More West London Developments & a 'Modern' Government Agenda

A new hotel in West Ealing  adds to the district

Every time I venture out I try to take a camera with me - this is principally a Canon G16 which for a modern point and Shoot camera gives (I think) great results.

What I see almost every day is a view that I wish to capture as a  picture- yesterday I noted again how buildings are shooting up here a new hotel.

It seems that change is that famous constant - here another sign of West Ealing being led into a more affluent future a hotel at it's heart - and work by West Ealing Station continues.

A  sign of the changes that are underway in West Ealing by the station

'Modern' Government  agenda 

Tally Ho ! Let's cast our minds back, first a few years to a time when the then 'new' Conservative leader David Cameron started a modernising agenda and then to more recent days when he announced that he'd be (of course) be governing for all the British people.

First, all those years ago when he spoke about modern Britain he spoke about engaging with the disaffected and protecting the planet - the message chimed with the idea of how the Tories wished to shake free from the image of the 'Nasty Party' - it was a bold message and a modern message.

More recently after the last election result with talk of  'Hard Working families'  there was a belief that the mantra of 'We're all in it together' might be important well recent announcements have seemed more about factionalism - is the idea of 're-visiting' the Fox hunting legislation a message of modernisation of UK PLC's priorities or that 'We're all in it together' (Don't get me started on the arrogance of a 10% pay rise for MPs when the poor continue to be squeezed)?

Is there too a  danger that a legitimate evaluation of what the BBC should do  (the BBC 'Green Paper' announcement today)  risks  being  hijacked by those who have all ready decided their views - let's hope that ideas of a changing landscape do not mean the destruction of an important national asset.

Pleasure of Pub

Yesterday on the way to the council 'Tip' I noticed that new flats have sprung up on what used to a public house, The Red Lion in the heart of Greenford - not sure if I should go as far as to say the heart has been ripped out but it is I think symptomatic of a change in the Alcohol climate of the UK.

Non routinely for me I did visit an Ealing  Pub (The Rose and Crown) yesterday and found it a good experience - it was not the sort of drinking place I'd have sought out for a wild time but it did seem to really serve it's local community it's even got  a number of performances of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet coming up in August  in the garden there.



Another pub that's been demolished for flats 

Alcohol is a problem for many but it's also a pleasure for even more and the value of it as a social lubricant and a part of rituals  is difficult to overestimate.

I started visiting pubs at the age of about 14 and it was less of an issue than it would be now and for me (I don't think) that it's been a real problem as we get older many 'moderate' drinkers tend to cut down their consumption for a variety of reasons.

But there are problems that a social hub (that is called  a pub) can address and which are not met by the myriad of coffee shops where the strung out stare at their laptops and tablets giving the impression that they're not alone.

Oh I had a great incineration session too..

Burn Baby Burn (as Hudson-Ford would say)

  

The new economy personified in RatedPeople

The internet has changed life in so many ways - here's one thing I found about how it brings out much better functioning market in goods and services

Yesterday afternoon a minor panic as we were showing signs of a toilet related leak (the W.C.) and we've got a visitor arriving at the end of the week - well first step was to put something under the drip.

RatedPeople - Hit the (dual flush) button for satisfaction

Next step see what the internet had to offer  - potentially helpful tips from Youtube related to wing nut tightening - sadly not a cure.
After that it was to Rated People - you enter what you know of the requirement  and the job goes out to likely candidates, I'd estimate that less than 15 minutes later  I'd got someone offering to come around and take a look - set this for Monday (today) afternoon.

Today I was fortunate to get one of Ratedpeople.com's top plumbers (in top 3 in London he told me) and he carried out an efficient job complete with a 1 year guarantee - quite different from pre internet palaver.

The guy explained how the process is a virtuous circle with tradesperson being keen to earn a good reputation and this meaning the customer gets a good job - interesting to learn that he's from the midlands but spends at least 5 days a week in London where the rewards are considerably better than in his home district.

We've now got a nice new dual flush now  too and would use the plumber and procedure again (but hopefully not for a while).

Art at RACC

So Technology imapcts in more than just how we use it but also how it affects the environment and what we do to dispose of it whan the 'new model' arrives.

This was brought home to me by a nice three dimensional work which was  part of Lloika Farrow's first year Fine art studies (HNC) and was showing in the hall of RACC, (Richmond, London).

 The display is about how quickly actual technology is superseded this used  mostly out of date redundant hardware- the work's called The Technological Landscape and I applaud the originality shown.

A different take on something technological, old hardware that we take for granted  as it goes to landfill?

Another book, another course and Dicken's Yard Progresses

A different sort of book

We take a lot of things for granted and some of these things that we take for granted can slip away from us - I'm talking here about Public Libraries here but could be talking about Malcolm the central figure of  a book I borrowed the other week from  Ealing Library it's called Painter man and is written   by Jeff Phelps - it's in some ways a difficult read but there's humour in the telling too.

What was great about visiting the library was the opportunity to take a punt - I borrowed a few books if a couple are good that's fine the Waterstones (or Amazon) experience is not the same.

What a library gives you

I fear that in a few years time the 'Library' will be marginalised  and the transactions around reading will be even more commercial - here's something about what libraries do, are and are valued.

City Lit Photography.

A Photo' that says London

Last year in the summer/spring  I joined a group with City Lit leadership  visiting Art galleries this year I've enrolled on a short (5 week) course of Evening photography of London districts - I'm looking forward to getting different things from my camera and seeing more of London.

Dicken's Yard

Work on the new commercial and residential development is continuing at quite a pace - I took a few pictures - those where there's a person or persons in there  gives you an idea of the scale of the project - a lot of money involved and Crossrail definitely contributory factor.

Almost monumental

Cranes are named after the birds

A scale is provided by the 2 figures