Brittany ... no not her .. frogland

[zefender]

Re: No such thing as society

Aha, the old 'taken out of context' ruse! Nah, she made no attempt to distance herself from the comment afterwards or the supposed misinterpretation.

MPC isn't buck passing. It minimises the chance of politicians being tempted to interfere with the market for electoral gain. I didn't mean to suggest that education has improved hugely - merely that spending had. Same too for health and transport. All of these are things which had been neglected to the point of dispair by rabidly blue governments over 17 years or so. Interesting too that you feel excellence can be achieved provided is it for the minority - excellence needn't be exclusive surely? Once it becomes 'average' when 50% go to university, it can still be excellent can't it?

Agree about election pledges bit - but that's far from rare from any party. Fox huntin climbdown will have lost massive support from 1st time voters and others IMHO.

Camaret loos/showers are in a sort of beach bunker. Very dark and damp, in filthy condition and the showers have that dribbling hose for two Euro affair. Also, daughter's boyfriend much shocked at peekaboo stranger through hole in loo doors, as you might expect, maybe. Months of counselling have achieved little, sadly. Sybarite is correct about the two loos. I was referring to the pier ones (nearest to where most boats berth I suspect). The ones on the front are quite a walk from much of the marina and still only rate 4/10 IMHO.

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[tcm]

Re: No such thing as society

Now now - either the govt is responsible for the lovely low interest rates and high employment...or they are hands off and actualy er they are just riding the economy as it comes. I think the latter...

Hey - I like it if things are good. But I've just come back from parents eveing. Son#1 did some work in Physics ,very good, very very good apparently for a boy age 13, not seen that since erm we did O-levels instead of GCSE says the teacher, trailing off...

Yes, Uni's can be great...but the essence of tertiary education was not of a mass training for producing a 100,000 media studies or 150,000 english grads per year. Mind you, I suppose if they can be sold the idea (for 20 grand) that getting a 2-ii at Lanchester will set them up in a career, erm, well, then that's very enterprising of the universities. But as an employer, what do I say to an arts graduate? "No, thanks, I won't have a McFlurry" . oops, couldn't resist it.

Anyway, i have just ploughed thru another of the maggie programmes on the telly. And it does rather seem that she and others were high quality people, who had to work at "being normal". Whereas the current lot seem to be rather poor quality people who'll never get a job as good as this, and have to work hard at seeming anywhere near as bright as the journos. No, it's not cos I'm getting old.

Um, anyway, Brittany doesn't start until st malo really, does it? Still think Cherbourg is a first target if not been before, otherwise you can't join in the conversations about whether it's a dump or not. I have been to other places along there but it is all a blur of oysters and calvados. This years project: I believe that 14-year-olds are allowed to drive 50cc scooters and will report back BUT of course will insist on leather jacket and gloves and skidlid. Wot is this years sailing expedition then ? We can ditch the political niceties and can move on to more contentious issues: the weather.

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[tr7v8]

Re: No such thing as society

Must agree with your second Para, when I was at school kids doing 8-9 O levels were unusual and 10 exceptional as were A grades. Now it seems to be the norm. said to woman who I worked with a little while ago that exams were getting easier, got told "well they just work harder" Ummm are their 2 L's in bollocks!

Jim
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Draco 2500

 

[hlb]

Re: No such thing as society

Some how think. That the economy try's it's best to carry on regardless of how ever government trys to pull it down. Think maggy did her best in the early years, before realising that she was a politian there for god like, so brought the world tumbling down. Strange how the economy now survives cos every one spends and there very worried about some folks saving. Whilst in the passed it was more important for people to save. On the other hand they want us to spend on pensions to keep another set of pilocks employed. One way or the other it seems to be working. I dont know how.

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Haydn

 

[BrendanS]

Re: No such thing as society

Governments have very little control over major swings in the market, no matter how much they try. FTSE has swung down into a more normal position, though what will really drag down the world economy is the DOW in the US, which is still way above where it should reasonably be. This happens predictably in cycles, though no one ever learns.

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[Gunfleet]

Re: No such thing as society

Brittany starts on the river Couesnon at Pontorson. But you need a shoal draft craft to explore that bit. It wasn't always so. Look at the chart a couple of miles west of Mont St Michel and you'll see a place marked Quatre Salines. It had a lighthouse in the 1750s and marked the entrance to the Couesnon. Probably the first proper Breton port you could get to today is Cancale, though no doubt the more intrepid kind of rivulet explorer would want to ground his keels at Le Vivier. Around the point from Cancale to Rotheneuf you'll see a couple of bays which don't dry and which are completely protected from the south and west. There are unmarked summer moorings in them and they're a good anchorage, as long as you don't think the wind will go round to the north and get excited. All of that is before St Malo!

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[zefender]

Re: TCM aka Jeremy Clarkeson?

Still think she should have stayed in the science lab for a career.
Agree though that current lot have spun themselves into a mushy wrapped policy vacuum causing much cynicism.
"exams getting easier" is a common condition of the ahem middle-aged. Frequently brought about by open evenings and peeks into homework efforts, it is sadly a chronic condition. Current standards different, not worse - more based on analysis and research and less on memory/blackboard scribblings of teecha. Grammar, vocab and style totally crap of course. Recently heard that there is no such thing as bad spelling - it is now 'alternative spelling'.

Not sure about this year, but, in a pathetic attempt to secure legitimacy in this thread, I will spend a week in and around Brittany. Fancy Ireland too. Sadly, repeat of last years mega long break would be likely to cause 'undercurrents' at work so I'll hold off 'til next year when I'd like to do the ARC. Mrs Zefender fancies chartering in Croatia this year, joining some friends who are doing the same thing - but I'm not sure. Renting someone else's boat whilst mine sits in her berth sticks in the throat a bit. Worried too that Croatia looks like being very crowded this year. But after dozens of August hols in greece, I suppose I'd be used to that. Also problem that Mrs Z might associate UK boat with cold, wet, tidal complications as opposed to preferred role as luverly floating sun-bathing platform. She may be right of course, but I'd prefer to avoid providing more evidence.


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[tcm]

Re: Croatia

well i have heard a few people rave about Coatia, and vast expane wd mean it would have to have a zillion boats to be truly busy. But I appreciate the concern about paying for multiple boats concurrently. My own record in this regard was going on a skiing holiday, then mrs tcm bust her foot so we drove off and stayed in paris for the last 2 nights. But the hotel wasn't v nice so she sed praps ditch this hotel and try another? but I sed erm look we have already paid for 5 sepret places to sleep tonite incl houses and boat and hotels, lets not make it 6.




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[Stingo]

Re: Croatia

I had a fiance once that wouldn't shag me (old fashioned, religion etc) so I took her down to Marks & Spencer and said "pick a dress". She found one and I marched straight off to the till with her protesting that she needed to try it on before paying for it.

"My point exactly" I said and that's how I became the ex-fiance.

Don't know what that had to do with your post tcm, but your post reminded me of that parting of fiasco's.

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[zefender]

Re: test drives

Did it happen twice then, or just the once?

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[Stingo]

Re: test drives

just once

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[duncan]

Re: funny you should mention that...

based ourselves at Tregier for a couple of summer holidays with trail boats - running down the river at first light to the estuary to fish was stunning. One day however, fog came in 'from nowhere...when you are fishing you can get carried away' and I had a facinating time moving around the various rock marks with the compass, an old Garmin 48 and the charts - admit I gave up and went back for breakfast.
Scary - 100ft one minute / 5 the next!

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[charles_reed]

Biscay not Brittany..

I think you mean, N Brittany stops at le Four Bank

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[tome]

Re: Biscay not Brittany..

Already eaten humble pie over this one Charles!

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[charles_reed]

That would have been a

Social gesture if you'd made no profit

and Exploitation of the disadavantaged if you had

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