The great lights turn off....

Once again I had to miss the switching on of the Christmas lights down Tonbridge High Street. So I'm yet to see them in all their festive glory. My kids went along and reported back to me that they'd enjoyed the whole thing. The only question I have is: What's with the fireworks? I thought we'd had Guy Fawkes night and the preceding two months of fizzes, cracks and bangs that go with it these days. Did we really need any more? I know we all need a bit of Christmas cheer but I just don't get it with the fireworks all the time. Summer festival of music? Oh let's finish each night with a firework show and pollute the air over the town and wake up all the kids and disturb all the dogs in the town centre.  Summer Carnival? Why of course they wouldn't be complete without more of the same! Christmas time, a time for rejoicing and Peace on Earth? Let's ruin it with yet more of them. Still at least the tax payer wasn't picking up the bill for it this time. What? What's that you say? The borough council paid for it out of their Leisure Services budget? Surely not in these times of austerity! It's just a shame that they can't get their priorities right and actually sort out the street lights at the north end of the town as well. It really is becoming pathetic now that a town like Tonbridge constantly has 6 or 7 lights not working on the short stretch between the Ivy House and the Big Bridge. Apparently they are, and I kid you not, the wrong type of bulbs! That is to say Kent County Council, who are responsible for the Highways (which includes street lighting) push the problem back to Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council because these lights are not the standard type and, because they're in the Conservation Area of the town KCC cannot replace the whole light. I know that Tonbridge Blog has moaned on about this before but it really does beggar belief that they can't sort this problem out between them. Lights are supposed to be for the whole year and not just for Christmas!...