European Parliamentary Elections

If you are anything like me, you are bewildered by the number of political parties vying for places in the European Parliament.  Each party promotes policies they believe are best for the Country or helpful for achieving their own objectives: the Green Party for a sustainable world, the Conservatives for business growth and free enterprise, Labour for affordable living, UKIP for British independence, English Democrats for an English Parliament, Liberal Democrats for keeping Britain in Europe etc.

There are a number of other parties such as the Christian Peoples Alliance, who want a fairer and more equitable world based on Christian principles and morality; Independence from Europe who are campaigning to quit Europe by having a referendum; NO2EU who want the UK to leave Europe, and the extreme British National Party who want to stop all immigration and outlaw miscegenation.

Election Day is the 22^nd May, and although we may be bewildered, I believe it’s really important for us to examine what is being offered for our future and for the future of generations to come; we should not waste our vote.

Links

An Independence from Europe

http://www.aipmep.org/

British National Party

 http://www.bnp.org.uk/

Christian Peoples Alliance

http://www.cpaparty.org.uk/

Conservative Party

http://www.conservatives.com/

English Democrats

http://www.englishdemocrats.org.uk/

Green Party

 http://www.greenparty.org.uk/

Labour Party

http://www.labour.org.uk/home

Liberal Democrats

 http://www.libdems.org.uk/

NO2EU

http://www.no2eu.com/

UKIP

 http://www.ukip.org/index 

A Privilege

Two previous posts each mention the privilege my wife and I had looking after our grandchildren on Saturday, 10^th May. All of us had a great time, but it was not without trials.

After receiving a penalty charge notice for parking on double yellow lines, we had to feed the children before motoring to the venue where the birthday party of our second youngest great grandson was to take place. As petrol was running low, I had to top up the tank. On account of staying in the library longer than we intended, then being delayed by the traffic warden, there wasn’t sufficient time for eating at a restaurant; therefore we decided to buy snacks and petrol at TESCO. The children could eat in the car.

My wife made the mistake of giving them sausage rolls. The result was an incredible mess, the likes of which I’ve never seen before since acquiring the car over thirteen years ago!

Well, we arrived at the party as it began, and a very enjoyable time was had by all – tiny tots to seven year olds, and adults, the oldest being 94.

I had to clean the grandchildren’s seats before the return journey. Doing it without a vacuum cleaner required care. Each seat had to be extracted so that I could remove the greasy crumbs without them ending up on the floor. A rain shower and a strong wind did not help. The only tool available was a handkerchief which was not brilliant, but better than my bare hands.

My wife and I were thankful that no unforeseen happenings occurred during and after the party to make the day more eventful. We appreciated having the children under our care and we are looking forward to next weekend when we’ll be with them again.

Children are truly precious.

(Matthew 19:13-15)

 

Penalty Charge Notice

 

Yesterday I said it was a privilege to look after our grandchildren, and so it was, but after taking them to Southend Library I returned to the car to find a traffic warden attaching a Penalty Charge Notice (PNC) to the windscreen of my car. I queried why, and he told me I should not have parked where there was a sign indicating that loading was prohibited between the times stated. I replied that as I had lawfully displayed a Blue Badge (BB) for the disabled children under my care I believed I was exempt from the double line parking restriction. He gave no further explanation, but said I could appeal against the charge.

After he left, another car parked next to mine and a different warden appeared. She walked towards the car and the occupant responded by driving away. The warden seemed to take no further action. I asked her if she could explain the term, ‘No Loading’ as shown on the sign. She said that where the sign is displayed in conjunction with single or double yellow markings on the kerb below, no one is allowed to park. I hadn’t noticed the yellow markings until she pointed them out. Having only seen the sign and the double yellow lines, I thought I was allowed to park there when displaying the BB.   

I have subsequently looked at the Highway Code where there is nothing about waivers for holders of the BB. The only reference I have found on the Internet regarding parking by BB holders is in a PDF produced by Direct Gov. (See link below) Only there is it clearly explained that BB holders are not exempt from that particular ‘no parking’ rule.

I have appealed, but it very much looks as though I shall have to cough up the fine of £35.00. Ignorance does not excuse one from the law.

Links

Highway Code

https://www.gov.uk/browse/driving/highway-code

On-street parking control signs and road markings

http://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum_dg/groups/dg_digitalassets/@dg/@en/@motor/documents/digitalasset/dg_191927.pdf

*Blue Badge Scheme: rights and responsibilities England

http://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum_dg/groups/dg_digitalassets/@dg/@en/@motor/documents/digitalasset/dg_191927.pdf

Children’s Party

My wife and I had the privilege of looking after the youngest grandchildren today. We took them to the library in the morning and to a birthday party for our second youngest great grandchild in the afternoon.

Hanging Basket Support

As I’ve mentioned before, my wife is a keen gardener. She enjoys playing around with flower displays and she has a hanging basket under the porch. Only a few days ago she did away with the old contents and replaced them with a new set of plants, but the strong wind this morning brought the basket crashing to the ground. A close examination of the HI-Lo support revealed that where the metal hook passed through a hole in the plastic casing the upper part had worn through.

Fortunately, there was no damage to the basket, and minimal effort was required rearranging the plants and replacing earth that had fallen out.

I volunteered to mend the Hi-Lo support. An hour-and-half later the job was done, and I had the basket back under the porch. However, when I tried setting it in the hoisted position, it would not stay put. A further examination revealed that the vinyl tape that retracts into the gadget was shredded at the upper end. At that point I realized my efforts were probably in vain. I considered taking the support apart to ascertain if the locking mechanism could be made to work, but I decided not to pursue the matter.  In fact, I doubt I shall bother, because a new Hi-Lo support can be had for as little as £6.60 from Ebay, although it may not be a genuine model.

In retrospect, my efforts were not entirely in vain, because I enjoyed trying to repair the gizmo, and my wife was pleased I had given of my time.

Links

Hi-Lo Hanging Basket Support £6.50

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=371046231127&fromMakeTrack=true&ssPageName=VIP:watchlink:top:en

Hi-Lo Hanging Basket Support £6.99

http://www.marshalls-seeds.co.uk/hi-lo-hanging-basket-support-pid4701.html

Hi-Lo Hanging Basket Support £7.99

http://www.crocus.co.uk/product/_/hi-lo-hanging-basket-raising-lowering-pulley/classid.2000018309/?affiliate=td

Hi-Lo Hanging Basket Support £8.99

http://www.suttons.co.uk/Gardening/Garden+Equipment/Hanging+Baskets/Hi-Lo+Hanging+Basket+Supports_MH2002.htm

Cruising Logs

I have added a new page to the blog with links to my Cruising Logs. To gain access to them, click the link below.

http://bills-log.blogspot.co.uk/p/cruising-logs.html

For future reference, you could save this page to your favourites or bookmarks, or better still, save the actual Cruising Logs page!

Happy reading,

Bill.

Nissan Leaf

I think the Nissan Leaf is a step in the right direction, on account of being a zero emission electric car. Strictly speaking, ‘zero emission’ is incorrect, in that the electricity for powering the car does not come about without emissions of CO2 into the atmosphere through the production of electricity in the first place. The car itself does not emit CO2 or other pollutants, but the production of electricity for charging the car’s lithium ion batteries does – even so-called eco-friendly solar or wind powered generated electricity is not emission free, because of the manufacture of the solar panels and wind turbines.

Despite these drawbacks, the overall pollution brought about by the manufacture and use of electric vehicles must be less than their petroleum and diesel counterparts. The big practical disadvantage of electric vehicles is their limited range, as is the case with the Nissan Leaf, which at best can only achieve 100 miles on a full charge. Charging via a domestic circuit can take up to eight or nine hours. At public charging points the time is considerably reduced; it is claimed an eighty percent charge can be done in about thirty minutes.

Electric cars perform as well as petroleum and diesel cars with one exception, that’s their limited range of about 100 miles, and until that limitation has been overcome, they will never be as popular.  Another disincentive for buying one is the cost: a Visia at £16,490, an Acenta at £18,490, and a Tekna at £20,490.

Links

Nissan Leaf Review

http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review/nissan/leaf

Nissan Leaf Prices, Models and Equipment

http://www.nissan.co.uk/GB/en/vehicle/electric-vehicles/leaf/prices-and-equipment/compare-leaf-models.html

Advantages and Disadvantages of Wind Power

http://www.technologystudent.com/energy1/wind8.htm

Macwester 28's Rudder

 

Pronounced heeling to port

 

Minus her port keel

 

Her rudder

 

A Pardox rudder

On December 11^th 2011 I wrote* about a Macwester 30 twin keel yacht, or at least, I thought she was a Macwester 30, but the author of two related comments said he believed she was a Macwester 28. Whatever the case, I saw the same yacht alongside the quay at Hullbridge last Sunday afternoon. By the way she was settled on the mud I knew she had lost her port keel. I spoke to a person I assumed was the owner, and he informed me the keel had come off when the yacht was on her mooring. He said he had temporarily sealed the hull with expanding foam, and that he was waiting for high water so that she could be taken ashore for inspection at the Up River Yacht.

What intrigued me was not so much her missing keel, but her relatively small rudder which is small in comparison with the area of her underwater lateral profile. I suppose the same could be said of many yachts, but Paradox is an exception, since her large rudder acts as a keel by providing lateral resistance. Generally, the further aft a rudder is from the centre of lateral resistance, the more leverage it has for turning the boat. Obviously, if a rudder is ridiculously small, it will have little effect. Therefore there must be an optimum proportional area relative to the lateral profile area of the hull according to where the rudder is located. The speed of a vessel, the amount of heel, whether it is a balanced rudder, and how it is hung in relation to being vertical on its axis will also affect how a rudder performs.

James 3:4 ‘Look also at ships: although they are so large and are driven by the fierce winds, they are turned by a very small rudder wherever the pilot desires.’

Links

*Macwester 30?

http://bills-log.blogspot.co.uk/search?q=macwester

Macwester 28

http://macwester.wordpress.com/macwester-28-atlanta-28/

Digging for Victory

My wife has a keen interest in the garden, but one thing she dislikes is the prevalence of bluebells at this time of year. They look pretty; however, they pop up in unexpected places and multiply profusely. Getting rid of them is a real problem on account of their bulbs multiplying, and they cleverly protect themselves by taking up residence in the roots of nearby plants. Extricating them is almost impossible without damaging the roots of plants that shelter them.

The Chief Gardener gave me the task of removing these tenacious plants from her front garden, and as I was endeavouring to dig them out, my neighbour asked if I was ‘digging for victory’. I immediately remembered back to the Second World War, because at that time there was a campaign, ‘Dig for Victory’. This was a concerted effort at growing vegetables wherever space could be found. My father entered into the spirit of food production by converting most of his garden for growing vegetables. It was part of the war effort at overcoming the enemy who tried starving the populace by blockading merchant ships conveying food from the US and Canada. German U-boats were instrumental in this strategy and they had a fair measure of success.

I thought about my neighbour’s question, and replied that I believed I could never be victorious in my battle against bluebells; after all, I had been trying to eliminate them for the past forty or so years, since becoming the owner of my property.

Links

Dig for Victory

http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/scotlandshistory/20thand21stcenturies/worldwarii/digforvictory/

Dig for Victory

 http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/focuson/film/film-archive/player.asp?catID=2&subCatID=7&filmID=7

Dig for Victory

http://www.homesweethomefront.co.uk/web_pages/hshf_dig_for_victory_pg.htm

Dig for Victory

http://history.parkfieldict.co.uk/world-war-ii/dig-for-victory

Hyacinthoides non-scripta (Bluebells)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyacinthoides_non-scripta

U-boat

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U-boat

Second World War

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II

 

Moments of Truth – Part 2

Two days after I wrote the article ‘Moments of Truth’,* my eldest granddaughter gave birth to a 9 lbs 10 oz girl. Both she and her baby experienced their moments of truth – these were life-changing events: the transition from being in the womb to being in the world and the drawing-in of the first breath of the little baby shortly after being thrust into the world. All went well, but not without the associated pains for a mother in labour.

I remember being present at the birth of my first daughter. The breathless child instinctively drew air into her lungs and gave a heart-warming cry; immediately her skin changed colour from lifeless grey to vibrant pink. The shared joy of my wife and me was evident to those around.

 The midwife and her team had work to do and they were pleased I had not caused them any problems. I did not faint, nor did I get in the way. In fact, I was able to hold my wife’s hand at the crucial moment.

That was indeed, a moment of truth; a wonderful time for us both, and a life-giving moment for our daughter who is now in her fifty-second year.

Links

Moments of Truth

http://bills-log.blogspot.co.uk/2014/04/moments-of-truth.html

Lovely Thoughts

Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy – meditate on these things.

Philippians 4:8

The Simple Life

Life can get complicated. Indeed, the older you become, the more complicated life becomes. When you are a kid you have few responsibilities. You are accountable to your parents and your life is governed by them. They feed you, clothe you and shelter you; they help prepare you for the big wide world. They help shape your character; monitor and encourage you in your education and support you in it; they watch and let go of you when you take independent steps and move from the paternal home, but their eyes are always watching, and their hearts are forever willing you on to make good. If you fall, they are there to comfort, encourage and support, but a time comes when you know you have to make it on your own.

Your parents will not be around for ever, and you have to mould a life of your own; you have greater responsibilities, both at home and at work. You are the breadwinner, the father, the mother, the grandparent or great grandparent.  With the passing of time, the web of familial affections spreads wider and wider until its edges become blurred where interwoven relationships merge with the mass of humanity - there is an uncertain present and a faltering future. Life becomes very complicated.

You are no longer the whippersnapper, the rebellious teenager, the newly married or the matured parent; you are in fact the grandfather, grandmother or great grandparent. Your faculties are failing; your influence is diminishing; your health is not as good as it was. You retreat for a simpler life, a life of acceptance, a life of reality. The world must take its own course. Your offspring must live their own lives of increasing complication, while you appreciate the simple life: a walk in the countryside, afternoon tea in the garden, and a snooze when you please. Most precious of all, is time for pleasant memories - the satisfaction of dreams fulfilled - contentment and peace with God.

You have found the simple and good life. You are a child again.

Oh, What a Beautiful Morning!

 

Sunrise at Poole Harbour

Some days I wake up, and the sun is shining. I feel I want to burst into song, and perhaps I sing: “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’, Oh what a beautiful day’ etc.”, but at other times I’m not so bright.

So much depends on my ‘feelings’, and yet this should not be, because no matter what my condition, I know that I have much for which to be thankful.

I imagine being Catrin Pugh who was severely burned in a coach accident. She only had 4% of her skin left in tact. No one thought she could possibly survive, and yet against impossible odds she did!

 In a recent interview* featured on ITV news she told of her incredible recovery and she spoke of her gratitude to those who saved her life, including her mother who donated replacement skin. Catrin also spoke of her love of singing and of her hopes of performing on the X-Factor.

No matter how bleak, or how dreadful, or how foreboding things were for her, her positive attitude and determination, coupled with gratitude, brought her through to today. She still has another year of treatment, including more operations.

Ephesians 5:20; Colossians 3:17; 1 Thessalonians 5:18

Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'

There's a bright, golden haze on the meadow
There's a bright, golden haze on the meadow.
The corn is as high as an elephant's eye
And it looks like it's climbing clear up to the sky.

Oh, what a beautiful Mornin'
Oh, what a beautiful day.
I've got a beautiful feelin'
Everything's goin' my way.

All the cattle are standin' like statues
All the cattle are standin' like statues
They don't turn their heads as they see me ride by
But a little brown mav'rick is winkin' her eye

Oh, what a beautiful Mornin'
Oh, what a beautiful day.
I've got a beautiful feelin'
Everything's goin' my way.

All the sounds of the earth are like music
All the sounds of the earth are like music
The breeze is so busy it don't miss a tree
An' a ol' weepin' willer is laughin' at me

Oh, what a beautiful Mornin'
Oh, what a beautiful day.
I've got a beautiful feelin'
Everything's goin' my way.
Oh, what a beautiful day!

Links

*Catrin’s Amazing Recovery

 http://www.itv.com/news/granada/story/2014-04-30/remarkable-recovery-of-woman-who-suffered-96-burns/

Exclusive: coach blaze victim tells of her incredible recovery

http://www.itv.com/news/granada/2014-04-30/exclusive-young-woman-tells-how-she-survived-after-suffering-96-burns-to-her-body/   

ITV News: Catrin : Pugh

http://www.itv.com/news/search/?q=catrin+pugh

Pictured: Inspirational teen who survived 96% burns in fireball crash

 http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/french-alps-coach-crash-catrin-3479423

Catrin Pugh Story – Daily Mail

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2617238/Theres-silver-lining-round-corner-Inspirational-teenager-suffered-96-PER-CENT-burns-horrific-coach-crash-needed-200-operations-survived.html

Oklahoma

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oklahoma! 

Oklahoma – Oh What a Beautiful Morning (Hugh Jackman)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNEUtN21cuU

Nelson Eddy, Oh! What a Beautiful Morning

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VadX1xZmr1A#t=18

Oh, What a Beautiful Morning

http://www.lyrics.net/lyric/348197