There was also the bonus of all that walking up and down the hill helping to improve my fitness, which has been suffering badly as I have not been able to do any football refereeing this season for the first time in 17 years.
Bishopswood turns out to be something of a microcosm of the whole ward, probably of the whole Taunton Deane as well.
There was the ‘staunch Labour’ couple - only the second I have actually met in the ward - but unfortunately for them, Labour does not have a candidate here. Their choice would presumably have to be the Lib Dems, because they are more Left than New Labour.
There was the lady who ‘does not vote anyway because they are all corrupt’ - I have met quite a few more of those than I have Labour supporters - but at least she accepted local council work was rather different from Parliamentary affairs and so she agreed to have a read of my leaflets and have a think about it.
I hope she does vote one way or the other. Everybody should at least have their say in a positive way about who runs the council rather than accepting by default whomever their neighbour has voted for.
There was also the ‘no point, we are voting UKIP’ lady - a first for me in this campaign. However, I had to break the news to her that she cannot vote UKIP because they are not putting anybody up.
I believe they might have one candidate somewhere in the whole of the Deane. But even if they ran the council, I find it hard to believe that Taunton Deane Borough Council would be able to pull the UK out of the European Union.
Still, I fully understand the sentiment, and, as a very long-standing Democracy Movement member and even (I say it quietly, in case I get into trouble with my Party bosses) having voted UKIP in Euro elections, I strongly share the sentiments.
So, for any UKIP voters out there, believe you me, I am the closest thing you have.
There was the lady who has built her own home single-handedly with her bare hands, who puts me to shame as my DIY skills are legendary for all the wrong reasons.
There was also a fellow blogger, but in my desire to impress him with political know-how, I forgot to ask what was his blog site. Perhaps, if he reads this, he will forward the address for me to have a look.
I found a great mix of people living here in Bishopswood, which must contribute hugely to the dynamics of the community and I look forward to learning more about them.
Only one resident point blank turned me away from their doorstep, using polite hand signals and a brief ‘no, thank you’, not even accepting the leaflet which will tell him how to get hold of me if ever he needs my help.
Others, even those who I cold sense are unlikely to vote for me, at least took the trouble to look at the literature which will tell them more about who I am.
With the election campaign now in full swing, I have been inundated with literature to give out to voters - two different Conservative newspapers, two different leaflets, and a slip for those who were not in to let them know I was sorry to have missed them.
I could not help noticing that this morning is recycling day, and almost everybody was putting out their green recycling bins.
The thought did occur that if I came back in the morning and had a look, I could find some of my literature had quickly made its way into the green bins.
If so, would it indicate the residents of Bishopswood have taken speed reading lessons, or that, rather like me, they do not have the time for all this ‘bumf’.
I try to read all the leaflets that the different parties deliver to my home because I think I should be able to understand what different candidates stand for before I cast my vote, but unfortunately even I have a rather large pile of them which I have not gotten round to finishing over the years.
It is easy to see what the Lib Dems stand for, having read some of the leaflets they have been delivering in the ward – ‘no’ to this, ‘no’ to that, ‘no’ to the other, and ‘yes’ to all the things the Conservatives are doing anyway.
I see they are even trying to claim the credit for the green recycling boxes, which the Conservatives introduced anyway. They want plastic recycling – the Conservatives are giving it to them.
They also rather deceptively complain about the things that their Lib Dem chums who are in charge in County Hall actually have responsibility for – not the Deane Conservatives - and which they could resolve if they so wished, such as speed limits and quarry lorries.
I have a good mind to fill out their ‘grumble sheet’. It would read something like: “Dear Lib Dems, why not try to do something constructive, why not try to be positive, why not tell people what you have actually done for them.” I already know the answers: “We can’t, we don’t know how, we haven’t.”
Perhaps my Lib Dem leaflets will quickly reach the recycling box instead.
At least the Conservative messages I have been delivering to people are positive and constructive – we have kept down the Council Tax, we are bringing in plastic and cardboard recycling, we are building more affordable homes for local people, we are supporting vital rural services such as Post Offices.
And as I trekked up and down the hill in Bishopswood, these were all issues that came up on the doorsteps time and again.
As dusk fell, I had to call it a day and realised I had left no time to take any photographs, as my gloomy photograph above shows.
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