Scargill

I don’t update this blog that often as mentioned in the previous entry – but I’m here in Bellingham and the weather is surprisingly nice at the end of July.

Maureen has been working on the garden and I’ve been upgrading our home automation and working on heating system issues with some success. We’ve also had friends visit and been out visiting others. All in a busy few days.

Coming back to the UK has been an eye-opener – prices have rocketed far more I guess than permanent residents will likely see. Popped into the Cheviot local pub for dinner with friends – the meals were not cheap but more’s the point, the house wine was £22 a bottle and if that doesn’t stand out – you’re part of the problem, dear reader. That is ridiculous for a common-or-garden wine at a common-or-garden local rural pub in Northeast England.

Even the nearest Indian takeaway is at it, based in a nearby trading estate to keep costs down yet charging £80 for Chicken Tikka + rice takeaway * 4 + poppodums. I nearly collapsed as we’re used back in Southern Spain to half-decent wine at 3 Euros a bottle in the supermarket, maybe 10-12 Euros in a rural restaurant – less in a bar. None of this has done anything to change my view that we made the right decision moving to Spain after a lifetime of very fairly contributing to Britain tax-wise – something I now put down to my own ignorance.

I have to hand it to Northumberland – the weather is quite reasonable right now whereas much of Europe is having record high temperatures in July – but that’s nature, not rip-off retailers and pub-owners some of whom should be hung, drawn and quartered IMHO. You can tell I’m annoyed, the new UK labour government have just announced scrapping the winter heat allowance except for some disabled folk and a whole raft of people who’ve spent their lives NOT contributing to the system.