Category: Local (To Me !!!)

Leader of the fight for Arctic Convoy medals is taken ill – Defence – Portsmouth News


I couldn’t say this any better than “Johnny Rotten Hates Stains”, the nom de plume of someone who has commented on the linked News article reporting the illness of Commander Eddie Grenfell, who has fought long and hard to get recognition for Arctic Convoy heroes.

This story is a very sad one, Mr Grenfell has had to wait all this time for some sort of official recognition and now his age is catching him up so he’s probably unlikely to ever hold this medal in his hand at the rate of pace things have moved,
Anyway, myself and many other’s awarded the Arctic guys a medal long ago, our medal is worth ten times what the official one will be as ours was given in proper recognition rather than a shut you up effort because people were making those that can’t venture out in todays snowfall yet alone face rough freezing sea for years at a time look like the weaklings they really are,

This country doesn’t deserve the Mr Grenfells of this world, it probably did at the time but as history and the record shows all this country has done has taken an almighty dump on these men as it has with the current forces by under equipping them in theater,

My message to a country that seems to think it can call upon us in times of trouble and ignore us all other times is up yours next time you start a war because you muppets couldn’t agree with another set of muppets from another country,

YOU FAILED MR GRENFELL AND ALL THE OTHER MEN THAT TOOK PART IN THE CONVOYS, THEY OWE YOU NOTHING, YOU OWE THEM EVERYTHING.

 

Leader of the fight for Arctic Convoy medals is taken ill – Defence – Portsmouth News.

Dairycrest Driver – Dickhead Of The Day Award


Yes, Thanks for the scary WTF moment this morning. I needed something to get my heart pumping …. NOT !!!

So there I am following this Dairycrest milk float through the QA hospital site when you, the Dairycrest driver, decided to pull into the bus stop lay by without indicating or braking. I carry on following the road and am just pulling alongside the milk float when you, the Dairycrest driver, pulled back out into the road, again with no indication.

Good job one of us was awake this morning as I avoided the collision that you, the Dairycrest driver, were intent on having.

That is why I award you, the Dairycrest driver, my Dickhead Of The Day award.

This award is normally reserved for Aqua Cars drivers, who have a total disregard for the highway code once the get on the QA site. However, they were somewhat scarce today so the award is yours.

Slow Snow, Slow Slow Slow


Against my better judgement, I drove my wife to work today. Normally the round trip, not accounting for waiting time, is around 30 – 35 minutes. Today, due to the inclement weather conditions, the whole journey took around 130 minutes. Of course I moaned all the way to my wifes place of work. Problem is that I had no one to moan to on my way home and that was by far the longer and worst part of the journey.

I took a few snaps during the journey which was punctuated by many tedious stops.

snow
Stakes Hill Road approaching Purbrook Way roundabout.
snow1
London Road, heading towards Widley
snow2
London Road atop Portsdown Hill, waiting our turn to dive down towards Cosham
snow3
London Road heading down the south face of Portsdown Hill
snow4
A3(M) Heading north on the Junction 4 slip.
snow5
A3(M) Heading north, still on the Junction 4 slip. Matrix says 40. You’ll be lucky. I think they display motorists wish lists
snow6
Purbrook Way and the College Road Junction. Thanks to the guys in the fluorescent jackets who were trying to keep us all moving. The road here was very icy under the snow. You can just see the car on the other side has gone askew.
snow7
View from my front doorstep. Boy was I glad to get home. Only a two-hour round trip. And I have it all to do again later today.

Topping Off


Tree
Getting Started

Temperatures were barely making it above zero during the last couple of days. That didn’t stop these fellows lopping the tops off my neighbours trees.

Tree1
Taking A Breather
tree2
Is That The Last Bit ?

Idiotic Outpatient Appointment Rules


On Tuesday 9th October, 2012 I had just completed an appointment with the consultant dealing with my Prostate Cancer. I left the hospital clutching the details of my next appointment.

Having elected for  “Active Surveillance” the next appointment, to review PSA blood test results, was scheduled for four months time. i.e. 11:10 on Monday 18th February, 2013

A while later, seems like a couple of weeks, I was notified that the appointment had been cancelled and that I would be advised of a new appointment in due course. Time passed, Christmas came and went and no new appointment. Knowing that I had to arrange for a PSA blood test a couple of weeks ahead of the consult and not having a specific appointment I took a punt and arranged for the blood test to be carried out on Friday 1st February.

Well time flies by when you are enjoying yourself and here we are, half way through January and I still had not heard anything regarding a new appointment.

So I contacted the Urology Department at the QA where they explained that the original appointment had been cancelled due to government and/or NHS rules and I had been placed on the Outpatients Waiting List. However, very helpfully she said she would arrange a new appointment for me.

“I have an appointment for you in February” she said.

“Monday 18th” she said.

“That’s amazing”  I replied “My previous appointment was on that day”

“What time ?” I asked.

“11:10”  she replied

“Bizarre” I responded. “That’s when my original appointment was scheduled”

“Oh I can’t give you that time” she jumps in. “The diary is showing a conflict with your original appointment even though it has been cancelled.” “I’ll have to give you another time. How’s 11:20 ?”

Obviously I accepted the new time and she said she would mail me confirmation.

So in summary, the new rules meant that my appointment had been shifted by 10 minutes, had cost me a telephone call and cost the NHS/QA  three appointment letters.

WHY ?

I can only imagine that they are applying the same petty bureaucratic rules that stop me from being able to book an appointment, to see my GP, greater than a month ahead of time.

No Story ? Let’s Just Make It Exciting Anyway


The UKs media are, this morning, falling over themselves to report on, well, nothing really. Who can make the UKs weather the big story of day.

Last night they were warning us about the snow and the big freeze that is going to engulf the country. The ITV News and Weather were advising us that “much of the country” was going to be impacted.

This morning that has translated into “about a third of the country”

Last night we were being warned that even if we didn’t get any snow we could expect to get the severe icy conditions with temperatures as low as -6 degC dropping to -15 degC by the end of the week.

This morning we have +2 degC and no snow

On the TV we have had reporters dramatically describing to us how Stansted Airport is operating as normal, how the roads are clear and traffic is flowing unimpeded by the weather.

To a degree I can understand why they are doing it. After all the last big freeze caught many of us with our pants down. In some case the authorities let us down but predominantly we let ourselves down.

Britain does have four seasons every year, pretty much without fail. So it follows that we will have Winter at some time. We should not be surprised when the winter brings with it snow and ice.

Only in Britain are such conditions or even the lack of them deemed suitable for such a media frenzy.

 

Where Are We ?


At around 09:30, on a very drizzly Saturday morning, I was waiting on Copnor Road, Portsmouth. Waiting to turn into the car park associated with the Tesco petrol station. In actual fact I was waiting for two under dressed lads to walk across the entrance. Having parked up and entered the store, grabbed two cartons of milk I headed to the cash desk. The two lads had obviously turned about and they now cut off my approach to the cash desk.

Both lads were clasping bottles of water and were looking decidedly the worse for wear and somewhat bedraggled, having no jackets or coats. The conversation went something like this…..

Lad: (With embarrassed laugh) …”Where are we ?”
Me: “Wow, you must have had a great night.”
Lad: “Seriously, where are we ?”
Me: “You’re in Copnor”
Cashier: (Speaking slowly and clearly enunciating as if for a foreign visitor) “This….is…..Copnor…. Road” as he gestured outside.
Lad: “We are from Portsmouth, we know that Copnor is near North End”
Me: “(Thinking that North End is their destination and indicating the nearby cross-roads) “If you turn right at the lights that road will take you to North End”
Lad: “We don’t want to go there”
Me: “So where are you trying to get to ?”
Lad: “We live in Southsea”

The cashier and I gave directions and the two lads set off, once again, on their journey home.

Some questions spring to mind.

  1. Why did we pass up a golden opportunity to prank these guys ?
    After all they had no idea where they were. We could have sent them north, out of the city. If we had they could still be walking.
  2. How can you live in Portsmouth yet not know where you are ?
    Portsmouth is an island of only 15 square miles. Approximately 4 miles in length (North to South) by around 3 miles wide.
  3. Where was my invite to the party ?

Scammers ??? – PPI Claims Company


Luckily I don’t get many unsolicited messages on my mobile. To be honest I can only think of two occasions in the last 5 to 7 years.

A few days ago I received the following text …..

Hi, your PPi claim still owes you £1702.43 from when it was mis-sold to you, it’s in your name waiting to be sent out to you. To get it sent out today reply PPi

The number from which it appears to have been sent is +447780642096

As I hadn’t submitted a claim I immediately smelled a rat.

This didn’t come across as a fishing exercise i.e. The message didn’t say “I could be owed …”. The figure they quoted was specific so they had sown the seeds of doubt in my mind.   If it had been a bit more neutral I would have written it off as text spam. After studying it a bit more I decided that if this was truly aimed at me it would have been a bit more formal. Something along the lines of “Dear Mr…..” or “Dear Robert …”.

OK so I decided to ignore this, treat it with the contempt it so obviously deserved.

My real concern about this type of message was raised last night while I was down at my daughters. I just happened to mention this text and without batting an eyelid she trumped my text with three of her own. She had received them over a fairly short period and they all came from different numbers.

Two of hers quoted the same sum of money owed but adding hers to mine we are “owed” something in the region of £7k – £8k.

Whoohoo !!! We are in the money. NOT !!!

I have tried calling the number  but I just get the “number has not been recognised” message.

Surely this blanket unsolicited messaging has to be illegal.  The actual message is a lie so this has to be defined as some sort of mis-representation.

I can see that some people, older folks perhaps, may be suckered into following up on this type of message.

Has anyone else out there received similar messages ?

Has anyone ever followed up and text back to them ?

The Fishermans Rest – Titchfield


The Fisherman's Rest

Spent a gloriously relaxed Saturday afternoon, with my wife and friends, at this pub. The Fishermans Rest has to be one of the best pubs in the area. Good food, friendly staff and a really nice atmosphere.

We spent four hours here, during which we caught up on family, mutual friends and jointly expressing our outrage at issues in the news while attempting to put the world to rights.

During this time we managed to take a breath or two and eat a wholesome meal

I had the “Trio of Fishcakes” while my wife and our friends all had the “Baked Stilton Stuffed Mushrooms” starter. Two of our party then sampled the steaks, the third had the Chicken Pasanda while I was boring and once again had the “Mixed Grill”. All agreed the food was delicious.

Eventually we had to take our leave and head home, parting ways in the car park and debating who would be the first to be taking a nap when we got home.

If you are ever in the area I wholeheartedly recommend this pub for a visit. Combine this with a visit to Titchfield Abbey for a little bit of history.

End of era as Havant’s last greengrocer shuts


Although reasons for this closure cannot necessarily be laid at the door of HBC, they are not helping the situation

David Guest, deputy leader of Havant Borough Council and ward member for St Faith’s, said: ‘Hopefully we have not lost it and they are able to relocate.

‘A lot of people enjoyed that shop and I’m very sorry to see it go.’

He said that independent shops were an important part of Havant.

So important that the HBC is intent on dragging shoppers away from the town centre by allowing huge developments across the other side of Park Road in the Solent Road area.

‘It’s nice for people to have a choice,’ he said.

‘As long as people use these independent shops, they will survive.

How many people have stopped using the independent stores in Havant centre since the Tesco store opened ? From personal experience I know that I don’t tend to go to smaller stores if I am doing my weekly shop in a supermarket. We are all so busy that it is more convenient to “one stop shop”.

‘There’s no guarantee they will stay around.

‘We just want to encourage more people to open small shops.’

If you want more people to open small shops then you shouldn’t allow the big stores to open up so close to the town centres.

HBC, haven’t you learnt anything ?

And you are doing the same thing to Waterlooville by allowing the new Sainsbury store to open up outside of the town centre. There is no incentive to anyone to open small shops in either of these town centres.

I feel sorry for John Wills and his family. It will be difficult for him to relocate and keep his current customers,to start afresh and build a customer base under the current economic climate and with the lack of true support from HBC. I wish him the best of luck for the future.

End of era as Havant’s last greengrocer shuts – Local Business – Portsmouth News.