So It Appears Penguins and Pelicans Really Died In 2013

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today. I am, I must admit in a bit of a rush, so please forgive any tardiness in this post

There was I yesterday, scrolling down Twitter, when I discovered an article which explained that Random House, which now owns Penguin Books, no longer recognise and negotiate with any union in the Penguin Books division.

Now I won't bother to discuss the nature of the particular dispute, unions and employers will never agree on everything ever. That's the nature of things, unions are for the workers, employers are for themselves and their interests. What is disturbing is that it has happened to Penguin Books. A company that I have loved and respected since childhood under their Puffin brand.

And it's upsetting.

Penguin Books represents many things. It gave you a vast array of books on many subjects from many countries with differing views of life and yet it was also essentially a firm that also had at its heart a sense of decency. This action has ripped any final sense that it was special. It has become just another arm of a multinational company and it's not bothering to hide it in a glorious past anymore.

If you can be in a union you should be. If it is the will of the employees of Penguin Books that they should be represented by a Trade Union so that the power of the group and face the power of the company then why not? It's democracy. But no. For you know that in doing this Random House know the power of the brand but not in what made the brand tick, the people. Not just the writers but the designers, proof readers, printers, editors etc. What they don't realise, or perhaps don't care, is by doing something that is against everything you believed Penguins to be, that in one action, though it will happen slowly, the brand has been destroyed.

So what will I do with my collection? Well I had thought of just stopping it. Something that would have the approval of my wife as a shelf space argument is soon going to come. But instead I've decided to continue with the paperback collection but stop at 2013,when I understand Random House took over.

Now you might say that I only buy pre owned Penguins/Pelicans nowadays anyway so what does it matter? The answer is I do buy "new" Penguins but as ebooks (the George Orwell and Jay Rayner books I discussed recently as an example) . I'm just not going to buy anymore Penguin publications to instantly download. Finished.

Of course as I've said on other things this is but a gesture, but sometimes gestures are all you have.

Quickly mentioning other books I've finished the Joey Barton autobiography . It was interesting, though I'm still not sure whether my view of him remains unchanged. Unsure whether I'll be able to go to a library before Christmas so the next book (which you may remember I bought in Maesteg indoor market in April) is Hemingway's chair by Michael Palin. Must be honest I'm not as excited in reading this than I felt when bought due to the disappointment that was the diaries. Speaking of disappointment the Beatrice Webb diaries (volume  two) were dull. They were more detailed than they were emotional and that to me was surprising. Buying it after remembering reading Volume 1 as a teenager was a mistake. I won't bother with volume three.

Still at least she believed in trade unions.

Until the next time

In Which A Lack Of An Aerial Causes A Tempest

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today,

Late last week the wife surprised me. She wanted a new television set. Her plan was simple. Get a new television and the current one is sent upstairs where she can watch particular programmes as and when necessary in peace and quiet such as the forthcoming Wales rugby internationals.

I was surprised but had no objections. After all I'd benefit as well.

So we went to Currys in Bridgend. Well gone are the days when you know roughly what you wanted in a TV. Being High Definition is no longer enough. The new products are even Higher Def than that, or 4K or "Superior "HD. And of course they have to be smart enough to be hacked by an eighteen year old from Beijing.

Personally I think HD is something that's overhyped. In the HD TV we currently have I only really notice any real change the closer I am to the TV. These new TVs have far more definition unfortunately I have far less time/inclination to care.

As far as the "Smart" bit I've a laptop for that.

Still we had basically rounded on a television to choose. Subject to a bit of measurement a 49" basic HD model (that was also "smart" but it can be casual for me)  from JVC seemed to be the one. However when we were at home an unexpected problem emerged.

The room where the current TV was going to be placed doesn't have an outdoor aerial. We needed an indoor one instead because we were not going to make any unnecessary costs of setting the room ready for an outdoor one whilst still trying to move house. But to provide a good reception we needed a strong indoor aerial as the closest transmitter was 23 miles away.

I went back to Currys. They don't have an indoor aerial powerful enough even though they make it clear in the shop that there are three types of indoor aerial. One for nine miles from the nearest transmitter, one for up to fifteen miles from the nearest transmitter and the one we need up to thirty miles. What we're after is a product with the sign of a blue house. Go to Tesco same thing, Go to Argos same thing.

Not only don't they have the product we need and most suitable for people in Bridgend it appears that that they don't sell these products at all. Not even on their websites. The point being that Tesco and Currys give the impression they do.

Went to look at Amazon. Seems that unless you buy a product that connects to the window involving a cable that hangs washing line style across the room it all appears to be trial and error.

Wife has spoken to the neighbours. Apparently they have an indoor TV aerial which works with the help of a booster in the bedroom (Carry On remark number one). Will have a look at how it's laid out in their bedroom on Wednesday (Carry On remark number two). Hopefully it'll be sorted soon,as I don't really have enough time to sort out installing two televisions, a new one and the current one in a new room until probably next Monday at the earliest.

Incidentally all of these aerial antics meant that sorting out a meal from the Elizabeth David book has to wait again. And again there's little chance of doing anything before next Monday at the earliest. This is the same with going to the library as well. So the book I'm reading now the Sam Allardyce disaster of an autobiography has finished is.

The Diary of Beatrice Webb - Volume Two

To be honest. When I ordered this book of this noted early socialist's journals from Amazon I thought I'd ordered Volume one. Ah well. If I like it I'll be more careful when I do order the first collection.

Until the next time.