Apoa is very happy to see Ghana doing so well in the MacDonalds Fuji Coca Cola Londis Budgens TK Maxx World Cup (or whatever it's called these days). This is partly because we discovered that Apoa is an existing name in Ghana and partly because they have a player called Papoe (Papo was Apoa's name for herself when she liked her words to have at most one vowel or consonant at a time). I don't know why they're saying their win was a 'shock', though.

For the record, we're also supporting to varying degrees England (different percentages of support from each of us, with mine fluctuating quite dramatically, down with every aimless lob, up with every robodance), USA (for passport reasons), France (for Thierry and family connnections), Togo (for the nice flag and similarities to Scotland - leave you to work out what they are), Brazil (because they're Brazil), Portugal (ois pois), Germany, Italy, Czech Republic, Sweden (for the au pairs) and most of the other teams really.

This afternoon, we'll be supporting Australia (because we'll be in an Australian outpost at Tim and Rebecca's barbecue during the game) .

What a relief that Scotland aren't there!

B-)

Just had an email from Jamie who hates the word random and is:

'optimistic we can erase this horror from the language'

He's linked to our London Language post on this to help explain his issues.

B-)

Now that I'm back to work and some of our members are a bit p'ed off** I don't have any time to blog as I'm marking like crazy internally and externally, but I couldn't not tell you about this which I read in the Guardian's Wrap this morning:

MISTLETOE AND WHINE

Gordon Ramsay is back in the papers - but this time, he's not the one doing the swearing. The chef tricked Sir Cliff Richard into criticising one of his own wines at a blind tasting for a Channel 4 show. Sir Cliff was not amused, using a phrase the Wrap will not repeat in a filtered email.

However, we can report the singer's verdict on a bottle of Portuguese red from his vineyard, Vida Nova. 'That's rubbish. I wouldn't pay for that, it's tainted, it's insipid. It tastes like vinaigrette. I'd never buy that.'

Ramsay is now using Vida Nova as vinaigrette at his restaurant at Claridge's, where he claims it 'goes down tremendously well with the tuna'.

B-)

**I can see their point since we've just accepted a deal worse than those breakers away at Ulster got and the same as the one that was out of the question a week ago, but I think they're being a bit hard on our leadership. Personally, I'd have had the stomach to carry on a bit longer, though.