Today’s been one of those unseasonably warm days when you really do wonder what month you’re in. I’ve had a day at home sorting out pictures for a magazine, then sorting out some paperwork before spending more time on tiling our bathroom – a job which has taken almost as long as building the Pyramids, much to my wife’s annoyance! Now I’m on the final stretch, having learned one or two valuable lessons which I’lll never have to put into practise again (days he, fingers crossed). Firstly, never ever decide to tile a small bathroom in an old Victorian cottage with large tiles – until you’ve checked the level of the walls with a large spirit level! It was only when I started tiling that I realised our bathroom must have been plastered by a drunken midget! The curvature on the walls was ‘challenging’ to say the least. There’s not a straight line in the bloody thing! Even the woodwork is on the piss. I’ve just been tiling above the bathroom door and realised that the doorframe is cock-eyed, so I’m really going to have to be creative with the new architraving!

I can’t do any more work to the bathroom tomorrow as Dawn’s parents are coming  round for a meal to celebrate her Mum’s birthday which was earlier in the week. Instead I’m going to dig out the garden gloves and move into the garden to get that ready. Bulbs are popping up all over the place, so with the weather forecast to hit a balmy 14 degrees tomorrow (the same as London!) it sounds like an ideal time to clean up the garden, clear down the bench and prepare for when Spring really does arrive. Mind you, as this is the Pennines that probably means snow!

Whilst doing the DIY I’ve been listening to the latest  instalment in the never ending farce of British politics. Labour has lost yet another MP, this time it’s Ian Austin the MP for Dudley North in Birmingham. He’s said he won’t join the other rebels as, unlike them, it seems he still believes in (Brexit) unicorns, but then he only had a majority of 22 and Dudley North voted Leave.

Whatever his future choice, he was very scathing about Corbyn, his acolytes and the way they run the Labour party. It’s difficult to see how ‘Magic Grandad’ is going to recover from this as I very much doubt Austin will be the last Labour MP to jump ship. There’s no sign of the party or the hard Left Corbynistas getting the message. Instead, they’re blaming everyone else but themselves. Right now, it’s almost worth seeing what odds the bookies will give on who from the Tory or Labour ranks deserts next as the Brexitshambles looms ever closer to D-Day.

Well, the home office. Wait, No! I mean my back room, not THE ‘Home Office’. I’m sure there’s plenty of headaches there dealing with the Brexitshambles and the uncertain status of over 3.5 million EU citizens living in the UK after March 29th, not to mention the stuff around a young girl in a refugee camp in Syria.

My status was that of someone having a quiet day editing pictures, shuffling paperwork and generally clearing the decks. Whilst I was working I had one ear tuned to the news to see if anymore MPs had jumped party ship today. In that respect it was a slow news day. I did check in on Facebook to see what the reaction was amongst some friends who remain members of the Labour party. Denial was the only word to use. I saw a very pained post from someone where the essence of their whole validiction was “I’ve been deeply involved in Labour for years. If Antisemitism exists, I’ve never seen it” So, that’s alright then. As you were. No mention of the problem his ‘golden boy’ Corbyn is about as popular as a fart in a spacesuit – and the fact EIGHT Labour MPs have abandoned the whip never even got a mention! This is why I think Labour are screwed. Their inability to engage with the disappointment and frustration with Corbyn and his acolytes many people are feeling and expressing is incredible. For them it’s business as usual and –

Mind you the Tories don’t seem to be much better. Our two party system’s broken. Both have lost the trust of the people (and may of their natural supporters). I can only hope that the defections continue and it will lead to the disastrous path we’re following to the Brexit cliff-edge changes.

On the bright side, I’m making my own personal financial preparations and I’ve just booked a number of jobs that mean next week is going to be full of interesting and varied events at several locations that’ll fill a few rolling blogs.