I remember her lying in the garden singing. A beautiful melody evoking times of yesteryear. About how your female who has passed will go on and on. In our memories. A lovely bridge part here. Plus Frank Sinatra is owed a lot for this song.

This weeks #MeansToMe thread will be the 100th post!! 💯 Coming this Wednesday - join in!

Thread number 💯!! Today’s #MeansToMe thread 🧵is about the Crowded House song ‘She Goes On’ from Woodface. Reply to this post with: * your particular interpretation of it or what it means to you * what feelings, memories or images it evokes Today’s song is a random pick!

A heartwarming story to end this evening. In 1948, a young British sailor named George Hickinbottom discovered a starving black-and-white kitten wandering the docks of Hong Kong and secretly brought him aboard the HMS Amethyst. The crew named the cat Simon, and he quickly became beloved throughout the ship. More than just a mascot, Simon proved useful by hunting rats that threatened the ship’s food supplies and equipment. He charmed both sailors and officers alike, especially the captain, often sleeping in his cabin and bringing comfort and companionship to the crew during long days at sea. Everything changed in April 1949 when the HMS Amethyst came under heavy attack while traveling along China’s Yangtze River during the Chinese Civil War. The ship was severely damaged, dozens of sailors were killed or wounded, and Simon himself was badly injured by shrapnel and burns. Despite his wounds, Simon survived and soon returned to roaming the ship, visiting injured sailors in the sick bay and continuing to hunt rats while the crew remained trapped for more than 100 days under constant fear and dwindling supplies. His determination and resilience became a powerful source of hope and morale for the exhausted crew. When the HMS Amethyst finally escaped and returned home, Simon was celebrated across Britain as a national hero. He received the Dickin Medal, the animal equivalent of the Victoria Cross, becoming the only cat ever awarded the honor, and was officially promoted to Able Seaman Simon. However, the injuries he suffered during the attack left him weakened, and he died only weeks later in quarantine before reuniting fully with the crew. The sailors mourned him deeply and buried him with full naval honors, remembering him not simply as a ship’s cat, but as a brave companion who shared their suffering and courage during one of the darkest moments of their lives. Have you seen the film?

Hell of a songwriter that man, hell of a songwriter.

Retweet ❗️ This is a Swift. sometimes they can end up on the ground. This is where they need YOUR help! Swifts arrive back to the UK from April/May to nest. 🪺 (A THREAD)

Source: The Guardian share.google/Z9pSFXWRIysFzg9…

A mystery moneyman's donations could carry Nigel Farage to power. He lives in Thailand and is “intensely private”. I’ve spent months investigating who he is, what he wants and his crypto fortune. Here, for the first time, is the story of Chris Harborne theguardian.com/politics/202…

BREAKING: A price cap will be placed on pet prescriptions, the Competition and Markets Authority has announced Pet owners will pay a maximum of £21 for their first prescription and £12.50 for any other medicines 🔗 Read more trib.al/ooH4b0E

Happy International Women’s Day

Please sign and share Animal Aid's petition to end greyhound racing in the UK today - just two weeks left to reach 100k signatures!  [petition.parliament.uk/petit…] Between 2017-2023 over 4000 greyhounds were killed at the hands of the UK racing industry, due to ‘accidents’ on the track or when they stop being ‘profitable’. Some dogs are even drugged with cocaine and similar substances to enhance performance. Rescue centres are overwhelmed with dogs who were raced, now in need of a home. Those who are less fortunate may be shot or even drowned.  One minute of your time can make all the difference to these dogs. Thank you for your support.

Aziza's Law. Criminalize Incest in New Jersey Now - Sign the Petition! c.org/dwkPncmLbm via @Change

The continuing efforts of local river guardians to investigate the Cherwell waste dump are really highlighting the utter incompetence of @EnvAgency & their failure to uphold the law. It now appears that complaints about the rubbish were made by local people as far back as May & the EA actually attended site in July. Having seen the devastation themselves, did they move to shut it down, as they could have done by blocking the site entrance & seeking a simple court order? Nope, they sent the owner of the land a sodding “stern letter” & let the dumping continue until late October! Failing in the same way as they did at Hoad’s Wood shows this is a systemic failure by the EA & needs government intervention. The investigation didn’t properly start until local river guardians contacted the media this week. Even now, their investigations are bearing more fruit than the EA’s. They guardians have found waste with names & addresses & traced it to the owner, who confirmed they put it in their municipal waste collection. If confirmed this shows the waste is the result of large scale fraud or corruption in the local authority waste management. Perhaps worst of all, the EA are now denying any duty to clean up the rubbish and plan to just leave it there & “monitor” it. Local river guardians have made a petition demanding a clean up. Please do sign it & support their campaign. c.org/brxtKnS9Tx

Action Against Illegal Waste site on the River Cherwell - Sign the Petition! c.org/JqkRV9YYv5 via @Change

Please don't make tonight the night you'll regret for the rest of your life. Unlike most mammals, hedgehogs don't have the Fight or Flight Response to danger. That means that no matter how frightened they are, they don't bite, and they don't run away. Their response to danger is to curl up into a protective ball, and wait until the threat passes. That's why so many get run over by approaching cars. That's why so many are maimed and killed by approaching strimmers. And that's why so many get burned alive in bonfires. ❌Poking a stick under the bonfire pile will just make the hedgehog inside curl into a ball. Even if you touch her and hurt her, she won't move or make a sound. ❌Lighting it from one side will just make the hedgehog curl even tighter. As the smoke fills her lungs and her coat begins to singe, she will freeze in place and wait for the danger to pass. ❌Shining a light under the bonfire will just make the hedgehog ball even tighter. She'll stay silent and close her eyes so they don't reflect light and give her presence away. The ONLY way to make a bonfire safe is to build it the same day you light it. So if it's already built, you need to move today, before lighting it tonight. Please stay safe, and make sure it's only the rockets that scream.

How would you react if you witnessed this?

When I heard about the conditions these penguins are kept in, from the Daily Express, a couple of years ago, I was shocked. It's unbelievable actually. I think if we need to boycott Merlin to make them change what they do, we should do that.  This is lifelong torture for those creatures, sentient creatures with instincts to do far more than they can do in that little basement dungeon. We demand that Sea Life let them go. Only 400 more signatures needed: thepetitionsite.com/takeacti…