So disappointed to see the demise of Thomas Cook, a travel firm we have used on numerous occasions for holidays, flights and corporate hospitality. We have been in Mauritius when a holiday firm has gone bust and we saw first hand the stress it put their clients under, both from the point of view of their holidays being cut short, how they would get home, and the actions the hotel owner took to protect his outstanding payment schedule.
None of that is pleasant, and it was only by chance that we had not booked a pre-Christmas mega group to take the ankle biters to Lapland for a special trip. Thomas Cook were favourites to be our carrier, but we were still trying to sort out dates with the four families involved.
Instead we have booked everybody to go to Geneva to see number 1 son and family so EasyJet just got 15 return flights they might not have been expecting. Geneva is great from Liverpool as there are flights most days in the Summer with extra ones during the main skiing season.
We have a few other sorties planned with a first trip to 'off the record Dick's new abode in Middle , Little, Upper or Lower Wallop near Andover shortly then a major BMW golf event in St Andrews followed by golf and spa in Gleneagles. We will return home yearning for sunnier climes I suspect but they might have to wait until next year as our property sales process has stalled once more so funds need to be rationed.
That said, we are geared up for the mega Euro Lottery tomorrow. What would I do with €200m
Thursday, 26 September 2019
Thursday, 12 September 2019
The Crosby Show
The beginning of September has been hectic. SWMBO returned from holiday with number 2 daughter, who then moved into her new home in Noctorum, still near to us, but a much newer house. There were all the usual last minute finance challenges which meant completion happened at near to 5pm!! Still she is in now and various tradesmen are doing jobs around me as I write this blog entry.
My weekend highlight while she was moving was to watch and engage with the USA Walker Cup golf team who practised at Wallasey on the Saturday afternoon. The conditions were tough so it was good to see the best amateur golfers struggle like members do.
I then played Bromborough badly, West Lancs pretty well and knocked it around Wallasey again on the Friday when the R & A had a guest day there. I met ex US Open champion Jerry Pate who also found the going tough.
On the Saturday and Sunday I was marshalling at the Walker Cup proper and unfortunately GB & I got well beaten. I did meet the world, including a group of ladies who I enquired as to whether they were the WAGS of the US team! It turned out it was the Captains lady and their family! Now when I say the Captain was Nathaniel Crosby, son of crooner Bing Crosby, these WAGS were golfing royalty.
I was also approached by a lady to have a photo taken with her husband. It turned out he was the nephew of Jack Rowell the ex-England rugby coach and they thought I looked like him. No change there then.
The weekend was not all golf though. On Saturday night SWMBO and I attended a concert by the Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra in Birkenhead Park which was great fun. On the Sunday we went again to the park to see China Crisis and the Christian's who were both very good. The concert was headlined by the Lightning Seeds who,sadly, were a bit flat and disappointing. Heyho, and all good to Wirral Council for setting it all up and running it, may there be more of the same next year.
Still things did not calm down. Tuesday saw me play Southport and Ainesdale golf course and on Wednesday my old mucker Ray Dudman turned up to play Wallasey en route home from Edinburgh. I beat him on the 18th green, just as the 5th stage of the Tour of Britain cycle race flew by the golf club.
A hectic start to September indeed.
My weekend highlight while she was moving was to watch and engage with the USA Walker Cup golf team who practised at Wallasey on the Saturday afternoon. The conditions were tough so it was good to see the best amateur golfers struggle like members do.
I then played Bromborough badly, West Lancs pretty well and knocked it around Wallasey again on the Friday when the R & A had a guest day there. I met ex US Open champion Jerry Pate who also found the going tough.
On the Saturday and Sunday I was marshalling at the Walker Cup proper and unfortunately GB & I got well beaten. I did meet the world, including a group of ladies who I enquired as to whether they were the WAGS of the US team! It turned out it was the Captains lady and their family! Now when I say the Captain was Nathaniel Crosby, son of crooner Bing Crosby, these WAGS were golfing royalty.
I was also approached by a lady to have a photo taken with her husband. It turned out he was the nephew of Jack Rowell the ex-England rugby coach and they thought I looked like him. No change there then.
The weekend was not all golf though. On Saturday night SWMBO and I attended a concert by the Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra in Birkenhead Park which was great fun. On the Sunday we went again to the park to see China Crisis and the Christian's who were both very good. The concert was headlined by the Lightning Seeds who,sadly, were a bit flat and disappointing. Heyho, and all good to Wirral Council for setting it all up and running it, may there be more of the same next year.
Still things did not calm down. Tuesday saw me play Southport and Ainesdale golf course and on Wednesday my old mucker Ray Dudman turned up to play Wallasey en route home from Edinburgh. I beat him on the 18th green, just as the 5th stage of the Tour of Britain cycle race flew by the golf club.
A hectic start to September indeed.
Monday, 26 August 2019
One down
So a Bank Holiday full of sporting activities comes to an end. Rory McIlroy won a cool $15m for winning the Fed Ex golf championship in Atlanta, Ben Stokes re-ignited the Ashes cricket with an unbelievable rear guard action in the test match at Headingley and Newcastle United parked the bus and snatched three points from Tottenham yesterday in a game I suspect Match of the Day struggled to find any highlights.
So guess which one I went to? Yes , with SWMBO playing Shirley Valentine in Greece, I thought I would just pop down to London and explore the new Tottenham Hotspur stadium for the day. The train down was fine, and then came the 35 minute slog from Seven Sisters tube station in 34 degree heat, a walk I have done many times in the past but not for a few years. I got to the stadium praying I would have a seat in the shade. Luck was going my way as, yes I did, on the fifth tier of the North stand. Looking around at the amazing auditorium it was clear they had reserved the sunny seats for the Georgie boys so they could get their kit off and fry. I bet there were some very sore bellies this morning.
The game was so dull that the lady sitting next to me left at half time, and her husband did the Express crossword through out the second half. I left early to ensure the walk back to the tube was not rushed as was the case.
The new stadium is huge. There are bag checks and security checks everywhere, and even when it was as hot as yesterday you could not take water bottles inside. The bars and food stalls were doing a roaring trade, and the sensible thing if you are local is to wait around afterwards , have a few beers and then head home. White Hart Lane station has been completely refurbished with Club money but I am unsure whether there are extra trains to get people away form the ground quicker.
The Club were sensible enough to have the cricket on the TV screens which made for a very different match day experience than would normally be the case, but I was delighted to watch the highlights again when I got home. I was disappointed with Virgin rains that the first class lounge now charges for alcohol. This I was informed is due to too many people getting drunk for free before their train leaves. Never mind that its all free on the train anyway!! So I had a pint of Pride in the pub next door. If you are going to pay may as well have something you like.
On Saturday I played golf at 07:15, a time I was unaware was part of Saturday morning!! I was pleased how I played, and there were three 1's in our group. I got an 11 at hole 13 and one of my partners got a hole in 1 at the 5th. Drinks all round!!
Today I played again and was 5 under par after 6 holes, slipped to 4 under after 10 and finished 2 over, very much a nearly round, hey ho! Tomorrow is a day of rest which will probably involve cosmetic cleaning and ironing just to show willing, before the golf starts all over again, weather permitting.
So guess which one I went to? Yes , with SWMBO playing Shirley Valentine in Greece, I thought I would just pop down to London and explore the new Tottenham Hotspur stadium for the day. The train down was fine, and then came the 35 minute slog from Seven Sisters tube station in 34 degree heat, a walk I have done many times in the past but not for a few years. I got to the stadium praying I would have a seat in the shade. Luck was going my way as, yes I did, on the fifth tier of the North stand. Looking around at the amazing auditorium it was clear they had reserved the sunny seats for the Georgie boys so they could get their kit off and fry. I bet there were some very sore bellies this morning.
The game was so dull that the lady sitting next to me left at half time, and her husband did the Express crossword through out the second half. I left early to ensure the walk back to the tube was not rushed as was the case.
The new stadium is huge. There are bag checks and security checks everywhere, and even when it was as hot as yesterday you could not take water bottles inside. The bars and food stalls were doing a roaring trade, and the sensible thing if you are local is to wait around afterwards , have a few beers and then head home. White Hart Lane station has been completely refurbished with Club money but I am unsure whether there are extra trains to get people away form the ground quicker.
The Club were sensible enough to have the cricket on the TV screens which made for a very different match day experience than would normally be the case, but I was delighted to watch the highlights again when I got home. I was disappointed with Virgin rains that the first class lounge now charges for alcohol. This I was informed is due to too many people getting drunk for free before their train leaves. Never mind that its all free on the train anyway!! So I had a pint of Pride in the pub next door. If you are going to pay may as well have something you like.
On Saturday I played golf at 07:15, a time I was unaware was part of Saturday morning!! I was pleased how I played, and there were three 1's in our group. I got an 11 at hole 13 and one of my partners got a hole in 1 at the 5th. Drinks all round!!
Today I played again and was 5 under par after 6 holes, slipped to 4 under after 10 and finished 2 over, very much a nearly round, hey ho! Tomorrow is a day of rest which will probably involve cosmetic cleaning and ironing just to show willing, before the golf starts all over again, weather permitting.
Friday, 16 August 2019
Deja Vous all over again
We are on the train back to Liverpool, following our annual trip to London for the Lord's test match. This year is an Ashes year but our hopes of seeing Jofra Archer throw a few down at the Aussies were dashed once again by the weather.
This is the second year running that we have had a complete washout following a similar experience when India were the visitors.
We adjourn to Crickets on such occasions, although it is disappointing that they have removed Fullers London Pride in favour of some pale imitation of an IPA. We did our usual trick of purchasing an umbrella from one of the numerous charity shops in St John's Wood high street, and SWMBO and I both purchase some clobber so not a totally wasted day.
After an early dinner the night before at The Duke of Sussex in Waterloo, we went to see 'The Bank Robbery That Went Wrong' at the Criterian Theatre. It had some very clever and amusing moments interspersed with periods of dullness, but that is farce for you.
Yesterday we met Cousin Mike and Val at the Ivy Cafe in Richmond which very pleasant. Marion joined us for a drink later before we deferred once more to Waterloo for night cap.
So all in all a good three days, and the refunded entry fees should cover all the r & r!!
This is the second year running that we have had a complete washout following a similar experience when India were the visitors.
We adjourn to Crickets on such occasions, although it is disappointing that they have removed Fullers London Pride in favour of some pale imitation of an IPA. We did our usual trick of purchasing an umbrella from one of the numerous charity shops in St John's Wood high street, and SWMBO and I both purchase some clobber so not a totally wasted day.
After an early dinner the night before at The Duke of Sussex in Waterloo, we went to see 'The Bank Robbery That Went Wrong' at the Criterian Theatre. It had some very clever and amusing moments interspersed with periods of dullness, but that is farce for you.
Yesterday we met Cousin Mike and Val at the Ivy Cafe in Richmond which very pleasant. Marion joined us for a drink later before we deferred once more to Waterloo for night cap.
So all in all a good three days, and the refunded entry fees should cover all the r & r!!
Monday, 29 July 2019
Cool man, said Dylan
A lot of comment in the media at the moment about the legalisation of cannabis has also pushed the legal aspect of the drug to the forefront of many peoples thinking. The likelihood of cannabis plants being grown legally in everybodys loft or garage is unlikely to happen shortly, but members of a Government task force who have just returned from Canada are optimistic that the same process the Canadians use could e copied successfully here.
One of the current challenges is how to decide what is legal and what is not, Customs officers appear to confiscate some supplies of CBT Oil which parents in particular are bringing into the Country to try to treat afflictions like seizures in their young children. At the same time International rugby players George Kruis and Dominic Day have launched a Company selling the oil to fellow athletes for remedial and recovery purposes which seems all above board.
Small amounts of CBD Oil can be obtained fairly easily by mail order. Our oldest has an interest in a Swiss company which exports to the UK. You can check it out here. I have used it for some time to ensure my PSA readings are maintained in the safe zone as far as any prostate cancer traces are concerned. So far so good.
So it all seems to be confused and unco-ordinated at the moment, but if you need to try any out yourself give Kannaroyale a go at the link above
One of the current challenges is how to decide what is legal and what is not, Customs officers appear to confiscate some supplies of CBT Oil which parents in particular are bringing into the Country to try to treat afflictions like seizures in their young children. At the same time International rugby players George Kruis and Dominic Day have launched a Company selling the oil to fellow athletes for remedial and recovery purposes which seems all above board.
Small amounts of CBD Oil can be obtained fairly easily by mail order. Our oldest has an interest in a Swiss company which exports to the UK. You can check it out here. I have used it for some time to ensure my PSA readings are maintained in the safe zone as far as any prostate cancer traces are concerned. So far so good.
So it all seems to be confused and unco-ordinated at the moment, but if you need to try any out yourself give Kannaroyale a go at the link above
Sunday, 28 July 2019
Pocket Style
As I continue to fight the case for Boris as PM up here in Scouseland, with, I admit, limited success, I am delighted that one of his cohorts, Jacob Rees-Mogg has struck a blow for the reinstatement of the Queens English by issuing a style guide for his newly allocated government office.
Regular readers of this blog, most notably 'Off the Record Dick' and my late departed mate Figs,will be surprised and fascinated to learn that I developed one such style guide for the members of the IBM consulting and professional services organisation in the early 90's. The Company was just branching out into the consulting arena and it was considered important to ensure our reports and the presentation material surrounding them were of a consistent format, hence the need for some grammatical guidelines. I must admit to lax usage of the apostrophe and comma, however it is very interesting to look back at some of the guidelines presented at that time. Here are a couple:
Issue: Avoid using the word issue unless referring to a paper or journal. Use problem or concern instead.
Simplistic: Use simple-minded or naive, or simple if that is what you mean
Verbs: Do not use nouns as verbs; for example, 'IBM solutioned the problem'
One of the great sources of style was produced by The Economist for its journalistic staff. It is interesting that Boris himself was the editor-in-chief for this organ for many years!!
This guide was later published and sits on my bookcase along with 'The Complete Plain Words' , 'Big Elephants Are Useful', a compendium of mnemonics and idioms and 'Eats, Shoots and Leaves' a modern punctuation bible.
Can any or all of them solve the greatest grammatical challenge regarding what people from Argentina are called? Answer, from The Economist is that they are Argentines not Argentinian. Phew! glad we cleared that up.
Regular readers of this blog, most notably 'Off the Record Dick' and my late departed mate Figs,will be surprised and fascinated to learn that I developed one such style guide for the members of the IBM consulting and professional services organisation in the early 90's. The Company was just branching out into the consulting arena and it was considered important to ensure our reports and the presentation material surrounding them were of a consistent format, hence the need for some grammatical guidelines. I must admit to lax usage of the apostrophe and comma, however it is very interesting to look back at some of the guidelines presented at that time. Here are a couple:
Issue: Avoid using the word issue unless referring to a paper or journal. Use problem or concern instead.
Simplistic: Use simple-minded or naive, or simple if that is what you mean
Verbs: Do not use nouns as verbs; for example, 'IBM solutioned the problem'
One of the great sources of style was produced by The Economist for its journalistic staff. It is interesting that Boris himself was the editor-in-chief for this organ for many years!!
This guide was later published and sits on my bookcase along with 'The Complete Plain Words' , 'Big Elephants Are Useful', a compendium of mnemonics and idioms and 'Eats, Shoots and Leaves' a modern punctuation bible.
Can any or all of them solve the greatest grammatical challenge regarding what people from Argentina are called? Answer, from The Economist is that they are Argentines not Argentinian. Phew! glad we cleared that up.
Saturday, 27 July 2019
George Stephenson
I have had a very difficult year of golf so far. I have had some niggly injuries, some runs of bad luck and an inconsistent swing which is so frustrating as to make me almost give the game up for a while. That last emotion has, however, been balanced by my ability to find some form in a few team competitions.
I have been fortunate to come second in the Wallasey Invitational event and win some money, John Porter, a major player when New Brighton were a formidable rugby team, and I came second in the Old Padeswood senior open where we won money and golf balls, and my team ,"Shoeless Joe's", managed to win the Wallasey4Wirral charity golf day where we won £100 each,together with wine and meal vouchers in the raffle. A very well done to Neil Bennett and his son who continue to run an excellent day and raised over £6000 for various cancer related charities
All of the above were very welcome, but none so much as the round which allowed me to qualify for the BMW Golf Cup International UK final to be played on the Castle course at St Andrews. I played in the BMW owners golf events for many years until BMW pulled the plug on them, and this is the second year I have been able to try to qualify for the finals as an independent. I had it won with four holes to play at Woburn last year but grabbed defeat from the jaws of victory. This year at Hillside I was able to keep my composure and finish in second place. That gets me an all inclusive stay at the Old Course Hotel for a long weekend, and I will hope to get a chance to play the Old Course while I am up there.
The only down side is that it clashes with the Twickenham Rugby weekend away which this year includes three rounds at Minehead GC and three nights at a tribute band extravaganza at Butlins!! Another year perhaps!
So why the heading for this particular post? Well, when I first joined Wallasey GC as a soft Southerner who knew nobody, George took me under his wing, and week on week we have played together every Saturday for nearly ten years. George extended similar comradeship to Peter Ellerington and Phil Gedman. George is now 86 and only two weeks ago went round the golf course in 82 shots. To beat your age is a target every golfer aims for. The pro golfers look to do it in their early 60's, good amateurs in their 70's and people like me hope to live until the y are 90 and are still playing golf!!
As a thankyou and a late 85th birthday present, we took George this week to play at Royal Birkdale, rated as the top course in England. It did not disappoint. The welcome was first class and the course was laid out in excellent condition. We played variable golf, but George was so focused that he and I managed to beat Phil and Peter after I had put us into an early lead and they had pegged us back on the back nine. SO, whenever I go through the emotions outlined at the beginning of the article, I just think of George and his single mindedness, never mind that he is giving me 20 years and three shots. He is a legend and I value him as a friend, long may we share the fairways.
I have been fortunate to come second in the Wallasey Invitational event and win some money, John Porter, a major player when New Brighton were a formidable rugby team, and I came second in the Old Padeswood senior open where we won money and golf balls, and my team ,"Shoeless Joe's", managed to win the Wallasey4Wirral charity golf day where we won £100 each,together with wine and meal vouchers in the raffle. A very well done to Neil Bennett and his son who continue to run an excellent day and raised over £6000 for various cancer related charities
All of the above were very welcome, but none so much as the round which allowed me to qualify for the BMW Golf Cup International UK final to be played on the Castle course at St Andrews. I played in the BMW owners golf events for many years until BMW pulled the plug on them, and this is the second year I have been able to try to qualify for the finals as an independent. I had it won with four holes to play at Woburn last year but grabbed defeat from the jaws of victory. This year at Hillside I was able to keep my composure and finish in second place. That gets me an all inclusive stay at the Old Course Hotel for a long weekend, and I will hope to get a chance to play the Old Course while I am up there.
The only down side is that it clashes with the Twickenham Rugby weekend away which this year includes three rounds at Minehead GC and three nights at a tribute band extravaganza at Butlins!! Another year perhaps!
So why the heading for this particular post? Well, when I first joined Wallasey GC as a soft Southerner who knew nobody, George took me under his wing, and week on week we have played together every Saturday for nearly ten years. George extended similar comradeship to Peter Ellerington and Phil Gedman. George is now 86 and only two weeks ago went round the golf course in 82 shots. To beat your age is a target every golfer aims for. The pro golfers look to do it in their early 60's, good amateurs in their 70's and people like me hope to live until the y are 90 and are still playing golf!!
As a thankyou and a late 85th birthday present, we took George this week to play at Royal Birkdale, rated as the top course in England. It did not disappoint. The welcome was first class and the course was laid out in excellent condition. We played variable golf, but George was so focused that he and I managed to beat Phil and Peter after I had put us into an early lead and they had pegged us back on the back nine. SO, whenever I go through the emotions outlined at the beginning of the article, I just think of George and his single mindedness, never mind that he is giving me 20 years and three shots. He is a legend and I value him as a friend, long may we share the fairways.
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