Energy Chancers

 

The chancers are at it again.  Both EON, now called 'E.on Next' for no good but certainly a costly reason, and the British Gas people, now called 'British Gas Evolve,' again for no good, but certainly costly reason are asking for a meter reading every month.  This apparently is to ensure you are up to date and able to control your costs, though I notice they do not allow you to reduce those costs as you wish on their websites as they once did.  So, to save costs, I have had to read the gas meter, in the rain, and today, clamber up and down stairs to read the electric meter in the basement (which was warmer than my condominium).

As you may remember I cannot have a 'Smart Meter' as there is no signal in the basement, and therefore I must monthly clamber about to save these grasping chancers from employing men to do so as they once did.  This saves me money?  Cutting their costs, lowering their high salaries and big bonus's to chancer directors, removing this government, and nationalising gas, water and electricity, alongside rail and bus as well as the NHS might help my costs.  I doubt reading meters monthly will do so.  

There is of course no alternative to these large powerful crooks.  It is indeed true there have been problems with gas supply, especially from that nice Mr Putin, who probably has shares in these two companies, yet the smaller companies that still remain are struggling and no cheaper now than this lot, whatever name they use.

Brexit has not helped either, we have lost the collective deals we once shared, and nobody reckons the UK now.  Prices to increase soon, but I am confident that nice Mr Johnson will enable a good deal for us all, unless he is at a party that is.

Return to Normality

I did not leave the house today.  The need for an after Christmas clean up and the need to avoid the rain trapped me happily indoors.  I cogitated on the washing as the machine whirled the mixture around.  My mother did not have a machine until the 1970s and then a hand-me-down from a woman she worked for.  Until then all the washing was done by hand.  She must have grumbled often about the hard work, even though as kids we often er, helped.  Using the mangle was fun even if we avoided the hard part of the work.  She however, was lucky!  

Just imagine washing in Victorian times where much more clothing was the fashion, and not just much more of it but much larger outfits for the women.  All this done by hand.  The soap in those days was usually a long red block called 'Sunlight,' or 'Lifebuoy,' or some such.  It meant the woman had to scrape flakes of the end and mix them in water, washing the kids in the same fashion usually also, but maybe not at the same time.  It was the flakes that helped make William Hesketh Lever famous.  He and his brother worked with a local chemist to develop the soap, based on Palm Oil, he noticed the scraped flakes and an idea came upon him, he put the flakes in a box and 'Lux Flakes' were born.  This became the common soap powder, of various brands, we used way into the 70's.

Today, I poured a dollop of liquid into the machine, £1 a go at Poundland, and watched it go.  

The hard work for me was afterwards as I then had to try the variety of raiment that had lain there for many Christmas days.  I wondered where some had got to!  How can one person whow ears the same clobebr all week find so much in the washing machine?

This proves indeed that the Christmas Holiday is over, housework, rain, normality back, well as much as possible.  Boris lying in his teeth on TV, note the hair has been combed in an effort to make him look like a PM, children returned to school with no protection, no teachers and little hope from this corrupt bunch of gangsters.  NHS  worn out, told they must bear it as we 'are at war' while the NHS like the armed forces are deprived of proper equipment and support.  However, this does not matter, as Boris is still there and he and his people are still coining it in!

I am not sure nurses agree.

 

First Sabbath of the year

The Kirk was almost empty this morning, whether this was due to people being away or the result of too much New Year celebrations was not made clear.  I was however, given a lift home, and home before noon is always a good thing.  It would have been better to have someone make lunch for me and then do the ironing but alas that did not happen.  So make do and mend and wonder "What was that I ate?" had to do.  

First sermon of the year is always tricky.  The church has to be reminded to set its heart on Jesus, not the world, to read the book, study the book, pray without ceasing and love one another.  This was not helped one year a long time ago when the pastor turned and looked in my direction as he urged us to "Move on with no more sin and (as he looked at me) no more spiritual jerks."  Quite how neither of us responded amazes me yet.   

Once home I discovered Championship football was on today.  This meant I could use PPV TV and watch Arbroath play Inverness.  This was welcomed I must say, and so £13 was soon paid and I waited by nodding off, until the game began.  This was great fun until 10 minutes in the server failed.  It took 15 mins at least before an alternative picture was found.  Apparently the server did not expect a thousand people to log in as usually only a couple of hundered do this at Arbroath.  However, government restrictions limiting the crowd to 500 meant many logged on and all collapsed.  'Vimeo,' for it was run via them, failed to impress many of the Angus hordes!  

In the end however I enjoyed the poor game played in high wind and was really too tired to care about much else.  I have struggled to wake in the mornings and look forward to a lie in tomorrow. 

 

Happy New Year 2022

 A Happy New Year to all my readers, including bots!

 

We will face another year of Covid, there will be 'wars and rumours of wars, famines and earthquakes in various places,' terrorists and protesters, mismanagement and corruption in high places.  However, there will also be acts of kindness, efforts at peace, and for many of us good times after bad, hopefully.

In short, life goes on when the calendar changes, we can do little about the life around us but we can change the life we have now, and then we can our world for the better.  May the Lord make his face to shine upon you this year and always.

I hope your 2022 is a good one for you and yours, all the best!

 

New Years Eve 2021

Being New Years Eve I decided I had to check the shop to ensure I had those last important things that I cannot do without, especially as the shops will be closed for the holiday.  I was wrong!  Both Sainsburys and Tesco are open tomorrow, not much change in the hours either.  

This will not be the case in Scotland!  

I thought I had to buy now or struggle on until Monday or Tuesday but it appears no struggle will be required.  Having lounged, drank, eaten too much over Christmas it appears no desire is left among the local natives for similar this weekend.  How often I realise I am living in a foreign country!

 

I was glad to get out under the glowering dark clouds.  Slowly the clouds have fallen away allowing a temperature in the 50's F.  This is unusual for December and knowing similar is happening elsewhere, in the US for example, it indicates a degree of global warming that Fossil Fuel salemen insist does not exist.  Their backing, if not invention, off anti-covid fears intended to ensure people return to work, thus creating money for them, has not gone unnoticed, especially when MPs shout about this in parliament and they happen to be connected to such companies and their offsprings.  How unusual for an MP!

I wandered amongst the few, almost friendly, people out and about.  Handfuls of people prepared for cold weather sweltered around town, a surprising amount of shops remained open, though some were clearly making the most of the time off.   

Home to the usual housework ignored all week.  I am so lucky!  However, it is good to get so much done badly.  Now I am about to check my Christmas spending, this ought to frighten me somewhat and ensure next year I spend less!  Then I prepare for Hogmany, that is heading to bed.... 

Dreich!

 

Dreich indeed!

Thick, heavy, threatening clouds hung over the empire this morning.  Even the LED street light that brightens up the world at 5 am each morning struggled to peek through the gloom.  By the time I struggled out of bed much later I hoped the gloom would have eased, it had not.  The darkness lay over the country for some time, occasionally breaking into light cloud and pretending there was a sun shining high above and beyond somewhere in the sky.  The clouds lied.

Having spent a fruitful morning staring at the laptop and obtaining nothing whatsoever from my endeavors I took the only possible action, I gave up.  Following a pretend exercise period I then wandered up to Tesco via the park.  The damp drizzle popped out now and again yet the air was mild and my heavy coat appeared needless.  I kept it on mind.  Tesco itself was reasonably busy at that time, and having none of the goods I sought means I must visit Sainsburys again tomorrow.

Do you ever get the idea my life is too exciting?

I wonder if I could get one of these 'Influencers' roles on Instagram?  They are all nobody's, have nothing to offer bar sponsored products that nobody requires, have little talent if any, nothing positive to say and are at best boring.  

Surely, surely I could fit in there?  

I can set up a camera and the world can watch me sitting here at the laptop, benging my head on the desk when it does not do what I wish, drinking tea and expensive whisky, and every so often turning to the camera and promoting, accidentally, an expensive piece of garbage that millions will buy because I say so!  Sounds good to me!

I wonder if I can cope with all that money arriving each month?

 

The Quiet Week

 

 

Another day in Toryland, another day with no leader to be seen.  Boris, the present Prime Minister, has run away again.  He has been done in by the knive carrying friends he put in place to protect him from harm, especially the numpty Liz Truss, now Foreign Secretary, and the 'Make the rich richer, especially me' Chancellor Risi Sunak.  Both are hoping for his job, both would be worse than he!

You will recall Kenneth Clarck's comment after the last time he stood for the leadership.  "After the vote 132 Tory members shook my hand and told me they had voted for me, I only got 87 votes!"  The numbers may be innaccurate, but the quote is true.  Now, as we eat leftovers yet again, MPs, Whips, and friends of the leading contenders are stabbing competitors in the back, making lying promises for support, and dining out with editors of right-wing papers.  All fighting for the top job, as indeed is Boris, though his temporary wife may be fighting harder than he, she is on the make and not willing to let go of the 'power behind the throne' that she possesses and is less willing to be caught out and made to pay for the decorating.  Whatever happens, she will land on another high climbing man with power, ability and an openess to her charms.  

Will any of this benefit the nation?

No!

Yesterday it appeared I had somehow enlarged by 5Ibs in weight, today I had returned to normal.  It is indeed amazing what can happen when adding or avoiding roast potatoes.  It may even be normal tomorrow again.  However, exercise was beyond me, a trip to Sainsburys yesterday morning was enough and the gray, rain carrying clouds, have been with us all day today limiting the desire to get out off my chair and wander.  Instead, I returned to the occupations of yesterday, I did nothing!

From my chair via the laptop I visited many parts of the world, played 'Solitaire' and 'Block Game' until the mental stress caused me to turn to the leftovers in the Plum Vodka bottle.  It seemed to me to be too small a bottle for what was inside, very enjoyable and very lifting!  

 

 

The world has returned to some sort of normality, rain clouds fill the earth, people wander across the park with dogs or bags filled at Sainsburys.  The wind shakes the leaves, dripping dollops of water cheerfully on passersby, dogs drink from the puddles, birds are noticeable by their absence, and even the 'white van men' are in short supply, only one today, for next door of course.   

Cars drive by but many have taken, or have been given, the week off.  Pictures of crowded shopping centres, happily sharing the latest virus by not wearing masks, are not found everywhere.  The public leave home only when forced, shopping, bargain hunting, or getting away from the noise of the kids are the favourite reasons.  Some even go to work.   

So now we sit and await New Year.  In the meantime we rise, search for the calandar, work out the date and then plan the day.  It may even be a decent day tomorrow, only thick cloud glowering above us.  This means we may, well wrapped up, walk out and find they lied to us again.  

One thing to look forward to on Jan 1st is the introduction of the full benefits of Brexit!  On that date all the prices concerning trade with the EU will grow substantially, a whole host of other legislation comes into play, and almost nobody understands what is going on and what the result will be.  Actually some of us do know the result, we have spoken of it often and we see the early results in front of us now.  Let us simplify the result, try 'Disaster!'

Tired Monday

 

This is me today.

Total wipeout.  Not able to stay awake all day.  Even a lunchtime snooze is not enough to lift this tiredness.  I suspect the apple crumble, large lunch, roast potatoes and sliver of whisky may play a part in this.  

Too much running around in the days prior to Christmas, no energy left to make the most of the whisky gifts now available to me.  Instead I stare at pictures of far off lands Live on the screen.  Railways in the USA, watering holes in various parts of Africa, some in hot sunshine, some in heavy downpours.  The online pictures from various parts of the world, Live and free, can be interesting, especially if you like Zebras, railways or ocean spray thundering against the shoreline. Such simple pleasures were all I could manage today.

I may enliven myself with some er, gifts tonight.

Boxing Day 2021

 

The problem with having Christmas Day on Saturday is that many folk think Sunday is a Monday.  I am convinced some folks were half way to work this morning before remembering what the day was.  For many others the presence of family or friends, and maybe the weight of over indulgence proved too much for them as few indeed arrived at the Kirk this morning.  The teeming rain did not help either. 

However, we gathered, sung several songs badly, and without the technicians being available we had to read the words out off a book rather than view them on screen.  This has not happened for so long some among us had forgotten how to read!  It was clear we had all forgotten how to sing.

 

 

Soon enough I was back home, the shepherds and angels remaining behind while I indulged myself in roast potatoes, not black like yesterday, and a chicken concoction far too big for me.  However, with some effort I managed, and washed this down with Plum Vodka.  A bit strong with the cloves dear! 

Then Joy!  The Heart of Midlothian game against Ross County was available and I was able to shout abuse at the TV director for failing to do his job properly once again.  Why does he spend so much time looking at the back of players heads?  Just watch the game mate!  Surely this is the easiest job in TV, why make it hard?  Anyway, we won of course, so that provided more cheer.  Now, lying ahead of me are two more games on Now TV via SKY.  It is so hard deciding whether to watch here or go and watch from my bed...

 

Two days holiday now follow.  This is time for the wrapping paper, empty boxes, the ones without cats sitting in them, and other assorted rubbish, including that strange uncle that comes only at Christmas to be discarded, recycled or dumped.  Peace and quiet, unless the kids are still around, and a time for sleeping off excess now arrives.

I hope your Christmas has been a good one, Jesus is still here, no longer a baby but a King, talk to him, he will listen.  He even arranges a driver when the rain is falling, or at least he did for me today anyway.  

You do realise that this time next year will be a new year?  Jings!

 

 

Christmas Day 2021

Happy Christmas everyone.  

Talk to the babe...

 

Christmas Eve

 

I'm shocked!

I met the woman downstairs today and discovered it was not the woman I thought it was.  They had moved out and this one replaced them about 18 months ago.  Jings, no-one tells me anything.

Anyway, I got on well with her and her 'uncle,' and walked round the town for air.

This grubby tree was in the centre and I took a shot of the lights though I do not like trees.  These are pagan things and have no place in Xmas to me.  However, the weather, ike the streets, was too dull for anything else, so I sauntered home, passing the few folks out seeking last minute gifts, or visiting watering holes, if open, for Xmas.  I saw one or two groups, and indeed heard them long before I saw them, well watered!

Now we face the Xmas days.  Tomorrow is Christmas Day, then Boxing Day, with two days off after this for the family arguments and recovery.

Many will also be sharing Covid virus's with friends and family, I will remain in safety with my liqueurs and whisky for protection...

 

O Salutaris Hostia