Stevenage FC

I grew up in Stevenage, so it goes without saying that I like to see Stevenage Borough (or just Stevenage as they like to be called now) do well, so the last few seasons have been a nice treat for me.

I went to school throughout the infants and junior at St. Margaret Clitherow school which is situated on Broadhall Way, right next door to the Football ground. We used to do projects on the history of the club and make models of the ground, they were probably pretty naff but at the time I thought the model was a very good likeness.

Despite winning the league in the 1995/96 season, the club were denied promotion to the Football League due to insufficient ground facilities, which was a great shame. The ground had to be up to standard by the Christmas of 1995, so from then on Stevenage knew they would not get promoted if they won the league, however the ground was made up to standard in the summer break of 1996, but they still were not allowed to go up as it wasn't done by the Christmas deadline. I always thought this was extremely unfair.

My biggest thrill as far as Stevenage are concerned was when they played Newcastle in the FA Cup back in 1997/98 when Kenny Dalglish was their manager. A temporary stand was erected behind the away end to house the Newcastle fans, which increased the stadium capacity to 9,000, enough to satisfy the FA, they didn't want a repeat of the previous year when they drew Birmingham and had to play at St. Andrews instead of Broadhall Way, because the FA were not happy with their ability to hold enough fans.

Unfortunately I didn't get a glimpse of Kenny, except when I watched the match on TV, but it was a huge thrill knowing he was in my home-town. The game ended 1 – 1 which was amazing for the non-league side. They were knocked out in the return, but Boro' were unfortunate to lose 2–1 at St. James' Park because it has been proved, using computer technology, that Shearer's first goal did not actually cross the line. C'est la vie!

Stevenage finally gained promotion to League 2 at the end of the 2009/10 season and gained promotion again at the end of the following season, into League 1.

In January 2011, Stevenage beat Newcastle United 3–1 at Broadhall Way in the FA Cup third round, the first time the club had ever beaten top league opposition. The win earned Stevenage the 'Outstanding Team Performance' award for the 2010–11 season.

After yet another successful season in 2011/12 the club finished in the final play-off position for promotion to The Championship, which unfortunately they failed to gain. It's almost time for them to try again.

Minimum Wage

What is the point of the National Minimum Wage?  The obvious answer is to ensure that working people are receiving a wage they can live on, to prevent poverty in the working class, to ensure no one is working as slave labour.

If this is the case then why is the NMW so low?

 The government set the NMW at a level they think is acceptable for people to be able to live on, but if this is the right level then why is there a need for Working Tax Credits which subsidise lower paid workers salaries up to a "liveable" level?


If the NMW is classed as the lowest acceptable wage for a person to live on then why is that money taxed, leaving them with even less money to live on, does minimum not mean anything.  


It is not just the young or unskilled workers who earn this (slave labour wage) minimum wage; fully qualified, skilled & experienced workers are being made to work on £6.08 per hour (depending on age).  Most of these people have families to feed, household bills and mortgages or rent to pay, so how do they manage - they claim working (and possibly child) tax credits. What's the point of a system that taxes people and then gives them the money back because they can't afford to live?

It seems a ridiculous circle. Earn minimum wage, pay tax to government, government give some back in tax credits.



Surely if the National Minumum Wage was increased to a real liveable level, there would be no need for Tax credits. 

Having the facility to claim tax credit opens the door for employers to get away with only paying minimum wage. As tax payers we are subsidising those employers to underpay their staff and are therefore, in fact, directly subsidising the profits of their businesses.  

Tax credits are a government subsidy for mean employers. 

Surely if the government raised the minimum wage to a real liveable level, that would take some people off benefits (without lowering their net income) and give them the pride of paying their way in life, rather than being dependent on the state. Which, in turn, would improve their self-image and help break the dependency cycle for some families.

I recently took on extra work to help boost my income. I am 47 and have been fully qualified in my skilled occupation for 10 years and yet my employer will not pay more than the minimum wage.  Its no surprise to me to find that staff turnover is pretty quick, but my employer doesn't mind, they'll soon employ others for minimum wage (for a while).

Earning minimum wage makes you feel under valued, I know I am worth more than £6.08 an hour, but what do I do? Do I leave and not earn the extra money at all or do I stay, swallow my pride and work for peanuts?

 

Political Correctness Pfft...

Has anyone ever said to you "well, that's not very PC"  they have to me and I honestly despair with the utter ridiculousness of it all.

Don't get me wrong, I don't want to offend anyone and can honestly say I don't ever intend to offend anyone.

But all this political correctness has gone way too far.  Why do some people think others are so offended by such trivial things that we have to change the way we say things or how we celebrate events etc.  It's extremely frustrating and has gone so far as to make an utter mockery of any good that could have come from it.

When a school feels they have to teach children to sing Baa Baa Rainbow Sheep instead of Baa Baa Black Sheep then you know the world has gone crazy.

I have been doing a bit of research into some ridiculous politically correct situations and can honestly say (whilst shaking my head in amazement) I've had enough. I want to be able to speak without having to worry whether some one will take offence or not.

I read about a situation (from a black man - am I allowed to say that?) where a discussion was taking place and a white woman (that should appease the PC people) made a comment about being the black sheep of the family, then someone piped up saying "that's offensive to black people"  REALLY ... give me strength. The black man who told the story said he didn't find it offensive at all.

Are sheep not allowed to have black wool anymore!!

A bakery in Kidderminster was advertising 'Ginger Person' for sell instead of 'Gingerbread Man'  has anyone told these people that biscuits don't have feelings, you can't discriminate against a biscuit - hmmm but maybe I should find it offensive that people may want to eat ginger people (being a red head) ... hmmm interesting ;) 

We also have the situation where parents feel they are doing something wrong if they take photos of their children at the beach or playing in the park. A grandmother from Southampton was told that she could not take photos of her grandchildren in a park paddling pool due to fears that paedophiles could get illicit shots of young children.  Sadly this is a growing trend across different counties, however there is no legal requirement for Councils to have such a policy, so if it happens to you complain to your councillors.

Amazingly a council has banned the phrase "singing from the same hymn sheet" in case it upsets atheists. Salisbury council has told employees that the religious connotations of the saying could offend non-believers. Employees have also been told not to use the phrase 'colour blind' but instead to refer to 'colour visual impairment'. 

A UK recruiter was stunned when her job advert for 'reliable' and 'hard-working' applicants was rejected by the job centre as it could be offensive to unreliable and lazy people.

A classic English dessert has been renamed to avoid embarrassment. The traditional pudding Spotted Dick has been given the title Spotted Richard, after UK council bosses feared the original name might cause offence.

We even have the situation where children's books are being edited to conform with this political correctness regime.

For example some characters in Enid Blyton's books have been changed:

Dame Slap	becomes	Dame Snap
Bessie (a black character)	becomes	Beth (a white girl)
Fanny and Dick	become	Frannie and Rick

We have to avoid using words that some think, may, possibly, offend blind people, fat people, lazy people, foreign people, religious people the list is endless. Where is it going to stop.

Seriously I could go on and on ... 

It's ridiculous that people feel they have to think and double-think everything they say just in case someone takes offence to the terminology rather than what is actually being said.

To have respect for each other includes acknowledging everyone's differences. Respect and tolerance has to come from within. Political correctness which is forced upon us is no more than a mask behind which all sorts of warped opinions may still hide.

My favourite football match?

What's my favourite football match?

As a Liverpool fan it is a very easy question to answer.

 2005 champions league final – The best comeback ever

I'm sure a lot of you will probably guess to this being my favourite match, although I have to say after 45 minutes of play if you'd asked me the same question, my reply would have been so different.

The excitement I felt in the days building up to the final was immense, I just had a feeling that this was going to be our year. We had all the "optimists" out there giving comparisons to 1981, if I remember rightly it was stuff like:

Year 1981

1. Prince Charles got married
2. Pope died
3. Australia lost the Ashes
4. Liverpool crowned Football Champions of Europe 

Year 2005

1. Prince Charles got married
2. Pope died
3. Australia lost the Ashes

So my burning question was "Will Liverpool win the champions League?"

Of Course they would ~ it was destiny

The day of the match, I was full of nerves, the butterflies had butterflies. My son had football training from 7pm that night, although I had begged the manager to start 30 mins early (which he did) so I could get back to watch the build-up to the match, after dropping my son off. I had arranged for his dad to pick him up at 8pm.

I sat in front of the TV with my daughter, Rosie with all our LFC tops and scarves on, Flags draped over the sofa's and with the most tense feeling in the world watched the start of play with all eagerness.

It wasn't long before I was reminding my husband, to pick our son up & telling him Liverpool were losing 2 - 0. I was miserable, Kev said they'll come back.

Not long after he arrived home we were 3 - 0 down and as usual he tried to pick me up with "This is Liverpool, if anyone can do it they can" (Btw he's an Arsenal fan).

So the long awaited 2nd half began (that half time break took ages), we could hear the fans singing "You'll Never Walk Alone" and my spirits were lifted. I sat with my hands clasped as if praying (I probably was praying actually) and then, it happened, I was leaping up and down as Captain Fantastic scored Liverpool's 1st goal. As he ran back to restart the game he swung his arms round getting the crowd going and encouraging his team, to say "Come on we can do this".  

What an inspirational man.

My hope was rising, I was so tense I'm not sure how I was breathing. Then the miracle happened, Vladimir Smicer scored & it was 3 - 2 and I really started to believe. My husband was saying "Told you" whilst I was still saying "but we still need another."

And then we all watched as Stevie was brought down in the box. "It has to be" I was thinking but I could barely look at Xabi took the penalty. Nooooo (missed) .....Yessssssss (put in the rebound).

I was on the edge of my seat for the rest of the match, extra time was so nerve racking, but the guys came through. Watching Stevie defend for his life when exhausted, watching Jamie defend for his life when he had cramp, watching them all just give their last breaths to ensure we made it to a penalty shoot-out was magnificent.

I was quietly confident with the shoot-out - but even so the nerves and excitement had screwed up my stomach. I was so tense.

Winning this match for me was so much better than the previous European Cup final wins, because I had my daughter watching with me and it was the first big trophy she had ever seen Liverpool win and it was a pleasure to share it with her. I now have someone in my family who has the same enthusiasm for this club as I have (I've never had that before) and it makes it all so much more special.

Other Liverpool related blogs :
A Hero From My Childhood

What does Hillsborough mean to me?  

How it all started for me

Salon Treatments - Aromatherapy Massage

Aromatherapy is the art of using oils for healing. The oils are absorbed into the body via the skin's pores during massage or by inhalation through the nose.    The molecules within the oils enter the bloodstream, and from there target the nervous system, thus affecting ones emotional and physical well being.

      
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Aromatherapy massage is a treatment of the face, scalp and body using pure essential oils. These natural oils are extracted from plants and flowers and have their own unique properties. Some are relaxing and soothing helping to relieve stress and tension, others are refreshing and restore energy, whilst others balance and harmonise the body and can be used to help specific problems.

         
Aromatherapy can be of benefit to most people and is particularly helpful with stress related problems. The importance of maintaining a balance in the body is now well recognised and regular treatments are especially beneficial to people who have busy, stressful lives.
           

           
You do not have to be unwell to have a treatment as feeling relaxed allows the body to function efficiently, which in turn can prevent illness. The massage is smooth and gentle, aiding lymphatic drainage. The oils are specifically selected for each individual.
           

           
Some benefits of Aromatherapy :
           
Stimulates and tones the skin, improves muscle function

Stimulates blood & lymph circulation

Calms & soothes the nervous system

Restores energy

Balances & harmonises functions of the body organs

Helps regulate glandular activity
           

           

           
Aromatherapy massage lasts around 60 minutes and can help provide relief for a variety of conditions including arthritis, acne, back pain, PMT, depression, cold infections, insomnia and respiratory problems.


Other Holistic Blogs:

Holistic Facial
Swedish Massage

Indian Head Massage
Health & Safety

Olympic Torch Relay

Only us Brits would brave the rain, stand around for at least an hour before the event, getting soaked through and still have a smile on our faces, having a laugh with the people next to us, who we've never met before.  And why this time? 

We've had the rain soaked Diamond Jubilee, we've had a rain soaked Wimbledon and today I've seen a rain soaked Olympic Touch Relay.  Today the torch relay route was Cambridge to Luton starting at 6.33am, passing through St Ives, Huntingdon, Bedford & Grotten End before arriving in Letchworth Garden City at about 11.40.  It was great being able to follow the Relay live coverage on my phone, it helped to build the excitement knowing when it was just around the corner. By 12o'clock the traffic was stopped from entering Pixmore Avenue and so we knew the torch was about to pass. 

I wasn't expecting the procession that came before the flame, I thought that made a nice touch and certainly had the crowd cheering.

Once the torch had completed the route through Letchworth it was off to Stevenage where more of my family and friends were waiting patiently to see the procession. 

The next ports of call, to finish the days mammoth relay, were Welwyn Garden City, Hatfield, St. Albans, Hemel Hempstead & finally finishing in Luton.

It may have been wet in Letchworth but it was so worth it. I love the banter between strangers, I love the euphoria, the cheering & I absolutely love the passion & pride we have in our countrymen and women.

It's now just 19 days until the Opening Ceremony and I for one can not wait.

What Does Hillsborough Mean To Me

It's very hard to put into words what Hillsborough means to me because Hillsborough, to me, is not a place, is not a football ground, it is an event, a disaster.

It was April 15th 1989 and it was an FA Cup semi final between Liverpool & Nottingham Forest.

I was not at the match, I do not live near Liverpool, I don't know anyone, personally, who died or even anyone who knew someone who died. So some will think how can it have affected me all these years.

But … Liverpool the City, Liverpool the Club and Liverpool the Family are all in my heart. It breaks my heart to think of the anguish and heartache my Liverpool family were going through on 15^th April 1989 and have been going through ever since.

It makes me immensely proud when I see how Liverpool the city and Liverpool the Club pulled together to help the bereaved and the traumatised.

Not many a day goes by when the Hillborough tragedy does not come to my mind. I fill up with emotions every time I read or see anything reported about that day. It is such a terrible tragedy that must never happen again. I tried desperately hard to buy tickets to the match but had no luck, or maybe now you could say I had a lot of luck. I know if I had managed to get tickets I could very well have been in amongst the crush or witnessed it first hand, I thank the lord my family did not have to go through the worry, the anguish, the heartache, the not knowing on that day, that so many others did.

The lies that were written after this catastrophe were disgraceful, I find it hard to believe that some human beings are capable of putting money before compassion.

 

NINETYSIX Liverpool fans died that day, they just went to watch a football match.

There must be some justice for the 96 – it has gone on far too long without anyone truly being held responsible for the mess that unfolded. We all know justice won't bring back the 96 souls but it will hopefully bring closure for many people and help them get on with their lives.

My wish is for my Liverpool family to feel peace in their hearts because for the last 23 years we have all been, and still are, very angry.  

After 23 years a petition was signed by over 100,000 people which led to a debate in The Commons regarding the release of all Hillsborough documents.

MP for Liverpool Walton, Steve Rotheram made a dramatic speech for the families of the Hillsborough victims to open the debate.

And the outcome was favourable. The families fighting for justice would finally get to see all of the official documents that have been kept hidden since 1989.

Other Liverpool related blogs :
A Hero From My Childhood

My favourite  football match 

How it all started for me