Oops!

Have just come out of hiding from under my office desk!

Oh the indignity of having an item removed from Facebook !!

Serves me right for being distracted while writing a headline to a story about blue badge ‘dodgers’ as l left the middle D out of the word and had used a double G instead!!

I will leave that for you to work out and apologies if anyone was offended. It was not intended.

I am sure l was not alone, yesterday, in getting throughly soaked.

I cycled in to Bath to cover the Bath in Bloom judging of our urban displays of real flowers in parks and pots and hanging baskets.

So much effort by the Parks Department, Bath BID businesses and individuals across the city.

Regulars will know l prefer the real thing to plastic displays – which seem to be engulfing our shopping streets.

Just recently l praised The Ivy in Milsom Street for switching to the real thing. I was disappointed to see they’ve added a plastic floral arch. Great for customers but bad for bees.

I know Bath businesses are running on tight budgets and have to do all they can to attract customers but l am sure a little more of the real thing wouldn’t go amiss.

I am in the process of covering a new exhibition – Biophilic Bath – at the Museum of Bath Architecture which is all about engaging with nature in urban areas.

Here’s an interesting quote: “As populations have grown, and cities have become more urbanised, the built environment has become profit driven, resulting in hard, bland places where nature is missing.”

Plastic just isn’t fantastic. It’s no substitute for the real thing.

Moving out of the city to the London Road and near the turning for Larkhall. I mentioned the fact that utilities had done quite a quick road repair and cleared the site of temporary traffic lights and signs.

I was hoping debris they had removed from an inspection hatch in the pavement would also be taken away but – not so! It’s still there for the rain to spread.

While we are in the Larkhall area, there is a lovely little park which has recently been landscaped with a pond, new trees, benches and even a willow ‘igloo’ but, within it, is an old play area where the ‘equipment’ has been removed. It was old, rusty and becoming dangerous

How much, l wonder, would it cost to convert this vacant space in to say a boules court? A welcome addition?

Finally, in an effort to continue to encourage people to get out and exercise more. Have you noticed – if walking near the Victoria Suspension Bridge – that Riverside’s Elizabeth Park comes complete with exercise equipment.

Couldn’t we have something like this in other city parks and public spaces?