‘They Worked From Dawn Till Dusk
Once the hands and backs of farm labours knew interminable days of endless work.
It is these bodies that have made this country. People who worked all day from sunrise to sunset, in all elements’

Well Done!

thanks for what is a very thought provoking and true post about the realities of todays situation.

TBH I find myself in the opposite position, hence why I haven’t unfortunately been able to participate as much in either this wonderful venture or Transition – I am regularly working 12-16 hour plus days, sometimes in until the early hours to get what needs to be done achieved. What i’ve noticed is not so much that “work is drying up” but *interesting or *fun** things are becoming harder to find – for instance few people can afford a AV engineer (which is my actual trade) or a paid DJ and the reason late night dance events are being stopped is really because the NHS can’t cope with the drugs/booze addiction they cause when a economic depression and politicial turmoil is stretching them to the limit as it is – but there is still a fair bit of “boring” work like construction, cable monkeying and accountancy..

However this also is partly by choice – but also out of necessity to be a decent human being

I’m not particularly religious (a lapsed Catholic)) but do believe a human has a duty to contribute something positive – in my youth I was a hedonist whom despite my parents efforts to give me a good start dropped out of uni in a haze of pills, powders and potions (and still like a drink and party today) and now am quite rightly being kept in line by wider society but also reasonably well rewarded – I might not take home a investment bankers salary but its still higher than many people my age get especially those who don’t have a full University education.

There is the risk I might keel over and land up in Papworth, but I suspect that cleaning up my lifestyle slightly and still not owning a car means my giblets are in better shape than many men of my age – and TBH better I that if I keel over I do that from good honest hard work than merely from partying or mindless testosterone-fuelled competitive “sports” or spending my time and money on cars and getting into a RTC from treating the highway as a playground/racetrack (which do for a lot of men younger than me),plus at least where I work if I do go over its often in a place full of nurses and where I know the phones to call “nines” and the backup systems are as resilient as possible as I built them . Most importantly, I don’t have a wife or kids to leave behind so hard work is what society rightly expects from me as compensation for my misspent youth. In comparison to all you lot in the CSA I am merely a overgrown chav what got lucky, and am lucky to be able to work hard and not to be in hollesley bay or St Clements or bottom of the Orwell TBH after the life I have led!

I did treat myself to a few bits of IT and audio visual kit this year but these are the first upgrades I’ve had since the rave days 10 years ago – interestingly my new digital based DJ mixing equipment and modest (but still powerful) computer and amp/speakers use way less electric than the old style kit.

At least they make up for a increasingly solitary lifestyle- but TBH I’ve already prepared myself for this – as I said on Transition forum if I end up a old man alone in the half flooded remains of Chantry with only stray cats and dogs for company, sat in semi darkness (due to conserving battery power) listening to war reports from the BBC Eastern Counties Emergency Broadcasting Services, I’m quite happy to do this.

My grandparents generation in Malaya after all had to do the similar as well as deal with actual invasion of their homelands (though the weather was better).

Unfortunately especially living currently without a car, IP4 and IP2 are further away than they seem – there is currently no way I could sensibly give both my day job and the CSA the effort they deserve, and though I accept its not exactly “right on”, to me as an engineer it doesnt’ seem that rational riding halfway across town to get food when there is a ASDA within walking distance.

I don’t like the place or its corporate ethos much myself but I do begrudingly admire the discreet but firm security culture – Ipswich as a whole is way safer than London but you still do need to have your wits about you especially if running a business – I did a bit of research about that area only to find the local shops folded due to being hit by both the residents of IP2 preferring to use Tescos as Copdock (despite this being the other end of the estate) and worse, targeting every shop in that precinct for shoplifting and even violent robbery, including the murder of the local pub landlady!

Even then Asdas staff have on occasions had to deal with violence against them such as the scrote who tried to make off from a self service machine and roughed up a female shop assistant.

That said, the area has been successfully cleaned up by both the coppers and whatever security Asda deploy to the point that all I saw today were two fat dogs being separated by security which were squaring up to each other but having considerable difficuty barking at each other without wheezing and panting, this made me laugh but I hope their vets put them both on a diet! (perhaps we should re-introduce dog carts?). Unfortunately it seems that some humans (like dogs!) may not cope so well at being “free range” and need a bit of “firm but fair” guidance, for instance seeing all the white and blue flashing LED strings down my sreet instinctively made me think back to 5 years ago and how the cops dealt with the murder of the 5 sex workers, quickly catching the offender *and* cleaning up the towns nightlife was again impressive to me and I don’t always see eye to eye with the cops on certain matters!

I don’t fear the future (though its in fact harder to face up to than the relatively “quick and clean” exit we were faced with in the 80s when the Soviets and Yanks were dead set on blowing a good chunk of the world into radioactive dust) but don’t see it as being anything *other* than hard work. I think I am still lucky as even in depressions there is always demand for folk who can keep the lights on and the phones working (Richard is in a similar position I wold expect) but am glad I am a bit older and can live with slightly less hedonism, it must be much harder for younger folk!

Alex

http://alasdairross.blogspot.com/2011/10/not-another-supermarket.html

I was there – but I am hidden at the back – see the little sign being held up high – that was me, honest!

I have heard that Tesco has made a planning application for a store on the Golden Key pub site on the Woodbridge Road.

I am strongly opposed to this application for many reasons and know that many residents of this area feel the same.

The area has several excellent shops, including a greengrocer, a butcher and a baker, that offer quality produce at a fair price. These shops are an integral part of the local community, providing jobs for local people as well as a sense of community. We need to encourage local businesses to develop if we are to cultivate a thriving community in this sought after area of Ipswich.

The local Co-operative stores on Cauldwell Hall Road and Colchester Road offer an excellent selection, including many local products, and are open daily until 8 and 10 respectively. I really feel that these shops serve the local residents extremely well, and that therefore there is absolutely no need for a Tesco store.

If the planning application were to be denied I believe it would confirm to residents that creating a truly sustainable community for the residents of Ipswich and the surrounding area is a priority for the council. An integral part of this vision is a supply of fresh local food at a reasonable price, while a Tesco store would mean yet more undercutting of prices, which in the end simply exploits producers, the environment and ultimately our communities.

I implore you to do all you can to ensure that the council says no to Tesco in this area of Ipswich.

Yours sincerely,

Tom Wilmot