Bills Posts

Earlier in the week, I wrote about a building that I had not really paid much attention to previously. I only noticed it on that day as I had sat opposite it to do a little bit of videoing in a crowded place. It was No. 50 the High Street.

Asking ChatGPT about it told me that the brickwork probably indicated a 1920’s or 30’s build, and just out of interest I asked what shop had been there are the place was built – ChatGPT couldn’t answer that one, but did suggest that the local library may have copies of Kelly’s Directory. I’ve just this second googled when was Kelly’s first published, and was told that was 1836, and that it was actually the Post Office Directory (the forerunner of the telephone directory)?

Our local ibrary, The Gosport Discovery Centre, had some Kelly’s Directories on its shelf. I have to say, what an amazing publication it was giving details for just about everybody private or commercial in the town (to be honest, I think it must have been just home owners, as there was only one entry per row / address.

The earliest edition that I looked at was the 1934-35 issue and No. 50 The High Street was owned by Mr. Charles (Chas) Standhaft. The 1940 – 41 publication lists the same owner. However, with the 1955 and 58 issues show the ownership changing, but staying in the family to an E. G Standhaft. I understand that Kelly’s Directory continued to be published until the mid-1970s and was eventually replaced by the telephone directory and yellow pages.

I’m just quite glad that I was able to find out that information.

That’s what I am planning to do tomorrow. I have two things that I want to do.

One of them is produce a bit of video. The main difference this time, is that I know what I am going to video, and a pretty good idea of what I am going to say. An unusual situation for me to be in, but for once, a nice one.

The next thing that I want to do is spend a bit of time in the Discovery Centre doing some research. There’s a particular shop in the high street, and I want to try and find out a bit of history about it. I think I know where to look, but I am wondering if I might need to go to Portsmouth Library.

I’m really quite excited by it all. Of course, the video will go wrong, and It’ll be really bad, but that’s part of the fun.

I’ll let you know how I get on.

Gosport has a Mens Shed, at the back of St Vincents College. I’ve been up and had a look at it, and am planning to join probably in the new year. You’d think wouldn’t you, that given my aversion to anykind of DIY that joining the Men’s shed would be the last thing I’d do.

But the Shed really isn’t just about DIY. They have a whole range of activities from DIY to a ukulele band – not that I have any intention to join that. I think they have a uniform (it’s a t-shirt really, but that on its own is enough to put me off.

So, I’m going to join, it should be interesting.

Sorry that tonight’s post is a bit short. I am very tired.

I am fairly frustrated with Facebook at the moment. Perhaps I should clarify that statement; I am not actually frustrated with Facebook, I am annoyed with myself over the way I am using it. It is not working as I wanted it to.

That begs the question; how did I want it to work? Well, that’s an easy answer. I would like to do one post per day, preferably in the morning, and if possible over the weekend also, which I have never been very good at.

The follow up question then, is; What’s the problem then? Well, that’s also a fairly easy one to answer; At the moment, my regular readers (and I know there are a few of them) are only getting one post a week from me.

So, why is that, when I have been for three walks so far this week? To be honest, the issues are my morning routine and work. I tend to run out of time unless I juggle things, which I don’t always remember to do, and I can’t really do a facebook post whilst I’m at work (well, I could, but I would also be violating several things, not least of which is the code of ethics).

Sorry for banging on about it, but this will become a lot easier when I retire, which is a matter of weeks away, so I could put a bit more effort in to juggling things and try and get more posts out – which is what I really want to do.

I really did want to try and have a good day and to be honest, it went far better than I could have hoped. I’ll be honest and say that I resorted to ChatGPT to find us an unusual day out. I do do have to say; “Boy, did it deliver”.

Have a look at; https://thesculpturepark.com/. this is near Hindhead, a place called Churt. The sculpture park is on open air shop of sculpture. I’d say there are thousands of them. Every yard or so there was something else that was intriguing to look at. I really can’t put enough emphasis how worth a visit this place is.

It did get off to a slightly bumpy start. The car park we needed to be in had been blocked off by a fire engine, apparently a small fire a bit down the road. With a little bit of negotiation, Elayne got them to open the park to us.

Directly opposite, is a pub. The Bel & Dragon. We had lunch there. It was very nice.

On our way home, we stopped at B&Q to buy a fire.

We got to be confronted by Alex asking for help. It looks like he may have broken a bone in his foot. Unfortunately, we are unlikely. To get the full story until after the weekend. Plus we broke a jug, a small white

My main focus is Gosport’s High Street, that doesn’t mean that I can’t look at the other parts of town. Take, for example, the four blocks of flats on and near the waterfront there is a rumour (I’m not sure how accurate it is) that some councilloors in the 1960’s visited Moscow and were quite taken with the designs they saw there, and brought them back.

Yesterday, I put a picture up of a building along the high street. I hadn’t really looked at it before. Whilst its frontage is basic brisk with a bit of patterning – it was plain. And yet, it was distinctive.

I had started a project, to look at the high street. It was mainly the shops I was interested in, because they seem to change with some frequency. But, there is a lot of interest to be had. I just need to broaden my scope along there a bit more.

The last time I did a shop survey was towards the end of April. Gosh, that was only four months ago, and yet it seems like an age. The next time I do it, probably sometime in the new year. As I write that, another big project I have in mind pops in to my head. The Neighbourhood watch. I never expected to have time for that for a couple of years.

Plans are changing.

I went out for a walk this morning. I had intended to follow my normal morning route, but as it happens it didn’t quite work out like that.

I walked my normal route up until I reached the Haslar Marina Pier Wall. I paused there for a while. I sat for a while and did a little bit of videoing. Nothing of any great importance, and certainly not anything I will publish, just me playing around.

As it happens, I was approached by an old chap who asked me about You Tubing, and then pointed out the camera he was wearing. He happily admitted it was a cheap camera from Temu. He posts his video under what I thought was RPS Media, but it doesn’t come up. I’ll carry on searching.

I’d worked myself up into a bit of a lather. I wanted to go back into the high street and record some video there. Face to the Camera in a busy high street. I sat down and set up and started recording. It wasn’t until I finished that I really started looking at the building I was sat opposite. Clearly an old building I asked ChatGPT about it.

Apparently, it’s from the 1920-30, and possibly early 40’s. I was curious about what the shop sold. Apparently, it was a hairdresser’s in the 1950s. If I want to find out what the shop sold when it was built. In order to do that, I have to consult an off-line resource which may be in the Discovery Centre.

I’ll let you know how I get on with that.

I don’t really drink alcohol very much these days, in fact I avoid it for no other reason than I get headaches if I drink even only one pint. But of course, that doesn’t apply to alochol free beers.

My friends whom I meet up with on a Saturday on Zoom, quite often have a different beer on the go, and to be honest, I was feeling a bit left out. So I thought that I could get some alcohol free beer so that I could explore what is available.

Tonight, I had a bottle of Shipyard and American Low Tide Low Alcohol Pale Ale – so not entirely alcohol free then, but only 0.5% – That’s OK, no after effects from that. I have to say htat it was very enjoyable, and I would definitley have it again.

the zoom itself was as always reeally quite pleasant, and I look forward to it nearly everyweek. I do miss the occasional one.

Lets admit it then. I’m not vlogging for any big sense of purpose of contributing to the charting of Gosports History, no indeed not. I am vlogging because;

• I want to
• I love using the tech
• I love seening me on the screen
• I just want to do it.

OK, having got that piece of honesty out of the way, now I can think about the kinds of things that I might to want to vlog about. Of course, Gorport not only figures very highly in this space because that is where I live, but also because the area is steeped in history. So why not make a thing of this, do what I enjoy and learn something in the process?

The picture came out better than I expected. It’s a small piece of railway track in a tunnel, but Oh! the history here. I f the greenery at the far end of the tunnel weren’t there, you’d have a lovely view of what was Gosport Railway Station.

The tunnel was punched through the ramparts that formed the main defences of Gosport. If I were to turn around and face the other direction, there would be another small section of track heading towards Clarence Yard. The tunnel and tracck were built to allow Queen Victoria to alight her train as close to the ferry that would convery her to and from the Isle of Wight, and her residence at Osborne House.

I just love that this piece of history is still here. Perhaps one day soon, I will incorporate it into a VLog.