|
Pictures:
1. Marques of Bath remembering Georgina with lovely wifelet Trudie Juggernaut.
2. Valerie Blondeau elegant P.R, Lord Roberts David- Davidson and Lord Anthony Leitrim, Lady Apsley and myself and Polo lunch in Cheltenham. (Two Lords and a Lady)
3. Karen Jones Tom Conte and Valerie
4. Lazy afternoon at polo
5. Founder of Althoft group who are the management company for the St James Club and his wife and Valerie Blondeau.
The last of the luxury lifestyle. I hope not!
Marques Bath came to celebrate Georgina's life at the Beacham's. It was absolutely packed, showing how she impacted all of our lives and brought us all together with her club. I for one have made many lasting friends. Thank you, Georgina.
There has been plenty going on this month and lots of openings, balls, black tie affairs and polo events. I was fortunate to attend the re-opening of The St James' Hotel and Club after an eighteen month closure for refurbishment. It was by special invitation and I was the guest of my good friend Karon Jones, the publisher of the internet magazine City Wealth. The guests included Tom Conti, Julian Fellows and Thomas Althoff, president of the Althoff hotel collection, with his wife Elke. The champagne flowed and the Andaman restaurant by Dieter Muller served some exceptional cuisine. We toured the newly refurbished building, which is quite simply elegance personified where all the rooms are state-of-the-art with bathrooms finished in granite and marble. There were gorgeous floral arrangements everywhere and the stylish meeting rooms and intimate dining areas were superbly decorated. I have no doubt the St James Hotel and Club will be the new must have address to have in London.
I enjoy watching a good polo match and polo at Cheltenham was fun. Thankfully it took place on one of the few sunny days so we could dress summery without shivering. Coronation Street actress Helen Worth (Gail Platt) was one of the guests enjoying the match. We joined the Lord Leithem party for another polo lunch in Wales and got the chance to see the sights. However, it was quite cold even in August and we didn't escape the rain. Travelling down by train was easier than motoring and booking a few weeks early is the key to First Class at affordable prices.
'Talk Talk' Stopped me Talking
Telephone providers are being bought out at an alarming rate. My provider was excellent until a buyout mistakenly took away my ability to pick up my voicemail from another phone whilst abroad. I was away in Monaco for six weeks and no one could contact me. I thought that was dreadful until I changed to 'Talk Talk' and it got considerably worse. At the changeover my line went dead and I have now been without a phone for 10 days. No one can get hold of me and the automatic voicemail just says I am unobtainable. I can't use my e-mail because there is no landline to connect the 'free' broadband to and so I have to travel to pick up my emails. You would think it couldn't get worse but there is no one to complain to. I have waited 30-45 minutes on premium lines twice a day only to be told that someone will phone me back. I have lost thousands of pounds of potential business but I have to just accept this and realise how much I am completely dependent on these super-large companies such as Carphone Warehouse, who bought out AOL UK. Everyone I speak to seems to be having problems or knows someone who has. Just wait until we have to put up with the same with the "super banks". Wish me luck - I hope I have my phone on by my next article. If you have your phone hijacked ask for the mac code. The privider has to give it to you by law and then you can get another provider to hook you up immediatly
Takeaway Food can be the Death of You
Remember, even if you are tempted by the price of takeaways, eating just two a day can not only result in you being fat but can ruin your liver in months. Volunteers, (what a crazy way to make money!) were given vast amounts of junk food. Within only two weeks some had gained as much as two stone and in just one week they were showing serious liver damage. Dr Varuna Aluvihare, a consultant herpetologist at Kings College Hospital in London, warned that the study shows that even in the short term you get abnormal liver results and generated liver fat. The research, comprising of twelve healthy and slim men and six women, was conducted by a team of Swiss scientists from Linkoping University.
What a Difference Just Two Weeks can Make
Food Producers in China and Japan have been using chemicals and pesticides to save money. The latest problem made a staggering 54,000 thousand babies ill and four died. The chemical mix included Melamine which created kidney stones. Melamine is a toxic chemical, banned in food. The baby food had been taken off the shelves throughout the world.
It makes you wonder how badly our food is contaminated to create so many obese people nowadays. One of my friends said, "Well, it's because we are not as active now as we're using cars all the time and not walking as much." She had obviously been sold this by the press. I pointed out that Americans had always driven everywhere and were not obese until recently. I spoke to a health food writer at a cocktail party just recently and asked her if she wrote about organic food. She said she sometimes did but commented that people were not really interested in organic food but more interested in what is in the food. "You mean what chemicals it is made up from!" I answered, noticing that she was quite overweight.
Watch out for anti-depression pills - they can damage a man's sperm, limiting his chances of having children. Taking Paroxetine tablets for just a few weeks can more than double the damage to the DNA in sperm. Check with your doctor if you want to come off the tablets because coming off them can increase the risk of suicide.
Chuggers is their Nick Name
These are the people that have been employed to approach smokers, in a similar way to charity fund raisers, and ask for donations. Also smokers in certain areas of London will be subject to being stopped in the street and give a carbon monoxide test in the hope to shock them into stopping. These "Smoking Police" will target people at betting shops, bus stops and shopping centres.
You may have read how the wine and even Champagne may not be what it is cracked up to be and may not even originate from the country you think it is from. Because wine producers aren't obliged to put the ingredients on the label they are using additives and pesticides to compensate for the flavour from shoddy wine making. We always go for organic. You can even get organic Champagne now.
Predictions come True
My very good friend Valentine, psychic to the European aristocracy, has astounded me with his predictions. At a champagne cocktail party in Park Lane a couple of years ago he solemnly told me: "Get out of America, Valerie. You will have a nightmare if you don't. The economy is going to collapse and there is something very serious going to happen with the weather. Just please get out I am very worried about you." I know he is very, very good but I had no idea quite how good. I was having an urge to sell our lovely 3 bedroom apartment looking over the river worth $650,000 but wasn't sure why. We had doubled our money on our apartment and I loved Florida as the winters are superbly warm with lots of lovely people. However, since then I have suffered over two years of hell. The apartment has lost half its value and our reckless volunteer board have contracted concrete restoration on the whole building costing $millions. Now both of our balconies have been removed and our living room floors dug into. It could personally cost us up to $100,000 for new windows, floors and for our part of the restoration and we can do nothing about it. If we don't pay they can take our apartment. We even went through the courts but the board and their construction allies were always a step ahead. The ridiculous thing is we even had the proof that the work was unnecessary. The real crime is that they have spoilt a lov ely secure building. Do not even think of buying an apartment in Florida until the laws change. You only need a rogue person on the board and your life can change. I never doubted you Valentine but I have to say it sounded too impossible to be true at the time.
Tips:
I can hardly not mention the economic gloom but the best thing to remember is to always have a 'Plan B' tucked away and remember money just doesn't disappear - it just changes hands. There are always people profiting from a recession so different people are the new rich. Damage control would be prudent and having clothes swaps are now very fashionable. They are not only 'green' but fun. Growing your own vegetables will keep you in better health and you can even grow vegetables such as carrots in a pot on your balcony.
Thank you for reading my page. You can e-mail me at: valerieaustinhyp@aol.com
Please visit my website at www.valerieaustin.com
Valerie Austin Training (founded 1989)
Validated (GHR, GHSC) Hypnosis Training courses at foundation & practitioner level in business and medical hypnotherapy.
Valerie Austin is author of six successful self-help books including SELF HYPNOSIS published by Thorsons
Founder of UKRAH (1992) The UK Register of Advanced Hypnotherapy.
Eds Note: VALERIE AUSTIN is an author, journalist and trainer with an international reputation in the field of hypnosis. Her best selling books and training help people achieve their full potential. She founded the Austin Corporate Stress Management Company focusing on reducing stress and anxiety amongst executives and CEO's. She also worked as a consultant in hypnosis at the Priory Hospital, the UK's equivalent to The Betty Ford Clinic, which specialises in food addiction and alcohol abuse. Valerie's work in the film industry (Hollywood) interviewing movers and shakers, producing TV news segments and publishing celebrity magazines in London gave her invaluable experience for her current Harley Street practice. |
