h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hi GT and Mrs, GT

When I at last managed to get out of my reclining chair on which I sleep, in spite of the electric hand-geismo which is supposed to make it work refusing to work, and leaving me, like a stranded whale, in the chair, unable to get out of it.... Once I had "winkled" myself out of it, without crashing to the floor in a helpless heap I came immediately to my "friend" my computer and and found your lovely post.

Somehow I must get the date of my first joininhg this wonderful research group correct.

I went to the first annual meet which was held in Regents Park in 2001/ Unfortunately I was going through na very"dotty" stage and could not remember my nickname nor my number, I do remember that Gnoman, who has now changed his name to some extraordinary chinese sounding one = was there and took a photograph of my son and I in my wheelchair.


I also rememeber that Amy Pawlowski had just paid a visit to England, and was very upset that she could not stay for the party. She sent a cut out of herself, and I sat all afternoon in my wheelchair, introducing Amy - the cutout version - to everyone who came to say Hi. I shall write nore later.

Thank you for writing. I lived in Shrewsbury for two years after my open heart surgery. I remember Preston. I am nearly thitty years older than you and your wife. Some difference......

With affectionate good wishes,

Christiane
AlsoRan80

21/X/3010 1 a.m. GMT

I've met Amy. I rode in a car with her from Upstate New York to Lancaster, Pennsylvania for a get-together of H2G2 researchers that included Tacsatduck, Shea the Sarcastic and her husband, Lady Scott, Mr. Christopher, and some other people I can't remember. It was a lot of fun, especially when we spent a day at Hershey Park. Fluffy Pink Rabbit was there, too. Tacsatduck stopped beside a corn field and took a picture of me and Fluffy.

So did I. We had to have a picture of Paul being corny, after all!

You went into the Mommy Track after that adventure, Amy. It was such an amazing time, and your life has been full of adventure in the years since.

Christiane, the meet in Hyde Park was on 20-July-2002. Here are two photos:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/eoinmcauley/3486459360/in/set-72157617384839429/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/eoinmcauley/3485643689/in/set-72157617384839429/

I hope those work out, as I am in work and my work computer doesn't show me the photos.

They work out well

Those are lovely pictures!

Thanx so much. They are lovely pictures. I had found two of them before. and I thought I had sent the reference to you. But obviously not.

Thank you kind friends for the kind remarks.

I am horrified to see that my "best outfit" is still my "best outfit." !! It shows how much I go out. It also demonstrates that I HAVE been in a wheelchiar for ten years. No wonder my bones have just disintegrated. painlessly,!!....

Also I am obviously doing something very wrong as once again I had "disappeared" from the list of researchers,and m"MY SPACE" had gone walkies.....It has taken me nearly three days and the help of a kind person far away to restablish connetions with the internet and eventuallj with all you sci-fi afficianados...... There is also a lovely picture of my second son beside me.....

Getting old is ....

Anyway my haur us much greyer....


I long for my hair to be a beautiful glistening white....
With affeftion

Christiane
AR80
Saturday 23rd October 10`0 8.25GMT

Very dear lil,

Well thank you soooooooo much for retrieving that posting. It moved me so much at the time, and I knew that I had written about it. and you found it, and not only that, Gniman sent it to the Editors of the BBC to show them what I had written. thank was thoughtful of him.

anyway I sm so glad I have got it back and when I manage to get my [rinter working again shall print it out.

There is another posting which I remember and that is about the Viking crash in 1953. My first spouse had flown it three times that week. On the fourth time it flew on it;s return to Salisbury - now Harare - a wing fell off. it was the first aircraft to disintegrate with "metal fatigue" although it was not called that at the time.

Can you possibly tell me, my so dear lil how I can retirieve that posting. i would like to show it to my grown up children who are all old enough to be grandparents.

Well, although I have been a bit down, I am very pleased to meet you again. I did not not have your special addy so did not know what to do.

Go well dear lil and I so appreciate your kindness and that of websailor and of course Gnoman.

with a great deal of affection

AlsoRan83
Christiane
Saturday 31sr March 2012 15.29 BST

I'm glad to hear from you, AlsoRan. Are you still living where you were [that nice place with the view of the Channel and roses on the patio], or did you move somewhere else? If the latter, were you able to take some of the roses with you?

Hi Christiane,

Your Entry about the Viking plane crash was easy to find, I had placed it into your Introductory Page

It was one of the works that entitled you to receive your Post Reporter badge

Here is the link: A52843584

love,

lil xx

Dear Websailor,

I have had such fun reading this old post of mine.

~also you news about the scooter.

Hold thumbs for me for next week. in spite of the marvellous report on the memory test, I have got a psychiatrist coming to see me in my home next Wednesday Now... what can they be up to. ?

I know I asked my GP if he wanted to take me around the country and exhibiting me as the 83 year old who had one lung - the other one is in a bottle in the Medical library in Caoe Town, and had emergency double by pass in`1994 and was given ten years to live.......Well that prognosticacian was slightly wrong i thin,!!!

He declinged, which I thought was very unchivalrous of him......

Think of the hope it would give to all those unfortunate octogenarians who suffer from strokes.
Oh and I forgot my strokes.......

Ah well!! I am still alive and kicking as you so rightly say.

With affection dear WS

AlsoRab83
Christiane

Saturday 31st Marxch 2912 16.00 BST

Quote...."I hope those work out, as I am in work and my work computer doesn't show me the photos."

It will if you click on Preview Post before you actually "Post Reply"

Hi Also Ran, been a long time since I have read on of your posts, well chuffed to see you back with us

Hope you stay a while with us, there isnt a lot of us Old Tomers left you know

Smudger.

Hi Paul,

Keith and I have been looking at a map of the USA and we found chicago. It is right next to the sea is it. Or is it a Lake. My knowledge of geography is dreadful.

Hope you are having a good weekend.

AR83 and keith.

Sunday lst april 2012 15.47 GMY

Smudger, my work computer does not show me any photos on the flickr website - our firewall replaces them with white rectangles.

Ah! well, that would explain it then

Smudger.

Well, my dear lil,

I had absolutely no idea that I had been awarded that wondertul honour of being a Post reporter. Thamk you for letting me know.

Perhaps my memory recovery is going much further back.

How wonderful to know that the improvement has been so dramatic. I certainly know that I can remember fascinating little intimate details.

I had my tonsils and adenoids removed in Marseilles in 1933. In those days it was much more dangerous to give an anaesthetic than to just take them out.

I can remember going int0 a big room holding onto the hand of, I think a nurse. In a chair in the room there was a man in a white coat with a light on his head and opposite him another chair. This was empty.

The nurse said to me

"Fait ta reverance" which translated means

"Do your curtsy."

In France in the days when I was young one had to curtsy to adults
when we were introduced to them.

I did, and then when I had been led to him by the nurse,and sat down on the chair, he tied my hands to the arms of the chair, and tied my legs together
.
The surgeon then said to me.

"Ouvres ta bouche"

which translated means

"Open your mouth"

This I did. I was very proud of my tonsils and had been showing them to everyone whilst on the ship travelling to France from South Africa!!

Quick as a flash they were out, and - well I shall not bore you with the remainder of the story.

The only horrid part afterwards was I was given castor oil which I still loathe. !!

For any doubting Thomas's who might exist, every ENT specialist who looks down my throat always comments on the "stumps" which they tell me are the "guillotined" roots of my tonsils.!!
111

I find that fascinating. !!And also proof positive that the memory exercises are working as can be proved by the empirical proof given above. !!!

Alsoran83

Tuesday 3rd April 2012 16.17 GMT

I am so sad Gnoman that you do not have the copies of those photographs. I have the two of them on mine. Perhaps you did not take them and someone else did.......

I hope you enjoyed your weekend and were not tired out at the end.

Regards to your wife, and congratulations to both your musical daughters who quite obviously take after their musical parents.
.
With thanks for your past friendship.

AlsoRan83

Tuesday 3rd April 2012 16.36 GMT
(I do remember you telling me about the difference between GMT and BMT It was you, or was I thinking it was someone else? )

Thank you Smudger for your welcome.

You know, most people think that because one is over 80 that one is going - well "gaga" is the only word I can think of using.

I actually get very cross when I am being wheeled by my carer - whom I pay to do this wonderful method of going for a walk when I do not have and do not want an electric wheelchair. People stop and talk and ask questions to my carer. Yet I have, thanks to this marvellous website and the wonderful exercises that I do, and also the fact that I have somehow recovered my courage feel much more "with it" than I used to feel. .!!

I hope you are keeping well, as is your spouse/companion, whom I recall, was not very well. Is ny memory correct that you were in the Navy and went to the Middle East?

With kind regards,

sincerely,

alsoRan83
Tuesday 3rd Spril 2012 16 47 GMT

Aye! AR83, its good to see you back with us again, my wife (Mk2, I call her that to keep her on her toes) is still with us, and fighting the emphysema like she has for the past few years.

We are both plodding on and making the best of the good days

Smudger