CCS concert in Cambridge

A reminder that my wife is taking part in a Cambridge concert in April. Tickets are available by post or on the door. If you are local, you may want to come. Tickets for children are very inexpensive.

Like

If you see a group of young people, it seems every other word is "like".  Is this the new "um" or "ah"?  I am definitely becoming a grumpy old man as I find this very annoying. It grates on me so much.  I want to go up and say,"do you realise you said "like" 12 times in the last 2 minutes?". Then I think, what is the point? No some things are best not said.

What happens when we die?

As one gets older - I am now 67 - I suppose thoughts naturally turn to the end of life. It comes to us all, but we prefer not to think about it.

I honestly have no idea and the most likely is we'll not be aware, as we were before we were born, so it may not matter.  MAN has a real problem with finality, and nearly every religion has talk of life after death. It bothers me that some are so certain about this. At the moment I have an open mind. Like so much in this universe, or even multiverses, we really have no idea.

Wisbech

As the weather was good today (I never believe the weather forecasts these days) we drove up to Wisbech and visited the gardens at Peckover House (NT). We also ate there.

Afterwards we went to the market and bought some sprouts. At one time this must have been a fine town with merchant's houses lining the river.  These days it looks a bit drab and run-down. It is a hub for immigrants from Eastern Europe who work in the agricultural  business. Good luck to them.

By the way, these sprouts cost us £1.  Pheasants were £2.99 each.

Old friends

Today, we had a couple of old friends around for lunch. We have known this couple since the 1970s although we went over a year since we last saw them. It's funny how we soon "connect" again. This is often a good indication of real friends - one just picks up where one last left off.

FTSE 100

At the moment the FTSE 100 share index has recovered about 2%, although some think a fall to 5200-5300 could happen. It certainly feels "wobbly".  If I was a betting man, I would expect heavy falls, but I am not a betting man. The markets don't like the slowdown in China, the general gloom around prospects in the world economy, and the rapidly falling oil price.

At some point, not too far away, the whole economy of the world has to change with a realisation that fairness is important and that resources are limited. Growth as a mantra for years will no longer be the watchword. You wait.

Weather better

After an overnight frost and a cold, dull morning, we are now bathed in winter sunshine. It is still very cold - much colder than it has been - but there is a blue sky and sunshine this afternoon.