WHAT ATTRACTED YOUR ATTENTION TODAY?

[LizG]

The number of Melbourne metro trains that were cancelled due to the heat. Appaently at 40C the tracks buckle, the trains have to go slower so they don't fall off the tracks so fewer trains can run.

[Stanley]

Ian, just another instance of the incompetence of the insurance companies when it comes to managing data on their systems. I have repeated instances of it in connection with Janet's property insurance on my house. I suppose if you pay peanuts to monkeys and put them under pressure by cutting staff numbers this is what you get.
Now, before you read this, recognise that I am not denigrating those who draw attention to lonely old people especially at this time of year. However, I get hacked off hearing nothing but news reports about old people who are 'a problem', are lonely or leading bored solitary lives. How about some balance and some reporting on the ones who are none of the above. It massages the perception that all old people are a problem that has to be managed. How about older people as a resource? I am not alone in that I have made myself useful in retirement by putting something back into the system. There are millions like me!

[Cathy]

Liz we had the same problems with some of our train rails today too. After 43C today I haven't bothered to check tomorrows weather...

[Moh]

We also had train problems but due to flooding & gales not heat!!
I see more wind turbines have appeared on Hambledon Moor - never saw the proposals for those - another 3 I think.

[Tizer]

Now, before you read this, recognise that I am not denigrating those who draw attention to lonely old people especially at this time of year. However, I get hacked off hearing nothing but news reports about old people who are 'a problem', are lonely or leading bored solitary lives. How about some balance and some reporting on the ones who are none of the above. It massages the perception that all old people are a problem that has to be managed.

I'm pleased to be able to report some good `old people' news for you. My dad went with his pal Sonny (who lives in the flat opposite him in the home) to a Christmas lunch organised in a church hall attended by lots of old folk. Later this afternoon he rang me and said what a great time he'd had, good food, bottles of wine (!) and everybody enjoying themselves. He hasn't sounded so happy for years. When he got home he had to have a sleep before ringing me, so you can tell how good a time he'd had!
Yesterday evening Mrs Tiz rang her dad at the nursing home and did her best to have a meaningful chat with him. He kept telling her "This is a great hotel, they serve good food and they look after Mum and I really well!" He sounded content and less demanding, and seemed to have accepted that the home is the right place for both of them. Just before they rang off he said "There is one thing I need to know. How much is a whisky and ginger in this hotel?" Mrs Tiz told him he should ask her sister when she visits them next. I can see some smuggling going on here!

[Stanley]

Good stuff Tiz, there should be more of it!

[Thomo]

Most old or elderly people today come from generations where mutual trust and respectfulness were plentiful, this was learned from the previous generations and not taught at school, life then was rather more relaxed and people had time for one another. We now live in a world where speed and academic superiority are predominant and have to a degree replaced compassion and respect. The older generation today come from an age that saw much advancement in technology tempered with the hardship of War and its consequences, these people still had time to talk with each other. The community bond that was established has been slowly eroded by the need to do everything as quickly as is possible, even the chat on the phone is slowly being replaced by texting etc, letters are becoming a thing of the past. The old people of today have a lifetime of general experience behind them and can be extremely useful if given the time and opportunity, that they cannot react as quickly is the downside of advancing years rather than a reluctance to assist. To draw a parallel the seven year apprenticeship has been replaced by a two year crash course, my twenty year old trusty calculator has just died but I can still do what I need the old way! I am presently undergoing the most painful experience that I can recall as it seems that I have just been surgically removed from a part of my family, not by face to face contact, not by letter nor even a phone call, but by e/mail. I have a daughter who now lives in Somerset, she is academically bright and has two lovely children, distance and my own circumstances over a number of years has prevented me from regular visiting, yet the distance from there to here is the same, I have had to try and maintain contact by letter and phone, this has now been viewed as interference rather than concern. The money I sent for my Grandson on his birthday last month, and the gifts for the two of them for Christmas arrived back here yesterday, the message in the e/mail last Saturday evening was this: "It would be hypocritical of me to give money or presents to my children from someone that they do not know well" the accompanying sarcastic comment about my wife was probably generated by a third party in the form of my ex wife, Joan has never done anything to deserve that. My initial feelings were of total confusion mixed with a degree of anger and having had no sleep last weekend, health concerns surfaced. Being too old and tired to mount an attack on this piece of moral high ground I will now have to sit back, take it on the chin and get on with what I have to do whilst I can still do it. I am then indeed fortunate that age has not dimmed experience yet, for some of our older people, something akin to this would be possibly be the last straw.

[Cathy]

Very sad Thomo, I feel gutted for you. Maybe you could copy out your last post and send it to your daughter, see what response you get.

[Tardis]

Time is a great healer Thomo, you have my sympathy

[Tardis]

Ofgem is calling on Industry to stop using power next winter & may even pay them to close

The payment deficit between inports and exports is now at it's highest for more than 24 years, presumably the 'boom' is sucking in far more imports because of the relatively high value of the £

[Thomo]

Thank you Cathy, I fear that sending her my last post would be viewed as emotional blackmail.

On a brighter note, it appears that our own "Panbiker" (Ian) and I were mentioned in despatches at last nights meeting of Pendle Council, and as a result it has been decided to update all of the War Memorials in Pendle before the Centenary of WW1 next year. A Colne Pendle Councillor has asked for help in how to go about discovering missing names and presenting the evidence that they are qualified for addition to the Memorial, I have just spoken with him and I am certain that we can be of assistance, ergo I am not generally redundant. We were fortunate here in our efforts as we were assisted by a local website dedicated to the Craven Areas part in WW1, for this I will be eternally grateful. We were also fortunate here in that our own Councillors were fully behind our efforts, both fundamentally and financially, this sadly may not be the case in some parts of Pendle! there are a few who's feelings and sentiments probably lie elsewhere, not for the greater good of that area in general. We on other hand will do what we can to help, not for glory, but because it is right and proper to offer aid to they who ask for it. What I feel at present must now take a back seat, as this requires urgent attention.

[Tizer]

Sorry to hear about your daughter's response Thomo. We had a problem recently when we had to find a nursing home for Mrs Tiz's parents. A member of the family emailed and accused us of "wanting to put them in a nursing home and forget about them". This was especially hurtful to Mrs Tiz of course who loves her parents dearly. We didn't reply, but left the matter alone and got on with what needed doing. Eventually we received an apology and I think the person concerned has suffered from guilt after given the issue more thought - the relationship has now healed. Families, eh! Onwards and upwards Thomo. You're doing a great job with the war memorials, Panbiker too.

I should add that after suggesting above there might be some smuggling of whisky & ginger into M&D's nursing home I now find that there is no need to smuggle - the home has no objection to alcohol (in moderation of course). Mrs Tiz's sister provides bottles of whiskey and ginger and these are stored by the staff and `dispensed as required'. Not bad, eh!

[Thomo]

That's the way to do it Tiz, Rum has been my saviour lately, there nowt wrong I that. The offer of help has now been extended to all Pendle towns should they require it, it will be my pleasure and possibly saviour as well. Have a good Christmas Tiz and family, Sic Transit Gloria Mundi!!

[Belle]

I was saddened to hear of your family split Thomo, there have been a few occasions like this in our family, and all I can say is try to keep the doors of communication open, even though your heart is breaking. It does take time, but I feel it's our responsibility as parents, because,as they sometimes remind us themselves, they didn't ask to be born. I cannot go into details on here but in the cases in our family, persistence has paid off, and relationships have improved, though it has taken years. What I kept at the front of my thinking is how devastated they would be if the snubbed parent were to die and they had never been able to make the peace, stuff like that ruins lives. Sit down when you are feeling less raw, and write a long letter to your daughter, tell her you love her, and that you love your wife, and your grandchildren. Try and let her know honestly the circumstances that have prevented you from being more involved, in my experience it is often the children who cold shoulder first, they have expectations of us which we don't meet , we let them down a thousand times without even realising, this is even more true if your daughter is a perfectionist and has high standards which she expects everyone else to live up to.
I was very fortunate to be able to heal a rift with one of my parents by realising that I needed to love them as they were, and not expect them to change all the time. As soon as I did that they relaxed, the pressure was off them, and our relationship improved tremendously, unfortunately it was in the last couple of years of their life, but at least we had some time together in relative harmony.

[Thomo]

Belle, although I have never had the pleasure of meeting you, what you say is true, and I thank you for the words of wisdom. I have been offered an "olive branch", not from family, but by a stranger who needs help, this I will give freely as it concerns something that I have become passionate about. This will keep me focused, and right now that is what I need, again many thanks and have a great Christmas.

Best Wishes: Thomo.

[Tardis]

Do we really need 17 different agencies to involved in child welfare. Maybe that is where the problem is, the state has over complicated the prosecution of a crime?

[Stanley]

The fact that my neck still aches!

[Nolic]

Tardis, there are not 17 different agencies involved in child welfare. There were 17 agencies who all had some information about the individuals and families that were involved in the abuse but not necessarily direct knowledge. These included: Police, CAFCASS, CPS Crown Prosecution Service, NSPCC, Children’s Social Care. GPs, Homeless Families Unit, Local Safeguarding Children’s Board,Ofsted, 6 schools, Sexual Abuse Referral Centre, 18 health professionals etc. Imagine , even in a small borough like Rochdale trying to establish effective liaison between such disparate groups.

One of the conclusions I have reached in looking at serious case reviews over the past few years is that one of the central system failures is exactly that - that services involved in child protection have become too centralised and governed by economies of scale. When I was social services area manager in Pendle in the late 1980's early 90's if we, police, schools, pediatricians or other health professionals had any concern about a child or family we knew each of the relevant people in the different agencies and we spoke to them. We could meet within minutes if needs be and decide if immediate action was needed or more information was required. The local touch and local knowledge has been removed from the system and this is one of the major reasons for failure. Community based local services will never return and as a result we will continue to experience these tragedies. Nolic

[Stanley]

That's my impression Comrade and it's good to hear you endorse it. I have always said that in many fields of governance, computerisation was seen as the magic bullet and to compound that error staff cuts started before the systems had been proved to work. I can remember having a separate bank account into which I put my NI payments and the tax people told me it was no use sending a cheque as they hadn't got the staff to process cash payments, a perfectly ridiculous situation. I have no doubt that the same applies in Social Services, too few staff with the time to talk to each other and the other agencies. It is quite simply bad management and has costed us perhaps billions. It still goes on of course and is now seen as the norm. One tiny straw in the wind, I have written to the Pension Service twice in the last six months about quite serious matters and haven't received any reply. If I do get one I shall simply do what they do, ignore it.

[Marilyn]

Mmmmmm....don't get me started.
I've met some excellent people in the child care system and I have met some absolute drop kicks...

[Tizer]

Nolic, thanks for explaining that and for clarifying what we see through the lens of the news media - my first response to the news was the same as that of Tardis but now I can see it more clearly and Stanley has added to the analysis. Your phrase `too centralised and governed by economies of scale' applies beyond the child protection services and sums up the present situation in most of our big companies and institutions. We talk about banks being `too big to fail' but in fact they're also too big to succeed, at least if you define success as providing a satisfactory service to their customers rather than lining the pockets of their executives. [Rant over!]

[Tripps]

I listen to the news a lot. I heard all the breast beating and allocation of blame to all and sundry for this situation yesterday, and wondered for quite a while, when anyone was going to mention the perpetrators who surely must carry the largest share of blame. Eventually the BBC interviewed Ann Cryer, the former MP for Keighly who added some balance when she described the background and "culture" of the men responsible.
The proportion of the coverage was about one part Ann Cryer to twenty parts other agencies. I'd suggest it should be the reverse.

[LizG]

The first of our family Christmas parties was yesterday with 4 generations in attendance.

The youngest generation were aged 3 to 9 with 2 boys and 4 girls. The 2 boys aged 5 & 6 played together kicking a ball for the dog, trying to catch the fish in the pond with their hands and then a very boisterous game with lego.

The 4 girls aged 3,4,6 & 9 sat cross legged quietly on the floor and played a board game.

Boys and Girls truly are from different planets!

[Marilyn]

Wow...they are good kids, Liz.
Hubby has two grand kids aged 10 and 8 and all they do when they are here is try to kill each other...fight like cat and dog.( one boy, one girl)
Not my grand kids so I cannot say anything. I've learnt it is best not to look too alarmed at the situation...as Mum and Dad and Grandad are pretty accepting of it...

[Stanley]

Tiz, I have said for a long time that we are very eager to innovate and put in more complicated systems but have retained 19th century management techniques. This applies to everything I can think of. I've just written a letter to British Gas telling them to scrub my application for Warm Homes Discount because I'm too old to play their administrative games, complicated letters and forms at 3 months intervals. Crap administration and I cant be arsed.