Safe and Secure

At my age, you increasingly get taken short, whilst out and about. Most of the places I walk, such as Regent’s Park, Hampstead and Westminster are not that well appointed with loos, but I know where they are, so it’s not really a problem for me.

On the other hand, if you don’t know an area, or are disabled it can be a real problem, especially as some councils have completely shut down their public toilets.

This subject was brought up on BBC Breakfast this morning and Richmond, which is a London borough, has come up with something called the Community Toilet Scheme, which pays pubs and shops a small amount of money to open up their toilets to non-customers.

What a simple, but very good idea.

If I had a nice pub, I’d join as think of all those punters who walk through.  I would also get a nice food/coffee smell going to see if I could trap any.

The headline on the front page of The Times today is Lessons in hate found at leading mosques.

Books have been found that call for the beheading of lapsed Muslims, forbidding interfaith marriage and keeping women indoors have been found at Regent’s Park and Whitechapel mosques.

According to one pamphlet called Some Kinds of Women Who Will Go to Hell, these are women who will.

1. The Grumbler … the woman who complains against her husband every now and then is one of Hell.
2. The Woman Who Adorns Herself.
3. The Woman Who Apes Men, Tattoos, Cuts Hair Short and Alters Nature.

So I’ll go to Hell then on all three counts.

I wonder if there is a companion book called Some Kinds of Men Who Will Go to Hell?

I suspect not, as this version of Islam is just unadulterated male chauvanist piggery.

Where did it all go wrong?

But then give many men a chance and they’ll do nothing.

How many single mothers are there, where the man has evaded his responsibilities? In how many families is the woman the breadwinner, whilst the man sits in front of the TV all day with cans of drink?

Tightlockup asked about the congestion charge in London.

It’s £8 a day and is only for the central area, the City, Kensington and Chelsea, and for a small part South of the Thames.  Click here for a map. The charge operates from seven in the morning until six at night, from Monday to Friday.

It came in a couple of years ago and hasn’t affected me at all, as I rarely drive in that area. I’ve said that I walk the few miles to my office across Regent’s Park and if it’s chucking it down, I can take one of the many buses. If I do that I usually wait no more than five minutes.

Most Londoners agree with the charge although many felt it impinged on their freedom to drive.

But take an incident a few months ago, where my man and I had to go to Piccadilly Circus to pick up two clients and then take them south to Croydon. We took my man’s car and parked on a meter for half an hour. But as they were late, we had to move and then he couldn’t find another one, so eventually it cost us for the Congestion Charge and about the same amount for the parking. In the end we would have been better using public transport, but then the clients didn’t do that sort of thing.

I always like the story of Mr. Hewlett and Mr. Packard, who were late for their debut on the New York Stock Exchange, because they got lost on the subway.

One thing though that all Londoners seem to have now is an Oystercard.  This is a fillable card, that you use to pay for all tube, bus, DLR and tram trips.  Even my friend from Glasgow has one, so that she doesn’t have to queue to buy tickets in London.

When you visit London, they are the easiest and cheapest way to use public transport. You can get them at any station with either a credit card or cash, without filling in any forms.

If you want to know more look at the Transport For London website.

I’m sitting here at my computer, answering e-mails, writing the odd note to people who work for me and adding topics like this to my blog. I’m swathed in a long thick towelling dressing gown and my feet are bare.  I’m not cold as the office is warm.

It’s often said to me that what would I do if I sold my share in the company. 

Would I go and live say in Monaco or somewhere similar to avoid all that tax? I wouldn’t as I just find England a place where I really do feel at home.

Take tonight and my situation.

London, or at least my part of it, is quiet.  In the morning, I will see birds in the sunlight in the garden. I can walk to the office mainly through the green expanse of Regent’s Park.  Within a few miles, I have all of the best restaurants, cinemas and theatres that I could possibly want.

What is money if I can live like that on a tenth of what I have?

I’m listening to the BBC Radio 5 at the moment.  It’s football, which is what I like, and what I’d miss if I went abroad.  At least I’d miss the English games.  Tonight Chelsea with all their money and so-called superstars are playing Wycombe, a team from the lower reaches of the leagues, in the semi-final of the League Cup. Stamford Bridge, where Chelsea play, is full. You can hear the six thousand Wycombe supporters over the thirty-six thousand for the home team.

That is what I really like.  The English passion.

It may overflow in the wrong way at times, but it is that passion that has created so many things that have benefited the world.