Come rain or shine

or even snow we'll get your copy of CJS Weekly to you.

This week every one got involved even HB's kids who leant their sledge and helped to pull the post from the office up to the Post Office for collection - yes, this is actually one of the main roads in the village.

CJS Weekly

We're all prepared for the Big Garden Birdwatch this weekend. Feeders cleaned and refilled but although it has rained pretty much non-stop all week it's been really quite mild (until today when it snowed) so not many birds int he garden or at the feeders. Perhaps another chilly snap will bring them in just in time for the count.
Monday's edition is almost printed and we're about to start putting it in the envelopes ready for the Postie tomorrow morning. This week it's 13 sides long containing 120 new apid posts of which 84 came direct to CJS. Talking of post our has been a bit hit and miss this week (our regular postie is on holiday), we can't beleive that there have been only ten letter for us all week. So if you've sent something by post and not had a response don't worry - yet - I'm sure it will reach us eventually.

Smelly letters

We get lots of post (well most days), sometimes the odd letter is perfumed by someone wearing too much scent but today we got a first. In the heap was a letter from Royal Mail to The Managing Director (that's Hebe in case you're wondering!). The post sat on a desk for nearly an hour whilst we dealt with emails and phone calls and every now and then an odd aroma drifted across the office. Finally post was opened and the letter from RM – phewee, did it reek? Oh yes, of 'sandalwood and floral notes' . After reading it at arms length we deciphered that it was trying to persuade us to send everything special delivery and so it was swiftly removed, out to the wheelie bins, not just the office bin. The smell was so strong AW started sneezing, so we opened a window to try to dissipate the pong but that brought in the pollen and the boss and boss dog (Juno) started sneezing too – hay fever this time. So thanks RM, next time can we have a box of tissues, please?

CJS Weekly - no collection.

We discovered this morning that Royal Mail did not collect our post on Saturday. To say we're not happy would be a major understatement. A formal complaint has been made to RM so we expect a book of stamps in recompense.
Our usual postie is on holiday and the replacement is less than useless, we've received post for another business down the road, and only two letters this morning (we usually receive around 20-30 on a Monday), added to which he virtually refused to take our mail and eventually did so grudgingly.
So apologies from CJS, we hope (fingers crossed) that your copies of CJS Weekly are with you soon. If you're one of the unlucky ones and have not yet received your copy then if you'd like to contact us we will provide you with temporary details to access the digital version.

What a week

Friday travails: TB had to leave her car at the field with her horses (a couple of miles from the CJS office) and walk home, 50 minutes of hard trudge through the soggy snow. AW tried to get home but managed 200 yards in 20 minutes! But family with a large 4x4 were able to make it through and take her home up the dale. However, we're happy to report to damages to property or more importantly people. The dogs all thought the snow was wonderful, their people were not so pleased at all the soggy pawprints. Friday night it all froze solid but by Sunday there was hardly anything left. Monday arrived and you'd never know it had snowed at all. And now (Friday afternoon) the sun in shining, it's warm and spring like, most peculiar!

Despite the vagaries of the weather CJS has trundled on and right now copies of CJS Weekly are dropping off the printers, this week is 12 sides long with 93 new paid posts of which 63 came direct to CJS.

You may be aware that postage rates are changing yet again come April, this will push the cost of producing and posting CJS Weekly beyond your subscription fee (yes, our profit margins really are so small). So we're looking at ways to reduce the cost and this week we're experimenting with folding your copies to fit a C5 (half A4) envelope which should make them RM letter size rather than large letter with an analogous postage decrease. If it's possible without giving the staff RSI we maybe able to stave off a huge subs increase, if it's not possible we'll have to stick with flats (C4, big envelopes) and charge you all a lot more – sorry. Keep your fingers crossed it works.

Lots of news.

Sorry for the brief hiatus, the blogger in chief has had some time off! So lots of news for you.

First, last week's edition of CJS Weekly was 10 pages with 67 new vacancies of which 29 were sent direct to CJS. As Royal Mail have now ceased Sunday collections this was the first time CJS Weekly was been collected on a Saturday. It would appear that the system was not quite ready for the sudden influx of extra mail on Saturdays with many more than usual subscribers this week reporting non-delivery. Let's hope the wrinkles have now been ironed out and that copies land on doormats on Monday as usual. This week's edition is now streaming off the printers, it's 12 sides of 85 new paid posts of which 34 came to CJS direct from the employer.

You'll find the results of the Subscribers Survey and our responses. A couple of changes are that we're looking carefully at the types of posts we advertise, excluding some we previously included and possibly adding a few ones. We're also reviewing the look and format of the voluntary vacancies. Many thanks to everyone who replied and sent us their thoughts; and congratulations to subscriber 37634 - the lucky recipient of a set of Bird ID Insights cards.

Now, just in case you hadn't noticed Monday is bonfire night (see the article about hedgehogs and bonfires in this week's edition). Being a rural area we're very lucky in not plagued too much by excessive and inappropriate fireworks. But one CJS subscriber has become an unknowing victim. This package was received in today's post:

Once opened we very gingerly handled a soggy envelope and extracted the contents which still smell smoky. There was also a note from Royal Mail which states, " The enclosed correspondence intended for your address was unfortunately damaged and recovered in this condition. I would like to assure you that whilst every effort is made to ensure your mail is secure at all times, you will appreciate that acts of mindless vandalism by unknown member o f the public do sometimes occur and are beyond our control." In other words, some idiot put a firework in the pillar box!!

Last week we had to light the wood stove for the first time this year, but then we've let it go out and now have the windows open again, this must be one of the warmest beginnings to November. We've also cleaned all the bird feeders and refilled them and now the garden is full of very hungry birds, they were just waiting, no sooner had the filled feeders been put on the hooks than the first finches arrived – even before we'd got back inside! This year there seem to be more cole tits than before and several large families of long tailed tits have been checking us out but as yet none of the large flocks of siskins that have been reported elsewhere. Several skeins of geese and one of swans (probably whooper but too far away to confirm categorically) have flown over this last few days. Hebe has discovered that she likes bird food and is digging under the feeders for all the scraps, she's not yet realised that a couple of them are within reach – yet….!

Oh, and for those of you worried about the poor traumatized pup - Hebe managed OK during the rugby, we were very restrained despite wanting to scream – it was a try, it was a try (it wasn't but there you go), so well done to the boys for a sterling effort and roll on 2011 when we'll do all again! In the mean time I think we'll have to go with some desensitization exercises prior to the six nations.

Owls, post and CJS Weekly.

The young owl has been on the wires next door today, it was here when we started work and stayed for most of the morning it had gone by lunch time but returned by the end of the day (which is round about nowish!)

By now you should all have received last week's edition of CJS. This week's is now printing and we will post it out as normal – however there is to be a series of strikes by CWU members which will severely affect deliveries. If your copy doesn’t turn up do please contact us for the temporary access details to download the missing editions from the website. Monday 15 October edition is nine pages containing 55 new paid posts of which 27 were sent direct to CJS. We're working on the results from your surveys and hope to have some answers for you soon.

Oh Bother…

…or words to that effect!

We've just received an email update from CWU informing us that there will be more postal strike in October – and this time it looks like it will affect delivery of CJS Weekly. Two lots of 48 hour strike action followed by a rolling programme of walk outs. As ever we'll keep you informed and you can always check our website.

CJS Monthly and news about the post.

After a bit of panic (one piece of artwork was taking the scenic cyber route via Pluto!) CJS Monthly is now printing. This month it's seven sides again with an additional four pages of events. And it contains an ad for CJS, yes, we're recruiting again. This time we need a part-time admin assistant – think you fit the bill? Then log on and read more.

In other news, we've had two communications about the post. First we heard from our local Royal mail sorting office that they're ceasing Sunday collections (nationwide not just in our little corner), we're looking at how this will affect CJS Weekly deliveries. And the other postage news comes from CWU (the posties union) the long running talks between the union and RM have broken down without any resolution so there are more strikes heading our way. Remember to log onto to the Royal Mail page of the website to find out what's happening and how it's affecting CJS.

Postal strike action latest.

News just received indicates that Royal Mail workers will be on strike next Tuesday / Wednesday, when CJS Monthly is due to be collected. This will not affect the online copy but will most likely mean that the paper copies due to you on Thursday will be delayed. We'll try to find out more next week.
Any information we do receive is posted at: http://www.countryside-jobs.com/CJS_Stuff/royal_mail.htm

No post.

Post again - no post yesterday due to action further up the delivery chain. No post today because of local action. If you've sent us something and you've not got a reply by Monday please contact us - it may be lodged in the growing RM backlog.

Friday news - a bit late.

Sorry no Friday update but the posts we were trying to publish kept being blocked. Everything seems to be back to normal now though. Anyway, you should all have your copies of CJS Weekly by now – Royal Mail permitting; CJS didn't receive any post over the weekend but it was collected as normal.

More Disruption at Royal Mail

Communication Workers Union has changed the way its members are striking, although each will still only strike for two days the strikes will be in different areas of the country and of the postal system occurring successionally over two weeks from next Wednesday (25/7). Royal Mail understands that our local major sorting office (York) will be affected on Thursday 26th. You can read updates on the situation at: http://www.countryside-jobs.com/CJS_Stuff/royal_mail.htm

Your local paper should be able to tell you what's happening local to you.

TriskaidekaFRIDAY

We're not bothered about Friday the thirteenth - are you??

So we were left in the dark yesterday. It worked out quite well as we received our first delivery of logs for next winter. No power = no computers so a spot of manual labour was a welcome change although a tonne and half of logs was perhaps a little excessive. Anyway two hours later all stacked and looking smart, the stack is four rows deep. These are mostly ash with some beech and are three-quarters seasoned should be great by October (we really don't want to light the stove before then if we can help it!). Of course we couldn't have managed it without canine assistance, Maia, on the left, and Juno. The shed to the left is where we stash the post until the postie collects - so it's a post box in disguise!!

RM workers on strike again today so your postal copy of CJS Weekly may be delayed and if you didn't receive your copy of CJS Monthly yesterday it will be, hopefully, waiting for you on Monday. CJS Weekly is this week 12 pages containing 81 new paid posts of which 42 were sent direct to CJS including several new advertisers.

More disruption possible

Sorry, two problems this week.
First on Thursday (12/7/07) NEDL are once again threatening to cut our electricity supply for the day, we'll endeavour to carry on as normal but if they do cut the power we may end up working in several locations and will not have access to our main server.
Second, another postal strike has been confirmed for this coming week, CWU members will walk out at 7pm on Thursday 12 July for 24 hours. Once again this should not hugely affect CJS but if you're sending is job ads by post please ensure they are with us before Thursday. However, the backlog may well delay delivery of CJS Weekly to readers.
To keep up to date please read: http://www.countryside-jobs.com/CJS_Stuff/royal_mail.htm and of course keep up to date here on our blog.

Rain (again), posties on strike & CJS Weekly.

We might not have pictures of several feet of standing water (thank goodness) but my, didn't it rain? – and the Met Office are predicting a load more so don't put the waders away just yet.

The leaning apple trees now have new stakes on the other side and are going to be slowly pulled upright again and then held there until they have grown new anchoring roots, I think some major pruning will be needed this winter instead of the usual trim and tidy. The good news is that the CJS office staff (and assorted livestock) seem to have survived the weather without too many problems – so far and fingers crossed for the weekend! And so CJS Weekly is now printing, this week's edition is 13 sides with 99 new paid posts of which 32 were sent direct to CJS. However, it is quite likely that postal copies will be delivered late. Today is the first postal strike over a decade with no collections or deliveries and although our mail is not collected until later in the weekend it is probable that dealing with the backlog will delay deliveries to you.

Well what a week.

The weather's never the same two days running and so much water and according to the forecast we've a soggy weekend in prospect – oh well. Another CJS Weekly hits the presses, 13 pages this week with 93 new vacancies of which 40 went sent direct to CJS. Already available online, paper copies will be with you on Monday – assuming the collection is made. Thinking of the post - CJS is making contingency plans for the Royal Mail strike action, you can keep up to date with what's going on either here on the blog or we've a dedicated page at:
Next week is going to be an odd one, on Tuesday we will be without power in the office so we've made arrangements to work from another office further up the valley but we won't be able to use our main data on the server (can't really move that!) so it’s just the basics for Tuesday and we'll catch up on Wednesday. I don’t think the lack of post on Friday will cause too many problems, CJS Weekly will be dispatched as usual and at the moment we believe it will be collected and delivered as usual.

No Post Collection.

To all CJS Weekly postal subscribers, we're sorry but Royal Mail let us down. Your copies of CJS were ready for collection as usual but the Postie failed to turn up. Upon enquiring of the local Sorting Office this morning, we're informed that he failed to turn up at all and no post was collected from the Whitby area on Sunday. The heap of grey sacks have now left us and your copy should be with you tomorrow. If you can't wait please contact us by email (preferably) or phone to request this week's temporary access details for the online copies.

Another (soggy) week draws to a close.

CJS Weekly is printing, 14 pages this week with 116 new paid vacancies, 65 of which were sent direct to CJS.

No news on the threatened Royal Mail strikes, therefore, all being well your postal copy should be with you on Monday.

Royal Mail: Postal Strikes looming.

Yesterday (7/6/07) 66% of the Communication Worker Union members voted to reject a pay offer from Royal Mail and in favour of a series of walkouts unless new talks can lead to a breakthrough.

If strikes do occur CJS will continue to dispatch CJS Weekly as usual although it may be collected late from us or delivered late to you. To avoid delays we would suggest that you transfer to web access, it's faster (available on Friday), cheaper (no p&p), easier (it's searchable for specific terms) and as you can view on screen or print chosen pages it's greener too!

As soon as we receive any information we'll pass it on to you. This will be through our website, on both News Releases and our blog (that's here!), and also in CJS Weekly. If you have an email address please send details to CJS then we can keep in touch with you even if the post doesn't.

Friday at last.

It's been a bit of chaotic week. Don't know why, just very, very busy…

Anyway we've just about reached the end of the week. CJS weekly is printing, the heaps are growing all we've got to do now is to stuff them all into envelopes. It's quite large again this week, 16 sides with 109 new paid vacancies, 54 direct to CJS. BUT, postal workers are being balloted on strike action so watch this space for how this may affect CJS.

Loads of new ads online this week, not just on Daily Online (and Monthly) but also in the events, on the links pages and in the Classified Directory so there's a load to look at over the weekend. We'll have a bit of R'n'R and be back bright eyed and bushy tailed on Monday.