We seem to complain about our friendly sun when we don’t see it and when we do, and it was a problem that I had been having in our breakfast room in the mornings when we sat down to have our breakfast. This is more apparent at the weekends because we have our bacon and egg treat a little later than during the week. The room is east facing and as you can guess, in the winter in particular when the sun is a little lower in the sky it does cause a bit of a problem.

Now I’m never one for complaining about seeing the sun, I don’t see enough of it but I felt that I could not squint at my breakfast any longer and would have to do something about it. Whilst searching around the internet I came across accompany called Tuiss Blinds and frankly I was agreeable surprised at the fantastic range of window blinds that they offer. These included white roller blinds, silver blinds, venetian blinds, in fact a full range of window blinds that can be bought online. In the end we settled on a white roller blind, although we could have picked from a truly stunning range of colours, from whites and naturals through to modern funky green and red. The blinds are made to measure and the online buying process was simplicity itself. So now I can enjoy my weekend breakfast treat and see what I am eating!

We were at a friend’s house recently and they have just had a swish new bathroom installed, which set me, or should I say my partner thinking about the one that we have at home. I must admit that it is looking a little bit tired and I wondered how I could improve the looks of it without going to the expense of a complete new bathroom suite.

You could be forgiven for thinking that there are no choices of colour available for bathrooms as it seems to be that you can have any colour you want, as long as it’s white! Mine happens to be white, but there is so much that you can do with a white bathroom suite, a coloured one does restrict your choice for the remaining decor. Of course it is very easy to add colour via bathroom decoration rather than through the components themselves. Our bathroom is not huge and this means that it needs to be decorated in light colours to make the room feel as light and airy as possible. However as we have decided to have new ceramic tiles on the walls, we can add some stronger colours with these.

The one area which we have decided to spend some money on is the shower. I have decided on a new shower cubicle which I hope will turn the corner of my bathroom into an elegant shower area. With a new thermostatic mixer valve and easy clean glass protection to the panels and doors, I am quite looking forward to my first shower and of course the smile on my partner’s face when the bathroom is completed!

As many of you may remember, I mentioned in one of my posts here in November, that it was time that I got myself a new car, well not new in the sense that it has never been owned before, but new to me. I did get an online valuation and decided that I would look at some of the many cars for sale at Carcraft so I went onto the Carcraft site which is very easy website to use.

You simply enter your postcode which then directs you to the nearest Carcraft showroom to you. I had decided that I really fancied an Audi A3 this time and put my preference into the search boxes to find an Audi A3 for sale and I was not disappointed as they came up with 80 from which I could choose.  Naturally I spent some time looking through those, as well as the many other makes of cars for sale at Carcraft, but in the end I have decided on a 2008 Audi A3 diesel which I can drive away for just £217.23 per month. I was offered  a 1 Year Carcraft Guarantee, a 1 Year Free Servicing, 1 Year RAC Roadside Assistance in case of breakdown, 120 Point Check, a 7 Day Exchange Policy, with a Free MOT. It really does not get much better than that does it!

It is one of those names that when you think of photography the name of Kodak has to crop up in the conversation. I remember not that many years ago when I went to photographic classes the debate about which film was the best one to use and if you did your own developing and printing, which papers did you prefer. In those days there was always a lively debate about whether Kodak was better than Agfa or Ilford; it became even hotter if you favoured transparencies against printed pictures. Then along came digital photography and using film simply faded away. No longer then did we experience the excitement, or disappointment, when you opened up the packet of pictures at the chemist or photographic shop. Why did I take a picture of just Sally’s feet!

Although Kodak did manufacture cameras and other photographic products it made all its money from selling film, then the digital camera came along and now no-one’s buying film. I have managed to find some interesting facts about Kodak and I’m sure that everyone has at least one Kodak product in their home, even if it’s an old black and white print.

Kodak founder George Eastman produced the first camera film in rolls in 1883. The firm Kodak is set up in 1888 and launches the first consumer camera in 1888 with the slogan: “You press the button, we do the rest”. In 1900 Kodak introduces a consumer camera for $1 called the Brownie, which goes on to become a best-seller in America and I had one of those, so did most people I imagine. This I found very interesting, in 1969 a Kodak camera is used by astronauts Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong to record the first Moon landing. Farewell Kodak!

The iconic brand is one that I’ve used for years when travelling by car to a business meeting, or going away to catch the cross channel ferry when going over to France. It’s true to say that Little Chef has been a sign of good food for over 50 years, with restaurants right across the UK. I was therefore, very sad to read that they intend to close 67 of its 161 outlets and make between 500 and 600 job cuts.

Sadly this is not the first time that the company has been in trouble, in fact the group went into administration in 2007 after which the majority of its assets were bought by private investment business RCapital. Little Chef has always been a favourite with business people on the move. Whether it is the place to refuel, meet colleagues or catch up on calls. At almost every Little Chef you can now connect to the internet completely free of charge, which in my opinion should be normal at most places now. Whilst reading about the latest problems by the company I was reminded that the first Little Chef opened in Reading in 1958, the same year Britain got its very first motorway.

I for one and I know my colleagues think this way as well, that this is the last we hear of the Little Chef brand being in trouble and hope it soon recovers to keep us motoring between stops at them for a bite to eat or a refreshing cuppa!

As most of you know I do like to have a little flutter at the online casino and play the tables as well as a hand or two of poker, but I occasionally like to have a bet on the horses or fancy my chances at who will be the first scorer at a premier league match. When talking to a mate over a pint the other night he said “are you playing with the bookies money”? No I don’t win that often I laughed and it was then that I got his meaning, free bets not just winning and betting again with that money.

How does that work I wondered, so I did some simple research and found it was very similar to some of the other gaming sites that I use for online bingo, or online poker for example. Although some of the offers for online betting varied, there were some great offers to be seen. With a couple of clicks with the mouse and I soon found the latest free betting offers from the UK’s leading online bookmakers. There are potentially thousands of pound worth of free bets and bonuses just waiting to be claimed. I can now find the very latest free bet offer from the top bookies, as well as full reviews, to help me make the right choice. Fancy joining me in a little free bet on the Carling Cup?

More shops will collapse into administration or announce store closures in the next couple of weeks, after suffering from profits which can only be described as being squeezed to extinction. Add to this a general fall in sales over Christmas, all of which can only add to the problems which are facing our High Street retailers.

Last week saw some more famous names go to the wall including Barratts Priceless, the shoe chain, Hawkin’s Bazaar, the toy shop and D2 Jeans. I have been reading comments made by Stephen Robertson, the director general of the British Retail Consortium, who has said that they expect another clutch of names to go to the wall in the coming weeks and months. According to Robertson, he has said conditions were worse than at the end of 2008, a period acknowledged to be the worst in a generation for the high street and which saw the collapse of Woolworths, Zavvi and MFI.

So I have to ask where the High Street is going, because without it our towns and cities will not be the same. The internet revolution has of course had an effect on the way that we shop, but top retailers have learned not just to live with it but to embrace it. Tesco have a very good home delivery service and on the London underground it is possible to visit a “virtual supermarket” as you commute back to home. John Lewis is yet another example of a top class store that has an excellent online facility but they offer so much more as well.  However the biggest complaint that retailers, particularly smaller ones have is the business rate which increases year on year, they are going up by another record 5.6% next year. As far as I can see the rates in England are the highest in the world.

There had been talk about it for a long time, but when you are not expecting it, these announcements always take your breath away slightly. Airline giant British Airways, which is now part of the combined group IAG along with Iberia, has bought out the loss making operation BMI from Lufthansa. Employees of BMI had always hoped that the sale to current owners Lufthansa would turn the company round as it has been making a loss for some time now.

There will be many people, and that includes me and other colleagues that have used BMI for business, particularly when we used our company’s Diamond Club card, which is one of the world’s most generous frequent flyer programmes. Of course there are tremendous benefits no doubt for BA which will gain a lot of extra slots at Heathrow, but my thoughts at this time of year will go out to the many people at BMI who are going to lose their jobs in the takeover. BMI employs more than 3,600 staff, but it was pretty clear to most people that following a loss in 2010 of £153m something had to give.

However Virgin is not going to take this lying down and has said it will oppose the tie-up, which is still subject to clearance by competition bodies. The world continues to be in turmoil and we can only hope for better things in the coming year.

People’s perception of life at university is often well wide of the mark, in the eyes of many it all about drinking and having fun away from the gaze of your parents. Well it’s true to say that in the first year at university, youngsters who have “flown the nest” for the very first time can get carried away by the newly found freedom. However reality soon sets in when they must begin to produce results, or face the prospect of being sent down. My niece came to see me recently; she is in her second year and wondered if I could give her any advice on how to write university essays.

She has admitted that during her education she has always found this part to be the most difficult and wondered if I was able to help. In my work we have published many books which offer coursework assistance help, but what she was really looking for was an online site which could perhaps illustrate up to date material and examples of essays which she could access. Looking around I was amazed to see so many sites which offered student essays online, but as I pointed out to her there is little if anything to be gained through just copying these examples and submitting them. I said that I would actively look for a site that was UK based, recommended by educationalists, and has plagiarism prevention software which is used by the university. So my friends, I must get to work and see what I can do to help my niece on her way to obtaining a good degree. Wish me luck!

The recent strike by public sector workers concerning their fears about changes to pension arrangements for new and current state employees, set me thinking about how much money one would need on retirement.  Having served in the RAF I will receive a pension but it is not likely to be enough for me on retirement so I joined the company pension scheme when I was eligible. It is difficult for me to understand why some of my colleagues and some friends that I know turned down the chance. Of course not every company has a pension scheme, which is often expensive to administer and to fund, but from 2012, the government wants all firms to offer a pension to their workers and they will be enrolled automatically unless staff opt out.

So if you do opt out, or your company does not currently offer a pension scheme, what should you do? A lack of awareness about saving for retirement is among the reasons for millions of people not saving enough to pay for the lifestyle they expect when they grow old. The alternative private, or personal pension, is offered by a provider such as an insurance company, High Street bank, building society or most typically, a pension company. Naturally you have to fund this yourself as you do not get any contribution into this from your employer, but it may offer more flexibility over how and where the money is invested. You will not be able to spend the money you put in now until you retire. However you do not have to pay much tax on this investment. When you retire, the pot of money that you have built up can be used to buy a regular income in retirement, called an annuity. The sooner you start to think about a pension, the better it will be for you in the long run.