The Chieveley Blogger

 Posted 1 October 2008 - At home with the pigs

Pigs. Yes definitely the pigs. They were the highlight for me. Particularly Gloucester Old Spots and our very own Berkshire breed. And then the Shire horses, their size and beauty are wonderful. Those were the best bits for me - what were the highlights of the Newbury Show for you?

It is easy to forget that we live in the country, what with the M4 and A34 allowing us to commute far and wide in all directions. Sometimes Chieveley can feel like a little piece of suburbia. That's why I think the Show is a great way to remind ourselves of the countryside that surrounds us. And it's right on our doorstep of course so we have no excuse for not going along.

The people-watching is great too, with country folk of all denominations on show. I always look out for the red-faced chaps who walk around in their wellies and tweeds, willow stick in hand. I'm never sure if they are real or not as they seem like cartoon characters from a bygone age.

Those pole climbers are real enough though aren't they, how on earth do they do that. I saw one lad scurry to the top in 12 seconds - bear in mind these poles are 80ft high - and apparently he had a bad back and hadn't done it for a year! Made me retreat to the pigs, I'm more at home there for some reason.

 Posted 15 September 2008 - Going Green

Talking of green wheelie bins in the last blog made me think about recycling in general. Obviously we've all got those new bigger crates for recycling, with cardboard and plastic bottles included too now, which is a positive move. They are heavier to carry though I've found - or is that an embarrassing result of me being able to fit more bottles in! Also, I've noticed that different parts of Chieveley have different recycling collection days, at least three by my count. Why is that? Seems odd.

I'm also pleased that supermarkets have finally stopped handing out large quantities of plastic bags and are encouraging shoppers to adopt the ‘bag for life' principle. In Newbury I notice that Sainsbury's, M&S and Waitrose seem to be doing quite well at this, Tesco still has some way to go it seems.

There is of course more that can be done on the recycling front and I'd be keen to see West Berks tackle Tetrapaks and those plastic containers that supermarkets dish out these days. As ever Google throws up some good websites on recycling which are worth a look. We can recycle more than we think.  

And finally...as you pass through Chieveley on a kerbside collection day take a look at how many of your neighbours are recycling. If I am not mistaken the number has increased in the last year, which is great. I am still amazed though that there are people who do no recycling at all. Thankfully they seem to be a dwindling minority. So if you drive past a house with no green crates outside on collection day give them a beep to encourage them along (I'll probably be in trouble with the noise police for that).

 Posted 5 September 2008 - Wheelie bin heaven

Like you I imagine, I returned from holiday to find a bright, green wheelie bin in my drive with a note attached to it announcing a new garden waste collection service. I must say this is very good news and I'm pleased West Berks are getting their act together when it comes to recycling and kerb-side collection. This bin will save me many trips to the Pinchington Lane dump and I'm sure this will be the same for many other people, helping reducing traffic levels a little too. A very popular new service for sure, well done West Berks. 

 August - The Blogger is away 

The Blogger has been away on holiday during August and will return in September.

  Posted 29 July 2008 - Viewed from afar 

The North has one, so too the West. And the East's will arrive in 2009. I feel it is only right that we in the South get one as well. What am I talking about? Why a huge, iconic sculpture of course, one that can be seen from miles away. The Angel of the North arrived in 1998 on the A1 near Gateshead. The Willow Man of Somerset, visible from the M5, is rapidly growing in stature in the west. Next year another angel will alight in the east, in Ebbsfleet, Kent to mark the opening of the high speed Eurostar rail link.

And where better to place a sculpture for the south than in Chieveley, the crossroads of the south of England. Visible from the M4 and A34 it would put Chieveley on the map for reasons other than the services and that restaurant. But what form should our sculpture take? What icon befits the local area?

I turned to my friends and family for a quick opinion on the matter and immediately unearthed a major problem. Apparently the ‘thing' that the local area is most famous for is indeed that restaurant.

So there you have it. Unless somebody comes up with a better idea then it looks like I'll be campaigning for a gigantic 80 feet high crab to be sited up at North Heath, for all the world to admire. "Oh you live in Chieveley do you. Isn't that the place with the giant crab?" they'll say to us for years to come. At least I won't be stopped in the street to give directions to an endless series of lost diners I suppose.

  Posted 5 July 2008 - Fete Accompli 

Did you go to the fete? A colleague of mine asked me recently why I go to the village fete every year. "Doesn't it get boring after a while?" she asked. She had never lived in a village and couldn't understand why village fetes are so enduring.

So I told her our fete was a highlight of the year; that it was organised by a great many people who put a lot of time and effort in, which made it successful. "Hmm" she said "that may be so but it doesn't mean your fete isn't boring". So I told her that the Chieveley fete was constantly evolving and changing with new stalls, events and innovations every year, definitely not standing still. My colleague nodded at this but clearly wasn't won over.

Finally I pointed out that actually it ‘s just a great afternoon out that brings people together, seven hundred people in fact and many from outside Chieveley. At which point she conceded there might be something to village fetes after all and asked if she could come along next year. I said yes and made a note to line her up for a place in the water stocks so we can all throw wet sponges at her.  

  Posted 11 June 2008 - Medicine by Post 

I hear there is a chance that our dormant Post Office may re-open by moving to the Doctor's Surgery. This sounds like a great idea and I hope it happens. It's the sort of imaginative solution to the post office closure problem that I was appealing for in a previous blog (see below ‘Post Office Closures' in April).

And just imagine how efficient it would be. Think of the opportunities we'd have to kill two birds with one stone, with a post office and a surgery in the same building.

For instance when it comes to holidays we'd be able to get our typhoid jabs at the travel clinic and at the same time pick up our foreign currency. How handy!

Presumably some will be able to have a pregnancy test and when told the good news will be able fill in a child benefit form on the spot. Hmm...how clinical!

And of course it may be possible to undergo a private medical consultation and be marched across the room to make a withdrawal from your savings account to pay for it. Ouch...how depressing!

But seriously, fingers crossed that it happens. We need a successful post office in the village. Let's just hope the waiting times at the post office counter won't be as long as those to see our GPs. Four weeks is a long time to queue for a stamp!

  Posted 28 May 2008 - On The Buses! 

It's half term. I know that because at the moment I don't have to scrape past the school buses in my car as they pick up and drop off in the village. I don't know why but I always meet them at the narrowest point in the road, the bit just outside the shop or that narrow channel at the end of Grace's Lane.

Two school buses frequent Chieveley. One is an old grey double-decker that rumbles and chugs its way through the village, windows misted up in the cold and wet, a plume of smoke billowing out as it departs each stop. The other is a sleek single-decker coach with metallic paint, leather trim and with air conditioning as the tinted windows are never misted. It purrs gently and glides along effortlessly, hissing occasionally as the door opens and closes. I believe one bus goes to the local state school, the other to a private school somewhere. No prizes for guessing which is which.

The difference between the passengers always amuses me. The children waiting for the grey double-decker are often seen standing at the stops in the rain, no coats, uniforms in various states of tidiness, a jumbled pile of bags, rucksacks and musical instruments strewn around them. Always chatting and seemingly happy though, despite their Bash Street Kids appearance (that's a bit cruel I know).

In contrast the private school kids are never seen in public. All that is visible is a fleet of Volvos, Saabs, Mercedes and BMW 4x4s clogging up the road by the bus stop. Presumably the children are cocooned safely inside these cars, like a precious cargo, until the very last minute when the coach arrives. I honestly don't know how they get from their cars onto the coach as none of them are ever seen on the street. I suppose the school fees must include some kind of tele-transportation method for boarding the coach or something.

Anyway, roll on the summer holidays, that's what I say. No buses for two months. Ding! Ding!

Imagine buying a grand old house in the country with large and lovely gardens, on the edge of a pretty village. Now imagine you've just moved in when there is a knock on your door. It's a delegation of villagers, keen to welcome you but even more keen to bring your attention to a particularly pressing matter. They point out that it is a tradition for you to throw open your gardens to all and sundry once a year and host a prominent village event. You immediately imagine odd rural types with their dogs and children all rampaging over your beautiful private gardens. What do you do? Say no and incur the wrath of the locals? Or cast aside your reservations and welcome them all with open arms seeing it as a good opportunity to meet people and integrate into village life?

Fortunately for the gardening club the new owners of Horsemoor House seem to have chosen the last option and are consequently hosting the Annual Produce Sale on Sunday May 11th. I'm not sure of course it all happened as I describe but in any case it would appear the new owners deserve a pat on the back for agreeing to play host.

The Produce Sale is a typically lazy hazy Sunday lunchtime, traditionally English village event. Always worth going for an hour or so for a chat, maybe a free glass of wine (they must have a surplus in the gardening club kitty!) and a quick rummage in the plants and produce on offer. I used to leave with a plant or two, which I always managed to kill off within a few weeks thanks to my utterly awful gardening skills. A triumph of hope over ability, if ever there was. I've trained myself to just come away a cake and some homemade jam now.

And of course it's a great opportunity to have a good old rampage around the lovely gardens of Horsemoor House (will the new owners mind me saying that I wonder, too late I suppose, already have).
 

  Posted 27 Apr 2008 - Getting behind 

When I accepted the challenge of writing this blog I was set the target of producing at least two entries a month, which I recall thinking at the time would be a pretty simple task. They'll have trouble stopping me I thought, life in Chieveley would offer plenty to talk about. And indeed that is true, there are many things going on worthy of a mention here. The trouble is I haven't actually been putting finger to keyboard often enough - according to my masters. I'm getting behind apparently. By mid-April I'd only posted seven entries. One short. Tut, tut.

"It's about time you did another blog" they said as I began to get a little irritated. "Well it's about time they were finishing those road works on the M4 roundabout" I replied with not a little hint of sarcasm. "And whilst we are at it, it's about time they sorted out those pot-holes in the road between School Road and The Red Lion before I lose a wheel" I continued, feeling like I was beginning to win the arguement.

"They are and they have" came the short reply, "that just leaves your blog".

Oh dear. Better get typing then.

  Posted 07 Apr 2008 -  Post Office Closures  

I got an unsolicited letter from our MP Richard Benyon the other day. It said that he had been working hard to save our rural post offices and how awful it was that the government was closing them all down. You know the sort of letter, you probably had one stuffed through your door too. Normally letters from politicians quickly find their way into the junk mail pile in our household ready for recycling into something useful.

However this one made me pause for thought as it plopped into the recycling bin. Not because of who sent it or what it said but because it struck a chord with me on the general point of our post offices. Everyone knows that the post office network is a huge asset and a key part of our national infrastructure and everyone knows that we are going to regret closing it down.

Of course it can't continue to exist as it is, everything needs to change and adapt to the times. The frustrating thing is that nobody seems to have the imagination and determination to do anything creative with it to secure its future. There must be lots of ways our post offices can evolve to ensure they remain valuable and relevant to the communities they serve. One small example is to be seen with our neighbours in Chaddleworth who have successfully absorbed their post office into the pub (The Ibex).

Not to worry though, all is well in Chieveley. Our ‘at risk' post office has escaped the axe. Hurrah and phew what a relief! Let's all be thankful for this small victory. But wait a minute.....hasn't our post office been shut for months anyway for some reason, and there is no sign it's about to re-open anytime soon. Doesn't feel like much of a victory to me.

  Posted 20 Mar 2008 -  Investing in the community  

A few weeks ago I attended the Auction of Promises event at the village hall and came away thinking that it embodied everything that is good about our community in Chieveley. Over 120 people were packed into the hall bidding for 100 promises during a very sociable and entertaining evening. It was marvellously lead by our very own auctioneer Simon Pallet; "Stick it on eBay and make a hundred" he said at one point trying to raise the bidding for a lot whilst at the same time bringing the house down.

 All ages and all walks of life were represented and in the end a staggering £7000 was raised which is to be split between the primary school and the church. The whole event epitomised the generosity of the community - generous in donating so many promises, generous in bidding so much money for them and generous in giving up so much time to make it all happen. A perfect example of us all investing in our community, which becomes even stronger as a result.

 Posted 2 Mar 2008 -  How absurd     

Life is full of the absurd. Much of the time the most ridiculous things pass us by completely unnoticed, but not at the moment, at least not for me. Every day as I drive in and out of the village I find myself silently confronted by the same two absurdities.

The first is the cycle path that crosses the A34-M4 roundabout, cheerfully and invitingly called the ‘Downlands Cycle Route'. The whole notion of anybody other than the maddest of the mad or the deeply depressed wanting to ride a bike through that vortex of cars, vans and container lorries whose drivers have the lane discipline of a demolition derby driver, is, well, is utterly absurd. The same applies to the local planners who conceived of the idea and built it.

And then there is the telephone box in the High Street, the one next to the bus stop on the corner of East Lane. If you find yourself strolling through this part of the village and suddenly feel the urge to discuss South African politics with Nelson Mandela then you're in luck. According to the large sign in the window the call rates to South Africa are at an all time low and are especially available from this very phone...in rural Berkshire. Now it's been about 150 years since I saw anyone actually in the phone box so the chances of someone picking up the receiver and dialling the country code for South Africa are nil (it's 27 by the way, just in case you were wondering). Maybe BT has spotted that Chieveley is home to several South African families but I rather suspect they phone their folk in Cape Town from the comfort of their own homes. Ridiculous piece of marketing. Absurd.

A feature of nature that heralds the arrival of Spring in these parts is the annual display of snowdrops at Welford Park. This beautiful carpet of white flowers seems to serenely float (if carpets could do such a thing) around the beech woods in the grounds of the house and is renowned both locally and nationally. The house, which dates from 1652, is privately owned but has opened its grounds to the public to enjoy the snowdrops every year for over 50 years. It's well worth a visit.

In fact the perfect Sunday at this time of the year must surely include a family roast dinner and a walk around the snowdrop woods with mums, dads, children, grandparents, dogs and all. So if you get a chance then do go along to Welford. It is open from 11am to 4pm on Sundays until March 2nd (Mother's Day) and at various times during the week. The small entrance fee on Sundays is donated to local charities. Their website has more information.

Oh and don't forget to take your camera as there are plenty of great photo opportunities.

   Posted 28 Jan 2008 -  A National Treasure right on our doorstep   

I've just booked some tickets for the theatre, The Watermill in Bagnor in fact. In case you haven't come across it yet, the New York Times has hailed it as "one of the most important and influential theatres in Britain". Doubtless that is true but I love it simply because it is a special place five minutes from Chieveley that brings the world of theatre to our doorstep.

With its future secure now we can look forward to many more years of truly outstanding, award-winning productions. It never ceases to amaze me how the actors manage to perform so perfectly whilst being so physically close to their audience. During one production last year the leading lady was virtually sitting in my lap in one scene and I was truly afraid to breathe in case I interrupted the dialogue! You don't get that kind of special intimacy in the West End. It's enthralling and unique.

The only mildly frustrating aspect of The Watermill is the audience, which almost entirely consists of the over 50s. Don't get me wrong here, the theatre wouldn't be viable without the consistent support of this magnificent age group and good on them for turning out in numbers. But I can't help feeling that it's a shame that a younger audience is not visiting and enjoying the productions.

So if you are reading this and under 45 then I urge you now (or at least in a minute, once you've heard me out) to visit the Watermill website and book, book, book! You will discover a whole new world of enjoyment right here on your doorstep and at the same time you will be helping to sustain a national treasure. Even the drive down through Winterbourne on a beautiful summer's evening is to be treasured!
 

    Posted 15 Jan 2008 - Communal buying power   

As I watched my oil tank being filled up yesterday, courtesy of the fabulous E-J at the oil club, the thought occurred to me that perhaps this was the way forward - for communities to pool together to increase their buying power and overcome the might of the supermarkets and other huge suppliers. What else, I wondered, could we bulk-buy - food perhaps? But then ‘The Baked Beans Club' or ‘The Chieveley Potato Club' don't exactly fire the imagination in the right way do they so maybe bulk-buying food won't work.

No, it would have to be something that was easy to deliver in one go; something that was not perishable and would be consumed in sufficient quantities to justify doing. Then my eye caught sight of our recycling bin and of course the answer became obvious - a wine club! If the empty bottles in our recycling bins are anything to go by (and Chieveley needs to do better in the recycling stakes, but that's another story) then wine sales to this village are buoyant. Not surprising really, given that the newspapers tell us that Middle England is partial to ‘a few glasses or red' most nights of the week.

With this in mind it's not too difficult to imagine the telephone ringing at Majestic Wines in Newbury and a voice on the other end of the line asking, in the manner of the oil club; "Hello, this is Chieveley wine club. Can you give me your best price for 6,000 litres of Chateau Margeaux please". Now that's bulk buying!

    Posted 04 Jan 2008 So that was Christmas then   

So another year in Chieveley is over and time at last to draw breath after a busy Christmas. Looking back I can't help feeling that Chieveley did Christmas rather well in 2007. There were the usual village Christmas events of course and I counted at least six. All were well attended, most were great but at least one has lost its way a little and would benefit from returning to its roots. For some reason there seemed to be more parties around which was a very welcome development. Although, thinking about it perhaps they've always been there and I've never been invited before!

And where do all those people who attend the Crib Service on Christmas Eve come from? It's the same every year. The church is always packed with people I've never seen in the village before - ever! And continuing on the subject of Christmas puzzles, why does the milkman have to do a double delivery 4 days before? What on Earth can you do with 10 pints of milk at short notice!

Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without Scrooge and in 2007 there were plenty of his namesakes around - all those people who so obviously hid when the collectors accompanying Father Christmas on his sleigh knocked on their door. Shame on you for having no Christmas spirit.