So farewell Andy Ripley
A true gentleman of the finest order
A bohemian rugby player
He mucked around in boats
Was a true Superstar
And always had a good word for everyone
I ran in the Sunday Times fun run in Hyde Park with him and
I met him on the towpath at Chiswick one day in 2006
He was always a fighter, but in a very English way
It was hard to imagine he was ill
As a World class No8
That heavenly rugby team just got stronger
Friday, 18 June 2010
Monday, 7 June 2010
Going once, going twice.....
I have just had two fab days up in Scotland playing golf at Turnberry, the 2009 Open Championship course. I played the Ailsa twice, and am pleased to report that the game held up well and I was part of the winning team, and came third individually, with my second round 86 being as good as I have played for a while.
I am a bit of a golf anorak, so on my return home I was able to check my golf logbooks and identify that in 1989 when i last played the Ailsa course I went round in 98. My handicap was 19 in those days, and we had played the Arran ( now Kintyre) course in the morning. Progress is progress, however, and for that I am thankful.
In that week during 1989 we played 36 holes round Prestwick Old Links, Kilmarnock Barassie, and 18 holes round Troon and Largs. These days 18 is enough both from the stamina perspective and for the fact golf seems to take longer to play.
At Turnberry people started batting off at 06:30 and the last crew we saw on the 18th was 22:15, so they probably started about 18:30. That's twelve hours golf with average 20 people per hour paying £125 each. £30,000 per day just from the one course.
I only had one embarrassment. You know when you see somebody you think you know, either from the pub or work or somewhere else social, well that happened to me. When I confronted the innocent chap it turned out to be Philip Searle from The Antiques Road Show, and Bargain Hunt. What a pleasant chap he turned out to be, just there for the craic like the rest of us.
I am a bit of a golf anorak, so on my return home I was able to check my golf logbooks and identify that in 1989 when i last played the Ailsa course I went round in 98. My handicap was 19 in those days, and we had played the Arran ( now Kintyre) course in the morning. Progress is progress, however, and for that I am thankful.
In that week during 1989 we played 36 holes round Prestwick Old Links, Kilmarnock Barassie, and 18 holes round Troon and Largs. These days 18 is enough both from the stamina perspective and for the fact golf seems to take longer to play.
At Turnberry people started batting off at 06:30 and the last crew we saw on the 18th was 22:15, so they probably started about 18:30. That's twelve hours golf with average 20 people per hour paying £125 each. £30,000 per day just from the one course.
I only had one embarrassment. You know when you see somebody you think you know, either from the pub or work or somewhere else social, well that happened to me. When I confronted the innocent chap it turned out to be Philip Searle from The Antiques Road Show, and Bargain Hunt. What a pleasant chap he turned out to be, just there for the craic like the rest of us.
Wednesday, 26 May 2010
Happy birthday to you....
The third anniversary of the blog passed while we were away. Gosh doesn't time fly. I started the blog to track the sale of the London property and would not have guessed that it would have taken two and a half years to complete that process, and at some cost. Still i got a very pleasant e-mail from the new owners this week enforcing how pleased they were with the purchase.
One is never sure what these old houses unearth once renovations start so it is good that no skeletons have been found in the attic. I must have done a good job bricking them up!!!
The place needed a new touch and I know they have done some alterations so good luck to them. They have kept my stained glass windows which they removed, so I will need to collect those at some stage, and may get a guided tour then.
So what else is new since May 2007....Tim , our oldest, got married, Emma, our youngest, produced our first grand child, Ava. I got to play golf with Tiger Woods (almost) in a Pro-Am, I managed to hang onto my job, although for how much longer is up for debate. Everybody had maintained good health given age and circumstances and all in all life has moved on in a reasonable and controlled manner.
In three more years I will have retired, my countdown clock says 1015 days to go!! I am sure we will have other grand children by then, and Ava can show them the ropes. England may have won a football trophy to go with the rugby World Cup and the World 20/20 cricket victory, but will the mighty Green Army bounce back into the Championship (that's the new Premiership for poor clubs who play British players in the team)?
So into year four we go, the blog at least gives my Google entry some credibility and it sits nicely with my named brick in the Olympic Park in Atlanta, the S Club brick at Twickenham Stadium and my fathers golf trophy at the golf club in Plymouth. A trail of discovery awaits anybody researching the Weathers clan.
One is never sure what these old houses unearth once renovations start so it is good that no skeletons have been found in the attic. I must have done a good job bricking them up!!!
The place needed a new touch and I know they have done some alterations so good luck to them. They have kept my stained glass windows which they removed, so I will need to collect those at some stage, and may get a guided tour then.
So what else is new since May 2007....Tim , our oldest, got married, Emma, our youngest, produced our first grand child, Ava. I got to play golf with Tiger Woods (almost) in a Pro-Am, I managed to hang onto my job, although for how much longer is up for debate. Everybody had maintained good health given age and circumstances and all in all life has moved on in a reasonable and controlled manner.
In three more years I will have retired, my countdown clock says 1015 days to go!! I am sure we will have other grand children by then, and Ava can show them the ropes. England may have won a football trophy to go with the rugby World Cup and the World 20/20 cricket victory, but will the mighty Green Army bounce back into the Championship (that's the new Premiership for poor clubs who play British players in the team)?
So into year four we go, the blog at least gives my Google entry some credibility and it sits nicely with my named brick in the Olympic Park in Atlanta, the S Club brick at Twickenham Stadium and my fathers golf trophy at the golf club in Plymouth. A trail of discovery awaits anybody researching the Weathers clan.
Tuesday, 25 May 2010
Yeah man
I am back from a few weeks of sun in the West Indies, getting a tan and grooving my swing for the upcoming golf challenges I face. The hotel had one communal tele and that was it, no internet feeds, no newspapers and no children. Deep joy.
The ash cloud did its best to prevent us getting there, but all credit to the Virgin Airways flight crew who worked to within 30 minutes of their legal hours to get us there, albeit 7 hours late. We returned on schedule, and what a changed place we arrived back to.
A hung parliament when we left meant we had no idea who was ruling Brittania, so it was interesting to see 'our' Dave had jumped into bed with young Clegg to form a Lib/Dem/Con government. Grumpy Gordon has fallen on his sword I hear so it will be interesting to have a new leader of the opposition. I am still catching up on the other political ramifications.
Money markets continue to drop on the back of the uncertainty in the Euro zone and I see an indiscreet IBM executive has forecast that the IBM worldwide work force could reduce by 299,000 employees in the next 5 years. Wow. Our leader is denying this and describes the comments as ludicrous. Time will tell.
I see Chelsea did the league and FA Cup double this year. Gone are the days when this was a rare feat for any team to achieve. it is now becoming much more the norm. One piece of sports news I did catch up with was England winning the 20/20 World Cup. As it was in the West Indies while we were there we did manage to take in a couple of group games and the England semi-final. All a good craic.
The sun has blasted the UK while we were away but has now done the usual and disappeared behind the clouds up here in Scouse, no doubt it will rain on the Bank Holiday weekend!!
So welcome back to Blighty I say. I will search out my first pint of Pride later today.
The ash cloud did its best to prevent us getting there, but all credit to the Virgin Airways flight crew who worked to within 30 minutes of their legal hours to get us there, albeit 7 hours late. We returned on schedule, and what a changed place we arrived back to.
A hung parliament when we left meant we had no idea who was ruling Brittania, so it was interesting to see 'our' Dave had jumped into bed with young Clegg to form a Lib/Dem/Con government. Grumpy Gordon has fallen on his sword I hear so it will be interesting to have a new leader of the opposition. I am still catching up on the other political ramifications.
Money markets continue to drop on the back of the uncertainty in the Euro zone and I see an indiscreet IBM executive has forecast that the IBM worldwide work force could reduce by 299,000 employees in the next 5 years. Wow. Our leader is denying this and describes the comments as ludicrous. Time will tell.
I see Chelsea did the league and FA Cup double this year. Gone are the days when this was a rare feat for any team to achieve. it is now becoming much more the norm. One piece of sports news I did catch up with was England winning the 20/20 World Cup. As it was in the West Indies while we were there we did manage to take in a couple of group games and the England semi-final. All a good craic.
The sun has blasted the UK while we were away but has now done the usual and disappeared behind the clouds up here in Scouse, no doubt it will rain on the Bank Holiday weekend!!
So welcome back to Blighty I say. I will search out my first pint of Pride later today.
Tuesday, 4 May 2010
Soap box superstar
I had a drink with Frank Field on Friday night. Frank is the long standing Labour MP for Birkenhead, and he was in my local with his campaign team relaxing after a long week on the hustings.
They are a weird lot, volunteer canvassers. I group them with twitchers, train spotters and the Greenham Common peace camp occupants as right up there at the top of the anorak league table.
His campaign leader, however, was an all together more rounded chap. In his early 30's he was up from Central Office in London to add some structure and support to the campaign. I did indicate to him that Franks seat must be one of the most secure Labour seats in the Country, but he was gracious enough to say that nothing could be taken for granted.
When he realised I was from his neck of the woods, the conversation quickly changed to a discussion about Anne Keen, the current MP for Hounslow West. He indicated that the seat had become a marginal now, in no little way due to the fact that Anne and her husband Alan, were an expenses scandal even before there was an expenses scandal!!
I shall watch all three candidates with interest to see what becomes of them on Thursday night, or Friday morning.
They are a weird lot, volunteer canvassers. I group them with twitchers, train spotters and the Greenham Common peace camp occupants as right up there at the top of the anorak league table.
His campaign leader, however, was an all together more rounded chap. In his early 30's he was up from Central Office in London to add some structure and support to the campaign. I did indicate to him that Franks seat must be one of the most secure Labour seats in the Country, but he was gracious enough to say that nothing could be taken for granted.
When he realised I was from his neck of the woods, the conversation quickly changed to a discussion about Anne Keen, the current MP for Hounslow West. He indicated that the seat had become a marginal now, in no little way due to the fact that Anne and her husband Alan, were an expenses scandal even before there was an expenses scandal!!
I shall watch all three candidates with interest to see what becomes of them on Thursday night, or Friday morning.
Monday, 19 April 2010
Smoking can damage your health
Hmmm, cut off from the rest of the world as we seem to be at the moment, I can't help but imagine the disruption it is causing further down the supply chain.
My brother-in-law was due to fly to Delhi yesterday, en route to the Himalayas to climb K2 or some similar high peak. He was unable to go and at this stage is unsure whether a reschedule will be possible. He is frustrated, but think of the Sherpa's who are on standby to help, and the whole infrastructure over there that is dependent on mountaineers coming from Europe. They are their lifeline to a reasonable standard of living, and they are losing out.
Maxines parents nearly booked a last minute cruise last week. They would not have been able to make the flight to Athens to pick up the ship. What happens in that situation, does the ship sail half full, or less? Do they lay off half the staff for the duration of the cruise? Imagine the effect of a half full cruise liner arriving at various ports where the people survive on the back of t-shirt and souvenir sales. It could last a couple more months.
The flip side of the coin sees members of the 1st Rifle brigade stranded in Lisbon on their way back from Afghanistan. They are no doubt glad to be safe, but separated once more from their family and friends, just when they anticipated some R & R. (none of that in Lisbon then eh?....ed)
Airlines face crippling losses particularly when they need to accommodate their clients for extra days, and hoteliers will struggle to account for the lost revenue from tourists unable to travel to their destination of choice.
And what of my GPS system which I sent back to the States to get repairs.....will it be coming by sea or do UPS have contingency plans for such events....it will be interesting to see. We are away ourselves in a couple of weeks, hopefully Eyjafjallajokull has run its course now and not woken up its big sister Katla. If she gets grumpy we could be stranded for weeks.
My brother-in-law was due to fly to Delhi yesterday, en route to the Himalayas to climb K2 or some similar high peak. He was unable to go and at this stage is unsure whether a reschedule will be possible. He is frustrated, but think of the Sherpa's who are on standby to help, and the whole infrastructure over there that is dependent on mountaineers coming from Europe. They are their lifeline to a reasonable standard of living, and they are losing out.
Maxines parents nearly booked a last minute cruise last week. They would not have been able to make the flight to Athens to pick up the ship. What happens in that situation, does the ship sail half full, or less? Do they lay off half the staff for the duration of the cruise? Imagine the effect of a half full cruise liner arriving at various ports where the people survive on the back of t-shirt and souvenir sales. It could last a couple more months.
The flip side of the coin sees members of the 1st Rifle brigade stranded in Lisbon on their way back from Afghanistan. They are no doubt glad to be safe, but separated once more from their family and friends, just when they anticipated some R & R. (none of that in Lisbon then eh?....ed)
Airlines face crippling losses particularly when they need to accommodate their clients for extra days, and hoteliers will struggle to account for the lost revenue from tourists unable to travel to their destination of choice.
And what of my GPS system which I sent back to the States to get repairs.....will it be coming by sea or do UPS have contingency plans for such events....it will be interesting to see. We are away ourselves in a couple of weeks, hopefully Eyjafjallajokull has run its course now and not woken up its big sister Katla. If she gets grumpy we could be stranded for weeks.
Friday, 9 April 2010
Take your own luv....
I have just spend the Easter weekend, and some, repairing the fence and refurbishing the front gates. As I was applying the third coat of wood stain, and wondering what Michael Caine must be thinking about (a) the Wood Preservation Society, and (b) his support for the Conservative Party, I cast my mind back to Easters past when I was a lad, and I was forced into that scouting tradition 'Bob a Job week.
In years gone past Bob a Job was one of the biggest events of the year for Scouts and Cubs and one which, in general, scouts hated! So what was a Bob? well it was a shilling in those days, five new pence in later times For the week of Easter scouts spent their school holidays going around door to door all over the area, walking miles, knocking on door and saying 'Hello, this is Bob a Job week, do you want any jobs done?' Scouts took on tasks like cleaning out garages, walking pets, gardening, car washing, shopping, and so on....and the charge? One Shilling.....a BOB!,
Newspapers always cashed in on the good stories and it was a great publicity week for scouts, people thought it was great for young boys (no girls back then) to earn money for scouting....through slavery!!! This Bob A Job week went on for years and years until someone decided that it should be changed to Scout Job Week as the shilling was consigned to history when decimalisation took over. Five pence a Job week just did not have the same ring to it!
As time went on the idea of any young child knocking on any strangers door became a no-no and the great Bob a Job week came crashing down! Bob A Job was phased out, but it had generated much needed funds for scouting, and the days were more innocent then...and perhaps....dare I say....a lot more fun.?
Some Scout and Cub packs continue to embrace the concept, although work is confined to family, friends and near neighbours. There must have been undesirable adults around when we did it, but I can't recall any incidents in our area.
Ah well, looks like the fence will have to last a few years until the grandkids are old enough to join up, then they can all have a dib dib dib at it.
In years gone past Bob a Job was one of the biggest events of the year for Scouts and Cubs and one which, in general, scouts hated! So what was a Bob? well it was a shilling in those days, five new pence in later times For the week of Easter scouts spent their school holidays going around door to door all over the area, walking miles, knocking on door and saying 'Hello, this is Bob a Job week, do you want any jobs done?' Scouts took on tasks like cleaning out garages, walking pets, gardening, car washing, shopping, and so on....and the charge? One Shilling.....a BOB!,
Newspapers always cashed in on the good stories and it was a great publicity week for scouts, people thought it was great for young boys (no girls back then) to earn money for scouting....through slavery!!! This Bob A Job week went on for years and years until someone decided that it should be changed to Scout Job Week as the shilling was consigned to history when decimalisation took over. Five pence a Job week just did not have the same ring to it!
As time went on the idea of any young child knocking on any strangers door became a no-no and the great Bob a Job week came crashing down! Bob A Job was phased out, but it had generated much needed funds for scouting, and the days were more innocent then...and perhaps....dare I say....a lot more fun.?
Some Scout and Cub packs continue to embrace the concept, although work is confined to family, friends and near neighbours. There must have been undesirable adults around when we did it, but I can't recall any incidents in our area.
Ah well, looks like the fence will have to last a few years until the grandkids are old enough to join up, then they can all have a dib dib dib at it.
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