January 17

 Dogs galore

Dogs as pets. More common than ever, spurred on by Covid and lockdown.

Feeding, dressing and healing them has become highly profitable. 

Most of my family are into dogs, and I know what pleasure that gives them.and enjoy reading of the those important family members, child like  companions.

The latest is jet black Rufus, the delight of Owen, Karen and Robert, one of the oldest Siân’s  Austin.It made me sad seeing pictures of him looking ill and listless.

A worry for Siân as are the substantial vets fees. 

When Braydon Manor was flourishing it was  a perfect home for Beverley, Julio and their family of dogs. 

I like dogs but have  never had one.

I took to cats whom I have found good.companions - and needing less energy and cost.

One of ours, grey Smokey was Limpy for years after being knocked down by a car in Cardiff. Spot, was another of my favourites. He used to  follow me to school, padding through front gardens. One evening we thought we had lost him. He had followed us to the  pub near our home in Cardiff. It was not until two in the morning we realised he was missing, I got dressed and returned to the pub.He was sitting outside, still waiting for us.

An even worse experience was when Robert brought his Fluff  by car To Penarth for the day and we ‘lost” her… we frantically searched, even across to the pier and I made some Lost leaflets. 

Late evening, realising we had to tell Robert the bad news I kept calling her and there she was, curled up behind a curtain in the living room.

I am tempted to have a kitten when I go home and have had offers but I doubt if I will do so. 

January 16

 

Sad NHS

The NHS is beset by a sea of troubles, seemingly insoluble whichI I have seen for so long now day by day. 

The most obvious and basic is the shortage  of nurses and nursing assistants..

The staffing in my ward,  responsible for 27 patients, is permanently short. They certainly do their best in the circumstances, almost running past my room from early morning - patients  wake-up time 6am - to late at night. Long hours and short breaks.

Hard work, too.

I understand why they have  moved to strike for the first time  even if I think it should not be needed as it just makes matters worse.

Even more understandable is the uncertainty for staff which is a further worry. Of those  looking after me some can’t wait to retire, others to find a new less stressful, better paid job

I don’t blame them.

 January 15

Politics calming.

 After years of upheaval ending in the farcical and dangerous brief reign of Liz Truss, comparative calm has come to our political scene.

The frenetic days have mercifully given way to a quieter more adult, reasonable approach by the new prime minister and leader of the opposition.

Even Prime Minister’s Question time   Is interesting and often instructive.

Mr  Sunak is proving to be  thoughtful and forceful while Sir Keith Starmer is an effective speaker and advocate.

Both have their eyes on next year and a general election that could decide their and the country’s long term future

They need to combine caution with practical ideas and policies.

It is an intriguing time. 

January isn’t

Strikes

I have never liked strikes, now so hugely desrructive They have long become something of a ritual, a well rehearsed  dance with both sides denying blame.

Over many years reporting  I covered hundreds of strikes, almost weekly.

Very lowly paid, at less than a £1for a short piece in the hey heyday of the Rhymney Valley mining for short items. 

I remember the ‘swearing  strike’ when a miner insulted his boss. Those strikes usually lasted several days in which time I would have sold a couple of dozen.

It was easy money reporting for the press agencies and and national papers.

Only once  have I been directly involved in the NUJ - National Union of  Journalists - when I was on the South Wales Argus.

I carried on working, even covering some big stories including  a front page lead in our rival the South Wales Echo.

A couple of years later I became chairman of the Wales and Marches section of the Union.

 I

 January 12

Not so bad 

Looking back just a few weeks it was all gloom. An army of glum researchers and analysts were reporting massive problems caused by widespread inflation including some the most brutal for decades. that would engulf the country. It would be a disastrous winter  for millions, they firmly predicted.

And the media lapped it up, causing a shock wave of worry and despair.

But, as so often is the case of bold headlines and dire warnings, now in midwinter the situation  is not as dire as predicted. 

Of course there are millions struggling to manage on shrinking budgets and across the board inflation, and the latest problem, wide ranging strike action, but life is not desperate for a large proportion of the public.

The winter, wet and windy is milder than expected, saving heating and other costs while the lifestyle of millions is improving. 

Since Christmas the media is reporting an astonishing revival in fortune and opportunity for so many.

What was to be a disastrous Christmas has proved astonishingly successful  for a wide range of businesses, from supermarkets to travel.

The headlines tell a happier story : One after another they have been surprised by the revival in shopping, entertainment, and travel, announcing substantial profits.

Many have proved to be resilient and positive, outward looking.

D Staycation seems to have given way to travel, worldwide holidays booming, many at all in cost. 

Despite  what was expected to be a stranglehold of inflation, shoppers have been out in force not just for food, and essentials ibut across the board with luxuries selling well.

There is a downside, of course. Too many people, especially families are finding it going, penny pinching, still not managing to make ends, food banks busier than ever, but the overall picture is so much brighter, certainly from those gloom laden weeks of autumn.

Blogging againhp

Blogging again.

My optimism has been low for most of the seven months I have spent here - often non existent . So I am ultra cautious in letting it creep in now. But there are signs to raise hopes.

I am feeling well, no pain and desperate to get out of bed and start to walk again.

Talking, at last, with a doctor last weekend I explained how I needed to do it. I was allowed to get up for two hours and it looks as though I can do so again today. 

No reason has ever been given for me being confined to bed for so long.

I am convinced that if I can get up regularly for a few weeks I can be mobile again, ready to go back home

 A huge change of life. 

Two big new improvements will help…. at last having teeth, due any day now, and repaired hearing aids that are making a tremendous difference.

So, cause for optimism, but I have been disappointed and frustrated for so long it is still just a hope. The next few weeks will decide