Chatbox

I would also like to support Megan. I would happily send an email to Post Office Services , if I knew where to do it, to try to offset the complainers. At this time of being told not to travel and not wanting to go into a busier
Office like Nantwich, our little local post office has been an invaluable way of keeping in touch with family with little packets or parcels. A few days break after Christmas was well deserved.

When the original Post Office closed Heather Jones and I, on behalf of the Parish Council, spent many days/weeks trying to persuade The Post Office to look for a willing volunteer to take on the task of running a Post Office. The danger was that we would get a travelling Post Office on two or three days per week. Fortunately for the village, Megan stepped forward and has done a magnificent job ever since. All residents should be thanking Megan for the effort that she puts in. Please continue to support her.

Very friendly cat lurking around mount pleasant corner on woore rd. In very good condition, headed down towards Audlem. Very noisy and seems a little lost. Is this the same one?

We are so lucky to have Megan and the post office, she is always a delight to speak to, shame on the grump's in this world, you can't please all of the people all of the time :(

Hello Audlem. I was a Post Office worker for all my working life.
I was fortunate enough to enjoy the rapport with my customers the vast majority of the time, but inevitably there are those who are never satisfied.
Of course, this isn't confined to the Post Office. I remember being in Morrisons as a customer a few years ago, and a cashier being maligned because they were closed on Christmas day and the customer couldn't get fresh cream for her trifle.No thought that he young female cashier probably had a family including young children at home for whom Christmas day was very special.
Working in any area with the public will inevitably have it's ups and downs, but from personal experience the former will always be the greater.

Totally concur with the messages in support of Megan – a great service for the village – and the break was fully deserved.

Clearly, people do not realise how lucky we are to have a Post Office and Postmistress when so many villages have lost theirs. It needs our full support and we should show our thanks, gratitude and appreciation rather than complaining. Anyone who visited the shop on the run-up to Christmas will know how hard Megan was working and in difficult circumstances. Royal Mail has had its problems recently but that is not Megan's fault!

Regarding the farm bird scarer, it is a fact that huge numbers of birds can rob the farmer of his cattle feed and the crops that they grow.
At certain times of the year, we have trouble with wood pigeons pulling up emerging crops plus hundreds of Canada geese feeding off the corn and grass fields. For a week or two, a bird banger has to be used until the birds get the message and move off. Otherwise, it is like a thief stealing from your bank account. As with the starlings, there is an additional problem of soiling the animal feed with their droppings. Please bear with us.

I fully support Bob Mc comments. We ate fortunate to have a person prepared to provide such an essential service. If anyone deserved a post Christmas holiday it was Megan

I think everyone in the village should be thankful that Megan took on the resposibility to run a post Office in Audlem.
I use it quite a lot and I feel that we get a very good service. If the Post Office is closed for a well earned holiday then it doesn't take long to drive to Wybunbury or Market Drayton, after all that is what we had to do when we didn't have a Post Office.
Please stop moaning, I don't want to have to drive to another village if the Post Office service is withdrawn.

Surprisingly, even farmers have responsibilities to their neighbours, the environment and the law. Yes, farmers do an important job but so do many others and some of those will be working long night shifts (especially doctors,nurses,care workers and retail workers at the present time) and need to sleep during the day. The National Farmers' Union is very clear on this. " Use audible scarers as a last resort." ......... " Never use noisy scarers near buildings where people sleep or where quiet is important." Even townies and semi-urban types have certain rights. I have lived in Audlem for over thirty years and have never heard anything as loud as this. It seems that the farmer is mainly trying to deter starlings from flying over from Ireland.

Thank you Megan for your continuing to offer Audlem a Post Office service. It is too easy these days to comment anonymously and far too often the wrong people get caught up in the cross fire. And the chocolates are Llovely too.

Megan . Keep up the good work young lady . Above all don't be put off by the small moaning brigade . During these depressing you need a holiday. I thank you for your service. Well done

I have to agree with Chris on this one. I am currently working at the cricket club adjacent to the farm and have witnessed first hand the problems faced by the farmer trying to keep the migratory starlings from devouring his cattle feed.
Maybe an alternative solution can be found to satisfy the semi-urban dwellers amongst us who appear to have scant knowledge or concern of agricultural life and practices.
If enough the noise sensitive volunteers can be mustered a rota could be organized to stand around the affected areas of the farm dressed in their best Worzel Gummidge costumes. When the starlings look like mounting an attack all they would have to do is jump up and down flapping their arms thus keeping the noise nuisance to an absolute minimum.
If the idea is feasible I can be contacted to hire out the costumes as I have a plentiful supply.

Adrian, I enjoyed your article about the lonely swan. Astute observation, lyrical prose and a delight to read on a cold winters day.

Can I make a suggestion with the 'booming' noises.

If it is indeed a bird scarer being used at the farm by the cricket club. Can we maybe just leave the farmers to carry on doing their job? And stop complaining about countryside activities taking place in the actual countryside!

Given a lack of other noise at the moment with few cars on the road, planes in the sky, and general background noise, maybe, just maybe the sound may be travelling that little bit further.

Rather than making complaints to Cheshire East, let's just cut the farmers some slack for the important job they are doing.

Having just got in from a walk down Mill Lane, opposite Corbrook Court down to the canal and along back to the village, I was surprised to never be out of earshot of the 'booming' noises for the duration of the walk which is a fair way from Buerton. According to the NFU, noise disturbance is 'what an ordinary, reasonable person would consider unacceptable.' Factors taken in to account include time, frequency and duration. As quite a few people who I would consider ordinary and reasonable have expressed concerns about firework noise with a duration of a matter of minutes, surely these frequent disturbances seeming to last hours are what most people would deem unacceptable and a complaint to Cheshire East I think would result in action being taken (assuming Cheshire East ever take action over anything any more). At present when few are in their gardens or with windows open it is perhaps less troublesome, but the weather will change soon.

Further to Rachel Bailey's interesting post, I was pleased to discover that Cheshire East Highways have recently re-connected with FixMyStreet (fixmystreet.com), the website platform for reporting incidents such as potholes, drainage and lighting etc. Cheshire East were connected to it in the past but then disconnected from it for a while for some reason – I can't imagine why they would do this!
For those who are not familiar with FixMyStreet, it is very simple to use and not only forwards a report directly to the Local Authority, complete with its location, but also raises follow-up reminders to both parties. Having used FixMyStreet a few times in the past, I have found it very successful and would strongly recommend it.
I reported a large pothole (just one of a growing number) which I drove (dropped!) into last night on Woodhouse Lane, and within a few minutes received acknowledgements from both the website and Cheshire East Highways.
Of course, only time will tell as to whether these problems will be attended to but the more of us who use FixMyStreet, it can only help.

Was the reference to the number 42 in the note from the AOL Science Correspondent a tribute to Lewis Carroll, or just to the old favourite Douglas Adams?

Yes Ed, you've deleted the Ringo Starr advert but what of the Veg? That's all I really wanted...the fancy coloured cauliflower in particular! And NOT his autograph......not that he would have given it me anyway..not that I want it of course but IF I did...he wouldn't. Don't want it anyway..................................................................

Watched the Coriolis Effect in the brook in Turnpike Fields yesterday. I can confirm that we live in the Northern Hemisphere.

Can I ask whoever is giving away the free Ringo Starr does he come with the Veg please? If not I'm afraid I wouldn't be interested as I think having the veg to eat would be a decent trade off for having him banging away on his drums all the time and refusing to give me his autograph even though, to be quite honest, I don't want it. He wouldn't give it me even if I DID want it though so I suppose that's not quite so bad.
How old is the veg please because if it's un eatable, I don't want it....or his autograph which he wouldn't even give me even if I DID want it...which I don't.

We had our vaccines today at Nantwich Civic Centre and like others have done already, we must congratulate and thank everyone involved in the whole operation there. It was extremely well organised and everyone was so friendly and supportive. THANK-YOU!

When I was first elected as your local councillor in 1998, we were already experiencing the impact of a reduction in government funding for maintenance of our roads, this has continued to be replicated in council budgets, although I don't recall neglect akin to that we have experienced in the last eighteen months.
I agree with and indeed represent to the council so many of the salient comments made on AoL as I battle on behalf and along with you, to get basic services to our area. I also share your frustration at the waste when issues, are left unresolved, eg, 'waiting to be approved for funding' whilst the ensuing cost to the highway escalates nevermind impact on you.
I would ask however, to remember that highways teams are allocated/contracted work based on their share of the council budget and it is not those front line workers who are ignoring us.
There is currently a smoke screen of reasons being promoted as to why the Cheshire East Cabinet are proposing a council tax increase of 4.99% but little or no explanation as to why they are proposing a further cut to the highway budget; this is this is on top of the proposed winter gritting cut for rural roads such as Coole Lane and Longhill Lane.
I have noted and share concern that on occasions the council appears to be more interested in headlines and possible 'vanity projects', rather than delivering on its core responsibilities.
The Council will vote on the 2021/22 Budget on 17 February, perhaps a distraction to lockdown is to take a look at the proposals on the CE website and let me know your views.

Try Phillip Jones who replaced our oil tank. Pipjones26@icloud.com or 07727195566. He is based in Grindley Brook, Whitchurch.