dosa, a geriatrician at Rhode Island Hospital in Providence, Oscar makes regular rounds, looking in on patients and giving them a quick sniff, before either moving on or settling down for a cuddle.

8] Doctor Vee rounds out the Blogfocus with his thoughts on the Formula 1 industrial espionage scandal between Ferrari and McLaren:

You only need to take a glance at the Ferrari and the McLaren to appreciate that they are not similar cars. The joke normally goes that if you gave all of the F1 cars the same paint job you would be unable to tell them apart. But the chassis of the Ferrari and the McLaren are very noticeably different to each other. Seemingly, nothing on the inside of the cars has rung alarm bells either.

Yes, Ferrari are livid. But this is typical of Ferrari. It is tough to think of a year in the past decade or so where Ferrari have not resorted to the rulebooks and the courts in an attempt to win the championship.

I really, really wanted to put Sicily Scene into the exotic class with her photos of the Sicilian Birthday Party but I've got away with it, I hope by putting her in the nav bar above. Please click on her if you haven't already been over there.

Lettonica, Toasted Bread and Hawkhill Acres were down for inclusion this evening but have raised an issue - they can't really be included if they've gone on holiday or haven't posted for some time, not when others are blogging frantically and not being noticed. They'll be under the hammer some time soon.

So, until Wednesday, including Sally, Geoff and Ellee, au revoir.