The news from abroad is scary and bleak and there’s big news at home that deeply affects us all: a chippy tea will soon cost a tenner. Ten. Pounds.
The cost of cod has soared 75%, the price of my favourite mushy peas have doubled and energy prices mean chippy bosses have to push up charges. I remember paying pennies for scraps wrapped up in newspaper, which is still the best way chips have ever been served.
Chips were always a hot, tasty and cheap way to fill up. I won’t pay ten pounds on principle. But when a warm waft of the vinegary smell makes my stomach rumble, all reason might go out the window.
When my optician agreed to come out to see me because my legs are so bad these days, I thought he must be a nice man.
When I asked if I could wear my dressing gown when he visited and he said, “You can wear whatever you like”, my thoughts were confirmed.
Then he asked the question I always dread: “Because of your name, I have to ask: is your son Robbie Savage?”
I know our Rob is like Marmite so my heart sinks when I’m asked in case the conversation takes a bad turn. But the optician said he adored our Rob.
That was a relief.
Because I can call our Rob and shout hellfire at him.
But if anyone else says anything about him, they’ll get my walking stick where the sun don’t shine.
Help marathon man Paul... he's a hoodie two shoes
The price of a chippy is through the roof and we’re all scared about the rise in energy bills, yet even when people are hard pressed, they still give to charity.
That’s what makes our country so great.
I choked up this week when my eldest son Jonathan told me Paul Pryce, his best friend for decades, is running the Manchester Marathon in April to raise money for good causes.
Half the money will go to the Glyndwr ward in Wrexham Maelor Hospital in memory of Paul’s late father Cyril. And the other half will go to Alzheimer’s Cymru as a tribute to my late husband Colin.
Paul has been running up mountains and even through Storm Eunice to train, and the thought of him pushing himself to the limit in his first competitive marathon for Cyril and Col means the world.
Seeing him and Jonathan wearing hoodies printed with pictures of their late fathers made me fill up, not just with emotion at missing Col but knowing how proud their dads would be.
I’d be ever so grateful if you sponsored Paul by following this fancy link thing: justgiving.com/crowdfunding/our-2-dads
Floored by Oti exit on Strictly
It’s a shame to hear Oti Mabuse has left Strictly Come Dancing.
I loved how she inspired comic Bill Bailey to dance.
But one thing we’ve learned is that the show is so fantastic,
we soon get to know and love newcomers.
And the good news is adorable Amy Dowden is still in – she’s my all-time favourite.
Hard hats off to those recognising industrial history
My dad and his dad, my Taid, worked for decades at the Brymbo Steel Works in Wrexham.
Open from 1796 to 1990, it fuelled Britain’s Industrial Revolution and raised countless families in this area.
Dad, who worked at the furnace, clocked up overtime to help pay for my grammar school uniform.
And sometimes my mum, perhaps with a fret for my dad, walked to the steel works and sat on the early
bank for a couple of hours just looking at it.
When the steel works closed, more than 1,200 jobs were lost and hearts were broken.
So I applaud Historic England’s pledge to award grants to help protect and recognise the nation’s working-class heritage, the places that really helped make Britain great.
Steel works and old mines might not look as pleasing on the eye as castles and mansion houses, but they mean more to most of us.
We don’t need more new houses built on the old industrial sites.
We need to remember where our families before us toiled to bring us up and keep the country running.
Reality of war is a scary prospect
My parents listened to every news report about the Cuban Missile Crisis in silence.
I was aware it was hugely important, but too caught up in going shopping and dancing for it to stay on my mind for long.
Now, age and maturity means I understand their fear. And I feel it when I hear the latest from Russia every night.
Although I’m almost too scared to listen to the news, I have been avidly tuning in to stay informed about world affairs whenever possible.
In one report, ordinary people in Russia were interviewed about their thoughts on the prospect of war. One lady said: “I worry how many husbands, fathers and sons will be lost.”
And that’s the reality of conflict. The people in big offices who threaten war will be behind big desks when our young soldiers are sent out to fight their battles.
No one in their right mind truly wants that to happen.
I’d love soaps to clean up their act
Emmerdale and EastEnders are both going to be on telly four times a week at 7.30pm.
And I wonder, in the fight for ratings, if they’ll add even more sex and violence to the plots? That’s the very thing that made me switch off.
I loved Emmerdale back when stories revolved around Joe Sudgen and his sheep farm. It was gentle, soothing and addictive.
But now the stories are way too far fetched, depressingly dark and the characters just shout and scream at each other.
When you’re a certain age, the TV can be a lifeline and I look at it as a mood lifter.
So while Emmerdale and EastEnders battle it out, I’ll be happily watching other channels.
*If you’d like to contact Val, email features@mirror.co.uk or write to Val Savage, PO Box 7290, E14 5DD
