Monday, April 25, 2011

Easter

So, here we are again in this annual festival upon which no-one seems able to agree a fixed date. Legislation was passed in 1928 in the UK for standardisation, but the arguments continue between the various Christian denominations, and the Act has not yet been given legal force. And so, we the public continue to munch our annual chocolate ration (and then some!) largely unenlightened as to the arcane calculations that give us Easter as a moveable feast. Who cares anyway? Astronomers, theologians, and others have predicted the dates well into the future, even ad infinitum, so that school boards and chocolate retailers know ahead of time for their planning requirements, while the rest of us simply enjoy the time off work or school that enable us to over-indulge happily.

Speaking of over-indulgence, yesterday we as a family went out to a local hostelry for a carvery lunch. Being a hot day they had provided what they were pleased to call a large summer salad as an alternative to the traditional vegetables, and very nice it was too, but I would hate to see the small one (if one's eyesight was that good!) Nevertheless, the meal was very enjoyable and washed down well with good ale and topped off with ice cream. What better? Siiting in the sun at homeafterwards, chatting, made for a very convivial afternoon. Later I had a skull-crushing migraine, perhaps brought on by too much sun, but by then the family-friendly enjoyment of the day was complete.

Some snide person has damaged my car. Parked on Thursday in a supermarket car park, the spaces in which are fairly tight, whoever was the person in the next car failed to take sufficient care when exiting. The result has been a scraping of my front faring above the bumper, right around the curve as they have steered round my car. Whilst it is just possible that they may be unaware, they must have found by now my car's colour on their coachwork to give them pause. Will they exercise more care in future? I doubt it.

Our trip to Norway, to see number one son and family, looms. The Wife is busy buying presents for them and at the same time forward planning for the reciprocal visit in July. Our visit is a little daunting since we shall be breaking new ground (as it were), meeting The Intended, staying with her parents (!) and so on. The prime reason for the visit is the Confirmation of the number one Granddaughter. Two years ago this rite of passage was undergone by The Grandson with attendant meal. Since neither TheWife nor I speak Norwegian the ceremony was largely incomprehensible, as was chatter around the dining table afterwards. However, this time whilst still ignorant of the language, we may have better seats at the ceremony and can renew acquaintance with The Granddaughter's maternal family members. Realtionships may still be strained there, but the ordeal will have to be endured one more time after this. So, gird up thy loins, Wife, and go to it!

I have signed up to Flickr. More photos and videos will be added over time, but please check it out.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dufferroy/

Friday, April 08, 2011

The Wife & I usually trudge round the supermarket on a Friday morning. Not the most enjoyable activity, but what makes it even remotely tolerable is the fact of breakfast out. That in itself is hardly the highlight of the week but it does enable us to people-watch while we gird our loins. An added bonus is that a hand carwashing facility is offered in the car park, no doubt by immigrant workers (legal & otherwise) under a gang master. I have learned to make a memorable remark when commissioning their expertise to avoid the more easily being charged twice for the service, or being thought dishonest for not paying on return to my car. This morning I jokingly requested a "short back and sides" as I handed over my tenner. It was as well I did for the young man did indeed approach me for payment a second time, but he remembered my jocularity when reminded. Be warned!

A nightmare of being retired and home most of the time is that occassionally one has to put up with The Wife's friends. We entertained five of them to lunch on Tuesday. The event passed off reasonably happily with many laughs. Janet & John (not their real names) came, also Darby & Joan, with Heidi. All are now in their 70's at least which made The Wife & I feel quite spry. Long may they continue to make us feel that way!!

The car expense, which I mentioned last time, turned out to be both the clutch master cylinder, and two font coil-springs. The clutch is probably wear & tear, but the other problem has to be pot holes. The roads are quite (some very) bad. Although the Council is, as I write, attending to the most serious problems in that regard, much more needs to be done. The government has made available an additonal £100M towards the national cost, but they could also help the unemployed by giving them some of the work. Now there's a thought.

Twitter is not the experience I thought it might be. It is fun and easy, but the sheer volume of tweets is mind-blowing. I had hoped to keep my end up, as it were, but in reality am overwhelmed by all the other trivia. I enjoy it and will continue at @dufferroy

Is summer here? The last two days have been simply glorious weather. Today I removed the winter covers from the various garden benches (noting inter alia that some of them need painting) and better sited them in the garden. Shade was provided by judicious placing of umbrellas, and it felt good to believe that all is right with the world. Number One Cat eschewed my efforts and remained stubbornly indoors, but my will shall prevail eventually. All that remains is the barbie season to properly arrive, and for the evenings to remain balmy not hot (or cold) and we shall have achieved perfection. Roll on summer.

Sunday, April 03, 2011

Vicissitudes

I suppose that we all have them, but that truth doesn't alter the frustration we feel when Life decides to throw a wobbly.
We have a broken loo seat. Normally one would visit the DIY store and pick up a replacement for a few quid, buit noooo! This one comes with a fitting which I cannot fathom, unless the solution is to remove the toilet from the wall in order to gain access to the rear of the thing. Enter the plumber, a representative of the local firm who fitted the wretched thing. After an hour or so he emerged triumphantly with the broken seat in tow and announced that it looked like a special purchase. He departed for the supplier, while I had visions of having to replace the entire toilet for want of the seat. We then had to send him photos of the loo to aid identification (Goodness knows what any intercepting agency might have thought). That was on Wednesday and we shall not see the new seat until Monday, perhaps, at a cost of some £65 + VAT. For a loo seat? And then there is the cost of fitting..

Yesterday my car played a trick on me. Exiting a car park which I have used countless times, a sound from beneath the car suggested a grounding, unlikely. Instantly the clutch pedal refused to return to its position, leaving me to change gear with a movement based on about half-an-inch of travel. The car ran ok, even if changing gear was necessarily cautious. After some 10 miles or so and to the accompaniment of another "graunch" the pedal returned to its full height, making driving easier. What can it be? Hopefully the garage will diagnose the cause and remedy tomorrow.

Number One son has had some set-backs of his own this week and some good news. Due to the activities of some at his workplace, and other happenings in his life, great stress has been endured. He is now signed off work for a couple of weeks while the problem gets sorted (hopefully) by an independent third party. Additionally, his legal challenge to recover money from a previous house sale failed, meaning that the immediate future will be a little more impecunious. However, sale of his current house went through smoothly, as did the move to the flat of the Intended, enabling him to put most of these trials behind him. Life goes on and should now get better and better.

I have joined Twitter! Early days yet, of course, but I hope to join in with the wider community in due course. Watch this space!!