So on Wednesday my dear old Dad finally shuffled off this mortal coil. He was 89 and unfortunately only a flickering shadow of the man he had once been. The end of his life came as a relief, he was suffering and death in the end was a kindness.
He was not special, just an ordinary man who worked hard to provide and bring up a family, he taught myself and siblings fairness, tolerance and to treat everyone equally. His attitude and reference to people could be non-PC but that is the generation he came from, he was never deliberately mean or nasty. Once we became adults he did not interfere with our lives but if asked would give his opinion. He trusted that we would be responsible and I hope we never let him down.
He will be buried next to his beloved wife who tragically for him,died far too young at 60. He spent 31 years on his own,when he had every expectation,to spend his latter years with the woman he adored.
He had become a little stubborn (perhaps he always was!) and as he would readily admit,cantankerous as he got older but the same could be said of me!
So I am now the eldest member of our family alive, a sobering thought.
So farewell and adieu Father may you rest in peace, we will celebrate your memory and raise a glass or two!
I am trying desperately to avoid writing reams of comment on the upcoming General Election but when the conservatives publish a manifesto that is so blatantly provocative. I am afraid I cannot keep silent.
I fully understand that more people are living longer and that should care be required it has a high cost. As these pages have revealed my own father is now in long term care as he is unable to take care of himself. The anxiety it has caused my sister and myself has been awful and fighting to get the Social Services to make sure he is taken care of, difficult and time consuming. This is not because they don't care or the social workers involved are not invested in the solution, they are under huge pressure and the bureaucracy is unwieldy.
Fundamentally I have no objection to funding care, or how it is done (though I am not in favour of the Conservatives solution) what concerns me is the layers of management and approval that it is needed before one can obtain the care for loved ones.
The new proposals hinge on the value of our properties. We live in a country that encourages us to purchase our own property, not so easy for the upcoming generations, so why is it always our properties value,targeted to fund what ever out taxes and National Insurance seems unable to sustain? We have to earn money in order to live in a western democracy, that is the way they function. We pay tax and NI,as well as VAT on goods, that's how the system functions!
I am of an age where these problems are affecting us because of elderly parents and in the not so distant future, will affect myself and my wife. So naturally I am very invested in these proposals.
I know little sympathy will given, especially from those younger than ourselves but I am not persuaded that my generation has no right to protest that our rights and expectations are being eroded. I would never vote Conservative but I urge you not to either. Mrs May's "strong and stable" message "in the National interest" frightens this voter, she is dangerous and so is her parties manifesto. DO NOT GIVE HER and HER PARTY POWER, SHE and HER CABINET will RUIN the UK for DECADES to COME!!!!!!
Well old Guesty has a sporting theme today and that theme is Golf. I occasionally indulge a round of the club and dimpled ball. In my lifetime the equipment and ball technology, has, as with everything else, developed at a rapid rate. When I started playing golf, "woods" were wooden clubs and irons, by and large were of one type and that was that. Now there is a plethora of different choices in every facet of equipment, clubs, clothing, shoes etc: I will not bore you with all the variations available, if you are a golfer you will know and if you are not, you are simply not interested.
I read recently that the governing bodies of the game are contemplating capping the technology of the humble golf ball, as its flight encourages long hitting from the modern professional and has necessitated and increase in the length of courses, in order to accommodate these prodigious hitters. This has come with a heavy cost, as the clubs have had to invest in the re-design of their layout and some clubs are no longer capable of hosting a professional tournament because their courses are too short! It is a fix that has the good of the game at its core but in my opinion, that ship has now sailed and to mix my metaphors, one cannot put the genie back in the bottle! Combined with modern clubs and the generally greater athleticism of the modern player, I believe that, even if the composition of the ball, is altered, the players will still propel the missile almost as far, if not just as far.
The only solution in restricting long driving is to limit all equipment and that is not going to happen, unless the equipment manufacturers see it as a massive marketing opportunity, which is unlikely given the huge sums of money invested in research and production of today's clubs. Development in all sport has been going on since sport first started and will never stop, it is one of the fundamental attractions of sport. It does not matter how much technology improves equipment, the skill in wielding that equipment is never going to be diminished and only those with the greatest skill and talent wills rise to the top of the sport.
Today I have decided to revert to my alto ego of Mr Grump. Guesty is a fickle character and opinions are always there to be changed! I have espoused many different ones on these pages, read by few but then that is not the point, it keeps me amused and one should always express ones thoughts. So what you ask (did you?) is the focus of my ire today?
Politics, media, the state of Europe, sport, fashion, no I think I have stated my views on those subjects often enough and have no intention of doing so this time.
So today it is going to be retail, yes shopping, the all embracing drug of the masses. We love buying things and the commercial retail world is only too ready to accommodate us in every way they can. Every day is a sale, it is relentless. Deals a plenty, bargains, mega this, super that, Xmas, January sales, Easter, this Bank holiday, any Bank holiday and of course the recent ugly rise of "Black Friday" and it's associated run up and run down!
Now lets get one thing clear right from the off, it is only done to make money, profit. Well that's blindingly obvious, I hear you say and of course you are correct but it seems sometimes we forget that this is the only aim. A product maybe the best in the world and recognised as such but it sole purpose is to make money for the manufacturer and supplier. I do not begrudge any company from making a fair profit, they have costs and overheads and it would be unrealistic and naive to think they do it for altruistic reasons.
Retailers and particularly the larger ones use then products they sell as the foundation for adding accessories and other add on's, this is where they make their "real" profit.
I have some experience of retail and am constantly amazed by the non stop need by the public to continue to spend money! I do not claim to be immune to this phenomenon and join the spending spree every so often and it is a spending spree, one of gigantic proportion's which leads one to ask, can the whole edifice come crumbling down or continue to be sustained?
Some purchases are necessary because a replacement is required or goods are being purchased for the first time and how often does a new purchase lead on to the necessity of further buying in order to get it all to work together?
This year it seems profits are down and the retail park is not as busy as it has been, I suspect this is to do with a bumper end to 2016 and the current uncertainty with the general state of the world and in Britain's case Europe and of course impending elections increase that nervousness.
To my narrow minded sight it seems that the all embracing clutches of shopping has in itself become a kind of religion but instead of attending a church, mosque etc: we worship at the hallowed alter of the shop and store!
