If it ain’t broke…

whisky

 
When I was buying my lunch I saw a bottle of apple flavoured Jim Beam behind the counter, and was tempted.

Just had a little tipple and bleurgh!! Another bottle to sit in the cupboard until a late night gathering runs later than the off-licence closing time!

Locksmith lock-in

Prison bars

Graham and I have just been released from 5 hours of prison! We were about to take our pre-lunch constitutional walk today – and found the front door wouldn’t open! And we don’t have a back door…

The shop manager next door tried to open it with keys passed through the window but no luck. So we’ve been waiting all day for the emergency locksmith.

In the end he managed to fix it – but only after squeezing through our neighbours’ small stair window and pirouetting onto our balcony to gain access. The poor guy was a man after my own appetite and not the sveltest locksmith in Sussex – or probably even in the street – so I think he’ll have a few stories to tell his kids at Burger King. Which is where he tells me he and his family were about to go before our emergency call…

A magical knot

Knotted band

Once, when I was around 13 or 14, I came across something wondrous and magical. And, as tends to be the case for most of us, but perhaps particularly for a blasé young teenager, I almost, but not quite, failed to recognise its significance.

I was idly playing with an elastic band on the fingers of my hand, performing a cat’s cradle. I was close to my grandmother growing up and so had a raft of skills beloved of the average Georgian schoolgirl. As the band snapped off my fingers I noticed something rather odd. It had formed a simple knot – the simplest form of knot that you might tie in any piece of string – along one side of the band. Continue reading

Under the duvet

Under the duvet
When the world is too much
And your drive has been driven,
When you’ve tired of the rush
And no more damns can be given,
When your snowman is slush
And Santa’s sleigh has been ridden,
There’s just one place that you stay,
Hidden under the duvet.

Its fabric is warm
And its crevasses dark.
You won’t hear the storm
Nor the song of a lark.
There’s no need to perform,
No feat to bench-mark.
There’s no wrong thing that you say,
Hidden under the duvet.

So grab a torch and a teddy-bear
And a well-thumbed book.
Block the door with a chair,
Take the phone off the hook.
Leave your cares elsewhere,
Thumb your nose, cock a snook.
Draw a veil over to-day
With me under the duvet.
 

Bring it on!

Graham – Would you like one?
Me (tired, hot, and distracted) – Go on then, you’ve brought it now.
Graham – I think you’ll find you mean “bought”.
Me – Pfffffft…

I have taught him too well!!

Sound not found

Soundhound

Tried to find the name of a tune that’s driving me mad by humming at Soundhound song recognition app. One suggestion was “No idea” by a Japanese singer and another was “Speak my language” by the Cure.

I think it’s being sarcastic.

Knot Telling’s Sexagenadvent

Knot Telling

On the eighth eve of sexagenadvent
Knot Telling brought to me
An eight-shaped lizard coloured in most carefully.
 
On the seventh eve of sexagenadvent
Knot Telling brought to me
Seven bowls of Jewish chicken soup
and an eight-shaped lizard coloured in most carefully.
 
On the sixth eve of sexagenadvent
Knot Telling brought to me
Six lives saved by the IJM
Seven bowls of Jewish chicken soup
and an eight-shaped lizard coloured in most carefully.
 
On the fifth eve of sexagenadvent
Knot Telling brought to me
Five pics of Commander Chris Hadfield’s moustache!
Six lives saved by the IJM
Seven bowls of Jewish chicken soup
and an eight-shaped lizard coloured in most carefully.
 
On the fourth eve of sexagenadvent
Knot Telling brought to me
Four inspirational quotes by Malala
Five pics of Commander Chris Hadfield’s moustache!
Six lives saved by the IJM
Seven bowls of Jewish chicken soup
and an eight-shaped lizard coloured in most carefully.
 
On the third eve of sexagenadvent
Knot Telling brought to me
Three kind actions by Pope Francis
Four inspirational quotes by Malala
Five pics of Commander Chris Hadfield’s moustache!
Six lives saved by the IJM
Seven bowls of Jewish chicken soup
and an eight-shaped lizard coloured in most carefully.
 
On the second eve of sexagenadvent
Knot Telling brought to me
Two thoughtful blog posts
Three kind actions by Pope Francis
Four inspirational quotes by Malala
Five pics of Commander Chris Hadfield’s moustache!
Six lives saved by the IJM
Seven bowls of Jewish chicken soup
and an eight-shaped lizard coloured in most carefully.
 
On the eve of sexagenadvent
Knot Telling brought to me
One grammar quiz
Two thoughtful blog posts
Three kind actions by Pope Francis
Four inspirational quotes by Malala
Five pics of Commander Chris Hadfield’s moustache!
Six lives saved by the IJM
Seven bowls of Jewish chicken soup
and an eight-shaped lizard coloured in most carefully.
 
On the day of sexagenadvent
Knot Telling brought to me
Friendship, wit, and wisdom
One grammar quiz
Two thoughtful blog posts
Three kind actions by Pope Francis
Four inspirational quotes by Malala
Five pics of Commander Chris Hadfield’s moustache!
Six lives saved by the IJM
Seven bowls of Jewish chicken soup
and an eight-shaped lizard coloured in most carefully.