Author: jonathan (Page 3 of 4)

Listening to the radio this morning I was somewhat annoyed to hear that some Tesco shop in England was selling Easter Eggs – already. Given the a-religious, crass commercialization of Christmas in which, once again, any Christian message was almost completely drowned out by extortions to spend, drink, eat and party amidst tales of Santa, reindeers and tinsel, I can’t say that I was surprised.

What does surprise me is that Christians don’t make more of an attempt to reclaim Christmas and indeed Easter for Christians. Both events are central to the Christian story and fundamental to how Christians perceive themselves and their faith. Instead both Christian celebrations have been subverted by retailers with the active acquiescent of Christian and non-Christian shoppers alike. The upside of course is that with more people spending, the economy grows by a fraction of a percent. The downside however, is that it pushes everyone just a little more into debt and further detracts from what should be a celebration of a central Christian message.

Most religious holidays the world over have been encroached to some extent by secularism and commercialism, but none, in my view, as much as Christmas in the West. It is hard to imagine Muslims secularising Eid or Hindus turning Diwali into a shopping fest. And Yom Kippur is hardly an excuse to run riot in the malls and clubs.

The reason given each time for turning religious festivals into commercial ones and bringing them forward months is that the punters want it. Well we, the punters, are fed up with it. We’re going to buy our Easter eggs at Easter and not before.

With both sides of all the Squares lined nose to tail with vehicles of all shapes and sizes, pedestrians forced to walk on the road, and wing mirrors missing each other by millimeters, I can’t imagine many people in Strathbungo are happy with the parking arrangements.

Sadly Zipcar hasn’t strayed beyond the US, Canada and London, but a similar scheme is in place in the Southside of Glasgow – Whipcar

Unlike Zipcar which owns a fleet of cars available to zipcar members, Whipcar cars are owned by you and me but available to other whipcar members to rent by the hour, day and week. Eligible car owners and drivers register on line and simply accept or reject requests to rent it.

Owners set the price of rentals (against established guidance) and Whipcar makes its money by charging WhipCar owners a fee (15% incl. VAT of the rental price) and drivers a transaction fee (£2.50) when placing a booking.

The advantage of this scheme of course is that owners can make extra money for your car which would otherwise just sit idle in the road and drivers have access to cars without the expense of owning or the faf or expense of renting from a rental company. And of course if enough people used Whipcar there would be considerably less congestion in the Squares.

It all sounds like a recipe for disaster doesn’t it as friends and neighbours crunch or even write-off your car sparking neighbourly disputes. But Whipcar it seems have got this covered and gone to great lengths to reduce risks, vetting all cars and drivers with the DVLA, holding credit card details for all parties, and offering eBay-like feedback profiles. And the scheme won’t even affect your insurance, with Whipcar having created a special insurance package for the service. The moment you accept a booking on your car their insurance supersedes yours for the duration of the hire, keeping your no-claims bonus intact in the event of damage.

Costs vary depending on your car and location. Whipcar suggests that our 03 Mazda 6 estate can command £6/hour, £28/day or £154/week for us if we put it on the scheme. To save depreciation costs, MOT, annual servicing, fuel, insurance, road tax, accident insurance excess not to mention the hassle of parking I’d be sorely tempted…

Read press coverage here.

While reflecting that my wife and I are going to have a quiet Christmas together this year I couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like if it was just me spending Christmas alone. A short trawl on the internet threw up an article from the Daily Mail earlier this month which reported that:

Most elderly people think Christmas is overrated and one in ten of them will be spending Christmas Day alone, according to a survey.

It showed that the poorest were more likely to dread Christmas and more likely to borrow money for presents and celebrations. They were also more likely to spend Christmas on their own.

Sixty-eight per cent of them believe Christmas is overrated, compared with 54 per cent of the population as a whole. Eighteen per cent of Britons, or nearly one in five, say they dread Christmas.

And Research from Help the Aged has revealed that three quarters of a million older people in Britain regularly feel isolated and lonely, while one million are spending the Christmas period on their own. According to Help the Aged, a worrying half of the UK’s nine million elderly population claim that the television is their main form of company.

Please do visit anyone in Strathbungo who will be spending Christmas by themselves particularly those who are already vulnerable or unwell. Taking a pie or going with a family member (particularly a child) will reduce any stress or awkwardness from your visit. Small gestures can have a big impact on the health and wellbeing of others.

They may have specific concerns they need to talk over with somebody and may be in need of extra support. It could simply be of course that their family wasn’t able to make it to Strathbungo on account of the weather and closed roads and airports. It could be that they have not invited anyone because of the expense of hosting and giving gifts. And remember it is not just the elderly who may be spending Christmas alone. New comers to Glasgow and Strathbungo as well as the more introverted of us (and I include myself in that category) are also vulnerable to spending Christmas alone. Whatever the reason, it could be that you will be the only person your neighbour sees or speaks to at Christmas.

And if you haven’t seen someone for a few days when you would normally expect to see them, ask if a neighbour has keys and gently let yourselves in to check all is well.

If someone needs company do stay with them and make sure they are warm and fed. Invite them to your place for coffee or a meal. Or, if they are up for it, invite them to your Christmas party. If you know of someone in Strathbungo who would like some company but you can’t help, then let me know and we will organise for someone to visit.

Our aim should be that no one is alone at Christmas who doesn’t want to be alone.

With more than a few stories from around Strathbungo of frozen and burst pipes, flooded basements, destroyed boilers and general house problems related to the cold I thought to post some advice on how to protect your house when temperatures outside drop below those in your fridge freezers.

Remember that pipes are most likely to burst during cold weather spells and when homes are left empty, it’s worth taking the following steps to help protect them and give yourself some extra peace of mind. The cost of fixing the problem afterwards (not to mention repairing damaged houses) is considerably more than the cost of these basic preventative measures.

Make sure your water tanks and cisterns are insulated.
• Lag your water pipes that are in cold and draughty areas. Take special care of any in outbuildings, lofts or along outside walls. (Our mains water pipe burst next to the outside wall)
• Use pre-formed pipe insulation on all pipes – these are available from DIY stores where you can also get advice on the best thickness to have. They are dead easy to install taking only a few seconds each.
• Keep pipe lagging dry inside and use waterproof lagging outside
• Protect outdoor/outhouse taps and pipes. In your outhouses and garages, turn off the stop tap and any supply pipes. Drain the supply pipe if possible – by running the taps dry once the stop tap is off. Please remember to turn the taps back off once you’ve done this
• On very cold days, you could open the loft trap-door to allow warm air to enter for a few hours.
• In freezing conditions, leave your heating on low, even if you’re away – and have a friend or neighbour check your home regularly. Have the plumbers name and number on your fridge!
• If you’re away for a long time over the winter, turn the stop tap off and drain the whole system. Radical but effective!
• Repair any leaking taps.

(Thanks to United Utilities for this)