Chidham and Hambrook Village - everyday

I came to visit family over the christmas period and my mum took myself and her grandchildren to a lovely park in hambrook. We had a lovely time in such a quality play area. I live in Southampton and we do not have anything this nice to take our children too and it made a very nice change to take my children to a park that is clean, tidy and has lovely play facilities. Kind Regards , Emma Phillips

Thursday January 7th dawned and after two vain attempts at getting cars out of the drive we resorted to our walking shoes!  The captain of our village cricket team needed the exercise so a walk to  Southbourne Co-op seemed a mountain away but we put on a stride  and rucksack and forty minutes later after a few slip-ups arrived. We tried to catch a train but failed on how to get a platform ticket and a bus was out of our reach. The old spirit of talk to everyone you meet seemed to have returned and life seemed good.

The return journey was easier knowing the pitfalls until someone you know “Dave and Kim Castle” pull up to give you a lift home! Tempting but not in the Barleycorn carpark so a pint was the order of the day!! But the hero of the week is my sons headmaster who insists his school never shuts but had to forclose last Wednesday until today Monday 11 th and sent homework to them via e-mail! He is true grit!!! And he has his own digger to clear the school grounds!

Thanks to Carol Haskett  

Dec 27 by email

Hello everyone. Spent a lovely hour at the playground today with my 2 year old granddaughter plus the 8 year old, and how fortunate are we to have this facility. We met Bella and her Mum there, who were visiting her grandparents and had a marvellous time. Lovely facility for the village. Carol

posted 7/1/10

CFL's - an alternative viewpoint.
Do you like the light given by the new Compact fluorescent lights” (CFLs), used in your home? Some think them rather harsh or “soulless”. For an alternative, you could try the latest tungsten filament Halogen 240 volt ‘Classic' lamps, made by Osram Sylvania, available on line and beginning to be stocked by electrical wholesalers. No doubt in due course they may also reach retail shops.

The government has put great effort into persuading us to buy CFLs, so that in the interests of fuel economy, it might seem there is no alternative. However the facts have got a bit confused because of industry claims that could mislead. (see BBC article)

CFLs soon lose some of their light output – take out one of yours after only a few months use and you will see that it is already darkening and will continue to darken until you are driven to change it. On toxicity grounds, there should be no argument as to which is the best buy for homeowners. Every time a CFL gets smashed, toxic mercury vapour is released. Advice about this is given on government websites. This is also true of fluorescent “strip lights” which also contain mercury.

Clearly comparing like with like is not easy. The new type Halogen Classic 28 watt uses 30% less electricity than the old fashioned standard 40 watt lamp, is significantly more expensive to buy, but will last longer than a conventional bulb. This is because the class “envelope” is filled with halogen, the inert gas which causes the molecules of tungsten given off by a hot lamp filament to spontaneously bond back on to the filament as soon as it is switched off…. So these new type of 240 volt lamps will not get progressively dimmer at anything like the same rate.
Based on a contributed article

"The case of the vanishing person.

I have found writing this article very difficult, and it has been re-written many times, in order not to offend anyone, and yet putting over a delicate point that I know some people with long term chronic would like to highlight.

No matter what people may think, politically correct or otherwise there is a great deal of responsibility, life skills, comprehension, understanding, and wherewithal to being a partner, parent and person. As the years progress, roles between people are mutually defined and agreed, living happily ever after, based on the ‘Us' premise.

Of course the relationship between two people, who are effected by long term chronic illness will change, nothing to be frightened about, it's the natural thing. However I have noticed over the years, that some carers unwittingly start to use the term “I” or “my”, in place of “we” and “us”, when talking to people. I am sure that this is based on kindness assuming that reducing the stress of day to day workload, finances, spreadsheet, booking flights, holidays, insurance, fielding phone calls, decision about colours, house improvement and so. Gradually the person with the illness has less to do, and feel sorry for themselves, with the reducing responsibility and stimulus. They become too frightened to mention this to their partner, in case they offend them, knowing that their condition may get worse, and the carer has enough problems already, now and in the future.

We now ask how can we handle this delicate challenge, perhaps dinner for two with the essential candles (the more the better), and a candid, loving talk sprinkled with humour, to start sharing roles again, unless of course you are happy the way things are.

Yours Bob Ashwood."