It happens.....

I had a bit of an unusual start to my day. I was walking through Parc Leopold this morning, quite early, when the parrots arrived. This park is home to a large colony of bright green parrots that I am rather fond of. They make a heck of a spectacle as they dart noisily around Brussels in close formation - they can turn up anywhere at any time, but Parc Leopold is where they call home.

About 100 of them were heading towards me, and I was on high ground so I figured they would pass pretty close. As they flew overhead I looked up, and one of the little bastards shat in my eye!

I hate it when that happens.

Back in 2004 I had a similar experience with an owl. This was particularly remarkable as it happened in Rotherhithe, and east London is not a place usually associated with owls. As a result of this I am probably one of the very few people on God's earth who knows what owl shit tastes like.

My grandmother always used to tell me that it was good luck - although getting a faceful of partially digested rodent entrails is probably the kind of luck that most of us can do without.

Some are more equal than others....

I am really pleased that Prince Phillip, who I have always regarded as a bit of a national treasure, is up and on the prowl after his recent heart scare.

I am also delighted that the NHS was able to scramble a helicopter to take him to Papworth for the best treatment available in Britain.

But I must ask..... if a 90 year old bloke from a council estate had an identical problem, would he have had identical treatment? Or would he have had to go through NHS Direct before being taken by ambulance to his local General Hospital before being put on a trolley with a little note on the end of it saying "Do Not Resucitate"?

I think I know the answer to that question.