The NHS are changing the way you converse with your local surgery.....I don't know if this has happened down Plymouth yet ? They are doing away with the 8am chaos of first come first served....you are No10 in the queue situation. They are replacing it with a triage situation.....by you using you phone and answering multiple questions of why you are phoning.....they will then put you in a priority list.....most serious first etc.....and you will at worst get an answer within 48 hrs. I was sent a text explaining the new system....pages of info in tiny writing which you need to enlarge....and then move sideways to read each line in full.......time consuming rubbish. This new system will start on Mon 14th July........I went back to the top to read it all again and the highlighted website wouldn't respond to me tapping on it again.....so I couldn't re-read it. I can see many elderly people not getting on very well with this when it starts.........so it was good to see that if you didn't have a smart phone or computer you could still phone the surgery....I don't know how these type of people where informed of the new system.....did the receptionist actually pick up the phone and tell them manually (how distasteful to have contact with the peasants). It looks very time consuming for the patient (less work for the surgery of course).......I know how I'm going to contact the surgery.....will they complain when they realize I've got a smart phone and a computer. One horror I've just thought of.....will I have to use this system to order perscriptions.....or can I do the simple thing of texting the Prescription lady direct....which is so easy and simple at present. PS.....It will be difficult to assess patients needs.....one will ladle it on with a spoon.....whilst another quite ill understates their situation.......who gets seen first ?
Yes unfortunately it's back to the Thatcher era T.I.N.A. There Is No Alternative. We've got rabid fascists in Reform, Lib Dems who've drifted to the left of Trotsky and the rump of the Tories who started the Cult Of Personality crap with Johnson. Now they can't escape from the political death loop they unleashed upon themselves by courting White Van Man rather than their traditional supporters.
Just a few points on where we are following the abandonment of social security reforms, best estimates seem to be that the Government is about £5 billion short of where it planned to be in the recent Spending Review, on top of £1.5 billion lost by reversing the Winter Fuel benefit cut. That’s against a background of a clear need for infrastructure spending - hopefully efficiently executed - and vital increases in defence spending. It was laughable how much was made of an order for 12 American F35A fighters. I haven’t forgotten that we originally planned on about 145, of which 45 (ish) have been delivered in the form of F35B’s for the Navy. So actually, that’s a reduction of around 90 aircraft. Various taxes have been tipped to go up including a further extension to the freeze on Income Tax thresholds, which has aleady dragged 7m people into higher bands. It won’t be long before the Basic State Pension attracts tax. At the same time, pension funds are being pressurised into investing more in UK shares, which will increase the risk inherent in the schemes. This week, there’s been talk of doing the same with cash ISA’s. They’re another investment favoured by pensioners, giving risk free returns probably 3x what’s available in conventional savings accounts. To be fair, they’ll never make you rich but you won’t lose the lot either. We’re doomed.
Watched the U21 final tonight. Nail biting but well worth the watch I thought. Great result for the youngsters. Some real talent on show from both teams.
They said some top players missing because of the Club World Championships......but good to get one over Germany.
And two championships back to back… All we need now is for the senior team to win the World Cup. Won’t be easy, the Chelsea v Benfica in this stupid club championship was delayed for two hours yesterday due to thunderstorms. The game was stopped in the 86th minute with Chelsea winning 1-0 and when it resumed 2 hours later, Benfica equalised immediately! And no I haven’t watched a single kick of it! This match was a quarter final between two top teams. The attendance was a paltry 26,000 in a 74,000 seater stadium. How many would you get for the same two teams playing a quarter final in the Champions League? It’d be limited only by the size of the stadium wouldn’t it? Having said that, it’s was 42C in Seville yesterday. Anyone would think the world is getting hotter……
She’s gone up to Somerset again so I thought I’d take the opportunity to watch a film. I chose the multi-award winning “The Banshees of Inisherin”. I wish I hadn’t. It’s not often I’m totally bewildered but this is what Google Gemini AI makes of it. The Banshees of Inisherin" explores themes of fractured relationships, the cyclical nature of conflict, and the impact of choices. It uses the backdrop of the Irish Civil War to symbolize broader human conflicts, particularly the breakdown of male friendships and the self-destructive tendencies that can arise from such divisions. The film also delves into ideas of legacy, mortality, and the search for meaning in the face of despair. Elaboration: Symbolism of the Irish Civil War: The film's setting in 1923, amidst the Irish Civil War, serves as a powerful metaphor for the destructive nature of conflict, even among those who were once close. The fracturing of the friendship between Pádraic and Colm mirrors the larger societal divisions caused by the war. Breakdown of Friendship: The core of the film revolves around the sudden end of a long-standing friendship between Pádraic and Colm, which escalates into a bitter feud with significant consequences. The reasons behind the initial conflict become less important as the feud intensifies, highlighting the self-perpetuating nature of conflict. Legacy and Mortality: Colm's desire to leave behind a musical legacy, symbolized by his song "The Banshees of Inisherin," introduces themes of mortality and the human desire to transcend death through art. The film questions whether such legacy-building can truly offer meaning or redemption. The Nature of Conflict: The film critiques the human tendency to intellectualize and categorize, leading to division and conflict. Pádraic's "niceness" and Colm's intellectual pursuits represent different approaches to life, and the film explores how these differences can lead to irreconcilable conflict. Individual vs. Collective: The film explores the relationship between individual identity and the larger community. Pádraic's initial connection to the island and its people is contrasted with Colm's desire to separate himself and create a legacy, raising questions about the individual's place in the face of societal change and conflict. The Banshees: The mythical "banshees" who foretell death are referenced in the film's title and song, adding a layer of foreboding and highlighting the pervasive sense of melancholy and impending loss. They also represent the insular and parochial nature of the island community, which contributes to the escalating conflict. It’s a great film but I’m now thoroughly depressed. He killed the ****ing donkey!
Ah well I didn’t write it Plym, a computer somewhere did. I think it mis-states the place of Irish Troubles in the story. Both must be Catholic surely…. We see Colm in confession and Padraic is farmer with 3 cows: an unlikely Protestant landowner. Neither is a villain and yet both do bad things. It rather relates to the Troubles by showing that both parties in a conflict can be both sinners and sinned against. I was expecting a cheery Irish version of Whiskey Galore though and it certainly wasn’t that…!
After a really hot afternoon, it’s clear up here but there’s a thick bank of fog down over the Sound and the rivers that come off it. We’re therefore going to be lulled off to sleep by two ships sounding their foghorns at the requisite intervals. From the ship tracker app, one is a German warship, the Sachsen Anholt, which is coming inwards and an anonymous British warship, probably HMS Trent, going out. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_frigate_Sachsen-Anhalt https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Trent_(P224)
Don't you just love automated answering systems. Managed to damage the gas piping coming from my meter in the garage which is not attached to the bungalow. Side wall of the Bungalow was covered with ivy and other similar climbing shrubs....my son and I were cutting it back and we knicked the gas pipe hiding underneath the ivy. Gas board sent a man out to isolated the Meter. This morning I phoned British Gas to organize a repair.....it took over 5 minutes to get past the automated voice.....one of the questions asked was...."have I any other form of HEATING"......I politely answered no through gritted teeth....the temperature indoors at present is 83F or 28.5C
Very proud of my younger grandson at the moment....just finished his second year of a Maths degree at Durham Uni....he managed 85% pass for his end of year exams.....they told him that if he gets at least 60% pass next year which will be linked up with his 85% this year he will get a first class degree.....we're not sure were he has got the brains from.....but he gets better results the harder he works.....must be something in that. He has been offered an actuary summer job (6 weeks) with a firm in Tonbridge...which he started Monday....only came home from Uni Saturday
You should try Virgin Media. I got an email this week saying my monthly direct debit had bounced and that my service would be terminated unless I took immediate action. Firstly, that’s nonsense: I know exactly what’s in my account. I could see the DD on my account dated for the following day. It wasn’t due ‘til the following day so they couldn’t know whether it had a bounced or not. Secondly, like many, I get numerous fraudulent contacts, mostly in the form of robot phone calls claiming to be from my (un-named) bank’s “security department”. A bounced DD would be an ideal entree to discussing my bank account details. There’s no way to get to Virgin except via an AI bot with an IQ of about 2. It’s all about the customer not being able to pay rather than anything else . Got there in the end. They apologised but the only explanation was that their system had fired off the email in error. Not too reassuring coming from a major tech supplier is it?
But these scams over personal accounts etc....can scare the living daylights out of some people.....who jump over backwards to comply with the perpetrator to but it right.....it can turn you off internet banking.....but with branches disappearing nationwide....how else can you use your account.
Thanks Plym for all your comments and keeping me up to date with things happening at the Club. Its Canada Day here ...sorry but i have to wear my red shirt. BC
Hi BC. If Trumpy has his way he would have you wearing the Stars & Stripes ? Glad you find it all interesting....keep viewing.
I simply could not manage without accessing my bank, building society and credit card accounts online. Indeed, I do almost all of my non-grocery shopping online. I’ve got to the situation whereby I assume everything is a scam unless I satisfy myself to the contrary. The bank fraud calls I get nearly every week are frankly pathetic. They use artificial voices. They don’t use my name: they know my number but not my name. They don’t announce which bank they’re calling from. They come for mobile phone numbers. No bank would approach you like that on such a serous matter.
I got caught out once with my card being read in a Garage.....account emptied in Thailand by using small transactions purchasing items.....Bank didn't bat an eyelid and just reimbursed my account.
