Here in Blighty we've just had Guy Fawkes Night. Or more usually because history in schools isn't really taught any more, Firework Night. It seems odd to me that we celebrate a failed terrorist attempt to blow up the Houses of Parliament, but there you go.

There's a shop down the road from me that caters for fancy dress and parties. I've not been in there, but there's always a fascinating window display and with Halloween, all sorts of rubber monstrosities appear. I especially like the old wizard. One day I'll pop in and ask if I can buy him.

However, the arrival of Guy Fawkes Night meant that fireworks were on sale. Back when I was a kid there were television campaigns to get you to buy entire arsenals of gunpowder filled cardboard tubes. 'Standard Fireworks' pretty much seemed to have had the market to themselves.

These days such adverts are not allowed. I'm suprised you can still buy fireworks at all. Imagine my suprise then when the local fancy dress shop advertised 'Buy One Get One Free' not only across their windows, but on a placard out in the street. They're almost giving the things away. So what happened to Fireworks Night? I hardly heard a bang.

Pep It Up Guys

I see the Vatican had finally realised that church services are considered a bit dull. That's an understatement. However the catholic church was always an organisation that takes itself a bit seriously. I find it a bit hard to imagine the Pope making one of his appearances at the window of the Vatican in true James Brown style, or the local vicar leading a christian rock band to the point where old ladies queue up to dive off the stage into the crowd. So The Blues Brothers were prophets after all?

Nope. Still not interested in becoming a christian. It's been two thousand years people - can you not get it right yet?

Made It Back

Congratulations to the Russian team for simulating a 500 day manned mission to Mars. I'm not sure why I want to congratualte them for serving a sixteen month jail sentence in a science laboratory, but everyone else is, and I guess if rehabilitating prisoners means making them do useful things like getting fired into long space voyages, well so be it.