About work and cycling

I recently changed my job - although I am still based in the same office and surrounded by the same people, I now work with a different manager with different responsibilities and a different role. I am really enjoying my new job - though I had quite a steep learning curve as my new boss went on holiday two weeks after I started (it had been arranged long ago so I didn't take it personally!).

I work in local government and everything is driven it seems by the ubiquitous "target". Some targets are good - to achieve more or to get better are good goals to strive for. However, we have been working towards a really unpleasant and negative target that makes me feel quite uncomfortable. We have been counting down to the end of the year the numbers of people killed and seriously injured on the roads of Essex. The aim was for the number to be lower than last year - and although we did manage to reduce the overall numbers from last year, unfortunately we didn't quite achieve the figure set for us by central government. It's been horrible to see the number posted on the office wall, gradually rising every day. Christmas and New Year are both very bad times for road casualties, and the most dreadful ones are those that involve young people or children. I have always loved that song by Chris Rea, "Driving Home for Christmas" but it is always tinged with a horrible thought that nowadays we make so many more car journeys at this time of the year, and at at the same time there will be lots of people on the roads who are on the way home from a drinks party or a night out. The floral tributes that you see on the roadsides are a dreadful reminder of the lives that have been wrecked and so often drink driving is responsible. I personally believe we should adopt a zero tolerance to drink driving in this country as they do in some other European countries.

I'm also very conscious of safety as a cyclist. I always wear a cycle helmet, reflective/fluorescent gear and have lights front and back (as well as assorted reflectors). You wouldn't believe the number of drivers who still don't see me (or perhaps choose not to!). I don't cycle on the pavement, and always stop at traffic lights, yet the number of times I get abuse, both from pedestrians and drivers, is unbelievable. My worst problem is with the dog walkers. Part of my route to work is along a shared cycle/footpath which is wide enough to accommodate pedestrians and cyclists but the problem is the dogs - I don't dislike dogs, but the dog owners who walk on one side of the footpath with their dog on the other side with the lead across the width of the footpath really take the biscuit. Oops this has turned into a rant - sorry! Pedestrians who step into the road just because they haven't heard a car coming are also a real hazard. I don't set out on my journey to mow anyone down, but pedestrians are always astonished that cyclists can't stop dead. In the Highway Code they give the stopping times for cars travelling at different speeds, and most people are aware that the faster you are going the longer it takes to stop but a cyclist travelling even at 3 or 4 miles an hour (which is slow) will need a few yards of stopping distance.



This is one of the government's Think campaign posters - it is aimed at drivers to make them more aware of motorcyclists, but cyclists are also very vulnerable. I have only been involved in one accident as a cyclist when a driver opened their car door as I drew alongside - I was very bruised and shaken but it was lucky that it was on a quiet road as I was thrown across the road - if anything had been travelling in the other direction it would have been much worse.

PS - the posting date for this is showing as 7 December - I started it then, but didn't get round to posting until today - 5 January 2008!

What I've been up to lately

I haven't been near my home computer much lately. I have missed reading all the lovely blogs I usually visit and hope to catch up in the next couple of days.

Meanwhile, here are some of the things I've been doing:

• Making jam - for my friend who is fund raising for the hospice

Lovely Victoria Plum Jam

• Blackberry Jam and Apple & Blackberry Jam (my favourite). These are the few I kept for me - about 20 pots of jam went off for the sale.

Spare blackberries were used to make crumble and stewed apple and blackberries - haven't the blackberries been amazing this year?

• Making lavender bags - another fund raising idea
  
  
  

• Taking two very cross rabbits to the vet for their Myxamatosis jabs. No photos of them I'm afraid - since their visit to the vet they are staying very firmly out of my way. Little do they know they're going back in two weeks for their VHD jabs. I expect after that I won't see them again till spring!




• Making Bunny Manor fox proof in preparation for the long dark nights - it's turning into Colditz - photos to follow when all is complete.




• Covering old box files to store magazines and knitting patterns in:
  
  
  

Before

After

• Painting my newly acquired EBay bargain - I got two of these basket stacks for a very reasonable £13. The other one has two drawers and they will be very useful for storing sewing, knitting and other such crafty things, plus all those odds and ends that we all have lurking in drawers! Also I've got a few charity shop bargains. I want to paint or decorate this little jug but need some inspiration first - any ideas?

Yesterday I had a flying visit to my mum and sister in Bristol - and to collect all the stuff my daughter left behind at the end of last term. When she came home from university in May the car was absolutely packed to the gills and we had to leave bulky things like her bike, bookcase, duvet and pillows behind. Now she's going to be at Cambridge for the next year doing a placement with the Autism Research Centre she will definitely be needing the bike! What a wonderful bike-friendly place Cambridge is (and much nearer home so we will be able to see her more often than when she was at Bath). I'm really looking forward to visiting lots of interesting places in and around Cambridge.

My Journey to Work

Although I am not originally from Essex, since I've lived here for over 15 years I have come to love many things about this county. I'm originally from the West Country, and much appreciate the drier climate here, and the distinct lack of hills (which as a cyclist I do prefer!).

One of the things I like about living in mid Essex is the proximity to the countryside. On my short journey to work each day, I am fortunate enough to travel along a very attractive path, which is surrounded by trees, with the River Chelmer running alongside.

Most days I cycle to the office along this path and cross over the river via a footbridge. It's very pleasant, and as the seasons change there are so many lovely things to see. I actually took these photos about two weeks ago, and in just that short time everything has become even more lush, there are even flowers opening on the water lilies in the river (the variety is Brandy Bottle - though I've never got near enough to catch a whiff of the scent that gives it it's name!).

Recently, one bank of the river was banked up with willow, which is a natural means of reducing erosion. It is quite attractive, and apparently in a couple of years there will be a lovely willow hedge holding everything firmly in place.