Disastrous Monday…

I had to go up to the hospital today to have x-rays on both knees. My neighbour offered me a lift up there so off we went at 9’clock and were there in no time. I only waiting about 5 minutes and then someone came to take me to get changed (well take my leggings off). She set off down the corridor at a great rate. I limped after her! 10 minutes later I was still sitting in the tiny changing room but then someone appeared and said Oh the radiologist couldn’t find you. Mrs Speedy clearly forgot to slow down enough to tell her I was there. X-rays done in no time so off I went. If I hadn’t had the extra wait I would have caught the bus back to town but it had gone so I decided to walk home and was back by 10.07. Quite a good speed for an old ‘un with dodgy knees.
I put the telly on but it was all about some football match or other so decided to go into town for an M&S bacon roll. I’d forgotten the festival in town for two weeks and don’t like loud music so headed straight to M&S but it was packed out so I headed back home. Not too far from home I met a friend and stopped to chat to him and a pigeon got me. It was the first time for many years but it was all down my sleeve!! Thank goodness I was on my way home. And first tunic needing to go in the wash
When I got home my knees were shrieking that I walked too far so I poured myself a glass of chocolate oat milk; sat down, put my feet up and spilt it all down the front of the tunic I’d changed into. Clothes changed again! I had a couple of other things that needed washing so put the machine on. Sat down, feet up and again managed to spill chocolate milk down the front of my tunic. My fault for using a flexible plastic cup from my iced latte! They say things come in threes so that’s 3 tunics for the wash today and it’s just lunchtime;-))
My main blip is the harbour since it was high tide and plenty of water but I put a country scene in extras to show that I do leave town now and again.

And my saying of the day is ‘if it looks like a duck’.

The phrase "if it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it probably is a duck" is often attributed to American poet James Whitcomb Riley, who wrote something similar in the late 19th or early 20th century. It's a way of saying that something is what it appears to be, based on its readily observable characteristics. The phrase is also known as the "duck test" and has been used in various contexts, including legal reasoning and discussions about intelligence. 

The saying is a simple, yet effective, way to illustrate the concept of inference based on observable evidence. It suggests that when something exhibits the typical traits of a particular thing, it's reasonable to conclude that it is that thing. This principle is used in everyday situations and in more formal contexts, like legal arguments and discussions about artificial intelligence. 

In the context of legal reasoning, the duck test helps to establish facts based on observable evidence. For example, in the case of a suspected communist, someone might say, "If it walks like a duck, talks like a duck, and associates with ducks, then it's probably a duck". This means that even without direct proof, the observable behaviour and associations of the individual are enough to suggest their affiliation. 

The duck test is also relevant to discussions about artificial intelligence and the Turing Test. The Turing Test aims to determine if a machine can exhibit intelligent behavior indistinguishable from a human. The core idea is that if a machine can interact in a way that appears intelligent, then it is, for all practical purposes, intelligent. 

Monty Python referenced the test in the Witch Logic scene in their 1975 film Monty Python and the Holy Grail, where a mob of villagers reason that because witches burn, they must be made of wood, which floats in water, and since ducks also float in water: [7]
Villagers: “If she weighs the same as a duck, she's made of wood...”
Bedevere: “and therefore...”
Villagers: “a witch!”
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duck_test