Longrider

Not only does this bridge have a “wow” factor, it is one I’ve watched develop over the last few years. The A75 motorway connects Clermont Ferrand with the Mediterranean and is a rare beast in France; a free motorway. However, the latter part is patchy, forcing the traveller onto the N9 just north of Millau where it is not yet complete. Now while the N9 is a nice twisty stretch of road, the wind down into Millau and back out again usually involves watching the rear end of a truck for most of the way as it is too narrow and twisty to make a safe overtake - although sometimes on the bike an opportunity presents itself and I take it .

For the past few years on our journeys to the Languedoc Roussilon, we have watched a spectacular structure take its elegant form over the valley above Millau. Today, President Chirac opened the bridge and it is open to traffic on Thursday. We are taking the overnight ferry on Saturday to spend Christmas in our French house, so will be travelling across this wonderful piece of engineering on Sunday afternoon. At €4.6 its going to be worth it (a positive bargain, indeed). Added to that, it will knock about 45 minutes off our journey.

Today I went for a walk with two of my sisters. Since giving up paid employment, my quality of life has improved to the point where these little strolls have become a regular thing. My youngest sister, Lucy, usually texts me a grid reference and we meet up and walk out on a route from one of her many walking books. Today, we were joined by another of my sisters, Diane. It was pleasant just to walk and talk, spend half an hour in a pub over a drink before setting out again and munching sandwiches in the presence of a Bronze Age stone circle. Cold though it was, there’s something pleasant about the English countryside even in the depths of winter.

The Guardian has a story about a recent prosecution by ICSTIS, the premium rate regulator. A Bristol based company was fined £300,000 for promoting a bogus prize draw scam. In reality what the scammers do is encourage people to dial a premium rate number (in the UK these have 090 prefixes). They then run up a telephone bill on average of up to £20. Worse are those lottery scams where the tricksters demand money up front to release the “winnings” leaving the victim thousands of pounds out of pocket.

In the UK we have a system of opt-out that allows us to register with the Telephone Preference Service. By registering with TPS, the number is put onto a do not call list that companies are legally obliged to observe. Failure to do so can result in legal action and a fine. Certainly since registering our number, I’ve noticed a dramatic decline in the number of unsolicited calls.

Unfortunately, scammers are engaging in illegal activity to start with, so are not too perturbed by a legally enforceable do not call list. The best defence therefore, is awareness.

A neat marketing trick that came our way the other day was from a company called Telewest - a cable and telephone service provider. The card that came through the door was apparently a follow up to an attempt to call round the previous day. My wife is skeptical that they called at all. I believe that it is entirely possible that they did as this company is a serial door knocker and as neither of us was in, it seemed plausible enough. Either way, the card claimed that they had called the previous day to change our internet connection to their broadband service even though this had not been requested. Despite this, the card stated that they were certain that the competitive nature of the product would have been sufficient for us to allow them to have carried out the work on the spot. Doorstep selling irritates me at the best of times. Junk mail, too - but this little tactic, gimmick though it doubtless is, is a supreme piece of arrogance that ensures I will never, under any circumstances, ever, ever, ever, use Telewest’s products or services.

Anyone who likes cats (guilty) invariably has a similar passion for big cats (guilty). After all, they are just cuddly kitties with bigger paws (and claws), aren’t they? It seems that attempts to classify tigers - a wonderful cat if ever there was one - have been flawed. A new genetic study has identified two groups from the so-called indonesian subspecies. They have dubbed the new discovery Panthera Tigris Jacksoni after tiger campaigner Peter Jackson.

Worrying though is the news that of the eight subspecies of Panthera Tigris, three are now extinct.