IT'S been one of those good news/not such good news weeks since we last touched base.

Good news: Exeter Chiefs parading down the city centre streets on an open-top bus; not such good news: England coming last in Eurovision. Good news: Bank Holiday Monday; not such good news: I was left out of the England squad. Good news: friends want to get together with us here in Devon; not such good news: in a tent!

I blame that last one on all this 'staycationing' we're hearing so much about. People choosing to holiday at home because of the financial climate. Good news for campsites, but not such good news for hotels. According to a recent study, the number of hotel companies becoming insolvent has gone up by 60 per cent in the last year.

Last Monday, Stacy and I spent part of our afternoon staring at tents for sale in a field in Topsham. I have never been camping but, as an acrophobic is to bungee jumping, I know instinctively that nylon dwellings are just not for me.

We have never been tempted to attend any musical festival regardless of the line-up of talent. It's the other line-up that puts us off — the one for the toilets. I have no intention of experiencing Glastonbury or Chagford unless it's from the comfort of a chaise lounge while being fed grapes. There was one tent I liked, but it was too big to carry and the circus had already commandeered it.

The average Briton only has three true friends. A recent survey also found that most people have lost touch with an average of 24 'mates' over the years after simply 'drifting apart'.

As our camping weekend approaches we will watch two more mates drift away, clutching their loo rolls.

Other not so good news that surfaced this week include:

A fifth of children have no idea where they live as they no longer walk to school. Being ferried around in the car by their parents has destroyed their local awareness and knowledge.

Watching TV has risen to more than four hours a day and figures released show that 25,000 Brits still watch black and white television!

In all, we spend a day and a quarter each week watching television, unless you are stuck in the middle of a field sharing your nightwear with insects and wishing you had remembered the loo paper.

Finally, good news: here comes the weekend! Ciao!