50 years of Christmas Eve Club

The Christmas Eve Club was 50 this year. Yes 50 years a group of friends first started meeting.

So where did it start? In 1966 I was just 16 and legally was not allowed to drink in a Pub and in those day it was very difficult for some one U18 to get served in a Pub the only Pub in those day where youngsters could get a drink was in the Castle which has now gone. Yet myself and my mates could get a drink in the Beauty of Bath, the Landlord I am sure knew we were under 18 but as we lived locally and most of the customers knew us he turned a blind eye. Yet he would never serve us with shorts nor anymore then 3 pints and remember the drink of the day was Brown and Mild or Stout and Mild at best 2.5% Alcohol, we respected that and we were never loud. Well that was till we were 18 and then it was loud singing especially Christmas Carols and songs lie the “Parson and the Curate” “Some die of drinking water” and “I once knew a farmer”

CEC all of us with our tie Clarkees Bar 1993

CEC would meet at the Beauty for several years as we got older we would start on a Christmas Eve Pub crawls through Sittingbourne singing Carols as we went. In those days the Pubs would shut at 3pm but we weren’t finished as one of our number would always forget a Major Christmas Present (NO name given), a group of drunken high-spirited revellers trying to find a present must have been something to behold. When this was done we would be off home and on several occasions I have had to prop up one our number against his front door, ring the bell and run away so I did not have to meet his wife can you believe they are now divorced.

Clarkees Bar with Sweat Shirts 1994

 The years went by and we came some what more sensible as I have just built a Gym in Milton Regis Playing field with a Bar our meeting were held there this was 1990. This was also a silly period for me as I bought all members a CEC Tie, CEC Sweat Shirt, Reindeer Antlers, cloth badge and silver pin badge for all to wear. The sweat shirts no longer fit, the antlers are broken and most of the pin badges and cloth badges are lost are lost BUT I still have my Tie which I faithfully wear every Christmas eve oh I nearly forgot I also gave every CEC member a book of Carols which we could swear our allegiance to Christmas Eve. This was the year we would meet in the summer and have a meal together sadly we drifted away from this some 10years ago but this will be revived in 2017 a comment was made that we were getting no younger.

Keith Jacobs

I closed my Bar in Milton and open another at my Swale Martial Arts Club in Sittingbourne aptly named “Clarkees Bar” so the venue moved again and we brought with our regular treat of Keith Jacobs playing the bagpipes ( I do not know what an Englishman is doing playing the Bagpipes I still do not know). That closed 4 years ago since then we were at the Taste of Portugal 2013/14 then Coniston Hotel 15/16
 

Taste of Portugal 2014

So who are members of the Christmas Eve Club? Martin Clarke, Norman Clarke. Keith Jacobs, Trevor Waghorn, Trevor Jordon, Keith Whyman, John Elmer over the 50 years we have had a few temporary members but these are the main stay. What do we talk about? The Past of course a thing all old men do and the stories get better every year.

Coniston 2016

Well I had great meeting this year a lot tamer then previous years i.e. no drinking games etc. but it is always good to see old friends you knew as a child.

Martin Clarke

The Truth About The Crusades

THE TRUTH ABOUT ISLAM THAT WILL SHOCK YOU TO THE CORE Never Again Canada

Prince Charles got it right

I think Prince Charles got it right have a listen

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p04mb0d7

UK Foreign Office 'got Syria wrong'

Please have a listen 

UK Foreign Office 'got Syria wrong'

A former British ambassador to Syria has said the British Foreign Office has got "Syria wrong every step of the way".

Peter Ford told presenter John Humphrys that the UK had "made the situation worse" in Syria by failing to put troops on the ground and encouraging rebel groups to mount a doomed campaign.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p04m9nqx

Reality Check: 5 Problems with CIA Claim That Russia Hacked DNC/Podesta ...

Hitler finds out about new IJF rules for 2017

Hitler finds out about new IJF rules for 2017: Updated version - hope you enjoy! This description needs to be longer.

10 Facts About The Arab Enslavement Of Black People Not Taught In Schools

I told you so

 All those Academic Elite who think themselves so superior have been proven wrong but there excuse will be it is safer then Alcohol and the latest is safer then Sugar. Yet the people who smoke this drug also drink Alcohol and take sugar. It can not be said people who drink alcohol and take sugar smoke this drug

 

The terrible truth about cannabis: Expert's devastating 20-year study finally demolishes claims that smoking pot is harmless

• One in six teenagers who regularly smoke the drug become dependent
• It doubles risk of developing psychotic disorders, including schizophrenia 
• Heavy use in adolescence appears to impair intellectual development
• Driving after smoking cannabis doubles risk of having a car crash 
• Study's author said: 'If cannabis is not addictive then neither is heroin' 
• The drug is currently legal in two states - Washington and Colorado 
• A further 21 states have allowed it to be used for medicinal purposes  
• Obama said earlier this year cannabis is not as dangerous as alcohol  

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2783111/The-terrible-truth-cannabis-Expert-s-devastating-20-year-study-finally-demolishes-claims-smoking-pot-harmless.html#ixzz4SnpKC7oc
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David Blaine Shocks Jimmy and The Roots with Magic Tricks

Apples

I am not 100% sure that Climate Change is what it says but do agree that we should cut back on what foods we import to the UK from a great distance and realise that the cost in terms of fuel is horrendous and also realise that fuel emissions from these journeys can not do the World any good

Now I am fundamental against waste especially when it comes to food, so when I was driving along the Lower Road between Deerton Street and Faversham I was shocked to see an Apple Orchard laden with fruit just falling off trees having not been harvested and most were on the Floor

Why they were not harvested I do not know and would like an answer but what I do know is 2/3 of our Apples sold in this country are imported and we eat twice as many from abroad.

This to me is disgraceful surely the time has come for all us to eat home grown products when available also we need to eat seasonally, this applies to meat as well as fruit and veg. Just look in your supermarkets and see the exotic fruits and meats we import do we really need crocodile and kangaroo steaks?

Us Car Owners are continually being made to feel  guilty because we drive cars as they are not good for our Carbon footprints and we pay the earth to have a car yet nothing is done to curb unnecessary import of food products who’s journey cause a massive Carbon Footprint

Christmas tree NOT Festival tree

Visited Tunstall Church Sunday to see Christmas Tree Festival NOT Holiday Tree or Festival Tree but Christmas Tree. We must not forget that Christmas is about the birth of Jesus Christ not just an an excuse for non believers to get drunk. We in this country are lucky to have so many beautiful Churches

 

Kay Burley v James O'Brien

Do Not like James O'Brien but he is right in this case Kay Burley is an idiot

Food Banks

Food banks

Food Banks are very Controversial some say they are necessity other say they are not needed. One thing is for sure if something is free people will use it. Now I have no personal experience of Food Banks but I do know 3 people who have used them.

About a year ago two of my tenants were unemployed and claiming benefit for some reason or other their benefit was suspended because it was being changed to something different. They were then told to go to the Food bank and claim food, which they did. Both had a box of groceries delivered to them with £40 worth of goods in each box and one of them was given £20 towards his electric bill.

Yet no one checked if they had money in the bank, food in their flats which they both had and what was more after two weeks their benefit was reinstated and back dated. So surely before someone is a participant in Food Banks there should be checks, balances and advice on how to manage their finances.

You have to admit there is something wrong with the system

Recently another tenant was laid of work his work is of a seasonal type, within 2 weeks he was given help by the Food Banks because his benefit had not come through but will come through.

Can someone tell me if people who use food banks are checked or are just turn up and you will get served?

Food Banks along with soup kitchens are a life line for the genuine homeless and it seems a disgrace to me that Billions can be spent on foreign aid yet we still have homeless in GB

Now before you start to tell me I do not know what the unemployed have to put up with, you would be wrong I rent Flats and bedsits to single men several who unemployed or are on state pension. They all get housing benefit and percentage of Council Tax paid that leaves them approx. £70 per week for food not a great deal but by being frugal they can survive with all their benefits that is about £200 per week a good incentive to get back to work. Pensioners are slightly better off as the average pension is about £116 per week’

When I was in my twenties I worked as a Judo Coach for 40 weeks of the Year for KEC the Inland revenue decide that what I earned in 40 weeks was my Annual income so I was not entitled to Dole money when I was not working. So I spread my money over 52 weeks and I can assure you the only benefit we were entitled to was Child Allowance. My point is why do people not plan ahead especially if they know they will be unemployed for a certain time of the year

Mhairi Black SNP

Mhairi Black SNP MP this 22 year old Scottish MP someone with no experience of life lectures us about how disgusting that Government Money is spent on the Queens Buckingham Palace to renovate it. Once again this silly women gets it wrong because "Occupied Royal Palaces, such as Buckingham Palace, are not the private property of The Queen. They are occupied by the Sovereign and held in trust by Crown Estates for future generations. The Queen privately owns two properties, Balmoral Castle and Sandringham House, which are not publicly funded" Interestingly enough she has not mentioned the money spent on the National Trust for Scotland

Christmas Trees

Christmas Tree display at 

St Michael's Church Sittingbourne

Val at 70

 Valerie Clarke nee Apps will be 70 on November 21^st. It doesn’t seem possible the girl I met and started courting (there is old fashioned word) in 1967 has reached this age. To me she is still the young girl I met all those years ago and if you look at the photos you say 70 NO! I can honestly say all the time you still fancy your wife your marriage will be solid and when you get to the time you stop fancying her you most probably do not fancy anything apart from your bed and a bathroom. I asked if I could put some photos on with her in a Bikini and the answer was NO so the other photos were out of the question

Val Present from the Kids

All the family gathered round on Saturday for a meal at Thai Fusion, 14 of us all told, I said I would pay for everything at £25 a head I thought that is not to bad £350 but did get a shock when I was present with a bill for the whole evening a whopping great £610 that made the bar bill £260. Never mind it was a great evening for a special women and an evening not to be forgotten. Any way it is only money who needs to buy food pay electric bills etc.

So as it was her birthday I said Val have a lay in that’s the kind of man I am, waiting a little bit longer for my Breakfast was not a problem

Val my love for is bigger now then when I first met you, mind you so is my stomach

Val lots of love from me and I will start saving for your 80th

Val with the new Mrs Clarke

There is some ugly women about

With Harry

with Lewis

Poppy

Val's best Friends Sheila and Ann Sheehan

John

Clarke Women

Ban the House of Lords

The House of Lords is from a By gone age where the Monarchy and Lords ran the country we now supposedly live in a democratic Country which I dispute see below. The Lords are unelected group of mainly failed politicians, Bishops what right do they have to thwart the will of the people. They represent no one only their own political and selfish interest. Time for the House of Lords to be abolished and be replaced by a second elected chamber and we need to replace the present electoral system

Scotland SNP party got 4.7% of the UK vote and over 59 MP's, UKIP gets 12.6% of the UK vote and gets one MP and the LibDems get 8% of the vote and have 8 MP’s they say we live in a democratic Country? Yet the LibDems have 104 members in the Lords and they say this is a democrocacy

Could this apply to us Brits

Could this apply to us Brits

10 Point List of "Rights" Americans do NOT have...

The following has been attributed to Lewis Napper, a Jackson Mississippi, computer programmer.  He didn't expect his essay -- a tart 10-point list of "rights" Americans do not have -- to become an Internet legend.

'We the sensible people of the United States, in an attempt to help everyone get along, restore some semblance of justice, avoid more riots, keep our nation safe, promote positive behavior, and secure the blessings of debt-free liberty to ourselves and our great-great-great-grandchildren, hereby try one more time to ordain and establish some common sense guidelines for the terminally whiny, guilt ridden, delusional. We hold these truths to be self-evident: that a whole lot of people are confused by the Bill of Rights and are so dim they require a Bill of Non-Rights.'

ARTICLE I:
You do not have the right to a new car, big screen TV, or any other form of wealth.  More power to you if you can legally acquire them, but no one is guaranteed anything.

ARTICLE II:
You don't have the right to never be offended. This country is based on freedom, that means freedom for everyone -- not just you! You may leave the room, turn the channel, express a different opinion; but the world is full of dummies, and always will be.

ARTICLE III:
You do not have the right to be free from harm. If you stick a screwdriver in your eye, learn to be more careful; do not expect the tool manufacturer to make you and all your relatives independently wealthy.

ARTICLE IV:
You do not have the right to free food and housing. Americans are the most charitable people to be found, and will gladly help anyone in need, but we are quickly growing weary of subsidizing generation after generation of professional couch potatoes who achieve nothing more than the creation of another generation of professional couch potatoes.

ARTICLE V:
You do not have the right to free health care. That would be nice, but from the looks of public housing, we're just not interested in public health care.

ARTICLE VI:
You do not have the right to physically harm other people. If you kidnap, rape, intentionally maim, or kill someone, don't be surprised if the rest of us want to see you get the blue juice.

ARTICLE VII:
You do not have the right to the possessions of others. If you rob, cheat, or coerce away the goods or services of other citizens, don't be surprised if the rest of us get together and lock you away in a place where you still won't have the right to a big screen color TV or a life of leisure.

ARTICLE VIII:
You do not have the right to a job.  All of us sure want you to have a job, and will gladly help you along in hard times, but we expect you to take advantage of the opportunities of education and vocational training laid before you to make yourself a useful citizen.

ARTICLE IX:
You do not have the right to happiness. Being an American means that you have the right to PURSUE happiness, which by the way, is a lot easier if you are unencumbered by an overabundance of idiotic laws created by those of you who were confused by the Bill of Rights.

ARTICLE X:
This is an English speaking country. We don't care where you came from, English is our language. Learn it!

Lastly

ARTICLE  XI:
You do not have the right to change our country's history or heritage. This country was founded on the belief in God. And you are given the freedom to believe in any religion, any faith, or no faith at all; with no fear of persecution. The phrase IN GOD WE TRUST is part of our heritage and history, get comfortable with it.
 

Well done Trump

Great article in the Mail I sent a Text to the Lefty James O'Brien on LBC " James you got the Brexit result wrong now you have got the US election result wrong it just shows how you and your ilk have no connection with the ordinary man"

I was right. Trump’s triumph has crushed the lefty luvvies, useless pollsters, multicultural mafia and gender Nazis who refuse to listen to regular people. So, from a Brexiteer, thank you America

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3919816/KATIE-HOPKINS-right-Trump-s-triumph-crushed-lefty-luvvies-useless-pollsters-multicultural-mafia-gender-Nazis-refuse-listen-regular-people-Brexiteer-thank-America.html#ixzz4PWHkTdCj

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