Monday 15 May 2023: In response to two Affinity Water draft videos

Monday 15 May 2023: In response to two Affinity Water draft videos

Video 1

I quite liked the upbeat, inspirational music. Its use helped me to continue to listen to what the man was saying.

I thought the editing of the video was very good: it maintained interest.

I thought that the use of additional images was okay: it maintained interest. However, in contrast to last week's feedback in which I criticised the use of pretty photographs in the document, the use of pretty images here would have been much better than the line drawings reproduced from the document. (I can listen to what a talking head is saying while being shown a short clip of a chalk stream or of a burst pipe being mended.)

I thought that the background scenery was unremarkable, but better than him being in an office or studio.

I thought that the single talking head was a little tedious. I should have preferred there to have been an alternating man and woman talking head. (But not a quasi interview.)

Having watched the video a second time, I found it less interesting, and found myself watching the ducks or geese in the background. It really does need some illustrative material such as chalk streams and people repairing a burst water main.

I think that it would help were the figures spoken verbally by Martin Haslett to be put on the screen (and preferably given some proper context).

I feel uncomfortable and challenged by asking what would make the video more appealing because you are asking what would make it a more effective public relations exercise.

What I found really difficult were parts of what the man was saying. I considered him to be using weasel words. For instance, the five year plan runs from 2025 to 2030, but he then roped in the single figure of a 50% reduction in water wastage through leaks (which would sound okay for 2030) by 2050. It would have been much more honest to say what the 2030 target is for reduction in water wastage through leaks. Also, he made out that the recent cost of living crisis means that this is a financially difficult time for many people, and that Affinity Water can help people by rescheduling their payments - big deal! They will still be required to pay. Were water provision to be in the hands of the municipality, then social tariffs for impoverished people could be levied - and without charging (taxing) less impoverished customers more. He talked about the roll-out of, was it 400,000? smart water meters, without actually acknowledging that a significant proportion of Affinity Water's customers do not currently have a water meter at all. The aspect at which I scoffed most volubly was the part where he said something to the effect of people wanting good quality water in their taps. Yeah? Really? That is what the water supplier is supposed to deliver - it is not meant to be optional. It is the barest minimum expectation. (Which, by the by, Southern Water have failed to achieve, yet again, this time in West Sussex.)

What was missing was any indication that the consultation is an honest attempt to determine future direction, rather than simply a public relations exercise dressed up as a consultation. However, Affinity Water is not a publicly-owned organisation that takes its legitimacy and direction from the people it serves. It is a commercial organisation with an intent to make money as painlessly as possible for all (owners, employees and customers) concerned.

 

Video 2

I found the music in this video overwhelming.

I experienced the video editing as more clunky than Video 1.

I considered the insertion of short video clips to be exactly what I wanted to see in Video 1.

Unlike regarding Martin Haslett, I found the woman talking head to be a serious distraction. Partly it was her waving her hands about. Partly it was about her reading from a script (she did not appear to be very relaxed). She also seemed to be on a mission to convince the viewer that she and her colleagues on the ICG (?) do an excellent job.

The elephant rampaging around the room was that what a majority of customers want is for water provision to be in public ownership. Yes, people want continuity of supply, at least acceptable quality water, and small water bills. However, she did not mention that who owns the water supply matters to many people.

Key message: there are seven independent experts (by whom are they paid?) who do an excellent job at something, so there's no need to worry.

It would seem that the ICG is made up of people intent on keeping Affinity Water in business, rather than challenging its role as a commercial organisation.

I did not take in that the woman's name is Caroline Warner. Is she the chair of the ICG?

The aspect of the video that I found unclear was why it had been made / why I was watching it.

Watching the video the second time through, I found the Caroline Warner to be glib and unconvincing: "people want their water to be eco-friendly" makes it sound like the product she was talking about supplying is washing powder, not about trying to wrest back a natural environment in south-eastern England that has been trashed by some water companies.

I was confused about whether this ICG group relates only to Affinity Water, or to all water companies.

 

Thursday 11 May 2023: Amazon product review: Stewart Patio Tub Planter

Diameter: 50 cm; height: 39 cm; colour: gun metal black

I think that the first one I bought from Amazon (over a year ago) arrived damaged due to the almost total absence of packaging and rough handling. I knew to check it carefully as soon as it arrived, and so was immediately able to arrange a replacement with Amazon which arrived a few days later. It is clear from other comments that a proportion of these planters are damaged on delivery. The other three have been undamaged.

It is important to understand that the planter will arrive without drainage holes. Places for drainage holes are marked on the base of the planter. I am currently considering ordering a further planter to use as a patio pond, for which purpose I believe the planter would be excellent - not least because it does not arrive with drainage holes. Taking note of the experience of other people, I avoided the mistake of trying to punch drainage holes using a hammer and a sharp object, as this risks splitting the plastic (and thereby compromising its structural integrity). Instead, I used a heated soldering iron to make the holes, which was ideal: effective, simple and quick. A red hot poker (not the plant) would do the job just as well.

I am using three planters for strawberry plants, ten per planter, in order to have much improved control over the garden weeds that always swamp our strawberries. The depth of each planter means that it can hold plenty of moisture in the form of damp/wet soil, as a consequence of which the plants do not require watering every day during the summer. I am using the fourth planter for carrots, in order to keep the plants off the garden soil surface where carrot root fly lurk. The depth of the planter means that it is to be hoped that the carrots will grow to their full length.

Once full of soil/compost, the planter is almost impossible to relocate, mostly because of how heavy it will have become, but also because the plastic walls are not especially heavy duty. Therefore, careful thought needs to be given in advance of its siting.

I consider the planters to represent good value for money.

Monday 8 May 2023: About the bank holiday weekend

Monday 8 May 2023: About the bank holiday weekend

My wife and I being retired from paid employment and full-time carers for our quadriplegic and now mostly-paralysed daughter (who is also profoundly deaf and almost completely unable to speak) who is clinically extremely vulnerable to the coronavirus (which everyone else seems to think has disappeared), bank holidays rarely present delightful opportunities, merely disruptions to the schedule that is our daily life. The weather being dry but troubled by sea-fret, we grasped the occasion to visit Samphire Hoe. Although we found the car park was full (not good), apart from a solitary Blue Badge space (which is all we required), almost all the visitors were crowded around the refreshments booth, mostly in an enormous queue. Consequently, we were able to walk briskly along the sea wall promenade without there being anyone around, which is what we require to stay isolated and safe. There was absolutely nothing to see (no sea-birds, and not even Shakespeare Cliffs) because of the sea-fret, and there being no wind, there were no waves on the sea. (I assume that it will have been a productive day for people smugglers putting migrants, refugees and asylum seekers into small boats to cross the Channel.) The sea-fret also muffled all sound. There was absolutely nothing to photograph. My daughter indicated that she considered the experience to be "spooky". On the way home, the car nearly ran out of petrol because the fuel tank is tiny due to the wheelchair access conversion. Getting out of and back into the car in the short space of time it took to refill the fuel tank made me feel extremely travel queasy, which knocked out the rest of my afternoon. I cooked stir-fried vegetables with noodles for our evening meal.