Minimalist poet, minimalist lifestyle

I spent the day yesterday with my parents and when I got home there was a message on the answerphone from the jobcentre asking me to phone the office before five o'clock - well I didn't get in until after this time so I had to wait until first thing this morning to return the call.

Today it's my six month review and so I assumed the jobcentre had cancelled or re-arranged my appointment; something I wasn't going to be too happy about at such short notice. However, I've just got off the phone with them and I'm even more unhappy; in fact I'm bloody livid - the phone call was just to remind me about my appointment today...there's no change to the time; they're just treating me like a naughty little boy who's incapable of remembering things...typical of their attitude towards clients/claimants/customers.

I have a legal obligation to attend the jobcentre whenever they request it - I know that they need to constantly harrass and remind some people because they have a poor attendance record and a very unhealthy attitude...maybe if their benefit was stopped they could manage to get out of bed and attend an interview on time, and in the meantime the jobcentre staff could start treating me like an adult.

Since we started our informal hiking group in late May I've been on four of the five walks and estimate I've done 55 miles...that's quite a few thousand calories burnt off. We haven't been on the moors for nearly a fortnight now though because of car trouble.

Another contribution to my earlier post about the lack of social mobility in England - the problem isn't only about able and talented people not being allowed to progress in scociety, but useless, incompetent and corrupt employees frequently remain in post, or are promoted out of the way, or even receive massive and grotesque redundancy or bonus payments.

Obvious examples are bankers, bankrupt businessmen, politicians, local government workers...and celebrities.

I've just been on the Council Estate Gifts and Dearne Valley Life applications and couldn't find a drunk carrying a vacuum cleaner anywhere...I used to see them all the time when I lived at Thurnscoe.

Why is orange cordial so heavy, even when I dilute it with water?

There's a report out today that says that social mobility in the UK is the lowest of any western country...and don't I know it.

From personal experience these are the problems I faced:

Abolition of grammar schools
Poor public transport
Poverty
Cultural and historical insularity
Poor career advice
Lack of ambition in others
No appropriate positive role models
No contact with the world of work while still at school

I've taken the advice of antlady69 and my sister who's a nurse in Australia and bought some magnesium tablets to hopefully alleviate the muscle spasms I'm suffering from at the end of my walks.

It was actually a bit embarrassing since this tablets are located in the women's health section, and even say 'women's health' on the label...I think they're mainly used to ease period cramps.

On our hike yesterday we passed the site of Dale Dyke Dam which burst in 1864 resulting in the deaths of 244 people.

There's a small memorial plaque and an information board there - my three walking companions had never heard of the Great Sheffield Flood though...this makes me quite sad and angry that people are not aware of local history; especially when it was such a tragedy.

That's how far we went on our walk today; mainly on the high moorland near Bradfield to the north west of Sheffield.

Phil and Paul had told their wives they'd be home for six o'clock, but we were late because we lingered near some interesting rocks.

We'd just set off home in the car and both their mobile phones rang within seconds of each other - just a few minutes after six o'clock...just another reminder to me, that despite a great day out with three mates, I'm still all alone in the world...there's no-one waiting for me when I get home.

The arrangements have been made for this week's walk in Derbyshire; seventeen miles on Thursday.

I've a couple of thoughts on my mind though: I always need to take so much to drink in my rucksack, even though we usually call at a village shop en route to re-supply, and am wondering why dilute orange weighs so much...even when water is added. Secondly, it's about twenty years since I was last regularly walking on the moors and during this time my body has declined...the moors are also twenty years older, but they don't seem to have eroded much...to me they appear to be just as high and steep.

I'm still stiff and aching after Tuesday's fifteen mile walk in Derbyshire; probably even more so than yesterday.

Highlights of the walk:

Chatsworth Hall and Park
The Emperor Fountain
Deer in the park
The estate village of Edensor

There was an injured bat in my bathroom sink when I got up this morning; this was certainly a surprise. It didn't get in through an open window because I always close them last thing at night, so I'm concluding that one of the neighbourhood cats must be to blame.

I've just been drinking from a bottle of Tango orangeade and noticed that on the cap it reads, 'Open by hand, not by foot.'

What?

I've just been out in the garden, first thing after getting up, and squashed two large snails; as I did last thing last night.

It's relentless.

This fact I know to be true from personal experience earlier this morning; strawberries - the uglier they are, the sweeter they taste.

I've just noticed that a new TV channel is due to start broadcasting on the Freeview platform soon. It's called 'Quest' and I was under the impression it would be showing a lot of Discovery Channel programming and various other documentaries.

Well, after looking at the first day's schedule I'm very disappointed; the programmes are about restoring a panelled dining room, two panel beaters converting a car into a hotrod, and why does toast always land butter side up when dropped?...oh, and a couple of episodes of Ironside and Mission Impossible.

It's just more of the same and so I won't be watching much.