Trees

I'm not a King Charles type of tree-hugger in the physical sense, but I am in spirit.

On my morning walks with Billy my dog, my favourite bit without question is simply looking at, and enjoying, trees.

I don't know all the names of the trees, my knowledge is sorely lacking, but I love them all. 

We're lucky here that we still have some wonderful Elms nearby, most were devastated by Dutch Elm Disease, but our local churchyard contains a small pocket of survivors. The one above is superb with its low hanging branches and beautiful form. It sits beside the narrow brick path that leads to the church entrance. There is also a convenient bench underneath that you can just see bottom left. Perfect for resting a while with heavy shopping bags.

We are also lucky that the 'Great Storm' of October 1987 didn't destroy all our churchyard trees. Several were knocked over and taken away, but quite a few of the bigger ones survived.

They have been planting more trees since we've been back from France. I think about 14 new trees have been planted, making both the Rest Garden and the Churchyard feel quite wooded.

I also love the trees back in France. Our woods consist mostly of Chestnut, Oak, and Pine, with a sprinkling of wild Cherry, Walnuts, and Apples. The combination of these trees makes the area perfect for producing some of the world's very best wild mushrooms. 

It had to happen.

It has now rained. Last night (Wed/Thur) we had an hour or so of light rain. I had just planted out some Lavender cuttings, so it saved me the task of watering them.

As usual, at 7.30 am I took Billy for his morning walk, and did actually need my wet-weather gear. Wellies, Barbour, and silly hat, all saw service for the first time in many months; albeit very little.

I know that many parts of Britain have been over-rained-upon, and have even experienced flooding; but not down here, nor for our few months spent in France this Summer.

It does look as if we'll have more rain today (Fri), then back to dry again.

I don't mind a bit of rain, as long as I can get out with Billy; it's more for him than for me. I suppose the worst bit is wearing my Barbour which is heavy and hot. OK in cold weather, but not whilst still warm. I would also prefer proper rain to drizzle.

It's really rather nice to have that bit of variety.

 

Biographies.

I'm currently reading Lucy Worsley's biography of Agatha Christie. I believe it's No 1 in the Sunday Times best seller list. A well deserved spot.

I also recently read Antonia Fraser's 1972 biography 'The Life and Times of Queen Anne'. 

I mention these two books specifically as they contain so much detail. I also remember previously mentioning my friend John Masouri's biography of 'Bob Marley's Wailers' for the same reason.

I am often amazed by the amount of minute detail in biographies. Often the more ancient the subject, the more detailed are the descriptions. It's as if the older an event, the clearer the details. How can this be the case?

In Fraser's book, she quotes dialogue almost as if she was there. With Worsley, at least Agatha Christie, who died in 1976, had lived within living memory and there are still people around to consult. Even so, some of her details must surely be speculation.

At the back of Worsley's book are 57 pages of Sources, Acknowledgements, Notes, plus the Index. A lot of research has obviously gone into her subject.

So, how much of a biography is allowed to be supposition? Do the editors check every single 'fact'? Personally I don't really care, as I'm more interested in a good read than 100% accuracy, but it would be interesting to know!

 

The Assault on Motorists.

I believe that 40 of the UK's biggest urban authorities have now introduced 20 mph zones, and that 28 Million people now live in areas where 20 mph is the norm.

Motorists are really being attacked at the moment. Our trusty old petrol cars will soon no longer be manufactured, and we will eventually be forced to drive electric vehicles instead (which seem very prone to exploding for no apparent reason). No thanks.

The price of petrol seems to rise regularly. Cars are now so complicated that only very expensive computer-aided servicing is possible. And taxes, MOT's, and insurance costs, are making motoring extremely expensive. I suppose they want us all to ride bikes or horses.

With train drivers often on strike, and the rail system very inefficient and expensive, we are almost obliged to use cars for long journeys; especially if our destination is nowhere near a railway station. It no longer surprises me that so many people drive without tax and insurance; not that I approve!

If we walk or ride bikes our 'Carbon Footprint' will certainly benefit, but the economy is bound to suffer. If workers can no longer move freely from place to place without being 'fined', they will simply stay at home.

In areas where they have ULEZ restrictions, all non-compliant vehicles have to pay £12.50 per day; that's £87.50 per week. That money has to be earned or added to bills; we will all pay one way or another in the long term.

'Supercars' are now a common sight. These expensive fast cars are becoming more expensive and faster by the day. Top speeds well over 200 mph are common, and acceleration from 0 to 60 is registered in nano-seconds. With speeds limited to 20 mph, there doesn't seem much point in owning one, unless one is prepared to pay endless fines.

At least I can say that I have a non-polluting compliant car, and I also have a garage; so no ULEZ fines, and no parking fines. I have absolutely no control over the rest; I'm putty in their hands.

Hamas.

When I heard that Hamas had launched thousands of rockets against Israel (above), I simply despaired.

The leaders of Hamas show no regard for the safety of their own citizens; they must have known that Israel would retaliate with considerable force. You cannot continually attack a neighbouring country without some response.

Hamas are fighting a one-sided war that they know they cannot win. Thousands of Palestinians will die as will Israelis. I really wish that Hamas would spend their money and efforts on making life better for the population of Gaza, and not permanently trying to kill their neighbours. I am sure that the majority of Palestinians have no argument with Israel; all they want is a quiet life. 

I hear that Israel has now cut-off Gaza's electricity and water supply. They depend on Israel for so much.

I feel very sorry for the people of Gaza. They are led by an idiotic terrorist gang who bring death and destruction upon their own people. It would be good to be able to target their leaders specifically, but as we all know, they tend to hide in hospitals and schools. Instead, it's the ordinary citizens of Gaza who will be suffering; and they already are.

If I was Netanyahu I would insist that the Hamas leaders return the 'hostages' within 24 hours, any failure to do so would result in serious mass destruction. This nonsense cannot go on. They have to be taught a lesson. 

Whilst the Israelis are sending a few retaliatory rockets into Gaza, maybe they could also send a consignment of brooms, dustpans and brushes. I notice that Gaza's streets are filthy and littered as one would expect of such people, only when they begin to respect themselves will they learn to respect others!   

I used to know a few twisted people who openly supported Hamas (Corbyn calls them 'his friends'), some of them even painted Stars of David on our nearby Marks and Spencer store windows, imitating the Nazis; totally disgusting. Yesterday I listened to Starmer condemning unequivocally the actions of Hamas, and he was joined by all European leaders (both Left and Right) in his condemnation. Maybe those who previously supported these terrorists will now be too ashamed to do so again.  

Our thoughts are with our blog-friend Yael in Israel, who seems to have been under attack from these thugs for many years.

Putin, of course, blames the USA. But he would!

Another knife crime.

As usual yesterday morning, at just after 8 am, I went the two hundred yards to buy my Sunday Times newspaper. I buy it from a small Sainsbury's just down the road. A little further up the road towards the Station I noticed the flowers.

A 17 year old boy was murdered there a few days ago. He was stabbed by a 16 your old boy, and died almost at once. The 16 year old is now in custody, and will no doubt spend the rest of his life in prison (some hope!).

Mustafa Momand was knifed in broad daylight at 4 pm on Thursday the 5th of October. A totally senseless killing that has shocked everyone; especially in our immediate area. RIP.

 

Jamie Proposes to Aurelia

Call me an old romantic softie, but my Christmases are never complete without a showing of 'Love Actually'.

I suppose this must be the most popular scene in the film. Something to enjoy on a Sunday morning.