Any day now ....

I've heard rumours, nothing more than whispers, that the new swing bridge will almost certainly definitely maybe perhaps open this very month or even sooner. You heard it here first.

" ... into the dustbin of history"

It's been a strange old week since the death of Thatcher. Whole forests have been chopped down to provide  for the yards and yards of utter tosh spewing from the presses along with a seemingly never ending televisual spew wave to wash your senses sideways. Opinions are divided, nay, positively polarised with demands to show respect set against street parties and wild behaviour (mostly by people who weren't even born when "that woman" was PM). We had no less than a whole day of Parliament extolling her virtues; some of it extremely embarrassing, one noble lord commenting that she had "beautiful hands and lovely ankles and she knew how to use them.'"! There were a few exceptions but even they lacked any sincerity. In the real world it is fair to say that most of Wales, Scotland and the North of England shed not a tear at her passing. I know many had celebratory drinks. Tempting then to say that it was a bit like old times when she was in office with her divisive ways. Only then policemen on horseback were beating seven shades out of striking miners; today we have a mass download of the Ding Dong song from the Wizard of Oz. So, maybe, the old man from Trier was right when he said "History repeats ... first as tragedy, then as farce".  

Speaking of farces, today we have a £10 million tax payer funded military funeral to finally dispose of this destroyer of hope and wrecker of lives. Money well spent. 

For the journey

Here's the branch of Lloyd's bank an the end of my street. Lloyd's have a rather irritating advertising campaign with the slogan 'For the journey'. I have no idea what that is supposed to mean except that I suspect that, as the UK Government is the largest shareholder in this business, we are all being taken for a ride.

Property game

I haven't played Monopoly for many years; the last time I did it caused rifts and rows (I can't help it if I'm lucky). Anyhow this student accommodation outfit seem to like the game so much they've decorated their front yard with little green houses, red hotels and other themed items. 

Still here

Taken by Margot K Juby

The lengthy cold spell has meant the snowdrops have lasted much longer than they usually do; these are are still going strong.

Taken by Margot K Juby

More monochrome images over at the Weekend in Black and White here.

Sold

This former Victoria Wines off licence has finally been sold after standing empty for over three years. I wonder if they paid cash.

Debout! les forçats de la faim

Here in Hull, in one of the richest countries on the planet, people are going hungry for want of money to buy food. While politicians vie, in the vilest manner, to condemn the so-called generosity of the welfare system, and rich men pay themselves bonuses for their failures and we plough on through the never ending depression, it is difficult, I think, not to want the Earth to rise on new foundations.