Disgusting disregard for our countryside.

As I have mentioned my day job is as a multi drop delivery driver for a North Yorkshire agricultural supply company and in the course of my work I get to see some of the most beautiful countryside in Yorkshire or even in the UK.  I regularly stop for a break in one of two pull off's on the road running through Hovingham woods, on a clear day the view from the cab is well worth looking over.  On Friday I pulled off the road in the first pull off to re-tighten a sheet strap and glanced to my left.  What I saw is in the picture below.

The view is obscured by the mist but what is in full view is the rubbish that has been dumped. Some brainless scum couldn't be bothered to drive to the local tip and in a fit of extreme idleness tipped the unwanted plastic rubbish at the side of the road.  My sympathy for this behaviour is such that I would not hang draw and quarter the offender, if found, I would simply have them put down with the same chemical that is used on dogs as I see no advantage it causing unnecessary suffering, but it is a close thing.  Our countryside deserves better treatment and more respect than is shown by the actions of the scum who did this.  

Orchard and New Blog

When I started writing this blog I had intended to include the trials and tribulations of my fumbling attempts to establish an orchard in the paddock behind our house.  But after some consideration and some thought on the title of this blog I have decided to start another new blog which will be a record of my mistakes and gradual learning while working with my trees.  So for anyone who wishes to follow my progress or lack of it please check my new blog which can be found at the following address.
http://www.normanbyorchard.blogspot.co.uk/

UK Alone ?

There would appear to be some debate as to whether the UK should leave the EU and go it alone. I suspect this point of view is fermented  by pathetic politicians who assume that they will gain a little extra notice if they are able to parade themselves on a smaller stage.  I wonder if the politicians may possibly be having their egos massaged and polished by other interested parties who are terrified that if the UK joins the EU fully and adopts the Euro they will have one less currency to gamble with and generally distort and mess up.  As any reader may gather from this I am strongly pro EU and our membership of the same.  I believe that being part of Europe and playing our part in the decision making is preferable by far to the way our relationship with the other countries of Europe has been conducted since the time of the Romans and possibly long before.   I remember discussing some problem or other with the owner of an agricultural supply business several years ago and the gentleman in question said that he had hope for a better brighter future and his reasoning was as follows.  "To get here you have travelled from one village, crossed a river bridge, passed through another village and come here.  At one time you may have had to fight the locals in the first village to pass through, pay an exorbitant toll charge to cross the river and possibly get robbed mid river then fight for right of passage through the next village and all before you got here.  Now you are able to get from your home to here with non of these problems.  It has got easier and much safer to travel that small distance, that is progress."
While his example was a little extreme the point he was illustrating was well made, things appear to be improving albeit slowly.  I believe this illustrates clearly why we should remain part of the EU and even integrate with the Euro.  Talking is better and much less wasteful than fighting.  I also hate the idea that if I wish to spend my money in another EU country I have to exchange it for Euros and in doing so have to pay someone for the privilege, thereby enabling me to spend my money in another country. It seems to me that the money traders who facilitate this exchange actually produce nothing of any value, they feed no one, cloth no one and educate no one.  In other words when I exchange money I pay someone for facilitating something that should be unnecessary in a descent world.  Its high time we adopted the Euro, it will be a good start, and could be seen as our first move towards a world currency.  I believe we are better off as part of the EU, not only that but we should be taking a very active part in the decision making.  If we don't take care now we will find ourselves left on the outside begging to be let in.  

The Mess That Is Windows 8

Just before Christmas my wife had need to buy a new laptop, unfortunately she had little option but to get Windows 8, since I hadn't seen it before I wasn't in a position to advise her against it.  I wonder if anyone else things Windows 8 is an abomination placed over the top of something that nearly worked which in turn is operating something that worked as well as it could.  I have seen little or no progress in windows as an operating system since Windows 95 and I consider Windows 8 to be a total abomination.  It appears that Microsoft, in desperation, have tried to produce something that might feel like Android, if only to someone who had never used an Android device.  To the casual user, such as myself and my wife, Windows 8 appears to consist of a layer which can be operated by a touch screen over the top of Windows 7.  The whole effect has been to make the thing nearly unusable on any device that doesn't have a touch screen, which is the majority of Windows devices.  To add insult to injury they even had the stupidity to remove the start button.  If the designers had any sense the whole top layer would be optional and the user should be able to turn it all off leaving Windows 7 visible and working.  I don't particularly like Windows 7 but it is far better than the mess that is Windows 8.  If anyone from MS reads this and would like to make the whole thing user friendly again please produce an update which allows the user to turn off the Windows 8 front including the irritating side bars and reinstate the proper start button.  After that stop messing about trying to update Windows it really isn't worth it, when you have done that START THINKING AGAIN AND WRITE A COMPLETELY NEW OPERATING SYSTEM.  STOP TRYING TO PATCH UP CRAP! IT DOESN'T WORK AND IT NEVER WILL.  

26/02/14

It's taken me till now to comment on yesterday. Yes it really was that bad, by the time I had diminished and clocked off I was irritable, itchy and tired. I got home took a shower had something to eat and fell asleep In my chair while my wife marked school work.  It was ten when I woke and my wife was just packing her work away.  At that point I gave up and went to bed, hence no comments about work.
Yesterday I was back to seed dressing, seventeen tonnes at four farms. Not too bad except that the first two were North of Easingwold and the third was in East Yorkshire near Pocklington. At least the final one wasn't far from the third and it was on the way back to base. The first job involved oats as did the last. Oats may be a great food but they are full of itchy dust and the dresser hates them more than I do. Suffice to say they can be problematic. Really all went we'll it just took a long time due to the travelling distances. After a shower, a sleep in my chair and a night's sleep I still felt rough. It took half of the day to feel normal again, but eventually I did come round.  See you later.

Wind Power

Many people hate wind farm with a passion. I have never understood why. Though they may not be as picturesque as the traditional story book windmill, I still find them quite elegant. I realise that wind power alone cannot be the complete answer to our power problems, but I do think that it can be part of the answer.  I would rather the whole of the UK was covered with wind turbines than have a single nuclear power station.  Until we have a way to render any waste or leakage harmless in less than six months there should be no more nuclear power plants.  

Tawny owl in distress.

One very windy night about two years ago we heard something scrabbling about in the chimney.  I presumed it was one of the jackdaws from next door prospecting for a new nesting site.  If they get in they usually get out the same way, the only trouble is that if they like it they start dropping sticks down the chimney until they wedge into a platform that they can build a nest on.  I usually manage to dissuade them by lighting the fire for a couple of days only the very persistent birds continue after this treatment.  I forgot the bird making the noise and went up to bed.  When my wife came up she said she thought it was an owl, my reply was a little sceptical and I think went something like this "don't be daft, owls are far too sensible to get stuck in a chimney."  Still thinking it was a jackdaw I settled down and had a good nights sleep forgetting the problem.  Next morning I went into the room to collect my glasses before going to work and heard a very pathetic and sorrowful hoot coming from the direction of the stove that is connected to the chimney.  I didn't have time to investigate and asked my son to check when he got up.  He was unable to get into the stove but rang me to say that he was sure it was an owl.  I happened to be back in the yard at lunch time and since I only live about five miles from work I went home.  I had to dismantle the stove but when I finally got into it so that I could see the entrance to the flue I could see a pair of talons hanging down, I managed to get my hands past the talons and around the birds wings and slide it out of the flue.  Sure enough it was a very bedraggled, sad looking tawny owl.  I let it sit on the grate and took a couple of pictures while the poor bird was coming round from its ordeal.

 

I picked the owl up, being careful to avoid the talons and carried it out side.  While I was carrying it the bird did one of those owl tricks and swivelled its head round at a seemingly impossible angle and stared directly at me.  The look it gave me seemed to suggest that it was holding me directly responsible for its predicament and no matter what it would remember me.  I released the bird outside and after a little hesitation it flew away apparently unharmed.  We have a lot of tawny owls living in the immediate area and we hear them almost every night but so far as I know I have never seen that particular owl again.