This is my nephew Gregory in Thessaloniki whose English is better than my Greek

 

Steely Dan - Josie

Steely Dan, "Razor Boy"

Steely Dan - The Caves of Altamira

Anglesey Council in trouble?

This is where blogs come into their own. If you have an interest in Anglesey council the comment section might also be of interest.

Link The Druid

North Wales AM Mark Isherwood backs calls for probe into Hanson Cement plant in Padeswood

Link Flintshire Chronicle

A letter to the Chief Constable with regards driving behaviour

Condolences to those and their families involved the incident mentioned below.

------------------------------

cc The Leader Editor 

Morning Chief Constable.

More carnage this time at Ewloe.

http://www.leaderlive.co.uk/news/87948/boy-killed-and-sister-seriously-injured-in-a55-crash.aspx

You seem to be downgrading our non existent traffic policing.

NWPA are letting us have our say over traffic enforcement non policies. Are they necessary or excessive? ( that's the joke line). 

No problem getting bobbies on the scene after someone has totalled themselves and others. Seven police vehicles and two Vosa's on the scene at Ewloe.

I and others find driving in Wales a disgrace. Tailgaiting is common putting un needed pressure on road users.

This last week I have been pushed along the road by a 30 ton tanker, a woman with a young familiy, a youth on his mobile phone amongst many

Outside Penyffordd the bypass is a noisy race track at the weekend.

Why do we have to have this lowering of standards to the lowest denominator?

No one is going anywhere fast due to road volumes.

Colin Hughes

Penyffordd District

Still loads of speeding in Chester Rd and our CBM sitting on his hands ( along with our Cllrs). Or is he doing his paperwork?

NWP a sad joke with regards traffic policing?

Does CBM Howie Williams take 80 minutes

to fill in his holiday request forms? Perhaps that's why we in Chester Rd can't have any traffic policing.

Link MailonLine

This paperwork regime  is a farce. I think this is something Howie would agree with too. Any data published by police forces or government is immediately suspicious as they have been caught out so many times slanting the statistics to their own agenda.

A Hare in the wilds of Nant y Ffrith

Painted by Albrecht Durer

One seen tonight walking in the rain with the dogs.

Link. Wikipedia 

Further for Howie and David

What is category filtering?

Category filtering allows you to block ads from certain categories from appearing on your site. Our system classifies ads automatically and we don't rely on advertiser-provided categorization. Right now, we're only able to support category filtering for English, French, German, and Spanish. Ads in these categories will be blocked if they're in any of the supported languages, regardless of how they've been targeted to your pages.
You can block ads from up to five of the following categories:

• Cosmetic procedures and surgery: Includes lifts, suctions, lasers, hair removal and restoration, tattoos and body modification.
• Dating: Includes dating services and online dating communities.
• Drugs and supplements: Includes pharmaceuticals, vitamins, supplements and related retailers; does not include resources providing information about drugs.
• Get rich quick: Schemes promising fast earning.
• Politics: Includes politics or controversial social issues; does not include ads for news organisations that are not generally associated with a partisan viewpoint on issues.
• Religion: Includes religious ads and ads advocating for or against religious views; does not include astrology or non-denominational spirituality.
• Ringtones and downloadables: Mobile add-ons including ringtones and other downloadable goodies such as screensavers and wallpapers for desktop PCs and profile layouts and graphics for social networks.
• Sexual and reproductive health: Includes sexual function and fertility ads; does not include normal pregnancy resources.
• Sexually suggestive: Provocative pictures and text.
• Video games (casual and online): Includes video games, online games and downloadable games; does not include video game consoles.
• Weight loss: Includes weight loss, dieting and related products and programmes; doesn't include healthy eating or general fitness ads. 

Problem , can't see how to set it up yet.

Google Blogs and Google Adverts

CBM Howie Williams and previously Cllr David Williams have chastised me for adverts that appear alongside blog entries such as  solicitors who advertise to get you off a speeding conviction.
Comment section here

Up until a week or two ago I had no control whatsoever with regards ad content. I put a keyword word in the blog this then triggers an advert.

I have previously signed for Google Adsense. I get paid a sum every time someone clicks on an advert on my blog. Sometimes a penny, sometimes more. I am not fully up to speed with the Google ads system but it goes something like this.
1. A company or agency such as North Wales Police buy words from Google. Recently NWP did this with regards the "Balance your Bobby" initiative. My blog contained words that NWP had bought (temporarily) so NWP and other police forces adverts appeared on the side of my blog.

Recently Google have brought out a new function which allows bloggers to block certain adverts such as lawyers trying to get speeders off the hook. When I work out how the function works I will apply it to the blog.

Wanting to live on a village road not a rat run or race track.......................

Why politician's are hated Part 23

and why the main stream media need to start telling the truth.

Link The Raccoon

Rail link to Mold?

Sam said  " The line could run from an existing junction at Penyffordd through Mold to Wrexham while the station could be linked to the coastal line through Shotton. "

Link The Leader

Politics in Scotland

Link The Raccoon

Are Penyffordd Councillors

serving the interests of Chester Rd by refusing to push North Wales Police to police traffic? We are a major route to school with no lolly pop lady.

The answer is no.

Established media telling lies yet again

The blogs rule.
Here is a story in the Guardian
and here is the truth

keywords, banks , guardian, slog

Pretzel Logic

Used to go to a pub in Stanney Grange withTim Hinks Edwards. My introduction to Steely Dan.

Kid Charlemagne

My Old School

Hey Nineteen

Don't Take me Alive = Steely Dan

Sausage Beans and Chips

 

Home made chips as well.

The remains of Reith Ingman's Oak Tree at the Institute

 

I had a conversation with Reith Ingman the other day about the oak tree that was cut down at the Institute. Above is from the centre of the tree. It's like balsa wood. Reith tried to save the tree but it was deemed too far gone. He consulted the tree man from FCC and another tree expert.The centre was rotten with just a small outside ring alive. It was thought a strong wind would bring it down.

Haloumi Cheese Kebabs with Brown Rice

I've pulled them off the sticks.

Five Myths about Alcohol

Next time you read the shocking truth in the main stream media about binge drinking etc you might cast your mind back to the article below.

Link The Newly Reformed Devil's Kitchen ( no swearing)

Monday morning

Internet down.*
Traffic thrashing through the village - no respect from the low life.
No presence by North Wales Police as it ever was
Backed by  Penyffordd Community Council.

Our Belkin router occasional decides to block access. The only way forward is to close down and turn off all boxes for at least 30 seconds.

* postscript. My wifi connection was open ( not encrypted) so next door had two computers connected.
The first thing I do when the internet goes down is to remove firewalls. I had not reinstated firewall so next door were getting free broadband.

North Wales Residual Waste Treatment Project for Flintshire

 

Links 

The Leader

NWRWTP

Location Theory

Location Theory II

An email to the Leader

Dear Leader

A letter for consideration

Deputy Opposition Leader Cllr Bernie Attrridge is very right in his pronouncement that Flintshire should not be the dumping ground for North Wales, that the site should be more centrally placed.  If we look at the option of Flintshire from a business and economic point of view, Deeside which is where the proposed installation may be sited is on the very edge of North Wales.

Any expert in the applied mathematics of Location Theory would tell you it's madness to site the installation on the edge of North Wales. The most efficient location using the A55 as the main arterial route is on the Conway Borough and Denbighshire border which is the mid way point in North Wales from a population perspective. If the back of a knapkin is used in conjunction with a spreadsheet the siting of the Waste Treatment Plant on the Conway / Denbighshire border instead of Deeside shows transport savings in the region of 50%. Over the life time of the unit this would amount to £10's of millions of pounds in savings. This is a huge saving which also improves carbon foot prints and vastly reduces emissions. The North Wales Residual Waste Treatment Project should immediately dismiss Flintshire as a possible site due to the huge extra costs of transporting waste all the way to Deeside.

regards Colin Hughes
Chester Rd Race track (only 800 speeders a day at present)
Penyffordd District


spreadsheet which shows calculations available

keywords: Cllr Bernie Attridge, NWRWTP, 

Cllr Cindy Hinds campaigns for disabled access at Penyffordd Rail station.

Link The Leader

The Battle of Evermore - Led Zeppelin

Jimmy Page on mandolin.

Ramble On - Led Zeppelin

Stairway to Heaven

Benny Hill in Penyffordd

Serving next door.

Why you no risten ?

Speeding continues wholesale

What are Penyffordd Councillors doing about it ?
Why are PCC not pressing North Wales Police to do their job ?
Why do PCC conspire with NWP not to enforce traffic speeding on a major route to school?

The Flintshire Chronicle

 

The Flintshire Chronicle

Plastics are they safe?

I've recently being reading stuff about plastics and food. I am growing tomatoes and melons in large plastic containers. I store rainwater in large plastic that get warm in the sun.
 I have started growing vegetables in raised beds and ceramic pots. There is some way to go on this.

It would appear there are substances in plastics that mimic endocrine actions. they are called endocrine disruptors

Link Bisphenol A

Baba O'Riley

Won't get fooled again - Yes you will

The state this country is in.

Never mind political party leaders doing grandstanding promising this and that. The following by the SLOG gives a truer picture.

Link The Slog

Local Journalism and Blogs

I'm sure the Leader is not in this category mentioned by The Raccoon.

Link  “Disgraceful Journalism” – The Main Stream Media v. The Blogosphere.

How the banks deal with you

link The Slog

Learning to Fly

Us and Them

Dark Side of the Moon. Youth, 8 track and a red mini. Meeting girls at the Tivoli.
An aupair staying with a family in Buckley. Swedish come in blond and dark, this lady was dark haired. Led Zepelin 4 was the anthem. Lying out on grass verges in Buckley 3.00 am in the morning listening to Stairway to Heaven which is not what you are listening too.

Echoes

Shine on you Crazy Diamond

Tomatoes I am growing this year

Found them at the car boot sale on Sunday.

 

Oxheart Pink

You can also buy them here

  

Apricot Brandy Wine

 

Tigerella

keyword: heirloom

Waste Incinerators

Since we have one ( Hanson Cement) and Flintshire County Council is exploring options to provide one for North Wales use I'd thought I'd do a little FOIE to see who to see who was responsible for proposing Kiln 4 at Flintshire County Council.

Express your anger at the politicians on election day

Leave the ballot paper blank or vote for an Independent.

Links
Walesonline 
blankvote.org.uk

keywords: none of the above

Wanted by North Wales Police

for telling the truth about traffic policing in North Wales. The letter below appeared in last Wednesday's Leader.

Top Cop Needs To Get Out More

Chief Constable Mark Polin has announced he is removing resources from traffic policing.

In his statement he repeated the oft used canard* that North Wales Police were renowned for their hard line on traffic enforcement

The Chief Constable surely lives in cloud cuckoo land.  He needs to forget what former Chief Constable Richard Brumstrom spouted and get out more.

From now on until Winter North Wales will sound like a noisy race track each weekend, with bikers and tourists racing down to their caravans.  Traffic policing has also been quietly removed from North Wales communities via the back door.

The police authority has recently announced that anti-social behaviour is high on the concern list of North Walians.

Being a friend to noisy racing bikers with illegal exhausts and speeding motorists who pose a constant threat to the life of law-abiding citizens is surely not the way to go.

Colin Hughes

Penyffordd.

* An unfounded or false, deliberately misleading story.

postscript. Bike patrol policeman stopping bikers at Coed Talon on a Saturday afternoon.

Friday Night Entertainment

Joe Walsh - Meadows

Friday Night Entertainment

Rocky Mountain Way - Joe Walsh - (Eagles)

The Rock Anthem.

How should you vote in the General Election 2010?

Someone I know tried the questions linked to below in The Telegraph. (The Telegraph is a Tory newspaper and the questions may be squewed in a certain direction.)

It turned out after he did the questions that the best party for him was the BNP.......................

BNP 77%
Conservative 23%

I'm going to do the test myself. I'll tell you my politics upfront.

Small government.

Public agencies to have full accountability, they do not at the moment.

No immigrants coming here getting houses and money when they have contributed nothing to our country.

No uncontrolled immigration that we have had for the last 10 years.

A decrease in population.

No immigrants coming here demanding this that and the other.

Little red tape for private business.

The end of pensions for the public sector. If you want a pension get your own don't ask me to pay for it.

No speeding tolerated in villages and communities.
Illegal exhausts of vehicles policed.

My Results

BNP 68 %

UKIP 49 %

Conservative 41 %

No wonder all the main parties are so scared of the BNP.

Link The Telegraph

Warren Hall construction - A Living Hell

Chester Rd, Penyffordd will also become a living hell if through traffic is not diverted from the village to the bypass.

Link Warren Hall Construction

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Email to Cllr David McFarlane of Broughton.

cc Mark Stewart, Airbus ( destroyers of community environments everyday )
 
Morning Cllr McFarlane
 
Not very nice at Warren Bank is it. You should be pressing for high concrete walls as noise barriers not puny wood. Colwyn Bay didn't settle for a 6 foot high wood fences and 70 mph.
 
Haven't seen the plans properly but there looks like more than a fair chance that the boy racers from Airbus who hammer through Penyffordd everyday will end up in one of the upstair bedrooms next to the slip road.
 
Warren Bank a disaster for Thornhill Close, also for Chester Rd Penyffordd with regards extra traffic.
 
Still no sign of North Wales Police in Penyffordd, 900 speeding cars a day. (data June 2008)
 
Colin Hughes
Penyffordd District

Friday Night Entertainment on Thursday

Steely Dan
- The Legends

Friday Night Entertainment on Thursday

Only to be with you

Friday Night Entertainment on Thursday

We could be here all night

Friday Night Entertainment on Thursday

Clocks by Coldplay
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDFmuOtKrBc&feature=related

Friday Night Entertainment on Thursday

Let it Be - The Beatles

Friday Night Entertainment on Thursday continued

Another demonstrative performer.
With a little help from my friends - Joe Cocker legend.

Friday Night Entertainment on Thursday

A master at one with his instrument - Classical Gas

Gnocchi in Pine Nut Butter with Lamb's Lettuce Salad

100 lorries through the village today courtesy of Mulcair, Costain and Welsh Water

Perhaps Mulcair's site manager Dave Owens will know the exact amount of 20 ton trucks that have done there and back journeys from somewhere South of Penyffordd to Penyffordd Habitats. Today and overall.
ps. We have a bypass.

An email sent to the Considerate Constructors Scheme.

Apologies to Alun Griffiths Ltd ( Warren Bank)

Site Information

Name Penyffordd Habitats
Site Access No 4
Tel 0800 7831423 or 01244 529700

Links
Penyffordd Habitats
Considerate Constructors Scheme

Penyffordd Community Council write to Edwina Hart AM

About cancer and Castle Cement.
House prices head South.

http://www.leaderlive.co.uk/news/87295/call-for-probe-into-link-between-cancer-and-flintshire-factory.aspx

Penyffordd District Issues with Government

Points made to Mark Tami in an email 

1. No traffic policing in Chester Rd, Penyffordd or the roads in general. It shows. ( Councillors continue to  sit on their hands)

2. Gosafe remain an unelected quango who work for themselves and not communities.

3. No policing of vehicle exhaust systems so North Wales sounds like a race track.

4. North Wales Police remain unaccountable. They should be big enough to stand criticism and deal with it if it is constructive criticism. Their current performance in Chester Rd reminds me of the Keystone Cops.

5. There is too much red tape for private business. The Labour Government (and EU) are killing the goose that lays the golden eggs. You will have little money for that which you promise on your election literature unless private business is set free of many of the shackles that have been imposed.

6. The Labour Government's initiation of FOI Law a highlight for me. The law however needs teeth. Gosafe and FCC have consistently avoided and lied with regards specific FOIE's

Those involved in the above need disciplining in a way that hurts them. ie downgrading of their position

The Tadpoles

 

Click image to enlarge

Mark Tami knocks the door on the election campaign

I'm down the garden talking to the cucumber plants.
More tomorrow.

Link http://votetami.com/index.html

Teenage Dirt Bag whatever one of those is

This one is dedicated to Howie our CBM last seen three weeks ago. Howie is away on a course. Traffic Policing?

Is traffic speeding less this week due to :-
1. Gordon Brown's credit crunch
2. Kids off school
3. Howie's efforts to stop traffic speeding
4 A mixture of all three

postscript: kids back to school, normal rush returns

Monday night entertainment

Pigs still in the trough.

Our MP's are caught red handed fiddling their expenses ( sackable offence in the real world )
Three MP's being charged have been given legal aid.

http://order-order.com/2010/04/12/labour-back-morley-and-chaytor/

The Death of a Tree

 

This tree has stood in the village for hundreds of years.It has stood there as the sons of Penyffordd marched off to the first and second world wars. I think it's the only elderly tree in our area in which a squirrel lived. Our part of Penyffordd looks bare not a mature tree in sight. Could it have stood there for another 100 years in a more pruned format?

Link Wikipedia

keywords: vandals, Penyffordd Institute Committee

postscript. One of my moles informs me the tree was diseased.

Hot Potato Chicken Coronation

 

With orange and avocado slices.

Organising drinks in breweries, councils, committees and youth clubs

 

As mentioned previously Lisa and myself went to the Penyffordd Community Council meeting last Wednesday. We have watched the "improvements" as we have driven passed on the way to dog walks or work. The windows are very nice but there is a cost.

£55,000 to the ratepayer.

The sub contractors have trashed the inside.

There is a hole in the roof with fungi growing.

£1000 computer has been pinched whilst sub contractors were on site.

There is no money left to fund the youth club so it is shut.

There appears to have been no discussion between Penyffordd Youth Club Committee and FCC over what was being done otherwise the hole in roof would have been fixed first.

Cllr David Williams to contact FCC.

There seems no interest in bringing in North Wales Police to investigate the stolen computer.

Public authorities waste our rates money like water down the drain.

Vegetable Tempura

s

 

Tempura is a Japanese dish. This one is battered pepper, broccolli, carrots, cauliflower and courgettes. The sauce is sweet and sour. The rice is brown with red onions.

Comments have been reopened.

I closed comments early on because comments became tiresome. If you have people commenting who think 2000 vehicles speeding through a village each day is fine you know you are dealing with the brain dead.

Food Waste Collection

Flintshire County Council are introducing a pilot scheme to collect scrap food.. Not sure if this is going to be nice.

I remember the food bins at school where food scraps were kept before being collected by a lorry to feed the pigs. That was pre foot and mouth.The thought of food sitting in a bin for a week or a fortnight in the height of summer? If your not careful as quite a few will be, you leave the lid off flies are attracted, lay eggs..................

http://www.flintshire.gov.uk/wps/portal/english/displayNewsItem

You can turn food scraps that are vegetable of fruit based into garden compost. Some containers can even be kept in the kitchen.

You can't used animal protein stuff, dairy, meat, oil or excrement of dogs and cats if compost made is to produce vegetables.

Another method is Vermicomposting which uses red wrigglers.

Are local counties playing politics?

I've been to Chester and Wrexham today. Both have roads with so many potholes that make the counties look like they are in Romania. Is it because we have an election coming up? I think they are both run non labour authorities. Or is is just end of year issues.

Money is going to be in very short supply for local authorities from next year no matter who gets in. The markets will make us conform. Greece is having big issues. Spain, Italy, Ireland and us are next.

Penyffordd Council Meeting

Last night I went to Penyffordd Community Council monthly meeting as there was an open forum where residents can have their say. I had my say. I am unhappy with levels of communication between councillors and the public. I want all councillor's email addresses. Most of them hide them from me. Apparently its not against the law to do so.
My argument being that if I know what is happening I cannot then fire missives off to all and sundry. If I know a solution is being sought ( speeding traffic) I have hope. 

If I had not gone last night I would not have read the monthly minutes for March 2010. At that meeting CBM Howie Williams stated that data recorded for June 2008 showed speeding levels at 5 %.

Real levels taken from data supplied by FCC. Speed levels over 30 mph equal 34% on approximate faily traffic levels of 2700 which equals 918 each day.
Highest speeds 60 mph +.
* If Penyffordd Councillors were really interested in this data they would ask for a copy.
(Cllr Linda Vidamour excepted who has asked for a copy)

Postscript: CBM Howie Williams was using information supplied by Arrive Alive. The information if we are charitible was mistakenly collated.

Penyffordd Community Council Meeting Wednesday April 2010

Open Forum at 6 where you can address the council. Over three years since speeding was mentioned and traffic is still hammering through the village in large numbers. I'm told progress is being made.

Perhaps it was this one........................told off ..............

The Song We Got Married Too

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcBliEF2IdE

Not Quite - Ladies Crumpet

And Finally

For all those out there whose parents said
"When are you going to get a proper job?"
The answer  NEVER.

Further Lady Gaga - Papparazzi

Mid week - Let's go Gaga - Poker Face

George Monbiot floors the Speeders

This is not new. Puts the excuses for NOT having traffic calming in their place the bin.

Link Comment is Free

Gordon goes to see the Queen

Consequences of no traffic policing in North Wales in one week

A483

2 killed

3 accidents

12+ vehicles involved

The A483 has 9 incursions into barriers in the 3 mile length of road between Wrexham and Ruabon.

Six mile queue's and organising drinks in breweries

The A55 in The Post

Open meeting at 6.00pm Wednesday

Wednesday night is the Open Meeting at 6.00pm - 6.30pm which takes place once a year.  The public can ask any questions they wish to which will then (hopefully) be addressed by councillors.
It is three years since I pointed out the speeding to which was said nothing to do with us (PCC)

So it has been a war of attrition. Letters to the Leader, emails to officers in charge of education saying councillors are not fit to be school governors, emails to councilors who put dog dirt ten points higher than village safety. It has been endless except for a few cease fires to give them the opportunity to respond.

PCC have attempted to have me stopped by using Flintshire County Council lawyers, they have asked NorthWales Police to intervene.

Stopping traffic hammering through the village betwenn 7.30 and 9 is not rocket science all it needs is occasional police presence. Howie does not even need to book people.

The long term solution is traffic calming.

I had a quick look outside before traffic still hammering through the village. I am not one to labour things verbally. I can state what is still happening after that what can one do. It's Chester Rd environment we are the middle of the village we deserve protection.

General Election 2010

May 6th

Google Streets does Penyffordd

Some weeks Google said they were releasing Google Streets on Google Maps.
If you go to here http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&tab=wl
and drag the orange man logo in the left hand corner on to the map it will show how Google recorded Penyffordd.
You may have to put a postcode to get Penyffordd to come up. My Google set up takes me straight to Penyffordd.

For instance where we live my ivy is still up, No4 still have their old car and George and Ken across the road are out.

If you are house hunting this tool is very handy for seeing the neighbourhood. Street Maps has two parts a large window and a smaller window. By holding your mouse button and turning the mouse you get a 360 degree view.

You can drag the orange man up any street that is lined with blue. These are the streets that the Google vehicle has scanned. Some say it's a thieves tool. It does give you a good idea of an area you are thinking of living in without having to rely on the flannel dished out by estate agents.

Anyway here's my favourite councillor's house. (top picture below)  I had a camera pointing at my house a few months ago but it wasn't Google's it was North Wales Police. Our CBM Howie Williams had it put up by FCC without anyone knowing about it , it was that covert.
Even FCC who put it up will not admit they put it up or for what purpose.

Got took down dead quickly when I mentioned it on here. They said it was broke. Never got put back up again and Flintshire County Council have no record of who put it up or who took it down. A little shifty I think.

You can see the shadow of the google camera at the bottom of the picture.

 

 

The camera looking at my house. All the anti social behaviour was happening a quarter of a mile away.

Cheap Polytunnel

 

Bought this on Ebay for £55. Its a bit flimsy the poles that is. I have reinforced them by driving metal poles into the ground and tie wrapping them to the pole frame. Some Ebayer's tunnels have blown away, best to nail them down good.  

In the tunnel are peas, lettuce, garlic (started them late), radish, carrots and beetroot. 

The buckets are filled with Elwyn's black gold. (rotted manure)

The polythene is reinforced and seems strong. I dug a path in mine that makes it appear about 8 feet tall. Good value for the money. I like polytunnels and green houses as they are warm for a lot of the year.

I am hot house flower lol

I have plans for a larger DIY polytunnel.

Link Ebay

DIY Soil Heating - Don't try this at home

 

This is a 15 watt rope light 240volt sitting on a slab of Kingspan. The sides are Kingspan the front a double glazed window the top perspex. The Kingspan has a foil skin that reflects the light. This is my plant incubator to start my tomatoes, melons and peppers. Its 6 foot long by 2.5 foot wide and tall. The rope light is covered with compost. The pots with the plants and seeds will sit on top. I may put some broken paving slabs on top then some more compost to act as a heat sink. 

I have a little digital thermometer with a remote wired sensor embeded in the compost. the compost whch had been outside started off at 11degrees C , it raised to 13 over the afternoon. I have plugged the soil heater in and it has reached 14.4. This I hope will rise 25 to 30.

Postscript. Up to 38 by next morning. Some fine tuning needed

So it works lol

Will try to control soil temperature with a timer. The best way a temperature thermostat.

Last year I bought melon plants from the Duke of Westminster's garden centre but they sulked due to low soil temperature. Should stop that this year 

Thank you Yvonne for the rope light present. So far it has lit up my protest sign " 2000 speeders a day" I had pointing at the road. Now it is buried in the incubator. If I pull back the compost it will glow blue at night. Tomatoes not Ganga, Howie. 

Also looking at soil heating with solar. Watch this space.

Footpath Troubles

 Illegal - Electric fence for horses blocking footpath

Illegal - Surface unfit to walk on caused by horses. The electric fence keeps the horses to the footpath. The green stuff at the bottom is not cabbage but lichen. lol

This is the stile at the other end of the footpath. Do you get the impression one is not really wanted. 

Irate woman " Get out of my garden"

Me " This is a public footpath"

It's best to stay calm. Do not get angry, bide your time, take photographs. The law is against them.

The madame has a garden each side of the footpath. It looks like there is not a right of way. I knew it was a footpath as I had looked at the ordnance survey map before setting out.
Footpath signs have been removed both ends as well.

There is an issue in another field where a stile is "missing". A new fence has been errected "sans" stile.

I will be looking for an informal agreement with the farmer to use the gate at the top of the field instead. Not legally binding but good enough for us. 

Things to do.
Monday morning ring Flintshire County Council to make sure footpath is on the authority's Definitive Footpath Map.
I have already asked FCC to put footpath signs back up. This is going through the motions.
They would have looked at the definitive map before starting the job.

Then I intend to set the dogs of war on her!

No not really. Hope not have to get Klaus out the box.

1. Get in touch with Cllr Hilary Isherwood as it's on her patch.
2. I want a polite apology off the lady " a misunderstanding, etc. (you joke)
3. Electric fence removed from footpath
4. Footpath surface reinstated.
5. Assurance that we will not be attacked by the two horses as we have dogs (on leads)
(Another farmer killed today by a cow whilst tagging her calf)
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1263043/Farmer-trampled-death-cows-daughter.html

FCC have a duty with regards the above.
If they don't do its off to the Welsh Ombudsman.
I do not expect to get that far.

A resident in Penyffordd who spent a £1000 on a gate over a village footpath in attempt to stop the yobs messing around the back. FCC made resident remove gate.............

Further options.
1. Join the Ramblers Association. Cost £30 per annum
2. Email Klaus..............Cost free, if he takes the bait.

Any further agro will reported to North Wales Police as harrassment.

Notes
1. The Authority owns the footpath surface.
2. In England and Wales once a footpath always a footpath. Unused footpaths cannot be taken away.
3. Not all footpaths are public rights of way.
4. Legally footpath is considered as the Queen's highway. It has the same legal rights
as a trunk road.
5. It is illegal to plough up or disturb the surface so as to make it inconvenient to use.
6. Owners are supposed to look after stiles and gates.
7. If owner will not reinstate disturbed surface, the authority may repair the surface and send the bill to the owner.
8. Bulls more than 10 months old are not allowed in fields with public footpaths.
( Cows with calves should be avoided at all times if you have dogs, even without dogs there is still risks, 5 people killed last year by cattle in UK).


Links
Open Access      
Public Rights of Way
Basic Footpath Law
Ramblers Association
Rights of Way Law

Treuddyn Website

Something for Penyffordd to aspire to.

Link Treuddyn Website

FOI Requests made to Flintshire County Council

As a fan of FOI this is of interest to me. It would help  if officers who avoid, obsfucate or tell lies are disciplined in a way that is punitive.

If you wish to guarantee that they reply do it through the site below. Emails I have sent appeared to get lost in the ether.That's polite for emails deleted or email address blocked.

Link Flintshire County Council FOIE

Fewer Road Accidents in Future on the roads of North Wales

The new chief constable Mark Polin has promised recently to go easy on speeding bikers. Illegal exhausts are fine and the louder they are the further they can be heard from the trunk roads of North Wales the better.

Cllr Roberts Head of North Wales Police Authority was pleased with the doing away of traffic policing. North Wales will be able to offer a racing facility vastly superior to Oulton Park he said.

Today the Chief Constable has also anounced he is to go easy on car speeders.

North Wales Police Authority think the above a splendid jolly idea too.

Traffic policing has also been given up in Chester Rd, Penyffordd as our CBM Howie Williams refuses to do it as it upsets the shift workers and rat runners.

With all the above relaxations of law in place Chief Constable Mark Polin expects road accidents to fall. Safe Speed and Motorcycle News are overjoyed  and will be making full use of North Wales as a race track this summer. 


Link Daily Post

Chirk Car Boot Sale 2010

Mud everywhere. The proprietor taking the P. Could have improved infrastructure by putting hard core in the isles. Be aware of leaving any lanes that do not have hardcore. Best to keep your car's driving wheels (usually the front) within a yard of the good roads so its easy to get pushed off. Last Sunday there were more than a few having difficulty.
 
Chirk Car Boot Sale is every Sunday in the big field during British Summer Time it retires to the small field at the top during the winter.

Free to get in. Stall holders pay about £8 for a standard pitch. In good weather in the summer this must be nearly the biggest car boot sale in Britain.

Weather for Easter Sunday mixed. There is also a carboot at Farndon on Easter Monday.
Carboots happen in Marchwiel on Sundays and are good when it is warm.


keywords. Easter.

One Minute Old

To Elwyn's farm at Green Lodge, Llandegla on our walk. There we witness a lamb being born. Elwyn sprays a substance on the lamb that is unattractive to foxes. It's best if the ewe has lamb away from mud as they are disinclined to clean a lamb if its born in mud.