WOOLWORTHS R.I.P

Couldn't sign off without a special mention of Woolworths,it's been a familiar face on the High Street through the decades,enoy the images from the 1st Woolies in the U.K. until the groups final days.
Good luck to all the staff ,28,000,now that's an awful lot of people to lose their jobs,here's hoping some at least have managed to secure something in these unusual and unforgiving times.

Jenny

CATCH UP TIME

I realise I have already submitted a post for today,that was more a very condensed version of the severe economic difficulties we face,we have said goodbye to Woolworths with a lossof 28,000 jobs,so many companies have gone to the wall and it all happened so very quickly,repossessions and redundancies are rife,not a pretty picture but we are a stoic nation and somehow we will pull through this.I can't help but acknowledge a shake up was needed,but people are paying very heavily.I'd say it's a depression, having lived through 3 recessions this is very different,and it's also the uncertainty,but I shall come back to this subject at a later date,we have to catch up from last October.

I saw my 61st birthday and hubby his 64th in October,eldest son was 33 in November which was a very busy month,the youngest was off to Miami,South Beach area,she loves it over there, the people, the lifestyle, but what a historic moment to be in the USA,the 1st black president was elected Barak Obama ,for once America got it right,what a statesman they have.

We had the Good Food Show back in the U.K. and the Clothes Show Live at the NEC Birmingham,something we do every year in the run up to Christmas and what a concert at Symphony Hall in December a week before the big day,a family occassion followed by panto a few days later.

January always appears to be flat,probably for that very reason,let's face it everything is done to excess during Christmas/New Year,and then you take the decorations down..yes it becomes very flat,and we've had a particularly harsh Winter,snow and hail today even.

February back once more to the NEC where we enjoyed Strictly Come Dancing the tour,and then it was daughter's birthday,but now we're in March ,Spring,it's staying lighter for longer of an evening,always a good sign,and we've had some springlike days ,it's been good to get out in the garden.

Tomorrow we're off to see David Essex,yes I've loved him since my teen years,in a musical he's co-written,All The Fun Of The Fair,at the Hippodrome Birmingham,many of his songs are in it.

Two weeks time we're off on the first of our holidays,hubby and I in Somerset...It seemed like a good idea when I booked for the end of March,fingers crossed the snow stays away it's a beautiful part of the country,then May we're off to Lincoln,Skegness and Mablethorpe and September Majorca,Puerto Pollensa,daughter's off to Boston.

A very condensed catch up but here's hoping my posts become more regular...and I'm still doing my workout,tried the volunteer work,and it didn't suit as I couldn't see how I was enhancing the patients time in hospital,more a case of the NHS obtaining labour with no cost.

If it was a charity I'd have no problem but not when it crosses into an area of utilising volunteers to fill in for paid work.Many will do as asked, they're hoping for employment, or on placement so unlikely to say no when asked to do something ,one guy was cleaning beds now that's not what I'd call volunteer work.

Time for bed now will catch up later.

Jenny

AND NOW WE HAVE QUANTITATIVE EASING!!

This is a more sombre post than previous entries,it is of it's time and believe me things are tough in the U.K.,and destined to become even tougher before 2009 is out.
The country is now broke,not slightly bent but officially broke,and we the taxpayer have now bailed out the banks to an estimated 1.3 trillion pounds,yes not a misprint that says trillion,a figure myself and many others find hard to envisage,unfortunately these bail outs,coupled with interset rates cuts ,we're down to 0.5%,have not seen credit flow into our economy.
Now we have something "new" which goes by the name of "Quantitative Easing"..to lesser mortals it's printing money ,the very last resort for the U.K.,or any country, it allows the Bank of England to pump money into our ailing economy.We are in unchartered territory ,no one knows if it will work,but everyone should pray it does because there is nowhere else to go,and that's a very scary thought.
So where does that leave the majority of us who are not part of the "establishment",the answer to that is only time will tell,but we're not best placed if things don't improve,not one single person I know will be getting a pension of £700,000 per annum,that's what Sir Fred Goodwin has for allowing his bank RBS to go bust,and we the taxpayer are paying for it, along with all the other CEO's and board members of the banking sector who have either been sacked or resigned through incompetence,yes they'll be getting their pensions too....That's what being part of the establishment means, whatever happens your future is secure and a labour government has presided over these events,but they are the establishment,it was Gordon Brown who pushed for Sir Fred's knighthood,another Scot by the way.
I'm not an economist,banker ,or politician,(bar Vince Cable who warned of these events) ,but how come myself and my husband could see 5 years ago that public borrowing and spending was getting way out of control,the housing bubble would inevitably burst ,as prices soared ,and people no longer bought homes but "investments",it was an orgy of greed ,the public buying on credit what they knew they couldn't afford,and encouraged by the government..but now the chickens have come home to roost,and it's us the taxpayer who will pay the price,our children and grandchildren,not the "establishment".
I'm very angry,we have been prudent ,not overspent but our small amount of savings accrue no interst now,we have paid into a with profits endownment,life/ savings plan for 20 years,it matures next year but insurance companies are now saying they are unable to pay out final bonuses,or will the said companies even be solvent in 2010,the plus side is the house is paid...I retired last March and my husband retires in October,and that was meant to be our nest egg,but prudence is punished it seems in this country,so not a bright economic outlook,probably why both of our children are seriously thinking of leaving the U.K.,one for Australia the other the USA.The taxpayer paid in part for their university educations,and they will now deliver their knowledge and skills to other parts of the globe.The USA is in dire straits but the youngest offspring sees more likelihood of building a good life there than staying in the U.K.,and Australia has of course been extremely prudent with it's economy.
What a sad day when young bright things no longer remain optimistic.
However as I shall now convert to optimistic mood,let's hope something wonderful will happen within the economy to shift this economic cycle into positive mode...I'm certainly not holding my breath ,but live in hope as they say

TEMPUS FUGIT..tick tock

Skegness August 2008 above.

Cyprus,Paphos below, and to the right.

Time flies,now how often do you hear that ?But my oh my it really does,I was dedicated to this blog on retirement...but shame on me the last entry was in March...Good news though I am still working out every Monday,yes it has come as a big surprise to me too!!!!...organised exercise was something I've spent a lifetime avoiding,and here I am every week.

Mid October,well almost coming to the end of it now,less than 10 weeks to Christmas...some kind soul passed that on to me this week,so I thought I'd share...and life has been very busy but in the most positive and nicest way...We were in Cyprus,Paphos to be exact end of June/July.....wonderful hotel called the Avanti,not to be confused with the holiday village..the staff,service,food and location excellent,and the pool is probably the best I've used....photos uploaded..in August we were in Lincolnshire,Sutton-on-Sea.Mablethorpe and Skegness..I love that part of the country......yes everyone flocks to Devon and Cornwall,and they are wonderul places,I even lived in Devon for a while....but Lincolnshire for me is very special ....Genealogy is keeping me busy,and I shall be doing some voluntary work with the local hospital...days are full and wonderful even though Gordon Brown is PM ,the economy is in meltdown and Britain is dare I say it bust...Well done Blair and Brown how proud you must be,there is no honour amongst politicians,you are examples of everything that is wrong with our system.

For the moment I must dash...but I shall return...The Restaurant is now on,do hope Michelle and Russell win ...yes I adore Strictly Come Dancing too.

Jenny

KEEP YOUNG AND BEAUTIFUL...IF ONLY..

I so remember the words to that song "Keep young and beautiful",it was also a signature tune for a keep fit regime,and if I recollect correctly, it was run by a lady called Eileen Fowler.I remember only too well as my mother did these exercises regularly,with quotes of and "Eileen says if you do this"...However I digress, but bear with me, there is a connection.
I have for many years worked in a Sports Centre,quite a prestigious one,at the University of Birmingham, but have never ,ever, joined in the madness of excercise classes and the keep fit trend....but what do I do?...Newly retired I decide(well in fact, I decided before the said retirement date)to go to an evening Monday exercise class,mainly because Claire the instructor is lovely, and over the years on reception, I have got to know the members of that class,but the real reason for selecting this class,it's the easiest ,well that's what I'd always been led to believe, and it reads as such in the brochure.With this information I was discussing the forthcoming activity with Julie ,my immediate neighbour,and yes you've guessed it, she wanted to come too,another newbie to the world of lunges and sit ups ,lambs to the slaughter or what???
We duly went to our class this evening ,and an even brighter idea of mine,to walk there and back,2 miles each way...It was nice to see everyone again,but Claire was away this evening,in Germany, and we had a different instructor,the lovely Esther,who had us lunging,marching,jogging,stepping,stretching,and a further punishment is the huge mirror all across the one side of the dance studio,you get to watch your excess wobble ..in time to the music of course...I have muscles I never knew existed,and Julie bless her,don't think she knew what hit her,but being British we kept going ,and kept up with everyone...we all but limped out of the centre after saying our goodbyes,but guess what we're back next week,and we enjoyed it.No we're not sadists just very grateful we survived.

Jenny

AND I SAID THIS SITE WASN'T RETRO??.....DO YOU REMEMBER WHEN??

Having just typed an intro,saying this site wasn't dedicated to retro,started me thinking about the 60's...Well it would things really do wander into my mind....but we were so lucky it was a golden age,jobs aplenty,I lost count of the number of jobs I actually had,after all you could go out in your lunch hour and if you were offered better paying employment,hand your notice in when you got back.
The mini skirt was born,we won the world cup,I think everyone came out on to the streets after the match,and 42 years later we're still waiting for the magic that the squad of 66 gave us,all in vain I fear ,players just don't seem to be hungry enough,and they're far too pampered.
Flower power came to our shores,and naturally I had the kaftan,long blonde hair,didn't we all(lads too),but then we also had the mods and rockers(mod here),and protest songs,yes as teens we protested...quite a lot!!
After all this was our time, the word teenager was officially in the dictionary,and we were the first youth generation to have disposable income.Young men rode lambrettas or motorbikes,and we all paid homage to Carnaby Street...well there was definitely a street sign on my bedroom wall,that said that along with all the album covers and my wonderful Dansette record player.
However we weren't a pampered generation, no benefits, or handouts if you didn't work ,and god help you if you became pregnant before you married...I can honestly say my dad was the most effective form of contraception,as most fathers were..simple terms "Bring trouble to this house and you're on the street",you knew there'd be no reasoning,and like everyone else it would be a shotgun wedding,or unmarried mothers home,so you didn't ,or if you risked it you prayed an awful lot for a whole month which seemed to last for an eternity...There was an awful downside to this the girls who sought out the back street abortionists,there was nowhere else to go, clinics didn't exist,and many a young girl lost her life or was seriously ill.
Every girl married,not the lavish OTT affairs they have now,which usually leaves the new Mr.&Mrs.with a huge loan to start their married life,no ours were simple the bride wore white ,very often the reception was in the brides house,or a local club,your dad ,danced as only dad's can at a wedding, along with an assortment of male relatives,and although most won't admit it ...because of course we've all "moved" on..but the inevitable fight broke out....My mum bless her had to be different I married in the early 70's ,we had an all singing ,all dancing, brand new Holiday Inn Hotel in Birmingham,and they were new to this country,so mum decided our reception was there,which cost mum and dad an arm and a leg...such a waste as we divorced at the end of the 70's,and I've remained cynical regards lavish "do's" ever since ,after all 2nd marriage very simple,register office ,reception in the house and still going strong.
The 60's was my era,a golden age,working hours were long,health and safety..unheard of...the world was a very small place,no such thing as flitting to another continent at the drop of a hat,we had smog ,coal fires,walked for miles,pc's unheard of,but or fashion was unique,thanks to Mary Quant,Twiggy and the like,and anything was possible,every other lad was in a band and some of them made it,and the music was something else...Yes it was golden... I met the Rolling Stones,saw the Beatles live,also the Beach Boys,Brenda Lee,the list goes on, what more could a girl ask for?

IS THERE A PLUMBER IN THE HOUSE???

Having the bathroom refitted,now we thought this would be a simple straightforward exercise,but to date it appears plumbers are now a breed apart,and maybe some are suffering serious delusions of grandeur ...Silly me I keep forgetting I'm the customer and will be paying,must learn to know my place!!!!
We want a no frills bathroom suite fitted,white suite, white tiles,and new shower,and I stress the bathroom in question is a small one,small but straightforward,modern house.
The first plumber arrived 2 days ago to give an estimate,as he gave an oh, and ah, and things should be okay??....obviously artistic licence is now required to screw the client for as much as you can get.Frank his name was, and he talked for England, obviously not busy then ..as he regaled of his holiday in Dubai,and eventually said the estimate would be £2,700....that didn't include the plasterer(he'd forgotten him) and the tiles,so let's call it £3,000 and rising!!!!Frank no way am I funding any more trips to Dubai for you and the family,best part he turned round and said he chooses who he'll do the work for ,the basis being whether he likes them or not????Does this poor deluded soul think anyone would actually employ him,let alone recommend him, he left me with a thumping headache,and a feeling of total disbelief.
The 2nd plumber arrived early this morning,he did look like the son of Frank though,not good....however it appeared he understood what our requirements were,told him from the off what we wanted,he said it was a straightforward job,however he didn't give an estimate and hasn't rung,even though he said he would later in the day...So what is it with British plumbers?Do they only want jobs where the client is spending quite a few thousand,we're going into recession in the U.K. so a few words of advice customers are your bread and butter,and don't complain about the Polish workforce......What I wouldn't give for a hard working Polish plumber he'd sort my bathroom out.......Are there any out there in Birmingham??

Jenny.