Jenjie

I learned that you don't want to be in a position needing car repairs at Christmas

don't be gone too long!!

This makes me so mad! :angry: I couldn't get legal aid when I needed it as I apparently earned too much, so why should he get it for injuries sustained when he was breaking the law. its completely ridiculous!

The ringleader of a plot to steal diamonds from the Millennium Dome will get legal aid to sue the police. William Cockram and three other men tried to snatch £200m worth of diamonds from the site in Greenwich, south east London in November 2000. Cockram has now issued a writ against the Metropolitan Police, saying he was assaulted by officers during the raid. Cockram, from Catford, south east London, was jailed for 18 years in 2002 for the attempted robbery. In a statement, the Legal Services Commission said: "We cannot differentiate between applicants for legal aid on the grounds that a decision to grant funding may be unpopular in a particular case." Russian mafia The Flying Squad mounted its biggest ever operation in history when foiling the plot. More than 100 armed officers lay in wait as the gang ram-raided their way into the Thames-side tourist attraction on a JCB earthmover. The raiders, armed with sledgehammers, a nail gun, ammonia and smoke grenades, were caught by armed police inches away from seizing jewels from the De Beers diamond exhibition vault. Officers were lying in wait because they had feared a major robbery was being planned and the Dome was under surveillance as a potential target. Police believed there was already a potential buyer lined up for the real diamonds, possibly arranged through the Russian Mafia. One theory was that the Millennium Star was wanted by an Arab collector. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/6203731.stm

black cherry and chocolate trifle

And you were perfectly entitled to be in a bad mood. Just coz you knew it was coming doesn't make it any easier. If you're good friends with someone it leaves an inevitable gap.

Hammond tells of 'lost two weeks' Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond has said the two weeks after he was in a high speed crash are a blank. In his first TV interview since the crash which almost cost him his life, Hammond told Jonathan Ross's chat show the only injuries were to his brain. Hammond's dragster went out of control at nearly 300 mph at Elvington airfield, near York, in September. "I was driving and then it was two weeks later and I was in Leeds (hospital)," he said. "There was a sense of 'oh bugger'," he added. "Apparently I was awake on the way to the helicopter and I got a bit fighty, I wanted to do a piece to camera, but my eyes were pointing in different directions. "I have no recollection of that, or the first few weeks. I sort of heard stuff going on but I wasn't in it (a coma) for very long. "I had post-traumatic amnesia, five-second memory, it happens as a result of brain injury. "In hospital I was completely useless. I'd look at the menu and order my favourite, cottage pie. "Five minutes later it arrived and I said that's great, it's my favourite, how did you know?" Drinking ban But he made a speedy recovery and instead of remaining in hospital for 15 months, as doctors predicted, he was out in weeks. Hammond assured Ross he was completely recovered and was looking forward to returning to Top Gear. The only long term problem, he said, was the doctors had said he could only drink small amount of lager. "I'm sending Mindy (Hammond's wife) to try and negotiate that," he joked. Friday Night with Jonathan Ross is broadcast on Friday at 2235 GMT on BBC One. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6201247.stm

quite easily. you can continue having periods right into pregnancy, and if you're carrying the baby a certain way you wouldn't realise. When a friend of mine was pregnant, nobody knew because she carried the baby really high so there was no real bump, it just looked like she'd put on a bit of weight around her waist. and some really lucky people don't get morning sickness or other symptoms

thanks for that!! they announced it on the bbc website at exactly 17:00 just as I was logging off to go home

:laugh3:

:D

:D

no problem :) we're just awkward over here!!!

The UK's fertility regulator has amended a licence to allow stem cell researchers to recruit egg donors not already having medical treatment. A world expert criticised the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority for making the decision during a public consultation on the issue. The HFEA has defended the decision, and stressed that it will not affect the outcome of the consultation. The process of human egg donation involves potential health risks. Earlier this year, the team in Newcastle was awarded a temporary licence to offer discounted IVF treatment if patients donate eggs for research. It has emerged that the team was granted the UK's first licence to begin recruiting female donors who are not already having medical treatment in November - even though the HFEA's public consultation on the issue didn't finish until early December. 'Improper decision' Leading stem cell scientist, Dr Stephen Minger, from King's College London, criticised the awarding of the licence. He said: "Although I support this research, I am flabbergasted that the licence was given before the consultation process was completed. It seems very improper. "It begs the question - what is the point in having a consultation? "Why should women undergo this procedure to donate material for something where we have no idea yet how efficient therapeutic cloning with human eggs is?" Professor Alison Murdoch, from the Centre for Life, Newcastle, which has been granted the licence to use altruistic donations said: "I think it's probably very unlikely that we will get many women coming forward, because of the procedures that are involved and the potential risks that might be involved there. "But I believe very firmly in women's choice, and if we give these women full info about what the research is about, and about the risks that they incur in participating in this research, I think we should take their decision as it stands." The authority said the licence could be reviewed if the consultation resulted in a new policy which did not favour this type of egg donation, known as altruistic donation. The HFEA said in a statement: "The intention is to be ready to produce a policy by late February. "The recent decision to allow one centre to carry out altruistic egg donation for research will not affect the outcome of the consultation. "The centre agreed to provide the HFEA with regular information on their work in the meantime to inform our decision making. "The HFEA has a statutory obligation to consider research applications as they come in and therefore must deal with them." Dr Evan Harris, a Liberal Democrat member of the Commons Science and Technology Select Committee, said: "The medical risks of egg donation are low enough for women to be allowed to volunteer to donate for research, just as they can for the treatment of others, especially given the shortage of eggs and embryos." http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6197679.stm

bein Chester Zoo, it wouldn't surprise me in the slightest

She's 15. year 11 is the name for the school year she's in, sometimes called fifth year.

The largest lizards in the world are capable of "virgin births". Scientists report of two cases where female Komodo dragons have produced offspring without male contact. Tests revealed their eggs had developed without being fertilised by sperm - a process called parthenogenesis, the team wrote in the journal Nature. One of the reptiles, Flora, a resident of Chester Zoo in the UK, is awaiting her clutch of eight eggs to hatch, with a due-date estimated around Christmas. Kevin Buley, a curator at Chester Zoo and a co-author on the paper, said: "Flora laid her eggs at the end of May and, given the incubation period of between seven and nine months, it is possible they could hatch around Christmas - which for a 'virgin birth' would finish the story off nicely. "We will be on the look-out for shepherds, wise men and an unusually bright star in the sky over Chester Zoo." Flora, who has never been kept with a male Komodo dragon, produced 11 eggs earlier this year. Three died off, providing the material needed for genetic tests. These revealed the offspring were not exact genetic copies (clones) of their mother, but their genetic make-up was derived just from her. The team concluded they were a result of asexual reproduction, and are waiting for the remaining eight eggs to hatch. Abnormal phenomenon? Another captive-bred female called Sungai, at London Zoo in the UK, produced four offspring earlier this year - more than two years after her last contact with a male, the scientists reported in the same paper. Again, genetic tests revealed the Komodo dragon babies, which are healthy and growing normally, were produced through parthenogenesis. Sungai was also able to reproduce sexually, producing another baby offspring after mating with a male called Raja. Richard Gibson, an author on the paper and a curator at the Zoological Society of London, said: "Parthenogenesis has been described before in about 70 species of vertebrates, but it has always been regarded to be a very unusual, perhaps abnormal phenomenon." It has been shown in some snakes, fish, a monitor lizard and even a turkey, he said. "But we have seen this in two separate, unrelated female Komodo dragons within a year, so this suggests maybe parthenogenesis is much more widespread and common than previously considered." He added: "Because these animals were in captivity for years without male access, they reproduced parthenogenetically. "But the ability to reproduce parthenogenetically is obviously an ancestral capability." He said the lizards could make use of the ability to reproduce asexually when, for example, a lone female was washed up alone on an island with no males to breed with. Because of the genetics of this process, he added, her children would always be male. This is because Komodo dragons have W and Z chromosomes - females have one W and one Z, males have two Zs. The egg from the female carries one chromosome, either a W or Z, and when parthenogenesis takes place, either the W or Z is duplicated. This leads to eggs which are WW and ZZ. WW eggs are not viable, but ZZ eggs are, and lead to male baby Komodo dragons. And like Sungai, she would be able to switch back to sexual reproduction, so she could breed to establish a new colony. There are fewer than 4,000 Komodo dragons in the wild, and they are found in three islands in Indonesia: Komodo, Flores and Rinca. Adult males can grow up to 3m (10ft) in length and weigh up to 90kg (200lb) - making them the biggest lizards on the planet. The researchers said that, to ensure genetic diversity of Komodo dragons kept in captivity, zoos should perhaps keep males and females together to avoid asexual reproduction. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/6196225.stm

A 15-year-old girl has given birth at a school in Bradford. The baby was born in a medical room at St Joseph's Catholic College in Cunliffe Road on Friday, a school spokesman said. An ambulance was called but the girl had given birth by the time it arrived. The Year 11 pupil is not thought to have known she was pregnant. Spokesman for the Catholic Diocese of Leeds, John Grady, said the girl and her baby were "fine". "It is something that will be talked about for some time but we are just happy that the girl is OK, the baby is OK, and hopefully they will be home this weekend and spend Christmas at home," he said. "It is not going to help to go moralising on the whole situation. That is not important, what is important is that the child and the baby are fine and everything is being done for them and their parents." Mr Grady said the head teacher had met the girl's mother and preparations had been made for her to return to school and continue with her education. http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_yorkshire/6193021.stm

A fire has destroyed the home of Lost actress Evangeline Lilly in the town of Kailua on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. No one was at the rented residence at the time of the blaze and no one was injured - though most of its contents was destroyed, according to AP. "Evangeline was on set already when the fire occurred," her publicist has confirmed. "Luckily, her roommates were not in the house either." Lilly, 27, plays crash survivor Kate Austen in the hit US drama. The Canadian actress is reportedly engaged to her British co-star Dominic Monaghan. The fire broke out around 0630 local time on Wednesday. According to a spokesman for the Honolulu Fire Department, the house was "fully involved" in flames by the time firefighters involved. "We stopped the fire from spreading," he said. "It took us maybe 15 to 20 minutes to knock down the main body of fire." Only the roof and a couple of interior walls were left standing, said reports. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6199517.stm

at this moment it is 8am here. and its 9pm in New Zealand

So, what I was saying before the board rudely kicked me off.... Its really crap when a good friend moves away, but it can also be the test of a true friendship. I have two close friends who I can no longer see very often. One I used to work with, then we both moved jobs, and its difficult to get time together anymore. The other has moved to Newcastle. With both of them I've found that no matter how long we're apart, it always seems like only yesterday we were together when we meet up again. We always slot straight back into place with no awkward silences or any problems. So long as there's livejournal, msn, email & text we keep it going! Is there a group of friends that you hang around in together? Maybe if he got to know you, he might not be so worried and more likely to be agreeable?

I wrote you a lovely long reply to this, but had to take a call before I could post it, so the stoopid board has kicked me out and eaten the reply in the process. Will post again properly when I get home.

its the months! If you were slightly more sad than I am, you can set it up from 26th Dec 2006 and it'll count down until it hits dec 25th 2007. As it was, I only set mine up about 40 days before christmas

its not as if you're slagging off him personally, sounds more like you're habing a go at the subject and your fellow students. even if he talks to you about it, I'm sure he can see the funny side of you accidently sending your private notes rather than the 'official' version.

yes, and http://www.bbc.co.uk/celebdaq/