Hello pop-pickers , here we are at the end of July and it seems we had a fairly normal summer for the UK, sizzling hot days followed by days of pissing down with rain. Its been that way for the past 70 summers that I can recall.
Last year the eco-nerks supported by the brain dead media were saying “We have now gone beyond Global Warming - we are now at Global Boiling”. Well it turns out that if you measure temperature from a concrete pavement it is significantly hotter than measuring a metre above ground level where its supposed to be taken. Oh well, as they say in journalistic circles “lets not let the truth stand in the way of a good story”.
So where has Teddy Barrett been training this month then? How about this: Wenvoe (Wales), Bristol, Winchester, Liskeard (Cornwall), Honiton, Bedford, Stevenage, Bridgwater (Somerset) and Holsworthy (Devon).
One of my training sessions was for maintenance guys at the YMCA. Bloody fatal for me, I couldn’t get that tune out of my head and kept whistling and humming it the whole time I was there. Pretty much like Austin Powers and the mole he wasn’t supposed to notice – “mole, Mole, MOLE, MOLEY MOLEY MOLE”.
The summer months are my time for a spin on the motorbike. I am not a wet-weather biker by any means. Wet roads are slippery roads and I had too much biking in cold weather when I didn’t have any other option, I certainly don’t intend to repeat that. But riding out on a summer’s day, exploring villages and interesting locations is brilliant.
Early in the month myself and professor Griffiths (he on his Royal Enfield) went cross country through Southmoor and Stanford in the Vale to White Horse Hill. A relatively simple thing to do but thoroughly enjoyable.
I see that JTL have launched (another) campaign urging employers to take on apprentices. Well yes that’s all very well and good. But employers really need to make sure they take on the right calibre of apprentice. What tends to happen quite often is a contractor will take on an apprentice because his dad is Clerk of the Works or a Building Manager they deal with. Or we might get the “Virtue Signalling” where an apprentice is simply taken on for the colour of their skin or gender.
When you have to teach these characters at college, a lot of them haven’t the slightest interest in the trade and will play up in class because they don’t really want to be there. Some simply play up because they are immature and mostly grow out of it. But with the poorly chosen ones their classmates will have to put up with distraction for a couple of years before they bail out and take up something they are actually interested in.
I would propose that all apprentices should be independently assessed by the course tutors that will have to deal with them at college. This could easily be their first week of college training. Subject to satisfactory completion of that period the employer could decide whether to retain the apprentice, divert to a more appropriate role or part ways. This would also help the contractor avoid falling out with a parent as the decision to hire would not be his alone.
I would also propose more, not less, practical working sessions at school. Using tools and fixings should be basic skills taught to all, irrespective of gender or interest.
Schools should also have lessons detailing what various trades and professions actually do at work. I have heard a secondary school teacher ask an Electrician to fix her computer. This is actually another issue, in that many teachers have gone straight from school to college, to Uni and haven’t got a clue what makes the real world work. Like asking a priest for advice regarding your sex life.
Ted’s “Meal of the Month” award goes to Premier Inns “Social” restaurant at Stevenage for their Chicken Makhani Curry. I don’t really like a strong curry but I do like to get that taste, and this was superb. Enough heat to make it tasty but not too much. I would be very pleased to have this in an Indian restaurant. Well done Premier Inn, I’m looking forward to trying it again at your other hotels across the country.
As July draws to a close spare a thought for all of those in the construction industry and support trades, who have to work flat out to complete contracts during school and industry shut-downs for the holiday period. For many contractors its far from the break you might imagine. 20 Hour days to complete work without getting into penalty clauses. And often during the hottest time if the year. Metrosexuals on their scooters need not apply.
So, as all good cowboys do, its time to saddle up, and ride off into the sunset. Adios Amigos e Amigas, hasta que nos volvamos a encontrar (Goodbye chaps and Chapesses, until we meet again).