Author Archives: Barrybloke
For several years I have been thinking about a voting method for electing governments, which would, at the same time, encourage people to actually go out and vote and enable them to make their feelings known about all shades of the political spectrum. I have always thought that to vote against candidates would be far […]
I saw her again this morning, when I got up for my old man’s early morning ‘comfort break’. Eschewing the pocket-sprung luxury of her Slumberland mattress, she was up and out as dawn was breaking. Walking at slightly faster than relaxed pace, her right arm was extended forward at forty-five degrees as she attempted to […]
The first incident of which I shall tell you took place in the 1970s. We lived on a small private development in Tunbridge Wells, which consisted of a mix of three-storey townhouses and flats, which were also arranged in three-storey buildings. This was a co-ownership scheme and the developers employed two men to take care […]
Susan and I worked together, as Librarian and Driver respectively, on a Surrey County Council Travelling Library. We met a great many people, from all walks of life and made many friends. Susan was excellent at her job and readers were constantly enquiring about the latest works from a myriad of authors. This required that […]
Just outside Dormansland, in Surrey is a large pile which rejoices in the name of Greathed (pronounced Greathead) Manor. This place houses retired people from such walks of life as the military, the diplomatic service and similar. They are all of a type and mostly slightly dotty. In the mid-60s I used to take my […]
When I first took on the job of driving the Surrey travelling library, I found myself working alongside a chap called Bill Strahan. He was a very conscientious man and went on to greater things in the library world. I was replacing in the driving seat a man with whom Bill had not got along […]
Driving along the A40, Oxford By-pass in the VW 412 Variant with our caravan in tow. In the rear view mirror I noticed that we were being followed by an ancient Rover 105. As this venerable machine overtook us we saw that it was wearing a large padded armchair, which was balanced precariously on a […]
The block of flats in which we lived at Tunbridge Wells was built on a sloping site, with the front facing up the slope. The front of the block being at ground-level meant that the rear was supported on six-foot high brick pillars, which afforded parking space for cars under the rear of the building. […]
Noise
By Barrybloke | July 28, 2011
Susan, Sarah, John and I were on a caravanning holiday at Brecon in South Wales, when Susan came out with this gem. We had walked to the top of a nearby hill, taking with us an Ordnance Survey map of the area. From this vantage point we were able to identify, on the landscape below, […]
This story was told to me by Lee. When he worked for Kodak, in the role of photocopier engineer, he was required to attend a meeting on this particular day. This was a quite high-powered occasion, with various managers and supervisors present, as well as a dozen or so engineers. It seems the meeting had […]