Passing Didcot Power Station
On the way back from Oxford, I passed Didcot Power station.
The chimney is very distinctive and there are now only three cooling towers, whereas for a long time there were six.
I’ve never visited the site, but a roommate at Liverpool University; Martin Sykes worked on the building before going to university.
Graham Miller Doesn’t Exist Any More
Yesterday, I got a letter from the Inland Revenue and it used the name I have on my passport, which I’ve used since I met my late wife in 1967.
As Hackney Council have also finally got round to changing my name on the Electoral Roll, the only place that Graham Miller exists now is with junk mailers and cold callers, who bought it off a list from an old Electoral Roll.
So I can now bin all mail addressed to Graham and be rude or humorous to cold callers who ask for Graham, in addition to those who ask to speak to Mrs. Miller.
Incidentally, it should be a criminal offence to ask for someone who has died in a cold call.
Has Cameron’s Honesty Settled The Election?
For a few years now, I’ve believed that whoever wins the election in a few weeks, will have a good chance of winning again in 2020. In Is George Osborne A Closet Trainspotter, I detailed all of the big rail projects finishing in the later years of this decade and said this.
Whoever wins the election in 2015, will be the biggest beneficiary of all this planned spending, as many projects like Crossrail, Thameslink and the Great Western Main Line, will be fully implemented just before the 2020 General election.
Cameron’s obvious desire to step down at the end of a second term, if he wins the election and lead a normal life, will give his successor a good hand for the 2020 Election.
His honesty has certainly put him in a totally different box to all of his rivals.
It may not win the Tories the election, but his decision probably will help many voters make up their minds.
Perhaps he also remembers that the last Prime Minister with a reasonable popularity level and a very supportive family, forced to call an election, won the resulting contest!
A Typical Annoying Problem Of Living Alone
I want to fit a grab rail in my bathroom and these pictures show the position and the rail.
I want to put it at an angle so that I can pull myself upright safely to get out of the bath.
The first problem is positioning it in the right place. The easiest way is to lie in the empty bath whilst someone else holds it tightly to the wall.
The second problem is that the tiles are very hard to drill, so I intend to use a strong epoxy to glue the grab rail to the wall.
Mixing the epoxy and getting it in the right position is definitely a job for at least three hands.
Perhaps we need a Rent-A-Hand Agency, where someone can help you out on a barter or mutual basis.
Where is my late wife, when you desperately need her?
Will Osborne Abolish Tax On Savings Interest?
This is said in this article in The Independent.
Tax on income from savings will be abolished for millions of people in the Budget today as George Osborne woos pensioners and “hard-working taxpayers” ahead of the May general election,The Independent has learnt.
So is the paper right?
It would make a lot of sense.
1, It would certainly encourage saving.
2. Encouraging saving may mean that more money will go into peer-to-peer lending, which will help lower interest rates for borrowers and give the banks a bit of a kicking. So a by-product of abolishing tax on savings interest could be better availability of finance for individuals and businesses.
3. I can see those who provide homes for savings like banks, building societies and peer-to-peer lenders getting increasingly innovate in finding ways to create high-interest, instant-access accounts.
4. It could put a lot of financial advisers out of business, as if say you had a lump sum to invest, you could easily work out what would be the best savings account, to keep the money until you need it.
5. But surely, the biggest benefit will be that as savings will now be held in an account, that doesn’t carry any tax, it will simplify tax accounting and returns for banks, building societies and savers alike.
If he does do it, then just imagine how any party who put it back would fare in an election!
On a personal note, if it does happen, I’ll be putting more of my money into Zopa!
Cheshire East And Southend Strike Cheaper Energy Deals With OVO
This report on the BBC tells how Cheshire East Council has done a deal with OVO to get cheaper energy for residents and businesses.
The report also says that Southend are doing something similar.
I think we’ll be seeing lots of deals like this in the future. Some might even be provided by the Big Six energy companies as they try to keep market share.
I do think though, that linking energy to a community could give a lot of advantages.
1. It creates a direct incentive for councils to bring in energy saving and local generation schemes, like the one created by Islington at Bunhill Row.
2. The philosophy might also push developers to create new offices, business premises and housing, that is less energy intensive, due to the higher profile of energy costs in the area.
3. Those not on-line or without a bank account, would gain access to cheaper energy through the council’s payments system. I can just about remember people paying for their energy in small gas and electricity offices.
4. We might even see the time, when you pay a single on-line payment to your local council for Council Tax, Resident’s Parking, gas, electricity, broadband and water.
If the system doesn’t deliver cheaper prices and better service, you can always vote the politicians out of office.
A Cute Waste Truck
This is probably the cutest waste truck you’ll see at the moment.
It is electric-powered and if nothing else is a good advert for the business.
After all, I photographed the vehicle and put it here.
The Bridges Of Berwick-upon-Tweed
I took these pictures as my train from Edinburgh to Newcastle crossed the border into England on the Royal Border Bridge.
The main bridge in the picture is the Royal Tweed Bridge with Berwick Bridge behind.
This Google Earth image shows the three major bridges in the area and Berwick-upon-Tweed station above the town.
Berwick-On-Tweed
Note how you can make out the arches of the railway viaduct in the image.
A Use For A Small Sheba Knife
My Sheba cutlery gets used in all sorts of ways.
A Use For A Small Sheba Knife
As the small knives are more designed for spreading butter and jam, rather than cutting, they are ideal for opening packages without damaging the contents.
Sheba is the greatest cutlery design ever. And they were made in Sheffield and my upward of twelve settings have been used for nearly fifty years!
A New Route To Legal Services
I passed this cafe in Hampstead yesterday on Haverstock Hill.
A New Route To Legal Services
I suppose that The Legal Cafe might make a sensible profit on the coffee and cakes.
The Anonymous Widower 