It’s been another good week (mainly). No great adventures or “dates” this week, just ordinary stuff with one or two modest exceptions. The weather has been largely fine – we’ve had some freezing cold days with bright, bright sunshine and deep blue skies interspersed with some less cold days, overcast and dreary. At the moment, the UK is split into two roughly equal parts by a weather front which is sluggishly traversing the country – to the north temperatures are sub-zero and the precipitation is falling as rain, sleet and snow. To the south temperatures are nudging double digits (Celsius) and, while overcast, it is largely dry and approaching Spring-like conditions. Thankfully, we’re in the south.
One day early in the week, the afternoon sunshine persuaded Ms Playchute, at least, that she should start tackling the garden. Much hacking, pulling, digging, tearing, pruning, sawing, chopping, snipping, tromping & snatching thus ensued. Most of my (modest) efforts involved picking up the debris she generated and wheeling it around to the back, back garden (i.e., the middle of the orchard) to begin construction of what will one day be a stupendous bonfire. However, there was one task I was permitted to undertake (and, without supervision!) – I was given instructions on snipping the unwanted newer shoots on the three pear trees in the orchard (only because I was tall enough whilst balancing precariously on the top rung of the step-ladder, to reach the top-most shoots). And, you’ll be pleased to hear that I managed the task effectively and efficiently, and only fell off the step ladder a handful of times.
I ran across an article in the Guardian about some grants available for young people to explore the world, not with a bus pass and guidebook but rather, with a bicycle and a map. I would apply but I suspect I am somewhat over the upper limits of the anticipated age range. As the young woman who wrote the article explains, it seems that biking around the world is the new form of budget travel.
A new grant, launched by well-known adventurer Tom Allen last week, aims to get young people exploring the world
As most of you know, I am a (fair-weather) cyclist and, while I quite enjoy cycling around the local countryside on a fine day, I am perhaps a bit too old to be contemplating cycling from the UK to China and, presumably, back again as these youngsters have done.
A Long Way to Pedal – http://longwaytopedal.com/
Punctures and Panniers – http://www.puncturesandpanniers.com/
Donna shared a link on Facebook to some WPA-style travel posters from NASA “advertising” journeys to destinations throughout the galaxy which, I thought, were pretty cool.
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I reckon Earth looks like a half decent destination.
You know how governments (I presume it’s all governments, not just ours) release “bad” news when there is a mass of other news-worthy items already in the hope that the “bad” news will get buried? There was a delightful little nugget which was picked up by the Huffington Post on Friday night/Saturday morning, just as David Cameron was undergoing his marathon renegotiation of conditions for the UK’s continued membership of the European Union.
As I’ve written in the past ad nauseam, one of the looney right’s chief complaints about the EU is the “huge” number of migrants who flock to the UK, take all our (low-paid) jobs, take advantage of our free health service, receive preferential treatment and access to social housing, claim every benefit to which they are entitled and then send the vast sums of money home to their wives and children!
As a consequence, one of Cameron’s chief demands in his renegotiation was to be allowed to put a “brake” on the benefits that migrants are able to claim when they come to the UK, the object being to stop the UK being such a “magnet” to those wastrels fleeing the ravages of war. He originally “demanded” a four-year freeze on any in-work benefits (i.e., tax credits for low paid work) for all migrants although he conceded at the 11th hour that the restriction would only apply to new immigrants, not to those already living and working in the UK. Furthermore, he wanted to keep this brake in place for thirteen years. That was rejected by the conference and, in the end, the summit settled on a seven year brake.
All of which is simply fluff and nonsense designed to appease the looney right. It turns out that the government has no idea how much migrants actually cost in terms of benefits nor how much economic benefit they bring (you can be certain that those in work pay more tax as a proportion of their income than Google, Amazon, Starbucks, George Osborne, David Cameron, etc.) In response to a question:
The Government claimed it has no information on how much EU migrants cost – or benefit – the UK. Treasury Minister Lord O’Neill made the startling admission in a written Parliamentary answer that was quietly published while the Prime Minister was in Brussels.
Shadow Justice Minister Lord Beecham pointed out that Mr Cameron was making migrant benefits a centrepiece of his Brussels renegotiation. “It is extraordinary that the government, which is making such an issue about the impact of migrants on the nation’s finances should turn out to have no information about what it is actually paying out in benefits on the one hand and receiving by way of taxes and VAT on the other,” he told HuffPost UK.
Honestly, you couldn’t make it up!
And finally, just so you know we’re interested in American politics as well, someone shared the following on Facebook:
Love to you all,
Greg
Loved the NASA posters – strikingly similar in design to the old British Rail posters, with illustrations of various destinations in the UK – somewhat less exotic, but definitely more inviting.
Not that we feel superior, of course, but the current antics of the US Republican party candidates helps us overcome the shame of TO’s former mayor – who shall remain nameless.