A Disorderly Retirement
I wonder if we in the west are heading towards the post-consumption age? I have always objected to being referred to as a consumer – it reduces our humanity somewhat to be viewed as simply a creature that devours things. Much has changed in the past few years and rabid consumption is now frowned on…
I suppose it was inevitable that Covid would catch up with me in the end – I haven’t exactly been hiding myself away at home. Fortunately, I had a mild case and in different, non-pandemic, times I’d just have dismissed it as a cold. In fact, it was mostly inconvenient and involved a surprising amount…
I’ve been wondering about the expression “ivory tower”. Where did it come from and why are academics supposedly living in one, far removed from normal life? It doesn’t sound very comfortable and it’s definitely not elephant-friendly. I’ve looked it up and it comes from the Bible, Song of Solomon 7:4: Thy neck is as a…
There is a widely held theory that bacon is just about irresistible and that it is the downfall of many vegetarians. People of the Muslim and Jewish faiths seem to get along without it very well and I don’t recall seeing much pork at all in India, let alone bacon. This bacon fandom must be…
I can’t deny that ageing has its downsides, but I like to comfort myself with the thought that it probably has its upsides too. Advancing age is supposed to bring increased understanding, knowledge and wisdom, but I’m not entirely convinced. I do know how to make a white sauce and where the stopcock is, so…
I can hardly believe that this time last week I was in Italy – eating delicious food, strolling through olive groves and clambering down Matera’s spectacular gorge. When the pandemic started, I was convinced it would all be over in six months and we’d look back on it as a strange and frightening time. I…
I completely forgot to write my blog yesterday because I was so distracted. We are actually leaving the country tomorrow for the first time in nearly two years and not only is it more complicated than it used to be, but I’m really out of practice. I can’t quite remember how international travel is done….
I’m afraid there was no blog last week because I was in deepest Dorset with a somewhat eccentric internet connection. I had decided that since I was on holiday I’d just post a few photos with captions, but things didn’t go according to plan. I tried to upload some pictures, without success, and then couldn’t…
September used to be such a busy month with endless back-to-school or back-to-university demands involving large quantities of food, stationery, clothing, nagging, paperwork, shopping, time, driving and, mostly, money. (Shopping for children’s shoes is a bleak memory that I keep hidden away in the deep recesses of my brain, never to be allowed out.) It…
There is an aura of mystery and intrigue about the Silk Road that still lingers centuries after the trade routes fell into disuse. I have long been fascinated by the lands ranging from China through Central Asia to the Middle East, and I think it must have started in my childhood, as so much does….