Wise old Henrietta!

How to decrease your carbon footprint and help prevent climate change!

Tribute to Constable Bill Barker of Cumbria Police

Cumbrian police have confirmed that the body found on a beach on the county's west coast is that of 44-year-old Pc Bill Barker, who was swept away by torrential floods early this morning. Resisdents of the village of Cockermouth are seen being rescued from their homes by members of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution and the R.A.F Rescue Helicopters.

A man was rescued in Cockermouth in Cumbria after torrential rain caused rivers to burst their banks. Almost 15 inches of rain fell in 36 hours non-stop.

Cumbria Police chief constable Craig Mackey said: "It is with deep sadness that I can confirm that the body found on a beach at Allonby this afternoon is that of our friend and colleague Pc Bill Barker."

Father-of-four Pc Barker had worked for the force for 25 years as a traffic policeman and family liaison officer looking after bereaved families. Now, the day before they were due to celebrate his 45th birthday, his family are now mourning his loss.
"Pc Bill Barker, who has served the communities of Cumbria with the Constabulary for 25 years and currently works as a Roads Policing officer in Workington. He was directing motorists off the bridge, saving lives, when the tragic incident occurred," ACC Graham said.

"He is a valued colleague and friend of many officers and staff within the constabulary - and to those in West Cumbria where he lives and serves."

More than 250mm (9.8 inches) of rain fell in little over 24 hours in the area, causing the Rivers Derwent and Cocker to burst their banks.

Four bridges have now collapsed, main roads are blocked, schools are closed and more than 200 people have been forced to leave their homes in nearby Cockermouth overnight after the deluge struck.

PC Barker disappeared after Northside bridge, one of the main routes into Workington, collapsed in the early hours of this morning.

RNLI lifeboat operations manager Captain Brian Ashbridge said: "There is a massive current coming down through the Derwent so, although the sea isn't very rough, conditions for the RNLI volunteers searching in the river basin have been very challenging.

"It's absolutely horrendous. There is a huge amount of debris around in the water at the moment as well, which adds to the difficulties."

Hilary Benn, the Environment Secretary, said the downpour may have resulted in "the wettest day ever recorded" in famously rainy Cumbria.

He claimed the resulting flood in worst-hit town Cockermouth was "a one in a thousand year" occurence which could not have been prevented by the town's flood defences.

Police and fire services, the RNLI and RAF staff worked throughout the night, using lifeboats and wading chest-deep in water to rescue residents trapped in their homes in Cockermouth, Workington and Keswick. One worker finishing his shift this morning described the scene as close to "armageddon".

In Cockermouth, a tourist attraction because it is the birthplace of William Wordsworth but also a historic flooding hotspot because it sits between the rivers Cocker and Derwent, around 1,000 properties were thought to have been flooded and 50 people had to be airlifted to safety by helicopter.

A lifeboat commander told The Times that firemen had to break into a bank on Main Street to rescue two women trapped inside by flood waters of up to eight feet.

"There was a massive torrent going past the front of the building and they were on the first floor behind barred windows, said Sarah Nimmo-Scott, deputy divisional commander in the RNLI.

"In the end we had to get the fire brigade to basically break into Barclays Bank and they we shipped them out."

Gwenda Davies said was staying at a friend's home and both were trapped in upstairs. She described a "raging torrent" around six feet high in the lane outside the house.

"The water is now up to the downstairs ceiling and I can hear the furniture downstairs knocking on the ceiling," she said by phone. "The River Cocker is apparently one of the fastest flowing in the country apparently and we certainly know it now."

Tony Cunningham, MP for Workington, suggested the flood was “of biblical proportions” to be able to take down the Northside Bridge.

“I went down to the bridge last night and I’ve never seen the River Derwent as wide as it was," he said. “The force of the river was absolutely incredible. This is a stone bridge, to wash away a bridge of that size and dimension is incredible.”

The Army has now been called out to help the civilian emergency services to rescue people still trapped in their homes and begin to clean up as the water levels abate.

Mr Benn, who is in Cockermouth, said the while flood defences there had been strengthened recently, they were only built to withstand a "one-in-100-years flood".

"What we dealt with last night was probably more like one-in-a-1,000, so even the very best defences, if you have such quantities of rain in such a short space of time, can be over-topped," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

Gordon Brown, the Prime Minister, contacted the chief constable of Cumbria Police to offer any Government assistance he needs.

"Our thoughts are with all those who have been impacted by these floods and our thanks go out to the emergency services who continue in their extraordinary efforts to help the people affected," he said.

Flooding has also been reported in Cork where the River Lee has burst its banks, and there were reports that a family of five including an 87-year-old woman had to be airlifted to safety from their home in the early hours of the morning.

Flooding was also reported in north-west Wales and in Dumfries and Galloway in Scotland, and the inclement weather caused widespread distruption on trains and roads around the country as well as at sea, where gale force seven winds raged.

The Environment Agency Floodline service has received more than 12,000 calls from members of the public over the last 48 hours and issued more than 43,000 flood alerts via phone, text, email and fax.

It currently has six severe flood warnings in place - all in Cumbria - 29 flood warnings, and 65 less serious flood watches.

Julian Mayes, a forecaster with MeteoGroup UK, the weather division of the Press Association, said the rainfall in Cumbria was an "historical event".

Mr Mayes said the levels of rain were equivalent to five or six months of rainfall typically experienced over London and the south east of England.

"The fact that there's eight feet of water in some places is not that surprising," he said.

"Primarily, it's the sheer quantity in the last 36 hours that has caused the flooding.

"But in November the ground is saturated. The rain can't get into the soil, it just runs off.

"That means rivers rise very quickly and suddenly."

T'was the month before Christmas

They say what happens in America happens here eventually.........oh hang on! It seems in many areas it already has!

T'was the month before Christmas*
*When all through our land,*
*Not a Christian was praying*
*Nor taking a stand.*
*See the PC Police had taken away,*
*The reason for Christmas - no one could say.*
*The children were told by their schools not to sing,*
*About Shepherds and Wise Men and Angels and things.*
*It might hurt people's feelings, the teachers would say*
* December 25th is just a ' Holiday '.*
*Yet the shoppers were ready with cash, checks and credit*
*Pushing folks down to the floor just to get it!*
*CDs from Madonna, an X BOX, an I-pod*
*Something was changing, something quite odd!*
*Retailers promoted Ramadan and Kwanzaa*
*In hopes to sell books by Franken & Fonda.*
*As Targets were hanging their trees upside down*
*At Lowe's the word Christmas - was no where to be found.*
*At K-Mart and Staples and Penny's and Sears*
*You won't hear the word Christmas; it won't touch your ears.*
*Inclusive, sensitive, Di-ver-si-ty*
*Are words that were used to intimidate me.*
*Now Daschle, Now Darden, Now Sharpton, Wolf Blitzen*
*On Boxer, on Rather, on Kerry, on Clinton !*
*At the top of the Senate, there arose such a clatter*
*To eliminate Jesus, in all public matter.*
*And we spoke not a word, as they took away our faith*
*Forbidden to speak of salvation and grace*
*The true Gift of Christmas was exchanged and discarded*
*The reason for the season, stopped before it started.*
*So as you celebrate 'Winter Break' under your 'Dream Tree'*
*Sipping your Starbucks, listen to me..*
*Choose your words carefully, choose what you say*
*Shout MERRY CHRISTMAS, not Happy Holiday !*
Please, all Christians join together and wish everyone you meet

***HAPPY CHRISTMAS***


Christ is The Reason for the Christ-mas Season!

I Only hope we find GOD again before it is too late ! !

Remarks from CBS Sunday Morning - Ben Stein
I Only hope we find GOD again before it is too late ! !

The following was written by Ben Stein and recited by him on CBS Sunday Morning Commentary.

My confession:

I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees, Christmas trees. I don't feel threatened. I don't feel discriminated against.. That's what they are, Christmas trees.

It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, 'Merry Christmas' to me. I don't think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn't bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu . If people want a creche, it's just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.

I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period. I have no idea where the concept came from, that America is an explicitly atheist country. I can't find it in the Constitution and I don't like it being shoved down my throat.

Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that we should worship celebrities and we aren't allowed to worship God as we understand Him? I guess that's a sign that I'm getting old, too. But there are a lot of us who are wondering where these celebrities came from and where the America we knew went to.

In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this is a little different: This is not intended to be a joke; it's not funny, it's intended to get you thinking.

Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her 'How could God let something like this happen?' (regarding Hurricane Katrina). Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She said, 'I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone?'

In light of recent events... terrorists attack, school shootings, etc.. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found a few years ago) complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK. Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school. The Bible says thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.

Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave, because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed suicide). We said an expert should know what he's talking about. And we said okay..

Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.

Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with 'WE REAP WHAT WE SOW.'

Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell. Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says. Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing. Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace.

Are you laughing yet?

Funny how when you read this message, you will not tell many of your friends about it because you're not sure what they believe, or what they will think of you for drawing attention to it.

Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us than what God thinks of us.

Tell others about it if you think it has merit.

If not, then just disregard it... no one will know you did. But, if you disregard this thought process, don't sit back and complain about what bad shape the world is in.

My Best Regards, Honestly and respectfully,

Ben Stein

My thanks to my cousin Elfrieda in Florida for drawing my attention to this statement with much of which I fully concur!

Love & Sorrow with the Sparrows

I know this is anthropomorphic but nonetheless I liked it and hope you do as well

Here a female mate is injured and the condition is soon fatal.She was hit by a car as she swooped low across the road.



Here he brought her food and attended to her with love and compassion.


He brought her food again but was shocked to find her dead.




He tried to move her ... a rarely-seen effort for swallows! Aware that his sweetheart is dead and will never come back to him again, He cries with adoring love.



He stood beside her, saddened by her death.



Finally aware she would never return to him, he stood beside her body with sadness and sorrow.




Millions of people cried after seeing these photos in America, Europe, Australia, and even India. The photographer sold these pictures for a nominal fee to the most famous newspaper in France. All copies of that edition were sold out on the day these pictures were published.

And many people think animals don't have brains or feelings? You have just witnessed Love and Sorrow felt by God's creatures. The Bible says God knows when a sparrow falls & how much more He cares for us. Matthew 10:29 & 6:26

We WILL remember them!

The average British soldier is 19 years old…..he is a short haired, well built lad who, under normal circumstances is considered by society as half man, half boy. Not yet dry behind the ears and just old enough to buy a round of drinks but old enough to die for his country – and for you and for me. He’s not particularly keen on hard work but he’d rather be grafting in Afghanistan than unemployed in the UK . He recently left comprehensive school where he was probably an average student, played some form of sport, drove a ten year old rust bucket, and knew a girl that either broke up with him when he left, or swore to be waiting when he returns home. He moves easily to rock and roll or hip-hop or to the rattle of a 7.62mm machine gun.

He is about a stone lighter than when he left home because he is working or fighting from dawn to dusk and well beyond. He has trouble spelling, so letter writing is a pain for him, but he can strip a rifle in 25 seconds and reassemble it in the dark. He can recite every detail of a machine gun or grenade launcher and use either effectively if he has to. He digs trenches and latrines without the aid of machines and can apply first aid like a professional paramedic. He can march until he is told to stop, or stay dead still until he is told to move.

He obeys orders instantly and without hesitation but he is not without a rebellious spirit or a sense of personal dignity. He is confidently self-sufficient. He has two sets of uniform with him: he washes one and wears the other. He keeps his water bottle full and his feet dry. He sometimes forgets to brush his teeth, but never forgets to clean his rifle. He can cook his own meals, mend his own clothes and fix his own hurts. If you are thirsty, he'll share his water with you; if you are hungry, his food is your food. He'll even share his life-saving ammunition with you in the heat of a firefight if you run low.

He has learned to use his hands like weapons and regards his weapon as an extension of his own hands. He can save your life or he can take it, because that is his job - it's what a soldier does. He often works twice as long and hard as a civilian, draw half the pay and have nowhere to spend it, and can still find black ironic humour in it all. There's an old saying in the British Army: 'If you can't take a joke, you shouldn't have joined!'



He has seen more suffering and death than he should have in his short lifetime. He has wept in public and in private, for friends who have fallen in combat and he is unashamed to show it or admit it. He feels every bugle note of the 'Last Post' or 'Sunset' vibrate through his body while standing rigidly to attention. He's not afraid to 'Bollock' anyone who shows disrespect when the Regimental Colours are on display or the National Anthem is played; yet in an odd twist, he would defend anyone's right to be an individual. Just as with generations of young people before him, he is paying the price for our freedom. Clean shaven and baby faced he may be, but be prepared to defend yourself if you treat him like a kid.

He is the latest in a long thin line of British Fighting Men that have kept this country free for hundreds of years. He asks for nothing from us except our respect, friendship and understanding. We may not like what he does, but sometimes he doesn't like it either - he just has it to do.. Remember him always, for he has earned our respect and admiration with his blood.

And now we even have brave young women putting themselves in harm's way, doing their part in this tradition of going to war when our nation's politicians call on us to do so.