I am a bit under impressed with August so far.
Having been brought up reading the sort of Peter and Jane books where they all spent August dashing about in swimsuits on the beach and waving ice creams at one another, so far August has not lived up to my expectations.
It has been a damp squib.
I have been sitting on the taxi rank in the rain for so long that I have vented my feelings in a stiff email to the council.
Dear Licensing,
I am not sure whether I should be addressing this problem to you or to County. I would be grateful if you would pass my letter on to the relevant department if you do not feel that the issues addressed are within your remit to resolve.
As you are aware, we have recently had a licence fee increase, we are now obliged to pay a year’s licence for a vehicle rather than just a few months.
With this in mind I can’t help but wonder how your department can justify the dreadful weather we are having at the moment.
Taxi drivers not only pay their licensing fees but we pay council tax like everybody else, which must add up to a substantial contribution to the council’s budget. Therefore, on behalf of taxi drivers, I would like you to look into this with some urgency.
The endless, torrential rain we have had for the last few weeks is both bad for our business and bad for the community a a whole. I have not been able to peg my washing out for ages now, and I think we are reasonably entitled to expect higher standards than this.
I would like you to take this matter to the highest level. If the difficulty is being caused by lack of investment in decent, acceptable weather, then it is time the council’s budget was reviewed properly.
Surely you are able to see that even a small investment in some reasonable climate conditions would pay dividends. Tourism would be boosted, and people would be willing to spend their disposable income to purchase extra luxury items such as barbecue charcoal, thus supporting local businesses.
I am sure you will agree that the stated aim of the council, to make Cumbria a better place to live in, would be far more effectively achieved if only more of the budget could be set aside for improving local weather, and I would be very pleased to see your department spearheading a campaign to do so.
I would welcome your support in this matter. I am completely fed up of wet dogs and steamed up windows in my taxi, to say nothing of the awful impact it is having on my personal life. I have not yet been able to chuck my sheepskin boots and woolly socks to the back of the cupboard where they rightly belong at this time of year.
I would be very grateful if you would investigate and attempt to resolve this issue as soon as possible.
Yours faithfully,
Sarah Ibbetson
I dispatched this off to them to deal with when they get up tomorrow morning, that should wake them up a bit. Maybe if enough people complain then they will start to do something about it.
It has rained all day, or at least for the bit of it that I have seen, because obviously my experience of the day didn’t start until lunchtime.
By the time we got up, our lodger had gone to work and Lucy had got her own breakfast. Oliver was still oblivious to the world, buried in a horrid nest of boy-and-dog-scented sheets with a small stash of Haribos stickily next to him, presumably in case of the zombie apocalypse.
We scraped him out and insisted on some ablutions, which he faithfully promised to undertake. At the time of writing they are still pending. I will let you know what happens.
In the end we wrapped ourselves in coats and scarves and splashed off to the farm, where we carried on painting and mending things quietly, listening to the endless drumming of the rain on the tin roof, and occasionally pausing to re-wrap the shivering dogs in their quilt.
By the time we got home I was so cold that Mark lit the fire.
August.
LATER NOTE:
I got this back from the Council just before bedtime:
This is an automated response to acknowledge receipt of your email.
Thank you for your enquiry. We will respond to your query/application within 3 working days.
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South Lakeland District Council
Making South Lakeland the best place to live, work and explore
