Lady Diana Spencer lived an extraordinary yet tragically short life. She was born Diana Frances Spencer on 1 July 1961 into British nobility, growing up privileged on the grand Sandringham estate. Though shy, she was thrust into the global spotlight when her engagement to Prince Charles was announced in February 1981, having met just months earlier. Their spectacular royal wedding on 29 July 1981, enchanted the world, as over 750 million people tuned in on television.
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Friday, 29 December 2023
My Relationship to Prince William, Prince Harry and Diana Frances Spencer
Lady Diana Spencer lived an extraordinary yet tragically short life. She was born Diana Frances Spencer on 1 July 1961 into British nobility, growing up privileged on the grand Sandringham estate. Though shy, she was thrust into the global spotlight when her engagement to Prince Charles was announced in February 1981, having met just months earlier. Their spectacular royal wedding on 29 July 1981, enchanted the world, as over 750 million people tuned in on television.
Thursday, 28 December 2023
My Relationship to President Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln served as the 16th President of the United States from 4 March 1861 until death following his assassination on 15 April 1865.
Gettysburg Address
His assassination
Recommended Reading
My Relationship to President Abraham Lincoln
How many people living today might also be 8th cousins?
Wednesday, 27 December 2023
My Relationship to Helen Keller
Best Selling book Amazon.co.uk |
My Relationship to Helen Keller
13th cousins are quite distant...!
Royal Mail Redirection
COMPLAINT
REPLY
Thursday, 14 December 2023
Security Vulnerability Alert!
Thursday, 19 October 2023
Reporting vehicles without TAX or MOT
ADVERTISED FOR SALE
Report a vehicle with no MOT
- number plate (registration number)
- make and model
- colour
- location
Report an untaxed vehicle
Sunday, 8 October 2023
News from Number 13
This week I took Mum to see the nurse at the doctor's surgery, and then we decided to pop over to Fleetwood for the market.
If you'd like a bit more AI, here's the result of my query asking for ArticleBot for an item about two humorous ladies shopping in a supermarket (also adapted into AI Ally).
Tuesday, 19 September 2023
Corgi Appointment
I'm trying to get the gas service done at my Mum's old house.
I contacted Corgi Homeplan at the beginning of the month and they said that someone would be ringing to make an appointment. On the 5th my Mum took a call from someone who said he was "outside". My mum didn't understand and explained that she didn't live at the old address anymore and the phone call ended. Later, she told me the tale and it dawned on me that that was probably the engineer calling about the gas service. He must have turned up without making an appointment.
I called 1471 to get his number, called him back and explained the situation. He then arranged to make an appointment with us a few days later on Friday, the 8th. But on Friday the 8th I got a text message saying that he had to cancel because he had to go to the hospital.
My mum emailed Corgi, and they responded saying that the service had been done on the 5th and now wasn't due until next year.
I contacted Corgi explaining what had happened and they came back with a new appointment on the 15th. On the 14th my mum had to make an emergency appointment at the surgery needing me to take her, which was going to be on the 15th when the engineer was supposed to arrive to do the service. I emailed Corgi a couple of times to cancel the 15th, they didn't respond at first, but I then got text messages saying that the appointment was rearranged for Monday the 18th between 12 and 4 - in fact, there were three text messages confirming that
- but on the 18th I waited at Mum's empty house between 12 and 4 pm and no one turned up and no one called or texted me to say there'd been a change of plan. So, back to Corgi, who were very apologetic but were unable to contact the missing engineer.
So, now I wait in the hope of a new appointment.
Update...
So, a new appointment was arranged for Friday 22nd Sept. I was there from 8am until 12 noon. And you guessed it, he didn't turn up! I asked Corgi Homeplan to contact the engineer again. He phoned me, told me he'd do it on Monday 25th, that I should await his call before travelling to the premises. This time he turned up 5 minutes after I got there and the service was finally done.Tuesday, 12 September 2023
Tuesday, 5 September 2023
Rossall Beach
Paused for a moment during this evening's walk/litter pick to take this on Rossall Beach.
— at Rossall Beach
ROSSALL BEACH
Rossall Beach, with shingle and sand,
A coastal paradise so grand,
Dark clouds or clear blue skies above,
A place for peace and nature's love.
Swallows soar and dip and fly,
Seagulls glide across the sky,
When sun shines bright, a welcome heat,
A perfect spot to put up your feet.
Folk walk dogs and go for a run,
Or cycle along, or push their mum,
Anglers add bait and cast their line,
There's some, they say, who like their wine.
Rossall Beach, with all its charm,
A place to soothe, a tranquil balm,
Where worries cease and troubles end,
A haven where good memories blend.
©Alan D Winter 2023. All rights reserved.
Monday, 4 September 2023
Plant
This is my plant. It was about ten years old in 2013. Watered sometimes.
And Now.
And it's moved 3 times.
Friday, 25 August 2023
Tuesday, 22 August 2023
- Alan's Other Blogs
- Everyday Life Blog
- AI Discoverer (dabbling in Artificial Intelligence)
- Legends Story Time
- Alan's Walks in South West Bedfordshire
- Alan's Photography Blog
- Alan's Bytes and Pieces (IT related) Blog
- Alan's Blackpool and Lancashire Notes
- Alan's Hemel Hempstead Notes
- Houghton Regis Notes
Saturday, 25 February 2023
Planning in Houghton Regis: Monumental failure?
Linmere? I thought that area was going ok, as was HRN2, although I've never been a fan of renaming Thorn after the consortium's name of Bidwell West.
Mind you, I only landed in Houghton Regis at the end of 2006, and by then the developments were already a long way down the planning route. So, for me, it's been a journey of learning the footpaths, enjoying the walks, and recording what's been happening. There's still great walks to be had and it's important to keep on top of keeping those routes out from the urban mass as green as they can be. They're not only green corridors for wildlife, but also for humans and of course that means clearing up human (litter) waste, so people should help out with the Houghton Wombles where they can.
Sunday, 22 January 2023
Hemel Hempstead: Car Crash
In my late teens, I can recall crowding obliviously into a mini with about 7 other people and being driven by a drunk work colleague/friend from a disco in Kings Langley, back to my home in Hemel Hempstead.
Paul, the driver, went around sets of bollards the wrong way, drove fast, and irresponsibly. As I was in the back, and being squashed by lots of flesh, there was not a lot I could do to get him to stop.
Anyway, after driving recklessly he dropped most people off, and then myself.
He then carried on through Hemel Hempstead town centre, hit the brick wall in the central reservation, and put himself and another work colleague/friend in hospital for several weeks.
Lucky for the driver and other passengers no one was killed.
I didn't find out about the accident until a few days afterwards when I went to work. I had a lucky escape.
English Editor said,
In my youthful days, I recollect an incident where I found myself, regrettably oblivious, crammed inside a compact vehicle with approximately seven companions. The driver, Paul, who happened to be both a work colleague and a friend, was under the influence of alcohol as he spiritedly chauffeured us from a discotheque in Kings Langley to my abode in Hemel Hempstead.
Paul, in his intoxicated state, brazenly navigated through bollard sets in the opposite direction, propelled the vehicle with unwarranted speed, and exhibited a marked lack of responsibility. Unfortunately, being confined to the backseat and surrounded by a multitude of bodies, I found myself incapacitated to intervene and implore him to desist from his perilous course.
Subsequently, after his reckless escapade, he dropped off the majority of the passengers, including myself. Continuing his ill-advised journey, he proceeded through the heart of Hemel Hempstead town center, colliding with a brick wall that formed the central reservation. This grievous collision resulted in both Paul and another work colleague/friend being hospitalized for an extended duration of several weeks.
Fortuitously, no lives were lost among the driver and his fellow passengers. It was not until several days later, upon my arrival at work, that I learned of the unfortunate accident. I can only count myself fortunate to have escaped unscathed from this harrowing ordeal.
Pets: CATS - NO THANKS!
Well, I was amazed. Why pay for a cat?
I grew up with kittens crawling all over our house. The wild cats nearby were always procreating. Mum had some of them caught and put down, with help from the RSCPCA and like-minded neighbours, and some were taken in, weaned, and passed onto good homes after their earliest weeks of life.
I am sure that some were splayed before being passed on. Goodness only knows what the RSPCA and vets bills were, though to be fair, I think the RSPCA may have reduced their bill or didn't always charge.
Then we kept three of them; Patch, Whisky, and Hoppy. Patch was the oldest, wisest and cleverest cat I ever knew, and he lorded it over his wild cousins. A short-haired black and white, I would encourage him to walk around the perimeter of a disused bowling green with me. He would trot around, sniffing in the side bushes, as we went. Indoors, I trained him to sleep on a newspaper on a bed settee. You could practically have a conversation with him, and he seemed to make appropriate head nods.
Mum with "Patch" |
Patch also took great care to keep an eye out for the other two house cats; if there was ever any likelihood of a fight with the outsiders, he'd sort it out. He only had to sit in the middle of his yard, and the outsiders would go away.
"Patch" |
The three house cats would preen each other, licking each other's parts that they were unable to personally reach, like the back of the head. Whisky was a long-haired, ginger and white, cat, and by comparison to Patch, was quite dopey.
His fur used to get very tangled up, and Patch used to help him try to sort it out. Licking and licking. There's no doubt in my mind that the long hair made Whisky very hot in summer.
"Whisky" |
Finally, there was Hoppy, so called because she hopped around on account of (probably) having had a paw chewed off by her mother at birth. She was forever cutting the stub, so requiring lots of antibiotics and bandaging at various times. If she hurt that paw, you really felt it with her; it must have been so much agony. Because of these injuries, we rarely let her out, although she would often try to get out.
Unfortunately, one day, Hoppy made off through an open window on the first floor. There was an old chair about 4 feet below the window, and in turn, that chair was on the roof of a ground-floor building. I saw her go, and of course, I should have had the window closed. On the roof of the ground floor building, I think she whacked her stub again. She then panicked and leapt about 12 feet down towards the front door, where presumably she had decided to re-enter the house.
Well, that leap finished her. She fell onto the very hard surface, causing so much damage and injury, that it was decided it best to end her life.
Grandma was the name given to the female wild cat that was ALWAYS pregnant. She was Patch's mother, probably Hoppy's mother, and the mother of his sister, who I called Trixie; Patch and Trixie were so alike, except Trixie had a bit of ginger in her. But Trixie always stayed wild and had her own share of litters. So sooner had Grandma dropped a litter, than she was wailing for another mate.
The kittens we took in were a lot of fun — at times; we boys set up obstacle courses with cushions and cardboard boxes for them, for their amusement and our entertainment. So interesting watching them creep around corners, and pounce on one another. But the downside was kitten-poo and wee to clear up.
Obviously, you contain the area to be messed by not allowing them everywhere, and you train them where to go by putting their nose into their mess and then plonk them into the cat-litter box. But it all takes a while to teach and for them to learn.
No sooner were they trained, than it seemed they were sent off to new homes, and within a few weeks another batch of kittens was brought in from the wild.
The day Patch died was quite sad for me. He was probably about 10. I had been living away for a couple of years and had missed him. Then I moved back to my parents for a couple of months while my flat in Dunstable was being sold, and I was waiting for a house purchase to come through. It was while I was back there that Patch started staying out all night. He was in a neighbour's openly-accessed garden, just sitting on the pathway. Normally when I called him, he would come, but this time he wouldn't.
A couple of days passed. He would do a low growl if you tried to move him. I even persuaded Whisky to go and sit with him for a while! And he did!
Eventually, with great difficulty, he was manoeuvred into a vet box made of cardboard, and I started to carry him along the road to the vet. I'm sure he sensed where I was taking him. Suddenly, the cardboard box was soaked, as he had done a wee.
I struggled with the box, to keep him contained, and arrived without him having fallen through and run off.
But once at the vet's, that was that, unfortunately. Too ill to be recovered, you see.
So, with memories of cat hairs all over the house, recollections of school trousers always having pulled threads from crawling kittens, the ghastly smell of cat food on saucers, and cat litter always spreading out of the cat litter boxes, please forgive me. I'm afraid I couldn't put up with having a cat again.
STV - Are Votes Fair? - Something I wrote in the 1980s
Are Votes Fair?
The Story of Fed-Upshire County By-Elections by Alan D. Winter
Purpose: A read and discuss document aimed at schools, education. An Argument for Repeal of the First Past The Post Electoral Method.
The election results were being announced for the three vacant seats on Fed-Upshire County Council. Party workers and helpers stood expectantly in huddles around the great hall.
"Here are the results of the Town division," announced the Returning Officer, " Harold Boggins, Conservative, 333; Fred Tike, Liberal Democrat, 1710; Benjamin Wasnik, Labour, 2957. I duly declare Benjamin Wasnik the county councillor for Town division."
Cheers from Labour supporters.
Later,
"Here are the results of the Country division. Mary Flower, Labour, 910; David Snelling, Liberal Democrat, 1754; Susan Topple, Conservative, 2113. I duly declare Susan Topple the County Councillor for Country Division."
Cheers from Conservative supporters.
Then, several hours later, after three recounts,
"Here are the results of the Village division. Graham Duke, Liberal Democrat 2040; Larry Lake, Labour 910; Samuel Rasping, Conservative, 2050. I duly declare Samuel Rasping the County Councillor for Village division."
More cheers from Conservative supporters.
" 2-1 to us " declared Tory agent John Minor. "I don't know how we have done it, but congratulations all round, team. "
Liberal Democrats looked the most down hearted. In all seats they had finished second. And there are no prizes for coming second. The closest they came to winning was in Village, pipped by 10 votes after three re-counts. Labour had won the Town seat and the Tories had won the Country and Village seats.
Labour had hoped to do better, but were content with winning one seat. Tony, the Labour agent, came over to speak to John, the Conservative agent.
"Congratulations. That was close thing in Village with the Liberals. "
"Yes. I didn't think we were going to make it. All turned out well in the end," smiled John.
On hearing this remark, Charles, the Liberal Democrat agent, interrupted them.
"Well, I suppose congratulations are in order, but I have to say, I did not think it turned out well at all. You Tories got less votes than us or Labour and yet you succeeded in electing two councillors. In fact, overall, we had a thousand more votes than Conservatives, and 500 more than Labour. The corrupt voting system wins again. Once again the voters are misrepresented in the Council chambers. "
Charles showed the other two the actual votes casts for all three seats.
" I don't mind telling you I am gutted, " continued Charles, "More voters voted for us than they did for Conservative or Labour, and yet we didn't get a single Liberal Democrat elected to the council. It isn't the Liberal Democrats I am sorry for, it is the voting public. They didn't get what they wanted. "
ARE VOTES FAIR?
- Which party received the most votes overall?
- Which party achieved the most councillors elected?
- Do the 1133 votes cast for Labour in "Country" have any value in electing a Labour councillor for "Town" division?
- How will the votes of 5500 Liberal Democrat voters (more than a third of all the votes cast) find an expression in the council chamber?
- Find the party with the lowest Total number of votes. How will these voters be represented in the Council chamber?
- Is this system of elections fair?
- Can you suggest any improvements to the voting system to make it fairer?
Votes Cast In The Fed-Upshire Elections
Town | Country | Village | Total | |
Conservative | 337 | 2113 | 2050 | 4500 |
Liberal Democrats | 1706 | 1754 | 2040 | 5500 |
Labour | 2957 | 1133 | 910 | 5000 |
Total Votes | 5000 | 5000 | 5000 | 15000 |
LAB WIN | CON WIN | CON WIN |
Learn More about Single Transferable Vote
© A. D. Winter