Coming back from a hard day’s footpath clearing today – after several hours doing battle with the skin-tearing, hair-tangling three-dimensional jigsaw puzzle that is the gorse bush – we encountered two walkers. ‘Oh,’ said the female half of the couple, spotting our implements of destruction. ‘Oh good, I’m glad someone’s doing something about it. I was just saying we should …’ I smiled politely, ready to direct her to the guy from the council who would happily provide her with the opportunity to join us on the next task. ‘Email somebody and tell them they should do something about it,’ she went on.
See, all this time I’ve been thinking that I was one of ‘us’. Only now do I discover that actually I am one of them, the great they that gets things done, or doesn’t, depending on whether a public-spirited citizen has emailed to remind them. Still, at least that makes me a somebody after all these years. Next up: what they, sorry, I, should do about the credit crunch…
Town Mouse 
i wunt be one of them, tis normally their fault….
I was doing some strimming in the garden today and I am in pain all over so you have my
sympathy.
Regards John
I learned a long time ago that there are those who do something, and those who say something should be done. Somehow, I am not the least bit surprised to learn you belong to the former, rather the latter, much larger group.
You do realise, of course, that the couple will now move from the position of Something Should Be Done to Why Wasn’t Something Done Earlier?
As to the credit crunch… I’m a capitalist. Let the banks fail. If the government wants to sling huge amounts of money about give it to the people who have/or will loose money if the banks do fail. That said, if you are the Someone that people email when Something Shout Be Done then no doubt you have 20,000 conflicting suggestions on what Should Be Done.
Remember: You can keep some of the people happy some of the time. The rest will just complain 🙂
Psycho – yeah, that is the problem
John – I’m at the aching all over stage now. Plus a nasty case of ‘gorse measles’ all over my hands
Bikinginla – before I get too smug, I should add that, shortly after posting this we went out for a walk and found that ‘they’ had fixed the foot bridge over the ford – the one where we had just been stepping over the broken bits & thinking that Something Should be Done.
Dom – only 20,000 suggestions?
So what ARE you going to do about the credit crunch? I think we should be told.
I’ve just been to the allotment where ‘they’ are busy repairing the shop, ordering new seeds, getting to know new plot-holders and dealing with complaints. As one of ‘them’ I’ve always wondered what the other lot do with their evenings when I’m writing newsletters, stuffing envelopes or canvassing support – presumably they watch reality TV – while we just live in reality.
Oh, they’re all busy writing emails to the council, probably.
Nick – I was going to spend the country out of the crisis, but it turns out I have no money. So I’m planning on running around like a headless chicken panicking instead. That’ll sort it…
John…are you sure you’re doing it right? You’re supposed to hold the end that doesn’t rotate!
hehe – should have done the training…
John…are you sure you’re doing it right? You’re supposed to hold the end that doesn’t rotate!
Yes your right, but I bought it on ebay and there were no instructions.
cheers John
Actually, I just thought this through and I imagine that whichever end you hold will be the end that doesn’t rotate but with entirely different consequences at the other… Oh well!