So With Regard To Transport In Wales....The Price Is Right ...It Should Be A Case Of Skates Off

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

As regular readers will know when I lived in Bridgend I always wondered at how the arrogantly incompetent Labour Council assumed that if you ignored the basic realities of people's lives and just went for grandiose gestures then things would work out fine.

Doesn't matter that they've allowed Bridgend town to rot almost beyond repair and fearful what any diminution of production in the nearby Ford plant would mean to the area. Oh no. Instead you build funky new flats for "young professionals" to do whatever "young professionals" do or move the town centre library away from the town centre. That should sort things out....look at this new building here ...not the number of closed businesses over there.

And then Labour was surprised when it lost overall control of the council?

Well it appears that First Minister has taken a leaf out of the council's tactics (he is after all AM for the area). We are as people living in Wales supposed to ignore the lacklustre way the country is being run. We are supposed to ignore a stagnant economy, We are supposed to be grateful for the glories of Labour in the past and ignore the mess they're making of the nation in the present. We are supposed to ignore the years they have had in running our children's education which has proved to be so incompetent the Minister now responsible is a Libdem

"Look people of Wales." Labour will say "Look at this. We don't have an economy minister. We do things even better here. We have an "economy and infrastructure minister. Look at that...you're impressed huh?"

And the man given this grand title is Ken Skates (whose business card is probably the most impressive in Cardiff Bay if judged solely by words needed to fill it).

Today Plaid Cymru AM Adam Price has said that the portfolio is too wide ranging and that transport should be hived off from Skates' responsibilities. Of course he is right. Women (and certainly my wife) will say that men cannot multitask. What should be crystal clear though is that aside from leaders no minister whether male or female should multitask. They should focus on their portfolio which should be as specific as possible.

Perhaps Carwyn Jones should look at a dictionary. The words "Economy" and "infrastructure" means completely different things. By themselves they are massive undertakings to administer. Together Ken Skates would have to reveal a big S under his shirt to show he's capable of doing this superhuman task. Unfortunately events would suggest Skates is all too human.

I won't go into detail at the risk of boring you, but there are issues regarding the next rail franchise (an argument between the UK government and the Assembly) which a transport minister would look at intricately and also the cancellation of the electrification of the railway line between Cardiff and Swansea by London). But how can he deal with that properly when there's the minor matter of the economy to consider?

The Welsh road system is a mess at the best of times. The bus service outside of the major towns is patchy. All this shows integrated Welsh transport hub is but a dream. Then there is the proposed South Wales Metro Link. Which seems all very flashy but makes me nervous should there be any issues with cost increases down the line. It needs someone with their Skates on...wait a minute he's doing something else.

Speaking of flashy projects there was the Circuit For Wales that Labour eventually scrapped. If Bridgend Council had control of the National Assembly that would have passed through with no qualms. I'm in no way an expert, but from what I saw on TV I think the scrapping of support for it was correct. However it took a very long time (starting before Mr Skates was minister) to make the decision....as if he was too busy on other issues.

As I've said the Welsh economy is in a delicate state at the moment. The effect of Brexit on Welsh and international businesses based in Wales has yet to be foreseen (though regular readers of this blog will know of my concerns regarding Ford and Bridgend) . You would hope that the economy minister is making plans to cover all eventualities. He should. Perhaps though just like the Welsh government reaction when Tata steel proposed the closure of Port Talbot steelworks or when Tesco announced that the call centre in Cardiff will close next year the stable door will be shut when the horse has gone far, far away.

(A quick aside a spokesman for Mr Skates said "It is disappointing that Plaid Cymru seem content to use an important situation like this to play political games and exploit a situation for their own narrow ends" .  Thus saying how dare an opposition AM oppose Welsh Labour. well.It's the job of an opposition to oppose...particularly when an obvious way to improve the situation is staring people in the face)

So First Minister, forget following the tactics of Bridgend Council. Go back to basics. An economy minister, a transport minster. Accept that the Price is right and it's just a case of Skates Off transport.

Until the next time.

Brussels Would Listen To A Welsh Brexit Minister......Trouble Is London Wouldn't

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

I have written before about the consequences about Brexit to Wales, with emphasis on the issue of the Ford engine plant in Bridgend. So it was interesting to hear the views of the Welsh Conservative leader Andrew RT Davies (RT I would assume standing for Rotund Tummy) who suggested that Wales should have a Brexit minister because it was too much of a job for the Labour First Minister to handle by himself.

On the surface this seems to be a good idea. Unlike their Scottish equivalents the Welsh government seems to have provided a squeaky mouse approach to the approaching cliff face jump. Indeed I have argued that they seem to lack a clear approach to any damage that the lack of EU money/business investment would cause Wales.

An example that came to light last week was the criticism of the Welsh Labour govt for their lack of communication with Irish ministers over the effect Brexit would have over the channel crossings through the Irish sea. Just taking the effect on the Welsh side the damage to the ports involved could have a knock on effect to economies of Swansea and Holyhead. But from Cardiff Bay apparently hardly anything, why should they care indeed when ferries won't spoil their privileged and subsidised view.

Bridgend to the Valleys, Rhondda to Holyhead. All of Wales will be affected in one way or another by Brexit. Possibly disastrously given the Rip Van Winkle approach currently being acted upon by Welsh Labour.

Welsh Labour and Plaid Cymru have set out a post Brexit future for Wales. But of course Plaid are not the government and consequently are unable to get actively involved in the process.

So a Welsh minister targeting the needs of Wales post Brexit seems not unreasonable. And to go back to the example of Scotland (and to digress here how pathetic Welsh Labour really are in battling for Wales in comparison with what the SNP are doing for Scotland) even they have a ministry for Brexit

Unfortunately negotiating with Brussels, or at least being part of David Davis' negotiating team, is not what the Rotund Tummy one had in mind. Instead the Welsh Brexit minister should give "strong and constructive representation" to the UK government negotiators.

And therein lies the problem. For if Welsh Labour government input is to be fed through a Conservative Westminster administration we all know that the interests of Wales will be ignored. For if the interests of Wales were listened to "Super prisons" would not be built and the railways would be electrified.

Apparently the economic minister in the National Assembly sits on a pan UK committee on Brexit...a committee that has not met since February. The UK govt has just taken the Brexit ball and run away with it, if only it knew what to do. "Constructive Ambiguity" is how the UK Brexit secretary is describing the negotiations with the EU at the moment. This is of course gloss marketing speak for "We don't know what we're doing and we're making it up as we go along".

(And having spoken of the shame of Welsh Labour. Is it not equally shameful that the EU. Now a group of twenty seven states have got it's act together  unlike the British Conservative administration?)

Perhaps the Brexit ministry feels that consultation with the Secretary of State for Wales Alun Cairns is sufficient. A man let's not forget so sensitive to our European neighbours that he called Italians "greasy wops". It says enough about the Conservative party that a) he got away with it and b) got promoted.

Wales voted for Brexit but they didn't vote to take back control and then find London controlling the negotiations and aftermath that directly affects it. If it turns out to be the disaster us Remainers predict, then resentment will grow and with that a rise in the Welsh Nationalist movement. Whilst I believe in independence for Wales there is no member of Plaid Cymru who would wish the economic disaster that might lead it there for it's effect on the people living there.

So for the wellbeing of the UK as a whole, Brexit ministers from all the regions should be listened to and be part of the British negotiating group. Unfortunately we all know that won't be happening.

Until the next time.

So Randall Munroe. Can Science Give Me A Solution To Stopping Someone Mauling My/YOUR Book?

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

So picture the scene. I'm at work. As regular readers will tell know, I bring a book with me to read during the breaks. On this particular day that book turns out to be What If? by Randall Munroe. One of the books borrowed from Sully library. A tome which gives "Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions" such as "Is there enough energy to move the entire current human population off-planet?"

Anyway there's a moment when I have to go outside for a few minutes so leave that book out of sight and do what I have to do.

On returning to work however I see a sight that set all readers on edge. My work colleague for the day is just sitting there with the book in her hands!

It's my book! Oh alright not my book. But I'm it's custodian for a while. Not her. Moving the pages as if it's her's

So there she stands and starts to chat about Mr Munroe's work.

"It's a good book" she says. Implies that it's been read....by her.

But I think she's lying. Why? Because of the way it's being examined. The way she's looking at it, as if for the first time. If I see something that I've read before then unless the pages of this edition are embossed with gold and the illustrations have been done by Leonardo De Vinci then it's ignored. You don't see a book you've read in a bookshop and say "I'll just reread one of my favourite passages as I'm passing". You're after something new.

But there she is, reading it, turning the page without a care. Well certainly not caring about me anyway.

Feel like shouting "give me back my book!" But of course I don't. It's a reader thing. As if in a literary way she's breaking and entering to somewhere I'm currently living in.

It is however a workplace environment. Diplomacy means I have to stay quiet. After all one day she might be my boss.

Eventually work calls her to put the book aside...not where I'd left it in the first place....instantly the book's in my workbag.

So Mr Munroe. Is there a scientific way you can stop someone from mauling your book (literally here your book) at work without risking your job? I think I speak for all readers that this is an important issue.

Until the next time

Have I Been Persuaded By Jane Austen? Well....

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

So picture the scene. I'm at the rented apartment from doing the afternoon/evening shift at work. Daughter is on her tablet. Wife, who moans when daughter or me are online, is on the laptop playing Mahjong.

I go to my normal returning from work routine. Ask loved ones how they are (incidentally never argue when you've just returned to work late at night. Your brain....well my brain anyway...is not up to it). Go to the toilet (TMI? Sorry). Change my clothes, contact my mother in Essex and ping a microwave meal (I've boiled it down to two. Beef Lasagne or Spaghetti Bolognese

And what then? It's about eleven pm. I have to stay up for about an hour before going to bed to rest my wide stomach. So what do I do? Normally I'd watch something on YouTube or Netflix and nod off on the sofa, or listen to a downloaded programme on the BBC radio iplayer and nod off. But not this day, Saturday. For my Kindle has told me that I've only half an hour left of Persuasion to read and I'm going to finish it come what may.

This task then, the reading equivalent of having a walk after dinner (it's after eleven at night I'm not walking out), is completed. From never reading Austen I've now read two of her novels in a short space of time. Things and indeed me have certainly changed recently.

Having said that, and mentally registering your round of applause, regular readers of this blog will remember my rather ambivalent view of Emma. That I did not dislike it but didn't feel as if I was reading great literature either. Thus Jane Austen was part of that group of writers such as  F Scott Fitzgerald and Anton Chekhov that I was literary Switzerland towards.

Now I have read two Austens I must be to the majority of the male population a freak. A male not in the artistic or educational worlds who has read two Austens?! Clearly to most men that and the fact I wear glasses must make me an expert on the subject.

So let me start by saying this. I much preferred Persuasion to Emma. It is a book with less of the Austen clichés. Less dances,less indeed a dance of manners.

Perhaps more importantly however it has a character (which I'm not going to spoil  by revealing here though obviously you can surmise it's a woman) that the reader can root for. Whilst there was no one I actually hated in Emma, it did thinking retrospectively lack that emotional hook.

And that central character is believable as well. There is no way that Gwnyeth Paltrow could justifiably played her without being laughed at all the way to the goop. Out of curiosity after I read the book I checked who played this person in the 1995 film adaptation. She seemed exactly the right fit to my imaginary picture.

But.....

The other thing that I've realised having read two of her books now is that Jane Austen characters rarely go beyond second gear emotionally. No throws of passion or spasms of anger. To me as a reader this seems irritating and unrealistic.

Still, what do I know....being a boy. (an old one admittedly) ?

So Jane Austen stays for me in a state of literary Switzerland. Which as I've said before is more difficult to explain than disliking her because if you're neutral towards a writer there's more chance that you've missed something (you dislike a writer them there are weapons you have to explain why).

Now to the next book which turns out to be David Copperfield by Charles Dickens. It's been a while since I've read any Dickens ( so many books so little time) so I'm looking forward to reading it.

Now tying up the loose ends I've also finished The Golden Rules of Blogging (& When To Break Them) by Robin Houghton. To be honest all it taught me is that if your blog is not a business then the best rule is simply trial and error. Adhere to the "rules" and you will just miss the fun of creating and running it.

Until the next time.

To Westminster It Appears Wales Is Only Good For Prisons

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

New prisons are being opened and built in Wales. The first question is why Wales is being targeted in this way? Is it that the Ministry of Justice (who has control of the justice system in Wales) feels that if a prison is in Wales it's a case of out of sight out of mind?

For this post I'm going to concentrate on one. The proposed building of a category C prison on disused land on Baglan in Port Talbot that will house 1,600 prisoners (let's face it though that is likely to increase because of overcrowding).

Local residents oppose it and yet the Ministry of Justice in Westminster, who have full control over the justice system in Wales (unlike Scotland) want to push it through thus changing the character of the area in an instant.

Now Baglan is near the M4 which would probably partly explain the choice. Of course being near to the motorway would make it easier to drop convicted felons at the prison. Conversely if a prisoner is able to arrange an escape then it'll help him get out too. Many towns are relatively close by as well as the cities of Cardiff and Swansea so it'll be easy to hide out for a while.

The proposed prison will be near a bird sanctuary,industrial estates, residential areas, houses and most disturbingly of all schools and a care home. and whatever some glossed up management type will go on television and try to reassure he/she will never be able to guarantee that a jail, even a new one, will be escape proof. Consequently local residents will be living in fear, and it is no exaggeration to say that it is fear, because their neighbours will be criminals.

What I'm going to say next I was told on Twitter, so it comes with the health warning that I've not checked on this, but it was said that some of these prisoners could come as far afield as Birmingham. My first reaction to that was what? If it is correct that English convicts (as opposed to English people living in Wales who are convicted) are being dumped to Wales what greater show there can be of the contempt Westminster shows for the land and people left of the Severn Bridge. There are many areas in England that this prison could have been built on, driving along the M4 I've noticed that Bath to Swindon seems relatively empty to me for example. But no. Jettison people far away from their locality to Baglan and who cares what people there think.

There appears to be a split within the Labour party on this issue. Whilst not opposing the principle of a prison being built in the area the local Assembly Member is against the particular sight chosen for the reasons I gave above as is the local MP. Yet astonishingly the Labour run Welsh government is apparently minded to sell land selected for the prison. According to the BBC website a Welsh government  official said that a new prison would bring "economic benefits to the area".  Really? Apart from taxi firms and cafes what businesses will continually thrive because of the presence of the prison? In fact the area will decline because people will avoid the prison if they can, property prices will fall,householders and local businesses will seek to move away, no new investment will want to move in and so a downward spiral for the area will begin.....because no one wants to have criminals living nearby.

And you know what? On a small scale the consequences of such a rash and ill thought judgement by people motivated by ideology, greed or just stupidity will be exactly what hard Brexit will cause Britain in the future. Perhaps Baglen is a shape of Britain to come. For Brexit read Baexit as Baglen radically moves away from what it once was and changes for the worse.

Also remember that both the Welsh Labour government and the slimeball Conservative secretary Alun Cairns sights "economic benefits" for Wales in supporting the new jail. Ironically the site chosen was near a closed down factory. The Welsh economy should be fuelled by the production of assets not the keeping of criminals . This is quite seriously pathetic from those in positions of power.

The people of the area need politicos who actually care about their interests not just in a bogus economic argument that seems to me to have ignored the bigger overall damage. It seems that the only consistent support they have had is from Plaid Cymru. Local people in Baglen appear to have been trampled on thus far. That is just an injustice.

Perhaps in the case of Baglen that for Westminster since they can't use New South Wales to house criminals Old South Wales will do instead

Until the next time.

As Nations Go The Brink Of Nuclear War....Let's Talk About Hilary Mantel And P G Wodehouse

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

So for the past few days the world has to face the serious possibility of war between the United States and North Korea. Who knows how this will pan out. Let's just hope that both nations will wake up to the cliff edge they're walking towards. After all it will be far more than just those two countries that will be directly affected. And indirectly every country in the world.

And what of course this proves also is that fat men with stupid hairstyles should not be allowed to lead nations. Remember that when Boris Johnson tries to be British Prime Minister.

Let's then drag ourselves to the more civilised pursuit of reading books then. First off being Hilary Mantel's collection of short stories The Assassination Of Margaret Thatcher......oh.

When you read a well known author for the first time, as I will go on about when discussing P G Wodehouse, their reputation precedes them. Sometimes it's very difficult to shake that off as you're going through the book. With Mantel it wasn't that difficult. She's known for historical fiction, indeed have given out the Reith Lectures on BBC Radio 4 on the subject, revealing a voice that could be best described as a gentle Dalek.

These short stories though are set in the late twentieth century to the present day. So they're relatively modern which meant I could approach them relatively fresh. There are ten stories in the book, but one, Comma, I'd already found out was about child cruelty. Wasn't going to read that. So I'm chatting about the remaining nine.

Three of these Hilary Mantel stories had, much to my surprise some of the worst writing I've read since reading Sam Allardyce's autobiography........

(I'll pause here. I'm going to claim to be the first person able to put Hilary Mantel and Sam Allardyce in the same sentence. Now I've done it twice)

.....the writing was that bad I noticed it.

Two of the stories were inconsequential. What I mean by that is that was that my reaction at the end was to mentally shrug my shoulders.

One was well written but had a surprise ending so disturbing I wish I hadn't read it.

Three (the final three as it happens that includes the Assassination of Margaret Thatcher) were truly engrossing.

So a mixed bag then. I can't say I really have an opinion of Hilary Mantel after having read the book. Seems I'll need to read another one to have an opinion of her. Not today though. The next tome that I took out of the baby collection of books that is Sully library is this.

Cecelia Ahern - How to Fall in Love

Now this is an unexpected experiment. Regular readers to this blog would know how I've gone on about male readers avoiding female writers because the covers were too "girly" and argued that Marian Keyes is a far better writer than her chick lit covers would suggest. Well here's a book that the old me would have avoided by a famous "chick lit" writer. So we'll see how I get on.

With regard to the Kindle The Man With Two Left Feet And Other Stories by P G Wodehouse is finished. Every one of my prejudices were confirmed. Young men just want a good time, upper class men are mainly stupid, young women are pretty, old women are battleaxes, life is just froth. Problems just go away like that.

Even attempted suicide, suicide, is treated as if it was mere whimsy. Goodness only knows how he would have dealt with nuclear war.

So as you can guess I hated it.

The next on the ebook pile is Persuasion by Jane Austen. Thus far (early days) I prefer it to Emma.

Until the next (hopefully not radioactive) time

Why Plaid Cymru Should Not Panic

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

This is another of those occasional posts which I'd not intended to write but Twitter and it's 140 characters brought to my attention. It was a link to a BBC News website whose headline was Rhun ap Iorweth " would consider running for Plaid leader". Rhun Ap Iorweth being a leading figure in Plaid Cymru.

It caught my attention as an English Plaid member. Has Leanne Wood resigned I thought? Is there going to be one of those summer party leadership election battles that pass the media's time until September?

No.

It turned out that the headline was Sun/Mail like in it's distortion. If you read it what was said it was that he would consider running for the party leadership if Leanne Wood steps down. So let's pause here. A politician is asked a direct question and he answers it directly. He would consider being leader of the party but will not threaten his leader to get the position. If he was a football player, let's say for West Ham United, and was asked if wanted to be captain one day, he'd say of course, but that doesn't mean he'd stab Mark Noble on the way to the post.And yet the headline by itself implies something much more dramatic than what was actually said.

Rhun Ap Iorwerth also "admitted" that he wanted to be First Minister one day. Admitted? Was there torture involved? Again a politician is answers a direct question directly and it's as if a whole squadron of cats have been let out of the bag. Personally someone with ambitions for himself and his party should be applauded for therein lies motivation to succeed.

What worries me about this article is the way it was mischievously interlinked with a call by an unnamed Plaid Cymru AM for a fresh leadership contest with Leanne Wood to step down. Now let's say for the sake of argument this unnamed AM exists. The argument that is used is concerning the "disappointing" Assembly, local and general election results and that Plaid needs a fresh approach to go on. It also says she has lost the confidence of the other AMs. Personally I do not know but would doubt the last point. Political schisms in any party are rarely contained for very long and this would have surfaced a long time.

Am I reading an attempt to put two and two together and hype it up to five?

With regard to the various election results. Plaid under Leanne Wood have improved it's position from the dire state she inherited under Iuean Wynne Jones. It might have been slower than some people would have liked, but it's still an improvement. Leanne Wood is a popular asset to the party in a way that Carwyn Jones is not. I wish her to stay as leader but should she leave with any hint that she was pushed out then not only would the party be damaged in the eyes of the electorate but the next leader will face very high and possibly in the short term unrealistic expectations.

And if we focus on the results of the last general election as I've written before Welsh Labour were lucky. They were able to profit from "the Corbyn effect" even though they are the party not of Corbyn but of Blair. By the logic of the unnamed AM the disappointing regional and general election results should mean that she immediately resigns......the person I'm referring to being Nichola Sturgeon.

But politics is cyclical. The consequences of Brexit will mean that the Labour position will be just as disastrous as the Tory one. Welsh people and people like me who live in Wales will seek an alternative. Welsh Labour fears Plaid Cymru because it reminds them of what they once were, not the incompetent mess they have become. Plaid Cymru, if the ultimate vision of an independent Wales making decisions for the benefit of all the people who live there not a Cardiff Bay elite will become more attractive in such a future.

So Plaid Cymru should not expect an easy few years....but should not panic.

Until the next time.

Hockey Sticks At The Ready

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

It's Sunday and I'm wandering around YouTube looking for free live sport. Normally there's a cricket or football game that I can cling onto (have to work out what Romanian team to support) but find myself surprisingly stopping at women's hockey. Why would I want to watch a sport I've little knowledge of  and not taken any interest in the past? Well it's in Cardiff (Wales were playing), I noted that this game is part of a tournament, and my daughter plays hockey at school.

In other words I've a plan to knock off another day from the summer holiday.

This tournament is called Eurohockey Championships II. It involves eight nations just below the top tier. For the moment they are playing in two groups of four before everything then goes into the knockout stage. The reward for the final two is entry into the elite group of nations.

There were two matches on Monday. The first we would miss and it didn't matter anyway. The second however was France Italy. This was good because in the absence of Wales we had a team to support in view of our ancestry.

Just to give you a clue...

"Italia! Italia!"

So found ourselves in Sophia Gardens at around five thirty in the evening. Also home for Glamorgan Cricket Club it's a complex that houses the Welsh Hockey HQ with it's own (much smaller pitch). Had our hot dogs (which tasted better than the Five Guys thing at the Red Dragon Centre on Friday)soft drinks and we were ready.

As we entered the pitch both teams were training and the announcer was giving out the teams. There was a group of young Frenchmen to our right. You could tell they were French by their tops (a giveaway that) and the way they cheered when every player from their side was mentioned (one I noticed that received a whistle). However when it was time for the national anthems it was they who belted out Les Marseillaise with commendable gusto more I noticed than the team. The Italians ladies (dressed in white) sang their tune as loud as possible as if their lives depended on it.

"Allez le Bleu" shouted one of the Frenchmen as the match started. Or if you can imagine a surprisingly gruff voice "ARRLLLEZ LE BLEU!!".

And indeed France in the beginning did attack. So much so that my hockey ignorance began to show. There was apparently a foul on a French player in the Italian half. Ah I said to my daughter "a free kick".

Well she gave me a look of utter contempt that only a teenage girl could give.

But after this French pressure Italy a few minutes later scored.

"Italia! Italia!"

The French tried again. Just missing the goal whilst the Italian goalie threw herself spectacularly across the line.

Soon after I started clapping. Italy scored with a goal a few yards from the halfway line. It was spectacular....but no one was celebrating....cue contemptuous daughter look two. She tells me that you have to be in the semi circled area to by the net to score a goal. 

Ahh right....

There then was an altercation. A French player fouled an Italian who turned round and raised her stick. Before it turned all martial arts though they were both sent off. Didn't seem to bother Italy though. A run off the wing, a cross from which a strike by an oncoming Italian player caught the defence and the goalie off guard. The most football like goal of the game.

Moments later there was a third. A back flip of the stick to the net. 3-0 Italy. And that was the score at half time.

"Italia! Italia!"

The Italians spent half time by the pitch. The French ladies went off to their French dressing room presumably to be shouted out with various French swear words by the French coach.

If there was swearing though it didn't work. Four minutes into the second half Italy scored again. Soon after that there was a penalty  that made it five.

Even the sin binning of an Italian player didn't matter. Just like football when a team tries to throw everything but the kitchen sink to try and retrieve itself from a bad scoreline leaving itself venerable to opposition attack. There was a one on one between the Italian player and the French goalie. I'll give you another clue what happened.

"Italia! Italia!"

To be the Frenchmen I mentioned earlier still shouted support to their countrywomen...just a little more muted with every goal that crossed the line.

And before the final whistle there was another ....seven nil ....."Italia! Italia!".

It's not for me to talk about either team's chances in the tournament. I lack the knowledge to say anything about that. Except in retrospect the fact that the Italian ladies sang the national anthem as forcefully as possible unlike their French counterparts was perhaps a sign that they were a team. Which (let's face it the French lost seven nil!) their opponents really were not.

I must admit I enjoyed my first hockey game and more importantly so did my daughter. Unfortunately work means I can't go to any other match but we'll see whether the wife can take her in the next few days.

Oh yes just one more time.

"Italia! Italia!"

Until the next time.

Welsh And Sports Direct

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

You know there is a thing about walking into a Sports Direct store. You feel uneasy. There is such a bad background story now. The owner Mike Ashley having to make radical reforms to the way staff are treated there due to the stories of bad working conditions. You feel somehow complicit walking in. As if you're being friendly with a Victorian mill owner

Now let me make it clear. It's been a while since I've entered a Sports Direct. But the last time I did I got the sense that there was a lack of coordination. As long as you could pile it high and sell it cheap it seemed as if it didn't really matter where you put the items for sale. It really seemed a mess to me.

Anyway Sports Direct are in the news for a different reason in Wales today. Apparently there was a notice in company notepaper in a Bangor store banning the speaking of the Welsh language for "company business" for various reasons citing specifically health and safety.

Now Sports Direct are denying that this is company policy and are investigating. But before we chat about the note directly let's say this. Even if, say, the notice was fake and this was the work of some disgruntled English only speaking employee or a monoglot practical joker like all well organised pranks it was believed automatically. And the reason was because you wouldn't put it past Sports Direct to act like this. That you see, whether justified or not, is what a bad reputation does to a company.

And let me make my views clear. The one and only time in a work environment that people have to speak English is if there is a work related conversation and an involved non Welsh speaker is in the room. That is it. To deny the speaking of Welsh in any other context is to take away people's basic human rights.

In this notice whilst it states that speaking a language other than English could pose "various risks" to the company the only one actually highlighted is health and safety. This is of course rubbish. Not only are there bilingual signs available but also in the event of a fire, ( in a store let's point out that literally puts clothes for sale up to the ceiling) does anybody really believe that a Welsh speaker would shout "Tan!" before shouting "Fire!" Women children and Welsh speakers first? If you really believe that then obviously still you still vote UKIP.

I have written before of how the speaking of Welsh is slowly becoming an act of rebellion in the light of apparent pressure by mainly right wing ideologues. If this is now affecting business then this disease is spreading.

If this notice is proved to be true and the company doesn't act I would not advocate a boycott of Sports Direct. People's jobs might be on the line. Instead what I'd suggest, and if I next go into Sports Direct this is what I'll do, is to insist on being served by a Welsh speaker only even if my Cymraeg is not fluent. If more people do this perhaps the native language of Wales will be appreciated by those who know the price of everything and the value of nothing.

Until the next time.

How Spiderman Saved The Day......But

Hello there. Hope you're feeling today.

Before we talk about all things spidery on Thursday went to the adoptive prefab that is Sully library to pick a new non fiction book to borrow.

As it happened went for two.

The non fiction section started with travel books. Most of them being guide books. The only "travel" book was Notes From A Small Island by Bill Bryson. Trouble is...I've read it.

Then came I.T books...Windows 8 for beginners and IPAD for seniors were some of the more trendy tomes until the old eyes saw this

The Golden Rules Of Blogging by Robin Houghton

Who knows it might make me a better blogger?

There was though the need for a second book. This was the next one on the shelf.

Randall Monroe - What If?

The blurb says it's about serious scientific solutions to absurd situations. We shall see.

Right that's all things bookish dealt with today. Let's turn to the original World Wide Web Wonder.

So far my daughter has not had a lucky summer holiday. Her friends in her new school have gone away (her turn is to come) and if the weather is any judge late July/August appear to have gone on a break with October having filled in for them. So she hasn't really gone out much anywhere so far.

On Friday the wife was working but I was not so decided that we'd see a movie. My original choice was a Japanese anime movie at the Chapter Arts Centre in Cardiff that I knew was on the day before. Thought it would be different. So that was the plan.

However there turned out to be a problem with the plan...in a nutshell what happens on a Thursday stays on a Thursday. The anime wasn't showing  on Friday.

So looked at what was on at the local Odeon cinema in the Red Dragon Centre just outside Cardiff. Showed the timetable to my daughter and told her to pick a movie we'd go and watch together. She picked, much to my surprise, Spider-Man Homecoming.

(A quick digression for those of you wondering why I didn't make her see Dunkirk the answer's simple. This time I wanted her to watch what she wanted and not force her to seeing something that she'd grudgingly watch. Personally it seems to me that all of the family should watch this together and not treat it as a refuge on a rainy day)

Anyway back to webby guy. Asked daughter why she wanted to go and see something that she'd never given any hint of liking before. There were two reasons:

1) Spider-Man is "hot" (My daughter is fourteen)

2) Zendaya is in it.

Now taking these two things in order (and thus a pre review of the review of the movie). You would have to ask a gay version of me in an alternate universe as to the "hotness" or otherwise of Tom Holland who plays Spidey. What I will say is that neither he or any other of the actors playing students looked like the fifteen/sixteen year olds they were apparently playing.

With regard to Zendaya (star of Disney channel comedies that all seem to merge into my fifty three year old brain into one amorphous mass) it's not spoiling the film to say that her role was so insignificant she could have tweeted it in.

The movie incidentally had a 12A certificate. One of the reasons was because of a "mild sex reference". As it happens it was the only bit of the movie that made me laugh.

Anyway off we went to the centre. Essentially a place to spend your money on various things such as a cinema, casino ,bowling alley plus various restaurants. Got the tickets then took some lunch at a place called Five Guys. Let me describe the lunch one hotdog each, fries for her and a soft drink. The food was OK but nothing special. It was also more expensive than the cinema tickets!!

Eventually it was time for the film. Daughter having armed herself behind Dad's back with a large and stinky box of popcorn (FYI I hate popcorn)  It wasn't full,or half I'd say about a quarter if that. First came the ads, then the trailers...a new Thor (Chris Hemsworth is also "hot" apparently) a Justice League of America that seemed to be filmed under a shroud it was that grey. And there is a Gerald Butler film out soon as well. Gerald Butler, star of that Boss aftershave commercial where he talks absolute twaddle as if it was in the Bible.

And then....at last....the film.

And let me stress at the outset I hated it. The overall reason being all the changes they made to Spider-Man since I read the comics as a child. There are many examples that I could use which would spoil the movie so won't go there. Here though are three that are not spoilers.

1) Spider-man had Spidey sense. Where he would get a tingle of upcoming danger. Well that's gone.

2) In this movie Spider-Man doesn't have a sidekick so much as a helper. But in the comics (should I be saying "graphic novel" now?) the webmaster swung alone.

3) Finally Aunt May was a wizened white haired old lady with a heart condition. Not a description anyone would ever give of Marisa Tomei.

But the point is this. The opinion of a fifty three year old man with nostalgia issues does not matter. The audience this film was catering to was represented by the fourteen year old to my right....and she loved it.

So thank you Spider-man for giving my daughter an enjoyable afternoon at the cinema........and for making me feel very, very old.

Until the next time.

On A Cover Spoiling A Book, Library Crisis, The Dangers Of Forgotten Wells And On Avoiding The Wodehouse Until Now

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

Since I last chatted a number of books have been finished. Time to take a deep breath and begin.

Totally Wired by Andrew Smith. The first book borrowed since I joined Sully library is now read. Here's my suggestion about it.

Avoid the cover.

On the cover of the book I borrowed it implied a general investigation into the dotcom crash of the early nineties. But although there is an explanation of events at that time, it's to put in context the creator and company that it focuses on Josh Harris and Pseudo.com. I didn't realise this until a third of the way through. Thinking "Well I get Josh Harris when do I get to the others?" felt quite irritated until it dawned on me that the cover had led me astray.

Perhaps (I don't know) the UK publishers felt that unless you were that technical geek interested in internet American history the book would be avoided by the great British public. This could be true. But for me it spoilt the book as my mindset was on one route because of the cover whereas it was taking a slightly different journey.

(As a quick aside the only internet or even information technology advice I will give people is. If a geek describes to you a high tech future in whatever form then believe in the geek. It will happen. You might not want it to happen, you might not want your life to be monitored by a mainframe in Vladivostok, but it will happen. However it will never, ever, happen at the speed they will tell you though. That one piece of advice that was given to by a geek and I pass it on to you).

Totally Wired is actually worth a read once you realise what it's really about. I'd recommend it.

Had a library crisis last night. Came home after the afternoon/evening shift knowing amongst other things I'd be off to the library tomorrow to borrow the next non fiction book. But, disaster.....my library card was missing.

That's right the library card I had waited for, made an effort to get, was gone. WAS IN A PANIC! Before I pinged myself a microwave meal at ten forty five pm was hunting it down and accusing wife/daughter of having hidden it. Why am I like this? Why am I obsessing over a library card? Is there a hidden meaning? Where is Freud and Jung when you really want them?

Anyway I gave up last night when hunger took over as a concern. Then, as it eventually does, sleep.

What did I do first thing this morning? Hunt for the card again. And you will be happy to know my mental state is back on track as I found it, sticking out behind a furniture cabinet like a naughty schoolboy. Must have dropped after the wife moved pile of papers it was on. Panic over. Better put it in the wallet now. Don't judge me. At least it's not drink or drugs.....it's reading.

On the ebook side of things finished Our Italy by Charles Dudley Warner. Italy in this case meaning California. I won't repeat what I've written before about it except that if you want to give a present to a Californian Geography teacher with a taste for local history then this is the book to get. Otherwise avoid..

Next up turned out to be a ghost short story from H G Wells about a man who knowingly spends the night in a room. I won't spoil it further except to say that once finished you will be severely underwhelmed. Unless he wrote it for money it was the most pointless ghost story I've ever read. It was as if he was thinking "I'm H G Wells. I've revolutionised science fiction novels, I done works of social commentary, I can write a ghost story. How difficult can it be?"

Well if The Red Room is anything to judge by very difficult.

H G Wells is remembered for specific Science fiction novels as well The History Of Mr Polly and Ann Veronica. A lot of his other stuff is forgotten. Having read the bonkers and racist When The Sleeper Wakes and now this could it be that most of his work was forgotten because it was rubbish? An experiment for another day perhaps.

So am now reading The Man With Two Left Feet And Other Stories by P G Wodehouse. I've never read a P G Wodehouse book before. No let me be even more clear. I've avoided them. Whether it was in the library,bookshop or online Wodehouse works were to be swerved from. Why? Well the impression the covers (we come back to that again) as well as short snippets on TV whilst channel surfing gives is that it's the chocolate mousse of literature. Easily consumed and as quickly forgotten. There always seemed to be better things to read.

As for Bertie Wooster and Jeeves. Well if Jeeves really was the one with the brains he would've thrown Wooster into jail whilst taking part in the glorious revolution of the masses against their capitalist oppressors. Instead he serves an idiot.

But I haven't read the books....this is just an impression....and this collection was free.

Will chat properly when I've finished it but on a scientific survey of having read two short stories....my prejudices remain.

Until the next time.

A Further Thought On Ford in Bridgend And Caitlin Moran To The Rescue With Old Technology

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

Yesterday was Saturday and just after lunch had to drive from where I live now to the outskirts of Bridgend town to begin the afternoon/evening shift of work. Normally my choice of  radio station of this journey is BBC Radio 4 ( the station coming back varies, but that's unimportant here) solely because I can catch up with the news at one the next time world events and me meet on these shifts will be when I've finished at ten in the evening.

The programmes before and after the news normally just wash over me. And so it should have been this time. Being a Saturday afternoon that was Any Questions where a panel answer audience questions on the issues of the day. Normally it's too predictable to be of any interest to me and occasionally annoying when a particular guest I don't like turns up. Here it was Julia Hartley-Brewer, a talk show host who can be best described as a toilet trained Katie Hopkins.

Now one of those questions was of the government's plan (and the fact that this government has a plan over anything is astonishing in itself) that no petrol or diesel cars would be sold by 2040. It appears that similar moves are being made across Europe (taking back control...ha!). The point though is whatever the timescale and how it's implemented it does appear that the future is electric. Cars will be humming to a different beat.

It was when they had finished discussing this issue that I passed the turnoff to the Ford Bridgend plant. Only then did my brain join the dots. Something I already knew but didn't register properly before.

It's an engine plant.

I have written before of my belief that the UK and Welsh governments need to move now to secure the future of Ford Bridgend. If motoring is to be electric then investment needs to be made now to make sure that the factory and the jobs are safe. The plant will need to be updated to cater for electric cars in order for it to be relevant in this new age. Ford will want incentives to do this and too be honest money should be thrown at them to be tempted to do this and fend off the consequences of Brexit. Because if the technology goes to a country in the EU, then whatever the enviornmental benefits of electric cars are the environmental costs to Bridgend will be disastrous.

Both the near closure of the Tata Steel works in Port Talbot and the closing down next year of the Tesco Call centre in Cardiff revealed governments (particularly that of the Labour run Welsh administration) that were seemingly caught out by events. Here they have time to seriously make an effort to secure the future of Ford Bridgend.

But the clock is ticking.

And to lighter matters.

Have finished Dostoevsky's The Idiot. Don't really need to say any more than I did yesterday. You know I liked it.

The next ebook on the Kindle pile is Our Italy by Charles Dudley Warner. first published in 1892. Only in this case "Italy" turns out to be California. If I understood the logic correctly. California is like Italy because of it's varied climate and landscapes. Thing is. In Chapter One there is mention of the Mojave Desert. No Geographer me but at this moment at least, before global warming changes things beyond recognition I don't recall Italy having a desert. There is also at least one moment where Europwe is compared unfavourably with the sunshine/drought/flooding/forest fire state. When you read it my first thought is "Then why the title Charlie?"

But let's be fair here. The target audience for this book now are probably Californian Geography teachers with an interest in local history. My lack of any real interest is probably because I'm so far away from the core demographic I'm in a different continent...which literally I am....specifically in fact the Italy with rain that is Wales.

Anyway I have 29 minutes according to my Kindle to go. I know this because that was the moment when a sign came up saying that it needed charging during a break at work. But unexpectedly there was a backup. Moranthology by a hardback book I'd bought yesterday in windy Porthcawl and had left in my work bag. Yet again in Ms Moran has come to my reading rescue. Not just because there was something to read but also that it's so damned good.

Until the next time.

Dostoevsky At The Dentist,By The Porthcawl Coast And With An All Day Breakfast For Lunch

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

I know what you're going to think. He's left the Bridgend area for over two months now but he's still coming back? Leaving aside the fact he works there?

Well yes. But things still need servicing. Last Friday it was the car. Yesterday it was the turn of my teeth. Dentists are like hairdressers. Once you've put your faith in one that's it until necessity puts you into an agonised search for a replacement.

I remember once a dentist in Cardiff. It would have been about twenty years ago. Young,blonde pretty she was also the roughest I ever dealt with. She manoeuvred my mouth as if it was plasticine which, considering the lasting effects of my Bells Palsey is that I can't smile straight was bothersome to say the least. Mentioning it to my wife later she said "Yes she's rough with me too".

Which was why at nine thirty am I was the man waiting at reception to be called. I was the one reading a book on my Kindle. Ignoring the temptations of the TV channel they had on (really daytime TV taken as a whole is really where your brain goes to die). I was reading The Idiot by Doestoevsky, which I should say now is an entertainment but still better than what was on screen. After all will future generations eulogise about Homes Under The Hammer? I don't think so.

Anyway after my name was called and about half an hour later where things were put into my mouth and there is a sudden urge to cough at all the wrong moments I walked out of the premises. My teeth were ready to fight another day.

Like last week was working the afternoon/evening shift that day so it was pointless to return to the apartment. Like last week the weather was bad. Rain and heavy winds. Had though less time to wander aimlessly through the streets than previously What should I do? Make a return trip to Bridgend Town? What idiot would think that on a windy day like this a trip to the Porthcawl coastline would be a good idea?

So that's where I went.

Now in terms of a coastline must be honest and say that as long as it doesn't get into flooding mode I prefer watching the waves crash into an area. Porthcawl yesterday, heavy winds, cold, dark clouds  November in July, didn't disappoint.

Drama Without The Commercial Breaks

It really was as bleak as this

I did have the idea of stopping and reading a bit more Dostoevsky here. But, well I'm not that mad.

Must admit I like this

Opposite the coastline there is a Bed and Breakfast called The Foams Edge. Not quite today.....

....but close

And if you want the juxtaposition of the angry sea and the town?

Not sure this would be in the postcards

Decided that I did want to read a bit more Dostoevsky by the coast. There was in this weather a perfect place for it. A small enclosed place directly along the sea called The Piccolo Bar. So having bought a cappuccino I took my seat.

This was my view

It was it has to be said the first time I've ever felt seasickness whilst on dry land.

Two more pictures of crashing seas before I go on. Firstly from the Ministry of Obvious Signs Porthcawl Division.



And then this, the end of the harbour wall in Porthcawl. I could have gone further, but not being a lunatic or the French Lieutenant's Woman felt discretion was the better part of valour.



Like last week in Bridgend Town I felt for old times sake I should buy a book. Went to my favourite the Porthcawl Animal Welfare Shop (PAWS) and on entering saw a guy pay for a group of books....including vintage Penguins!!

Nonetheless went upstairs and there was a number of Penguin paperbacks to chose from. But as it happened a different,non Penguin caught my eye. Moranthology by Caitlin Moran which is an anthology of You may remember I wrote about how she helped pass the time for me on Christmas Day at work when I was reading How To Build A Girl and how I was impressed by it. So partly being excited, part out of state of gratefulness and mainly out of it being a hardback selling for just 60p I bought it.

Time then for lunch. Went to a café called The Esplanade.Decided on a all day breakfast with a cup of tea.

As a quick aside I should mention that the European British Open Senior Golf Tournamnet was being played nearby. In the café there was a woman with that sort of bright pink golf top and visor that you see being worn by the wives of male golfers or female golfers. The look and her tan suggested that she was American. I looked at her and thought. "You've never been to Porthcawl before have you"

Who Says Civilised Living Is Dead?

Despite the Moran book being on the table it was Fyodor's book I continued reading. And I've almost finished it. As said it's an entertainment. The closest way I can describe it (and it's not quite correct) is as a comedy of manners. But I enjoyed the novel and it shows a range in what he could write about that I hadn't realised before.

So when it comes to classic Russian writers I'm still wit team Fyodor.

Until the next time.

In Which I Strayed With Cheryl And Chat About A Few Russians (Only Books I'm Afraid)

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

Now that I'm a member of the local library I decided to go back to the ebook I electronically put to one side for a while Wild by Cheryl Strayed. In it she tells the story of how she undertook the Pacific Crest Trail (which starts in a desert) as a sort redemptive process after having gone off the rails emotionally following her mother's death.

Well it was finished and well it was a good read. Not a great read you understand. This notion of redemption is very American and the mere thought of walking a long way involving a desert is not my idea of fun (after all hot weather in South Wales makes me go into hives).

There is apparently a film of Wild starring Reese Witherspoon. This surprised me given that it's a rather slim tome. Perhaps it's a marketing ploy for those of us who've read the book to be tempted to watch it ready to mock should the movie be different in anyway. Well it's worked for me.....when it's on TV.....or Netflix anyway.

Next book randomly selected was The Seven Who Were Hanged by Leonid Andreyev. It's about people facing the death penalty and how they react I'd never heard of him before. But apparently he was a contemporary of Tolstoy and could be compared with Dostoevsky. Having read this book (the first of his I've ever read)....possibly.

This is not a whodunnit. All of those condemned to hang committed the crime. What the novel shows is their various and changeable reactions to their impending fate. It was compelling reading.

One of the points Andreyev does show is that you might not think you're Napoleon but being just this side of sanity doesn't mean that you should be hanged if you commit a murder (as opposed to life imprisonment you understand). Really this is an equally slim time as Wild but affected me much more.

So now the next book on the eBook pile turns out to be The Idiot by Dostoevsky. Again the kindle is revealing a sense of humour. And for the moment so far so good.

Until the next time.

Things To Do in Bridgend Town On a Wet Friday Morning

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

In the end it became all very sitcomesque. A few weeks back I had booked MOT test for the car in a garage near where I work in Bridgend. Not living in the area anymore it was booked for about one o'clock last Friday before starting my afternoon/evening work shift. The wife would later come down to pay the bill.

However some days after that realised that I'd forgotten to book for a service as well. Not a problem. Contacted them to arrange it. On confirming that it was booked the garage added a sting.

"Please bring the car in at eight thirty".

Where I live in near Penarth is about a thirty five minutes car journey to Bridgend. On public transport however it's an eternity. I had I realised roughly five hours to spend in the town. A place without any museum or some place of entertainment for the morning. What was worse was that it was raining. And when I say raining it was as if it was auditioning to become a monsoon. Indeed just to add a sprinkle to the general deluge when I left the garage stepped into a puddle. So was going to be spending the time with a sodden right foot before doing anything else.

This is remember July

This was going to be fun.

Here then. If you have to spend five hours in Bridgend Town on a wet Friday morning is a guide of Things to Do.

Look For Changes Since The Last Visit: Regular readers of this blog will know how I've monitored the decline of the town mainly due I would argue to the arrogant incompetence of the Labour council since I last chatted about this there have been some differences. In the good news category Bridgend Town has resumed its status as a two Greggs the Baker town and there is a new bar/coffee place/lounge that is where the Queen Victoria pub was which had been closed down for years.

In a pub context what is a lounge

However

This was either a sweet or one of those smelly soap shops

There is this.

Not Closing But Moving

This clothing company is moving with the local Poundland. Whilst I don't know how they will handle this cohabitation what it does mean is that from the middle of next month a major retail space will be empty.

Was mainly a clothing store

Must admit had been suspecting this store was going to close for a while now as it was offering half price on everything in stock. Still sad to see it go. It's been around for years.

Not a closure I know but you may remember that I've spoken previously of the Nolton Arcade in the town. The small shopping arcade where apart from the two shops that back along to the street every shop has been closed down. Well nothing has changed. But when I went to have a look noticed this.

"Thank you for visiting the arcade" it says. How sad is that?

And of course what is probably the oldest disused McDonald's is still there.

Popular with Penguins

Have a breakfast: In Bridgend there are many cafes that will sell, depending on your viewpoint, a full English,Welsh or large breakfast. Not an easy choice but eventually went for Ty Coffi near the bus station.

Ty Coffi

The View From Ty Coffi

So what should you do whilst waiting for your full English/Welsh/Large breakfast?

Read a Russian novel of course

And as for the breakfast itself.

Large it certainly was

Not only was it so full I couldn't finish it. I was too full to have lunch later afterwards. And for the record very tasty.

And after you've had a full breakfast you need a walk. Bridgend Town can provide such a service. Thankfully the weather was dry for about two hours in the morning for me to do this.

The Library Walk: I have written before of how Bridgend Labour Council moved the town centre library to outside the town centre. I decided to walk between the two buildings.

From Here

To this. Part Leisure Centre Part Library

It took me ten minutes.

Now I'm not going to say that I took the quickest route. You might be able to do it in nine. Still that means that if you live in the other side of town a walk to the library could take at least twenty minutes and possibly more. A decision of Bridgend Labour madness.

River Watching: Bridgend Town has the rivers of Ogmore and Ewenny that runs through it. Sometimes it's rather therapeutic just to cross a bridge and watch the river flow through.

Worth Hanging Around For A While

Visit a Church: Even for an atheist like me. I do prefer traditional looking churches. Bridgend Town has a worthy one in Saint Mary's

Now that's what I call a church

When I visited there was a service being performed there. Sparsely attended. Must admit I wish I could believe in an afterlife. But no. Once we are gone we are gone.

And inside

Seagull watching: Regular readers of this blog will know that I'm not a fan of seagulls. Still when you see them as far inland as Bridgend Town it's a warning of bad weather to come. And must admit to admire the fact that they're not afraid to wander the streets even when humans are present.

Bridgend Town Seagull Action

And even more seagull action

Buy a part owned Penguin paperback and have a capperchino: Must admit for old times sake I wandered around the charity shops in the town looking for a vintage Penguin paperback. Amazingly I found one. Go Down Moses by William Faulkner. So went to a nearby café to celebrate.

Civilised Living

It was about this time twelveish that the weather turned on the taps again. Indeed it poured so much there was a moment when I wondered whether the town would be flooded.

Nervy

Amazingly the five hours flew drenchingly by and even better the car passed with flying colours.

Until the next time.

Let's Talk About The Regeneration Of An Old Friend.....The Library. Plus Pictures From A Bay

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

Bet you thought for a moment I was thinking of Doctor Who. Ha! Just quickly to say not bothered by the gender change one way or another. Except perhaps to mention that the Doctor has probably become the ultimate transsexual.

Anyway yesterday I got a call from Sully library. My library card is now ready and would I collect it? Is the pope Catholic? Yes of course I would.

And so an old friend has been regenerated. Sully Library. Let me remind you of the new form it has taken.

Magnificent No?

So at long last I get a library card.

The Route Of Knowledge

The next is to pick the books. One of the extra quiet pleasures a library produces. As it's a small place I aim to read all the most reasonable books I can. So for example as I'm currently living in rental accommodation no garden or home tomes will be read. Or, as it was the first in the non fiction category travel guidebooks are a no no. Getting a permanent place is a priority.

First book then on the non fiction shelves I could read was this then.

Totally Wired - Andrew Smith

This is about the companies that tried to get onto the internet bandwagon too early and its consequences. Seems like an interesting read.

I could have picked ten books but instead settled for two. So if I've finished the book and Sully library (which remember is just open for three days) is closed then this is the backup.

The Assassination Of Margaret Thatcher - Hilary Mantel

I've never read a Mantel book before so should be interesting.

And in case you're wondering I'll read the library books during daylight and the ebook at night.

During the evening we went out to have a dinner as it was my mother's birthday in Cardiff Bay. When we finished (a nice meal at an Italian restaurant called Bellinis) I took the following pics of Cardiff Bay as the day turned to dusk.

Bay in Action

The subsequent rain and thunderstorms seemed to have had brought the seagulls in when we were there.

No a fan of Seagulls...Avian Bullies

More dusky shots

Plus added rainbow

And finally. Penarth on a Tuesday night. Quiet.

A Pier View

Cliché Seaside Grey

Until the next time.

Apparently McDonalds Is Now The New Beacon For Lost Old Ladies

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

It was all supposed to be so simple. My mother, coming down for her birthday from Essex (daughter still being at school) would, not knowing how to get to our new abode, go to Cardiff West services on Junction 33 of the M4. There she'd give me a ring, I'd go and drive there whereupon she'd follow me on the way to the apartment.

However at 8:30am the phone rings. I knew instantly something was wrong. It was my mother. There had been roadworks at junction 25 where all of a sudden she found herself forced to leave the motorway.

But where exactly was she? Lime Road Newport she was told. In a car park between a pub and a McDonalds. Frightened and alone she asked me to come and pick her up. Not having a Satnav or knowing the area that well of course I said yes.

Quick check on the internet revealed that the M4 closure was caused by work on the Bryn Glas tunnel in Newport. Now perhaps me or my mother should have checked on this, even so, what is the logic of roadworks on a Sunday in summer? If the weather was fine then my mother would not be the only person caught up in all of this.

There was another problem. I put Lime Road....then Lyme Road onto route planners. Nothing. Why was this? There was only one thing to it. Take the same turnoff as my mother and look for a Mcdonalds.

Still out of the apartment first thing I did was to get some petrol. Now a quick aside here. What is it about marketing types and the naming  of petrol?Went to Texaco where their fuel is called Premium and Supreme. This begs the question Premium to what? It surely can't be Supreme because if you're Supreme then you're all powerful.

BP is the same. They call their top oil Ultimate. Which suggests it will never be bettered. We all know though that it will be. So what will they call the new stuff "Ultimate Plus"? Don't think this has been thought through.

Anyway off I went. It was a journey of about half an hour and when I reached the junction I followed the signs for a diversion.....and went the wrong way to Pontypool. Turning back went back to the turnoff and going west instead. Took the first turning. There there was a Sainsburys and a sign with a big curly M on it. I was close.

But the road is a mix of residential and industrial estate. No sign of the big M and it's produce anywhere.

Lost in Newport

More Newport Lost Action

The road became a dead end. It was then I saw a road sign. Mcdonalds it said was open. But Lyne Road was closed, My first reaction was "Ahh Lyne Road" My second reaction was "closed?" Still I was clearly within spitting distance. But where to spit was another matter.

Decided to go back where I came and take the next turning along. It's there saw the big M and my mother waiting patiently.

She is grateful. I start to describe myself as the geriatic rescuer as I did for the rest of the day. We drive home.

Newport seems like an interesting place for a visit. Part new part old. Part Shabby part shiny. This contrast in a space closer than I've seen before in Wales. Worth a look for the future but not today.

So thankyou Mcdonalds.The new beacon for lost old ladies.

Doesn't mean I'll eat there more mind.

Until the next time.

How Welsh Independence Could Ease Inflation And the Consequences Of Brexit

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

I know I no longer live in Bridgend, though it appears constantly in this blog as if I'm trying to relive the old hits and indeed next week I might have to spend a long time doing nothing there (which I'll explain should it happen at the time).

However though working near to the town I've genuinely tried to wean myself off chatting about it. One thing I haven't done, that is until yesterday, is to go near to the house we used to live in. That is the personal past and though occasionally I go against my own rule, for the most part do not believe in looking back. Do not see the point.

Yesterday however I had to go to a shop in a small shopping area nearby as I promised my wife I would given that was working the afternoon evening shift. Did what I had to do and then felt the need for a drink. So wandered into the local Tesco Express.

A quick aside here. Tesco Express is only express depending on the time you enter. It's the only place where, should you be unlucky, it's express to shop but slow lane to queue

I'd regularly visited the place when living nearby, it was let's face it a store of convenience for the singular item...mainly milk. Now however it was odd wandering in. Felt like a stranger in a strange land. Everything seemed familiar, people, layout, offers for things I rarely wanted but it was just unreal.

Shaking that all off went to get something to drink and well was shocked. Knew that inflation was on the rise, but as I looked everything that my eyes could gaze on seemed to have risen. Noticed that San Pellegrino mineral water was up, should I have some crisps with it? Well they were up as well. No I thought. Just go for what your tastebuds wanted. A small bottle of Tropicana orange juice. Last time I'd bought one of these they cost £1.

Now they cost £1.19.....£1.19!

And of course whilst invidually there may have been reasons for specific increases we all know that the main reason has been Brexit and the fallout from it. People who were misled into thinking that walking from the EU meant a bright new world of a better NHS and wonderful trade deals are now seeing that life alone is just lonely and expensive.

This current Conservative coalition with the DUP, a party that seems to have as its mantra the philosophies of a witchfinder general have started negotiations under the delusion that Britain still has an empire to back it up. It appears that rather than negotiate and accept the inevitable compromises that it would bring the government would rather bang their heads on a brick wall of hard Brexit saying that it would be "better for Britain".

People may have voted to leave the EU. But people were voting on the destination. At no stage has there, or apparently will there, be a vote on the route to get there. Life in Britain is actually tough enough already for a lot of its population. A hard Brexit will push it on a course which, for the social wellbeing of the country if nothing else, may lead to uncharted dangers. I've recently chatted on the dangers for the Ford factory in Bridgend that Brexit might cause. A hard Brexit may spread that across the United Kingdom, causing it to be even more fractured and disunited as it is now.

Hence for Wales as well as Scotland independence suddenly becomes an economic and social issue as well as a political one. For a minority Conservative government that has to be propped up to survive to force through tactics that are unpopular will cause resentment. Perhaps, the people of the Celtic regions should be independent and negotiate their own deals. Perhaps the people who care about falling off a cliff rather than those from a privileged distance away who would rather they jumped free fall from it as long as they felt morally pure should be in charge.

If Wales was independent and negotiated from its perspective alone. Then compromises will be made, but it will also be the case that the looming disaster will be avoided as well. That will ease inflation as well social unrest that is bound to happen should hard Brexit occur.

Welsh independence may need to come quicker than we think.......the clock is ticking.

Until the next time.

Disappointment At The Library, Dilemma At The Supermarket

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

You may remember that last week I attempted to join the local library in Sully, the closest where we live at the moment in the Vale of Glamorgan. However because of the installation of "new systems" I couldn't borrow any books from the literary prefab but was assured that today, Tuesday, it would be ready.

The Prefab Library Sprout

So I walk in, ready for some hot book borrowing action, ready to have get some books. I give my name, say was promised a library card, prepare to receive it and off I go.

But....

The three lady librarians look at me amazed that someone who last week applied for a library card wishes to actually use the miniature services it has to offer.

A woman with long blonde hair who I assume to be the lead librarian tells me that they have just finished installing their systems.....but there is a backlog of applications to be put through.

I mention that there was a promise that this would be done in a week. Didn't show my anger, I'm a reader rarely a fighter. Don't think that I hid my frustration well mind.

Nothing could be done though. Saturday is it appears the next possible day that the card will arrive. They've promised to ring me when it does come. We shall see.

And you know what, much as I'm grateful to my Kindle I miss a paper book and going to  library these are the sort of things that won't be truly appreciated until they're gone. Yet I can't go back to appreciating these things because of something, Vale of Glamorgan council, that isn't my fault.

Angry,frustrated, disappointed and most of all bookless I travel to the nearby LIDLs ( aka along with Aldis the supermarkets people will go to after Brexit as everything else will be too expensive) to do a quick shop. Not a lot. Just a basketload of mainly things I forgot to get yesterday.

So I'm at the checkout. The stuff is on the conveyor belt and so I'm about to put my basket in the pile of empty baskets at the end of checkout before I can indulge in the game of filling up the carrier bag before the cashier has given you the cost or will he/she and the queue behind mentally tut at your tardiness. However empty baskets are not the only thing there. For in the previous basket there's a packet of ham and some white fillet of fish.

What to do? Put it back myself?  Tell the staff thus creating more delayed time and increased tuttiness from those behind me? Inform them about food probably made inedible by the lazy so and so before me.

No I was terribly,terribly British and said nothing. Just created a new pile for the baskets and let the sanctity of the queue continued unabated.

Civilisation is not destroyed yet.

Until the next time.