Friday 24th December 2010

And here we are; Christmas eve. All the shopping is done. Gifts are wrapped. Cards have been sent. The shops are now closed. And it is all over. We just have to get through tomorrow.

I guess I am lucky in that I have been away from home for a few Christmases, working in the RAF or on the high seas, and in truth there is nothing else I would rather be doing than being with Jools and heading over to her Father's place for a huge family dinner tomorrow.

Our plans to head to our local church for candlelight carols and then the pub opposite for beer and mince pies have hit the dust for another year, as we have lit the fire now and are looking forward to a dinner of fine rump steak, mushrooms and hand cut chips. We might watch a film on TV, or we may not.

So, yesterday, Jools headed to Canterbury early on to finish our shopping; I stayed home with the kittens and wrapped the presents I had bought and to make mince pies.



In the afternoon we settled down to listen to the radio as Dave Lister took over Radio Two to play some tunes and some banter with listeners. And then Simon Mayo played two hours of requests, Christmas songs and non-festive ones.

The evening was spent with Mulder and Scully and Mulder and Scully as we and the kittens lay on the sofa and watched a couple of episodes of the X-Files on DVD. The kittens did not seem impressed.

Today, we had a few things to get, and so we headed into Dover before the crowds before driving along the coast to deal to watch the waves crash onto the shingle beach at spring tide.

we went to the pier and had bacon sarnies and a cuppa; we went back to the car to read a bit whilst the tide reached it's maximum. with a strong wind, the waves crashed onto the beach and against the pier. All under a leaden sky and in a cutting wind.

A quick drive to St Margaret's Bay to the Coastguard for a pint of porter of two, and then back home for some stinky French cheese and some tomato bread bought from No Name Shop in Deal.



And then sit on the sofa listening to the penultimate Mayo and Kermode film show on the radio; with Jason Isaacs again; what more could we ask for?

And so darkness has crept over the land, and NORAD informs us that Santa is in Wulumuqi, China and heading westwards dropping presents and gifts at an astonishing rate.

Good old St Nick!

Merry Christmas.

Thursday 23rd December 2010

And so this is Christmas.

Today is the first day of my Christmas break, the weather is cold, but not cold enough for snow. what ice we have left is melting making pavements treacherous.

Yesterday, being the last day of term, as it were, I spent at home, well, working from home. as we had a funeral to go to.



So, at least as I do most of my work with a computer, i can work from when it suits. Well, when it works. Setting up the internet connection and then the VSP; that can take an hour, as it did yesterday. But, in time it works, and i get on and deal with dealing with my work mail and other stuff. It's all magic really.

And then it was time to scrub up, put on the suit and head to the crematorium. Fog had come down, and so we cruised at a safe 50mph, whilst some folks headed past at silly speeds with no lights on, all whilst heading blindly into a bank of fog.



It seemed like half the town had turned up for the service; there was standing room only, and we had to stand at the back of the balcony. Fine words were said, we listened to his favourite songs, and then the curtains closed and we filed out; said kind words to the grieving. And then we climbed back in our car and headed for home.



On the way back Jools and I stopped off to watch a double-headed steam tour thunder through. we arrived a few minutes before it was due to find half a dozen gricers already there. Word came through via text that the train was ten minutes late, and so we tightened our coats, stomped our feet and double checked the settings on our cameras.

Then, we saw three lights from the mouth of Guston Tunnel; out of the gloom and mist they came, smoke everywhere, it rushed towards us; my camera whirred; and then it was under the bridge and it was heading away, leaving us wreathed in smoke and steam.

we got back in the car and headed home. we made lunch and sat down with a hot cup of coffee after turning the heating up another couple of notches.

I did some more work as the afternoon turned towards evening, and then at five turned the computer off, and that was it for my working year.

I made chorizo hash for dinner; washed down with a bottle of home brew, and we settled down to listen to the final Radcliffe and Maconie show on the wireless.

It snow go!

It is amazing, when you think about it, that as little as six inches of snow can bring the entire country to a standstill. I mean driving on an ungritted and unploughed road is going to be tricky, especially in something like a Smart Car, but trains? Airports? Should we really accept the pleas of managers when they claim unprecedented amounts of snow as a catch all excuse?

Take Heathrow Airport, one of the main hubs in the world of aviation: It has not snowed there for three days, and yet just one runway has been cleared of snow. And they cannot get equipment around and under aircraft parked at a terminal to clear snow. On average there is 32 tonnes of snow under each family sized passenger aircraft. It would appear the plan, as it is, is to wait and hope that the weather warms up. And then the passengers will go away. If only there were items of machinery that could clear a runway of snow; thankfully no other countries in the world have snow as heavy as London has experienced since the weekend.

Oh, wait a minute……

Yes, airports all over the world in extreme latitudes cope somehow; planes take off; planes land; passengers are not delayed. Heck, planes take off and land on icy runways! Is that impossible to happen in London ? Maybe we have different types of ice. Yes, that is it; different kind of ice that the snow sweeping machines cannot cope with.

So, is it any surprise than an airport that operates at 98% most of the time, that when something goes slightly awry, maybe we should just accept that six inches of snow will result in the average passenger having to sleep on the floor of the departure hall. Heavens forbid they could actually come up with a solution…

And then they are trains; since the steam locomotive was invented at the beginning of the 19th century, devices like ploughs have been invented to clear snow from lines so that the papers, milk would be delivered on time. During the harsh winters of 1947 and 1963, trains still ran, papers, milk, coal, etc were still delivered. Who would have thought that here in the future when we should all be living in cloud houses, wearing silver suits and eating meals in pill form, that our modern, sleek, fast trains could be stopped by a couple of inches of snow? Can it really be beyond the realms of possibilities that someone could find a way to get our modern trains cope with snow?

Where I live, in Kent; or New Siberia as it is being called, we have had maybe a foot of snow since the weekend. Which, is a fair amount. And yet our local TOCs trains cannot get enough grip due to the fact they are so light and use third rail electricity. Three years ago after a similar amount of snow it was discovered that the modern EMU cannot be coupled to a locomotive and be hauled; this was to be rectified. Well, we see how well that went! There is talk of heating the third rail; this would cost hundreds of millions of pounds to do over the entire network, and would cost millions per winter to operate. So, what we are saying is the Victorians could get and keep the trains running; so could the Edwardians; heck, even the much-maligned British Rail could keep the trains running. But the power of market forces and the horizontal privatisation of the rail network cannot.

In closing; let us hope that the cold does not continue for three months as happened in years gone by, as we will all starve as we all by our goods are not now local but our milk comes from Yorkshire , probably, so the breakdown in transport infrastructure has huge implications. What happened when millions of people cannot get into work; shops have nothing to sell? It’ll be Lord of the Flies all over again. I have an idea; let’s eat the bankers and the weathermen; problem solved!

Goodnight.

Tuesday 21st December 2010

So, Monday rolled round and it was time to head back to work. The snow from the weekend had not melted and so we slithered our way down into Dover so I could drop Jools off; and then back up the side of the valley for the main road to Sandwich and Ramsgate beyond.
The main road although being a four lane one, was down to one lane in each direction, and speeds were down to 30mph. But, I got to work on time, ready for a full day at the coal face.
So, a busy day went well and despite a late finish due to meetings; I was in good spirits as we were off to a Christmas party in the evening. Sadly the snow Gods had different ideas….

The BBC had forecast light snow from midnight and turning heaving by three; as it turned out the snow had begun by six and was turning into a proper blizzard by seven. We looked out the office window at the back of the house across the valley to the village the other side; just a few lights shone through the snow. We decided not to head out, and called Jools’ father to break the news.

I looked in the freezer, and all that we could cook from frozen was lamb-burgers; and so soon they were sizzling away in a frying pan, as outside the snow swirled and began to pile up. As has become normal, I sat on the sofa watching the game on TV, with a lap full of kittens; except when they see the players running across the screen, and they go to see where the ball is going to, and no matter how much they paw the screen they can’t play with that ball.

Anyway, we went to bed at ten, with the snow still blowing and settling outside. We were fully expecting to wake up to drifts of snow and not being able to get out of our drive in the car. However, when we looked closer at the street, we saw that car tracks made in the snow had gone down to the tarmac; the snow was melting.
But there was still the task of clearing the drive to do, eat breakfast and then go out into the world of idiots and see if we could avoid them. As it turned out, with the schools being off already, the roads were all but empty, and the drive into Dover and then to Ramsgate was painless and thankfully uneventful.

Sunday 19th December 2010

Snow.

Yes, snow.

what it is that brings out our inner child?

The inner child that screams 'SNOW, lets play, that'll be FUN!'

The inner child that makes normally sane people drive at 90mph on ice.

The inner child that makes folks panic buy milk, bread and sprouts.

OK, maybe not sprouts, but still, confronted by endless rows of empty shelves, it's like a shop behind the iron curtain in the 80s.

So, back home from the course; I worked from home on Thursday due to me getting home so late on Wednesday. I can answer mails and check databases, call on my mobile; it really is almost like being at working the office; except with kittens.

Ah yes, kittens. Kittens like the cursor on the laptop screen, and think it's just another thing to be played with and chased. Oh how I can laugh now, but not at the time.

And then on Friday, I did make to trip into work, driving carefully as there was a dusting of snow. I got stuff done, made calls, done stuff on the databases. And then came home.

Snow was not forecast for that night, but was for Saturday. and so, against my better judgement, I went to Tesco that evening for milk, bread but no sprouts. We now have enough stuff until after Christmas. YAY!



The snow was not forecast to hit Dover until the afternoon, but by the time we got up the blanket was spreading south, stopping travel and forcing the postponing of sporting events. We headed out for a walk around the village, there was a little snow around, not a lot, but the ground was as hard as iron. I took a few shots, we talked, it was good to be out and doing something.



At the cliffs we went into the cafe for a coffee and a piece of fresh shortbread, before heading back home through the village. By the time we got back most football games had been postponed, and so myself and a lucky kitten to the sofa to listen to the games that survived.



At half one the snow began, and continued until dark. The ground was so cold it lay straight away. Most folks were already home and so the world seemed strangely quiet. I had lit to fire, and so it got nice and toasty, just like the average house cat likes it.



The snow continued to fall all evening, until the clouds parted and the moon came out casting a silvery light over the land. The reflections were so strong, it was almost like day, and there was even a shadow of the tree in the back garden.





Not much snow today, just a few flurries this afternoon. we headed out for the same walk as yesterday; the only difference was being ankle deep in snow today. At least the wind had died, and it did not feel as cold. we have made this walk in all season, and how the colours and vistas change through the year is really stunning. And now the year grows old, and most is asleep as the wind blows and the snow falls.



On the way back home we call in at the Red Lion as it was five past opening time, and very nice it was supping Christmas ale sitting in front of the open fire. Once home, I made sausage rolls, and soon they were ready to eat, hot out of the oven. Nothing quite like it.



And so, we should be able to go to work tomorrow; two days for Jools and three for me, as we begin our holidays by mid-week.

YAY.

Thursday 16th December 2010

Good morning, good afternoon, good evening or pleasant dreams; depending on when you get round to this. That is, of course, assuming that anyone actually reads these words. I do and I know Jools does, so, that's good enough for me.

So, sorry for the break in updates from the house of the happy kittens that Chez Jelltex now quite clearly is. But, we had a quiet weekend and then I had to travel to Kendal to climb their large ladder. I cannot believe that Kendal as the biggest ladder in the land, but it was that I was sent on how to climb and work at height without killing me or anyone else.

Saturday, we lay in bed a little too late, but once we got up and made bacon sarnies, got our act together and headed out to near Sittingbourne to find a home brew shop. There are better reasons for going out, but buying home brew kits is surely one of the best reasons.

We headed up the A2 and then into the boondocks to find the shop. It was full of lovely beery and winey goodies. we stocked up on two beer kits (for me) and a cider one (for Jools) before we headed off. we passed an unusually shaped church at Tonge, which needless to say, we stopped so I could snap it.



we then headed into Sittingbourne to see if there was anything worth snapping; after battling through it's one way system we decided to head right back out as noting other than soulless shops could be seen.

We headed out onto the Isle of Sheppy and then out across the marshes to the remote Hart Church and the Ferry Inn for a drink before heading back home.
From the motorway, I spied an unusual church, and as it was within a mile of a junction, we headed off to find it.



As it turned out, the church had a Christmas tree festival on; and so we parked up and walked in. St Peter and St Paul Ospringe as a very unusual tower, and some mad Victorians had added towers and turrets to it to make it really stand out from the crowd. We were greeted at the door and were told the church's history before we walked round, with me snapping away.



We headed home after having a cup of tea and a ginger star cookie, for a snooze and a lay down listening to the footie on the radio whilst covered in kittens and cats. As usual!

Sunday was a much brighter day, and so we headed out to walk along to revamped promenade in Dover and get some exercise in, and gird our loins for the trip to Sainsburys which we had planned next.



The new flowerbeds and paths were all twisty curvy things, and along with the bright sunlight suited my wide angle lens perfectly.



And then it was off to Folkestone and the battle of the superstore. In truth, Sainsbury's is not as bad as Tescos but we went round getting the stuff we wanted before getting the heck outta dodge and heading back home and vowing not to go out again that day.



And so a quiet afternoon deveoped with me, the kittens and the football on Sky getting acquainted with the sofa. Some snoozing might have been involved too!

And so, the day slipped through my fingers like sand and darkness fell and the NFL went by mostly unwatched, especially as the Vikings game got postponed due to snow inside the Mall of America dome; they have some serious snow there for sure!

And so Monday dawned and my long trip to the ladder in the north loomed large. At least with modern trains, a trip to the Lake District is not a long one; a short blast up HS1 on a Javelin; a walk along Euston Road and then a Pendilino north meant that I arrived in Kendal in less than five hours after leaving home.

With a map on my phone I wandered around Kendal until I ad to ask where the Premier Inn was, and a further walk along past the bus station brought me to the hotel. I checked in, unpacked; I say unpacked, I took the tee shirts and stuff and arranged them in a ball on a shelf below the TV. And then it was time to head out to find a pub showing the football.



finding the white Horse, I bought a Christmas beer and settled down, chatting to a local guy on the table next to me and waited for the game to begin. In truth, no matter that the game featured two of the country's biggest teams, Man Utd and Arsenal, it was poor fare and the beer at least made it pleasant enough. Once the final whistle blew, I walked back to the hotel a bit peckish as I had not eaten since lunch; imagine my dismay that KFC was closed already, and the hotel just had a vending machine. And so I went to my room with a small packet of bite-sized cookies and a cup of tea.



Now, in my haste to get work done last week during my two days in the office, I failed to print out the joining instructions from the training centre. I had made a note of it's postcode. And so I thought it wise to set off early as possible to find the centre and better to be an hour early rather than an hour late.

So I walked back to the station, under the bridge and out on the main road north, the map on my phone promising me I was going the right way. And indeed I was, as I arrived at the centre dead on eight and exactly an hour early. I waited, and then waited some more.



At half eight the staff began to appear and I went inside the office building and waited some more, breaking the boredom by filling out forms. YAY!

And then, right on time at twenty to ten(!) the course began with some serious death by Powerpoint on the rules and regulations regarding climbing.

That afternoon the practical began; ending with each of us having to climb 20m or so. Now, 20 m don't seem very high, but up on the narrow rung of the ladder as I struggled with the harness and hooks and things, it seems halfway to the moon with people down on the floor looking like toys.

But, I passed the test, and thought the worse over. But little did i know what tomorrow would bring......



That night I went out with camera and took shots of the town centre in the dark; well, lit up by neon and streetlights. I met up with a guy from the course and we had a couple of beers and played some pool before I thought it best to have a meal once in a while, rather than just ale.
I went back to the hotel and its attached pub and ordered steak and mushroom pie which appeared in 5 minutes. It was horrible, clearly microwaved and stodgy to say the least. But the ice cream I had for dessert was fine enough.



And so a second day climbing training and I could go home; easy, eh?

Well, an hour of watching videos and then back to the climbing frame thing and TERROR! We had to climb through a hatch in the floor and just using the harness and ropes gently float to the ground!!!

I say ropes, they were properly tested ropes and harnesses and shackles and stuff. I was last to go, and thought about it long and hard, but in due course I sat on the edge and let myself go and I was floating down to the ground like a large leaf. A very large leaf indeed.

The rest was easy easy and we were let out at three and the guy I had met the previous night for beers and me shared a taxi to Oxenholme station on the main line in order to get a nice early train. Ten minutes after I arrived, a train pulled in just stopping in Preston before arriving in London; I got on and tried to find a seat. And so as the sun set and dusk crept over the land we sped south and the snow clouds threatened to gather and scatter the fluffy white stuff around and maybe could have left me marooned in Kendal.

Saturday 11th December 2010

And so another week goes by.



As I said in a previous blog, I have been on a first aid course this week. What going on a course like that brings is the chance for people from different backgrounds together. And then forces them to sit in a room in close proximity whilst listening to a chinaman lecture us on first aid whilst laughing at his own jokes and with hilarious mispronunciations. Did I mention the lecturer of Chinese extraction? No? I say Chinese, he is from Hong Kong, but Joe has been living in the UK for decades and has a nursing background. So, he was qualified to teach us first aid. But then there was the diversions; the little stories, some of which had relevance, most didn’t. Still, I was being paid for being there, and it was in a hotel, on The Leas in Folkestone, which was quite swish.
It did also mean a late start of nine o’clock and a finish of half four with an hour for lunch. I’ve been on worse courses, and will do again of course. Next week I have to go all the way to Kendal for a course on working at heights, as apparently they have the biggest ladder in the country. But, more of that next week upon my return.
So, the first aid course: we were a mixed bunch, two from a holiday company, a few dinner ladies and a couple of lads from a building company. And me. I was the only one who did not take notes. Not one. I was banking on the hope that the assessment on the final afternoon would not be too taking.



And so it turned out; so now I can apply a bandage which may not make your condition worse; and in the event you are unconscious and still breathing, I can put you in a recovery position. And then, if you stop breathing, break your sternum whilst massaging your heart. I passed the test, and went home with one (used) dressing, one (reusable) triangular bandage and a handbook to consult if anything else happens that we have not covered.

So, it is now the weekend, and two days off. Maybe we should actually get Christmas gifts for the family and write cards? You think? Maybe we shall sit down tonight and write cards and make lists…..