WAFTING INTO 2014 AND FAREWELL TO THE TANK

What have I done so far since the last weeks of 2013 wafted away and  2014 blasted in. 

I have felt weary, tired, but definitely not fed up; I am not affected by the long dark days at this time of year.  What I am affected by, I believe, is the relentlessness of the festive expectations that are manipulated by commercial interests.

 For heaven's sake, Christmas trees hanging from store ceilings in September, all dressed up with their tinsel and faux parcels! I was pleased our town's street lights were not switched on until the 7th November 2013. That's weeks behind the lighting up in major cities. The lights are pretty, a gentle tradition to brighten up the darkness.

Then there's the need to get packages and well-wishing correspondence sent by mid October if you want it to definitely arrive in time for mid December in the Antipodes and the Americas, we're told, notwithstanding the blatant profiteering of the mail system; the costs of posting anything have soared.  There are leaflets telling you what can and cannot be sent and where whatever it is, can and cannot be sent. Added to that, there's a memory test, you are interrogated by the teller as to what is in the parcels and packages.  It is almost like airport security. My gift package of two mini Xmas puddings was checked against an explosives list!!!! 

We travelled on Christmas Day, 25th December.  It's rare to share the road with many cars on this day.  This year was an exception. People had taken note of the severe weather warnings and delayed their journeys.  One of the few businesses open, a Brewers Fare restaurant, was quiet when we arrived before the lunch rush. We were looking for restrooms and a hot drink.  The staff were so accommodating, finding a space for us to sit and have cups of coffee, then giving us takeaway drinks for the journey. 

On lower ground it poured with rain. Up high, there was some snow; the snow ploughs and gritters were busy at work, we passed four. 

At The Portrait Gallery Edinburgh

When we returned home, it felt so good slipping back into my own bed for the first time in 2014 and drifting off to a relatively restful sleep.

This week, we have waved cheerio to our  liquid petroleum gas (LPG) tank, a garden feature for far too many years. I got to connect the lifting chains.

The hydraulic lifting mechanism was a fine bit of engineering.  It took quite some time to complete the manoeuvrings both sides of the fence. Once on the lorry in the right position, our tank had to be strapped securely into place.  Regulations prohibited the vehicle to be driven off till the remaining LPG was drained out of the tank into the fixed white one on the trailer. 

A morning and two mugs of tea later, (for the driver) a signature on a receipt for the tank's removal, the job was completed and the driver was off to pick up the next tank.

Click on the pictures to make them bigger.

WEIRD WESTERN EXPECTATIONS FOR AFGHANISTAN'S ELECTIONS

• Who honestly and truly expected there to be a free and fair [ and democratic] vote in Afghanistan? 

• On what levels of expectation were these weird Western ideas developed and set?  

• Surely those who are there in official roles were never that naive?
  

Sure, there has been an election campaign with  two main contenders.  That's a start; quite a big one I would say.  It has got to be better than a bloody coup together with all those various insurgents vying to take power in their inimitable ways.

It's a bit like a blog space.  I can hear the current players saying, this my site, I blasted well do what I like and in my way.  If you don't like it, you know what you can do.......etc,etc, etc. However, one contender has already got the bigger stage and all the trappings that go with it.  He is intent on holding onto it. If he is doing it by peaceful means, that is, stuffing ballot boxes in his favour, or at least getting others to do so on his behalf, in my book that is preferable in the present environment of Afghanistan, than stirring up any additional malicious and dirty warring behaviours.  There are others already there, who will stir up fear soon enough.

No doubt, Dr Abdullah will hold his counsel just now, with the encouragement of the senior Western advisers. We hear of fiery meetings in back rooms to broker some globally acceptable game playing like a second round of voting. There are high stakes here, walking on egg shells would be firmer.
I am not in favour of much of what I hear and see, but I do not live in the country; I have not had, as a woman, the misfortune by accident of birth to be there.  Compromises, however unpalatable are going to have to be sought to develop a manageable 'peace'.