Minor moans

First moan is about a water bill from Thames Water which occupied four sides of A4 but which I found rather uninformative. Gave me no idea whether our usage was going up or down or whether our payments matched that usage. Just a laconic 'no action needed'. Perhaps it is all part of the plot to get us off paper bills, helpful or otherwise, and to get us into their maze of online life.

Second moan is about the two newly replanted trees outside Wetherspoon's in our newly resurfaced market square, as noticed at reference 1. They are both looking a bit sad, never having really got going, but I don't suppose the manager at Wetherspoon's ever thinks to get someone to pour the odd bucket of water over their roots. Which one would not have thought was a great deal of bother - less bother than phoning up the council to moan about it - and would, in due course, usefully enhance their veranda experience.

Third and last moan is about a fine of £60 for failing to display a valid parking ticket in Brading car park. We were guilty as charged - but it is also quite possible that the chap who issued the fine recognised our car and knew perfectly well that we had a holiday letting ticket, that is to say a free pass. In any event, while we understand the need to keep things simple, it is still irritating to be fined in this way. Let's hope that Brading council get a share of the loot. Let's also hope that bored Brading youth don't get their jollies on Friday nights by removing these tickets - in which case one might appeal - although I suspect it would be quicker and easier just to pay the £100 that would by then be due.

I might also say that the ticket had none of the heavy black print and aggressive warnings that come with speeding fines. All much more low key, much better to that extent.

PS: this (Tuesday) morning, I add a fourth moan. My favourite railway timetable, that once offered by Network Rail or perhaps National Rail from the address at reference 3, has not been working properly, mostly not at all, since the start of industrial action, some weeks ago now. And is still not working this morning. At least not on my laptop. You get started, then it gives you a bad request message, the sort of low-level message that suggests that something is broken somewhere. Reduced to using their more commercial rival at reference 4, the people who have paid Microsoft and Google to appear at the top of searches.

References

Reference 1: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2022/04/notre-dame.html.

Reference 2: https://www.localparkingsecurity.co.uk/. The people to whom Brading have subbed out car park management. Much simpler than adding it to the duties of one of their chaps already in the area... Perhaps the chap who looks after the toilets in the car park, presently not open? Or perhaps the chap who keeps the large grave yard on the other side of the wall in order?

Reference 3: https://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/.

Reference 4: https://www.thetrainline.com/.