Big Brother on FIVE

Chanel FIVE has at last confirmed it is talks with the makers of the series Big Brother, Endemol, to take over the programme from Channel 4. This is great news for the fans of the show who have been morning it passing on the internet discussion boards since the show ended last summer.

Although I can see there being a format change for the new series to accommodate Channel FIVE's schedules I can't see it being much different form the show we aw on Channel 4. Talks must be at an advanced stage if they are to produce a show for this summer. With auditions to be held and a new house built the timing is getting tight. I would expect by the end of February a deal will be done and this much loved show will be back on our screens.

Artist of the Week - Adele

Brining the Artist of the Week really up to date this week featured artist is Adele. Currently she has two albums in the charts, her first album "19" at number 4 and her second and new album "21" at number one. Not to mention the number of singles she has in the single chart.

I came across Adele through the BBC2 music show "Later with Joules Holland" and loved her voice and the quality of her live performances. If you listened to her on Radio 1's live session on Thursday you will know exactly what I saw in her. Since then I have listened to her first studio album but with a new album out she deserves revisiting.

Adele was born in to what she describes as a very unmusical family in 1988 and first attracted the attention of a record company after she posted a three song demo on her MySpace page. She is a English singer song writer who since being discovered has received recognition both commercially and critically as well as being a huge hit with the public. Her first album "19"debuted at number one, and has been certified as a double platinum in the UK and her second album went straight to number one in the album charts when it was released last week. She is an incredibly talented woman and a natural performer and given her young age she looks likely to be around having hit after hit for many years to come.

I hope you join me in listening to Adele and  have a great time listening to her new and her old album. They are both well worth listening too, also if unlike me you have the chance go and she her tour this spring. It is bound to be amazing. As for next week you will have to wait and see who I pick, because at the moment I haven't got a clue who it will be.

Missing Texts

Over the past eighteen months I have been using the Orange Mobile phone network and I must say up unto they merged with T-Mobile I have been really happy with the service they have provided. The pay as you go packages are excellent and I have got some wonderful discounts on a new handset. Now I have all the Children on Orange as well for the same reason.

However or late I have noticed that the network is dropping text messages every so often. Now this could be a phone issue or a network issue. I am not certain but it is starting to become a bit of a concern, especially when important texts are going missing and you can't get the person respond or in any other way, as in the case of some of the recent text messages I have had to send.  It is not just affecting one person but quiet a few of my contacts I have tried to contact by text. The messages seem to get stuck "pending" delivery. I just hope Orange get there finger out and get it sorted soon. They must know about it by now it all over some of the mobile phone discussion forums.

10,000 Views

It was much sooner coming than I expected but today the counter passed the 10,000 page views point. I would just like to say a big thank you all of you that come and visit my blog and take time read what I have to say. Be you a regular or just someone that has popped by looking at a single page or two.

As you will know if you are a regular visitor I have been getting behind on some of the post recently. Don't worry I will catch up, it is just that other things have being getting in the way or writing my blog since the start of the month. Some of which can't be helped like work commitments and the family matters which  are to important to me skip over and neglect. The resulting catch up posts might be smaller than those in the past and I apologise for that but things will return to normal soon.

Poorly Lucy

Another of the rather slightly shorter post of another lovely day with all three of my girls. Unlike most of the days recently it has been slightly less busy with just a new tyre to get for the car. This was after one of them developed a major puncture the day before. It wasn't what we need with a new car seat to buy for Lucy but it couldn't be helped it needed replacing and it needed replacing now.Driving around at 50mph wasn't a option for a weekend when Emily and Catherine have to go to Leeds to see their mum.

It was a relatively quite morning with little to do. I had taken the flat tyre into the garage the day before and they had put the spare on the car. It was just a question of waiting for the call to have the new tyre fitted and the spare taken off. We weren't expecting that to happen until after lunchtime so I got on with some work to past the time until I picked up Lucy from nursery.

Lucy once again siad "I love you Daddy' and a massive big hug when I saw her. This is becoming quiet a thing and I could really get use to it. It makes you feel so warm inside. It was lovely see her again and have her hold my hand as we walked to the car and set off for the supermarket to get some food for lunch. While we were there we picked up some bacon, mushrooms and some nice fresh bread rolls. Something of a favourite with Lucy and myself and after all the eating out of late it was nice to have something at home for lunch.

The afternoon was mainly taken up with playing with Lucy, but something wasn't right with her. She had a cough when I picked her up from nursery and she was starting to tire easily and she wasn't her bouncy self. Her play was much more sedate than usual. Clearly the cold she was developing was starting to take effect. I did think about giving her some medicine but thought I better not or she might not be able to have anything before bedtime.

Soon it was time to pick up Emily and get the tyre changed and we did this at same time to save petrol, and so we headed off to Oakham. Lucy was so pleased to see Emily and gave her a great welcome and they both sat in the car as it went up in the air to have the tyre changed. I'm not sure Lucy knew what to make of it but with reassurance from Emily she was fine and was looking out the window to see what was going on as the car was up in the air.

When we got home Catherine and George were waiting to welcome us back, but unlike normal Lucy decided to sit and watch some television under a blanket with her juice rather than play. Not normal Lucy behaviour at all. She normally gets one of the girls to play with her, but not today. She was like that for rest of the afternoon until dinner and beyond. Slowly get worse as the day went on.

With time getting on it was time to take a quiet poorly Lucy back home to her mother in Oakham. I was sad to see her go as always and she asked if I would be sad when she goes. I replied that I'm never sad because I can remember all the lovely things we do together.  Not always the truth but she doesn't need to know that. When I got back the girls were on the computers chatting with friends on Facebook and watching BBC iPlayer which took them pretty much up to bedtime.

I hope little Lucy is alright. She was clearly going down with what seemed like a rotten cold. I wish I could ask how she is, but at them moment I don't think that would go down too well, but if she gets really poorly I sure I would hear about it. Can't wait to see Lucy on Tuesday, and I hope she is better by then.

Skins Series Five

Tonight sees the start of a new series of the award wiining Skins with another new cast on E4 at ten o'clock. It is drama based around the lives of a group of sixteen to eighteen year olds through there college years. It has a reputation for dealing with hard hitting subjects and problems that the youth of the today face growing up in modern Britain.

I started watching the first series and loved the dark story lines and the excellent acting, writing and direction. It's not always an easy watch but it is worth sticking with until the end as the character development and stories can run from one show to the next and into the next series. If you haven't watched why not give it a go and if you like it you can always watch the other series on channel 4 on demand.

Supermarket Madness

As you will know if you read the blog you will know there is a massive development planed for Oakham, the county town of Rutland which I personally feel will change the town as we know for the worse. Gone will be lovely small shops and family run businesses to be replaced by supermarket madness. 

If the supermarkets get their own way and the County Council approve all the planning applications, they have in for consideration at the moment, then Oakham's two supermarkets will become four within a few years, with one of existing supermarkets being enlarged to increase the range of goods it sales placing in direct competition with some of the shops on the High Street. The question is, forgetting the effect on the High Street, is there any need to have so many supermarkets in such a small town even taking account of the proposed expansion of the town.

Looking at the supermarkets that have applications in so far we look set to gain a Waitrose store and a Sainsburys store which will be going in competition with the existing Co Op store and a enlarged Tescos store. The County Council claim that having more supermarkets will be good for the people of Rutland by providing competition to Tescos, however looking at the mix of supermarkets we are getting I can't see them being any kind of threat to Tescos at all. The existing supermarket that will suffer will be the Co Op. Waitrose and Sainsburys are high end supermarkets as is the Co Op, all three will be after the same customer base, while Tescos will just carry on selling to the middle and lowed end of the market as normal. What I can see happening over a short space of time after completion of the additional supermarkets that four will soon become three. There isn't the population in the area to support three high end supermarkets. If the County Council really wish to see some competition to Tesco's it really needs to attract a low end super market into the town like Audi or Lidl, however I can't see them doing that as it would be seen as making the town cheap, but then again with four supermarkets and 1,100 extra homes it will become cheap as it, as will prices of houses in the area when the market is flooded with new homes and nowhere for people to work. 

Like all things in Rutland at the moment the underlying motivation for development is greed by all concerned. Having four supermarkets is madness, as is the Hawksmead development but this doesn't stop the County Council ruining our countryside and the heritage for our children. When it comes to money and the promise of money then greed takes over and we all know where that got us with the banking crises in the past few years. It is time the County Council thought again and I hope the people of Rutland think hard if they want these people in power when it comes to the next election.  

Birthday Shopping

Today was all about shopping for presents and shopping means finding somewhere decent to shop with a wide range of shops when Oakham doesn't cater for your needs. In this case I needed a good well stocked music/DVD shop. Today that meant a trip to Peterborough. One of the nicer cities in the region and only 45 minutes away in the car from Langham.

So after picking Lucy up from her nursery in Oakham we headed out to Uppingham and the bakery to get some food before heading east on the A47 to Peterborough. I must they rolls their are really good, as I can't stop saying, and that can be seen by the fact that Lucy eats all her roll as well as the filling. There wasn't a a single crumb left. 

When we got to Peterborough we parked by in the car park near the Cathedral and walked into the city centre and to the shops. I was amazed how many shops were either closed or closing down. I know there have been shops shutting in Oakham but not to the extent as they have closed there. You can really see what the greed of the banks has done to the local economy there.

Lucy was really good at walking around the shops. We walked for ages and she never complained and was really good at not touching things except of course when we visited a toy shop, but that is understandable, what child wouldn't. We weren't long in the city and I soon located all I needed to buy. Lucy wanted to pop into the Cathedral, but there wasn't time and we soon were heading back to Oakham to get Emily from school and then back home to Catherine and George.

Lucy was so pleased to be home again and have Emily and Catherine to play with. She busied herself playing with then to dinner and then again after dinner. They hardly stopped to watch TV or do anything other than play until it was time for Lucy to return back Oakham to her mother. All the time she was here we worked on her potty training and I will say she is doing a great. With Lucy gone Emily got on with her homework and Catherine watch a bit of television until bedtime.

I'm so blessed to have three lovely children that I love them to bits. They really are special to me and it is nice when they are together. They are growing up so fast. Emily in particular is starting to become a young woman and she is so pretty. I'm so proud of all they do.

Artist of the Week - Evanescence

This weeks band of the week is one I came across almost by accident. I was looking for something completely different on the internet and came across a reference a song called "My Immortal" that I played and almost instantly liked. The band in question and this weeks artist of the week is Evanescence.

I came across then quite by accident while looking for something completely different on the internet, You know the sort of thing when you endless go looking for something only to find something else that side tracks you down a different path. My discovery was just like that and what a nice discovery it was. I particularly love the acoustic songs as well as finding the heavier tracks original in content.

Evanescence are basically a rock band and they were founded in Little Rock, Arkansas back in 1995 by Amy Lee and Ben Moody however it wasn't until 2003 until they released their first commercial album which went on to sell 15 million copies world wide and helped them win two Grammy Awards. The band has relatively few studio albums given the time they have been together, just two and a third in production, however both albums released so far have been successful and from what I have heard from the third album it has the potential to mach this success. 

I hope look up my artist of the week on YouTube you enjoy listening to Evanescence. Next week I will be listening to something that is very current. Until next time happy listening.

Lots Going On

The lead up to the three day weekend with Lucy, Emily and Catherine has been absolutely crazy and the weekend itself extremely busy. So much so something had to give and that will be this weekends blog entry which I'm sorry to say is just going to be a brief summary of what has gone on.

Picking up Lucy on Friday was a dream. A big hug and "I love you Daddy" is enough to put a smile on any fathers face. The afternoon started with a trip to our favourite bakery in Uppingham and some of the best bread rolls in Rutland. Followed by a lovely afternoon playing at home. When Emily and Catherine got home from school Lucy settled down to play with them. Then there was some eating and some cleaning for the weekend to come to done. It was lovely seeing them all being so helpful, including little Lucy. Soon the place looked lovely and clean already for Lucy and the girls to mess it over the weekend again. It was three very tired girls that went to sleep that night. Lucy after her bath, stories and kiss and cuddles and Emily and Catherine after spending sometime talking to their friends on their Facebook accounts.

Saturday started off Lazy. Lucy and Catherine were the first two up. Catherine was off down into Oakham to go shopping with her friend before going to stay over the night with her friend in Langham. Emily meanwhile had one of her friends coming round for the afternoon. Although Emily was having a sleep over originally, it didn't happen because another one of her friends had to cannel because she wasn't very well. This didn't stop emily having fun with the friend that did turn up. She was a lovely girl and was so polite. Even, a shy at first,  Lucy had a lovely time with them both and said some really sweet things that made us all smile. Before dinner Lucy helped me bake some bread. She loves cooking and often pops into the kitchen to see if there is something she can stir and hopefully taste. The girls had their dinner together before Emily's friend had to leave and go home. I also cooked a second meal for latter in the evening. Slow cooked lamb shanks and vegetables that turned out to be rather yummy especially with the home made bread eaten in front of a roaring coal fire. Of course that was all after Lucy had her bath and was safely tucked up in bed. She looked so sweet when I checked on her before I went to sleep, all snuggled up in her blankets.

Lucy was up first as normal on Sunday but there was no Catherine to join her for breakfast. She didn't seem to mind and still enjoyed her food on her own while chatting away to me. Emily is a practicing teenager and rarely gets up before ten on a Sunday when the church bells wake her from her slumber. While everyone was snoozing I took advantage of having Lucy to myself and we did some drawing together on the floor. When Emily got up Lucy went off to play with her for a while and I enjoyed listening to the closeness they both display in way they play. It is moments like this I know bond between them is strong and I'm grateful we get to see Lucy as much as we do. Catherine returned for lunch and played with Lucy until it was time for her party. It was Lucy's first invite to a party. She was ever so excited when we got there and she had a smashing time, eating lots of jelly along the way. After the party Lucy went back to her mums house in Oakham and I returned to Langham to find Emily and Catherine playing on the Xbox together. This occupied them up to dinner and with homework time out of the way after that, they went to the land of nod.

It has a been a lovely weekend. I have enjoyed having them all. Emily had a great time with her friend, Catherine enjoyed her sleep over and it was really nice going to the party with Lucy, if rather noisy. I just wish I had more time to talk about it all. I can't wait until they are all here again together on Tuesday.

Fire at the Grainstore

One of the places to drink in Oakham for any real ale drinker is the Grainstore Brewery near the Railway station in Oakham. When I passed it on Saturday there was three fire engines outside the Brewery and people standing around watching as they put out a fire.

Rumour has it that the damage is not to extensive and that the owners hope to have the pub open again early next week. That will be a welcome news to the regulars at the pub and those that come to sample some of Rutlands finest ales. 

It's a Done Deal

According to the headline on this weeks Rutland and Stamford Mercury "Officials back 1,100 - home plan". It looks like it is a done deal as far as the paper is concerned and I agree with them. The developers of the Hawksmead development know they have done enough to convince the majority of the councillors this is financially beneficial to the funding of the council. 

So what can we do, well the answer is very little. The truth is the decision will probably have already been taken in private before the council meeting considers it on Monday. The only thing left to do is to turn up at this Mondays county council meeting at 6pm and make your view known. The developers clearly think the people of Rutland want this but when you talk to people on the streets and they actually spend a few minutes thinking about this they see it is a disaster for Oakham and Rutland. Especially now with shops going and people are losing there jobs.

Rutland Farm Shop - Closed

More sad news regarding local businesses hit by the slow down. While I was out and about yesterday I noticed that closed Rutland Farm Shop at the Rutland Village in Ashwell has closed down and the shop now stands empty. It was a great source of local produce from around the county and now it gone and with no notices on the door it can you can only assume it has gone for good.

It seems it has fallen victim the recession that is clearly in full swing as far as the region goes and thing can only get worse as the airforce base, the prison and the council make people unemployed in the coming few months. Meanwhile the county council continues to expand Oakham to create a eco and economic nightmare local businesses based on blood money they will get from the expansion of the the town. 

Artist of the Week - David Cook

This weeks artists of the week comes from a few years ago. when I first saw him preforming on seventh session American Idol in the 2008 which he went on to win. That artist is David Cook who performed an amazing version of "Billie Jean" based on Chris Cornell performance and arrangement of the song from 2007. It was simply amazing at the time, and to my mind still is. I'm sure it won him the show in the end and without it that performance he would have returned to his roots. It was miles above everything else the night it was performed.

I do worry that American Idol might end up being his downfall if he stay's with the people that produced the his first album after the show. He has far more to offer than being turned into a one album wonder. Thankfully he seems to be taking his time on the second album that should be released sometime this year all being good. However, saying that his first album wasn't bad, it just wasn't as good as the solo album he recorded before he went on the show. That album showed an artist with more depth and talent that seems to have got watered down by the commercial music industry.

So who is David Cook, well he was born in Houston, Texas, raised in Blue Springs, Missouri, and currently lives in Kansas City and Los Angeles. His interest in music and sing started at a young age and he performed in nearly every school show,  from elementary school to high school. After a brief spell with sports he moved on to study theatre studies at University before dropping the subject in favour of graphic design which he eventually got a degree in. All through this period music was in his heart and after leaving University he went onto concentrate on playing music and recording with his band Axium which he had formed while at high school. All together he recored four albums with the band before he released his first solo album. It was only by chance he went on American Idol at all, he went to the auditions to support his younger brother, but his mother and brother persuaded him to try out and he made it onto the lives shows and won the whole thing.

I hope you enjoy listening to David Cook as much as I did the first time I heard him sing on American idol. Do check out his early music, especially his solo album which really shows he had it in him with or without the show, and while your at why not have a listen to Axium too. You should find all the early music on YouTube if you search around a bit.

Dancing on Ice - Returns

Last Sunday saw the start of Dancing on Ice 2011. A firm favourite with families all over the country and this family is no exception. We all love the show and have been watching it for a number of years. It is just a nice show that you can all sit down to and enjoy together.

For me the best show in recent years was 2009 when Ray Quinn won, or should I say stole, the show. From his first skate it was clear that there was something special about him and I would go as far as saying he has the makings of a professional ice skater and in contrast there was Todd Carty who has to be the funniest man on ice. It was a real classic. Lets hope this years show is just as much fun to watch.

Oakham High Street for Sale

Anyone that has lived in Oakham for a while couldn't help but notice that the "Cook Shop" in the High Street is closing down. It was a lovely shop that I have brought things from in the past, mainly presents. If you needed a specialised cooking item it was the place to go. They had everything. It another sign of the economic slowdown caused by all the problems with the greedy banks. Of all the shops in Oakham I thought they would have made it through this period. 

Despite the town councils view that the small shops in Oakham are doing well the closing of this shop shows that things are far from as good as they believe. It is only a matter of time before more shops like this close in the high street and this situation is going to be made worse by the expansion of Tescos, approved in a recent planning meeting by the council. If it is bad now, and worse after Tescos, by the time one more large supermarkets open as part of the Hawksmead Development and another on the site of the college it could see the end to Oakham High Street as we know it. By the time the planners have finished there will be so much competition to the small shops in the High Street in Oakham that a large number of them will end up being closed down and boarded up. 

Is this really what we want for Oakham? I think the Council are living cloud cuckoo land and they are planning their way into a nightmare. It is up to us to stop them. We have a vote in May 2011 that can help start this process off. It time to vote for a change and save our county. Vote for people that will make a difference and not go down the road that ruins one of the most beautiful parts of England. 

From Rain to Sun

Weather wise it was a mixed day, starting off with rain and ending up with lovely sunshine by mis afternoon. Being mild it was just a shame that the ground is was so wet that we could make a trip to the park in the afternoon, because today was a day that Lucy comes to Langham.

The morning got off to a good start. Emily and Catherine were up early and soon dressed and fed and they made their own packed lunches allowing me to have a relaxing coffee before heading out with Emily to Oakham to her school. Things were a little different this morning in that we had to get Lucy's car seat from Oakham before taking her off to school. All part of the new method of doing things now that Lucy is at nursery. With the the seat collected, a good morning said to Lucy, I dropped off Emily at School then went to the CoOp on the morning milk run. What seems illogical to me is why I didn't pick up Lucy with the car seat and take her to nursery, after all it is on the way to the CoOp, but somethings in life have no logic I guess, and that is one of them.

With Lucy now being in nursery the mornings are different. They seem longer with not much to do other than work or just relax and wait. I guess I have just got use to her being about on Tuesday and Friday mornings and I make the most of my time with her so I had a routine based around her. Now that routine has changed and I feel at a lose end. I just don't know what to do with myself. Watching television for entertainment when all that is on are the boring day time TV shows isn't really an option and nor is sitting on the computer playing on Facebook and such like. I thought of getting some more work but a two hour block isn't a useful amount of time and although three hours is the cost of the extra hour in nursery without childcare costs isn't an cost effective option. I guess in a few weeks the new routine, whatever it turns out to be, will kick and things will feel normal again. 

With the morning gone and noon approaching it was time to set out Oakham again to pick up Lucy. It was lovely to see her and she ran to me and gave a massive hug after she had her shoes on. When I first saw her she was sitting on the story mat listening to a story and then she was hugging me for dear life. She looked lovely in a her new dress and top. As I got her coat on I checked she had everything with her. She takes her new toy dog to nursery with her and last time she managed to forget it and nearly did the same today. 

Soon we were marching off to the car together. She was chatting away and said something about a Birthday card and seemed a bit upset that she had forgotten in the morning. All I could think of was it was something to do with a party she is going to next Sunday. Her first ever party. I wasn't sure it was important or not but I said she could take it on Monday and that seemed to be alright with her. It's probably her lack of the concept of time that was the problem rather than her forging the card. 

Our next port of call while were in town was the supermarket to get some food for lunch and dinner later in the day. It is always a pleasure going round the supermarket with Lucy. As I have said before she has this natural ability to make people smile and today wasn't an exception to that rule as we whizzed round with Lucy sitting in the trolly and collecting the things I passed her and carefully placing them around her. The shopping didn't take long and when we got home we didn't have anywhere to park, as people were collecting their children from nursery at the Langham Primary School. So to kill a few minutes we all popped off to the Church to have a look around. We had a great time, Lucy playing with the piano and me pretending to be a vicar giving a sermon from the pulpit before we returned home.

When we got home we were warmly welcomed by George, who was more than pleased to see Lucy as always. As soon as she had said hello George off came the coat and she marched off into the family room to play leaving me to make everyones lunch. Today we had a favourite, bacon and mushroom rolls, which has to be one of the most yummy foods around, after all who can resist the smell of cooking bacon. I even know a few ex-vegatians who succumbed and were turned back to eating meat. 

With lunch out of the way I headed into the family room to play with Lucy and we got out some of the games she got for Christmas and started to play with them. She was having a super time especially playing Peppa Pig snakes and ladders with the house rules and she managed to beat me twice. I wasn't close to the finishing square on either occasion. It was great to play some board games with her as with some of the games she got and it that and a bit of play in her bedroom with her dolls house took us nicely up to the time to fetch Emily from school.

It never takes long to get to Oakham from Langham, it's only 2 miles and there is never no traffic compared to Leeds where we use to live. Travelling 2 miles there could take 20 minutes in Rutland the same distance takes about 5 minutes. Soon Emily was in the car and Lucy was giving her a cuddle and a kiss and we were all heading back home to see Catherine.

Catherine was on the computer when we got home and Lucy went off to find her and give her the same welcome that she gave Emily just minutes ago. Catherine finished what she was doing and then it was done to play with Lucy while I got on with making everyone tea and Emily got on with her homework in her bedroom. They both were having a grand time from all the noise I could hear from the kitchen and they were soon joined by Emily. It is lovely the way her older sisters love playing with her. It would be so easy for them to do there own thing but somehow one of them always has her attention. 

Soon everyone was sitting down at the table for dinner and Lucy was entraining us all with her little ways and sayings. It was lovely to be all together and enjoying our food with light banter and fun and recounting the day together before Lucy had to return Oakham and the girls had to go off to Leeds to see their mum.

I had a lovely day with them all, although they do seem a lot quicker now than they did before. I can't wait for the spring and the summer. Seeing the sun today reminded of all the things we did last year and I can't wait to do them again. As soon as the ground is dry enough it back out to the parks and enjoying the countryside. 

Ashwell Prison to Close

It is a sad day for the people that work Ashwell Prison and their families which is to close for good in March this year. It is also a sad day for Rutland with another major employer disappearing from the county due to Government cuts forced onto this country by the greedy bankers who continue to smile and take their bonuses as all around them falls apart. According to reports the Government have closed the prison because of the cost of refurbishing the prison after the riots of 2009, are just to great in the current economic climate, however people working at the prison claim millions have already been spent of on the prison rebuilding it. It seems that the Government are happy to waste that investment and bulldoze it to the ground to be replaced with who knows what. 

The interesting thing is that it will make the plans by Hawksmead look even more ridiculous than they were to start with. The prison was one of the larger employers in the area and it will see more people leaving the county putting more empty houses on the market. It will also impact the services industries in the area that supported the prison making them less likely to take on more employees. If the Hawksmead development looked silly before, it now just looks plain stupid. Firstly there are now two brown field site in Rutland for potential development, the prison site at Ashwell and the RAF base at Cottesmore. So the question is why on earth develop a green field site at Oakham and spoil a lovely town when there are brown field sites waiting to be reused. Also this closure brings into question the whole scale of the original Hawksmead Development as well as the plans outlined in the Rutland Core Strategy. With growth set to slow over the next few years this isn't the time for unrealistic plans.

The question is will the Oakham town council planning authority take any notice of of the fact that the prison has closed. I believe the answer is no, they will continue to nod at the developers of the Hawksmead Development despite from what I can tell talking to the people I know is a growing concerns that they don't have the people of Rutland and Oakham's interests at heart and they are living cloud cuckoo land. They are railroading this development through despite growing local opposition. There are even rumours going around that Oakham town council are considering holding future planning meetings in private and away from the public eye. I hope this is untrue for it would make it easier for them to pass and support such developments with out the scrutiny of the press and the public. This would be a real kick in the teeth for open Government.

Finally details of the examination of the Rutland Core Strategy by the Secretary of State was been published. It is interesting that it is big on waste disposal while only only attempting to be green. It goes on about green housing but completely misses the point. What is the use of green housing with low carbon footprints when the people living in the houses have to use loads of carbon driving to work in the big cities and towns that are between 18 and 30 miles away. The whole notion that the planned development has a low carbon footprint when you consider this is ridiculous. If this is an example of how the Secretary of State sees green thinking then any notion that the Government is green has no basis in reality.  

Something New

Every so often you come across someone new in the music business and I was just listening to the radio while I was cooking and I came across Rachel Colins. A new artist from London inspired by Kate Bush and Laura Marling she has been compared by some to Eliza Doolittle and Regina Spektor,. Recently she had oar play on BBC 6Music, LBC and Amazing Radio. So you have a chance to listen to her original music play the video below that was recorded at the Montreux Jazz Festival.

Recently she has released a four track EP "Things To Do", featuring four of her own works backed by a band that includes a brass section, backing vocals and percussion. Currently she is working on her debut album, while continuing to promote and perform tracks from her EP.  Time will see if she is a star of the future but she has made a good start and the list of radio stations her work appears on is increasing week by week. One thing is for sure she will be bound to pick up a core following if her new album lives up to the EP. You can listen to more of her music at her website (http://www.rachelcollins.co.uk).

Lucy grows up

It been milestone for little Lucy today. It was her first full session at Nursery. By all accounts, hers included she had a great day. She was joining in with the play, sitting nicely for the stories and by the end had the confidence to join in with the songs. She was smiling from ear to ear when I picked her up and gave me the biggest cuddle ever. When the Nursery worker asked if she was coming agin tomorrow to play there was a big yes. She hardly stopped talking as we walked to the car.

We took her for a special lunch at a little bakery we discovered in Upingham and boy was she hungry. She got through a tuna and tomato roll and a shortbread guitar she wanted for pudding. She was so proud of herself. When we got home she got on with playing and having fun until it was time to pick up Emily and she returned home to play with Catherine. 

It was all to soon time for her dinner and for her to return to Oakham with sweets in hand. This was especially so of today because all the things we normally do had to be fitted into two hours less, but all the same I'm glad she going to Nursery and it will do her confidence the world of good. I just wish it hadn't turned in to a logistical nightmare. 

I'm sorry the family posts are rather short at the moment, especially this one, but things are rather hectic at the moment and there is a lot going on. Hopefully soon these posts will get back to normal.

Artist of the Week - The Script

Another relatively new band for the new year takes this weeks artist of the week spot. This time it is the turn of the Irish band the Script who released only two albums to date, the first simply call the "The Script" in 2008 and the second "Science and Faith" last year.

Although an new band on the block, after being in the twilight for many years, they have been hugely successful with both of their albums reaching number one in the albums charts and going platinum in Ireland and the UK. Their singles haven't been so successful so far with the highest one "The Man Who Can't Be Moved" from the first album reaching number two in the UK singles chart, but I'm sure it is only a matter of time before they get their first number one hit, probably from their third album when it is released.

The Script are a soft rock band from Dublin, Ireland who moved to London after signing to Sony Music. They were officially formed 2001 out of the band MyTown which had failed to make it into the boy band market in the UK in the late nineties. However it wasn't until one of the bands members mothers feel terminally ill that the renamed band started to be noticed and they started winning awards and making an impact on the charts. It was during this time they released there first album and went on to support U2 in 2009 before releasing their current album. As a testament to their growing fan base a recent concert tour in March this year was sold out within five days of going on sale.

I hope you join me and enjoy The Script over the coming week. It is good to listen to listen to new music as well as some of the old stuff you love. Next week I will be returning to an old favourite.

Mixed Busy Bag

It been a busy weekend with lots going on and I don't just mean the weather that went from snow to sunshine. In fact so much so that blogging has had to take the back burner, there were just other things to deal with. All the same it been a good weekend on the whole even if it did start with a covering of the white stuff and ungritted roads.

Lucy was here from Friday morning until Sunday afternoon. Everyone has had a lovely weekend playing and in Lucy's case enjoying the snow on Friday. She has really taken to watching Peppa Pig on my phone and she is trying to workout how to get it to play new videos after the last one has finished. Emily and Catherine meanwhile made the most of her being here and took advantage of the good weather and went to town on their bicycles to meet up with their friends. They are really starting to grow up now and find their own feet. Finally we all had a lovely Sunday lunch together before little Lucy returned to Oakham.

But despite it being a busy weekend, in a lots of ways, there was still time to go out for a drive and Saturday and we watched the sun setting over Rutland countryside with a beautiful windmill in silhouette. I just wish I had my camera with me because it was such a wonderful life affirming sight.