Nadolig Llawen 2020

It’s three days to Christmas, and all in Cardiff will be frantically hitting the high street in a last minute flurry of over-commercialised action. So, let’s venture forth with great trepidation, and take on the challenge of negotiating a path through the maddening hordes of shoppers. But hang on, what’s happened to The Hayes? Always a place to provide a sight of festive elegance, but now seems a little deserted…

Let’s try the Christmas Market… always a good place for a warming festive scene (when it’s not being dismantled early, that is!!)…

Maybe the pubs and clubs are doing a roaring trade as an alternative to the worries of what to buy… but then, I forgot, they have already been consigned to memories of a cultural history!

Perhaps everyone is gathering in front of the Castle for a special pre-Christmas event? Or, maybe not…

Okay, at least Queen Street as the main shopping thoroughfare can be depended upon for accommodating the masses… Wow, my kind of shopping!!

Until we speak again, it seems I can only wish you a Merry Covid! Perhaps in years to come we will all look back on this experience and say… WTF???

Strategic advice

Anybody seen anything resembling a strategy floating around? Particularly amidst the clear-as-mud-mess our Tory incompetents revel in serving up on a daily basis?

Our witless Government misinformation trumpets like to spout lies and nonsense to the gullible masses about how they are confidently in control.

But, take a closer look at the detail clouded by the confused messages…

Is that the truth of stark reality we can sense hoving into sight? Surely even those previously blind to the shenanigans of our ‘Liar-in-Chief‘ at Number 10 might benefit from some closer scrutiny of what is before them?!

Until we speak again, my strategic advice is to keep your eye on the prize!

Watching me… watching you

Just as the coronavirus pandemic lockdown restrictions gradually reduce it’s time to emerge out into a strange new world. You know… the place that has benefitted from the relative absence for months of pesky human creatures.

A place where birdsong has provided the soundtrack to an environment basking in a newfound laidback state of relaxation.

A place where fish have developed the confidence to swim about in clearer waters.

So, taking a gentle stroll along local canal side footpaths can only infuse the mind with a sense of tranquility…

That is, until you turn the next corner? “This is my place now… nobody passes!”

“Hey fellah, you might as well retreat into your buildings, but you can’t hide from me!”

Until we speak again, “I’ve got my eye on you!”

Sod it!

As the coronavirus restrictions begin to lift we are all being confronted with difficult decisions…

Is the time right to get back to work? Are the kids back in school? Can I work from home still? Will the workplace be safe? Do I use public transport? Do I add to climate damaging emissions? Where do I buy lunch these days? Has anybody worked out what the furlough thing is all about? Do today’s job loss announcements include mine? Do I believe anything the lying bastards in Government say?

Sod it…

Until we speak again, there are two types of people in the post restriction world of Cardiff… those dealing with difficult questions, and those who just mess about on boats!

Toys for boys

For those of you in lockdown missing such delights as the ‘hooking a duck’ stall at your funfair of choice, Cardiff has ‘The Swan Catcher’ as a toys for boys bigger version on offer…

Until we speak again, don’t forget to throw it back in when caught, as QEII wouldn’t be happy… it would be like putting a corgi into a hot dog!!

Grayson’s Art Club

A little bit of creative humanity is currently appearing on Channel 4 in recent weeks. The artist Grayson Perry invites members of the public to submit their example of lockdown art on a theme for the week. Selected examples will feature alongside his own artwork in a post-lockdown exhibition.

This week’s theme is ‘the view out of my window’ as it represents lockdown ideas, so here is mine…

The plant, that was there, has clearly died (more a reflection of me than the virus I think). The Coronavirus brick wall dominates the present view. But shoots of green and blue emerge on a distant horizon.

Until we speak again…

2020 vision ~ Part 2

Perhaps we already have the word of the year… how many times have you heard Unprecedented being used? At least 2020 in the last couple of months and counting.

Anyway, this was a year barely a couple of months old when we realised Vladimir Lenin  had a vision of things to come when he stated: “There are decades when nothing happens; and there are weeks when decades happen.”

Then there was our less than visionary Government’s initial response here in the UK, sod testing let’s just sit back and go for herd immunity; well, Ian Cowie offered some insightful advice: “If you follow the herd you could end up in the abattoir!”

As for what has become a standard mindset for some people, in relation to ‘unprecedented’ times, Erma Bombeck reminds us: “Worry is like a rocking chair; it gives you something to do but never gets you anywhere.”

With the consequence of  lockdown inevitably meaning the economy charges headlong into recession, employment prospects look grim for many; but don’t worry too much for the future prospects of the divorce lawyers, as Ogden Nash reminds us that: “Marriage is the alliance of two people, one who never remembers birthdays and the other who never forgets them.”

When it comes to a final reckoning, and the Government have to answer for the decisions made (or not made), they have already been carefully creating their deflector shields… we were always guided by the science we were perfectly clear, and it is up to the public to use their common sense… you can guarantee that inside the Johnsonian universe it will be everyone else’s fault, never his. Well, just remember the wise words of JM Barry: “When you mix politics and science, you get politics!” 

Risk Uncertainty

Until we speak again, there are lies, damn lies and statistics… you just have to look at this Government’s record on coronavirus testing to see that one in play!

Alternative Olympics

The Tokyo 2020 Olympics might well be postponed, but for sports lovers suffering through the corona crisis lockdown there is good news… the Bin Store Roof Games have still managed to take place, and here is a highlight from the blue riband 3 metre sprint competition.

Squirrell [2]

Until we speak again, the competitors are lining up for the 6 metre breast stroke swimming competition…

Ducks at 14 [2]

 

Rush Hour

“I don’t like Mondays”, or so the song said. Well, it looks like the world over, that sentiment is playing out in an all too different way. Rush Hour anywhere is looking a little bit like the one experienced here in the centre of the capital city of Cardiff. Not too many people rushing to the heart of the administrative and leisure centre down at Cardiff Bay

Lloyd George Avenue

Perhaps they are all heading for the offices of the newly established Capital Quarter? Or, maybe not…

Tindall Street

How about one of the seats of learning dotted around the centre of the city? Looks more like extended vacation time…

University of South Wales

Shopping with an event and pre or post restaurant visit anyone? Perhaps not…

Until we speak again, the main message seems to be one of…

Be kind

 

 

Wisdom of a stable genius

Who would have thought that the answer to the world pandemic was just sitting there in the kitchen cupboard under the sink? Thanks to the most stable genius taking a break from his Florida golf course, we now know that the message was staring us in the face all of the time… KILLS ALL KNOWN GERMS DEAD!

20200424_115059

Until we speak again, I suggest there is a ready and waiting cohort of people well suited to an immediate trial… it is more usually referred to as Trump’s base. WARNING: If you are not a part of this clearly defined population, do not try this at home, or anywhere else, in any form!