Wales has lost its coal mines and its steelworks. No country can prosper witout an industrial and manufacturing base, and short-term money-saving by governments who wanted to be re-elected has led to a disastrous situation, I think. You have to create wealth in goods, not by printing money and borrowing.
I've spent a lot of time with eastern students, They are the cream of their country's youngsters, I suppose, but their discipline and work ethic are immensely impressive. It makes me wonder how we can compete. I know what schools are like in this country. In placces like Japan, children go to state school followed by private cramming schools and have to work really hard. I'm not saying it is altogether good, but it is a different work ethic from us.
I will give you that G/G, the parents of those children see a way out of poverty in their children as our parents did with us many years back. My mother a dress maker Father Haulage contractor, probably better off than some around but they made sure my Sister and I had a full education and it paid off. The visitors we see coming to this country are the cream that rose to the top and many once here wish to stay which says something about our way of life. Our education system is getting better in this area, my Grandchildren from the youngest appear to have a goal in mind, the discipline is back, politeness a trend and bullying now well and truly cracked down on. These are of course better Schools in better area's although most of the sink schools have been demolished and rebuilt as smaller more compact units. We have a very good extension in Stockton of the Durham College with more being built and as I said previously still have a good ground base in industrial production. Of course we have losers mainly because as you said Government short sighted policy led to it, now we have economic cuts which as usual hit the worst off. What is the answer? wish I knew although in this area it is not all doom and gloom. Do not worry too much in a few years time the then government will wake up to a melt down of power, realise we are sitting on billions of tonne's of coal as the Germans already have, the Welsh Valleys will sing once more.
Frank, perhaps everyone is happy now they've got it off their chests!
People were talking about class a while back, but no one represented the middle class! (perhaps I missed it). I'm middle class, descended from clergymen, Naval officers, doctors and teachers. Also have what is probably a "posh" accent - have been teased for it. But I really agree with what Discodave said
I HATE it when people assume you are of a lower social level than they are because of your accent. I still have a slight accent even after moving away from home when I was 18 (so been away longer than I was there now). I mix in several social circles, some of my closest friends are well to do and some arent. I can honestly say that being upper class or even middle class doesnt make you a better person, you make the person you are and social class, money, upbringing, breeding and stock means nothing in my eyes.
You are who you are, but you can make a difference if you care for and are cared by your fellow human beings, class should not count. My OH came from a coal mining family but, encouraged by his mother he worked hard, got a scholarship and went to university. We have so much in common and I love him to bits.
Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
The army was a good leveler Lizzie apart from a couple of the household Regiments class was long gone. We had Honorables and such many of them allowed to finish University so much older than us Regular and inured youngsters. In the Desert it all came down to being as comfortable as possible in the circumstances and that meant the said Honerable had to wash the pots and pans, make the tea with the rest of us, they also relied on us to keep their heads on their shoulders. You could say we worked our way up the the standards we live at today, some of it was pure luck in that we were sure of pensions over and above the norm although at the time it was not in our thoughts, I do feel sorry for the pensioners of the future, what will they have?
Here's my rant for the day. Why, oh why, do those gardening caltalogues that come with magazines - T and M, Parkers, etc - contain so little information? The very minimum information for plants should be height, flowering period, type of soil and hardiness. You have to use a gardening book with them before being able to order safely. I'll bet a lot of inexperienced gardeners order on the basis of the photograph and get disasters.
I don't really understand the attraction of some of the plants either. They are not cheap for their size, often have to be grown on before they can be planted out and quite often fail. Again, I'll bet new gardeners get their confidence undermined when they lose these plants.
Hi all , I don't have any rant today but I do enjoy reading everyone else's , I thought that this had died as I had not seen any posts for a day or so .
nothing to rant about here ,except the traffic is cutting down my road at a very fast pace to avoid the traffic lights kindly put up by the water board.Poor cats are having a narrow escapes from inpatient drivers.
Rose I am allergic to cats so it bothers me not, saying that as I went out today a ginger cat was sitting on the wall as I opened the gates, as I stepped back it had leaped onto the bin and managed to rub against me before I could react. Luckily it did not touch skin or else I would have been back in the house laying down with a wet towel over my eye's. Yes it is that bad. G/G Those catalogues are there to ring your money out of you none of them care once the plants are on the way. They do not tell you to leave your order for the North at least two weeks later. A shady corner or greenhouse, some seed and patience and you can have a long lasting show not here today gone tomorrow and then nothing. I sow in periods of a couple of weeks, that way you can put fresh plants into the spaces left by those gone over.
I was going to have a rant - my first I believe, but now it's 2!!
I typed it up, tried to put the cursor (which often disappears on this board) at the beginning of a line & my message vanished into thin air . Not for the first time either!! Hmphh.
Now the proper one.
Why are T-shirts/tops being made so long & thin at the moment??
I think I'm fairly average; 5'4", size 10/12 & pear-shaped.
If the top fits then the bottom stretches tightly over the hips & tum; if the bottom gently skims the hips then I need a boob job for the top to fit!!
It's not so bad with trousers, but I wear a skirt for my dancing classes, for coolness, & a long tight top looks dreadful. I'm digging out all my old T-shirts (never throw away anything ) as they are much shorter. I have some with gathers round the neck, which givess extra material round the bottom - simples!!
Oh well, back to M&S next week for another refund.
Posts
Wales has lost its coal mines and its steelworks. No country can prosper witout an industrial and manufacturing base, and short-term money-saving by governments who wanted to be re-elected has led to a disastrous situation, I think. You have to create wealth in goods, not by printing money and borrowing.
I've spent a lot of time with eastern students, They are the cream of their country's youngsters, I suppose, but their discipline and work ethic are immensely impressive. It makes me wonder how we can compete. I know what schools are like in this country. In placces like Japan, children go to state school followed by private cramming schools and have to work really hard. I'm not saying it is altogether good, but it is a different work ethic from us.
I will give you that G/G, the parents of those children see a way out of poverty in their children as our parents did with us many years back. My mother a dress maker Father Haulage contractor, probably better off than some around but they made sure my Sister and I had a full education and it paid off.
The visitors we see coming to this country are the cream that rose to the top and many once here wish to stay which says something about our way of life.
Our education system is getting better in this area, my Grandchildren from the youngest appear to have a goal in mind, the discipline is back, politeness a trend and bullying now well and truly cracked down on. These are of course better Schools in better area's although most of the sink schools have been demolished and rebuilt as smaller more compact units. We have a very good extension in Stockton of the Durham College with more being built and as I said previously still have a good ground base in industrial production.
Of course we have losers mainly because as you said Government short sighted policy led to it, now we have economic cuts which as usual hit the worst off.
What is the answer? wish I knew although in this area it is not all doom and gloom.
Do not worry too much in a few years time the then government will wake up to a melt down of power, realise we are sitting on billions of tonne's of coal as the Germans already have, the Welsh Valleys will sing once more.
Frank
"OH dear" I seemed to have killed this thread, what happened?
Frank.
Frank, perhaps everyone is happy now they've got it off their chests!
People were talking about class a while back, but no one represented the middle class! (perhaps I missed it). I'm middle class, descended from clergymen, Naval officers, doctors and teachers. Also have what is probably a "posh" accent - have been teased for it. But I really agree with what Discodave said
You are who you are, but you can make a difference if you care for and are cared by your fellow human beings, class should not count. My OH came from a coal mining family but, encouraged by his mother he worked hard, got a scholarship and went to university. We have so much in common and I love him to bits.
The army was a good leveler Lizzie apart from a couple of the household Regiments class was long gone. We had Honorables and such many of them allowed to finish University so much older than us Regular and inured youngsters. In the Desert it all came down to being as comfortable as possible in the circumstances and that meant the said Honerable had to wash the pots and pans, make the tea with the rest of us, they also relied on us to keep their heads on their shoulders.
You could say we worked our way up the the standards we live at today, some of it was pure luck in that we were sure of pensions over and above the norm although at the time it was not in our thoughts, I do feel sorry for the pensioners of the future, what will they have?
Frank.
Here's my rant for the day. Why, oh why, do those gardening caltalogues that come with magazines - T and M, Parkers, etc - contain so little information? The very minimum information for plants should be height, flowering period, type of soil and hardiness. You have to use a gardening book with them before being able to order safely. I'll bet a lot of inexperienced gardeners order on the basis of the photograph and get disasters.
I don't really understand the attraction of some of the plants either. They are not cheap for their size, often have to be grown on before they can be planted out and quite often fail. Again, I'll bet new gardeners get their confidence undermined when they lose these plants.
Hi all , I don't have any rant today but I do enjoy reading everyone else's , I thought that this had died as I had not seen any posts for a day or so .
Derek
nothing to rant about here ,except the traffic is cutting down my road at a very fast pace to avoid the traffic lights kindly put up by the water board.Poor cats are having a narrow escapes from inpatient drivers.
Rose I am allergic to cats so it bothers me not, saying that as I went out today a ginger cat was sitting on the wall as I opened the gates, as I stepped back it had leaped onto the bin and managed to rub against me before I could react. Luckily it did not touch skin or else I would have been back in the house laying down with a wet towel over my eye's. Yes it is that bad.
G/G Those catalogues are there to ring your money out of you none of them care once the plants are on the way. They do not tell you to leave your order for the North at least two weeks later. A shady corner or greenhouse, some seed and patience and you can have a long lasting show not here today gone tomorrow and then nothing. I sow in periods of a couple of weeks, that way you can put fresh plants into the spaces left by those gone over.
Frank.
I was going to have a rant - my first I believe, but now it's 2!!
I typed it up, tried to put the cursor (which often disappears on this board) at the beginning of a line & my message vanished into thin air
. Not for the first time either!!
Hmphh.
Now the proper one.
Why are T-shirts/tops being made so long & thin at the moment??
I think I'm fairly average; 5'4", size 10/12 & pear-shaped.
If the top fits then the bottom stretches tightly over the hips & tum; if the bottom gently skims the hips then I need a boob job for the top to fit!!
It's not so bad with trousers, but I wear a skirt for my dancing classes, for coolness, & a long tight top looks dreadful. I'm digging out all my old T-shirts (never throw away anything
) as they are much shorter. I have some with gathers round the neck, which givess extra material round the bottom - simples!!
Oh well, back to M&S next week for another refund.