Category: Uncategorized

Right Now #3


Yup, right now, I am listening to Summer Of ’69 by Bryan Adams.

Seems appropriate as the clocks changed last night as we moved into BST. The loss of one hours sleep means that it is officially Summer whilst in reality, nature still thinks it’s Spring.

Whilst there is an implicit sexual meaning behind Adams song, 1969 was a momentous year for events of interest on a global scale.

On a personal level, in May of 1969, I  started my apprenticeship as a Fitter and Turner. Initially I spent two years based at the Flathouse Apprentice Training Centre, then completing my training in HM Dockyard, Portsmouth. To complete this course I had to leave home, move into digs some 90 miles from home.

The first-ever Concorde test flight took place March of 1969, conducted in France. It’s such a beautiful plane, but really noisy. When our pooch was still alive, every Sunday afternoon, we used to take him up on Butser Hill. We would see Concorde flying low on its descent into Heathrow. It’s such a shame it isn’t flying now.

July of 1969 saw the Apollo 11 landing on the moon. Astronauts Aldrin and Armstrong were on the moons’ surface for just under 22 hours, but theirs was a jaw-dropping achievement.

The Woodstock Music and Arts Fair took place in August of 1969. Nearly half a million people attended. Strange that it is referred to as Woodstock but actually took place about 40 miles away at Bethel.

On a darker note, 1969 was the year of the Manson Family murders. Named after cult leader Charles Manson. Five people were murdered by the cult, including a heavily pregnant Sharon Tate, wife of movie producer Roman Polanski.

President Richard Nixon announced the end of the Vietnam War in December 1969 and immediately began troop withdrawal. This proved to be somewhat premature as in April 1970, the war spilled over into Cambodia.

Thank you, Bryan Adams. Your song has acted as an historical trigger.

The Garden Show – Stansted Park


Stansted House

It is always a good sign when the notices go out advertising the annual garden show at Stansted Park

It means that Summer has truly arrived.

The annual show is a brilliant event and is, usually, graced with reasonable weather.

We’ll be there. Will you ?

https://app.portsmouth.co.uk/2024/03/22/the-garden-shows-set-to-return-to-stansted-park-this-summer/content.html

The Garden Show at Stansted Park

Happy St George’s Day


Follow the link below to see my previous thoughts on  how little we think of the English patron saint compared to the patron saints of the other countries that make up the United Kingdom.

https://siskinbob.com/2011/03/23/once-more-for-emsworth-and-st-george-what-about-the-rest-of-the-country/

This year, my online calendar doesn’t even mention St. George’s day. And yet, staring me in the face are entries for St. Patrick and St. David both celebrated in the same month.

The people of this country do my head in. They get bent out of shape because Nike introduce a multi colour version for the England football strip, but seemingly ignore St. George, for whom the flag is a symbol.

And let’s not forget that the cross of St. George forms an integral part, if not the basis, of the Union Flag symbol of Great Britain, the United Kingdom.

I did a quick trawl of the interweb to find out what was happening in my area to celebrate St. George’s Day. Well, apparently,  not much.

I found several instances referring to parades and services associated with Chichester Cathedral. Sadly, they were all for years gone by.

Also sad, if there is any truth in it, is this text

We do recognise St George’s day In England, although as a more multicultural society it is not observed by all. There is also an air or Political correctness that abounds in England today that the St George’s flag (white with Red Cross) is viewed by some as racist.

https://www.quora.com/

Racist !!! Where the hell did that come from ? The national flag of multicultural  England is racist. More woke/BLM bullshit.

Similarly, another snippet

Observed on the 23rd of April each year, you’ll find parades and a range of celebratory activities popping up around England. Expect to see the symbol of St George (a flag with a red and white cross) everywhere, as well as people flooding the streets and local pubs, as well as church services.

https://www.rabbies.com/en/blog/how-celebrate-st-georges-day-2024#:~:text=Observed%20on%20the%2023rd%20of,as%20well%20as%20Church%20services.

At the grand old age of seventy-two, I can safely say that I have never seen a parade for St. George, nor people flooding the streets.

Most churches will hold services for St. George and some pubs will certainly put up some bunting and promote St. George, in the hope of drawing in a few more punters.

But, St. George is not embedded in our psyche. If we had a national holiday, then more people might sit up and take notice.

But that isn’t any more likely now than it was in 2011 when I lasted posted on this subject.

A Little Prog Rock Please


This was us, Gerry, me and a couple of friends out for a Fridays entertainment.

Honestly, we were in the stalls, somewhere just left of centre, three rows from the  back.

The picture was taken at the very end of the show by Genesis Connected, a very competent tribute act.

I have been a Genesis fan since the early 70’s. In fact, the first time I saw them live, they were only 2nd or 3rd on the bill, still very much on the rise.

I followed them closely, seeing them live every time they visited Portsmouth. That is  until Peter Gabriel departed.

After that, I found it very difficult to differentiate between Genesis with Phil Collins taking the lead vocals or a Phil Collins solo effort.

This new phase for Genesis saw the band transition from Prog-Rock to Pop-Rock, and my interest in Genesis waned.

Not having any prior knowledge of this act, I will admit to being a little disappointed during the first half of the show. I was expecting more offerings from Prog-Rock Genesis.

Where were tracks from Trespass, Nursery Cryme, Foxtrot, Selling England By The Pound, and The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway ?

Turns out that I was being a tad unfair. The image below tells why.

“Celebrating the hits ….”

Genesis didn’t start to have hits until they transitioned to Pop-Rock, although they did enter the UK charts with a track taken from Selling England By The Pound. I Know What I Like was a minor hit, reaching number 21 in April 1974.

Once I had rationalised what this band was about, I began to enjoy the show more.

We were treated to crowd pleasers such as Living Years and Cup Of Coffee from Mike and The Mechanics, Biko, Sledgehammer,  and surprisingly Panopticom from Peter Gabriel, but for the most part, this was a Phil Collins love-in with songs such as In The Air Tonight, Easy Lover, Turn It On Again, Invisible Touch, Sussudio and more besides.

Genesis Connected had the audience singing along, clapping, and even dancing for the final song of the night.

All in all, it was a polished performance. I sang and clapped with the rest of the audience but when it was over I was left hankering for the Return Of The Giant,  Hogweed, The Knife, Watcher Of The Skies, just a little more Prog-Rock.

Having said all that, I would go to see them again. I’ll just have to get my Prog-Rock fix elsewhere.

Local Council At Fault


Simon Carter states that the only way to reinvigorate our town centres is to shut down the internet !!!

https://app.portsmouth.co.uk/full_page_image/page-22-1834/content.html

To a certain extent, he is correct. The Internet is a contributing factor but not the sole reason Waterlooville is in such a sorry state.

And, of course, 60’s architecture isn’t wholly to blame either. But, it doesn’t help to alleviate the sad, drab appearance of Waterlooville centre.

Bright sunshine goes a long way to enhance the appearance of the shop fronts. But despite the sunshine, what is notable is the lack of people. Just two people walking thru and nobody sitting at the tables outside the cafe.

Compare that view to the picture I took last week on a dull day.

Not a single person in sight and no amount of sunshine is going to improve this view.

A significant factor in Waterloovilles’ demise was the decision to divert the A3 and to pedestrianise the main thoroughfare and therefore removing passing trade.

Further planning decisions to allow the development of retail parks away from the town centre have further reduced the footfall needed to sustain the businesses that have disappeared over the years.

The diverted A3 subdivided Waterlooville, and with the retail park providing free parking, while the town centre car parks charged for the dubious pleasure, there was further incentive to stay away.

Blaming the Internet is too easy and distracts from the part that Havant Borough Council had to play in getting Waterlooville to its current state.

If You Carry A Knife You Are Planning To Kill


In my view, if you leave home carrying a knife, then you are already of the mindset that you may use it.

If you use it, then you must be aware that you are, potentially, going to kill someone.

That is not manslaughter. That is murder.

While Betteridge didn’t take the knife out, he must have accepted it from Hansen, and he did wield it with tragic consequences.

And, again, in my view, Hansen, who supplied the knife, bears equal responsibility and should also be charged with murder.

Neither Betteridge nor Hansen can be unaware of the countrywide incidents involving knives and the subsequent consequences.

Far too many knife related deaths are being reported on TV and in the press.

And yet, Hansen still carried a knife out onto the streets and at some time passed it to Betteridge, who then used it to such devastating effect.

In the early hours of Saturday, August 5th, 2023, the lives of three eighteen year olds were changed forever, along with the lives of their friends and family.

https://app.portsmouth.co.uk/full_page_image/page-11-2029/content.html

RIP Malcolm


https://www.sussexexpress.co.uk/news/people/sussex-mourns-bonfire-legend-who-provided-the-big-bangs-at-fireworks-displays-across-the-county-4534451?page=2

I want to take a few moments to mention Malcolm Foster.

Malcolm was a school chum who lived a few doors down the road from where I lived. We used to muck around in the village of Westfield, where we lived.

We went to school together, initially at Westfield’s own primary school, which was just a few minutes’ walk up our road. And then, later, joining the Cooks Coaches’ daily school run to Claverham County Secondary School at Battle.

At the weekends and in school holidays, it was breakfast and out. We would go exploring the countryside for miles around on our bikes.  Occasionally, we would ride out to Brede village and its namesake river, with our fishing rods on the hunt for Roach, Perch, and eels. Our parents never knew where we were, and there were no mobile phones back then. No packed lunch, either. We might have scrumped a few apples, and I do remember sitting in a field of Kale chomping down on a few leafy stalks. I dread to think what might have been sprayed on those fields.

My father was the village bobby, and it was normal police practice to change officers’ assignments every couple of years or so. We had moved to Westfield from Lewes, and then sadly, our family had to move away from Westfield.

We didn’t move far, just to Battle. For me, it was just a few minutes’ walk from our new house to Claverham. But it did mean that I didn’t have the daily coach ride with Malcolm, and also, the ripple effect was that there were no after-school or weekend jaunts. So, inevitably, we drifted off into different social groups.

Over the years, we have communicated sporadically, but without the aid of current social media it was difficult.

So, although we didn’t remain close friends, I do have some happy memories.

And, from what I have been reading recently, Malcolm lived a full life with lots of friends.

RIP Malcolm Foster. My thoughts go out to all your friends and family.

Plans But No Real Substance


This is the face of a deluded woman.

https://app.portsmouth.co.uk/full_page_image/page-17-1971/content.html

Deluded because she is annoyed that folks, when they visit, can’t see the councils plans.

Journalist Christopher Howse of The Telegraph published an article on the demise of Waterlooville. He presented his view after a single visit.

Well, I found myself in Waterlooville centre at around 13:00 on Monday and I think Mr Howse is pretty spot on.

Although there were a few people wandering around, they didn’t look much like shoppers, more they were just passing through. With no shop fronts to attract them, invite them to pause a while and browse. It all looked pretty desolate.

All that was missing was some tumbleweed blowing around.

Despite the best efforts of those businesses actually open, it is not an attractive place to be.

There are many barber shops here, but all but one had no customers. The bored proprietors were sitting drinking coffee or fizzy pop.

The coffee shops all seemed to be fairly busy, but due to a distinct lack of interest in chipboard, there wasn’t much to keep me window shopping.

After around 45 mins, I had completed a full circuit of the town centre and took myself off to join the coffee drinkers.

I’m sorry, Councillor Robinson, but visual impressions of the town don’t convey the potential that HBC plans to build on. I really do applaud HBC for what they are trying to do, but as I have said before, I fear it is too little too late.

A misguided HBC has mishandled the planning of both Waterlooville and Havant centres, and the local residents are paying the price

It Passed …. Again !


Here in the UK, once a vehicle is three years old, it has to be submitted for a annual MOT test.

My vehicle, a Mazda CX5, which I have had since 2013, was due its MOT at the end of this month.

It was booked into the testing station today.

Brilliant news, it passed the examination. That’s eight consecutive years with no work to be carried out.