The News of the World

OK, I have to comment on this story as many others are currently doing. As far as I'm concerned, The News of the World is where it belongs - in the gutter and washing down a drain. It is appalling that newspaper investigative practices have infringed on the privacy of so many people. I cannot understand the claims that no one running the paper knew nothing of the illegal practices and a full inquiry - private and impartial - is urgently needed.
I do agree sadly with the suggestion that the paper will simply be re-branded and that this is just a stunt by Rupert Murdoch. It's important that any boycott is carried forward to any re-born publications.
I have enormous sympathy for all those affected so far and all those wondering if their phone messages were hacked. A lot is unknown currently and the investigation will no doubt unearth more wrong-doing and malpractice. If anything good comes out of this, there should be strict regulation on how newspapers operate. The BSkyB deal currently pending should be scrapped at least until the investigation is completed. There needs to be accountability for the illegal practices uncovered so far - not just a slap on the wrist. There needs to be a realisation that this country can do without Rupert Murdoch. The government should not be in a position whereby it is scared of Rupert Murdoch and his media empire. We managed before, we can manage now.

P.S. The Internet domains for the 'sundaysun' and the 'sunonsunday' were registered two days ago by 'persons unknown'...

A good news story...

I was really pleased to stumble across an article on the BBC News site this morning... it's all about a new cable car system that's been installed in Brazil's Rio de Janeiro Complexo do Alemão slum district. 

Source: Wired.com
The 3.5km system negates the need for residents to spend hours on foot traversing the steep narrow lanes and stairways on foot.
It's normal to associate this part of Brazil with drugs and violence so it's really marvelous to see something like this - provided by the government at considerable cost for the benefit of its people. It's not every day you see something like this...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-14055490

Preparing the vegetable patch

I'm exhausted, really exhausted. I started work on my vegetable patch this afternoon so it's ready for my seedlings when they've matured a little. I made a good start - until my aged ground fork decided to snap... Luckily my father had one or two spare so I popped over to collect it and I was up and running again.
I've made quite good progress. The soil was far better than I expected. We had covered the ground with gravel so I removed as many as I could before digging. I was pleased to see the soil was actually very healthy - not clay-like at all, full of worms and nicely aerated.

I need to turn over the remainder of the patch but I'm seriously considering using a small rotavator as I really want the soil turned well and fully broken down ready for planting. I'll have a look around to see if I can hire one locally for a day or two.
The weather for the next few days is changeable with lower temperatures and rain, some of it prolonged and heavy. My seedlings should benefit well. The pampas grass will be a challenge to move. We've tried burning it and poisoning it but it just won't die. We've even had a colony of bees set up home in it. It has to go I'm afraid as it's now sitting on my vegetable patch.

Garden update & an odd looking visitor

I’ve been quite a busy bunny. Yesterday I bought a selection of seeds from our local gardening centres at Spalding. They really needed to be planted straight away - I have cucumbers, spinach, carrots and broccoli. I did also buy some onion seeds but I cannot plant them until next January.

So I have spent the afternoon planting seeds. I even managed to use some of my own compost so I’m feeling quite good!

I did see a very unusual vivid red and black butterfly. I’m convinced it’s rare as I’ve never seen anything quite like it before. It lingered long enough on some bamboo for me to capture it on film. 

If anyone has any idea what it's called, do please let me know.

Sunday update - Vlogs

I like blogging. It's a way for me to keep a record of the things I do and the things I think about. I also like v-logging but I really don't find it very easy to do. I'm a big fan of v-logs and watch several channels on YouTube run by everyday folk. They are interesting and it's possible to learn so much from them. The problem I have is that I'm not really any good at expressing myself on a video as I am here in text. I like making videos, particularly about my meagre efforts at self-sufficiency and of course my model railway hobby. I just don't like to see or hear myself in them. I suppose I'm a bit of a perfectionist. If I'm reading from a cue then that's fine, I'm quite comfortable with that, but freestyle and I'm all over the place. I suppose practice could possibly make perfect but I'm too impatient for that. I have tried reading from a cue - it works provided you like your videos very documentary-style. The thing about the videos I have seen posted on YouTube is the ease in which they've been made and the rapport between the 'presenter' and the camera. Maybe I should just practice some more...
Another important factor in all this is that the v-logs I watch are made by people who live alone. They also have very few distractions around them. Maybe that's where I'm 'going wrong'. I have family around me - my wife and son. We have a dog too but she doesn't get in the way at all and is probably used by now to hearing me talking to myself...
A channel on YouTube I'm enjoying a lot is 'rickvanman'. There are hundreds of videos on a range of interesting topics and they are made by a guy who some years ago decided to ditch his humdrum factory job for the life he now enjoys. It's well worth a look. It did take me a while to understand what this guy was all about but I think I now understand him and appreciate his videos all the more for it.
I'd really like to start looking seriously at expanding my self-sufficiency project and seeing if it's possible to grow some other vegetables. Cucumbers certainly interest me as do onions so I may look into starting these relatively soon.

My tomato plants have really shot up in the last week. There are new shoots, leaves and firmer looking stalks. A couple of the plants have also begun to flower which I'm really pleased about. There's an area of the garden I've been told by my wife I may be able to dig over for planting. Ideally I would really like to construct a large frame which I could then cover with plastic. We'll see. The ground will be challenge enough and a lot will depend on the quality of the soil.

I hate flytippers

Among the many things I dislike, some of the highest rating have to be flytippers. The area I live is sparsely populated. Most of it is farmland and marsh but all of it beautiful and at times quite tranquil. It is however becoming more and more common to find people's unwanted appliances, car tyres and furniture dumped without a care at the side of the road or down a dyke. Why these mindless idiots cannot simply drive a few miles to the local recycling centre is quite beyond me. The latest item to be dumped at the side of the road between here and Sutton Bridge is a leather sofa.

I suspect it will sit there for quite some time before it's removed. There is a real and sad lack of interest in the countryside and our surroundings in general. If it's not on their doorstep then people don't care where they dump their rubbish.

A turn up for the books...

I visited my mum this morning with my son. I often go on a Friday and we have breakfast there. My mum cooks a mean breakfast. While I was there, my mum asked me to check her lottery ticket. She had tried to check the numbers on Freeview but was having problems. The truth is that despite being shown hundred of times, she cannot grasp the technology. So grudgingly, I brought the numbers up on the kitchen TV and started the check the ticket. As I read across, each number matched those on the ticket. I continued circling them until we had five numbers circled - five out of a possible six. Unable to believe my eyes, I checked and double checked before calling to mum. At first, neither my mum or dad believed me but we agreed I would shoot down to their local store to get the ticket checked. As they aren't on the Internet I couldn't do it there.
Arriving at the store I asked the assistant to runt he ticket through the machine. I could see the look on her face as the winnings were displayed on the screen. She excitedly informed me that we had won £1,076!
I had to wait a few minutes for the store owner to return to the shop. He needed to get the money from the safe.
I returned to my parent's home and gave them the money. Kindly, they let me have £150 and put the same to one side for my sister. Despite their faults which often drive me to the edge of despair they are certainly very generous and I love them dearly.
So, it just goes to show that I can happen to you...