I want to get started. I picked out a theme. But now how do I proceed ?

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  mewidget · Member · Nov 24, 2013 at 2:52 pm

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  I want to get started. I picked out a theme. But now how do I proceed ? Sorry, but this is not clear to me at all.

  The blog I need help with is: (visible only to logged in users)

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  kevindevlin · Member · Nov 24, 2013 at 3:41 pm

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  A Million Dollar theory.

  PS Instructions for reading. Only to be read by persons with a million pounds to spare. You must be prepared to give it away without any financial inducement or repayment. I’ll be happy to email my bank details to any sponsor who fancies putting the theory to the test. To the financial poor in money terms but rich in pain and disability, read and see the funny side if you can.
  Good health and no physical or mental suffering are worth more than a million pounds. That’s what my old grand-mother used to tell me. She was a wise old bird, crippled with arthritis, but she had nothing like a million pounds to test her theory. Having tried the lottery, I find myself in the same predicament. Could it give me what I got from this night out?

  Yesterday evening I did something I’d never done before. It involved getting dressed and going out. Now getting dressed for me is a mighty long exercise. I’ll go into it another time. Before going however I’d had rather a stormy discussion with my main carer about what I was going to be doing. It did not end well with the result when I arrived at the venue; I was not feeling terribly like being social never mind getting anything useful from the evening’s activities. Nor helping anybody else. I left home on my disabled scooter and into the cold night air. In my basket were two bottles of champagne and a half bottle of port. I also had two wine glasses. The ticket for the event read, ‘Hot food provided, bring your own refreshment’. Now as the event was being held on church premises, and I not being very ‘holy, I wondered as I got nearer and nearer if my choice of refreshment was appropriate. I digress for a moment. I have just started attending my local Church of England Parish Church here in March. I started to go because I just love singing. I have been having singing lessons for the past two years as part of the treatment to keep my lungs clear. The Church I go to has a wonderful organist and I enjoy his playing while I sing. Back to the point. When I arrived I had to wait outside until I could attract some attention for assistance opening the doors to let me in. I had my bottles hidden under some towels and tea clothes. Into the main room I went, any worries about the booze I had brought disappeared as across table after table I could see a sea of bottles of wine, red bottles, white, some full, some less so.

  As it was my first time, I was a tad shy. I made my way to the only empty table in the hall. I parked my scooter and it stock of ‘refreshment’ as near as I could. I then transferred on a normal seat. This took a few moments and was very painful, par for the course. No sooner had I taken out one bottle of champagne, I was approached by a stern looking lady. ‘You’ll have to move when you have eaten’ she said. No introductions, no hellos, or thank you for coming, not even a smile. I made no reply. There was not going to any fun here tonight I thought. Never mind I stayed, but for only one reason. The numbers of those attending had in effect left me no way out, not even for the loo so I had to stay until the end.

  I enjoyed my meal, sausages and mash. Not just any old sausages. A mixture of three provided by our local butche in the town. If you have not tried it, champagne, painkillers and sausages go well together. The stern lady approaches, she sat down at the other end of the table. I watched as she opened her bag and produced one of those really old fashioned black cash boxes. Up went the screen at the other end of the hall, a laptop opened on a spreadsheet. A clue, she started to set up, then with a plastic container and without a word of introduction she started to give me small bags of money and told me to empty the contents into the plastic container. I did. Then she started to get back her stern voice. If you won’t move, ‘you can be my assistant’ she said. So there I was collecting in money from complete strangers, 50p on number 1, 50p on number two and any combination up to number 8. Have you worked out what event I was at yet? I’ll give you a clue; it involved some DVD’s and people ‘donating’ money to charity. NO, not karaoke thank you. They would approach the table I was now ‘working from’, buy tickets in any combination of numbers between 1 and 8. In addition, they would frequently buy tickets in multiples representing the older people ‘at their tables’. Into this plastic tray they would throw their money and I would give them their tickets and their change. I was starting to enjoy the evening. I even bought some tickets for myself.

  Two factors are important here. Firstly, I have never been a gambler, not even when I had spent a day at a race meeting many years before. I have always claimed that I would not ever put anything into one, nor would I take anything from one. The second factor, like many people, I have never won a raffle. Have to worked out what the evening was all about, or have you left me to ramble on? (Give yourself a medal if you are still here) It matters not as I am feeling much better since I started writing this blog. These strangers were becoming more and friendlier as they would visit me at the table either to buy more tickets for different races or to pick up their winnings. Some of those attending were more disabled that I am. Their efforts started to inspire me. I worked as fast as I could. I decided to check the tickets I bought. Over the evening, I paid out £32 pounds into this charitable event. After my winning tickets were checked, it transpired that I had won more than I spent. A first for me winning £43. I had earlier ‘bought’ a horse and without knowing who or what it was, I had won another prize for have sponsored the winning ‘race’. I was getting a real buzz.

  During the evening, the stern lady said that any losing tickets should be placed in a large plastic box. We must each put our name of them before throwing them in. This was to be a loser’s raffle. The lady cleric who runs the church was invited to draw out one ‘lucky’ winner. You need no prizes for working out who the winner was. The moral of this my tale is that even with disabilities, we can help others without planning it, even if we did not feel like it when we start, doing something for others gives me a buzz and it did just that. I had an evening of firsts. First time I had been to a ‘race night’, first time I won money on gambling, first raffle win. In the course of the evening, I had shared both bottles of champagne with my new friends and helped to raise much needed funds for the work of the church. I could now go home and face whatever was waiting for me with renewed vigor. Before I left, I put my winnings back into the funds. I had got more out of the evening that others. I got that buzz you can only get when we take time out of our own pain and suffering and looking to others, doing something for other less well off. Everybody knew I had won more than I spent. Nobody save one knew I had been true to my principles in respect of not gambling. Sorry, they call it a lottery’.

  Whatever they call it, I had 3 hours of considerably less pain without expecting it, or indeed planning it. I went back home off into the blackness of the night on my scooter the ‘richest man’ in town.
  Money, no matter how much we have can match up to the contentment of doing something for others and while so doing get relief from the constant pain. It’s a bit like a drug. Even the million dollar man could not have been as wealthy as I was just for those few hours if we accept that good health, pain relief both physical and for the inner being and doing something for others are more important than money. I do. Mind you I’ve never has a million pounds so I don’t really know for certain. If there is somebody out there who would like to fund the testing of that theory, I’d be glad to accept your million pounds or dollars as a gift but I cannot promise you would get it back.