Hastings Town

Very little social content for me to share these days as all I do pretty much is look after Dad and go out 'collecting' as The Clean Up Man.

Dad has had to have a catheter put in again (which is a pain!) but aside from that we are doing o.k. together. On the 'collecting' front I have collected 37 sacks full of litter and fly-tip so far this month, which is quite an increase! With a few days left in the month I expect to exceed the 42 sacks I need to reach my target of 500 sacks this time but even if I do there will be ground to make up if I am to get to my target.

Two more sacks of litter/fly tipping yesterday to take me to 251 sacks for the year so far.

Just past the half way marker then but (as last year) about a month's worth of 'collecting' behind if I am to reach my target of 500 sacks this year.

If anything the litter situation is slightly better than last year but this is most likely down to the fact that there are now more volunteer litter pickers going about.

Will keep trying and keep you posted!

Does anyone know an Emma Whittall? If so I think I may have her purse. I found it this morning while out 'collecting' as The Clean Up Man. There is some money in it and two credit cards - it is safe with me but I would like to return it to Emma.

PLEASE SHARE this post as I have tried looking for her on here but with no luck. I expect she lives locally but may not be on FB. If any of you know her contact me here or on 01424 852024 (please let it ring a while as Dad is elderly and I am usually upstairs)..

Let's get Emma her purse back!

I would like to post a 'general word of warning to all policy makers and politicians' involved in the General Election today.

Watch out for the 'Did Not Vote' vote!

I will be taking a close interest in how many people do not vote this time since the new (BIG BROTHER) photo Id requirement has come into force.

I believe this to be wrong and will be surprised if the 'Did Not Vote' vote does not rise at this election as a result. It is well worth pointing out I feel that if 'Did Not Vote' actually outscores the winning party that the whole idea of democracy must be seen to have failed - miserably!

Politicians in this country are I feel going to be shown a LARGE Yellow card today - they would do well to take note of this because the 'ref' only has one other option after that - the RED card!

It is time for Big Brother to retire and let people be humans again - with all their frailties and faults. Making mistakes is part of what it means to be human and to learn from those mistakes is a vital part of a persons development in life. We are not robots nor should we be treated like such - trying to 'run' society with such hardening and rigid rules as is commonly becoming the case these days is a HUGE mistake!

A win for 'Did not vote' = the decline of interaction with politics and the more people who take no notice of politics the more fragmented we as a community we become!

Right, well That is all I have to say about the election! (lol)

With 'election fever' gripping Hollington it seems that the pressure is getting to some of the local electorate!

4 sacks of litter 'collected' today by The Clean Up Man to take my total to the year so far to 215 sacks! THREE pairs of soiled boxer shorts 'contributed' to those sacks taking the total pairs found this year to 8 with 'underpants' on 4 and knickers a still totally respectable 0!

There does seem to be a big reduction though in the amount of large fly-tipping incidents which is nice and I have seen lots of local people deliberately using bins which is great to see! One or two people have even helped out briefly to make a difference to my workload so THANK YOU to those as well...

Hollington can be a great place to live if we all look after it!

'The Clean Up Man' out again this morning. Lovely weather so nice to get sunshine and fresh air but the littering was less encouraging. Got 4 sacks full today including a smashed up portable record player that someone had jumped on and smashed to bits in the road and the remnants of a motorcycle that had been in an accident . What made me laugh about the motorcycle was that all the sharp bits of metal had still been left in the road - just right for peoples tyres! Most of the debris had been chucked on the side of the road but no-one had since come along to clear it all away! I couldn't do much with some of the larger bits of bodywork but I managed to bag up most of the rest...

The grass is thick and deep almost all over Hollington at the moment and a great many paths are getting overgrown and blocked or are dangerous re brambles etc. Such a shame that we as a society have become so slapdash about keeping the place looking nice...

It seems you have to watch exactly which words you choose to use on here these days. I had to delete a post yesterday about my litter collecting and its effect upon society because they said it infringed their standards on 'hate speech'! (lol)

If a real human had read what I'd said rather than an AI bot it would have become immediately obvious that my post was about nothing of the sort! Sadly, it seems we are all now being 'ruled' by AI and computer programmes rather than real people...

'Brave new world' here we come!!!

Very little of excitement to report in my life these days - but that is not necessarily a bad thing bearing in mind my recent past...

Out 'collecting' again with the Tidy Up St Leonards group but it was hard going as the area down where the old Bathing Pool used to be was very good! I struggled to get just a single sack of stuff and spent most of my time clearing fag butts. The message really does seem to be getting through to people these days about keeping the place nice and taking pride in and care of your community! The only bummer for me being my success is in effect putting me out of the job I never had in the first place! (lol)

Still. I had a nice long walk in the fresh air at least. 27 sacks 'collected' this month so far...

Woke up very early this morning. I felt hungry and kept thinking about Tom Leitch whose death I heard of yesterday. Tom and I were not really friends as such but we shared a lot of good times together when he was the 'sound man' for 'The Pieros' and in the days when he used to come along to Shorelink Community Writers 'Summer Parties' held at Nicola Rodmell's farm. I still have a lot of photos from that time and with all that has happened in the last three years or so most of it seems like a lifetime ago now...The one 'ray of hope' coming out of these thoughts being that I joined Shorelink in late March/April 2004 - 20 years ago this year. Until I left in about 2018 I had experienced 16 happy years of fun, happy memories with people like Alvin Culzac, Sally Patricia Gardner, Roland Gardner, Bean Kennedy, Bin Kennedy, the late Robert Brandon, Paul Cooper, Bill Myers and Anthony Berry, Jan Wilkins, Tania Pearce and a whole host of others. We did picnics, nights out to the theatre, FEDfests and two or three MINIfests as well as 'Hastings Hullabaloo!' and numerous Christmas time gatherings and lunches. All of which go to prove that if things come right for you a LOT of good things can happen to a person in 16 years! I am so blessed to have known all of the above people and to have met 'my old sparring partner' Harvey Summers through my association with Shorelink and Alvin Culzac. Will such good times ever come again? Maybe buy even if they don't I have many fantastic memories to keep me warm.. Lots of love to all and sincere condolences to Tom's Leitch's family, friends and colleagues... # # #

A quick end of month update on my progress as The Clean Up Man.. After three months I am on 129 sacks full of litter/fly-tipping which is 3 ahead of my target if I want to get to the 500 mark by the end of the year. Nothing has changed much since last year but the area does feel and look a bit better to me this time around so I think I might struggle over the next two months or so to find as much stuff...Well, HOPEFULLY that might be the case but you can never underestimate the power of the 'degenerate community'! (lol) On that note the scores on the doors re underwear this year now reads Boxer Shorts 4 Underpants 3 Knickers 0 so well done to the ladies for not contributing so far to the scoreline!

Out 'collecting' again this morning. Got 2 sacks full of stuff to bring up the 100 sacks so far this year mark! Yesterday went out with the Tidy Up St Leonards team and found somebodies keys. We were in and about the flats in Stonehouse drive at the time so if you know of anyone who lost some keys in that area please tell them to contact me directly on [email protected]

Oh and GOOD NEWS...I miscalculated my year end total of sacks when I posted to say that the final score was 459...it was actually 466! I have double and triple checked it this time so that is definitely right!!

All the best to everyone for 2024. I didn't stay up to see in the new year last night and heard only a lot of fireworks going off. Not like the old days when I was D.Jing new years eve and people would be wandering the streets singing and shouting 'Happy New Year'! Gone are the days of good will handshakes and the odd cuddle on the way home from the disco! Since covid the world seems to have become a rather vaccuous place all about home deliveries and 'staying in'. I don't want to see my life automated so I hope 2024 sees a return to people being more human and less robotic again!
Love to all and MANY THANKS to all of you who stand by me through thick and thin - it is much appreciated xx

Well, the final score is in for my 'Clean Up Man' challenge! Out again in the wind and rain this morning I managed to get another 4 sacks before the heavy rain and thunder strikes happened! This means that with a gallant 47 sacks in December that I have finished with 459 sacks for the year!

I know it's not the 500 I hoped for but it is still a blooming good effort and I know that I have given it a good go! As for what it means for the community in Hollington and Hastings & St Leonards it shows that we all have a lot of work to do to try and instil a sense of pride in our town and where we live. If one man can 'collect' 459 sacks full of litter and fly tipping in a calendar year just think how much is collected by The Council workers, volunteers and my fellow 'Tidy Up St Leonards' 'warriors'!

Hollington, Hastings & St Leonards is as good a place to live as we all make it! Whether rich or poor it is down to each of us to make a tiny effort...

Next year? well, I will have another go at getting the 500 and we will see what happens? In many ways it will be good if I fail miserably!

Can you please share this post, please!

I found a set of keys this morning while out 'collecting' in Old Church Rd. They were near to the bus stop at the bottom of Old Church. If you know of anyone who has lost a set of keys please get in touch - they are safe and sound at my house...

Thank you.

Out again in the windy weather! 5 more sacks 'collected' today and that brings up the 450 on the year!
No chance now of reaching the 500 (only 4 days left) but I will have achieved at least 95% of that goal which can't be bad...

Another 4 sacks of litter off the streets of Hollington today! I found another knife and this time it was sticking out of the ground blade UP near to Hollington Junior School! The mind boggles as to how and why!!! I also found yet another pair of men's underpants and a smashed up television set!!

What a great initiative this is! Get your votes in now!

Best Local Shop Awards 2023-24 – Sally-Ann Hart MP We are so lucky to have such a fantastic array of independent shops and businesses here in Hasting and Rye. These businesses are the heartbeat of our community and a vital part of our local economy. As we begin Christmas shopping, this competition is our way of saying a big 'thank you' as we celebra...

A lovely touch by my local Church - St John's to include a pic of me with my award in their newsletter!

Beauty and the Beast A real Beauty of a pantomime adventure this Christmas!

✨ It's the post you've all been waiting for..... PUBLIC GIGS!✨

Thursday 24th June - Millbrook Garden Centre - Staplehurst 6pm to 8pm (TICKETS STILL AVAILABLE https://www.millbrookgc.co.uk/shop/customer-events/group/Millbrook%20Rose%20Festival%20Preview%20Night/day/24/month/6/year/2021.html )
Tuesday 29th June - Busk in London King's Cross Station 3pm to 5pm
Wednesday 30th June - Busk in London, King's Cross Station 1pm to 3pm
Friday 2nd July - Busk in London, King's Cross Station 1pm to 3pm
Friday 16th July - The Yellow Stocks Sittingbourne 8pm to 10pm
Sunday 22nd August - The Jukebox & Retro Fair Weekender (BOOK YOUR TICKETS)
Saturday 29th & Monday 30th August - Eastbourne Vintage Festival 2021 August Bank Holiday (BOOK YOUR TICKETS)