Knit-A-Square

Can you knit? Do you know someone else who can knit? If so you may wish to give your support to a world wide initiative to help orphaned children in Africa. To find out how read the following appeal by an organisation called 'Knit a square'.

There are an estimated 1.4 million orphans in South Africa, many of them as a result of losing their parents to HIV AIDS.

This number keeps growing, over 500 children a day become orphans. This is a terrible and mostly unrecognised human tragedy.

Knit-a-square.com has recently been set up to ask the knitters and crocheters of the world to send an 8 by 8 inch (20x20cm) square or more to specified charities in South Africa, where they will be made up into blankets for these children.

The orphans live in terrible poverty. They lack love, shelter, food, education and warmth. Many charities are working hard to provide the first four of these basic human needs.

The knitters and crocheters of the world can provide the last.

If you knit or crochet just one square and send it, your efforts will achieve our goal, 10,000 blankets by the end of 2009.

You will have reached out and put a protective arm around a child who needs your support.

The more you knit and crochet, the more blankets we will make, the more children who were cold, will sleep warmly at night.

If you can possibly help, please do. These children have not brought this terrible tragedy on themselves, they are innocent victims and they are suffering a terrible plight. For more information click on the following link www.knit-a-square.com and take the first compassionate step towards giving them the help and support they need and deserve.

Brainteaser - Sunday's Answer

Well done to reader Gwyn Chapman who e-mailed in the correct answer to yesterday's brainteaser puzzle.

The correct answer was 'ICE'

Each word starts with the last two letters of the word before it and ends with the first two letters of the word that follows it.

Today's Smile

Thanks to Eve in Tasmania for sending in today's smile. This is really funny.

An older, tired-looking dog wandered into my yard. I could tell from his collar and well-fed belly that he had a home and was well taken care of. He calmly came over to me, I gave him a few pats on his head; he then followed me into my house, slowly walked down the hall, curled up in the corner and fell asleep. An hour later he went to the door, and I let him out. The next day he was back, greeted me in my yard, walked inside and resumed his spot in the hall and again slept for about an hour. This continued off and on for several weeks. Curious, I pinned a note to his collar: "I would like to find out who the owner of this wonderful sweet dog is and ask if you are aware that almost every afternoon your dog comes to my house for a nap." The next day he arrived for his nap, with a different note pinned to his collar: "He lives in a home with 6 children, 2 under the age of 3 - he's trying to catch up on his sleep. Can I come with him tomorrow?"

Two Little Pals

How's This For A Mouthful?

I love this story written by Rose Prince for the Telegraph. For me it's all about a book title, but it does cover a serious issue as well. It first appeared in the papers at the time when Jamie Oliver was doing his television programme 'School Dinners'. Kids at a Rotherham school were refusing to eat their new healthy eating school menu. As a result some mothers were handing out chips to their children by passing them through the school railings. One particular mum, Gill Holcombe, decided to do something about it. "It was silly" says Holcombe, "These were people saying they had no time to cook and not enough money, but I thought, I haven't any time or money either but I can do it." Holcombe, pictured above with Rose Jonson, is a divorcee with three children aged 15, 16 and 19. She decided to write a book to show how it could be done, and approached a publisher who agreed to publish it for her. The book was written whilst Holcombe was holding down a job in a solicitor's office, from which she has since been made redundant. The title of the book is an absolute knock-out, it just makes you want to rush out and buy a copy. The title of the book is 'How To Feed Your Whole Family a Healthy Balanced Diet with very little Money and Hardly Any Time. Even If You Have A Tiny Kitchen, Only Three Saucepans (one with an Ill-fitting Lid) and no Fancy Gadgets - Unless You Count the Garlic Crusher. Holcombe said "I wrote the book because I wanted those women who fed their children chips through the fence to read it. Cooking does not have to be a drudge, in fact it is the best fun you can have." Gill Holcombe's book is published by Spring Hill at £9.99 and is available on line at http://www.howtobooks.co.uk/ or can be found at any good book stores.