How Times Have Changed

My cousin and I used to sit around our kitchen table, listening to my Grandmother regaling her tales.

She talked about the war a lot (with tears in her eyes), about bombs dropping, and the buzz bombs. She lost four brothers in two wars. My mother remembered the red skies from burning London.
The Second World War was the war to end all wars. But man has not changed his penchant for war, and wars continue today, advanced further by AI weaponry.

My grandmother was born in 1890. She was the family beauty. She also took ten years off her age, and we all believed her. It was only later that I found her birth certificate and was astounded.

I often wonder what she would do these days if she came back to our high-tech world.
She told us about the cat whisker radios and phones. Queen Victoria was the very first person to speak on the phone. Social media has now become our norm for communication.

As a child, I played in the sunny garden with an old-fashioned gramophone, and 78 records, hours of fascination. Then records were downsized, then tapes arrived, and the next best thing were CDs. Now we search on the internet for music. Music has evolved at a fast pace and many different styles. 

The global economy has shifted towards digital currencies. I no longer read a real newspaper as I once did on a daily basis.
There are government responses to pandemics, medical technology, and telehealth now exist.
Attitudes have changed towards gender, sexuality and race.
Have advancements moved us forward or backwards in many respects? Could you live happily without technology? Do you yearn for lost freedoms? Travel was much easier in the sixties and seventies. I was a huge globetrotter, but now I find airports and some aspects of travel a hassle.

ABBA - Money, Money, Money

The Byrds - "The Times They Are A Changin'"

Moccasin Creek - Porch Honky

What were the biggest changes in your life? What do you remember changing?

Communication on LFE is based on respect. We chat with friends, welcome music, memes, gifs, trailers and rarely, if at all, discuss politics or religion.

Lian & Kieran

Four And Twenty Blackbirds

I always wondered what happened to the birds in the dainty dish, were they eaten, after being baked?

Julie Felix - Going to the zoo

As a child, I loved visits to the zoo. I also used to take two little boys to the zoo. I thought it was fun.

I share the same birthday as a three-year-old I looked after. He too loved his day at the zoo. He boasted about his donkey ride, a good memory, although he was rigid with fear,

First stop, reptile house, not my favourite. A man next to us said, "I wonder what that big snake is? John turned round…That’s a python, silly! How I laughed.

I always considered zoos with large enclosures educational, and maybe happy places for animals.

But should unwanted pets be sent to the zoo?

I cannot understand how anyone could be cruel to a pet animal, let alone send it to be eaten. Animals deserve to be treated well and looked after. They have feelings, and I believe souls too.

I also looked forward to our annual summer holiday with the usual donkey ride galloping along the beach. I now wonder if the donkeys were treated well?

Certainly, for zoos, conservation could be one argument in favour of them.

As a teen, I read…My Family and Other Animals, a book written by Gerald Durrell. He certainly loved animals, and it was a good read, even though some of his insects got mixed up and used in his mother’s cooking jars. I became an avid fan of his books and his conservation zoo. Now I wonder.

Another point is zoos in war zones. Many caged animals starve or are left wandering the streets, their carers having fled the bombs of destruction.

Baha Men - Who Let The Dogs Out

Official War Horse Trailer

Katy Perry - Roar

Post memes, gifs, trailers, music, and chat with friends.

Lian and Kieran

Upside Down Weather

July is usually quite a hot month where I live, but this July has been the strangest ever, without explanation from weather sites!? It has been exceptionally hot with temperatures reaching 42c and 46c. However, two nights ago we had cold strong winds resulting in a blanket to sleep with. This morning I woke up up shivering with cold as the French windows were open. Believe it or not 25c feels cold with a drop in temperature to 25. Most welcome during the rising heat in the days with a cool breeze with high temps. Fires have raged in Greece and Cyprus. My friend’s car battery caught fire in the heat of the day yesterday.
The weather is upside down and unpredictable. Usually August and September stifle with relentless heat night and day. We will see come August.
Snow was reported in Germany a few weeks ago.

Farmers insurance: mer-mutts 🌊🐶 (2016/17)

A Russian earthquake caused tsunamis in Japan. Torrential rain caused flooding in Chicago, pets had to be rescued swimming around inside their homes. An owner caught endangered pets swimming around. Texas also had floods.
Our weather is upside down. What is the cause?
Unfortunately, it isn’t raining men, and insurance companies don’t always pay out when needed.

The Weather Girls - It's Raining Men

Due to the very hot recent weather, the sea is too hot to swim in, and much of the beautiful sea has warnings not to swim due to contamination. Many tourists end up in the hospital with burns!

Have you had problems with outlandish weather? Dealing with insurance companies?

How do you protect yourself from the sun in hot weather? In small doses, the sun heals the skin, and hospital patients need windows and light. Many hospital wards here don’t have windows; patients near windows do get better more quickly.

We all love summer days with sunshine, but not when it's too hot. Animals can also suffer from heat or cold. Take care of pets in severe weather conditions.

The Shocking Truth About the Sun They Never Taught You

Brook Benton - Rainy Night in Georgia

Vivaldi - Storm Extended

Welcome to LFE…The aim is to enjoy and contribute, chat with friends. Respect all commenters.

Lian and Kieran

Are You Destiny’s Child? Or Is Your Destiny Laid Out For You And Unchangeable?

Come on Inner Peace!

Do you believe in destiny or fate? Or do you believe in Karma? Karma is balance.
Karma you can change, by action word or deed. Are the two intertwined?

Every thought word or deed is recorded in the universe. You can’t eradicate anything that you have done, but prayer, chanting, meditation, and positivity, can lessen karmic retribution.

You can change much in your life, but always have a goal and be aware that sometimes to examine or change of part of your character is necessary to obtain that goal. Challenge your life.

Then there is the question of coincidence, is there such a thing? Personally I don’t believe in coincidence.

Instant karma seems to be in newspapers these days, it would be a rare event, it can take a lot of work to change a negative aspect of your life that is problematic.

Imagine is a beautiful song by John Lennon, and today’s reality of open borders is very much in the news, the reality appears to be very different, some refugees are living in first class hotels, some cause riots, and some are not prepared to blend with their hosts or their hosts culture.

This is not an ideal world..yet we must strive for the world we need or want.

Let me read your palm.

There are many songs from the sixties about love, destiny or Karma…The Beatles, the Stones, and many more groups searched these themes. The world was a more positive place.

Hans Zimmerman - Dune, Time Of Quiet Between the Storms

Culture Club - Karma Chameleon

Destiny’s Child - Say My Name

Emerson, Lake & Palmer – In The Hot Seat

So post memes, gifs, chat with friends and enjoy!
Try to avoid politics. Respect all posters.

Lian and Kieran