Because I knew I was going to be busy today, Friday, when I ran round the village on Thursday I thought I would pop into the co-op and pick up a few things. Nothing I desperately needed. Just getting ahead of myself. So it was very annoying to arrive in the village centre and find the co-op festooned with police-crime-scene-no-entry tape and a police van sitting outside. Peering through the gaps I could see quite a messy situation in there with stuff strewn around the floor.
We walked into the village later to see if things had improved. Not one jot or tittle! Same police-crime-scene-no-entry tape. Possibly the same police van. Certainly the same mess indoors. This time there were two policemen on duty outside so I asked what was going on. Someone broke into the co-op on Wednesday night. Well, yes, I had worked that out. No idea when the shop would reopen. How annoying. The co-op is my major food shopping venue apart from Uppermill market. I’m pretty sure I am not the only one in that situation. If this continues I shall have to cycle to Uppermill coop or maybe even Greenfield Tesco, maybe on Saturday. I shall monitor the situation.
My daughter reckons the thieves were after the STM, the cash machine, or rather, its contents. I guess if you know how to break into one of those you can extract thousands, if not tens of thousands of pound! It seems other small coop stores in the area have been broken into and their cash machines emptied! Goodness, I would not know where to begin to attempt to rob a cash machine! They did not teach stuff like that at my school!
This was confirmed later. Apparently they blew up the cash machine at about 11.30 pm. Local people heard the explosion, said the report. Not us! We must be far enough away from the village centre not to hear it. Or maybe we heard something and thought it was some loony setting off fireworks. There have been quite a few of those!
This morning I ran past the coop and it appeared to be open for business as usual. Well, thank goodness for that!
Our granddaughter and her housemate organised a bonfire in their barbecue bucket in their garden last night. She sent photos, very pagan looking! One of the neighbours gave them a bit of their winter store of firewood, another gave them sparklers and, lo and behold, a mini community event but with each household in their own garden!
Still no results from the USA, but a lot of noise and divisive chatter from the current POTUS!
My daughter sent me this quote, supposedly attributed to one of my American heroes, Bruce Springsteen:-
“There’s no art in this White House. There’s no literature, no poetry, no music. There are no pets in this White House. No loyal man’s best friend, no Socks the family cat. There are no images of the first family enjoying themselves together in a moment of relaxation: no Obamas on the beach in Hawaii moments, or the Bushes fishing in Kennebunkport, no Reagans on horseback, no Kennedys playing touch football on the Cape.
Where’d that country go? Where did all the fun, the joy and the expression of love and happiness go? We used to have a president who calmed and soothed a nation, instead of dividing it. We are now rudderless and joyless.
We have lost the cultural aspects of society that have always made America great. We have lost our mojo, our fun, our happiness, our cheering on of others— the shared experience of humanity that makes it all worth it. We need to reclaim that country once again.”
-Bruce Springsteen
There you go.
The sun is shining, the early morning fog has cleared and the sky is blue. I have a Diggle Chippy Hike to go on.
Life goes on. Stay safe and well, everyone!
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