Some reading for a snowy day

As we have been advised to stay at home today and avoid the treacherous weather, I imagine that you will all be following that advice and may be casting around for something to fill your suddenly vacant hours, so here's to the rescue. (Don't say I never do anything for you.)
Younger Daughter teaches in a secondary school Somewhere in England. Early last week she was faced with a pupil who, despite several warnings, had spent the whole lession not doing any work. On being reminded that, as a result, he would have to stay behind, he took out his mobile phone and began to use it. YD asked him to give it to her, in accordance with school policy, which he refused to do. He picked up his bag and headed towards the door, but YD got there first and stood in front of him with her hand on the handle, whereupon, he pushed her roughly out of the way (all five foot two, seven and a half stone of her) and opened the door.
As luck would have it, the head teacher was passing by and witnessed the incident and the other 30 pupils in the class all supported her account of what had happened so he was told to go to the behaviour unit the next day as he was not allowed back in class. When he didn't do so, that meant a phone call to his mother. As she found herself quite unable to believe that her cherished son could possibly have behaved in this way, she insisted on a meeting with all the staff involved directly or indirectly. So on Friday, three or four staff spent an hour of their time meeting with the mother and her son, challenging, among other things, his assertion that actually YD had 'assaulted' him.
YD, of course, spent the interim days worrying about the possible outcome of this meeting (She has already been diagnosed with high levels of cortisol - at 25 years of age) because she knows from experience, that she does not always get the support she needs from senior staff where behaviour is concerned.
And the boy? Eventually and very grudgingly, he apologised. Sanctions? None.
Possibility of further disruptive behaviour? Very high.

Is your journey really necessary?

"Heavy snow hits much of England" says a news headline on my homepage, so I turn to read more here and, guess what? It has actually snowed in Wales and Scotland as well, not that you would know, of course, unless you live in those areas. If it's happening in the south-east, we get to hear about it ad infinitum and I sit here watching BBC Breakfast and wondering, not for the first time, why it is that everything grinds to a halt as soon as the white stuff puts in an appearance. We knew this was coming days ago, the Highways Agency maintain that they have extra officers out and gritters have been working through the night and "Everything is under control, folks!" People in Russia, Scandinavia, Canada and other places where snow is a common occurrence, must be laughing their socks off at us.
What I am really amazed at, however, is that there is no bus service in London at all. That is not to say the buses are not running. According the the item on the link above, the passengers have been standing at the bus stops for lengthy periods, only to see empty buses sailing past. Is it too simplistic to wonder why, if they are on the roads at all, they can't actually do their job and convey passengers from A to B? Can't be the wrong kind of snow. Maybe it's the wrong kind of passengers.

An adoption is announced

Paddy (Reserved)


· Border Terrier Cross
· Approx. 5 - 6 yrs
· Male
· Small Size
· Moderate Grooming Requirement
· Moderate / High Energy Levels
· Re-home

Description

Paddy arrived at the rescue underweight and a little nervy; gradually he is gaining weight and developing his personality.
He has a calm nature and is generally quite placid. He desperately needs an owner who has time to give him some much needed TLC. Once he has gained condition, confidence and his true terrier nature develops he will need a moderate to high level of exercise and mental stimulation to satisfy his needs. Paddy needs to be in a calm environment with no young children so that he can have the space he needs to adjust to family life.

There's a whisper that this little fellow may soon be coming to take up residence chez Jennyta. How about that!
PS. Anyone looking for an animal to rehome in North Wales, just head over to this site and take your pick.

National Shed Week

I think someone on Radio 4 said, on Sunday, that this week is National Shed Week. If this is true, it will probably be of great importance to Younger Son.
When he was in his teens, YS was very keen on animals, so eventually we had 13 rabbits, various mice, rats, hamsters, gerbils, chipmunks, chinchillas and probably many other small furry creatures that I have now forgotten about. (Notice I am not including the water snake in this, as that belonged to Elder Son.) Oh, and then there were the fish, lots of them in the huge pond that he constructed, so huge that I had to tread water whenever I hung out the washing.
However, the link to National Shed Week is that YS had three of them. Birthday and Christmas presents tended to be shed-related for a few years and, as well as providing homes for the multiplicity of small animals, they provided a valuable opportunity for him to learn and develop carpentry, building and electrical skills.
So, I hear you surmise, he's probably got his own pet shop by now. Well, actually no; he works in an office. But he does have an allotment, presumably with at least one shed on it.
Funny how things turn out...

Chickens

Elder Daughter has acquired some hens, three to be precise. They are ex-battery rescue hens, but although their feathers are a bit straggly in places, they are not in bad shape. Some arrive so badly pecked and plucked that they have to wear little woolly jumpers until the feathers grow back. These have names too, and personalities, apparently...
Meet Babs, Bette and Talulah, the Mother Cluckers! (Her wording, not mine, ;))

Northern Rock bonuses

Northern Rock employees are apparently about to receive large bonuses, for having met targets for repaying the £26 billion loan from the government, which of course, translates into the £26 billion loan from you and me, the poor, benighted tax-payers. They deserve this, it is said, because they have 'worked exceptionally hard in extremely difficult circumstances.' I'm sure they have, just as I'm sure lots of people in other jobs throughout the country have, even to the point of agreeing to reductions in their hours so that colleagues would not be made redundant and being forced to take weeks, even months off work in order to avoid losing their jobs.
Once again, this is an example of how banks and other financial institutions appear to lead a charmed life, with no consequences no matter what actions they take.
Call me naive, but I, in my simplicity, would have thought that those members of the public who have chosen to save their money with Northern Rock since its nationalisation have played at least some part.

Gas bills

So British Gas are about to graciously reduce our bills by 10%. Good of them considering it is now (hopefully) near the end of winter and that a few months ago they increased them by an eye-watering 35%.