Cans, Crap and Crocuses
If you walk through Friary Gardens this week you will see the lovely Daffodils and Crocuses in full flower under the trees, making a beautiful woodland scene slap bang in the middle of Richmond.
You will also see a number of carelessly discarded empty cans of McEwans export chucked away by some dysfunctional youth(s) oblivious to anything in the world but their own desire to get pissed or high in the name of having a good time.
The Friary Gardens have long been a Jewel in Richmond for both the local population and visitors, with the well-kept flowerbeds a joy in the spring and summer months, and for me at least, a haven of peace in the darker months.
The District Council have finally come round to the idea that the gardens are good for the town (though they did try to get out of looking after them a few years back), so it’s about time the police got to grips with the drunken yobs that all too often frequent these beautiful gardens.
I suppose I could look on the bright side… at least there isn’t the minefield of dog crap along the footpaths anymore, no - the lazy dog owners have all moved to Castle Walk!


It’s the 5th of February and our caged Christmas tree stands sadly in the market place like a forlorn and forgotten prisoner.
and I’m sure everyone concerned gets on with the job with the best intentions…
No artificial flavours, no artificial colours, no hydrogenated vegetable oil - just a good honest chocolate wholemeal biscuit.
When we’re born our bodies are to be turned over to the state…. we’ll be bar-coded at birth and pitched to the highest bidder.
Why oh why do we have to put up with postal delays, just because it’s Christmas? I have been waiting for some quite important mail for the last few days now - posted with first class stamps - which would normally only take 1 day to arrive.
This is what the sky looked like from my office window this evening at about 4.30… just thought I’d share it with anyone who’s interested. Who needs Christmas lights with this kind of thing going on!… just as well really ‘cos they ain’t working tonight!

Recently, I’ve needed to use the public transport system from Richmond to Catterick Garrison, a journey of about 2 1/2 miles. After a week of being put through misery, torture and hell - with possibly another week to follow - I can honestly say that the local bus trip is just not worth the suffering it can inflict. Not only are the buses dirty, smelly, quite often late, (or even too early so you miss them!) they are too damned expensive. I have great sympathy for all those poor souls who have to use the buses as a matter of course.




So Lewis Hamilton can’t bear it in this country any longer - off he goes to Switzerland so he can get away from his fans and fame.
As it’s now half term, and I don’t take the sprog to school for a week, I can enjoy a different, far more enjoyable route to work than the one mentioned in my previous post.
If there’s one thing that really hacks me off (ok, I know there’s more than just one!) it’s cars, and in this case, lorries that park on the pavement.
Here’s an aspect of Richmond that is probably never seen or noticed by more than a handful of people… it’s a shame because it’s a surprisingly uplifting one for me.
A blog about Richmond and some other stuff too...