Patch is going to hate it

Joey Jones5 Comments

The start to the new year always starts in the most horrible of ways. My poor boy will be cowering in the shower, trying his best to make himself as small as possible.

It’s only 4.45pm GMT, but already I feel a bit sick. Knowing what my lad will have to go through.

Fireworks, Noise, pollution, disruption. Why?

As a kid, I think I was never sure what it was all about. People around me going ooh and aarh. Yeah, a sparkler was nice, but hey, it was cold out there, never really got it.

And then as I grew I learned how wild and domestic animals really were affected. It’s not funny and it’s not clever.

This-

(later edit, I copied this and now can’t find the source to give credit)

“Millions of animals, including pets, farm animals, and wildlife, are significantly affected by fireworks, with studies showing over 80% of pet owners report negative impacts, and high percentages of dogs (around 41-62%) and horses (over 79%) experiencing fear, leading to distress, injury, escapes, and even death, due to the unpredictable, loud noises and flashes.


Impact on Pets (Dogs & Cats)
Fear & Anxiety: High percentages of dogs (41-62%) and cats show fear, trembling, hiding, excessive barking, pacing, and panting.
Escape & Injury: Many pets try to escape, leading to them getting lost, injured, or even killed. Lasting Trauma: Fireworks can cause long-term trauma and lasting stress.


Impact on Farm Animals & Horses
Extreme Distress: Horses and livestock experience severe anxiety, with one survey finding 79% of horses anxious around fireworks.
Fatalities: There are recorded cases of horse fatalities linked to firework panic.


Impact on Wildlife
Disorientation & Death: Birds and small animals can be disoriented, unable to find nests, leading to young dying from starvation or dehydration.


Habitat Disruption: Smoke, pollution, and debris from fireworks litter habitats and harm wildlife.


Why Animals Are So Affected. Heightened Senses: Animals hear and see sounds and lights much more intensely than humans.


Unpredictable Danger: The sudden, loud, and unpredictable nature of fireworks triggers survival instincts, making them seem like a massive, close-range threat.


Key Statistics
80% of pet owners report negative impacts from fireworks (USPCA poll).
62% of dogs show fear (RSPCA).
66% of animals are negatively impacted by private displays (RSPCA).

And that was just part of the report. Horrendous statistics.

Can you imagine what animals in war zones must feel like? No, neither can I.

Thank you Scottish Power

Joey Jones3 Comments

Yay! Scottish Power have just put £150 into my account as a gesture of goodwill. Rock and Roll!!

(It’s a cold weather payment to customers)

There are some captains of industry who give a damn.

My heart was warmed, and now is my home.

Was that your doing Keith Anderson? What a man!

Going back to my roots

Joey Jones12 Comments

What makes you feel nostalgic?

Anything connected to Birmingham-the UK’s second city makes me feel nostalgic.

We had such a lively music scene, ‘ town’ was vibrant day and night. I still feel fortunate to have been around to witness and be part of that era.

Hearing a Brummie accent on the radio makes me smile. It gets me every time. Not everyone can hack it, but that’s not my problem.

I love the dry sense of humour unique to the area. They are good people to be around.

The ‘Flower of Birmingham’ is the Foxglove

The motto of the city is Forward

Some of our muso’s

Roy Wood/Move/Wizzard

Jeff Lynne/ElO

Ozzy Osborne/Sabbath

Steve Winwood/Traffic

Toyah Wilcox

Ruby Turner

Ali Campbell/UB40

Joan Armatrading

Christine Mc Vie

Judas Priest

Duran Duran

Moody Blues

Dexys Midnight Runners

Ocean Colour Scene

The Streets

Spencer Davies Group

Editors

Fine Young Cannibals

Jamelia

About Brigitte Bardot

Joey Jones4 Comments

Some folk were quick to remind me that Brigitte Bardot was less than perfect, and she held views that were/are  certainly distasteful.

I don’t condone for a minute her unsavoury opinions, but did honour her passing for her absolute dedication to animal welfare. They don’t have a voice. How they treated is in the hands of humans.

Animal welfare is my passion, a way of life. I took it for granted people would pick up on that. My bad.

Listen to Caroline Flack

Joey Jones1 Comment

What relationships have a positive impact on you?

Thesedays it’s simply easy-going people I like to be around. A sense of humour does it for me, too.

I’ve had more than my share of the difficult, the ones who think they have got away with their passive aggression.

We are all complex souls and act in one way or another for a variety of reasons, I get that. And I blame myself totally for humouring folk in the past who think I fell off a Christmas tree.

My dad provided for us. We lived somewhere nice and were well fed, never cold, and with pleasant family holidays. But I still haven’t worked out why he had kids at all.

I felt us as siblings were just add-ons to the life he led along with his harem. Guilt tripping was rife with four wives( I mean he was married 4 times, lol) and a girlfriend or two thrown in for good measure.

It was constantly difficult for us to navigate our way through and around the characters and their personalities. None of them child friendly. Only my mom, who lived elsewhere, had any warmth.

And it’s warmth that attracts me today, people who give a damn about the world spining out of control, with leaders who should be locked up.

The ones who have compassion and understand how humans really mess with the lives and deaths of animals.

And in the words of Caroline Flack ( 1979~2020)

“In a world where you can be anything, be kind,”

Aston Villa FC and Emily Dickinson

Joey JonesLeave a comment

If you started a sports team, what would the colours and mascot be?

If it’s OK with you WP, I’ll simply stick with my original home team. Aston Villa FC. Claret & Blue. Hercules, the lion is the mascot.

..and guess what ? There is space on this page for the words of another. I know some of you are getting to love this poem as much as I already do.

Hope is a Thing with Feathers by Emily Dickinson ( 1830~1886)

“Hope” is the thing with feathers –
That perches in the soul –
And sings the tune without the words –
And never stops – at all –

And sweetest – in the Gale – is heard –
And sore must be the storm –
That could abash the little Bird
That kept so many warm –

I’ve heard it in the chillest land –
And on the strangest Sea –
Yet – never – in Extremity,
It asked a crumb – of me.

AI says..The poem uses an extended metaphor comparing abstract hope to a resilient bird that lives in the soul, singing wordlessly but powerfully, sustaining humans through life’s harshest “storms” (gales, chillest land) without ever asking for anything in return, emphasizing hope’s innate, selfless, and persistent nature as a constant, free companion that offers comfort and strength.

and words by W.H.Davies

Joey Jones5 Comments

How have your political views changed over time?

What hasn’t changed is that I find inequality a bitter pill to swallow.

‘World’s top 1% own more wealth than 95% of humanity’ (Oxfam,Sept 2024)

And now WP, with a space left on the page, allow me to fill it with the words of another.

No apologies for posting this again and again,and anyway, I know lots of you love this poem

Leisure, by W.H.Davies (1871~1940)

What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare?—

No time to stand beneath the boughs,
And stare as long as sheep and cows:

No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass:

No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night:

No time to turn at Beauty’s glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance:

No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began?

A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.

Picture this

Joey Jones10 Comments

You get to build your perfect space for reading and writing. What’s it like?

Deep in the woods is a little house. Smoke curls up from the chimney. A black cat with short white socks stretches on the front porch. A rocking chair is placed on either side of the freshly painted door. A soft turquoise, matte. Silver metal work gleams.

As the sun goes down, a light comes on and she appears. With a saucepan in one hand and a wooden spoon in the other  she gently bangs ( maybe ‘ gently bangs’ is an oxymoron? You tell me)  the two together, many times in succession. ‘ Kuti, Kuti, Kuti’ she calls, and an elderly Jack Russell appears, runs up the steps, brushes past her, and disappears inside. The cat follows.

The emerald of her fisherman’s smock, the blue of her Levis, and the mulicoloured paisley scarf tied around her head are a vision of grace. She turns and enters into the warm and cosy place she loves. The perfect writer’s retreat.

🎵 Baby, you can drive my car 🎶

Joey Jones4 Comments

What is your all time favorite automobile?

Errr… Maybe the old black BMW 3 series with a sunroof. The jags of yesteryear were nice, with that lovely chrome work and walnut dash. But they were heavy. Probably only do 3 minutes to the gallon, thesedays.

If you asked me what car I would like today, I’d simply ask for something reliable. Not one of the new bigger ranges where you have to dismantle the whole side just to change a headlight bulb.

When they first came out, I had the use of a brand new Juke. I loved that car! It was automatic too, which was fun. Almost drove itself. Had a problem with the transmissions at one stage. The lad at the garage told me that Nissan only use a cheap bit of plastic for the tube-thing.

Anyways, it eventually got written off in a car park with someone reversing into the side. Luckily I was inside the store at the time. ( Thesedays I see are driven by old people. 😂 So perhaps I won’t consider another.

I’ve mentioned the sunroof, err, grey please. Prefably with the £20 road tax. I guess that narrows my option, somewhat. There again, if I could afford a big show-off car, the cost of the tax wouldn’t bother me.

In the meantime, I’m happy enough in my little Peugeot 208. I have to use caravan steps to get Patch in and out of the back. But we manage..