Peter Warrender

Peter Warrender's interests are varied and include music, archaeology, ecology, astrology, world and local politics and alternative therapies.

He will be blogging on a variety of subjects, from local politics, eco living, farming, weather, health, the UK financial situation, and general goings on effecting Pembrokeshire living.

Peter Warrender's interests are varied and include music, archaeology, ecology, astrology, world and local politics and alternative therapies.

He will be blogging on a variety of subjects, from local politics, eco living, farming, weather, health, the UK financial situation, and general goings on effecting Pembrokeshire living.

Latest articles from Peter Warrender

An illness from Hell!

After a few days working in the garden, and taking rubbish to the local tip, I notice a few bites on my waistline.  I thought they were midge or Mosquito bites, but they turned out to be far worse problematic.  My wife and I had to go and look after my mother who is suffering from Alzheimer’s. It was an 8 hour journey on slow coach Arriva, I felt uncomfortable on the way up, with not a clue of what was about to happen to me.  We retired early after our long trek, only for me to wake up about half three in the morning, with excruciating pain all around my side.   It felt like my ribs were broken  and my skin was on fire along with what felt like someone was repeatedly stabbing me in the side with a blunt knife.  I had to get up and sit in the chair downstairs for a bit or just walk about to stop this endless pain.  I had contracted Shingles, I have never had them before and hope will never get them again.  You cannot lie down without diabolical pain with a feeling like someone had doused you in petrol and set it alight, the pain came in waves the pain was so bad it made me feel sick. The next morning I travelled about 20 miles to a health food shop that I was a customer of, we arrived only to find they had closed down.  I need some health supplements to ease this pain from hell.  On returning back to my mother’s house, I scoured the internet for health food shops, the only one I could find was about 25 miles away.  Next morning we set off on our quest to the shop, we arrived a few hours later only to find an earlier traffic accident had put in the shops windows resulting in the shops closure.   Shingles are bad enough on their own without all this fruitless travel. That evening my daughter informed us about another health food shop in the centre of Manchester, this time I had a telephone number to check if they were open, they were.  I obtained some Oregano oil capsules, DSMO, Tea Tree oil, Cayenne Pepper, enabling me to make a potion for dabbing on to the Shingles and a mix to consume also. I did get some light relief, but the burning itchy skin continued for a few days after.  I would not wish Shingles on my worst enemy; it is definitely an illness from Hell.

Infested by Pugs : )

Charlie Pug seemed to be lonely and needed constant attention he wants to be with someone 24/7, so we decided to get him a friend, a baby Pug dog. We ordered him from a family in Llanelli, and then waited a few weeks until he was 8 weeks old before collecting him. Otis as we have called him is full of cuteness, he can quite easily fit on one hand, he seems to be driving Charlie mad, he will not leave him alone, constantly trying to nip him in the undercarriage. For a couple of days Charlie spent his time on the windowsill escaping this 8 week old crocodile. Otis is slowly becoming more sociable after a week of telling him off for chewing Charlie, our hiking boots and any spare thumb or ear that was hanging around by him, his teeth are like needles. I do not think Charlie is too happy with his new brother, he keeps giving us a look of despair, and as if to say “where the hell is this thing from, it was a lot more peaceful before he arrived.”

A good time was had by all.

The weather was grey but rain stayed away, it was only the crowds that poured onto the dockside at Milford Marina today. Yes Fish week was well underway. Happy people wandered between the variety of trade stalls, food wagons and great entertainment. It was a carnival atmosphere with children enjoying the excitement of the inflatable’s and various rides. Bands were playing while people leisurely sipped there drinks in scenes like you would find outside a continental bar. Anyone could see that this year’s organisers had once again done a terrific job. The Party spirit was all around there was even a boat with a 3 man band aboard, playing while it scooted between the revellers. These events bring the best out in everyone, a couple of hours to forget your troubles and let your hair down. Let’s all look forward to next year Fish Week extravaganza. Well done everybody, it all went down swimmingly. : )

Hypothyroidism gives you half a life.

Hypothyroidism occurs when the thyroid gland doesn't make enough thyroid hormones. This slows down the metabolism of the body, leading to symptoms such as always feeling cold, fatigue and easily putting on weight. Your thyroid gland makes two hormones: thyroxine (also called T4) and triiodothyronine (also called T3). Together, these hormones regulate your body's growth and metabolism. Your metabolism is how quickly your body uses resources to create energy and how quickly this happens in the body. It affects lots of things, including how much you weigh and how much you sleep. It is quite difficult to get your GP to diagnose this condition; this is because today GPs mainly rely on blood tests to diagnose their patients. Before the use of blood testing Doctors would use the pinch method where they would gently pinch your skin at top of your arms also taking your temperature on waking, before you start moving about, gives a good indication. If your body temperature is below 37 Centigrade is another clue. Hypothyroidism can go undiagnosed for a lifetime. You may have a GP that is aware of the symptoms, if not do your own research, and present it to your GP, to see what they make of your findings. Treatment used to be taking natural Thyroid extract; today we are given synthetic treatments which do not work as good as the natural form of Thyroid extract. There is lots of information about Hypothyroidism on the Internet, investigate this for yourself and If you feel you have the symptoms, go to your GP and get yourself checked out, armed with the knowledge you have acquired..I found a book called "Hypothyroidism Type 2" by Mark Starr, M.D. very enlightening.

Forget High Speed Rail Links, Lets Have A National Cycle Network

I pay road tax but hardly use my vehicle; we mostly walk with the exception of sometimes driving at weekends, for long distances we use the train as cheaply as possible by booking in advance. If our Government really wanted a healthy population they would instead of spending millions on a high speed rail link, upgrade existing lines and add more rural connections and at the same time build an independent vehicle free National Cycle Network, where cyclists along with walkers could travel around the UK and into Europe in safety, far away from the dangers of cars and their pollution. We already have a few cycle paths in Pembrokeshire but they need linking up to all major towns, it would bring more holiday cyclists and tourists, providing much needed jobs and income for the county. Come on Wales let’s build this Cycle Network and lead the UK in providing a healthier life for our citizens and tourists. : )

Prostate Problems and Nettles

Prostate Problems A large percentage of men over 50 will suffer problems with an enlarged Prostate. Symptoms vary from excessive urination, trouble passing urine and erectile dysfunction, along with various aches and pains around the groin area. Most people visit their GP to get treatment for this sometime excruciating painful condition. In their sixties my father and his two brothers all suffered from complete urination blockage, which is extremely painful and dangerous which can badly damage your kidneys as the urine backs up all the way back to your kidneys, which can prove fatal. All three were hospitalised and operated on, my dad’s brothers were diagnosed with Prostate Cancer and had their Prostate removed. My dad had a simple operation to open up the tube that was blocked by the enlarged Prostate. I had always assumed that this Prostate problem would eventually visit me, as it seemed genetic in our family. My assumptions proved quite correct a few months ago. It started with me having no strength of flow as I passed urine, and increased frequency in having to urinate. It got worse and I had to get up a couple of times in the night causing me sleep problems. I researched online for natural herbal treatments. I already knew about the herbs Saw Palmetto and Pumpkin Seed Oil which had proved helpful to some people as a food supplement that relieved their symptoms, I obtained both herbs and did get relief from them, but something did not seem quite right, my wife came across an article saying Nettle Root soaked in 40% proof Vodka, for at least 2 weeks is useful for the problems I was suffering. I started taking a teaspoon of our homemade tincture 3 times a day, allowing the tincture to sit under my tongue so it was easily absorbed into the body. It seems to be working very well and I have regained full urine flow. I will continue to take the Nettle Root Tincture for a few months and then stop and see if everything is OK without it. I strongly believe in treating my health problems with Herbal rather than Pharmaceutical products, I have been doing this for years, I am not endorsing what I am doing, and would encourage anyone suffering from health problems to contact their GP and other medical advisors, and get yourself checked out.

A New Year's Resolution

Just before Christmas I visited Haverfordwest riverside Farmer’s Market, I came across the Blaencamel farm stall, selling organically grown produce. I purchased a variety of their vegetables and salad. The cost was slightly more expensive than the supermarket, but worth every penny due to the produce quality and taste. After too many disappointments of buying poor quality/tasting fruit and vegetables from our local national supermarkets, I am making one New Year’s resolution, and that is to support local farmers and growers, especially “Organic Growers”. If you have never tasted Organic produce you are missing a treat, to me it tastes better and feels a lot more nutritious than the bland tasting stuff hanging off the supermarket shelves. Join me in supporting the quality food producers of Wales, you know it makes sense. : )

Atrocities are still happening today

In a recent trip to Germany I had the chance to visit WW2 Belsen concentration camp. I was fully aware of the war time atrocities that had occurred to residents of the camp. I remember as a child seeing the black and white film footage shown on the newsreels of local cinemas. As we drove into the car park of Belsen, you could not miss a massive grey building which turned out to be a museum, a modern building, built from bleak looking concrete, you enter into its cavernous halls some twenty five foot high, through a pair enormous dark steel door. Hundreds of illuminated pictures, mostly of people who had perished at the hands of their Nazi guards were on display throughout the museum. As I viewed the pictures of the deceased and condemned, I felt like weeping, how man could have done this to their fellow man was beyond my comprehension. Sadly we are still allowing war crimes against the peoples of Iraq, Libya, Afghanistan, along with many other countries. We left the museum and walked around the acres of gardens that were surrounded by high trees; the large flat area was peppered with several large mounds, which were all mass graves of the murdered people who once existed in most horrific conditions until they could not take it anymore. Except for the sound of crickets there was a strange eerie silence permeating all around, not one single bird could be heard or seen to fly over the graves. Melancholy will reside at Belsen forever, I hope the people of the future, will feel the great sadness and anger I felt for those who suffered and died at Belsen,and for all other victims of wars and atrocities that have perished in this world that is driven mostly by greed.

How safe are Airport full body scanners

How safe are Airport full body scanners I was aware of full body scanners operating in some of our Airport Terminals; I also believed that we all had the right to refuse them, as long as we went through a thorough pat down.