• Some medications are not available from pharmacies, and in emergencies, one has to purchase or collect enough for night-time dosage from the pharmacy at Mater Dei Hospital. The fact is, however, that some of the medicines cannot be bought at night, and one has to return in the morning, even if one is under doctor’s orders for bed rest. Could something be done to make things easier for ill persons who have no one to run their errands, please?

Laps

• Michelle Vella Wood has set a new national record during her participation in the Sweden Ironman Kalmar. Her accumulated time was 10 hours and 53 minutes; she swam the 3.8 kilometres in 1:09.56, cycled 180.2 kilometres in 5:43.57 and ran the 42-kilometre marathon in 3:51.38. Well done to yet another Maltese athlete who has done us proud internationally.

Leverage

• Sometimes, it takes just one parking ticket for people to realise that they are not above the law. Why is it that in some towns and villages, cars and even vans are allowed to park haphazardly, where they constitute a danger both to pedestrians and to other vehicles that are rounding tight corners, where manoeuvring is already difficult because of oncoming traffic? It would save a lot of hassle and repeated reports to the police and local councils if action were taken as swiftly as it was lately in Mosta.

Labels

• Enough time has passed that the destination markers in Arriva buses should have been fixed to indicate local destinations. The voice-over, sometimes, announces the correct names of bus stops; however, some buses still indicate the names of towns in China. This has been going on for so long now that it fails to raise even a smile from commuters, and instead, elicits comments of disgust.

Liberty

• A person who uses a wheelchair finds it very difficult to organise a meal out with friends at Valletta or Floriana. One would sometimes prefer not to eat in the open air. Not only are pavements a potential wheel-trap but sometimes one end of a pavement has a ramp and the other does not. Shopping is a nightmare, since even where access is possible, the aisles between the shelves are far too narrow for a wheelchair to pass between them.

Liability

• It is not the first time that driving instructors are seen taking mobile telephone calls when their learner drivers are at the wheel. The scene is something out of Only Fools and Horses: one hand on the steering wheel, and one holding the telephone. This appears to be a very dangerous method of teaching others how to drive.

Low

• It is shameful that five-star restaurants are allowing patrons in without being decently dressed. Are we going to the dogs to earn a quick buck?

Local

• Why has the tattered fencing in front of the old Trade Fair grounds not been removed? Vehicles sometimes have to pass through the narrow street just in front of the entrance in order to get to their destination. The whole area looks neglected.

Limit

• Why is the air conditioning temperature of the reception area at Mater Dei Hospital kept so low during the night? During the day, visitors’ body heat and the constant opening and closing of doors make this, perhaps, understandable and necessary. However, at all other times this is an unnecessary waste of energy.

Language

• There was once a hint of a promise that each television station would have a consultant for the Maltese language, to curtail atrocities in news crawls or other visuals before they went on air. This proved expensive and the idea was quietly forgotten. Still, one wonders how it is possible that in a whole outfit there is not one person who is capable of proofreading something in the mother tongue and pointing out blatant errors. Perhaps offering a token allowance would bring these people forward.

Lessons

• Much has been said, but little has been done, about the suffering of karozzin horses, especially those that ply areas where there are no water points or awnings of any kind. One assumes it would be a very simple matter to attach a foldable canopy to the front of the passenger cabin, which would protect the horse from the sun, and, if necessary, from the rain too.

Leftovers

• People are being told that packets of six empty plastic bottles (terms and conditions apply) will entitle them to a free ticket in a lottery connected with recycling of such. In some areas, this is already causing a re-run of what used to happen when glass bottles were returnable to shops for cash. Some people think there is nothing wrong with slashing open Tuesday recycling bags to extract these bottles, from behind the doors of private residences. This may not be illegal but it is probably unhygienic.

Lines

• It would seem that whereas yellow lines that garner the state money in fines if someone parks over them are constantly repainted, the same cannot be said for the white stripes in zebra crossings. A quick drive to several towns and villages will indicate that these have been allowed to wear away into a faded grey that drivers cannot see. If they do see them, they assume they are no longer in use, because of their condition. Thus, pedestrians dice with death each time they cross the road.