Reports of Hurricane Harvey causing so much damage and dumping trillions of gallons of water on the State of Texas  moved me to write something.

One can’t begin to imagine or understand what those poor communities are going through and having to cope with but for certain it is terrifying, confusing, worrying and sad. Emotions will be high, tempers will break and tears will flow. Questions will be asked and some of those will have no answer. Work together and become strong so as to push on through.

The loss of all the memories tied up in their home and possessions is enough to want to give  up but add that to being cold, wet and not knowing what is going to happen must be utterly bewildering and stressful. Loved ones being lost and pets left to fend for themselves sends a shiver down my back and I feel helpless to do anything but drivel on within this blog.

But it is the only way I can show any support and love for the victims.

Mother Nature sure has a way of letting us know She is still out there and a force not to be reckoned with. She understands how fragile the wooden houses are and  that many lives hang in a precarious balance and uses that to cause untold heartache. But it is the only way She knows how to vent Her anger at the stupidity and greed of mankind. It comes as a warning not to  build week structures on vunerable land. I am in  no way defending Her actions but sometimes we build our lives on unsound platforms but we can never be prepared for extremes that only occur once in a lifetime. If we could then we wouldn’t be able to live anywhere. So as a result we try and do our best and, hopefully, learn from our mistakes and failings. What we can’t defend against is the capitol greed of the developers and corporate giants that oversea these dumb projects and hoodwink normal folk into thinking its okay. Shame on them all and they know who they are.

Once this deluge has subsided and the waters recede to reveal the nightmare to  come I sincerely wish all those affected and touched by this tragedy a swift and painless-as-possible return to a happy life.

Part of me wants to jump on a plane and physically join you in helping to survive but as I have no practical experience in these matters then I would probably be more of a hindrance than help. I shall stay unless my presence is demanded or needed.

The resolution and fortitude of the emergency services, army, aid-workers and citizens to help those who are in trouble sends a signal that we are not lost in our humanity and that is to be praised and shouted from every rooftop. It is after all the little people who keep the cogs of the world moving not the senior figures in their ivory towers. Thank you one and all.

So friends from over the pond stay safe, help those in need, comfort yourselves and communities and know there is moral support from around the world during these hard times.

Bless you all.

Its been a long time since I can honestly say that a car has caused me to talk about it and big it up but my Smart Brabus Fortwo is one to shout about.

I love it to bits. Nimble, fast, comfortable, fun, eyecatching and cute are just a number of words I can use to describe it.

Not since the days of my first car, a mini 1000, have I enjoyed bumbling about the roads with a smile on my face yet this one can hold its own against the big boys.

It may not have neck-breaking acceleration but push the sport mode button and things sound and act reasonably quickly.

Oh I hear the scorn and jibes about being too small, dangerous in an accident, bumpy and expensive for its size but they are all a myth in my mind. Before you comment have a go in one and see what you think.

When I see those ugly saloon cars, that quite frankly all look the same and if the badges are removed  one would be hard-pushed to tell them apart, with all the wasted room being driven around I just cringe. They clutter up roads and pavements, rarely fit on drives or in garages and cost a fortune. Yes for some they have their practical needs but on the whole they are a status symbol and a sign that they are in the same club as all the other so called achievers.

This little car is a head-turner because it is different and surprising. It looks quirky and behaves badly. Just like a naughty child.

Okay I’m not saying it has changed my life or its anything that special but being able to say with all honesty that it has made me happy is a brilliant statement to be lucky enough to say.

I wonder how many people can say the same? Most I guess have more pressing factors that will determine their choice. Eight kids mean I have to drive a mini bus, my dogs dictate that I need an estate car with dog guard, I pull a caravan so a four-by-four is the only choice and I work in an office as an uptight manager and for that reason I have to drive a Beemer or Audi. Oh and I have to have Range Rover so I can ferry my little brat to ballet classes and elocution lessons on those so tricky town roads with all the boulders and slippery muddy surfaces; or maybe just  to bump it up the curb and put fear into other road users.

Compromises; they are rubbish but essential for some and I find myself lucky not to be constrained by many when it comes to the tin box on wheels.

Try one and see; you know you want to.

We all have neighbours, whether near or far away, and on the whole we all rub along just fine.

The young couple who rented the house next to me were lovely and I was saddened when they announced their moving out due to the non-flexibility of their landlord (who is a lying nob and acutely boring).

The perfect next door people really. I never heard a pip out of them after 8pm and even before that one couldn’t call them noisy.

Now the house lay empty once again and I await the arrival of the new with nervousness and trepidation.

Only a few can say they live next door to the Satan-sporned people from hell amd I have been lucky as not to be included in that number.

Our island is becoming increasingly more crowded and with that comes inherent problems. Everywhere one goes there are throngs of people, queues of cars and acres of concrete and at times tempers flare. New homes are shrinking in size to enable developers to squeeze more out of the land. It will be inevitable that tempers will fray and break as folk are forced to live upon each other and personal space is something of dreams.

This means being neighbourly is even more important and vital for happiness and social balance. I couldn’t imagine what life is like on those sink estates and terrorized high-rise flats. Education and moral upbringing is vital for harmony and these areas seem to lack both.

Even the postcard images of village life can be far from ideal. Nosey neighbours and busy bodies can cause hatred and ostricisation. In the main most knuckle under and fit in.

But at what cost is being neighbourly? Compromise….showing a side that is false, greed and jealousy. ???Certainly some of that but not all for everyone.

How lucky most of us are.

I can’t be alone in being or feeling like this.

The years roll on by and work seems to get harder and longer in its hours. Free time is spent being perpetually tired.

So the simple fact is that something has to give. Housework becomes less important. I’m not saying that no chores are done, its just some of them are ignored. Ironing? Nah, I don’t have a board or iron…sorted. Dusting? Why bother moving it from one place to another…it doesn’t eat or drink anything…it can stay. Washing dishes? Let the machine do them.

I don’t think myself lazy, I just don’t have the energy to do much after work and my days off are either consumed by exercise, shopping or caring for a hangover. My home doesn’t have the storage for the things I have. Even when I do blitz the rooms it still looks cluttered and messy so my challenge is to just leave things to find a happy medium. Yes it is a bit of a love and hate issue but Life is easier and happier by doing so.

Now I hasten to add that I don’t live in squalor and my sink is not full of used pots and pans. Instead I try a happy balance of lived in look and student from the eighties.

Time???? Not enough but at times too much. Yep a bit of an anathema. All the same trying to fit in work, dog walking, exercise, cooking/eating, sleep, reading, music, television and socialising is almost mind-boggling so housework must give.

If clouds can drift, breezes can whisper and rhythms can waltz then surely, as a mere human, one can be a bit lazy..

So am I lazy or just managing my activities in a commonsense way?

The dog doesn’t appear to mind……….

One person stands holding the word Change, having embraced it, while others did not accept change and were crushed by it.

Are all changes good? Some are. An oil change for the motor certainly is and a swap for a full bag of sweets for an empty one gets my vote. But changes in kids and adults when considering their attitudes to smart phones, tablets and computers is probably not so good. Climate change is a sticky subject too and one that won’t be sorted for the foreseeable future.

Its all too easy to mock or put down changes but equally its important not to ignore the signs that different scenes may lay ahead.

I hate seeing kids on phones and electronic devices when they could be outside playing football or riding their bikes but that is just an attitude of a generation. Roads have become too busy with vehicle traffic to cycle safely and the march of squeezing more homes onto land makes finding suitable secure sites for football increasingly difficult.

Climate change can cause horrific natural phenomena like coastal erosion, melting ice caps and droughts. But this has been going on since the beginning of time. Are we scared of the changes to the planet or for our existence? Now there is a question. It all depends on a personal view point. I don’t have kids so really don’t mind what happens when I have gone but for those who do there is the fact that future generation’s continuation hangs on whether they can survive the constant alterations. That could be cause for worry but there is simply very little we can do if we want the luxuries and lifestyles we crave today.

I’m not saying we should run off to caves and camping but just be aware of our actions.

Why waste food because a date says its off? Most have eyes, a sense of smell and feel so use them and reduce what we throw out which is perfectly fine. Be safe but think sensible.

Change gear when needed or choose an automatic.

I have lived with these little friends for nearly a year now and One would either love them or hate them.

I, for one, love them and they have indeed become little friends. Yes I have a limited collection of music but having to sample new work, search around for unknown artists and then pay for, what you hope is good, the albums or singles can become quite costly.

This is where the Amazon Alexa in speaker or just the guts form come into their own. The Speaker is known as the Echo, the AI part only is the Dot. The Echo is a stand alone speaker that plugs into the mains and has a built in speaker as an all in one unit. It may not be the best speaker but compared to Bluetooth speakers around the £100 mark it certainly holds its own. The Dot on the other hand has a very tiny speaker built in but it is best linked to Bluetooth speakers or hard wired into and existing stereo. The sound then is as good as your equipment allows. There is a third member of this family called the Tap. This is a portable version of the Echo and is WiFi linked on the move. However, in the UK it hasn’t been released yet (as of 30th July 2017) so will only work as a Bluetooth speaker, as a costly error told me. Oooops but hey we all live a learn.

That’s  the rubbishy bit out the way.

What I really like about these gadgets is the fact that you can ask them to play random music, turn on desired artists or find certain tracks. I have been introduced to so many new names and titles that otherwise I would have been unaware of and they have rekindled my desire and lust for the beat.

Not only that its fun to have your mate tell you the time, the news headlines or what the weather is going to be like. Linked with the Smart Home it can turn lights on and off, work locks and order provisions. It sure is a clever bit of kit.

All homes should have one and new homes should come with on as a standard part of the build.

I’m quite sure it will get better with time and of course rivals like Apple and Google will want their slice of the market with their versions of Google Home  and HomePod.

Google Home is out but reviews say that Amazon wins hands down in all areas so for me that was a no no. The HomePod from Apple is planned for December this year and only then will we know how good or bad its likely to be and what any hidden cost are lurking.

Experience tells me Apple could do something amazing but I may be corrected about that prediction. Cost is not going to be cheep as its estimated to come in at around £270. Compare that to Google Home at £130 and the Echo at £150 ( the Dot £50) and is it a buck too far?

So if you are looking for something to zizz up your music life or have some fun with then rush out and get an Echo.

Its one of the best decisions I have made of late.

I have seen in the media recently lots of articles about all new car sales to be electric by 2040 so I was inspired to think about this.

Its not that far ahead and is a bold statement, however, I do feel that many arguments hinge on the fact that we are looking at this through the eyes of people living in present 2017.

I have seen a big development in car technology in just the last few years and battery technology is on the cusp of a major revolution if such technologies as Carbon Tubes and Graphine can be enhanced efficiently.

So taking into account that driverless technology improves at the rate it is going and energy can be collected and stored quicker and easier then this may not be such a foolish pie in the sky policy.

At present batteries are quite bulky and expensive. They need changing every 3-5 years and are not that efficient. A full charge can take hours even with the rapid charge points that can be installed. The range of a full charge ranges from a mere 100 miles to a more user friendly 300 miles. But its not quite enough.  But thats now. If they are improved then charging could be as simple as installing solar roof panels and or a solar powered home charging unit. Also the output range in theory could rise to an average of 500 miles to unlimited. Now thats more like it.

Driverless cars are beginning to be with us in lesser forms already. Take lane assistance, progressive cruise control, assisted parking and anti collision awareness. These are all done by the car. Yes the tech is new but again that is now. In a decade or so who knows where that will be.

There are around 32 million cars in the UK today but as one report said most of those are only used around 5%-10% of the time and that means an awful lot of sitting around doing nothing and cluttering up our streets and towns. Oh and a large proportion of those are on lease or hire terms.

A think tank has suggested that with driverless cars we could  do away with our privately owned cars and sign up to a car share scheme where we book a vehicle for the travel to and from work or for that trip to the supermarket or family visit. It makes sense to me as the headache and costs of owning a vehicle are washed away. Our streets would be cleaner, less clogged and safer. Less cars would be needed as I doubt there is a single minute where all 32 million journeys have to be made at the same time.

But saying all New Cars will be Electric doesn't mean that the older petrol or diesel will be banned (maybe from city centres)  it just means they will be phased out. My point is that steam was replaced by the internal combustion engine but we can still enjoy the steam age at rallies and museums as we do with some of the classic cars.

The biggest challenge I can see though is the Government being ready. I mean it takes them a week to order a new paperclip. Think about it. Electric charging points at work and public places will have to be introduced. Driverless reference points and tech will have to be put in place on all roads and the mind set of the population will have to be changed.  But let us say that Google, Elon Musk, Amazon and Apple, along with the major car makers, can provide the technology and persuade people to take up their offering then we are half way there.

Maybe 2040 is not such a Pie in the Sky year to propose after all?

Without forward thinking and lobbying would we have seen the pioneers giving us rail travel, air travel and car use?

When one is young, in their twenties, it often appears so easy to keep fit and stay healthy no matter what is thrown at the body. One just seems to be able to bounce back quickly.

Well I can tell you guys that fast forward to middle age, thirty years, and the tables begin to turn.

Eating becomes a science, drinking needs forward planning and a darkened room to recover in, getting up each morning requires a little more effort and cursing at the aches and pains and exercise is damned hard work.

The body ages and also niggling injuries haunt your every day and add that to a lack of free time and one is almost facing a losing battle.

Hey, its not all doom and gloom. The challenge of completing an eight mile jog is quite daunting but when finished the sense of achievement is immense. That gut-busting bike ride, yeah the one with pedals that doesn’t have an engine or electric motor, leaves one feeling rather sick but the joy and proud feeling produced is just fine. Mother-natures natural drugs.

Eating something healthy and not too much is very difficult for those of us with a craving for cakes, crisps, sweets, biscuits and chips.  Fruit and veg doesn’t appeal quite as much. I don’t feel comfortable unless crisp central and Mr. Sweet tub are not in good stock.

Temptation is far too easy and the urge to give in is massive at times.

Saying all that I do try and keep my plump little self as fit as I can. Not just physically but mentally too. Reading, writing, listening to music and chatting are some ways of maintaining a reasonable mind and I love jogging and cycling and walking to keep the old ticker pumping.

Working as a postman also has its benefits and challenges as the rounds get bigger and the walking grows. Trust me by the end of a delivery one is ready for a pint of builder’s tea and several rounds of doorstep toast.

I’m not looking to be the eternal Adonis or live to the age of two hundred but equally I would like to put off being unable to walk to the end of of the road and die before I retire.

So is there a right time to start keeping fit? Yes there is. Now is the time to change a few habits and lean towards a slightly better physique. It doesn’t mean rushing out to join a gym or clearing out all the cupboards but why not try spending half a lunch break walking or replace the thick sliced loaf with a thin. Walk to the pub and back instead of hailing a cab.

I realise I will never be able to run that five minute mile any more or jump around and be as agile as I was thirty years ago but I am proud that I can still manage a ten mile jog, a 40 mile bike ride, a 10 mile a day step average at work and keep a resting heart rate of 60bpm at 50 years of age.

Mentally I am still mad so that is by far the healthiest part of me.

We all know money grows on trees right? Wouldn’t that be super fantastic? It don’t; get over it.

How much is money an influence on our lives and within society?

Massive to the max is my estimation.

Think about it. Whether its in the form of credit, debit or actual hard cash its all around us twenty-four-seven.

Stay at home and the demands are ever present. Go out and there is always someone after your hard earned. Even visiting friends and family has its cost. The whole world centres on money and enough is never enough.

Most of us dream of healthy bank accounts. Some can realise that aspiration. Most strive for more.

The problem is that it can create harmony, cause arguments, instigate wars and harbour all kinds of distress.

Yes money can make one happy and it can bring a healthy benefit to most lives.

I think my main gripe is that it is unfair and totally misused. I mean who actually earns or needs multi million pound rewards each and every year for doing a job? How can these vast sums be justified? Do the people given such amounts even know what to do or care about anyone else?

The masses are lucky to see twenty or thirty thousand a year trickle into there high-street banks and I am sure that most of that drains out with lightening speed to all the grabbing and demanding corporations to snap it up without thought or care.

Many have a lot less and don’t have the luxury of realising their demands and end up with debt, stress, anger and desperation.

However, does money bring happiness? Not in my mind. Just scratch the surface of any wealth and see the stress, sadness, anger, despair and mistrust. It is true that MONEY is the root of all evil and is the biggest influence of inequality.

Just like food, space and relaxation there is enough for everyone and more to spare but the greedy are blind to the situation and hold on to the majority of the pot whilst ninety five percent of the world scratch around for the ten or twenty percent of what is left. If they could have it all I am sure their conscience  would have no worries at all.

Utopia. Never whilst mankind and money are around.

Money; its a crime…….

Some days start with a real positive others don’t but start they do.

Yesterday was one of those “just okay” starts. Nothing tremendous in either extreme, in fact quite the opposite. No work which was a bonus and an hour lay in but apart from that it was very ordinary.

So I drank tea, which is one of my favourite past-times, read the papers online, listened to music and generally relaxed. I did, however, have a challenge to complete in the form of gaining an Apple Watch Badge for working up a sweat and doing a 3.5 mile jog. Once I had walked the dog and warmed up my ageing limbs I started my watch and phone to record and subsequently submit my distance and time.  Not only was 3.5 mile reached but smashed and I settled on finishing off at 7.1 miles in an hour and 7 minutes.

It felt fantastic and, after so many months of foot pain and uncomfort, it was a real and honest achievement and treat for my mental personna.

That done I visited my partner and had a pleasant chat and cuddly with the smallest dog ever.

I had promised myself an evening out after a busy week but by the time I was ready and spruced up I was billy-no-mates. My first thoughts were to stay put and postpone my adventure into town but as I was half way into the metropolis I threw caution to the wind and marched on.

I found not one familiar face or person suitable to bore and my initial impression was I was in for a washout of a night. To compound this news of a friend reached my ears about his suicide which put a very sad edge to proceedings.

It certainly was food for thought but out of my personal debate I decided to stay out and try and make a fist of what was quickly becoming a poor night. I sure Stuart would have approved and urged me to do so.

After settling into a beer and tab people watching was my only source of entertainment but suddenly an old mate broke my lone existence. Chats and jokes accompanied beer and soon all was beginning to work out for the  better.

Sadly, he only stayed out for an hour or so and I once again found myself as my only companion. “I know” I said, “a change of pub is bound to bring forth some known bodies of fun”. With that in mind I strode off to “The Bell”.

Right choice?

Hell yes.

Still no one to enjoy life with except the bar staff but they have a job to do so one has to leave them to it.

What was turning into a downward slope of thinking enough is enough and ambling home was suddenly swiped away as the three piece band fired into life.

A seat was offered along with friendly chat and beer. The music also filled the gap of, by now, billy-with-mates.

From the first power cord to the last smash of drums the sound was brilliant. The atmosphere changed to an electrically charged happy buzz. Life was once again brilliant and well worth living.

What nearly was a wasted time and effort on my behalf turned out to be one of the best evenings of entertainment and fun I have had for a while.

Long live the pleasant unexpected.