That’s the PUB team (aka the Pom-poms und Beer team), the support group for friends running marathons and half-marathons. Support is mainly shown by making a lot of noise, drinking beer, offering beer to other spectators or runners if they so desire, and chanting encouriging slogans (like “Go – go! Only 40 more to go!” at the 2km mark). Because it is pretty boring to stand around and watch runners for hours until the handful that you know come past, chants and waves are done for ALL runners that come past. We’ve been told that the encouragement was appreciated by total strangers, too.
And a reminder that in the 1990s there was something called Mad Cow Disease (or BSE). Even today people who lived in the UK during that time are not allowed to give blood in Germany because of this.
pictures imperfect blog 
Goodness! Most of us never came within 20 miles of a mad cow. Or ate one either. OK. Do without my blood then …
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That’s exactly how most British expats react when they turn up to give blood and are told “no thanks”. Mind you, they didn’t want my blood either since I used to live CLOSE to an area where malaria is endemic (Harare, Zimbabwe, the malaria area starts something like 50 km outside of the capital) more than 10 years earlier. However, the weird thing was that my husband was always roped in to give blood when he was at the factory in Germany and later he was a cherished platelet donor because the Red Cross in Bavaria has different rules to our area. So next time I went, I just didn’t tell them.
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Dishonesty is sometimes the best policy. Or sins of omission anyway.
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