Grr!

Years ago, when you were unemployed there were the papers to look through for vacancies, shop owners would advertise in their windows, and you just dropped in, or you wrote to prospective employers with your qualifications, even if they weren't advertising.  The last resort was the job centre.
Back then, job centres had loads of postcards on boards, with available posts on them. You were supposed to make a note of the code on the card, and discuss with one of the approachable, job centre staff. Or, you could sit down and the member of staff, more often than not, would helpfully assist you to narrow down your options.  There were careers advisors on hand as well. (I forgot to say, some cheeky people would take the job advert cards down, to ensure that no one pipped them to the post.) You could wander in, browse the jobs and walk out again.
Fast forward around twenty years, the card adverts were getting less on the boards, but job search machines had been installed. I can't remember exactly how they worked, but you fed some details in, and then a raft of possible jobs would appear, and you could get printouts with contact details. There were still careers advisors on hand. Security staff were beginning to appear, but their main job was to eject the odd stroppy person. The staff were still exceptionally helpful, and would look through options if you explained what you were looking for.
Fast forward to the present time. It's now called Jobcentre Plus, surely this is a complete misnomer? There are a scant dozen actual vacancies which are replicated on any available job board. That's your lot as far as jobs are concerned. No, as always, the secondary purpose of this place is to process people's claims........hold on.....no, it's not, as all that is done online these days, so if you have never used a computer you're stuffed.
The friendly helpful staff are dying out, they're being replaced by specially selected drones, who often, have never done any other actual work, other than follow their blessed "government  guidelines", and do not seem to have an ounce of common sense between the whole centre's staff. (Profound apologies to the nice staff left over from the previous regime.....there are some.)
In the past, you could leave feeling positive, having had help to find a suitable, possible job to apply for, a course to further your career plans, a tricky form filled in, etc.
Now, with the advent of Universal Credit, you feel, at best ambivalent, at worst.........I shudder to think.
It's a depressing place where the people it is designed to provide help for, come out after being talked down to, forced onto courses that are as much use as a chocolate fireguard, with no actual useful information.
Oh, and there's no careers advisors in each centre.
This is supposed to be a service that helps unemployed people, but it's now a place where government elected drones get to feel smug. I wonder if they have a league table to see which "job coach" humiliates the most people in a week?

Lately

So......I had an operation on my left foot/ankle, again!
To amuse myself, and let friends know how I am, I have been writing posts on Facebook, as if I am my cat, Raphael.
I decided to gather them up and created a blog for Raphael.
It is called Raphael's blog.
Here's today's post.
Raphael's blog day 8
Yesterday slave Jean was braver, maybe she's getting a little better now?
She made her own dinner, just a sandwich, and washed the pots that were waiting to be washed.
I think that she might be getting stronger in her front legs too, as she doesn't look so tired after using the sticks.
That will be me lying across the white thing, and....I have found her toes sticking out, so I gave them lots of gentle headbumps through the day.
Jean spent quite a time talking on the phone about something, there were 4 calls, I think. At first she looked worried, but after the last, she was smiling.
The horse pickle gave her some pills to take, they only gave 10 days, they said the doctor would give the rest, but the doctor is not allowed to give them to Jean, only horse pickles can.
There was something in a letter that made Jean cross, but she looked determined after a while, so whoever sent the letter better watch out!

Bubble Bars

Right....sick of buying Rice Crispies squiggy squares?
Make your own!
The most expensive ingredient is the marshmallows.

Here goes!

Bubble Bars

75g butter, or good quality margarine (3oz)
175g of marshmallows (6 oz)
75 g milk chocolate.....supermarket saver blend is good for this, as it melts well. (3 oz)
100g rice crispies (4oz)

Put everything except the rice crispies in a pan. Put over a low heat and melt. Stir well together.
REMOVE from heat.
Stir in crispies.
Put in a shallow 7 x 11 inch lined baking tin. Press down. Leave to set.
Cut into bars.
You could top with chocolate, if required.

Easy to make, and at a fraction of the cost of the stuff you buy ready made.

New sea wall.

The sea wall in Morecambe needed replacing.  It was crumbling in places and probably getting a bit dangerous in parts.
Last year, they did the stretch from Happy Mount Park down to Morecambe Town Hall. This section looks very nice, with a surface reminiscent of sand, apt at a seaside resort.  Where roads meet the prom, there's the road name set in the concrete. There are also some platforms, where wheelchairs can use ramps, and they create mini viewing points. New play areas were put in place as well.
After Christmas, they started the stretch from the Midland hotel to Regent Road. Being nosy, I asked one of the guys if we would be getting any platforms. The answer was, yes, one. The guy I was talking to explained that the reason for the platforms was a difference in height between the road/footpath and the prom, and there was only one place on our stretch that fitted the bill.
What they have done looks great, I don't think that they are going to put the road names on, but there are pictures in the pieces of the wall on either side of the places where you access the prom. Waves near to the Midland, fairground depiction either side opposite where Frontierland was, and tide ripples, at the bottom of West End Road.
The preparations for the platform are starting, they've also knocked down the disused toilet block at the end of Regent Road.  That's a little odd, but we'll get used to it.
There is a little dissatisfaction that the stretch between Regent Road and the Battery is not going to be done......no money.  However, having lived here at the time of the sea wall being first done, the groynes were constructed at the same time. The shape of the ones out from the Battery car park is obviously well planned, and breaks the waves sufficiently so as not to create any onshore damage.
There has been one thing that has made me a little sad, the seats have been taken out, prom narrowed, and access has been restricted, and I can't currently get onto the prom near me.
It'll be great when it's finished, but the new benches at the other end of town don't look very comfortable.

Too much plastic!

I see things on Facebook asking for signatures on petitions to the government about reducing single use plastic, and emails about the same subject. Here's my take on it.
All very well signing petitions, but they don't always get read, let alone debated.
It's quite simple, if you don't want to ruin the planet for your future generations, do your bit.
If everyone did their own "bit", it all would add up. I refuse carrier bags, have stopped buying liquid soap.
A drop in the ocean....but I made my own fabric bags over ten years ago. That's an awful lot of carrier bags over ten years.
Ready meals frequently are in single use plastic, why not make your own, freeze the surplus for another day.  Some people live off ready meals...
This problem with single use plastic has escalated in recent years, plus there are many people who still refuse to recycle.
I started recycling years before everyone had recycling bins at home, but I was aware of the future problem back then.
Back then people who recycled were cranks.

You shouldn't have to see a photograph of a turtle stuck in a six pack plastic to make you think that you should be careful with your rubbish.

Ok, this might feel controversial to some, but it's my thoughts. You don't have to agree, and that's your prerogative. If you don't agree, please don't leave argumentative comments.

Long time no post

Well, sorry for the lack of posts.
I haven't even posted my "promises" to myself for 2018, or reviewed my 2017 ones.
I have been diagnosed with Fibromyalgia, but the specialist is not convinced that it is causing all my current problems. So now I am waiting to see the neurosurgeon/neurologist for further investigations.
One of my problems is that if I bend my neck forwards too much for more than a few minutes I go dizzy. Not great.
I'm getting quite a collection of long term health conditions, but hey, I'm still alive, so I reckon that I am winning.
The tablets that I was given to help with the Fybro seriously disagreed with me, so the doctor tried me on the lowest possible dose, and starting off every other day.  I was even worse on that, so there's nothing else to try.
The good news on the health front is I had another pain killing injection for my spinal stenosis, which has helped in part.
I feel like a caterpillar that's made their chrysalis and is waiting to emerge in it's new form.  Knowing me, I'll come out as a month.