David Pibworth
An Abject Apology
t's only appropriate that I should take to a Ivelocipede and wear a Scottish style wig, as not only am I a quarter Scottish , but
I'm related to Kirkpatrick MacMillan who
invented the bicycle in 1839. My mother, Betty, who many of you know, was a MacMillan and with a number of 'Great's ' in front of it, he was her Uncle.
I shall do a full article on that at some point, but for now I happen to mention it as I told this fact to some cycling pals of mine in MK and they 're now trying to twist my arm to join them on a 500 mile charity cycling trip in France in September. I have explained that being related to the person who invented the bicycle doesn't give you the ability to hop on a bike and cycle around France with gay abandon . They then tell me that it's a relay type of trip and so one is 'only' expected to do 125 miles over 3 days. Oh right!
I might do it. I'll need sponsorship of course. I wonder if the Thames Valley Police would .... no...no...probably not. Look, I tell you what. I'll do it if the Thames Valley Police sponsor me for £2,000. That should get me out of it. Or they may think it will kill me off and be worth the outlay. They could afford it. All that money they get from stopping people for not wearing seatbelts, going to a good charitable cause...must be worth a thought. Or a whip round from some senior officers would do the trick. We pay them plenty. Now then , other things . It seems to me that Olney Market on Thursday is getting smaller. There are definitely less traders than there used to be. Without knowing the ins and outs of what goes on it can only boil down to one of two reasons . The rent is going up enough to make traders pack it in, or people are not coming to the market as they used to. Or maybe it's a combination of both as, if the traders have to pay more, then economics say they have to charge more for their goods to make it pay. Whatever, it does seem to be dwindling somewhat and it would only take a few more empty spaces before things looked really bad. What a shame it would be if we lost Olney Market. I shall now go and buy a pie from Andy the butcher to show my solidarity, brothers.
And talking of solidarity brothers , we lost Tony Benn recently. Love him or hate him, he stood up for free speech and he was warning us all about the problems of the EU - years ago - and what a horrible dishonest mess it would become. Oh how everyone laughed when Tony Benn and Enoch Powell stood up together and put the facts to the public. Looking back and realising that we were hoodwinked by Ted Heath and Harold Wilson, two of the most dishonest politiciansofourtime,insteadoflisteningtoTony Benn and Enoch Powell, two of the most honest politicians of our time , is terribly embarrassing .
We must have been mad. And now we have every wretched political party being pro the EU, an elite club, run by the elite, for the elite. Blimey , I've just looked back at this. Politics , police, local issues.
Oh blast, I totally forgot about the apology. Sorry about that.
I wonder if our intrepid editor will get shouted at again.
Power to the People! 50 Phonebox Magazine
Dementia Champions
Westland, one of seven homes to be accepted on the 'WHELD' programme
s you are know Westlands is A passionate about the care and
support we offer Individuals
living with Dementia. Westlands has been accepted to take place on a research programme called "WHELD". This
is a programme for improving well-being and health for people living with Dementia. The programme will run for nine months and will teach staff skills , adding to the skillstheyalreadyhavetoenhancethelife of a person living with Dementia. Out of 24 homes across Milton Keynes, Aylesbury and London, we are one of seven homes to be accepted onto the programme . WHELD launched the programme on Thursday 20th March at 2pm, at Westlands. Fran Meda from the research programme introduced the programme to staff , family and visitors . The meeting was an introduction to the programme and involved two staff members receiving training to become Dementia champions. They will take part
in a four day training programme with members from other homes accepted on the programme .
They will then introduce techniques and skills they have learnt to improve social interaction and coping strategies for people who may be experiencing difficulty in coping with dementia , including family members of loved ones within the home, they will also be looking at individuals care plansandensuringthattheyareasperson centred as possible and meet individual's social and interactive preferences .
A training video has been filmed here between 24th and 27th March, by ACC Film company, where the residents and staff took part in starring in the video, which will be delivered to care homes across the country.
If you require further information please contact me on 01234 711545.
Salina Ballard