Media consultant (Wales & world!) able to tackle any job – with a smile!
Journalist/broadcaster . . . PR and marketing guru . . . social media Ninja . . . events organiser . . . you throw it and I’ll catch it!
07777 683637
rlloydpr@btinternet.com
This website is now back in action after something of a lull over the summer.
It is in need of some TLC, so bear with while I get categories, tags and pages reorganised – and fill in the gaps for the missing bits!.
But I promise I will update more frequently.
So, come back and visit every day, if you so desire . . .
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DO you really want to know what gets up my nose?
It’s got five letters, starts with a V and isn’t a Vicks Inhaler!
The answer is, of course, Vapes.
The craze for vaping not only gets up my nose; it gets down my throat and generally winds me up to the point where it is not good for my blood pressure.
Believe it or not, I’m a tolerant fellow.
For example, I will concede that people have the right to weigh up the personal risk to their health and smoke cigarettes– just as long as they don’t give me a ‘Platters Moment’ (Some Gets In Your Eyes!).
My opinion on e-cigarettes and vapes is roughly the same – tolerable in the hands of adults who understand the risks and ‘smoke’ in areas which do not cause me grief.
On the flip side, I have a Moan List about vapes and vaping –
All of the above could, of course, be over-reaction on my part . . . yet more signs that I am turning into a Welsh version of Victor Meldrew!
Surveys can sometimes be very unreliable and I usually prefer to rely on the evidence of my own eyes.
So, my own ‘Milltir Sgwâr’ (square mile) survey of Swansea City Centre this week turned up no fewer than 10 specialist vape outlets (that’s not including other corner shops and stores where vapes are available). It is a similar story in Neath, Port Talbot and Llanelli.
Plainly, vapes are big business.
The problem – for that is what I think it is – is now being debated by greater minds than mine.
For example, John Griffiths MS weighed in last week with an excellent article on the Fabians Cymru Welsh Fabians webpage.
The group is part of The Fabian Society, Britain’s oldest political think-tank, so these guys know a thing or two about promoting public debate on key areas of Government policy (both in Wales and the wider UK).
Senedd member Mr Griffiths is singing from the same hymn-sheet as me when it comes to vaping, declaring, ‘Clouds of vapour and a variety of smells contaminate the air’.
Mr Griffiths points out –
‘Vaping and e-cigarettes are used by some as a tool to help quit smoking. A legal vape cartridge must not hold more than two ml of liquid, which allows for around 600 puffs.
‘Although thought less harmful than smoking, vaping can have negative effects on the heart and lungs, and we do not yet know the harms from long-term use. ‘The risk of nicotine dependency varies between e-cigarette products, with disposable pod vapes allowing particularly high levels of nicotine to be inhaled, and therefore a greater risk.
‘I am sure I will not be the only elected representative that has had constituents raise with them the problem of vaping by young people in school.
‘There is a strong debate on what is the best course of action for us to take to protect our young people and people of all ages from the harms of vaping.
‘There are 29 countries around the world which have decided to ban the retail trading of any equipment related to vaping, including Brazil, India and Thailand. Meanwhile, 14 countries have decided to ban vaping in enclosed/semi-enclosed public places, workplaces, and public transport, with a punitive approach taken for non-compliance in countries like the UAE.
‘A different view holds that a ban on sales would be counterproductive to the campaign to further drive down smoking rates, given vaping can be effective in cutting down or giving up cigarettes.
‘I believe a compromise here could be to make vapes only available at pharmacies by prescription as a smoking cessation tool.
‘Many of those who would stop short of a ban suggest restrictions on the marketing and promotion of vaping products, particularly to children and young people is what’s needed.
‘Currently, the packaging is often multicoloured and appears designed to entice younger people. Why is it, rather than having generic flavours such as mint or menthol, vapes are available which are clearly marketed to attract our young people.’
Always happy to modify my opinions, I’m now with Mr Griffiths on the idea of prescription-only vapes.
And, having cleared the air – and my lungs – of the topic of vaping, I will aim for a peaceful countryside walk this weekend.
That’ll keep my blood pressure down . . . just as long as I don’t spot any fly-tipping!
Twitter: @rlloydpr
Email: robertlloydpr@rlloydpr.co.uk
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A book exploring the natural phenomenon of darkness and the way that it fires our imagination has been published by an Aberystwyth University academic today.
The work of creative writing lecturer and critically acclaimed author Dr Jacqueline Yallop, ‘Into the Dark: What darkness is and why it matters’ is an in-depth exploration of our primeval fascination and fear of the dark.
Looking at darkness in all its forms, the book draws on science, literature, art, philosophy and history to consider how humans experience the dark and how it captivates, baffles and appals us.
Yallop also considers the darkness through the eyes of her father, who developed dementia and acquired a pre-occupation with the dark as his world reduced.
Dr Yallop said: “Ever since I was a child, I have been fascinated by the dark – by our efforts to capture or avoid it, by the meanings we give to it and the way our brains process it. Over the centuries, the state of darkness has been examined and analysed by art, literature, physics, medicine, religion, psychology, and psychiatry – and yet, it remains a mystery to us. It is a thing of fascination and repulsion, an absence and a presence, a solace and a threat, a beginning and an end.
“As humans, we are occupied by our ongoing battle to eradicate the dark, wiping it out one streetlight at a time. But by doing this, we are overlooking the importance of the darkness to our wellbeing. The darkness offers unique physical and mental benefits to humans and is vital to the rest of nature. I hope that the book will make readers curious about the dark and make them want to experience darkness for themselves – but also to treasure it as something that is precious and should be valued.”
Dr Jacqueline Yallop works in the Department of English and Creative Writing at Aberystwyth University, where she teaches prose fiction and creative non-fiction. She takes an interdisciplinary approach to teaching, encouraging students to draw on their knowledge of areas such as art, film, theatre, history or nature to inform their work as writers.
‘Into the Dark: What darkness is and why it matters’ is released on 9 November 2023 by Icon Books.
Dr Jacqueline Yallop
Dr Jacqueline Yallop is a Reader in the Department of English and Creative Writing, and Director of the University’s Centre for Creativity and Wellbeing
She has written three critically acclaimed novels and three works of non-fiction. Her novel Obedience (Atlantic) was nominated for the Man Booker Prize. Her memoir Big Pig Little Pig (Figtree) was Radio 4 Book of the Week. Her work has been translated into several languages.
Yallop has always been fascinated by beautiful, historic and quirky things. Having trained as a curator, she worked with collections in Manchester and Sheffield, including Ruskin’s Guild of St George Collection. Her PhD explored narrative in display, museum and the novel in the nineteenth century which included, among many other things, the eccentric lives of Victorian collectors.
Links
Department of English and Creative Writing
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Weather forecast for Llanelli-on-sea today is ‘Rain and hail, hard hat needed’.
McMillan Morning Notes (early walk) –
Buoy oh boy, things are unravelling.
Sailboats, trains and canal barges, miniature worlds on a wall.
Bouncing white balls, not rugby-shaped, just hard as ice.
Rugby memorial gardens missing the noise of the Tanner Bank.
County council approves funding for electric pitches at Pembrey Country Park campsite –
Creative West Wales networking scheme launched at Canolfan S4C Yr Egin –
https://www.inyourarea.co.uk/news/creative-west-wales-scheme-launched-at-canolfan-s4c-yr-egin/
National Trust Cymru welcomes new tenants at Carmarthenshire coastal farm –
Today’s random front page is the Manchester Evening News. #SupportYourLocalPaper #RegionalFronts #buyapaper
Today’s South Wales Echo front page. #SupportYourLocalPaper #RegionalFronts #BuyAPaper
Today’s South Wales Evening Post front page. #SupportYourLocalPaper #RegionalFronts #BuyAPaper
Today’s Western Mail front page. #SupportYourLocalPaper #RegionalFronts #buyapaper
One for my pals in the north. Today’s Daily Post front page. #SupportYourLocalPaper #RegionalFronts #BuyAPaper
Today’s playlist is a random mix from Spotify. Includes Joni Mitchell, Robert Palmer, Leon Russell, Brice Springsteen and Andy Williams.
Gavin & Stacey star Ruth Jones says she’s ‘properly chuffed’ as she announces career first –
https://www.walesonline.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/gavin–stacey-star-ruth-28074117
The Welsh town named one of The Times’ prettiest towns for Christmas shopping –
https://www.walesonline.co.uk/whats-on/shopping/welsh-town-named-one-times-28066619
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Comedian Phil Evans is from Ammanford. He is known as the man who puts the ‘cwtsh’ into comedy. This column appears in the South Wales Evening Post, Carmarthen Journal and Llanelli Star. Website – www.philevans.co.uk
GOOD CUSTOMER SERVICE? DON’T BANK ON IT!
I recently related the tale of a friend who almost lost money to a ‘landscape gardener’ whose only written ‘qualifications’ to trade as one were the words ‘Landscape Gardener’ on the side of his van.
Not having parted with any cash, my friend returned to his bank with it in the same envelope the bank teller had put it a few days previously.
As he entered the bank, he noticed the only teller on duty behind the counter stood up and left her post, presumably to avoid the tiresome business of having to serve a customer.
There were two other female staff members standing around, but before he could speak to them, he was approached by a young man wearing a scruffy fleece jacket and a ring through his nose.
For an instant my friend thought he was another customer – until the man asked “Can I help you?”
“Yes” my friend said. “I took £1500 in notes out last week and want to pay them back in over the counter”.
However, the assistant said as counter staff weren’t available he’d have to use the paying-in machine, offering to do the paying-in for him.
It was only after the young man started feeding 10 and 20 pound notes into the machine that he bothered to explain the machine only took 50 notes at a time!
Not surprisingly, a queue built up behind my friend, while the two female staff members remained standing around, not offering to go behind the counter to serve customers.
During the 10 minutes or so it took for all the notes to be slipped into the machine, my friend apologised to the people queueing behind him and asked the assistant why there nobody was serving at the counter.
His off-hand reply was, “There’s very little demand for it. Most people bank online!”
My friend wanted to ask him what new career he intended to follow when the bank eventually closed – as it surely will, given the attitude of the staff – but thought better of it.
I don’t think I’d have been as polite.
Would you?
Are you feeling it?
Can you believe it? Lately, I’ve been struggling to warm up and it’s been quite a challenge. I mean, I might have to go digging for my thermal underwear, which I thought I could retire after my last winter vacation.
But here’s the funny part: the other day, I was strolling through Wind Street in Swansea and I couldn’t help but notice something hilarious.
Most of the people there were dressed like it was a scorching summer day!
Bare legs, flimsy tops, and not a single fur coat in sight.
Even the women were rocking outfits that were more suitable for a tropical beach than a chilly evening.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I appreciate their fashion sense, but practicality seems to have taken a vacation.
And you know what? I’ve come to realise that I’ve reached an age where comfort and practicality reign supreme. Some might call it boring. But, hey, I’d rather be warm and happy than freezing and miserable, right?
Can you relate? I refuse to believe I’m the only one who feels this way. I mean, it must have been freezing last weekend. I even saw my local councillor walking by with his hands in his own pockets!
Talk about leading by example, huh? Ha Ha!
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