claire deeley

mainly reading and running

[Mr PitBull Stories @MrPitbull07]

Roald Dahl on Measles: Olivia, my eldest daughter, caught measles when she was seven years old. As the illness took its usual course I can remember reading to her often in bed and not feeling particularly alarmed about it. Then one morning, when she was well on the road to recovery, I was sitting on her bed showing her how to fashion little animals out of coloured pipe-cleaners, and when it came to her turn to make one herself, I noticed that her fingers and her mind were not working together and she couldn’t do anything.

'Are you feeling all right?' I asked her.

'I feel all sleepy,' she said.

In an hour, she was unconscious. In twelve hours she was dead.

The measles had turned into a terrible thing called measles encephalitis and there was nothing the doctors could do to save her. That was...in 1962, but even now, if a child with measles happens to develop the same deadly reaction from measles as Olivia did, there would still be nothing the doctors could do to help her. On the other hand, there is today something that parents can do to make sure that this sort of tragedy does not happen to a child of theirs. They can insist that their child is immunised against measles.

...I dedicated two of my books to Olivia, the first was ‘James and the Giant Peach’. That was when she was still alive. The second was ‘The BFG’, dedicated to her memory after she had died from measles. You will see her name at the beginning of each of these books. And I know how happy she would be if only she could know that her death had helped to save a good deal of illness and death among other children.

[claire deeley @clairedeeley]

@EthanBenard You look brilliant

[claire deeley @clairedeeley]

@MadelaineLucyH Thank you!

[claire deeley @clairedeeley]

@EthanBenard Well done!

[claire deeley @clairedeeley]

@EthanBenard You are still losing compared to say 6 weeks ago. Maybe look at the beginning of the year and appreciate the difference? My penny’s worth re food is to try and eat stuff that must be prepared by you - so no vacuum packed foods or pour over sauces

[claire deeley @clairedeeley]

@EthanBenard Don’t lose heart - you are still losing weight overall just get back on that pony

[claire deeley @clairedeeley]

@EthanBenard Don’t be disheartened - it is coming down - your are 2 lbs lighter than last week I think that’s a win

[claire deeley @clairedeeley]

@FrankRGardner An amazing photo!

[claire deeley @clairedeeley]

@JohnNicholRAF Seabass and chips!

[claire deeley @clairedeeley]

@EthanBenard Very few people are happy with their own bodies. You need to reach about 50 for that. Know this, you look so much more fit than when you started. Keep going one lb at a time

[claire deeley @clairedeeley]

@BriefcaseMike I thought he was very good tonight!

[claire deeley @clairedeeley]

@EthanBenard You are doing well. Keep going

[claire deeley @clairedeeley]

@piersmorgan @MarsGlobal Completely agree

[Liberal Democrats @LibDems]

Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words.

[Neil Stone @DrNeilStone]

Asal Shafiei, 21 years old.

Murdered by the regime in cold blood simply because she wanted the freedoms you all have

Free Iran in her name!

[Protect Kamala Harris ✊ @DisavowTrump20]

This is Alex Pretti, a registered nurse and the man murdered by ICE today in Minneapolis protecting a fellow citizen from Trump’s thugs.

RETWEET to honor his life 💔

[Shayan @shayan_]

I’m devastated. A good friend and dormmate of mine, Amin Pourfarhang, has been sentenced to death after protesting in Iran 😭 He’s one of the kindest people I’ve ever known.

Please share. Visibility raises the cost for the Islamic Republic and may stop this execution!

[The Rejoin EU Party @RejoinP]

Can we get #Briturn Trending? #ExitBrexit

[claire deeley @clairedeeley]

@EthanBenard Brilliant well done