Thursday 26 April 2012

Life, committees and travellers

26 April 2012

Some time ago I posted a report about the list of areas that had been indicated that might be suitable to house building projects.  Well, I don't know how the News got the list but it shouldn't have got it.  Now the council committee that was on working on it has been suspended while an investigation takes place into the leaking of the document.  No one knew about the suspension until a question was asked about it.  It seems that Dorktown does not have a Borough Plan which some believe that the lack of such a plan leaves the town wide open to building developers to build anywhere they want.  The suspension of the cross party committee makes this even more likely.  The thing is, we residents of the town have no idea what is going on simply because a lot of the council work goes on behind closed doors.  We only find out about it when leaked documents are made know in the press.

Travellers are again causing hassle and added costs to the Dorktown tax payers.  They move on to land at the Pingle Fields and were move on from there.  Now they have moved on to land beside a sports centre just off Greenmore Road.  A lot of folk think that they should have the right to have places provided for them by us tax payers.  OK, fine, but there is such a site here in the town but they won't use it for some reason.  Maybe because will have to pay rent and council tax?  I don't know for sure but I do have my own thought about it.  We tax payers have to pay to get the evicted, not once but time after time when they set up illegal sites.  But the cost doesn't end when the move on does it?  Inevitably there will be even more expense incurred when a cleanup team has to move onto the site to clear the rubbish the travellers have left behind.  It seems to me they want all the benefits of living in an area but are unwilling to make any contribution to that area.   

There is a lot anger and upset caused by these people and that will not go away until they try to live by the normal standards of society in general.  Of course, this is not just a problem for Dorktown, it happens all over the country making it a national problem, not a local one.  To sort it out needs a national approach, not leaving to each and every local authority to deal with.       

My fourth book is now with me old mate Bill Howe is kindly proof reading it for me.  After I get it back and made the alterations he suggests I can get it off to CreateSpace (unless I can find another such company), and got a proof copy sent out to me.  Hopefully then I can get it published.  In the mean time, someone Jan has been friendly with on Facebook I think, an ex-teacher, has read through The Mission and suggested some changes that he thinks will enhance the book.  I've had a quick look and most of the items he's marked are my typical typos. like 'teh' and so on.  I can make a start on sorting that out while I wait for the proof copy to come back.  The next move then is to send it Matador and get it published there.  We'll see eh ... ... ...

So there I am sitting and reading and an idea comes into my head while doing so.  I reached for my notebook and pen and make a note of the idea.  But which notebook?  You see, I one in my camera bag for when I'm out and about; I have another beside my bed; there's a third beside my arm chair in the front room; a fourth is here beside me lappy and guess what?  There's a fifth one upstairs in my study.  I was starting to feel that I had far too many notebooks on the go.  But then while I was lying in bed reading the latest edition of Writer's Forum, I read that Simon Whaley a number of such books as do a number or other writers.  However, they all differ to me in that they use their books differently with each note book having a separate job.  Maybe I shall get round to doing the same one day. 

So then, today's' photo is of ... 

two lesser black backed gulls.

And this is brilliant ...

On the first day God created the cow. God said, "You must go to the field with the farmer all day long and suffer under the sun, have calves and give milk to support the farmer. I will give you a life span of sixty years."
The cow said, "That's kind of a tough life you want me to live for sixty years. Let me have twenty and I'll give back the other forty." And God agreed.
On the second day God created the dog. God said, "Sit all day by the door of your house and bark at anyone who comes in or walks past. I will give you a life span of twenty years."
The dog said, "That's too long to be barking. Give me ten years and I'll give you back the other ten." So God agreed.
On the third day God created the monkey. God said, "Entertain people, do monkey tricks, make them laugh . I'll give you a twenty-year life span."
The monkey said, "How boring, monkey tricks for twenty years? I don't think so. Dog gave you back ten, so that's what I'll do too, okay?" And God agreed again.

On the fourth day God created man. God said, "Eat, sleep, play, have sex, enjoy. Do nothing, just enjoy, enjoy. I'll give you twenty years."
Man said, "What? Only twenty years! No way, man. Tell you what, I'll take my twenty, and the forty the cow gave back, and the ten the dog gave back and the ten the monkey gave back, that makes eighty, okay?"
"Okay," said God, "you've got a deal."
So that is why the first twenty years we eat, sleep, play, have sex, enjoy, and do nothing; for the next forty years we slave in the sun to support our family; for the next ten years we do monkey tricks to entertain the grandchildren; and for the last ten years we sit in a chair by the front door and bark at everyone.

Life has now been explained.                         

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