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Friday, December 5, 2025
Thursday, December 4, 2025
Mayfield Villages Update
I wrote about Mayfield Villages in a previous post. It is a retirement block with a large downstairs communal area, with an indoor swimming poo. Here, for my own benefit as much as yours, is a reminder of what I have learned. Mayfield village, in Watford, north west London, is a retirement home for the active retired. Not a nursing home, nor a home for those who cannot look after themselves. Although you can have a carer to live with you. One and two bedroom flats.
Advantages
1 The flats all have balconies.
2 Helpline in the flat.
3 Call-in system, so if you don't call in they investigate to check if you are ill.
4 The swimming pool
The slender swimming pool has only room for three people to do laps up and down. So you have to book your slot. But most people prefer the sociable water aerobics activities, exercises with dumbells in water.
Residents can set up their own activities. Once a month on a Saturday night the residents organize an activity or entertainment.
Any Disadvantages?
Not enough storage space for a hoarder. I have a three bedroom dwelling, with a large living room, a conservatory, a shed, a garage.
The lease is only 250 years. If you are over 55 it won't lose value in your lifetime. Four generations of people could live there. I suspect that in the last hundred years, the lease will be extended at a cost to the then current owner.
But lots of people not quite ready to buy have stayed on the mailing list.
How do you book an appointment? To see a flat and be on the mailing list for activities open to visitors who are potential buyers.
The Brent Cross development will be one block, not two. One block sounds more convenient to me. No need to go out in the cold to get to the swimming pool, sauna and whatnot. Although some people like to have a two centre day. Sit and read in one block. Then go back home to yours.
My contact is Gordon Osborne, gordon.osborne@mayfieldvillages.co.uk
Wednesday, December 3, 2025
Hach End festive lights and jollity
Reindeer outside Sea Pebbles fish restaurant.
Commemorating Harrow becoming a London borough.
The Steak restaurant has lights on the trees by the board proclaiming the lunch offer.
Practising Polish Pronunciation - on holiday or here at home
Poland has a lot to offer those on business and holiday. I have already seen Chopin's monument in Warsaw. The grave of the inventor of Esperanto language in Warsaw - on my wishlist is his museum in another city. The pretty southern former capital and trips to salt mines - and Auschwitz. The amusing ankle height dwarfs in Wroclaw are on my wishlist. Amber and Polish milk caramel sweets, I loved. I have written about these in my other posts.
Over here in London we have Polish supermarkets catering to a lot of Polish people.
We have a Polish plumber. We have trouble saying his surname.
I looked at the written explanations of the Polish language. It seemed that the z sound is like an h so that sz is sh and cz is ch. Easy-peasy.
So, a name ending czyk is more or less chick.
Then I looked at some videos. Type in speak or pronounce Polish and Youtube will show you a choice of half a dozen.
You have to add two more sounds which are not like English. The w is pronounced v like in German.
The j is pronounced y like in many other languages.
And three letters?There are a few more. Add a diacritic or a little tail and you change a c to a ch. Or is there a ts? And - Enough for one day. I shall come back to this tomorrow. At least I get a rough idea.
Try it yourself.
Tuesday, December 2, 2025
Today's the Day - Dec 2 National Pollution Control Day
A leaflet came though my door.
Prevention is better than cure.
I am already sorting everything in my house.
What more can I do?
1 Choose less packaging.
2 More recycling.
3 Join or start a whatsapp group for your street or area, offering things you don't want to throw away so other people can get them for free.
Recycle goods at your clubs and meetings. Used paper, for stapling into small notepads. Or made into papier mache. Or for school art and craft Saturdays.
Campaign for a shop in every high street that runs repairs to umbrellas and pots and pans and clothes, and teaches teenagers and the unemployed. In another area teach cooking from leftovers, growing from leftover seeds and fruit stones.
Persuade your local council to run two days a year when like other cities and countries, everybody leaves furniture and good on the street outside their house or business and passers-by take what they want. At the end of the day, charities and local councils collect items which are left over.
Start a city improvement group. Collect ideas from around the world and add at least one a year.
Get the immigrants 99 per cent in work, keeping up skills, contributing, not being a burden on space and taxes. Get them into a new city on wasteland not prone to floods.
Start a senior's skills club. Adopted a skilled granny. Grannies can teach crochet and knitting and using sewing machines and cooking and bike riding and swimming.
Get all immigrants paired with others to teach English and their native languages and translate government documents online, to save paying for translations and printing documents in 12 languages.
Celebration Day
Why have a day celebrating anything? One advantage is that if nothing else, it just gets bloggers like me talking about it. You can discuss it on the phone with friends or in a restaurant or pub in the evening.
National days? Which nation?
Have a ten year limit on empty buildings, after which a charity renovates and rents out and can sell off to the original owner or another or the new tenants.
International days are set by the United Nations.
Every packet should include recyling instructions. Every equipment should have a repair or buyback number from the manufacturer.
I recycle jam jars. I use the sticky label to clean the carpet.
I re-label the jar.
Please share links to your favourite posts.
Irish Whiskey Way for Whiskey - and Irish whiskey Chistmas Pudding
Irish Whiskey Way
Oops. I have to keep correcting my typing. It's whisky or whiskey. Scotland whisky, Ireland whiskey, the USA Tennessee Whiskey. Check the place name and the bottle. How do I remember? There is no e in the word Scotland. There is an e in the word irEland. Tennesee also has the letter e. So there you have it. Remember the E in Ireland and the E in Irish whiskey.
Areas covered include Dublin, the Atlantic Way, and Northern Ireland.
And if you are not a whisky or whiskey drinker, but your friend or neighbour is, more good and interesting news is that Dublin airport has raised its cap on liquids. So you can take some drink back to your family or friend or house sitter or pet sitter.
Who needs a guide? A guide to matching wine and food. Isn't there alcohol everywhere in Ireland? And good food? And Irish favourites.
I remember years ago, when my husband first visited Ireland, on business, he was amazed that even the tailor's shops and other non food and drink shops had bottles of alcohol and advertisements for alcohol in the window.
Distilleries
I saw 27 distilleries on the website of the Irish Whiskey Way. Including the Titanic Distillery in Belfast. Whiskey, craics - singsongs in pubs, have a laugh. Or the Titanic museum which is about the wonderful, majestic, but unsafe ship, a magnificent Titanic scale museum which is fascinating, impressive, but ultimately sobering.
At least two distilleries to visit in Dublin. At least One in Cork. Many more scattered about. You could do two a day for a week. From North to south and in the middle you can find distilleries.
Teetotallers In Ireland
You can buy alcohol free Guinness and other drinks for drivers and teetotallers. Any drink free areas? It has been tried. A pub called the Virgin Mary.
With Christmas coming, thoughts turn to Christmas pudding with Irish whiskey. Not in Ireland? No plans to visit? You could make your own Christmas pudding with Irish whiskly.
Useful websites
https://www.irishfoodguide.ie/2011/12/my-easy-to-make-christmas-pudding.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_whiskey_distilleries_in_Ireland
Please share links to your favourite posts.
My latest book is Embarrassing Moments.
Mailbox topper in Hatch End, London, England, UK
The traditional red pillar box, shaped like a pillar. Americans would say mail box. I always think of boxes being square, but I suppose you get round ones, like hat boxes and cheese boxes.
The red colour makes it British. Also the toppers.
Once you have seen one, you want to see more.
Websites on post box toppers
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