Friday 25 December 2015

From there to here and back again


It is a full-moon this Christmas day and as someone pointed out, as if mixing alcohol with families wasn't crazy enough.

The kids went off to catch the last-minute frolics at the pub last night, but turned up relatively drunk in the first place, having just come from there. It was all fine, and I didn't forget the gravy as I did one year. Another year I served the roast potatoes too early, but accidentally left the oven on. When it came time to wash-up and pack it all away, I found the absolutely perfect potatoes uneaten.

I gave H.I. a book of Rilke poetry (she asked for one about 10 years ago), plus a Ladybird book entitled, 'We go to the Gallery', featuring a couple of kids and their mother on the front cover, staring at a blank wall. H.I. gave me an almost indescribable toy which consists of a weasel-like, life-like thing which madly chases and worries a plastic ball around the floor - once you have inserted a battery. Son-in-law says he is going to buy one for the cats. This would amount to cruelty, I think.

This is going to piss Rachel off (again) but my main source of imagery seems to come from Facebook these days, and I love the above letter from a grateful pensioner to the Rank Xerox organisation. My only ambition for the New Year is to see if I can make at least one post which does not feature the 'F' word.

16 comments:

  1. The 97 year old Ms Grant sounds my kinda gal; Mrs James doesn't. Happy Christmas.

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  2. Mrs Grant has a good writing style. It sounds just like someone I know.

    You haven't wished me Happy Christmas yet.

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  3. I've just watched the Christmas Service from Bath Abbey on TV, which took place about an hour before I got up.

    The Rector is a nice man who is a bit of a James Dyson look-alike, and the Vicar reminded me of a female Stephen Fry.

    We have a good choir. Maybe I should have gone - it's just round the corner from me.

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    1. She would have had if I could be bothered to get up.

      She read from a script, not knowing ANY of the ritual words at all, and there was one highlight when she wanted the congregation to stand, and signalled so by raising her hands upwards, palms up.

      She had made so many liturgical gestures before this, that it took the flock THREE gestures before they understood that she wanted them to stand. The last one was made with a very pissed-off expression on her face. Worth watching on catch up just for that.

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    2. The female's in the church don't quite seem to have got it yet. I notice it even listening to the Sunday services on the radio.

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    3. I know the apostrophe isn't needed.

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    4. I was going to ask, "The female's what?"

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  4. You tell her, Mrs Grant. I love reading other people's letters! I am a fan of the website "Letters of note", lots of treasures there. Happy Christmas, Tom.

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    1. I like reading other people's letters too Judith. You should read Kurt Vonnegut's (if you haven't already done so) published in paperback last year. Excellent collection of letters from when he was a student, through Dresden, coming home, and the rest of his interesting life and a wonderful writing style.

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    1. I'm with Rachel - it isn't very Christmas this year and I'm putting that down to the temperature. I hope so anyway.

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