Earthlings

It's my birthday. I'm 55. I never never expected to live this long. There's a large brightly coloured sign on the loungeroom table from the kids - well they're teenagers now - saying Happy 55th. I can't pretend any longer that I'm not middle aged. In fact I'm now legally old enough to retire, although thanks to government shananagans it's not really worth it till you turn 60. June 21. The shortest day of the year, the longest night. The cusp of cancer and gemini. The twisting fates of multiple personalities. Work has been absolutely monstrous; the boss driving everyone crazy, cyber bullying. I thought it was only me, only to discover that many others feel the same; or worse. I thought he was picking on me because in the kingdom of the blind the one-eyed man is king, and he wanted to get rid of anyone who knew what they were doing so he could look impressive to his harem. But he's picking on the young blokes as well. They forget; I've been bullied and harassed by the best; including the ex for the ten years since we separated. Moves have been taken. There are few advantages to growing older, but one of them is learning to stand up yourself.

THE STORY CONTINUES:

"Four months after giving birth to Sammy, Anna was pregnant again. He talked her out of having an abortion.

"Before they knew it, they had two kids and their lives had changed utterly and irrevocably.

"They settled for the full suburban nightmare, the car, the mortgage, the endless bills. He abandoned the past, keeping few friends through the change. He bunged on the normal bloke routine. wore working boots, swaggered when he could have minced, worked hard in his own introverted, torturedly honest way as a reporter on the paper, achieving a certain recognition, readability linked elegantly with the landscape or the nature of the event, the strings of facts. But in the past few months he couldn't face his own life any more. His internal contradictions were reaching some kind of impasse... Couldn't you help me with this fucking seatbelt?' he shouteed accusingly."


THE BIGGER STORY:

JERUSALEM (CNN) -- Several dozen pro-Fatah Palestinians with little food and no toilets remained stranded Wednesday inside the Erez Crossing walkway connecting Hamas-led Gaza to Israel.

"The situation is dreadful," Saeb Erakat said. "The situation is very, very dire."

The refugees are inside the 300-yard long covered walkway bordered by two 10-yard high concrete walls, which is now filled with waste and feces. They are mostly young men, but a few women are also there with several children. They represent what is left of several hundred people who rushed to the border crossing last week when fighting between Hamas and Fatah militants raged for control of Gaza. (Watch Palestinians stranded in border crossing)

Some of them tell stories of narrow escapes from Hamas militants and many say they fear for their lives if forced return to Gaza.

The Israeli government allowed several dozen senior Fatah leaders and their families to pass through on their way to the Fatah-controlled West Bank. People with foreign citizenship were also allowed to pass, according to Israeli daily Haaretz.

On Monday, grenade attacks inside the tunnel wounded at least 17 people. Israel has already allowed wounded Five of the critically wounded were rushed to Israeli hospitals, but the others remained in Gaza, Erakat said.

Erakat said the Palestinian Authority was "looking at various options" for resolving the Erez Crossing crisis.

Erakat urged all other Palestinians in Gaza to "please stay home."

It is estimated there are 4.3 million Palestinians who are considered refugees in several countries, according to the U.N. Relief and Works Agency.

Elsewhere Wednesday, Israeli aircraft pounded two rocket launchers in northern Gaza after two Qassam rockets were fired toward southern Israel, an Israel Defense Forces spokeswoman said.

It is the first Israeli airstrike since Hamas took control of Gaza last week.

There were no reported casualties from either strike.

Israeli soldiers killed six Palestinian gunmen during firefights in Gaza and the West Bank early Wednesday, Israeli and Palestinian sources said.