Its Halloween again and much as I dislike children I went out and brought a couple of bags of sweets. The doorbell has been ringing every five minutes for the last couple of hours and a succession of witches, vampires, skeletons and zombies have all gone away happy with some candy. The sweets have nearly run out now, so I guess its time to turn off all the lights and pretend I am not at home, after all I think I have made an effort.

I tried a bath melt from Lush last night. This one is called MMM Melting Marshmallow Moment. It is bright pink and smells like candy. I wasn't really expecting a lot from this small rather unexciting looking bath melt. When added to the bath it sunk straight to the bottom with none of the fizzing I have come to expect from bath ballistics which I usually purchase. The bath melt, however dissolves slowly over the course of about 15 minutes leaving a pleasantly coloured pink and lilac coloured bath. The candy smell is not overpowering and the water goes all creamy and and foamy. This is not a bath melt that can be enjoyed in a hurry, because it takes a while to dissolve you need to leave a good half an hour free to fully appreciate it. I found it a truly relaxing experience and the mixture of cocoa butter, almond oil, chamomile power and marshmallow powder left my skin really soft. I will be buying this again.

This is strange, its a cat that glows in the dark. The cat named Mr Green Genes has been genetically modified as part of an experiment which could lead to a treatment for cystic fibrosis. He looks like any normal cat until he is exposed to ultraviolet light, then he glows. Researchers made him so they could learn whether a gene could be introduced harmlessly into the feline's genetic sequence to create what is formally known as a transgenic cat. That's all very interesting but my main thought on reading the article was "cool a glowing cat".

This article highlights some toilets that are in rather unusual locations. This one is in the guard tower at Alcatraz. Other pictures include mountain top locations and even a toilet that is built into an aquarium. How strange.

We spent last weekend fitting laminate flooring in our dining room and today I am in pain. My whole body hurts so I guess I have used some muscles that don't usually get much use. I thought fitting laminate flooring was meant to be easy. All the instructions say that the pieces simply lock together. What the instructions don't tell you is that "lock together" actually means you have to hit them very hard with a mallet until they fit. The instructions also fail to mention the challenges that you face fitting the floor when the walls in your house are not straight. Sure the walls look straight but when it comes to lining up the first the few planks of flooring you suddenly realise that they are not. The job does get easier after you have put the first three rows of flooring down but it certainly took a lot longer than I expected. I now have another thing to add to my list of hated DIY jobs. Next time I might just buy a carpet.

This is interesting its a device to stop cold callers. Ironically it was invented by two ex telemarketers. The device is called TrueCall and it works by downloading information on commercial and scam numbers form the internet and preventing them from getting in contact with you. It can also block calls from people that you don't want to speak to. The system intercepts all calls and if it recognises them as a friend or family of the user it lets them through as normal. However, if the callers number is identified as a telemarketer or nuisance caller the device answers it with an automated message and the phone does not ring at all. Its not cheap at £99 but it looks like it could a solution to unwanted sales calls.

It appears people really will steal anything these days. This story comes from Jamaica where police are investigating the theft of hundreds of tons of sand from a popular beach. In July around 500 truck loads of sand were removed from outside a planned resort at Coral Spring beach. There are suspects, particularly people within the tourism sector, as a good beach is seen as a valuable asset to hotels on the island but no arrests have made since July leading to criticism of the police. The theft of the sand has meant that the plans for the resort have now been put on hold because the most important feature, the white sand beach has now disappeared. It must be fairly hard to hide thousands of tons of sand, I'm guessing it won't long before it shows up on a new beach somewhere.

This is interesting, it suggests that a herd of 200 cows produces as much greenhouse gas as driving a family car 3,000 miles. Dr Andy Thorpe of Portsmouth University said that 200 cows expel as much methane annually as the equivalent carbon dioxide emissions of a car burning 21,400 litres of petrol. He also says that whilst CO2 emissions have increased by 31% in the past 250 year, methane emissions have increased by 149%. Apparently methane has a greater warming effect than CO2 and also has a longer lifetime in the atmosphere as well as being responsible for a fifth of global warming since 1750. Around 55 to 70 per cent of methane comes from the farming of animals such as cows, sheep and goats which produce methane as they digest food. It makes me wonder what are the methane emissions of the human population? I suppose we could eat less meat and more vegetables but would that mean that we produce more methane?

A government think tank has come up with a "five a day" program designed to help people stay sane. The Mental Capital and Wellbeing report was compiled by Foresight. They believe that a small increase in levels of wellbeing can produce a large decrease in mental health problems. It suggests amongst other things connecting with others, being active, taking notice of your surrounding, learning and giving to neighbours and the community. The five steps from the article are listed below but can they really keep you sane?

Connect
Developing relationships with family, friends, colleagues and neighbours will enrich your life and bring you support

Be active
Sports, hobbies such as gardening or dancing, or just a daily stroll will make you feel good and maintain mobility and fitness

Be curious
Noting the beauty of everyday moments as well as the unusual and reflecting on them helps you to appreciate what matters to you

Learn
Fixing a bike, learning an instrument, cooking – the challenge and satisfaction brings fun and confidence

Give
Helping friends and strangers links your happiness to a wider community and is very rewarding

This is rather strange its a snake massage. Basically the snakes are placed onto the persons skin and as they crawl around they produce a massage sensation. Smaller snakes are used for delicate areas such as the face and larger snakes for other parts of the body. The snakes are all none venomous. If you fancy it prices start as £30. If you don't fancy a snake massage you can also get a rodent style message where mice and rats are placed on your feet. 

I get sick a lot less now that I don't have to commute on the tube everyday. Before that I was ill at least every few weeks and tended to have a constant cold all winter as I got another one each time the previous cold came to an end. I also suffered from frequent sickness bugs. I had assumed that all the illnesses were caused by being packed into a train with lots of people who were coughing or sneezing. It appears, however, that there are more bugs about than I originally suspected. This article suggests that one in four commuters has bacteria from faeces on their hands. It is based on a study carried out by scientists from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. They swabbed 409 people at bus and train stations in five major cities in England and Wales and found that many people do not wash their hands properly after using the toilet.  People who used the bus had dirtier hands than those using the train and manual workers were found to have cleaner hands than other professionals. The further north they went the more dirty hands they found with men in Newcastle being the worst offenders.

I came across this article about a stuntman who recently set the world record for the longest bicycle passage on a wire without a safety net. To set the record he cycled 235 feet along a wire suspended 135 feet above the street. Nik Wallenda performed the stunt in Newark and even managed to make a phone call on his cell phone half way through. This man is crazy I can't even cycle in a straight line on the ground.

It appears that some red squirrels are starting to develop an immunity to a virus which threatens to wipe out the population. Britain's native red squirrels are now only found in on the Isle of Wight and Brownsea Island. They have been under threat from a killer virus which was introduced by the non native but much more common grey squirrels. Recently eight red squirrels have been found that had an immunity to the squirrelpox virus which threatens the species. The red squirrels that were found with the immunity had died from other causes but were clear of the squirrelpox disease raising hopes that red squirrels have now developed a natural immunity.

Police have issued a warning to home owners in Surrey after a number of incidents where thieves have used cat flaps to steal valuables. In one incident a suspect was arrested after he went around the back of a house in Betchworth and reached through the cat flap to try and steal valuables. Police have advised home owners not to leave any valuables within easy access of cap flaps and to make sure they are adequately secured.

On Friday I went to see Spyski at the Lyric Theatre in Hammersmith. Whilst the play would not have been my first choice it was better than I expected. It started off as a production of The Importance of Being Earnest which as it turned out was a cover for the actual production of Spyski. The idea here is to create the feeling that the cast are actually telling you a true story but disguising it as another play so that the authorities do not detect it. The story recounts the events that the actors have experienced over the past week. The plot centres around the lead actor who stars in the cover production, he ends up in the same hospital as a Russian spy who has been poisoned and who eventually dies. Whilst in the hospital, however, the dying spy passes on his secret and the actor is suddenly thrown into a deadly plot. I won't divulge any more of the story, but will simply say that the acting was rather good, the storyline for me perhaps got a bit sketchy and lost at times but overall it was a funny and rather light hearted show.

This is interesting its a new procedure for people who want fuller eyebrows. The procedure involves shaving the hair from the back of the head, extracting the follicles and then implanting individual hairs into the brow area. It was previously only available in the US but if you fancy it, you can now get it in here in the UK for about £2,000. It sounds painful, I'm not sure its worth it just for the sake of fuller eyebrows.

This article suggests that smokers who regularly drink red wine could reduce their risk of developing lung cancer. Research suggests that smokers who drink at least a glass of red wine daily are 60 per cent less likely to develop lung cancer. Men who were heavy smokers, saw a greater reduction in risk with a 4 per cent lower likelihood of developing lung cancer seen for each glass of red wine consumed per month. White wine does not have the same benefits.

This article suggests that pets are good for you. Apparently owning a pet can reduce the owners chances of developing cancer by nearly a third. Studies carried out at the University of California, San Francisco and Stanford University in California have found that pets can help protect against cancer by boosting the immune system. Previous studies have also found that children that have pets take fewer days off school because they are much more resistant to infections. Based on this I should be very healthy I have lots of cats.

A married couple in Cambodia took drastic measures when they decided to separate. The couple who have been married for 40 years decided the most logical way to divide up their shared assets was simply to cut their home in half. The wife moved all of her belongings to her side of the house and her husband then sawed through the building to remove his side of the house which he plans to relocate to the other side of the village. It seems a little drastic but I suppose its one way of sorting out who owns what.

I'm not sure if anybody else finds them irritating but after recently installing Skype on a new computer, I found that it automatically adds call buttons to web pages when it thinks something is a phone number. It appears that this is a plug in that is installed for use with Firefox. It took me ages to find out where to turn it off but eventually I found it hiding in the tools menu under extensions. After disabling the Skype extension for Firefox those annoying buttons have gone and I am much happier.

I came across this article that claims the creators of the long running children's program Postman Pat are making a few changes. Traditionally Postman Pat and his cat Jess delivered mail in the Lake District but the creators of the show feel that it needs updating. Instead of delivering mail to the local people in his van, Pat will face a daily commute from Greendale into Pencaster where he will work in a new high tech sorting office. Pat will be provided with a helicopter and a stunt bike to help him complete his deliveries. I'm not entirely sure why a postman needs either a helicopter or a stunt bike, this certainly isn't Postman Pat as I remember it.

Well I won the lottery last night but unfortunately it was only £10 so I guess it won't change me. It is my first win for some time though and I guess it will pay for 10 more lottery tickets. Hopefully one of those will be a bit more lucky.

The cold summer may not have been that good for sun lovers but it has been good for sparkling wine. The summer has boosted the acidity in Cornish vineyards producing a much higher quality of sparkling wine than usual. Whilst the poor weather reduced the overall crop of grapes by around 80% the remaining grapes are perfect for making sparkling wine. The Camel Valley Vineyard will use them to make its wine called "Cornwall" which came second at the inaugural sparkling wine contest in Italy beating vineyards from Champagne but losing to Bollinger. This years bottling should produce and even better vintage that the vineyard owner believes could rival even France's best champagne. Now where do I buy some of this?

This is an interesting idea, its a parental control system for cars called MyKey. The idea is that parents will able to set limits such as adding a top speed that should not be exceeded and setting how the loud the stereo can go. Ford will introduce the controls on some US makes of car that will be go on sale in 2010. The Ford Focus will be the first car to include the MyKey system but it is likely to become a standard feature. The main feature of the system is that you can set the top speed of the car to 80mph. It also has other options such as setting a volume limit of the car stereo, making the car sound an alert if the passengers do not wear a seatbelt and setting warning tones if the car goes faster than 45, 55 or 65mph. The system is aimed at new drivers but I do wonder how many new drivers can afford a brand new car. The cars I had when I started driving struggled to go more than 80mph downhill with a following wind. In fact my current car would probably need a push.

When wine started flowing through the taps in a small Italian village it was hailed as a miracle because it coincided with Marino Grape Festival. During the festival the sparkling wine flows from the main fountain in the square, however on this occasion it came through local peoples taps. It turned out, however, that there was no miracle, the situation was down to a technical error with a plumbing problem at the local vineyard. An error had switched the pipes from the local vineyard into the domestic water supply rather than to the intended destination of the fountain. As word spread the local people filled buckets and plastic containers with as much wine as they could. Wine on tap, this sounds great.

This is a rather unusual story that I came across, it about a girl who suffers from a condition that means she bleeds spontaneously from her pores. Twinkle Dwivedi who is 13 loses blood through her skin without being cut or scratched. She has had to undergo several transfusions to replace her lost blood after it has seeped through here eyes, nose, hairline and the soles of her feet. She has also woken up covered in blood. Her family have consulted a number of doctors and even preachers but as yet no cure can be found for her condition which is thought to be caused by a rare platelet disorder.

Dolphins in a Japanese aquarium have been put on a diet because they have become too fat to do tricks. Kinosaki Marine World in Japan has put all of its 19 dolphins on a weight loss plan because they have been failing to hit jumping targets or keep upright whilst they are trading water. Under the plan they will eat more white fish and fewer fatty mackerels. They will also be put on a new exercise regime to help them try and shed the extra pounds.

This is strange its jewellery for eyes. The jewellery which comes in a number of designs including teardrops is made to hang on a wire from contact lenses. The designs are attached to the contact lens using medical wire and hang from the eye. They cost around £200 for the lens and jewellery attachment and are meant to be perfectly safe. Personally I think its a silly idea and would find it quite irritating to have something dangling from my eyeball.

This mobile phone built by Japanese firm Sharp Corp will allow people to unlock the door of their car and start their engine without using an ignition key. Cars equipped with the system will be able to sense when the correct key is nearby and will allow the engine to be unlocked. They will also allow the engine to be started once the device is inside the car. Nissan has shipped a million cars with the technology in Japan since 2002.

This is interesting, its an article that describes how ants display a preemptive response to danger. In a Brazilian ant colony some ants choose to sacrifice themselves for the good of the colony. At sunset, the colony will protect itself by sealing off the entrances with sand. The problem with this is that a few ants must choose to remain outside to complete the job. These ants will be unable to reenter once the nest is sealed and so will die when the temperature drops overnight. A behavioural ecologist found that as many as eight ants would remain outside the nests. The remaining ants, however, were not stragglers they stayed outside the nest to deliberately help to hide the entrances and would spend up to 50 minutes carrying sand into the hole until it was sealed. By the time the morning came the ants that had stayed outside were dead. It is thought that the ants who remained outside were old or sick ants that chose to sacrifice themselves for the greater good of the colony.

I came across this article today about a jacket which was on sale at TK Maxx. The jacket which is made by a Swiss firm contains a concealed knife on the inside pocket attached by a chain. The knife is a pocket penknife size and is meant as a promotional gift. I have since read that the coat has been withdrawn from sale in the UK but I do wonder why the store thought it was a good idea to stock this product when we hear stories of knife crime deaths daily. Surely selling jackets with concealed knives is sending the wrong message?

This is interesting its a solar powered bicycle. The device operates like a normal pedal cycle but has a canopy lined with solar cells overhead. As the user pedals along in the sunshine the rays charge a battery that powers a small electric motor in the back wheel. The battery can then power the bike forward at speeds of up to 15mph as well as lowering the resistance in peddling so that it is easier to cycle up hills. When the sun isn't shining the bike can be charged by plugging it into the mains. It is currently still only in the concept stage but the inventor hopes to find a manufacturer and mass produce it.

This article suggests that sitting still increases hunger. US researchers carried out a study where they monitored the appetite of a group of people who were asked to be active or inactive for day at a time. On the days when they were inactive the people were more hungry. Whilst the results are preliminary the study suggests that exercise decreases appetite whilst sitting still boosts it. I'm not sure how much truth there is in this but I defiantly eat more if I am bored and have nothing to occupy me.

Every one that flies into Britain will be offered a free cup of tea and a biscuit under a new plan. The man behind the idea is Mark Price the managing director of Waitrose. He plans to offer tea and biscuits at Terminal 5 for a trial period. He will offer 5,000 cups of tea a day to travellers in the arrival hall. The only sticking point appears to be what type of biscuit they should offer.

This device has been invented by Japanese inventors. Its basically a large human airbag that is designed to be used by elderly people. The vest contains sensors that detect whether the wearer is about to fall. Within 0.1 seconds of the sensors being triggered two airbags will inflate to the size of three footballs providing a soft padding for the back of the head and bottom. The device does have some drawbacks it only protects the wearer if they fall backwards, not forwards and at £700 it is a little expensive. It does also seem a little impractical to wear when carrying out day to day activities.

With my husband working hard on important project at work I find myself spending more and time at home alone with my four cats. Generally I have quite a few TV shows that I like to watch but when there is nothing else on I like to treat the cats to a nature documentary. Whilst this might make me sound like a crazy cat lady I do quite like nature documentaries. Not as much as my cats, though. They especially like documentaries about birds and watch every moment intently with their ears flicking constantly. They also make hunting noises at the TV when they see certain types of birds, usually songbirds which I guess they are familiar with seeing in the garden. Rather confusing, however, is that my cat Oliver has recently started making hunting noises when he sees Alan Titchmarch of the TV, why I don't know, but for some reason my cat wants to hunt him.