last night a bell-ringing night

16th august 1788

'at  seven o'clock I awoke my neighbour...' 

byng and his companion (the 'famous pedestrian' ID) have reached tonbridge. after a night in the rose and crown make a visit to summerhill before setting off down the rye road to pembury and the ruined bayham abbey. 

'the ruins, though sadly dilapidated and disfigured from being used as a garden, are yet of great beauty, with many arches, remains of chapels and some fragments of tombs. a proprietor of gothic taste would render it solemn and pleasing, where as at present it is glaring and fantastic.' 

they stop for dinner at the chequers public house in lamberhurst and by evening they have reached the queen's head in highgate (above flimwell). there byng drinks port wine to drive out a cold. 

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'blackstone has been the largest provider of newly built affordable housing in the country (the uk) for the last three years...'  - james seppala, the head of real estate europe at blackstone. 

should an american private equity firm own so much british housing? 

the key issue is that every stage  money is leaving the cycle and not being reinvested in creating anything like enough new and genuinely affordable housing (aka. social housing) or to maintain what exists. now whatever remaining risks there are have been bounced by blackstone onto the pension funds (presumably at the point of maximum profitability because this is the point of private equity firms).

horsemouth did not get up at 7am. it was more like 9am. last night a bell-ringing night (horsemouth is only learning)  and he  ended up in the dog playing pool. (so once again he is slow out of bed this morning).