Monday 9 March 2020

Opening the door to strangers.

Following on from yesterday's post regarding the man on the doorstep selling his drawings.   When my cleaning lady came this morning she listened to my story and told me that there had been something on Facebook yesterday about these people selling drawings - apparently there was a woman in the next village going round at the same time.   So it was not genuine and it was indeed some sort of scam.   Hopefully somebody will have phoned the Police in the area.  Also I had an e mail from friend S saying the man had been there and that she too had felt sympathy for his situation - so that made me feel better.

It is worth pointing out to you that I have a chain on my front door so that the door opens only a fraction and no-one could enter.   Also I always keep my Patio door locked and my kitchen door opens into my garage which is always locked, so I do feel fairly safe.   Nevertheless, it is quite unnerving when this kind of thing happens.

Anyway enough of that.   Today, after a pleasant, sunny start, it is now grey,  breezy and cold.   I had to go into town to post a letter (yes, I have a post box directly opposite my bungalow, but I had no stamps left) and to call at my Solicitors.   But I came back home and made myself lunch and since
then have done very little other than read the paper and open my mail when it came.   One of the things which came was my replacement Blue Disabled Badge for my car - it said to allow six weeks for renewal - I did so and it has come back almost by return - very impresive.

Another thing which impressed me today was that last week the wind blew over my green garden waste bin.   I e mailed our local council asking if I could buy a replacement and this morning had a lovely e mail from them telling me not to worry they would call within the next week and either repair or replace it free of charge.   So now I am sitting here thinking - the world is not such a bad place after all.

Keep well and virus free.  See you tomorrow.

19 comments:

Granny Sue said...

It is good to remember the positive experiences as well as the not so good. I have been in situations where I think it is a scam and yet I feel so badly for not helping. Then there have been others. The one that comes to mind is the young couple who said they were out of money and needed money for the baby's milk. This was in the parking lot of the grocery store. I didn't believe them, but I had just bought a gallon of milk so I gave it to them. As we pulled away, I looked back in the mirror and saw them pouring the milk into the baby's bottle. We went back and I gave them $20 cash. Then had to go back into the store to buy milk! But more often than not, yes these things are just attempts to get money by fraudulent means.

I love that your council will replace your bins. Here we have to provide our own. England is amazing to me for the number of services provided to its people.

Rachel Phillips said...

Interesting take on the follow up.

Librarian said...

Good to know you have safety measures such as the door chain in place. May they never really be necessary!
Your blue badge arriving so soon is indeed impressive, and you are right, sometimes the world doesn't seem such a bad place after all (it usually does not for me, anyway, but I am very well aware of how lucky I am, and that my happy life is not to be taken for granted).

gmv said...

I try to keep the good deeds and things uppermost in my mind. Scams and bad things do happen, but my belief is there is more good than bad. The bad just gets the most news.

Bovey Belle said...

It's difficult, as you are brought up to try and help people (genuinely!) in need, but so many scams going on these days, it is almost impossible to tell who the genuine ones are.

Good news that your bin will be replaced/repaired FOC.

Bonnie said...

Thank you for the follow up. Yes, it is good to acknowledge the good and positive things isn't it! Everyone talks about the bad things but it is always encouraging to hear the good. The only news program I watch is every evening at 5:30. They always devote the final five minutes of it to a good and positive story. I love that.

Heather said...

I gave some money (only a little) to a homeless man begging in the street last week, and then wondered if I should have done so. I am so cosy in my little flat that I can't bear to think of anyone having to sleep rough especially at this time of year.
Glad your home is so secure. It is a great comfort when living alone.
It is good to hear of someone receiving such good service when we usually only hear of all the complaints.

Tom Stephenson said...
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Alphie Soup said...

The case council to the rescue, once more!
Alphie

Alphie Soup said...

Delete that case...

Alphie Soup said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Alphie Soup said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Joanne Noragon said...

It's good to know the "social services" you enjoy are speedy, too.

Catherine said...

Scamming is so common these days that it really pays to be constantly aware. I left my husband in my Mums flat yesterday to fix some electrics while I took her for her eye appointment. He answered the phone twice to a scamming recording purporting to be from Amazon Prime. Something my mother does not use. As it was a recording he could not even tell them to “go away”. Mum is quite savvy so just puts the phone down generally. However it pays to look out for those in genuine need too.
Keep safe.

Rachel Phillips said...

It gets more interesting by the minute. People rip off food banks, soup kitchens and charities but I suppose they fall within the comfort zone of giving.

Gwil said...

A woman was taken to the bank by a helpful roof repairer to draw out 25,000 but fortunately the cashier alerted the police and cowboy was arrested.
Also arrested this week men posing as plain clothes cops to gain access to houses of elderly. Can you see your doorstep from a window? Then you can weigh up people without opening the door.

Tom Stephenson said...

I have just read your previous post Weave. I know this to be a scam along the lines of the Romanies who used to offer to clean your windscreen at red traffic lights. Sometimes they go into pubs to sell 'their' drawings. It's a scam, and they shouldn't target people like you. (I just censored the original comment...)

Tasker Dunham said...

In the olden days they would have tipped boiing oil over both him and his drawings.

The Weaver of Grass said...

Thanks everyone for your concern. I always have the chain on the door and never open i any wideer than that to anyone I don't know.