DARE I SAY IT – BUGGER THE BUGS-

This year so far, and we are only at the end of March, has been one of bugs all round and not only the dreaded medical flu ones.

This poses a real question. Have all electrical goods have a built in bug – a crash on date? During recent months I have needed to replace washer/spin drier, fridge freezer, vacuum cleaner. And in recent weeks computer and printer. All the original items were bought new when we moved into this house just over 4 years ago.

Obtaining an estimate for repairing these has shown it is as cheap to buy new. Add in call-out charges, day or hourly rates and so on the figures add up.

So I have spent a lot of time surfing the web to find replacements. And here I encounter a real challenge which bugs me no end. Prices for the same item vary so much I really do not know which to buy. Some have reductions if you buy within so many hours. Others offer free postage or immediate next day delivery. Some offer other enticements, others none. So where is the catch. Indecision rules okay.

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Apart from what seemed like bugging disasters at the time, life has gone on pretty much the same. Healthwise nothing has deterorated, at least the docs tell me so. We have some surprise worries about Tom though as yet nothing we cannot cope with. Writing progresses, painting too although the watercolour challenge has yet to be beaten. A recent attack on Venice almost totally destroyed my confidence! Instead this post I offer you an oil image of Flamborough Beach with rock fall.

  Still we have got rid of the Christmas bugs – started attacking in October; the Easter bugs started if I recall on New Year's Day. Now we have only the Holiday bugs......an attempt to book a holiday in Filey which from internet descriptions seemed ideal. A recent short visit showed the place totally unsuitable for wheel chairs and mobility scooters despite telling the agent when booking these accesses were an essential. Now I am being asked to pay almost £100 cancellation fee!

I am beginning to feel a bit like Scrooge. Must stop moaning. Flowers are blooming, gale winds are blowing them down, rain is torrenting and I'm off out for lunch at the local pub. Hope there are no power cuts, heating down or the scampi gone off!

And on a world scale things are worse than ever. Terrorist bombs the world over. Aircraft disasters. Floods and famine. Migrants bombed out from homes living in squalor, with no new homes in sight. Massacres and abuse.

And on top of all that we can, it seems, celebrate the long life, death and history of Britain's Steel Industry. Also, all my old TV friends are no longer with us – it seems like one a day is taking that step into the unknown. I'll stop there before I turn on the gas!

So, what have we to look forward to this month?

Seems like not a lot, but the days will get longer; the sun will shine more often; garden flowers will bloom and my painting Ancient and Modern will go off to the framers. Added to all that good stuff there is even more.

That part of my brain which stimulates new ideas for my writing seems to have come out of hibernation and I am having difficulty in keeping up with the flow.

So I will just say thanks and celebrate the fact that at least I am alive, well and kicking.

A bientot. And PS: The food and environment at the Ship Inn at Dunswell, near Beverley are superb. Booking required 01482 854458

Please do let me have your thoughts on any of the points I mention in my blogs via: beverleynow@gmail.com reference May Day as the subject . I hope to reply within a couple of days.