Moving Home.

 I have not written a blog for several months,so here goes! I must have had writer's blog! I am in the 'throes' of moving from one flat to another. This is a very trying time,to say the least! It is also a time for getting rid of all the 'clutter' accumulated during a lifetime of buying and receiving various objects. It is marvellous to know that we have our Charity shops,and recycling bins,to pass on any unwanted items to! There is a lot to be said for those people whom are not 'hoarders' like me.  

 My flat looks like the Lost Property office,at London's Baker Street! However,I do not have any coffins or budgerigars among my luggage;as they might have at Baker Street! I have found that when packing the smaller items;it is a good idea to mark the sides of the cartons with a black felt pen.This is an ideal way of enabling you to unpack at the other end of your journey! For example,mark all those cartons in which you stored your books,with the word 'BOOKS' all over them! Some people number their boxes,but to me this does'nt seem helpful when coming to the 'unpacking stage' of events. After all your packing is done;you await  eagerly for a confirmation letter,giving you the date on which you can move in to your new home!

 Finally, there are all those other duties to be performed,such as telling pension companies your moving date;plus the address of your new home.The Banks,and Building Societies,Utilities,etc;need informing as well! So,it's a good job we don't move every day of the week;since that would be Purgatory indeed.There is also the business of getting rid of all those cartons,used to convey your items,and finding a recycling skip,or bins near your new home! Unpacking can be just as tedious,as packing can be.There is also the question of hiring transport to be considered. Contrary to popular belief,I have not died,seeing that no blogs have been forthcoming from me in recent months! I am hail and hearty,to say the least!                                                                                                      

Is it time to get rid of traffic lights?

I recently read comments by Martin Cassini,which he made on B.B.C.Radio4,about considering whether it is time to get rid of traffic lights;since motorists could start using 'common sense'.The outright answer to this question is an emphatic 'NO' since they do not possess common sense,only of a commoner kind!Many ignore the pedestrians,and jump the lights,whilst showing the wrong colour.They also sound their horns far too much these days!They give one another the motorists'BENEDICTION' i.e.the finger movements,thrown in for good measure,as a 'bargain bonus'To clarify my comments thus far;the answer is to retain the traffic lights as a 'strong'deterrent against their 'crass' and unreasonable behaviour.However,very few are good,safe and sound drivers these days!                                                                                                                                                            
                Martin,have you considered how full our A&E Departments,plus mortuaries,would be if as you suggest traffic lights were taken away!Our poor nurses,doctor's and surgeons'would be 'overburdened ' with patients,plus corpses!It's bad enough at the weekends when they,plus our various police forces,and ambulance crews,have to deal with people who cannot hold a drink,but over-indulge,due to their 'piggish'behaviour! So I urge you once again,to please go away,and have a good 're-think' before you make such remarks.

Good Manners,plus Common Sense.

Are any fellow bloggers aware of the decline in good manners,plus common sense.I would put the seventies as the start of this gradual demise.Here are some of the reasons why I have come to this conclusion.When I was a youngster,I would hold a door open,for a lady to pass through first.Since the nineteen sixties,many feminists have rejected this,thinking that they are being treated as simpletons whom are incapable of doing anything for themselves!Many ladies,even today,smile when you hold a door open for them to enter through.Another thing which annoys me when departing from a Supermarket; are those shoppers who do not stand aside to let you leave,but either push you back inside,or walk right into you instead!Once outside the shop,or store,you come into contact with What I term"pavement hoggers"they are stretched right across the pavement whilst heading in your direction.These people do not possess any 'common sense' or even 'good manners'whereby they make room for anyone heading towards them.It would seem that they should walk in the gutter,to be run over,by on-coming traffic!Queuing for buses has become a "free for all"these days,since it does'nt matter how long you have waited at the bus stop;since people whom came after you,push ahead of you to get on the bus.Another sign of the 'great decline' in good manners! Now onwards and upwards,towards the media!I refer here to the Radio and Television networks.It is extremely sad,that the B.B.C. the forerunners,of broadcasting in the U.K.greatly lack,'common courtesy'when interviewing e.g.Members of Parliament,or Eminent People from various professions,They 'but in' whilst their guests are still speaking.The studio guest should tell the interviewer to let them reply to the question(s) being asked them.Perhaps this is B.B.C.policy these days! If so, how sad.

Quiz

These are the answers to a quiz I did to test my computer skills. See if you can guess what the questions were!

1. typewriter, type, writer, prior, tripe, pry, pop, wire, try, were, you, piety, priory, your, tyre, queue, quiet, true, pout, trip, yew, wort, route, yep, port, rep.
2. THIS IS THE CAPS LOCK KEY. This Is The Shift Key.
3. €
4. Arrows, Sidebar, Page up and down.
5. Adjust your computer's settings.
6. To stop typists from jamming the keys.
7. Christopher Sholes in 1874.
8. 59.44 EUR
9. Trishna and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.
10. The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.
11 & 12 & 13. The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.

14.

"The Austerity Cuts".

Before the last General Election,Prime Minister,David Cameron,stated on T.V.that we could not go on in the way we were going;and that the New Labour Party had borrowed,and spent all the money.Also,it would take us at least five years,to pay off the interest on the debt,or maybe longer.So,how much debt was incurred by the previous government? I greatly admire David Cameron,whom has kept to his pre-election promises,in this regard.When I watch Parliament on the"Freeview Channel"I do not hear the party opposite say that they left the economy in a sound state,no they keep"very quiet"on this one! My intuition tells me that no Prime Minister coming into office,would make such severe cuts unless they were completely necessary!It does'nt  take an M.A. Degree to work this out!Whilst I feel sorry for those whom are unemployed,it should be noted that this situation applies to other countries in Europe as well.I do not possess a degree in economics;only three G.C.E's .However,I understand this,that in any type of business,you have to put money into it,and not keep spending and borrowing.Otherwise,you become bankrupt,and the business goes to the wall!So,heaven help us if New Labour ever return to office.All those things which the Prime Minister,is trying hard to achieve,will go to the wall!I used to be a staunch supporter of "Old Labour"in my early days;when it was a good party to follow,as a person of the working classes.My feelings have "greatly changed" in regard to the present so-called "New Labour"Party.

Washing away the snow.

After several weeks of snow,and bitterly cold weather, today became much milder.The falling rain was much appreciated,since it washed away the compacted snow and ice.Now,I have put away my snow boots,in the sincere hope that they will not be needed again,hopefully,until next winter.As I stated in a previous blog,the month of February is unpredictable as regards the weather.Now,let us turn our thoughts towards March,and the possibility of much brighter,and cheerful days,as we head toward Easter,the time when the daffodils start to bloom,and keen gardeners set to work clearing up the debris left by the winter months,in their various plots, whether vegetable or flower.Also,as I've just remembered,the lawns,be they small or spacious,need attention,and whatever work required,must be carried out after a thorough inspection has been completed.

So called "Lost Tribes".

Last week,the B.B.C. News ran a feature about a tribe found in the forests of  Southern Peru.They were found  only by chance,due to the logging being carried out in their region,whether legally or illegally.This tribe made it quite clear that they did not want to have anything to do with outsiders.They have,in all probability,been living in this area for centuries,quite happily,until now.I suppose that if de-forestation gathers apace,they,like the North American Indians(natural people of that Continent) will be "forced" into the twenty first century,whether they like it or not.We are the"lost tribes"not them.That expression is "totally" true when referring to ourselves. There have been numerous wars,for centuries.Greediness abounds,in today's world.The poor suffer at the hands of the rich who line their pockets.Those whom have want more and more.