saturday afternoon

Decided not to throw the laptop over the 7th floor parapet as, tempting and enjoyable it would have been, it would have curtailed the internet doings of more than just myself, so thought I'd better not. Very Jeremy Bentham of me, you may say, but sometimes you just have to bite the bullet. And it isn't my computer, that was a consideration. But I will now be more circumspect in using the spellchecking facility. It wasn't very good anyway, being based, it seems, on an American kindergarten dictionary and thus any word over 2 syllables or seven letters was automatically flagged. I'm trying to thik of an example, but daren't try it again in case it freezes agan, so you'll just have to take my word for it.

Anyway, it is saturday afternoon and I find myself with a spare few minutes before heading into 'town' to watch the Wallabies and All Blacks bash lumps out of each other in a lively hostelry known as the clubhouse. This was chosen as the clientele is predominantly antipodean, which should make for a good atmosphere, a sort of sine qua non if you will, for watching these sorts of games. (Think I used that bit of Latin properly, read it in a textbook earlier today and didn't have the foggiest)

But spare a thought for those who are unable to watch the rugby today. Specifically a chap who works for us who had to be taken to a pyschiatric hospital this week as he has a nervous breakdown and manic depressive psychosis. Not a pleasant thing to have at the best of times, but in Japan I think it must be even worse. Some of you may remember the chap I came out here with, Andy, back in 1996. He went mad as well. Is it me? Am I driving people to these ends? Well, not this chap as I don't really know him, but I have met him and done some training a while ago, so you never know. Anyway hope he gets better soon, especially as out health insurance policy doesn't actually cover in-patient pyschiatric problems, which could prove expensive for this chap. But get this, the policy does cover out patient treatment of the same kind, which seems a bit back to front to me. I mean, this chap is in a bad way, but if he was an out patient he could at least fly back to the UK and get treatment there, but now he is confined to a hospital so can't leave so will be racking up huge bills that he can't get out of even if he wanted to try. Doesn't seem quite fair to me.

Goodness this has turned into a bit of a rant. Didn't mean it to, so apologies, but, well, I hope you can see my point. (Just in case you're wondering, I checked over a couple of other ex-pat health insurance policies and all seem to say the same thing, so looks like you're a bit buggered if you lose your marbles in a big way over here).

Quick comment in answer to big golf playing Brother's comment on the last post, no there was nothing about golf in the post that disappeared. There is seldom anything in my posts about golf, what with it being one of the more ridiculous pastimes invented by the Scottish. But I'll tell you what, sometime, in the next few weeks, I'll wite somehthing about golf that isn't too rude, how about that?

Right, I'm off to the pub. Not really sure who to shout for today as whoever wins will be hard in the final. Let's hope rugby is the winner...

(PS no spellchecking to be done, so apologies for any typos)