A nice day for a quick stroll through the park. A couple amble toward the edge of the lake and the local population of waterfowl converge on them, hoping for their morning supply of bread, which they were duly offered and a mad scramble for damp morsels ensued. One seabird seems to have gotten annoyed at one of the geese. It glided on the wind, stationary above the offending goose, wings gently rocking from side to side as it assumed the optimum position, then dived on him again and again. The flustered goose gave up trying to feed and looking a little dejected swam away from the combat zone.

meanwhile in town the drab pedestrianised Theatre Square is slowly becoming known as the Artists Quarter. The old Post Office building is an art gallery, and two empty shops are being used as extensions, including the one that had that 'What Is Hope?' exhibition in the window. Pipes and berets anyone? No, I didn't think so either.

Bills That Hurt

Gas prices are still set to rise inexorably. How long can this go on? Yesterday I received a gass bill which I compared with one from a few years back. I used half the amount of gas this last winter and owe the company a few quid above my regular payments, whereas back then they owed me more than a hundred. That's quite an extraordinary hike in prices.

It means I have to make some very hard decisions about how to keep myself financially secure. Sorry Mr Dentist, but my appointment is cancelled. Nothing to do with an agonising thirty minutes of medieval prodding and suction pumps, but simply a matter of avoiding big bills. It also means that a good hot bath is back on the once-a-year treat list, and again I turn back to sponge baths to keep clean.

Little luxuries make life very pleasant but oh how easily we take them for granted. For now I'll have to grin and bear it.

Not Always For Free

I got an email from my email service provider, or more exactly, their billing department. Apparently they've had trouble processing this months payments. Eh? I thought this email service was free? It says so on their webpage. Why do they need my credit card details and why are they threatening to terminate the service if I don't provide the info? A part of me wonders if this isn't some sophisticated con (apparently it's called 'phfishing' or something like that), or perhaps some incredible bureaucratic cock-up. Anyhow, one strongly worded email sent to Customer Support, and no update. How could I? The bank withdrew my credit card.