I've just come across this site:

http://uk.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/PublicHomeServlet

And that awful question rears its ugly head again - why did none of these kids hit the headlines like Madeleine McCann? Some of them are babies, for God's sake! But of course, they almost all fit the wrong demographic. Too poor, too ethnic, too unphotogenic. Perhaps their families didn't speak good enough English. Families who are sitting at home now, wondering why their child never got this much attention, and thinking that maybe, if they had, they might have been found.

Visit the site and weep. Because really, if something bad happens to you, it really helps if you have had some good photos taken first.

Bank holidays

What is it about bank holidays this year? All they do is incite the worst weather. This is particularly on my mind as Lucy is sitting at my elbow, loudly demanding that I go out there and turn the water off. I don't know why my cats think that anything outside the house is within my control, but every time the weather's manky they follow me around for several hours, wailing, until they've checked every exit to make sure that the same weather exisists outside each one. (Remember The Door into Summer?) Only then will they settle down on the bed, casting darkling glances my way. Sometimes the provision of food, shelter, warmth, strokes and medical care just isn't enough, it seems.

The magazine is starting to look like a real magazine. I won't mention the friend who phoned to point out that some of the current proof is in Latin (go on, I'm sure you can work it out). I've only misspelt one person's name so far, but then Kay's blog made me a little nervous:
http://writingneuroses.blogspot.com/

Oh, and I've become an avid freecycler. Go to Yahoo groups and see if there's one in your area. It's amazing what people can find a use for and much better than all those trips to the tip.

Spring cleaning

You're supposed to do it when the weather's good, I know. But most of this involves clearing out the contents of my hard drive, so I think I can be forgiven. I'm also scanning decades of photos onto disc, and wondering if photographic paper is recyclable. Probably not.