This particular house in Norwich was one of 7 others the landlord owned just in this particular street. The landlord owned another 40 or so properties elsewhere in the city. All but one were privately rented out at suitable ‘market rates’. Although I thought 47 properties sounded a bit excessive, it isn’t uncommon for a private individual to own this many.

The UK is a leaky bucket and we’re looking in the wrong place to keep it full.

It’s clear the UK has some serious problems ranging from rampant obesity, poor mental health, demoralised staff, anti social behaviour and decaying roads. Are we looking for the solutions in the wrong place? That’s what this article is about.

Prices are Rising! Are you worried?

I know the media is prone to create headlines that induce worry into its readers, but the prediction of increases in the cost of living are probably real so I think we need to get used to it. Is it such a bad thing?

Hurry! Don’t Miss out! Save! Limited time only. Click here. Etc.

Have you ever studied a cauliflower and looked closely? It sounds odd, but having rediscovered cauliflower cheese recently I’ve also discovered the beauty of the cauliflower.

This question has frustrated and challenged me for years. It has helped me understand new things and showed me how little I understand most things. The question is: “How hard can it be?”.

Some background: before moving to Norfolk in 1987 I grew up in North London on a staple diet of Star Wars and old World War 2 films. ‘Show me your papers’ was a common request in the war films and led to me realising how thankful I was to live in a free society like the UK.

The abundance of biographies out there published during lockdown suggests people are finding time to do things they wouldn’t normally do. Well here is my contribution: writing about my desk.

Another day of the morning routine. Wake up. Make coffee. Let chickens out. The half-awake routine was wonderfully interrupted by something other than the chorus of eager chickens wanting to break out of their house and have breakfast. There was a big egg in the run. Bluey greeny sort of thing that had to have come from something much bigger than a chicken, after all, it seemed to weigh about as much as one of the chickens so the hole it came out of was much larger than the ones chickens had. Read more

On Friday 26th January, I was woken up ahead of my normal 530am time by what appeared to be a chicken celebrating an early morning egg. When doing the rounds  of letting dogs out, feeding the chickens etc, I noticed one of the chickens was a bit bedraggled. Mavis appeared she had gone for a swim in the river, which is a bit odd. The penny dropped, foxes had made a visit and despite getting away with nothing, had spooked one of the girls into the river. That at least, was how it seemed. Read more

Remember marble runs when you were little? There was something so wonderful about putting them together and seeing a marble end up  where it should. That fascination never ends – even at 48 I was equally fascinated by how the Moors in the 9th century channelled water from one place to the other. In this case, the old waterways feeding the pool in the Andalucian shack I was staying in. Read more

A brief ditty about Aldi, Hall Rd, Norwich. I went in for some wine and some milk (both great quality and price!). I overheard two Spanish students discussing Pizzas and cheekily said in Spanish I think the best is the chicken and chorizo one. I asked a friendly English chap with one arm about the brioche burger buns and he seemed really pleased to be able to help.

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Darwin’s Evolutionary Theory is Dying..

And it’s because of what science is discovering that finally, Darwin’s greatest doubt is being realised.

“If it could be demonstrated that any complex organ existed, which could not possibly have been formed by numerous, successive, slight modifications, my theory would absolutely break down.” – Charles Darwin, 1859. Read more

This was a question I rather naively posed to a leading consultant psychiatrist a while back when visiting my home (on a social thing in case you wonder!). I thought perhaps I should have presented it in more politically correct terms, but alas, I didn’t know how to.

The response was interesting “That is a very good question, and the simple answer is Yes’. So according to an ‘expert’, we are going madder after all! Read more

According to the widely accepted evolutionary theory, I came from inorganic matter combining to form the most basic form of life, and then over loads of time that simple life got more complicated until I arrived. Must add, my real Mum and Dad had a big part to play. However, according to a recent article my eldest ‘living’ ancestor looked like this…

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A few years ago I was in the Gobi desert stunned by the beauty of the Mongolian desert. A boy on a horse walked by, nodded, probably wondering why on Earth I travelled across such a place in an English ambulance. Whilst this Earth is an amazing place of beauty, and so much to be discovered and explored, every now and then where I spend most of my time reveals a equally stunning beauty.  Even the people around you so often reveal something that refreshes your belief in a human beings capacity for incredible beauty. Read more