service

So! What's more annoying? The willingness of businesses to sell poor product, provide poor service or have poor concept of public image, or the publics willingness to put up with it.

Consider this:
A family (children parents and grandparents) turn up at a pub, having made a booking for Sunday lunch they are told that their table is not ready yet, but if they'd care to wait..... They order a round of drinks and sit at a table in the bar, twenty minutes later, no sign of being shown to a table, no order taken and no apology or further explanation offered. The family indicate they'll eat at the table in the bar. The children, both bored and hungry are becoming fractious. They examine the menu, if seems a little over complicated and overpriced but nevertheless make an order. While at the bar, grandad observes a 'character' come into the bar proffer an empty glass to the bar manager, the glass is refilled with lager and given back, no money changes hands, grandad observes the 'character' is scruffy, dirty, unkempt . On further observation he realises he's wearing chefs garb, a member of staff. Eventually, food arrives. It's really poor quality, the children's food is not only poor quality it's also totally inappropriate. The staff although apparently willing to try and help are clearly not communicating with each other. The bill is presented and paid, no tip is left. The whole experience is thoroughly disappointing for all the family.  The only satisfied party seems to be the 'character' who appears at the bar every 15 minutes or so to have his glass refilled with beer.

Ok, in its self this is no surprise. But this particular establishment seems popular. It gets positive reviews on Tripadvisor.  For the life of me, I just can't understand why.

When I went to pay the bill, the waitress asked if everything had been ok. I said "no" and started to tell her about the lack of table despite a booking the wait to have an order taken. I tailed off at that point, deciding my complaints were probably too numerous to list, and really, what good would it do.

So, what should we do when presented with poor product or poor service. I'll vote with my feet. I simply won't go back.

Having had a good whinge. Here's a cheery tale of washing machine parts. A couple of weeks ago our washing machine broke down. With a little big of Google based research I identified the problem. With further research I identified the part I needed and a company I thought might be able to supply it. I phoned them, I spoke to a young lady who was polite and proficient, she confirmed the identity of the part, confirmed the price and that it was in stock. She dealt with the purchase. 36 hours later the part was in my hands. After a bit of YouTube based research I fitted the part and the machine was back in operation. My thanks go to E-spares. Excellent service, thank you.

I will be going back to them.

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Random Conversations

I’m currently on holiday with my wife and stepson in County Durham. We’re staying in the grounds of Finchale (pronounced Finkle) Priory. After lunch on Easter Sunday we go for a walk in the grounds with a few members of visiting family. On route we come across a church group in the process of baptising a few of their congregation in the waters of the river Wear.

Now parents of teenagers will be fully aware of the random nature of conversation you can have with them. Whilst walking on a wooded embankments that sweeps down to the river, my stepson Eric (name changed to protect the innocent) and I embark on a discussion about god the universe and everything. Being a teenage boy Eric is anxious to establish what, I consider to be is right and wrong, Christianity, Islam, Judaism or any other. Now at the age of 53 I still haven’t established exactly what my views are; I happen to think that there is good in all faiths, that they all have something to offer. But I know this would be a bit inconclusive for Eric. I hold a view that teachings of Buddha have a lot to offer. So, the conversation moves to Buddhism. Then as boys would, Eric drops "Jedi" into the conversation. A bit off the wall but it’s still worthy of discussion. I explain that, in reality the establishment on Jedi as a religion came about as a result of people having a bit of a joke when filling in their census forms. I tell Eric my understanding of what the Jedi is all about ; that there is a force in every living thing, a dark side and a light side. And Jedi are guided by the force.

From right out of left side, Eric asks the question have you ever hugged a tree. I have to be honest and say, “Yes.”

“Why?”

“Just inquisitiveness.”

 “Did you get anything from it?”

“Try it.”

Eric looks slightly uncomfortable and refuses to hug a tree. I want to show him that it’s OK to be a bit daft sometimes. So I find a tree just a little bigger than my arms will encircle and, for the second time in my life, I hugged a tree. I can’ say I had an epiphany or saw the light on the road to Damascus but there is something ethereal about hugging a tree. It’s difficult to put a finger on the experience but it’s a little like holding a very small baby.  You get a feeling of being in the presence of lot of “life”.

(I started writing his blog entry on 6^th April 2010, then for some reason never got around to completing it. I now find myself with the time and motivation to continue. My memory of the incident is a little fuzzy, but I feel it’s worth finishing) Since starting this blog entry I’ve become a beekeeper. When I lift a frame full of bees from the hive I get the same feeling of being in the presence of a lot of life.

Now, people that know me will know that I’m not a namby-pamby, limp wristed, wishy-washy, Guardian reading Hippy, but I hugged a tree and I was moved by the experience.

The conversation with Eric closed at this point as some completely random minor event took his attention and he moved on.

As for the tree hugging. Try it. Find a tree, slightly bigger than your arms can encircle. Pick a nice one though, you wouldn’t want to hug anything unattractive. Put you arms around it, and give it a gentle squeeze. Close your eyes and keep an open mind. If the only conclusion you come to is that Martins completely lost the plot, I don’t mind. You never know though, you may like it.

A week may be a long time in politics. It’s even longer on the allotment.

About ten days ago it was cold, I mean really cold, there was a north easterly wind coming over the south downs, that would cut you in half, walking into it would give you an ice-cream headache in a matter of minutes. Any thought of going to the allotment was quickly dismissed as sheer folly. I’d been on the plot a few days earlier and found it to be a desolate place. The scene was much as it had been towards the end of November. No signs of the gardening year ahead, just f few leeks and Brussells stems survived the winter.  On the few occasions I did venture on to plot, I busied myself with non-gardening jobs that needed to be done. Clearing the bee plot, sorting and burning rubbish, siting my cold frame.

In view of the freezing conditions I decided to get on with a job closer to home. A new chicken run was needed, that seemed a productive use of my time, so I got on with it. My garden fish pond had developed a leek so clearing and re-building that was another project to take up my time.

On Saturday the weather had made a substantial improvement, the chicken run was complete, I returned to the plot. What I found was a significantly different scene to that I had left only a week earlier. Ground had been cleared, earth had been tilled. One couple had cleared their ground, collected manure from a nearby stables and made pleasantly aromatic heaps at various points. On Monday I went back again, and found that Eddy, an allotmenteer of 14 years experience (and he started when he was seventy), had actually planted his potatoes, and was busy putting onion sets in the ground.

So why is all this so worthy of note. Up until the end of the cold snap, I was confident that I was ahead of the game. My plot was tidy, the non gardening jobs wre just about complete,I felt ready for the coming of spring. I left the plot for a week, and bingo. I find that my fellow plot holders have made even better use of the time, and left me trailing in their wake. I now feel somewhat humbled. Just goes to show. Take your eye off the weather for the very briefest of time and the world will leave you behind. A week is a long time on the plot if your not there to make full use of every oppertunity to make progress.

Things go from bad to worse. The inclement weather has returned the ground is so sodden I don’t stand a chance of getting those seed potatoes in the ground for at least another week.

Hay ho.

Anyone for Satay.

On Friday I was at a retirement party for a long standing friend, Jem. The event took place in a local pub; the beer was good, the company excellent. The only slight cause for concerns was the threat of being cagouled into making a fool of one’s self at the karaoke.

Refreshments were provided by Jem’s, long suffering, lady wife. This comprised of a large platter of finger food being delivered to each table. I have a reputation for a healthy appetite, so immediately tucked in. In the middle of the platter was a ramekin of sauce.

“I wonder what the sauce is?” I asked my fellow diners.

“Peanut, satey sauce.” I was told.

I selected a piece of chicken on a stick, sloshed it around in the sauce and took a hearty mouthful. My initial thought was ‘Mmm, this sauce is quite aromatic’ then as my taste buds went into overdrive, the truth dawned on me. This is sauce is mustard. As the realisation struck home, my tongue began to burn, my sinuses immediately cleared, my nose began to run, and my eyes filled with tears.

Anxious to help other avoid the same fate I said, a little too loudly, “This satay sauce is mustard.” Someone said “Mmm, I like satey too.”

“No, it’s really mustard.”

“ Oh! Are you OK?”

To add insult to injury the next morning I told my wife of my misfortune, she laughed like the proverbial drain. She said. “Did everybody laugh?”

I said “No, they were quite sympathetic.”

She laughed even more.

First posted on the river cottage website of 21/03/2010.

The First Anniversary of This Time Last Year.

This time last year I was developing my retirement plans. The basic idea was to get an allotment, take up beekeeping, fishing, foraging and beating at a pheasant shoot. All of which were partially inspired by watching a little too much River Cottage.

Progress has been significant. This time last year I had no allotment and little hope of getting one. I now have the use of three ‘half plots’ (but that’s another story). I have joined the local beekeepers association; I have a beehive and the promise of bees in the spring. I foraged for my first wild mushroom. I’m a regular beater at a nearby shoot.

I find myself with an almost completely different social circle and a completely revised set of favourites on my web browser. I’ve also found another interest, ‘blogging’.

If I’m honest, I don’t think blogging is very well supported on the River Cottage website. At the time of writing the blog of the week is nearly three months old. I’ve used the Questions section of the website and got good advice as a result. I find the Forum threads tend to ramble away from original subject. So the purpose of this blog dear reader is, to encourage you to have a go. Blogs allow you something different. Blogs allow you to express an opinion, relate your experience, tell a story, pass on your expertise, or any combination of the above. It can be on any subject, from the weather to the global recession, to the circumference of your beetroot. Anything goes, so long as it’s legal and doesn’t cause too much offence.

While working on any one of the more tedious jobs on the allotment you may find your mind wandering to, and dwelling on some issue or other. There starts a blog, it’s then just a question of getting it written down and posted on the web, easy.

Having blogged, I find myself checking e-mail every morning to see if anyone has commented on my effort, if people agree or disagree with the sentiments expressed. I find I want to get my blog out to a wider audience. Like a terrorist, I crave the oxygen of publicity. Other bloggers generate their own websites to host their blogs, but that sounds a bit technical for me.

Please keep reading the River Cottage blog section, make comments, and have a go yourself. You never know you may be a budding HFW.

First posted on the River Cottage website ob 13/01/2010

The Saga of the Seeds.

OK, it’s late December, time to plan the garden for the coming year. I’m new to this lark, so I needed some guidance. Happily I was the grateful recipient of the River Cottage Veg Patch guide a few months ago. So according to its advice I wrote out my veggie ‘wish list’. My ambition was to cultivate a total of thirty different vegetables. Reading on in the guide it suggested different varieties to grow to get the best of flavour and the longest season for each veg. So, on to the internet. Where are all these varieties available from and how much are they going to cost me? After a little surfing I alight on the garden organic website, lovely! They have almost all the seeds I want and their principles on maters organic align with mine.

The next morning in back to the Garden organic website, in the shop, busily selecting which seeds I want to buy. I’m attracted to the offer of two months free membership. On the click of a mouse button I’m into the application form and after a few more keystrokes I’ve paid £28 for a year’s membership of this, very worthy, organisation.

At some point in the morning, an epiphany takes place. Hang on, most of the seeds I’ve looked at are about £1.50 a packet and a good few of the more unusual verieties at well over £2. So taking an average price of say £1.50, 30 veg, two verieties of eact, 60 packs of seeds will cost about £90. Add two that the £28 for membership but take off the 10% discount that membership gives me and I’ve spent £108 and that’s without onion sets and seed potatoes. This is getting out of hand time for a re-think.

Isn’t the point of an allotment to produce good food, but economically? Secondly, as a first year allotmenteer are 60 varieties of veg a bit ambitious? Yes and yes are the answers to those two little posers. So with that in mind it’s off to Wilkinson’s to see what they have to offer.

In Wilkinson’s the veg seed are variously priced, but the overriding offer is 3 packs for £1.50 or 3 packs for £2.50 depending of the seed. So I go to work trying to remember what’s on my wish list and the varieties I had selected from the guide. I ended up with 24 pack of seeds for about £14.

So, what s the lesson in all this. It would be nice to grow all that we desire, it would be great to grow all manner of unusual varieties for flavour and season, it would be great source all the seeds sets and plants from an organisation that is furthering the cause of organic food production. BUT, I need to have clear objectives in what I’m trying to achieve. I’m making an effort. I’ll produce organic home grown veg, and I’ll do it in a way that supports the family income rather than put it under further pressure.

First posted on the River cottage website on 01/01/2010