Feral Litter Louts

At teatime yesterday I walked down to Cosham for a Tesco 'shop'. Abandoned on the side of Wymering Lane was a ladies bike, probably stolen. My route then takes me through Fairfield Square where a diagonal paved path crosses a huge area of grass. At the central point there is a seat where the youngsters hang out and drink. They smash glass bottles on the path, there are shards everywhere. The pavement along the Southampton Road is strewn with litter, mostly fast food debris. I passed a group of teenage girls, none of which were wearing warm clothes. They moaned about how cold it was, while pulling at their flimsy clothes, I guess to cover them selves better. Peer pressure ia a terrible thing. I don't suppose it was because they couldn't afford coats, it was more like coats aren't a fashion accessory. Cosham High Street is similarly decorated with rubbish. Where I see liquid running down from bin areas I always wonder if it was because someone has urinated. Blue and white paint had been spilled on the pavement, then bikes had been ridden through it. Some of the paint had been covered by sand. At least none of the glass in the bus shelters had been smashed.

Why Do Things Break Down Simultaneously?

The Camper Van and the Clio always seem to break down at the same time leaving me without transport. It's a good job I live on a bus route and near the train station

My Freeview boxes of which I have three, go wrong at the same time. Fortunately I know my way round my home entertainment system so I can usually fix things.

The last time the one in the living room played up I was astonished to see how much dust had accumulated on the equipment. My set is TV, Freeview STB, dvd recorder and a Tivo.

To clean up I have to pull out the TV stand - it's heavy as I still have an old fashioned bulky TV sitting on top.

I hate this job because behind the TV is a jumble of cables, a mixture of scarts, aerial and power. I've marked most of them so I know what goes where.

I always say a little prayer when I re-assemble and then hold my breath when I switch it back on.

I'm always amazed as to how emotionally draining this little exercise is.

Posted via email from Liz's Posterous

Ransomes Lawn Mower

I've decided to utilise my own body power rather than use electricity. If I can do things by hand I'll reduce my bills. Last week I bid for and won a push cylinder mower from a local Ebay seller. Today I drove over to Hambledon to collect it. I am over the moon with my new toy. It takes very little effort to push it around and it cuts the grass beautifully even when it's wet. I'm not sure how old the mower is but the guy who sold it me told me it's the Rolls Royce of mowers. He collects and sells lawnmowers for a hobby and has shed's full of them. He gets them from all over the country and even has a sort of lawn mower museum. He's amazing, I met his wife and they are both in their eighties. I don't think he can read or write so his wife does it all. Fancy that, 80 year old ebayers. They were both very friendly and I was invited in for tea and biccies. They live in a large house in Hambledon. I hope I am as intrepid as them when I am that old. We got talking about refurbishing old buildings. It turned out that he has a good collection of decent timber. To cut a long story short I bought a nice piece to use as a mantle shelf in the living room. He was born and brought up in the Charlotte Street area of Portsmouth. When the city got bombed during the war the family was moved out to Cowplain. His wife was born and brought up in Purbrook. The met at school and have been married 58 years. I think my guardian angel must have been looking after me today. I've now got a lovely mower that will last me for years and even though I wasn't expecting this I've also got a nice piece of wood. On top of that I had a very interesting time talking to two smashing people.