There are places my annoyances will never reach

When I compare me to the galaxy,

My troubled soul begins to see

I’m a grain of sand on the biggest beach

And there’s places my annoyances will never reach.  (Watercress – “Stars Shine On“)

OK everyone. So things did not go entirely to plan on Thursday. And by everyone I mean you, Cultural Snow. And by things I mean the UK general election. (And the BBC’s TV coverage too. And in that case for not entirely to plan read pointlessly expensive and confusing to the extent of undermining the case for the licence fee, and in the case of the online swing displays, simply wrong. If only Andrew Neil‘s boat, The Silver Sturgeon, had sprung a leak.) So calm down everyone. Including me.

And watch this…

I saw this at Sparkling Crystal (or just click on the pic above) by Iridium77. (There’s no sound with it by the way.)

There now. Feeling better? Calmer?

Still a tad peeved? Perhaps the appalling, pathetic and chaotic failure of democracy that saw hundreds of people denied their right to vote at polling stations across England is still nagging at you. Maybe you’re fretting that it’s time to send in international observers to ensure the basics are carried out with a baseline competence? (Overseas readers may be rolling their eyes and laughing at this point.)

Well here are some more blessings to brighten your doleful demeanour.

1. Peter Robinson getting the boot from East Belfast by the Alliance Party‘s Naomi Long. That’s right. The Alliance Party. Naomi is their first elected MP. The double jobber need no longer worry about double jobbing. Northern Ireland’s first minister crestfallen. The glamour couple of Peter & (Well, here’s to you Mrs) Iris Robinson are both out. Among their many colourful career highlights was her comment that being gay is worse than being a child abuser. Beaten, for once, by the forces of tolerance and cross community non-sectarianism. Hard to believe – yet it’s just happened. (Though don’t go getting carried away. The Alliance vote is small everywhere else.)
2. Sylvia Hermon keeping her North Down seat. A thoroughly decent woman cast adrift from her Ulster Unionist party when they decided to go into official cahoots with David Cameron’s Conservatives. The score cards for MPs now reads. Ulster Unionists 0 – Sylvia Hermon (Independent) 1.
3. Caroline Lucas winning Brighton Pavilion for the Greens. She has power. She commanded us to fly less, and lo and behold, we’re already doing it. And, well, I don’t usually fancy politicians, but… What can I say? She’s politically admirable.

You see. Things aren’t as bad as all that. Just think. You could be one of the people who didn’t want Labour’s Glenda Jackson to keep her job as Hampstead and Kilburn MP, or wanted to see the back of Sinn Fein’s Michelle Gildernew in Fermanagh South Tyrone – but didn’t bother voting. How sick must they now feel, with Glenda getting back in on a majority of only 42, and Michelle squeaking through by 4 votes. FOUR VOTES.

If you are one of those people, there is one more thing you can do to douse the flames of heartburn and self-recrimination. I did it as I walked away from the polling station early in the morning. Tune in to A-Net Station Radio from Antarctica. Upbeat blues of great clarity. It’ll lift your spirits quicker than a recount, and sustain you through the political horse trading ahead till we get a new government. Whenever that is…P.S. They also have a defunct-looking blog down there. It’s called Sanctuary.

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