What are we doing with ourselves now that we can’t while away the time in cafés and shops? Have we embarked on a strict project of self-improvement? Have we joined Gareth Malone’s online national choir so that we can frighten the cat with an off-key version of Elton John’s I’m Still Standing? Or are we…
The birds are winning
My tai chi classes have been cancelled so I am now practising in the garden and I can’t get over how peaceful it is. Normally, the planes are zooming endlessly overhead and there is a constant drone of traffic noise from the nearby A4. I’d become so accustomed to this background noise that I barely…
Time out
I don’t mean to downplay the seriousness of the problems that the world is now facing, but even the worst situations can have their compensations. There are those who are quite looking forward to cancelling all their diary commitments and cocooning at home. Of course this will present challenges, mostly in the form of other…
The lure of daytime television
I have recently been watching an awful lot of daytime television. Not by choice, you understand. My father has been staying with us and TV has featured prominently. I had optimistically thought that I would read a book, serene and undisturbed, while all of this was going on in the background. But, predictably, that isn’t…
Anyone for a later-life crisis?
Everyone is familiar with the mid-life crisis, but I don’t think I’ve heard anyone talking about a crisis occurring in later life. Surely this must be fairly common among the newly retired? Retirement is such an enormous change in people’s lives, a period of great adjustment and re-imagining. We are entitled to a crisis of…
What I learned from travelling in Southeast Asia
People say that travel broadens the mind and it’s probably true for many people, but I’m not convinced that my mind has been broadened, maybe just bent a bit out of shape. I seem to end up with a smattering of impressions and odd nuggets of information from every country I visit. After a month…
In Praise of January
I know that January is generally not that popular, but I think it’s much maligned. I admit that it’s not the glitziest time of year and it definitely suffers when compared with its flashy predecessor. January is to December as a sensible pair of walking shoes is to a glittery party dress, but there is…
Do I have to make New Year’s Resolutions?
I just don’t think I can be bothered this year. There are lots of ways I should improve and lots of things I should be doing, but if I didn’t achieve them in 2019 I’m not likely to achieve them in 2020 either. I can’t imagine that people are any more successful at keeping New…
The Post-Christmas Review
I love the week between Christmas and New Year. Peace descends and all the frantic socialising, cooking, shopping, present-wrapping and frenetic organising is over. Everyone has retreated to their own homes to lie low and eat their Christmas chocolates undisturbed. People in the media refer to this time as ‘Twixtmas’, but I’ve never heard anyone…
Are Christmas songs bad for your mental health?
I think that the secret to enjoying Christmas is, like everything else in life, managing your expectations. I have modest expectations of the holiday season – I think the weather will probably be damp and grey, but I will eat some nice chocolates and enjoy the Gavin and Stacey Christmas special. The only way to…