a sussex yuletide

It always amazes me how different Sussex is. The dialect, the place names, everything really. Abby and Danielle were quite shocked when the shops down there sold the 'same as you get in a normal shop'.

Sussex nationalism is everywhere - don't ever call a Sussex person 'English'. They'll kill you!

The best thing about Sussex is that it was the last place in Britain to be christianized - it'll probably be the first place to re-Paganize too! The above sign is typically Sussex - thanks Dad!

What is it with christians and 'christmas'? All the crap they spout, even though everyone knows that Yule is a Pagan festival, and all the so-called 'christian' traditions are just perversions of Pagan ones? Birth of the son/sun - get it? The winter solstice. I HATE christians!!

sussex housing madness

I thought this was for 'Beadle's About' when I first saw it. This ONE bedroom starter home, in pit of the world Littlehampton, is seriously being advertised at £250,000!!!! This is with £49,950 off!!

This really does underline how mad the housing market had become and why the fall is going to be massive. Whilst most commentators are forecasting 30-50% falls I reckon this is very optimistic. I expect around 70%, at which point even I might buy somewhere - though there'll be no guarantee prices will ever rise again.


And we have to remember that your quarter of a million quid starter home is particularly vulnerable to sea level rise and storm flooding on the Sussex coast - which makes it even less of a bargain!


This was the street where I grew up - Whitelea Road in Littlehampton. My sister still lives here, and the house between hers and the one I lived in is up for sale. She announced that it was up for sale for £135,000, we all laughed, assuming she was horrified at how unrealistic the price was. No, she thought it was CHEAP!! They have a lot of shocks coming down south.

Mum and Dad rented our place for £1.50 a week back in the 60s.

the end of woolworths

We've just had a long weekend down in Sussex (more to follow!) and made aquaintance with Woolies twice. The top two pics are of the store in Chichester - the empty shelves were more interesting than the ones with stuff on. Woolworths got it wrong right to the bitter end, with its fake 'sale'. They should have gone back to their roots and sold everything for 6d (2½p). That would have brought the crowds in and been a nice slap in the face of the administrators.

The last picture is from a lovely Italian restaurant in Littlehampton with another dying Woolworths forming the backdrop. Historic or what?

littlehampton 2

Neil's garden.


Food.


Grapes.


Neil discusses Peak Oil.

On the second day we visited Chris and Neil up in Findon. We hardly need push Peak Oil any more - everyone gets it now. Neil is really looking forward to things breaking down as he's the kind of bloke that will thrive in a much harsher world! He's got a dog the size of a bear, knows the location of more community guns than I do, composts, beats up hippies and commies and grows his own food. He was also desperate to talk up Peak Oil.

littlehampton

Jeff's garden.


The ubiquitous Green Man - no English home should be without at least one!


Jeff's tree nursery.


The model railway.

We popped to my old stamping ground of Littlehampton - Britain's toughest town - a couple of weeks ago, calling in on family. This is Jeff's place. As well as numerous artefacts of Sussex - Jeff is a rabid Sussex nationalist - there were Green Men, a nursery for trees that he rescues from the Downs as seeds, then brings on and replants back on the Downs, and an excellent model railway.