The First Sunday Musings In July

~ beetleypete

Well, the small heatwave of June changed to cloudy and humid conditions with greatly reduced temperatures. There has still been almost no rain, little more than light showers. But I am not complaining about that, as we get more than our fair share of rain at other times.

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Ollie has started to lose some fur in small patches, triggered by the heat, and his constant dips in the river. I am hoping this will not mean another trip to the Vet, but at least he has found his appetite again, and is eating heartily.

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As I approach the seventh month since my application, I have still not received my renewed driving licence. This despite involving my member of parliament, the police, my hospital consultant, and passing the DVLA eye test last month. I am continuing to drive though, as I refuse to be imprisoned in Beetley by their incompetence.

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The summer season brings the annual television woes, as Wimbledon Tennis (and football later) dominates programming. This is the time of year to be grateful that we have a PVR, access to Netflix, and the ability to access ‘catch-up’ TV via a streaming box.

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Prices continue to rise, despite the obscene profits enjoyed by the big oil companies, online retailers like Amazon, and the five major supermarkets. On Monday, the cheapest unleaded fuel in this area was £2 a litre, which is £10 a gallon. (Diesel for my car was almost £1 more a gallon) We are being taken for fools by this government and their rich cronies, but short of armed revolution, I can see no way out of the downward spiral of Britain.

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The world is going crazy, and working people are paying the price for billionaires to get richer. But try to forget that, and enjoy your Sunday.

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65 thoughts on “The First Sunday Musings In July”

  1. Prices for everything going up here in Australia, too. These days we watch very little tv. Doctor Who when it’s on, Grand Designs and a few local productions. Not much else, and yes, the sporting coverage is…booooorrrrrrriiiiing!

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    1. July is always packed with sport in this country, and almost every single event is televised ad nauseum. Then they have programmes that ‘review’ the sport later, followed by ‘highlights’ even later. It is relentless.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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    1. We are set to warm up again this week. The local water company is warning of ‘drought conditions’! That makes me laugh, after all the rain we had earlier in the year.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  4. I honestly think they should soon act against increasing prices, because here they forgot to give back serviced gas turbines to Russia. It is a purely “German thing”, because Siemens Energy have them stored in Canada. Let us hope the best! Best wishes, Michael

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    1. There have been many protests here about the price of petrol and diesel, but the government is looking after their friends in the oil companies, and enjoying the 46% tax on our fuel.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  7. everything is certainly up and we are all making adjustments and doing the best we can. it’s challenging and I worry about the people who have the least already, trying to make it through.

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  8. Gas here is so costly too, so with basic commodities and grocery items. I went to the market yesterday and I was surprised at the cost some items which used to be cheap.

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    1. Some things increase dramatically in one week. Our shower-gel has cost £2 for years. Last week it was £3. That’s a big percentage increase on one item.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  9. I am a tennis fan so enjoying the coverage though I do agree there is too much. Stuck at home though as my car broke down on Wednesday, got towed to my garage who are short staffed and busy, so I still don’t know what is wrong, whether it can be fixed, or at what cost. And we have to walk a mile to catch a bus, uphill on the way back, but taxi fares are extortionate here.

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    1. A taxi from Beetley to Dereham -just over 3 miles- costs £11 each way, slightly more at night. We can get a bus at the end of the street, but the last one back from town leaves at 5:10 pm. Not much use for a night out. That’s why my driving licence is crucial to living here.
      I hope you get your car fixed soon, and it doesn’t cost too much. (I know you like tennis. 🙂 )
      Best wishes, Pete. x

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  10. (1) We always get a light shower in the summer, thanks to the Perseids.
    (2) Hannibal Lecter’s diet has been patchy of late. But he has found his appetite again, and is eating heartily.
    (3) “As I approach the seventh month since my application, I have still not received my driving licence. Helios just keeps hemming and hawing! So I’m going to take the chariot out for a spin anyway! I mean, really, what’s the worst that could happen?” (Phaëthon)
    (4) Back in Missouri, we called a “streaming box” a jon boat.
    (5) If Britain continues its downward spiral, Brits will be screwed.
    (6) I’m doing my part to rein in the billionaires. I don’t contribute a dime to their GoFundMe account!

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  13. I am not a tennis person either. No longer watch TV but always hated when everything was taken over by sport or some horrible parade. Things are bad in Britain and beginning to be worse here. Can only read a limited amount of news. My only “power” is to vote and certain parties are keen to remove that privilege which is a joke in any case. Electoral College and “Fake” elections. 56% of Americans reportedly believe the government is corrupt and that we should arm ourselves.

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    1. Things are definitely worse in America, Carolyn. Half the population seems to be lurching to the Far Right. As for TV, I don’t follow any sport, so never watch any of it on TV, especially long tournaments, or Olympics.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  14. Our trips to the grocery store results in an increase every time we go. Our gasoline is still under $5 a gallon and we only drive when absolutely necessary. I have been watching FreeVee (what was once IMDB). Yesterday I watched the original Perry Mason series. The acting is dated, but I love the black and white and the old cars, etc.

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    1. I am well-aware Tennis has a lot of fans, Stevie. I just wish the BBC would show it all on one channel, and give us something else to watch for two weeks.
      (The petrol price I mentioned was at Tesco, charging £1.99.9 a litre. I rounded that up to £2)
      Best wishes, Pete.

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    1. Over here, it is the cost of petrol/diesel pushing up the cost of everything. And we now have home-care workers resigning because they are spending so much of their salary driving to clients in their own cars.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  18. Here the prices are through the roof as well, in everything, especially energy (electricity, gas, petrol) and food, but, of course, that affects everything else, because all businesses (small and big) depend on energy as well, and, everybody has to eat, although less fancifully these days. Living in a big city I don’t drive and I don’t have a car now, but the rest is expensive anyway. I hope Ollie’s hair thing improves quickly, and it’s good to hear his appetite is better. As to the driving licence… I think you’ve heard it all by now.

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    1. Thanks, Olga. The price of pertrol/diesel here is now some of the most expensive in the world, and almost twice as high as in the USA. That is affecting everything, as you say. But there is no need for it to be so high, when the Oil companies are making reord profits.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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    1. We have to be more careful on fixed incomes, but my wife has offered to do some overtime shifts where she works, to guarantee we can have a short holiday in September. Nothing fancy, just one week by the seaside in Lincolnshire.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  21. Plenty of rain [albeit intermittently] here, Pete; glowering clouds again today, with just the occasional glimpse of sun. Par for the course for the British summer though, I fear. I was looking forward to a birthday barbecue today with my elder daughter & family [a few days early, but convenient on Sunday] but she’s succumbed to Rona 😉 so that’s off the agenda, for the time being anyway. Luckily, I had a steak in the freezer, as a poor substitute. All the best, cheers, Jon.

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  22. How do people on fixed incomes in England get along in this kind of inflationary economy? Does England have any kind of relief programs to help the elderly and the unemployed?

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    1. There are benefit payments available, but they don’t provide enough to counter the current huge price increases. One government minister suggested that people who cannot afford to heat their homes should ‘wear more clothes’. This present government is very callous, the worst I have seen in my lifetime.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  23. OMG Pete, Gasoline (Petrol) here in the USA is almost $5 per gallon (It was Six dollars in California but it has come down a bit, and the people are still bitching and moaning about it all. Your petrol is now above 12 US Dollars? That is outrageous. How are your food prices these days?

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    1. A big supermarket shop has increased from around £85 to nearer £99 in three months. That lasts the two of us (and Ollie) for one week. For a family of four, it will be nearer £140. The fuel prices are hitting the country the hardest though, John.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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