Uninvited, unexpected, unwelcome and under our skin, heavy snow is once again ‘gracing’ the populace of West Yorkshire. Woken by my spouse Karen’s singing as she ironed, this morning I jumped out of bed to be greeted yet again by a carpet of snowflakes…… It’s no good, I’m going to have to get that flaming…
Tag: technology
Beast From The East
According to meteorologists and a local pensioner’s bunions, the icy temperatures strangling the UK show no sign of relenting in the coming days. Originating in Scandinavia and dubbed the ‘Beast from the East’, this meteorological front is currently acquiring more column inches than any other news story. Apart, that is, from Saturday’s English rugby defeat…
No Good Deed Goes Unpunished
Yesterday afternoon I drove a friend (who for the purposes of anonymity I shall call Dr X) to a day care clinic. My chauffeuring services required as my buddy was scheduled to undergo a minor medical procedure rendering him unable to drive back…… And no he wasn’t having his licence removed! This local clinic is…
Literature, Leg Warmers & Lactate
The sound of a TV fitness broadcast is within earshot as I commence this literary offering. Sitting on my posterior in my dining area, I grow evermore uncomfortable as I listen to a doctor relaying the health risks of physical inactivity. This discomfort a consequence of knowing all too well I currently neglect that particular…
Rendezvous With The Son & Heir
Yesterday, I ventured east on the A64 to the York Designer Outlet where I met up with my twentysomething son Jonny. An amiable young man, the fact he’s occasionally prepared to read my narratives, when his sister steadfastly refuses, contribute to making the Leeds lad my favoured offspring. I’m not upset about my daughter Rachel’s…
After ‘Bat Outta Hell’, Take The Second Exit
During a recent discussion about journey distances, an old acquaintance asked me how far my east Leeds residence was from my mother’s Wakefield domicile. As I’ve never been inquisitive enough to record the exact mileage, it was a question I couldn’t answer with any real accuracy. This being the case, I responded with the tongue-in-cheek quip “If you drive a steady…
BACS To The Future
A couple of days in Bedfordshire with two long-term mates, has meant nostalgia, beer, Thai curry and pizza have been my metaphorical weekend mistresses. I first met these amiable chaps in 1983 when I started working at British Coal’s Gateshead computer centre…… One of the lads is called Bill, the other (like me) isn’t. Not only did we work together in the north east…
Don’t Panic!
On the 23rd December Panic Saturday will be upon us. A recent inclusion in the festive calendar, I have it on good authority it’s the moniker bestowed upon the last Saturday before Christmas Day. A godforsaken few hours in retail purgatory, that would be worthy of entry in a contemporary re-write of Dante’s Inferno. An inclusion in…
Worse Things Happen At Sea!
Today marks the 150th Birthday of the shipping forecast on BBC radio. The broadcast, introduced in 1867, a consequence of sea-farers concluding it’s predecessor of harbour-masters exclaiming “I bet it’s chuffing choppy out there today, marra!”, was no longer fit for purpose as an aid to safe shipping navigation. In the days when it was frowned upon to calm boisterous children…