The Christmas Card

As many people know, every year I create a Christmas 'news letter' which I suspect brings as many groans to the recipients as happy comments.  Here's 2011's, reformatted to not make an Xmas Card....:

Wishing you a Happy Christmas!!

 And a Great 2012!

“Dear Father Christmas, I think the iPhone 4s looks rather interesting but I think I’ll have a HTC”.  That’s what I wanted to put on my Christmas List but Dad says he doesn’t think Santa hands out HTCs to six year olds.  So I’ve asked for football, rugby & cycling stuff instead.  And Lego City.

Yes, it’s Christmas again and time for those of you that I never see to hear about everything my Dad, my Mum & I have been doing all year.

Dad says that I always come first, so I’ll write about me now.  Can I tell you, I’ve been to loads of after-school football clubs this year and I am definitely the best 6yr old and when I grow up, I think I’ll play for Arsenal, Liverpool or Manchester United [delete as applicable depending on who is winning – Dad].  I definitely won’t play for Everton.  [Why not?? – Dad].  If I play in the World Cup, I’ll play for England, but if I play in the rugby World Cup, I’ll play for Wales. [Good boy – Dad].  That’s if I’m not riding as a professional cyclist obviously – I have done lots of races this year from time trials on a runway to cyclo cross through muddy forests and fields.   I even won a time trial in the 6 and under category!

Apart from sporty things, I love playing Angry Birds and Scrabble.  I’ve also learnt draughts and have beaten Mum & Dad a few times.  And I love to read – especially football magazines!

I’ve also become a bit of a roller-coaster boy.  I’d been on a little roller-coaster before, but for my birthday I went to a place called Twin Lakes with my cousin Thomas and we went on bigger and faster ones!  I LOVED it!

One of the holidays I had was camping with Mummy & Daddy – we spent a night in our tent in Rutland.  I said to Mummy & Daddy, when I woke up in Rutland, “I’m loving this holiday” [because it was warm, it wasn’t raining, and he got to stay up late – Dad].

Mummy’s had a few holidays this year but when she goes away she never takes photos!  One was with me to Great Yarmouth and it didn’t rain too much.  One was with me & Dad camping to  Mablethorpe, as I said, where there were millions of lady birds [no, literally, there were, over every surface – Dad].

Another one of Mum's holidays was a quick break to see Mum’s old friend in Glasgow, and another to old friends that she met in Ludlow.  Mummy’s old, so I’ve no idea how old the friends were?

Dad couldn’t get a work trip to somewhere exciting this year although he has been to Dover a few times.  Does that count?  And he did go to Belgium twice to see racing, and he usually comes back tired and with muddy clothes.  I wish he’d take me along.  AND, he did spend a week in northern France to see the Tour de France but I couldn’t see him on tv…

One day, Dad put on clothes like the professional cyclists do although it was a bit more stretched over his belly, and said he was going for a bike ride.  And his legs were like little sticks.  But, my Dad rode a race bike again and says he’s not ridden a race bike for 8 years nearly.  I think Dad wants to say something:

[It’s true, I’ve started riding again.  After at least 7 years of being too ill, after many failed treatments and one I’d wholehearted recommend, after false starts and failed aspirations, eventually I’ve started to come around.  The “Perrin” treatment, plus a general attitude of “it’s now or never” has seen me return to the bike, and at last, I’m

out, several times a week if I can, doing the miles and the training.  And loving it.  Simple as.  So glad to be back  Though I’m still fat and unfit..]

Anyway, that’s it.  It’s hard writing all this as a 6 yr old, I need a break….  Happy Christmas one and all!

Huw, David & Patsy xxxx

I've a car organisation to thank....

Yes, I thank the RAC for pushing me in to publishing a blog which will aim to show quite how stupid the country's love of the motorcar is.  Because it is.  We all know it, just we cannot accept it.

They claimed that the country was going to become gridlocked as more and more cars join the fray, and the answer to this was to build, you guessed it, more roads.  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/mobile/uk-15814118?SThisFB

Would this be more roads like the M25, the A14, the M6?  You know, roads which were built to remove the pressure of more and more traffic, or to apparently improve speeds from x to y, but have very quickly become known for their traffic jams, 'accidents' (a term I hate, as almost always someone is to blame).

So, I'm going to publish my thoughts.  Facebook has borne the brunt of many of my thoughts, I'm sure I've made myself unpopular and "the leftie" in some people's eyes for daring to question the status quo of car ownership, the acceptance of speeding and so on, but actually, I don't care.

I do care if my son can ride his bike safely, if he can cross the road safely, if my local environment is pleasant, if fields are tarmacked over for parking and out of town developments designed for the car, if town centres die because bloody Tesco builds another 'town centre starving' Extra 24hrs, and so on.

Will I come across as arrogant?  Dunno.  Will I come across as angry?  Probably.  Sad?  I am already.  Passionate?  Hope so.  Deluded?  Only if people continue to bury their heads in the sand.

Let's put it this way - this topic of cars and people's liberty to drive a car.  People are fine to drive cars.  I do - when I need to.  Drive them, but drive them with an eye on:

1) If I hit someone and they are hurt, can I deal with this?
2) If I hit someone and they are killed, can I deal with this?
3) How much is this journey ACTUALLY costing me, financially, physically, time-wise?
4) Is there a sensible alternative?  (i.e. bike from mine to work is 10 mins.  To drive is slightly shorter sometimes, sometimes considerably longer at others).
5) Why am I travelling to work, spending so much money simply to get there?  (think, depreciation of the car, fuel and so on - and do you know it's actually cheaper now to run a car (vs average income) than in the 80s, despite the fuel prices)

And if you ignore these pointers, you really are joining the "age of stupid" - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZjsJdokC0s....

Ooooops, more friends lost off Facebook....