Sunday morning 8-55.a.m. I lost out on my morning walk with Skipper this morning. I woke up at 1.50 a.m. to listen to the boxing on the radio and didn’t get back to sleep. Barbara is presently walking Skipper at Langness. It’s a bad forecast for tonight, though they are talking of wind speeds of 70/80 mph with heavy rain and big tides. The last forecast said the wind would be from the Southeast which is not as bad as it would be if they were blowing from the Southwest. Of course those of you who live in Douglas will have a different point of view. Well just 3 days to go now before the second course of chemo. I will simply be relieved now if I make it to Wednesday without picking up a cold or something. I will be sent home if I turn up there with a cold or virus of any kind, so, I have to be very careful over these next three days.

I guess all I have to do is sit tight and be lazy. Talking of being lazy, I have often been asked as to when I might write another book. The answer is, basically I am too lazy. Writing a blog is much easier. For one thing when you are writing a book you know that nothing you write will appear in print for at least 6 months. Also you have to be so much more careful in what you might say in a book compared to a blog. How many times have you come across people who resolve an argument by seeking the answer in a book? I have yet to hear of anyone who tried to resolve an argument by checking out a blog. That is not to say, I am filling my blog with lies and my book contained nothing but the truth. I think a few white lies might be found in both. The book of course was a local publication whereas a blog has no boundaries whatsoever. Indeed there well may be someone right now reading my words on Mars. Even though my book was only sold on the Isle of Man, my first contact was from a reader in Sam Palo in Brazil.So, I will stick to blogging for now, if there is an easy way of doing something I am as lazy as the next man.

I guess we need lazy people, they always will find an easy way of doing something. If my first boss wanted a job doing quickly in his factory he would give the job to the laziest person, as according to him they would find the quickest way of doing it.

In the 1960’s my dad used to empty coal boats in Castletown. Sometimes he had to work with a man who (according to Dad), when it was cold, “was too lazy to shiver”. Sometimes though, the quickest way of doing something can go hopelessly wrong because of forgetfulness or stupidity.

Paddy Murray was an Irish man who came to Port Erin for work from Dublin back in the 1930’s. He was brought here by a Mrs Kelly, to thatch the roof on her cottage. Mrs Kelly also owned a fleet of rowing boats she rented out during the summer months. At the end of the summer, the boats would be collected up and brought up to the top of the harbour for the winter. Mrs Kelly had asked Paddy to collect the rowing boats and row them to the top of the harbour. Paddy being the resourceful Irishman decided the quickest way to get the boats to the top of the harbour was to tie all 6 boats together. This would make a train and Paddy would only have to row the boat at the front. This was fine and Paddy set off rowing with great gusto. After several minutes Paddy had made little or know progress and was sweating like a pig, when he heard the harbour master calling out from the quay. “Paddy, your stern boat is still tied to the quay!” “Is that right”, said Paddy. “Be Jasus it’s a good job you were atellin’ me, for otherwise I’d have pulled the quay from under your feet.” Well that’s my blog for today people, something throughout the course of today will inspire me for tomorrows. Can I just finish by saying to anyone who has packed in smoking today and feels they are gasping for a smoke, just remember, it is better to be gasping for a smoke than gasping for life.

No one knows this better than I do. Any kind of therapy now, is better than chemo therapy later. In three weeks time the smoking ban will have come in and, I would have been joining you outside on the pavement. The trouble is, cancer beat me to it. Don’t let it beat you as well.

I am not a sinner turned saint; I’m still a sinner with one less sin.

Tom