alarm clock society

This was a phrase I heard on the radio this morning. It came from William Hague and he was saying that he wants an encourage an 'alarm clock culture'. I think he meant by this that people are to be encouraged to spring out of bed in the morning and rush to work, there to busy themselves in the infernal machine in order to generate income for the country.

An alarm clock is so named because its strident ringing alarms us enough to wake us up. So its function is to disturb the natural rhythm of our sleep and to wake us suddenly in a way that shocks our body into action. So we wake alarmed, we then travel to work and in that commute to are probably subjected to further stress. The majority of us then strive for our 8, 9 or more hours and then face the same alarming trip home. And this is the sort of society that the Tories are aspiring to. At the same time, they are trying to discover how happy our society is. Other surveys have already identified our children as being the unhappiest in Europe and I would be surprised if adults are much cheerier - I wonder why!

The boating way of life seems to me to be much more in tune with our natural rhythms - especially if we are relying on battery power rather than mains electricity. I tend to wake when it gets light, so in the cold dark winters I sleep later and in the light summers, I am awake and ready for the day much earlier. I haven't used an alarm clock since I moved aboard and haven't yet been late for my 9-5 job. Because of my power constrictions, I watch less TV and go to bed earlier than I did when I lived in a house. This means I am getting  the amount of sleep I need and very rarely feel over tired. There is quite a lot of hard physical work involved in living aboard and that keeps me healthy, but also gives me a good excuse to regularly sit down and rest - something that is positively frowned on in this hurry up world these days. Even cruising seems to fit in with a more natural pace of life as we move so slowly and create little disturbance - so much so that I get to see wildlife that would have hidden itself from me had I been walking or cycling on the towpath.

Alarm clock society? You can keep it thanks - I will continue to belong to the floating society!

sorted!

I think I have finally sorted out the problem I had with people not being able to leave comments. There is now a pop up window that allows you to leave a comment without having to jump through impossible hoops first!
So now if nobody leaves comments I will know that either I am being impossibly boring or I have a bunch of mute followers!!
Despite the blog itself gagging people, I have had several interesting conversations with people regarding my philosophising (if there is such a word?) I had expected some argument - but no, I think people are increasingly waking up to the fact that the way we have organised our society does not bring happiness to the vast majority of people. The news yesterday reported that 6 million people in this country suffer from high blood pressure - 6 million!! I don't know of many boaters that suffer from that particular problem. I guess the combination of travelling very slowly and being surrounded by both beauty and people enjoying themselves helps keep our black bile to a minimum!
Oh and welcome to our second reader from South Africa - Tony.

I have discovered I can't comment on my own blog! It keeps asking me which profile I want to choose, but then gives me no choices and so I can't post a comment - Grrr! If anybody knows about these things, please tell me what to do. I've even altered the settings so even anonymous people can comment - but no joy for me!

What I wanted to comment on was Chris' comment and so this is what I wanted to say:

I've done the clock - finding out all sorts with the settings. It also occured to me that maybe wisdom + contentment = happiness and so does away with the need for success?

thought I was being ignored!!

For ages I have not received any comments on my various blog entries and I started to think nobody was reading it and so was wondering whether I should continue to write. Then yesterday I had a chat with a fellow boater from my mooring and he told me that he had tried to post a comment but that the site wouldn't let him.

So I have investigated my settings and I think I may have solved the problem. So if there is anybody out there panting to leave a comment - have a go!

Talking about comments, I had a read of my last posting and it struck me that a) it is a bit sermon like and b) it sounds as if I've got it all sorted and you poor slobs haven't a clue! Well, I can't help the sermon tone - it's a style I learnt when I actually was preaching sermons! As far as the second point, I certainly don't have it sorted. But I am experimenting with living another way and also living with a lot of cynicism about the great 'truths' this society holds. But, as I used to regularly tell my congregations - I could be wrong!!!

success?

I have been pondering on what it means to have a successful life. What markers do we look for when we judge a life? It seems to me that on all the markers our society recognise, my life is currently spectacularly unsuccessful!

• I am single and haven't had a partner since the mid 90's - a cardinal failure in our world.
• I am fairly impressively downwardly mobile in my career and I am, on most scales, judged as poor as far as income is concerned. I do not have a house and have few possessions.
• I don't care a jot for my appearance, as long as I am clean. I have saggy bits and the odd wrinkle and I haven't worn make up since I moved aboard the boat. I have even let the dye grow out of my hair and can now see a fair amount of grey!
• As a water gypsy I have no status and am regarded as just above the level of a land gypsy by a lot of people.
• Having been 'a leader of men' in both my previous careers, I now have no influence or power over anybody except my dog - and not that much over her!
• Spiritually, I have walked away from a privileged position in the Church and am now homeless as far as a faith position is concerned.
• I have no ambition to 'better myself' as far as any of the above is concerned!

So I should be deeply unhappy if not suicidal! But what if we as a society used different indicators of success. Would we be a happier people?

• Instead of narrow romantic / sexual relationships, what if we judged ourselves on the quality of our wider relationships - with family, friends, our neighbours. For example I know the first names of all my neighbours and there are at least 20 boats on my mooring. How many neighbours are you on first name terms with? And what about strangers; I make a point of smiling at or greeting everyone I pass (unless I'm in town where it is pretty difficult!) If I'm waiting in a queue, I try and chat to the person next to me. I refuse to buy into the myth that strangers are dangerous and not to be looked at, let alone spoken to. What would our society look like if civility returned? If we smiled and nodded, doffed our hats and said, 'No, after you' occasionally?
• What if, instead of judging people on the number of things they own, we rated ourselves on how interesting we are, how much wisdom we have accrued, how kind we are, how closely we are living to our ideals? On this scale I have to admit I have a way to travel, but at least I've started on the road.
• And in our career, what if we were appraised on how much we helped our fellow workers, rather than trying to beat them up the greasy pole. What if the quality of what we did was judged, not on how much money or power we have accrued for the company but on how much the world was a better place because of what we have done? What if we judged our work, not on how much we earn or how far we have risen but on how closely our work matches our skills, our personality, our dreams?
• Instead of the cult of beauty / slimness / celebrity, what if we judged ourselves on how happy and content we are in our own skins. What if we looked at different types of faces, bodies, abilities or colours as part of the amazing variety of life and to be celebrated rather than trying to force everybody to conform into some sort of media induced ideal?
• As far as faith in concerned, what if instead of defending our beliefs against all comers, insisting on whatever we believe is the only way, we developed the quality of curiosity about other beliefs. What if we could look at something very different from what we believe and ask 'what can we learn from this?'
• What if, instead of focusing on how successful we are, instead we looked at how happy and fulfilled we are? Then, on this scale, I would be successful indeed! What about you?

cruising plans

I have 20.5 days holiday this year. That doesn't sound much, but only working four days a week means that when I take 4 days holiday, I can have nine days off in a row. Just as well as there are several people who want to visit and go out on the boat. Funnily enough they all want to come in April - can't think why they don't want to come now!!!

So I have the pleasant job of working out when and where I'm cruising this year. I want to have at least one trip out alone, but the others can be with company. One cruise is already planned - to go up the Ashby Canal with Roger and Shirleyann Andrews. Shirleyann is the generous lady who made all my new curtains and seat covers, so the least I can do is to take them out cruising. My brother James will hopefully be visiting. If he is on his own we can go out cruising for as long as he has free. But if his lovely family come, then space is an issue as they can't all sleep on the boat overnight, so although we can still take the boat out, it can only be a day trip. Then there is my friend Mary who joined me for part of my Great Shroppie Cruise. She also wants to visit and go out somewhere. I love Great Haywood and Tixall Wide, so we will probably go there as it only takes one longish day or two shorter ones to get there.

I haven't yet decided where I will go for my lone cruise. I am toying with the idea of a challenge. Either by going out to the River Soar and so tackling my first broad locks and first river (with the exception of my boat handling course where I had a day on the Severn). Or by going up the Trent and Mersey towards Manchester and tackling the Harecastle Tunnel (very long) and large flights of locks, as well as cruising through urban areas like Stoke on Trent. Alternatively I am tempted to go down the Coventry and on to the Oxford Canal. So many choices and so little time!

I also want to visit my stepmother in Beaulieu for the last time before she moves house as that has been our family home since 1976! So if any of my other readers were planning a visit, you better let me know soon - or wait till 2012!

Belated Happy New Year

Sorry I haven't updated my blog for a while; my excuse is that merely surviving has been taking all my time and energy since November!

This winter has felt harder so far than either of the other winters I have spent on the boat. I think this is due in part to the freeze happening much earlier than usual and also that I am usually disgustingly healthy but have had 2 nasty colds in a row since my birthday. The current one is taking a long time to work through and I am not patient with my own illnesses or anyone else's for that matter either!

I finally managed to move the boat yesterday, for the first time since November 17th. It was such a relief to pump out and take on diesal and water. I was also delighted to turn around and so to be moored the 'proper way round' on my mooring. There is no right way of course, but for some reason I much prefer being moored facing Alrewas than Fradley - I don't know why, it just feels right!

Bonny has outdone herself by smashing her personal best for refusing to come back on a walk. Her previous record was six and a half hours, but Sunday before last she ran off at 7.45am at the beginning of our morning walk and returned at 6.30pm! I say returned, but she only got near home when I finally caught her; I don't know if she would have crossed the lock alone and come all the way back to the boat. What made it infinitely worse was this was a working day! So I had to take unpaid leave at a time when I really can't afford it. Usually when she run off she barks or pops out of the bushes every so often so I know she is OK. This time she utterly disappeared for all 10 and a half hours! So she is now permanently in bondage and I have made a vow to keep her on the lead until her second birthday in May. Meanwhile I will do loads of training with her. I don't know why I hate having to keep her on the lead so much. Apart from loving seeing her racing at full stretch after a rabbit / squirrel / anything that moves, I think it is because freedom is such a high value for me at the present. However her safety and my sanity are even more important to me so bondage it is!

On a brighter note, having filled up with diesel and done my sums I can now officially announce that my new fridge has just about cut my diesel bills in half! I now rarely have to run my engine in the morning and as long as I run it in the evening when I am drawing the most load - with cooking, washing and telly watching, then I am using around a litre and a half a day as opposed to just under 3! Just as well, as the EU has interfered again and we now have to use a different sort of diesel in our boats and surprise, surprise, it's more expensive. That coupled with the rise in fuel costs generally means my bills are rising uncomfortably, especially as pay rises are unknown in the company I am working for. What with VAT going up to 20%, my annual mooring fee due in February and my car heading towards senile dementia, life is challenging at present. But then, what would life be without challenge and risk?