A proposal, a shower and The Joke Shop

14 August 2012

I see the Joke Shop is still going strong.  By Joke Shop I mean Job Centre Plus of course.  The Despatches programme last night was about just how badly they were doing in getting into work - and they are not doing very well at all.  The overall director of system was on the show and she was working hard in trying to play-up the role of her department but the interviewer had so many instances of how poorly they were doing that she wasn't at all happy.  Instances like the man who instead of listing what he had done to find work the previous week gave them in his shopping list - and it was accepted.  Like the man who provided a copy of a letter he had sent to an employer saying that he really didn't want the job and not to employ him.  That too was accepted.  

I could see the anger on the face of the director about it, no matter how calm she looked on the surface.  In one scene she gave a sideways look at the interviewer that seemed to say, "Where did you find all this out from?"  I have a feeling there would have been a number directives sent out this morning.

This morning we had a visit from the occupational therapist to do an assessment on our needs here in the flat.  The main issue, actually the only issue is the bathroom.  The bath in there is far too small for me, let alone for Jan who is 6' 2" in height.  Neither of us can get or out of the bath and we need to a shower to be fitted.  There will now be a recommendation that a wet-room will be fitted.  The waiting time is around 6 months.  It's going to be a tad cold come winter walking down to the complex for a shower and back.  Well, we will have to put up with it for now.

There's a photo of the Market Place from the 1960s in today's News.  Traffic was allowed to move through the whole of the town at that time.  The photo also brought back memories of when the town was much happier, much more friendly and consequently a much better town.  Now we have trees instead of cars, a pedestrian area rather than zebra crossings; closed shops instead of a busy market town.  The town centre is much safer than before but less friendly to my mind.

We did a bit of shopping yesterday and finally ended up in the Woof Woof.  What was that?  What's the Woof Woof?  Its real name is the Greyhound at Sutton Stop, the junction of the Coventry and Oxford Cannals.  It's been some time since we last in there.  We do like the pub and the regular turnover of real ales is pretty good.  It was winning the local pub of the year award every year so they decided not to enter into it for a few years to give others a chance.  The major problem for us in there is that it is quite expensive.  They have a very good menu too but again, a very pricy menu.  Still it was nice for the just one pint we had yesterday.

Photo time ... 

St Paul's Cathedral and Millennium Bridge from outside Tate Modern.

Funny time ...

There were two elderly people living in a Florida mobile home park. He was a widower and she a widow. They had known one another for a number of years.
One evening there was a community supper in the big activity center. The two were at the same table, across from one another. As the meal went on, he made a few admiring glances at her and finally gathered his courage to ask her, "Will you marry me?"
After about six seconds of 'careful consideration,' she answered. "Yes. Yes, I will."
The meal ended and, with a few more pleasant exchanges, they went to their respective places. Next morning, he was troubled. "Did she say 'yes' or did she say 'no'?" He couldn't remember. Try as he would, he just could not recall. Not even a faint memory. With trepidation, he went to the telephone and called her. First, he explained that he didn't remember as well as he used to. Then he reviewed the lovely evening past.
As he gained a little more courage, he inquired, "When I asked if you would marry me, did you say 'Yes' or did you say 'No'?"
He was delighted to hear her say, "Why, I said, 'Yes, yes I will' and I meant it with all my heart." Then she continued, "I am so glad that you called, because I couldn't remember who had asked me."