So I couldn't let TE's first rugby tournament go unmentioned. Last weekend we went to Reigate for a mini-tournament, involving five girls' sides; two from Essex, Old Reigatians and Pulborough (I think). The two Essex sides were Eton Manor and Barking. It was a freezing day, the wind was bitter, and it wasn't pleasant. We got there and TE went off into the changing room with the other girls from Worthing.
She's not been playing long with Worthing RFC and others in the team joined after her. She used to play at Worthing Leisure Centre but gave it up. Then she asked if she could go back, and her coach suggested she might benefit from going to the town club. So that is how we ended up where we are, which reminds me, I need to pay her club fees...
So that recap was by way of explaining that expectations weren't high. Worthing are a new team, in the sense that there were a lot of new team members, and they were up against some pretty organised competition. Old Reigatians for instance seemed to have a very desirable set-up, a seemingly new clubhouse and very well-kept pitches. And their team was good, I think in the final reckoning they were the team who won most games. And that makes sense, right? I mean, why invite other teams to play at your club unless you are confident in your abilities to contest the game? And the clubhouse was really nice; it was the sort of place that people want to be a part of. If I lived in Reigate, I would probably enrol my daughters in the club just for the social aspect - apart from the bar prices. They may have been club prices, but they were more Fabric prices than Tarring Working Men's Club prices. That came as a bit of a shock! But we lived through it...
Worthing Girls, on the other hand, managed to lose their four matches. But the team, despite taking some injuries, weren't despondent. The coaches encouraged them, and pointed out what they were doing well, and congratulated them when they put into practice what they had learned in the training sessions.
So even though the weather being cold and damp, and the scorelines not being encouraging, the girls weren't disheartened. We asked TE if she had enjoyed it, and she said yes. She certainly didn't appear to have struggled at all. She scored a try, which always puts a better spin on the day, and she was one of three girls who got a "Man of the Match" (I suppose it should be "Girl of the Match") award, for improving over the course of the day and being instrumental in some of the closing plays of the final game.
Most of the team are moving up to the 13-year old side (TE currrently plays with the U13s). So she will be one of the longest-serving players, which means, possibly, that the other girls in the team will look to her for support and guidance during games. I hope that Worthing can keep up the momentum and generate more interest in girls' rugby. The current coaches are moving up with the girls, so I hope that they can get some replacements who do as good a job and be as positive as the current guys are.
I'm certainly glad that TE is enjoying her rugby, and I hope that future tournaments are played on better days (weather-wise) and the results are kinder, but if she enjoyed playing on a bitterly cold day even when they lost all games, I think maybe she might have found her passion?
Sunday, February 19, 2017
Tuesday, February 07, 2017
Tuesday 17-02-07 Brexit (again)
As I write this, MPs are debating Article 50 in the House of Commons. I don't know what they are trying to achieve, since the majority of MPs will vote for the Article 50 bill, which gives the PM the power to inform the EU of our wish to invoke Article 50 and withdraw from the EU.
Most MPs don't want to leave the EU, they think it will be bad for Britain and they think that we will be worse off, but they are still going to vote for it.
No amendments to the bill will be accepted, in my expectation, and the bill will go through as it stands. I don't understand why they are wasting time over it; they have another full day of debate tomorrow.
It's all for show, as far as I can see. I'd like to see some discussion of how to actually reverse Brexit, and if it is at all possible. There is no point, in my opinion, going along with Article 50 at this point and then trying to reverse things later. As has already been said in the House of Commons, MPs have already voted to trigger Article 50, and they have agreed with May's timetable, i.e., to do this by end of March. So if any of them renege now, they will be portrayed as untrusted flip-floppers.
I believe most of the Tories are secret Leavers, even if they claimed to be Remainers and campaigned for Remain. The ease with which they have given up the fight is astounding. Anna Soubry and Ken Clarke spring to mind as MPs who have stuck to their principles. And I don't think Labour are much better; I do think that if Corbyn had been on the back benches he would have been a Leaver, and it was only for party unity that he decided to remain.
It does seem though that the process is irreversible; I can't see a way that this might all be turned back so that we can all return to normal. Maybe we will all regain consciousness in the shower, much like Bobby Ewing did in Dallas? I don't see any other option. So fasten your seatbelts kids, it's going to be a bumpy ride.
TTFN.
Most MPs don't want to leave the EU, they think it will be bad for Britain and they think that we will be worse off, but they are still going to vote for it.
No amendments to the bill will be accepted, in my expectation, and the bill will go through as it stands. I don't understand why they are wasting time over it; they have another full day of debate tomorrow.
It's all for show, as far as I can see. I'd like to see some discussion of how to actually reverse Brexit, and if it is at all possible. There is no point, in my opinion, going along with Article 50 at this point and then trying to reverse things later. As has already been said in the House of Commons, MPs have already voted to trigger Article 50, and they have agreed with May's timetable, i.e., to do this by end of March. So if any of them renege now, they will be portrayed as untrusted flip-floppers.
I believe most of the Tories are secret Leavers, even if they claimed to be Remainers and campaigned for Remain. The ease with which they have given up the fight is astounding. Anna Soubry and Ken Clarke spring to mind as MPs who have stuck to their principles. And I don't think Labour are much better; I do think that if Corbyn had been on the back benches he would have been a Leaver, and it was only for party unity that he decided to remain.
It does seem though that the process is irreversible; I can't see a way that this might all be turned back so that we can all return to normal. Maybe we will all regain consciousness in the shower, much like Bobby Ewing did in Dallas? I don't see any other option. So fasten your seatbelts kids, it's going to be a bumpy ride.
TTFN.
Thursday, February 02, 2017
Thursday 17-02-02 Farage and Democracy
https://twitter.com/Nigel_Farage/status/826914009056161796
Farage is a tit, in my opinion. These MPs are not "enemies of democracy". Less than 40% of the voting public voted for Brexit, so it is only right that some MPs vote against triggering Article 50. MPs are representatives, not delegates. Indeed, most MPs, if it were down to them, would not have voted to trigger Article 50.
But MPs have carried out the will of the people, just as Cameron promised in the introduction to his referendum: "This is your decision. The government will implement what you decide."
And that is why referendums are infrequent in British politics. We elect MPs to represent us in Parliament, and decisions get taken there. We don't instruct our MPs how to vote, they are not delegates. We can petition them, and ask them to vote a certain way during a certain vote, but they are under no obligation to take our views into account when making their decision. I asked my local tory MP to vote for the renationalisation of the railways: I knew he wouldn't, but I wanted him to know that some of us actually agree with that particular proposal. We actually had a good chat about it.
In UK politics the plebiscite (that's you and me) are directly consulted very infrequently, i.e., we don't do referendums. We let the MPs decide on our behalf. I have heard that if we had a referendum on whether hanging should be brought back as a punishment, it would overwhelmingly be approved, and that is part of the reason why we don't have a referendum on it. MPs are protecting us from ourselves - but that is why we vote them in and out of power.
Unfortunately on this occasion, despite the fact that the Brexit vote will lead to a massive constitutional change, Cameron put in no safeguards or thresholds over voting levels or participation. If only one person had voted, we would have had to follow that individual's wishes. That is how ridiculous the Brexit referendum was.
In my opinion, the 114 MPs who voted against the bill should be applauded. They carried out their job, as the representative of their electorate, to the best of their abilities and as their consciences dictated (especially those Labour MPs who voted against the whip). They knew that they wouldn't stop the bill being passed, they knew that they were making a futile gesture, but they went ahead and voted as they did anyway.
They might lose their jobs at the next election, or other considerations might sway the electorate. But by voting as they did, the 114 MPs showed that we were living in a democracy and not a dictatorship, which is probably what Farage would prefer - as long as he was wearing the leather trousers.
TTFN.
Farage is a tit, in my opinion. These MPs are not "enemies of democracy". Less than 40% of the voting public voted for Brexit, so it is only right that some MPs vote against triggering Article 50. MPs are representatives, not delegates. Indeed, most MPs, if it were down to them, would not have voted to trigger Article 50.
But MPs have carried out the will of the people, just as Cameron promised in the introduction to his referendum: "This is your decision. The government will implement what you decide."
And that is why referendums are infrequent in British politics. We elect MPs to represent us in Parliament, and decisions get taken there. We don't instruct our MPs how to vote, they are not delegates. We can petition them, and ask them to vote a certain way during a certain vote, but they are under no obligation to take our views into account when making their decision. I asked my local tory MP to vote for the renationalisation of the railways: I knew he wouldn't, but I wanted him to know that some of us actually agree with that particular proposal. We actually had a good chat about it.
In UK politics the plebiscite (that's you and me) are directly consulted very infrequently, i.e., we don't do referendums. We let the MPs decide on our behalf. I have heard that if we had a referendum on whether hanging should be brought back as a punishment, it would overwhelmingly be approved, and that is part of the reason why we don't have a referendum on it. MPs are protecting us from ourselves - but that is why we vote them in and out of power.
Unfortunately on this occasion, despite the fact that the Brexit vote will lead to a massive constitutional change, Cameron put in no safeguards or thresholds over voting levels or participation. If only one person had voted, we would have had to follow that individual's wishes. That is how ridiculous the Brexit referendum was.
In my opinion, the 114 MPs who voted against the bill should be applauded. They carried out their job, as the representative of their electorate, to the best of their abilities and as their consciences dictated (especially those Labour MPs who voted against the whip). They knew that they wouldn't stop the bill being passed, they knew that they were making a futile gesture, but they went ahead and voted as they did anyway.
They might lose their jobs at the next election, or other considerations might sway the electorate. But by voting as they did, the 114 MPs showed that we were living in a democracy and not a dictatorship, which is probably what Farage would prefer - as long as he was wearing the leather trousers.
TTFN.
Thursday 17-02-02 Water
I am beginning to develop a pathological hatred for water, which isn't good for my health. Currently it seems that it has been raining constantly and heavily for about four days, and I am getting to the point where I am dreading having to go outside under the open skies. Because they are not open, they are closed over by grey and rain-bearing clouds which obscure the sun and the sky, and the clouds continuously pelt me with rain.
I don't dress well for rain, either, which doesn't help. I have a fantastic waterproof coat which I bought from Mountain Warehouse, but that is about it. The water runs off my coat onto my trousers, and turns them two-tone, normally dark at the front and then lighter at the back. On days when the rain is particularly heavy, even my shoes get in on the act, and go all two-tone too. And then they take an age to dry out.
I popped to the chip shop the other night, and it was raining, so I hurried there and got into the shop quickly, to get out of the rain. I placed my order and then sat down on the window ledge, and then jumped up pretty quickly - the shopfront was leaking and the water was collecting on the ledge. Another example of where rain or water was out to get me.
And it's not like I'm safe even in my own house. A few years ago, we had an extension built onto our kitchen, and that leaked on us too. To be honest, it leaked onto a friend while they were standing up and preparing to leave. It was a bit lucky really, or we might not have noticed. We had to have the flashing redone to seal the join, but it seems to have been dry since.
Last summer we had a flood in the house; the toilet in the bathroom overflowed and flooded the kitchen while we were out. We're still in the process of putting that right, and I will come back to it.
A couple of weeks after that water escaped from our shower and flooded the bedroom below; that was a minor incident compared to the kitchen flood, but it prevented us from using the shower for a few months. It turned out that the sealant around the shower tray had dried out, and so water had escaped around it and ruined a small portion of the wallpapered ceiling below.
And now, while installing a new kitchen suite, we've discovered that the mains pipe has been leaking since forever. The guys who are fitting the kitchen are proper builders who can also take care of the plumbing, so that is a bonus, but there is no guarantee that the leak will be fixed before they want to start installing the new cabinets, and other bits & pieces. I am dreading that they might have to delay the install, especially considering that currently we don't have a kitchen at all; no basin for washing up, no oven for cooking, no washing machine or tumble dryer to clean our clothes with. And the ground floor is about half the size that we are used to without the kitchen, which is making things all a little squished. If I were to try to spin it positively, I might describe it as "cosy".
So that might go some way to explaining why, these days, when I hear the patter of raindrops seemingly constantly and continuously against the window, my heart sinks. But it'll be summer soon, and then I will be able to enjoy warm sunny days and long summer evenings, and it won't rain at all.
TTFN.
I don't dress well for rain, either, which doesn't help. I have a fantastic waterproof coat which I bought from Mountain Warehouse, but that is about it. The water runs off my coat onto my trousers, and turns them two-tone, normally dark at the front and then lighter at the back. On days when the rain is particularly heavy, even my shoes get in on the act, and go all two-tone too. And then they take an age to dry out.
I popped to the chip shop the other night, and it was raining, so I hurried there and got into the shop quickly, to get out of the rain. I placed my order and then sat down on the window ledge, and then jumped up pretty quickly - the shopfront was leaking and the water was collecting on the ledge. Another example of where rain or water was out to get me.
And it's not like I'm safe even in my own house. A few years ago, we had an extension built onto our kitchen, and that leaked on us too. To be honest, it leaked onto a friend while they were standing up and preparing to leave. It was a bit lucky really, or we might not have noticed. We had to have the flashing redone to seal the join, but it seems to have been dry since.
Last summer we had a flood in the house; the toilet in the bathroom overflowed and flooded the kitchen while we were out. We're still in the process of putting that right, and I will come back to it.
A couple of weeks after that water escaped from our shower and flooded the bedroom below; that was a minor incident compared to the kitchen flood, but it prevented us from using the shower for a few months. It turned out that the sealant around the shower tray had dried out, and so water had escaped around it and ruined a small portion of the wallpapered ceiling below.
And now, while installing a new kitchen suite, we've discovered that the mains pipe has been leaking since forever. The guys who are fitting the kitchen are proper builders who can also take care of the plumbing, so that is a bonus, but there is no guarantee that the leak will be fixed before they want to start installing the new cabinets, and other bits & pieces. I am dreading that they might have to delay the install, especially considering that currently we don't have a kitchen at all; no basin for washing up, no oven for cooking, no washing machine or tumble dryer to clean our clothes with. And the ground floor is about half the size that we are used to without the kitchen, which is making things all a little squished. If I were to try to spin it positively, I might describe it as "cosy".
So that might go some way to explaining why, these days, when I hear the patter of raindrops seemingly constantly and continuously against the window, my heart sinks. But it'll be summer soon, and then I will be able to enjoy warm sunny days and long summer evenings, and it won't rain at all.
TTFN.
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