SORRY!

I'm sorry about my last blog, I have no idea what has happened to Blogger, I hope to sort it out soon... BOTHER!

Voting on Thursday Surprise!

I may have to reboot this blog as I have no idea how I've effected it when I look at the text within the blogging process, however, just now someone told me they had no idea that photo ID was necessary to vote! I wonder how many people are unaware?!? Anyway, you don't need to take your poll card with you to the polling station, but you now do need to take photo ID if you want to vote at the local elections, and for Police & Crime Commissioner, this Thursday the 2nd of May 2024, and whenever the General Election is held. If you turn up at the polling booth without photo ID, you won't be allowed to vote, so get it now if you don't already have an acceptable method of ID, and don't want to lose your right to vote. Acceptable photo ID includes an original (not photocopied) Passport, Driving Licence, Older or Disabled Persons' Bus Pass, Freedom Pass, other Concessionary Travel Cards and SmartPasses, PASS Card, and EEA ID cards. For full details of acceptable photo ID go to the Electoral Commission website. If you don't have any photo ID that qualifies, you can apply for a Voter Authority Certificate, providing you are on the Electoral Register, at the Government website. If you want your name to be added to the Electoral Register, go to the Government website, where you can register online, or, again, lose the right to vote. Don't forget, a General Election is due within the next 9 months, but it's too late now for Thursday. This policy was introduced last year, if you want further details, and of how it went for elections last year and by-elections, go to this Parliamentary Research Briefing. For further details go to the Electoral Commission website. 👍 Don't lose your right to vote or forget people lost their lives fighting for your rights! Oh yes, and what a waste of taxpayers' money, the Government should have had the General Election on the same day as the local elections, just have the one day's costs not 2 in a year! Plus it would have been interesting to see how local councils changed with a larger turnout than usual, oh well...😒

Biltong in St Andrews Mews!

Look away vegans...

I was walking by the other day and was excited to find that the Sussex Biltong Company (website) has opened an outlet in St Andrews Mews TN34 1SJ, near the Waldegrave Street end, in what used to be the office (photograph above). Of course I had to purchase some, and I can tell you that having it freshly cut, then eating it, is nothing like the dry tasteless biltong you get in packs in pubs, t'was lovely!

Apparently, they are having a 3 month long trial to see if Hastings is a suitable place for them to sell their products, and I vote, YES PLEASE!! ✔

Hastings Kelp Project

Good luck and best wishes for this project! I'll cut & paste below their message to the Hastings in Focus facebook page, explaining the project, and share here the Hastings Kelp Project website and their Crowdfunding page:

'An exciting new nonprofit-making organisation project is starting in Hastings! The aim of the organisation is to 'rewild' the coastline from Hastings to Pett Level beach with kelp seaweed forests for the wildlife, the oceans, the planet and the future and put Hastings on the map as a green hotspot in the UK!

We'd love to kick it off with local funding and support and are offering all local businesses the chance to advertise and show their care and devotion to the planet with just £100 to promote their business on our website and social media top 250! Do you care about the planet? The oceans? The wildlife? The future for your children?

Research has shown that seaweed can produce 70% more oxygen and absorbs carbon more effectively than trees with estimations up to 175 million tonnes of C02 stored each year. Through photosynthesis it absorbs this huge amount of carbon and it disposes this to the bottom of the ocean, storing it forever, helping us, helping the planet, helping the future.

Kelp forests provide an environment and habitat for a wide range of fish, mammals, birds and invertebrates from starfish and anemones to seals and dolphins through to shrimps and lobsters. Kelp forests provide a nursery for juvenile animals to grow and stay safe, protected from storms and predators as well as being an essential part of the food chain. They are a natural buffet for many birds like the gulls, egrets and terns and which feed on the small and abundant crustaceans. The safety and nutrition from the kelp forests help wildlife flourish.'

Register today, or lose the right to vote on the 2nd of May!

If you want your name to be added to the Electoral Register, go to the Government website, where you can register online, or, again, lose the right to vote. You have until 11.59pm TODAY, that is Tuesday the 16th of April 2024 to register, and don't forget, a General Election is due within the next 9 months.

Also, you now do need to take photo ID if you want to vote at the local elections, and for Police & Crime Commissioner, on Thursday the 2nd of May 2024, and whenever the General Election is held. If you turn up at the polling booth without photo ID, you won't be allowed to vote, so get it now if you don't already have an acceptable method of ID, and don't want to lose your right to vote.

Acceptable photo ID includes an original (not photocopied) Passport, Driving Licence, Older or Disabled Persons' Bus Pass, Freedom Pass, other Concessionary Travel Cards and SmartPasses, PASS Card, and EEA ID cards. For full details of acceptable photo ID go to the Electoral Commission website.

If you don't have any photo ID that qualifies, you can apply for a Voter Authority Certificate, providing you are on the Electoral Register, at the Government website.

This policy was introduced last year, if you want further details, and of how it went for elections last year and by-elections, go to this Parliamentary Research Briefing.

For further details go to the Electoral Commission website. 👍

Don't lose your right to vote folks! ✔

Sad News, Good News, and Entrepreneurial News...

Walking up to the station earlier and what did I see? NOTHING on the island in front of the railway station and bus terminus, yet another empty space sadly...

Where, up until recently, Jimmy Toller's retired fishing boat RX53 Dorothy Melinda was situated (blog), lack of money apparently again being the culprit, as it was allowed to fall into disrepair, sadly. Thoughts with you Jimmy, R.I.P. 😞

Wednesday Low Cost Menu

Despite what happened at the Bale House (blog), the 'not for profit' Grumpy Cook Hastings, 1A Robertson Street TN34 1HL (facebook), continues to help those more needy, vulnerable and lonely. They also provide training opportunities for people to work in the hospitality sector. Nice one, keep up the good work, my respect!👍

An early reminder that Jack in the Green 2024 is to be soon upon us, that is on the public holiday for May Day, Monday the 6th of May 2024, but with the events for the weekend starting on Friday the 3rd of May (website).

For those readers who are entrepreneurial leaning, the seafront kiosk on the promenade above Bottle Alley (blog) is again up for renting. The Council has asked for 'Expressions of Interest' by 5pm on Tuesday the 23rd of April 2024 at the latest (website). You have a little over a week to apply, good luck!

3 Weeks Until Local Elections

You've probably all received poll cards by now, but you don't need to take your poll card with you to the polling station, however, you now do need to take photo ID if you want to vote at the local elections, and for Police & Crime Commissioner, on Thursday the 2nd of May 2024, and whenever the General Election is held. If you turn up at the polling booth without photo ID, you won't be allowed to vote, so get it now if you don't already have an acceptable method of ID, and don't want to lose your right to vote.

Acceptable photo ID includes an original (not photocopied) Passport, Driving Licence, Older or Disabled Persons' Bus Pass, Freedom Pass, other Concessionary Travel Cards and SmartPasses, PASS Card, and EEA ID cards. For full details of acceptable photo ID go to the Electoral Commission website.

If you don't have any photo ID that qualifies, you can apply for a Voter Authority Certificate, providing you are on the Electoral Register, at the Government website.

If you want your name to be added to the Electoral Register, go to the Government website, where you can register online, or, again, lose the right to vote. You have until 11.59pm on the 16th of April 2024 to register, and don't forget, a General Election is due within the next 9 months.

This policy was introduced last year, if you want further details, and of how it went for elections last year and by-elections, go to this Parliamentary Research Briefing.

For further details go to the Electoral Commission website. 👍

Don't lose your right to vote or forget people lost their lives fighting for your rights! 

Oh yes, and what a waste of taxpayers' money, the Government should have had the General Election on the same day as the local elections, just have the one day's costs not 2 in a year! Plus it would have been interesting to see how local councils changed with a larger turnout than usual, oh well...😒

Strange Bale House Decision!

Recently, the Grumpy Cook stopped trading at the Bale House, up on Hastings Countryside Park at Fairlight, when their agreement was terminated, very strange too! I'll copy & paste what the Grumpy Cook say, and this link gets you to an online petition that was set up by customers from Hastings and Fairlight, and tells you what they think. Sign if you agree, and please pass on the message, many thanks!

Dear all

As some of you will know we have recently stopped trading at The Bale House.

It has now been confirmed by Groundworks South who operate The Bale House that our agreement with them has been terminated.

The reason given is I failed to inform them that I transferred from a Ltd Company to a Community Interest Company (Not for Profit)

In essence transferring to almost charity status and putting all of our profits to helping the people of Hastings is obviously a very bad thing to do.

That aside the team and I would like to thank all of the customers who have visited us for nearly three years and indeed many of you are now friends. We are terribly sad it has ended this way, and as they say life goes on.

We will still be trading and doing our work from our cafe in the town centre, so it’s not goodbye it’s just cheerio from the Bale House.

Take care and we hope to see you soon in town…our work continues.

Team Grumpy x

Final Days of Belgian Break...

Penultimate day, walking westwards into the City centre via Ambiorix Square (screen.brussels), the angle looks a bit weird in this photograph, but it's just the angle I took the image at. 😉 Oh yes, and just after passing this fountain we witnessed a wee drug deal, it happens everywhere, even during a quiet morning, in broad daylight, in a scenic Brussels square!

Our first port of call on this, mostly, nostalgic wander around Brussels, was to the Comic Art Museum (website), which is situated in an Art Nouveau building designed by Victor Horta in 1905. Originally a department store, it opened its doors as the museum in October 1989.

Getting closer to our first beer (and lunch) destination, we stopped briefly by La Monnaie (website), the national opera house, where a dear relative of mine sings... In addition, this is where the Belgian Revolution of 1830 first erupted. Essentially from 1815 Belgium became the Southern Netherlands following the Congress of Vienna (Britannica), and the Belgian bourgeoisie began to tire of King William I of the Netherlands, and now he had forbidden the presentation of Daniel Auber's opera La Muette de Portici at La Monnaie. 

The opera included what the King considered a potentially inflammatory story of nationhood, courage and freedom, and he was correct! The opera had been banned since the 3rd of August, but it was performed on the 25th of August 1830, and its language incited the audience to riot, leave the theatre and take to the streets, soon joined by the working classes, because there were other factors, of course, including unemployment and the harvest failure. By the 4th of October 1830 independence was declared, a week after the Dutch forces retreated from Belgium.

Closer to the City centre we reached Le Cirio, Beursstraat 18, 1000 Brussels (website), next to the old Belgian Stock Exhange, La Bourse (Brussels). This is an old favourite bar of ours, originally an Italian Delicatessen founded by Francesco Cirio in 1886, the present interior was redesigned by Henri Coosemans in 1909 in the style of an Arts Nouveau Italian cafe.

Together with our tasty food in Le Cirio, we each had a beer from Hoegaarden (website), their 8.5% Grand Cru, a spicy wheat beer, which has developed since the monks of Hoegaarden started brewing in the 15th century. Hoegaarden suggest that their early wheat beers were extremely sour, and the monks began experimenting with orange peel and coriander, which comes through in the taste still, together with forest fruits, peach and pear, and slightly malty. An interesting mix of wheat beer and Tripel, with spicy undertones, still pretty good.

Just around the corner in the Grand-Place is the City of Brussels Town Hall (website), a majestic Gothic building originally built in the 15th century, but much of it rebuilt after 1695 when it was damaged by fire when French troops bombarded the City; the original tower and walls survived. I decided to buy myself a map in the Tourist Office in here for a Euro, my previous map having been lent to a friend who didn't return it, life... Interestingly, the tower and building dwarf the Duke/King's House opposite (website), guilds people being wealthier?

Then we wandered southwards and just before the Sablon we reached one of the most interesting bars you'll ever find, La Fleur en Papier Dore, Rue des Alexiens 55, 1000 Brussels (website), 'the flower made from gold foil'; it's many years since I last visited, but it hasn't changed a bit, with very friendly bar staff! It really is an 'arts' bar, created by Gerard van Bruaene and filled by artists and musicians, such as the Surrealists including Rene Magritte, and Jacques Brel. Bits and pieces here and there, much unmatched furniture, and pictures and all sorts adorning the walls, and reyt laid back! Surprisingly, I went for a pilsner as I hadn't drunk Maes for years, and it was in 40cl glasses, which amused me: Maes Pils (website), 5.2% and, well it's a pilsner, brewed with Saaz hops, and what more can I say, other than refreshing and still very enjoyable!

We carried on walking southwards where, very soon after passing Saint-Gilles' Town Hall (where my older Belgian niece's birth was registered), we reached Chez Moeder Lambic, Rue de Savoie 68, 1060 Saint-Gilles (website). This was the first of their 2 bars selling Moeder Lambic beers, and specialising in Lambic and Geuze beers (as you can see in the photograph below), and they sell many others as well as their own, indeed they stock over 300 different beers!

I drank a bottle of their very own 8.0% Moderation (I've seen it called La Moederation elsewhere), and I think Dan did too. It's not a lambic, but a very pale golden ale, refreshing and bitter, with a nice dry finish. I wrote 'between a lager and a bitter' to my taste, and not bad at all!

With our dinner that evening we had a bottle each from the St Feuillien brewery (website), their 7.5% Blonde, with a deep golden colour. Hints of malt and spices, and a light bitterness and dryness to the finish. This isn't a bad beer of its style at all, and you can buy it in M&S if you fancy a bottle... Tasty, and you can buy it in Hastings!

Oh yes, and I came back the next day, another dire travelling experience, although I did get back £32 from Eurostar, for it was their fault, cheers folks!

April Fool's Day Crime - Not a Joke.

Spot the Police Car now at the Cornwallis Street end of St Andrews Market, which was broken into at about 02.00am early today. I say April Fool as it appears to have just been wanton damage caused, perhaps because there was nothing to steal? At least 3 windows were damaged, including in the door of what used to be the hairdressers but is now empty, pointless, or a grudge with the new management?

Whatever, if you do live close by and saw anything, there was quite a bit of banging reported between 02.00 and 02.30, or if you have any information by way of an alternative source, please get in touch with the Police by calling 101 or go to the police website. Or make a visit to the Police Hub in Hastings Town Centre between 12-13.00 or 15-16.00pm, Mondays to Saturdays (blog).

Apparently senseless... 😒