Had lunch - how's about a walk?

Polish Lowland Sheepdogs allergies - colitis

I'd like to say that we always use homeopathic remedies when treating the boyz allergies or illnesses. However , as far as I'm concerned the jury is still out as to whether they work. We have tried Sulfur Heel for the ear scratching but Zymox, which is decidedly non-homeopathic is the only thing that experience has shown is proven to work. Wilf suffers from stress and my recent trip away from home has brought on his stomach upset and colitis. Our marvellous vet has introduced us to a natural remedy that works and works quickly - Nux Vomica. Despite my initial scepticism 10 drops of this liquid put on his dinner cures the symptoms very quickly with no side effects. Highly recommended.

Terminal 5 - better to arrive in than depart ?

Took the Heathrow Express to the airport yesterday morning. As always it left on time and took me straight to Terminal 5 in comfort, punctually and with the minimum of hassle. Cost was $50 for a return ticket which isn't cheap - but I guess you pay for efficiency.

London's Terminal 5 has had a bad press but it's now functioning smoothly - when you arrive at least. I was off the plane from Rome on Tuesday and through immigration within 5 minutes and on the Heathrow Express to the centre within 10.

Departing yesterday morning was another matter. No sooner had I arrived at the security lines than the staff closed up that section for their morning break and directed us to the security lines at the other end of the airport. Believe me, that terminal is quite a walk from end to end when you're carting luggage. The screening staff at security , when you eventually get there, have developed a peculiarly hectoring manner ' Get your liquids ready - Get your liquids ready now!' is the brusquely shouted mantra that greets you when you get to the x-ray machine. I almost thought they were going to start yelling Raus! Raus!

Security wouldn't let me carry my passport with me - which I think must be a first at any airport I've ever been through. Working all day at security must be a thankless task but Terminal 5 has trained their people to provide one of the most charmless impersonal services imaginable. I wonder why British Airways, who operate out of Terminal 5 , doesn't raise the service levels with the British Airports Authority - does no one recognize what a bad reflection of Britain and the British this lack of civility generates? At Kennedy or LAX the staff face the same pressures but don't descend into rudeness or assume a warden style approach to passengers. Security at Rome can irritate with its lack of logic, particularly in high summer, but the staff always retain a sense of humanity and decency. Britain seems to have lost something in its quest for efficiency.

BA to Rome left on time both going and returning and arrived early both ways. The airline has its detractors but I'm not one of them.

Gain shall take the place of loss (part 7)

Random thoughts on the economy picked up from the papers

'Layaway' a purchasing arrangement dating back to the 1940's is making a comeback with US shoppers.

Who really flies with Low Cost Carriers? The richest 18% of the UK population buy 54% of airline tickets, the poorest 18% buy 5%.

China overtook Germany to become the world's 3rd largest economy after the US and Japan. By gross domestic product per head China ranks 122nd in the world.

Eurozone industrial production in November fell 7.7% from the same period last year.

Mumbai ranks 7th on the list of world cities with the largest number of billionaires (20 with an average worth of $7.6
bn).

London - the recession is now biting

Travelling around it seems to me from purely personal observation that the US is in the eye of the economic storm, the UK is just entering it and the Europeans haven't woken up to what is happening.

In London with the exception of American and European tourists enjoying the collapse in the value of the pound the shops were not as busy as I had expected them to be at the height of the January sales. Clothes that I had seen in Jermyn Street in December were now being marked down 50% but the buyers were primarily from outside the UK - the accents in the stores were primarily New England, Swedish and German. The pictures taken on the camera phone give a pretty good indication of how quiet London was at 11.00 am. It wasn't Armageddon but certainly much quieter than usual. One cab driver told me his takings were down 30% from the same time last year and would have been lower if it wasn't for the influx of tourists on weekend shopping trips.