What Happened When the Lights Went Out

Today we had to go to Sainsbury's to do some very basic shopping. We had to order my repeat prescription at the pharmacy. We weren't in there that long.

When we got home we had to put the shopping away and go on-line as we had bought a magazine, Photo Plus, which is a specific magazine for Canon digital camera users. We wanted to sign up so we could have a subscription which meant we got a camera case as part of an offer. All set up with a Direct Debit and well worth the cost, meaning that each magazine arrives in the post each month along with the reporter bag (worth £130 apparently.) I already have B.B.C. History Magazine as part of a subscription and as a result each monthly copy is considerably cheaper than the cost if you buy in a shop. The same for  Photo Plus. You also get access to their website as well as videos and other learning materials.

Then we began to have some strange things happening around the house. First, the smoke alarm kept going off. I think the battery was running low, and every now and then the thing made this noise, which meant it really needed a new battery, so I have taken the battery out to stop the horrible noise and will buy a new battery in the next couple of days. Then the kitchen light began to flicker when I put the electric kettle on (this has been happening regularly for some time now.)The microwave kept making 'pinging' noises, the sound you get to tell you it has reached the end of it' cooking cycle. But how it did this I can't think when the power was off.  Then I coudn't get onto the internet. As we had only just finished our on-line setting-up of the magazine subscription this seemed very odd. Then Carol noticed that the fridge/freezer wasn't working, such as the light didn't come on when the door was opened and it wasn't making it's usual humming sound. We tried the kitchen lights and they didn't come on and then noticed that the meter whch we use with a top-up key wasn't lit up on it's digital display. We had only recently topped up with £10 so we couldn't see that it could be used up after only a couple of days. And if it was about to run out you get a 'peep' sound to warn you there is around £1 left so you can either top up with fresh credit or put the key in without credit and get £5 emergency credit which gives you enough time to get to a shop to put credit on the key and then put on the meter. We also checked the gas meter in the meter cupboard but that wasn't lit up so we knew it wasn't anything in the house as well as checking the fuse box in the kitchen (more like the switches that get thrown automatically if there is a problem with the power.)

I then recalled the fridge magnet we'd been sent from the distribution company, Western Power Distribution, who apparently are responsible for the electric cable coming into the house (not the company we pay our electric bills to.) So I rang the number on the fridge magnet, which said 'Power Cut.' I had been to the houses either side of our house to check to see if the power was off further along the street, but nobody had been cut off. So, the only solution was to ring this emergency telephone number. Having given details of what had happened to the operator, house number and telephone number (I had to use my mobile because our cordless telephone needs electricity to work the charging station the handset sits in.) and within around 20 minutes a very friendly and chatty man turned up and had a quick look at our wiring etc etc and in partcular the point where the power cable comes into the house in the meter cupboard which is at the front of the house. He was somewhat surprised by the poor quality of the work that had been done (I'm not surprised, as our landlord is in the habit of getting cowboy engineers, window installers etc etc to do work in the house. How long have we been waiting to have the garden fence repaired? Several years at least, and counting. The general maintenence of the property takes a lot to be desired, including the fact that the gas boiler has caused problems and hasn't been serviced in all the time we've lived in the house and should be gas certified for safety on a yearly basis and hasn't since we went over from renting through an agency to the landlord being responsible for such matters.)

Anyway, the gentleman who came out to fix the power supply told us that he could fix the problem. I'm not exactly sure what the problem was, but the two cables, negative and positive, were fused together which was why the power was off and it would require some part freshly installed which he could do on his own, but, because of health and safety, he wasn't allowed to do on his own, so he would require a second engineer to come out and help do the work. So, he rang and got through to this gentleman who came from Bletchley and after about 45 minutes they had managed to restore the power and we were extremely grateful because if they hadn't managed to fix the problem we wouldn't have been able to have any lighting in the house, hot water, the fridge/freezer would have begun to defrost it's contents and we wouldn't have been able to use the oven to cook our evening meal. But, fortunately, none of that happened. Over the years I've lived in quite a few houses, but I've never experienced this happening with the electrical supply. I've know a few black-outs, the electricity being cut off for whatever reason, but nothing like what happened here with this.

Christmas, New Canon camera and Greeting Grandson George

Well, that's another Christmas come and gone. A bit of an anti-climax I always think. All that build-up, money spent, food eaten, excessive television schedule and all that and it's gone in 24 hours. I think it's the fact that the shops are stuffed to the rafters with merchandise to tempt you to part with your hard-earned cash and then within another 24 hours they re-open and the self-same stuff is around 75% discounted. You can't win, either way, it's to make you feel guilty that you didn't spend your money in such-and-such a store or on-line.

I've had my eye on a brand new digital camera for quite some while and had looked at a new Canon D.S.L.R. model, a 100D, which is one of their E.O.S. cameras, which was within my budget of £350. I'd seen it on-line at various retailers, Amzon, Jessops, John Lewis and Argos and was able to get a fairly good idea of it's specifications. We've had a couple of Fuji 'bridge' cameras and, for the money, they've been good value. But we have wanted to expand into S.L.R. territory, with a much more sophisticated camera which would allow us to change lenses, use the range of exposures and other refinements which a digital S.L.R. camera would allow. I started off around 12 years ago with a very basic Sony 'point-and-shoot' camera (which I still have, incidentally.) when I wanted to try out what, at the time, was a relatively new type of photography. I wasn't sure that digital could possibly be as good as traditional, film, photography. Before long I was using the camera to do all my photography tasks and, when I bought a new Apple computer, was able to up-load my photographs on to that and edit them and publish them on such sites as Flickr and then the relatively new social media site (at the time), Facebook. Then I met Carol and I found that she was as interested in digital photography as me and that she had a Fuji 'bridge' camera which we took with us when we visited National Trust properties and also when we went on holiday to Yorkshire together. We then bought a second Fuji camera in a sale in Jessops's in Northampton. Both these cameras were in Fuji's Finepix range, and, for the money, were exceptional value and produced some good photographs.

So,  last Wednesday,after all the research, we went into the Jessop's branch in Milton Keynes Shopping Centre to buy the camera. It turned out that the one they had in the shop on display was the only one they had in stock, so that is what we bought. Having purchased it we spent some time wandering around the shopping centre before we drove over to Stony Stratford because Chloe and Steve were staying with Chloe's half sister Louisa and her husband Richard and we would at last get to meet my grandson George for the first time. I mentioned that he was born on the evening we had our rare evening out at a restaurant back in October. We had planned to visit them in Worcester, but we have both had bouts of illness which meant we couldn't drive all the way there and hence the meeting, in a pub, The Cock, in Stony Stratford.

Proud grandparents with new grandson George.

As we had the new camera with us, it was a chance to try it out, hence the picture I have posted above. Quite an emotional moment, to say the least. Considering the fact I had my heart attack nine years ago I am so fortunate to be well enough to enjoy 'the moment.' Things might be very different if I hadn't come out of it, and might not have been around to meet him. 

Chloe with my son-in-law Steve and baby George.

On Boxing Day (26th December, the day after Christmas Day in Great Britain, for those not in this country.) it was surprisingly mild and warm weather-wise. ( WweInfact, up until now, we've had an exceptionally mild winter.) We needed to get out of the house. Being stuck indoors for any length of time begins to pall. A large amount of television-watching does begin to make you googly-eyed.. We considered several places and ended up on Whipsnade. After all we can visit without paying with Carol's Fellowship membership. So we drove there, no more than a 30-minute drive down the A5 towards Dunstable and across The Downs. We were surprised how many people were out walking along the paths as we went past the visitor centre run by the National Trust. We were further surprised by the number of people at Whipsnade Zoo, no doubt visiting as we were, making the most of the weather. It was certainly strange visiting so close to Christmas. We managed to get some good photographs of the flamingoes, as we saw them a good deal closer than we are usually able to see them.

Flamingoes at Whipsnade Zoo

We had bought a picnic with us, and ate this sitting in the car, overlooking the view from the carpark, the valley below where the zoo is situated. Fortunately the weather behaved itself although it looked very over-cast. 

A Merry Christmas!

Well, it's only a few days until Christmas. We've done virtually all our Christmas shopping, although we're off to Sainsbury's early tomorrow morning in order to buy the last few items to cover the festive period. Why do people have to go so crazy when it's Christmas? You'd think there was a war on and there was a shortage of the most basic things, such as milk, bread, cake, eggs, wrapping paper, tinsel and so on. I was in Sainsbury's last week and it appeared as if they'd sold out of sugar so had to buy the smaller packs. It might be a good idea to keep away from supermarkets for the next few days. I've seen people pushing shopping trolleys over-laden with all sorts of things. It's mayhem, and considering that most supermarkets will be open again on Saturday (Boxing Day) really makes no sense. Also, another factor that always gets me, and I've mentioned this within a post I've written somewhere on this blog, there will be sales days after Christmas day, and what you can buy for goodness knows how much will then be reduced considerably. So (I know Ebenezer Scrooge would have loved this.) you can buy the same items for up to a half or more, less than the pre-Christmas day price. 

I will probably not write anything more on here until the New Year, although I have a tendency to write something when I find something quirky going on around me, which is one reason why I enjoy this sort of writing. So, with that in mind, to all my loyal readers, I will wish you a very Merry Christmas and Happy and prosperous New Year and see you in 2016!

730th blog post: Ashfield Surgery Appointment and Over-night stay at Milton Keynes Hospital

Over the course of the past six weeks or so I have been experiencing a rather nasty pain in my chest, rather like an angina attack, bought on by some form of exertion, such as walking. It usually goes off with rest. This happened a few weeks ago when we went to Stowe Landscape Garden and started up as we walked back to the car. I had to stop and sit and it gradually went off. It also happened again last Friday after we'd been to the restaurant for a meal with Carol's work colleagues and we were walking back to the car. It's almost like a sort of 'spike' of pain, as I say, similar to an angina attack. I have used my G.T.N. spray which is supposed to relieve an angina attack.The G.T.N. doesn't seem to make much difference to reducing the discomfort.  I was prescribed insoborbide mononitrate last time I was admitted to Milton Keynes Hospital when I had an angina attack which didn't subside after a particular bad attack. It has a similar effect to G.T.N. spray as it makes your blood vessels open up to allow a better flow of blood and so reduce pain. I had got to the point where I was really suffering with this discomfort but was reluctant to go to the doctor because we have been going there quite a lot recently, and in particular, after the last few weeks with Carol's medical problems. I was prompted to get advice for this situation when I went to Sainsbury's pharmacy to collect a repeat prescription and the pharmacist did a review of my medication (as they do every six months or so.) I managed to mention this chest pain and he said that perhaps it was caused by one of my current medications, such as bisoprolol, which helps maintain a slower heart rhythm and possibly the dosage I'm on needs reducing or increasing and that, as a result, I should make a doctor's appointment and discuss this chest pain with my doctor and get him to either increase or reduce the bisoprolol dosage I'm on. So, yesterday morning I decided to ring the surgery to get an appointment with the doctor (or 'a doctor' as there are several doctors at the Ashfield Medical Centre.) As mentioned in an earlier post on here, they have changed the appointments procedure and you now have to ring and go through a sort of 'triage' system so that they can decide which medical problem are more urgent than others and then get  a doctor to telephone back to discuss the problem and then make an appointment for later in the day. I eventually go through at around 10 o'clock. Then a doctor rang me around 45 minutes later and I was able to discuss the chest pain to him and as a result was given an appointment at the surgery at 4.30 yesterday afternoon.

When I got to the surgery the first thing I realised as soon as I got through the door was that the computerised check-in system wasn't working. You're supposed to put the initial of your surname in the program then the month and day of your birthday and it's supposed to bring up yout appointment-time and the doctor your're booked with. But because this wasn't working (it's a common fault that this sytem crashes whenever I need to go to the surgery and sign in with the system.) so I had to queue up and check in with one of the receptionists. It transpired that I was seeing one of the practise nurses and not a doctor. Having waited for a further ten to fifteen minutes I was called in by the nurse (because the computer system wasn 't working, it meant that the digital display which informs patients when their appointment is ready so you go through to the relevant room.) and then had to explain what I have already described above. I had to have an E.C.G. which is something I've had several times before and when she had the print-out from this it was taken to a doctor elsewhere in the surgery. I had to sit and wait a further ten minutes and she returned to tell me that I would need to go to the hospital.  Which was not exactly what I wanted to hear as I had expected this to be an 'in-out' appointment so I could go home immediately afterwards. She then said that they would need to call for an ambulance to take me. Which seemed amazing since the hospital is barely a five-minute drive away from the surgery. So the ambulance came (within around ten minutes.) and I had to then describe the symptoms of the pain in my chest  to the paramedics and they took notes and took me out to the ambulance and did a further E.C.G. scan and my blood pressure.) We eventually moved off and got to Accident and E I mergency, being taken inside sitting in a wheelchair (which is strange for me, having been a carer, where I often pushed other people around in a wheelchair.) Once at A and E I had to go through the process of describing my symptons yet again. By this time I had called Carol on the phone to let her know where I was and to let her know what was going on. Meanwhile she had arrived in A and E. I was taken to a cubicle and settled in. We were then told that I was likely to be there for around 2 hours. When they insisted that I must wear a hospital gown did I realise that all this was going to take a good deal longer than anticipated. I had to go through the rather unpleasant ordeal of them taking a blood sample. Unpleasant, because, as you know, if you've read any of my previous blog posts, taking a sample of blood has caused stress as well as problems. As it turned out it did cause some problems as the nurse couldn't find a vein that would yield  sufficient for them to sample and consequently it took quite a long time, but eventually it was successful. That done, we had to wait, and wait and wait. It wasn't excessively busy in A and E, so I don't know why they couldn't deal with me quicker. I think they soon realised that my case wasn't particular urgent although, anyone who has a history of heart problems or had a heart attack gets priority which would be one reason why I was taken to A and E so quickly. They then put other patients at the front of the queue and my case was much further down the list which was why I had to wait around 4 hours before anything could be done as regarding what had caused my chest pain. Carol decided that she would need to go home as it was getting late and I would be staying at the hospital over-night. I then was taken to have a chest X-Ray and by the time that was done the doctors could have a look a my notes as well as the X-Ray and blood test results to give a clearer picture of what was going on.

Sometime later, getting on for around 10 o'clock, one of the doctors came to tell me that, having looked at past E.C.G. records and other material they had from earlier hospital visits that there was no evidence to show that what had caused the pain I had been experiencing had anything to do with my heart and that I could go home. But by that time I was really tired and felt that I wouldn't be able to drive let alone walk, even though 'home' was so close. So I rang Carol to say I would be home in the morning. Earlier the doctor had said that whatever it was that had caused the problem had been because things 'had been stable for a long time, but now they had become unstable' but at that time they could not see what it could have been that had caused the pain.' But by now they had decided that the problem wasn't heart-related, which was a relief to me. So, I was moved into a sort of holding ward, away from A and E, as they have to free up beds for incoming patients. Then, having got to sleep and was well settled in for the night, I was woken at around 3 a.m. to be told I was being moved once again, to yet another ward. I was pushed there by a porter and nurse, through the corridors of the hospital, into a ward that reminded me strongly of the C.C.U. at Bedford Hospital (Coronary Care Unit) because it was almost exactly the same sort of configuration of beds with curtains around them and facing one another (I think the Bedford C.C.U. has eight or perhaps six beds, in two blocks, one for men and one for women.) I was once again checked in, with 'obs' (observations) blood pressure, temperature and another E.C.G. I suppose they have to adhere to certain procedures, but by this time it was becoming somewhat annoying. How many times did I repeat the symptoms? It seemed somewhat obsessive. Could they not have kept the various sets of notes and referred to them? Build up a set of notes from each successive examination? It does seem that the N.H.S. is somewhat over-staffed with people pushing bits of paper and in some cases, over-sensitive to such things as targets and statistics, which would be what most of this is about.  I spent a somewhat restless night attempting to sleep, as it was so noisy. Staff walking about, doing such things as 'obs' of other patients and someone talking in the next ward very loud and squeaking trolleys and electronic gadgetry making strange beeps and burps at irregular intervals. But I think I did manage to sleep for two or three hours. At 5.45 my mobile alarm went off, as it's set to that time because we always get up at that time every day, starting off the day with me making us both tea. Incidentally, I didn't get a cup of tea early as I would have expected when I had had to stay in hospital, although we did have tea and a sandwich given us as we waited in A and E, nor did they ask me what medication I was on which was rather a surprise. At 6.30 Carol phoned and said she would come and pick me up later and the doctor re-appeared to reiterate what he had said the previous evening about the pain being unrelated to my heart but at that time they could put a finger on exactly what had caused it. So, I was free to go home. A further lot of 'obs' were done and I got dressed and walked out of the ward. I went to the nurses station to tell them that I was leaving expecting there to be some paperwork to sign or allow me to be discharged. But the staff didn't seem that interested so I walked out. I didn't get so much as a cup of tea when I was on that final ward. I hadn't eaten anything since having the sandwich when we were in A and E. Not so much as a packet of crisps. I'm somewhat surprised. It seems I was totally ignored. They kept an eye on my blood pressure, temperature and so on, but not one offer of something more substantial to eat. When I was a carer I could have been done for neglect if I didn't allow one of my clients a drink or something to eat if they were unable to provide something for themselves. So I'm shocked to think I got nothing except a rather lack-lustre sandwich and a mug of tea. But I got outside and couldn't work out exactly where I was, and certainly not near the front entrance of the hospital as I had expected of even near when I had entered A and E when the parmedics had brought me in in the ambulance. I had a call on my mobile and Carol came and collected me from near where we had gone the other evening when we'd visited the former Walk-In Centre. So, we drove home, to be met by our two dogs, Poppy and Alfie, who were pleased to see me as they were totally confused by having their routine upset when I had gone out and left them alone in the house the previous afternoon.

Putting It Together

I have mentioned in earlier posts on this blog about my writing. I have been developing a 'multi-strand' piece, set in a single location, with differing characters, and giving these characters their own individual story arcs. I have been struggling for some time with how I could link them together in a successful, cohesive fashion. I think I'm fairly positive how to do this, using a narrator, someone who observes the whole setting. I am now formulating a structure for the whole and writing material for this narrator. I will be leaving off working on this project over the Christmas and New Year period and will re-commence working on editing what I have already written in the New Year (I have a ring binder full of the material I have written up until now. I am very surprised by how much of this there is.)The ediing of written material is actually just as important as the writing. What you leave out is probably just as important as what you put in. So, the expression 'more is less' makes a lot of sense in some ways. Something you learn quite early on as you begin to write and develop your writing skills. It's a bit like acting, it's not always what an actor says and does, the unsaid things, body language, facial expressions etc etc which can be used to put across a whole host of emotions that are more telling in some ways than speech, used to develop a character on stage.

Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Screening Appointment

I had a letter come out of the blue from the N.H.S. a few weeks ago to go for a screening for something called an abdominal aortic aneurysm, something I had never heard of before. Apparently men of my age (65) are supposed to be prone to this problem, which can, apparently, according to the leaflet which came with the letter, be very dangerous.  The aorta is the main blood vessel that supplies blood to your body. It runs from your heart down through your chest and abdomen. In some people, as they get older, the wall of the aorta can become weak. It can then start to expand and form an abdominal aortic aneurysm. The condition is most common in men aged 65 and over. Unfortunately the day the appointment was arranged I was feeling particularly unwell and didn't go. I got another letter about a week later asking me to arrange a new appointment by telephone so I rang and got the fresh appointment. I wasn't aware that Milton Keynes area was covered by Bedford Hospital N.H.S. Trust, in fact the hospital I was taken to when I had my heart attack in 2006. This is where I rang to make the appointment. I presume they had my name and address and details on their system from then and that would be why I got the letter. Anyway, the appointment is this morning at 10.40, at the Grove Surgery, which used to be our doctor's surgery before we moved to Ashfield Medical Centre.

I'm not entirely sure what this procedure entails, but I imagine it will be similar to the tests I had shortly after my heart attack. One was an angiogram which was done at Bedford Hospital and I had several others done at Papworth Hospital near Cambridge and then a few years later I had what was called a Stress Test done at Milton Keynes Hospital, so I imagine this screening will be similar.

Later.

I got to the Grove Surgery in good time. With about 20 minutes to spare. I always think it's best to be too early, because of parking the car. I was glad I did, because the surgery car park was chocker-block full, and so was the road leading to it and the carpark immediately behind the adjacent parade of shops. So I decided to try the carpark which is in front of the shops in Netherfield. I managed to find a convenient space, and, instead of sitting and waiting for a few minutes in the car before going to the surgery, I decided to walk straight there. The waiting room was very busy and I went to reception to say I was there, as you are supposed to do. Ashfield Medical Centre has a computerised system which you have to sign in to with your name, date of birth etc (although for the past several occasions it has been out of order.) I sat and waited for my name to be called. I was somewhat amused by the automatic door they had. A man went to leave and couldn't get the door to open. For whatever reason, the door wouldn't respond when he walked up to it. It must have got confused because you no doubt have to be in range of some sort of movement sensor that would pick up that you are there and then allow the door to open. You have to go through two doors, with a sort of porch in between. I expect this is to keep the heat in during cold weather. He managed to leave, and then several people walked past the door and it kept opening and closing even though people weren't going in or out.

My name was then called out by a young man, whom I could tell was going to do the screening as he was dressed in an N.H.S. uniform along with a lanyard with an identity card on it. I had to have such a card when I worked as a support worker for the N.H.S. I was led into a room and was surprised to find several other people were also there. It turned out the young man who had come to fetch me from the waiting room was a trainee and the other people in the room were observing how he worked. He informed me what the other people were there for, which didn't bother me. I am always pleased to be able to help anyone, particularly if they are training and it furthers their career as well as making sure that a particular procedure is done correctly. I had to lay on a couch and raised my shirt so he could put some gel on my stomach and lower abdomen and he then put the scanner senor on my abdomen. He moved the sensor up and down my stomach and lower abdomen and the lady who was observing kept telling him in which direction to move it and they were looking at a screen which showed my internal organs (I didn't look. I had a similar thing done as I have mentioned above, when they put something in my blood to make my heart beat faster and they could see how it was behaving on a similar screen. Similar to an ultrasound scan that is used to see a baby developing within the womb when a woman is pregnant.) He then said that my blood vessels were 'fine and healthy' and as far as he could see there was no reason for me to have an aneurysm and  I wouldn't need any further scans. At which point the procedure was finished. I sat up, although a little bit dizzy and lightheaded and the lady who was observing said that she would have to look at the scans to check for 'quality control' and if they weren't up to the correct standard I would have to return for another session. I just hope not. It wasn't an unpleasant experience for all that. Everything was extremely professional and well managed. Except, when I fot home, I found that I had the gel left on my stomach and some of it was on my shirt. I don't know exactly what it was, but no doubt something like KY Jelly! 

Rain, Rain! Go Away!

Storm Desmond has been raging across the north of England and into Scotland. We've been seeing some awful footage on the television news of homes being flooded, the misery caused by water damage, cars up to their roofs in water, people being rescued by boat from their front windows, boats being rowed down mains streets. It's quite awful. Luckily for us in Milton Keynes and most of the south of England we seemed to have escaped from this flooding. But overnight we've had heavy rain. We drove to Tesco at Oldbrook Boulevarde early this morning because Carol needed to get cash out of the A.T.M. as we're going to a restaurant with other  staff members of her department at Milton Keynes Academy for a Christmas meal and we have to pay a deposit. It should be a good evening out. It was raining heavily as we drove there. Whenever it rains we get a torrent or water running down the road in front of our house. The dogs are a little reluctant to go out in the garden when it rains. Alfie comes back in looking like a bedraggled rat. As his coat is long and naturally curly, whenever it gets wet it starts to get even curlier, making it look as if he's had a perm! He is in need of another grooming session so I will have to book another early in the New Year.

Further Thoughts on 'Downton Abbey'

Warning: Spoilers

We have been watching the television series 'Downton Abbey' on catch-up. Over the last few weeks we have more or less 'binged' on the show.  The earlier episodes have been shown on the digital channel I.T.V Encore and then put on download or 'catch-up' through our Sky subscription, but we were stuck at the end of series 4 and there were no more episodes so we were left stranded, mid-air, as it were. We now have an Amazon Fire Stick which allows you to watch films and television shows which are streamed via the internet and, as members of what is called Amazon Prime, we can see a lot of stuff free (although we pay a £79 annual subscription which also means we can get free postage and packing when we buy anything via Amazon's website which is very convenient.) We did attempt to see the first episode of the series when it first came out, but, having watched it including advertising, we gave up. It has been taken over by so much advertising we couldn't cope with it, and  one of the advantages of catch-up television is that there's no advertising every ten minutes or so. Ads for sofas, car insurance and mobile phones is enough to put anyone off. We discovered that 'Downton Abbey' was one of the many television series we could watch, but up until the end of series 4. It appears that the final series is not free to watch. We will have to pay considerably more to watch it, but it's likely to be free once the final, Christmas episode is shown on Christmas Day. I have mentioned the show in previous posts but since watching it up until the end of series 5 (sorry, I refuse to use the American term 'season.') there is a good deal more about it which I want to discuss.

I'm still more interested in the 'downstairs' staff than the 'upstairs' family. The Earl of Grantham, as played by Hugh Bonneville, is a real stick in the mud. Reluctant to break with tradition and see the estate move forward into the 20th Century, or so it seems. Likewise, Carson, the Butler, seems to do anything to avoid any sort of modernisation. Why do the ladies need maids to help them dress and undress? Likewise, the gentlemen, can they not dress themselves? I understand that, during the earlier period, the Victorian and Edwardian eras, when the women wore corsets, loads of petticoats, had lots of hooks and eyes in their boots and shoes and cross-lacings in their dresses which would require a lady's maid to help, and the men wore stiff collars and cuffs in their shirts and the fact that clothes needed more care because they needed folding neatly, but it seems the aristocrats are incapable of any sort of work. But in the later period, for example the 1920's when clothing became simpler, ladies wore lighter dresses without any sort of lacings, they wouldn't obviously need assistance with their dressing and undressing. I can see, as regards plots, the valets and ladies' maids are integral to the storilines as they have to keep secrets divulged by their misstresses and masters. As regards the kitchen staff, as time goes on there are more appliances used in the kitchen which made the staff's lives much easier. We have visited many National Trust properties and seen the kitchens, notably Crag Side in Northumberland and Ickworth in Suffolk and they have modern (or at least, modern at the time they were introduced in, say, the 1920s and 30's.) At Cragside, for instance, the whole house was run using hydrolectric power. Infact, I believe it might have been the first country house to use any sort of electricity. The power generated worked such things as spits for roasting and even a lift between floors of the house and lighting. In 'Downton Abbey' the introduction of the telephone and radio seems to cause a huge stir amongst the artistocratic members of the household and the downstairs staff. At one point Carson is horrified by the thought of having to use the telephone but after a while relents and uses the thing frequently.

The 'downstairs' staff have more interesting 'story arcs.' Daisy has had the most interesting 'story arc' and has definitely grown as the show has gone on. She is now considering an education and hopefully will be able to break free from a life of drudgery downstairs. All this bought about since she had lessons with the schoolteacher, a rather firey character with Socialist leanings. In one particular scene when she comes to dinner at the house, she gets on the wrong side of the Earl of Grantham with her left-wing views. At this point we see a different side of Robert not seen until then. I think the way the stories have managed to utilize historic events, such as the sinking of the Titanic at the very beginning of the first series, the First World War and it's effects on staff and family, the move forward into the 1920's, the 'Jazz Age' and the introduction of such things as motor transport, radio, telephone and so on has been well done. Also, how the class system has shifted and how ordinary people has aspire to greater things rather than be stuck in a rut at the bottom of the pile. However, it will be interesting to see how the aristocracy cope with change as they have to come to terms with this shift in the class system and how they manage to deal with declining estates, the upkeep of large houses and also their fortunes being eroded by higher taxation etc etc.

The Grantham family run and own a vast estate with acres of land and property and they are often seen on horseback. But only minimally. I think there has been a foxhunt at some point and we've seen one of the ladies on horseback at a steeplechase. I think the fox hunting element has been only seen on a very small amount  of screen time to avoid upsetting the politically correct contingency, but let's be honest, the aristocracy have not been known to avoid upsetting people with their hunting, shooting fishing and generally ill-treatment of the wildlife of the countryside. There has been some shooting going on, but what else do these 'types' get up to? Compared to the downstairs staff, they're generally a very dull lot. 'Stiff upper lip' describes them well. Don't show your emotions (the men, of course.) except when the dog dies, not show any affection for your better half. Reserved, stoical etc etc. Meanwhile, the women are self-centred, moody, emotional, and thoroughly heartless in some cases. Mary spent episode after episode moping after the death of Matthew (understandable, up to a point I suppose.) And then she became a man-chaser. Building up the hopes of many men and then ditching them at the last moment. Lady Edith has been seen moping over her child which she had illicitly and then tried to palm the poor child off on a farmer and his wife who live on the estate and then pretended that she wasn't her child. What a tangled web etc etc.

I suppose 'Downton Abbey' does have it's appeal. It's well enough made, written and acted. A lot of time and effort has gone into the look and feel of the thing. The period is evoked well with both the settings and costumes. But to be honest it's somewhat dull. It can best be described as 'chewing gum for the eyes.' What I mean is, it doesn't take many risks. It's typical Sunday evening entertainment. It fits the so-called 'Ovaltine Television' mold. We always seem to get either vets, nurses, midwives and other assorted professions in our weekly dose of drama on a Sunday night. And invariably costume drama of some sort. It's the sort of last thing we see before we go to bed as the weekend draws to a close and have to contemplate going back to work on Monday morning. It's totally inoffensive, doesn't upset anyone in any particular way and is thoroughly Middle Class. We get our fill of nostalgia, although, as someone or other said, 'Nostalgia's not what it used to be.' It moves along at a snails pace. No speeding cars, police chases, guns being fired. It won't 'frighten the horses' as someone else also said. I don't dislike it and it gives employment to a great many good actors. I have to say it's great to see Dame Maggie Smith in something and definitely in her element. As I've said in an earlier post, she does seem to get the best lines.

The upstairs characters are not really characters I can identify with. They're rich and arrogant. Can't they see that their lifestyle is gradually coming to an end? Would they not have had some idea that things would change after what happened in Russia in 1917 with the Revolution? As would have happened when Charles I was beheaded and Cromwell took over with the Commonwealth? I can't really identify with them. They don't in general terms have 'character journeys' because they don't have to strive for a better life because they have money, position, power and so on. Meanwhile, the downstairs staff have to not only work extremely hard, but if they want to break free from their lives of drudgery, they have to work harder than most to get anywhere away from the confines of the house. Although, saying that, they do have the protection of the house and the family, security up to a point, a roof over their heads and free board and lodging.The best drama comes when the characters have to go on a journey, a really good story arc, which means that by the end of the novel/play/film or whatever they have changed from how they started at the opening of the story. Think of Oliver Twist or David Copperfield or even Les Miserables, where Jean Valjean changes gradually during the course of the story.

I have seen documentaries on television which give a relatively accurate picture of what life in a country house would have been like, similar to the large house depicted in 'Downton Abbey.' Yes, I know, it was never intended to be a documentary. It's more of a soap opera for those who want to have aspirations above their current position in life. Similar in some ways to 'Dynasty' or 'Dallas.' But there are aspects of life on a country house and estate which seem to have been conveniently forgotten. Such as the fact that the staff have to get up extremely early each morning (usually before 6 a.m.) to make up the fires, carry coal in buckets great distances from goodness knows where, empty the slops (or to be more accurate, the bed-pans, 'guzunders' etc etc.) because most of these houses didn't have sanitation as we know it in the 21st century. Then there's the matter of slave ownership, as many aristocrats made their fortunes by owning slaves who worked for them on cotton plantations. And then when slavery was abolished many former owners got large sums of money in compensation from the British government which they then often used to invest in such things as the railways, canals and many industries. And I suppose to be fair, 'Downton Abbey' is set in the early part of the 20th century when most of what I have mentioned in this paragraph would have been eradicated. Also, many of the owners of these houses and estates were fair employers, who treated their staff with respect and gave them decent wages, for the time.