Woolly Socks and Worn-Out Shoes

Tomorrow, Friday 28th February, MPs are to vote on whether to name the August Bank Holiday as 'Margaret Thatcher Day'. Totally disregarding those who were adversely affected by Margaret Thatcher's actions, there are those who want to pay tribute to her by forcing her name on to our calendar. Politicians are public servants.  Thatcher did her job to the best of her ability and, I'm sure, did what she thought was right.  However, the nature of politics is that when you act for one section of society you are acting against another. To pay tribute to a politician in this way, especially one who is hated as much as Thatcher is, is an insult to all those who suffered under her premiership. https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/stop-naming-the-august-bank-holiday-as-margaret-thatcher-day?source=facebook-share-button&time=1393435643 DING DONG ...  The Margaret Thatcher Day movement has been halted.  Congratulations everyone involved in stopping it in i...

I watched Yes Prime Minister last night and there was a conversation between Sir Humphrey and Bernard which had me rocking. The party have had an opinion poll done.  It seems all the voters are in favour of bringing back National Service Well I’ve had another opinion poll done showing that the voters are against bringing back National Service Well they can’t be for it and against it. Oh of course they can Bernard.  Have you ever been surveyed? Yes.  Well, not me actually, my house.  Oh, I see what you mean! Bernard, you know what happens; nice young lady comes up to you – obviously, you want to create a good impression; you don’t want to look a fool, do you? No No.  So she starts asking you some questions.  “Mr Wolley, are you worried about the number of young people without jobs?” Yes “Are you worried about the rise in crime among teenagers?” Yes “Do you think there’s a lack of discipline in our comprehensive schools?” Yes “Do you think young people we...

I've been married to a man for 20 years who's described in very minute detail what can happen to bodies destroyed because of fast and stupid driving; a foot in a shoe, or half a head lying somewhere, debris scattered over 300 yards, eyes that have bled because the heart exploded before impact. That's the main reason why I don't do fast and stupid driving.  I've heard so much about it that I could almost feel I witnessed it first hand.  My husband was involved in an accident in which 4 boys were killed when they hit his bus at 90mph, airborne.  Three of them were dead before impact and the other died on impact.  My husband was lucky to have survived. That's why tonight's journey home frightened and angered me so much.  There are people who don't understand, don't know, or simply don't care. Tonight it's piddly pouring and it's pitch black out there on the road - no street lights, limited cats eyes, bends, turns, double white lines fo...

It was a silly little argument that meant absolutely nothing, but I had to go off on one, didn't I, storming off like a kid in a strop. I should have known better.  It was dark and it was raining and I'd had a bellyful of Carvery.  Anyway, it was my choice to go driving off. I'd hardly covered five yards when a police van approached me from the other side of the road.  It was odd that I was driving on the right-hand-side - but then, so was the police van.  I'd not even got rid of all the condensation on the windscreen.  I was in a foul mood. So this policeman approaches my car and I wind the window down as he bends to lean over me.  He'd taken blood tests by the time I was in that little interrogation room.  I was saying for the umpteenth time that I hadn't drunk any alcohol, but he just kept interrupting me that he knew I hadn't, but the fact remained that I was over the limit and they were going to slap 3 points on my licence and a fine of £218...

I've lost count of the number of odd glances I get from people when we're talking about teenage drinking and why we should or shouldn't allow our children to drink in the house. Well, I do allow my daughter to drink in the house.  Primarily so she won't be suddenly let off the leash when she's 18, having for years been so eager to get into the pub and taste the nectar that has teenagers all over the world throwing up and ending up in hospital.  Also, so I can keep my eye on how much she wants to have a drink.  The last four-pack of Breezers I bought for her lasted 7 months. I can't keep my eye on her all the time, I know that.  I'm fortunate that she doesn't feel the need to spend her evenings with local kids; she'd much rather communicate with her out-of-town friends online and meet up with them occasionally.  What she does then is out of my control.  And that is why I allow her the drink at home.  Hopefully, then, being offered a drink away from ...

My brother once bought a handful of concert tickets for himself and his friends who said they would like to go.  A little bit further down the line, my brother having paid for them, two of his friends said they couldn't make it.  Naturally, he was a bit miffed because of the expense, but they were mates and he didn't ask them for the money because they weren't going to get the benefit of going.  That left him with two tickets that he couldn't use. So, I sold them for him on ebay.  I put them on at face value, but on bid, thinking that maybe that'll help me cover my listing fees, final value fees, and that little bit extra that Paypal take off when a seller receives payment via them.  However, what actually happened was the tickets sold for quite a bit more than we'd hoped and my brother received the proceeds of the sale, minus my expenses.  Fair enough.  It was a one-off and we weren't about to set up in business ordering tickets from ticket companie...