Evidence of recession

It was good to see Angie and John at the weekend, even if it was a bit brief and confined to less than an hour on Sunday morning. Discussing the work situation with John is came out that his employer (a small construction firm) cancelled all overtime 2 months ago, some staff had been lost by natural wastage and others had been laid off (in total 12 jobs had gone) and that this week there is a meeting planned to discuss a 10% pay cut. He’s already taken a significant hit by loosing the overtime element, but as he puts it “it’s better that Job Seekers’ Allowance”. I’ll vouch to that!

On the job search front, yesterday was a right mixture. Most of the day was a downer, 17 email alerts (some 44 jobs) and not one for which I’d consider myself suitable, or, hadn’t already chased. Two phone calls just after midday from agencies saying that the roles I’d been put forward for were not going to call me for interview, then late afternoon a call to say I’d got myself another telephone interview for 11am Wednesday (tomorrow). This afternoon I’m off to Solihull for what will be my first interview since Trinity terminated my employment -- I still find myself searching for their reason for doing so, but accept that I will never know the truth. But that's the past and this interview could be my future, so it's best (new) suit and polished shoes, leave in plenty of time, drive nice and steady and fingers crossed that I put myself across as the man for the job.

Not a bad week, all told

So at the end of this week spirits are still up and I'm staying positive. Tuesday coming I've an interview in Solihull and then on Friday I've a telephone interview in the morning and a face to face interview in Nottingham just after midday. I've somewhere around another 8 - 10 jobs that I've applied for where I'm waiting to hear back and so far only 2 have notified me that I'm not being considered. There are definitely jobs out there to be had, the problem is getting considered.

Mother had a check up at the hospital this week, no bad news though they are not really sure whats causing her headaches and tummy pains. My view is that it's the stress she's under looking after Dad. He also went in to hospital for an investigation on his waterworks problems, but, he too came away with a clean bill of health and no real answer as to why he has sediment in his catheter.

Mark has had a week of training ready for his summer job that he'll be doing for the next 6 weeks as a Play Care attendant -- just hope the scheme is better attended this year. Two years ago they were inundated, so last year they doubled the cost of attending and as a result hardly any kids attended. Hopefully they have learnt from their mistakes and priced it accordingly.

Suzie was a Presiding Officer on the local by-election yesterday -- the Lib Dems got back in so Derby is still under their control as they have 2 more councillors than Labour. Didn't the SNP do well on home soil up in Scotland though. Hopefully the long knives will soon be out for Gordon Brown.

Angie and John are up and staying with Mum & Dad this weekend and Norman next door has his birthday on Sunday and is (weather permitting) having a BBQ Saturday for us all to celebrate with him. So let's all hope that we don't get any of the forecasted rain (the BBC are rarely correct these days so we should therefore see more of the sun) and we can all have a nice, well earned, relaxing weekend.

Dad is back home

After a week in the Helen Ley Centre father is back home safe and sound and appears to have enjoyed the break. Mum needed the break more than dad did, and it took until Thursday for her to feel any benefit of his not being there, but, he's back and things are quickly returning to normal. I went down for mid-day in anticipation of turning up at about the same time as the ambulance to lend some muscle to the ambulance crew, and get him indoors, and, I later went down at 19:45 to see how they were but mum's home helpers from Care UK were there so I didn't stop, no need for me to hang around when they are on hand to put him to bed.

I think one of the things dad enjoyed was the actual trips to and from Leamington Spa because even though he was laid out on a streatcher he could see out of the vehicle and he's not been able to do that for over 2 years now.

I just love riding

Many people, many much wiser than myself, have tried to diseminate exactly what it is about riding a motorbike that:-
* Puts that stupid great big grin on my face
* Gives me the buzz that I only get when riding
* Makes me feel so alive
All in a way that nothing else can or does.

I have thought about it many times over the years. I don't have the most expensive, most exotic, most powerful or best handling motorbike. My gear is all bought on a tight budget or has been bought for me (presents at birthday or Christmas) but it does the job.

So why then do I get such a buzz from a simple 5 mile trip to the Job Centre office (to sign on) and the trip back? Why do I get that lift to my spirits that instantly puts that great big grin on my face even though I'm riding cross town? Suzie says I'm sad. Whatever. All I know is that it works for me and I love riding my motorbike!

Mamma Mia

Thursday started quietly on the job hunting front then got busier as the day progressed. Inbound calls from agencies, then writing covering letters to accompany job applications following up email notices of roles posted on various job boards and closing with a flurry of emails and phone calls.

And so it was againt today, nothing much before mid-day then madness for most of the afternoon. Since returning from Lanzarote I must have spoken to around 20 agency personnel and the general impression I get is that the jobs are out there but things are moving slowly as we start the school holiday season (commonly known as the silly season).

To cheer me up Suzie treated me to a visit to the cinema, the new one up in the top of the Westfield Centre in Derby. Nice and comfortable it is too, so unlike the old flea pits of my youth with plenty of leg room (though the people behind us still managed to tap their way through the film on the back of our seats). Overall, a real tonic and a great pick me up. We'd seen the show in Las Vegas in 2006, seen the documentary about the making of the film, then here we were watching the film in comfort. If you like big name stars, an easy to follow, loose and easy plot/story line and loads of ABBA music then treat yourself to a couple of hours in the cinema. We will certainly be getting the DVD when it comes out.

A day in the city

Mark and his girlfriend had a day out to London. A couple of cheap coach tickets from Derby to Victoria Coach Station meant I was dropping them down in Derby for a 7am start which should have got them into London for 10:45, but, traffic hold-ups meant they were a half hour late. After a good day sight seeing they caught their return coach at 17:30 only for the bus to overheat and breakdown. The coach was replaced after they limped into Leicester and they got back and hour late.

Journies aside -- it appears that they had a good day out, seeing the back end of the Changing of the Guard before taking a ride on the London Eye, plus a bit of window shopping in Oxford Street and a walk in the park. All as a belated birthday treat for Eleanor. Nice!

So far so good

After having such a good start to the week I was expecting, and prepared for, the rest of the week to be a real downer. Not so. Still getting inbound contacts from agencies who have found my CV and want more information or want to discuss possible positions, and notifications that my CV has been submitted/received.

Currently I’m waiting to see if I'll be getting to attend an assessment day at Experian which I'm both looking forward to and dreading in equal measure, should hear in a couple of days with any luck.

Monday, Monday

"Monday, Monday, so good to me..." for those of you old enough to remember, those are the words of a song from the 60's group the Mamas and the Papas. It rang true yesterday though...

My first Monday (this time around) spent searching for a job, and it turned out to be a good one. Last week I put my updated CV onto a number of job sites so Monday morning saw a fair barrage of emails from searches I’d set up. The day saw me applying for 5 jobs in the Midlands area before heading off to the Normanton Road Job Centre Plus office to arrive in time for my appointment which, because it’s my first visit for this claim is actually 2 appointments. Anyway, for my troubles I have committed to applying for at least 3 jobs a week, logging on to their website or visiting their office (to use their computers) at least once a week and signing on at The Wardwick Job Centre Plus office once a fortnight. Wow!

The trip to and from the Job Centre Plus office came close to being the highlight of the day as I used the motorbike – only 5 miles each way but boy, does it put a smile on my face! I just love riding that bike of mine. On returning home I updated my profile on 2 more web sites so that now I have up-to-date details and CV on Monster Jobs, CW Jobs, Planet Recruit, Jobserve, Jobsite, Total Jobs and the IT Job Board (and I’ve still a few more to visit this time around).

The day ended with a phone call to say that I’d earned myself a telephone interview for the BA role at Egg in Derby, to be held… wait for it…. At 10am on Monday 28th July! No hurry there then. Joking and sarcasm aside, it was just the tonic to end the day on a high note.

Apart from job hunting, what else happened yesterday? I took a trip to the local DIY centre and bought a cat flap to replace the one I broke Sunday night, returned and fitted it. I did two machine loads of washing, had a visit from mother while she was out walking the dog, and I cooked spaghetti bolognese for the family dinner. Somewhere in there I found time to post on this blog and visit the Deauville Owners forum and read/post on there. Mark’s girlfriend Eleanor turned up late evening with a bunch of flowers for Suzie and a bottle of Chardonnay for me as a thank you for taking her with us to holiday in Lanzarote -- quite unnecessary but much appreciated.

The Weekend

Saturday was dominated by the transfer of Dad from home to the Helen Ley Centre at Leamington Spa. Firstly, Andy and I had to go and help manhandle him (on the stretcher) out of the bungalow because he was too much for the two female operatives of the (private) ambulance sent to collect him. Then I took mother down to the Helen Ley Centre so that she could check him in and make sure he was comfortable. It’s the best Care Centre I’ve seen, better than the Nuffield Hospital in Derby that I’ve attended in the past at BUPA’s expense. Spacious, plenty of cheerful staff, well planned and with all the facilities one would expect of a care centre that specialises in sufferers of MS. It came highly recommended and I can see why. He should be comfortable there for a week and mother should get that much needed rest she deserves. While mother did the booking in chores I stayed with him while the day staff unpacked his stuff, made him comfortable, found him some lunch and fed it to him -- he can’t even do that now, it’s pitiful watching him try and I find it all very upsetting! We got back home about 3pm.

Sunday I decided that as the weather was nice and bright and sunny and warm/hot to do a spot of gardening out the front of the house -- hedge trimming, grass cutting and picking up other people’s litter that had blown in on the recent winds. Though I say it myself it did look a lot better for it. Our friend Dave called in for elevenses (regular Sunday morning occurrence) on his way to see his parents for lunch in Nuneaton. We had mother up to join us for lunch after she’d returned from walking Sheba in a park on the other side of the city. As Mark had gone off for the day (ripping a Land Rover to pieces for restoration) and there were no girlfriends for us to feed it was Suzie, me, Andy & mother round the Sunday dinner table. Afterwards mother had to sleep off the glass of wine that she had with the meal -- still that didn’t do her any harm. Mum went home and I carried on out the front, mainly clearing up and putting the tools away. Mark returned home just in time to go off with his mother and play badminton at 8pm with Fred (just returned from a cruise) and Dave (freshly fed by his dear mum). Fred came in afterwards and we swapped holiday stories and he sat through Suzie’s holiday photos and together we sank some whiskey I brought back from Lanzarote. A nice way to end the day & the weekend.

Ending on a High

The week has ended on a high note. Mark re-took his driving test today and passed with 7 minors, but for now he will be staying on 2 wheels as he can afford to run his Suzuki Burgman 400cc scooter but doubts that he’ll be able to finance a car.

With just 4 days under my belt searching out possible jobs, I have to say that on balance it’s been a good week. The old perennials are still kicking around, by that I mean Egg, Eon & Capital One -- all 3 companies seem to be constantly advertising for Business Analysts but never get in contact, supply feedback or invite to interview and one gets the impression that they probably aren’t worth pursuing for long term employment prospects. However, my week has ended with recruitment agencies again sticking my CV into these organisations. On top of that it’s also gone out to a further 3 companies who aren’t known for frequently advertising positions and who use single or shortlisted "preferred supplier" agencies -- something that is encouraging for applicants in my position.

So I end the week knowing that my CV has gone out to 6 potential employees and that I’ve spoken to nearly double that number of recruitment agencies, some I’ve been in contact with before while others are for the first time. The weather forecast is promising better conditions than the cloud and rain we’ve endured since returning from Lanzarote so it might just be possible to get the bike out and go for a ride on Sunday. If not, there’s always the MotoGP from the Saxonring to look forward to. Before that, on Saturday Dad is off to the Helen Ley rest home which specialises in MS sufferers for a week of respite, both for him and Mother who is staying home for a long overdue break (as his carer).

Taxing the Road User

Road Fund Tax, Fuel Duty, Toll Roads, Car Purchase Tax, Car Insurance Tax.... PLUS there’s the little matter of VAT on top of all of that! The list just goes on and on!

Now it's not news to any of us that The Government, through The Treasury, already levy a hefty charge on road users by way of taxation on fuel which is subject to both Fuel Duty and VAT.

And it's no surprise that they want to tax us even more heavily!

But the difference is that now they want to use technology to levy a new and supposedly different charge which they are calling Congestion Charge. Only they can’t make their mind up, they (The Government) have no real strategy so they (The Government) also want to bring in road pricing!

They plan to do this by introducing hi-tech tracking devices that encourage people to stay off major routes and use rat runs. The road system in the UK has evolved to meet the need – the NEED for people to move between their place of residence and their place of work. Introducing hi-tech tracking devices will not remove that NEED, people will still NEED to go to work.

And they (The Government) are ignoring all the other problems:-
Uninsured drivers – the cost of insurance is forever going up. This year the increases are not because accident rates are going up, or because the percentage of young drivers has increased. No, the main factor in this year’s increases is the cost of flood damage to property as a result of the spring floods which in many cases could have been avoided if expenditure on maintenance of drainage systems had not been reduced due to budgetary cut-backs imposed by The Government. Why should the motorist pay for general accident claims resulting from flooding? Those that claimed will loose their NCD. Rates for Home and Business property and contents should go up IF the insurance companies are to recover some of their losses. But why should insurance for vehicles go up unless there were significant payouts for damage to vehicles (which there shouldn’t be as generally speaking, vehicles can be moved away from floods and flooding).

The unemployed & long term sick – again, they (The Government) want to reduce the people on benefits. Why? If you get them back into work then they will have to travel, so congestion will increase. Leave them at home, keep them off the road – just don’t pay them benefits. No benefits will mean that they find work (could be a problem, leads to commuting) or survive by living of savings (that’s OK) or turn to crime (end up in prison, no commuting there) or become homeless (no need to commute, just stay at work) or die (that’s cost effective). But if they (The Government) don’t want us commuting then they should look at ways of getting us OUT of work!

Immigration - strange but immigration IS a factor here. Firstly, do they really think that illegal immigrants will drive cars that are legally registered, insured and fitted with a hi-tech tracking device? Of course they won’t, like all criminal classes they will find a way round the monitoring. And if the immigrants know that they will have to have these devices fitted, do they (The Government) really believe that these people will pay the charges levied? Of course they won’t – they will just keep on the move and the debt will build up and remain unpaid! The requirement to fit these devices will lead to an increase in illegal activities as people from countries not used to fitting them evade having to do so while in the UK!

But, The Government is intent on going ahead with introducing these hi-tech tracking devices therefore there must be an ulterior motive. Is it simply the desire to bring in Big Brother by the back door? If they were truly concerned about Congestion Charging and Road Pricing then every vehicle, trailer, attachment, etc… would have to be fitted with a device. A vehicle towing a trailer/caravan does more damage to the road and causes more congestion than one without. Similarly, a larger vehicle towing has a greater impact than a small one. So to get the charging right and fair to all road users and for The Treasury, everything has to be fitted with a device. And the cost should be adjusted based on the number of people in the vehicle and the only way to do that, and to make sure that the correct person is charged, would be to fit every PERSON with a tracking device. Ah! The ultimate Big Brother. At least it would do away with identity cards – fit a chip into everybody at birth. That would solve the immigration problem – all those immigrants wanting to come to the UK to “work” (and causing more congestion) wouldn’t be quite so keen if they knew that they would have to have a chip implant.

So why does The Government keep insisting that it has to press ahead with Road Pricing and Congestion Charging? Two reasons… 1. Jobs for the Boys, and 2. Toys for the Boys. They would employ more Civil Servants (commuters) to run and maintain the Technology (computers) which at the end of the day means it all boils down to technology for technologies sake! And at the end who has to pay for this immense piece of pointlessness? Us! The tax payers!

So my question to them (The Government) is this – just when are you going to get your collective heads together and thrash out a strategy that is cheap and simple to put in place, self administrating and ensures all the revenue raised is paid to The Treasury. Hang on a minute, that system is already in place and is proven to work – it’s called Fuel Duty.

Job hunting

Now anybody who knows me will confirm that I’m not a football fan. Yes I follow what’s going on but I have no real allegiance to any particular team, but I know a lot of the pet phrases that the commentators make when a game is in progress. Many of them you’ll instantly recognise, like it’s a game of 2 halves and it’s a funny old game, etc… well so today has proved. A quiet morning and then everything happening right up to a final incoming phone call from another agency at 16:50 with a request for more details and a promise to phone me back in the morning.

While I was beavering away wading through job site email notifications, updating my profile on the numerous recruitment web sites and making phone calls our Mark was out on a 2 hour driving lesson in readiness for his 2nd driving test tomorrow – I just hope that he passes this time as it’s an expensive pastime.

Anyway, just to prove that I’m not the only bike mad one on this planet take a look at this BBC video clip I found on the BBC news web site, it’ll make you smile, that I’ll guarantee!

Getting back to normal

Late on Tuesday afternoon Mark and I collected the replacement TV and installed it in the lounge. First impressions were along the lines of ”boy, that’s BIG!” We’ve stepped up from 37” to 40” with 3 years insurance for a total cost (over the value of the insurance voucher pay out) of £39 which I think is excellent value for money. We’ve stuck with Samsung as all the retailers and reviews opined that they are generally the most reliable and best combination of picture quality and features. Time will be the judge.

Like Tuesday before it, Wednesday morning was spent doing laundry. In between washing machine loads I updated my CV and got down to chasing possible jobs and job agencies with several possibilities being thrown up. Some, like Egg, Eon and Capital One have cropped up before and they take so long making their selection decisions that I’m surprised that they ever manage to recruit anybody. Some of the other roles I’ve not come across before and so offer greater hope for selection. I eventually broke for lunch at 13:00 for lunch and then got down to doing some serious amount of ironing. In total I processed 9 wash loads and was “ironed out” when I got a call from Viv. She’s still looking and not had any work since zeda folded but was cheered up by having had an interview this week and found 3 job possibilities this week after weeks of nothing – I wish her all the luck in landing a role soon.

Of my other reported failures… I transferred my SIM card across to the spare Nokia phone I had inherited from Trinity and it powered up straight off showing 4 bars of charge – not bad as it’s been in the drawer since mid-April. That’ll do for now. As for the camera, I went onto the Canon website and phoned one of their 3 UK authorised repairers. The quote for a “service” was £96 plus part and p&p for a camera that is no longer available new and which cost Sue circa £180 when she bought it for me 2 years ago so it looks like I’ll have to buy a replacement, but, that can wait until I have a salary coming in.

The Great Escape

Lanzarote was just that -- my, no OUR, great escape. Timing was spot on with me loosing my job on the Thursday before we were supposed to get away. No change of plans, we went and it was the best and only thing we could and should have done. But Lady Luck still wasn't on my side... I've already covered the demise of the main TV in the house which was written off by the insurance / warranty company with them sending us a vocher to purchase a replacement which we then couldn't get until today (bought on 24/6 and we collected from local store 8/7).

Well we get to Puerto del Carmen and 2 days in my camera packs up, finito, dead! No problem, I just have to share Suzie's with her. Then with 3 days to go my mobile phone dies, and that is a problem because all the job agencies, all my contacts have that number, friends, family, everybody. I keep swapping my SIM card in and out of Suzie's phone but it's not the answer and it wasn't working so I just waited until I got home where I (fortunately) have a spare (thanks Trinity).

So what of Lanzarote? Brilliant! For a 7 - 10 day break it's just the ticket. Lots of sun, sometimes cloudy, often breezy and frequently very windy. I didn't use sun cream/screen once and have come home with a lovely tan got by just spending time in the shade and being sensible about exposing my (too large) body to the direct sun. While there we ate well with 2 course meals costing beteen 90 - 125 Euros a time (for 6 people) but mostly between 90 - 100 Euros (including drinks). Mostly we had one meal a day as a group, usually in the evening, but, Andy & Emma often had a full English breakfast (at under 3 Euros a head) and Mark & Eleanor snacking cheaply as only university students know how to.

While there we took an excursion called "The Southern Tour" which was interesting and got us up into the Volcanic National Park. Nicely paced with several stops and never long on the air conditioned bus spoilt only by the typical commercially arranged syop at a winery, where wine tasting was arranged with the sweet wine being like liquid sugar and the dry wine strong enough to be used as paint stripper. We hired a car for a day, which with 6 adults had to be an MPV. Luckily we got a Opel Zaffira 1.8 which was only 7,500kms old and we drove up to Orsla on the northern most point of the island, had a mid-day meal and then back down the East coast stopping at the Caves of Verde (Green caves). After stopping back at the appartment to freshen up we then drove down to Playa Blanca and spent the evening there, returning to the appartment late that night. We certainly made the most of our day with wheels and the Zaffira impressed with just how easily it coped with 6 adults wanting to tour for a day. If there was any criticism then it can only be of the big gap between 2nd and 3rd gear in the gearbox which meant using 2nd gear more than I would have liked.

Mostly we walked everywhere. Up and down the strip, down to the harour, round the coast walk back towards our appartment. Every day started with a trip down "heart attack hill" and ended with the return trip back up. Sometimes we did that hill 3 or 4 times each way in the day. We should have lost some weight but because of the quality (and quantity) of the food that didn't happen, and I think we have all put on a few pounds (well I have anyway).

Flights both ways were no trouble. Such a shame that we have to turn up 3 hours before departure in the UK. If the rest of Europe can do all the checks in 2 hours why can't we here in the UK? So we got home at 3am this morning and having slept most of the 3.5 hours trip home I was up at 8am and started doing the laundry, most of which is now done.

Today Mark had an interview and got himself a holiday job, six weeks full time work at the local sports centre. That should help float his bank account ready for his next term at university.

Normality returns tomorrow. Suzie goes back to work and I start pushing to find that job that I both want and need, but, at least I start with a clear head. Thank you Lanzarote!