Z mourns localism

While Tim is away, I usually manage to catch up on a few items of paperwork that are too boring to waste time on when we’re together – and, since the deadline is Tuesday and I posted that particular one last night, I feel I’m ahead of the game and sorted.

The last bank in town closed yesterday, and we’re all very resentful.  The next town, six miles away, is twice the size but has All The Banks and two or three building societies too.  The bastards haven’t even left behind their cash point.  They are, as a great concession, sending a mobile bank for a couple of hours twice a week.

They say there aren’t enough regular customers to be viable, but of course they manipulate the figures.  For one thing, they only count those people who go every single week.  For another, they’ve spent several years sending their customers elsewhere.  When Russell died, there were still three banks in Yagnub; HSBC having closed down a long time previously.  He had accounts at all of them and I was obliged to go to a branch in a different town for each.  None of them would make appointments in Yagnub to deal with any business at all, you could only pay in cheques or pay in or withdraw cash; very little else.  It didn’t matter if you were bereaved or old with limited mobility.  They wanted an excuse to close the branch, so wouldn’t let you do your business there.

I really wish I could cock a snook at them all, but it is more trouble than the principle is worth.  I have accounts with two banks, because I won’t give all my custom to one, and there are standing orders and direct debits in and out, I can’t quite face it.

Still.  There we go.  It isn’t good for me to be angry.

Yesterday, I went to Ippy Hospital to visit a friend who’s had a horse riding accident.  She’s a good and competent rider, but Joey was startled when a gust of wind made her shirt billow – it was tucked in and didn’t blow around, but he heard it and he bolted.  She clung on and readied herself for him jumping the gate he was galloping up to ….. and he stopped dead and she fell off.  She has broken her pelvis, her sacrum and her hip socket on the right side.  Awfully unlucky, but at least she didn’t land on her head or break her back.  Her instructor, who owns the horse, was filming her, until Joey bolted, then you just got jolted grass and sky, as she ran to help.  “Oh shit!” and she ran and there were just voices.  One caught the horse and calmed him, another went to Lottie and spoke to her gently, another phoned for an ambulance, and they all did the right thing.  I cried when I saw it.

I was her first visitor, and I’ll go again next week – it’s not an easy journey for most of her friends and her daughter is in Italy, and Lottie played it all down so that she didn’t feel she should come home.  She won’t be able to manage at home for a while, and will have to go to a cottage hospital for daily physiotherapy after she leaves hospital.  There are a few of them about still, fortunately, though most of them have been shut down.

5 comments on “Z mourns localism

  1. DIANE J PATMORE

    I’ll let you insert your own alpha-effing-betical expletives.
    It’ not just rural Norfolk…this Big Business nonsense is all over the place! It’s wrong. Very wrong. and I’m too damn’ old to get on that high horse.
    I am glad that your friend has a cottage hospital (I don’t think there is such a thing here) as a stop-gap before going home.
    xx

    Reply
    1. Z Post author

      There are two options, apparently, one closer than the other, so she hopes they’ll have a place for her. We are lucky enough to have one locally here too – only because it’s owned by the Church and there’s a strong group of Friends; the NHS has been trying to close it down for years.

      Reply
  2. Liz

    We are fortunate living in a large town with all the banks in the town centre and still one or two local branches too, and a couple that are near to industrial estates, presumably to serve the businesses there. I cannot remember the last time I actually needed to go into a bank and deal with a human being but at least I do still have that option.

    Your friend’s accident sounds horrible. I hope she mends quickly. Ippy hospital is less than 2 miles from our house so you’re welcome to call for a cuppa (assuming we are not both at work) on your way to or from visiting.

    Reply
    1. Z Post author

      I don’t go all that often, but I do still get cheques and I do sometimes need to speak to someone. And I certainly use the cashpoint.

      Thank you, I’d love to – I didn’t realise you were that side of Ipswich, which says nothing for my bump of direction. Next week, I’ll probably go on Monday or Tuesday, is either of those any good?

      Reply

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