Concerning Autumn, Work, Delightful Things, and Car Trouble

 Life in my new place is becoming more usual and quite a lot less unfamiliar.  I now know my way around pretty well; it turns out the best way to get your bearings is to get lost.  Many times.  It does help to have a map, though, and I am lucky enough to have thoughtful landlords who had an extra one on their hands which they gifted/lent to me.  The upside of getting lost is that the scenery is something else.        This is the most glorious autumn I have ever seen.  The trees are blooming with colour; scarlets (my favourites), burnt oranges, golds, and greens blend together on the sides of the road and make the world look like a painting.  The leaves have been fluttering down onto the hood of my car every time I park it at home, so that when I go to leave, I drive away and the wind picks them up and sends them flying behind me.  It's kind of fun.
 I've fallen into my place at work, I think.  Getting used to new ways of doing things took a little time, but I'm pretty confident that I've picked everything up now.  The new team I've joined was extremely welcoming and is very helpful.  My new manager is really nice and makes jokes even when she's too busy to do anything else.
 I've discovered that the best time to come up with fantastic story ideas is when I'm in the back room at work, methodically unpacking stock.  I had what I like to think of as a minor epiphany the other day when I was hanging pea coats.  I have a whole pile of finished but need rewriting/half finished/barely begun/scattered ideas waiting for me to pick them up again.  I'm hoping I will get some more time to write in November.
 Recently my "days off" have turned into "days filling in for sick people at work", which has been just fine by me; more hours is exactly what I need, and I like feeling that I'm helping out.
 All right, enough about work.  There's a darling bookshop in town about a fifteen minute walk away, and a pretty exciting thrift store (exciting because I discovered a set of Pickwick Papers, the lovely green centennial edition, for $2 each!).  It's like a treasure hunt going into that part of town.  If I go to the library, I don't even have to pay for the treasures I find.  I've been getting Broadway musicals like My Fair Lady and Cinderella to listen to in the car on my way to and from work, and it is positively delightful.
 I've been having car troubles, but luckily the Canadian Tire around here is just down the street, so I'm taking it in for the second time tomorrow and I'm planning on strolling around my favourite little area of town while I wait for it.  Or perhaps I will just sit and read.

Rainy Day

After almost a whole week of driving, a week of settling in, a week of work, a weekend of visiting with family and friends, and another week of work, the internet finally works.

I never thought it would take so much calling and being stood up by technicians and confusing interactions with internet providers, but we do finally have functioning internet, so here I am typing an update on our presently hectic lives.

My husband is finally able to get all the information he needs to do his work, and I can finally contact my lovely family and friends.  Thank God for internet that works.

Okay.  Rant over.

Today it was raining and I went to the library; a very cosy mix.  I used my umbrella for the first time since moving out here and rejoiced in the sound of the rain pattering on it as I splashed through the puddles in my black fall boots.  The rain reminds me of home, so though I grumble on the outside sometimes, I absolutely love it.  I picked up a piano book of Tchaikovsky (our landlords have offered me the use of their piano whenever I wish and I feel as joyful as Beth must have when Mr. Lawrence gave her the use of his), and a whole mess of dvds to watch whilst I knit my projects.

I have discovered a post box not far from our little home; I can walk there in fifteen minutes.  That has also contributed to my current good mood.  I look forward to popping my letters in it and knowing they will wiz across the continent, even across the sea, to the people I love.

So far, today is a very good day.

Now I am going to have some delicious tea a lovely new friend gave me.  It even came in an owl tin.  Yes, there is such a thing as perfection!

Sunday of Bow Ties

 My husband and I are moving across the country, as I mentioned in my last post, and today was our second to last Sunday at our church.  Our priest will be gone next Sunday, so, unbeknownst to us, the parish organized a going away party for us.  As I was standing in our choir singing, I started to notice the overwhelming amount of men wearing bow-ties (my husband is a connoisseur of them).  At first I passed it off as coincidence, but as more people arrived wearing them, I realized something was going on.

After our church service ended, our priest announced that in honour of our leaving, the Bow-Tie Brethren would have a photo taken on the steps outside.  Even my little cousin wore a blue bow-tie with boats on it (it became increasingly damp as he sucked on it, but oh, how adorable he looked).

This was not the end of the surprises, however.  My dearest mum and dad had a cake made for us that said "All our love and prayers, Emily and Michael.".  It was so sweet and I cannot express how loved we felt today.

I was given a whole set of bamboo knitting needles and a cute polka-dot case for them, and I had to stop myself from squealing with delight.  I have been wishing for a set of my own for a long while now.  It was a very meaningful gift and one that I will treasure my whole life.

Every possible size imaginable, and aren't the polka dots delightful?!

I am now sitting at home and feeling absolutely and completely blessed.  There are so many wonderful people in my life that love me and they all showed it today.

Even as I say goodbye (for now) to them, I know that I will always have them with me, wherever I go, in my heart.  They will be with me wherever my adventures carry me, and I will always be with them.

I am looking forward to a hamburger barbecue with my family tonight, and while I wait, I'm going to colour in my Disney Princess book (yes, I know I said it was specifically for the trip, but I can't resist, and it's not like I'm going to run out of pages!) and watch Castle.

Perfection in a picture.

What a wonderful, wonderful day.

Book Day

Today was the day I set aside to pack up my books (most of them) in boxes to ship across the country in anticipation of our big move.  I researched carefully how to properly place the books in the boxes and how to prevent damage, whether through books shifting inside or a water drip.  Armed with this knowledge, I set out to the shops this morning to gather my supplies.

Boxes I already had in abundance, thanks to a stop at the liquor store the night before (we were picking up a pack of beer for our Lord of the Rings Risk night, which was SO much fun, by the way.  The game, not getting beer).  I had carefully taken notes in my cute little owl notebook that my mum had given me and had listed exactly what I would need and where I needed to go to get it.

Page One...

and Page Two!

I started at a craft store, which would not have any of what I needed, but it did have a colouring book I wanted.  I got a 600 page Disney princess colouring book for our long drive, and flipping through it is absolutely thrilling.  SO many pictures of my favourite princess, Belle, and many of my other second favourites as well.  I'm so excited!  (I even have a pack of lovely Staedtler colouring pencils!)

Whoops.  Rabbit trail.

So I got all my supplies;

- packing paper & bubble wrap (Home Depot)
- packing tape & regular tape (Staples)
- scissors & plastic bags (already had)

and when I got home I set to work.

I separated all my books into piles according to size and placed them carefully into my prepared boxes.  I am not taking any chances with them.  My logic is, if I have to mail them across the continent, then I'm going to be the one to carefully and lovingly pack them so that I know I've done all I can to ensure they arrive safely.  A tiny bit of me is apprehensive of this big trip for them, but books are shipped all the time and it seems to me, if they are packed properly, then they arrive perfectly fine.

The Boy Next Door, all wrapped up.

Nicely wrapped and ready to go in with its siblings.

Tada!  Spines against spines.

I made a rather chilling discovery as I pulled my books off their shelves, however.  A little munching bookworm had decided my Anne of the Island hardcover was a tasty morsel and took a burrow in it.  Thankfully, it wasn't a particularly special copy to me (although it's all relative, all my books are precious), but my heart raced as I thought of my Enid Blyton Island of Adventure hardcover right next to it.  Thank goodness, when I pulled it out, it showed no signs of bookworm feasts.  I did find the little muncher, though.  He had expired in the hole.  My belief is that he died of gluttony.  He should have known better than to eat a book of mine.  Tsk, tsk.

Was it yummy, little worm?

Very hard to see, but that's the dust he left behind in the corner of the bookshelf.

My book packing adventures have been paused a bit, due to my hot sticky state of being.  I am quite happy with my efforts so far, and am confident that my treasures will travel well padded with packing paper and well wrapped in bags to prevent moisture.

A good day's work, I believe.

Survivors of the bookworm attack.

A Decision

Well...I've joined Nanowrimo.  My plan is to (finally) write a proper book.  Heavens knows what a proper book is, but I am determined to at least finish something that can be called a novel.  I'm not even sure what I'm going to write about.

This should be fun.

The Road Goes Ever On and On

Has it really been a year since my last post?  I have neglected this poor blog for far too long, and it is now time to start up again as I turn the page and start a new chapter in my life.  This past year has been a magical, wonderful whirlwind of life changes.

In April last year, I started courting a wonderful man, to whom I am now married.  He is absolutely amazing and we are going to have so many exciting adventures together.  The first one will be moving across my home country to live near the university he will be attending for five years for a PhD program.

I decided that since I am almost finished my degree, I will have much more time on my hands and what better way to spend that time than chronicling our adventures?

So I will be more faithfully updating and writing.  I'm hoping to start writing properly again.  I have neglected writing for so long that I find I am sounding choppy and unpolished.  I know if I practice it will become better, but I'm really bad at making time.  Hopefully blogging again will be a step towards a book sometime.

As Tolkien has written in a very famous book; "The road goes ever on and on, down from the door where it began."

A Day of Flowers, Sunshine, and Spring

It's April!

I have officially started reading The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim for the month of April, in the hopes that some of the enchantment will slip into my hectic life. It's lovely, as usual. (I find it a little sad that 'lovely' is the only word I have to describe it, but it really is lovely!) I'm probably going to wrap up the month by watching the movie version, which was wonderfully done!

Life is hectic, but if I take a little time to step back and breathe, I find peace once in a while. The end is in sight! Soon my semester will be over and then summer will start! (I will be doing two summer courses, but I'm hoping the workload will be a lot lighter.)

I went to see The Hunger Games last week, and I really enjoyed it. It was violent, but I was expecting that. What I really liked about it was that the main character was a girl who didn't wear skimpy clothing in order to get noticed. She was strong and kind and wore baggy clothing. I preferred the book (but really, don't we usually?), but I have to say the movie was a very close second. If you have read and liked the book, I'm pretty sure you'll enjoy the film.

Let's see...what else? Oh yes! I read The Twits by Roald Dahl, which was very adorable.  And I discovered a book by A. A. Milne, the author of Winnie the Pooh!  I was browsing my favourite used bookstore and saw it on display...so I brought it home.  It was so good!  And here was ignorant little me, not even knowing A. A. Milne ever really wrote anything besides Winnie the Pooh!  How embarrassing.

The book was called The Sunny Side: Short Stories and Poems for Proper Grown-Ups.  Now, I wasn't sure whether I really classify as a "Proper Grown-Up", but being 20 now, I decided that I technically did.   It was crammed with little poems and short stories that were simply delightful.  It was light and sweet, and is now patiently waiting on my shelf until I need to read it again.

I've also started to read The Lord of the Rings again...long story.

Long story for those of you who want to hear/read it:  My dad used to read them aloud to us, so I've known the story ever since I can remember.  Two summers ago, I decided I should probably read them for myself, so I proceeded to read most of The Fellowship of the Ring in one week.  Result: Tolkien overload.  It has taken me about two years to finally pick them up again.

I'm reading The Two Towers now, but I can't wait until Faramir makes his appearance.  He's wonderful.

Well, that's all for now, friends!  I'm off to read Roald Dahl's Fantastic Mr. Fox in bed before I fall asleep.

Hello Everyone!

Just a note to say, yes, I'm still alive!  I have recently been bombarded with assignments and homework, so my life is limited.

I have been having a ball on Tumblr, however.  It is very addictive.

As to what has been happening recently; I went on site-visits for my library course and was able to see some libraries that are not open to the public, one of which in particular was beautiful...but I can't say where it was for security reasons.  I felt very important, going through doors that had gold plaques saying "No Public Admittance"!

I have discovered some TV shows that I have grown quite attached to, although I am normally not one to like TV.  Doctor Who being one, Robin Hood BBC being the other.  There are (of course) some aspects of them that don't quite sit right - Robin Hood is mainly wonderful, but as I was watching Doctor Who (Doctor Nine Season) some things came up that I was very unhappy about.  Ah well.  I take it with a pinch of good sense.

The weather out here has been warming up, and my spirits seem to be escalating as the end of the semester is in sight!  I somehow know I'll be able to see all this craziness through!

I have been reading when and wherever I can, although I have not had time to blog my findings on my other blog, The Perfect Book.  Hopefully I'll be able to catch up when I have some free time!

I also hope to learn to play this on my piano during the summer:



It's such a happy ragtime!

Also, I have plans to read The Enchanted April for April. It's such a lovely book!

Well, that's all for now!  If I don't have time to write more later, I'll be thinking of you!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!  I hope it's filled with flowers and love.

I'm spending mine reading Lark Rise to Candleford / Anne of Avonlea and then going to see a movie with my siblings in the evening!

A lovely day to all you lovely people!

Happy New Year!

Well, this is a bit premature...but Happy New Year everyone!  Hoping it is filled with family, love, peace, joy and laughter.

Hello Again!

Hello everyone!  I hope you all had a very merry Christmas!  It's such a lovely time to be with your family.

I must apologise for my prolonged abscence!  As usual, life has been pretty busy lately.

My Christmas was lovely, as I spent it with my dear family.  I was also pleasantly surprised by presents that I was not expecting, including a book (of sorts) that opens and is actually a box.  I have decided to make it my special place for any letters  I receive.

I have started a Tumblr and a Pinterest, which are both very enjoyable, but there are certain aspects of both which makes them not quite as wonderful as they could be.  However, I have filled my pages/board with lots of pretty things.

I have also been thinking about my New Year's Resolution.  I was thinking about how nice it would be to have a year without all of the junk the world is throwing at us.  So, I have resolved only to read books that I know are good and have no undesirable content in them, and watch movies that are good (PluggedIn is a great resource for that!).  So I'm going to (basically) try to isolate myself from the unsavoury side of our culture and focus only on what is good and beautiful.  I usually try to anyway, but this coming year I'm really going to put my foot down.

Now a little warning about this upcoming semester.  I don't think I will have much time for blogging, so I may disappear again for lengthy amounts of time, but rest assured I will return!

I also need to make a post with pictures of my new books!  I have been book shopping (as usual) and have found some real treasures.  So those will be coming...eventually.

That's all for now, so Happy New Year, everyone!  What are your resolutions?  Do you have any?

Winter Has Arrived With a Flourish!

My Top Ten Favourite Books #3

Little Women has been a treasured classic for many girls ever since it was first published, and I am one of them.  Not only because I can relate to it so well, but also because there are so many good things to learn from it.
I see similarities between myself and all of the March sisters; I am artistic and slightly vain like Amy (I also wish my nose was smaller), I write and secretly hope for adventure like Jo, but I also want a home with children like Meg, and I can play the piano but can only hope I am half as good as dear little Beth.  Thank goodness my mum is as kind and loving as Marmee.
I live in a family of four (although two of them are brothers, not sisters) and it really is like that - everyone is different, but everyone has the same inside jokes and lovely memories.  We even had our own newspaper once, just like the Marches.  (I was writer and editor, but at least everyone read it...)
There is so much good in this 'little book'!  I think it should be on everyone's must - read list.
I loved being a part of the March girls' lives; play acting, laughing with Laurie, writing tragic romances, struggling to be good, but most of all realizing the importance of family and friends.
I laughed and cried my way through it and will never tire of re-reading it.  I think that's what makes a book really special; it's so good you will always want to read it again.
Suffice to say that Louisa May Alcott wrote this book from her heart, and it shows.  There is so much heart in Little Women that it overflows into the reader and leaves you feeling as if you've found another place to call home.

Post About Beatrix Potter

I just wrote about one of my new books over at my other blog: The Perfect Book...you may be interested :)  Enjoy!

Book Sale at the Library

Yesterday was a soft gray day shimmering with silver raindrops.  I love the music of the rain!  I woke up around 7:30 and proceeded to spend most of my day tidying, reading, and relaxing.  It was lovely.  The rain made it so homey in our little house.  You could see it trickling down the window panes and hear it dancing on our roof.
I decided to leave early for work so that I could stop by our little library beforehand.  I drove all the way there in my little car (I got a car!!  She's small and silver, and her name is Josephine).
I don't know whether I've ever described my library, but I will now.  It's in part of a heritage building in our village, which is a light yellow with white pillars in the front, almost Parthenonian style.  It has warm dark wooden doors, and the one that leads into the library has a little roof overtop of it to keep you dry.  The library is quite small, but our kindly librarian has managed to squeeze as many books in as possible.
Anyway, I went in to pick up our books and saw lots of boxes of books waiting for a booksale happening the next day.  I was going to leave without looking through, as I wouldn't be able to come later, but my dear librarian said she would give me a whole box of my picking for a dollar because she said she knew they were going to a good home where they would be read and loved.
I thanked her profusely and collected my treasures, stacking them on the counter.  When I was finished, she tucked them all into a cardboard box and gave it to me.  The rest of my day I was filled with contentment and gratitude.  I honestly have the best librarian in the world.

  

 

Every day seems to have a little pearl which is given to me.  I didn't realize it before; I've had to train myself to find them.  It's like a treasure hunt!  I'm collecting them to make a whole string, a beautiful one, full of happy memories.
God is so good to me.
I hope every one of you are having as wonderful a year as I am.

Pretty Pictures

 Young Woman Reading By A Window by Delphin Enjolras

 Beautiful cover of George MacDonald's The Princess and the Goblin

 Screenshot from the Band Perry's music video If I Die Young

 Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady

Ophelia by Arthur Hughes

Hear, hear!

Prime Minister David Cameron's 'fight-back' speech in response to the horrible riots in England made a deep impression on me; when I heard it all I could think was 'Yes!  Yes!  This is what we need!"  Hopefully it strikes home with some other people out there who will stand for what they know is right.  I would cry tears of joy to see our world return to our good tried and true standards of justice and truth.

Here is his speech in full:

It is time for our country to take stock.
Last week we saw some of the most sickening acts on our streets.
I’ll never forget talking to Maurice Reeves, whose family had run the Reeves furniture store in Croydon for generations.
This was an 80 year old man who had seen the business he had loved, that his family had built up for generations, simply destroyed.
A hundred years of hard work, burned to the ground in a few hours.
But last week we didn’t just see the worst of the British people; we saw the best of them too.
The ones who called themselves riot wombles and headed down to the hardware stores to pick up brooms and start the clean-up.
The people who linked arms together to stand and defend their homes, their businesses.
The policemen and women and fire officers who worked long, hard shifts, sleeping in corridors then going out again to put their life on the line.
Everywhere I’ve been this past week, in Salford, Manchester, Birmingham, Croydon, people of every background, colour and religion have shared the same moral outrage and hurt for our country.
Because this is Britain.
This is a great country of good people.
Those thugs we saw last week do not represent us, nor do they represent our young people - and they will not drag us down.

WHY THIS HAPPENED
But now that the fires have been put out and the smoke has cleared, the question hangs in the air: ‘Why? How could this happen on our streets and in our country?’
Of course, we mustn’t oversimplify.
There were different things going on in different parts of the country.
In Tottenham some of the anger was directed at the police.
In Salford there was some organised crime, a calculated attack on the forces of order.
But what we know for sure is that in large parts of the country this was just pure criminality.
So as we begin the necessary processes of inquiry, investigation, listening and learning: let’s be clear.
These riots were not about race: the perpetrators and the victims were white, black and Asian.
These riots were not about government cuts: they were directed at high street stores, not Parliament.
And these riots were not about poverty: that insults the millions of people who, whatever the hardship, would never dream of making others suffer like this.
No, this was about behaviour…
…people showing indifference to right and wrong...
...people with a twisted moral code...
...people with a complete absence of self-restraint.

POLITICIANS AND BEHAVIOUR
Now I know as soon as I use words like ‘behaviour’ and ‘moral’ people will say – what gives politicians the right to lecture us?
Of course we’re not perfect.
But politicians shying away from speaking the truth about behaviour, about morality...
...this has actually helped to cause the social problems we see around us.
We have been too unwilling for too long to talk about what is right and what is wrong.
We have too often avoided saying what needs to be said - about everything from
marriage to welfare to common courtesy.
Sometimes the reasons for that are noble – we don’t want to insult or hurt people.
Sometimes they’re ideological – we don’t feel it’s the job of the state to try and pass judgement on people’s behaviour or engineer personal morality.
And sometimes they’re just human – we’re not perfect beings ourselves and we don’t want to look like hypocrites.
So you can’t say that marriage and commitment are good things - for fear of alienating single mothers.
You don’t deal properly with children who repeatedly fail in school - because you’re worried about being accused of stigmatising them.
You’re wary of talking about those who have never worked and never want to work - in case you’re charged with not getting it, being middle class and out of touch.
In this risk-free ground of moral neutrality there are no bad choices, just different lifestyles.
People aren’t the architects of their own problems, they are victims of circumstance.
‘Live and let live’ becomes ‘do what you please.’
Well actually, what last week has shown is that this moral neutrality, this relativism – it’s not going to cut it any more.
One of the biggest lessons of these riots is that we’ve got to talk honestly about behaviour and then act – because bad behaviour has literally arrived on people’s doorsteps.
And we can’t shy away from the truth anymore.

BROKEN SOCIETY AGENDA
So this must be a wake-up call for our country.
Social problems that have been festering for decades have exploded in our face.
Now, just as people last week wanted criminals robustly confronted on our street, so they want to see these social problems taken on and defeated.
Our security fightback must be matched by a social fightback.
We must fight back against the attitudes and assumptions that have brought parts of our society to this shocking state.
We know what's gone wrong: the question is, do we have the determination to put it right?
Do we have the determination to confront the slow-motion moral collapse that has taken place in parts of our country these past few generations?
Irresponsibility. Selfishness. Behaving as if your choices have no consequences.
Children without fathers. Schools without discipline. Reward without effort.
Crime without punishment. Rights without responsibilities. Communities without control.
Some of the worst aspects of human nature tolerated, indulged - sometimes even incentivised - by a state and its agencies that in parts have become literally de-moralised.
So do we have the determination to confront all this and turn it around?
I have the very strong sense that the responsible majority of people in this country not only have that determination; they are crying out for their government to act upon it.
And I can assure you, I will not be found wanting.
In my very first act as leader of this party I signalled my personal priority: to mend our broken society.
That passion is stronger today than ever.
Yes, we have had an economic crisis to deal with, clearing up the terrible mess we inherited, and we are not out of those woods yet - not by a long way.
But I repeat today, as I have on many occasions these last few years, that the reason I am in politics is to build a bigger, stronger society.
Stronger families. Stronger communities. A stronger society.
This is what I came into politics to do – and the shocking events of last week have renewed in me that drive.
So I can announce today that over the next few weeks, I and ministers from across the coalition government will review every aspect of our work to mend our broken society…
…on schools, welfare, families, parenting, addiction, communities…
…on the cultural, legal, bureaucratic problems in our society too:
...from the twisting and misrepresenting of human rights that has undermined personal
responsibility...
...to the obsession with health and safety that has eroded people’s willingness to act according to common sense.
We will review our work and consider whether our plans and programmes are big enough and bold enough to deliver the change that I feel this country now wants to see.
Government cannot legislate to change behaviour, but it is wrong to think the State is a bystander.
Because people’s behaviour does not happen in a vacuum: it is affected by the rules government sets and how they are enforced...
...by the services government provides and how they are delivered...
...and perhaps above all by the signals government sends about the kinds of behaviour
that are encouraged and rewarded.
So yes, the broken society is back at the top of my agenda.
And as we review our policies in the weeks ahead, today I want to set out the priority areas I will be looking at, and give you a sense of where I think we need to raise our
ambitions.

SECURITY FIGHTBACK
First and foremost, we need a security fight-back.
We need to reclaim our streets from the thugs who didn’t just spring out of nowhere
last week, but who’ve been making lives a misery for years.
Now I know there have been questions in people’s minds about my approach to law and order.
Well, I don’t want there to be any doubt.
Nothing in this job is more important to me than keeping people safe.
And it is obvious to me that to do that we’ve got to be tough, we’ve got to be robust, we’ve got to score a clear line between right and wrong right through the heart of this country – in every street and in every community.
That starts with a stronger police presence – pounding the beat, deterring crime, ready to re-group and crack down at the first sign of trouble.
Let me be clear: under this government we will always have enough police officers to be able to scale up our deployments in the way we saw last week.
To those who say this means we need to abandon our plans to make savings in police budgets, I say you are missing the point.
The point is that what really matters in this fight-back is the amount of time the police actually spend on the streets.
For years we’ve had a police force suffocated by bureaucracy, officers spending the majority of their time filling in forms and stuck behind desks.
This won’t be fixed by pumping money in and keeping things basically as they’ve been.
As the Home Secretary will explain tomorrow, it will be fixed by completely changing the way the police work.
Scrapping the paperwork that holds them back, getting them out on the streets where people can see them and criminals can fear them.
Our reforms mean that the police are going to answer directly to the people.
You want more tough, no-nonsense policing?
You want to make sure the police spend more time confronting the thugs in your neighbourhood and less time meeting targets by stopping motorists?
You want the police out patrolling your streets instead of sitting behind their desks?
Elected police and crime commissioners are part of the answer: they will provide that direct accountability so you can finally get what you want when it comes to policing.
The point of our police reforms is not to save money, not to change things for the sake of it – but to fight crime.
And in the light of last week it’s clear that we now have to go even further, even faster in beefing up the powers and presence of the police.
Already we've given backing to measures like dispersal orders, we're toughening curfew powers, we're giving police officers the power to remove face coverings from rioters, we're looking at giving them more powers to confiscate offenders' property - and over the coming months you're going to see even more.
It’s time for something else too.
A concerted, all-out war on gangs and gang culture.
This isn’t some side issue.
It is a major criminal disease that has infected streets and estates across our country.
Stamping out these gangs is a new national priority.
Last week I set up a cross-government programme to look at every aspect of this problem.
We will fight back against gangs, crime and the thugs who make people’s lives hell and we will fight back hard.
The last front in that fight is proper punishment.
On the radio last week they interviewed one of the young men who’d been looting in Manchester.
He said he was going to carry on until he got caught.
This will be my first arrest, he said.
The prisons were already overflowing so he’d just get an ASBO, and he could live with that.
Well, we’ve got to show him and everyone like him that the party’s over.
I know that when politicians talk about punishment and tough sentencing people roll their eyes.
Yes, last week we saw the criminal justice system deal with an unprecedented challenge: the courts sat through the night and dispensed swift, firm justice.
We saw that the system was on the side of the law-abiding majority.
But confidence in the system is still too low.
And believe me - I understand the anger with the level of crime in our country today and I am determined we sort it out and restore people's faith that if someone hurts our society, if they break the rules in our society, then society will punish them for it.
And we will tackle the hard core of people who persistently reoffend and blight the lives of their communities.

So no-one should doubt this government's determination to be tough on crime and to mount an effective security fight-back.
But we need much more than that.
We need a social fight-back too, with big changes right through our society.

FAMILIES AND PARENTING
Let me start with families.
The question people asked over and over again last week was ‘where are the parents?
Why aren’t they keeping the rioting kids indoors?’
Tragically that’s been followed in some cases by judges rightly lamenting: “why don’t the parents even turn up when their children are in court?”
Well, join the dots and you have a clear idea about why some of these young people
were behaving so terribly.
Either there was no one at home, they didn’t much care or they’d lost control.
Families matter.
I don’t doubt that many of the rioters out last week have no father at home.
Perhaps they come from one of the neighbourhoods where it’s standard for children to have a mum and not a dad…
…where it’s normal for young men to grow up without a male role model, looking to the streets for their father figures, filled up with rage and anger.
So if we want to have any hope of mending our broken society, family and parenting is where we’ve got to start.
I’ve been saying this for years, since before I was Prime Minister, since before I was leader of the Conservative Party.
So: from here on I want a family test applied to all domestic policy.
If it hurts families, if it undermines commitment, if it tramples over the values that keeps people together, or stops families from being together, then we shouldn’t do it.
More than that, we’ve got to get out there and make a positive difference to the way families work, the way people bring up their children…
…and we’ve got to be less sensitive to the charge that this is about interfering or nannying.
We are working on ways to help improve parenting – well now I want that work accelerated, expanded and implemented as quickly as possible.
This has got to be right at the top of our priority list.
And we need more urgent action, too, on the families that some people call ‘problem’, others call ‘troubled’.
The ones that everyone in their neighbourhood knows and often avoids.
Last December I asked Emma Harrison to develop a plan to help get these families on track.
It became clear to me earlier this year that – as can so often happen – those plans were being held back by bureaucracy.
So even before the riots happened, I asked for an explanation.
Now that the riots have happened I will make sure that we clear away the red tape and the bureaucratic wrangling, and put rocket boosters under this programme...
...with a clear ambition that within the lifetime of this Parliament we will turn around the lives of the 120,000 most troubled families in the country.

SCHOOLS
The next part of the social fight-back is what happens in schools.
We need an education system which reinforces the message that if you do the wrong thing you’ll be disciplined…
…but if you work hard and play by the rules you will succeed.
This isn’t a distant dream.
It’s already happening in schools like Woodside High in Tottenham and Mossbourne in Hackney.
They expect high standards from every child and make no excuses for failure to work hard.
They foster pride through strict uniform and behaviour policies.
And they provide an alternative to street culture by showing how anyone can get up and get on if they apply themselves.
Kids from Hammersmith and Hackney are now going to top universities thanks to these schools.
We need many more like them which is why we are creating more academies…
…why the people behind these success stories are now opening free schools…
…and why we have pledged to turn round the 200 weakest secondaries and the 200
weakest primaries in the next year.
But with the failures in our education system so deep, we can’t just say ‘these are our plans and we believe in them, let’s sit back while they take effect’.
I now want us to push further, faster.
Are we really doing enough to ensure that great new schools are set up in the poorest
areas, to help the children who need them most?
And why are we putting up with the complete scandal of schools being allowed to fail, year after year?
If young people have left school without being able to read or write, why shouldn’t that school be held more directly accountable?
Yes, these questions are already being asked across government but what happened last week gives them a new urgency – and we need to act on it.

RESPECT FOR COMMUNITY
Just as we want schools to be proud of we want everyone to feel proud of their communities.
We need a sense of social responsibility at the heart of every community.
Yet the truth is that for too long the big bossy bureaucratic state has drained it away.
It's usurped local leadership with its endless Whitehall diktats.
It's frustrated local organisers with its rules and regulations
And it's denied local people any real kind of say over what goes on where they live.
Is it any wonder that many people don't feel they have a stake in their community?
This has got to change. And we're already taking steps to change it.
That’s why we want executive Mayors in our twelve biggest cities…
…because strong civic leadership can make a real difference in creating that sense of belonging.
We're training an army of community organisers to work in our most deprived neighbourhoods…
…because we’re serious about encouraging social action and giving people a real chance to improve the community in which they live.
We're changing the planning rules and giving people the right to take over local assets.

But the question I want to ask now is this.
Are these changes big enough to foster the sense of belonging we want to see?
Are these changes bold enough to spread the social responsibility we need right across our communities, especially in our cities?
That's what we're going to be looking at urgently over the coming weeks.
Because we won't get things right in our country if we don't get them right in our communities.

RESPONSIBILITY AND WELFARE
But one of the biggest parts of this social fight-back is fixing the welfare system.
For years we’ve had a system that encourages the worst in people – that incites laziness, that excuses bad behaviour, that erodes self-discipline, that discourages hard work…
…above all that drains responsibility away from people.
We talk about moral hazard in our financial system – where banks think they can act recklessly because the state will always bail them out…
…well this is moral hazard in our welfare system – people thinking they can be as irresponsible as they like because the state will always bail them out.
We’re already addressing this through the Welfare Reform Bill going through parliament.
But I’m not satisfied that we’re doing all we can.
I want us to look at toughening up the conditions for those who are out of work and receiving benefits…
…and speeding up our efforts to get all those who can work back to work
Work is at the heart of a responsible society.
So getting more of our young people into jobs, or up and running in their own businesses is a critical part of how we strengthen responsibility in our society.
Our Work Programme is the first step, with local authorities, charities, social enterprises and businesses all working together to provide the best possible help to get a job.
It leaves no one behind – including those who have been on welfare for years.
But there is more we need to do, to boost self-employment and enterprise...
...because it’s only by getting our young people into work that we can build an ownership society in which everyone feels they have a stake.

HUMAN RIGHTS AND HEALTH AND SAFETY
As we consider these questions of attitude and behaviour, the signals that government sends, and the incentives it creates...
...we inevitably come to the question of the Human Rights Act and the culture associated with it.
Let me be clear: in this country we are proud to stand up for human rights, at home and abroad. It is part of the British tradition.
But what is alien to our tradition – and now exerting such a corrosive influence on behaviour and morality...
...is the twisting and misrepresenting of human rights in a way that has undermined personal responsibility.
We are attacking this problem from both sides.
We’re working to develop a way through the morass by looking at creating our own British Bill of Rights.
And we will be using our current chairmanship of the Council of Europe to seek agreement to important operational changes to the European Convention on Human Rights.
But this is all frustratingly slow.
The truth is, the interpretation of human rights legislation has exerted a chilling effect on public sector organisations, leading them to act in ways that fly in the face of common sense, offend our sense of right and wrong, and undermine responsibility.
It is exactly the same with health and safety – where regulations have often been twisted out of all recognition into a culture where the words ‘health and safety’ are lazily trotted out to justify all sorts of actions and regulations that damage our social fabric.
So I want to make something very clear: I get it. This stuff matters.
And as we urgently review the work we’re doing on the broken society, judging whether it’s ambitious enough - I want to make it clear that there will be no holds barred...
...and that most definitely includes the human rights and health and safety culture.
NATIONAL CITIZEN SERVICE

Many people have long thought that the answer to these questions of social behaviour is to bring back national service.
In many ways I agree...
...and that’s why we are actually introducing something similar – National Citizen Service.
It’s a non-military programme that captures the spirit of national service.
It takes sixteen year-olds from different backgrounds and gets them to work together.
They work in their communities, whether that’s coaching children to play football, visiting old people at the hospital or offering a bike repair service to the community.
It shows young people that doing good can feel good.
The real thrill is from building things up, not tearing them down.
Team-work, discipline, duty, decency: these might sound old-fashioned words but they are part of the solution to this very modern problem of alienated, angry young
people.
Restoring those values is what National Citizen Service is all about.
I passionately believe in this idea.
It’s something we’ve been developing for years.
Thousands of teenagers are taking part this summer.
The plan is for thirty thousand to take part next year.
But in response to the riots I will say this.
This should become a great national effort.
Let’s make National Citizen Service available to all sixteen year olds as a rite of passage.
We can do that if we work together: businesses, charities, schools and social enterprises...
...and in the months ahead I will put renewed effort into making it happen.

CONCLUSION
Today I’ve talked a lot about what the government is going to do.
But let me be clear:
This social fight-back is not a job for government on its own.
Government doesn’t run the businesses that create jobs and turn lives around.
Government doesn’t make the video games or print the magazines or produce the
music that tells young people what’s important in life.
Government can’t be on every street and in every estate, instilling the values that matter.
This is a problem that has deep roots in our society, and it’s a job for all of our society to help fix it.
In the highest offices, the plushest boardrooms, the most influential jobs, we need to think about the example we are setting.
Moral decline and bad behaviour is not limited to a few of the poorest parts of our society.
In the banking crisis, with MPs’ expenses, in the phone hacking scandal, we have seen some of the worst cases of greed, irresponsibility and entitlement.
The restoration of responsibility has to cut right across our society.
Because whatever the arguments, we all belong to the same society, and we all have a stake in making it better.
There is no ‘them’ and ‘us’ – there is us.
We are all in this together, and we will mend our broken society – together.

AMEN.  He is honoring his predecessors (Winston Churchill in particular)!