Week 220

3rd March, 2013

Strangely quiet and overcast day. Not cold but not inviting outside. The Sunday Times is the focus of the morning.

I can’t get Mum’s voice out of my head today. For so many years we argued about Catholicism and the iniquity of the priesthood. I bated her about the prevalence of homosexuality in an organisation which preached so vehemently against it. Her response was that stock RC answer – The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. – We all carry original sin around with us and must fight it all the time. There’s always one bad apple but don’t judge us all by that. What would she be thinking now? Cardinal Keith O’Brien, head of the Catholic Church in Scotland and the most senior figure in the church in the UK, a man who has condemned homosexuality from the pulpit has admitted to that cardinal sin himself. And this can be set against a backdrop of sexual abuse by clergy across the country and the world. There is only one thing sinking faster than christianity and that is the Lib. Dems..

4th March, 2013

Frost on Skiathos but Spring in Surrey. Glorious morning of riotous sunshine out of crystal clear blue skies. Not warm yet but 10C/50F and warmer, we are told, is on the way.

I am no supporter of the Greens or of Environmentalism. I hate wind turbines with a passion. I would convert them to Roman Catholicism and dump them in the sea – off Australia. The Times this morning runs an article which has done more to raise my blood pressure than anything for a long time. Not only are these ugly scars on the landscape useless when the wind isn’t blowing but, when it blows too strongly and too much electricity is generated – more than is required – we are paying huge amopunts of money for the turbines to be turned off. Whatever the weather and whatever the demand, we are paying unnecessarily. Any party that offers to end this iniquity will get my vote.

5th March, 2013

Oh, what a perfect day. Glorious blue sky, strong, warm sun – 16C/61F – birds singing and darting everywhere. We had a number of trips on our agenda. First was a trip to Woking. The Peacock Centre – Specsavers. New distance glasses for me and reading glasses for Pauline. Pauline likes reading sun glasses for reading outside. I wanted glasses I can’t break if I sit on. We both achieved our ideal for about £300.00.

Home for coffee and to do a few jobs then off through the sunfilled streets lined with trees in full blossom to Weybridge and then Walton on Thames. Not exciting shopping but a delicious bounce of Spring everywhere.

The big match tonight – Man U. vs Real Madrid. Another chance to put the ‘Chosen One’ in his place – hopefully.

6th March, 2013

Lazy morning after a day out yesterday. The big match didn’t go the way I and many others hoped but life goes on. Did my 30 lengths at the pool this morning and felt better in doing it than at any other time since we started it at the beginning of November last year. We have started the tenth week of denial – no alcohol and no carbohydrate. Today is a fish day in honour of Jane Bennett. She’s not dead but can’t have long because she is a vegetarian. Do they eat fish? It all gets too intricately political for me to understand. Pauline is making smoked haddock chowder for lunch and I am cooking salmon fillets with oven-dried tomato topping accompanied by garlic mushrooms. It is the sort of thing that I would serve with a chilled bottle of Sauvignon Blanc but not today. Maybe when I celebrate my 81st birthday. Apparently then I will have exceeded the National Average. Unfortunately, by then the National Average will have moved to 120. Anyway, the longer I live, the more I claw back from the Teachers’ Pension Scheme which makes life all the more worth living.

   

It has consistently been warmer here than Athens throughout the day. Certainly, Surrey can be delightful in the Spring. Our previous home in Huddersfield today registered less than one third of the Surrery temperature throughout the day. T-shirts here and top coats there. The difference – 200 miles.

7th March, 2013

Rain this morning. It was rather nice to see it. Warm but wet. Tesco shop this morning. An hour and a half of misery and then we call at Phyllis & Colin’s house for a cup of coffee before making our way home.

Letter from our friends on Sifnos today. Puts us to shame. Our Greek friend has written it in faultless English. Lovely to get though. In Greek Orthodox, Easter isn’t until May 5th. Lent starts soon so today is Tsiknopempti or Charred Thursday which is a celebration of meat. I have to say that there is still plenty of meat available and consumed by Greeks during Lent, in my experience, but not so conspicuously. The name of the day is based on the custom of roasting meat. According to the tradition the meat has to be barbecued, and as a result it’s smell ” the tsikna” overwhelms every neighborhood. The smell marks the name of this Pempti (Thursday in Greek) and it is called Tsiknopempti.I’m very glad I have no religion or I would be giving up alcohol and bread and rice and pasta and potatoes ……………oh I have for 66 days already! What a godly boy!

8th March, 2013

Wet, wet, wet today. Actually rather nice. We have had so little of it recently. Outside, tarmacers are redoing the surface of our lane which was only resurfaced a month or so ago. Almost as soon as we had a beautiful and smooth new surface, yellow markings appeared to highlight small areas. Now, the road surfacing team are back. It will soon be dug up again. It is the Lib. Dem. approach to road maintenance – piecemeal, illogical and amateurish!

9th March, 2013

Happy 58th Birthday to Cathy, my younger sister.

She has changed careers in later life and is clearly making a success of it. She offers a counselling service and works in a swish new School Academy. It is nice to see her blossoming in later life.