Robert Hampton

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24th December 2014

Value of Nothing

David Cameron has given a Christmas message:-

At this important time of year for the Christian faith I send my best wishes to everyone in the UK and around the world celebrating Christmas.

Among the joyous celebrations we will reflect on those very Christian values of giving, sharing and taking care of others. This Christmas I think we can be very proud as a country at how we honour these values through helping those in need at home and around the world.

Politicians banging on about religion almost always sounds like cynical pandering. It’s especially so when it’s David Cameron – leader of a government which has pushed many families into poverty. 90,000 children will wake up homeless on Christmas morning. Shelter reports that the number of homeless families living in B&Bs has trebled this year.

So merry Christmas, Mr Cameron. I will wait until May 2015 for the top present on my wish list – your exit from Nunmber 10.

2nd December 2007

Gimme Shelter
Posted by at 11.44am | It's My Life | No responses

The bus stop near my house is incredibly badly located. The pavement at this point is fairly wide, and the shelter is set well back from the edge of the road. Unfortunately there is a tree directly in front of the shelter, which blocks waiting passengers’ views of oncoming buses, and more importantly, blocks bus drivers’ views of waiting passengers. This means that the bus shelter cannot fulfil its primary function, as you have to keep stepping out from under it to see if a bus is coming. Also, the bus lay-by has a big pothole which quickly fills up with water every time it rains.

On Friday it was raining quite heavily. I was waiting for a bus and stepped out from under the shelter to see if one was coming. At that moment a car decided to pull into the lay-by to use the nearby cash machine.

SPLASH! All over me.

The driver got out. “Did I splash you then?” he asked.

When I responded in the affirmative, he was mortified and offered a profuse apology. I was genuinely taken aback. I don’t usually get apologies, and definitely not from car drivers where the general attitude seems to be that it’s entirely one’s own fault for getting in their way and deigning to use feet for something other than the accelerator or clutch.

I was so surprised at his contrition that I found myself going very over the top in the forgiveness stakes. “It’s OK, don’t worry about it,” I babbled repeatedly, even after he left, which must have alarmed the driver of the 82A when it eventually arrived and I climbed aboard.