Hi to one and all,
well tonite is the 4th of november, bonfire night has arrived, now i dont know if anyone has noticed, but here in Barrow in Furness the build up to bonfire night has been very quiet, not so many fireworks going off day and night,
maybe its the recession,? but i honestly think that this recession will do alot of good for society,
i think our society today have become selfish and greedy, and dont respect eachother anymore, neighbours dont speak to eachother, like they used to in the old days, its all been spend spend spend, now it has come to a halt, does anyone else think like i do that the problem in todays fast spend lifestyles has been the cause the destruction of our society, i say it will do them all good to get back to the basics in life, and spend more time getting to know eachother, rather than spending all their time spending money,
kind regards,
b,j,devlin

Isn't it on the 5th November? We don't celebrate it here possibly because some times it is not the best weather for bonfires and fireworks. They used to set off fireworks on Queens Birthday here but the sale of fireworks is illegal in New South Wales, they are still legal in Canberra so they do arrive here. I think New Zealand still celebrates on the 5th November but they tended to have group events with huge displays when I was there.

See what you've done Beejay, I've got this sudden craving for parkin and treacle toffee. Here's a recipe if you want it: http://www.britainexpress.com/articles/Food/parkin.htm Seems easy to make but does it keep? I have an idea that my grandmother would steam the leftovers then serve them with custard.

Regardless of resesion I dont think people will ever change their greedy ways .It will always be a case of the fat cats get fatter and the must have society continuing to destroy its self. The banking crisis makes me laugh .You will get a letter and be charged for going over drawn etc BUT its YOUR money (TAX PAYERS ) thats BAILED THE BANKS OUT or payed for take overs

HI JOHN,
i totally agree with you, the banks will give you a unbrella when its sunny, then take it back when it rains, i too am disgusted with the goverment bailing them out with tax payers money,
the fat cats should of paid up and bailed them out,
kind regards
B,J,DEVLIN

HI NIGEL,
thanks for the recipe, my mother used to make the best treacle toffee ive ever tasted, and i used to watch her makeing it all us kids would hang around her waiting to to get the bowl she mixed it in and would sit there dipping our fingers in the bowl till there was no sign of treacle toffee, fond memories of my childhood
kind regards
B,J,DEVLIN

Just been out shopping today but forgot the treacle, only thing we didn't have.

First time I saw toffee being made I watched expecting to see individual toffees forming as it was being stirred; I'd already figured out that something in the ingredients determined if the sweets would be round or square.

Hello Nigel, thanks for the recipe for Parkin, there is so many different recipes mostly about gingerbread type which they called parkin, the ones i am after the flat round type you could get from Redmans thanks again. Regards Doris

Hi Bernie, every time i go shopping i have noticed the price has gone up, there is only my son and i to feed and i mostly get the same food every time, now and again i will get something extra. The council put £50 extra on our service charge in advance its scandalous. Regards Doris

Good to know the BANK OF ENGLAND has cut the interest rate to 3%
This now means people that have to rely on there savings to get though these hard times get less for there money and Banks can lend more to folks who cant afford to pay back what they borrow because there jobs are going down the pan
HAPPY DAYS ARE HERE AGAIN

John keep your fingers crossed we'll see you know the saying give in one hand and take away with the other. Regards Doris

John EarnshawWM wrote:
Good to know the BANK OF ENGLAND has cut the interest rate to 3%
This now means people that have to rely on there savings to get though these hard times get less for there money ...

It is really up to the individual to decide where to invest their money. The drop in interest rates has affected us all, at the moment every cent that we have is invested in cash accounts so our income has dropped. There is nothing to stop us gambling by putting out money into shares or some other kind of investments that has crashed recently. Whatever has fallen in the last few months will go up again but don't know if this will happen around now or in 2-3 years time. We have chosen to sleep soundly at night and adjust to our new income. Some will move into shares or property funds hoping to make a killing, many will lose, a few will gain.

The main problem is that governments have abdicated their responsibilities. They now believe in market forces and self regulation, these are great in boom times but now we have lots of 29 year old whiz kids running the finance sector, they don't want to lose their Lamborghinis and Porches so they started to gamble with everyman's money, this started with the subprime problem in the USA which was exported to the rest of the world. The gambling continues, this is why they are having a roller coaster ride, as soon as the central banks do something, like drop interest rates or release money, the dealers think great we can start gambling again and replace the fortunes that we've just lost. It will be very difficult for governments and central bankers to take control of the situation again because they've let it get so far out of hand, not unlike many of the other problems in the world where governments didn't do the job that they should have done.

I knew quite a number of people who had gone through the great depression, they are now either passed on or quite elderly but they understood the value of thrift and caution. Perhaps we need another great slump to knock a bit of sense into everyone.

It was about a year ago I wrote on another site saying things were moving in circles again similiar to like the roaring twenties before the great depression.

I think your right Nigel ,there are geniune good people trying to help the less privilged, but politics and world markets will bring about changes many won't like or enjoy.

regards Wallace